The Fairy Contender
by Insane Dominator
Summary: One day, Nic Pularis is drawn into a sub-dimension, where he encounters Legendary Pokemon. He is entrusted with Plates by Arceus, and send to the land of Fiore, where he encounters Natsu, Lucy, Gray, and Erza. He must go through multiple perilous journeys with his Pokemon and Fairy Tail, and triumph and endure hardships to master all eighteen Plates and save the universe. OCxErza.
1. Extreme Craziness

Chapter 1 – Extreme Craziness

**Hello people, I'm Insane Dominator, and I would like to thank you all for taking the time and reading my first story. I had multiple ideas stirring all over the place and I've decided to get them all out by doing some Fanfiction. I wish that you all like and favor this story. I'll welcome some feedback and reviews and criticisms, though the criticism part I wouldn't advise as much (I'm a sensitive guy, cut me some slack!). I'll be making an OC (Original Character) and probably have him pair with Erza (OCxErza), or OCxCana, but I think it'll be OCxErza. We'll see. Let's begin my first fanfiction, shall we!**

**Oh yeah! I would like to thank Alpha Dragonis and Gemini300 for the inspiration to do this fanfic. Yes, I'll be using the same intro, future apology to you guys. Now that that's out of the way, on with the reading!**

**WAIT! I forgot.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon nor Fairy Tail. They belong to Satoshi Tajiri, as well as Nintendo, and Hiro Mashima. **

**Finally, no joke, I mean it, let the reading begin!**

* * *

**Chapter 1 – Extreme Craziness**

It was a little past eleven in Lumiose City. People were chatting off, cabs going about, people and their pokémon running about, even small bird pokémon flying about. Relaxing outside a café having something to eat was one person who would change the fate of another world. This was Nic Pularis. An average sized trainer who is 18-years-old. He had blue eyes and short black hair that was slightly spiked up and slanted to his right. He sported sunglasses that we wore on sunny days, otherwise they would he hanging from the V on his gray V-neck T-shirt. He had on a sleeveless long coat that went down to his shins that he kept unbuttoned. The coat was black with blue flames flickering on the back, reaching from the bottom to the top of his thighs. He had on roomy blue jeans and had earbuds and a phone for his music. He had black roller-skate shoes that had a red pattern all about. He also sported a Mega Wristband.

Nic was having a bottle of water and a little bagel. He was busy listening to his alternative music while his buddy, his Greninja, was sitting idly and relaxing in the seat next to him. Greninja was Nic's first pokémon. They've been traveling all around Kalos and have been everywhere. Greninja has even taken up Nic's personality, making them a duo that you can't beat so easily. After two years of having to travel around Kalos, and catching a few more Pokémon, Nic just thought of site seeing until something peeks his interests. You would think by now he would have a plethora of pokémon, when he actually only had six. He had those six and never caught a single pokemon afterwards. Nic thought his team was interesting, so he just kept them as they were and didn't switch anything up.

When Nic had finished, he got up and began walking. His Greninja followed in pursuit. He then sensed a strange feeling from his right. He looked and saw a dark cloud right around the corner of a side alley. Nic couldn't help but feel a shiver escalating and plummeting down his spine. It wasn't anything ominous of that sorts, but it was strange. He looked around and no one was looking. People were too busy getting stones from the Stone Emporium, new clothes, and getting their Furfrous trimmed.

Nic turned to Greninja, who had the same feeling. Regardless, they decided to tackle this strange feeling head on. They turned towards the side alley and went in blind, literally. They both had a hand on their eyes so they wouldn't have to see if it was a potential scary monster. They pressed onward until they hit the wall and fell on their backs. They then had their hands drop from their eyes and sighed.

"Note to self: Don't go in blind." Nic said out loud. Greninja just croaked his name and both were up again and turned the corner to see that the black spacial cloud of darkness was calling out to him. He could feel himself quiver. He had to shake this off. He took in a few deep breaths and plugged in his earbuds to relax himself. He then walked into the darkness rather slowly, with his Greninja right behind him. As they went further, they looked back and noticed that the alley was gone. They were literally in the dark. Nic still had his earbuds in so he was still at ease, though not as much.

When they've decided to stop after thirty seconds of entering, and began hearing things; well, just Greninja since it wasn't listening to anything to ease its worries.

"At last. Nic Pularis has arrived." One voice said.

"Eh, I don't think he's listening to us." Pointed out another voice.

"What?! Ugh, fine. GREETINGS HUMAN!" the first voice yelled. This caused Nic to jump as he heard 'greetings human' loud and clear. He looked about and put his earbuds back into his pocket.

"I believe we have his attention now." Said a third voice. Out of nowhere, three spheres of energy began emerging from the darkness. One pink, one yellow, and one blue. In that order, they took the shape of a triangle. Then three pokémon were shaped from those energy spheres. The three were Mesprit, Uxie, and Azelf (in that order again).

Nic was mentally freaking out. He wasn't prepared for this. His mind was shuddering, shaking, causing a mental eruption of screams and questions, etc. After a few moments, he was slowly composing himself and he looked up at the three pokémon.

"Before I continue on with my mental breakdown, can I ask you three something?" Nic wondered in a calm status.

"Sure, what?" replied Azelf.

"WHAT IN THE NAME OF ALL THINGS DECENT AND GOOD IN THE UNIVERSE IS GOING ON HERE?!" shouted Nic in a panic.

"Funny you should mention the universe", said Azelf, "We'll get to that shortly."

"Relax Nic", informed Mesprit, "We're just going to take this nice and easy. We will bring no harm to you nor your friends. We assure you." Nic started to feel at ease with how gentle Mesprit's voice was. If she meant they would bring no harm, then what's the harm in believing she meant no harm? It's all too confusing. Too much 'harm'! (Hah, irony.)

"Okay, so why are you guys here? Better yet, why am I here?" questioned the confused human. Greninja said his name and raised his hand, not wanting to be left out. "And him as well." Nic added.

"Good questions", said Uxie, "First, we are here because we are in need of your aid, which also answers your second question."

Nic was understanding with Uxie, considering it was the 'Being of Knowledge'. "Okay…"

"But if you wish to speak any further", Uxie continued, "You'll have to take it up with the others."

Nic wasn't following. "Others? You mean the two that are right there?" he asked, pointed and referring to Azelf and Uxie.

"No. He means these two." Azelf said, floating out of the way. Mesprit and Uxie also scattered. Nic and Greninja were getting the feeling that Mesprit, Uxie, and Azelf weren't the only ones present.

Two large figures then began to take shape. They started as blue and pink dust and once they'd took shape they began to flash, forcing Nic and Greninja to look away for a brief moment. When they'd looked back, they were trembling and wide eyed at the two legendary pokémon. The blue one was a large four-legged being with a diamond on its chest. The pink one was a bipedal being with two pearls on its shoulders.

"Greeting human, I am Dialga." The large blue pokémon announced.

"And I am Palkia." The pink one finished.

It was one thing to mentally freak out, but Nic was taking all of that stuff that was stuffed in his head and multiplied it by 700 billion (a random number). He was on his knees, begging for mercy. "Have mercy, creatures of the beyond!" Nic prayed. Greninja was trembling and was sitting still like a petrified statue. "I admit everything! I never learned to make a fire, so I used the tail flames of Charizard every night! I forget to clean my pokémon's' food bowls and have them eat out of them again! And I accidentally stepped on Greninja's tongue last week with a muddy shoe when he was out like a light!" Nic pitifully admitted. Greninja almost immediately shot straight up and shuddered at the thought of eating out of a filthy bowl. It was especially mortified that his trainer stepped on his tongue with a muddy shoe, which almost made the Ninja Pokémon gag and gave his trainer an unmerciless death glare.

Nic looked up at his buddy and got up. "Hey, that was only one time." Nic stated in defense, holding up a finger that meant number one. At this point, the two almost forgot they were in the presence of legendary pokémon.

The two pokémon looked at each other and sighed. Dialga then looked down at the two and let out a deep breath. "Though that is highly comical, and pitiful to admit, we are here to debrief you on a situation that involves you." Nic and Greninja then refocused their attention back to the legendary Dialga and Palkia. Seeing as they needed him, he wasn't willing to decline, though he still wondered what they needed from him.

"Eh…sure, but what exactly is this predicament?" Nic wondered.

"Here's what's happening", Palkia continued, "Arceus is slowly losing his powers, meaning that the universe will soon collapse upon itself. He has reason to believe that entrusting the plates he kept all this time to a human will restore that balance." Upon hearing that lives are at stake, Nic switched to a rather determined look and got serious.

"Alright, and he believes that _I _can be entrusted with these powers?" wondered Nic.

"That is correct", Dialga said, "He has explained to us that he has sensed great potential in you. He has been keeping an eye on you, and has concluded that you and your pokémon act as one." Nic then turned to Greninja, who had a blank expression much like Nic. Arceus wasn't wrong there. Nic was looking into a mirror image of himself. "Also", Dialga continued, "He has told us that because of this power between you and your pokémon is strong enough to handle and control the power of the plates he plans on bestowing you." Nic didn't argue, though he was still curious on how this will work.

"Uh, sure thing." Nic replied. He then had a thought ring a bell in his head. "Hold up. Exactly how are these powers going to work in a human like me?"

"You'll be alright", explained Mesprit, "The plates will bring no harm nor damage to your life; however, your body can only suppress and manipulate five plates at this point. You will pick a type of plate and it will be inherited to you. The rest of the plates after that will be unlocked or will be searched for throughout your mission. As an added bonus, you can use pokémon moves based on the plate that you have chosen, and your appearance with those plate changes will also change, though not to a great degree."

Nic was so pumped now. He was almost jumping up and down at the thought of being able to use actual pokémon moves. He pictured himself using Hydro Pump, Sludge Bomb, Hammer Arm, Strength, even the accursed Tickle attack. He thought he could conquer anyone who threatens him or his pokémon or family.

Snapped back to reality, Nic nodded. "Let's do it." Nic responded. A golden light then slowly descended from above. It slowly then stopped right above Dialga and Palkia. The light then began to shape and Arceus was revealed. Though, when the two stated Arceus was losing power, they'd forgot to mention that his life was losing strength as well. Arceus looked pale and exhausted.

"So, at last human", the almighty pokémon said, "We meet. I want you to be aware of the circumstances of taking up this mission. Once you've accepted, there's no turning back. The fate of the universe rests in your hands. You can turn back now, but this is your only chance." Nic shrugged off any doubt clogging up his decision. There was no way Nic was gonna stand by and watch as the universe falls apart.

"If I turn back now, then your efforts would have been for nothing. I'll do it." Nic proclaimed. Arceus then nodded.

"Very well then." Arceus then summoned forth eighteen plates, all revolving around him in a clockwise manner. "You may choose five. The rest will be unlocked or searched for later."

Nic then gave deep, deep thought. He had to figure out a way so that he could have a strong start. He decisively thought of the natural elements he might face. He also considered the possibility of no electricity, meaning his phone holding all of his songs would die out. He considered the possibility of being at sea, and being stuck in a desert. His imagination went wild, but he soon came to a decision.

"Ok…I choose Water, Electric…Fire…Flying…" Nic really didn't think all that way through, so he thought of a random type, "…and Poison." Nic finished. Five plates of blue, yellow, red, sky blue, and purple all converged and were infused into Nic's body. Already, he could feel his body changing. He felt those five types surge and lay dormant within him. '_This feels absolutely incredible. It's like I can feel the power and moves rush into my head.'_ He thought.

"Palkia, explain to Nic here where he will be heading to for his powers to evolve." Dialga politely asked.

"Wait, you mean that I'm going to another world?!" exclaimed Nic. Greninja was awed at this astonishing turn of events.

"That's correct, young heir of the plates", explained Palkia, "I will tell you as to what is ahead of you. In a land far, far away lies the kingdom of Fiore, a small, peaceful nation of seventeen million, and a place filled with magic. Found in every home, bought and sold in everyday marketplace, for most, magic is merely a tool, a mundane part of everyday life. For some, however, magic is an art, and have devoted their lives to its practice. These are the wizards. Banded together into magical guilds, they apply their skills in search of fame and fortune. Many such guilds dot the landscape of Fiore, but there is a certain guild in a certain town that soars high above the rest, one from which countless legends have been born. A guild that will no doubt continue to create legends well into the future. Its name…is Fairy Tail." Palkia stated much like a narrator.

Nic was just dumbfounded. _'Geez, did it really take him this long just to say that it's Fairy Tail?'_ Nic thought. Nevertheless, he recalled there being magic, which peeked his curiosity. "Wait, when you say magic, you mean like sorcery and spells?" Nic wondered.

"That is correct. This is where you will grow and live to harness your powers." Stated Arceus, barely able to say such things in a horrible condition.

"So will my power be affected by their magic?" wondered Nic.

"Fortunately, their magic will not suppress yours because it's not magic you're using. Remember, this is the power of plates that govern the pokémon and history. You would be wise not to blab this out to all of Fiore, for there would be great hysteria upon us all."

Nic responded with a nod. "I'll do my best." Nic swore. With that said and done, Palkia and Dialga emitted auras and the plates began to orbit around Nic. Nic returned Greninja back to his poke ball and saw that the plates formed a large ring at his feet.

"Before you depart, let us tell you something", Arceus said, "The time is parallel in both worlds, so it's not like one day in Fiore is equal to six months on your world if you were worried about that; also, keep in mind that we cannot be of any help to you from this point forward. As of now, the rest is up to you." The ring then glowed and made Nic fall, making him fall from the sky.

"WAAAHHHH!" screamed Nic as he plummeted downwards. The portal then closed, having the plates go to Fiore and/or deep inside Nic to unlock.

Azelf just floated there thinking. "Do you think we could have transported him to the ground rather than the sky?" he questioned. Everyone was just silent thinking, _'Uh…'_

Nic was screaming for his dear life. He didn't expect to start out like so. "They could've just transported on the ground, BUT NO!" Nic was shouting in midair. He then saw that he was coming in pretty darn fast and was falling into what looked like woods. He was several miles up, and he was screaming and swearing that if he lives he'll get back at them for transporting him through the sky.

Nic thought fast. He got out a poke ball and threw it straight down. "Charizard!" Nic yelled. The flaming dragon then popped out of the ball through a light and caught Nic to prevent him from falling. Nic huffed and puffed. He finally caught his breath and sighed in relief. "Thanks Charizrd, _please_ take me down." Nic commanded the Fire and Flying type Pokémon. Charizard then slowly came at an angle and finally made a soft landing in a forest clearing. Nic rolled off the Flame pokémon's back and fell on the ground with his face watching the clouds go by. After composing himself, he returned Charizard and looked about.

"Well, guess I should start walking." He said. He flipped open his sunglasses that were on his V-neck and put them on. He recalled as he was descending a town that was not too far off from where he was. This then got him some worry. "I hope nobody saw any of that." He hoped, thinking people would get suspicious; fortunately, no one was around, so he was in the clear. With that thought brushed aside, he made his way to town.

* * *

**Later that day…**

Nic finally made it to town called Hargeon, where he decided to think as to where he was meant to go. He then did a mental recap, and Palkia did mention something about this place called 'Fairy Tail', so he decided that he would start off by heading there.

Just before he was going to head there, he then remembered also that since this a new world people won't realize that he doesn't use magic. He then thought that his "magic" would be called Multitype. If anyone calls it something else, he won't care. He also had to keep his pokémon low key since people aren't associated with them here. He then gathered some intel and went to find a map of sorts.

Upon walking about, he then noticed a rather large group of girls surrounding this one guy. They keep saying "Salamander! He's here!" He had to admit that he was getting a bit curious of this commotion. He then proceeded to get closer. I was at the back of the crowd of girls when a blonde was slowly walking towards him. All of the women had heart filled eyes, including the blonde. _'Perhaps he's just a famous wizard_.' Thought Nic. Out of the blue, a pink haired boy with a sleeveless, gold trimmed, black waistcoat that was open and untucked, a thick black wristband on his left wrist. He also sported white knee-length trousers, a scarf around his neck, and had a lot of stuff carried on his back.

"It's me-!" he shouted, but stood shocked that it was the wrong person. Just then, the blonde flinched, though Nic didn't wonder why. "Who the heck are you?" the pink haired boy asked dumbly, shocking this "Salamander". Just then a group of girls were beginning to attack him, saying how rude he was. Nic's first instinct was to aid in this boy's need, but then recalled he had to keep his profile down. Salamander then eased them by saying he didn't mean it, to which they returned with heart filled eyes.

Nic then noticed that the blonde from before had a look of animosity. What was admiration turned into bitterness. Nic didn't want to get involve anymore and wanted to just bail. Before so, he saw Salamander giving the pink haired boy an autograph.

"No thanks." He said, which gave him another horrific all-female thrashing. As he was twitching by some garbage bags, the small blue cat with big eyes, a white belly, and a green sac looked back at this "Salamander".

"Guess it wasn't him after all." Said the cat. Nic raised a brow, for a _cat_ was talking! Then again, Chatots could do partial human speech as well, so he wasn't too shocked by this event. Salamander then snapped his finger and was standing on a tower of pink fire.

"I'm having a little sware at my yacht tonight and you're all invited!" He openly announced before departing, riding the flames to who knows where. The ladies then went away, leaving the cat, the boy, the blonde, and Nic.

"Who the heck was that guy?" the boy wondered. I then decided to walk up to him, and the blonde was doing the same.

"If I knew, I would tell ya." Nic said.

"Uh, thank you for your help." The blonde said, which made the boy wonder what he did.

Awhile after that, the girl took the two guys and cat to a restaurant, where they all dined on the stuff she ordered; although, it was mainly Natsu and Happy who chowed down. Nic eventually learned that the blonde's name was Lucy. She was shocked to see the food get wolf down so fast and sighed.

"Uh, I guess it's my turn for intros then. I'm Nic." Nic said. Lucy then explained that this "Salamander was using Charm Magic, a magic that was banned for a long time now, which made the ladies fall in love with him. The only thing that came to Nic's mind at that moment was that something similar like that occurred in his world. It was the move Attract, though this had no affiliations with Salamander.

"I really can't thank you guys enough." Lucy said.

Natsu was stuffing food into his mouth and mumbling out "No problem" with food in his mouth.

"I may not look like it, but I'm a wizard to, though I'm not a member of a guild yet." She then just began to ramble on about Sorcerer's Weekly and hopes that she'll join a very special guild someday. "Oh yeah, you guys came here to find somebody, right?"

"We're looking for Igneel." Happy said while Natsu devoured a pizza.

"Is he a person?" Nic wondered.

"Nah you got it all wrong. He's not a person he's an actual dragon." Natsu explained. Lucy was heavily baffled by this, while Nic just flinched. Nic was stunned that dragons were around, but then recalled he's seen a bunch of Dragon Type okémon. He'll believe anything at this point. After Lucy paid for the food, she made her way out. Natsu and Happy were bowing their heads in respect.

"Thanks for the food!" Natsu said.

"You're embarrassing me!" Lucy exclaimed. "Let's just call it even since you've helped me out." Lucy then departed. Nic had a strange feeling, so he went by instinct and departed as well.

"See you guys later." Nic said, waving bye to Happy and Natsu. He then walked about town for a little bit and saw that Lucy was sitting on a bench reading Sorcerer's Weekly and saying how she'll one day join Fairy Tail.

Just then Salamander showed up and Nic got out of sight. "What's that, you want to join Fairy Tail?" Salamander asked Lucy. "I just came by and wanted to personally invite you onto my yacht tonight." He said with a charismatic smile, to which Lucy rejected.

"Your Charm Spell won't work on me! I'm aware of its use, so I'm unaffected!" Lucy pointed out. She then turned her back and rejected the invitation.

"You want to join Fairy Tail, don't ya?" he asked. This got Lucy's attention again. He then had on his charismatic smile. "Tell me, have you ever heard of Salamander?"

"Wait, you're telling me you're Fairy Tail's famous Fire wizard. Salamander?!" Lucy demanded.

"That's right, and if you come I'll put in a good word for ya." He said, to which Nic thought as a lie. Lucy then fell for his trick and she accepted the invitation.

After all of that was settled Lucy was prancing about, satisfied she'll get into Fairy Tail. Once those two were out of sight, Nic came back into view. _'I'll have to keep an eye on this 'Salamander'.'_ Thought Nic.

That night, Natsu and Happy were watching the yachy leave, which reminded Natsu of his motion sickness.

"Ah, c'mon. It's not like we're going to board it or anything." Said Happy. They then looked over and saw a few girls talking about this 'Salamander'.

"I wish I'd gone to his party." "Me to. To think, a wizard that uses Fire Magic in Fairy Tail." The girls chatted. Natsu heard of Fairy Tail, and he instantly looked back at the yacht, of which made him think of his motion sickness again.

Nic was able to hide away on the side just before it set sailed to who knows where. He was able to evade detection and he tried to find his way to where Lucy and Salamander were. Once he'd found them, he stayed hidden. He saw how Lucy was able to see through his Sleep Magic that he was trying to use on her.

Just then, his men had all of the women on board had women on their shoulders.

"Wha-What is this?!" Lucy demanded.

Salamander was chuckling, and his charismatic smile had just turned sour. "Welcome aboard." He said. Lucy was then rid of her keys and they were thrown out into the sea. "I had no use for those since Celestial Spirits were contracted to you." Lucy then began to sob.

Just then, Nic sprang into action. He busted down the door he was hiding behind and began cracking his knuckles. "Alright. Who wants the first punch to the face?" Nic asked. Natsu then crashed through the roof right by Nic. Natsu wasn't too thrilled with Salamander sullying Fairy Tail's name. "You're just in time for the fun part." Explained Nic. Just then, Natsu was overwhelmed with motion sickness and a sweat drop was on Nic's face. "Uhh…very well then." Nic mumbled. He then turned and saw Happry carry Lucy with his tail and flew off. "Lucy! Happy! Get the keys! I'll take care of them here!" shouted out Nic.

Lucy was then taken away by Happy who could fly. "Wait, since when did you have wings?!" shouted Lucy.

"Now's not the time!" explained Happy as he flew off with Lucy. Now it was Nic, along with a motion sick Natsu, against a really large number of bad guys.

"Okay. It's time we get this party started." Nic said. He then began to change. He summoned forth the power of the Toxic Plate. He was glowing a light purple and the glow faded. Nic's black sleeveless coat with blue flames was now dark purple with light purple bubbles coming up from the bottom. His gray V-neck was now violet and collarless. His sunglasses had a light purple casing around the lenses instead of black and yellow. His eyes also changed to purple. His roomy jeans grew a dark shade and his shoes were now patterned with black and light purple with tiny spikes on the bottom.

The men recoiled as they have never came across this sort of magic. "Wh-what kind of Take Over Magic is that?!" one of them stuttered.

'_I see. So people call it Take Over Magic here. Very well, but this Multitype sure feels strange, yet so cool.' _Thought the poisonous utilizer. He then took a step forward in front of Natsu so that he doesn't get caught up in the attack. _'Let's give it a shot!' _He then stepped forward and took in a big breath. "**Acid Spray!**" A large volume of acid then came gushing out of Nic's mouth. The attack nearly got the members. They scooted back as they saw the acid burn up the floor. Nic then wiped his mouth. "Not bad, but let's see what happens when you're out of room."

His constant use of Acid Spray caused the men to go to the deck. Nic had Natsu on his shoulder and still felt nauseous.

"Please stop! Don't vomit another drop or I'll lose it for sure!" Natsu muttered. Nic then sighed and just let Natsu down. Nic then turned back at Salamander and his men and smirked, thinking this was pretty cool.

Out at sea, Happy and Lucy finally got away, only for Happy to run out of Aero Magic. "Uh oh!" Happy cried as he and Lucy took a dip into the sea. Lucy opened her eyes and saw her keys on a rock. She swam over and retrieved her keys. She and Happy finally resurfaced and gasped for air.

"**Open: Gate of the Water Bearer – Aquarius!**" Lucy then inserts the key into the water and turned it, making a gate open. Aquarius then appeared before their eyes. She was a mermaid with blue hair, eyes, and tail. Happy almost began drooling, thinking that she was a fish.

"Tsk." Aquarius also had a bit of an attitude with Lucy. Lucy wasn't that fond of her attitude.

"What's the big deal?! I summon you to help me, not give me an attitude! Now just get that ship to shore!" Lucy exclaimed, only to be given a death glare that shook her and Happy to the core.

"If you were to as so much lose my keys again, you're dead! Understand?" Aquarius threatened.

"Y-yes. It won't happen again." Lucy shivered in fear. Aquarius then summoned forth an enormous wave from her water vase (or jug, can't really tell) and had the huge wave rush at the ship.

The men on the ship were screaming, and Nic saw the wave come at him. "…something tells me that I'm about to get wet." He sighed as the wave swallowed the ship, and Lucy, to shore. The ship was in no condition as it was on its side and destroyed from the wave and the inside was fried from Nic's Acid Spray as a bonus. The girls that fell for his Charm Magic earlier were able to escape and flee, getting away from the hysteria.

Lucy was on shore and right next to Happy, whose head was buried in the sand and he pulled it out.

"Talk about overkill! You didn't need to wash me up ya know!" Lucy snapped.

"Hmph! Just consider yourself lucky that I wasn't aiming for you. Don't bother calling me because I'm on a weekend date with my boyfriend, and he's hot." Aquarius responded before going back to the Celestial World.

Nic was on the side of the ship, looking up at the starry sky. "Geez, talk about a washout." He murmured, also lightening the mood with a pun. He and Natsu finally pulled themselves together. Since they were on shore, Natsu didn't feel sick.

Lucy and Happy looked over at the two that were glaring heavily down on Salamander. Both were pretty irritated. "So", Natsu said, "You say that you're a member of Fairy Tail, huh? Then how come I've never seen your face before?!" Natsu then showed his Fairy Tail mark on his right shoulder. It was no question the symbol of Fairy Tail.

The acid was still coming from Nic's fangs, greatly annoyed that this fiend had the nerve to trick the innocent. "You lowdown scum", said Nic, "You tricked the people of this place, and you wanted to make slaves out of them?! How about we put you out of your misery!"

The men were trembling and couldn't move. "B-Bora! That's him! That's the real deal!"

"Don't call be that!" Bora retorted.

Happy then crossed his arms and glared at Bora. "That name, he's Bora the Prominence. He was once a member of the Titan Nose Guild, but was excommunicated for misbehavior and using his magic for malevolence." Happy explained.

"I don't care what you call yourself, but you've masquerade yourself as a Fairy Tail member. DON'T EVER MESS WITH FAIRY TAIL!" Natsu roared in anger. Bora ordered his henchmen to assault, but they were held up by Nic, who sprang into action.

"**Sludge Wave!**" Nic roared. His body was cloaked in some poison and unleashed a huge wave of that poison that swamped the men,knocking them all out. He then turned back to Natsu. "Your turn Natsu!" the poisonous wizard yelled.

"Be happy to oblige." Natsu said, jumping down and he began running towards Bora.

"**Prominence Typhoon!**" Bora then summoned forth a huge amount of energy and firing it at Natsu. Natsu didn't even flinch when he was hit, in fact he was eating the fire. Bora screamed like a sissy when his flames were eaten. "**Red Shower!**" He summons forth his Magic Seal that fired a multitude of elongated circles of purple flame. Natsu began running towards him, brushing off the attack as though it was nothing but flies.

"For the record, your fire tastes terrible!" Natsu commented and a flaming red seal appeared and Natsu began to take in a deep breath. "**Fire Dragon Roar!**" he then unleashed a huge amount of fire coming in fast. Bora barely dodge it, but still felt the intensity of the attack.

Natsu then saw Bora come in for an attack. Nic walked right up beside Natsu. He looked at him and smirked.

"What do you say? Shall we finish this?" He asked Natsu.

"Heh, sure." Natsu then made another quick seal and Nic straightened out his fingers in his right hand and seeping poison into them.

"**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Natsu yelled.

"**Poison Jab!**" Nic roared.

Nic aimed for the abdomen while Natsu got him in the face. The force of the two attacks send Bora soaring and crash into his ship with a thunderous thud. With all of that said and done, Natsu and Kale met up with Lucy and Happy.

"You did it!" Happy cheered, but was short-lived as the Royal Army was coming.

"It's the Royal Army!" exclaimed Lucy. Natsu then grabbed Lucy's wrist and began running and Happy flew in pursuit. Nic then turned golden and reverted back to himself. His wardrobe went to being his black coat with blue flames, his T-shirt a V-neck again, and jeans back to normal, etc.

"Hey, mind if I tag along?" Nic asked while running.

"Sure. Oh and, Lucy. You said you wanted to be a member of Fairy Tail, right?" he answered and asked while running. Lucy couldn't help but smile happily.

The four then proceeded and ran off from the scene and back to Magnolia.

* * *

**Sometime later, in Magnolia…**

The four finally arrived at the entrance of Fairy Tail Guild Hall. It was wood and a huge banner showing off the Fairy Tail insignia with "Fairy Tail" above its gate entrance.

Lucy was amazed at this. She's always dreamed of becoming a Fairy Tail member and she's only just a few steps away from doing so. "Amazing! I can't believe that I'm about to join Fairy Tail!" Lucy shrieked in pure joy.

Nic was pretty amazed himself, thought he distinctly remembered that he was send here to become a Fairy Tail member, and he's going to do that. He was still impressed with the way he and Naysu teamed up in that last fight. He actual felt like he was a pokémon. He felt great laying down the pain, though it was for a cause and not for the sake of fighting.

They all entered and saw that the inside was comprised of a lot of people in wooden tables and chairs. And there was even a bar that had Mirajane Strauss tending it. She was a model for the Sorcerer's Weekly magazine.

"I can't believe it! Mirajane in Fairy Tail!" Lucy was as shocked as a crazed fangirl.

"We're back!" Natsu yelled. He then went over and just slugged a guy in the face, making him fall to the ground. "That rumor was a fake!" Natsu roared.

"Hey, it was just a rumor! You just had to go and blame it all on me, did ya?!" The other member retorted. The argument quickly escalated into a fight, of which everyone took part of.

"So, it looks like flame brain is back." Said a voice. He was Gray Fullbuster. He had dark blue, spiky hair and had a necklace with a sword. He had on black jeans, but strangely nothing on the top.

"Gray, your clothes." Another person said. It was Cana Alberona. She had dark brown hair, a blue bra, some short pants and some sandals. She was busy attending to her barrel that she drank out of.

"Whoa. Talk about thirsty." Nic stated with a sweat drop.

Gray then began searching for his clothes and Elfman Strauss, Mirajane's brother, stepped in and joined the brawl. "A real man never backs down from a fight!" Elfman proclaimed. He was tall, had white spiky hair, had a slight tan, and had a long black jacket on. He also had a scar running on the right side of his face over his eye and had on sandals.

Out of the blue, Gray and Natsu send Elfman flying into Mirajane into a table into a wall.

"This is too annoying for me." Said Loke. Loke had orange hair, blue sunglasses, and had on a lime green jacket. He was sitting next to a few women and politely asked them to wait for him as he began to join the fight after being hit with a mug.

It was just too much hysteria, and this was not even two minutes in.

Gray then lost his underwear and Lucy was mortified to see him in the nude.

'_How indecent can this guy get?!'_ Nic thought and looked away. He just went over to the bar and just sat down.

Right next to Cana and plugged in his earbuds. Cana was just as annoyed. She then noticed Nic was sitting right next to her. She turned to him curious.

"How come you're not in on the fight?" Cana wondered. Nic turned to talk to Cana and turned the volume down so that he can hear her and his music.

"Well, I'm new here as well as Lucy. I prefer to not get in these sort of fights unless it's for a good reason." Pointed out Nic.

Cana looked back at the insanity and sighed. "This is guy I don't find the men here appealing, they have no class." Cana said. She looked as though she was about to throw a fit. She then brought out some cards and was about to make them stop. Nic saw this coming and held out an arm.

"Wait!" Nic yelped to Cana just before she was going to use them. He then got up from his seat and looked back at her. "If you don't mind, I think I'll stop them all at once."

Cana blinked once and she put her cards back. He told her to wait just a second. Since there was no one behind the bar, that meant people didn't have to see him transform, though Cana may be curious.

"What are you doing?" Cana wondered, seeing him crouched behind the counter. He then quickly glowed and had the Toxic Plate active once more. His appearance changed back to the light purple bubbles on the dark purple coat. Sunglasses had purple outline, collarless shirt, and somewhat spiky shoes.

Cana was shocked to see Nic transform this way. This left her flinching until finally speaking. "Is that a Take Over?" Nic then approached the massive fighting.

"In a way, yeah." Nic said. He looked back and smirked. "You might wanna find some cover, and take your booze with ya. You wouldn't want it tainted now, would ya?" Cana didn't question him and did as told. She took two barrels and hid behind the counter. Nic then turned back towards the crowd of fighters that were hitting away. "Okay, that's enough! **Sludge Wave!**" Nic unleashed a huge amount of purple sludge that got _everyone_; well, exclude Cana. They all were laying down on the floor, all drenched in purple and smelled rather askew. With the swiftest of movements, Nic ducted behind the counter and transformed back before anyone saw who did that attack. He glowed and changed back. He then looked at Cana, who raised a brow.

"Funny, you remind me of Erza." Cana explained.

"Who's Erza?" Nic asked.

"She's an S-Class Mage who always gets her way. If push comes to shove, she'll resort to violence and stomp all over us." This frightful image only intrigued Nic. He didn't feel threatened at all.

"Huh, I should see that in action." He wondered. Cana only had a sweat drop.

"You're kidding, right?" Cana said baffled. They heard mumbling and heard voices coming over. Quickly, Nic took action and created a façade. He had his music volume increase and laid back against the wall opposite of the counter. Cana caught on to his actions quickly, and drank out of her barrel.

Gray and Natsu came over and looked about and saw Nic listening to music and Cana drinking.

"Hey", Gray said, "You know who did that just now?" Nic noticed Gray and mute his music for the moment.

"Don't ask me. I came over here to get away from the fighting and go to my happy place." Nic faked, which Cana followed suit.

"Yeah. You guys are annoying, but he told me it would settle if I just ignored it, and it worked." Cana said. The guys sighed and departed from the bar. Cana and Nic then emerged from the bar and sat back down on the stools. Nic then gave Cana a grin that said "thanks for playing along". Her wink back meant "sure thing"

Just then, a large figure appeared. "**What's going on here? You morons almost wrecked the Guild Hall**." He boomed.

"Oh, hey Master!" Mirajane said, getting up. Nic's jaw dropped at the size of that thing, but soon dwindled down to an old man and Nic sighed in relief.

"Greetings." Master Makarov said in a caring manner. He made his way up to the second floor and looked down on everyone. Everyone was looking at him in anticipation. He then flashed out a pile of complaints on paper. "How annoying! Never ending complaints from the Magic Council! This is the most complaints that has ever been written! This recent one of how Natsu and some other delinquent have trashed a harbor!" Cana saw Nic gulp, and then she slightly giggled. Mkarov then continued. "All you guys do is drive me mad!" Lots of the guild members looked down in shame as to what they have done. Makarov then grinned. "…however…" he then had the pages torn up and shredded.

"I say screw the Magic Council. Now listen, Magic if found to be without reason, and we've come to gain reason because of that. Our magic is meant for greatness, and rules from the Magic Council just keep hammering us down, but these rules only suppress our potential and fail to have us grow as individuals. Don't be afraid of those knuckleheads on the council. Follow your beliefs and strive for the future, because that's what makes Fairy Tail Number One!" Makarov declared and everyone cheered in delight.

It was later that day when Lucy and Nic received their Fairy Tail insignias thanks to Mirajane. Lucy's was pink and on the back of her left hand. Nic's mark was on his back between the shoulder blades and was violet. The two admired their marks for a little bit.

"Hey, Natsu. Look, I have my mark." Lucy said full of pride.

"Congrats, welcome to the guild." He said nonchalant. Happy was too indulged eating a fish that was bigger than him.

Nic took the time and relaxed. It wasn't quiet, but it was unique. A fight could start anytime, so he had his guard up. Mirajane then gave him a light tap on the shoulders, which freaked him out. He jumped and got one foot in the air like a ninja. He saw that it was only Mirajane, and was at ease.

"Nic, I do wonder as to how you came to join Fairy Tail." Mira wondered.

He then came up with a simple lie, which wasn't a complete lie though. "Oh, I heard about this from an acquaintance. He told me Fairy Tail is an amazing guild that could help me gain potential." He said. Mira smiled.

"Well we sure are amazing!" Mira pointed out. Master Makarov then came up and talked to Nic.

"Young man, are you hiding something?" Makarov asked. He was seeing right through Nic's lie. The other members of the guild gathered around, obviously curious as to what the new member had to hide.

Seeing as he had no way out of his predicament, he then started to explain. "Well, this isn't like the Kalos region, that's for sure. And no, Kalos isn't anywhere near here. It's in another world."

Everyone gawked at this, Happy wasn't paying attention and kept eating his fish. Some members just laughed and some stood speechless.

"You don't seem paranoid, can you go into detail?" Makarov was intrigued by this turn of events, and still Happy didn't take notice. Nic took in a deep breath and explained from the beginning. He first had to explain what world he came from and what pokémon are and how people battle with them. He explained about trainers and gyms and the Elite Four and the Champion.

By this time the guild members that were laughing were just as curious as the other members. He explained as to how he confronted Legendary Pokémon and was told to master the eighteen plates, though he didn't go all that in depth so people couldn't freak out. He talked about how he made it to Hargeon and aid in Natsu and Lucy's fight, leading to the present. Lucy could understand, since Celestial Spirits are that way as well, but everyone else had some trouble following as to how the legendaries transported him.

"So, how many plates do have at this point?" Gray asked without a shirt on.

"As of now, I have 5. Natsu already took note of my Poison, and I still have Electric, Water, Flying, and Fire." Nic then told Gray to put on a shirt.

"But wait", questioned Levy, who was the leader of Team Shadow Gear, "Why did you decided to start with those? Wouldn't it have been wise to pick stronger plates to begin with?"

Nic then folded his arms and looked down. "You have a point, but I thought if where I was going was going to be much like my world, then I would have to get the types to best help me in common environments. If I were to end up in the sea I could switch to a Splash Plate and breath underwater. If stuck in air, I'd switch to my Sky Plate."

"Can you show us one of your Pokémon?" asked Lucy.

"Sure, but make some room first." Everyone then took a step back as Nic brought out a poke ball. Everyone was curious as to how his pokemon would look.

"Let's go, Greninja!" Nic shouted. He tossed the ball into the air and opened. A white light gushe out and touched the floor and took shape. The light disappeared and it revealed Greninja. People were in awe by this one. They've never seen anything like it.

"Doesn't look very appetizing." Happy commented.

"Is that really a pokémon? It looks like an overgrown frog." Said Natsu. Big mistake. Greninja took note of Natsu and Happy's comments and gave an unforgiving face.

"Look, you'd be wise to watch your mouth." Nic said. Greninja then unleashed a Water Pulse on the two by concentrating water to its palms. When the attack hit, Happy was dizzy and saw fish over his head. He then fell to the ground in a daze. Natsu was wet all over. Greninja gave a swift smirk and then returned back to its poke ball.

"That was a dirty trick!" Natsu protested.

"He's my first pokémon, meaning he takes after me; besides, I wanted him to be the first to see this guild." Nic explained. A fight almost broke out, but Nic just walked away saying he doesn't want to get involve in a mess that they have. This was let go and everyone went off to do their own thing.

Later, Romeo Conbolt, who's the young son of a wizard, was upset because his dad wasn't back yet. Natsu and Nic took notice, even Lucy.

"My dad said it would be three days and it's been over a week!" Romeo cried. Master Makarov was a bit worried to, but chose to not show it.

"Now boy", said Makarov, "Your father is a very capable wizard. I doubt that he would be given trouble up on Mt. Hakobe. You should learn to have some patience Romeo, now go home and wait for him." This didn't go unanswered as Romeo punched Makarov and calling him a jerk and ran of crying. Natsu just punched the request board and turned to leave.

"That wasn't very nice of the Master." Commented Lucy talking to Mirajane.

"True, but even though Master is right. Natsu barged off like that because he sees Romeo as himself. He had it rough worrying about his father, and he doesn't want Romeo to feel the same. It was rough for Natsu to find Igneel."

"Igneel", Lucy thought back to when Natsu said he was looking for a dragon named Igneel back in Hargeon. It didn't take long for her to put two and two together, "Wait…you mean that Igneel is Natsu's father?!"

Mirajane nodded. "It's a sad story. Natsu was taken in by Igneel, who became his foster father. He taught Natsu to write, the culture, even Fire Dragon Slayer Magic. One day, Igneel disappeared and was never heard of since. This made Natsu want to find him wherever a dragon is heard of. No luck up to this point."

Lucy then got up and left to look for Natsu. Nic was only a couple seats away and heard everything. He sat there in a deep trance. He thought of how _his_ parents kicked him out when he was fifteen. He became a pokémon trainer and never looked back. He doesn't want to have people go through what he went through. No support throughout his journey. He was all alone, except he had his pokémon, so he wasn't all that alone. He was in deep thought until Lucy was out of site.

"…" Nic got up and darted out.

* * *

**Later…**

Natsu was unable to move at all. He couldn't help but groan and cover his mouth. The carriage ride was to take Natsu, Lucy, Happy, and Nic up to Mt. Hakobe.

"You're just never lucky when it comes to transportation, are ya?" Nic rhetorically asked. Natsu just groaned and lied down.

"Hey Nic, why did you tag along?" wondered Lucy.

"Ladies first." Said Nic being a gentleman.

"Simple, Natsu invited me. But he didn't invite you, why is it you came anyway?"

He thought about this and tried to put it all together. "I guess I wanna help Romeo. My parents rejected me after I turned fifteen, but even so I still don't want families to go through what I've been through to." Nic worded.

It wasn't long after that that the carriage stopped moving. Natsu then sprung up from his incapacitation.

"ALRIGHT, WE STOPPED MOVING!" Natsu roared, feeling all revived. As he and Happy were prancing about, the carriage driver told them to exit.

"Sorry, but this is as far as I can take you." He apologized. They got out to take in the scenery.

It was beautiful. Cold, frigid, snow falling down everywhere, violent blizzards. What more could you ask for? Lucy stepped out, shivering like a little dog.

"When did it start snowing?!" she exclaims. "It's a frozen wasteland."

Nic didn't feel much of a chill, though he didn't know why. _'Probably because of the Flame Plate that's keeping me warm.'_ He thought. Natsu didn't feel the cold either. Nic just assumed it was the dragon fire, but just left that subject alone and focused on the task at hand.

After a little bit of walking, Lucy had enough of the cold.

"Natsu, I'm freezing!" Lucy inquires.

"That's what happens when you where such light clothing." Natsu replies.

"You're one to talk!" she retorts. She then came up with an idea. "**Open: Gate of the Clock Consolation – Horologium!**" a giant grandfather clock then came from a golden glow. Lucy took the liberty and put herself inside his hollow inside.

"'Why on earth would Macao come to a place like this?' Miss Lucy questons." Horologium repeats, since no one can hear her from the outside.

"Why didn't you asked that earlier? He went down to take down a Vulcan, it's a big ugly monster." Explained Natsu, which made Lucy shudder in horror.

"'I'm going back to Fairy Tail!' she proclaims." Horologium interprets. Natsu, Happy, and Nic just continue on walking.

"'Be my guest' I reply." Natsu said, copying Horologium's way of talking.

"Aye." Says Happy. They then pressed on and try to find Macao, Romeo's father.

Just then, a huge ape like creature was jumping from the cliff above, catching Nic's attention.

"Guys above us!" Nic alarmed, having all three dodged the bog gorilla's assault.

"That's a big Vulcan!" Happy exclaimed. They then noticed the twenty-foot beast sniffing about and racing after Lucy, who was inside Horologium.

"Not so fast!" proclaimed Nic. He then had the Flame Plate activated, which made his features change. His eyes were fiery red, his jeans were charred black, his shoes were running shoes that were a pattern of red and yellow. His shirt was an orange V-neck, sunglasses still the same, and his coat was a pure red with yellow and orange flames flickering from the bottom.

Natsu was amazed that he could do such a thing. Other than the Poison transformation, this was the only other one he saw.

"Get back here, ya foul ape!** Flame Wheel**!" Nic then began summersaulting and being cloaked in fire at the same time, so he was a rolling flame. All the ape had to do was swat his arm at him and he went flying into Natsu. Both fell on the ground and into the snow. The Vulcan then grabbed Horologium and ran off.

"'Help me you two flaming buffoons!' she yells furiously." Horologium reiterates. The Vulcan got out of site, leaving only the guys to track them down. Natsu had Happy fly ahead and try to stay close enough to trace.

Eventually, the Vulcan had Lucy in a cave, though she was still in Horologium. The deranged monkey was prancing about in victory. And time ran out for Horologium and Lucy was all alone.

"I'm afraid time has ran out for me, Miss Lucy." Informed Horologium as he went back to the Celestial World.

"No! Please! Make an extension this one time!" Lucy cried hopelessly. The Vulcan then began to approach and then he was hit with a Flamethrower out of the blue. The Vulcan was sent back a few meters and gazed angrily at Natsu and Nic. Natsu then cracked his flaming knuckles.

"Where's Macao!" Natsu demanded. The Vulcan then swatted an off guard Natsu out of the cave and into an abyss. Happy then went back and flew down to get him. Nic then turned to Lucy.

"Don't just stand there! Summon a fighter or something!" barked Nic.

"Don't push your luck!" Lucy shouts and then brings out a golden key. "**Open: Gate of the Golden Bull – Taurus!**" A large bull, that was humanoid, then appeared with a big axe.

"Cow?" questioned the Vulcan.

"Get ready you banana perv, because Taurus is the strongest Celestial Spirit I'm contracted with!" exclaimed Lucy. Taurus then got hearts in his eyes.

"My Miss Lucy, you're looking as hot as ever, how about a smooooch." Taurus said.

"Oh yeah, he's also the biggest perv I know as well." Lucy sighed.

"My woman!" the Vulcan growled. This shocked Taurus out of his trans and made him all riled up.

"Your woman?!" protested Taurus, gripping his axe, "Them fighting words ya moooonkey!" Taurus then jumped and came down with the axe on the Vulcan. The ugly beast caught it just in the last moment, his two hands holding the sides of the blades.

Nic then thought it would be time for punch to step in. "**Fire Punch!**" yelled the flaming contender. The Vulcan then got out of the way and pushed Taurus into the Fire Punch, being dealt a serious blow to the face that knocked him out. He then plopped to the floor and was forced back home to the Celestial World.

"Oh man, that was stupid of me!" Nic cursed himself. He then looked back at the Vulcan who was smirking in glee of taking down the spirit. "…but still. That overgrown ape is fast. I'll just have to just match him then!" He was then cloaked in flames and began sprinting. "**Flame Charge!**" he then rammed into the beast and caused it to step back. When the beast looked away to see Lucy trying to find some cover, he has hit from behind by a surprise attack by Natsu and his Fire Dragon's Claw, which was a flaming kick. When the Vulcan fell forward, Natsu looked back up at Happy.

"Thanks again buddy!" Natsu said.

"Aye!" Happy replied. This struck confusion to Nic.

"I'm glad you came to join the smashing and all, but how come you weren't sick when Happy saved you?" questioned the fiery being.

"You've gotta be kidding me! Happy isn't a vehicle, he's my friend!" Natsu protest. Nic just nodded in understanding.

"Got it." Nic said. _'Boy, I walked right into that one.'_ He thought. They both then had just enough time before the ape tried to attack them. They dodged and did a double combo.

"**Iron Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Natsu roared.

"**Flame Charge!**"

The two attacks then hit the Vulcan, it flew back and grabbed hold of a stalagmite. It yurned and used the momentum to try and fly back into the two. Nic got out of the way due to his enhanced speed from two Flame Charge attacks. Natsu stood his ground and tried to push the Vulcan back. It was either Natsu or the Vulcan.

"Wait!" Nic muttered, having an epiphany. "Natsu can…" He then aimed at Natsu. "Natsu! Chow down!" Natsu then saw Nic unleash a Flamethrower at him. Natsu jumped out of the ape's way and stod his ground as he swallowed every bit of fire from Nic's Flamethrower.

Natsu wiped his mouth. "Thanks for the meal pal. Now I got a fire in my belly." Natsu said with a grin. He turned and saw the Vulcan coming at him. "**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Natsu's one punch send the perverted ape soaring and crashing through seven stalagmites and ended up crashing into the wall, out like a light.

"Y-you guys won!" Lucy cheered in joy. They all gathered by the unconscious ape as it was transforming back into a man.

"Macao!" Natsu exclaimed in surprise.

Nic and Lucy stood there just as dumbfounded as Natsu. "HUH?!" Lucy and Nic shrieked in unison.

"It looked as though he was possessed by a Vulcan." Explained Happy.

"Possessed? Vulcan? What is happening?!" Nic was just confused all over the place.

"Let me explain. Vulcan's thrive my invading and using other bodies, much like a Take Over." Happy detailed.

They all then skipped the chatting and tended to Macao's wounds.

"Don't you dare die on me! Romeo's waiting for you! Macao!" shouted Natsu. Macao then slowly opened his eyes and groaned. He was bandaged in the abdomen and a little in both arms.

"Heh, how pitiful", muttered Macao, "There were twenty of them. I managed to take down nineteen, but the twentieth got me. I'm too shamed to go back."

"Don't put yourself down like this", encouraged Nic, "nineteen of those big brutes is an accomplishment. Why beat yourself up? If anything, you'd set a good example for your son on how to go through a job, so how about we quit talking and get you back to your son." Natsu then grabbed Macao by his hand and took him home by having him lean on Natsu for support.

It was sundown by the time the five got back. Romeo was thinking of how some bullies picked on him and how he made his dad go on a job. When he saw his dad come home, he tackle him out of joy.

"DAD!" Romeo shrieked. "I'm sorry! It's all my fault!"

"Nah don't be. I'm sorry I worried you." Macao said.

"It's alright, because I'm a son of a Fairy Tail wizard!" Romeo cheered.

"Next time bullies pick on you, tell them this: Can your dad take down nineteen monsters all by themselves? Because mine can!" Macao said happily. As the two embrace, Natsu and the others ventured off back to the guild.

It was a good day for the team. Natsu and Happy venture back home while Lucy stayed with Mirajane for the night until she gets her new home in a matter of days. Nic was given a one night's stay in the guild. Nic had his Greninja out for the night just because he wanted to enjoy looking after the guild when it's dark.

Nic was lying on a table while Greninja was on another table, gazing up at the ceiling high above them.

"Tell me Greninja", Nic asked, "These past two days have been the most hectic in a long time. Natsu and Happy are a great team to be around, though Natsu can be utterly impulsive. Lucy and her Celestial Spirits are pretty amazing as well. To think I blew up a ship with a fire breather, ran away from an army, joined a guild, and teamed up with that Salamander to conquer a possessed man. What do you think's gonna happen?"

Greninja then turned his head and looked over at his trainer. "If I knew, I would tell ya." The Ninja pokémon replied. Both were frozen at this sudden development. His Pokémon just talked! Even this surprised Greninja. After a short paused, Nic just sighe.

"You know, there's some crazy things going on here. A talking cat that can fly, wizards that use magic, Celestial Spirits, talks of dragons and this Igneel. Heck, I'll believe in anything at this point." Smirked Nic.

"Seems legit." Greninja replied. Both then just gazed back up at the ceiling and drifted off.

'_I have a strange feeling that we're in for a wild ride.'_ Contemplated Nic, and the two then drifted off into a light sleep, awaiting for what tomorrow had in store for them.

* * *

**How's that for a chapter. Again, apologies to Alpha Dragonis and Gemini300 for using the same intro, but I needed something to work off of. Everything was original and to what I could have detailed.**

**I plan to have these chapters long because I can get a bunch of the plot in and I can. I plan to have each chapter as much words as I can manage, and I don't want to have the chapters to have that big of a word range (9K-12K).**

**I you saw, only Greninja and Charizard were introduced, and Nic's appearances on his Plate shifts seem to only affect his wardrobe and his eyes. More pokémon will be shown soon, and Nic will unlock/find some plates eventually. **

**Since this took me awhile, roughly almost a week (since I had a snow day, I got a huge chunk done), it's most likely going to be a little bit before another upload. **

**Again, thanks for taking your time and reading my first FanFiction guys, really appreciate it!**

* * *

**Next Time: The Pain Train**


	2. The Pain Train

Chapter 2 – The Pain Train

**Hey guys, it's a little while since I've updated. This chapter will just detail the Lullaby Arc, and what went on before. I prefer to leave arcs out that don't peak my interests, like the Daybreak Arc. Don't expect the OC to take part in everything. I have little to no favorites and /or reviews, so I would advise you to do so as it would make me a better story maker. Since no one has anything to say, I guess we can get this train rolling (Foreshadowing!).**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon nor Fairy Tail, they belong to Satoshi Tajiri, Nintendo, and Hiro Mashima. I do, however, own my OC.**

**To Recap:**

Nic came across an alley and began to talk with the Legendary Pokémon Dialga, Palkia, Arceus, and the Lake Trio. There, Nic found out he was to inherit the plates entrusted to him by Arceus, who was slowly progressing to death. Nic was infused with five plates to begin with and was send to the magical land of Fiore. He encounters Natsu Dragneel, Happy, and Lucy Heartfilia. The four then go up against Bora, who took Natsu's nickname 'Salamander', and beat him with no trouble. The group then ventures off to the town of Magnolia, where Lucy and Nic become Fairy Tail members. It wasn't later that the group then took down a Vulcan that was really Macao, Romeo's father. Nic learned that his pokémon could talk and fell asleep.

* * *

**Chapter 2 – The Pain Train**

After those insane events occurred, Nic and Greninja woke up early and decided to get some food. They got up from the two tables and scrounged for some ingredients. Fortunately, Nic knew how to make some tasty omelets. He and Greninja wolfed down about two omelets each, leaving the two satisfied with full stomachs. Nic was rather curious at this point about the town and the terrain, but then Master Makarov stepped inside the Guild Hall.

"Ah, morning Nic!" implied Makorov. He looked to see that Nic felt refreshed and ready to start his day. "I see that you're up and ready to tackle the day."

Nic just felt like scoping out the scenery; more importantly, he wanted to get out of town to the nearby woods to do some training.

"Uh, yeah", responded Nic, "Hey, I'm gonna go scope out the town for awhile. Tell Natsu and Happy and Lucy that I won't be here all day." Makarov nodded and walked away, leaving Nic to have Greninja return to its poke ball and walk out of the place.

The town wasn't too bad. The town had a population of 60,000, with a lot of merchants. He got a quick glimpse of the Kardia Cathedral, the food, and a bunch of other stuff. He only scoped the area for about a couple hours before he decided to go to the outskirts of the town. Nobody even knew who he was, so they didn't take notice of his absence.

Nic traveled about and came across nothing but open land, and rocks, and a lot of spread out trees, and more rocks. After finding a good place to stop and take a breather, he decided to test out his other plates.

"Okay", he said to himself out loud, "I think the Splash Plate should be given a go." He then began to glow, showing that he was about to change. His eyes were now an ocean blue, with his sunglasses on regardless. Those sunglasses were the same, but the casing of the lens was dark aquamarine. His coat was dark blue with light blue waves going from the bottom to his thighs. He had no shirt on, exposing his toned upper body. His shoes were now water shoes that were waterproof.

He cracked his knuckles and looked for an easy target to practice on. He found three medium sized rocks and took a stance. "Okay." He said, conjuring up the power of the Splash Plate. He made a glow from underneath arise, conjuring water that was surging all around him. "I summon the power of the Splash Plate to harness my potential! Let it drown and wash away all negativity that will come!" The surge then increased, making an enormous ring of water circulating at an alarming rate. "Come! I use this power for the sake of the universe!" He then focused on the three medium sized rocks. "**Hydro Pump!**" The water then made an aquatic mirror in front of Nic. The mirror then unleashed a huge spiraling torrent that shattered not only the three rocks, but made a tree timber. He wasn't close to being done. He turned and saw another rock the size of him. "**Aqua Jet!**" He was enveloped in water and lunged at the large rock with massive force. He went straight through and shattered it into a multitude of tiny fragments. He didn't take into account the impact it left on him as he was recovering from that sudden burst of speed into a hard object. "Ow. That's gonna hurt my shoulder!" Nic wined, but he knew wining wasn't gonna get him anywhere. He turned away and saw another rock a hundred meters away. He then conjured up some more energy and fired a boiling jet of water from his mouth. "**Scald!**" he impact caused the rock to crack as the attack made impact. It didn't take long after that for the rock to break apart on its own. Nic felt a little tired, but made no haste in trying to break some more things with water.

A good half hour rolled by, leaving everything around Nic either drenched or destroyed. You couldn't find anything dry within a three hundred meter radius. Nic was pretty wiped. "Okay…I think…I'm…good…for my Splash Plate." He gasped. His hands were on his knees, he could barely look up. He took a couple minutes to recover and stretched out. "Oooookayyy", He sighed while stretching his back, "Now onto-." He stopped and felt some sort of presence nearby, but it was a multitude of them.

Nic couldn't help but look around. He didn't find it in the forest, he didn't find it in the air, he even thought it was just his stomach telling him it was time to eat. He chose to ignore that feeling and walked about. He eventually found the exit to the woods and found the plain landscape with a road going horizontal to him. He thought it would be best to lay low in the shrubs and see if anything would happen. He waited for if that strange feeling would go away or not, of which it didn't. Then he saw some thugs coming up from the left. They were walking down the road. To his right, he saw a young person with a mountain of luggage taking the road up.

The thugs then saw this person and her stuff, and they'd just smirked. Nic could see their intensions were to rob this girl. He didn't step in just yet, but watched as the group of rowdy guys walk up to this young woman. He could hear them threaten her and taunt her. He looked to see if the girl was threatened, of which she wasn't budging.

Nic couldn't help it, but his heart stopped as he had just gazed upon the most beautiful woman he has probably ever saw in his entire life. She had long scarlet red hair and brown eyes. She had a voluptuous figure (though Nic knew better at a time like this). Her attire was a Heart Kreuz armor, a blue skirt, and black boots.

Nic had to ignore this ticklish feeling inside of him and focus on the situation at hand. Luckily, the Splash Plate was still active. The thugs were closing in on her, and that's when Nic stepped in. From within the shrubs, he unleashed a Bubblebeam that bombarded the thugs with continuous force. Some were out on the spot and some were still standing.

"Who did that?!" one of the more muscular thugs demanded. Nic then burst out of the shrubs and lunged at the thug.

"**Aqua Jet!**" Nic roared as he ploughed into the man, sending him flying and crashing into several of his own men. "**Hydro Pump!**" Nic then created a mirror of water and unleashed a monstrous and pressurized torrent of water, which send every one of them sky rocketing off to who knows where.

After all of that was finished, Nic sighed and put his hands on his knees. He was still tired from his training, so he hasn't had a lot of time to fully recover. Doing three consecutive attacks was a bit much, but he was still standing at least. Nic was drained and he glowed, signifying he was reverting back to his own self. He was too busy kicking those guys' behinds that he'd forgotten about the scarlet woman behind him. He was breathing heavily and regaining his breath.

The scarlet woman walked up to him. "Are you alright?" she asked. Nic got all the way back up and looked at the woman. Nic couldn't help but be more attracted to her up close. He still had to be on guard though. He didn't know who she was, so he had to keep his awareness levels at a high level.

"Yeah, I'm fine", said Nic, "Are you alright as well?"

"Yes I'm fine." She replied. She then up her hands on her hips and raised a brow. "You didn't have to do that you know? I could've taken them on with ease." She said in a polite manner.

Nic just shrugged it off. "I'm sorry. It was an instinct." Nic said. The scarlet woman then smiled at his sincerity. He was a raging fighter at one moment, and then a nice guy afterwards.

"It's alright. Thank you anyway." She smiled.

"You're welcome."

Something then made the scarlet woman wonder. "By the way, why were you in the shrubs?" she wondered. Nic couldn't dodge this one, so he had to tell her.

"I was training in the woods when I felt a weird presence coming. I followed my instincts and went and saw a young woman coming and a bunch of rowdy thugs coming the other way. If things got out of hand, I would've stepped in." explained Nic. She then nodded in understanding and went back to attend to her luggage. Nic thought she could use the hand in hauling all of that stuff. "Hey, do you want me to help you carry your supplies?" asked Nic, trying to be a gentleman.

She was in thought. _'He seems like a good guy. I'll let him tag along a little bit…but that magic, what was it? It didn't look like a Take Over, and it's not like my Requip. I'll have to keep an eye on him.'_ She then had him come over and haul the cart of luggage. He chose not to ask why she had all of this stuff, but did wonder as to where she was going.

"Where're you heading?" he asked.

She turned to him as he pulled with ease. "I'm off to Fairy Tail." She explained, which made Nic stop dead in his tracks.

"Fairy Tail? I go there!" Nic replied in shock. This made her turn around in surprise.

"You're in Fairy Tail?" she asked. Nic then turned around and pulled up his coat and shirt, revealing his Fairy Tail mark.

"Yeah!" Nic smiled, "I just joined yesterday. Me and this other blonde did so as well. I think her name's Lucy. Hold up, you go to Fairy Tail as well?" She then showed her blue Fairy Tail mark on her left shoulder.

"That's correct. I'm Erza Scarlet, Fairy Tail's S-Class Wizard." She exclaimed. Now Nic wasn't only smitten, but was in awe of such a heavily skilled warrior, though he then came to a realization.

'_Wait. If she's S-Class, then does that mean she's stronger than Natsu?'_ thought Nic, _'Natsu's already a flaming monster. Guess I should keep myself aware of her.'_ He then returned to pulling on the cart of luggage. "Guess my introductions are in order as well. I'm Nic Pularis, and I guess you can say I'm new to all of this."

Erza then turned to him confused. "New to what?"

"Magic. Guilds. Blowing stuff up. Do I really need a list for all of the stuff that I've been through the past three days?" he said. Now Erza was curious about him.

"You mean you never did magic? Then how come you did those attacks just now?" she questioned.

"Well, since you probably weren't there yesterday I should tell you…" Nic then explained all over again as to how he met the legendaries and came to this world with the powers of pokémon and how he had met Natsu, Happy, and Lucy.

When he mentioned Natsu and him teaming up to conquer Bora and destroying a harbor, she just sighed. _'Of course Natsu would destroy a harbor, but I never thought this guy could do as much damage. Still, his mission is like nothing I've ever heard of and that transformation he did confirms he's telling the truth.'_ She thought. And then he explains the events leading up to now. "I must say, that's an interesting story Nic", commented Erza, "I never would've guessed that another person from another world could do similar magic that I can do.

This made Nic jump. "Hold up! You mean you can use attacks to?!" Nic exclaimed. Erza looked away and thought of how her powers were correlated with his.

"Well, the only real similarity is that our outfits change. My powers can still differentiate depending on them though." Erza explained. Nic nodded in understanding.

"Ok." He then threw in a smile. Not a smirk, but a sincere smile. "I'd like to see that sometime."

Erza let on a light blush. Nic then mentally punched himself, saying he overdid it. He then shook his head and got back to reality. "Shall we press on?" he asked.

"Yes, I believe that's a good idea." Erza inquired. The two then decided to ruin the moment by pressing onwards. It was dark by the time they were a couple of miles off from Magnolia, so the two decided to make a fire, or Erza did. All Nic ever did was use Charizard's flame for a fire. While Erza made the fire, Nic stared off into space.

'_Man, I wonder how Natsu and the others are doing?'_ Nic thought. He then heard someone call for him.

"Hey Nic", Erza called out, "I got the fire started." He looked over to see Erza sitting on a log eating Strawberry Cheesecake, which intrigued Nic.

"Thanks. Erza, is that a cheesecake?" Nic questioned. Erza then raised a brow.

"Yeah, is that a problem?" Erza said is a threatening tone. For some odd reason, Nic wasn't scared. He got that she was tough, but her demeanor didn't make him shiver; then again, they were by a warm fire.

"Well, it's just that aren't sweets like those bad for your health?" He said. Erza just looked back down at her cake and thought about it. She then took a bite out of it again.

"Don't worry. I eat this stuff all the time, but I do appreciate your concerns though." She said with a small smile.

Nic smiled back. "Anything for a fellow guild mate." He then trailed off and saw the fire reflect off of her brown eyes. The light shining from her smooth skin, and the flames refleting off her scarlet hair, making her look like an inferno. "…wow…" he muttered. It wasn't until Erza looked up at him that he said it out loud. His brain finally caught up to what he said and he fell back in embarrassment. Erza knew he was gazing at her. She couldn't help but lightly blush at his combination of sudden sincerity and funny ways to avoid a moment. She smiled and resumed to eating her cake. Nic got back up, not wanting to say another word after his sudden embarrassment. He just gazed at the wood that was burning and drew a blank. His mind was as empty as his stomach. He forgot to eat something for lunch, but he just let that feeling slide, that is until his stomach unleashed a growl. He looked up in shock as Erza heard his stomach thunder about.

"Did you forget to eat?" She asked. Nic just looked down and sighed.

"Wel…yes." He admitted pitifully. Erza then finished the last of her cake and walked over to her luggage. She got out a whole entire steak she was planning to eat sometime.

"Here. We can cook this and eat." She implied. He didn't know what to drool at; the sight of that tender steak, or Erza. All he did was nod and they got cooking.

As they were preparing the steak, Nic tried to have another shot at a conversation. "So, Erza. What kind of magic do you use?" Nic asked. "You said your magic is a little like mine, but I'm curious as to what it really does.

Erza smiled. "Glad you asked that question Nic. You see, I use Requip Magic. Allow me to explain." Then she pulled out a board of diagrams from her luggage compartment. Nic was thinking this was school time. Erza then pointed a stick straight at his face and pointed it to the board. "Requip is when I use weapons that I keep in storage. Think of it as a bank account: you take some in, you take some out. My weapons go into what is called a pocket dimension, where it is 'stored'. When I switch out a weapon, it's 'requip'; however, I can not only can my weapons, but my armor changes as well. Each armor gives me a variety of abilities, and each one can use a variety of weapons to it." She explained this as she also used the diagrams to help aid in her explanation.

Nic got it. He understood. After that explanation, Erza stuffed it all away in a flash and sat back down. "Now, I do believe I get an answer from you. What's your power like?" she asked.

Nic knew it was only fair to answer back. "Well, you see this is how it works: Plates are infused inside of me, and each plate is different, all in all, there's eighteen of them. I can only unlock five at this point. Those five are Water, as you saw, Electric, Fire, Flying, and Poison. I can use attacks that are then related to the type of plate that's active. As you saw, I could only use Water Type attacks since the Splash Plate was active. The more plates I find, the more variety I have in typing." Erza understood thoroughly. In a way, their powers were identical.

The wind chill was low this evening. It was rather cold, and the fire wasn't doing much help. The strangest thing was that it was summer. Nic made a pouty face in a way that made him look like he was trying to concentrate. He then came up with an idea.

"I guess now's as good as time as any I guess." Nic proclaimed. He then stood up and got out a poke ball. Erza was curious as to what Nic was doing. "Say hello, Charizard!" Nic yelled. He threw the ball into the sky and the ball opened, bringing forth a light that went down and touched the ground behind Nic. The light took form and Charizard emerged.

Erza was wide eyed at this spectacle. "That's a pokémon?" she asked in shock. Charizard then approached her, curious as to who she was.

"Oh, don't worry Charizard. She's a friend." Nic explained. Charizard then turned towards Nic.

"Okay, but we all knew that because we can still here from inside our balls." Charizard explained. Nic nodded in understanding.

"I'm glad we can communicate thoroughly now." Nic admitted. Charizard nodded in agreement. Charizard just had its tail by the fire, making everyone that much warmer. Erza was so cozy she could just sleep right on the spot. Nic just wanted to eat, and Charizard wanted a piece of the steak. When the steak was done, it was divided up. Erza got a third, Charizard got a third, and Nic ate his share before anyone realized it. It wasn't long before everyone was fast asleep, with Charizard keeping them warm.

Morning came rather quickly and everyone woke up to see some light creeping up from the horizon. Nic didn't feel lie waking up, neither did Erza. Charizard was already up and found some berries to have for breakfast. Charizard was eating while the other two were rolling about, trying to avoid the sun. Charizard couldn't help but see how peaceful Nic and Erza were.

"Heh, love at first dawn." Charizard joked very quietly before resuming his breakfast. A few minutes went by and Erza decided it was time to get up.

"Alright Nic, get up." She said, getting to her feet.

"Someone hit the sun snooze button." Nic muttered, using his arm as a gesture for hitting an alarm. Erza sighed and went over towards his side and nudged his shoulder.

"It's time to get up. We have to get back to the guild." She insisted. Seeing that he couldn't fight it any longer, he slowly got up.

"Morning." He said.

"Morning."

The two then looked as the sun was beginning to climb up the sky. Nic then flipped open and put on his sunglasses, which made him feel good. Seeing the luggage, Nic had to think of something. Charizard gave a small belch, signifying the satisfaction of his meal. "Now I'm ready for a workout!" Charizard sighed in delight.

Nic then hatched an idea. He snapped his fingers and thought as to how this could work. "I got an idea!" Nic announced. Erza crossed her arms in wonder of what he was thinking. He then looked at Erza and smiled happily, which made her smile back. Nic then looked at his Charizard. "Charizard, fly Erza to Fairy Tail if you can." Nic commanded. Charizard then got up and stretched, ready to take action. Erza was shocked to see how or why Nic would do something like this.

Erza looked at Nic. "Are you sure?" she asked. Nic grinned at her.

"Consider this a thank you for the steak last night." He responded. Charizard then came over and hunched over, letting Erza climb onto it's back.

"It's okay, I won't drop ya." Implied Charizard. Erza then decided to take up Nic's offer and she climbed onto Charizard's back.

"I'll catch up later! Charizard, take it nice and easy for her!" Nic went over and hauled Erza's stuff back on the road. Charizrd then slowly went up in the air. Charizard went over towards the luggage and even picked up the large monster horn, showing his strength.

"You always go that extra mile, don't ya?" asked Nic. Charizrd just smirked and turned to fly with Erza and the horn in its claws. Erza held on pretty tight, but Charizard's done this before. He then began flying over towards Magnolia. Erza looked behind to see Nic pulling the cart. She couldn't help but think of how generous he's been.

'_Nic…he's got me smiling all over the place.'_ Thought Erza, who grinned.

Charizard flew at a low altitude so Magnolia wouldn't freak out. When they've reached Magnolia, Charizard came to a stop and descended. Charizard was aware that he had to keep a low profile, otherwise things would get out of hand. He put down the monster horn and had Erza climb off of his back.

"This is as far as I can take ya? Are you sure you can take it from here?" Charizard asked, hinting the monster horn.

"Don't worry, I'll be just fine." Insisted Erza. Charizard nodded and flew off to meet up with Nic. Erza then let out a huff of air and carried the horn all the way to the guild.

* * *

**At the Guild Hall…**

The guild was just as rowdy as always. Lucy was trying to find a job while Natsu and Gray were about to pick a fight with one another. Mirajane even transformed herself into Wakaba's wife just to make him stop flirting with her, which worked.

"Now let's see. What job to pick?" wondered Lucy, "Rent's due next week, so I have to find some money and quick." She then felt a mixture of warm and cold air behind her. She turned around and freaked out because Natsu and Gray were about to fight.

"You're going down flame brain!" proclaimed Gray.

"Says you popsicle!" retorted Natsu. They both were glowing auras and glared ferociously at one another. Before Natsu and Gray could throw any real punches Loke dashed right into the guild, all sweaty and troubled. Everyone looked at him to see what was going on.

"You guys! Terrible news! Erza's back!" This made everyone in the guild either shudder or scream.

"NO! Not Erza!" Someone cried out.

"Gah! Erza?!" Natsu and Gray exclaimed in unison, which then resorted to them glaring at one another for saying the same thing.

They all then heard footsteps coming. Natsu and Gray and everyone else just sweated in fear. Erza then entered the guild with the giant horn with a fierce and highly regarded demeanor in her eyes.

"Yo Erza-san, what is that thing?" Max asked. Max was a guild member that could use Sand Magic. Erza's one glare at him made him almost pee his pants.

"It's the horn of a monster I vanquished. The villagers were so grateful to me that they decorated it and gave it to me as a trophy. Why, is there a problem with it?" he said intimidatingly.

"N-n-no! No!" Max shuddered. Everyone else was quiet and quivered under her authority, all except Mira.

"Hello Erza, I trust things went well." Said Mira calmly said and smiles.

"Where is Master Makarov?" Erza asked.

"Oh, he went to a meeting to consult the other Guildmasters in Clover." Mira explained.

Erza then looked around the guild. "I've heard that this guild has been getting rowdy lately. Master Makarov may not care, but I do. This guild needs to get its priorities straight." She then began reprimanding some guild members for their habits. She scolded Cana for drinking, Wakaba for his smoking, and a bunch of other stuff that people do. "Macao, I'll let you off easy this time, but just because I got a good word from a certain someone." She said. "Also, there's a serious matter at hand. Normally, I would consult with the Master, but seeing that he's not here, I have no other option but to take action and act upon myself. Where's Natsu and Gray?"

Natsu and Gray then were hugging each other like they were brothers. They were both just terrified of her, so they had to be nice to each other to evade discipline.

"Right here Erza! Being the greatest friend that I can be!" Gray smiled wide.

"Aye!" Natsu said in agreement.

"What's with those two?! They're acting way different than what they were a minute ago!" Lucy exclaimed. Very quietly, Mira explained that Erza beat up Natsu a few years ago along with Gray for his stripping habit. Ever since then, the two have been afraid of her.

"It's nice to see you two getting along, although even the greatest of friends lock horns every now and again." Erza said.

'_Try always.'_ Lucy thought.

"Listen you two. This is very important. I could really use your help." Erza's need for help shocked everyone. Some even exclaimed that was inconceivable.

"The famous Titania asking for help!" "This must be big!" "Is this for real?!"

"Meet me tomorrow at the station tomorrow morning. Don't be late." Erza.

The two "friends" then looked at each other.

'_Natsu and I on the same team?!'_ Gray misbelieved.

'_Grrr, Gray. Why do I have to work with him?!'_ Natsu thought.

Mira then stepped in. "Erza, why not take Lucy with you, she's strong as well." Mira insisted.

"Wha-what?!" exclaimed Lucy. Erza then turned towards Lucy.

"I see, so you're Lucy. I've heard about you, how you aid in saving Macao. I look forward in working with you tomorrow." Erza said, which made Lucy quiver.

"I-I what?! Wait!" Lucy didn't have a single say in this matter. Erza then began to walk out and talked, but didn't turn around.

"Also…there's someone else joining us tomorrow." She then exited with her trophy. Mira thought deep with wide eyes.

'_Erza, Natsu, and Gray on the same team?! This could be the most powerful team that Fairy Tail has ever seen!'_ Mira thought.

Just as Nic arrived in Magnolia, with Charizard in his poke ball, he saw Erza walking up to him. He seemed rather pleased to have done something like this for her, even her ferocity didn't affect him. Erza stopped in front of him and grinned.

"I'm thankful for your deeds Nic." She stated. Nic just smiled as a reply. _'He sure does love to smile.'_ She thought.

"No problem, anything else?" Nic asked. Erza then got a serious look on her face, which made Nic feel serious to. Obviously this was important.

"I need your help. While I was away, I heard of something that troubled me. I'm having Natsu, Gray, and Lucy accompany me on this mission, and you'll be joining me as well. Meet me tomorrow at the train station in the morning. Be prepared." It was either the fact that Nic was going to spend some time with Erza, or the fact that more lives are act risk here, but Nic got a serious smirk on his face.

"I'm ready. I'll be there to aid in any way I can. You can count on me and my pokémon." Proclaimed Nic. Erza then nodded.

"Good." She then took her stuff and went away. Nic was standing there speechless. He thought that this was critical. If she was an S-Class Wizard asking for help, then this was a matter of upmost importance, meaning Nic had to be ready, though it might be easier said than done.

Nic just made the guild his home. If his clothes needed to be washed or cleaned, it wouldn't be an issue because everytime he switches plates his outfits are always refreshed. That night, Nic was gazing up at the ceiling alone. He couldn't help but think as to how to think of his simple training session led to him meeting a beautiful wizard. He chose to ignore that feeling for the rest of the night and went to sleep.

* * *

**The Next Morning at Magnolia Station…**

Natsu and Gray were causing a big ruckus in the train station. People were coming in and out of the train station, and Fairy Tail usually uses trains for transportation. This was gonna be a bumpy ride.

"Why would Erza have me team up with a flaming torch?! There's no way I would team up with you!" proclaimed Gray, holding up a fist.

"I don't get why that Erza would want me to work with such a moron. I hate this!" Natsu fumed. Their blue and red auras collided, making people around them walk away.

Lucy was sitting and sighed because of this predicament. "Let's just way we don't know them." Lucy sighed to Happy, who was eating a fish.

"Why'd you tag along in the first place?" Happy asked with a mouthful of fish.

"Because Mira told me to and to keep an eye on Natsu and Gray if they start fighting when Erza's not around." Lucy explained. Natsu and Gray were glaring the other down. Just the slightest twitch could set them off.

Elsewhere, Nic was walking along and passing by people, some were leaving saying they saw a flaming boy and another man arguing. He guessed them to be Natsu and Gray.

Yesterday, Lucy met up with Nic near the guild. She explained that she was tagging along on the mission and she needed help in keeping the flaming lizard and ice stripper sane, to which Nic complied. Lucy was so relieved to have someone help her in taming two wild beasts.

He soon made it to the spot where they were suppose to meet. He arrived at the same time as Erza, with her huge cart of luggage. The guys immediately went to their friendship façade, both trying to be friendly.

"Let's do this buddy!"

"Aye!"

Lucy was just shocked to see that huge load of luggage. "Holy cow! That's a lot of stuff!" Lucy exclaimed. Erza then turned to talk to Lucy.

"So, Lucy, you're new I take it? Glad to have you here." Erza said. Though Natsu and Gray wanted to fight each other, they couldn't because Erza was there. Whenever she turned to look at them, they turned to their friend mode. When she was talking to Lucy, they would glare aggressively at one another. "Mira said you were strong, so I don't doubt her. I'm happy to have you on board." Erza stated, which made Lucy feel uncomfortable.

Natsu then took one short glimpse off of Gray and noticed that Nic was there as well. "Nic!" Natsu exclaimed in joy. Nic went over and gave Natsu a fist bump.

"What did I miss?" Nic asked in a cool manner.

Natsu smirked. "Heh, you missed a lot buddy. We went on this mission and tried to get this book called Daybreak…" Natsu went on about how he formed a team comprised of him, Happy, and Lucy. He then explained how this guy named Duke Everlue tried to stop them with some bodyguards, but ultimately failed. He then told of how the writer of Daybreak put a spell on the book that would rewrite itself. The son of the author, Kaby Melon was also borrowing the house to look rich. Natsu didn't accept the money because they didn't actually destroy it.

"Man, that's a lot of info buddy." Exaggerated Nic.

"It sure is. Oh yeah! There's one more thing!" Natsu looked excited when he said it. He then stomped down and got in a fighting stance. "Nic, I challenge you to a battle!" His flames were on fire. There was no question. He was serious. Nic took this by surprise, even Erza was shocked.

Nic contemplated for a few quick moments and his mind formulated a win-win situation. Nic then stepped forward. "You know, we work well together. Perhaps even more so than you and Gray, but try and prove me wrong." Natsu was confused. This even got Gray provoked.

"What are you saying?" Gray demanded.

"Here's the deal: Natsu I'll fight you when we get back to the guild, on the condition that you and Gray work together throughout this mission. If you can manage that, then I'll battle you when we return to the guild. Sound fair?" Ntsu wasn't moving an inch, as to where Gray was all over the place.

"What kind of a deal is that?! I can't work well if this flame brain is frying up anything he touches!" exclaimed an angered Gray. Gray may not have cared, but Natsu really wanted to take on Nic. The two were powerful, but they'd never knew what would happen if their powers collided.

Natsu was pumped. "Alright, you got yourself a deal!" Natsu said with enthusiasm. Now he was blowing flames up into the air. "I'm al fired up!" The train was then going to depart, and the team was set to go Natsu grabbed Lucy and Happy and dashed for the train.

It wasn't even a minute into the ride and Natsu was developing motion sickness. He wasn't doing so well. Erza and Lucy sat in one seat while the guys sat on the opposite. Natsu had his head on the window as he was trying not to barf. Gray was in the middle, Happy was in Lucy's lap, and Nic was on the end, so he could burst out of the train the second it stops, besides the fact that he would be ready to spring into action at any given time.

"Natsu, how stupid can you get?" asked Gray, showing no sympathy to his comrade.

"He does this whenever he has any transportation other than Happy." Explained Lucy to Erza.

"Very well, Natsu come over here please." Erza implored. The dragon slayer then threw himself in between her and Lucy, where Erza asked him to settle in and that's when she punched his lights out, making him fall onto her lap, much to everyone's shock.

"Uh, was that necessary?" asked Nic.

"This is so that our train ride won't be annoying." Explained the scarlet wizard. Nic then had a sweat drop.

'_I guess this is what Cana meant.'_ Nic thought. Even so, he didn't find Erza that intimidating. He just thought she was a good person with a different approach to certain matters. Erza also had a good aspect of Nic. Even thought she was shown to be violent at some points, he was still kind enough to do things of his own accord. A little while rolled by and Nic came to realize that he could figure out everyone's magic abilities. Lucy can summon Celestial Spirits, Natsu can use Dragon Fire Slayer Magic, and Erza can Requip, but he wondered what Gray could do.

"Hey Gray, you mind if I ask what your magic consists of?" Nic asked. Gray looked over at the curious member and then he held out a hand and act as though he was clutching something. When he released his grip, a three inch replica of Fairy Tail's insignia took its place in the form of ice.

"I use Ice Maker Magic." Gray stated. Nic nodded in understanding. Gray then turned his attention over to Erza. "So Erza, what's all of this about.?"

"Of course. I have reason to believe that a Dark Guild known as Eisenwald is planning something." She explained. I'm not sure, but I do believe that it involves the magic item known as Lullaby…"

* * *

**Eisenwald Guild**

Some members were chatting on when they'd gathered at the guild's entrance leading out. A gut with white hair, marks all over his body, and a scythe lead them.

"I heard Kageyama finally got that seal off of that Lullaby." Said a guild member.

"Took him long enough." Said an impatient member. Their leader slowly walked towards the entrance and smirked.

"I believe that the time has come. We'll soon be able to reach our goals. The Guild Masters will be too busy talking on and on at their conference to even realize what's in store for them." Said their leader.

"So Erigor, when do we depart?" asked another member. Their leader turned around and pointed his scythe at him.

"We leave now." Erigor said with a sinister grin.

* * *

**Back on the train…**

"I'm only guessing, but the guys that took Happy were probably involved with Eisenwald that dropped out when they'd wanted no part in this plan of theirs." Erza stated.

"Makes sense to me." Said Gray. Gray explained that he met up with Natsu and his team when they were coming back from a request. He then told that some guys were from Eisenwald and they were defeated by the team. The ex-Eisenwald members were then eliminated when the Eisemwald members found them. They didn't want this plan of theirs to get out to any others' ear.

"What do you think's gonna happen?" asked Lucy.

"Let me start from the beginning." Erza said. "I was heading home the other day after I completed a job. I stopped by a local pub where it would be a lcal gathering stop for wizards. These guys were talking on about their frustrations about the location of Lullaby and how difficult it is to break such a member then said he would be back within three day's time." Lucy was beginning to process this. She thought she heard that name somewhere before.

"Lullaby? That sounds like something you'd sing to a kid to make them fall asleep." Lucy said.

"Yes, and the fact that it was sealed away meant that it consists of powerful magic. I was such a fool. I'd recognized their leader's name just afterwards. Erigor, the Ace of Eisenwald. He's only satisfied with assassination jobs, which gave him the name 'Erigor the Reaper'." Erza explained thoroughly.

The thought of death by slaughter made Nic's skin crawl. "So you're saying he makes a living by killing. That's ironic, and not in a good way", Nic thought, "Is that why they were classified as a Dark Guild?"

Erza then looked at Nic. "Somewhat. When the Magic Council banned assassination jobs, Eisenwald chose money over authority. They were kicked out of their wizard league six years ago and continued being active to this day." She then pounded Natsu's head, not realizing it because she was too caught up in cursing at herself. "I'm such a fool. If I'd known Erigor's name that day, I could've pulverized the answers out of them." She scolded herself.

"Whoah. Okay, I wanna go home now." Lucy shuddered.

"Hey Lucy, why are you looking slimy?" Happy asked.

"It's sweat!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Don't beat yourself up over this", said Nic, "At an rate, if Lullaby was what Eisenwald is after, and they took assassination requests, if you try to put two and two together, then Lullaby must be used to cause a certain death." Indicated Nic. This shocked everyone. They never knew Nic could be so decisive when he's serious to the bone.

"You might be right; however, we can't confirm if Lullaby is even capable of doing such a thing, but that's a thought to keep in mind." Praised Erza.

"I see. Eisenwald is plotting something and you want to stop them, all because of what you overheard?" Gray said.

"That's right, and I'm not foolish enough to take on an entire guild all on my own. That's why I asked you guys for your help." Erza admitted. She then got a fierce look in her eyes. "We're storming the Eisenwald guild." This made Lucy almost drown in sweat, causing Happy to fly over onto Nic's lap. Gray was pumped for this mission.

"Now that sounds like fun to me." He smirked.

"Aye!" Happy said in agreement.

* * *

**Onibus Station**

It didn't take long for the team to reach Onibus Station after said explanantion. Happy sat idly on the luggage that Nic had decided to pull on his own accord, which pleased the scarlet maiden. The team then began to set off.

"Maybe I should've gone home." Lucy mumbled.

"Hold on." Nic realized. Everyone then came to a halt.

"Why? What is it?" Erza asked in wonder. She then noticed that Nic was doing a head count. When he realized something, he went wide eyed and ran back to the train.

"Hey!" Gray shouted, now chasing after him. Nic stopped to see that the train had departed, along with a certain flaming numbskull.

Everyone then caught up to him. "Did we forget something?" asked Lucy.

Nic slowly turned around with a dreadful look. "I'll give ya a hint: He has motion sickness." Everyone paused and gasped.

"Gah! We forgot Natsu!" Lucy shrieked.

"I was so busy talking I forgot about him." Erza said. She then held a fist and clenched it, looking troubled. "I'm such a fool! Natsu hates all forms of transportation! This is all my fault! Please, someone hit me for my penance!"

Nic then had a sweat drop and turned. "Don't beat yourself up over this. We'll just go fetch him." Explained Nic. He then brought out a poke ball. Erza and the others had a pretty good idea as to what he was doing. "Come on out, Greninja!" Nic shouted. Greninja then came out and looked at Nic. "Alright, catch up to that train and get Natsu out of there, we'll catch up as soon as we can." Nic ordered. The Ninja Pokémon nodded in understanding.

Knowing that he was the fastest and the swiftest member on Nic's pokémon team, Greninja knew he would catch up in no time. Everyone was surprised by the speed of second it was in front of them, and the next second he was gone. _'I'm surprised that Charizard wasn't called for the job; then again, I do have the highest speed on the team. Add the fact that I can get in and out without causing my destruction.' _thought Greninja as it dashed,

Nic then turned back to his friends. "Now…does anyone have any way of catching up to the train?" The group then hired a Magic Mobile. It was a car that was powered by Magic that goes through a SE plug. Erza took it upon herself to be the driver. Nic managed to find an emergency brake for the train, which would by them some time. Erza was speeding along with Lucy, Happy, and Gray riding inside with Nic clinging on the top. Normally, people would be freaking out, but the fact was that Nic loved to go fast. It made him that much energetic.

"WOOOOOOH!" he screeched as the Magic Mobile was accelerating at an alarming rate. It was reaching speeds close to 80 maybe even 90 mph. Erza didn't bother to slow down. She would drain her Magic power by doing so, but had to catch up to her forgotten friend.

Nic was enjoying the ride, but then notice that the SE plug in Erza's right wrist looked as though it was draining liquid. Even though it wasn't suppose to be harmful, Nic couldn't help but think if that could've been blood being drained. His enjoyment was short lived and his face paled. He then just plopped his face down on the roof and tried to close his eyes while begging for this ride to end soon so he didn't have to see that accursed SE plug again.

* * *

**At that same time, on the train…**

Natsu was sitting up on the train seat. He groaned to a great degree, and he was the only person in the train car. It wasn't long until the car door slid open and a young man with short black hair with a pontail came in.

The man noticed that Natsu's mark was signifying his affiliation with Fairy Tail. The man just sneered. "Heh, so you're a member of Fairy Tail. How miserable." The man then stomped Natsu in the face. What made things even harder was that Natsu couldn't move due to motion sickness. "You official guilds are too formal. We Dark guilds simply abide by our own rules, no need to feel put down."

Natsu was shaking to the bitter core. He was all fired up to give this guy a beat down; that is, if he could move. With whatever strength he could summon, he got his flaming fists at the ready, to which Kageyama stepped back. Natsu was on his feet and was prepared to attack.

"It looks like we've got ourselves a rowdy one." Said Kageyama.

"You…" that was the only word Natsu could say before his flames turned off and his face turned rather sour.

Kageyama just sneered at him even more. "Let me give you a demonstration as to what real Magic can do!" a purple seal then emerged from his feet and his shadow extended out and struck Natsu, sending him soaring to the ground.

It was in that instant that Kageyama was about to attack again that Greninja shot Dark Pulse straight through the window for interception. Kageyama stuttered back in shock as Greninja leaped through the window between Natsu and Kageyama.

"Who the heck are you?!" Kageyama demanded. Greninja just looked back at Natsu, seeing as how motion sickness was taking a toll on him. He then looked back at the Shadow Mage and frowned.

"You got some nerve, taking a man down when he can't fight!" Greninja growled. Before anything could be said and done, the train stopped (via the emergency brake back with Nic and the rest of the team). Greninja jerked a little while Kageyama fell forward, having a flute with a three-eyed skull on it drop.

With the motion sickness at a halt, Natsu began to get to his feet. Greninja and Natsu both then took note of the object.

"What is that?" Natsu wondered.

"Y-you saw it!" Kageyama worried. Before anything could be done about the flute, Natsu clashed his two fists with a fiery red dragon seal on it.

"It's time for some payback! **Iron Dragon Iron Fist!**" He then lunged at him.

With his guard got off, Kageyama stepped back. **"Guard Shadow!**" A wall of shadows then spiked up, protecting Kageyama. Natsu made contact and there was an explosion, wrecking everything in the train car. Kageyama was busy getting up while Natsu had a fist in the air.

"Lucky shot." Muttered the Shadow Wizard.

"You making fun of my guild?!" steamed Natsu. The announcements then came on.

"Attention passengers, our emergency stop was a false alarm. We will be moving again momentarily.' The announcements said. This wasn't good for Natsu. This meant he had so much time to either defeat him or get off the train.

'_Oh crap!'_ thought Natsu. "I gotta go!" he then grabbed his stuff from above his seat.

"Hold it right there!" shouted Kageyama, "You're not getting away that easily. You're at the mercy of Eisenwald now!"

Natsu then looked back at the angered Kageyama. "Eisenwald huh. How about we take this outside!" The train then began to move, and Natsu was trying not to barf.

Outside, the Magic Mobile was just approaching. Nic was on the top and saw a somewhat beaten up cart. Upon that, Nic immediately got up and frowned. _'Natsu, you even have to make demolition inside a train_.'Nic mentally sighed.

Inside the cart, Natsu was close to collapsing due to motion sickness. Greninja caught him just in time. Greninja then glared at Kageyama as he picked up the flute. "This isn't over ya know!" Greninja said. He then used Smokescreen as a cover, making Kageyama cough and block his vision. It was with that opportunity that Greninja leaped out of the train with Natsu and get away.

The guys in the Magic Mobile saw the two jump off the train. Fortunately, it was up ahead. Erza quickly pulled over, almost knocking everyone and the vehicle over. She and the others got out of the vehicle and ran up to Natsu and Greninja.

"Natsu, are you alright?" asked Erza.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Greninja came at just the right time." Natsu said, giving Greninja the credit he deserved.

"I apologize Natsu." Erza said. She then grabbed Natsu's head and thrust it into her breast plates, which did hurt.

"It's okay!" Natsu muttered. Nic couldn't help but feel mental pain. That thrust into the chest armor would definitely hurt. Maybe even a potential concussion.

In that note, Natsu spoke. "I was attack buy a weird guy, saying he was from Eisenwald." Erza then snapped and slapped Natsu to the ground.

"You idiot! That is exactly who we're after! How could you let him get away?! I explained everything on the train!" Nic then intervened before things got out of hand.

"Erza," Nic said, making an irritated scarlet woman turn to him. "You punched his lights out remember? This is the first time he's heard of this." Upon realizing this, Erza gasped.

"I'm so sorry. Please hit me for my penance at once." Erza said. Natsu just shrugged it off and everyone sighed.

Greninja then added something. "Hey, guys. While the train stopped, that man that attacked Natsu had some weird flute with three-eyed skull." He said. This made Lucy think.

"A three-eyed skull…" Lucy was searching through her memory, thinking about that flute.

"What is it Lucy?" Happy asked.

"I've heard about that flute before…Lullaby, the cursed song! It's Death Magic!" This made everyone nearly gasp. "There's deadly spells that can kill the person they're used on, to make things worse, Lullaby is far more dangerous. That flute was Lullaby!" The second they all heard that, everyone got back into the Magic Mobile. Nic returned Greninja to his poke ball and Natsu, Gray, Happy, and Lucy got in. Erza then went full speed and made the vehicle rock a little.

"Erza, you're using too much Magic!" Gray exclaimed. Erza just ignores him and continues to push herself.

"We don't know what Eisenwald is planning. We have to catch up to them and fast!" Erza said.

* * *

**Kunugi Station**

The station was being overrun by Eisenwald. A bunch of woman shrieked in horror as a fellow conductor was stabbed by Erigor's scythe. People were scurrying in a panic.

"Get everything off. The luggage, the people, and don't hesitate to kill any stragglers!" commanded Erigor. Kageyama then came off the train and met up with Erigor.

"Ah, Kageyama. I heard that you were coming by train. Took you long enough." Noted Erigor. Kageyama then handed the flute over to the deranged scythe wielder.

"Finally got that accursed seal off, sorry for the wait." Said Kageyama.

"At last. Lullaby is mine. Said to have been a weapon created by Zeref. It can kill hundreds, even thousands!" Erigor then noticed the cart that Kageyama stepped out of. It was a mess. "What happened here?" Erigor demanded.

"Don't worry about it. Some flies simply needed to be swatted, but they buzzed off." Kageyama explained. Erigor then had a nasty glare.

"Did they see Lullaby?" he asked.

"They didn't a long look; besides, they're too late. Fairy Tail has some screw offs that simpl- " This made Erigor hold the scythe to his neck.

"You idiot! You let a Fairy Tail wizard see the Lullaby and get away?!" Erigor was not pleased.

"B-bu-but it's not like he know our plans!" Kageyama pointed out. Erigor then retracted his scythe and held it over his shoulder.

"True, but we can't afford to take any risks. Once we reach Clover, you men must swat these pesky flies!" All men then abided by his order and got on the train for Clover.

* * *

**Not long after, in the town of Oshibana Station…**

The Magic Mobile was going through the streets like a wild animal. Erza was using too much Magic.

"Erza, you're exhausting too much Magic!" Nic proclaimed. Erza just smirked.

"If I lose Magic, then I'll rely on hand-to-hand combat!" she replied. Nic looked down in wonder.

'_Geez. Talk about guts.'_ Nic thought. He then looked back at the SE plug and paled, thinking what if that was blood. He held on tight, but kept his head down. She then came to a screeching halt. The sudden stop was caused by the large group of citizens gathered around Oshibana Station. This stop send Nic flying forward straight through the crowd. The fact that Erza was going about 80 to 90 mph meant that (due to Newton's Laws) he flew overhead the crowd and crashed into the officer leaving them out of the scene, rendering the man unconscious. Nic slowly arise, and Erza and the others caught up to him.

"…well he ain't gonna talk." Gray said looking at the unconscious officer. Erza then looked at the other two and gave glares, of which the officers shuddered. Without warning, she went and head butted them asking them what's going on.

A sweat dropped from Lucy. "Seems as though Erza's questioning methods are counterproductive." She determined.

"That's Erza for ya." Gray said.

"Gray, your clothes." Said Nic, to which Gray was shocked.

The group then went inside the station with nothing stopping them. The trio was running about in the station. Lucy was given the greatest honor of carrying around poor Natsu, who was motion sick the entire time. The group saw what looked like the Royal Army. They were in no condition to move and some were badly damaged. All Nic could do was grit his teeth and press onwards.

Eventually, they heard a chuckle from above and afar. "Welcome. Step into the web of despair you flies." Erigor announced. They all saw an entire guild up ahead, including Kageyama. There were at least one hundred people.

Lucy was so frightened, she accidentally dropped Natsu, whom Happy attended to.

Erza looked up at the white haired scythe wielder. "I take it that you're the one they call 'Erigor the Reaper'?" Erza boldly stated. All he did was chuckle in delight that Erza spoke of his nickname.

"Hey, you. It's your fault that I got in trouble!" Kageyama growled at Natsu. Natsu heard this voice and remembered it well.

Natsu got up, recovered from a triple combo motion sickness (Train + Magic Mobile + Lucy) and saw Kageyama.

"You!" Natsu growled back.

Erza was still in need of answers. "I'm not intimidated by any of you. I demand to tell us of your plans!"

"Oh, so you're not aware then huh?" Erigor said amused. He then flew up in the air. "Tell me, what do train stations have?" Erigor asked above.

Nic wasn't sure, so he threw in some wild guesses. "People?" Nic asked.

Erigor then sat on a broadcast sound device thingamajig. "All places have people you idiot!" implied the reaper.

"Tickets?"

"No."

"Train tracks?"

"No!"

"Part-time custodians?"

"NO! You dim-witted numbskull! It's a broadcaster! I'm sitting on one! Get it?!" yelled an agitated Erigor.

"Oooooooh!" Nic said in understanding. "…hey wait a minute, you're gonna broadcast Lullaby! Aren't ya!" Nic proclaimed.

"That's right! I'm cleansing this world of people who make their rights dear to their hearts. Those who paid no attention to those who had their rights stripped away. They committed a sin on not realizing insustice."

"That isn't going to make matters for you any better!" Lucy stated.

"Who cares! Soon we'll have power and then take control of the future!" Erigor clutched his fists in confidence.

Kageyama then made a seal at his feet and his shadows went to attack. "By the time this Dark Era emerges, you fools will be history!" The shadows then escalated and were coming down on Lucy. Natsu used his flaming fists and brushed the shadow attack away, shocking Kageyama.

"Well look at what we have here, a party!" Natsu cracked his knuckles. Lucy looked at him in concern.

"It's not a party, they're villains!" Lucy corrected.

"Like I said, a party!"

Nic then stepped forward, joining Natsu in the fight. "That's right. It's a party, and every single one of them is the piñata that we're about to smash open!" implied Nic.

Erigor then began to float off. "Don't let them enter our beloved Dark Era that will rise!" Erigor then vanished into thin air. Shocking Lucy and Happy.

"Natsu! Gray! Work together to stop Erigor!" she then turned to see them glare furiously at each other. "What did I say?!" Erza scolded. The two then ran off with their nice-guy acts to find and stop Erigor. Now that left only Happy, Nic, Lucy, and Erza.

Kageyama and a mummy guy went off to stop Natsu and Gray, and the rest were facing off against the four that were left.

"Let's do this!" Erza shouted. She then used her Requip Magic to change her oufit. She began to glow and change. She now had plated armor covering her chest with a large metal flower over it. She has large skirt with metal plates on the upper half. Her neck and stomach were uncovered, and had large metal wings with individual blades. It was her Heaven's Wheel Armor.

Nic thought Erza was hot before, but the site of that almost made him blush. He had to focus and admiration could come later. Nic turned to Lucy. "Lucy, find some cover. This is gonna get rough." Nic stated.

Lucy then backed away, as well as Happy. Nic then began to glow as well. Nic transferred over to the Zap Plate, hoping to get a charge out of it (Hah! Pun.). The earbuds in his ear now were larger and yellow two one small red lightning bolt on both ends. They were connected by a metal wire that went down to his phone that was in his pockets. His pants looked worn out and his shoes were yellow with gold stripes going all about. The spikes in this form were running spikes. His T-Shirt was yellow with a golden collar. His sunglasses were hanging on his collar and remained unchanged, except for the little red lightning bolts on the sides. His sleeveless coat looked torn on the shoulders which made him look like a punk. His coat was black all over and the blue flames were replaced with yellow zig-zags that raced to his lower back.

Even Erza was enamored by his change, though she didn't want to show it. She then focused on trying to take down these guys. The two contenders then leaped and went in for their attack.

"**Spark!**"Nic's body then was cloaked in electricity and he rammed into multiple people like a football player. At least ten people were damaged. Erza easily slashed at multiple people, their weapons all shattering from her sword slashing. She got twenty in one attack. One guy was about to strike her down from behind, but Nic got him just in time.

"**Charge Beam!**" a little orb was then in Nic's two palms and the orb unleashed a concentrate blast that send the guy through the wall, it also increased Nic's Special Attack as a bonus. Erza looked in shock. She was almost attacked from behind and was saved. She turned to Nic surprised. "You okay?" Nic asked. Erza nodded, noting she should watch his back as well.

Erza knocked out another ten in one attack, and Nic used Electro Web and shocked five and used a Thunderbolt on another five. Multiple guys were being taken out like the trash. Erza then decided to finish this. "Dance, my blades!" she ordered. About twenty or so swords then surrounded her like a wheel. The swords then began spinning rapidly and then were pointed at the foes.

"I call upon the power of lightning! Zap Plate give me strength to vanquish these foul people and shock them of their own ambitions!" yelled Nic. A huge thundercloud then emerged over the remaining bad guys.

At this point, Lucy was freaking out. "Whoa! And here I thought Erza could be scary!" shuddered Lucy.

"Aye!" confirmed Happy,

"**Circle Sword!**"

"**Thunder!**"

The swords then separated and were send flying into the opponents, and at the same time a huge thunderbolt crashed down on the guys. The two attacks were more than enough to defeat the whole guild three times over. The Eisenwald guild members were defeated and both Nic and Erza reverted back to themselves. Erza then got down to one knee, exhausted.

"Erza! Are you okay?" Nic asked. Erza looked up at him and smiled.

"I just overdid it a little. Gray was right, I used too much Magic for that Magic Mobile." Erza was exhausted. Nic then got down and had her used him as support. When they finally got to Lucy, Erza was able to get on her two feet.

"You guys, that was amazing!" exclaimed Lucy.

"Thanks, but we're not out of the woods yet." Nic then handed Erza over to Lucy.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Lucy asked, having an uneasy Erza leaning on her. Nic then turned to leave. "Happy, stay with them until Natsu or Gray come back!"

"Aye!" Happy replied.

"Wait, Nic!" Erza yelled. Nic then turned to face Erza. "You two need to warn the public to evacuate now! I'll try and see if he's outside! Erza, don't do anything reckless got it?" Nic then turned away and ran out of the station without having to hear Erza's answer.

"Be safe, Nic." She slowly whispered softly.

Lucy and Hapy then supported Erza to the nearest mega phone. They soon reached the roof of the place and Erza was on two feet. The large crowd then watched as she speaked. "ATTENTION! THIS IS URGENT! IF YOU VALUE YOUR LIVES YOU WILL LEAVE AT ONCE! THE GROUP OF BAD WIZARDS HAVE A WEAPON THAT CAN KILL YOU ALL! RUN NOW!" she projected over the mega phone. Everyone, including the officers she head butted from earlier, ran away. She, Lucy, and Happy then looked as they fled. When they turned their backs, they gasped as they saw a giant barrier of wind encasing the station.

"Wh-what is that?!" Lucy shrieked. They all saw Erigor then float behind them.

"It's a shame. Dealing with you Fairy Tail flies would be fun; however, I have much bigger priorities." With a motion from his hands and all three were send through the Wind Barrier. All thre crashed inside, now they too were stuck. Erza tried breaking through, but the barrier made her bounce off.

"Erza!" Lucy shouted. Erza then growled.

"Erigor!" Erza screamed. Erigor then grinned and flew off, leaving the barrier to suppress them.

* * *

**With Gray**

Gray took the path on his right and went into the studio, where Erigor was nowhere to be found. Instead, he was busy dealing with an Eisenwald member that had mummy appendages. He was binding Gray and lashing at him over and over. Gray's constant use of Ice Make Magic was putting the guy on ice, quite literally.

"**Ice Make: Knuckles!**" he then send the guy soaring. Now Gray had him by the shirt and was threatening him.

"Tell me what the plan is!" Gray demanded.

The mummy guy was pretty cocky. "Heh, we lured you here so that Erigor could keep you sealed up and so no traffic could stop us from reaching our final destination." He explained. "We didn't want any trains going to Clover."

"Yeah, why?"

"Because that's where Lullaby is heading. The only way to Clover was by going through the canyon that was between here and there. Unless you can fly like Erigor, you won't make it there. And think of what else is in Clover." He then whipped Gray with his black mummy wraps and send him soaring.

Gray finally got it. _'Dammit. So they're going to use Lullaby on the Guild Masters.'_ He then was lashed again and binded by the mummy person..

"Soon we'll have our revenge for those who kept us down!" proclaimed the guy. Gray then froze the bandages and the Eisenwald member's limbs.

"That's not gonna happen!" proclaimed Gray. "You mess with the Guild Masters, then you're messing with all of us!" He then completely froze the guy and left him where he was. "Now I gotta go find Natsu." Gray then rushed to help Natsu.

With the team stuck in the Wind Barrier, Erigor progressed onward to Clover. Little did anyone know, he was being tailed.

* * *

**I got done super early this week. I had two snow days in a row, so I got this chapter done in three days. I didn't like the Daybreak Arc at all because I thought it had no significance, so I had Nic stay away from that one. Maybe the Galuna Arc as well, but we'll see. **

**Again, apologies to Alpha Dragonis for making the first chapter much like his, I'm trying to make it as original as I can.**

**I'm still thinking about Nic's pokémon team. I got five figured out, but not sure about the sixth, I'll see if I can manage something. Shouldn't be that hard.**

**I chose to stop after Gray defeated the Mummy Wizard because I was afraid I was getting close to my limit, which was 12K. So guys, expect the rest of the Lullaby Arc to be finished the next chapter. I can't make promises that updates will be this quick, but I will get a bit done every night. If I ever get a school cancellation due to weather, I'll work on FanFiction all day. Also review please! Review!**

* * *

**Next Time: Nightmares in the Wind**


	3. Nightmares in the Wind

Chapter 3 – Nightmares in the Wind

**Hey people! I finally updated. This update was rather fast. I had to get a few things done, so I had to do bit by bit every night. Let's get rolling!**

**To Recap:**

Instead of going with Natsu, Happy, and Lucy on a job, Nic decided to leave town for the day and do some training. During that time, he encountered Erza Scarlet, who he found heavily appealing. The two bond throughout the day and arrive home the next day, only to go out on a mission to prevent Eisenwald from doing something dangerous with Lullaby. The group then fought against numerous Eisenwald guild members and was stuck inside a Wind Barrier. Erigor proceeds further to Clover to kill the guild master, but he doesn't realize he's being tailed.

* * *

**Chapter 3 – Nightmares in the Wind**

As Gray was finishing up with Reyule, Natsu was trying to find Erigor somewhere in the station. He was running in the opposite direction that Gray was heading and ran at high speed. He, however, did not take into account of a certain Shadow Wizard that was tailing him. Natsu soon barge from room to room. Erigor was nowhere to be found, but that didn't stop him. He was shooting fire all about, trying to find him.

"Erigor! Come out, come out wherever you are!" Natsu demanded as he blasted away. Natsu eventually made it to a room with a bunch of boxes stacked everywhere. He was taking a few breaths and felt some presence behind him. By the time he turned around, Kageyama emerged from the shadows and attacked Natsu with his shadows, sending him crashing into a bunch of wooden boxes.

"That felt good! Had enough you insect?" mocked Kageyama. Natsu struggled a little to get up, but eventually made it up on his own two feet. But what was off was that his face was in a wrecked portrait, making him look like a child with an overgrown angered face.

"NOT YOU AGAIN!" roared Natsu. There was an awkward silence as Kageyama took in the stupidity that Natsu had brought upon himself.

"…wow. You look like an idiot." Said Kageyama.

"Shut up Doggy!" scolded Natsu.

"It's Kage!" reprimanded Kageyama. "Anyway, I think I've figured it out now. You eat flames to increase your strength. That wasn't hard at all really."

Natsu then burned away the portrait with his anger and his face was on fire. "Now I really wanna give you a trashing but I haven't the time! Tell me where Erigor is!"

"Why don't you make me." Kageyama insisted with a smugged grin. "**Knuckle Shadow!**" A seal then emerged from under him and gave Natsu multiple uppercuts. Natsu quickly reacted and got his feet under him.

"So, I get to kick your butt AND get the info I want? Sounds like a great deal! I'm all fired up!" Natsu and Kageyama then went into a heated battle. Natsu kept avoiding Kageyama's assaults and Natsu kept shooting flames.

"**Shadow Orochi!**" His shadows then shaped into snakes that lunged at Natsu. Natsu didn't even flinch as a multitude of them came down on him.

"**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**" Natsu's fists then unleashed a whiplash of flames that destroyed the shadow snakes in one shot, shocking the Shadow Wizard.

"Whoa! He-he took them down in one shot! I had no idea wizards like that existed!" Kageyama exclaimed. He then stood frozen in fear as Natsu unleashed a fireball down on him, shaking the entire building about.

As the smoke cleared, Kageyama was against a wall that wasn't broken by Natsu. The walls around were charred. Natsu then emerged from the room that he blasted Kageyama out of. "Man, I was trying not to mess the place up this time, oh well. Sorry I had to take you down Diarrhea." Natsu said.

"It's Kageyama! Get it right!" he yelled.

"Yeah, yeah. Tell me where Erigor is." Natsu's patience was wearing thin. Kageyama just chuckled.

"He's long gone. He's on his way to Clover to kill the guild masters as we speak." Kageyama confessed. Just then, Erza and the others appeared. She, Gray, Lucy, and Happy finally caught up to him.

"Natsu, we need him alive!" she shouted, running towards them. She then pulled out a sword and held it to Kageyama's neck, almost cutting Natsu in the process.

"You will dispel the Wind Barier and do so without hesitation!" Erza demanded. Kageyama shuddered in fear.

"Just do it man! This chick's a real monster!" Natsu wailed, warning the frightened Shadow Wizard. Just then, a hand went straight through Kageyama's abdomen through the wall behind him, which shocked everyone. Erza stepped back in shock.

"Why…Karacka?" Kageyama muttered as he fell to the floor. Erza immediately tried to pick him up.

"Crap! He was our only way out!" Gray said. Natsu looked about in shock as Kageyama laid there unconscious and Karacka was in a mental shock as he thought of how he had to kill Kageyama as an order.

"Don't you die on me!" Erza ordered, holding an unconscious wizard.

Natsu was angry. He had his fists on fire, and eventually his entire body as well. "You tried killing your own friend…you…HOW COULD YOU! HE WAS A MEMBER OF YOUR GUILD AND YOU WENT BEHIND HIS BACK!" Ntsu roared. Karacka immediately fled behind the wall he phased through, but that didn't stop Natsu. "HOW COULD YOU?!" His flaming fists broke the wall and knocked Karacka out in the process. "Is that how you Dark Guilds treat each other?!"

As Natsu thrashed the sense into Karacka, Erza was trying to get Kageyama to get up. She tried shaking him, but was no use.

"Erza stop! There's no way he can use his Magic in his condition!" Gray insisted.

"If I force him to he will!" Erza insisted, still shaking him up. Lucy and Happy looked on as the useless efforts kept going.

"Uh, I don't think that's helping." Lucy muttered. Happy then looked about, thinking that there was someone missing. Then it hit him.

"Hold up, where's Nic?" wondered Happy. The team then stopped and looked at Happy, realizing that Nic wasn't there with them. Natsu looked back at Happy,thinking that Nic went off somewhere else.

"Where is he?" Lucy wondered.

Erza thought for a moment while getting up, having Kageyama use her as support. _'Nic, did you go to fight Erigor?'_ Erza thought.

* * *

**Clover Canyon**

The only way across the Clover Canyon was a single train line that stretched all the way to Clover, which was where Erigor was heading. Erigor was looking out at the sight of Clover in the fair distance.

"I'm so close." Erigor stated. "The Magic energy I used for that Wind Barrier should be recharged anytime now. I'm gonna make them all pay for taking away our rights!" He then began to fly up and proceed further, but then he felt the presence of something. The problem was that he couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from. He looked in all directions around him, but didn't get the chance to look up as he was struck down onto the rails. He gasped as he tried to get up. He then heard feet land in front of him, blocking his path. He then looked up to see Nic standing in his way.

"Erigor." Nic growled. Nic was using his Sky Plate form to catch up with Erigor. Nic's coat was a sky blue with white, puffy clouds going from the bottom to his thighs. His shoes were light blue and had white stripes all about. His shirt was white and his sunglasses were on his face and the casing around the lenses were a light blue. He also had a large pair of wings that was almost double his arm span.

Erigor got up in shock. He didn't expect to be followed. "How did you escape my Wind Barrier? It's impenetrable!" Erigor proclaimed.

"I was never inside of it in the first place. As I was running out of the station, I saw some wind stirring up behind me. The next thing I knew was that a huge tower of wind surrounded the station. I figured that I had to stop you in order to free my friends, which brings me to right now." Nic explained.

'_Tsk! I had just missed him! These Fairy Tail flies are such a nuisance.'_ Erigor thought. He then brought forth his scythe. "Very well then. Since you're so persistent, why don't I make this quick and finish you here!" Erigor said.

"We'll see ya blow hard!" Nic retorted. He then spread his wings and took flight. He then came down on Erigor from an angle. "**Wing Attack!**" His wings then lit up and Erigor blocked using his scythe, but Nic easily caught Erigor off guard as he circled around at the last moment and struck him from behind, causing him to fall forward.

"Damn. He's more agile than I had expected." Erigor quietly stated as he got up.

Nic was standing there and contemplating about his own predicament. _'I haven't used this plate before, so I might be at a disadvantage if it comes to a long range fight. If he uses a long range spell and I get caught up in it, I'm going to be in trouble. That scythe is another problem. He can block close range attacks as well. I'm just going to have to keep him off guard for the time and strike in whatever means necessary.'_ Nic thought.

Erigor then made a seal. "**Storm Bringer**!" A huge tornado then swallowed up Nic. Wind was pounding him from all sides of his body. He could feel the pressure engulfing him as he swirled about. He was eventually spit out from the top and began falling down the side of the cliff. Nic quickly spread his wings and stopped falling. He was only one hundred feet below Erigor, so it wasn't too far down he fell. He soared straight back up, much to Erigor's surprise.

"What?!" Erigot yelled.

"Well it looks like I wasn't wrong calling you a blow hard, but now let's see how you like a taste of your own medicine." Nic shouted. His wings then began glowing a light blue and he began flapping tremendously. "**Hurricane!**" A huge tornado then formed and sucked Erigor in, trapping him and he grunted as he was caught up in the attack. When the tornado dispersed, Erigor remained air born.

"It seems that I have underestimated you Fairy Tail pests." Erigor said. He then made a seal in front of him and more wind was conjured up. "**Storm Mail!**" He then went to strike Nic with himself cloaked in violent wind.

Nic then lunged up at Erigor at a high speed. "**Aerial Ace!**" He then collided with Erigor. The two were in a neck and neck brawl. The wind was clashing with Nic as he tried to push forward. He then had his wings lit up. "Let's see how you like this!" He then backed off and brought his wings back and let loose a strong multitude of tiny air saucers as he brought his wings forward. "**Air Slash!**" His attack then ripped right through Erigor's spell and send him hurling back down to the bridge.

"Impossible! He went through my Wind Mail?!" exclaimed Erigor in disbelief. Nic stayed stationary in the air as he looked down at the shocked wizard.

"It's called 'Air Slash' for a reason pal!" Nic informed. Erigor wasn't pleased that he was at an even match against Nic. _'Natsu, Lucy, Happy, Gray, Erza, you guys hang on.'_ Nic mentally pleaded as he went back to focusing on his fight against Erigor.

* * *

**Oshibana Station**

The group made it outside and saw that the Wind Barrier was still going on strong.

"Our only means of reaching Clover is cut off at the moment. If we dispel it now, then we should be able to catch up to him." Erza informed.

"We should be able to use the Magic Mobile, but we need to get out of this blasted thing." Gray stated. Out of the blue, Natsu unleashed a flaming fist, but the wall easily made it bounce off. Natsu fell backwards, but refused to quit.

Erza tried to get Kageyama to wake up, but it wasn't working. She tried budging him multiple times and tried shaking him up even more, but that didn't help the situation at all.

Natsu refused to quit. "I'm breaking through this thing one way or another!" Natsu proclaimed. Natsu repeatedly shot straight into the barrier and bounced off the same number of times.

"Stop Natsu!" Lucy pleaded. She then grabbed hold of Natsu and tried to get him to stop. Natsu stopped and looked back at Lucy, who lightly blushed.

"What?" Lucy asked. Natsu then broke free and had an epiphany. He then turned to Lucy.

"That's it! Call your Celestial Spirits to get us to the other side!" Natsu thought.

"Hey, I would, except we need another Celestial Wizard to do so." Lucy explained. Happy then was in deep thought, thinking very hard.

"Celestial Spirits…WAAAHHHH!" Happy's epiphany shrieked about, shocking everyone. "Lucy! I'd just remembered what I was trying to tell you this whole time!" Happy then got out Virgo's key, which stunned Lucy.

"How did you get Virgo's key?! You thief!" Lucy then grabbed Happy's mouth and gripped it.

"But it didn't steal it, Virgo gave it to me after Everlue was arrested." Happy muttered out of his mouth, which made Lucy let go. "After his arrest, her contract with him was broken and she wanted to make one with you Lucy!"

Lucy didn't want to deal with that gorilla maiden, so she just ignored it. "Not now Happy, I'll deal with it later." Lucy protested.

"But-" Happy was cut off by Lucy pinching his cheecks.

"But no!" She was rambling on about how Happy wasn't making himself helpful and how he should stay out of other's way, which made everyone look on in shock.

"Looks like we've got Erza Two." Said Natsu.

Happy then sighed. "I'm sorry. I just thought since Virgo could drill holes, she could get us to the other side." Everyone then looked shock from this statement.

"She can?!" Erza exclaimed.

"For real?!" Gray thought.

"You're right!" Lucy said. She then hugged Happy very tight, she was greatly satisfied with his help. "You're so helpful Happy, why didn't you say so earlier?"

Happy then got a grudge look on his face. "Someone was pinching my cheeks!" Happy stated. Upon realizing this, Lucy gasped and bowed to Happy.

"My most sincere apologies. Just please let me have the key!" she pleaded.

"Give me the biggest fish you can find and you'll be forgiven." Happy said. After Lucy said she would do so once they would get home, Happy gave her the key.

"**Open: Gate of the Maiden – Virgo!**" A slim, pink haired maiden then appeared. This stunned Lucy tremendously. "…huh?"

"You summon me Mistress? What is it you need?" Virgo asked. Natsu then recognized Virgo and walked up to her.

"What's up Burger? Man, you've really slim down." Natsu said, getting the name wrong.

"I am Virgo. I apologize for past problems that I have caused." She said.

"You're like a different person!" Lucy protested.

"I am a spirit that will do anything to please her Master, even change looks." Virgo then changed into a giant gorilla lady that was exceedingly fat. She stood tall and her voice was deep. "Much like this." She said. This horrified Lucy and Gray, but Natsu didn't mind.

"Don't! Your other form is fine." Lucy insisted, to which Virgo changed back to her slim self. "Can we work out the contract later? We need to get the other side of this barrier."

"As you wish Mistress." Virgo said. Lucy was annoyed by that.

"I prefer you don't call me that." Lucy said.

Virgo then took a good look at Lucy's whip. "How about Queen?"

"No."

"Princess?" Lucy then took a shine to that title.

"Yeah sure, okay." Lucy said.

"Can we get this over with?! Erigor is getting closer to Clover as we speak!" Gray complained, though he was in his underpants.

"Gray! Your clothes!" Lucy shouted mortified, to which Gray quickly looked for.

"Very well then." Virgo then proceeded to drilling a hole and went under the barrier. Everyone was amazed to see Virgo making a hole.

"Nicely done Lucy!" Erza complimented as she shoved her into her breast plate. Everyone then went down the hole, except Natsu went over to get Kageyama.

"Him as well?" Gray said. He looked as Natsu, who was serious.

"It wouldn't feel right to just leave him here." Natsu said. The team, with Kageyama, made to the other side of the barrier and made it out of the tunnel. It was still windy and stuff was blowing around in a hazard.

"This wind is crazy!" Lucy complained, trying to keep her hair from flying all over.

"Princess, I'll keep you from exposing your panties." Virgo said. She then had Lucy's dress from exposing her panties, though Virgo's was exposed to a blushing Gray from behind.

"…oh, wow." Gray said.

Kageyama then began to move his head, slowly regaining consciousness. "It's no use. We've won." Kageyama muttered. Erza and the others looked in disappointment at the betrayed wizard. Erza then noticed that Natsu wasn't present, nor Happy.

"Where's Natsu and Happy?" Erza asked. Everyone saw that they weren't there as well. Erza then thought the two went to fight Erigor. _'Natsu, be careful. Watch Nic's back.'_ She thought.

* * *

**Clover Canyon**

Nic was flying about, trying to avoid Erigor's assaults. His constant Wind Magic was making Nic get nowhere. He did manage to use multiple Air Cutter and Air Slash attacks, but those were the only two that would've worked.

"**Storm Bringer!**" Erigor then unleashed a huge tornado on Nic.

"**Hurricane!**" The two attacks were bashing into one another. Eventually, the two tornadoes combined and both were swallowed up by the raging wind. The two were grunting and unable to move. As a few moments rolled by, the attack ceased and the two slammed back down on the tracks. Erigor was tired, and Nic was feeling just as drained.

Erigor then stood up and Nic followed suit. Both then stared at one another. The other was equal in strength to the other. "It would appear that we've have some balance in our powers." Erigor analyzed.

Nic gazed behind Erigor, seeing a flying Happy and Natsu racing towards the fight. Nic then smirked. "It would appear that we also have some company." Nic said.

"Huh?" Erigor turned around, only to get a Fire Dragon's Claw to the face. Erigor fell backwards and Natsu landed in front of Nic. Happy then exhausted his Magic and fell down. Natsu then caught a tired cat and set him off to the side.

"You did god Happy." Natsu said.

"Aye." Happy muttered. Natsu then went over to Nic's side and smirked.

"It's about time. I thought I would be taking all of the credit this time." Nic said.

"Please. I got a score to deal with him." Natsu said. Regardless, the two looked back at Erigor as he got up.

"More Fairy Tail flies. This is more troublesome than it's worth." Erigor said. "**Storm Mail!**" Erigor was then cloaked in wind and flew into Nic and Natsu. Not wanting to wait any longer, Natsu leaped up and attacked head on.

"**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" the attack bounced off and Natsu plummeted to the bridge.

"Natsu!" shouted Happy, very worried for his pal. Natsu then got to his knees and got back up. Erigor descended, still cloaked in his Storm Mail.

* * *

**With Erza and the others**

Erza was using the Magic Mobile and was following the train tracks towards Clover. She and the others weren't too far behind at this point. Gray, Lucy, and an injured Kageyama were riding in the back. It was a little bumpy, mainly due to Erza's low Magic energy. She saw everything was getting all hazy and still pressed on regardless.

In the back, Kageyama groaned and looked up at the Fairy Tail members. "Why are you helping your enemy?" He asked.

"Look pal, you need a doctor, and the closest one is in Clover thanks to Erza scaring off the doctors in Oshibana.

"I heard that!" Erza yelled back to him, which Gray nearly paled.

Kageyama just shrugged it off and sighed. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were going to make me a hostage. In case if you were wondering, Erigor doesn't give a crap about any of us." The Magic Mobile then swayed and bumped up and down a little, which send Lucy flying into Kageyama's face with her butt. After the ride settled, Erza yelled out everything was fine now.

"I'm so sorry." Lucy apologized.

Kageyama clenched his face as he was hit head on with a butt. "Can your oversized butt be any bigger?" he complained. Lucy had a tick mark growing on her head as she was insulted.

"Somebody thrash him! He said I had a big butt!" Lucy exclaimed in anger. Gray just sighed, thinking this was going to be a long ride.

Outside the Magic Mobile, Erza wasn't feeling so good. _'My vision's getting blurry. I used too much Magic power. Natsu. Nic. Both of you need to stop Erigor. We're counting on you!'_ Erza thought as she pressed on.

* * *

**With Natsu and Nic**

"What's wrong? Don't tell me that's all you've got!" Erigor mocked. Natsu then gritted his teeth and lunged at him.

"**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Natsu's fist was only a foot away when the flames went out. "What the? How could my flames go out?" Natsu wondered. Erigor then chuckled, but it was short lived as he saw an Air Cutter coming at him. He got hit and that attack was only strong enough to dispel the Storm Mail. Erigor got into the air and sneered.

"Are you okay Natsu?" asked Nic.

"Yeah, but why did my flames go out? I don't understand!" Natsu was getting a little frustrated.

"My Storm Mail simply extinguishes any flames that are in close range." Erigor explained. He once again cloaked himself in Storm Mail and went down to strike Natsu.

"I'll show you!" Natsu proclaimed. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" His attack was almost extinguished when it came out of Natsu's mouth. Erigor then rammed into Natsu, sending him soaring back close to Happy. Nic evasively went up and used an Air Slash and tried taking Erigor down from above. He saw this and dodged the attack. Nic then got in front of Natsu to protect him.

"Why can't my attacks do anything?!" Natsu complained. He was getting frustrated that his attacks weren't getting through to him. Nic looked back at an annoyed Natsu.

"He'd just answer your question." Nic explained. Natsu just ignored this and leaped. He tried to use another Fire Dragon's Iron Fist, but was blown away easily. Nic caught him as he has flying off and brought him back up to the bridge.

"I think it's time I finish off you pesky Fairy Tail flies right here and now." Erigor said. He then made a Magic seal and it had little seals revolving around it.

Nic stood there and gulped at this turn of events. "This looks like the opposite of good." Nic indicated.

Happy was freaking out as the attack was beginning to surge. "Whatever you do, don't let it touch you!" Happy yelled.

"**Emera Baram!**" His two index and middle fingers cross to make an "X" shape, which generated a halo of light around them. A large mass of wind blades was concentrated into a huge blast of wind that could slice anything up.

'_Oh crap!'_ Nic thought. He had to act fast, otherwise he and Natsu were toast. With no options, Nic grabbed Natsu by the shoulders and dragged him up into the air in a swift leap, which surprised Natsu. They watched as the attack ripped up the railway and train tracks. After the attack ceased, Nic set Natsu back down. "Natsu, why don't you let me handle him. Your fire can't do much against his wind." Nic stated.

Natsu's entire body was on fire. He grabbed a part of a rail and gripped it furiously. "No! I don't understand! I have to beat him!" Natsu yelled. Fire was now erupting everywhere around him out of anger.

Nic looked on in shock and somewhat little fear. "Uuuhhhh…this is either good, or it's really bad." Nic indicated. Erigor's violent winds then began to weaken all around him. He looked surprised at this turn of events.

"What's this?! The angrier he gets, the more intense his flames become!" Erigor proclaimed. "Flames of emotion! But how?! It's ancient Magic!"

The flames continued to swell up as the Storm Mail decreased. Nic thought of something, something that could help.

"**Gust!**" He then unleashed a gust of wind to the flames, which made them grow even larger. Happy then found an idea.

"Natsu!" Happy yelled. Natsu looked back to his pal. "You suck fighting this guy. Just have Nic do the rest and just be done already." Everything went dead silent. Nic knew Happy was trying to rile up Natsu for a victory, but he thought he went too far.

'_Oh shit.'_ Nic mentally cursed.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Natsu roared as the flames erupted much like a volcano with a huge amount of intensity, which was far more intense than anyone could have imagined. Erigor's Storm Mail was no more, and Natsu was a towering fire. He then lunged at Erigor at almost the speed of sound, encased in fire. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" Natsu then unleashed a headbutt in an inferno. He rammed Erigor, making him soar up in the air and crash into the bridge with extreme force. He was out like a light.

"How's that guys!" Natsu said.

Nic stood there perplexed and with a sweat drop. _'Note to self: Don't hog the spotlight when he's around.' _Nic mentally noted.

"You showed him Natsu!" Happy said. Natsu then looked rather annoyed.

"You didn't think so earlier." Natsu reminded. Happy just shrugged off what he said.

"A cat's memory isn't the greatest." He said, trying to lie. Natsu then let out a breath and looked at Erigor.

"Guess it doesn't matter. I'm that amazing!" Natsu proclaimed in joy.

Nic finished with his perplexing thought and shook his head to get back to reality. "That was something. That's for sure." Nic said. The three then saw the Magic Mobile pull up to them. Erza looked out in shock as Erigor was defeated. He looked back up and saw Nic grinning at her, satisfied with the victory and seeing that she was okay. Erza grinned back, happy to see Natsu and Nic were okay as well.

The guys got out of the Magic Mobile and went up to congratulate them. Kageyama looked on in shock as he saw Erigor lying on the ground defeated.

"No way. Erigor never loses." Kageyama muttered. He then looked at Natsu and Nic, both satisfied with their victory. "Can't believe you had a hard time with this guy." He said to them.

"Shut it!" Natsu retorted.

Erza was using Lucy for support as they walked up to them. "I'm proud of you both." Erza stated with a smile.

"T'was nothing." Nic said being modest. Erza sighed, seeing how bruised he was.

While they were all talking, they failed to see Kageyama seize the flute from the ground and hopped onto the Magic Mobile. He then floored it and almost ran them over. The guys quickly both out of the way as he made his way down the tracks.

"Lullaby's mine now! Shouldn't have left your guard down!" he shouted as he got away.

"After him!" Erza ordered. With some Magic energy restored, Happy grew his wings and picked up Natsu. Nic began flapping his wings, though he was drained. He picked up Erza, who was still drained of Magic, and flew in pursuit of Kageyama as well. Lucy and Gray followed in pursuit.

* * *

**Sometime later, in Clover…**

It was nighttime and the moon was shining down on all of Clover. Kageyama was outside the Conference Hall, thinking he was a fair distance away.

"This should be far enough. Surely they should be able to hear the song from here." Kageyama said. He then began to inhale, then he heard pages turn behind him. He turned back in shock at seeing Master Makarov sitting on a log, reading a Sorcerer's Weekly magazine with young woman.

Kageyama turned and stared, mortified to see a perv reading behind his back, quite literally. Makarov then got up and put the issue away. "Now, I have to go and -!" He looked to see Kageyama staring dumbfounded at the pervy Guild Master. "GAH! It's not what it looks like! I was doing research on wizards that's all! Plain and simple!" Makarov protested.

"I don't care what you're doing." Kageyama sighed. Makarov was relieved, but was short lived as he saw the bandages on the Shadow Wizard.

"You've been hurt badly boy, you shouldn't be walking in such a condition." Makarov said.

"Yes sir." Kageyama said. He then recognized the man. _'Hold on, that's Makarov. He's Fairy Tail's Guild Master. Why do I always bump into these guys?' _As Makarov was about to walk away, he sought this to be the perfect opportunity. "Excuse me. I don't suppose you would want to hear a song?" he said kindly.

Makarov looked at the strange flute. He could see this wasn't an ordinary flute. "…very well then. One song couldn't hurt." He said.

Kageyama then brought the flute close to his moth and he was about to play. _'This is it.' _He thought in victory. He then had a rush of memories go through his mind. The thoughts of revenge and getting his rights back, but then talks from Lucy and the other Fairy Tail guild members about killing won't make things right. He thought as to how he was betrayed, and how Natsu raged over Karacka and thrashed him. He hesitated to get close to the flute, and he was going back and forth on how to handle this matter. Should he or should he not?

The guys finally caught up to him. They watched over a hill as they saw Kageyama in front of Makarov. At this point, Nic reverted back to his normal self, in case if you were wondering.

"Master!" Lucy warned. She was then stopped by a shush from a cross-dressing fat man who was bald. This shocked and scared Lucy, Natsu, and Gray. Nic got out of sight before he could be anymore freaked out.

"We're about to get to the good part." The guild master said. He then began to be flirty around Natsu and Gray while Lucy did what Nic did and hid behind Erza.

"Who's that?" asked Nic, trying not to look so he wouldn't lose his appetite.

"That's Guild Master Bob of the Blue Pegasus Guild." Explained Erza.

"Can you guys keep it down over there? This is where things get good." A man in sunglasses with a spike dog collar and a hat said, leaning next to a tree. He was behind Nic and Lucy, watching Kageyama and Makarov from the distance.

"And that right there is Guild Master Goldmine from Quatro Cerberus." Erza told them. Lucy was astonished, but Nic just sighed.

"This day just keeps getting weirder by the minute." Nic sighed quietly.

Back down with Makarov and Kageyama, Makarov was getting a little bit impatient from Kage's hesitation. "Well?" Makarov asked.

After some silence, Kage gulped. _'I can do this. One song, and everything will change.'_ He thought.

Makarov looked off with a disappointed look. "Nothing's will change." He said. Upon hearing this, Kage gasped that Makarov knew what he was thinking. He then turned back towards Kageyama and everyone else that was watching from afar heard his words. "You can't change the fact that those who are weak might remain weak. I don't find that to be a bad thing. If you think about it, we humans are weak and our insecurities gave birth to guilds, and they're why we have friends who we even call family. When we're around our family, it's easy to think on the positive scale. Let's put it in another way; if we're clumsy, we bump into things, but as long as we believe and hope for a better future, then it doesn't matter if we're clumsy or stumble into messes we come across. We have to choose our paths and live our lives to the fullest to reach that future. Don't let that accursed flute block you from seeing such a future."

A wind blew and Kageyama trembled. The guys were thrilled and inspired by these words. Makarov stood as Kageyama got to his knees, dropping the flute onto the ground. "I surrender." He admitted with his head down.

The then rushed towards their Master, satisfied that Kage learned the importance of life from such a great speech.

"Master!" Erza said.

"Wait a go Gramps!" Natsu complimented. Makarov was then shocked to see the whole group coming up at him. Master Bob and Goldmine watched from afar as the Fairy Tail members congratulated their beloved Master.

"How did you guys end up here?" Makarov asked. He was then shoved into Erza's chest plates, which of course hurt.

"Master, your words were so inspiring they almost moved me to tears." Erza admitted, hugging her Master. Erza let go and now the other Guild Masters came up as well. Lucy went over to comfort Kageyama, Natsu patted Makarov on the head, and Gray was without a shirt, though no one cared.

Erza looked over and saw Nic looking at Lullaby. He couldn't help but feel odd about that flute. Erza walked over towards him. "Are you alright?" Erza asked. Nic then looked at Erza and back towards the flute.

"I don't a good feeling. That's all." Nic stated. Just then. The eyes of the flute lit up and then emitted some dark energy. The group immediately turned towards the flute.

"**I've grown tired of you humans, trying to resist my power!**" The flute announced. Everyone gasped as it spoke. A super large seal then emerged from above. The dark cloud of energy then spiraled upwards. "**No more games! I shall just have to devour you myself!**" The flute then turned into a horrific three-eyed monster that towered over them.

"It's huge!" Lucy exclaimed, frightened.

"Understatement of the century!" Nic said to her.

"Erigor never mentioned anything about a monster!" Kageyama proclaimed in horror.

"He must be a demon that was from the Book of Zeref. It must be Lullaby's true form, created from forbidden Black Magic." Implied Goldmine, reminding everyone that Zeref was the one who created such a monster. The townsfolk then began to run away and flee for their lives as this beast towered over them.

Nic then looked at the group. "So, who is this Zeref?" Nic wondered.

"He is the most vile of all wizards," Master Bob explained, "I never would've guessed his magic and monsters would pop back up again."

Lullaby then looked down at the whole group. "**Now then, whose soul should I eat first?**" It asked, gazing at everyone.

Natsu then got pumped for a fight. "Eat huh." Natsu wondered. "…hey, does anyone know what souls taste like?" Nic then turned towards Natsu.

"This aint an all you can eat buffet!" Nic scolded, shocking Natsu awake from drooling all over about food.

Erza then turned towards the group. "Natsu! Gray! Get everyone to safety!" she ordered, to which the two greatly disregarded.

"Who put you in charge?!" demanded Natsu.

"Yeah, don't get all bossy on us!" Gray said. The two were then shot death glares from Erza's eyes.

"Just do it!" she demanded in an impatient tone. The two then hurried along with their friendly personas plastered on their faces. Lucy sighed, thinking as of how scary and threatening she can be.

Nic was just watching as the two followed her orders under fear. _'She's just as demanding as my mother.'_ He thought, which stands to reason why he wasn't afraid of her in the first place.

Off in the distance, the Royal Army stood affirm. "We're not running off! This demon is nothing!" They all yelled. The demon then looked at them, thinking it was insulted.

"**I'll show you what true power is!**" A seal then emerged from its mouth and a beam of energy shot forth. That one beam was strong enough to blow away a mountain top. The shock wave of the attack was tremendous, almost making everyone fall back onto their backs, though the blast was several miles away.

"Uh, Captain. Can we run now?" shuddered a soldier. To which the captain turned and ran, ordering a retreat and to get out.

"**I have no need for those pathetic humans that can't even hold their own sword.**" Explained Lullaby as it turned back towards the group. "**I want wizard souls!**" The group stepped back, leaving only Erza, Natsu, Gray, and Nic to face the monster.

Happy looked up at Lucy. "Hey, why aren't you fighting?" asked the cat.

"Well, none of my Celestial Spirits are available at the moment and I really don't want to get in their way." Said Lucy.

"If I had to guess, I'd say you were chickening out!" said Happy.

"Shut it! Lie any help either!" retorted Lucy. The giant monster then screamed. The scream was hurting everyone's ears. No one could hear one another as their ears ached. As soon as it stopped, Erza summoned two swords.

"Ready?" she asked the guys.

"You bet!" Natsu and Gray said in unison.

"We'll give that thing a real earache!" proclaimed Nic. They all then charge at the monster.

"**Requip!**" Erza then requiped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. Nic then activated his Toxic Plate. Now everyone was ready to go. Nic went first using Sludge at the beast's face, making it temporarily blind for a few moments while Natsu unleashed a Fire Dragon's Iron Fist that made it step back.

"**Ice Make: Lance!**" Gray shouted. He extended his arms and created long, curved ice lances that crashed into Lullaby, making it stumble back. Erza then slashed away at Lullaby. She was cutting away and slashing about everywhere. It didn't take long for the demon to pinpoint her.

"**I got you now!**" Lullaby shouted and unleashed a punch on Erza. Erza didn't notice because she was too focused on trying to find another change to strike. She was flying about and she saw the fists coming at her. She wouldn't be able to dodge it in time.

Nic jumped and pushed Erza out of the way, taking the hit for her. She looked back and saw Nic get send flying high. "No!" Erza shouted. Nic straightened out in midair and aimed on Lullaby's head.

"**Sludge Bomb!**" Nic shouted. A more powerful version of Sludge went shooting high speed from Nic's mouth and crashed into Lulaby's face, causing it to yelp as it clenched its face. Try to think of it as if you were hit with a baseball in the face. Lullaby didn't like that one bit. It shrieked as it looked back at Nic.

"**Now you've made me mad you punk!**" Lullaby then tried to step on Nic, but was hit with Natsu's Fire Dragon's Roar from its side. The beast then looked at Natsu and looked down at him. "**You know, how about I eat all of your souls at once!**" It was then brought to a halt as it felt a slash in its cheek. Erza came around and was floating in front of the beasts face.

"Will not threaten any of us! We have you cornered and you're no match against our combine magic. You should surrender now while you can." Implied the Requip Wizard. Lullaby looked Erza dead in the eye and grinned viciously.

"**How about I take your soul first, then the rest!**" Lullaby then screeched about. Since Erza was in front of it, she had to cover her ears as she screamed. She fell to the ground, rather disoriented from the close range roar. Erza looked to see a monstrous foot about to kick her to the moon, and her body hasn't recovered from that sudden assault.

It was as if his body acted on its own. As if by instinct, Nic, once again, pushed Erza out of the way. He stood affirm and took the massive foot that dragged him into the air and soared off into the mountains somewhere. The guys watched in shock as Lullaby had just kicked Nic and send him off to who knows where.

Erza was silent. She just watched as Nic soared off and Lullaby laughed. "**Well, that's one down!**" It gloated. Erza didn't know what came over her. It was as if she let her fury get the best of her and summoned over fifty swords. These swords were a variety, but nevertheless were weapons. Everyone around her shuddered as she had an angered expression about in her eyes.

"You dare harm Nic! How could you! You shall pay!" she yelled. Natsu, Gray, and even Lucy shrieked. The other Guild Masters nearly peed their pants as they saw this furious side of Erza.

"My god! She's never this scary!" Natsu remarked.

"She's only enraged when someone messes with her strawberry cheesecake! Nic isn't a cheesecake!" Gray exclaimed.

"**Fool! Do you really think that toothpicks such as those will give you the upper hand?!" **Lullaby exclaimed. Erza then commanded all of the swords to strike Lullaby. Every single one slashed away and Lullaby was swatting around, much like he was attacked by flies. The swords then disappeared and went back to her pocket dimension. They could see Lullaby with multiple cuts in it, but that didn't stop it from shooting a Magic Beam at all of them.

"**Ice Make: Shield!**" Gray managed to make a durable barrier that was able to stop the attack from exploding on them. The magnitude around them was tremendous as the Magic Beam went in a line. Fortunately, Gray saved everyone behind him, and Natsu swallowed up whatever fire he could.

"Now I got a fire in my belly!" Natsu announced.

"**You're a monster!**" Lullaby proclaimed, punching Natsu, but to no avail. Natsu jumped and ran up its arm and delivered a Fire Dragon's Claw across its face.

Erza then began changing again. "**Requip!**" She changed into her Black Wing Armor. This particular armor was black with silver trimmings with silver crosses all about. It was a revealing silver-edges breastplate and plates running down from her hips to her waist guard. Large plates covered her legs. She had two wings with a membrane-like material, and her hair was in a ponytail this form. "Natsu! Gray! C'mon!" she yelled as she soared upwards and attacked with Natsu and Gray following in pursuit.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in the mountains nearby…**

Nic was lying on the forest floor, as he fell through multiple tree branches. Fortunately, the branches he broke acted like a cushion and he was unharmed. He felt as though he was ran over, pumped back up, and ran over again. He felt his back crack as he got up from his cushioned impact. He looked around ached about. His back took a beating from the crash regardless, but his abdomen was feeling like mush after that kick to oblivion. He was still active in his Toxic Plate Form, but it's not like he can move after that last round he had.

"Well, I sure got a kick out of that." Nic joked. He chuckled at his own pun, which then turned to a whimper as his body began to hurt as he laughed. Nic then heard some explosions in the far off distance. He had to muster up whatever strength he had left to climb. He slowly grabbed hold of a branch and worked his way upwards. Eventually, he popped out from the canopy and saw a view of the whole valley. He looked around and saw Lullaby a little to his right. He saw it fight and struggle against Erza, Natsu, and Gray. He looked out and slowly descend, leaving only his head above the canopy.

"Hmmm. Well, I could see how this goes, but I need to take out that monstrosity. But how?" Nic thought. He then saw Natsu unleash a Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame, followed by Erza's amplified sword slashing. Gray then used an Ice Make: Saucer that made Lullaby scream in pain upon impact. Seeing this, Nic sought to find a great opening. He took notice that the beast was only focused on Erza and the others, so he could unleash an attack from the side, or find another way.

He then recalled that Lullaby could shoot a Magic Beam that could destroy a mountain, but also recalled that it hasn't played its song yet. It could shoot a Magic Beam out of rage anytime now, so attacking from the side wouldn't be a good idea, especially since he got a fist and kick delivered to him. So the only other option…was above.

When Nic looked up, he thought he would have to get really high up and go straight down if he were to finish this with one blow. The problem was that his body was too drained and damaged from that battle with Lullaby. He need some help. He got down from the canopy and onto the ground. He then shifted to his Zap Plate Form

"Charizard! Let's go!" Nic then had Charizard come out from its poke ball and then it roared.

"Look Charizard, I need you to fly me high up and have me over that giant monster." Nic ordered, pointing out towards Lullaby. Without even the slightest hesitation, Charizard nodded.

"Do I even have to ask what you plan to do?" Charizard rhetorically asked as it turned around and had Nic climb onto its back.

"Something stupid." Nic answered. Charizard then began taking flight. He slowly arose from under the canopy and saw Lullaby. Nic then looked down at his pal. "Now listen. We have to be quick about this. It's imperative that he doesn't see us. If he sees us, then our chances of a surprise attack have just burned up."

Charizard then looked up at Nic with a look of understanding. "This'll be fun." He then took flight and soared high, and I mean high, into the air. Charizard was going 50-60 mph up, so they were gradually gaining altitude.

Back where Erza and the others were, Lullaby casted a giant seal and engulfed it. It began to store power, and the land around it was slowly wilting.

"This can't be good!" Lucy said. They looked and saw that the trees and grass all around was dying.

"Lullaby is sucking the life out of the plants!" Happy confirmed. The entire land was shaking by now. A fierce magnitude rippled, even Nic and Charizard felt the vibrations as they were climbing the sky.

Finally, Lullaby stored up the power necessary and clasped its hands together. "**It's all over now!**" Everyone's ears were aching as its voice vibrated about. Lucy struggled to cover up, and Erza had some hesitation to move due to the multitude of vibrations throwing off her balance in the air. Nic and Charizard were far away enough so that they only a little vibration.

Then the moment came and the vibrating stopped. It played its one note…which was a wheeze. Lullaby gawked this astonishment. It didn't understand.

"What was that all about?!" exclaimed Happy with earplugs.

"**Why isn't my Melody of Death working?!**" Lullaby shrieked.

"It must be from all of those attacks!" Kageyama said.

"They sliced and punctured so man openings, they messed up its sound!" Lucy exclaimed. "All that buildup and nothing to show for it." Lullaby stood there in grave revelation. Its efforts were in vain.

"Flutes are overrated anyway." Happy figured. Lullaby got a tick mark from that comment.

"**You dare mock my superiority?!**" Lullaby then kicked the side of a mountain with some civilians.

"This is bad!" "Can things get any worse?!" "This demon's lost it!" Many villagers ran for cover and tried to avoid its wrath. The rampaging monster then shot a Magic Beam, to which Gray blocked. The guys then proceeded to attack once again.

Way up in the sky, Charizard and Nic were sailing about and trying to see a perfect opening to go in for an attack. Charizard looked down at the monster and saw it rampage. "Well, mind filling me in now?" Charizard asked. Nic then looked down to see Lullaby below him. They were probably several thousand feet above the monster. "Hurry up Nic! It's getting hard to breathe!" Charizard wasn't joking. They were so high up that another hundred or so feet and oxygen would become scarce. Both Nic and Charizard were breathing fine at this point; in fact, they descend about a hundred feet just so they could get some more oxygen.

"Charizard, I'm gonna dive and hope I hit him on the head." Nic said.

"What?" Charizard asked perplexed.

"That's right. You're gonna drag me down and then throw me. I'll unleash a powerful Electric Type move and finish him." Nic said. His Pokémon was getting the idea, though he didn't quite like it.

"I'm not so sure. Why not just have me use Fly and knock him out from that?" Charizard suggested.

"Because we need to stop this thing before it kills my friends! It may be different from where we came from, but here it's either life or death!" Nic stated. Charizard looked down and nodded.

"Fair point; besides, you would be shattered without Erza, wouldn't ya?" the Fire and Flying type teased, causing Nic's face to turn bright red.

"Be quiet!" Nic demanded, only for Charizard to chuckle at this display from his trainer. "Charizard…I need you to do something else as well. As I fall, use an attack on me."

This made Charizard immediately turn its head towards its trainer, shocked that its trainer would ask such a thing. "I think we're too high up! You're lightheaded from lack of air!" Charizard protested. Nic knew what he was doing.

"Trust me on this one Charizard. We need all the power we can get." Nic said. With a silence following, Charizard was thinking.

'_He's not joking. He needs my flames for a boost, though he'll hurt himself. He's grown bold.'_ Charizard noted. He then smirked and looked back down. "I still say it's the thin air!" Charizard said.

"Let's do this!" shouted Nic. The two then dived down at an alarming rate, reaching speeds about 80-90 mph. When they've reached a certain point, Charizard grabbed Nic by the wrist and threw him down. "Have a nice landing!" Charizard noted as he hurled Nic downwards, gaining even more speed.

"This is it!" Nic shouted. He then started generating an immense amount of electricity. The lightning bolts on his coats went to light blue as the energy was being generated. Nic clenched his fists and his eyes turned red. He then let out a dragon roar and his entire body was surrounded in thunderous electricity. "You're finished! **Legendary Arts: Bolt Strike!**" He then soared straight

Charizard then decided to use this opportunity and give Nic what he asked for. "**Heat Wave!**" Charizard then flapped its wings once and unleashed a rushing wind of flames. The flames then caught up to Nic and fused with Bolt Strike, making it look like a meteor of fire and electricity.

Everyone was terrified of Lullaby's wrath. It screamed viciously as it was going to kill them all, regardless if it couldn't play its song. Lucy then noticed something above Lullaby, and it was coming down hard.

"Guys, what's that?!" Lucy pointed out. Everyone then looked above Lullaby and saw what looked like a meteor of fire and electricity shooting downwards onto Lullaby. Natsu, Gray, and Erza all stopped and looked up at the projectile plummeting. Lullaby swatted at them, but they regained their focus and dodged it. They all backed away to see the projectile.

"**Giving up?**" the demon asked. It then laughed as it thought it had achieved victory, only to hear thunder above him. It then looked up and gasped. "**What is that thing?!**"

"You're going down!" Nic roared, as so everyone could hear. When Erza heard this, she almost jumped.

"Nic!" she yelled.

Lullaby almost gasped as Nic closed in on it. Nic then gave one final push and thrust down at full speed. Upon impact, there was a tremendous shock wave that channeled through the air. Nic smashed his entire body into Lullaby, causing it to fall back onto the Conference Hall as well. There was a surge of fire and electricity flying everywhere. A huge magnitude erupted as a light shot upwards towards the sky.

Charizard looked at this light and saw it touch the sky. _'Hmph. Some landing.'_ Charizard thought. The light eventually dispelled, and a few bolts of electricity surged through the sky. After that, it was all over.

Everyone gathered around and saw the enormous crater that was the size of Lullaby. Nothing but smoke was coming out for a few minutes. All of the Guild Masters and the group saw the enormous cloud soon clear up, and found Nic barely standing with a multitude of bruises and some static going about. Some of the wizards walked down towards him.

The group made their way down towards Nic as he remained still, trying to take in deep breaths. Erza couldn't help but feel amazed. She requiped back to her Heart Kreuz Armor before approaching him. Everyone was awe struck, no question. Nic destroyed Lullaby in a single destructive move. When they all closed in on him, Nic let out a sigh as he reverted back to his normal self.

"Hey guys, can we get dinner now? God I'm hungry." Nic said casually. Well, they did forget to have dinner, so they were all a little hungry. Everyone then broke out in a joyful cheer and ran up and surrounded Nic.

"That was amazing Nic! You took down Lullaby with that sick attack! We didn't even know that was you!" Natsu commented.

"That was pretty intense." Gray said. Everyone congratulated him, but Kageyama sat there and smiled.

"They're a weird bunch, but they sure got heart." He said.

"You send flying off in the fair distance, who knew you would come about pulling a stunt like that?" Lucy said. Happy was flying in circles, joyful things turned out okay. Everyone praised him, which Nic was blushing from. Erza then walked up to him and shoved him into her breastplate.

"You did well Nic. You had me worried there for a few moments." Erza said. She tried to contain as much joy as she could and hide a faint blush as well.

Nic was there, with his head hurting. _'Well, it's the thought that counts.'_ He thought. As he was released from Erza's painful hug. Charizard then descended to the ground right next to Nic. Everyone had to make room for this sudden appearance. Erza and the others stepped back as Charizard looked at Nic.

Charizard then smirked. "You always go that extra mile, don't ya?" Charizard asked, asking the same rhetorical question Nic usually asks it. It's true, Charizard always pushes himself, but his trainer pushed the boundaries as well.

Nic smirked. "Well, what can I say? I have to be a role model for my family, am I right?" Nic said. Both trainer and Pokémon shared a laugh.

"Look at you. You're a mess!" Charizard pointed out in a happy mood from that laugh.

"Well, I did ask for this, didn't I?" Nic said. Charizard nodded in agreement. The two then fist bumped and Charizard returned to its poke ball.

Natsu was just struck the entire time Nic was talking with Charizard. Once they were done and saw Charizard return, Natsu ran up to Nic.

"Was that a dragon?" Natsu asked. He looked dead serious at Nic, wanting an answer. Nic then mentally slapped himself for two reasons. The first was blowing his pokémon's' cover, and the second was that Charizard did look like a dragon, which made Natsu think he knew Igneel.

Nic shook his head. "Sorry buddy. He's a pokémon, not an actual dragon." Nic admitted, much to Natsu's disappointment.

Some Guild Masters then started to berate him. They were furious that Fairy Tail destroyed the Conference Hall.

"Someone arrest those savages!" one of them said.

"They've destroyed an entire building!" another yelled.

Makarov looked off from the distance along with Bob and Goldmine. He stood there, interested in the boy's potential. He could sense great power dormant inside of him.

"That boy has got some guts to say the least." Goldmine commented. "That last attack was something."

"That boys got the looks too." Noted Bob. "Is he part of your guild Makarov?"

Makarov then sighed. "Well, from that display, I guess we've got ourselves another Natsu." He said in dread. He thought that the combination of Natsu, Gray, Erza, and Nic could probably wipe out a civilization. Who can say?

Back with Nic and the team, he was joking as the sound of Lullaby's destruction was music to his ears, to which everyone laughed. Though there was destruction charges on the guild, the team dealt with it by fleeing and tried avoiding the angry crowd of Guild Masters.

After those incidents occurred, the Eisenwald Guild was arrested by the Royal Army. Every member was arrested, including Kageyama, who didn't any spite being changed. The only one who wasn't arrested was Erigor, who remained at large. The Magic Council in Era contained the fractured Lullaby flute, and made sure that it would never fall into the wrong hands again. The Magic Council now had to deal with Fairy Tail's destructive charges.

* * *

**The Magic Council in Era**

"What's disturbing to me is the fact that a weapon from the Book of Zeref fell into such a Dark Guild." Org said. Org was a tall man with a grey beard.

Belno then spoke up. She was a woman with yellow hair in a spiky ponytail. "My concerns are with Fairy Tail. They keep destroying property. Take a look at this!" A green lacrima showed a display of Nic using the combination of Bolt Strike and Heat Wave and crashing down on Lullaby.

"Who is he?" another member asked. "What kind of Magic is that? I've never seen anything like it."

Belno then looked down. "Unfortunately, we have no record of this person nor where he came from. All we do know, is that he showed up in Hargeon not too long ago. He looks even stronger than Titania." Siegrain then smirked, which caught her eye. "Is there something that's peaking your interests Siegrain?" she asked in a displeased manner.

Siegrain had spiky, blue hair, a red mark on his face, and was much like the same age as Erza. "I can at least say that Fairy Tail keeps us on our toes. Without them, this world would be rather boring. Don't you agree?" Siegrain asked.

"Fairy Tail does have a plethora of strong and peculiar Mages running about. That new one seems to have our interests at the moment, am I right Belno?" confirmed Ultear.

Belno nodded. "Yes, that is true. We must also be aware of the charges they have accumulated while in Oshibana and Clover."

Another member of the council then got up from his seat. "Well now. It would appear that we have two predicaments at once, and I say we solve them fast." The Magic Council looked at the member.

"What do you propose?" Org asked.

"Fairy Tail's destructive, we have no record of a Mage that has recently destroyed Lullaby, and to me, these are fools running around boasting of their superiority. I say we set an example now, and deal with that said Mage."

* * *

**Once again, it was an early update. I had a snow day, again, and got half of this chapter done in a day. The weather is looking better this week, so no early updates until MAYBE Sunday or Monday, but I don't make promises.**

**Compared to the other two chapters, this one was close to 10K rather than 11K, but that's because I wanted to save the Magic Council stuff later and not make this chapter any longer than it should be. **

**I'm trying to be aware of my grammar, so I look over this stuff before updating, though I do miss a few spots here and there.**

**I'm still trying to figure out Nic's personality. To be honest, I just made him up on the spot (I like to improvise). I'll get his personality cleared up, don't worry.**

**I'm having another idea for a FanFiction, but I'm still working out the details, I'll let you guys know if it happens. **

**With that said and done, Favor, Follow, &amp; Review guys. Reviews really help. Review!**

* * *

**Next Time: Injustice is Served**


	4. Injustice is Served

Chapter 4 – Injustice is Served

**What up people! Sorry for the wait, I've been having some Writer's Block and my mind couldn't think for a few days. Add the fact that I'm making other stories for my friends. All of this has my head spinning. Ugh.**

**It would be very helpful to get more followers and more favorites and more reviews as this story progresses. **

**I thank all of you at this point for favoring and following my story, so let's get this show on the road!**

**To Recap:**

As the group comprised of Erza, Gray, Natsu, Lucy, and Happy, and an injured Kageyama get out of the Wind Barrier with the help of Lucy's newest Celestial Spirit, Virgo, Nic confronts Erigor. It wasn't too long after that Natsu came and defeated Erigor. Kageyama managed to reach Clover, but surrendered to Makarov due to a change in heart. The Lullaby demon then emerges and then Erza, Gray, Natsu, and Nic fight the monster. Nic is sent flying somewhere in the mountains as the fight continued. Nic manages to defeat Lullaby with the aid of Charizard, destroying the Conference Hall in the process. This caught the Magic Council's attention.

* * *

**Chapter 4 – Injustice is Served**

Nic and his pals returned to Fairy Tail soon after the issue with Lullaby was taken care of. It had been a little over a week since then, and things were going by rather smoothly. Nic was wounded badly from fighting Lullaby, so he had to get treated once he got back to Fairy Tail. It only took a couple of days for him to be back on his feet and feeling like himself.

As usual, the guild was filled with fights, of which Nic stayed out of. He just hides behind the bar and plug in his earbuds. Cana accompanies him to drink in peace, though the noise was rather bothersome. Cana and Nic came to respect each other in the matter that they don't get in fights with the other guild members; if anything, it's more like a routine. Nic came to be friends with Cana and sit by her often, though he never drinks. Cana didn't mind Nic around her at all, though she only found him appealing in the fact the two just made a routine to stay out of fights. Other than that, she isn't that attracted to him in any manner. Of course she finds Nic to have some class at least, but the fact remained that he can act like Erza to stop a fight just like the first day. Nic thought Cana to be a good person. Though she might be the heaviest drinker, she's at least a little more sane than all of the others. Nic came to acknowledge Cana as a reliable friend and someone to talk to when he's drained.

One day, just after Nic had fully healed, the guild pushed their luck too far. The guild was feeling rowdy, and Natsu and a shirtless Gray were about to throw down.

"Bring it you flaming lizard!" Gray shouted.

Natsu lit his fists up in flames, obviously not backing down. "I'm all fired up now you walking snow cone!" Natsu retorted. The two then started to thrash about, getting the rest of the guild involved as well. Cana was feeling the tension rise and started to get up. She was about to bring a barrel with her behind the bar counter when she noticed that Nic and Greninja were following.

"They never cease to annoy us, do they?" Cana rhetorically asked. Nic just shook his head and Greninja shrugged. The three then were about to crouch down, when Gray was send flying into Nic, who hit the wall. Nic fell to the floor with Gray tumbling over him. Nic groaned as Gray got up on his two feet.

Nic noticed that the flying Gray knocked his phone and earbuds out of his hands and ears. He saw the two lying on the floor in front of Gray. At that moment, he was about to reach for them, when Gray stepped on his phone without even paying attention. The phone had a super intense casing that could withstand a sixty foot drop, so Gray's foot didn't even come close to cracking it. Gray didn't even notice he stepped all over Nic's sanity as he jumped over the bar counter, shouting at Natsu and getting back into the fight.

Regardless, even if it wasn't damaged, Gray has done the unthinkable. Nic was frozen for a few seconds, but then a death-like aura surged around him, making Greninja shudder.

This left Cana curious. "Why are you shaking like a terrified dog?" Cana asked the Ninja Pokémon. Greninja then turned and looked at her with eyes that made him look like he's seeing a ghost.

"You're about to find out." Greninja shuddered. Nic then slowly got up and slowly walked in front of the counter, gazing horrendously at the fight. Nic began to exhale and inhale deeply, making Greninja even more terrified. "You'll see what happens when people even touch Nic's phone." Cana then turned back towards Nic. She could see the insanity in his eyes, which made a seat drop on her face.

Nic then stomped really loud on the floor. "GRAY!" he roared, making the entire guild stop in place. They all turned towards the insane Nic, who was avenging his phone that was stepped on. Natsu and Gray stopped in place and looked at Nic.

"What is it?! Can't you see I'm busy dealing with-!" Gray didn't get to finish as Nic transformed into the Zap Plate Form and came at Gray in a blink of an eye. Nobody saw that coming. Nic gave him a Thunder Punch across the face that send him crashing into a table nearby. Nic unleashed a tremendous Thunderbolt on the defenseless, not to mention half naked, Gray as he was repeatedly pulverized by a continuous beating with Thunder Punch.

Natsu and the other guild members looked on as Nic had an insane look. No one knew Nic had this side before, which made them quiver. This side of Nic was more like Erza, but much, much worse. Natsu couldn't even move as he looked as Gray was repeatedly smacked down.

Nic pulled Gray up and looked at him dead in the eye. Gray had static running all over his body, along with multiple bruises, probably a few broken bones, and a new found fear for Nic.

"W-what did I do?!" Gray stuttered. Nic, finally easing up, reverted back to himself and stomped over towards the bar to get his phone and earbuds off the ground. He then held it up for everyone to see.

"You stepped on my sanity!" Nic roared. "You do not EVER touch my phone!" Now Cana knew what Greninja meant by that. Nic then stomped over towards Gray again, and gave him the most demonic death glare that could leave the mind scarred for life. Gray almost let out a yelp as he stood in fear. Then Nic roared at the top of his lungs. "DON'T EVER TOUCH MY SANITY!" There was a brief silence that fell, which was then stopped when Nic was turning and walking back towards the bar. The guild was now terrified of Nic's wrath as they are with Erza's. He then turned towards the guild and stood quiet and glaring deeply. "And that goes for all of you." He growled, turning back and going back to the counter and sitting on a bar stool and putting in his earbuds.

In retrospect, he broke a table, nearly shattered the floor, made the entire guild quiver, and nearly ripped Gray into pieces. All because of Nic's phone getting stepped on. They all realized that they should never mess with two things: Erza's cheesecake and Nic's electronics.

Just a little bit rolled by, about an hour to be more accurate, and things were still quiet. The repairs were considered done, Gray was all bandaged up, and Nic was still sitting on the stool with his earbuds in his ears. Cana returned to her seat while Greninja stuck by his trainer's side. He knows just how his trainer acts. He's aware that Nic has cooled down by now. Nic usually listens to his music for a loooooong period of time, during that period, his mind and body gets riled up and then tired. The thing about Nic was that he listened to so much music that his mind and body are burned out from intense from the music he listens to and was now relaxed.

Nic opened his eyes and sighed, as though he'd was tired of something that was bothering him.

Mira noticed this and looked at Nic. "Is something wrong?" Mira wondered. Nic then looked at the innocent person and took in a deep breath.

"I think I need something." Nic said. Mira instantly thought that it was food, considering he hadn't had much to eat all day.

"What can I get you?" she asked casually. Nic had to think about this for a moment. What could he have? Only one idea sprung up in his mind.

"Get me some strawberry cheesecake if possible." Nic ordered. This almost made Cana fall out of her seat and Mira almost tripped at this sudden order.

"Are you serious?" Cana asked getting back onto her stool. Regardless, Mira did as asked and whipped up some strawberry cheesecake for him.

"Here you go. I must say, the only other person who eats this stuff is Erza." Said Mira, still rather surprised.

"Actually, do you think I can get this in a container?" Nic asked, which made the two wizards flinch.

"Wait, you're gonna save that for later?" Cana asked in disbelief. Nic then looked at his drunken pal and looked down like he was trying to evade something.

"It's not for me, it's for someone else." Nic explained. At this indication, Mira almost immediately caught on to Nic's hint. She had a smirk across her face.

"Oh, I see. You planning on giving that piece to a special someone?" Mira teased. Nic tried to look away, but that only made things worse for him. Cana caught onto his intentions and knew he was planning on giving that to. She too was smirking.

"She loves her cheesecake lover boy." Cana teased. Greninja didn't bother. He respected Nic, so he just looked at him with his usual blank face.

Having a really long sigh over and done with, Nic finally got a container and put the cheesecake inside. He then put it into his coat pocket so nothing would happen to it. With all of that said and done, he then recalled he had to finish something he has been holding off for some time now.

He got up and stretched. He then walked over towards Natsu and Happy at a nearby table. He looked down to see Natsu eating some sort of dish while Happy was devouring a large fish Lucy promised him.

"Hey, Natsu." Nic said, getting the Dragon Slayer's attention. Natsu was still feeling a little bit freaked out from earlier, but saw that Nic had no intention to break Natsu's bones at this time.

"Oh, hey Nic." Replied Natsu.

"Hey Natsu, got a minute?" Nic wanted to discuss a matter with him. Natsu could clearly see that this was something vital. He wolfed down his food and goy up. Happy was too indulged in his beloved fish.

"What up Nic?" Natsu asked curiously. He saw Nic walk outside, and Natsu followed suit. Greninja then recalled what Nic had agreed to. He got up and followed Nic. Cana just looked on as she wasn't that interested and resumed to drinking her booze.

Outside the Guild Hall, Nic stopped and turned towards Natsu, who stopped behind him. Natsu was wondering as to what in the world Nic was doing.

"Natsu, I do believe that we had an agreement." Nic reminded. Natsu then crossed his arms and recalled anything that had to do with an agreement. Eventually, it finally hit him. He was wide eyed and he was just about to breathe fire in excitement.

"Haha! Yes! I finally get my match!" Natsu yelled. Everyone inside the guild could hear Natsu roaring about him and Nic about to battle. Everyone then began making their way outside to watch this fight. Cana then smirked, thinking this would be a good way to pay her tab.

A crowd of Fairy Tail Guild members were circling around them, ready to see this sight. Greninja slowly proceeded to the middle to be the referee. Cana already had bets up on the board. A lot of people, if not all, betted on Natsu. Only a few people had bet on Nic. They weren't so sure as to how this fight could turn out.

"Hey flame brain, you better not lose this!" yelled Gray, of whom was still in bandages. Happy and Lucy eventually showed up in the crowd. Lucy was shocked to find the two about to fight.

"No way! Those two are really going through with this?!" exclaimed Lucy. She took a quick glance down and saw that Happy wasn't by her side. She looked left and right and stood dumbfounded to see the cat bet in this match. Of course, he put his money on Natsu. Cana also pitched in on the betting that she came up with. She decided to bet on Nic just because she knows his strengths and weaknesses better than Natsu does.

"Hey Lucy, did you bet?" asked the tiny blue cat walking over towards the blond.

"You kidding me?! I need all the money I can get if I'm to pay my rent!" exclaimed the Celestial Wizard. She then felt something behind her. She turned to see Erza come up from behind. She had been away on another job and had just got back. "Oh, Erza!" Lucy said surprised.

"How have you been Lucy?" asked the scarlet haired Mage. She then noticed the fight was about to start. She saw that it was Natsu and Nic. This got her interests. "I see. I do remember that Nic has fully recovered, and did promise Natsu a fight." She recalled correctly. She then let loose a small smile and Lucy took note of her looking at Nic. She'd put two and two together and held a hand to her mouth.

'_Does Erza like Nic?!'_ This thought ringed in her head for a few moments. She didn't expect such a scary wizard to be soft, especially Erza.

Gray then walked up to Erza. "Hey, just in time." He said. Erza then took note of his bandages all over his body and the multitude of bruises.

"Did Natsu finally beat you?" she asked calmly. Gray then gritted his teeth, thinking if Natsu actually had beaten him. That left a cold feeling down Gray's spine; then again, he does Ice Make Magic. He then looked at Nic, which made her look back at him.

"Nah, let's just say that you'd never want to separate Nic from his devices. One minute he's mild, but then you swat that device out of him and the next thing you know is that your spine snaps." Exaggerated Gray. This left Erza shocked. She had no idea Nic, of all people, could do such a thing. Erza's beaten Gray up before, but not to such extremes. Nic obviously treasures his electronics, and will destroy all those who stand between him and his sanity.

Natsu was just about ready to make the first move. His fists were all fired up. He smirked full of joy that he was going to finally fight Nic. "I've been wondering who was better!" Natsu said. Nic just cracked his knuckles in response.

Greninja finally made it to the middle, where he would overlook the battle. In his head, a thought popped in his head. "Hey, Nic!" called out Greninja. "Don't you find this ironic? A pokémon is refereeing and the human is battling!"

Nic almost broke out in laughter, but managed to suppress it into a loud chuckle. "If that isn't ironic, I don't know what is!" Nic shouted back to his old friend. Greninja only grinned for a few moments before getting serious. He then held up an arm, getting everyone's attention.

"The battle between Nic and Natsu will now commence! This will be a one-on-one with no time limit!" recited Greninja, as he heard all of this numerous times in his past battles. Nic transformed into his Splash Plate Form, giving him an advantage with water against fire.

"Natsu." Nic explained. "I'm aware that you would just eat my flames if I change to Flame Plate Form, but I wanna see how well you do to stop my water attacks!" Nic was testing Natsu. He wanted to see how Natsu reacts to these situations.

All Natsu did was intensify his flaming fists, eager to see how this battle could turn in his favor. "Now I'm really fired up!" proclaimed the Dragon Slayer.

Greninja saw that both were ready. With a swift motion of his arm, Greninja signaled the two to commence. "Let the battle begin!" Greninja announce. He immediately leaped away and got out of Natsu and Nic's way.

Natsu went at Nic with a Fire Dragon's Iron Fist. Nic didn't hesitate to intercept with an Aqua Jet. Nic surrounded himself in water and lunged at Natsu. The two attacks made contact, making a shockwave run through the area. Everyone covered up as they were either drenched or fried. Natsu was trying to push through the Aqua Jet, but the flames on his fists went out and he jumped back before getting directly hit. Nic leaped back and unleashed a Bubblebeam attack. Natsu jumped and dodged with ease.

"**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" Ntsu was then encased in fire and came down like a missile on Nic.

"**Aqua Jet!**" Once again, Nic lunged at Natsu and the two attacks collided in midair. Neither side was giving an edge this time. Natsu was pushing with all of his might, trying to overpower his aquatic adversary.

Since neither side was giving in, a huge steam cloud began to take form and swallow up the two. Water and heat creates steam, and Natsu's flames were dangerously hot. Nic didn't think this was gonna do much good for him. With quick reflexes, Nic redirected himself upwards, and Natsu lost his balance. Now high in the air, Nic unleashed a Bubblebeam down on the Dragon Slayer, sending him to the ground, which had a thin layer of steam all about.

If Gray had a shirt on, he would've taken it off by now, because the steam felt like a sauna. "Man, are they trying to dry us out?" wondered the bandaged Wizard.

As Nic was falling, his vision of Natsu was hazy because of the thin layer of steam. He then saw a flash of fire from within the steam cloud and the next thing he knew, he was kicked in the abdomen with a flaming heel. "**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" Natsu roared as he propelled himself up and dlivered that blow to Nic. He then spun and delivered another kick to Nic, sending him crashing into the earth.

The crowd was going nuts for this fight. For the beginning, it was a real bang. Nic slowly arose from the earth, brushing off any rock deposit that was on him. "Well, that could've gone worse." Nic said out loud. He and Natsu then glared the other down, awaiting to see who will make the next move. _'This is going to be harder than I thought. If Natsu's flames and my water attacks keep at this, he'll just keep using the steam produced to his advantage. I have to shift the odds. At this point, our attacks are balanced due to Natsu's physical prowess.' _Nic thought, but then another thought came to Nic's mind in those few moments. _'So I guess this is how pokémon battle. It's interesting.' _He then relaxed his body and brought his two palms together.

By this point, the steam finally cleared. Natsu was already prepared for his next shot, but then everyone looked up and saw a small rain cloud over their heads. It was big enough to cover the small area around them. Then it started pouring down. "Let's see how you fair when I increase my Water Type moves. **Rain Dance!**"

"Oh dear, I forgot to bring my umbrella." Complained Mira as everyone was getting drenched. Lucy was trying to cover herself, but Gray and Erza didn't bother. They were too focused as to where Nic was going with this strategy.

Natsu noticed that his fire was dwindling into embers. This rain was also weakening his fire. "Heh, I take it that this is a Pokémon move?" Natsu asked, still with a confident smirk on his face.

"Yeah. Now be ready!" Nic shouted. "**Brine!**" An enhanced torrent of saltwater came raging out of Nic's mouth, and the size of the torrent stunned the crowd.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" the torrent of fire was much smaller than usual. To be more accurate, it was half as powerful, while Brine was enhanced by 50 percent. Brine easily overpowered the roar and rushed right into Natsu. He was sent soaring back and rolled few times before face planting into the ground. When he slowly got up, he opened his eyes wide and screamed at the top of his lungs.

"MY EYES! THEY BURN!" Natsu roared as his eyes were red. He stomped all about and ran back and forth in comical fashion. Nic raised a brow in remembering that Brine was saltwater.

"Oops." He said quietly. He then thought of a way as to clean his eyes and do damage, as long as Natsu doesn't look up and have the rain clean his eyes instead. "How about this! **Hydro Pump!**" A mirror of water then appeared and unleashed a _monstrous _torrent. If the enhanced Brine wasn't bad enough, Hydro Pump was like having an entire ocean fly at you. The guild members gawked and recoiled at this monstrous attack. Natsu was too distracted to notice. When he saw a blurry vision of blue, he gulped.

The last thing anyone saw was a mountain of water exploding everywhere upon impact. They all heard a loud "BOOM" and then they were wet all over, not that Rain Dance did that already.

Eventually, they saw a drenched Natsu several feet from where he was standing. He was still up, but his body was somewhat drained from the onslaught of water attacks. He opened his eyes, fresh as fresh could get. He gasped for air, as he had been hit with water head on and could hardly breathe during that period. "Man, that was refreshing and painful!" Natsu stated with his eyes glaring at Nic.

'_I have to hurry. Rain Dance is going to run out of time.'_ Nic thought. In haste, he used a speedy Aqua Jet that looked like a raging torpedo coming at the Dragon Slayer. Natsu then ducked at the last moment and gave Nic an uppercut that send Nic to the ground with a big thud. He then used a weakened Fire Dragon's Claw and gave a kick that sent Nic flying. Nic landed on his back and grunted as his Aqua Jet didn't finish Natsu. He slowly got up and noticed that the rain finally stopped. The clouds quickly dispersed and everyone was relieved to have been rid of the falling water.

'_Well, gotta give him credit for this one. I know Aqua Jet is fast, but even so, that was quick thinking of him.'_ Nic thought. Natsu lit his whole body in flames. The water on him quickly evaporated and steam was coming off from him, literally. Natsu smirked and lunged at Nic.

"**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" Natsu roared. Nic stood in place and waited, just like what Natsu did. He waited, and finally got his opportunity.

"**Crabhammer!**" With perfect timing, Nic's left arm was encased in water and shaped into a huge crab claw. Nic brought it down like the almighty power of Thor's hammer and sent Natsu hurling into the earth. Rock deposits were flying everywhere. Nic stepped back to see if Natsu was still able to continue, only to see him leap out and try hitting Nic with back-to-back Fire Dragon's Iron Fists and Claws. Eventually, he landed a direct hit on Nic with a Fire Dragon's Claw and send him sideways a few feet. Nic grunted and then smirked.

"I have to say, you're pretty good!" Nic shouted to the Dragon Slayer.

"Not bad yourself!" Natsu replied.

Nic then sighed and began glowing. He showed that he had shifted to his Sky Plate Form. "I would continue on with my Splash Plate Form, but seeing as to how we keeping being equal with my water and your intense flames, I'll have to resort to using another strategy."

Natsu only smirked at his plan. "If you think that'll beat me, then you're wrong!" Natsu proclaimed. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" He then unleashed a torrent of fire at Nic, who quickly ascended and dodged with ease.

"**Wing Attack!**" Nic shouted. His wings then glowed and he soared down towards Natsu.

"Let me show you what mine is like! **Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**" A whiplash of flames then collide with Nic's wings. The two attacks broke apart and Nic ascended back into the air.

"**Acrobatics!**" With swift speed Nic descended and knocked Natsu around a few times, going at blinding speed in all directions. (I would imagine that having a phone on him counts as an item, so it does normal instead of double.) Nic was then grabbed by Natsu by the leg and was thrown. Niv straightened out just in time before Natsu shot a Fire Dragon's Roar, to which Nic countered with Air Slash. The two attacks ended in a draw.

Both sides weren't looking tired. Natsu didn't stop to rest as he leaped and aimed a Fire Dragon's Claw at Nic, of whom easily avoided by flying in another direction and strike his back with a Wing Attack. Natsu fell, but landed safely and looked up at his adversary.

'_Even in Sky Plate Form, we're even. Types really didn't matter much here lie in Kalos…hold up! Wait a minute!'_ Nic suddenly had a realization. _'Types didn't matter, but weaknesses still apply! And I know Natsu's greatest weakness.' _Nic then had a small grin form on his face.

"What's funny?" Natsu demanded.

"Alright flame brain! This is your only chance to give up! Do you wish to concede?" Nic asked. Natsu didn't even budge at his statement. Erza looked up and noticed Nic was planning on something, and she also remembered Natsu improvises in fights.

"It looks as though Nic has the advantage." Erza stated, getting Lucy and Gray's attention.

"What do you mean?" Gray said, angered that he would lose his betting money on Natsu.

"Take a look." Lucy and Gray then noticed as how Nic was grinning confidently. "You saw how Nic had the advantage when the rain was coming down. He knew fire doesn't go well against water and he used that to his advantage. He then shifted to that form and can dodge and strike with ease." Erza deciphered.

Gray then raised a brow. "Now that you mention it, Nic does seem to have a brain unlike that walking match stick." He commented.

Natsu only had his flames on his fists intensify. He wasn't gonna quit, that was a given. "When I'm finished, _you'll _be the one to give up!" Natsu then leaped and tried scoring another hit on Nic.

"**Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow!**" Natsu roared as he was getting closer and closer to Nic.

"I warned ya!" Nic shouted. Natsu was about to hit, when Nic flew in a small circle and grabbed Ntsu from behind. He then held him by the shoulders and watched as Natsu was struggling to break free.

"What is this?! Let go!" Natsu roared with flaming limbs flying all about and shooting fire in the air. Nic only had to jerk a little to get him to stop. This motion made Natsu's face turn green and vulnerable.

"He's using Natsu's motion sickness to his advantage!" Lucy stated.

"Going up!" Nic then dragged Natsu high into the air. The sudden rush made Natsu's face even more green than it was before. The high altitude made the guild members look like ants. When Nic got to a certain point, he stopped and then did a full rotation to gain momentum for hurling Natsu straight down. "**Sky Drop!**" Natsu was falling at a fast rate. His face now looked as though he was about to explode with vomit any time now. Nic then added insult to injury by using Hurricane while Natsu was falling, making him spin uncontrollably. Natsu then crashed into the earth and everyone was flabbergasted to see the Dragon Slayer lying there about to spew his guts to oblivion. He was barely conscious, but unable to move. Nic descended to the ground and changed back to himself.

"Natsu is unable to continue, the winner of this battle is Nic!" Greninja refereed. Everyone then cheered as Nic actually managed to defeat Natsu. Some gazed in disbelief at this sudden victory. Everyone came and circled Nic, going up and congratulating him.

"That was so cool!" "I never thought you'd pull a stunt like that!" "That was amazing Nic!"

He was getting so much praise that he almost broke out in a blush, but what really got him flustered was Erza in front of him and smiling. She was happy at the fact that Nic was able to conquer such a tremendous obstacle with the level of skill he had. Though he was only in Fiore for a short while, he was surpassing Natsu!

"I'm proud of you Nic." Erza said in praise. Nic only smiled back in joy of hearing her compliment him.

"Thanks Erza. Really means a lot." Nic replied. He looked behind Erza and saw Natsu rising from the ground, over his motion sickness.

"Gah! Get ready for another go!" Natsu shouted.

Nic turned towards the irritated Dragon Slayer and smirked. "Oh, you want to take another trip into the sky I see." Nic said, reminding Natsu of that horrible feeling. The thought of being dragged up into the air almost made him pale.

"You dimwit! I lost my winnings because of you!" Gray shouted in frustration.

"Oh shut it Gray, it's over." Cana said. You can't blame Gray for being upset, almost everyone was mentally frustrated. The only people who had actually bet on Nic was Cana and Mira.

Makarov then came up towards Nic and stood in front of him. "I must say, that was an interesting fight between the two of you." The Master commented. "You have shown this guild that even with the smallest of experience, you can conquer the impossible." He then turned towards Natsu and had a blank face, which then turned to a comical anger. "I LOST MY WINNINGS ON YOU NATSU! 1000J WASTED!" Makarov berated, almost shattering Natsu's eardrum.

"I didn't know Master was a gambler?" Mira said to Elfman.

"He gambled like a real man!" Elfman stated.

They all then heard a loud clap. This clap echoed all about and got everyone's attention. They all turned to see a humanoid frog thing in clothes and walked up to them.

"May I have your attention please. I have come on behalf of the Magic Council." The frog announced. This astonished everyone, all except Nic. Nic had no clue as to who or what the Magic Council was. As far as he's concerned, they're nothing at this point.

"Do I have to ask what the Magic Council is?" Nic asked.

"The Magic Council governs all guilds and their actions. They even make laws and make sure that they are followed, and we're being held accountable for a lot of damage." Levy pointed out. Nic then looked back at the frog and crossed his arms.

"Not very welcoming." Nic stated.

Even Greninja wasn't feeling welcomed. Though a frog herself, her disposition made an ugly first impression of the Magic Council. "Not very satisfying." Greninja muttered.

"The Magic Council holds charges to two members of your guild in regards to the Eisenwald incident. Erza Scarlet, you and the Mage with the sunglasses are under arrest!" the frog announced.

"WHAT?!" Natsu roared. Everyone was in shock, and they were frozen. Natsu was so irritated, but Nic kept his cool.

Nic has mentally cursing, thinking that his cover was blown. The Magic Council must have found out during that time period and wanted to take him for something. This boiled Nic on the inside, but nevertheless stayed calm. "It's okay Natsu." Nic assured. "If they want to take us in, then we can't argue. It would only make things worse." With reluctance, Natsu stomped about and stood in place in rage of having his friends turned over to the authorities. Nic then stepped forward to confront the frog messenger. "If you would be as so kind as to rephrase that so it would sound like we would be escorted instead of arrested please." Nic asked sincerely. "It would make me feel much more comfortable." The lady frog took a pause and nodded.

"Very well." She had a mean tone still, but showed no reluctance. "Erza Scarlet and sunglasses Mage, the Magic Council wishes to have you escorted to their presence." She rephrased.

"Thank you." Nic said. He then turned towards his Greninja and they looked at each other. For a good few seconds, Greninja knew what it had to do. He knew well enough to keep an eye on Natsu, knowing how impulsive he is. With a quick nod from Greninja, Nic turned and he as well as Erza had wrist cuffs around them. This prevented the use of their Magic, but had no affect on Nic, considering it wasn't Magic he had. Erza was rather surprised at to how well Nic is taking this situation. He wasn't resisting nor was he thrashing about, guess that's another thing to distinguish between him and Natsu.

The ride there was rather quiet. Neither of them didn't say much. This really wasn't the time to speak, considering they were being "escorted". Nic sat on one end, while Erza sat across from him. Almost the entire way, he was just trying to doze off and shake off, but to no avail. All he could really do was just either look down or up. If he looked down, he'd be staring at his knees and zoning out. If he were to look up, he'd find himself staring into Erza's eyes.

Erza wasn't feeling any better than he was. She didn't think words could get them out of their predicament. She was just silent, but noticed Nic was staring at her almost occasionally. She couldn't help but stare back. Eventually, it was a staring contest that neither had realized. Nic smiled at Erza, which made her smile back. Though they weren't at the right place, nor the right time, the two were feeling rather warm and fuzzy inside.

When they'd finally reached a stop, they were asked to exit the cart and they were "escorted" inside.

'_This place feels like a bad omen.'_ Nic thought, feeling unsatisfactory rush through every part of his body. The frog lady was leading Erza and Nic down the large hallway, still in cuffs, where they'd stopped in front of a man.

This blue haired man with a red mark on his face was looking rather nonchalant, leaning back against a pillar. When he'd open his eyes, Erza was wide eyed.

"Siegrain." Erza gasped. Upon his presence, the frog lady bowed down towards him. Already, Nic was feeling antsy to punch him, but he didn't know why. It was just a foreboding feeling.

"It's been awhile Erza." Siegrain stated, standing up. He couldn't help but smirk as Erza tensed up. "Don't get so agitated. At ease. Me, as well as those old farts in the room up ahead, are just projections from Era. It wasn't found necessary to go in person."

Erza shot lasers at him. "So you're behind this?"

"Don't be so anxious, me and Yajima are the only ones who favor Fairy Tail. The other Council members don't like to take blames, especially the recent Clover destruction, so we had to make you our scapegoat." Siegrain explained with a grin.

Erza was extremely frustrated. She was clenching her fists. It was taking Nic a huge amount of self-control to keep him from going wild on Siegrain. It was clear he was taunting not just Erza, but Fairy Tail in general. Siegrain then put his fingers on her chin and leaned in to whisper. This made Nic almost lose it.

"One more thing." Siegrain said in a whisper. "Keep your mouth shut about you know what. For both of our sakes." Erza had to suppress a growl.

And that's when Nic finally snapped. He then stomped his foot, which made Siegrain and Erza turn towards him. "Shut it!" Nic retorted.

Siegrain almost went wide eyed at this sudden burst of emotion. The fog messenger almost jumped in fear. "Do not ever threaten my comrades of Fairy Tail. If so, you're in for a world of misery." Nic growled. Erza shook her head at him, telling to quit it. Despite what she was warning him about, Nic sneered and glared at Siegrain.

"You must be that new Fairy Tail recruit that can do Take Over." Siegrain said in a calm manner. "What's your name?"

"Nic." He answered.

"Well Nic, first of all, the Magic Council has gotten interested in you since your unique abilities alone accidentally destroyed the Conference Hall. Secondly, you'd be wise to not make an enemy out of them."

Nic was well aware of the situation he's been put in, but the sudden impulse got the best of him. Though it was a projection, Nic grabbed Siegrain by the collar, with both hands in cuffs, and pulled him closer. Siegrain was shocked to say the least. They made eye contact, and Siegrain can see the threatening disposition within his eyes.

'_This guy.' _Siegrain thought. _'What is this Magic? It feels strange. Is this so he can make contact with my projection? But he has wrist cuffs on. What is he?'_

"If you mess with my friends, you mess with me." Nic proclaimed. He then let go and sneered at the councilman. Siegrain regained his composure and straightened out his collar.

"Anyways, the council will be waiting for you two." His projection then disappeared, leaving the frog to shudder, Erza, and Nic.

Erza turned displeasingly at her friend. "He's right. You shouldn't have done that. You musn't have the council as an enemy." She said very seriously. She only got a sneer as Nic looked away.

"He had what was coming to him. Besides, as far as the Council's concerned, they've already made an enemy." Nic growled, still frustrated. Erza could clearly see that Nic wasn't going to reason with her berating. This was a whole different side of Nic. The side that she didn't see when Nic's phone was stepped on. The feeling of Nic's demeanor felt like an absolute zero chill that made your mind shatter. Erza felt this side was even scarier than her.

'_This side of Nic, was this what Gray meant?'_ wondered Erza. _'Compared to his mild, serious, yet relaxed self, this felt like the opposite. I heard that Nic was fearful when his phone was stepped on, but did Siegrain taunting me cause this? Am I another reason Nic can be this vile when I'm threatened?' _These feelings changed from a frozen chill into a twister of emotions from within. She felt touched, but disappointed. Scared, yet impressed. She then realized Nic's intentions were to protect her, and she didn't blame him for what he did. If anything, she'd might have done the same thing, but would be able to suppress such an act. Nevertheless, this side of Nic was still surging, and she would guess that the meeting with the Council will only make such matters worse. The more she worried, the more concerned she got for Nic's safety.

The frog messenger got over her shock and slowly proceeded and the two followed.

"Thanks Nic." Erza said very softly. "I appreciate what you did for me."

Now a little at ease, Nic grinned just for a few moments, though he didn't want to look Erza in the eyes after his behavior. If anything, he was ashamed of his actions, but knew it couldn't be helped.

In the courtroom. The pair stood in front of the seven members of the Magic Council. Erza kept a straight face, but Nic was only angry. If there was one thing that Nic hated more than the constant guild fighting, it would be authority. Nic has been free for over three years, and he's being restrained by some dimwitted cowards who refuse to take the blame. It was unbearable enough to accused of shallow crimes, but arrested and brought for display almost made Nic lose it again.

"Before us are the defendants, Erza Scarlet and the sunglasses Mage." The frog said. "Please take the stand you two." Erza then took the stand, followed by a boiling Nic.

"Erza Scarlet, you and your friend right next to you stand before the council to answer to charges in regards to the Eisenwald incident. These charges include damage to Oshibana Station, the destruction of the Clover Canyon Bridge, and destruction of the Clover Conference Hall. Witnesses describe a scarlet haired woman for the Oshibana incident, but the charges expand to your friend of whom did damage to not only Oshibana Station, but the bridge as well as the Conference Hall." Org announced. He then turned towards Nic. "The Take Over Mage must be questioned as to what his business was as to his business with the Eisenwald incident and whereabouts beforehand."

Nic had to keep his cool. If they were to ask him as to where he lived, he would have to think of a convincing lie. He ease himself, making him look more calm, but still internally erupting.

"Take Over Mage, may begin questioning by-" He was put to a halt when Siegrain held up a hand.

"I wouldn't advise having you questioning this young man Org." noted Siegrain. "He doesn't cooperate well with threats." Siegrain then looked at Nic, and then looked back at Org just to avoid Nic's angry glare. Org simply sneered at him.

"To be honest, I couldn't care less which one of you questions me. I would never cooperate with such harsh and imposing individuals, and threats and demands only makes it worse." Nic informed. His attitude and tone astonished and slightly irritated the Magic Council.

"I'm well aware of your impulsive actions." Siegrain implied. "But you do realize that you're in front of the entire Magic Council, right?"

Nic almost began gritting his teeth. Being told what to do by cowards is just as infuriating as his demeanor without his phone or earbuds. "Doesn't mean anything to me." Nic said.

"You dare speak with such an attitude at this Council?" exclaimed Org. "There is absolutely no denial to us. You will comply or-!" He was cut off by Nic held up his cuffs as if he was holding up a hand.

"I think you understand my point." Nic said. "Like I said, I'd never cooperate with push overs." Everyone was speechless, even Erza for Nic's defiance in the Magic Council. Before things could get out of hand. Yajima stood up and held out a hand.

Yajima was a small old man with a toothbrush moustache that goes halfway towards his mouth. He had a long sleeve shirt that was brown and a spiked hat. Like Siegrain stated, he favors Fairy Tail due to his friendship with Master Makarov.

"I'd think it would be best as to drop all of this and have Ultear question him. She does have a way with comforting such gutsy people." Yajima said. Org only groaned as to how Yajima had a point. Ultear then stepped in.

Ultear was a pale-skinned young woman with dark purple hair and had brown eyes. She had a voluptuous figure much like Erza, and had a revealing dress with a stripped pattern. The way she was gazing at Nic was making Erza almost quiver in place. She didn't like that look.

"I suppose you're right Yajima." Ultear said. "Best I should handle this situation and question him. Shall we?"

Nic couldn't care less of her approach, because he was aware of her motives as to get information out of him. He eased himself a little and looked at the young council member. "Yes." Nic answered.

"Very well, shall we start with your name. I do believe that calling you other than your name would become rather cumbersome." Ultear explained in a sultry tone, which made Erza almost glare at her.

"Sure. I'm Nic Pularis, my "Take Over" is a personal transformation that's called Multitype, a transformation only I can do. It does share traits, but only outfit wise and with the exception of my eyes." Nic thoroughly explained.

"Fine, how about your history. We have absolutely no records of you. You only showed after Hargeon. Can you please explain?" Ultear asked.

Nic came up with a convincing lie on the spot. "You see, my mother and father were wandering merchants. We were pretty self-sufficient, and we made a lot of money. One day, when I was seven, my mother and father passed away from natural causes, mainly getting ill. That left me all by myself to wander about. My parents had a little bit of Magic in their heritage, so they'd managed to teach me a thing or two before Death took them to the heavens. I'd managed to thrive on what I could buy and find all around me. When my merchant supplies reached zero, I had to fend for myself and use what money I had left. This happened when I was only eleven. So for the next seven years, I have been wandering about, trying to find a suitable home. When I heard about guilds, I thought I could rest easy and live there. I scoped every town and found their guilds to be ruthless and far too demanding, so my search lead me all over the place. Eventually, I found myself in Hargeon and that's when I heard of the guild known as Fairy Tail. You can say that brings us to right now."

His lie was very convincing. He made it sound like he was retelling an actual event. Even Erza almost bought his story, and then she reminded herself he was trying to cover up his identity of his other world experience. Even the Magic Council bought this lie. Siegrain smirked at this statement. Nic knew Siegrain was up to something.

'_Siegrain. I know you're up to no good, but I can't seem to figure it out. I don't trust him.' _Nic thought. During the story, Nic cooled down and wasn't feeling as rowdy.

"Very well. I guess that's all we needed from you." Ultear stated. "Also, I guess that's why you display such tyrannical behavior towards us. You've been alone throughout your life, so you weren't put down by superiors. We'll let you off easy, but be aware that outbursts like those could lead to such drastic consequences." Nic was fully aware of this. Siegrain said not to have the Magic Council as an enemy, but also knew that he was still being used as an example to those who break the law.

"That is a given." Org stated. "Don't step out of line again Nic Pularis, understand?" He had a very threatening tone, which of course set of fumes in Nic again.

"I get it, but it's not like I'd listen to you." Nic retorted. Org stood up in rage.

"You quit that feisty attitude young man! You're only making this harder than it is!" Org stated in an irritated tone this time, to which Nic brushed off.

"Does this look like the face of mercy?" Nic glared back, showing a very foul facial expression. The two glared at one another for some time, and then Siegrain broke it up.

"Org. I do believe that this staring contest should come to an end." He insisted. With a sigh, Org complied and sat back down.

"You better watch out, Nic Pularis." Org stated. "You are dismissed, you can go-!" Just then, a large explosion from behind. There was also a thick cloud of Smokescreen that made the entrance even more dramatic. Just then, Greninja leaped in with Natsu dressed in a hilarious armor.

"I'M THE CRAZY LADY THAT YOU OLD TIMERS HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR! IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH HOW MY GUILD WORKS THEN YOU'VE GOT ANOTHER THING COMING!" Natsu roared. He was breathing fire and flailing his limbs all about.

Erza was stunned, shocked, mortified, stunned again, angry, and speechless, followed by more stunningness. Nic looked over at Natsu's partner-in-crime and sighed. _'How Natsu got you into this plan of his, I'll never know.'_ Nic mentally sighed. The Magic Council members themselves were shocked and gawked at this stupid stunt.

"I AM THE ALL POWERFUL ERZA! YOU THINK I'M DESTRUCTIVE, BUT YOU HAVEN'T SEEN NOTHING!" He then rampaged and used fire and destroyed a few things in the room, and Greninja assisted with a couple Water Pulse attacks flying about. The council members looked in deep shock, but Siegrain was rather amused. Nic however was both. He thought it was hilarious for Natsu to dress like Erza, but infinitely stupid of destroying stuff, not to mention that his pokémon was assisting his rampage.

Natsu then pointed at the council members. "DO YOU REALLY THINK THE STUFF DESTROYED IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE GUILDMASTERS LI-!" He was stopped mid yelling as Nic, still cuffed, banged his arms over Natsu's head, stopping his rampage and having him see little stars flutter around him. Nobody even saw that coming. Now the council, and Erza, not to mention Greninja, was shocked.

"Natsu! You pyro barbarian! They were letting us go, but then you _had_ to just go and be Erza! Besides, that isn't close to being as appealing as Erza is! You numbskull!" With that, Nic swung his cuffed hands and knocked Natsu out. Nic was breathing heavily as his impulse got the better of him. He didn't realize until a few moments later that he said Erza was appealing to him out loud, which made him froze in place. Erza heard what he'd said and stood completely frozen. She had to suppress a blush of embarrassment.

Org just angrily sighed. "Just take them away." Org said, tired of all of this nuisance.

"I'm truly sorry for all of this your honor." Erza bowed her head in apology.

Nic then looked over at Greninja, who just stood still. "How did you get dragged into his idea?" He asked.

Greninja just shrugged. "He was relentless, what can I tell ya? No matter how much I tried to stop him, he kept on pushing, so I had to help." Nic sighed, seeing how Greninja had a point when it came to Natsu and being stubborn.

The four spend that night in a prison cell. Thankfully, Nic and Erza didn't have to wear those wrist cuffs on them. Natsu was at the mercy of Erza, as where Greninja was to be reprimanded by Nic.

"Honestly buddy, was Natsu that stubborn?" Nic asked, still baffled.

"Yeah." Greninja said. "Besides…I wanted to look out for my best friend." Nic froze in place. He always knew Greninja and him were close buddies to the end and through death, but had forgotten what it meant to be a real friend. A real friend was someone who trusted you for as long as they'd known you, someone who stuck by your side, someone who would take a beating for you, someone who would aid you in your time of need, someone who would never leave your side.

Nic was touched to the core. He should have never doubted _his_ best friend. His pokémon was his family. Every member was special. Through thick and through thin, they all came to trust Nic and stay by his side and never leave him ever. Nic felt sorry for himself, but looked up at his pal with a smile.

"I'm proud of you buddy." Nic told Greninja.

His friend just shrugged and smiled. "Anything for my trainer and pal." The two then fist bumped and they turned their attention towards Erza and Natsu.

Erza was not pleased.

"Words can't even begin to describe of how angry I am with your stupid stunt. That whole trial was just a fiasco." She growled at the Dragon Slayer.

"Wait, so this was all for show?" he wondered.

"They were just using me and Nic as an example that if you break the law, you get punished." She explained, still angry.

"If you ask me, they did a lousy job doing so." Nic commented.

"Well that's because you resented!" Erza scolded Nic, of whom wasn't frightened.

"I take none from no one!" Nic berated, she just sighed and turned her attention back towards Natsu.

"Anyway, aside from what Nic said was true, they would've found us guilty and send us home with a warning, but thanks to you and that frog we're stuck in a jail cell all night!" Erza barked, which made Natsu flip out on his own actions.

Erza turned away, displeased. "I can't believe you."

Natsu turned away, upset about what he'd just done. "I'm sorry guys." He sighed.

"It's okay. It meant a lot." She said. She then grabbed his head and banged it on her breastplate.

"Ow!" Natsu wined. Nic just looked on and thanked the Dragon Slayer while his head was still hurting.

"You care a lot about our well-being, so I'm not mad." Nic said.

The night pressed on, and Siegrain was in the shadows. He smirked. "A Fairy Tail Wizard huh, Natsu Dragneel." He was very interested as to how things will go for Natsu in the future, but was even more curious as to whom this Nic Pularis really is. "I wonder what powers we'll see from you later on, Nic Pularis."

* * *

**A little while after…**

The night pressed on, again. Natsu and Greninja were both out like lights. Erza was gazing up at the ceiling, as to where Nic was listening to his music on his phone. He felt like dozing off, but then realized that he hasn't eaten all day. He then felt his stomach roaring for some nourishment. He couldn't sleep because he needed food.

He looked over at Erza and saw her gazing off. He was curious as to what went on between the two. _'How did she and Siegrain know each other? What do they need to keep shut about?'_ These relentless questions kept bombarding his head. It was driving him nuts.

Erza took notice of Nic looking at her in curiosity, and looked at him. "What is it?"

Nic snapped back into reality and heard Erza. He blinked a few times and shook his head. "It was just a thought." Nic said. She didn't feel like asking him about what he was thinking, all she could really do was just look at him deep in her thoughts. She was spacing out just as much as he was. She learned a lot about Nic today.

This is what Erza thought of him: Nic was a guy that has pure intentions. If feeling good, he'll aid in anyone who needs help. He can be a little silly, but be serious on missions. He can have a super quick temper and will defy _anyone_ no matter who it may be. He cares deeply for his friends and comrades and will go so far as to defend them through force. He can be considered mild and friendly if not feeling so.

Erza was trying to figure Nic out, but what struck her as odd was that Nic didn't even fear her. She went so far as to warn him, yet he stuck his neck out and showed he was the boss. This made Nic's wrath feel like hell compared to Erza's wrath. He's something alright.

Nic then felt something as he reached into his coat pocket. Nic felt it and realized that it was the container that held the strawberry cheesecake he was saving from earlier. He almost felt his brain jump out of his head, telling him to give it to her. He had to resist the urge to do so. He thought this wasn't a good time.

As long as this mental war went on, he wouldn't be able to give Erza the piece of cake. If not now, then he would probably regret it later on. He just gave up and pulled the container out of his pocket. He didn't want to give it by hand. He just slid it to her. He then just turned his back and tried to sleep, though it was hard for him to do. Erza was too zoned out to realize it, which Nic sighed in relief.

Half an hour later, Erza was dozing off and then put her hands on the floor, but when she did, she felt a box. She looked down and was wide eyed at the strawberry cheesecake that was right next to her. She didn't know if this was a miracle or not. She hasn't eaten all day either. She slowly looked up and saw that Nic was looking away and trying to sleep. She knew it all too well. She paused for a moment and broke out in a smile. Eventually, it lead to her blushing, thinking it was rather touching that Nic would get her something like this, even when things were pretty grim.

She took the fork that came with the cake and slowly ate it. Unbeknownst to her, Nic was still awake, and her the fork dig into the cake. Finally, he grinned and at last caught some shut eye.

* * *

**The next day…**

Natsu was so glad to be out and bouncing about around the Guild Hall. He was running and breathing fire in joy. "Woooooooh! Fresh air never smelled so good! I'm breathing this stuff all day!" Natsu shouted. His constant running about was getting annoying to the other guild members.

"Keep it down." Jet complained.

"Give it a rest already." Droy complained. These complaints went unquestioned as Natsu kept running about.

"Isn't he just precious when he acts like this?" Mira said, delighted to see Natsu's spirits high and almighty. Lucy was drained and had her head down, she was upset that the trial was just for show.

"I still can't believe that was just for show." Lucy groaned.

"I couldn't believe Greninja jumped right into Natsu's plan. And here I thought they would croak." Gray joked.

"That joke was as cold as your ice." Elfman complained.

At another table, Erza was busy sitting idly and Nic was sitting right next to her. She couldn't look at him in the eyes, mainly because she was just a little shy from the present he slipped her last night. Nic was feeling the same way. He couldn't muster up the nerve to talk to her, mainly because of his demeanor yesterday and the cake he gave her.

After a little bit, Nic was able to get out a few words while looking at the table. "So, about yesterday." Erza turned her head and was curious as to what Nic was gonna say. "I'm sorry. It's just that wanted to save you, just as Natsu wanted to save us both."

Erza smiled. "Don't worry, I know you wanted to protect me." Nic felt reassured hearing how he wasn't gonna be unanswered. Erza then continued. "I dis wonder as to how you managed to get me that cake in the first place."

Nic turned his head and looked at her, admiring her curiosity. "Before the fight, I asked Mira to box it up so that I could give it to you later. I know that you like strawberry cheesecake, so I thought I would be nice to do something for you." This made Erza nearly blush. She couldn't help but see that he cared for her and would do something like this.

"Thanks Nic." Erza said, trying to look away so Nic wouldn't have to see the blush getting even more red. Nic tried to look back at the table, thinking as to what to say now. He then thought of something witty.

"I thought it would also be nice because you and that cake had something in common." He said, trying not to look at her. She looked at him in curiosity as to what he meant.

"Oh, what is it?" Erza asked casually. Nic then tilted his head just a tiny bit towards her and smiled and looked at her.

"Because your both very sweet." He cleverly said. That did the trick. Nic then looked away in embarrassment as he thought he went a little too far, but he actually stopped at a perfect point. Erza looked away as her face was as red as her hair. Fortunately, no one was looking.

A little while went by, and Nic got up to get some water. He had his earbuds in and feeling rather pleasant at the moment. He looked about and turned to see that everyone was looking rather drowsy. One by one, he saw everyone dropping like flies into sleep. The only one he saw that wasn't asleep was Master Makarov, although he was rather drowsy. Nic was fully awake, though probably because his music was blasting his ears and making him have energy to spare. Even so, he couldn't help but wonder. Was it something in the booze? Was it because they all stayed up all night? Was it because they weren't feeling it today?

A masked person with his whole body cloaked then showed up. This cause Nic to believe that he was an enemy. As he approached Master, Nic stepped in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.

"Who are you?!" Nic demanded. The masked man stood in place. His entire body, except the eyes, was covered. He had multiple staves on his back, bandaged arms and hands with gloves. He was shocked to see his Sleep Magic having no affect on Nic, though his face was covered.

"So you can resist my Sleep Magic?" he asked. Nic pulled out his earbuds and tilted his head.

"Eh, sorry. I couldn't hear a word you say." Nic said.

"Do not worry Nic." Informed Makarov. "Mystogan here is a fellow guild member." Nic then looked at Makarov and looked at the sleeping guild members. Mystogan then walked on over towards the request board. He only observed for a few seconds and picked a job off of the board, he then walked up to Makarov and showed him the paper.

"Is there a reason you have them put to sleep?" Nic asked. Mystogan froze and looked at Nic.

"Yes, but I would prefer to have that between me and the Master." He explained.

"But the guild is like a family, it's not like we would care, but if the reason is crucial, then we won't push you." Nic informed the mysterious Mage. After a pause Mystogan turned.

"I'll tell you only this, because you brought up a point. My Sleep Spell is so that no one can see my face." Mystogan informed. Nic was curious to learn more, but had to respect Mystogan's privacy.

"Understood, thank you Mystogan." Said Nic. Mystogan then began to walk out of the guild, slowly counting down to when the Sleep Spell wears off. Once he'd reached zero, he was gone and out of the Guild Hall. Everyone, exclude Natsu, immediately woke up feeling all groggy and tired.

"Ugh, was Mystogan here? He really needs to lighten up on his Sleep Spell." Complained Droy.

"Does he have to do so every time he comes here?" complained Levy, following the rest of the guild getting up.

"Who's Mystogan?" Lucy asked, feeling left out.

"He's a contender for Fairy Tail's strongest wizard." Said Elfman. Gray rubbed his eyes and spoke about after him.

"Yeah, and he doesn't want people to see his face. The only one who really saw his face was Makarov." He said.

"Not entirely." A voice stated from above on the second floor. Everyone looked up and saw a tall muscular man with spiky blond hair. He had spiked headphones and a coat going over him. The coat was black and his shirt was much like a tainted gold with dark spots all about. He had a lightning bolt scar running down his face, which was the most notable feature. "I've seen him before."

"Laxus, didn't expect to see you here." Elfman said surprised.

"You're never around." Commented Wakaba. Nic looked up at the guy. His tone wasn't very inviting and he sounded like he was arrogant of sorts.

"Mystogan's just shy, respect his privacy. Besides that, that guy with the earbuds in his ears got a pretty good look as well." He said. Upon hearing this voice, Natsu instantly arose from his slumber and jumped to his feet.

"Laxus! Come fight me!" Natsu demanded. Nic looked back at his flaming idiot of a friend.

"Please pal, if you can't even land a punch on the chick over there, then you'll never be up to par with me." Gloated Laxus.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Erza said. A death aura surrounded her, which made everyone flip out and run for cover.

"No need to get offended now." Gray tried to ease.

"I'm saying that I'm number one in this guild." Laxus said, acting all high and mighty. This made Natsu want to burn him on the spot.

"Prove it!" Natsu shouted.

"Come up here and prove me wrong little man." Laxus taunted. Almost instantly, Natsu began running up at Laxus. When he was about to jump, Master Makarov's hand grew large and pinned Natsu against the wall, and he did so without looking.

Lucy was shocked to see Natsu pinned.

"You're not allowed on the second floor Natsu, not at this point in time." Insisted Makarov. Laxus then rested his head on the rails and laughed.

"I think you've made him upset." Laxus said. Natsu was trying to break free and failed miserably.

"Shut up!" Natsu growled.

"That's enough Laxus!" Makarov demanded. Laxus got up and smirked.

"Do you guys know what a champion looks like? Well he's right here!" Laxus referred to himself, being an arrogant jerk. All he got was stares from everyone, especially from Natsu, Gray, Erza, and Nic. He then looked down at the young person with sunglasses on his V-neck. "Hey, you'd be wise to keep your mouth shut about Mystogan pal."

"Same implies to you thunder boy" Nic responded.

The guild gasped as Nic called Laxus something unexpected. This immediately gave Laxus the energy to jump down and glare down the easily tempered Mage. The entire guild was dead quiet.

"What did you just call me?" Lxus said in a very threatening tone.

"You heard me." Nic wasn't afraid at all. Obviously he had no-fear genes.

Laxus's hands were now coated in lightning that signified his anger. Nic was ready to transform.

Suddenly, Makarov intervened. "That's enough you two!" Laxus hesitated to listen, but then turned away.

Laxus sneered and took off, but not without saying that Nic just got off easy.

The whole scenario was over and everyone was able to take in oxygen again. They all stopped hiding and returned to whatever they were doing before Mystogan's arrival. Natsu was still a bit mad that Nic could get in a smart comment before he did, but was glad at the same time because he got to see a frustrated Laxus.

Makarov shook his head in disappointment. "Nic, you need to be careful around Laxus." Makarov warned. Nic looked at the ground and turned to leave the guild for a little bit.

"Making friends. Everywhere I go, nothing but friendly friends." Nic muttered rather sarcastically.

* * *

**I got this chapter updated Sunday night, so I'm making great timing on my updates.**

**This chapter wasn't exactly what I was going for, but it's okay. I had to get another part of Nic's personality shown, so that's what this chapter's priority was about. **

**Somebody asked if there will be a Mega Evolution. Don't worry, you'll see one very soon, potentially the Phantom Lord Arc. **

**I had to get as much as I could involving this section of the story, because I'm planning something for the next few chapters. For the record: I don't write this stuff, rather I type on the spot if you guys were curious.**

**Don't worry guys, more pokémon will be introduced, but they'll all come individually.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, and **_**especially **_**Review. I would appreciate it if you do so, for it will make me happy, and I will be able to do more updates every week, or week and a half. **

**Thank you for reading another chapter. Again, Reviews!**

* * *

**Next Time: A Date without a Heart**


	5. A Date Without a Heart

Chapter 5 – A Date without a Heart

**Hey guys, I'm back! Some insane ideas have been in my mind lately, but you'll see how I'll I apply that to the story.**

**About last chapter; to be fair, I had no clue as how I made Nic so aggressive. I wanted to make him look mild and sweet, yet assertive and able to stand up for what he treasures. As previously stated, I just type this stuff up on the spot, though I should write this stuff first.**

**You guys remember when I said I might leave Nic out of certain arcs that I don't like? Well, you'll see. **

**To Recap:**

Everyone returns to the guild, where they learn the hard way that you never touch Nic's phone or earbuds. Nic finally battles Natsu and eventually wins. Afterwards, Nic and Erza are arrested and taken to the Magic Council for charges. With Siegrain threatening Erza, Nic snaps and shows a more monstrous side of himself that's even scarier than Erza. Nic lied to the council and his secret wasn't discovered, but he and the council did not like each other one bit. Afterwards, Natsu, dressed as Erza, and Greninja barge in and destroy stuff, making them all spend one night in a prison cell. The next day, Mystogan shows up and Nic is unaffected by his Sleep Spell as he takes a job and leaves immediately after. Everyone wakes up and Laxus and Nic glare down at each other in spite of one another's attitude.

* * *

**Chapter 5 – A Date without a Heart**

About half an hour rolled by after Nic and Laxus's confrontation with one another. Nic was walking about around Magnolia and was listening to music to entertain himself. He didn't think going back to the guild at this time would be such a good idea, especially with the hysteria that bloomed with the consecutive confrontations involving Mystogan and Laxus.

He strolled about and eventually ran into some sort of café. It was just a small café with a cute little red roof and a sign hanging over the door that said "Sunny Side Up's". It was a few blocks away from the bakery that Erza loved to get her strawberry cheesecakes from. The café had a few tables outside, so he took the liberty to step inside and the doorbell rang.

The lady as the waitress looked at Nic, noticing another customer walking into the café. She looked to be in her early twenties with brown eyes and brown hair in a bud. She turned towards Nic's direction to serve him.

"Hi, welcome to Sunny Side Up's. How may we help you?" She asked. Nic looked about inside and noticed that the place had quite a few people being served. This little café was generally known for its breakfast and lunch specials, so it's not like he was coming in for a special occasion or anything. Nic didn't feel like being inside with people, so he thought he would sit outside.

"I'll sit outside." Nic said. He then went out the door and the waitress followed. Nic took a left outside the café and sat at the closest table that was five feet away from the door. He sat idly and the waitress pulled out a piece of paper and a pen.

"What would you like to drink?" She politely asked. Nic wasn't feeling much of anything. The only thing he really drinks ever is water. Nic disliked beverages that weren't water. The only exceptions were lemonade, orange juice, milk (skim), and chocolate milk if possible. Seeing as they serve mainly coffee at this café, he would just have to resort to his usual.

"Just some water will be fine." He ordered. The waitress then went back inside and came out in less than thirty seconds with a glass full of water. Nic was shocked as to how fast she made the order. "Whoa. That was fast." He commented.

"We were trained to react fast to orders, especially since we're super busy around this time of day." She responded. Nic nodded in understanding of how much effort a waitress has to put into serving customers. "Alright, what would you like to order?" she asked.

Nic looked at the menu rather quickly. He just scoped the menu and found an omelet section. Nic didn't mind omelettes, it's one of his favorite breakfast foods. The only problem was that he could only get them whenever he's in a city or town.

Back in the pokémon world, Nic roamed constantly. He was always going through every route and every city every day. It would take Nic at least a few days to get from one town to another. (I'm just stretching the geography here.) Here, he's right in a town that he could have omelets whenever. Though, he did have some omelets whenever out on routes. All he had to do was get the necessary ingredients from the previous town and just make them over a fire. This didn't happen too often though, only about once a week. Ever since he joined Fairy Tail, he could have omelets whenever he wanted, as long as he cooked it for himself. The Guild Hall is literally his home, so the guild's kitchen was basically his kitchen, to which no one argued.

"I think I'll have a Western Omelet with tomato, green peppers, cheese, mushroom, and ham." He ordered. The waitress took a few seconds to write that order down and nodded.

"Okay." She said. She then walked right back into the café to tend to the other customers inside. When she was out of sight, Nic immediately zoned out and listened to music.

Upon his zoning out, he was recalling as to how this was a situation before he ventured into this world. Nic recalled being at a café with his Greninja and then they left for Fiore. It was hard to believe, it only felt like they've been here less than three weeks, probably because they were.

At that thought, he noticed that Erza was walking by and she saw him sitting in a chair outside the café. She had just finished replenishing her supply of strawberry cheesecake. She walked by with a cart of thirty strawberry cheesecakes. She then started to walk over towards Nic.

Nic almost immediately turned his volume off so he could speak to Erza. He sat upright and she was standing right next to him.

"Hey Nic." Erza said.

"S'up Erza." He responded casually. He was trying to keep himself from not talking as much, considering she was there when he confronted Laxus; more importantly, how he mentioned she was very sweet. The thought of saying she was as sweet as her strawberry cheesecakes almost made him look away in embarrassment.

Erza took notice of Nic slowly turning away. She assumed he was trying to avoid her. She didn't blame him though. Even she began thinking back as to how he was bold, not to mention clever, enough to tell her she actually meant something to the Multitype Mage.

She took notice of the empty seat across from Nic and thought it wouldn't hurt to hang around before heading back to Fairy Hills to put her strawberry cheesecakes away. (She must have one big fridge!)

"Mind if I take a seat?" Erz asked. This made Nic's head almost spring upwards. He didn't necessarily see this coming, though he didn't want to avoid it either.

"Sure. Be the guest of honor." Nic said. Being called 'the guest of honor' almost made her lightly blush, so she quickly sat down right across from him.

After a brief moment of quiet, Nic thought it would be nice to get to know her more, so he started to look at her in the eyes and began thinking of some things to say.

"So…" Nic was squirming a little bit in his chair, just to think of something casual. "Wonderful weather we're having." It wasn't the best thing that came to Nic's mind, but it was the first. Though it was rather obvious, he wasn't wrong. The weather has been great since he'd been in Fairy Tail. It probably rained maybe once or twice.

Erza looked up at the sky, seeing as there are very few clouds. She then looked back down at Nic and grinned. "I suppose you're right." She replied.

After that, Nic's food came out from the café. The waitress had it served on a plate and had set it in front of him. "There you go. Is there anything else I can get you?" she said.

Nic shook his head. "Nope. Thank you." He politely said. She then turned and went back inside to serve the other customers and left Erza and Nic alone once more. Nic couldn't help himself, he hasn't had an omelet in awhile and he was aching to cram some into his mouth. With one stab of his fork, a huge chunk of the omelet was lifted up and Nic almost began drooling at the glorious sight. "Here's to an _egg_xcellent rest of the day." Nic said, trying to fight off the drool that was trying to escape his mouth. With one quick motion, the piece was send hurdling into his mouth. He just shoved that huge piece into his mouth and savored every bite of it.

Erza couldn't help but stare at him. For one thing, he shoved a huge piece of omelet into his face right in front of her. Secondly, she couldn't help but see the content look on his face. He looked as though he was taking a bite out of heaven. Erza felt a few things going through her mind. For one thing, she was shocked that NIc had as much manners as did Natsu. Second of all, she thought as to how Nic almost forgot she was there, as he was eating something that caught his attention. This made her almost feel jealous. Thirdly, she wondered what heaven tasted like as well.

She let out a slight cough, which got Nic's attention once more. The moment he looked up at her, he was wide eyed and had forgotten that she was even there. He was frozen in place, not to mention he had a little bit of the egg dangling from his mouth. He quickly opened his mouth and gulped it down, still had his shocked gaze on the beautiful Mage that was in front of him. Once he swallowed, he looked around left and right to see if anyone was watching, which thankfully no one was.

"Uh…" Nic had to improvise, so all he did was smile idiotically and looked as though he was happy. "So…yeah."

Erza just sighed and smiled, thinking as to how silly his reaction was. She then looked back at Nic and tried to think of a few things as well.

"It looks as though you were in quite a heavy moment with that omelet of yours." She noted.

"Seems like it." Nic responded.

"Seems as though the omelet is more popular to you than I am." Erza said. This made Nic feel somewhat guilty. He had forgotten she was there and he was too busy eating food to notice her. Looking down in shame, he thought as to fix this and slid the plate to the middle.

"Try some." Nic insisted. He cleaned off the fork with a napkin and handed it to Erza. With little reluctance, she grasped the fork and dug into the omelet. She got out a small piece and then brought it into her mouth. After chewing it up and tasting it, she couldn't help but raise a brow.

'_Hmm, I can see why Nic loves this stuff.'_ She thought. Truth be told, Nic can tolerate others having a bite of his favorite breakfast/brunch special, but can never tolerate people touching his phone. At this point, he was satisfied to see Erza enjoy his food. After swallowing, she cleaned the fork and handed it back to him.

"Not bad, do you have this stuff on a daily basis?" she asked.

Nic just shrugged. "Not really. I mean, I travel all the time back when I was in my world, so it's not like I had the necessities for this brilliant work of art between us. I could get the ingredients in a town, but I would only have one omelet a week. Ever since I came here, I had much more to eat, though I don't have it too often so as I don't get sick of them. I would probably have it maybe twice, maybe three times a week, depending if I'm in the guild in the morning." Nic wasn't feeling at all nervous about telling his omelet life, but along that topic, he noted the strawberry cheesecakes in her cart.

"I guess I could ask you the same thing with your cheesecakes." He said, referring to her food. She looked over and turned back towards him.

"I guess, but it's a long story." Erza said. Nic didn't feel like asking her anymore questions, mainly because he wanted to eat some more. Every other bite, he would have Erza eat a little piece. Eventually, the omelet was finished and the waitress came out with the bill. It wasn't big at all, so Nic paid on the spot. He also had to leave a tip for her serving him. With that said and done, he took the cash and nodded.

"Thank you, come again you two." She then walked back in, finished serving him.

Erza couldn't help but feel as though her face was exploding with red. She was feeling rather fuzzy inside, like some butterflies were fluttering in her stomach, though that could be the omelet she ate.

'_D-does she mean 'you two'…as in…me and Nic…together…o-on a date?" _These thoughts were making her steam as well. This felt so embarrassing to her.

The thought flew right over Nic's head and he proceeded to get up. He noticed as to how red and steaming Erza was. He leaned in very slightly and wondered as to what she was thinking.

"You who." He whistled. Erza was brought back to reality and turned towards Nic. "You okay? You look as though you were gonna burst in flames." Nic joked. Erza then looked down and turned back to her steaming red, heavily embarrassed.

Nic grinned as to how cute she looked when she was like this. It wasn't every day you see a shy Erza. Nic has known Erza for only a short while, and she was always so stoic and dead serious. He hasn't seen this side of her before.

Pushing that aside, Nic thought as to be the gentleman from day one and he looked over at the cart of strawberry cheesecakes. He then began walking over and Erza looked up at him, now in a light pink rather than a deep red. She was curious as to what Nic was doing. Nic grabbed the handle and looked back at Erza with a smile.

"I do believe that I should be a gentleman and help you with your "groceries"." He said. Upon this realization, Erza shook the embarrassment off and got up. Erza had no objections, so she allowed him to drag her cart all the way to her place.

The way there wasn't too bad. The load sure felt much lighter compared to last time. Since this was only "groceries", it didn't feel like he was yanking away at five hundred pounds of "luggage" or something.

Fairy Hills was a female dormitory, which was where most female members of Fairy Tail lived. It was atop a grassy hill that wasn't too far from Fairy Tail.

The exterior design wasn't too bad. It was large and mildly imposing. It was made of what looked like bricks. It consisted of a central, elongated section at which the sides sat two wings protruding outwards, much like a sideways capital I. One of the center's right acted as the main entrance, which looks like a double door with a pyramid shape part topped by a similar pyramid-shaped roof, which was held by wooden beams. Lighter bricks lined up vertically to enforce the edging of the standard bricks, with light beams that went horizontally. The front had a porch in front of the central part, with a steep tiled roofing split by beams held by wooden pillars. All of the windows had arches in them. The entrance had a sign that was held by two pillars that was stone and brick. It had Fairy Tail's symbol and there was a large arch saying "Fairy Hills" in dark letters.

Nic took a good look and gave an impressed nod. "Not too shabby." He commented. He only walked up to the overhead sign, where Erza stopped in front of him. She turned back towards him and sighed.

"I'm sorry Nic, but Fairy Hills is a female only dormitory, meaning you're not allowed in to help." Erza explained. Nic just shrugged it off and turned.

"Don't worry, I trust you can take it from here." Nic said. Erza nodded and was handed the cart. Nic then stretched and began to turn.

"Ooooookayyyyy." He sighed stretching his back. "Now that that's done, I think I'm gonna…" As he was leaving, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Upon instinct, he jumped and turned in a super quick motion. He exhaled in relief that it was only Erza, still. "Geez, you almost gave me a heart attack." Nic complained.

"Don't fool around with that nonsense. If you had a heart attack, you'd be lying on the ground by now." Erza reprimanded.

"Well, at least you know I'm not heartless." Nic joked with a pun. It took a few seconds for the joke to sink in, and Erza smiled and giggled just a little bit. Nic then recalled as to Erza touching his shoulder. "Hey, did you need something?" Nic asked. There was a brief silence and Erza was looking down, trying to think of what to say. As time progressed on, Nic could see the light blushing forming on her face, yet again.

Eventually, after five minutes of awkward silence, she looked up at him and took in a deep breath.

"I was wondering." She asked.

"Yeah?" Nic was a little curious as to what she wanted from him. He'd never seen Erza so shy before.

"C-can you wait here?" She somewhat stuttered on the beginning, but got through with her question. With no protest, Nic stood there by the sign as Erza went inside to put away her cheesecakes.

* * *

**Later…**

Nic was practically dozing off in front of the sign due to Erza taking so long. He did wait for her, but she never told him how long to wait. A hundred years? Nightfall? Never? Was he suppose to just doze off until the end of time or what? It's felt like an hour when it's really been an hour.

When Nic woke up, he heard someone telling him to get up. He, once again, sprung up and took fighting stance.

"Mommy! It wasn't me! It was…" Nic then noticed Erza was in front of him. She looked different. She had on a white blouse and her blue skirt. She turned a little here and there with arms folded, it looked as though she was shivering, but how could she when it felt just fine for any type of clothing.

"Oh. Erza, hey. What happened to your Heart Kreuz Armor?" Nic wondered.

"Well, I wanted to put that away and ask if you wanted to stroll with me?" She asked not as serious, but not as secured. This was off to Nic. Erza never felt so insecure. He couldn't help himself but wonder as to why she didn't wear her Heart Kreuz Armor. This side of Erza was nice and all, but she looked a little uncertain.

Regardless, Nic had to say something in defense. "Look Erza, it's okay if you wear your Heart Kreuz Armor. It's not that you don't look ravishing, believe me when I tell you that you do look quite nice, but you don't seem too sure of yourself." Nic explained in concern.

Erza looked down and uncrossed her arms. She then sighed and look rather unhappy. "I haven't worn this in awhile, also…I wanted to wear this just in case if nothing goes on and I feel safe."

"You don't look safe to me. Just requip into your armor. I'll go with you anyway." Nic insisted. She then looked up in shock that he said yes.

"You mean it?" She wondered.

Nic just shrugged. "Of course. If you feel insecure, just change back into your armor. I have no objections." Erza hesitated and chose not to.

"I think I feel safe for now." Erza said, insisting they go through without her Heart Kreuz Armor. The two then began walking into town, Erza was right by Nic's side.

Along the way, Nic looked at her. "Hm, not a bad look for a first date." He teased. She looked over at him and glared.

"It's not a date! We're not even dating!" She protested.

"Keep telling yourself that." Nic said sarcastically, which got him a punch in the face. That's Erza for ya.

At any rate, things went pretty well. They walked around town was pretty pleasant. Erza and Nic did nothing but nonstop talking. Erza told Nic as to why she doesn't wear her blouse that often. It was because she had a painful childhood and wore armor just to be secure, but she went no deeper than that. Nic didn't push her though, he did the same thing to everyone when he first came to Fairy Tail. She told him about how in her childhood, she lost and eye and got an artificial one. This was too horrific for Nic. He knew that people could be scarred for life, but at such a young age, this made Nic almost pale. Before she could speak anymore stuff, Nic held up a hand.

"I think you've said enough. I get it you had a painful childhood, so what? What matters is now. Erza, you've become a warrior that can fight off numerous people and come out without a scratch, you care deeply for your comrades, and you're very capable. If you still doubt yourself, we got your backs." Nic said. Erza nodded, knowing what Nic said was true.

Now it was Nic's turn. As Nic told his story, Erza was just as shocked as he was at her story. He explained that his parents ignored him and focused all of their attention on his little sister. Whenever his sister did something wrong, innocent or not, Nic would be held responsible and would be given punishment. He had so much trouble on his hands, that he had a few tiny, barely noticeable, scars on his back from punishments. Nic finally had enough and he decided to yell back at them one day, which concluded with him getting beaten up. The day after, he left home and never looked back, never regretting leaving fifteen years of hell. His parents even called the police to bring him home, but Nic told his side of the story to the police and his parents threatened their own son with potential death involved, which sentenced them to life in prison. His little sister was then taken care of the neighbors, which were far more sweet than her parents. In summary, he was a slave of punishment, much like Erza.

Erza put her hands to her mouth, seeing as their pasts were somewhat similar. They were both horrified as to what the other went through. That's when they realized their personalities are what they are now. Erza felt more secure now that she had someone to relate to, as did Nic.

With their pasts revealed, they were more optimistic for a better future. They then ventured towards the South Gate Park. It was a cute little park that had a large tree in the middle. It had a playground that looked like a castle and quite a few people were there.

They both sat on a bench, where they'd decided to shut up and take in some peace and quiet. Both laid their heads back and Nic put on his sunglasses so that the sun doesn't shine into his eyes. They were both completely still and just had themselves plopped on the bench.

About half an hour rolled by and Nic turned his gaze towards Erza. He noticed her scarlet hair reflecting the light, and how she looked so peaceful. Nic smirked, happy to see this side of Erza. He's aware that he has to keep this to himself, otherwise Erza will destroy him, repair him, and destroy again, followed by more destruction.

Eventually, the two arose from the bench and stretched. They then decided to venture back to Fairy Hills, where Nic would drop off Erza.

On the way back, Nic was in thought about something. Not about how his little "date" went, but a different topic. This has just hit him just now. He hasn't found a single plate yet. As of now, he only has the Flame, Sky, Splash, Zap, and Toxic Plate. Though he's been here for roughly three weeks, he hasn't made progress.

He kept this thought undercover as he smiled and walked with Erza. When they reached the place, Nic stopped at the overhead gate and sighed.

"Well, that was an interesting first date." Nic said. Erza only shot a glare at him.

"It's not a date!" She gritted her teeth.

"But you enjoyed it anyway!" Nic exclaimed happily. Erza only blushed and turned so that Nic didn't see her face turn red. As she turned to go back inside, Nic whistled to her, signaling her to turn around. She turned and Nic smiled at her.

"Hey, guess I'll see you later then." Nic said. Erza grinned and went inside. "That was a fun date!" Nic hollered out.

"It was not a date!" Erza yelled from inside. Nic giggled, having finished with teasing her. He then turned and walked off back to Fairy Tail.

He had to get in some jobs. He had two reasons in doing so; first: He needed money because he was fresh out from going to the café, and two: He needed to find Plates, so he had to explore. Now that the guild has settled down, Nic thought it would be best for him to go about and take a job and get out.

It's around five in the evening, so it was close to dinner. At that point, everyone would be probably getting into fights. Nic could use that to his advantage and sneak in, show Mira or Makarov the job and skedaddle out of there.

He slowly opened the door, and quietly went inside. There was a lot of laughing, and cheering, and a few guys talking each other down. Nobody took that big of a notice of Nic. He made haste to the Job Request Board and quickly scanned it.

He found a job. It had a good pay on it. Six hundred thousand jewels to stop a group of maniacs from tormenting a town. He thought that this should be fun. Nic took the job request and brought it over towards Mira. She helped him pack some supplies, mainly a rucksack of food and water.

"I'm rather surprised." Mira said. "This job has a decent reward, but the job itself looks atrocious. Are you sure you're up for it?"

Nic just shrugged. "I won't know until I try now will I?" He said. Mira just nodded.

"Okay, at least it's not S-Class." Mira said in relief, thinking of such a job.

Nic stood in wonder. He did recall Erza being S-Class, and it meant she was powerful to the greatest degree, but never thought of what being an S-Class Wizard is about.

"If I had to guess, S-Class missions are dangerous to the power of insanity, yes?" Nic asked in a mathematical way.

Mira nodded. "Yes. You know the jobs down here are for all Mages, well the ones on the second floor are reserved only for S-Class Wizards. There are only three: Erza, Laxus, and Mystogan. Only those jobs are for them since they're S-Class. That's also why Natsu wasn't allowed on the second floor, because he isn't S-Class."

Nic understood and left the guild, he was as quiet as a mouse.

Fortunately for him, he left just before Happy sneaked towards the second floor and stole an S-Class job.

* * *

**The next day…**

Nic slept that night out of sight, not too far from the road to Freesia. He woke up from a decent sleep from underneath a tree. It wasn't the best place to sleep, but it suited him for the night. He sprung up and immediately began running towards Freesia. He didn't bother to have breakfast because he thought the townsfolk really needed help. Whatever it was they needed.

A half hour past ten, and Nic could see a town up ahead. He still had a ways to go, but he was getting closer and closer within every minute of his constant dashing. Nic mentally face palmed himself, thinking he could've gotten there overnight; regardless, his speed was super fast. Since he's been traveling all over Kalos, his leg muscles heavily increased, making him a strong and fast runner without even getting tired.

"Taking trains? Who needs them?" Nic rhetorically asked himself. "Not this guy." If he were to take a train, he would probably be at the spot where he is right now, yeah, he's that fast! On another sort of transportation, Nic also learned to climb trees to avoid the swamp while he's normally on route to Laverre City. This enabled him to tree hop, much like ninjas, so he proceeded to do so to save time, which is how he managed to get this far that fast.

As Nic strolled through town, he took in many of its features. Many beautiful buildings had flowers about, all scattered. Most of the window were arched and tiled. A lot of the buildings were white with brown roofing, which didn't bother Nic.

He tried to find whoever was in charge of this town, which would probably be the mayor or something. As he tried to find this guy, he noticed that not many people were out on the streets. He heard that Freesia was a lively town that likes to party. It would be more accurate to say they were preparing a funeral rather than a party.

Everyone was looking rather gloomy and melancholy. People were not even close to being motivated; in fact, they looked as though they were just about ready to keel over. They were all hanging up banners that were saying "Freesia Petal Festival", of which meant a big festival that was going to show off any and all flowers. Then again, this town was known for its export of beautiful flowers.

A mother was walking uneasily with her son and younger daughter. Both looked oblivious as their mother was slowly beginning to crumble away and hug them, shedding tears. Nic didn't like this situation at all. He needed to help in any way he can. He could care less about the Plates right now, the depressed citizens were his number one priority.

Nic found a large building and stepped inside. There, the secretary was reluctant to let Nic see the mayor, but allowed him access when he explained the job request. At that instant, Nic waltzed into the mayor's office. It was pretty classy for an office. On the left wall was a book shelf with a plethora of books. Right next to it was what looked like a picture of a father, a mother, a son, and a daughter. The father looked to be around his mid-thirties as well was his wife. The father had black hair and a goatee. The wife had long blond hair that curled at the ends. The kids looked to be about between five and nine. He then saw the plant growing right next to the picture. It looked rather wilted and could wither away the second you'd touched it. On the right wall was a long red couch and another wilting plant. Of course, there was his desk and his chair was facing the window that was behind him,

Nic walked up to the desk and the chair turned. It was the same man that was in the photograph. He looked heavily fatigued. He looked as though he hasn't been sleeping well, let alone sleep at all.

"May I help you?" He asked rather ill. Nic then showed him the job request that was posted.

"I'm Nic Pularis from Fairy Tail, and I'm here in regards of your job request." He said. They both shook hands, but something felt wrong.

"Ah yes, you must be an S-Class Wizard. I'm Hiro, and I'm the mayor of this village. I trust that your guild has been notified of the changes in regards of the request, yes?"

"Eh, what changes are we talking about here?" Nic asked.

"Due to circumstances, I had to change the rank to S-Class, also adding a huge sum to the reward." Hiro said.

That's what felt off. Mira did note that the job did seem rather dangerous to be on the normal request board. The job specifically stated to take down a group of maniacs, though that might not be in depth.

Nic frowned. "Eh, nope. Not a word on the changes."

Hiro's face fell. He slumped back as though he has suffered a defeat of sorts. This situation was looking more grim than it was ten seconds ago. "This is upsetting. What am I going to do now?"

Nic had to do something to cheer him up. He looked so tired and frail, so he had to act upon instinct, again. "Who cares, I'll get this job done!" Nic proclaimed, making the mayor look up in awe of this guy's will to fight, despite the changes.

"Well, okay. This is critical, and if no one helps, everyone here will die." The mayor said. He stared at Nic, seeing how he'll respond. All Nic did was nod.

The situation went much like this:

First, Hiro sent a letter in regards of changing the job to S-Class about five months ago. Hiro explained that about six months ago, the people were growing desperately. Nic paid extremely close attention to the events, so this was where he got his serious mode turned on.

One evening, an army of tangible shadows emerged from the forest and attacked the town. The townsfolk were caught off guard by this sudden assault from the forest. The townsfolk had to fight back, but the only flaw was that they only had so many Mages, as many as maybe ten. Eventually, the army was driven back to the forest, but not without some points to their end. To be more accurate, the tangible shadows simply touched someone and they were in a state of hyper sleep.

Immediately afterwards, Hiro ordered strict sentry and around the clock watches for precautionary reasons. It was just in time because the tangible shadows came back the night after. More and more people were put into this state of sleep, even the Mages were no match for the sheer numbers. Hiro thought that this shadow army was being manipulated and Nic could find the source and destroy it. This was the original request Nic was tasked to do, but that was six months ago.

The townsfolk that were put in this state of sleep were experiencing dreadful nightmares, an infinite hell. They had sweat drop and screamed in their sleep from time to time. They never woke up. They were stuck in that state until the source was destroyed. They all had to rely on help to arrive.

One night, three cloaked wizards arrived in town. It was obvious that one of them controlled the shadow army. It was also clear that their Magic was hazardous and had no chance of being surmounted. The townsfolk were forced to surrender due to their overwhelming use of Magic. Since the three wizards were cloaked and hooded, their identities remained a mystery to this day. Their goals were also unknown.

The three wizards spared, but there had to be a price. Everyone that was in a state of sleep, which was now ninety percent of the town, was awoken by one of the mages and the sleep rejoiced, but that was just the beginning of something horrible. Every night, the three demanded a tribute from the ones that were asleep. The tangible shadow army would come to town and escort them back to their masters back into the woods. At first, people volunteered to be sacrifices. So much as ten went at once the first week, but then the volunteers dropped to one. The numbers began to dwindle down bit by bit. The town had a size of one thousand, but now there was only half as many left. If this continues, the town will be left a barren wasteland.

When Nic heard this, his serious mode shifted to anger mode. He slammed his fist down on the desk and began gritting his teeth. He proclaimed that he will help these people even without a reward. At this point, he screwed the money and wanted to save the lives that people cherish in this town. He then proclaimed that he's gonna make those three wizards pay for the suffering and heartbreak that the townsfolk had to go through. He walked out, ready to break some bones.

After the layout of the situation, Nic was arranged to sleep in their house that night, but Nic said he's use to sleeping in hammocks and in trees, so he didn't think sleeping in a house was his niche. Regardless, Nic and Hiro walked towards Hiro's house.

Now Nic knew why the townsfolk hesitate to even look at Nic. They clearly mistrusted visitors and outsiders due to this catastrophe. It makes Nic upset seeing a once lively town turn into such a desolate desperation. They needed help, and Nic intended to do so.

They came about at the large town square in the middle of town. The town square had smashed flowers that wilted and died, much like the townsfolks' trust and hearts.

"This is where the town gathers for the tribute and the shadows come and claim them." Hiro informed. "This happens at midnight every night."

Nic nodded. "Do the wizards make an appearance?"

Hiro shook his head. "No. Only their shadow army comes and claims the victim. They then escort him or her into the woods. It's reason to believe that the controller will have to be in such a range, so he or she must be watching from a distance to see things work accordingly."

"I see." Nic was formulating a quick strategy in order to deal with the matter. His plan was near completion when he'd finally made it into Hiro's house.

The house's exterior was reasonable enough for a mayor to live in. It was two stories tall and had a cozy porch with a bunch of depicted flowers. The railing was smooth and black for someone to hang onto. Hiro opened the door and walked right in with Nic following in pursuit.

"I'm home!" Hiro hollered out. Nic stepped inside and heard light footsteps approaching from upstairs. A young girl came down. She had the same hair as his father's but the eyes were more brown than blue. He was roughly five, maybe seven. He came down and rushed towards his dad with a big hug.

"Hi Daddy!" the boy exclaimed in excitement.

"Just then, some barking could be heard from within the living room. Out of the living room came bursting a little brown spotted dog with a tag that said "DALE". It came up at the young girl and sat obediently in front of her. The young girl crouched down and hugged her little puppy. Nic couldn't help but smile at the sight. It was too precious, let alone innocent.

Another set of footsteps could be heard from upstairs, it was the nine year old that was in the portrait. He had brown hair, bur brown eyes as well. He came down and greeted his dad as well.

"Hey Dad." The young boy said. "Man, you're home rather early today." He pulled away and took notice of Nic's precense.

"Dad, we have a visitor?" The boy asked. Hiro looked back and realized he didn't introduce Nic yet.

"Ah, yes. Jane, Edmund, I'd like to introduce to you Nic Pularis. He's going to help us in our time of need." Hiro said.

Nic waved at the kids, only to get glares shot at him. _'Hm, nice kids.'_ He sarcastically thought. The kids' faces changed from having sugar-crazed looks to desolate dark moods.

"We want dinner." The spoiled kids said, particularly to no one. They gave Nic another cold stare before they ventured off into the kitchen with Dale walking and hanging his tongue out.

Nic looked at Hiro with a blank face, obviously not impressed with his kids' attitudes. Hiro looked down and sighed.

"You'll have to forgive my children." Hiro said after a moment of silence. "Normally, they would be jumping for joy and be happy rather than spoiled and demanding. They aren't fond of Mages or anyone who could use Magic."

Nic frowned at this. "What happened?"

"It's because of their mother. My wife." Nic then paled, thinking of what he thought Hiro was about to say. Hiro then looked up at the ceiling and began speaking.

"Things weren't easy for us. The onslaught of attacks and people pulled into nightmares kept increasing, and the agreement with the three wizards only made matters far more unbearable. Every single midnight, a victim would be claimed. I've even sent scouts into the woods to follow, but not a single one has returned."

He took a deep breath before continuing. Nic could see he was beginning to show some tears. "One night, my wife was a victim of these attacks and fell into a potential nightmare. When she was brought back to reality, my kids and I were so overwhelmed with joy that our sorrow was pushed aside. That is, until three months ago. We gathered for the picking. The army of tangible shadows came. We stopped with the volunteering and they had decided to pluck us out by that point. "

Hiro paused and he was definitely showing some tears forming. "That was the night. The last night. Out of the blue, a shadow pointed out and everyone turned towards that person."

He choked and began to shed a tear. "I was useless…my…my wife…oh god I miss her."

Nic patted him on the back as he began to break down and cry, trying to comfort the grieving man. No more was to be said. Nic saw the children peep over from the kitchen and look at their depressed father. Nic understands why they dislikes Mages now, and he didn't blame them. Even he would be disgusted by the sight of Mages if that happened to him.

After some time went by, Nic got Hiro back to his feet and took a deep breath.

"Dinner will be in an hour." He said, walking over towards his beloved kids and the cute dog that was sniffing the floor.

Nic went into the living room and sat straight up on a nearby couch. He was left to attend to his own thoughts. Nic thought of this to be the situation for every family in Freesia. He tried depicting the shattered hearts, the loneliness, the empty void. All of that was steadily increasing every single night. Nic thought about the little girl with her puppy and the young boy with only those two to care for while Hiro was in his office. This was when Nic thought of the three wizards that began this whole sorrow.

'_These wizards, who are they? What do they want?' _Nic was halted with the earthquake that camr from his bottomless pit known as his stomach. Once again, he went the whole day without a single bite. Nic had to set aside these uneasy feelings for now and try to get some brain food into him pronto.

Nic, not wanting to make the kids feel sick, chose to eat in the living room. After his belly was filled with nourishment, he remained in the living room, trying to formulate a strategy. As the sun was slowly turning the sky orange as it set, Nic was just about finished with his thinking. He had his idea.

Before he could proceed, the dog was being rather noisy upstairs and Nic went to check it out. He climbed up the stairs and found that the boy's room was empty. The dog was whimpering in front of his closet as it tried clawing the closet door, obviously trying to get into something. Nic then slowly approached, getting Dale's attention. The little dog then stopped whimpering and slowly walked towards Nic and stopped in front of him. He looked down and saw that it was somewhat melancholy. Nic then slowly proceeded towards the closet and stopped in front of it. He very slowly turned the knob and saw Edmund huddled into a corner. He looked as though he saw a monster. He was shuddering and almost breaking down in tears.

Nic didn't think was good, so he opened the door wide and Dale came prancing up towards Edmund and it sniffed him. The wet nose felt ticklish, which made him squirm. Soon enough, he looked up and saw the family dog licking his face. Nic then kneeled down and tried speaking to him.

"Edmund?" Nic quietly said. "It's okay. Nothing bad is going to happen to you."

Edmund looked up. "Y-you sure?"

Nic had to be positive. If he said "if tonight goes well", then that'll only put the kid in doubts. In situations such as these, Nic gently smiled.

"No doubt. After tonight, no more people will be claimed as a victim." Nic put a lot of confidence in his words, which made Edmund feel more hopeful.

"So, you're really gonna help us?" Edmund wanted a positive answer. Nic turned towards the dog and petted its head.

"I'll say this. I will not rest until this nightmare is over. What you were doing was understandable, but there are other ways of confronting fear." Nic informed.

"Like what?" Edmund asked.

"Well, you did it. You showed your fear, and saying you're afraid is okay as well." Nic said. "That's good because if you know your fear, you can overcome it and become a better person."

"Really?" Edmund asked rather shockingly.

Nic grinned and turned to walk out of the closet. "Yup, and don't ever forget it for as long as you live. You might want to pass this along towards your little sister. She really needs her big brother at this time."

Edmund then got up and walked out and made haste with Dale walking right beside him. He left his room with a determined grin and went to comfort his little sister, who was probably in her own closet, afraid.

Seeing a brother go aid a younger sibling had Nic feel touchy, yet depressed. Touching because it was family, but depressed because he hasn't seen his twelve year old sister in a long time. Nic had to be strong, no matter how painful and touching it was. It did, however, give him even more motivation to not even think of giving up on these people.

* * *

**Before midnight…**

The townsfolk slowly began to emerge into the town square, with somber looks with a hint of fear added in for a recipe of despair. The remaining families were hanging on to one another like there was no tomorrow, because another wasn't going to live to see tomorrow. The silence was like dread to the heart. A rock falling to the ground could probably make them all jump. It was so quiet, you could hear other people's breaths getting wavy, and their heartbeats were escalating to a maximum.

It was time for Nic to get to work.

Nic slowly turned towards an alley and followed it. He traveled the alley and trailed it back to where the town limits were. Beyond there, there was nothing but forest and pine. There was also a huge amount of bushes and shrubs so that you couldn't see the forest floor, as well as the little animals that were shivering in fear from what they anticipated to be another unholy night.

When Nic got towards the limits, just at the edge of the alley, he stopped just before the 400 meter field of grass. Silently, he smirked. _'This is where we get to work.'_ He thought. He brought out a poke ball and tossed it up. "Get out here, Kecleon." Nic said, calling forth his Color Swap Pokémon.

Kecleon emerged from its poke ball, right in front of Nic. Kecleon has been with Nic ever since it was caught back in Route 6. Nic had a sharp eye, for if he didn't, then maybe he wouldn't have captured Kecleon.

Greninja was much like Nic, Charizard was willing to go that extra mile, and well…let's just say Kecleon was, in a light term, "odd".

"Hello Nic." She said in a monotone, turning her head a little as she said it. She almost sounded a little creepy, but that's what makes Kecleon special to Nic, much like the others. Nic crouched down and spoke to his old friend.

"Hey Kecleon. This is extremely vital." Nic explained, which got Kecleon listening. "Now you see that tree line?" Nic pointed out towards the trees that were over the desolate field. "I need you to hide in there. I'm going to be escorted into the forest. From there, I need you to track and follow me. Make sure you keep your distance, we can't have the enemy see you. I'll most likely be in trouble. If that happens, you jump in and stop the enemy and then we rush them and finish them off, once and for all." Nic explained rather thoroughly. Kecleon was able to understand, though it looked in multiple directions while listening. It turned back towards Nic and nodded.

"You got it Nic." Addressed the Color Swap Pokémon.

"Also, if we get to a clearing or cave out in the forest, do not leave the forest unless you see me in a dilemma." Nic added.

With all of that said and done, Kecleon turned invisible, leaving only the red zigzag stripe visible. Since Nic trained Kecleon to be as stealthy as Greninja, he knew that she could remain quiet and undetected. All Nic saw was a dashing red stripe making a break for the forest. It wasn't as fast as Greninja, but it certainly was way above average speed for a Kecleon.

With Kecleon out of sight and in the woods, Nic silently ran back towards the crowd that was gathering for the next victim.

Nic returned undetected and unnoticed. He slowly slithered through the crowd and make way towards Hiro and his kids' side. Nic was sure that if this plan worked, everyone will be rid of this nightmare; if not, Nic didn't want to think about that outcome.

They all heard some rustling, as one tangible shadow monster emerged from the forest. The crowd tensed up and tried to hold back any yelps that might emerge from their mouths. They all saw the first shadow being followed by another shadow, and then several more, until there were about five hundred dragging themselves towards the town. They were moving sluggish and didn't make a sound. In a few minutes, they were in town and facing the citizens.

The shadow just stood there, awaiting for the next victim. Nic took a good look at these guys. For one thing, they had black cloaks, their hands looked like bare bone, and their faces were pitch black with red eyes. This left a stale feeling going down Nic's spine.

The people were scared to death, and not all exaggerating. They couldn't move, because they feared that they would start panicking and then the nightmares will come back. Nobody wanted to lose another family member, so the odds of anyone volunteering were slim. None wanted to go into the forest, because they know they'll never return. They all had just prayed for this curse to be lifted.

A hand shot up from within the crowd. "I'll go!"

Everyone turned almost immediately to see this stranger raise his hand. They all looked to see him with his trademark sunglasses on his V-neck, and his long, black, sleeveless coat with blue flames. They all watched as he marched straight towards the shadows. They cleared the way so that he may confront these shadows and be a victim. The citizens didn't understand something. Unlike the previous victims, he didn't sound scared, but confident. And what was even weirder was that he wasn't showing any reluctance. What was even more strange than that was that he was smirking.

Nic stood in front of the army, arms crossed. "What are we waiting for, Christmas? Let's get this over with." Nic stated boldly. He then walked towards the army and the army surrounded him. They made him the center and kept their distance, knowing touching him would resort to him being put to slepp and a shadow would be given the burden to carry him.

* * *

**A little while after…**

So far, everything was according to plan. Kecleon was invisible as it dashed through the trees, not wanting to cause sound through the grass and bushes below. Nic obviously trained Kecleon to see skilled with jumping as well as stealth. If you think about it, it's also the silent killer of Nic's team, hardly losing any battles due to its training with such skill matching Greninja.

Anyways, Kecleon followed as Nic was escorted through the forest. The army took the bait as Nic was taking a risk as being the bait. Kecleon was invisible, except the red stripe, but since it was the dead of night, it wasn't even noticed, so it could stay close by.

Nic walked along the horde of tangible shadows as they continued to slowly walk towards their destination. From this short distance, Kecleon saw that Nic was even being touched. No chains nor cuffs, leaving him to be of free movement. Either the enemy was arrogant, or really stupid.

Kecleon dashed to another tree and waited for only a few moments before pressing on towards another branch. The horde's pace was never ending, but it was constant as it was slow. Nic notice that about ten or twenty shadows vanished into thin air. Nic was wondering as to what was happening. Was the enemy trying to conserve power? He wasn't certain as to what was happening.

It was rather strange to Nic. He felt some odd energy that was close, yet so far. It was somehow making Nic feel strange. He could sense the Plates from within him surge with such energy that was similar to the one he was feeling from such a distance. As kept walking, he felt the energy growing stronger.

After an hour of dragging his own two feet, the walking finally came to a halt. Nic was peculiar as to if they've reached their destination. It wasn't likely, considering that they were still in the forest. He scanned his surroundings, knowing Kecleon was somewhere among the tree branches and proceeding to follow him.

A sudden voice almost made Nic jump. "Well done pets. Yet, another sacrifice for the glory of Zeref." The feminine voice called out. The name Zeref ranged a few bells within Nic. He recalled him being the one to create Lullaby. This didn't feel good at all. If that voice mentioned Zeref, then it's most likely that he's involved with this predicament as well.

A hooded figure stepped out from the shadows of the trees from up ahead. She looked up at Nic and smirked. She then pulled down her hood, revealing her long hair as white as snow, which fell over her shoulders. She had what looked like eerie green eyes and pale skin. She proceeded forward as the army parted before her as she went to get a better look of Nic.

Nic was troubled, not just by this woman, but the fact she had something to do with Zeref. Nic remembered Zeref being an ancient wizard that was of pure evil and hatred.

She smirked at Nic, smitten by his appearance. "Oh my, what do they call you gorgeous?" She asked. Nic was sick to the core. She was obviously seducing him, which Nic didn't find amusing.

"I suppose it's ladies first." He said in an unemotional way.

Her smirk widened. "Hmm. I see we have ourselves a gentlemen. I'm known as Rosa. And you?"

He paused, trying not to hesitate. "Nic."

"Nic." Rosa was perplexed by saying his name. "That's a rather peculiar name."

She turned around and made her way in front of the army. "Enough stalling, let us proceed."

With a snap of her fingers, she signaled for the army to proceed once more. Kecleon observed the army beginning to move once more. She watched as they all began walking and she kept being stealthy to avoid detection, with her being invisible the entire time. At the time, Kecleon noticed about another twenty or so shadows vanish with no warning. Kecleon was beginning to have some speculations as to how the woman's magic worked, but needed to get some more intel in order to be sure. Regardless, Kecleon had to make use of what she gas.

Kecleon proceeded to track them with the upmost caution. There was no telling as to what was to become of Nic or the woman's magic.

* * *

**Later…**

After yet another hour of relentless walking, trees began to decrease in numbers and began to thin out. This eventually led to an open field of grass. Kecleon wasn't worried for it was invisible, but was beginning to worry as to what is to happen now that they were in a field. She would eventually descend from the trees and follow by swift foot. She, however, did not proceed too far and stayed back as a lookout and watch over and become a surprise. This mission allowed no mistakes tonight.

When Nic got towards the field from the forest, the energy he sensed from earlier was even greater in intensity. The Plates from within him were going crazy. It was like a magnet to a fridge. This energy was irresistible to Nic, but he didn't know if it was good or bad. He looked ahead and saw a structure that was similar to that of a step pyramid.

'_Oh sweet Mother McArthur.' _This structure was huge! It was bigger than that tower that the Mega Evolution guru lived in. This structure was large with what looked like flat and smooth shale, with smooth and no rugged edges. There were stairs that led to the flat top. Nic stood forth at the humungous structure, gazing at its size and how beautifully made it was.

'_Wish I could take a picture, but they would probably confiscate my phone.' _He thought. He held back the intensity of his voice, because his body was feeling energetic. He can't explain it, but it felt like this energy is like two tons of sugar. It was driving the plates inside of him nuts. He also had another sense of dread, as though it were another type of energy at the same. There were two energy signatures, and both originate from the pyramid. This definitely didn't feel good. Not one bit.

The two saw two more cloaked wizards approach. The shadow army parted so as the wizards confronted Nic.

One was taller than the other. They both pulled down their hoods to reveal themselves. The tall one had spiky white snow hair. He had narrow eyes and eyes of the ocean abyss. He had a mark all over his face. It was like a black stripped tattoo running from around his eyes and ran down his cheek bones and ended at the bottom of his neck. He had a serious look that made him look like the head of them all.

Nic turned to see the shorter one. This one was a little taller than Nic. Unlike the other two, he had messy, black hair. He had brown eyes that were of the tainted earth. He had a weird tattoo on his forehead that looked ancient. It also looked like a hieroglyphic eye.

All three gathered and stood in front of him.

"You seem to be different compared to the others." Said the taller one, feeling as though Nic was different in a way he couldn't describe.

"How so?" Nic asked, feeling mentally ready for a brawl.

Rosa stepped in. "Though, he is pretty cute." She admitted, licking her lips.

The other two men didn't care one bit. They had to proceed to revive Zeref and bring forth his power. "No matter, the ritual shall proceed."

Rosa pouted. "C'mon. We could have so much fun together."

Nic was well aware of what she meant by "fun", and that feeling almost made him sick. She gave Nic a glint that had send shivers up his spine, if they spare him, he wouldn't get out of this alive anyway.

"Rune is right, the ritual shall commence." Conjore, the tall one, stated. "Bring him forth!"

Rosa was willing to wrap her arms around Nic, much to the latter being uncomfortable, as they began up the flight of stairs that looked as though it could touch the stars. She had her head somewhat resting on his shoulder, as though they were a couple walking romantically. Nic did not like this touchy feeling from her, especially since she and her pals are the enemy.

As they began to climb even further up, Nic felt as though was ready to burst out of the pyramid. Nic was literally on top of both sets of energy. Nic wasn't going to forget he was bait, if they found out he was a "wizard" this very instant, then the plan would be compromised.

He had to lay low until the time was right, then he and Kecleon would strike.

* * *

**Before you start asking why, let me answer in anticipation. I chose Kecleon not just because I wanted to introduce another pokémon, but also because Greninja was relied more on speed, as to where Kecleon is a master of stealth and camouflage. Let me also add that I wanted Nic to have a team that has unpopular pokémon, exclude Greninja and Charizard.**

**I am making up names, as you could see. What was ironic was that I looked up the definition of "Rune", and it said a mark of mysterious or magic significance. That was pretty convenient. **

**So this is during the Galuna Island Arc. Since I didn't like that arc, I had Nic take a different path. Don't panic, Nic will be in the Phantom Lord Arc with participation of sorts.**

**I got done early because of one snow day this week, so the next update might be of early next week.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, and Review this story and/or chapter.**

* * *

**Next time: Two Ancients Unleashed**


	6. Two Ancients Unleashed

Chapter 6 – Two Ancients Unleashed

**S'up peeps! I got another update here for you. I have another FanFiction that's coming soon, so that's what's keeping me from updating this story. Don't panic or go crazy, I'll still be working on this story; in fact, one of my stories that I've been doing for a friend is nearing the final chapter. Expect some updates here and there between the two.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon nor Fairy Tail, they belong to Satoshi Tajiri, Nintendo, and Hiro Mashima. The only thing I do own is the OC.**

**For the record, I forgot that Hiro's name was the one that created Fairy Tail, so that was a huge coincidence.**

**Regardless, let's get on with this story! **

**FOREWARNING: Insanely long chapter!**

**To Recap:**

After going to a café and talking with Erza for a little bit, the two decided to spend some time together and got to know the other's past. He then went to go on a job to find some Plates (not dining plates) and get some cash into his pockets. He enters Freesia to find that the town has to make a daily sacrifice in order to have peace with three wizards. Nic uses himself as bait while his Kecleon trails him and the army to an open field that has a shale pyramid of sorts for a ritual to revive Lord Zeref.

* * *

**Chapter 6 – Two Ancients Unleashed**

Nic didn't like this feeling, and it wasn't the creepy seductive lady draped on his shoulder. It was a more vile and potent feeling. The Magic energy was massive, more massive than he could have imagined. He had to think as to how this group of people got this power. Nic recalled the Dark Guild Eisenwald. That guild was linked to Zeref, and the name Zeref came from this particular group as well. There might be a good chance that these guys have more power than Erigor and that demon Lullaby put together.

This left Nic to assume one thing.

He looked up at the three above him and asked something. "Mind if I ask something?"

The three turned towards Nic, but still pressed on. Rosa licked her lips and squeezed harder. "What might it be handsome?" She asked seductively. "If it's about that silly ritual, don't worry. I wouldn't wanna ruin the surprise, a fine-looking townsfolk like you isn't a Mage after all."

That's right. The enemy isn't suppose to know he's from another guild. He acted like an ordinary citizen from Freesia. Boy, this will be a shock to them when they find out the truth.

Anyway, Nic got back on topic and asked his question. "No, it's not about this ritual." He paused before speaking again. "You guys are a Dark Guild, aren't you?" His tone was slightly more accusing. The three wizards stopped walking and stood in place, all three were shocked from this statement. Conjore looked back towards Nic, seeing his eyes glaring towards him. Conjore definitely had an uneasy feeling about this guy now.

'_Just what is this guy?' _He questioned himself. He made a façade by smirking. "You're not dumb, I'll give ya that much." He remarked, turning back and walking up. Rune just glared at him before they all proceeded once more. As far as he was concerned, he was another sacrifice from a crappy town. He sure was arrogant. Nic was sure that Rune wasn't as suspicious as Conjore was. He could tell by how he was glaring at him more uncertain than the other. Nic had to keep his guard up.

Nic looked over and saw that Rosa was purring, seeing how he had looks and brains. Nic had to hold back his sigh as they continued onward. _'What would Erza think if she saw this? Better yet, what wouldn't she do?' _Nic thought, imagining if Erza was right there. She might try and tear Rosa's arms off at least and send her flying thirty miles to who knows where.

They had another minute to go, and they finally reached the top. It was flat and square in shape. There were three triangles and a red symbol going about the entire flat top. The center was a solid red with a diameter of a meter. From there, the red markings circulated and stretched about in zigzags and more circular patterns that reached the edge of the strange top. The Runes were obviously from strange text that was ancient. Near the other end was an altar that was rather small. It was like a little rock that you could stash away something

Nic wiggled his arm free of Rosa's arms, but she only pouted as her time with him has come to an end. Rune and Rosa escorted Nic to the middle, where the red circle was, while Conjore walked over towards the altar. He turned and had some sort of long six feet sphere with a blood red bladed-edged crystal on the end. The crystal emanated a demonic influence that Nic could sense. This wasn't like Lullaby, but more bloodthirsty and unholy. Nic had a pretty good feeling that this was coming from the glowing crystal.

Rosa and Rune took their positions on the two triangles, and began to recite a chant. It was some words that Nic had no clue was. Probably ancient words, definitely not Italian. The runes then began to glow a blood red that filled the air with such evil. Nic could feel the energy all around him, it was making his skin crawl. Nic had to stay put, no matter how bone-rattling the feeling got. Kecleon was watching from the distance, just at the tree line. She recalled Nic saying to jump when he's in a dilemma. She tilted her head and proceeded past the army, still invisible. She swiftly found the staircase and trailed upwards.

Nic then felt as though his body became completely immobile. He was stuck within that tiny circle, paralyzed and not able to even lift a finger. This sick energy was binding his body so that he couldn't escape. The only thing he could move was his head and neck.

Nic turned his head to see that Conjore has joined in on the chanting. As the chanting proceeded, the spear was slowly rising and was levitating from Conjore's hands. The spear made way towards Nic very slowly and Nic saw that the circle under him was swirling with blood red energy, drawing the weapon ever so near. Finally, the chanting stopped and they were speaking English again.

"The seal shall be broken, with the body of the relentless human race and their blood of greed." Conjore recited. "The new era of darkness and chaos shall enter the twilights and swallow the light. With one more sacrifice, let it appease the hunger of the demons that dwell within the name of Zeref. The death of the oblivious and the unfortunate shall awaken his power."

The spear was above five feet away from Nic and at a killing arc from above. Nic now was in a panic. His heartbeat was racing faster than the fastest Rapidash and pounding harder than a Heavy Slam. Nic swallowed hard, hoping for his pal to make her appearance.

'_If I possibly die, let me remember three things.' _Nic mentally prepared a will. _'My pokémon. The ones who stood by my side and would follow me through death, they are my true family. Let me remember Fairy Tail, and how annoying Natsu and Gray are when they fight. I still don't know why Gray takes his shirt off, it's weird. I'll miss Erza for as long as eternity lasts. Finally, let me remember one more vital thing…omelets. Boy, how delicious they were. The numerous omelets I could've had. I'd find it nice to have two omelets at most in a week, but I guess I'll have as many as I want now.'_

The spear then came down. Just as the blade was coming down on Nic, a shadow from underneath sprung up and rammed into the spear, knocking its trajectory off. It missed Nic and hit between his two feet. The spear cracked the circle, making the runes stop glowing and freeing Nic, enabling him to move again.

The three wizards only had a few seconds to process this as they were all suddenly hit by Kecleon's Slash and they all fell to their sides by this stealthy intruder. They all laid down and looked up to see Kecleon reappear by Nic's side.

"Just in time." Nic said, looking down at the Color Swap Pokémon. She simply tilted and turned her head and looked in another direction.

"That spear looked pointy." Kecleon said in her creepy manner that always sounds so innocent. Kecleon usually points out the obvious and says weird things, but Nic and the other pokémon can always understand her point.

Nic looked at the spear and kicked it away, off of the pyramid and plummeting down towards the grassy field. "So it was." Nic agreed. Nic then glowed, activating his Splash Plate form. He then turned back towards Kecleon. "You know what to do." Kecleon nodded. It turned invisible, exclude the red stripe, and zoomed down from the pyramid. Nic followed and leaped down from the steps. Kecleon was using her Shadow Sneak and taking out multiple shadows all on her own.

"Kecleon!" Nic shouted, reaching the bottom and signaling her to come to his side. She revealed herself and was back by Nic's side without the army touching her.

"**Surf!**" An enormous tide then erupted from underneath him, having the two ride it without harm. The wave swallowed up the entire army and the three from above on the pyramid watched as their army was reduced to zero by one move. When the water cleared out, all of the shadows were no more. Every single one has vanished. Kecleon then leaped from Nic's side and looked up at him.

"Hang ten!" she said, waving her arms up. Nic did the same and waved his arms a little as well, satisfied to have those guys out of the way too. Suddenly, Nic and Kecleon both sensed something.

They turned and Rune suddenly appeared before them and shot a punch on Nic. He blocked with his elbow and pivoted. He then punched him in his gut and he regained his footing immediately from upon landing. He back off a few feet as the other two were surrounding them. They were at different sides, all cornering the two. They were pretty fast to recover such a critical blow from Kecleon's Slash from earlier.

"I thought something was different about you." Conjore proclaimed. "It looks as though Freesia has enlisted the help of another guild. I think we need to repay them a visit once we're done with this amateur and his overgrown gecko."

"I am a Kecleon." She stated, correcting him and hardly taking offense. Nic narrowed his eyes and turned his attention towards the three enemies.

"No guys aren't going to rob another soul tonight, for we'll stop you." Nic proclaimed, with Kecleon now battle ready and holding up her claw.

"You're welcome to try." Conjore said in an amused way. He spread his arms out, being cocky and inviting Nic to attack him. Nic noticed that the spear from earlier was zooming at high speed and flew into Conjore's hand. He now held onto the spear and smirked. "Though, you're efforts will be futile." He finished.

"We'll see."

"I say we bring the pain." Kecleon said in her weird manner. Nic couldn't agree more. Kecleon always gets her point across, no matter what she says.

Nic thought as to make a tactic that involved catching them off guard and getting them all individually. He would need a diversion, so he used Muddy Water and tried to swamp the whole place. Kecleon was swift to avoid the three-sixty tidal wave. The other three leaped, but Nic lunged at Rune with an Aqua Jet. Rune blocked it with his arms and brushed Nic away. He then had his fingers straighten out, and they glowed a blue that also extended their length. Nic then sprinted with Razor Shell at Rune, but was caught off by being grabbed by a huge hand.

"Oh boy, it would appear that you've forgotten about me." Rosa stated. She rode on the large monster's shoulder and laughed. Nic was being held by a huge humanoid monster that Rosa might have created. He tried struggling free, but to no avail.

He took notice that this monster wasn't like the other ones. For one thing, it was touching him and he wasn't falling into a nightmare. Another thing he noticed was that it felt as hard as a rock. He looked over quickly and saw that a large portion of the field was missing. She must have somehow made this monster from the field only a few moments ago.

"You're a bad boy." She continued. "Using an Animation Spell on something this large was very hasty for me to do, especially after you took out my army of shadows."

Nic continued to try and break free of the grip he was in.

"Just give up already!" Conjore shouted from afar. "You're no match for us. You never had a chance to beat us in the first place."

Nic was showing signs of being annoyed. He was beginning to grit his teeth and glaring at them viciously. "You irritate me!"

They all failed to register the presence of Kecleon until she was spotted on the ground in front of the monster. She opened her mouth and the inside began glowing red. She then shrieked loudly, causing red shockwaves to come out from her mouth. The rock monster was shuddering at Kecleon's Screech. Since it didn't have ears and the vibrations were so immense, tiny parts of it was crumbling off. Rosa covered her ears and began to yelp for it to stop. She twisted left and right, unable to focus and the rock monster was beginning to crumble and break down.

As it was doing so, Nic was able to pry himself loose. Fortunately for Nic, Screech only affects its intended targets, so he was safe from the earsplitting attack. He jumped and turned towards the crumbling monster and Rosa. He unleashed a powerful Water Pulse from his two palms and threw it at the monster's cracked chest. They all watched as the monster exploded into shattered fragments and Rosa was send flying. She was in midair and Kecleon ran and leaped behind her. She let loose a Slash and send her crashing in front of her accomplices.

She slowly got up, agitated that her monster was obliterated with ease by two novices.

"You sorry beast! You've done it now!" Rosa shouted at Nic. Her flirtatious and seductive manner was replaced by a more cynical and angry side of her.

Nic had to change his strategy. Now that surprise attacks were no longer available, he had to swat them down one at a time. He has to make sure that he takes as little damage as he could. The three wizards were only a little injured, but not as much as he wanted them to be. This was going to be a little bit harder than he had anticipated.

"Not bad." Conjore remarked. "Nevertheless, your efforts are in vain. You're clearly outmatched here. Did you honestly believe that you could take on Tartaros?"

Nic was confused. He tilted his head just like Kecleon does.

"Eh, Tartaros?" Nic asked.

"Yes. We are part of one of the three most powerful Dark Guilds in history." Conjore explained, clenching a fist and smirking heinously. "The Magic Council labelled us the weakest of the Baram Alliance, big mistake for those old prunes. Tartaros has been storing power this entire time, so we're actually, and secretly, the most powerful guild ever devised. Those fools think they're all high and mighty, well we'll see who's superior once our plan goes accordingly. Their so arrogant in fact, that they don't even realize that they have quite a few traitors among their ranks."

Nic was now gritting his teeth even more. He hated the Council just as much as he did. The very mention of the Magic Council itself mad Nic want to break something. He could understand as to why they wanted to do it to the Council, but using innocent lives in doing so was going too far. He even had the very thought of someone being a traitor. He suspected Siegrain almost immediately. He knew something was off about him.

He shook his head and tried to refocus his efforts into stopping these guys. He couldn't be distracted by mere thoughts of a potentially lethal future. He had to remain focus on the present.

"So you just plan to show power, by killing off the innocent? The Council will only think less of you monsters!" Nic berated. "What can you possibly gain from killing the innocent?"

Conjore smirked even more now, making him look as though he was a madman. "It's not so much the Council than it is with our primary goal. Tartaros is dedicated to reviving Zeref, and we simply needed nightmares in doing so. We snagged every person we could, starting with the ones that were inflicted with nightmares. After we're finished with those guys, it's on towards the rest of the town. Those dumb fools cannot be allowed to live in a world where they can't use Magic. If anyone is considered a nuisance, you included, they'll be disposed of, forbidden to see a future of greatness. Those without Magic shall be disposed of, and Lord Zeref shall reign in the coming ages of darkness and ever thriving Magic. A future where Zeref and his followers shall stomp all over the weak, that is what we shall gain."

Nic sighed and shook his head. _'The madness never ends.' _He thought. He then turned back up towards the three maniacs and glared them down, getting into a fighting stance in the process.

"Aside from the fact that you've knocked a few of your own crews loose, I'm pretty sure that I'll be whooping your sorry behinds." Nic proclaimed.

"Save the children!" Kecleon proclaimed. She wasn't wrong there as well. They needed to protect the future and its future inhabitants from these weirdoes. Man, she's really good at getting a point across.

Conjore's smirked expression turned into a devilish frown in a split second. One moment, he was gloating of a future of darkness, and the next thing you know, he's got shivers going down your spine.

"Kill him and his pet." He ordered. The two other wizards then advanced towards the two contenders.

Nic glowed and shifted into his Toxic Plate. He ran up and Kecleon followed suit. Rune rushed in while Rosa was summoning forth a few shadow from before.

Rune confronted Nic while Kecleon dealt with said shadows, aware of not to be made contact with. Rune gave Nic an elbow to the gut, where Nic recoiled and pivoted. He turned and used Poison Jab, but Rune shifted to his right and Nic regained footing. Nic lunged forward with another Poison Jab. Rune dodged and grabbed Nic's arm and threw him overhead. Not the best choice.

Turning away, he saw that the small group of shadows was taken down by Kecleon's Shadow Sneak. Keleon worked fast. Kecleon immediately turned back towards Rune and pivoted and ran straight for him. Rune was ready to counter her assault, but was stopped by a Sludge Bomb to the head, sending him hurling back and sliding on the ground a few feet.

Nic regained footing upon using that midair attack and tried to take an analysis just like that. He noticed that whenever Rune looked at something or someone, that large eye mark on his forehead lit up. He also picked up as to how he was able to avoid Nic's Poison Jabs easily, but noticed that he was hit when he wasn't looking.

A theory developed in Nic's head, thinking that eye could see into the future as long as that said Mage has a visual on the opponent. There was only one way to find out. Nic turned back towards Kecleon.

"Kecleon, do your thing!" Nic shouted. Kecleon then became invisible, all except the red stripe. Nic turned back and leaped. He came at Rune with his mouth open and enveloped his fangs in a thick poison. "**Poison Fang!**" As his strong, venomous teeth was about to bite down on the wizard of evil, Rune stepped back and watched as Nic fell forward. He gave Nic a good punch to the gut, but saw Nic grab his wrist. He yanked on his arm that he used to punch the Multitype Mage and he bit into his arm, sending relentless pain through his body. Rune yelped in pain as he brought his arm in a circle and elbowed Nic.

Nic smirked back as he stumbled backwards. After regaining ground, he looked and saw that Rune looked rather feverish and his nose looked a little purple. He was badly poisoned. He coughed as he knelt on the ground, unable to withstand the poison. Rune was a little pale and he slowly got back up, groaning and glaring at Nic.

"Bet you didn't see that." Nic shouted out.

"You're going to die." Rune growled. He leaped forward, ready to punch. He was running forward until he was stopped from the side. Something slashed him from his right, and back to his left. He stumbled back a few feet and let out a gasping breath, having the poison take its toll.

He'd forgot that Nic's Kecleon turned invisible and was moving fast. Since he could get a visual on the Color Swap Pokémon, he couldn't predict its moves.

"Come out and fight you coward!" He shouted, turning left and right. He'd tried to search for that red stripe. He scanned the area, but didn't see it. Either it was too fast or it ran off.

"Hello?" Nic whistled, getting his attention. Rune turned back at him and was hit from behind with Kecleon's Slash, propelling him forward and unable to fend against Nic's Poison Jab into his gut.

He gawked as he fell forward into a Poison Jab he couldn't counter. Kecleon was swift and smart enough to jump above as Rune was observing his surroundings from before to avoid detection. Talk about being a sight for sore eyes. Ha!

He slumped backwards into an unconscious state. He wasn't going to be getting up for awhile. Nic's poison wasn't that lethal, but it sure knocked his lights out.

Having that said and done, Nic only had two more to go. The flirty crazy head and the tall one with a spear. He shifted his focus over to Rosa and was ready to fight the said Mage that could use Animation Magic to give life and form to certain things with certain characteristics.

Rosa summoned forth three human sized rock monsters from the earth, much like the big one she made from before. Given that they weren't shadows this time, Nic assumed they'll have the same characteristics as did the giant one, meaning upon contact he won't fall asleep.

Nic would imagine that since they're also made of earth, that meant that they should be easy to destroy. He remembered that since they're solid, Kecleon's Screech can make their bodies vibrate, causing them to crumble and weaken, which meant Nic could use a physical attack and easily shatter them. Nic thought of this in less than three seconds. That's how fast Nic was when being serious in a battle.

The three golems advanced, and they were much more agile than the one before. It had to be the lack in size that gave them such speed. Since they weren't as large or made of much earth, their bodies were lighter.

Nic changed from his Toxic Plate over towards his Splash Plate.

The first golem shot a direct punch to Nic's face, of which he was able to dodge by jumping. Nic was about to unleash a Water Gun from above, but failed to take into account that the second golem jumped and tackled him to the ground. Nic was send crashing into the ground with a five hundred pound earth being standing affirm and ready to throw a punch.

Just before impact, Kecleon was able to throw the beast off with a swift Shadow Sneak, allowing Nic enough area to stand and use a point blank Water Pulse. The water explosion had send the beast flying and crash into the ground with several fractures in its body. The first and third rock monsters advanced and Nic used Bubblebeam to stop them in their tracks. The attack made contact, having the creatures block with their arms. Slowly, they were pushed back. The moment when Nic stopped was when they unguarded themselves, which wasn't even two seconds later that Kecleon used Slash on both of them, leaving shallow gashes in their abdomens.

Kecleon back flipped and was right next to Nic. Kecleon stood for a brief moment, thinking back as to how this woman's magic was strange.

She recalled that Rosa could summon creatures that had to be under her control, but she remembered something that was extremely important. During when Nic was talking to her in the forest, Kecleon noticed shadows disappearing. She looked rather fixated on him, so that meant her mental capabilities had to be of some value. Kecleon noted that when she used Screech from before, Rosa couldn't concentrate, forcing the rock monster to crumble. It was no doubt her mental capabilities.

Upon realizing this, Kecleon turned towards Nic. "Nic!" she said, somewhat tilting her head. "I know her weakness."

"Feel free to fill me in anytime now." Nic said, seeing the creatures close in on them again. All three rock monsters were up and they were swiftly making way towards the two.

"The crazy lady needs focus to work those dummies." She said. Nic then pieced it together. It did make sense. He noticed she did lose concentration when Screech had hit, so it must be true. With a brand new strategy, Nic cracked his knuckles.

"Let's get to it!" Nic said.

"We shall rock their world." Kecleon said in her usual innocent yet creepy voice. She learned the puns from Nic, and she still made a point. Is there nothing she can say that's beside the point?

Just before the rock monsters could make contact, the two leaped back to avoid the beings. Kecleon used Screech and the red shockwave had the monsters stay still. Rosa could feel the intense Screech ringing her ears. This lowered all of their defenses sharply, leaving Nic to do some damage.

"**Razor Shell**!" Nic shouted.

He straightened his fingertips and they extended into long, blue, glowing blades. He ran up and sliced all three monsters that were shaking and crumbling from the lack of control Rosa had. They were all easily taken down, leaving Rosa to fend for herself. Sadly, she was in no position to defend.

Kecleon had just stopped using Screech, but Rosa's ears were still ringing like bells. Nic took the opportunity to switch into his Zap Plate really fast and then go for a sprint. By the time she uncovered her ears, Nic was right in front of her face with a ThunderPunch that said 'I'll give you a real charge!'. Hehe, puns.

Nic send a roaring ThunderPunch that dug into her chest, with her screaming with the combination of a physical punch and electricity shocking every nerve in her body. The attack sent her soaring back at high speed past Conjore and slam into the pyramid wall, leaving a tiny crater in her place. She fell to the ground with a thud and static popping up a few times. She was definitely out, with some paralysis for an insured policy of not getting up anytime soon.

'_That's two for three.'_ Nic thought, using his opponents as fractions, each being a third.

"That was pretty shocking." Kecleon stated. That comment was not only obvious, but clever as it was punny as well. How does she do it?

Conjore was deeply enraged by this turn of events. Two Dark Guild Wizards were taken down with ease by an amateur wizard that didn't even look all that tired. He glared at Nic with rage.

"How dare you?!" Conjore scolded the Multitype Mage. He had a thick black and purple aura surging all over his body. "My accomplices, beat by an ignorant snob and an overgrown lizard!"

Nic raised a brow. "If we're so ignorant, then how come we whooped your friends' sorry behinds?" he retorted.

"He just got oveeerrrrr!" Kecleon shouted, having her hands wail in the air.

Conjore was clenching his fists, his magic surging. "Very well. They may have been no match for you, but my power will give you a glimpse of the despair that you will feel!" Now his magic was concentrated into his right fist, the one that didn't have the spear. This magic was immense in negativity. Nic and Kecleon could sense it from their distance as well.

"Be ready Kecleon!" Nic said, bending his knees and getting into a fighting stance. Kecleon followed suit and showed her claws.

Conjore was grinning very cynically. "Prepare to die."

"Yeah, how about no." Nic said. Conjore then unleashed a beam of pure darkness at Nic. Nic countered with a Thunderbolt, which intercepted the blast. The two assaults collided, but Nic was easily overpowered with the amount of magic Conjore was delivering. The Thunderbolt only held up for about five seconds before the negative blast ploughed through. Nic was caught off guard and was struck with the immense force, giving off a shout of pain before landing on his back a few feet from where he was standing. Nic slowly got back to his own two feet, uneasy from that powerful blast. _'Just how much power does this guy have?'_ Nic thought.

"Now that you had a glimpse of the despair you will suffer from, I believe we should put you out of your misery and give you an eternity's worth of despair." Conjore said.

Nic used Charge Beam and Conjore easily dodged the attack. Kecleon turned invisible and reappeared in front of him in only four seconds. As she was about to strike him with a Slash, he unleashed another blast of pure darkness from his chest rather than his hands. Kecleon was send flying and flipping in midair.

Conjore gave no room to have them recover as he used another blast straight at Nic. Nic dodged by leaping to his right. He came back around and used Electro Web. He spit out a yellow web that surged with electricity. The web came down on Conjore, keeping him immobilized while being electrocuted at the same time. Before long, he shot another blast, freeing himself and getting the Electro Web dispelled. He then launched another blast of pure darkness, of which Nic generated a ball of electricity.

"**Electro Ball!**" He threw the ball at the pure blast of negativity and the two attacks intercepted one another. Since Conjore's speed went down from the Electro Web, Electro Ball's power shot up. Eventually, the two attacks gave in to one another, and an explosion occurred. The two Mages were clouded up by a large cloud of smoke that blocked their visions.

Conjore was cursing for having Nic's power tie with his. He gathered some more magic energy for another blast as soon as Nic moves or is in sight.

Suddenly, he was struck from underneath by Kecleon's Shadow Sneak, making him stumble back. He didn't have time to look as a sphere of yellow and green electricity with a red center, via Zap Canon, came through the smoke towards an off guard Conjore. The attack made impact, electricity flying everywhere. Afterwards, Conjore was barely standing, but electricity was paralyzing him.

The smoke finally cleared, and Nic leaped out with Spark. As Conjore was about to shoot one more assault at him, he was struck by Kecleon's Screech from the side, throwing off the blast's trajectory. The blast missed and Conjore fell to one knee. It wasn't just the damage that has made him drain, but those pure dark blasts he shot exhausted a huge chunk of his magic power. That last shot was all that he had left, meaning he was powerless.

Nic rammed into him, causing him to stumble back. Conjore remained standing, but his face was covered in sweat from overuse of his magic on so few blasts.

"You lousy punk!" He muttered under his breath. "I've had enough. I may not be able to drain your nightmares nor soul, but I'll kill you!" He held up the spear with the crystal. He was no doubt gonna try and strike Nic down with just that.

As Conjore was dashing forward to strike, he (once again) failed to notice Kecleon, of whom wasn't even visible. Kecleon was just too fast for him to trace as she swiped him from behind, knocking him over. He groaned as he looked to see that he didn't have the spear in possession.

"What?! Where did it-!" He was wide eyed when he saw Kecleon with the spear. Nic smirked, seeing how Kecleon's Thief was able to finish him. Conjore couldn't move, but watched as Kecleon looked back at him with the spear.

"Give it back!" Demanded Conjore. "Lord Zeref must be revived! Give it back you fools!" Conjore was infuriated. No matter how much he tried to get up, the paralysis kept him from doing so.

"You guys really think you're mighty?" Nic questioned. "You guys were way too easy." He then looked down at Kecleon and nodded, allowing her to terminate the spear. She held up an arm at an angle with Slash at the ready.

"Stop!" Conjore yelled.

Kecleon threw it up in the air and jumped. She then used Slash, which made the crystal crack. She jumped back down to Nic's side as the spear fell to the ground within Conjore's reach. When it landed near him, bad things happened.

They saw red demon-like energy come from the fractured crystal. It flowed everywhere. When it finally cracked and shattered, it exploded red demon energy.

Like a volcano erupting, the deluge of energy burst from the shattered spear. The explosion was so powerful, that all Nic and Kecleon felt was the feeling of flying. They could hear the faint screams of the three others that sounded like a far distance. The two saw only white for a brief moment, blacked out for that brief second, and they found themselves sailing straight into the debris of the remains of what was the pyramid. The two were too lightheaded and drained to do anything, except fall like meteors crashing into the earth.

'_This is gonna hurt so bad.'_ Nic thought before succumbing to his lightheadedness.

* * *

**Sometime later…**

Dawn broke out, and Nic found himself lying on his side. He wasn't in his Zap Plate Form from before, meaning he was reverted back towards himself during his unconsciousness. He felt nothing except pain in every single cell in his body. He clenched his fists in searing pain as he struggled to stand. He was up on his two feet, his hands on his knees. He gasped tremendously for air before. He had multiple scratches and bruises from the explosion. He looked around and was wide eyed.

Everywhere he looked, nothing but pyramid debris. There were piles and piles of black shale scattered about. The entire field was covered in the shattered pyramid. You couldn't find grass unless you were close towards the tree line back into the forest.

Nic searched around, seeing that no one else was there. He wasn't sure if the other guys were buried or dead. _'Are they…? What did…? Wait!"_ Nic remembered that his Kecleon was caught in that explosion. Almost like he had a sugar rush, he jumped and tossed rocks everywhere in search of his dear Color Swap Pokémon.

"Kecleon!" Nic shouted. "Where are you?!" He then turned and saw his pokémon approach from over a hilly pile. She looked just as bad as Nic, but at least she wasn't dead. Nic dropped to his knees and let out the deepest breath you've ever imagined. He was so thankful that she was okay.

"Nic!" Kecleon shouted. She walked out and hugged him. Kecleon was relieved that her trainer wasn't dead either.

Nic got back up and looked back around. "What happened?" He asked quietly.

"We were caught up in that explosion and we hit the ground very hard." Kecleon explained. She then looked back in the direction that she came from. "I found something though."

Nic was curious as to what she found. With what strength he could muster, he followed her towards the original spot of the pyramid. It was surrounded by huge chunks of shale, but the middle was somewhat leveled.

It was really strange. Some time ago, Nic sensed two powerful signatures that originated from the pyramid. One was super evil and one made his plates go nuts inside. During the battle, Nic's sensory towards those things turned off. Now, his sensory was back on. Though there was one thing off; one of the signatures from before was gone. Nic didn't feel his spine shiver, so it must be the energy that made the plates react that wasn't rid of. The evil energy was dispelled.

Nic was walking ever so closer towards the middle and the plates were acting like metal detectors. When they continued walking, they were getting crazier and crazier. Nic then saw something under a few grains of rock. It looked like some sort of stone, but it was more like a midnight blue. Nic's plates suddenly stopped reacting as soon as he was ten feet away. The weird stone then slowly lit up, as did Nic.

"You're shining!" exclaimed Kecleon. Nic felt the plates starting to draw in the one stone. The stone was levitating in front of them, slowly coming towards Nic. Nic quickly pieced it together. The forest. The plates. The pyramid. The reaction. Now it all made sense. There was no question about it.

It was a plate. Not just any plate, the Dread Plate.

Upon realizing this, Nic had his mouth open in shock. That explained the signature coming from the pyramid from earlier. Slowly, the Dread Plate made its way in front of Nic. Once the plate had touched Nic's chest, a flash of light appeared, as well as a slight pain. Nic gritted his teeth as the plate began fusing with Nic. The process was rather painful, but it was the first time. Add the fact that he was already damaged. The light slowly faded, and the process was complete. Nic now had six out the eighteen he had to collect.

"Wow." Nic muttered. He could feel about a millennium's worth of history flow through his body. This plate was ancient, no question. He felt all of the evil come from the plate, and it filtered into a positive energy for him. It was rough to describe. The plate gave off a vibe that could send shiver down your spine, but after a few seconds, he felt better than he was twenty seconds ago. Think of it as a vaccination for evil.

Nic then turned back and saw the sun beginning to rise even higher. He flipped on his sunglasses and plopped back down on the crumbled shale. As did Kecleon.

Nic turned to her in exhaustion still. "Kecleon, you okay?" Nic thought. Kecleon did look tired, but who could blame her. She fought with Nic against three wizards, and survived a catastrophic explosion, and got up earlier and found the plate.

"So…tired." She said in her usual creepy and innocent voice.

Nic grinned and looked back up into the sky. "Yeah. I wonder what happened to those guys?" He wondered. This question went unanswered as Nic got out a poke ball and held it up to Kecleon. "You did a great job destroying that thing Kecleon, now get some rest. Return." With absolute zero reluctance, Kecleon returned to her poke ball to get some rest. Nic then fell on his back and succumbed to exhaustion. Man, that explosion took a lot out of him. Poor guy.

* * *

**Meanwhile, back in Freesia…**

The women were doing their morning laundry and cleaning. Some were washing dishes, others were hanging clothes to dry. Some were unchanged from last night's choosing, but some felt rather curious as to why Nic had no fear in his eyes. This scene of bravery replayed over and over in some of their minds. This was the kind of bravery that could leave you depressed if it were in vain. This made some women feel less hopeful.

Before Hiro went to the office for some mayor stuff, Jane ran up to him. The little dog followed in pursuit.

"Daddy." The little girl said. Hiro turned around towards his daughter and crouched down.

"What is it sweetheart?" He asked. She just stood there with a blank expression on her face until she slowly began to tear up. She then leaped into her father's arms and began sobbing. Hiro stood back up with her in his arms.

"What's the matter sweetie?" He asked in deep concerns of his little girl.

"I don't wanna lose you." She sobbed. Hiro held his daughter and comforted her.

"Don't worry Jane, I'm not going anywhere." He assured. She kept sobbing for the next three minutes. This victim claiming was shaking her up really bad. It was bad enough that she'd lost her mother, but it would just break her if her father was next.

Last night was something that left her in awe. She was in the closet at that time and Edmund went to comfort her after his chat with Nic. He told her it's alright to admit fear so that you could grow strong. That replayed in her mind a few times.

_She was in her closet, huddled in a corner. She was on the verge of tears as she couldn't bare such anguish. She felt a few tears drop when the closet door slowly opened, revealing her big brother and the dog. _

_The two slowly went up to Jane, so as she doesn't get startled. The dog sniffed her face, making her move about as its wet nose was tickling her. She broke into a grin and then a giggle as it continued. _

_Edmund came and sat right next to his little sister. "Hey sis." He said._

_She looked back at him, very unsure of what to do_

"_Big brother, I'm scared." She quietly said. The dog ceased its sniffing and went to lay by her other side. Edmund looked at his sister, showing that he wasn't as afraid._

"_It's okay Jane." He said. "At least you know you're afraid, but that's a good thing."_

_The little one looked up in curiosity. "Why is that a good thing?"_

_Edmund looked at the dog as it looked at them. He reached over as he petted it. "Well, Nic told me something that could really be useful. He told me that there were many ways to confront fear, and we both did just that. We admitted our own fear."_

"_But, why is that good?"_

"_Because you can learn to conquer that fear and grow strong. I mean, I was no different from you five minutes ago, but Nic told me that fear can drive us to become strong, so that we can overcome it and protect what's dearest to us."_

She let go of her father as he closed the door and went off to work. She watched him go as the dog sniffed her face again, making her giggle. She walked back into the backyard to play around with the dog. She couldn't help but be curious. She didn't like wizards because they've failed to save her beloved mother, yet Nic brought her brother out of the darkness and into the light. What happened to Nic? She was asking questions to herself, starting to feel a change in heart.

* * *

**With Nic**

A little past four in the afternoon, and Nic finally has risen to his feet. He was fully conscious and his body had recovered some strength. He finally took one look around before he took off towards the town. Freesia shouldn't be too far. If it only took him two hours to get here, then it should take the same amount of time to get back.

Nic began his arduous walk back to Freesia. He ventured through the woods as fast as his legs could carry him, which wasn't very fast at all. He could only go as fast as he was when he was being escorted last night. He could only take it step by step. He focused on walking and nothing else. He had to conserve as much energy as he could in case if he confronts those guys again. The odds were that they were six feet under, literally, or they're in the same state he's in. He didn't have the time nor capability to worry.

He eventually made it halfway into the woods, and then he plopped right next to a tree. Just how much did that freaking explosion take out of him?! If anyone had to take a guess, that explosion of negative power drained his body for an extensive period of time. The same with Kecleon. The odds were that he wasn't going to be at full capacity until later on in the evening.

Once again, Nic started to get sleepy.

* * *

**Later…**

Nic shot his eyes wide open. His body was now at full capability. He noticed that it was now night time. Roughly around eleven to be more accurate.

'_Dang!' _Nic thought. _'It took me this long to reach a hundred percent?! I haven't overslept in forever!" _Nic just had to get back to Freesia fast.

It was close to midnight, and he was pretty sure if those three survived, the townsfolk would be at their mercy. He climbed a tree and finally got to a branch. With the speed and grace of a ninja, Nic flew from branch to branch. It wouldn't take long for him to get back to Freesia at this pace.

* * *

**Freesia**

That evening, Hiro held an emergency meeting in the town square. Hiro has been growing exceedingly anxious as to Nic's success. He's yet to return and no one had a clue as to his whereabouts. The townsfolk were just as anxious as they were restless as they gathered into the town. They were still caught up in the potential fear that he might have been killed and the shadow army will come back for them.

Hiro stood up on a platform in front of the crowd of people. His kids could hear him call out for their attention. Jane stood next to her big brother, who held the dog that was looking just as nervous as they were.

"Remain calm! Please try and look out for the positive!" Hiro announced. The voices among the crowd simmered down to nothing as they were turning their attention towards Hiro. "I understand of your concern and worry. I ask that you hold on until Nic comes back to-."

"He's probably dead!" A voice from within the crowd called out, interrupting Hiro. "He's yet to return, so that would mean those three wizards overpowered him and killed him!"

The crowd murmured in agreement at that possibility. Hiro then called for their attention once more. "We're not sure of that yet. There is no guarantee he's been taken down."

"Then where do you think he is?!" Another citizen challenged him. "If he wasn't killed, then how come he hasn't returned from the forest?"

Hiro grumbled in frustration to think of a reasonable comeback, of which none came to mind. If Nic was defeated, then their demise was sure to be as gruesome as his was.

Regardless, he had to remain positive and stay strong.

"Why don't you all have faith in Nic!" Hiro said.

Then there was a swirling of clouds from above. Lightning surged from within the swirling turbulence. The townsfolk were frightened by this phenomenon and Hiro made his way towards his kids. He huddled and held them close. Dale whimpered as it too was frightened.

There was a cold, demonic laughter from within the swirling clouds. A large creature then appeared from the center of the vortex, of which subsided almost immediately. The creature landed and broke the platform that Hiro was using. People backed away in paranoia as they gazed upon this wretched beast.

The creature was humanoid and was blood red all over. Its body was very bulky in appearance. Black runes were encrypted on its arms, much like the ones that were on the pyramid. The being was twenty feet tall with demon-like wings that didn't fold up. It had a crown of jagged horns and claws that were as black as the night sky. It had shoulder length white hair with a strip of black running down the middle. It had two feral eyes that glared at the crowd. The demon bared its hideous fangs, of which made a few people wet themselves.

"**Pathetic humans**." Conjore, Rune, and Rosa said in unison in a cold demonic voice. "**Faith will do you no good as your Mage is long gone, and so will you**!"

People shivered at this meaning. Nic has failed to stop them. Their fates were decided on his victory, and now their fates were sealed.

"Hold up." Hiro said, recognizing the three voices. "You're those three wizards who attacked us."

"**We were, but now we are reborn as one being**." The creature comprised of three wizards responded. "**We were almost defeated by him, then our most sacred artifact was shattered in front of our eyes. The energy we thoroughly absorbed from that artifact has unleashed this demon that you see before you. This form is the manifestation of us three in this one body – The Nightmare. A demon created by Lord Zeref that required your nightmares to fuel its power. We wouldn't be fee and be able to slaughter you all if it weren't for him**."

The demon unleashed a wave of dark energy that kept the crowd contained as they've tried to escape and run off. Now they were in a dome of see-through darkness. "**No one leaves. I'll bathe in every one of your bloody guts, one by one**." The crowd of people shuddered and huddled at the potential gory demise that might fall upon them.

Hiro and Jane and Dale were so scared that they've failed to see Edmund walk up. away from the crowd and right behind the barrier. The three wizards in that one body chuckled, amused by this foolish act of bravery. Edmund was shaking while glaring at the beast.

'_**Oh well**__.'_ The Nightmare thought. _'__**I guess he'll be the first to go**__.'_

Edmund struggled to keep himself from shaking in front of the twenty foot demon. He had no clue as to what came over him, an impulse maybe. Someone had to stand up to the demon, and Edmund was the only one who did so. The demon looked down at the small boy, amused by his actions.

Edmund was tired of constantly living in fear every night. It was about time they were all rid of this nightmare they've been trapped in for such a long time. He remembered what Nic told him about standing up against his fears. He was indeed scared, but still looked at the demon dead in the eye.

"**What's the matter boy?**" The Nightmare asked. "**So scared you can't stop shaking?**"

Edmund gritted his teeth. "I am afraid, but I ain't no chicken!"

The entire crowd gasped at this burst of courage and the demon looked somewhat annoyed by this act.

"**Very well**." The demon raised its right hand that had magic energy and held it up over Edmund. It then used its powers to force Edmund outside the dome, so that it could strike him down. "**I shall make you fear me!**"

"Edmund!" Hiro yelled out.

"Edmund!" Jane yelled.

The dog barked.

Edmund was prepared for the worst, ready to take the hit for what he'd believed in.

The next thing people saw was the demon getting hit from the side with a Flamethrower. The Nightmare fell on its side before it could strike Edmund. It fell with an earthshaking thud. The dome was dispelled and everyone looked to see where the shot came from.

Nic was on a building right next to the demon, ready to breathe another Flamethrower.

Hiro, Jane, and Dale all sprinted towards Edmund and embrace him in a hug, with Dale licking Edmund's face all over.

"Edmund! You're okay!" Jane said, happy to have not lose another family member.

"Oh thank goodness you're alright!" Hiro said. He looked up at Nic who had just jumped onto the ground. "Thank you so much Nic!"

Nic just nodded and focused his attention back on the demon that was slowly getting up, looking at NIc in the eyes.

"**So, you've survived**." The hideous beast snarled. "**I should have known you were still alive. You're so troublesome.**"

"What can I tell ya, I don't go down easy." Nic stated. He got in a fighting stance, prepared to attack.

"**Let's finish this, shall we?**" The three voiced monster spread its wings and took flight.

"Hiro, get everyone to safety!" Nic commanded, not taking his eyes off of the monster.

Without hesitation, Hiro did as told and directed everyone away from the fight. "C'mon everyone, let's go!"

"Wait!" Jane and Edmund said, both turning toward Nic. "Are you gonna be okay?"

"I can handle this thug." Nic said, still looking at the soaring monster. "You just worry about getting to safety."

With all of that being said, the townspeople made their way out of the area, with the two kids looking back one more time before turning a corner and leaving.

Nic and The Nightmare waited until the townsfolk were a far distance away from the area. Once they saw that the people were out of town, the two glared at each other.

"I'm gonna need some help." Nic muttered. It's true. Nic's gonna need some more fire power if he's going to conquer this demon. This was no doubt going to be harder than last time. The dark magic energy was more potent than from before, add the fact that it was three mages combined and encased into one demon.

He had all of his strength back from that snooze he had, but he didn't wanna bring Kecleon out again. If anything, she must have accumulated a ton of damage from that last fight. She had to rest while someone else tagged in.

Nic threw up a poke ball. "Greninja, let's go!"

Greninja appeared right next to Nic. It was ready to fight the big monster that was circling over their heads.

"Geez, has that guy looked in the mirror lately?" Greninja said, annoying the monster. "Hey buddy, there's this thing called lotion, you could really use that!"

The Nightmare merely gritted its teeth and awaited for their attack.

Greninja turned towards Nic, seeing him shift towards the Sky Plate. "What's the plan?"

Nic observed only for a few seconds before answering. "We lower him to the ground and attack him from there, but we need to be aware of his power."

With only a nod afterwards, Nic spread his wings and flew up. He readied himself to use Wing Attack. He sailed towards The Nightmare with his wings glowing.

The Nightmare, on the other hand, was waiting for Nic to make his move. He saw Nic fly high towards him for an attack, he made no attempt to dodge. Rather, he zoomed straight in.

Nic could see The Nightmare flying in towards him, and he was flying in fast. When he was within range, he lashed at him with his wings. He could've taken the hit, but The Nightmare was more than fast, it was predicting Nic's moves.

The demon grabbed his wrist and gave Nic a punch to the gut, literally knocking the air out of him. Nic gasped as the impact was heavy. Not only was he fast, but stronger as well. The beast held him by the throat for a few seconds before throwing him to the ground. Nic was sailing straight down, with The Nightmare speeding faster than a jet to ram Nic in the back, making the velocity increase dramatically.

"**Die!**" It shouted. Greninja saw this and rushed towards the falling Nic. He crouched down and leaped super high into the air. Its Bounce was making it fly into their direction.

The twenty foot demon didn't think of Greninja before the last second. When it turned to see the frog, it was given a foot to the face. He swiftly grabbed Nic from the fall and he used Bounce to push The Nightmare away as he also sailed back to the ground. Greninja landed safely while the demon was spinning a few times before regaining his balance.

"You okay Nic?" Greninja asked, helping Nic stand on his two feet. Nic coughed a little and finally looked at his pal.

"Yeah, I'm okay." He responded. He then looked up at the horrifying figure making its way towards them. "But he saw straight through my attack. That was Rune's magic. Wait…did it say it was those three combined? If so, then that would mean that thing can use their abilities as well. That would explain such a reflex to my attack."

The Nightmare growled as it was flying over them again. It simply chuckled. "**Not too shabby. Still, it won't work. I must thank you though. We've always thought that The Nightmare was sealed within the pyramid, but it turned out it was the spear. With this new body and power, we can give people what they deserve – death!**"

"We'll have to block its vision so that it won't see our movements." Nic noted.

"Leave it to me!" Greninja stated. Greninja then used Smokescreen to encase the two in smoke so that the demon couldn't see them.

The Nightmare clenched his fists as he looked left and right, but couldn't see through the thick smoke. He flapped his wings and make the smoke cloud vanish, but Nic and Greninja weren't there. It descended to the ground and looked about, moving its head left and right.

It had just forgotten to look behind.

It was shot in the back with a Dark Pulse and an Air Slash combo. It fell forward with a monstrous thud, it screaming as it fell forward. Nic and Greninja both appeared from the alley way just across from where they were. They've managed to make it there before their cover was literally blown.

The demon was about to get back up, but was slammed into the ground once again by Greninja's Bounce. The beast crashed with a huge thud, making a small crater.

The beast spread its wings and shot up from lying down. It turned and glared daggers down on them. "**You had the element of surprise.**" It admitted. "**But your luck's run out!**" It pointed its demonic hands down towards the ground, making five humanoid monsters from the pavement. They were about Nic's size, so they weren't too big, but now they had to deal with six opponents instead of just one.

"I'll take the stones, you stop the demon!" Greninja said. With no room to argue, Nic flew up towards a flat building roof and stood up. Greninja was using smokescreen to provide himself cover so that he could use Water Pulse and Dark Pulse to stop the monsters while their vision was sullied.

Nic looked up as the beast looked down at him, preparing to launch an attack.

"**Nightmare Stream!**" A wave of pure darkness went blasting down towards Nic, who countered with an Air Slash. The two attacks collided, but the stream still burrowed towards Nic through the smoke, but the blast wave was somewhat weakened.

"**Drill Peck!**" Nic's mouth then glowed and became a cone-shaped glow. He then began spinning like a drill and went straight through the middle of the stream. He escalated through the attacked and drilled into the horrid monster's abdomen, causing it to fly back several feet. The monster gritted its teeth and flew in towards Nic. He tried to use Aerial Ace, but the monster anticipated the attack and punched Nic as soon as he'd gotten close. Nic flew back and spun a few circles, which made him a little dizzy. He didn't have time to register the blast of negative energy coming his way. The attack hit him dead on, sending him crashing through a roof.

"**Want more?!**" Shouted the monster. The thick cloud of dust didn't subside just yet, so The Nightmare couldn't get a visual of him.

He saw what looked like a spacial mirror and it shot a blast of negative energy as well. This had send The Nightmare soaring through the air and crash down on the ground with the sound of thunder.

Nic emerged from the crashed roof and slowly descended to the ground. He was getting pretty tired. Already, he was badly bruised and scratched about. The beast sat up, showing its angry expression as to Nic's relentless behavior.

"How did you like a taste of your own medicine?" Nic asked in a rather mocking tone. "Mirror Move really does the trick."

The beast got back up and looked over to see that Greninja had already taken care of the stone monsters. He'd went to regroup with Nic and the two were now fighting side by side.

"**You guys are too persistent! Why don't you just die?!**" The monster demanded.

"Because we will never rest until you're defeat is certain! You've put a lot of innocent people out of their misery, and we'll never forgive you for such a wretched thing!" Nic exclaimed.

"The innocent don't deserve this torture. Just by picking on the weak only makes you a big coward!" Greninja shouted.

"**A coward?! If anyone's to be a coward here, it's you!"** The Nightmare stated.

Nic squinted his eyes to make him look as serious as serious could get. "We'll see."

Nic then began to glow and change into his new form, the Dread Plate. When the glow subsided, Nic had midnight blue eyes. His shoes were a mixture of grey stripes, black, and midnight blue patterns. His jeans were black with a chain on the side, giving him a more punkish look. His sleeveless coat had pure black flames flickering from the bottom up to the back of his thighs. The rest of the sleeveless coat was a midnight blue. Finally, his T-shirt was black with a regular collar, no V-neck, and the sunglasses were hanging from his shirt collar as well.

"You're gonna wish you've never been unleashed!" Nic boasted. The demon just roared as it lunged towards Nic. Nic then disappeared in thin air, having the demon gawk as he kept going forward. He didn't look as Nic reappeared right next to him and gave him an elbow to the face. The beast stumbled back in shock. It failed to detect Greninjs above it as it used Water Pulse straight down on the demon.

The watery explosion subsided and the demon looked perplexed. It bashed its head on a few buildings, not recognizing a thing. It was confused from the Water Pulse. Greninja then landed right next to Nic.

"Ready?" Nic asked. Greninja nodded and the two held out their hands towards one another. Nic held out his right hand, while Greninja showed its left hand. The space between them was being filled with darkness they were making. It was a huge mass of dark rings they were wielding.

"**Dark Pulse!**" The double Dark Pulse was fused into one huge Dark Pulse, sending a torrent of black and purple towards the demon. When the demon turned to see the attack, it was already too late.

There was a huge explosion that occurred. Dust was flying about everywhere and wind was scattering a lot of debris. It subsided rather quickly and Nic and Greninja both saw that the demon had been blown through four buildings. The Nightmare slowly got up, but it tripped as it did, meaning it took some damage.

"**You have infuriated me!**" The demonic being yelled. The ground then began to tremble, as the demon began to surge energy between the palms of its hands. It was slowly welding into a compressed sphere of chaos and darkness. Nic and Greninja just how much power this monster was pouring into the attack.

"This is really, really, reeeaaaallllyyyyy bad." Greninja noted.

Nic just looked on and gulped. This was worse than all of those previous attacks, perhaps even worse than that terrifying explosion from last night. If this attack hits, there wouldn't be any trace of them left.

"Got any ideas?" Nic asked. "I'm open to ideas."

"Well, considering that I don't know Mat Block, we can't guard ourselves. And we most certainly can't intercept it, meaning we're down to a few options."

Nic thought quickly as to how to approach this matter. The first scenario is deflecting it into another direction by aiming an attack a little bit lower. The second scenario is to dodge, and the third scenario…well, that would be a death sentence. Taking the hit would be as stupid as Natsu when he jumped on the boat the first night and got motion sickness.

"I got an idea." Nic said. Greninja looked at Nic in hopes that it was a good plan.

"What is it?" He asked.

"This!" Since nothing came to mind, Nic came up with a last resort. His fist had a pink glow and he sprinted towards the demon. Greninja knew what Nic was gonna do.

'_Charizard was right, Nic has grown bold.'_ He thought to himself.

Nic was five feet away when the attack was fully charge, sending off a high frequency.

"**Hell Canon!**" Nic was able to get there just in the last moment.

"**Sucker Punch!**" Nic let loose a punch to the demon's chest, having it bend back upon impact. It was unable to predict Nic's attack because Hell Canon required every single cell of concentration from within, meaning that it was vulnerable.

The compressed sphere of death then unleashed itself as the demon was falling back. The sphere was unleashed in an enormous wave of a mixture of pure black, purple, grey, and vermilion. The blast wave was redirected and aimed upwards at an angle, obliterating the top half of a building. The attack kept flying high into the sky, roaring throughout the area. The huge wave even made some clouds move. The wave soon dispersed, leaving the roaring sound to dispel only a few moments afterwards.

Nic barely dodged that assault, and he was left with only a little energy left to spare. The demon itself was lying on the ground from lack of balance from the attack it misfired. The Nightmare laid there in a dusty heap, grunting and growling as it tried to get up.

"**You…brat!**" It managed to get out. All of that power buildup took a huge chunk of the demon's power away from it, meaning it's just as drained as Nic was. Greninja appeared right next to Nic, ready to make an attack.

"Nic, what's the plan now?" The beast was now back on its own two feet, huffing a bit from that attack.

"Eh…win?" Nic said.

"Great plan!" Greninja responded. The two advanced as the demon roared. They both got on opposite sides, left and right, and Greninja and Nic both did a double Dark Pulse once more. The demon held out its two hands, having said block both attacks.

"**You fools! I will not lose to such arrogant punks!**" proclaimed the hideous beast.

Nic and Greninja both closed in on the demon as it growled fiercely at them.

"Hey, guess what." Nic said.

"**What?**" The Nightmare asked.

"We don't care!" Nic lunged at the monster's face with a Night Slash, slashing in an angle with a black and red outline arc following. The beast leaned back and avoided the attack and opened its mouth.

"**Demonic Blackout!**" The beast threw its head forward and unleashed a black and blood red blast right into Nic. The force of the attack had send Nic soaring high into the air, with a gasp of pain and air. He blacked out for about two seconds while sailing up. The Nightmare then shot into the air, attempting to attack Nic with its claws.

Nic regained consciousness and he saw the monster sailing at him. _'He's so powerful! I'll just have to use that to my advantage then!' _As Nic was starting to fall, he opened his arms, welcoming the attack. The beast was about to make contact, Nic grabbed its arm, turned it around, and threw him towards the ground. Nic smirked as the demon crashed into the earth. _'Thank you Foul Play.'_ He thought. Since the beast's strength was greater than Nic's, Foul Play did a whole lot of damage. If Nic had taken that hit for real, then he would've been pierced. Nic straightened out and landed without harm.

Greninja rushed over and regrouped with Nic. Nic looked at him and the two now had the chance to show this monster just who is the king of the ring.

The monster turned over on its back as Nic was carried by Greninja as he leaped from building to building, eventually ending up in midair. Nic then let go and the two were side by side in the air.

'_**Where did that strength come from?**__' The Nightmare thought. _"**We can't lose! Tartaros will prevail! We'll climb to the top and destroy you in the name of Lord Zeref!**" It yelled furiously as it wasn't able to move from such a devastating attack.

Nic's eyes lit up as his body was surrounded in a crimson aura. He raised his arms in conjunction with Greninja. Greninja was getting ready to do a Water Pulse as the aura around Nic's forearms was getting even thicker. As soon as Nic touched the Water Pulse, it was encased in this crimson aura. The two were falling at the same time, ready to unleash a brutal and final attack on this beast.

"Listen up! We won't let you destroy those who've suffered enough!" Nic proclaimed. "I don't give a damn about this Lord Zeref! You'll never triumph us as long as we protect those who we hold dear to us!"

The monster gritted its teeth as it couldn't move.

"Take this collaboration attack!" Nic shouted.

"**Night Daze!**"

"**Water Pulse!**"

Nic's left arm and Greninja's right arm came down on the monster's chest, sending a massive fusion of water and a pink and crimson forcefield throughout the area. The blast wave expanded as the monster roared in agony. The combo attack surged and there was a massive light that shined.

Once the attack had ceased, Nic and Greninja reared back as they saw the light take the spot of The Nightmare. The light shot upwards and it became a tower of light. At the pinnacle of the light tower, Nic and Greninja both saw that that the light was raining down light meteors, much like a mountain.

Nic couldn't think of what is going on, but the two saw the blobs of light raining down and touch the ground. They all then took the shapes of people one by one. When the lights faded, they showed they were actual people. Nic gawked at this as did Greninja.

"What in the name of sweet tomato sauce is going on here?" He asked.

"Not certain, but if I guessed right, I'd say the lives that were fed to The Nightmare are being revived." Greninja said. Nic took it and saw the people looking at themselves in disbelief. They couldn't believe that they were alive. All roughly five hundred or so. The light tower diminished, leaving the three wizards from before in a crater. Nic walked over towards them. They were all unconscious, but alive.

Nic looked around and saw that the people were looking at him and Greninja. They were finished reminding themselves that they were living once more. They all then went over and clapped in praise for the two heroes. Everyone shouted in congrats and sincere thanks for restoring their lives. They all hip-hip-hoorayed Nic and Greninja and such. It was such a great time.

Eventually, the townspeople came back into town, seeing all of the people return, they all looked as though they were seeing ghosts. Many people began crying on the spot. Some children had immediately ran up to their siblings or parents of whom they have thought they've lost.

"Papa!" "Mommy!" "Dad!" "Honey!" Everyone was in a deep hug as they clenched onto their once lost family members and never sought to let go. Among the group of people rejoicing, Edmund, Jane, Dale, and Hiro found the one person they've missed so much. Christina stumbled about, trying to figure out where her family was. Jane ran up and threw herself onto her mother. She didn't dare to let go. Edmund clung onto his mother as well. They didn't dare to let go. They couldn't believe it, everyone who was a sacrifice was now alive and well, but Christina didn't care because she was with her beloved family again.

Hiro wrapped his arms around his wife and kids and dog. The small family sobbed in relief that they were in each other's arms again. The tears just kept on coming.

"Mommy, we've missed you so much." Jane spoke softly.

"Shhh, it's alright now. I'm back." Christina said, soothing them all. It was the longest time before they've separated from the hug.

"Sweetheart, I'm so glad you're alive!" Hiro said, overjoyed to have the love of his life back. "But…how?" he continued in curiosity. He was indeed overjoyed, but this question raised through every mind of the people who fled the battle area.

She looked over towards Nic and Greninja. Nic reverted back to himself and grinned at the sight of everyone rejoicing with one another. "Nic and his friend right there saved us. They defeated the horrid demon that was using us to fuel its power." She said. "We weren't really dead, but we were release as soon as the creature was defeated."

Every single citizen then looked and stared right at the two. They were the complete center of attention. The two heroes looked on awkwardly as the staring continued. Edmund and Jane immediately ran up to them both and hugged them. Jane hugged Nic while Edmund hugged Greninja, the two were happy to see the two kids smile. Dale was running about, overjoyed in satisfaction.

"Thank you." Jane said repeatedly.

Hiro and Christina held hands and walked towards Nic and Greninja. The two kids pulled away and returned back to their parents' sides.

Hiro and everyone else smiled. "Nic and friend, we can't even begin to thank you for all that you've done for our beloved village. You have no idea how much gratitude we express to you. The entire city of Freesia can't thank you enough for your heroic actions. We will forever be grateful to you. Thank you for everything!"

Hiro and Christina then bowed to Nic and his ninja frog pal. In a few moments, the entire population did the same, which made the two feel embarrassed.

"Please, you don't have to do this." Nic reasoned. "It was my job to help you in the first place." He's never felt so praised in his life. Greninja certainly felt embarrassed as well. They both looked at each other and smiled widely.

Everyone clapped their hands in honor of their hero and his accomplice. "On honor of your bravery, I say a celebration is in order!" The townspeople cheered as they all threw Nic and Greninja into the air.

* * *

**That night…**

The party lasted the entire night, and it didn't stop until morning arose. The spirits were high as people celebrated their rejoiced family and freedom from the awful nightmare. The families enjoyed each other's reunion and now no one had to worry about those three wizards ever again.

The three wizards were tied up with rope around their hands and the Royal Army had come to arrest them. There was no escape once you're in this anti-magic cuffs. The three Tartaros members grunted as they were arrested. Nic just watched as they were taken away. He didn't regret laying the hurt on them, but didn't show any sign of glee as they were taken away. He was still occupied with the thought of Tartaros rising. What if it really did happen?

The party disregarded the damages that Nic and Greninja dished out. There was games, laughter, music, and a whole ton of food. We're talking edible deliciousness on a whole new level. Everyone has never felt so happy in ages.

Nic, with Greninja involved, was/were the star(s) of the show. Everyone wanted to talk with them. They were pushed and dragged to so many tables that it made the two dizzy. They couldn't even sit down to have a bite of something to eat before a fan yanked them somewhere. They all wanted to thank them for their valiant efforts and wanted to talk with him to get to know their heroes more. They would spend at most five minutes at a table before they were dragged to another.

At one point during the night, Nic had send out Kecleon as well. The people marveled at his other accomplice as well. He explained to everyone that she helped him in his daring job as well, of which the citizens happily accepted. Kecleon was feeling much better than it was earlier, now fully recovered and well rested to play around the entire night.

Around noon, the party began to dwindle down and it was now time for Nic to depart. Greninja and Kecleon both by his side as he looked back and faced the entire down that stood before him.

"Nic, take this." Hiro said, handing him what looked like a check. "You've earned it."

Nic took one glance at the check and his eyes nearly popped out of his sockets. The reward had risen to fifteen million jewels.

"Holy freakin protozoa!" Nic exclaimed. "That's a lot of zeroes!"

"Didn't you remember that the job was S-Class?" Hiro reminded him.

Nic looked on dumbfounded. "Oh, right. But are you sure about this? I can settle with the previous reward. You guys being happy is rewarding enough."

Hiro shook his head. "We insist. It's the least we can give you for all that you've done for us. No matter what, you'll always welcome here anytime."

Nic nodded, as did Greninja and Kecleon.

"We're sorry for how we were before." Edmund and Jane said. "We were wrong about you. And we couldn't thank you for how much you've done for us."

Nic grinned down at the two. "Don't mention it. I'm glad that you're united with your mother again." The kids walked up and they hugged him. The dog came up and licked Nic in the face, which tickled. His pokémon looked on as they were mighty proud of themselves for having such a great trainer and family.

"When I grow up, I'm gonna be just as brave as you!" Edmund proclaimed. Dale barked in affirmation. Nic smiled down on the newly courageous person.

"That's a great path to take. Never give up, no matter what and you'll succeed." Nic stated.

"You mean it?" Edmund asked, to which Nic nodded.

Nic waved farewell to all of Freesia as he and his pokémon began walking down the road. They all waved and shouted goodbye and told him to be back soon. Nic told them that he would come visit them soon if we wasn't too busy, and he would never break such a promise. Freesia feels like a type of place Nic likes now. First Fairy Tail, and now Freesia. Nic was feeling at home in all of the right places.

* * *

**On the road…**

On their way back to Magnolia, Nic had turned towards Greninja and Kecleon, who were feeling just as good as he was.

"Hey guys." Nic said. "Thank you."

Greninja looked on and smirked. "No probs. We're there for you thick and thin."

"Yeah. We're PB and J with indestructible crust!" Kecleon said, using the most weirdest analogies you could've imagined, all of which had no relevance. "We're duck, duck and goose. We're green eggs and ham. We're Ed, Edd n Eddy!" (Hehe, because I felt like saying that.)

With all of those freaky similes out of the way, Nic returned them to their poke balls and he had decided to take the way he got to Freesia – through trees. He climbed the branches and raced back towards Fairy Tail, awaiting for the next adventure to come across him.

* * *

**Sorry that this chapter was insanely long. Normally, my chapters range around 10K-12K, but I was too caught up in the fight scenes that I was making. This chapter was close to 14K!**

**The Dread Plate felt necessary because of the events that were going on in regards to the situation Nic was in. Yes, I made up The Nightmare, because I had to make some sort of demon. The Dread Plate versus The Nightmare felt reasonable to me that way.**

**About Bounce. Yes, I'm aware that Froakie and Frogadier can learn Bounce and not Greninja, but let's just say that Greninja learned Bounce as a Frogadier.**

**Don't expect any updates for a little while. I'm planning on starting up another story and finish up another one I'm doing for a friend. I'll work on the other story for a little bit and come back to this one and **_**maybe**_** alternate after every chapter. **

**Let me know what you think of this story so far and what you're opinions are on the characters. Let me know if you wanna see more of something or someone in any way.**

**Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review my story and/or chapter. **_**Review!**_

* * *

**Next Time: Two Dragons and a Nic**


	7. Two Dragons and a Nic

Chapter 7 – Two Dragons and a Nic

**Hey guys, sorry for the holdup. So I finally finished my story that I did for a friend and I got my second story all set up. Feel free to check that out. It's just another crossover, and if you like that story, feel free to Favorite, Follow, and Review that story as well.**

**Now that I have gotten those priorities accomplished, I can press on with another chapter. Remember, I might be alternating between this story and my new one, but this is the last time I'm telling you guys.**

**Alpha Dragonis: I think I get what you're saying, but you need to take into account participation. I'm not ready to reveal said Dragon Type yet (**_**SPOILER)**_**, but you'll see why this chapter is called that.**

**Now comes the Phantom Lord Arc, Nic will participate, to an extent, in this arc. I won't say how, but you'll have to read for yourselves.**

**To Recap:**

Nic and Kecleon proceeded with their plan and ambushed the Dark Guild, Tartaros. Nic and Kecleon managed to take down Rune and Rosa, and just as they were about to finish off Conjore, Kecleon broke the spear, creating a tremendous explosion of negative energy. When morning had risen, Nic and Kecleon found the Dread Plate, and then fell back asleep afterwards, leading up to almost midnight. Nic proceeded back to Freesia and came across The Nightmare, a demon that was fused with the three Dark Guild members. Nic and Greninja teamed up, with Nic trying out his new Dread Plate form, and the two defeated the demon. They, as well as Kecleon, were declared heroes, as well as the return of every citizen that was used as a sacrifice. Nic and the others partied all night and then left the next day, awaiting to return to Fairy Tail.

* * *

**Chapter 7 – Two Dragons and a Nic**

The following morning came, and Nic was finally back in Magnolia. He was glad to be back again after that long and rather painful experience, but it was so worth it. That accidental S-Class job made him value his new friends and he couldn't wait to get back to Fairy Tail to see them again, especially a certain red haired Requip Mage. He was feeling very optimistic, but who could blame him. He got the Dread Plate, and might be able to unlock another one if he keeps this up.

As Nic was making his way towards the Guild Hall, people were staring at him. Their eyes somewhat widened and they started talking quietly towards one another.

"Isn't he from Fairy Tail?" "I feel pretty bad for him." "What's gonna become of him?" All of these people were acting as though they should be taking pity on Nic for something he wasn't aware of. He was curious as to what the people were talking about.

It wasn't until he looked up ahead and saw that the guild was misshapen somehow. It looked as though it had some rods, very large rods, sticking out all over.

"What the…?" Nic wasn't sure as to how the guild looked like that, but he took it as a bad omen.

Before he knew what he was doing, Nic saw that he was now running straight ahead towards Fairy Tail. He got there in record time and came to a disturbing halt.

The guild that was towering above him was damaged and destroyed. There were a multitude of enormous iron pillars protruding through the roof and sides of the building. It was like a Ferroseed with a surplus of barbs all over its body. Nic gawked at this rather haunting image.

"HOLY FREAKIN PROTOZOA!" Nic shouted, panicking at the shattered site. He gulped and slowly made his way inside, trying to avoid the damaged furniture laying all about.

* * *

**In the basement…**

Natsu was clenching his fists and looked as though he was about to break someone's face. Erza, Lucy, Gray, and Happy were doing their best to keep him from rampaging into Phantom Lord's guild and trash it up as well. Master Makarov told him that it would do no good, as conflicts were forbidden between guilds. Erza was just as steamed as Natsu, but she had to obey what the Master has decided, much to her dismay.

The guild members were hiding out in the guild's basement, with nothing to feel but melancholy and dejection plastered onto their faces. The members had to resort to using this storage space until the upstairs is repaired.

Erza and crew had just arrived back roughly three hours before Nic. They had just got back from their Galuna Island S-Class request and they were appalled by the site of their guild demolished. Mira had already explained to them that Phantom Lord came in the midst of night and trashed the place with iron pillars all about.

"Natsu, calm down already!" Erza ordered the Dragon Slayer, who still failed to compromise. "If Master ordered us not to act, then we must do as he says."

Natsu struggling was beginning to dwindle, but nevertheless was still wanting to get payback. "Let me go!" Natsu shouted, with Gray restraining him. "I'm gonna give those Phantom jerks a piece of my mind!"

"Just drop it Natsu!" Gray said. "We all want payback just as much as you do, but we'll get in trouble if those Phantom Lord jerks come back again."

"Natsu, you've got to stop. This isn't helping the situation." Lucy said.

Eventually, Natsu simmered down into mere grumbles and groans and sat on a storage box that was close to him. The other four were heading into and sat down in a lookalike of the bar, where Mira was making food.

"This is truly horrible." Mira said in a depressed way. "We didn't do anything to them, why would they do such a thing?"

"It can't be helped. If we get caught up in a back and forth war between us and Phantom, there will be war, and we cannot allow that." Erza said, looking down at the table.

Others nodded in agreement from other tables, but some just drank their problems away, not to mention Cana drinking away and sighing after every finished glass.

They all soon heard a pair of footsteps upstairs. Erza and the others were tensing up and preparing to strike upon the second they show their faces. It was a good assumption to believe that it was Phantom Lord, but they couldn't be for certain. The footsteps were drawing ever so closer, and the guild was on the verge of a panic. As a safety measure, Erza summoned forth a sword and Natsu engulfed his right fist in fire. Gray was ready to summon forth ice upon the moment those Phantom bastards show there cowardly faces. The doors of the basement opened and they heard the footsteps approach. Little to them, it was still a pretty confused and somewhat terrified Nic.

He didn't even look at his footsteps, and he tripped and started falling down the stairs. The guild from below heard sounds of thumping and yelps going "OW" and "EEE" and "D'OH!" They dropped their guard in confusing, thinking how stupid are they to fall down two flights of stairs.

"OW! EEE! OWWW! D'OH! WHY?! AHH! EEE! OW-OOWW!" Nic was hollering as he tumble and crashed into a wall, bouncing off it and falling down the flight of stairs visible to the guild. They were relieved, yet looking in confusion as to how could he fall down two flights of stairs at a time like this.

Nic finally landed with a face plant on the hard floor, laying there for a few seconds before getting back up and groaning at his misfortune. Ignoring everything and everyone around him, Nic glared back at the stairs and pointed at them.

"Curse you stupid flight of stairs!" Nic berated the inanimate path leading up to the upstairs. "You've made a powerful enemy today!"

Once he'd calm down after a few seconds, he noticed that the entire guild was down there with him. He looked around and saw that everyone was staring at him. He noticed that they had frowns.

"So, I guess that I missed quite a bit." Nic said, trying to get back on track. "What happened?"

Nobody answered, but looked down at their mugs and went back to drinking. Not a single person could meet his eyes as the depression has arisen once more. Nic spotted Erza and the others and looked at them.

"Erza, what in the name of all things decent and good in the world happened here?" He asked Erza.

Erza cast her eyes in a downward motion. "It was Phantom Lord."

Nic's somewhat understanding of this situation now has shaken off his startled self and now he looked more serious. "If I may ask, what is Phantom Lord?"

"It's another guild, just like us." Mira pointed out. "Only we're not on the best terms with them. They rival us."

Nic's eyes widened. "You mean that they're another Dark Guild?" He assumed.

Mira shook her head. "No, Phantom Lord is an official guild just like us. For a few years now, Phantom and Fairy Tail have been competing for the top guild. They just came out of nowhere and attacked the Guild Hall when no one was around. Everyone was shocked to see the guild in ruins. We had to salvage what we could manage and take it to the basement. Master didn't allow us to retaliate, for it would only make things worse. For now, we're operating down here until we can get the upstairs fixed."

Nic nodded, but couldn't help but be concerned. "Was anyone injured?"

"No. Everyone was in one piece." She replied.

Nic sighed in relief, thinking that if someone was hurt, could mean the apocalypse for Phantom Lord. If there's one thing everyone in the entire could should be aware of, it's to never EVER infuriate Nic. He's scarier than Erza, an angry Natsu, and Lucy when it came to her rent, put together and multiplied by 700 billion. They all remembered what happened to Gray the last time Nic was angry.

Makarov came out of the bathroom, looking less intoxicated from the alcohol we consumed earlier. Even so, the booze wasn't enough to hide his worries as well. He was angry at the fact Phantom Lord could pull off such a cowardly act. The only thing that's keeping Makarov from storming off was the fact no one was hurt.

He spotted Nic and waltzed up to him to greet him. "It's good to see you Nic. The job was successful I take it?"

Nic crossed his arms and looked down at the Master. "Yeah…but there were some issues." Nic noted.

"How so?" Makarov asked. Everyone was in on how Nic could've had such trouble completing a task.

Since this was a guild, this was everyone's business. He couldn't hide it from them forever, better now than never.

Nic told that when he'd arrived, Hiro said the job had an increase in the reward and was an S-Class request, to which Natsu jumped at. He told how he came across this guild known as Tartaros and how the three members were trying to resurrect Lord Zeref. Nic also told as to how he and his Pokémon stopped a demon known as The Nightmare. Nevertheless, they still won and he finished the job.

The entire guild was almost shaking at Nic's story. He took on three members of the most elusive guild in the Baram Alliance. Makarov raised a brow when Nic told the events. This got him worried. If Tartaros was making its move, then Oracion Seis and Grimoire Heart can't be too far behind. This had disaster written all over it.

"I'll have to talk with the Council again soon." Makarov said. "If what you said is true, then we have to be prepared for what's to come. I'm going to have to make the Council make a move before they do. Right now, we have our own problems to deal with. These troubles just keep piling up on one another. Of all the times to get this news, this just goes to show how rotten our luck is."

The two shared a chuckle that was rather grim.

"Better safe than sorry." Nic said. "At least we were lucky enough to be unharmed. You've made the right choice by not responding. War is never the right answer. War creates only more war."

Makarov could feel Nic's passion for his decision. Makarov could see that Nic has been through a lot. Not just from being in Fairy Tail, but from his past experience in Kalos. He could sense the frustration, the joy, the tranquility, the seriousness, everything about Nic. Nic's wisdom was well beyond what he could've imagined. He wasn't exactly sure as to what Nic had been through, but it did lead to Nic having the experience to handle such situations as did Makarov.

"I agree with you there." Makarov said. He managed a small smile and then slowly progressed into a small frown again. "One of my children may have been attacked, but I can't be helped if that happens again." Nic knew he was referring to him and his confrontation with Tartaros.

Nic nodded. "I'll do what I can to save Fairy Tail as well."

With that aside, everyone let out smirks as to how bold Nic was to declare Fairy Tail such a meaningful place to him. It wasn't long after that Natsu broke it all up by walking up by being angry.

"Hey, that's no fair! How come he got to go on an S-Class request?!" Natsu demanded.

"Why's it matter?" Nic said, turning back nonchalant.

Natsu and the others then explained what they went through while Nic was on his job request. They told of how Happy stole the S-Class request and how everyone else had gotten involved. They told of a curse and how they completed their task and Lucy had gotten a new Zodiac Key. When the tale ended, Nic raised a brow.

"Geez. Natsu and Happy, I have to say. You two are indeed S-Class…S-Class dunderheads!" Nic berated them. "It's fine that you guys accomplished the request, but it was above and beyond stupid for the two of you to do such a thing. We need a new scale to measure your guys' stupidity. Honestly!" Nic couldn't imagine him getting caught up in something like that; well, probably. If people were in trouble, he wouldn't run away from them, so I guess Natsu and the others were lucky this time.

"Oh, come on Nic!" Natsu replied. "You could've just come along and helped us, but you had to go on your own S-Class job! So you're as guilty as us!"

"Listen flame brain! Unlike you, my job turned into S-Class without any notification, so my job was S-Class by coincidence, not because I wanted to get acknowledged!" Nic counter argued.

Natsu turned and pouted, seeing how Nic wasn't in trouble but he was. He just had to take his frustration on something, and then he started stomping about and was prepared to storm off to Phantom Lord. The others had to calm him down

"I can't take this sitting around! I have to do something!" Natsu almost began breathing fire.

"Just shut it you idiot!" Gray said. "We've had enough of your crap!"

"Enough Natsu!" Makarov berated. Everyone turned towards him.

"But Gramps-." Natsu was cut off by a silencing hand with a distasteful look on Makarov's face.

"This matter shall be disposed of. End of discussion!" Makarov then walked and took his place on top of the bar.

Natsu hated all of this. Sitting around wasn't his best strong suite. He gritted his teeth and looked at the floor.

"I know that this is unbearable and you want to settle the matter, but it's best left alone." Nic said with a much more calm tone than when he was arguing with Natsu. "The Fairy Tail Guild Hall may be demolished, but that doesn't mean Fairy Tail itself is tarnished. Look around you. These people are Fairy Tail itself, we're all alive, and that means Fairy Tail is alive as well."

Erza grinned and she could see that almost everyone had been listening to Nic and they felt their spirits lighten up slightly.

Natsu nodded in understanding.

Some time has passed and Nic was sitting next to Erza, who stared at him often. She was amazed as to how Nic was just as influencing as Master, and everyone's spirits were lifted in a matter of seconds. The guild was back to its old self, with the loud and boisterous going about, though somewhat dialed down a bit. Natsu and Gray were bickering again, as to where Lucy sighed over her friend's actions. Happy was idly munching down on some fish, Mira was rushing from table to table, getting drinks to every person she could. Macao and Wakaba were telling jokes again and Romeo was running about. Cana was still drunk and she laughed all about, though no one was surprised.

"How did you do it?" Erza asked.

"Did what?" Nic asked, looking confused.

"You scare people, yet you make them feel assured. You must have a way with them." The red haired Mage said.

"Well, I wouldn't say that." Nic said, looking down at table and drifting off into another one of his "rock out moods" with earbuds in and low volume to hear Erza. "All I do know is that you have to put the past behind you and pick yourself up."

Erza nodded and the two sat in comfortable silence. Nic was now officially in his "rock out mood", with his head bobbing up and down as he was listening to his music.

* * *

**That night…**

The sun had set and everyone had headed home. The odds were that some Phantom Lord members were still running about and the guild needed to make safety measures by traveling in groups. Erza and the others were heading off to Lucy's place (without her consent), and Erza wondered where Nic was. She was aware that Nic always slept in the guild, but his place was trashed. Since Nic wasn't around, Erza had no choice but to leave the matter alone and have Natsu, Happy, and Gray all go to Lucy's. The other guild members left that night, heading off towards their own respective homes.

Lucy had just gotten out of the bath she was in, cloaked in a towel. She had opened the door and Erza was looking so relaxed in her towel as well. Natsu was dozing off on the table, Gray was reading something, and Happy was still munching on some fish. It wasn't long until Erza requiped into her pajamas.

Her pajamas were a light purple with red crosses all over. Lucy was stunned to see how Era changes her clothes.

Lucy then sat down in a chair next to Natsu and began the discussion.

"So, do you have any idea why Phantom attacked us out of the blue like that?" Lucy asked, turning to Erza.

"No." Erza said. "It's true we were never on good terms with those guys in the past, but we've never resorted to violence on this scale before."

Natsu looked up at them with a pout on his face. "If gramps wasn't so sacred of them, we could've wiped them all out easily." He muttered.

"Since when have you been awake?" Lucy asked, but went unanswered.

"C'mon Natsu." Gray said. "Master isn't scared, he's one of the Ten Wizard Saints." Lucy then noticed that Gray was reading her story that she was making, she snatched it away from him and he wanted to know what happened next. Erza was curious to, but Lucy denied it.

"Well, I want to know what these Ten Wizard Saints are." Lucy asked, trying to change the subject.

"It's an honor bestowed by the Magic Council. It's a title given to the ten most powerful wizards on the continent." Erza explained.

"Phantom Lord's Master Jose is one of them to." Happy noted. It was all stopped when Natsu got up and slammed his hand on the table.

"Master _is_ scared! He's afraid Phantom's got too many members for us to handle!" Natsu argued.

"That's not even close to being true." Gray said. "You heard Mira and Master, the consequences of a war with Phantom isn't worth putting up the fight."

"We could take them easily." Natsu noted.

"No." Erza said. "The odds are that neither guild would survive. Their strength levels ours. Jose is the Master of Phantom Lord, and is very well known to be another member of the Ten Wizard Saints, meaning he's on par with Makarov. They also have their own S-Class wizards known as the Element Four. However, their biggest threat may be Black Steel Gajeel. I believe he's responsible for the Guild Hall's destruction. He's known as the Iron Dragon Slayer."

This news shocked and scared Lucy. "He's Dragon Slayer too?!" Lucy exclaimed. "I thought Natsu was the only one?!" Natsu just rolled his eyes and looked away. "So, if he's an Iron Dragon Slayer, does that mean he eats iron?"

"Yes, he does." Erza said.

They were still concerned as to what might happen, but the matter had to be left alone for the time being. They all drifted off to sleep, with Lucy in bed and the others sleeping either in chairs or on couches.

* * *

**Elsewhere…**

Since Nic couldn't sleep in the Guild Hall due to its destruction, he had to resort to other means. He's been so used to sleeping on tables and rooftops and floors these past few years, that beds feel foreign to him. His body has adapted to hard surfaces such as the tables he sleeps on when in the guild, or _was_ in.

Nic was laying up against a rooftop, staring off into the view of town. He scanned the town and didn't see anything, yet felt an uneasy presence. When the sun had set awhile ago, he could feel a dense sense flowing in the air.

'_What is this strange presence?' _Nic thought. _'It's feels cold and dark. It must be because of those Phantom-!' _He looked and saw something move about a few streets down. It was a shadowy figure that made him narrow his eyes. It had to be a Phantom Lord member. With the skills he acquired from tree jumping, and the stealth of his Kecleon, he leaped and remained quiet while closing in on his target.

* * *

**Not too far away…**

Team Shadow Gear, consisted of Levy, Jet, and Droy, were slowly making their way through Magnolia. It was late and the streets were deserted. Jet and Droy were concerned as to if it was such as good idea to be out at this time.

"Are you sure this is such a good idea?" Jet asked. "Shouldn't you be back in the girl dorms?"

Levy was keeping high spirits. "Oh come on, it's fine. And besides, I wouldn't wanna split up my team in times like this." Levy assured them. To which the guys had hearts in their eyes.

"Don't worry Levy, I'll make sure our team will be safe tonight!" Jet said.

"No, I will!" Droy said, arguing with Jet.

"No, I will!" Jet said. It was a constant war between them, and something was bound to break them up.

And it happened.

They felt something lung at them from an upward angle. Team Shadow Gear only had enough time to whirl around before the figure batted them to the ground. The three went down with a thud and got back up to see a long spiky black hair man with piercings all over. He had red eyes and a feral grin. He looked at them like they were a bunch of toys that he was itching to break.

"W-Who are you?" Droy demanded. He and Jet stepped in front of Levy to supply protection.

The man chuckled. "That's funny. Standing so tall, yet so frail."

"I don't know who the heck you are, but you better-!" Droy was cut off with an iron column bashed into his abdomen and sent him soaring backwards and it wasn't even two seconds that Jet suffered the same. The two tumbled and crashed into the pavement and laid there in disastrous fashion. The two had suffered a lot of damage from those two blows.

"Jet! Droy!" Levy cried. She rushed over to their aid, seeing them unconscious, with a few ribs broken. That was alright, it could've been much worse.

The man chuckled and Levy looked back at him in anger.

"Man, that felt good." He said, walking up to them. "You Fairy Tail weaklings couldn't even hold a candle to me!"

"You!" Levy shouted, turning her full body towards the assailant. "Why are you doing this?"

The assailant bared his feral smirk and chuckled. "Destroying your guild wasn't enough for me, so I figured I might bash some heads to meet my standards."

Levy was wide eyed at this implication. "Wait…you mean…that you're…"

"Yeah, that's right. I trashed your Guild Hall. Gajeel Redfox, the Iron Dragon Slayer!"

Levy froze in horror. She stepped back as she was clearly outmatched and had no chance at beating him. She might have the advantage if it came to intelligence, but this wasn't the case. If Erza, Natsu, or Gray were there, they could've helped her, but that wasn't the case. She wanted to scream for help, but was too afraid as to what Gajeel might do.

Gajeel made no haste in making another iron column and ramming into Levy. She flinched and yelped. She waited for the attack to connect, unable to move. She looked away, not wanting to see the attack coming. In a matter of seconds, she'll end up just like her teammates.

She heard a body clench the column. She heard the sound of an impact, but it wasn't her that was hit. She slowly opened her eyes and looked ahead. She gasped.

"Nic!" Levy cried.

Nic appeared just in time. He made it just as Gajeel announced he was the one responsible for the Guild Hall's destruction. Nic jumped once Gajeel was gonna hit Levy.

"Are you alright Levy?" Nic struggled to say, clenching the column. He had his arms extended outward, holding the iron club that was intended for her. Nic's grip was tightening as his eyes were looking more feral than when he'd found out Gajeel destroyed the guild. Nic was starting to push back the club, and it eventually retracted back into an arm.

"Heh, I gotta hand it to ya pal. Not many people can take my Iron Dragon's Club like you did." Gajeel praised. "Whatever. More trash for me to smash." Gajeel smirked.

Nic glared at him with the same level of dread that he showed to Siegrain awhile back. The Guild Hall trashed, and Fairy Tail was being threatened by this maniac. Nic was just as mad as he was when Erza was threatened. He bared his teeth and snarled. This scared Levy. This wasn't as bad as to when Gray stepped on his phone, but this level of anger was enough to shudder and fall to the ground onto her knees.

"So, you're the numbskull that destroyed our Guild Hall and attack my friends." Nic growled. "When I'm through with you metalhead, you'll be sorry that I've dented your entire body!"

Levy was frightened by the feral tone Nic was using. Even Gajeel could sense the animosity rising from him. His smirk turned into a serious frown at his words.

Nic talked to Levy while still glaring at Gajeel, though his tone was normal. "Levy. Take your teammates to the closest guild member's house. Help them aid, and call for back-up." Nic then brought forth a poke ball and summoned forth his Greninja. Greninja appeared right by Nic's side. "Take Levy's friends and get them to safety." He ordered his pokémon.

Greninja then picked up the two injured members with its arms and Levy tried to give support by putting an arm on one her teammate's sides to give Greninja some ease.

"What about you?" Levy asked in concerns for Nic.

"Nic's got this covered." Greninja assured her. "If there's one thing that can conquer anything, it's an angry Nic. Besides, Nic wouldn't want you or your comrades getting anymore beaten up than you already have."

Levy hesitated and looked back at Nic, who cracked his knuckles, as did Gajeel. She didn't like it, but she turned and ran around the corner with Greninja aiding in support.

When they disappeared around the corner, Nic felt much more assured now that no one was around. His attention was now on Gajeel. Despite the attitude he was giving, he smirked.

"What are you so happy about?" Gajeel demanded.

"I was just thinking would you will look with those piercings plunged into your face." Nic mocked. "You're going to wish that you've never messed with Fairy Tail."

The two now got into their serious fighting stances and it was on.

* * *

**With Levy**

"How much farther Levy?" Greninja asked, carrying an unconscious Droy and supporting Jet with Levy doing the same. They were moving as fast as they could.

"Not too far now!" Levy replied. As fast as she was moving, her pace wasn't equivalent to Greninja's. Greninja was almost dragging them with Levy in the back. Greninja was even holding back and still was a too fast for her. Levy wasn't exactly up to par when it came to physical challenges, and this was no exception.

Levy was helpless in defending her teammates when they were attacked back there. She'd just stood by while Jet and Droy took a beating. The image of those two shielding her with absolute zero hesitation was constantly startling her. If it weren't for Nic, she wouldn't be standing.

"Levy!" Greninja was trying to get her attention, and it worked. She snapped out of her trance and looked up at Greninja.

Greninja could easily tell that she wasn't in any condition to keep going. He'd slowed down and took the rest of Jet. Now, he was holding both Jet and Droy over his shoulders. Levy watched as Greninja carried the two with ease. Much like a ninja, he swiftly picked up the pace. Levy felt a little more at ease now, but still felt useless.

"Levy, it's going to be just fine." Greninja assured her. "Once we get to Mira and Elfman's place, try and contact Master Makarov and get back-up."

"But-." Levy was cut off by Greninja.

"We need to tell him about the situation. We need serious medical attention for these two. He can take them to his healer you guys were talking about a few times. Mira will look over them while Elfman and I rally up the troops. We'll then go and help Nic if he's stalling Gajeel long enough for back-up to arrive…although, I doubt back-up will be any help."

Levy was somewhat startled by what Greninja was saying. "What do you mean?"

"I'm saying Nic and the other pokémon got it covered, but back-up will come as an added measure."

Any chance of an argument died inside Levy. Greninja spoke with the upmost confidence in Nic and the authority passed down from him, leaving no room for doubt.

They tried to pick up their pace even more until they were almost sprinting.

* * *

**With Nic**

They've been brawling for a good two or three minutes now, with Nic transforming into his Zap Plate Form. The two fierce Mages were constantly trying to bash the other. Gajeel was trying to bash Nic with his Iron Dragon's Club, and Nic could easily dodge. Nic countered with a few Charge Beams and a few Thunderbolts. Since Gajeel was iron, the electric attacks were more accurate than normal. Gajeel could barely dodge until he was finally hit with a single Thunderbolt, much like a conductor.

He winced in a little pain, but other than that little jolt that seemingly only made him all warmed up, he was fine.

"Not bad punk. You're a tough nut to crack, I'll admit." Gajeel grudgingly said. "Now hold still so I can impale you!" He, once again, unleashed an Iron Dragon's Club. His right arm morphed into an iron column and he tried hitting Nic. He easily dodged by side stepping and then used Spark and grabbed hold of the column, with the electricity tracing back to Gajeel. He flinched in pain, but still felt just fine. He quickly retracted the column and it morphed back into his arm.

Gajeel jumped into the air and his right arm morphed into a spear this time. "**Iron Dragon's Spear!**" His spear arm stretched out and it almost made contact with Nic if it weren't for him leaning to his left. He leaped to his left as he saw the spear retract back to Gajeel.

"You're going to have to be faster than that if you wanna touch me iron for brains." Nic said. He took a glance back at the crater left by the spear and took note of what power that one attack dealt. At this point, neither side had been going all out. The two had different reasons for doing so. Nic wasn't going all out because this was in the middle of a street, where civilians lived. As to where Gajeel was simply testing Nic's potential, thinking if he would be a challenge or not. At this point, Gajeel considered Nic took be worthy enough to smash repeatedly with no mercy. The other three wouldn't be as fun to smash, as to where Nic was actually putting up a decent fight.

Nic shifted into his Dread Plate Form and engaged Gajeel in close range fighting. Nic ran up to the Iron Dragon Slayer and prepared to attack.

"**Iron Dragon's Spear!**" He was about hit Nic, but he disappeared al of a sudden, which shocked Gajeel. He stepped back and saw Nic reappear in front of him and deliver a punch to the face, making him stumble back into a flower cart. Now he smelled as fresh as a daisy.

"Eh, not how I wanted Feint Attack to play out, but I'll take it I guess." Nic shrugged. Gajeel got up and grumbled and growled as to how Nic humiliated him. His two arms became two clubs that Nic saw coming at him. He put his arms up and took the attack. His arms were feeling a lot of pain.

'_So, this is what it's like being hit by a Steel-Type' _Nic thought, using Gajeel as a simile to Steel-Type Pokémon. _'If he's a Dragon Slayer like Natsu, then that must mean he eats iron. Oh thank god I don't have the Iron Plate on me! Otherwise I'd be a buffet to him. I might as well say: "Eat me so that you can rearrange by face!".'_ Nic stumbled back as the clubs morphed back into arms. _'Maybe if I were to go back to using the Zap Plate again or shift to the Flame Plate, I'll manage to corner him.'_ He didn't get anymore room to think when Gajeel leaped forward and gave Nic a serious punch, to which he had to use Night Slash to intercept. Nic and Gajeel were even, until Nic was overpowered and stumbled back a step before getting a kick to the chin that send him soaring. He straightened out and landed unharmed. He wiped his chin and grunted.

"Not bad. You're a challenge, that's for sure, but you'll still be as easy to smash as was your precious Guild Hall!" Gajeel said. Nic growled and clenched his fists.

He was starting to get an idea of who Gajeel was. He was a hot-headed and wild ruffian who enjoys bashing other things out of their misery. Nic could see the maniac side of him from within his eyes. Gajeel wouldn't hesitate to rough up a few homes, and the thought of innocent people getting hurt only made Nic grow more feral from what he had been through.

Nic recalled the innocent victims of Freesia and how helpless they were. They were crying, sobbing, and he didn't want to go through seeing that again. The thought of Gajeel doing that made him snap.

"You." Nic growled in a very feral manner. "You won't ever harm another soul here!" This side of Nic was starting to freak Gajeel out.

'_What's with this guy? One second, he's calm. The next thing you know, he's a caged demon.'_ Gajeel thought. It wasn't even a second that Nic landed a Sucker Punch that forced Gajeel back several feet down the street, with Nic holding onto Gajeel by keeping up with the single punch. He thrust once more and Gajeel stepped back, seeing that Nic pushed him back at least forty feet down the street. Gajeel quickly rebound with an Iron Dragon's Club, of which Nic caught with one hand and brushed it aside with little difficulty. His anger was still up there, which kept his strength up, but it wouldn't be long before he cooled down.

"**Knock Off!**" One of Nic's arms was surrounded in black sparks and he ran up to Gajeel and slammed his fist in a downward motion. Gajeel intercepted by turning his arm into a sword and swatting him away. Nic quickly straightened out in the air and gripped onto a piece of wood as an outward look on a house and swung and was now on top of a roof.

"Try and pierce me while moving!" Nic shouted as he was leaping from roof to roof all the way to the forest just outside of Magnolia.

"Get back here and fight you spineless weakling!" Gajeel yelled. His two legs turned into iron polls and he shot himself upwards. He landed with a loud thud on top of a rooftop and began chasing Nic. Nic looked back and smirked, showing he was intending on Gajeel to follow.

Gajeel wasn't one to chicken out, so he followed anyway. This was Nic's plan; if they can get them into the woods, then they'll be able to cut lose.

"Hah! Fairy Tail has such weak creatures!" Gajeel shouted. "You're nothing compared to Phantom Lord!"

As much as Nic wanted to turn and go back and give Gajeel a beat down, he had to take into account the population. Gajeel had no right to talk trash after what he just did. If anyone was trash, it was him.

Finally, Nic had reached the forest and dropped to the floor and continued to run ahead. Gajeel pressed onwards and followed suit. Eventually, Nic was in sight.

"Payback time! **Iron Dragon's Club!**"

Nic was caught off guard as he turned to see a long column that morphed from his arm heading into Nic. The head of the column rammed his left calf and he yelped in pain. Nic leaped out of the way and felt his calf surge with weight felt less supported, and he groaned as he leaned against a tree for the support he needed.

"Dear lord!" Nic shouted in surprise. "It's so painful! Why is this a thing?!" He turned his head back and saw that the wound was rather deep and he saw it was a bruise. Nic almost paled at the sight of his bruise taking up the size of his calf and he felt lightheaded.

At least it wasn't blood.

Nic had to shift his weight over to his right leg to apply pressure on his limb.

He then heard heavy footsteps that was from Gajeel up ahead. He was only a few feet in front of him and he smirked.

"Now, where were we?" Gajeel said, cracking his knuckles.

Nic pushed of the tree and turned to face his opponent. He had to avoid using his leg as much as he could.

"I guess I'm on my last legs, literally." Nic said, trying to throw a few puns into the battle. Though this was a serious situation, he couldn't help but be punny. At least that got him focused on Gajeel and not the bruise. His face was less pale and he could feel the pain decreasing already. His calf hurt with every turn and step he made, but had to bare no less.

Gajeel groaned at the dry sense of humor. "Nice try kid. How about I beat some sense into you."

Nic gave a glare at Gajeel and got out another poke ball. Since Nic was in no shape to fight on his own now, he'll have to resort to using one of his pokémon for help.

"Let's go, Charizard!" Nic shouted. Charizard showed up right beside Nic and roared. Charizard looked at his opponent to see Gajeel rather perplexed.

"Hang on, that's not Salamander." Gajeel pointed out. Nic then thought back as to how Natsu was referred to as Salamander. In a way, it would be a mistake to accuse Charizard as Salamander. It would be taken as an insult if not a title.

"Sorry, but you're gonna face Charizard anyway." Nic said. Charizard turned to look down at Nic and saw that his calf was severely bruise. It was almost looking blue! Charizard turned back towards Gajeel and showed a death glare.

"Look pal, this can go two ways." Charizard growled. "Either you turn and run before I fry you, or we melt you on the spot!" He was threatening Gajeel for wounding Nic.

"Bring it lizard!" Gajeel said, smirking as he jumped and tried impaling Charizard with an Iron Dragon's Spear. Charizard didn't move as it intercepted with light blue claws.

"**Dragon Claw!**" Charizard yelled. He jabbed the spear with his light blue claws that surged with power and the pointed tip of the sword shattered and retracted. Gajeel grunted as his assault was nullified. He then noticed a fast flame incoming from Nic. He shifted into the Flame Plate when he wasn't looking. He unleashed the Flame Burst attack and it made a direct hit on Gajeel.

Then Gajeel found himself being blown away as the fire ball exploded upon impact. He slammed into a tree and before he could ready an attack, Charizard got him with another Dragon Claw. He gagged as the air was knocked out of him and Nic landed a Blaze Kick on his face.

Gajeel fell to the ground and got to a knee, not fully recovered from such a devastating consecutive attack. He inhaled a huge amount of air and clenched his abdomen where Charizard's Dragon Claw was more painful than he could've imagined. This was definitely a challenge for him. He hasn't felt this much pain in such a long time. These two were serious.

"That one was for Jet and Droy!" Nic shouted. "I'm not through with you yet!"

"And I'm just getting warmed up!" Charizard said.

Gajeel got back up and gazed at the two menacing figures. It was clear that they won't fall unless Gajeel falls first, but Nic was being supported by one of Charizard's wings. This could be a close one.

* * *

**With Erza and the others**

Lucy was fast asleep in her warm bed, as to where Gray and Natsu were sleeping with their heads down on the table. Happy was lying comfortably on a nearby cushion, and Erza was lying back on a nearby piece of furniture.

It was quiet and peaceful for them, though they had no idea what was going on. They were all sound asleep and it would take an explosion of sorts to wake them up.

There was loud banging on the door downstairs.

Erza immediately opened her eyes and lunge out of the room to the downstairs door. Lucy was feeling groggy and hesitated to get up. The knocking pressed on and she got out of bed and Gray soon followed.

Natsu yawned and woke up feeling drowsy. Happy did the same and the two made their way down in front of the door.

For a precaution, Erza requiped into her Heart Kreuz Armor with a sword at the ready. Gray was prepared to strike as well, but Lucy backed away, a little scared. Natsu and Happy trudged down the stairs, unaware of the situation.

"We're coming, we're coming." Natsu muttered. Happy was on his head and half asleep. Natsu finally came down the stairs and Erza opened the door.

They were all relieved to see that it was Elfman.

Erza put down her sword and Gray put his guard down.

"Uh, hey Elfman." Lucy said. "What are you doing at my place at this time of night?"

Erza narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, and why were you banging so hastily?"

A frown was on Elfman's face. "There's no time! Jet and Droy have been severely injured!"

Everyone's eyes shot wide open in dread and shock, even Natsu and Happy sprung up from this uprise.

"What?!" Natsu roared. "What happened? Tell me!"

Elfman's face grew grim. "They were attacked by that Gajeel guy. Levy explained everything. She and Greninja dropped them off so Mira can take care of them for now."

Greninja was seen behind Elfman, looking rather grim and serious. "Nic's fighting him as we speak. He told us to get back-up ASAP!"

"Lead the way!" Erza ordered. With no time to waste, everyone ran out of the apartment, regardless of Lucy in her pajamas, and followed Greninja to where Nic was fighting Gajeel.

* * *

**With Nic and Charizard**

Nic barely managed to dodge as a huge sword cleaved through several branches and tore up a few tree trunks. The sword was more menacing with the edges moving like a chainsaw. Slash after slash, Gajeel relentlessly tried piercing Nic, but Nic was able to _barely _dodge every swipe.

Gajeel was cut off guard with Charizard hovering above him.

"**Flamethrower!**" Charizard unleashed a huge blast of fire, of which Gajeel jumped back from. He failed to dodge an oncoming Flamethrower from Nic and he fell to the ground with a sliding thud. Charizard lowered its altitude and the two unleashed a double Flamethrower.

Gajeel wasn't going to take this lying down.

"**Iron Dragon's Roar!**" Gajeel quickly conjured up Magic and his mouth spit out a huge turbulence of iron at the duel attack. The result was an explosion of iron and fire everywhere, with neither side taking any damage. When the attacks began to clear out, Gajeel was wide eyed to see Charizard flying in towards him with Nic on his back.

"**Flame Charge!**" Nic's body was surrounded in fire and he lunged off of Charizard and rammed into Gajeel's gut. Gajeel didn't have time to react as he yelped. Nic back away and Charizard zoomed in afterwards with a harsh Dragon Claw, hurling Gajeel through a couple trees. Nic exhaled and inhaled deeply and Charizard continued to be Nic's support.

For some reason, the two felt uneasy.

'_Something isn't right.' _Charizard thought.

Suddenly, a long column got Charizard and he gagged as he fell back several feet away.

"Charizard!" Nic shouted. He looked back and saw iron spears heading his way, he ducked and rolled out of the way. If he didn't look in time, he would've been impaled.

A diabolical laughter could be heard from where Gajeel was. It echoed about as Nic and Charizard got their feet under them. They heard twigs and logs snapping as an image of Gajeel came from out of the shadows.

"I'm very impressed with you." Gajeel smirked. "However, you're going to have to do a whole lot more if you wish to take me down!" Nic and Charizard both stepped back in shock. They noticed that Gajeel had changed.

The Iron Dragon Slayer's skin had transformed into iron scales. His entire body was a dark gray that was an armor to him. He looked rather more beastly this way, and not in a good way for the two of them. This has gotten a whole lot harder for them.

Nic gaped his mouth in disbelief. "You've gotta be kidding me." He said. Charizard bared its fangs in the challenge they were given. The odds weren't in their favor unless they could pull a trick off.

"**Iron Dragon's Club!**" He unleashed his attack and the two managed to dodge. There was a shockwave as the attack passed them, meaning the force was greatly enhanced. Charizard recovered fast enough to unleash a Flamethrower on him, but it proved ineffective. "What?!"

Gajeel chuckled. "Go on. Hit me with all the fire you can muster up. You can burn away these scales even if you tried. This is tougher than your average iron, so good luck trying to penetrate me."

Nic stepped back only to feel his calf hurt, but still pressed on with Flame Charge. He was getting faster because of the Speed increase, but when the attack landed, it didn't even dent him. Gajeel chuckled and simply swatted Nic away. Nic grunted in how much force that one swat had. Gajeel turned to see Charizard use another Dragon Claw. Gajeel blocked with his arms and took the hit just like he did with Nic. His scales were barely scratched and he was unaffected by the attack. He punched Charizard in the face and it send Charizard down to the ground several feet away, right in front of Nic.

"This guy's a tough nut to crack." Charizard muttered while still down. Nic and Charizard slowly got to their feet and gazed at Gajeel. They needed to shift the tide, but they didn't have many options. In their current state, their odds were slim. Charizard's Flamethrower wasn't strong enough, so the odds were that Heat Wave was no better.

It was time to kick it into high gear.

Nic smirked, thinking how fun this might be. Gajeel was off guard by this expression Nic had on his face.

"What are you so glee about?" Gajeel demanded. Charizard looked back and saw Nic smirk. It's been awhile since he had such a smirk. Charizard recognized it all too well. Now Charizard was smirking at Nic.

"Let me guess, we're going to do _that?_" Charizard asked, as if he'd known the answer all along.

"You know it." Nic said, smiling at his pal. The two then looked back at Gajeel. "Hey, scrapbrain! You're not the only one who can upgrade ya know!"

"What?" Gajeel was confused. He saw that Nic held up his wristband that was on his right wrist. It had a weird stone in it that showed a variety of colors. Nic touched the stone and Charizard's body was glowing a blue light from his abdomen.

"It's been awhile since we've done this!" Charizard said, getting ready for what's to come.

"You bet! Now Charizard, Mega Evolve!" Nic shouted. He held his wrist high as it protruded strings of light that connected with Charizard. Charizard was reacting to the light and his body was now glowing. The changed could be seen. His body shape was morphing. Its body and legs were getting a little more build in them, making him look more physically fit. Spikes were being shown forming on its shoulders. Its claws were heavily sharpen and larger. Its snout was a little bit shorter. It showed two small, fin-lie horns going down his neck. Its wings were being trimmed and divided into large, rounded points and every third joint had a claw-like spike. The sides of its mouth was shown to have fire going out. When it stopped glowing, it was black with a sky blue underside. The wings were blue and the tip of the spikes on its shoulders were lined with sky blue. Its eyes were red and its tail flame and the flames coming out of its mouth were now blue with more intense heat than before.

Mega Charizard roared as it unleashed a shockwave throughout the air upon Mega Evolution. This made Gajeel step back in shock of this transformation. It could feel the heat from where it was standing.

"W-what is that thing?!" Gajeel demanded, stuttering upon looking into its red menacing eyes.

Nic smirked. "Meet Mega Charizard!" Nic shouted. Mega Charizard roared as it proclaimed the shift in the tide.

"Now here's something you don't see every day." Mega Charizard said, glancing back at Nic and looking back at Gajeel. "We have two dragons and a Nic, all in one place." He was right. Now that Mega Charizard was a Dragon Type, that would make Gajeel and Charizard the two "dragons" and Nic, well, "The Nic".

Nic let a small laughter escape him before he felt the bruise taking a toll on him. They had to end this now.

"It's time we finish this!" Nic proclaimed. Gajeel regained his composure and smirk.

"Hah! Whether or not you change doesn't mean you're still gonna win! **Iron Dragon's Roar!**" He then unleashed a turbulence that went straight for the two of them. Mega Charizard didn't even flinch as it spread its wings out.

"**Heat Wave!**" Mega Charizard roared as it unleashed large blue flames as it flapped once. The attack was far more tense than an average Heat Wave due to Mega Charizard's intense heat given off. The Iron Dragon's roar and the Heat Wave mad contact, and the result was that the Heat Wave was melting the iron in the turbulence.

"What?!" Gajeel was angry that his roar was being overpowered and Heat Wave soon overpowered him and hit him. He winced in pain as he took the intense blast. He was wrong. He felt his scales becoming hot, and he couldn't do much from that. He simply awaited for the attack to finish, and when he did, he stepped back and saw that Nic had shifted into his Splash Plate form.

"Charizard, **Fly**!" Nic commanded. Mega Charizard roared and it shot straight up into the air. Gajeel looked to see how fast Mega Charizard was flying up. It was just going up and up, and he had forgotten Nic for a split second.

"**Hydro Pump!**" Nic made an aquatic mirror and it shot forth a huge volume of water at Gajeel. Gajeel took it and didn't budge. The scales were cooling down for him and he only flinched at such an attack. Those scales were tough to break, but Nic was making progress.

Gajeel jumped and tried running up to Nic with an arm morphed into a sword, but Mega Charizard came shooting down and crashed on him. There was a shockwave flowing about from that crash and Gajeel was lying in the crater for a few seconds. He got back up and grunted at the amount of strength that Mega Charizard wielded. He did an Iron Dragon's Club and Mega Charizard got its arms up and wings for shielding. It took the strong attack and was shoved back a few feet. That attack had some fight in it. Mega Charizard grunted at Gajeel's own power and saw that the column was being retracted.

"**Dragon Claw!**" The claws on Mega Charizard's hands became surrounded in a light blue, claw-shaped energies. It made it looked as though it had bigger claws. It then jumped and soared straight into Gajeel, slashing at him. Gajeel, once again, blocked by using his arm. Dragon Claw was far stronger than it was earlier, and it made Gajeel flinch and yelp as it felt the scales on his arm being torn up. He stepped back and took a look at his arm. There was a huge claw mark on his scales.

"Damn you lizard!" Gajeel cursed. Mega Charizard gave a warning growl as it flew back to Nic's side. Fortunately for Nic, he didn't have to move around all that much thanks to Mega Charizard. Nic shifted back into his Flame Plate Form and the two launched a combo attack again.

"**Flamethrower!**" Mega Charizard roared, unleashing blue flames.

"**Inferno!**" Nic shouted, releasing a devastating blue flame from his mouth. The two intense attacks combined into an almighty blazing blast that Gajeel's Iron Dragon Roar was clearly no match for. The blazing attack melted through the assault that Gajeel threw and he got scorched by the attack. This was still considered normal fire to Gajeel, unlike Natsu's fire. However, this flame was far more intense than he would have imagine. He felt his scales beginning to burn and he clenched his fists and screamed in place. As the attack finished, he got to a knee and was breathing heavily.

"Give up yet?" Nic shouted, transforming into his Splash Plate Form. Gajeel looked up and he was infuriated.

"You'll pay for that." He growled.

"We'll see about that! **Water Pulse!**" Nic's palms then created a sphere of water and threw it at Gajeel's abdomen. Gajeel only budged a little and saw that the scales on his body were starting to feel uncomfortable.

He looked to see that his abdomen was beginning to crack, and the rest of his scales were looking either contracted or expanded. This somewhat restrained some movement, slowing him down.

"Curse you! **Iron Dragon's Spear!**" Gajeel shouted. He got up and tried and to pierce Nic, but he leaned to his left and he shifted back to his Flame Plate Form. He then began charging towards the Phantom Lord Mage, despite the leg wound he had to endure.

"Mega Charizard!" Nic shouted. Mega Charizard then roared and flew into Gajeel with a Dragon Claw. Gajeel was still retracting his spear arm when Mega Charizard swiped at his abdomen, making him fall back. Gajeel jumped back to his feet and saw that Mega Charizard was already a safe distance away from Gajeel.

'_He's fast-!' _Gajeel saw that his abdomen was severely cracked and saw that the scales were starting to chip off. "No!" He then looked to see that Nic was still charging at him.

"Okay you swine! Time to put you out of your misery!" Nic shouted. The flames on Nic's coat were starting to light up in a light blue, signifying an enormous heat signature surging about. Gajeel was trying to ready himself by preparing an Iron Dragon's Roar, but his scales were restraining his movements, making him flinch as a few scales chipped here and there.

Nic was now a few feet in front of Gajeel's abdomen, and he let him have it. "We've had it with you! **Legendary Arts: Blue Flare!**" Nic opened his mouth and a monstrous stream of light blue flames shot forth. Gajeel howled in agony as the almost point blank attack made contact. His Iron Dragon Scales shattered into pieces and the Phantom Lord Mage was shot backwards, still being bombarded with the gushing ocean of light blue flames.

* * *

**With Greninja and the others**

The others were at the sight where Nic had first fought Gajeel. They were clearly here, they could tell. They saw some shattered pavement from before, a few stands smashed, and they saw a flower stand destroyed.

"Natsu, can you track them?" Erza asked.

"Yeah, I'll try." With Natsu's enhance nose, he could pick up on Nic's scent in no time. However, before they could begin, they heard a tremendous explosion from afar. They felt the ground shake up and Natsu fell forward with a thud. He got back up and everyone saw a huge inferno of blue fire and smoke in the distance.

"What the heck is that?" Lucy asked. They all were seeing the inferno slowly diminish and the smoke was clearing out. They were all getting their guards up for this one.

Greninja raised a brow, knowing what went down.

"That would be Nic's handy work." Greninja said casually. Everyone turned and looked at Greninja in shock.

"That was Nic?!" Gray exclaimed.

"He caused damage like a real man!" Elfman exclaimed.

Erza was getting worried about Nic. He was facing a Dragon Slayer, and an S-Class Mage from Phantom Lord. "Let's hurry!" She ordered. Everyone then followed her, but Greninja zoomed ahead due to such amazing speed it had. They were all closing in on the site where Nic was.

* * *

**With Nic and Mega Charizard**

The dust and smoke cleared, revealing a straight line of nothing. An endless trail was shaped from the attack, with trees being either incinerated or destroyed. The trail ran a good few hundred meters until it was out of sight. The odds were that Gajeel was pretty much out for the count.

Gajeel was several hundred meters away, lying on the ground after being burned and smashed through several rows of trees. He opened his eyes and he turned his body upwards, barely able to stand up. With what strength he could muster up, he made a hasty retreat back to Phantom Lord, batted and wounded to a painful degree.

He turned back and looked back into the direction that Nic and Mega Charizard were from, he took a good glance back, unable to see with the distance between them, and turned back.

"This isn't over." He muttered before coughing and gagging, and fled into the forest shadows.

Nic and Mega Charizard were back where they obliterated Gajeel from the scene. Nic's mouth was letting out some hot steam after that last attack. He kept his mouth gapped open as the steam dispersed and he went to a nearby tree to support his weight. He sure felt lightheaded from that attack he pulled off. He belched up some fire and sighed, relieved that it was over…for now.

Mega Charizard walked over towards Nic. Both were breathing heavily from exhaustion. That fight had put them through their paces. Charizard got to a knee and grunted.

Nic looked over at his pal and sighed. "You too, huh?" Nic asked rhetorically, yet drained.

Mega Charizard huffed and puffed a little and turned towards Nic, letting out a slight chuckle. "That guy roughed us up good." Mega Charizard said with a smile.

"Yeah, but we whooped his sorry behind, didn't we?" Nic said with a smile. The two share a small laugh, looking at each other's wounds. All Mega Charizard had were a few bumps and scratches compared to Nic's large bruise on his calf, but he was roughed up in a few places as well. "Regardless, you did great pal."

"Thanks." Mega Charizard said, he then was encased in an array of colors and he reverted back to himself. "You didn't do so bad yourself there pal. We managed to go that extra mile."

Nic nodded and they heard some people approaching from behind. The two turned around, ready to spit fire the first chance they get. They then saw a few familiar figures run up towards them. It was Greninja and the others. The two gave a sigh of relief that they were in the clear. Everyone ran up to Nic and Charizard and stopped in front of them.

They all gasped at the damage the two had taken. They saw all of the bumps and scratches they have accumulated from their little scuffle. Erza walked towards Nic and looked at him.

"Nic, are you alright?" Erza asked. Nic nodded and grunted from his wound. He reverted back to himself and Erza looked at his calf injury in shock. "You're hurt."

"Tell me something I don't know." He muttered in pain. Erza and Gray then went over and gave Nic support to keep him up.

Greninja went by Charizard's side and looked at his injuries as well. Greninja and Charizard both gave mutual looks at one another, obviously understanding how the other feels. Since Charizard was Nic's second pokémon, Greninja and Charizard could read each other just as easily as they could read Nic.

"Don't tell me, you did _that_." Greninja said.

Charizard looked ahead at the damage they cause. "Yeah. That guy had what was coming to him." Greninja saw the trail ahead and whistled in shock.

"Dang. You two had some fire power!"

Natsu and Elfman then went up towards Nic and asked him what happened. Nic responded, saying that he and Charizard scared him off. The odds were that that wasn't the last of him.

Natsu cracked his knuckles in anticipation. "Those Phantom jerks are going to get what's coming to them!"

"Enough Natsu. Charizard and I defeated Gajeel and he's long gone by now." Nic said, much to the latter's shock.

"You did what?! _You _got to trash Gajeel, but I didn't?! That's no fair!" Natsu complained. Nic just ignored him and returned Charizard and Greninja for some well-deserved rest. Nic then explained everything about how the battle went as he was assisted on the way back to Magnolia.

* * *

**Later that night, in Phantom Lord…**

Gajeel had returned, battered and beaten to a pulp, much to the guild's surprise. They all got up from their seats and looked on in shock at Gajeel limping back in.

Jose Porla looked down at the beaten and roughed up form of Gajeel. He was surprised by what had become of him. The biggest threat of Phantom Lord, crushed and beaten. He was even more shocked to hear what Gajeel had reported. A young mysterious man with sunglasses on his V-neck was able to defeat one of his most powerful mages in combat. The Iron Dragon Slayer was defeated by an unknown person that Jose wasn't aware of, and here he thought he knew all of the strongest people in Fairy Tail.

"Are you sure that it wasn't any of Makarov's S-Class Mages, like Laxus?" Jose asked.

Gajeel shook his head. "No sir. He had sunglasses and he had his own set of monsters helping him. A frog and a fire breathing dragon that can transform as can he." He informed.

Jose pondered on what he had said for awhile. Makarov's grandson didn't possess those abilities. It was also not Mystogan since he never showed his face. Also, it couldn't possibly be the almighty Gildarts since he was away as well. Who was this mystery?

The Guild Master smirked and chuckled. "Well, this is interesting indeed. Makarov may have been hiding something from us. The odds are that he won't let this incident slide. Two of his guild members are injured. They should be here sometime to get back at us probably. You might as well rest up for when that happens; in the meantime, have Sol and Miss Juvia go and fetch little Miss Heartfilia."

The Iron Dragon Slayer nodded and left the room.

Jose stood there. _'What is this young warrior that Makarov has been hiding? I'm anxious to see what he can do. Makarov may have his own surprises, but I have a few tricks of my own. Be ready Makarov, it's time you learn who the top guild really is!'_

* * *

**Another chapter done. If you think about it, this was rather slow. It covered up a fight scene though, and I thought it was pretty cool. It's been awhile since I've updated this story, so consider this chapter a tasteful and epic treat.**

**Alpha Dragonis: Now you see why the title is called what it is? It wasn't until after I released the previous chapter that I thought of another and better title, but I just stuck with this one.**

**Somebody wanted a Mega Evolution, and now they got one. What did you think of Mega Charizard X?**

**Hope you guys enjoyed the killer fight I had going through this chapter. I wanna ask you guys something: I'm thinking of other possible ways that the Jupiter Canon could be stopped other than Erza, but I haven't found much luck. Let me know how it should go, I'm open to an ideas.**

**I plan to have one more fight before the big battle rages, so be ready for another fight scene ahead of you.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and chapter. My other story has double the reviews this story has, and I only got it out this week. It's kind of making me upset that this story isn't getting as much credit as my new one, considering this one has been out longer.**

**Nevertheless, thank you for reading yet another chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**. Please Review!**

* * *

**Next Time: Rain or Shine**


	8. Rain or Shine

Chapter 8 – Rain or Shine

**I'm back guys. My other story's most recent chapter took only a day to get done, and to me, that's a new record time. I worked on it all day Monday, so that didn't slow me down at all.**

**Some of you guys are throwing out some sweet ideas for the upcoming chapters. You guys are (in my personal favorite word) Total-Awesomeness!**

**Some of you guys want to see some more Legendary Pokémon like Kyurem and such in some fights. Unfortunately, I don't see how that's going to play out since Nic doesn't have the Icicle Plate yet, BUT you guys did give me a super sweet idea to use for the Tower of Heaven Arc.**

**In my viewpoint, I think you guys are thinking a little out of my comfort zone. You all might hate me for this, but I'm one of those individuals who hasn't made the transition over to ORAS, though I do play the game, but rarely. I like X and Y more, so all of that stuff that's in ORAS that wasn't in X and Y – Not gonna happen. HOWEVER, someone did bring up the move Dragon Ascent, so I'll look into that just a little.**

**I'll be introducing another pokémon this chapter, and another will come shortly after. **

**Now let's get on with the show.**

**To Recap:**

When Nic had returned to Fairy Tail, he found the Guild Hall destroyed and everyone operating in the basement. Later that night, as everyone else was asleep, Team Shadow Gear gets ambushed by Gajeel, the Iron Dragon Slayer from Phantom Lord. Nic rushes in and fights alongside Mega Charizard and the two manage to defeat him after a hard fought brawl, though he retreats wounded back to Phantom Lord.

* * *

**Chapter 8 – Rain or Shine**

After the devastating brawl that involved Nic, Charizard/Mega Charizard, and Gajeel was settled, Nic was helped back to Magnolia, where Jet and Droy were being watched over by Mira and Levy throughout the night until some professional medics arrived.

"Ow! Okay, that stings." Nic complained, but Porlyusica just rolled her eyes and continued applying medicine to his calf bruise.

"Don't complain. You're lucky that your bruise didn't get any bigger, otherwise it would be infected." The elderly pink haired woman sighed irritably. She finished applying the medicine and wrapped Nic's leg wound in bandages. She then went over to look at her other two patience that were attended to earlier.

Nic's gaze went over towards Jet and Droy, of whom were seriously wounded from a certain Iron Dragon Slayer ambushing them in the black of the night. They were both sleeping in beds, as to where Nic didn't need a bed since he was treated on a counter. The two were sound asleep from the treatments Porlyusica had provided. The two were diagnosed to be in stable condition, but won't be going anywhere for a few days.

"Thanks again." Nic muttered.

Porlyusica merely glared at Nic and turned her head sharply going "Hmph." And then exiting the hospital room.

"You'll have to excuse my old friend Nic. She isn't fond of humans nor human nature for that matter." Makarov spoke, stepping up to Nic.

Compared to Jet and Droy's injuries, Nic got off lucky. Other than his leg injury, he was perfectly fine if not tired and exhausted from last night. He didn't get a single wince of sleep because of his deep concerns for his fellow guild members.

Erza, Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Levy were all there in the same room, seeing them in such a feeble state. Not as much concern was addressed to Nic since he was fine though. The guild in general was infuriated with Phantom Lord and its cowardly stunts. This was the last straw.

Levy was sitting in between her two fallen comrades' beds, with tears swelling up in her eyes. She looked down at them in their sorry states and she couldn't bare but think that it was all her fault. Lucy say next to her to comfort her friend's mind, but to have little results. She felt even more guilty that she couldn't prevent Nic's leg injury.

Everyone was not only discomforted, but the fact that the same guy attacked twice had made them erupt in anger. Elfman was clenching his fists so hard that blood almost stopped circulating towards them. Gray was leaning against a wall with his arms crossed, as to where Natsu had a dreaded look that made him want to thrash someone in the next three seconds.

"Why couldn't I help…I couldn't do anything." Levy muttered, almost letting tears fall. Her voice was faint, but could be heard. "I'm so weak. I should've just went back home and then we could all be fine. This is all my fault."

"Levy, if anyone's to blame, it's Phantom Lord." Gray said, trying to ease a sobbing Levy.

"Yes, Phantom was done enough damage to us. They've crossed the line of tormenting our guild members with such anguish." Erza said, stepping forward.

A silence broke out as no one could do anything but just looked on at the two injured people…well, unless you count Nic as two and a half. Makarov just looked down and started shaking with such rage.

"I can handle our Guild Hall being trashed, I can handle our guild being blown away ten times over, but this act of violence has started something that Jose shouldn't have! Jose has gone and done the unthinkable. He needs to be reminded to never mess with my children. He wanted a battle, we're giving him a war!"

Everyone felt riled up from Master's speech. They all knew that you shouldn't go and mess with family, especially when it's Fairy Tail. Now was time to take action.

"Everyone, prepare the rest of the guild. We're taking the battle to Jose and Phantom Lord! We move at once!" Makarov commanded.

Everyone shouted in agreement. Natsu was all fired up now. His fists were raging with such heat that he was aching to let out.

"Yeah, it's about time Gramps!" Natsu said smiling with determination.

Nic looked on as the rest of the guild was cheering for their upcoming war, only to look down. He wasn't happy at all. He couldn't be. Not only could he not join the others, but the fact that war wasn't Nic's strong suite. Sure he had rivalries back in Kalos, but those rivalries didn't include beating the other trainer's pokémon senseless when it was already down. Fairy Tail was already down, and Phantom had gone and trashed them. If it were a one on one fight, then maybe, but Nic wasn't going to join such melee if it meant blood being spilled. He'll take the home front and keep watch over everything while they're kicking booties.

Everyone left the hospital room. Natsu, Gray, Elfman, and Mira, and also Lucy had followed them out. Erza was about to do the same, but then her gaze started drifting over towards Nic.

She noticed that he was silent. He didn't seem like himself this way. This made Erza feel unhappy.

"Nic, you alright?" The red-head asked.

Looked gazed up at her and did a half smile. "War isn't my specialty. I'll just take it easy back here." He said, feeling disgusted by thinking of blood. Erza could see it in his eyes. This was one of Nic's weaknesses: Blood. She felt sorry for him, but had to shift her focus back to where her attention should he held, which was the upcoming battle.

Nic continued. "Tell Natsu to fry a few guys for me, will ya?"

Erza looked on and turned her head. "Yes. I will. I'll see you later Nic." She said, exiting the room.

As soon as she had departed, only Nic and Levy were in the room, as well as an injured Jet and Droy. The thoughts came flooding through Nic's brain about the upcoming battle. He highly doubted that there will be blood, the meaning of war itself sickened him. It meant comrades and family getting hurt, and if that were to happen, he might freak out. That made memories flush back to when he was abused by his parents.

_It was a little house in Vaniville Town. His sister was still in her diapers, including the one she was wearing on her head as a hat. She crawled about while Nic was making a peanut butter sandwich. He was in the kitchen as to where his sister was in the other room._

_He was finishing up with the spreading of the peanut butter and pressed on with the jelly. When he had opened the lid, he heard a thud in the other room. Upon instinct, he dropped the jar of jelly and it broke on the floor. _

_Not even caring for the mess that he had made, he rushed over to see that his baby sister was crying. She was sitting there and weeping as Nic was coming to comfort her. _

_The thud was from her falling back when she tried to stand up. She had made a few attempts at this before, but that was when her parents were around. Her parents were upstairs and Nic was downstairs, easing his sister. _

"_Ssshhh. It's okay now. Big brother is here." Nic hushed quietly, making her calm down. She stopped crying and looked up to see him. She was pretty happy to see her brother. _

_Until the parents came down._

_Nic's dad had a goatee and short, black hair. He had an unkempt stubble and he had crude green eyes. He wasn't in the best shape, as he was a little overweight and his skin was pale._

_Nic's mother had messy, long, blonde hair. She was a little shorter than Nic's dad,but her blue eyes were just like Nic's, only hers weren't as pure. She was in no better shape than her husband. She was skinny and she wore no makeup._

_In summary, they were considered those kind of parents that took no shame in their looks nor personalities._

_They saw Nic's baby sister crying. The mom went over to pick her up as to where the dad just dragged Nic away._

"_What did you do to Vanessa?" His father demanded. Nic was deeply offended, but he couldn't do anything against them. It was a hopeless situation for him. His father looked to see that the jelly jar had been smashed._

"_Nic! What did you do now?!" His father roared in the kitchen. _

"_What did he do now?" His mother yelled. She gently set down Vanessa and smiled and waved at their favorite child. She waltzed on over and saw that Nic had dropped the jar._

"_Nic!" His mother yelled, very displeased. Nic was in trouble, all because he went to help his baby sister. His father went over and he glared down at Nic. He was frightened. He put up his hands to gesture a surrender._

"_Wait. I can explain-!" It was short lived when his father kicked him down hard and made him land on his back. He turned over onto his stomach and tried to get back up without crying. His mother stomped on over and she glared furiously at Nic. They were upset because they thought he had hit Vanessa, and Nic was gonna get the jelly jar and hit her with it until he heard them come down._

_How stupid are they?!_

_His mom jerked him up and slapped his face repeatedly, not wanting to see him as a bigger failure than he already was. _

"_Nic Pularis, you tell us what you were doing with that broken jar! Were you trying to hurt your sister with the shards?!" _

_Nic was wide eyed and scared. He had no say._

"_You need to be responsible. You can't try and hurt Vanessa just because she gets more attention than you! You dumb bastard!" His father berated, yanking Nic from his mother and dropping him to the floor on his back. His father went over and got the shattered remains and held them over Nic. "Let's see how you like it if you were in her place!"_

"_No, please!" Nic cried. "It was all a misunderstan-!" He wasn't allowed to speak and the shards came bombarding Nic's back, which felt terrible. Afterwards, he was left with a scratched up and bloody back and his parents forced him up and made him sit in the corner of the living room and go the whole day without eating._

_The parents wanted perfect kids, and they had given up on Nic when he was born, thinking he was a mistake. Worst parents ever. They weren't very educated, not bright, and they were a little high on the alcohol they consume and take out all of their frustrations on Nic._

_His sister had it easy, but Nic went through fifteen years of bloody hell, but still came out fine._

Back to reality, he slowly got up and tried to seek a quiet place to think. He needed a walk in nature or something. He plugged in his earbuds and made way out the door. Levy didn't pay any attention, but did take note of Nic's leave.

He got out of there and saw Lucy outside the hospital. Nic walked right up to her.

"Hey, Lucy." Nic said, trying to shake off any remains of that horrid flashback. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be getting ready for battle?" Nic could see that Lucy had no vengeful look in her eyes. He saw that she wasn't planning on joining the brawl.

Lucy frowned. "Well, the S-Class Wizards are out on job requests and Levy's watching over Jet and Droy. I think that it would be best to have more than just you, Levy, and Mira watching the guild. Since Levy won't leave their side, and Mira isn't much of a fighter, that leaves you and me. You're almost recovered, but I can't leave a friend knowing he's been through a lot. I'm watching the guild as well." Lucy said.

It wasn't such a bad idea to have Lucy stay behind, but it was for the best though. She was in the guild just as long as Nic, but she was just a little less inexperienced. It was best to leave them watching over while the others went for war.

Nic nodded. "Okay. Look, I'm heading out to get some fresh air. A hospital isn't where I belong. Be back soon, okay?"

Lucy nodded. "Alright, just be careful and make sure that if any trouble happens, signal me."

Nic started walking passed her. "Same." He plugged in his earbuds and then began walking off into the outskirts of town.

Lucy looked back and sighed. "This blows. Though I do wanna fight, I can't risk getting as injured as Jet or Droy. Ugh." She looked around and saw nobody there. No trouble seemed to be in sight, so she must have been in the clear for now.

"I guess I should get some groceries for Levy and bring them back to her. She hasn't eaten since yesterday." Lucy then went off into the market to get some food for her worried friend. It shouldn't be too long until she gets back, as long as she doesn't get delayed that is.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Nic had finally made it to another forest clearing. Not too far from where he and Gajeel had brawled. He had to get out to nature rather than lay in a hospital bed. Nic unplugged his earbuds and put them back into his pockets.

He slowly slid back against a tree trunk and closed his eyes. He could feel the grass and how the bark felt on his back. With the sun out, he flipped on his sunglasses and started to clear his head.

All of those wounds from the past, all of that pain, the heartache, the blood, he had to get that out of his head. That horrid childhood only scarred him for life, literally, and he couldn't seem to find such a place to ease himself. That childhood did make Nic see things the way they are now. For instance, he's not afraid of Erza one bit because he found his parents far more intimidating. The reason he has his earbuds in all the time is to drown out the pain he took in, and the reason he flips out in situations he didn't understand, like when the guild was destroyed, was because that happened a lot when he was young. Nic had grown since then to become a better being and understand others. What didn't kill him only made him stronger.

He sat in quiet for a good five minutes or so, and he was taking in every sound he could hear. The bushes rustling, the winds blowing, the occasional leaves in the wind. All of this was somehow tranquil to Nic. Nature sure had something to offer him for his discomfort.

Nic had already appreciate the concept of nature and the various environments he had to endure throughout his journey in Kalos. Fiore was no different. He's been through caves, forests, open seas, mountains of snow, pretty much everything you could've imagined. All of these environments made Nic adapt one way or another and that's how he managed to overcome such situations. In some battles, he used the surrounding to win, like have Greninja dive in nearby pond, or simply have Kecleon change into her surroundings.

Not much could be said otherwise for him. He always thought of nature as a hurdle to jump over. He never actually considered it to be peaceful to him this way, but that was changing for him.

The longer he sat there, the more nature he took in. He could feel the sun's rays beaming down on him, the heat making him feel like a plant. Nic was feeling as though his energy was slowly recovering.

He took notice as to how he was somehow being restored. He was slowly accumulating energy from all around him and he felt nothing but the grass he sat on and the bark. Aware that his concentration might break, he stopped taking notice and let it all flow. It was for the best though. He just took it all in as he sat there cross-legged. Now he was feeling something new.

He couldn't be certain, but it had to be that the Plates from within him were reacting as well. They weren't as nearly as strong from when he had gone and obtained the Dread Plate. Rather than feeling them jump all about like atoms, he felt them on a relaxing vibration. The more of nature he took in, the more the Plates began to vibrate.

He kept his breathing steady as he felt his body recover. Slowly in and out, as the oxygen went all about.

As of now, his mind was as fresh as a daisy and clean as the crystal blue water. It was like having a sixth sense, because he then picked up on a signature from above.

He opened his eyes, feeling cleansed of such anguish, though not entirely. He had seen a rain cloud hovering over an area as it flew over magnolia. It wasn't even big, but still he saw it. Rain feel down in a concentrated place and the little cloud was slowly moving deeper into Magnolia.

How could this be? It couldn't possibly be Rain Dance, and he wasn't in his Splash Plate Form to even do Rain Dance. He knew this wasn't natural rain almost immediately because he picked up on some Magic in the rain.

This wasn't a good sign to take. With some new found strength to take back, he got up and rushed back through the trees and back to Magnolia.

Though he hasn't completely recovered from said bruise or previous battle, he had enough energy restored and strength to jump from tree to tree. Nic didn't think as to how he could've gotten some energy back, but he had to focus on the matter at hand.

"I'm coming guys, hang on." Nic muttered as he jumped from tree to tree.

* * *

**Magnolia**

Lucy had just gotten the groceries that she was looking for and stockpiled them all into one bag. There were a variety of things that she had bought, and she needed to get them to Levy.

"Oh man, Nic sure has been gone for quite some time." She said. "It's been over half an hour, how long does a nature walk around here take anyway?" Suddenly, Lucy felt rain fall down on her all of a sudden. She looked up to see that it wasn't sunny anymore, but cloudy and rainy.

"Rain?" She couldn't help but feel curious as to how it could be raining when it was sunny not even ten seconds ago. She looked to see that the groceries and grocery bag were getting soggy and the bread was softening. "Oh, c'mon! I spend good money on that bread!" She complained. She then saw a person approaching her.

She was a blue-haired woman in a coat that wrapped around her body. She had blue emotionless eyes and an expressionless face. She had some sort of doll on her coat that was keeping her coat buttoned. She kept going "Drip, drip, drop" and continued onward as she walked by Lucy.

"Who are you?" Lucy said, startled by this woman.

"The rain is always with me. What kind of woman are you pray tell?" She asked Lucy as she continued to walk.

"Uh, I'm jst the regular kind. And what's with all of the dripping?" she answered and asked confused. The blue-haired walked right passed her, unfolding her umbrella. "A pleasure to have met you. I must be going."

Lucy turned in annoyance back towards the "drip, drip, drop" woman. "Well take the rain with ya!" Lucy yelled back. Then there was another voice that was heard as they both turned and saw the pavement changing and repeatedly saying. "Non, non, non!"

The pavement then stopped shaping and then transformed into a slim man of average height with a tiny, pointy, moustache and green hair pointing upwards. A monocle was over his right eye, attached to a slim chain. His other eye in general was small and round, compared to his other, larger eye. He wore a brown suit with three protrusions going outwards on both sides. He had on a white shirt with a red tie and had simple shoes. A short cape linked his elbows together.

He had a bizarre stance, with his head tilted. "I bid you bonjour, mademoiselle!" He said in a thick, French accent.

Lucy just looked on baffled. "Oh great, another weirdo?!"

The man then swayed his body and spoke. "Juvia, you must not shy away. You must focus on the task at hand." He then made his way over towards Juvia's side and put two fingers on his monocle, as if adjusting it. "Ah, oui. I see we have our intended target."

"Yes, she is the one." She said blankly.

Lucy didn't whether or not to be freaking out or standing her ground, but she knew these guys were trouble.

"Ah, oui. I have not yet introduce myself. Salut, I am Sol of the Element Four, also known as Sol of the Earth, but it is you who shall refer to me as Monsieur Sol." He said,

"I've heard about you. You're with Phantom!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Ah, oui. We have been send here to collect you and bring you back to the guild. My belle accomplice is Juvia of the Great Sea, she too is a member of the Element Four." Sol explained, bending his body all about.

Lucy then dropped all of her groceries and reached for her Zodiac Keys. She got in a defensive stance as the milk from the grocery bag began to stream out of the carton. What a waste of perfectly good milk!

"You guys are gonna pay for what you did to my friends!" Lucy exclaimed, but the next thing she knew was that her body was floating off the ground and she was being enveloped in a sphere of water.

Nic had finally arrived on a rooftop that towered above the scene. He saw Juvia encase Lucy in the sphere and he witnesses her struggle inside. They had no clue that Nic was towering from above.

Nic then had an epiphany. He felt the Plates stopped reacting, almost lie a switch. When he was ready for battle, that switch turned the Plates off, but when not in combat, the Plates were vibrating. Nic recognized this feeling from before, when he fought Tartaros. Back then, the Plates were going nuts, but they were held off when Nic went into battle. This was that same feeling.

'_Wait, does this mean…?' _Nic had an assumption that he's slowly unlocking another Plate, though his thoughts were postponed when he saw Lucy slowing down from within. _'Crap! No time to waste. I can't use Charizard since he's still tired, and that water lady looks as though she can manipulate water, leaving Greninja out of the question, so that means that I'm going to have to get up front this time rather than a stealth attack.'_ Nic then jumped down from the building and landed in between the two Element Four members and Lucy.

Sol and Juvia were taken back as Nic turned and shifted into his Splash Plate and diving in to get Lucy out of Juvia's Water Lock Spell. Since Nic had the Splash Plate active, that meant he could breathe underwater, giving him no trouble when it came to yanking Lucy out. The spell broke when Lucy was pulled out.

"Lucy, are you okay?" Nic asked.

Lucy coughed and looked up at Nic. "Yeah, thanks." Nic then assisted in getting her back up to her feet. The two then glared at Juvia and Sol. Juvia was still looking emotionless, but Sol was still wiggling about in surprise.

"Oh, mon dier! I have never seen such an ability. Someone had just fazed through Juvia's water with ease maintenant!" Sol said.

"It is a new development. Perhaps this is the one that gave Gajeel a hard time." Juvia said. Nic got ready to attack, but first he turned back to Lucy.

"Lucy. Get out of here and back to Mira. If it's you they're after, then I'll put some distance in between." Nic ordered. Lucy hesitated, but she soon took to her heels and turned.

"Be careful." She said, looking back at him. Nic then turned back to his new opponents with distaste.

"I'll try _not_ to." He said, implying that he'll have to get crazy this fight. Lucy nodded and ran off back to the guild's basement. As soon as she was out of sight, everyone was clear to go.

"Now, now monsieur. Why must you be getting in the way? We were on a task to bring Miss Heartfilia back to the guild and then then you showed up." Sol complained, bending his body towards his right.

"Why are you guys after her in the first place?" Nic demanded.

"Ah, that is a good question. But it will not be answered as we must now focus on you." Sol said, bending back upwards.

"Yes. Once we have defeated you, we will pursue Lucy Heartfilia." Juvia said, emotionless. Nic started to get a Water Pulse at the ready.

"You guys have to do a lot better than your pal if you want to get pass me!" Nic exclaimed.

"Very well, monsieur. We shall overcome your strength and then the Heartfilia heir will be ours!" Sol proclaimed. Nic was taken back by this development.

"Heir? What are you saying?" Nic asked, dispelling his Water Pulse. Sol shrieked and wiggled all about.

"Oh non! I have spoiled ses beans! Non! Oh well, it cannot be helped. You might as well be aware that her father had asked us to take her back to him at once."

Nic narrowed his eyes. _'I'll have to get some answers from Lucy later. Right now, these clowns are going down.' _Nic then got out a poke ball and tossed it up. "It's time to bring the hurt, Staraptor!" Nic shouted. Staraptor then formed from the energy from Nic's poke ball.

Staraptor proclaimed its name as it flapped in the air. It gave a shiver down Sol and Juvia's spines as it had Intimidate activated. Although, Staraptor has absolute zero fear, making itself extremely confident.

"You ready Staraptor?" Nic asked.

"Ever more. Just say the word and I'll crush them like potato chips!" Staraptor proclaimed.

"Ah, so this is what Monsieur Gajeel was talking about. That giant bird had given me the shivers." Sol analyzed, pinching his tiny moustache.

"It would appear that we'll have to defeat two adversaries now." Juvia said, folding up her umbrella.

The four were glaring at each other for a short while, and then the fun began.

"Allow me to begin. **Roche Concerto!**" Sol raised his arms over his head and Nic felt the ground beneath him starting to shake. He got out of the way just before the rocks shot upwards. Nic got his footing and managed to get in close to Sol with an Aqua Jet, but Juvia managed to cut him off with her Water Slicer. Nic saw this and stopped just before the blades had hit him. He watched as they all kept on going and sliced through a stand. Nic quickly jumped and used Brine on Sol, but was redirected back at him by Juvia's Magic. Staraptor managed to grab him and yank him out of the way just before getting hit.

"I can control water, so there's no need to use those attacks." Juvia said. Nic grunted as he then shifted into his Toxic Plate Form, seeing as how Juvia could manipulate his Water Type Moves.

"Stupid water lady." He muttered.

"Nic, shall we make it so that we each handle one?" Staraptor asked.

"Sure. You take the French guy, and I take the droopy lady." Nic said. Staraptor then dropped Nic and proceeded towards their intended targets.

"Ah, so I see we have ourselves an arrangement now, have we?" Sol pinched his moustache and grinned. "Very well, you shall suffer from defeat monsieur! **Sable Dance!**" Sol then created a swirl of sand around Staraptor, attacking him from all four sides. However, Staraptor looked unaffected by this attack, as the sand didn't even faze it.

"What's this? C'est impossible!" Sol exclaimed, seeing Staraptor flap there while taking the swirling sand.

"Is that the best you got? Ground Type attacks won't hurt me!" Staraptor shot straight through the sand and did a whole body 360 and rammed Sol with an Aerial Ace, knocking him onto the ground. Staraptor flew back upwards and circled around to attack again.

"**Acid Spray!**" Nic shot acid from his mouth as Juvia encased herself in a Water Dome, protecting herself from that one attack.

"Your attacks will prove useless if you can't even touch me." She said. Nic kept his cool, seeing as how he'll have to get up close with her.

"**Poison Jab!**" Nic then darted at Juvia with his fingers seeping with poison. She lashed her arm and used her Water Slicer to keep her distance from him. He jumped and narrowly dodged. He grunted as his calf didn't make the full recovery. _'Dammit. My jumping's limited. Gotta keep grounded.'_ Nic then landed and did a Sludge Bomb attack. Juvia, once again, use Water Slicer, but it tied with Nic's Sludge Bomb and there was a small smoke cloud. Nic made no haste in unleashing a Poison Sting, shooting little purple barbs at Juvia through the cloud.

Juvia didn't have time to register this as she was struck with intoxicating barbs, feeling them dart at her like needles. She winced in pain, but recovered from the shock.

"You're not sloppy, but you're gonna have to do better than that! **Water Cane!**" Her hand then became an aquatic whip that extended and then lashed out at Nic when the smoke cleared. He managed to evade a couple blows, blows the flexibility and the speed of the pressurized whip made it hard for him to avoid.

Back with Sol and Staraptor, Sol was using Roche Concerto, but she easily avoided it with her speed. Staraptor then used Double Team and a multitude of copies have appeared, confusing Sol.

"Which one is which? Je suis tres confused!" Sol said with eyes wide. He had to use Roche Concerto again, but he got two illusionary copies instead. The several others then converged on him and their wings were glowing a metal-gray color.

"Try and evade our Steel Wing!" The multitude of Staraptors said in unison. Sol flinched as the illusions fazed through him while the real one strikes him front the upper left, making him fly back and roll a few times.

"There's plenty more where that came from." Staraptor said as she flew in on Sol as he got up. Sol managed to snake his body around and wrap himself around Staraptor's body. Staraptor was stuck as Sol did not loosen his hold on the Predator Pokémon.

"Now now monsieur. Take it easy and please suffer from a slow demise." He said, with no way of being a gentlemen. Satraptor's movement was limited. All she could really do was move his head and feet. Sol's whole body was wrapped around her body, restraining his flight capabilities.

'_This guy's got me in a bind, literally.' _Staraptor thought. She then got up from the ground as stood on his two feet as Sol had squeezed even harder. _'Gah! This guy can't restrain me, not after I do this…' _Staraptor then used Steel Wing, making his wings glow a metal-gray again. Her wings then became even more sturdy and she just spread his wings and he pried Sol off.

"My, my. Such a strong set of wings, oui?" Sol analyzed.

Back with Nic and Juvia, Juvia had cornered Nic after lashing him consecutively with her Water Cane. When she thought he was cornered, she encased him in Water Lock.

"You're not going to make this any easier for yourself, give up and we'll spare you." Juvia said, raising her voice.

Nic wasn't in there for long. He shifted into his Splash Plate and he got his breathing back.

"Lady, giving up isn't in my vocabulary, neither is amphibology, for different reasons!" Nic proclaimed. He shot out of there with Aqua Jet and went straight up, putting some distance in between.

"**Hydro Pump!" **Nic then created a mirror of water that unleashed a large volume of water that went at Juvia. Juvia then made her counterattack as the Hydro Pump came at her.

"**Water Nebula!**" She then created two columns of water and they rotated around each other, forming a giant helix. Juvia then unleashed the helix at the Hydro Pump and the two attacks had collided. The two eventually cancelled each other out. Nic landed on the ground, but was short lived as he was blasted with an aquatic beam at blinding speed. Nic yelped as the attack pressed onwards and he slammed into a cart and smashed right through it and finished with a massive thud.

Nic laid there and tried to relieve his pain, but he was repeatedly stricken by Juvia's onslaught of Water Canes. She pounded and lashed at him consecutively. Nic grunted as he got up while being lashed at. He wasn't taking much damage from the lashing since the Splash Plate was active, but the attacks were still too overbearing.

"Lady…you've…left me…no choice." Nic growled, making Juvia stop her attack in curiosity.

"How so?" she asked. The rain was still coming down and the battle was intensifying.

"I didn't want to use this, but I can see that I'm going to have to short cut my way through this fight." Nic said, grasping his arm from the lashing he had sustained. He then shifted into the Zap Plate, making Juvia recoil from said transformation.

Juvia didn't know what to do next. What could he possibly do? There was only one way to find out. She then used Water Slicer, but Nic easily dodged by ducking. He then showed his power of electricity and he shot forth a Thunderbolt at her.

Juvia tried to counter with a Water Nebula, but the water only conducted the electricity, making it trace back to Juvia. Since her body was water as well, she conducted the entire Thunderbolt. She screamed as the electricity was so painful. She fell to her knees and Nic approached.

Juvia looked up and used her Water Beam to keep Nic away, but that wasn't the best move to use.

"**Thunderbolt!**" Nic, once again, used his Thunderbolt attack and he shocked Juvia, making her Water Beam useless. Juvia slowly got back up and started shaking. She was boiling with such rage. Nic could feel the rain intensify as she was starting to show off some steam. She gradually turned into water and then began to charge at Nic.

"You're not beating me! Never! **Sierra!**" She shot up in the air and then lunged at Nic from an angle, flying in and coming at him with a scalding body of water. "Graaahhhh!"

Nic stood perfectly still. He knew how this was going to end, but he had to follow through with it regardless. Nic just glared as he saw Juvia come at him.

"I call upon the powers of the Zap Plate to finish my foe and relinquish her from my sight. Let it be known that the power of electricity can surge through the violent torrents of cruelty and shock them to their senses!" Nic then had a large thundercloud over the battle and then lightning surged about.

"You're finished!" Juvia shouted.

"**Thunder!**"

Nic then unleashed a huge thunderbolt down on Juvia at high speed. She was only five feet away when the bolt had struck her. As the powerful bolt rained down on her, she screamed in agony. She felt every nerve in her body give in after being exposed to so much power.

Juvia fell to the ground with a thud. The Thunder attack ceased and Nic stared down at the barely conscious Juvia. She was back to being solid rather than her Water Body. Nic knew Juvia couldn't get up after such a devastating blast.

With one opponent out for the count, Nic then looked to see that Staraptor was still doing battle with Sol. He was well aware of how stubborn Staraptor is, so having himself thrown into the mess wouldn't make things better.

'_Staraptor's got this.' _Nic thought. He was simply respecting his pokémon as she continue her quarrel with Sol.

Sol adjusted his monocle, seeing Juvia defeated. He shrieked in horror.

"Non, non, non! C'est impossible! Ma accomplice has been defeated!" Sol shrieked. "Tres mal! This is not good!" He then looked and saw Staraptor using Aerial Ace again, and Sol took the hit and skid back a few feet. He got down to one knee, exhausted from his quarrel with Staraptor.

Staraptor flapped in place and glared Sol down, of whom was now shaking from being intimidated by his adversary.

"So tell me, is that the best that you can do?" Staraptor asked, quite unimpressed by Sol's efforts. Sol took offense to said question and got back to his feet.

Sol bend his body. "My, my, what a predicament that I am in, non? Well mademoiselle, you est tres formidable. I shall reward you with my most powerful spell." He then made a seal in front of him, which was rather large. This got Staraptor on edge.

"Take this! **Platre Sonata!**" A large clenched fist that was made of plaster then went soaring straight into Staraptor. She saw the fist coming at her with such velocity that she was narrowed down to only a few options.

Her most obvious choice, and most common, was taking the hit. She extended her talons and blocked the attack with her legs. The fist went flying at her with such strength that it pushed her back with ease. She grunted as she pressed on with extending her talons so that her entire body doesn't suffer. With what she could manage, she used the momentum and grabbed two fingers with her talons and she mustered up every bit of strength to send it flying past her with a summersault. The fist exploded when it was only twenty feet away from her. She huffed and puffed, tired from the amount of strength that she had to conjure up. She was lucky that the attack didn't explode right in front of her; otherwise, she'd be a fried chicken.

"That…took a bit of…effort." Staraptor admitted, trying to regain her breathing. She looked down and saw Sol using Roche Concerto yet again. With no time, she used Double Team and managed to avoid the attack.

"You are looking rather drained, now let me finish you!" Sol then used Roche Concerto one more time, and rocks flew up and Staraptor managed to avoid it once again, only to have all of the illusionary copies destroyed.

Staraptor was just about finished, she sought to end it with her most powerful attack. She flew down at an angle and dived right into Sol. Sol countered with his **Platre Sonata**, sending another large plastered fist into Staraptor. She dodged with a twirl around the fist and she came at Sol at high speed.

"Non! Je suis in big trouble!" Sol was shuddering as Staraptor was in front of his face, almost making him wet himself.

"**Close Combat!**" Staraptor then unleashed a massive barrage of wing strikes, talon strikes, beak strikes, all repeatedly slaming and bashing Sol like a punching bag. Sol gagged and yelped after every consecutive strike, unable to process a single strike until another two or three are delivered with more force.

After a repeated beating, Staraptor gave it one final strike with her wing and Sol soared into the earth, all battered and broken. Sol laid there for a few moments before slowly moving his body and crawling. Staraptor flapped in place and saw Sol slowly crawl over towards Juvia, barely able to stand. Staraptor flew back to Nic's side and the two watched as Sol got Juvia and then put her arm around his shoulders to support her. Juvia was barely conscious, but had no strength.

Sol looked up and took a good look at the all mighty adversaries that bested him and Juvia. After a good long stare, Sol adjusted his monocle.

"You shall obtain this victory once more, but rest assure that we will not be laying down like this. Until then, I bid you adieu mes adversaries." Sol said. His body then slowly began to merge with the ground, taking Juvia with him for an escape. Nic and Staraptor watched as the two made their getaway and disappear by Sol's Earth Magic.

The rain then ceased, revealing the sun once more in less than ten seconds. Nic looked to see the light shining bright on him. This felt good.

Nic shifted back to normal and stood there, processing the situation.

"…why were those guys after Lucy?" Nic said, slowly remembering what they were saying. Their target was Lucy Heartfilia, an "heir" and her father wants her back. This required an explanation, and he knew just where to get one.

"Nic, I don't think things are going to get any better after this point." Staraptor stated. Nic turned to face his Pokémon. She was right. The odds were that they'll just keep coming until Lucy is finally captured. This was disturbing, but he had to focus on the situation at hand.

"…Yeah. We better be prepared for the worst…" Nic said, looking forward at the alley that they've fought in. Puddles were everywhere, reflecting the sun shining ever so brilliantly. Nic then returned Staraptor and turned around. "Time to get some answers."

* * *

**The Guild Hall basement**

Mira was tending to Lucy and her health. Lucy told Mira that she was fine and that Nic was handling the situation.

"Do you think Nic will be alright?" Lucy wondered, sitting in a chair at a table with Mira standing right by her.

"Hope so. Nic's strong…Lucy, who exactly were your assailants?" Mira was curious, but also concerned with whom Nic might be fighting. Lucy tried to remember. She looked up into space and tried recounting the events.

"Let's see…" Lucy was starting to piece it all together. "…I think they were Juvia, and the other guy with the French accent was Sol."

Mira gasped at this shocking development. She stepped back in shock.

"You mean two of the Element Four?!" Mira asked. Lucy looked down at the table and stare off into the unknown.

"Yeah." She paused before speaking again. "I'm not sure why Phantom wanted to kidnap me, but I all I can say is that it wouldn't be good for any of us. Not that this situation is already."

Mira turned around and looked worried. "Well, Gajeel is considered tougher than the Element Four, but even two of the Element Four should be as tricky if not tougher. I hope Nic knows what he's doing."

It was only a minute after that they heard footsteps from above. The two indicated that it could be a member of Phantom, so they had to take precaution. Lucy got up and reached for her Zodiac Keys. The two of them then proceeded to the stairs and then they heard the steps going downwards very slowly. The two were anxious, but were relieved to see Nic coming down.

"Nic!" Lucy said, glad he's still okay.

"Are you okay?" Mira asked. They got no reply as Nic was staring down the entire time at the steps that he was taking. He slowly went down, step by step, until he'd finally reached the bottom. Nic then turned around and pointed at the staircase.

"Ha! Think you could fool me twice, well think again! I have triumphed over you!" Nic proclaimed, not forgetting the last time when he came down the stairs. "I told you you've made a powerful enemy!"

The two girls looked on, dumbfounded that Nic was yelling at the steps. After a bit of gawking at Nic's stupid rivalry with a staircase, the two proceeded towards him.

"Uh, Nic?" Mira got his attention. He looked up and turned around to see Lucy and Mira staring at him in disbelief.

"Uhhh…hi." Nic said, getting back to reality. He noticed that besides Levy and the two injured in the hospital, Lucy, Mira, and himself were the only ones who stayed behind as the rest of the entire guild went to fight and kick booties.

"Are okay Nic?" Lucy asked. She notice that Nic was a little banged up from his battle and that he was lightly bruised all about.

"Yeah. My Pokémon and I were able to defeat them and drive them off as well." Nic then saw the shocked look on their faces. They were both stunned to hear that two Element Four members were defeated.

"You took down Juvia and Sol?!" Mira sounded like she was in deep shock, but who wouldn't.

Nic nodded. "Yeah, but I doubt that they'll accept this defeat. They said that they wanted Lucy, and I doubt that they'll stop until they have her." He indicated. Lucy looked down and couldn't help but wonder.

"I don't get it. Why is it that they want me?" Lucy narrowed her eyes, unable to solve the puzzle in her head.

Nic took a deep breath and exhaled. "Okay Lucy. It's time for some answers."

Lucy and Mira looked at Nic with confused faces, wondering what Nic was asking for.

"Answers?" Lucy asked. The three then gathered and sat at a nearby table to hear what Nic had to say.

"Those guys told me that you were an 'heir' and that your father wanted Phantom to bring you back to him." Nic explained. Lucy's eyes were wide with shock as her father was pulling strings.

"H-how could my father do this?!" Lucy stuttered. She was clenching her fists in anger. Mira took noticed and looked concerned.

"Lucy, what is it about your father?" Mira asked her concerned friend. Lucy took a moment before answering.

"The truth is…I'm a runaway." She said. Nic went wide eyed that Lucy was a runaway as well. Mira looked on in curiosity. Lucy continued. "My family was rich, and my mother died when I was ten. My father was more concerned with his own business and money than me. He neglected me, and I took off about a year ago and he hasn't cared. Now he wants me back?! I hate him! He asks Phantom to do all this stuff and torture my friends just to get me to come home! He's a horrible man!"

"Lucy…" Mira saw a few tears fall from Lucy's face. Mir went to get a small towel to dry Lucy's face. Lucy continued to look down and let a few tears fall for awhile. Nic looked down at the table and drifted off into a pitiful thought.

He and Lucy were in the same boat. They were both runaways, both were neglected, and both were wanted to be taken back. After Mira came back with a small towel for Lucy, Nic turned to face Lucy.

"I get it." He said, making them both look at him. "Lucy, you and I had the same past. Let me tell you something…my parents hated my guts. They repeatedly beat me senseless as they simply pampered my little sister. I protected my sister, regardless of what happened. They always blamed me and that I don't deserve to be called a big brother or a son."

"Oh my god…" Mira and Lucy were horrified by Nic's story.

"At fifteen, I took off and started on my journey the night after my parents have almost destroyed me. It didn't take long for the authorities to find me, but I told them what they did to me, and I said it while my parents were there. On the spot, my parents threatened to kill me and my dad tried choking me. The two were sentenced to life in prison and my sister id being taken care of by the neighbors. She's doing far better now that she didn't have to see her big brother take the beating for her."

The two looked on with a mixture of shock and horror that Nic had it far worse than Lucy. Aside from the potential death Nic faced every day, his past was similar to Lucy's.

Lucy stopped crying and looked at Nic in pity. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"It's okay. I almost died a few times and suffered multiple scars that are barely noticeable on my back. Aside from that, I was fine. I did anything to protect Vanessa, even if she did it by accident."

A short silence eroded and Nic got up. "Well listen Lucy, you stay here and have Mira look after you. I need to check something out. Your father's gonna pay. This isn't your fault, remember that." Nic said. Lucy nodded slowly, still thinking none of this would've happened if she had just stayed home.

But that wasn't important. Right now is what mattered. Nic proceeded to get up and go back up the stairs and out of sight from the two girls.

Nic went out and back into the forest. The Plates from within him were at a slow vibration, starting up again after the battle. He walked a little bit as he had found the spot he was sitting previously and then sat back down in cross-legged form. He closed his eyes and let nature do the rest.

* * *

**Phantom Lord**

Fairy Tail was in a hasty retreat after Master Makarov was defeated and depleted of all of his magic. Despite wanting to get revenge, Natsu had to retreat because Erza urged him. She felt so useless and weak with the Master defeated. The entire guild ran off with Phantom chasing them away.

"Well, they're off." Gajeel noted, being upside down a wooden beam and observing Fairy Tail's retreat.

"They're retreating with sorrow in their eyes." Aira noted. He was a tall man who had a blindfold on. He had a green hat and a green cape that went over his yellow shirt. Aria also had a purple scarf going about his neck from both ends of his coat.

Gajeel flipped over and was right next to him. "Aria, I see that you're as creepy as ever, but I commend you on taking down their Master." The Iron Dragon Slayer commented.

"I was just following Master Jose's orders" He then started to cry. "It's so sad!"

"Why are you always crying? It's getting annoying." Gajeel said. "So, what's the staus?"

Aria stopped crying. "No word." The two then went away using Aria's Magic. They made their way over towards Phantom Lord's headquarters. It wasn't far from Oak Town, and it resided on a rocky hill. It was a large building that had an entrance that was topped with ornamental parts, with an arc held by two square pillars, completed with arched windows below it, and placed above the smaller arc of the door itself. To the right was an angled zone with several orders of large arched windows. To the left was a hexagonal tower fused with the building, with very high ornamental windows in groups of three in the lower part, with smaller and more numerous windows in its upper part. Each of the tower's angles was marked with a long, round pillar with bulges in correspondence to the architect of the building. The top ended with three long bulges. The top itself was a dome that consisted a protrusion similar to the columns. Behind the dome was the central part stood one more dome, smaller and topped with the guild flag on it. On the right of said dome was a flat and round platform. The most distinct qualities were the pair of towers on its sides of the front. They were very high and had many floors, eight to be more precise on each side. The top of the towers ended with pointed tiled roofs. There were four towers in all.

Inside, Gajeel and Aria met up with Jose, who was rather pleased with the results of the battle.

"Well, we've won this round." Jose noted.

"Yes, and we have them on the run. What do you want us to do?" Aria questioned.

Jose paused. "Wait until Sol and Juvia have returned with our targets…" They all then saw Sol and Juvia emerge from the ground right near them. To their shock, they were beaten to a pulp. Gajeel and Aria looked on in shock. Jose was wide eyed to see them all torn up.

"What happened?" Jose ordered. Sol and Juvia both got their knees and on their hands, trying to catch their breaths. After a few moments, Sol was bowing repeatedly as to where Juvia was still recovering her strength.

"Oh, monsieur. Je suis tres desolee! We have been defeated and mercilessly thrashed about!" Sol said. The others looked on in disbelief. Gajeel growled, thinking he knows who did this.

"Let me guess, was it _him_?" He asked.

Sol then got back to his knees, stopping his bowing. "Oui. He was much too powerful, and just as you have said Monsieur Gajeel, he had his set of monsters helping him. He and his large bird were much too formidable pour moi. Juvia was beaten hopelessly and I could not keep up with his accomplice. This is a disaster!"

Jose gritted his teeth, now in deep curiosity of what this guy was. First, Gajeel, and now two members of the Element Four. Jose was curious, but also annoyed.

"Did you capture our target?" Jose asked, trying to keep his cool.

"Ah, non! He made Mademoiselle Heartfilia make the getaway. He got there just as we were recovering her!" Sol explained.

Now Jose was annoyed. Now magic was surging all around him. Everyone took notice of this change of mood.

"Very well then. Master Makarov and his pose are left defenseless, but they still had their trump card hiding out back. I'm anxious to see what this guy has to show me. Get ready for battle! It's time that we finish this!"

* * *

**Fairy Tail**

Erza cursed herself for the umpteenth time already. She felt guilty that she wasn't there to aid Makarov in his battle. She felt a small tear run down her cheek, but quickly wiped it away so that she didn't look weak in front of everyone, of whom felt the same.

They all made their way back in the guild basement, they all were dejected and melancholy. They had suffered a defeat and they all gathered to tend to any injuries as well as formulating battle strategies.

Erza was in the shower, clenching her fists. She couldn't let go at the fact that she couldn't do anything with Makarov being tended at Porlyusica's place, which was a tree. She knew Jose must have done something to drain his magic, and she had to do what it takes to avenge him.

When they all got back, Lucy explained everything about how she was their target all along. How she was the target and her father wanted her back. She sat on a storage box with Natsu leaning on a wall right next to her.

"Being target by people are just one of the downsides of being rich, at least you're in the presence of a real _man_, like me." Elfman boasted.

Gray turned back, annoyed of Elfman's comment. "Hey, shut it already." Gray berated him.

"I've gotta say, I was shocked to hear you're a runaway." Happy said.

"There's no way I could've said that I was a runaway in casual conversation. I've been gone of a year and now my father wants me back. He's done all of those horrible things just to get me to go back. He's a monster…still, if I haven't run away in the first place, none of this would've happened." Lucy said, about to go on the verge of tears.

"C'mon, don't be ridiculous. Your dad's the one to blame." Elfman said.

"Idiot!" Gray said.

"Eh, I meant it was Phantom's fault!" Elfman corrected himself.

"No, it's my fault. All of this happened because of my selfish choices." Lucy wasn't feeling lifted at all by this situation.

"So what?" Natsu said. "I wouldn't picture you being the princess in her mansion. Laughing with us in the Guild Hall, going on adventures even when you freak out all the time. That's you. No running, because you belong with us. You're Lucy of Fairy Tail." Natsu had a fist in the air, proclaiming Lucy's stay. Lucy then started to cry.

"Oh please, no waterworks." Gray wined.

"Yeah. Real men are weak to tears." Elfman shuddered.

"I'm sorry!" Lucy cried. Loke looked on at Lucy from a distance, seeing her upset which made him bring back some painful memories.

Meanwhile, Cana was trying to locate Mystogan through her cards, but had no luck. She threw the cards all about.

"C'mon! I can't get a reading on where Mystogan is!" Cana complained. Mira looked back from her communication lacrima at the disturbed Cana.

"Oh dear, you did your best." She said.

"We've got too man wounded to put up a fight if Phantom comes back to get Lucy. And where the heck is Nic?"

"He said he needed to check something out." Mira said.

"Why is it taking him so long? I mean, if it's rest then it's understandable since he defeated Gajeel, and two of the Element Four, but to check something out isn't a suitable thing to go by." Cana noted.

"Mystogan is nowhere, and Master is wounded. You're the only one left. Please Laxus." Mira pleaded to the communication lacrima, which had Laxus communicating on the other end.

He looked annoyed. He then put a hand over his head. "Oh man, Gramps is freakin pathetic. Hahahaha. I don't see how this is remotely my problem. You're a big girl, so deal with it yourself!"

"So you're not gonna help us?!" Cana asked.

"Course not! Why would I?! Why would I clean up your guys' mess?!"

"Please Laxus, they want Lucy." Mira noted.

"Who? Do I even know her…oh wait, it's that blonde chick right? Tell you what, you talk her into being my woman and if Cana strips for me I'll do whatever she asks me to do." Laxus bargained.

"You pig!" Cana shouted.

"You wanna talk that way to a guy you're begging help from. Do me a favor, if that geezer lives, tell him he's out of his league and he should hand the guild over to me! Hahahaha!" Mira then shattered the lacrima out of anger. She then had tears running down all over her face.

"Why are people so cruel?" She sobbed.

Cana looked at Mira with deep concern. "Mira…"

"I don't understand. How could someone from Fairy Tail be so cruel?" Mira then turned around started to walk off. "I can't sit here and do nothing. I have to fight!"

Cana then tried to stop her. "I understand Mira. But even though you were an S-Class Wizard, you shouldn't put yourself in harm's way."

"I don't care. I want to protect Lucy and Fairy Tail." Mira said.

In the shower, Erza was still feeling down, but it wasn't like she could instantly cheer up. She then realized that she hasn't seen Nic ever since she got back. This left her even more discomforted. She was hoping to see Nic so that he could cheer her up, but no.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in the forest…**

Nic had been in the forest for a long time. He was becoming ever so slow in breathing. He was as still as a rock. Absolute zero movement, taking in everything that he could. Everything was just flowing into him. The wind, the air, the atmosphere. There was no limit as to what Nic could feel. He felt the earth beneath him vibrate with such life. He felt the grass against his jeans. He felt his Plates absorbing the energy and springing to life from within.

He felt himself getting more energy from earlier. Back from before he fought Juvia and Sol, he felt nature lending him a helping hand, and his Plates reacted ever so lively.

Nic had a pretty good assumption as to what might become of him if he kept this up.

One minute passed, and he felt as though everything was one. He now felt the energy blooming all about. His Plates vibrated ever so violently, and suddenly it stopped. Nic kept his mind with nature as he felt himself glow…

* * *

**Fairy Tail**

They felt the earth shake not too long after. Erza was just about finished in the shower when the entire still started to shake.

"What?" Erza wondered. She got out of the shower and wrapped herself in a pink towel. She then proceeded back to the basement, where the others were starting get all shaken up.

"What's going on?" Erza demanded.

"We don't know!" Elfman stated.

"Everyone outside, let's go!" Gray shouted. With no time to spare, everyone gathered whatever supplies they could get and went outside.

* * *

**With Nic**

Nic had his sunglasses on, with his V-neck now a jungle green t-shirt. His shoes were now sturdy jungle shoes. His jeans were now camo pants. His sleeveless coat was light green and the bottom had green grass going up to the back of his thighs.

His sunglasses glowed white while the rest of him was glowing green and sparking all over. Almost immediately, he was no one hundred percent full health. His calf and injuries from earlier were gone and now he was full of energy.

He felt the atmosphere change, sending a chill down his spine.

'_Phantom Lord, huh.'_ Nic had a feeling it was them. They were coming up by the shores and he could sense it from where he was at.

He got up on his two feet and stretched.

He smirked. "Guess it's time to join the fight."

* * *

**How was that for foreshadowing? Don't get me wrong, you guys are putting a lot of ideas out there, but I want no Legendaries participating. **

**I can't do any updates for the rest of the week because I got exams coming up. Add the fact that I alternate between stories. **

**Don't be afraid to let me know if you have an idea as to how Jupiter might be stopped, but I hatched an idea Friday night. If you guys have any say, let me know. Otherwise, I'm going with said idea.**

**So now you know four of Nic's pokémon, and another will be shown soon.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you liked it. **

_**Review!**_

* * *

**Next Time: The Forces of Nature**


	9. The Forces of Nature

Chapter 9 – The Forces of Nature

**Hey guys! I'm ready to begin another chapter for you all. Exams are done, and a new tri is going to start for me, and it's going to be easy for me.**

**Fun side note; I was watching a Fairy Tail Movie called **_**Fairy Tail the Movie: Phoenix Priestess **_**(English Dub), and I saw a part when Erza was fighting in a wedding gown. I found it funny when she got flustered when her defeated opponent asked if she was desperate for marriage. Makes you wonder if she really is.**

**Yes, last chapter was when Nic unlocked the Meadow Plate. I forgot to mention that. That Plate will be considered helpful in this fight.**

**ultima-owner: Close, you're idea is very close. **

**Guest: Good point you have with the Fairy Type, but no. I've made up my mind when I made the story and the future chapters wouldn't go as I would imagine them; however, I do recommend you read **_**Guardian Fairy **_**by Alpha Dragonis. ****It's super amazing, even better than mine, and has a Fairy Type in it.**

**A lot of you guys are curious as to what Nic's last two pokémon are. That's for me to know and for you to read. I will say this, if you read the A/N at the end of Chapter 5, it tells that Nic has unpopular pokémon. You knew this by seeing Kecleon, and maybe Staraptor. I've made up his entire team from when I created this story, and if one of them is changed, the story wouldn't be the same.**

**You'll see how Jupiter will be stopped. It's the only best and logical idea that came to my mind, so don't go hating me if it isn't what you wanted.**

**Time for the epic fight of pain!**

**To Recap:**

The entire Fairy Tail Guild ventures off towards Phantom Lord to avenge Droy and Jet. The only ones left behind were Levy, Lucy, Mira, and Nic. Nic went out to the woods to recover and felt a similar energy that reacted with his Plates. In a flash, he senses danger and rushes back to town and defeats Juvia and Sol with the help of his Staraptor, thus saving Lucy. Lucy explains that she's a runaway, much like Nic, and he goes back to the forest. The Fairy Tail Guild returns defeated and they were coming up with plans to fight back. Nic unlocks the Meadow Plate and senses Phantom Lord's arrival.

* * *

**Chapter 9 – The Forces of Nature**

The entire Fairy Tail Guild ventured outside and looked out in horrific shock. Natsu, and everyone else for that matter, was wide eyed and almost shaking in their footwear.

"What is that thing?!" Natsu questioned.

What everyone saw was the entire HQ of Phantom lord on a huge heap of earth with enormous mechanical appendages. They were all super long, spider-like legs that protruded from the bottom of the earth heap, keeping the entire guild far above the water that they traveled on. With every step it took, the earth itself emanated a magnitude that made the land shook.

"Is that a Guild Hall with legs?" Happy shouted.

"No doubt, it's Phantom's!" Loke said. Everyone had fear and doubt in their eyes. This was an entire guild on legs!

"How the hell do we fight something like that?!" Wakaba shouted.

Erza was shivering in her pink towel, not just from being out of the shower, but from the dread running down her own spine.

"I never anticipated this. I never would've imagine them going to such extremes to attack us like this." Erza said.

The Phantom Lord HQ finally stopped moving and it rest its earth heap in the water. Inside the building, Jose was commanding everything. In his corridor, of which was commanding from his chair. There were four guys in that same room making modifications through seals. There was a large purple, red, blue, and yellow one over their heads.

"The Magic focusing cannon, Jupiter. Engage." He said in a calm manner, ordering his four men to activate Jupiter. The huge Jupiter lacrima was being filled with power, having a large sum of Magic energy swelling from four other lacrima around it.

The entire front of the upper half of the Guild Hall dropped down, revealing a super large canon. The cannon slowly lengthened out, making it almost twice as long as before stretching out. The tip of the cannon was conjuring up a massive charge that was dark purple.

There was no way Erza was going to let this happen to her fellow guild members. Still draped in her pink towel, she dashed forward.

"Erza!" Mira shouted.

"What are you doing?!" Macao yelled.

As Erza was dashing, she requiped out of her pink towel into another armor. It was a bulky, dark colored armor, which had a single blue chest plate with a light blue belt contraption around the waist. Three spikes lined the top of the chest plate that gives way to a white neck brace that split, which gives room for her chin. The shoulders are sectioned with a large spike dividing each section, with the middle spike being the largest of the three. The gauntlets had a few sections, one of which that attached the elbows to two large white shields. A blue jewel lined the back of her hands, and attached to the bottom of her chest plates was a two layer metallic skirt with small spikes hanging on the end of those two layers. A large spike hangs inward on the bottom layer. The legs were covered in sections, matching the armor with a pair of blue greaves at the knees. Several curved spikes attached just below the knees of the greaves. She had a large headdress atop with a reflective middle.

Happy recognized this armor right away. "I know that requip, that's her Adamantine Armor!"

"Is she going to try and block the shot?" Bisca wondered.

"There's no way her armor can hold against a blast so strong!" Alzack said.

"Stay back!" Erza warned, getting ready to block.

"Erza!" Natsu shouted. He tried reaching out to stop her, but was held back by Gray.

"We can't. We just gotta have faith in her!" Gray said, trying to restrain him.

The cannon then fired a huge beam at them. Erza locked her shield and braced for impact. Everyone was awaiting for the shockwave that they were all preparing for, but then they felt something from behind from behind.

A similar Jupiter blast fired from atop the Guild Hall. The dark purple energy unleashed its way over Erza's shield, getting her to drop her guard.

"What?" Erza asked as the dark beam raced its way and collided with the actual Jupiter blast. Everyone looked on in shock to see the two blasts smash into one another. Everyone covered up as the two energies made a massive explosion in the middle. There was a shockwave that spread through the air, and that made everyone fall back on their behinds. Erza didn't have her big shield seal up, but her actual shield was good enough to save her from the traveling shockwave. The explosion kept escalating until the air and water was flying everywhere. Everything was shaking and trembling from the amount of power unleashed from those two blasts. The entire thing went on for a good thirty or so seconds, but within those thirty seconds, almost everything was torn up. Water was everywhere, the ground that Fairy Tail was on was softer from the trembling of the earth. Fortunately, no one got hurt, and Jupiter was out of Magic power, as well as the other blast that traced back to the top of the Guild Hall.

"What the heck was that just now?" Natsu wondered, getting up with the rest of the guild. Erza was still standing, and she requiped into her Heart Kreuz Armor.

"I don't know." Erza said. On top the Guild Hall, the spacial hole has disappeared.

"So, you're the Mage that took down Phantom's Dragon Slayer and two of the Element Four." Jose said, trying to hold back his irritated behavior. "To be fair, I imagined you would be older."

"They all say that!" The voice said from up top the guild. Everyone turned around and looked up. They were shocked to hear that particular voice.

Erza quickly turned around to see what everyone was looking at. She felt a smile form on her face when she saw who it was that was standing on the Guild Hall. She honestly couldn't recall being so happy to see someone in all her life.

Nic was in his Sky Plate Form, having said used Mirror Move to copy and intercept Jupiter. Nic flew down from the roof and landed lightly. The guild made way as he was walked confidently towards Phantom Lord.

"I take it that you're Jose right? I'm Nic Pularis." He stated. Erza looked to see him passing her. He stopped in front of her and planted his feet firmly. She could tell he was dead serious.

"A pleasure to meet you young Pularis." Jose responded. "I applaud for your acts to stop my guild's constant raids, but it's sad to say that your time has come. You don't have the strength to take on all of Phantom Lord, so I suggest you be a good little guild and relinquish Lucy Heartfilia over to me."

Fairy Tail didn't take this demand very well.

"Like hell we would!" Alzack protested.

"We don't turn our family over to monsters like you!" Bisca added. Everyone the guild was yelling back at Jose now, stating Lucy's stay and for Jose to get lost.

"We would never betray her like that! You'll have to kill us first!" Erza yelled. Everyone backed her up on that one for sure.

"You ain't gonna get any other answers, because we're Lucy's family now and we're not handing her over to you!" Natsu roared.

Within the crowd, Lucy was shaking, and she was swelling up in tears. She was so glad to have such amazing support in Fairy Tail, and seeing how they would risk their lives to keep her with them.

"You guys…" Lucy murmured. Nic looked back at Lucy, seeing her swell with a mixture of joy and guilt. He stared for a good few seconds before turning back.

"Alright pal, listen and listen good." Nic walked up and did yet another Form Change. He shifted from his Sky Plate Form into his new Meadow Plate Form, shocking Erza and the others. "This can go two ways: Either we kick your sorry ass to oblivion, or we forget this whole mess and never see each other again. Which do you prefer?"

Jose got up in frustration. He gritted his teeth and growled at the implication of Nic's threat.

"Are you threatening me?! No one threatens a Wizard Saint boy! Don't you know the first thing about authority?!" Jose roared.

Nic crossed his arms. "Yeah…it's stupid, like you."

"Prepare Jupiter! You got fifteen minutes to hand her over or you'll be punished!" This was Jose's final warning. This got everyone in a stir.

"Oh no, is he gonna fire that thing again?" "We can't take another shot!" "What do we do?"

"Is he for real?! He's going to fire Jupiter again!" Macao exclaimed. They all then witnessed Jose unleashing his phantom soldiers down on them. There was a vast number of them coming at them with force.

Nic then emanated a green aura. "Let's give this new Form a spin. **Petal Blizzard!**" A huge hurricane of green wind and petals and glowing leaves then scattered about and blasted through half of the entire shade army. Everyone looked on in shock of his huge power. Even Erza was stunned by his raw power.

However, they were all re-emerging and looked as though nothing happened. "Well…this might be an issue." Nic said casually. He then turned to Natsu. "Natsu, you and Happy get up there and smash Jupiter like you do anything else!"

Natsu cracked his Natsu and grinned. "Like you have to ask! C'mon Happy!" Happy then spread his wings and took Natsu with him.

"Aye sir!" The two then rushed up to the canon.

Nic then turned to look at everyone else. "Elfman, Gray, Erza, time to storm that giant trash heap!"

"You got it!" Grayt said, running.

"We're taking that thing run like real men!" Elfman shouted.

"Let's do it!" Erza said.

"Cana, Macao, Wakaba, Bisca, Alzack, I leave the guild to you!" Nic shouted, as though he was in charge, probably because he was.

"Right, we'll do our best!" Cana shouted. Lucy then came up to him just before he was about to dash forward in the raid.

"Wh-what about me?" Lucy asked with a tear coming down her face, but she did show determination. Nic saw that she wanted to help, but he had to think of her safety. Nic placed a hand on her shoulders.

"Lucy, I need you to find cover. Mira will help you." Nic said, with Mira stepping forward.

The blonde shook her head. "No! I can't watch as my comrades fight for me! I want to help!"

Nic then looked down at her hand, and he softened his eyes. "Tell me Lucy, what is that on your hand?"

"It's…my Fairy Tail Emblem." Lucy said, somewhat surprised, yet confused.

Nic nodded. "Right. We all bear this emblem together. It means we're family, and that means we'll do anything to keep this family whole. This doesn't concern just you Lucy, it concerns us all. We have to do our part in this battle, and we need you to do yours. We'll show them just how our bonds keep us united and how we will win with those bonds."

At the end of his speech, everyone was cheering in agreement. Erza was in awe of how wise Nic was. Obviously he was knowledgeable to a great extent. She wonders what else Nic had been through. He would put his life on the line to defend his own, just like he did with his sister.

"Okay." She quietly said. She didn't like it, but Nic was just looking out for her. Everyone was.

"Come on, let's go." Mira said, escorting Lucy. Lucy looked back at Nic. "Make sure you come back okay!"

Nic looked on as Lucy was taken somewhere safe. He then got out a poke ball and he had it open in his hand so as to not get as much attention.

"Kecleon, get out here." Nic said, with the Color Swap Pokémon being summoned in front of him.

"Yes, Nic?" Kecleon asked her trainer in her usual weird voice with a tilted head. Nic leaned in and lowered his voice as the shades drew ever so near and everyone was yelling at them, getting ready to attack. Although, everyone was there, so it's not like they weren't watching why Nic called out another pokémon.

"I need you to follow Lucy. Keep her safe. If any Phantom Lord goons go after her, stop them quick, and make sure your presence is low key." Nic explained. He had a bad feeling about the future, and he had to do something about the safety of Lucy. If anyone can defend with stealth, Kecleon's the weirdo for the job. Kecleon then instantly turned invisible, excluding the red stripe, and fled as fast as a rocket. Hardly anyone noticed it being gone that fast. Some people were amazed by that speed, but they had to refocus on the task at hand. Nic then turned and charged straight for the Phantom Lord HQ, along with Elfman, Gray, and Erza.

"**Ice Make: Floor!**" Gray shouted. He then coated the water in ice so that they could reach the Phantom HQ. From there, he made a staircase that trailed upwards to the guild entrance. They should catch up to Natsu in no time if they keep a fast pace throughout the place.

* * *

**With Mira and Lucy**

Mira had Lucy get taken to safety by Reedus. When they were out of sight by Reedus riding a carriage he created with his magic, Mira turned and used her Transformation Magic and transformed into Lucy, just to make a façade.

'_I may not be able to do Satan Soul, but there are other ways that I can help. I'll do what I can to help the others.' _She thought in determination to save her friends.

Reedus had taken Lucy to a disclosed warehouse, where they were being held protected. Reedus sat down, as did Lucy, and she just sulked.

"I really wanted to help the guys. It makes me guilty seeing them fight for me." Lucy said. Reedus was painting a self-portrait of her sulking, but was well aware of the circumstances the young Celestial Mage was in.

"Don't worry. It's just as Nic said, we're all in this together. Your burden is our burden, and we will save you regardless of whatever happens to us." Reedus said.

Lucy got up and sighed. "I know that this isn't fair, I should be out there-!" She stopped in mid-sentence when the warehouse shook.

"What was that?!" Lucy exclaimed. They both turned to see the warehouse doors being rammed and dented with a hard object from the other side. The two backed away with their guard up. The door burst open with Gajeel leading two other Mages.

"Hehehe. Well well, a fat guy and a blonde. Time to snatch and grab." Gajeel said, hanging upside down from the ceiling.

"It's over tubby. Just give up Lucy Heartfilia." The female Mage said.

"Our boss is rather impatient." The other Mage said.

Reedus was about to draw some creatures on his stomach and use his magic to defend Lucy, but then something happened in a blink of an eye.

Nobody saw it coming. It was a red striped blur that took down the two subordinates with one strike each. They fell, out for the count. Gajeel took this by surprise, for even he didn't see that coming.

"But how?" Gajeel asked as he jumped and landed with ease. He turned and didn't see anything. He then turned to face the two mages.

"What game are you playing?" Gajeel demanded to know.

In the shadows, he heard a voice; in fact, everyone heard it.

"It's a game called Hide and Seek!" The creepy female voice said. Gajeel turned here and there, wondering where on Earthland was that voice coming from. He turned his back and was hit with a Slash from behind, causing him to fall forward. Kecleon then reappeared in front of everybody. Lucy and Reedus were shocked to see this creature.

"What the? What are you?" Gajeel demanded to know. Kecleon's only response was her head tilting before lunging at Gajeel. Gajeel tried to counterattack with his Iron Dragon's Sword, but Kecleon ducked and used Shadow Sneak as an uppercut. Gajeel flew back, surprised of this creature's reflexes and speed. This thing the Iron Dragon Slayer was facing was very strong.

"Lucy, you and Reedus get out of here. This guy is nothing compared to me." Kecleon said. The two then pieced it all together. This one was on their side and she was stalling for Reedus and Lucy to escape.

"Wait…I know you. You're one of Nic's pokémon!" Lucy exclaimed. Kecleon looked back and nodded. Gajeel narrowed his eyes, thinking back to what he went up against not too long ago. He remembered the guy and his flaming dragon took him down. He also recounted him having a ninja frog. Upon realizing this was another one of Nic's helpers, Gajeel gritted his teeth.

"So, that Nic guy sent a lizard to deal with me, huh?" Gajeel said, cracking his knuckles. "My prime objective is to take the girl, but that guy owes me a rematch. Like hell I'll let this opportunity pass by."

Kecleon tilted her head. "You shall not pass!"

Lucy and Reedus were both making their getaway, as to where Kecleon stayed put and dealt with her adversary.

Gajeel smirked. "Time for some payback. **Iron Dragon's Roar!**" Gajeel send a tornado of iron at Kecleon, who was able to evade it by lunging to her right and started to turn invisible, hiding among the storage boxes.

"You can't hide from me you coward!" Gajeel then unleashed more of his Iron Dragon's Roar to shatter the boxes. Kecleon was able to duck once more, avoiding the flying boxes. After the hysteria of boxes had ended, Kecleon looked up to see Gajeel in front of her. With a quick reflex, she jumped and used Thief, hitting him on the shoulder, but Gajeel felt hardly anything and swatted her off.

"Come on, is that really the best you can do?" Gajeel asked, unimpressed by Kecleon's inability to scratch him. Kecleon grunted.

'_Curses! He's like a Steel Type of sorts. My attacks won't do much on him.' _Kecleon thought. _'I'm going to have to butter this toast!'_

Kecleon then used Screech, emanating red shockwaves at Gajeel. Gajeel was wide eyed at the level of frequency this attack was, and he covered his ears to keep the frequency out.

"Gah! What is this?!" Gajeel said, having his ears plugged by his hands. Kecleon rushed in, now finished with Screech, and used Slash on a defenseless Iron Dragon Slayer. Gajeel opened his eyes, relieved to have the attack finished, but was cut off guard with the Slash he just took. He fell back and skid a few feet.

"That's how I butter my toast!" Kecleon said, using the simile of butter and toast with Screech and Slash.

Gajeel got back up and growled. "**Iron Dragon's Club!**" His attack managed to hit Kecleon hard, which made her skid back several feet; fortunately, she was able to block with her arms, meaning her body didn't get as hurt as it was suppose to.

Kecleon smirked, thinking this was perfect.

"What are you so happy about?" Gajeel wanted to know.

"Because I took that one on purpose." She said with her weird voice in a serious tone. Gajeel narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"What?"

"Let me tell you this. I have Color Change, meaning that attack you just hit me with made my Type change. Considering you're relatively close to Steel Types from where I came from, that means I become a Steel Type."

Gajeel was having a hard time figuring out what she meant by that, and frankly he didn't care. "Look pal, I have no clue what you are talking about, but all I know is that you're not getting away with this!" He then used his Iron Dragon's Roar and almost obliterated the wall. Gajeel smirked, thinking that one blow did the trick. He was shocked to see his adversary still standing. "But how?! My Iron Dragon's Roar shatters everything it hits!"

Kecleon was walking forward with only a few scratches. "Like I said, you shall not pass. And did I forget to mention that my Special Defense is really high?" Kecleon was walking forward, readying a Slash.

Gajeel wasn't going to take this. He lunged at her with an Iron Dragon's Sword. The two attacks made contact, sending sparks everywhere. The moving points grinded along with lengthened sharp claws of Kecleon, with neither side calling it quits.

"You don't scare me!" Gajeel roared. He then used an Iron Dragon's Club with his other arm and rammed Kecleon, sending her into a nearby wall, he dragged his lengthy club along the wall with Kecleon being dragged as well. Eventually, he slammed her into a huge pile of boxes and watched as she crashed into them. After some sawdust and debris cleared, Kecleon was seen struggling to get up. She tried to get up, she took a lot of damage, regardless of her Type being changed. She coughed and got to her feet.

She saw Gajeel grinning very demonically at her. He was trying to intimidate her, and it was working.

She could recall the situation being just as bad a couple of years ago. That day, she had the confidence to triumph.

_It was a great day, though it was cloudy. In the Pokémon League corridors. Nic was facing Wikstrom, who was much like a knight. He was on his last pokémon, Aegislash. It was in its offensive form, and it had sustained not much damage. Kecleon, on the other hand, had taken a massive beating. Taking on Aegislash wasn't the best option after being with its Sacred Sword. She was just about ready to fall flat on her face, but still pressed on._

"_Use Shadow Sneak!" Nic shouted. Kecleon did as told and stretched out her shadow to attack._

"_**King's Shield!**__" Wikstrom ordered. Aegislash then changed its stance to a more defensive look, with the sword behind the shield. It then created a strong barrier that Shadow Sneak couldn't get past. _

_Nic grunted, thinking how stubborn this pokémon was. Wikstrom wasn't one of the Elite Four for nothing, that's for sure._

"_Aegislash, __**Iron Head! **__Show them that thou has been honorable in battle, and shall finish this through with dignity!" Wikstrom commanded. Aegislash followed through, with the pointed tip of his head now enveloped in a coat if iron. It did a Stance Change and went straight at Kecleon._

_If this hits, it would be lights out for Kecleon. Kecleon wasn't sure if she could do such a thing. She was sure that if she dodged, she might still have a chance, but then it might get hit with another Sacred Sword._

_Suddenly, she heard Nic take a deep breath. She looked back to see him as calm as the placid sea. She couldn't believe that she was being terrified and that Nic wasn't. After this past year and few months, what was she doing? She's grown so much, and she was going to let it all end here? Her mentally weird mind was stirring with the past, with the numerous battles, the teaching of moves, the bonds shared. Kecleon was taking it all in, in a two second time span._

'_Nic. You show no fear. You can stay calm, and I should follow. It took me this long to realize that I should be doing this too.' She thought. 'After all of this time, it's time to step up, and knock down this mighty oak and sprout a new fresh oak!' Despite her being quirky, Kecleon was serious on the inside. Her weirdness just interprets it differently. She knew this was no time to slack off. She leaped at the last second and landed safely._

"_Kecleon." Nic shouted. "Even the toughest of armor can be worn down! We're going to shatter his Defense with some sharp tools of our own!"_

_Kecleon turned and heard Nic. She had never forgotten that saying._

"_Use Screech!" Nic shouted. Kecleon then emanated a red shockwave and Aegislash quivered, seeing as it had no ears, but the vibrations ran through its body harshly._

"_Use Sacred Sword!" Wikstrom shouted. The long blade then stretched with a large amount of energy. That energy concentrated into a longer blade. Aegislash then tilted its body and brought down the mighty sword onto Kecleon._

"_**Screech!**__" Nic commanded. Kecleon then emanated more red shockwaves. As the sword was coming down, Aegislash felt more vibrations going through itself, throwing off its aim. The attack missed by a few feet, shattering the ground that was right next to Kecleon._

"_My word! His Kecleon has avoided my assault!" Wikstrom noted. _

_Aegislash got back up and glared at Kecleon deeply. Wikstrom then ordered another Sacred Sword, of which was coming at Kecleon sideways. Nic has Kecleon dodge by jumping. He asked her to do one last Screech._

'_Fear me!' She emanated one more Screech, causing Aegislash to shiver harshly from all of the vibrations it felt. It was shivering and quivering uncontrollably. _

'_The tools are all sharpen.'_

_Wistrom had Aegislash then use Iron Head, which it followed through with. Nic found this to be the right opportunity._

"_**Thief!**__ Now!" Nic yelled. Kecleon then charged at Aegislash and the two attacks collided. With Aegislash's Defense way down, the two were at an even standpoint. Kecleon's strength was probably getting the upper hand, since Thief is super effective on Aegislash. It was tough to see who would come out on top, Iron Head or Thief. After a few moments, Kecleon took this opportunity and grabbed its shoulders. This had caught Aegislash in a state of shock. _

"_What?!" Wikstrom shouted. Aegislash tried trying away, but Kecleon refused to let go. She held her ground and saw Aegislash struggle to pry itself free from Kecleon's claws. "Get out of there!"_

'_Time to cut down this oak.'_

"_Now, __**Shadow Sneak!**__" Nic shouted. Kecleon screamed as it made its shadow lung into Aegislash, ramming it right in the eye straight up. It didn't even had time to do King's Shield, and Kecleon had let go, watching her Shadow Sneak soar high into the air, sending Aegislash with it. Wikstrom watched in shock as the Shadow Sneak went so high up. The attack smashed Aegislash into the ceiling, causing a tremor and some rocks to fall. After a few moments, the shadow ceased and Aegislash started to fall, leaving a cracked roof. Aegislash crashed into the earth, right next to a piece of debris that fell from earlier. It had fainted with no doubt._

'_And thus sprouts a new oak.' Kecleon turned and smiled, seeing how she grew to be such a fine and now confident weirdo. She then finished by tilting her head._

Now Kecleon was going to do just that – shatter that armor.

She frowned and looked at Gajeel dead in the eye, now back on her feet. She had no fear to show. She leaned forward and looked as though she was about to sprint towards Gajeel.

"I will butter this toast if it's my last breath!" Kecleon shouted, proclaiming her stand against Gajeel. Gajeel was really anxious now. He then transformed into his Iron Dragon Scales just to make thing go his way. He gritted his teeth and then the two lunged at one another.

"**Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!**"

"**Slash!**"

The two went back to back assaults on one another. Kecleon kept up with Gajeel for a good thirty seconds. When Gajeel went to strike once more, Kecleon leaned to her left and jumped.

"**Screech!**" She did a mid-air attack, making red shockwaves vibrate at such a high frequency. Gajeel's Dragon Scales didn't make it any easier for him, as the vibrations made his scales almost quiver, this making him shake. He tried drowning out the sound, but his iron body absorbed it. She flipped over him and landed behind him. Gajeel recovered quickly, but he felt uneasy from that Screech. He turned and used an Iron Dragon's Club. Kecleon ducked and dashed left.

"Don't run away from me! **Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!**" He made a Magic Seal and out shot forth iron spears at her. Kecleon evasively maneuvered her way and dodged with a series of flips and more dashing. Kecleon then closed in on Gajeel and jumped over his head. Gajeel looked up, only to get hammered with an over-the-head Screech. He felt every iron nerve in his body shake and vibrate atrociously. He felt as though he was sensitive to the touch. His scales felt all worn out from the immense vibrations. Gajeel got to a knee as Kecleon landed in front of him and swiftly leaped a distance away for her adversary to take a breath.

"The…heck…my body...doesn't…feel sturdy." Gajeel stuttered, feeling off. Kecleon was ready to end this show. She got ready for one more Slash. Then, she charged full speed at Gajeel. Gajeel then create an Iron Dragon's Sword and the two attacks mad contact. The sword was trying to surpass Slash, but due to Screech dropping Gajeel's Defense to its minimum the sword shattered with Slash following through.

"Impossible!" Gajeel shouted. He was then struck with Slash, with Kecleon posing right behind him. Gajeel didn't yelp, but he felt his body drop to his knees again. A large fraction of his abdomen scales were slashed off and there were claw marks going at an angle. He looked in shock as he winced in pain.

"How did you…?" Gajeel struggled to look back, but then saw that Kecleon wasn't there. He turned his head back to find Kecleon in front on his face.

"You so done! **Shadow Sneak!**" Kecleon then unleashed her shadow from straight underneath Gajeel. The shadow sprang up and rammed Gajeel in his abdomen. Gajeel gagged and howled in agony as his defenses were shattered completely. He soared upwards, straight through the ceiling. His lackeys became conscious just in time to see Gajeel get send through the roof of the warehouse. The two looked to see that Kecleon was overpowering Gajeel. The shadow ceased and Gajeel came soaring downwards. He was about to crash into the earth and then Kecleon used Thief in mid-air and rammed into him, sending flying through the broken wall of the building and into the streets. His lackeys both looked in shock and disbelief as Gajeel had been defeated, again.

"B-boss was defeated!" The male Mage said. The two looked back to see the Kecleon tilting her head and glaring at them. They were both creeped out and scared.

"We've gotta get out of here, and get boss some iron!" The female Mage exclaimed. Gajeel's Dragon Scales were shattered all over his body, and he was barely conscious. The two got up and dragged Gajeel back to Phantom Lord, hoping to get him a speedy recovery with some iron.

Kecleon watched as they went off back to the guild, almost limping. She smiled.

"And that is how I butter my toast." She then turned and looked in the other direction, where Reedus and Lucy might had ran off.

'_I hope those two made it safe.'_ She then turned and tilted her head. "I like grapes. They're my fruits of labor."

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Phantom Lord…**

Elfman, Gray, Erza, and Nic were all running through the halls of the Phantom Lord HQ. They needed to find a way to stop this place before it unleashed another weapon if they had one. Jupiter was bad enough, think if they had something worse than that. Jupiter might not be his only resort, so it's best to say Jose has more tricks up his sleeve.

"Get ready guys. There's a large group that's going to ambush us at the next turn." Nic informed his comrades.

"How can you be so sure?" Gray asked.

"When I'm in my Meadow Plate Form, I take in all of my surroundings. Nature is by my side, and I can sense a lot of properties in a vast area." Nic pointed out.

The other three couldn't help but be in awe. Being able to sense an enemy from such a distance was a very convenient advantage. They wondered what else Nic could do.

"Gray, as soon as I soften them up, you give them a welcome gift!" Nic instructed the Ice Make Mage.

"What do mean by that-?!" Gray didn't get an answer as Nic stretched out his arms and Vine Whip came from his sleeves. He used one vine to grab onto the above chandeliers, and used the other one to grab Gray. Nic reeled himself up and then swung his way towards another chandelier.

They reached the corner, and turned. There, Nic quickly reeled himself to another chandelier before the group saw them. The enemy group was startled. They expected them to arrive on foot, but Nic dooped them. As Nic swung from chandelier to chandelier, he inhaled and blew out a huge cloud of orange sparkly dust on the entire group, just before they could do their spells. They all had sparks going about their bodies and they became paralyzed. Gray knew instantly what Nic meant right after his Stun Spore paralyzed the group.

In mid-air, Nic whipped Gray at the group and let go of him. Gray brought his hands together as he went soaring downwards.

"**Ice Make: Hammer!**" A huge ice hammer was then made and Gray swung at the literally stunned group. The mages had no chance as Gray ploughed through them with ease.

Nic landed right next to him just as Erza and Elfman had caught up. As they continued to press forward, they were just about to reach to Jupiter room, when a massive explosion was heard, shaking the place.

"The heck?" Gray said.

"It sounds like Natsu's having a ball with that Jupiter Cannon." Elfman said. They made only a few steps when the entire building was shaking. They saw the room behind them just disappear and the floor shifted as well. The building was changing.

The rumbling stopped after a few minutes. Nic and the others felt as though the building had changed drastically. They saw the Jupiter room up ahead and saw the ground heavily cracked and several lacrima pieces destroyed. They also saw Natsu and Happy confronted by some guy with black and white hair.

Natsu looked as though his motion sickness was kicking in, which wasn't good.

"Gray! Elfman!" Nic ordered. Both sprang into action.

"Prepare to die, Dragon Slayer!" The Fire Mage yelled, ready to finish off Natsu. He then took note that his body was being coated in ice, nullifying any chance of escape or movement. "Hey, what's going on?" He was talking even though he was frozen in ice, illogical but nobody cared.

Elfman then changed his arm into some scaly lizard beast arm. "You're no man, you're an upward shooting crystal ball!" He then punched him to who knows where.

"That makes no sense!" The Fire Mage shouted. As soon as he was out of sight, Natsu was slowly getting up, recovering from his unfortunate motion sickness.

"Nice job, you guys." Natsu said.

"You guys are so awesome!" Happy shouted, glad that Elfman and Gray came just in time.

The two look down at their friends.

"Natsu, what you did was just sad." Gray said.

"Yeah. That shift from just now should've been motion sick of you." Elfman said, his arm changing back to itself. Nic and Erza joined up with them.

"So I take it that you showed that Jupiter Cannon that you're the boss, yes Natsu?" Nic asked, knowing that's how it went down.

"You bet!" Natsu replied. Happy then flew out of the broken chamber and took a good look at what happened.

He noticed that the entire building. Happy was in shock to see not only a giant golden seal, but the entire guild itself turned into a humungous giant.

"Holy cow! The entire Guild Hall transformed into a giant!" Happy shrieked once he got back to the others. "And what's worse, that thing is making a giant spell!"

Erza narrowed her eyes. "A giant spell? Could it be…" Erza was saying stuff and then trailed off, thinking what it was.

"Erza?" Gray asked. Erza looked back up and kept her composure. "It's casting the Abyss Break."

Everyone, except Nic, was taken back by this development. By everyone's reaction, Abyss Break sounds like a dangerous spell.

"I take it that it's dangerous?" Nic questioned the Requip Mage.

"Yes, and by the size of it, we can say that it will wipe out all of Magnolia." Erza indicated. Nic was wide eyed at this development now. He had a hunch that Jose had something up his dreadful sleeves, and his hunch was right.

"So what do we do now?! We can't stand here and wait for that thing to fire!" Natsu shouted impatiently.

Nic turned to Natsu. "Relax, we just need to figure out what makes the Abyss Break work." He then turned to Erza. "What else is there about the Abyss Break?"

"It's comprised of four elements: Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. The Abyss Break gets its power from those four elements." Erza said.

Nic then had a realization. Je went wide eyed as he recalled the Element Four. If he recalled correctly, Juvia and Sol were members of the Element Four, and that guy that they defeated just now must have been another member.

"Oh, duh." Nic said. This got everyone's attention. "The Element Four must be powering this thing. Since they all have the attributes that Abyss Break needs, it's safe to say that they're the ones that need to be defeated in order for Abyss Break to stop." Nic said.

Everyone was in shock. This was the whatever time that Nic had astounded the group. Erza didn't think of this earlier. She had no idea Nic was this perceptive when it came to reasoning.

"Wait, so how do we stop the rest of the Element Four? We don't even know where to look!" Natsu had a point. They didn't know how they'll come across them or when.

"Well, our best bet is to split up and cover more ground." Nic said. With no one throwing out counterarguments, they followed through with Nic's plan and started for the nearest hallway.

* * *

**With Mira and the others**

Down on the battlefield, Jose's shades were getting the upper hand. Mira, still transformed into Lucy, was in the broken Guild Hall, while Cana tried conversing on the other side. They tried to think as to how they should take action.

"How long until the Abyss Break activates?" Can questioned Mira through a boarded wall.

"I'd say ten minutes if not sooner." Mira said.

"I'm sure the guys inside are looking for that thing's power source. Nic, Natsu, Gray, Erza, and Elfman are all up there stopping it as we speak." Cana's words made Mira's eyes shot wide open upon hearing her brother taking action.

"Elfman?!" Mira exclaimed.

"What's the big deal? He was one of our best fighters in the raid earlier." Cana pointed out. Regardless, Mira was still concerned of her brother.

"Grunts are one thing, but if he went up against Phantom's strongest…I don't think he can handle it." Mira didn't sound all that confident in Elfman due to past experience. Cana remembered all too well the trauma she and Elfman had to endure in regards of their sister Lisanna.

"…I understand. After everything you two went through. I think this is his way of leaving the past behind and moving forward." Cana explained. Mira then looked down, deeply contemplating about how she should resolve this dilemma. After a few moments, she had to move forward as well. She left the building and went out on the battlefield.

"Mira, what are you doing?" Cana called out to her disguised friend.

"Don't do it!" Bisca shouted. Mira just kept walking forward out to the battlefield. Jose looked out and saw "Lucy" walk out. He smirked, thinking things will work in his favor. One of his fellow assistance then came into his room and took note.

"Sir, didn't you send Gajeel after her?" He asked. Jose frowned, thinking he had a point. He then turned back and looked at his assistant.

"Why yes, I did. Was he successful, I take it?" Jose said, thinking that things wren't as they seemed to be.

"No sir. Gajeel was defeated by one of Nic's creatures. He's back and started to make a fast recovery."

Jose was gritting his teeth. Now he was certain that this Lucy in front was a fraud. The real one had gotten away and Gajeel was defeated…again. His assistance started to freak out because they could see the foul Magic energy around him, showing how displeased he was.

"That Nic and his creatures have interfered one too many times! Young Pularis will have to meet me sooner than he will expect."

Back outside, "Lucy" was issuing a surrender. Jose didn't buy it one bit.

"Nice try. I know Lucy Heartfilia isn't here, so you can cut the transformation." Jose announced, much to Mira's shock. Seeing how she was seen through, she transformed back into herself, clenching her fists.

A green seal then appeared under Mira, pulling her under. She screamed as she was transported somewhere.

"Mira!" Cana shouted. Mira was then shown to be in the clutches of the big giant, wedged between two of its fingers.

"Did you think your little parlor trick could fool me?" Jose sneered from within the giant.

"Mira!" Cana shouted. She couldn't do anything from where she was at now. She looked up at Mira, hoping for the best. _'You guys, hurry.'_

* * *

**With Nic and the others**

The group was about to come across another forty or so Mages up ahead, though they were unfazed due to Nic being able to sense them from earlier. Erza requiped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. She summoned twenty or so swords and launched them ahead, cutting the members into half. She then requiped back into her usual armor.

"**Beast Arm: Iron Bull!**" Elfman's right arm then morphed into a big gauntlet made of iron.

Nic used Vine Whip to grab Elfman's other arm and hurled him into the rest of them. The Mages toppled over like bowling pins. A perfect strike with no spares.

"Agh! I didn't get to set ablaze to any of those guys! Nic, I want to kick butt as well!" Complained Ntsu.

"Quit it. Now's not the time for your antics!" Nic scolded, getting him to flinch from his authority.

"He's right. We need to keep moving." Gray advised.

The four ran ahead to see Elfman embedded in a wall at the far end of the corridor with spirals for eyes.

"Eh…I think I threw him a little too hard." Nic mumbled. It only took a moment for the Take Over Mage to shake off his dizziness and come back to reality.

He glared at Nic with distaste. "Next time, I throw you!"

The Multitype Mage put his hands up as a gesture that he didn't mean to. "Sure, fine." He responded casually.

They all then saw that the corridor branched off into various hallways. Each looked as though it would lead to somewhere. It was safe to bet that it would be the Element Four.

Nic also sensed a familiar presence somewhere. He sighed, realizing what it was. He turned to face Natsu.

"Hey, Natsu." Nic said. "I detected Gajeel. He's st the top of the building. He's probably recovering from when he tried to kidnap Lucy earlier."

This news made everyone stand on edge. "What?! He tried to kidnap Lucy?!" Natsu shouted.

Nic nodded. "Yes, but I don't sense Lucy here, meaning that Kecleon defeated Gajeel. If I had to guess, I'd say he's eating iron to get back up to speed." He then turned to Elfman. "Also, I detected Mirajane here as well. She's somewhere down there." He then pointed down a hallway that was left of them.

"They have Mira?!" Elfman shouted. Nic nodded in response.

"Elfman, you go and save Mira. The rest of us will stop the rest of the Element Four; however, I would assume that one of them is down there where you might be going, so stay alert." Nic advised. Elfman mad no haste in dashing down a hallway on their left.

"Alright, I'm coming for you Gajeel!" Natsu roared. He engulfed himself in flames and shot upwards, burning through the ceiling and onto the next floor until he was escalating to the top. As soon as Natsu was out of sight, Nic grabbed one of his poke balls and tossed it upwards.

"Come on out!" Nic shouted. The energy then transformed into a cobra-like pokémon with a pattern on its belly. Everyone looked in shock to see another new creature that Nic has just now shown. Arbok hissed and turned to Nic.

"Nic-ssssama, what isssss it that you dessssire me to do?" The Cobra Pokémon asked his trainer in how he may serve him. Compared to normal Arboks, he was very mild and very obedient to Nic and does whatever he is ordered to do.

It's when he doesn't address to Nic is when he gets nasty.

"I need you to follow Natsu upwards. The odds are that Gajeel won't be the only one up there, so I need you to take care of any goons that may be helping him. Don't be afraid to assist Natsu if he's in a tight spot as well; however, leave most of the brawling to him and help if the time seems fit." Nic ordered in detail, making sure Arbok gets everything that he has said.

"Asssss you wish." Arbok hissed. It then slowly retracted its body backwards and bared its fangs. It then sprang forward and slithered in a blink of an eye down the hallway leading up to where Natsu was heading. Everyone looked in shock to see how fast Arbok's reflexes were. He was fast. Since when aren't any of Nic's pokémon fast?

"Geez, that one's a bit scary." Happy noted, which caught Nic by surprise.

"That's funny. Because his ability is Shed Skin. If it were Intimidate, that would be understandable." He implied. With no room to discuss the concept of abilities, Happy flew up through the burned ceilings to catch up with his pal.

In the meantime, Gray went down another hallway and Erza stayed by Nic's side.

"What about you? If possible, there's a good chance that one of us will be encountering someone who's not an Element Four." Erza noted.

Nic paused, knowing full-well that he knows where to find a certain person. "Trust me, I think Jose is interested in me only."

Erza went wide eyed, knowing that Nic will be going up against Jose.

"Are you blind? Nic, he's a member of the Ten Wizard Saints. His power is far too lethal for you alone!" She protested.

"Who says that I'm alone?" Nic asked in a calm manner. He got out a poke ball and out came Greninja, who was ready for battle.

"I don't think the two of you should be doing this. He's too powerful." Erza had a point. His power was something to behold.

Nic turned back to face her. "We won't know unless we try; besides, stopping Jose will stop this entire war. Greninja and I can do this Erza." Nic said.

There was a long silence, but Erza could see that Nic won't argue since there wasn't any time to argue anyway. All she could do was just hope that he will be alright.

"Okay Nic, we leave Jose to you." Erza spoke. With that said and done, Nic and Greninja dashed down a hallway, leaving Erza to sprint down the last remaining one.

'_Nic, you better come back after this is all over.' _Erza thought, starting to worry about Nic. For some reason, the thought of seeing Nic get hurt in front of her was almost too much to bear. Something in her was making her feel all jumpy and fluttery inside. She had to restrain every impulse that told her to run back to Nic, almost as though she had forgotten to give Nic something. A hug maybe?

She had to put these strange feelings aside for now and continue on with the mission at hand. As much as she would love to keep thinking about this desire to get back to Nic, she pressed onwards down the hall.

* * *

**With Elfman**

"Mira!" He shouted repeatedly. He didn't see any sign of her. Maybe Nic's senses weren't as good? He still kept running down the hall, hoping to find some answers. He stopped when he felt like he stepped on something. He turned around and saw that Monsieur Sol had emerged from underneath.

"Salut!" The member of the Element Four greeted. "Comment ca va? I am Sol, Monsieur Sol!"

"Ask me if I care! All I want to know is where you're keeping Mira. **Beast Arm: Black Bull!**" His arm then transformed into an even bigger and more muscular arm that was black all over. Sol adjusted his monocle, seeing this transformation.

"Oh, what is this? It would appear that you can only transform your right arm and not the rest of your body, monsieur." Sol said, waving his body about.

"So what, that still means that you're going down!" Elfman shouted, unleashing a punch down on Sol. Sol managed to dodge and backflip, keeping his distance.

"**Sable Dance!**" He created a Magic Seal and a whirlwind of sand engulfed Elfman, restraining his movements. Sol then appeared right behind him once the sand subsided. "**Roche Concerto!**" Rocks then escalated under Elfman's feet, making him fly into the air. He was able to bounce back by landing softly on the ground, thus taking little damage. Elfman, however, didn't have time to react when Monsieur Sol wrapped his entire body around Elfman's Black Bull Arm.

"Salut!" He said.

"You're sick man!" Elfman stated. He tried prying Sol off, but his body was too flexible. "Get off me, Man Sewer Sol!"

Taking offense, Monsieur Sol uncoiled his body and gave a mid-air kick to Elfman. "That's Monsieur Sol, idiot!" Elfman took a more defensive stance, seeing hoe he was tougher than he looked. "A long time ago, you attempted a Full-Body Take Over and went beserk, n'est pas?" Sol taunted him.

Elfman looked down in shame, seeing how it was true. "**Beast Arm: Iron Bull!**" He was about to strike when a statue resembling Lisanna appeared, which made him stop in his tracks.

"Je suis desolee, but I took the liberty of rummaging through your memories when you stepped on me earlier." Sol said. Elfman grunted and gritted his teeth, he then tried another attempt at a Full-Body Take Over, but wasn't holding up very well due to Sol taunting him with Lisanna.

"Non, non, non. Do you remember what happened last time?" Sol then created more copies of Lisanna with the earth around him. Now Elfman was surrounded by copies of his little sister everywhere. They all taunted him, throwing off his concentration.

"You coward." Elfman said, his knee on the ground. "A real man would face me head on!"

Sol then made all of the statues turn to dust and made that dust swirl about him. "Same implies to you. You're no man, you're a mindless east of whom killed his own sister! **Platre Sonata!**" He then launched a big plastered fist that broke the wall of the building. Mira saw this from the outside and looked to see what was happening. She saw Elfman on the ground.

"Elfman!" Mira shouted, causing him to instantly get back up onto his feet in shock.

"Mira? Mira!" Elfman shouted. He found her at least, but she was in the giant's grip.

Sol was right behind him when he saw his sister.

"I take it that is your older sister, Mademoiselle Mirajane. Formerly known as 'The She Devil'. She is being punished for trying to trick Master Jose, and now she will be crushed to death. As for you, your manly image is nothing more than a façade, hiding the weak creature that you are." He then made a seal in front of Elfman and his body was quaking in pain, causing him to scream. "**Merci la Vie!** You shall suffer the eternal memory of your sister's demise!"

"STOP IT!" Elfman shouted. His body was slowly turning into stone due to Merci la Vie. He was able to hear Mira shout out to him, bringing him back to reality.

"Elfman! I can't lose you too!" Mira was streaming tears and reaching out to him. Elfman saw his sister crying, which made him snap.

"…she's crying." Elfman said.

Sol looked back to see what he was doing, adjusting his monocle. "What now?"

Suddenly, a huge surge of power encased Elfman as the stone began breaking down. "I swore, I would never let anyone make you cry again. TELL ME, WHY ARE YOU CRYING?!" Elfman shouted. His body was glowing very bright with a lot of Magic surfacing.

"That light! No Elfman!" Mira shouted.

"I'LL MAKE YOU PAY FOR MAKING MY SISTER CRY!" Elfman roared. A large seal then came and then Sol looked to see what was happening.

"He did it." Sol said in deep shock.

"A Full-Body Take Over: **Beast Soul**!" Mira shouted.

Elfman was now a towering monster with claws for feet. He still had his pants (thank god), and his skin was now red with green abs. His face and neck were also green. His hair now looked more like a mane and he now had canines and got striped horns going up from a plate on top of his head. He had horns on his shoulders and he had a demonic roar.

Monsieur Sol was terrified. His eyes were wide in horror of the beast in front of him.

He tried to make an excuse. "Non, non, non! I wasn't trying to hurt you, I was simply trying to help you recover from your trauma. You are indeed the manliest of men. Eh…n'est pas?" Sol then tried walking away, but Elfman swatted at him, making the Element Four member airborne.

"Curse you! **Platre Sonata!**" He then launched a giant plastered fist while still in the air, hitting Elfman. Monsieur Sol looked to see he was unfazed by the attack, and he proceeded to beating the defenseless Element Four member mercilessly into the ground, punch after punch. Elfman roared as he did so, also clenching his ghost and throwing it back into his body. Elfman then picked up the beaten-up Sol with one hand.

"Non, at least knock me out, s'il vous plait!" Sol pleaded. Elfman then hit him one more time before Mira called out to him.

"Elfman!" Mira shouted, getting his attention. He turned and his size began to diminish. He ran up to his sister, while leaving Sol defeated on the ground. Elfman jumped and leaped along the arm, getting closer and closer to his worried sister. He then stopped right in front of her and glare at her.

"Elfman, I'm worried. Please don't tell me you lost control." Mira said, a little scared. To her shock, she was pulled out of the giant's grip and was hugged by Elfman.

"I'm sorry." Elfman said, his voice a little more demonic since he's in the Beast Soul. "I promised that I would never do another Full-Body Take Over ever again, not after what happened with Lisanna. This was the only way I could protect you and all of Fairy Tail."

Mira was so happy Elfman was still in control. "You're still in control." She said, so happy her brother didn't go crazy. "What happened back then wasn't your fault. You were trying to protect us."

Elfman then transformed back into himself. "…And I failed miserably. I killed our little sister." Elfman then looked down in udder shame as to that incident. Mira then went and comforted him.

"I'm still here. I'm still alive." Mira said. "We promise to live on for her, and she'll always be in our hearts forever."

Elfman then started to cry in joy. "Big sis! I'm so glad you're okay!" Mira looked up at her happy brother, and then noticed something in regards to the Abyss Break. Elfman saw this and looked at the circle as well.

"That's weird, the Magic circle for the Abyss Break Spell isn't being drawn as fast as it was before." She said.

Elfman then recalled what Nic had said about the Element Four powering the Abyss Break. "Mirajane, the Element Four is powering this thing, so tye giant slows down every time one of them is defeated." He explained, reiterating Nic's hunch. Mira was wide eyed at how this was very accurate.

"Yes. That must be it. How did you know?"

"Nic said it. He figured we could take down the Element Four and then the Abyss Break would be stopped."

Mira looked in shock, thinking how Nic was very knowledgeable. She had no idea that Nic was so perceptive. She and Elfman then got off the arm and went off to find the others.

* * *

**With Gray**

Gray crawled through a window and looked up, seeing that it was raining. He crawled out to find Juvia waiting there.

"Drip, drip, drop. Hello. I am Juvia of the Element Four. Drip, drip, drop." She said, holding an umbrella.

"Bring it on." Gray said calmly. "I'm not holding back since you're a chick."

After a long stare at one another, Juvia began to blush for some reason and turned back. "Well, I give up. You win." She said

"The heck?! Did you forget to go to the bathroom or something?!" Gray shouted. He then ran up to Juvia, only to get caught up in her Water Lock Spell. Gray winced in pain. Juvia noticed that Gray had an abdomen injury and started to panic.

"Oh my god. What do I do?!" Juvia questioned in concern. Gray then turned the whole thing into ice and shattered it, breaking free.

"He's an Ice Wizard!" Juvia exclaimed. "It's beautiful!" She then started thinking to herself._ 'I'm water and he's ice. We must be bound by fate.'_

Gray then slowly got up, still clenching his abdomen. "You almost got me there. You're fighting dirty."

Juvia got the wrong implication and started blushing when he took off his shirt.

"**Ice Make: Lance!**" He then summoned a Magic seal and arrows of ice shot at Juvia, only to have the attack go through her. Gray looked in deep shock that his attack didn't do anything.

"My body is made entirely of water. Drip, drip, drop. Sadly, I have no choice but to attack. **Water Slicer!**"

Gray then saw blades of water race towards him, but he managed to dodge.

"**Ice Make: Battle Axe!**" Gray then made a giant axe and swung at her, but it proved ineffective. _'Now what do I do?' _

"You cannot defeat me. Your guild may be spared if you hand over Lucy Heartfilia. Do that and I'll ask our Master to stop the attack. Drip, drip, drop." Juvia said.

Gray wasn't moved. "Like hell that's going to happen. Lucy's one of us. I'd rather die than give her to you."

Juvia then dropped her umbrella. She was deeply shocked by the false implication. She thought Lucy was her rival now. Juvia screamed how fate could be so cruel, which caught Gray off guard.

Juvia then surge a lot of water in anger. "Lucy must not be allowed to live!" She shouted, determined to beat her new love rival.

Gray was just confused.

She then unleashed a scalding hot Water Beam at Gray, only he was able to avoid it.

"What's your problem with Lucy?!" Gray shouted, only to get responded with another Water Beam. Gray was too slow to use his Ice Make Magic, so he dodged until he saw a Water Beam coming from above. He was able to make a shield, but the water was boiling hot, making the ice melt.

"I am invincible in the rain. You cannot defeat me." She then saw that Gray was nowhere to be seen. There was a steam cloud and Gray used that to his advantage. He was in the air and Juvia saw him.

"It's all over!" Juvia shouted, unleashing another boiling hot Water Beam.

"Oh yeah?!" Gray then touched the beam and it was turned to ice. He slid down and encased Juvia in it.

Juvia was blushing when she noticed that Gray's hand was on one of her breasts and he started flipping out.

"GAH! It's not what you think, I didn't mean to!" He shouted. She's never felt so embarrassed in her life. Gray then yanked his hand out and the ice disappeared.

"Sorry!" Gray said, having Juvia drop to her knees. "Okay, how about we start all over."

"No. I don't want to hurt you anymore, so there's no point to continue." Juvia said, standing up. Gray then noticed that the rain was starting to get worse.

"Man, this rain is so gloomy." He said, setting off a nerve in Juvia.

She started to steam so much and got mad. "How could you be so cruel?!" She shouted. She then launched a huge Water Beam at Gray. He tried to use his Ice Make Magic, but he couldn't do it due to the water being too hot. "I'm through with love!" She yelled, sending Gray back. "I've lived my whole life as a gloomy rain girl, but Phantom Lord looked past that, and they welcomed me with open arms. **Sierra!**" She then lunged at Gray with her body made entirely of scalding water.

Gray then made a shield just as water shot at him. "How can you be a proud member if your guild has harmed the innocent?!" He then punched the water, turning it into ice and nullifying Juvia's attack.

Juvia looked in shock to see how Gray turned the rain around her to ice. "He's amazing!" She said out loud.

"**Ice Make: Geyser!**" A Magic Seal then formed at his feet and a tower of ice shot up and froze Juvia. She screamed as the ice shattered and she started falling to the ground.

'_I lost. I'll splatter like a raindrop. Farewell world.' _She thought. Only that didn't happen. Gray skid and saved her from falling. She looked up in shock.

"Just hang on!" Gray shouted. "I won't let you fall!" Juvia held on as Gray helped her up. He then set her right behind him.

"Why did you save me?" Juvia asked.

"Just because." Gray said.

'_He saved my life…' _She then saw the sun come out and the clouds began to disappear. "So bright." She then saw and looked up at the blue sky. "The rain…it stopped."

"Hey look, the sun's coming out." Gray indicated. He then looked at Juvia, who was on the verge of tears.

"The blue sky, I've never seen it before." She said. "It's so beautiful."

Gray looked astonished that she never saw it before, but got out of that shock.

"So, you wanna go at it?" He asked her. Once again, the false implication made her heart jump and have hearts for a mouth and eyes. She screamed as she had hearts all over and fell unconscious.

Gray got up in shock of Juvia's behavior and the fact she was out.

"Hey, are you okay?! Speak to me!" Gray said, not understanding what went on in her head.

It wasn't long before Mira and Elfman showed right by Gray's side.

"Hey, you managed to defeat another of the Element Four." Elfman said, seeing how Juvia was down.

"Though, why is grinning in her sleep?" Mira wondered. Gray just shrugged, thinking she might be having a good dream.

They then saw that the Abyss Break circle was even slower than before, meaning there was only one left.

"Three down, one to go. Let's take them down like real men!" Elfman said with a clenched fist.

"Man, I sure hope Natsu, Erza, and Nic are okay." Gray said.

With the Abyss Break slowing down, everyone in the guild fighting below noticed the giant slowing down as well.

"Nice one you guys, keep it up!" Cana cheered as she shot a few cards and destroyed shades. _'Hurry up Nic. We don't know how much more we can take.'_

* * *

**And then we stop there. A lot of stuff happened this chapter, but that's good. I'm trying to get the plot moving as quick as I can in these next couple of chapters.**

**As you have read, you now know Nic's fifth Pokémon. You'll see Arbok in action next chapter. If you guys are wondering, the last pokémon will show in The Battle of Fairy Tail Arc. So sit tight until then.**

**Did you like Kecleon's flashback? I thought it was reasonable with the situation she was in. Let me know if you liked that scene.**

**Was the way Jupiter was stopped fair to you guys? Let me know.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, and Review this story and/or chapter if it appeals to you guys.**

**Review, because I said so. No pressure.**

* * *

**Next Time: No Way, Jose**


	10. No Way, Jose

Chapter 10 – No Way, Jose

**S'up peeps! Before anything, let me say that the title of the chapter was indeed a pun. You know that saying? Well, I'm using it quite literally this time. I might as well address and answer a few Reviews while I'm at it.**

**Guest: You're just about right in regards to Type variation along Nic's team. I want to have a variety of sources that the characters can depend on. The last one, however, with circumstances in regards to his team, I plan to make the last pokémon a more popular choice. That one will have a key in a couple future Arcs ahead. I also appreciate the kind stuff you're saying about my story and I thank you for the heads up.**

**Alpha Dragonis: Jupiter depletes its Magic source once fired, but you can say Nic copied the properties of the blast without using his own power. So he exhausted little energy when using Mirror Move, because the move itself did all of the work; although, you did have a point on a drawback, but Nic didn't have any major**** drawbacks with said reason if it makes any sense to you. You also have a valid point with Staraptor, but if it weren't for Close Combat, it wouldn't be considered as popular.**

**You guys, just don't worry about the last pokémon. It's better to focus on the present ones, because you know it won't show until The Battle of Fairy Tail Arc, so chillax and read the story.**

**Thanks for the support so far, I appreciate it. Let's rock n' roll.**

**To Recap:**

The entire Phantom Lord Guild has become mobile and made its way towards an injured Fairy Tail Guild. When Jupiter Cannon fired, Nic showed up and saved everyone. Nic, Elfman, Gray, and Erza all stormed the menacing guild while Natsu and Happy destroyed the Jupiter Cannon. Meanwhile, Lucy and Reedus were found by Gajeel, but was defeated by Nic's Kecleon, allowing the two to make another escape. Mira's transformation was found false and the giant snatched her up. Inside, the team splits, with Elfman saving his sister and taking down Sol, Gray defeating a love struck Juvia, Natsu going to fight Gajeel with Nic's Arbok as backup, Erza going to stop the last Element Four member, and Nic and Greninja heading off to quarrel with Jose.

* * *

**Chapter 10 – No Way, Jose**

At this point, only one member of the Element Four was still standing. If he was defeated, then the Abyss Break would be put to a halt. However, there were other obstacles in the way, such as a certain Dragon Slayer and a typical Wizard Saint, both aching to fight.

* * *

**With Erza**

She had entered a spacious room at the end of the hall that she ran down. She looked about and didn't see anything nor anyone; regardless, there was a potent Magic energy in the room. She knew someone was here, but which member could it had been?

She felt the presence concentrate behind her, and spun around to see Aria floating in the air. She summoned two swords in the blink of an eye and got into a battle stance, not wasting any time with said opponent.

"So, Titania, it would appear that you are my adversary today. It makes me sad to see a worthy foe fall, but it must be done by the order of Jose." Aria said with streams of tears coming down his blindfold.

Erza's grip tightened around her two swords. She glared at Aria with deep animosity, not forgetting what he had done to Makarov. "I know it was you who drained the Master of his Magic. I shall repay you in full for your actions."

Erza then lunged at Aria and attempted to slash him, but he teleported away at the last second. Erza grunted as the attack followed through with no target. She felt his energy above and looked up. Aria was above her and showed his palms downwards, making a Magic Seal.

"**Zetsu!**" He then launched his Airspace Magic down on the mighty Titania. Erza jumped back multiple times, dodging the bombarding explosions. She then jumped and trie slashing once more, but Aria then created an Airspace shield and blocked her assault. She fell to the ground and Aria shot forth another Zetsu in the process, prompting Erza to slash at the oncoming explosions as an act of defense. Fortunately, the Airspace barrages were all sliced and went past her, exploding behind her as she landed with grace. "You are not without reflexes and skill, oh mighty Titania. It would appear that I will have to step it up." He was smiling ever so confidently, believing Erza was no match for him. Yeah…sucks to be him right now.

He took off his blindfold, revealing magenta eyes that unfolded into four evenly spaced slices, four in all. Just then, a huge surge of power enveloped the atmosphere all around, causing winds to be stirred. "Now Titania, see if you survive Zero, also known as 'The Airspace of Death'. It consumes all life that happens to step in it!" A monstrous wind then enveloped the entire room, causing chandeliers and debris to shatter into little pieces

Erza wasn't feeling at all fazed by this act. She held up her sword at Aria. "Tell me, how is it that you could go so low as being such a sadistic character, relishing on other's misery?! Answer me!"

"It'd be more fun to show you how I do this so called claim!" Aria shouted with an evil grin. Aria then brought his hands before him, with the right being on top of the left, with palms facing the charging Erza. He then fired small Airspaces at her, which somehow looked like stars (looks like that to me). Erza yelled as she slashed through Aria's Zero with ease, even gliding her sword through the small Airspace attacks. She charged even further, slicing through the very wind herself.

This shocked Aria, for he was surprised that his Airspace was being beaten. "But how?! She's cutting through my Airspace! It just can't be possible!"

"**Requip - Heaven's Wheel!**" Erza then requiped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor and soared above a shaking Aria. She then came down on him and slashed at him with a multitude of swords from out of the blue. "**Blumenblatt!**"

Aria screamed as Erza had dealt with him with upmost ease. He fell onto his side, defeated. Erza landed safely and softly while looking back at the fallen Aria with unfriendly glares.

"You can never defeat our Master with such tactics. You'll only be remembered as a coward who fell by my hand."

"That's so sad." He said before going unconscious.

In a matter of moments, the entire place was shaking up. The Abyss Break Spell was nullified outside. Everyone saw the giant's Abyss Break Spell shrinking and its eyes stopped glowing, meaning the power had shut off. It drooped slowly downwards into the water. The giant had gotten to a knee as one of its arm splashed into the water. Everyone cheered, seeing the giant defeated.

Back with Erza, she turned once the giant had stopped shaking. She requiped back into her Heart Kreuz Armor and turned back towards the way she came, hoping to find the others.

"If I had to guess, the Abyss Break had shut down, and so has the giant." She indicated. "The others must have finished with their tasks. Better go and meet up with them." She then hurried along the corridor and the thought of Nic had sprung into her mind for that one little second. _'Dammit Nic, why didn't you take us all with you to stop Jose?'_ Her sense of worry was escalating, but she had more problems to deal with than Nic fighting Jose, like finding the others first.

* * *

**With Natsu and Happy**

Natsu had just finished burning his way to the top, literally. He burst through the ceiling and entered the head of the giant, where there was a few lackeys and an Iron Dragon Slayer with an appetite.

Natsu was encased in flames and ready for action. "Gajeel!" Gajeel himself had just finished chomping on some iron, with his reserves back up and running. He wasn't fully recovered, but it was manageable and endurable with the amount of iron that went down into his stomach. He turned to face his new adversary, the Fire Dragon Slayer, Natsu Dragneel.

He smirked. "This should be easier than last time. At least I got a chance against this punk." He gloated.

One of his lackeys stepped up. "Gajeel!" He was about to ask if they should do something about him, but it was clear to them Gajeel wasn't one for answers from those beneath him.

"This one is mine!" Gajeel and Natsu then lunged at each other. Gajeel unleashed an Iron Dragon's Club in mid-air, but Natsu dodged and grabbed the column, doing a full three-sixty and hurling him back from where he came from. He planted his feet against the wall and defended from an oncoming flaming fist from Natsu, resulting in an explosion that frightened the subordinates.

"We gotta get out of here!" The male lackey from before said. Just then, he felt as though all nerves and feeling within him went numb, as did the female lackey that accompanied him.

"What's going on? Why can't I move?" He then heard a hiss from behind, which immediately had sent goose bumps running down his spine. The girl turned her eyes and saw a big cobra creature with its pattern on its body glowing, via Glare. They were both paralyzed and their movements were heavily restrained.

Happy had shown up just as when Natsu had delivered a successful blow with another flaming fist at Gajeel, sending him crashing into a wall. He looked over and saw Arbok scaring the crap out of his victims. He flew his way around the main battle and went over to see if Arbok was in need of any help. It was clear that help wasn't necessary for either participants.

"Sssso, you're with that piercccced lunatic, huh?" Arbok sneered at the two, making them almost whimper with Arbok closing in on them. He then bared his fangs and they glowed light blue, grew larger, and were covered in ice. "Out with you scoundrels!" With one swift movements, he slithered in a fast motion past them both at once. They never even saw it coming, he was so fast. Then again, they were paralyzed. They had half of their bodies frozen in ice, which was where Arbok's fangs had strike them. They both fell with the ice shattering and were unconscious, lying along a pile of debris. Arbok looked back and hissed with a glare, looking down at his fallen victims. He then looked back at the fight that was more important than his, awaiting to see if Natsu needed assistance.

"Whoa. That attack was scary." Happy commented. Arbok then looked down at Happy and hissed once more, making him jump on the spot.

"Focussss, ya flapping feline!" Arbok said in a snobbish tone. He slithered past Happy and waited patiently in a position that made him look as if he was going to lunge out when the time called for it. Happy looked to see Arbok, noticing that it was doing exactly as Nic told him to do. Recalling that Nic ordered Arbok to assist in taking out any goons and await for when Natsu is in need of backup. Happy then turned and watched the fight.

Gajeel cracked his neck, adjusting from that warm up. "For fairy scum, you sure are push overs." He noted.

"You're the real scum here pal. For trying to hurt Lucy, I'll melt through your rusty old skin." Natsu retorted. This got Gajeel thinking.

"Hold up, how did you know that I tried to kidnap your friend?" Gajeel demanded to know. Natsu had a fist with flames with Gajeel's name written all over it.

"Because Nic told me. He made sure to have someone there to stop ya, just like how he and Greninja will stop Jose." Natsu responded.

Gajeel was shocked on the inside. That guy from before had anticipated such actions and had Kecleon take care of him and shatter his defenses like glass. _'So, that Nic guy is much smarter than he looks. He must have known that I would also come back here to recover, leaving the two of us to duke it out while he fights Jose. What an idiot. He'll fall to Jose, leaving me to demolish this guy!'_ The thought of beating Salamander made his iron spine crawl with such anticipation. At this point, Nic wasn't his focus, but taking down Natsu, someone who he had a chance of beating.

Both he and Natsu then charged at one another with him having a club and Natsu with a flaming fist. Both attacks collided and they were on opposite sides from before. Gajeel changed his arm into an extended blade, but Natsu jumped and dodged and delivered a foot to the face. Gajeel stepped back while Natsu jumped away with caution. The blades on Gajeel's Iron Dragon's Sword now spun like a chainsaw, ready to cut Natsu down like lumber.

"How about I rearrange your body with my Iron Dragon's Sword!" Gajeel shouted. He jumped and slammed the blade downwards. Natsu narrowly dodged while the ground shattered by the blades impact. "Not much of a push over now, are ya!" Gajeel mocked while striking multiple times as to where Natsu was trying to evade the attacks.

He then retracted his sword and smirked. "We've still got a score to settle from the other day, how about settling it right now?"

"You're on, you iron-chomping scumbag!" Natsu challenged. Gajeel then changed into his Iron Dragon Scales, making his skin look just like iron.

He jumped and was going to punch Natsu. "**Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!**" He then delivered a blow that had send Natsu into the wall, frightening some nearby lackeys that were hiding among the debris. Natsu's arm was badly bruised, almost as bad as when Nic was badly bruised from before.

"Those scales are amplifying his defenses and offenses!" Happy shouted, in shock that Natsu was being overpowered. Arbok wasn't taking this highly. He saw some goons hiding and saw Natsu being pummeled by another oncoming fist. He had to act, as in now.

"Hey, flame brat! Jump now! You too cat!" Arbok warned loud and clear. Arbok then brought his long tail into the air, gaining momentum when he was going to bring it down. Happy flew in the air and Natsu heard his warning. He jumped away, making Gajeel lose focus when doing so.

"**Earthquake!**" Arbok then brought this tail down hard, unleashing a disastrous rippling quake about the entire head. Since Natsu had jumped, he and Happy were spared, while Gjeel was off balance and feeling the quaking ground giving him trouble for some reason. The lackeys in the area have all shrieked as the trembling and hyper vibrations, as well as the magnitude, made them fall to the floor and flop about unconscious. If you were outside, you would've seen the head rapidly vibrating, but still attached.

"Whoa! Now that was scary!" Happy shouted as the attack simmered after twenty seconds. Natsu smirked and gave a thumbs up at Arbok.

"Be lucky that wassss minimum power cat. If it were maxxximum power, then thissss building wouldn't be sssstanding." Arbok remarked

"Thanks there, snake man!" He shouted, just about landing safely. Arbok hissed and backed away until the time felt necessary again. Happy flew back down and landed right next to Arbok, putting his focus back on the battle. Natsu then delivered a Fire Dragon's Claw and landed aclean hit on a somewhat damaged Gajeel. He was still in shock and pain from that Earthquake Arbok had dealt. He couldn't explain it, but it felt as though the ground was biting at him. Gajeel reeled away and then got out of his initial shock and went to strike Natsu. Natsu managed to dodge a few attacks that back some wind to them, which also made the ground quake when missing.

"**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" He then punched Gajeel right in the face, but not a scratch appeared. Natsu recoiled and rolled about from the pain his hand had received. He rolled and turned on the ground in amusing fashion.

Arbok chuckled. "Quite the comical one."

When Natsu had settled down, Gajeel walked up and gave a headbutt that send Natsu into the ground with a slight tremor. He quickly bounced back by jumping out of the crater and got some distance between themselves.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Iron Dragon's Roar**!"

Both breath attacks collided into one another, creating a vast whirlwind all around. Happy was freaking out from the sheer power that was blowing him away, but Arbok was unfazed, clearly showing some high level of endurance.

The entire wall behind Gajeel had burst and debris was all over the place. Gajeel didn't look injured at all, but Natsu himself was huffing and puffing, drained from the Magic he had exhausted.

"Is that really the best you got, Salamander? Your flames can't burn me the slightest."

Natsu then smirked. "Oh yeah, sure you're not cracking up there buddy?" He berated. Gajeel then felt his cheek cracking up, but only a thin crack. This surprise Gajeel for sure. He experienced this two other times, and the outcomes were not so good. "I don't breathe regular fire. The Fire Dragon's Roar burns anything it touches." Natsu then took off his shirt, leaving his upper half with only his scarf.

"Hm, didn't know that walking popsicle's clothes habit was contagious." Arbok sneered. At any rate, Natsu's body was consumed in flames, ready to dish out more pain.

"Enough warming up, let's go!" Natsu declared.

Gajeel then ripped off his shirt and Magic surged from all around him as well. "Bring it!"

* * *

**Meanwhile, with Cana and the others…**

Under different circumstances, Alzack would have loved to spend some time with Bisca on the rooftop. Unfortunately, this wasn't one of those romantic moments; well, unless you count blasting shades down as a date, then they would be having a great time.

Down below, the Fairy Tail Wizards were giving it everything they got to drive the shades away, but they just kept coming. The swarm of shades didn't stop, even with their most lethal spells being used. Regardless, the shades were still coming about, and they all were flying into one another, creating some sort of blob that was growing in size.

"What is that thing?" Wakaba shouted. The shades all then morphed into a giant dark purple blob with two red eyes.

"Did they all just combine?!" Macao shouted.

"Yeah, and it looks like we'll have to try even harder now." Cana remarked. Everyone was shouted to attack and kill the thing, but their spells weren't very effective on the beast. It expanded four large appendages and made four giant fists. The shade monster than rammed its fists into the building repeatedly.

Lzack and Bisca were no match for the monster as they were blown off the roof. They both were send flying and smashed somewhere in a pile of debris, temporarily taking them out of commission.

"Bisca! Alzack!" Cana shouted, she then looked to see the Guild Hall getting hit repeatedly to no end, which was a great disbelief to the Fairy Tail Wizards. "The Guild Hall!"

Even with everyone's spells attacking the thing, it kept up its assault and didn't let up for an instant.

'_Nic! Guys! Just hurry already! We're at our limits!'_

* * *

**With Natsu**

After Natsu and Gajeel's fists had smashed into one another, the top of the dome head smashed open, allowing the two to soar high and deliver fast and rapid punches against one another. To Happy's disbelief, neither side was giving an edge. Arbok looked up at the fight and narrowed his eyes, looking as though he was sharpening his focus. He kept his eyes and focus only on how Natsu and Gajeel delivered blows. He indicated that the two had a similar fighting style, delivering powerful punches with little thinking behind their actions.

As they descended, they duked it out with more combat on one of the horns of the head. The horn eventually snapped off from the power shots that both delivered evenly and the horn crashed through the dome of the head. The two had just jumped off and a dust cloud was in their way. Natsu was out of breath, as to where he saw Gajeel eating on some iron, which ticked off the Fire Dragon Slayer.

"Hold on man, that's cheating!" Natsu complained.

"So what?" Gajeel remarked with a mouth full of iron. He then finished chomping and smirked. "Heh, now I got a fire in my belly!"

"Hey pal, that's my line!" Natsu complained one last time just before Gajeel was surging with a Magic power boost from that iron he took in.

Adios Salamander. **Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!**" A large seal appeared in front of Gajeel and out came a multitude of metal spears that attacked Natsu in rapid succession. Natsu gasped and wheeze as the attack hammered him, making him step back in agony. After the dust cleared, he slowly got up.

"You think those metallic pencils can stop me? Well, here's my shot!" Natsu engulfed himself in flames and charged at Gajeel with what strength he had remaining. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" He rammed his head into Gajeel's iron abdomen, but that only tickled him.

"Heh, I sure got a fire in my belly, but you sure don't." Gajeel noted before giving Natsu an elbow to the head, and then using his Iron Dragon's Club to drag Natsu's head backwards and along a wall, hurling him towards the broken wall that opened to the destroyed Fairy Tail Guild. "I've had my fun with you, now beat it chump."

Happy looked as though he was about to cry. He watched as Natsu laid there on the ground, hardly able to open his own two eyes. He couldn't bear to see his pal get hammered like this anymore. He was shaking about, something that didn't go unnoticed by Arbok. Arbok looked down at the unhappy Happy. He stared at him, looking at how upset this feeling was. Arbok had to admit even though he can be very snobbish, except to Nic, even he knew the boundaries of horror and sanity and he didn't cross it, not even once. Seeing this fight sickened him. Gajeel had no pride and he was nothing more than a scumbag. Arbok glared furiously at Gajeel, prepared to strike, but then saw the Guild Hall go down, something that Natsu saw when he had opened his eyes.

"Check it out Salamander, we're doing some redecorating." Gajeel gloat, laughing demonically.

Natsu watched, baffled by the very thing he treasured getting trashed into the earth. All of those memories, up in smoke. Those times when he first joined when he was little, with the guidance of Makarov. He remembered when he first met Gray, that very moment when he fought him almost two seconds after meeting eyes. He remembered meeting Erza and how she beat the snot out of them. How he found Happy's egg and nursed it with the help of Lisanna. How Lisanna went on an S-Class request with Elfman and Mira and died while doing so. Finally, meeting Lucy and Nic and getting into a heck of a lot of trouble. All of those memories, gone.

With rage, he got up to his feet and turned to face Gajeel. He won't let Fairy Tail be sullied nor bullied anymore. He carried his own two feet and walked heavily towards Gajeel, who was waiting for him to approach.

"So, your Guild Hall is trash. How is that?" He asked before swinging his arm, slamming Natsu back against a machine. Once again, he got back to his feet, but barely. Gajeel then approached him. "This holding back crap is a bore, so I say it's best to stay down before I start beating your insides."

Happy was streaming tears, seeing how Natsu will never give up, a trait he would take to his grave. He was quivering and shaking. "He took down Jupiter, and took on a member of the Element Four. His Magic is depleted. IF HE COULD JUST EAT SOME FIRE, HE WOULD BE ABLE TO BEAT THIS GUY!" Happy cried. Arbok looked at Happy once more before looking back at the two duking it out, which was one-sided at this point. Gajeel then held Natsu by the collar and was readying a sword.

"End of the line kid." Gajeel sneered. Arbok then noticed the large machine behind them. Arbok knew a bit about these things and how if they were to explode…

This was Arbok's shot. He opened his mouth and a silver white was beginning to merge in front of him. Happy saw what Arbok was doing and saw that it turned into a garbage bag with a purple outline.

"You're attacking with garbage?" Happy exclaimed. Arbok showed his sneering glare at Happy, which made him shut up and step back, allowing Arbok to concentrate. He then unleashed his Gunk Shot at the speed of sound and it went past Gajeel and Natsu, having a critical impact on the machinery, making an explosion of fire from the destroyed machinery.

"Oh wow, that attack was amazing!" Happy exclaimed, shocked to see such force being applied in battle, especially with garbage.

Arbok hissed and watched as Gajeel looked at him.

"That snake thing is getting in my way again!" Gajeel shouted. Everyone then took note of the explosion's fire being sucked up by Natsu. Every bit of it went into his belly. Now,he was back up with energy to burn and a certain Dragon Slayer to demolish.

"That hit the spot. Thank a ton, snake man!" Natsu gave a thumbs up. Arbok stared, but then grinned.

"Beat his sssorry assssss for the ssssake of you and your friendssss!" Arbok said, still a bit rude, yet encouraging. Natsu then turned and saw Gajeel dashing towards him with a fist with Natsu's name written all over it. Now it really sucks to be in Gajeel's boots right now.

Natsu effortlessly engulfed himself in flames and swung his arm and bashed Gajeel backwards. Into the horn that fell previously, causing it to move.

"**Iron Dragon's Roar!**" Gajeel then unleashed in roar on Natsu, but the blast was easily deflected it, resulting in no damage.

"I don't know how many have to suffer from your hands, but it ends now." Natsu said, giving off a vibe that can make any spine shiver.

"No. I can't be defeated, it's impossible!" Gajeel was freaking out. He's only lost two fights ever, and he wasn't going to take a third one.

"I'm going to make you pay for what you did to my friends! MESSING WITH FAIRY TAIL WAS THE BIGGEST MISTAKE YOU'VE EVER MADE!" Natsu cracked his fists and the heat was intensifying.

Gajeel gritted his teeth, not taking this lying down He jumped and came down at an angle. "**Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!**" The attack collided with Natsu's own fist. Much to Gajeel's shock, the scales on his arm were cracking up, all the way up to his shoulder.

"You're finished, Black Steel! **Crimson Lotus: Fire Dragon's Fist!**" Natsu's hands were set ablaze and he fired rapidly at Gajeel over and over. "For Levy, Jet, Droy, Nab, Macao, Gramps, Wakaba, Cana, Loke, Gray, Erza, Nic!" He then delivered a fast uppercut. "And Lucy!" Gajeel then slammed into the ground, gagging as he had hit hard. "GRAAAAHHHHHH!" Natsu roared, igniting his body in a blaze of glory. He then lashed out a multitude of Wing Attacks and knocked Gajeel around furiously. "This is for attacking my friends, and destroying our Guild Hall!"

There were a huge amount of explosions that were set upon the giant. He repeatedly smashed Gajeel until fell over and screamed as he crashed into debris, smashing and shattering his scales. The entire head of the giant finally gave into the damage and it fell off its own shoulders, falling into the water below.

Gajeel laid in the debris, defeated. "You can't…defeat me…not you too…" He then fell unconscious and Natsu was looking over him.

"Well, well I just proved otherwise." He said before falling back and lying to face the sky. It wasn't long before Happy showed up with wings. Arbok came close behind.

"Heh, he'sssss a ticking time bomb." Arbok noted.

"That's Natsu for ya!" Happy responded. Natsu did a toothy grin, and Happy laughed in joy while Arbok hissed, just glad that he fulfilled Nic's orders.

* * *

**With Nic and Greninja**

During all of those events that transpired with one another, Nic and his ninja accomplice were running through a really long hallway. Even as of now, he sensed all of the battles that had taken place while he was running down the longest hallway. He felt the ground from above shake violently. He knew that was Arbok's Earthquake, and a few more violent shakes erupted. He even sensed Natsu's power triumphing over Gajeel. Sadly, he sensed the energy from the Mages defending Fairy Tail, it was diminishing. He had to quicken the pace, foor there was only one person left.

Nic pushed open a large set of double doors that lead to a very large room. It was not only wide, but very spacious. Aside from the huge chandelier, a long red carpet lead to a wide staircase. If the two had to guess, they must either be in Jose's quarters or a party room; if it weres the latter, then it was going to be one wild party.

"Nic, how do you think Arbok is doing, as well as the others?" Greninja asked Nic.

Nic turned and looked at his buddy. "You know Arbok as well as I do Greninja. He's sturdy enough to take tough blows. Aside from his demeanor, he's never failed to follow any of my commands." Greninja then nodded, knowing that was true.

Nic then sensed a very foul and deadly energy blooming nearby.

"You feel that deadly Magic?" Nic asked.

Greninja got ready. "Yeah, he's here."

"Welcome, young Nic and friend." The two then tensed up when they had finally came face to face with Phantom Lord's Guild Master, and one of the Ten Wizard Saints, Jose Porla.

His attire was different this time. He had on a long blue coat with a belt around his waist, with another one over his right shoulder, sporting Phantom's insignia on the buckle. The coat had golden stripes all about, had a brownish-red cape along his left shoulder, and had a black ribbon tied around his collar under the emblem that meant he was a member of the Ten Wizard Saints.

"I hope you don't mind the lack of commodities." Jose said as he casually made his way down the stairs with his hands behind his back. "If I had known that I would have guests, I would've arranged for a more suitable welcome, no?"

Nic decided to play along, make a bit of humor before the fun started. "It's fine. It would be messy later on anyway."

Jose's expression slowly turned dark, but he maintained his grin. "I have to say, taking on Black Steel, two of the Element Four, and then stopping Jupiter without damage. I'm impressed with your talents, you must have a huge amount of Magic reserves within you."

In retrospect, Nic did go through a bit. Taking on Gajeel, then Sol and Juvia, and then stopping Jupiter with just Mirror Move. Technically, since he didn't have Magic to begin with, he had nothing to gain or lose from that blast; and besides, he used Synthesis before he entered the room, so he was one hundred percent however you looked at it.

Nic faked it. "You can say that." He then prepared to attack by gathering green energy between his palms. The energy then shaped into a seed and he threw the green seed at Jose. Jose didn't blink when he caught the football-sized seed with his Darkness Magic.

Jose sighed. "Honestly, do you really think something like this could-?"

He was stopped in mid-sentence when Nic snapped his fingers, forcing the See Bomb to explode. Since Seed Bomb didn't explode on impact, not that it made contact anyway, Nic manually detonated it. The Seed Bomb exploded and sent Jose flying into a wall. Pain flared about as Jose was off guard by the attack. Jose shook off his momentary flaw and glared at Nic with discontent.

"Just shut it already clown face." Nic berated. He and Greninja both got in defensive stances, ready to take action.

"We're not here for your taunts, so I advise that you prepare yourself already." Greninja warned.

Jose's grin turned evil. "Very well, then. I say we start your torment and misery now. You and your friend there will suffer your own insolence." Then then began to conjure and concentrate Magic into his hands and a seal appeared. "**Dead Wave!**"

Jose then fired a large beam of energy at Nic and Greninja. The attack had made the ground shake as it sailed towards them. The two quickly sidestepped as the attack passed them and create a massive hole from the wall they had just entered. If that happened again, perhaps the hallway would be obliterated. The building shook a bit and Nic and Greninja didn't have time to process Jose popping in front of them with a fist ready.

'_So fast.'_ Nic noted. Greninja jumped in and blocked the assault with his forearms and followed it up by jumping backwards and unleashing a Water Pulse.

Jose intercepted by extending his fingers and shooting little beams as though they were bullets. He shot one at the Water Pulse and that only weakened it, but the second shot cancelled out the Water Pulse. Jose then kept up his Dark Beam and was shooting bullets in succession of one another. It didn't prove too helpful as Greninja diligently evade and dodged with speed, being able to avoid every shot.

As Jose was distracted with Greninja, he had forgotten NIc for a brief second. Nic sped into him and was about to do yet another Seed Bomb, but Jose caught a glimpse of him while he was preparing to do so. With his other hand, he fired his Dark Beam at Nic and that drove him away. Nic dodged left and right and backed away. He then countered with his own bullets.

"**Bullet Seed!**" He then spit out multiple golden seeds with green aura enveloped around each one in rapid succession, fiercely fending against each Dark Beam shot at him. Jose and Nic each shot at one another, every shot being intercepted by Bullet Seed and Dark Beam. After a whole ten seconds, Jose and Nic had decided to stop and get up close and personal. Greninja managed to get in close as well. Jose then made his fist envelop in some Darkness Magic and he punched forward, but not without an interception from Nic. Nic brought him arm back as fast as he could and his hand started glowing light green. It then extended into a long green sword, via Leaf Blade. The two attacks then collided, creating an explosion that Greninja backed away from. The ground between the two was a crater that covered their distance apart, which was roughly five feet. They both grunted and then proceeded to attack one another again. They kept trading blows, both assaults clashing into one another every time. Neither side was giving an edge when they collided. It was darkness Magic against Leaf Blade.

As Nic and Jose dished out repeated blows with accuracy and speed, Greninja sat aside and tried to do some experimenting. He did a Water Pulse, but then he held it in his palms. He looked as though he was compressing it. _'Nic, we need an edge. I know you won't have a problem with me re-learning an old ace in the hole.'_

As he was experimenting, Nic and the Wizard Saint had gotten tired delivering blows and they jumped away from one another.

"**Dead Wave!**" Jose then unleashed a massive beam at Nic.

"**Energy Ball!**" Nic made a light green ball in his hands, of which he threw to block the Dead Wave. The two attacks exploded and the walls all around now began to crack up from the sheer force those two attacks dealt. _'Good thing Grass Types have above-average Attack and Special Attack.' _

Greninja was cut off from his concentration, but he was able to compress the water. Now all he had to do was shape it.

After the dust cleared, Jose and Nic both had a few scratches on them. Aside from those, they didn't take much damage. They were both now probably thirty or so feet from each other.

"Not bad for a young Mage." Jose remarked grudgingly. "I was right. You are indeed impressive and your skills show no bounds. I was astounded that you managed to keep track off my speed."

"You can say I've seen faster." Nic remarked, thinking back to when he was battling against speedy pokémon with fast attacks. Thanks to those, he can read attacks a lot faster than your average fighter.

"That Makarov! Where does he find people like you?"

"I have no idea." Nic said. Regardless of Nic's answer, Jose continued on talking.

"For as long as I can remember, Phantom Lord has been at the top. We had the most powerful Mages with a variety of spells, the profits were endless, and then your guild started competing with us." He said with distaste. "_Fairy Tail_ has been getting even more attention than Phantom Lord, and I detest such competition." He said the guild's name with disgust.

They began to circle about, both pacing each other, almost like a circle, watching each other's movements and not taking their gaze off of one another. Jose still pressed on talking, though Nic didn't think it was necessary.

"Names such as Laxus, Mystogan, and Titania have been sprouting everywhere. Even a man called Salamander had begun spreading like wildfire. Even YOU are already making a name for yourself, despite the fact that you only joined recently!" Jose snarled, now making the room quake.

Now this had gotten Nic's attention for sure. Even Greninja was all ears as he was hiding away and was rotating the compressed water.

"Do tell." Nic said, intrigued by Jose's statement.

Jose glared and pointed an accusing finger. "Don't play coy with me boy! The guild masters in Clover caught sight of you defeating the demon known as Lullaby alongside some Fairy Tail Mages. And then, reports from Freesia say that a man named Luminous, alongside his animal accomplices, defeated three members of a Dark Guild as well as a demon!"

"Huh, didn't know I got a name. Guess that means I brighten up others' futures sort of speak." Nic said, trying to make sense of his new alias. Jose didn't take this likely.

Dark purple magic encased Jose's body and he roared. "I REFUSE TO HAVE SUCH SKILL BE MATCHED TO OURS! PHANTOM HAS ALWAYS BEEN AT THE TOP AND ALWAYS WILL BE!"

They were both cut off with a few compressed stars being spun and heading for Jose, which had cut straight through his magic. Jose saw these stars cut through his magic and managed to side step fast enough and watched as the stars crashed into some debris, slicing it up and crumbling. Jose looked over and saw Greninja go by Nic's side.

Nic looked at Geninja with a smirk. "So you decided to re-learn Water Shuriken. Not bad, I kind of missed that move as well, it cuts through a lot of our problems." Nic said in a casual tone. Both glared at Jose and saw his magic resurface again.

"Yup. So long Water Pulse." Greninja sighed as he made some cover for the two by using Smokescreen. Jose growled as his vision was blocked off. This only complicated things as he couldn't sense magic from either of them. This was troublesome for the Wizard Saint.

He then saw a Razor Leaf coming through the thick black smoke. Jose swiftly dodged it and saw it come another direction. He dodged that as well. He then saw Nic burst through the now dispatched Smokescreen. He used Grass Knot and managed to catch Jose's feet when Jose was trying to evade him. Jose fell on his face and then looked up at Nic, but then failed to see Greninja from above. Greninja came down with a brutal Bounce and smashed Jose into the ground.

Nic retracted his Grass Knot and Greninja returned to Nic's side.

"If I had to guess, I'd say he was just warming up." Greninja noted. Nic only nodded in response.

'_He wasn't using full power yet. This ain't good. Energy Ball and Leaf Blade were my best offense moves. I'll have to use a more strategic approach. That is, if I can.'_

They both tensed up when Jose got up and grinned. He wasn't going to hold back much longer, so Nic and Greninja had to end it, as in now!

* * *

**With Erza and Co.**

Everyone who had went to stop the Element Four eventually met up with one another. They all went and saw Natsu lying on the ground, tired but can still manage. Happy saw the guys coming towards them.

"Hey guys!" Happy shouted and flew over to Elfman, Mira, Gray, and Erza. All four had proceeded and made their way to where Natsu was. Arbok looked over and hissed. They all went up and looked down at the tired Dragon Slayer.

"Well, you did a number on the place, I'll give you that." Gray said, looking about the place. The place was nothing but a wreck. Even a few floors had debris on them from al of the rumbling that transpired between their brawl. For Natsu, for his explosiveness, one a scale of one to ten, you can say he breaks the scale twenty fold.

"So you've managed to beat Black Steel Gajeel I see." Erza noted, looking down at the defeated Gajeel. The poor guy just never caught himself a break with the defeats that have been piling up on his shoulders.

"Didn't even break a sweat." Natsu said. Arbok shook his head and Happy sighed, seeing how Natsu was being modest.

Mira then took note of Arbok's presence. Mira approached the Cobra Pokémon and looked up at it. "Are you one of Nic's Pokémon?" She asked curiously since she's only seen Greninja and Kecleon. Arbok nodded and then the ground shook, making the whole place tremble.

"What was that?" Happy asked. Arbok then set his body down and his head onto the floor, not moving an inch. Everyone watched as Arbok did this trick.

Natsu sat up and saw Arbok's head resting on the ground. "You tired or something?"

"I'm detecting the vibrations you idiot, now be quiet!" He scolded, freaking Natsu out a little.

"Man, this one is obedient to Nic, but when not him, he's a beast." Gray indicated.

"I said quiet!" Arbok scolded, making Gray step back. Now everyone was dead silent with Arbok detecting vibrations. After a good fifteen seconds, he lifted his head and looked at everyone.

"Nic-sssama isss doing battle with the Guild Massster assss we ssspeak." Arbok sounded much more mild since he was talking about Nic. Everyone, except Erza, was stunned to hear that Nic was doing battle with Jose.

"Is he an even bigger idiot than Natsu?! What the hell was he thinking?!" Gray shouted.

"He's fighting all by himself, pretty bold." Elfman said.

Erza looked at the ground. As much as she wanted to help, he could see that Nic and Greninja were in a big enough mess without them. She looked up at the others. "He's not alone. He has Greninja with him. Nd besides…" She turned and looked at the shore, and everyone followed her gaze "…we've got enough problems on our hands."

The team was shocked to see their Guild Hall being trashed by some large jellyfish being that was also tormenting their guild mates. The ground beneath them began to quake once again, signifying Nic's quarrel with the Ten Wizard Saint was heating up.

"It's not safe here. We need to get back to the guild and stop that thing." Erza said. Everyone there was reluctant to stop and turn when Nic was doing battle, but it was clear that if they did help him, no one would be there to help the guild members.

Even Natsu had trouble. He got to his feet and looked out at the destroyed Guild Hall. After a while, he turned his head and looked at the others. "Okay, let's go. Nic can handle this one."

The team was a bit surprised, but then again, this was Nic. He hasn't lost a fight yet. They all felt the same as Natsu. Though it didn't feel good to leave behind, they believed in him, and they had to put their priorities into making sure that the monster was stopped. No objections were made, and everyone started to look for an escape route as quick as they could. Happy started flying Natsu to shore, and Gray used his Ice Make: Floor to make a path that lead downwards and over the water.

Arbok had faith in his trainer. It was clear that Nic and Greninja had this covered. Arbok hissed and started following the others, deciding that this was one of those times to improvise.

* * *

**With Nic and Greninja**

"**Dark Pulse!**" Jose moved his arm in a long arc that was followed with a chain of explosions. The attack had such a massive range that Nic and Greninja didn't have any room to react. They were sent flying into the air and they smashed into the wall.

They both were wide eyed when they saw Jose readying an attack immediately after. Jose grinned. "**Dead Wave!**"

'_Uh oh.' _Both thought in unison. Upon instinct, Greninja used Dark Pulse and Nic used Seed Bomb to stop the attack. It resulted in a big explosion that nearly destroyed the room, not to mention the entire wall itself. The wall was completely destroyed, and it showed a view of the Fairy Tail Mages fighting hopelessly and failing. He just grinned triumphantly at the sight.

He looked over the edge and saw the rocks falling. He saw Nic and Greninja both landing on some rocks.

"Greninja!" Nic shouted.

"Got it!" They didn't need words to communicate, for they both knew what to do. That's why the two were unstoppable, they thought alike and read each other's minds and movements. A duo that no one can seem to beat single-handedly.

At any rate, Greninja grabbed Nic's wrist and yanked him up as he used Bounce to leap from rock to rock, all the way back up to Jose. Jose grunted with distaste as they made their way back up with the help of Greninja's Bounce.

Nic was then thrown upwards and was seen above Jose. Jose was ready for him and coated his fists in Darkness magic. Nic's arms were glowing and were enveloped in long sharp needles and he came down on Jose. Both collided with Darkness magic against Needle Arm this time. The two were exchanging a few blows, and then they collided once more, with neither side giving in. Both were trying to push the other back and overpower the other. They looked each other, dead in the eye as they were slowly overpowering the other.

Nic then grinned, which caught Jose off guard. "What could you find so amusing?"

He got an answer, it just came in the form of Bounce, of which that he couldn't dodge with Nic and him gripping one another. Greninja quickly jumped off and watched as Jose was getting back up. Nic's eyes glowed light green and two green-glowing vines burst from underneath Jose and intertwined with each other. The Grass Knot grabbed Jose's feet and made him airborne for a few split seconds before driving him into the ground. The Grass Knot was dispelled and Nic and Greninja backed away from the scene.

The two had exhausted some energy, with this being probably the opportunity, Nic was about to use Synthesis and gather whatever energy that was lost. Before he could do so however, Nic and Greninja both felt a sense of dread almost paralyzing them. This didn't feel good one bit. They felt a foul and malevolent energy skyrocket and it began to fill the room. It was so potent that the two were having a little difficulty in regards to their breathing. This sense of dread wasn't dying down, which prompt Nic to change into his Dread Plate Form, since that form could take in dread and filter it through him. His breathing became regular, but Greninja was still gasping quite a bit.

They both turned and saw where it was coming from. Jose rose from the small crater and he looked more demonic than ever. His eyes had turned black and dark purple energy enveloped him. He glared at the two with so much hatred swelling up.

"Makarov was the only one who could push me this far." He informed Nic and Greninja. "To think that youth such as yourself could cause me so much anguish…I was planning on killing you quickly…but now…you and your accomplice are going to suffer a slow and painful demise, watching each other wither away to nothing!"

Nic curse silently as Jose's Magic energy spiked. This wasn't good one bit. That meant his attacks were going to be increased, which had the two at a disadvantage. It's unlikely that they can block any future attacks if Jose cranked up the power even more. The two were huffing a bit, feeling exhaustion starting to kick in at this point.

"Now…" Jose was showing off the grin of a pure maniac.

The two fighters' eyes widened when the Wizard Saint disappeared in a split second. A cold chill ran down Nic's spine, though he was in his Dread Plate Form.

That maniac's voice was behind him. "…shall we begin, Luminous?"

* * *

**With Lucy and Reedus**

The two were riding another carriage that Reedus had created with his Magic. They riding through the forest and trying to get away.

After Kecleon had appeared and saved them, the two had ran off to a more safe location. They only knew one place that would be considered safe, and they believed the host wouldn't be too fond of their welcome.

They ventured into the East Forest of Magnolia Town to find this location. The location was easily confused, since it was a tree. They were able to find it regardless.

Within the sanctum, Porlyusica had noticed that Makarov was coming around. His body wasn't green anymore and he looked like himself again. He slowly began to open his eyes, seeing that he was inside Porlyusica's place. The place was indeed a hollow tree with natural remedies everywhere you looked.

Porlyusica tuned and started walking towards Makarov. "Seems that you're better."

Makarov slowly got up and began to get out of bed, and that's when Porlyusica slapped him.

"The heck was that for woman?" Makarov shouted.

"You deserved that for being such a reckless old fart." She said. "You still need your rest as well."

Makarov wasn't one to take things lying down, especially when his children are at stake. There was a war going on and he could sense it from where he was now. He got out of bed and started off. "Since when do I ever listen to you?"

Porlyusica shook off said comment and watched as he trailed off. "You're recovery was quick, especially with someone your age." She noted.

He then got on a long sleeve shirt that was purple and looked back at her. "Is that so?"

She then paused before saying words again. "Are you jst marching towards your death?"

"If it looks that way, then so be it. My children mean everything to me, and I won't risk seeing them fall to those monsters." Makarov replied. He then began walking towards the door, with Porlyusica's gaze never leaving him. He opened the door and looked back one more time. "Thank you for your help." He said somewhat rudely. He then exited the place and the door closed behind him.

Porlyusica then looked back to her old framed photos of Team Makarov. There was Goldmine, Bob, Makarov himself, a young Yajima, another guy, and herself included.

'_I swear. He never changes.'_

As Makarov was beginning to walk away, he saw a small carriage approaching from a distance. He made no attempt to move as he had recognized who was in it. The carriage had stopped a few meters ahead of him and peering from the driver's seat was Reedus and Lucy. Makarov looked up and saw the shocked look on their faces.

"Master, you're alright!" Reedus exclaimed. Makarov nodded as a reply.

Lucy looked in shock and jumped out of the carriage. "Master, you're okay!" Lucy exclaimed. She was about to walk over, but Master had no time.

"I can understand your concern, my children. Do not freight, I am well. We must go back and fight." Makarov said in a very serious tone.

This somewhat shocked the two. "For real?!" Lucy shouted.

"Yeah Master, are you sure that's such a good idea?"

Makarov looked down and closed his eyes. He paused and then spoke.

"We have to. For the sake of Fairy Tail. I will not abandon my children when they are risking their lives for our home." Makarov pointed out.

Lucy stepped forward towards him. "Master, they wanted me. They tried taking me prisoner, and we managed to escape. We came here to find refuge."

Makarov paused again and looked up. "Is that so? Well…" He then got into the carriage. "…I'll protect you, my children."

"Master." Lucy said.

"Let's get moving!" Master ordered. Just then, they felt something coming approaching. Lucy and Reedus turned, as did Makarov.

They all saw that it was Kecleon, who trailed them to make sure they weren't attacked along the way.

"It's you!" Lucy exclaimed. She ran up and saw that Kecleon was a bit damaged, but could still manage. "Are you okay?"

Kecleon looked up and tilted her head. "This software is still fully operated" She said. In a way, she was saying she was fine, though Lucy didn't have a clue.

"Ooookkayyy. Uh, what's happening so far?" She asked. Kecleon turned her head and looked back from where she had came from. She had a discern look as she turned to look at Lucy.

"The Abyss Break was put to a halt. The guys went in and are taking down Phantom as we speak." She responded.

Makarov was surprised. _'So, Jose had more tricks up his sleeve. My children had stopped him in his tracks. Now I must join in on the fight.'_

"There isn't much time. The Guild Hall is being trashed. We have to hurry." Kecleon then turned and jumped into the trees and started running. Lucy ran towards the carriage and got in. Reedus then turned the carriage around and they went back in the direction of the battle.

* * *

**With Nic and Greninja**

Keeping up with Jose was easier said than done. His Dark Beam was blasting away nonstop. Greninja managed to use Water Shuriken to cover more range and stop several shots, but more just kept blasting away with greater force. Nic and Greninja were all over the place, trying to evade Jose's powered-up assaults. They had little to no room to make a counterattack.

Nic reeled back when he saw Jose flash before him in an instant, his black eyes fixated to strike. Fortunately, Nic managed to get a surprise of his own in. Before Jose could thrust an elbow into Nic's gut, the Multitype Mage used a quick Sucker Punch and drove the fist into his face, driving them both into the air. Jose didn't look affected as he grabbed Nic's wrist and did a full three-sixty turn and threw him into the ground with a harsh crash sound.

"Nic!" Greninja shouted. Now Jose appeared in front of him as well. A large grin came across his face before he punched Greninja into an unbroken wall with a Darkness Magic coated fist.

Jose turned and saw Nic get up, he rammed into Nic with amazing speed and pinned him to the opposing wall by grabbing his throat. Jose watched as Nic was beginning to struggle. The evil glare on his face was getting even wider as he pinned Nic even harder, now driving a knee into his torso.

Nic gagged as pain flared almost everywhere in his body. He was literally against the wall and couldn't do much about it. He was only down to so few options.

He disappeared from Jose's site and grip and came from behind, via Feint Attack. He was about to deliver a kick when Jose brushed it away with his right arm when turning around and tried knocking him down with Dead Wave.

Nic narrowly dodged as the attack flew through the ceiling, making a rather large whole that showed the cloudy sky. The trainer and his pokémon saw this power boost. If one had hit them, it would mean lights out.

Nic then changed his approach by changing into his Meadow Plate once more. If he could somehow sap some energy, he could get the upper hand again.

Suddenly, the two felt something coiling around their bodies. The next thing that happened was that they were lifted off the ground by a long ghost made of Jose's Magic. They grunted in pain as the two shades tightened their hold on their two victims and electrocuted them, Nic saw Jose below them, grinning.

"You are indeed troublesome young Nic. You and your accomplice had come this far and had put me through my paces, but now you two will finally suffer the slow and painful deaths that has been eluding you two."

Nic had to think of a way to get out of this mess, him and Greninja. He could try using Feint Attack again, but that would take too much effort since he was stuck and being shocked at the same time. He could also try and use Leaf Blade; or would, if he could move his arms. His options were very limited now.

"Uh, Nic." Greninja asked Nic while stuck. "If you have any ideas, I would love it if you would…oh, I don't know…APPLY THEM!" Greninja hollered out the last part as he was shocked.

They both then heard Jose chuckle. "There you have it. Checkmate."

Nic and Greninja both then followed their gazes and saw through the shattered wall. Their eyes widened when they saw their Guild Hall destroyed. He sensed his guild members not doing well, but he didn't exactly sense the guild itself being trashed. The giant jellyfish shade had smashed the guild with its tentacles and he saw all of the heartbroken faces. He could see Cana crying, Macao punching the ground in anger. A lot of Fairy Tail members were screaming and crying. They were exhausted and almost defeated.

Jose chuckled at the sight of victory. He couldn't wait to be finished with Nic and move onto Makarov. He'll make him suffer a slow demise and watched his children die.

Jose then felt something change within the atmosphere. He frowned and saw where this energy was coming from. He saw that Nic was glaring in a feral manner at Jose. His eyes were filled with vengeance and such distaste.

Greninja looked at Nic and was wide eyed. "Uh oh. You've done it now clown head." Greninja said, which rewarded him a shock. Even Nic was shocked, but he didn't look as discomforted as were the previous shocks. It only made him spike in more distaste.

"You destroyed our Guild Hall…" Nic muttered in a foul manner. "…You had destroyed our home. The home that everyone cherishes…I'M GONNA BURY YOU AND STOMP ON YOUR GRAVE!"

Jose stepped back, but kept his cool. "My, my. It would appear that you don't like it when I destroy precious things. Your Guild Hall must be one of those things. Your guild mates will be next, so don't worry!"

Nic was then shocked, but that only mad him even more mad.

"JOSE! PREPARE FOR HELL!"

"Though I don't get as angry as my comrade here, I agree. You're going to wish that you've never messed with us!" Greninja shouted, now trying to overcome the repeated shocks.

Now Jose was facing two monsters ready to unleash their fury.

* * *

**The fight will continue to next chapter. The Phantom Lord Arc will end and then I might make an Original Arc rather than have Nic go through the Loke Arc. Then comes The Tower of Heaven Arc, of which I got big plans for.**

**Overall, were the two fights good up to this point? Arbok's participation was limited to just that. I didn't think that he shouldn't get too involved with two Dragon Slayers. I know I wouldn't.  
**

**Let me make this clear: I know what Nic's last Pokémon will be, and I will not change it nor tell you until it appears in The Battle of Fairy Tail Arc. Period.**

**Let me know how you liked the battle between Nic and Jose up to this point. If you like it, then leave a review.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys like the fight and action, as well as plot.**

**If you have any Reviews, make them as quick as you can overnight, because I'm jumping immediately into the next chapter rather than do another chapter on my other story.**

* * *

**Next Time: A True Saint**


	11. A True Saint

Chapter 11 – A True Saint

**Hey guys! Insane Dominator here, bringing you more action! You guys are the best, I'm getting quite a bit of positive reviews from the previous chapter in regards to Nic and Greninja's battle against Jose.**

**So apparently, you guys really favor the brawl and I am so glad that you guys like it. Hoping that the end of the fight will be as appealing to you guys. **

**I haven't got anything else to say and I've been holding you guys off long enough. Time to give you what you deserve for your patience. On with the fight!**

**FOREWARNING: Long chapter. Be ready.**

**To Recap:**

Erza easily took down Aria, thus stopping the Abyss Break Spell. With a small amount of help from Arbok, Natsu managed to overpower Gajeel and take him down. Nic and Greninja both finally confront Jose and they begin their epic brawl. Meanwhile, the Guild Hall was destroyed by Jose's shades. Makarov had finally recovered and Lucy and Reedus found him, taking him back to the guild to fight. As the fight escalates with Nic and Greninja, of whom re-learned Water Shuriken in place of Water Pulse, against Jose, Jose enjoys the sight of Fairy Tail's downfall, which had just unleashed the fury within Nic and Greninja.

* * *

**Chapter 11 – A True Saint**

Cana wasn't having fun at all. Normally, she would just be at the bar and chugging down barrels of booze. If a fight got under way, she and Nic would move to the back of the bar and chill there. She could really use a barrel right now, because after all that has been going down she's going to need all the booze she can stomach when this is all over. At the moment, she had to make sure that the giant shade blob didn't destroy anyone just like it did with their Guild Hall.

Everyone there wasn't able to do anything. The only thing that was really an option at that point was watch as the blob finish destroying their Guild Hall. Tears were on a lot of faces, especially those who were low on Magic. Macao and Wakaba were both clenching their fist so hard that blood had almost stopped circulating to their hands. Cana felt her insides crumble and quake as the beast slammed the ruins of the Guild Hall yet again.

Nevertheless, she had to put forth all of the effort she can if she's going to stop this thing. She turned and looked at all of the weary faces about. The other guild members were just as shaken up as she was, if not worse. She had to pull herself together if she wanted to ensure Fairy Tail's survival. She turned and looked at everyone behind her.

"Everyone listen up!" Cana yelled, trying to get their undivided attention. "This is far from over. There's absolutely no way that we're letting it all here. Our Guild Hall may be destroyed, but we're still standing as proud Fairy Tail members. Our friends had put their best efforts into finally stopping the Abyss Break, and now we have to do the same and stop this thing. We're going to stop end this war because we are Fairy Tail!"

Everyone there cheered and were inspired by her speech. There was no way they were going to take a defeat lying down like they are now. If the guys inside were able to stop the Abyss Break, then they can stop this blob as well. The brunette let out a heap of air, relieved to see everyone not letting up now that she encouraged them. Who knew being in charge was so difficult? Nic had explained to her one time that he tells all of his pokémon what to do, maybe that leadership rubbed off on her, who knows. She's probably going to have to chat with him about this whole "Trainer" thing.

At this point in time, the giant monster had just finished pulverizing the Guild Hall. Now it had a new target in mind. The Fairy Tail Mages were in a tight bind with themselves as the new target.

"Everyone, unleash your strongest spells on one point!" Macao shouted out to the group. "If we do that, then this thing should stop!"

They all cheered and conjured up whatever magic they had left. This was all or nothing, and they weren't going to take nothing for an answer. They were all aware if this failed, then they were screwed.

"Now!" Cana ordered.

Cana fired the last of her cards, Macao unleashed his biggest purple flames yet, Wakaba unleashed a thick stream of smoke, and everybody in general unleashed their spells onto a single point. An explosion enveloped the monster and everyone's vision was obscured for a few moments. This also caused quite a bit of dust to be swirled about.

"Is it over? We won?" Wakaba said.

The dust was clearing up and every single one of their jaws dropped when they saw that the jellyfish shade was hardly even fazed. Cana almost cursed every word she knew when the monster turned out to be unaffected.

"Everyone, retreat!" Cana yelled. With all of their magic used up now, everyone was powerless and unable to do anything. The large shade then began approaching them and Cana was almost ready to shed a tear.

'_Somebody, help us.' _Cana mentally pleaded.

Several giant tentacles then rushed at the Mages that were running for cover. Out of the blue, several very large magic circles appeared and stopped the assault.

Everyone looked to see that Makarov has just arrived with Lucy and Reedus and Kecleon following not long after. They all started to shed tears of joy when they saw the Master well and standing again.

"Will you never harm my children!" Makarov proclaimed. He was floating in the air and had a lot of power ready to be unleashed. The guild members cheered.

The Master held up his two hands and two seals were shown, and then two large seals were on both sides of the giant jellyfish monster.

"Begone!" Makarov then brought his two hands with the seals together and a very bright light was unleashed on the large creature from the large seals. The light illuminated the area for a good few seconds as the monster screamed as it dissolved into nothing.

"We look on the bright side of things." Kecleon said. When they saw that the monster was no more, everyone at the scene cheered in honor of their Master.

* * *

**With Erza and the others**

Everyone panted as they had finally made it back to shore. The only ones who weren't panting were Natsu, Happy, and Arbok. Natsu didn't need to run since Happy had carried him all the ways. Arbok didn't pant at all since it didn't have feet to begin with.

The way back was longer than they had thought. They had to find another escape route since the giant had reshaped their entry point. Another factor was that Gray's Ice Make: Floor was starting to melt.

They all came back just in time to see Master destroy the horrid monster. They all looked over and saw everyone cheering for stopping the shades.

"Hey, it's Master!" Gray said, running with everyone up to where everyone else was. Everyone had finally caught up to the others that were with Master Makarov. Everyone cheered even louder with their safe return.

"The Master finished the job like a real man." Elfman noted.

Mira smiled, happy to see that Master had made a recovery and even vanquished a powerful threat. Happy had set Natsu down and he smirked at the Master.

"Well Gramps, you sure showed them." Natsu said. Arbok hissed as Kecleon walked up to his side.

"Lots of craziness today." Kecleon said.

"Tell me something I don't know." Arbok said, nonchalant.

"Thank goodness that you're alright Master." Erza said. Makarov nodded and looked at everyone and then looked at the team that had just went to stop the Abyss Break Spell.

"I am glad that you are all alright." Master said. Everyone then began to catch up with one another on the situations that they were all put through.

Lucy had begun explaining how Kecleon had saved her and Reedus, after which was when Natsu and Happy told how Arbok helped them out with the fight. Erza wasn't paying too much attention as the two explained how they went through some stuff. She was also glad that the Master was alive.

The scarlet-haired Mage was staring at Phantom's guild hall, thinking that not everyone has returned yet. Everyone then realized that Nic had yet to return, bringing forth some concerns within the guild members.

'_Nic, please be okay.'_ Erza thought, then everyone had noticed a large hole from the giant, revealing the battle that was taking place from inside.

* * *

**With Nic and Greninja**

This wasn't a good situation to be in, especially if you were the one who had just angered Nic. If you anger Nic, then you're going to wish that the apocalypse had ended you instead of him. Greninja wasn't as angry as Nic, but he can be just as destructive as him.

Both had lost count as to how many times they had been shocked, but they weren't paying attention. Nic was snarling and was really pissed off. Jose had destroyed the Guild Hall and was laughing about it, which wasn't the best thing to do in front of Nic.

Jose then noticed that Makarov had just arrived and destroyed his shades with his Light Magic. Seeing Makarov alive was a sight that disgusted him. He had a foul scowl on his face. Thanks to the hole from earlier, he also saw Natsu, Erza, and the others making it back to shore. He turned and looked at Nic with a murderous gaze.

"You through, because I'm ready to hammer your face into oblivion!" Nic said, rather foul. He was too caught up in battle to pay attention to Makarov and the others back on shore. He had a solution, and he was going to get him and his buddy out of the trap.

He inhaled and then had spit out a small seed from his mouth. The seed speeded its way and had landed itself onto Jose's outfit. Jose looked down and looked at the tiny seed and chuckled.

"Seriously? Is this all you have left-?" He was then feeling the seed sprout and vines rapidly started to tangle around his torso. The vines latched onto him and he looked on in shock.

"What is this?!" Jose demanded to know. Suddenly, he felt his energy being slowly sapped away, and he looked and saw that Nic wasn't as damaged as before. He was slowly sapping at Jose's energy, making him grunt and flinch. "My power…the hell?!"

Nic then started to glow turquoise and he then began engulfing the energy that bind him and Greninja in a green coating. The sunglasses on his eyes lit up red as the energy traced back to Jose and made him wail as he was being inflicted with a Leech Seed and Giga Drain combo. Nic kept this up for a nice ten seconds, and that's when Jose started trembling from energy loss and the magic that constricted him and Greninja was slowly dissolving, putting them both back on the ground. In mere moments, Jose was back on his feet, but was smashed in the face with a Needle Arm that drove him into an unbroken wall.

Nic snarled as he was just getting started. He had lots of energy now thanks to those two moves. Jose then appeared in front of him and the two were going back to back with Needle Arm and Darkness Magic enhanced fists. Each blow was terrifying. With every strike, wind surged with Jose's foul Magic and Nic's fury.

Leech Seed was still attached and Jose flinched as he felt himself get sapped, which left him open.

"**Dark Pulse!**" Greninja finally got his turn to unleash his fury and landed a clean hit with Dark Pulse smashing Jose and knocking him over. Nic then used Power Whip, making his arm extend and turn purple, and slammed Jose with all his might, making the ground quake and almost shatter. Jose was left in a ten foot diameter.

Nic then backed away to Greninja's side. Both of them felt good burning off steam, so their anger was beginning to filter.

They saw Jose come at them yet again, with more anger in his eyes as well. Both got a Darkness Magic coated fist. The two blocked it by grabbing the two fists and clenched on. They were almost shaking from the potential might of crushing Jose's hands. Jose grunted as he felt pain in the hands and the Leech Seed sapped at him yet again.

The both then unleashed a combination of Water Shuriken and Seed Bomb, which created dust and as well as another crater, though not as large as the Power Whip. Now their steam was pretty much used up.

They were both panting, Nic from back to back attacks, and Greninja with him not being able to recover from any damage. They both then shifted their gazes and noticed that the Guild Hall was still in ruins, but everyone was unharmed. He saw Makarov there, and Lucy and Natsu and everyone else, he saw Kecleon and Arbok, even a certain Requip Mage watching him fight. There was a long pause as he saw every one of them looking up at him with determination to win.

Seeing everyone okay was all it took for Nic's anger to dispel. Nobody was killed and everyone was putting their faith in the two. Both then looked at each other and smirked.

"Think we're winning?" Nic asked. The second he had finished saying that was when the ground shook with Jose rising up from the crater and making the Leech Seed decay from his Magic. His power was still growing and his maniac facial expression was still plastered on his face.

"Eh, we still got a ways to go." Greninja said.

Now that Nic could think straight with a more calm vibe, he thought of a way to get them the upper hand.

"Follow my lead." Nic then began dashing towards the broken wall that lead to the outside. Greninja followed in his steps, but Jose was determined to exterminate them on the spot.

"You're not going anywhere!" Jose shouted as he dashed towards Nic with speed that almost matched Greninja.

At this pace, Jose would cut him off before he could reach the edge. Greninja managed to pivot and throw a few Water Shurikens at Jose. He aimed at his feet so that his footing would be intercepted. Jose sidestepped as he was cut off from reaching Nic. Greninja followed Nic as they leaped off of the edge and plummeted down below.

Greninja had an impression as to what Nic was planning to do, and he thought he would follow along. Both sailed downwards, side by side, as a Dead Wave was sailing towards them at an alarming rate

* * *

**With Erza and the others**

"Nic!" Erza instinctively reached out towards him in a helpless manner. An overwhelming feeling, of which felt foreign to her, was stirring up inside of her. Gray and Elfman restrained her, yet they were as shocked as she was. Mira and Cana had their hands covering their mouths in deep shock. Lucy and Natsu couldn't believe what was happening. Arbok and Kecleon looked on in disbelief.

Everyone watched as Nic and the Ninja Pokémon were leaping out of the structure. They watched as Greninja was now sailing by Nic's side and then the unthinkable happened.

They all saw Jose standing at the edge of the barely standing Guild Hall. He had a large Magic Seal that was aimed at the two and then unleashed a brutal attack.

"**Dead Wave!**" The spell was coming in too fast. They all saw as Nic flipped himself to face the attack and put his arms up to block it as the attack enveloped him and his pal.

Erza was standing there, feeling as though all time in the world has ceased to move. That image replayed in her head twenty times over in a span of two seconds. She didn't want to believe it, she couldn't. Maybe this was all just a big illusion to her, or maybe her eyes were playing tricks with her and that she missed something. There was no way. Nic couldn't be…

She felt something wet and salty starting to run down her cheek.

Kecleon stood there in disbelief. She had tilted her head so far that maybe she was seeing a fake image of Nic getting destroyed along with Greninja. She straightened up and slumped forward with her mouth wide open.

"No…no…the wheels have stopped spinning…" She muttered.

Arbok was completely still, not a single muscle moved. He was baffled with the vision of his loyal and friendly family and Nic getting vaporized in front of his eyes. The one human he was open to was destroyed, gone. Greninja was gone as well, another family member he was friendly with.

"Nic-ssssssssama." Arbok lowered his head and a tear was beginning to streak down his scaly face.

* * *

**With Jose**

Jose had on a triumphant grin, showing his teeth as he gazed downwards at the sea. The boy and his ninja frog was gone for good this time. He saw it as the purple explosion indicated such an assumption. He was really strong, as was his accomplice. Their skills in battle were remarkable and proficient. It was such a shame that they had to be destroyed. It was a well fought battle that had sure gave Jose a run for his money.

Jose chuckled and then turned his murderous upon a wide eyed Makarov, who was still in shock of Nic's demise. Now that one obstacle was out of the way, he had to take down Makarov, and then make him suffer as his children fall after, and then the Heartfilia girl will finally be in his grasp.

"Well Makarov, now that one of your precious children has fallen, it's time for you to join him and his frog friend as well! You'll see your children suffer and-!"

Suddenly, the ground beneath Jose was beginning to quake harshly. It started out low and quickly escalated. The next thing he saw was that the ground bared a huge hole that was opened up by a huge single Water Shuriken surrounded by multiple Air Slash attacks, making it look like a slicing galaxy of sorts. The attack's sides were able to strike Jose, tearing up his clothing, mainly ripping his shoulder cape and leaving a large fraction of his left sleeve clothing torn off. Jose flew back and skid as he saw the attack skyrocket and break the entire ceiling, basically slicing up all of the rock that would've fallen and it escalated and went up into the sky and a large scale explosion of blue and sky blue erupted. Not a single piece of debris fell from that attack, mainly because it was all sliced up from the combination of a compressed shuriken and several air saws rotating around it. Anything that were to be touched could have been obliterated on the spot.

He slowly approached the wide hole and peered downwards, only to get a Wing Attack to the face. He leaped back and a Dark Pulse ran towards him. He managed to leap and evade the attack, but just barely. He stopped and saw Nic flapping in the air with Greninja landing safely.

Jose gritted his teeth and touched the part of his face that took the Wing Attack.

"You! How did you survive?!" He scowled.

Nic slowly descended to the floor and shifted back into the Meadow Plate. "Let's just say that we found a back route."

_As Nic and Greninja were descending, the Dead Wave attack was catching up to them fast. Nic turned and had his forearms forward. What nobody saw was that a green force field with spikes had protected Nic and Greninja s they were falling almost at the point of impact. The explosion itself was found incapable of passing by the Spiky Shield. _

_As they continued to fall, with the explosion as cover, Nic shifted into his Sky Plate Form and flew towards the bottom of the giant with Greninja flying on his back. Fortunately, the bottom of the giant wasn't plunged in the sea, so there was a perfect opening._

_Everyone was still fixated on what they thought was a casualty, so not a single person saw through the explosion._

"_What do you say, we give him a hello from down under?" Nic rhetorically asked his ninja pal._

_Greninja smirked. "Let's make it a big welcome."_

_Greninja began to prepare Water Shuriken, and then combined all of his shurikens into a giant shuriken that was over his head. Greninja jumped and threw the massive single Water Shuriken at the bottom. Nic added a twist by using Air Slash and making the attack circle about the Shuriken, giving it far more destructive power, as well as more cutting power. _

_They both smirked as the destructive attack easily shredded through the bottom of the giant and passed through multiple floors, all the way through Jose's floor. Nic quickly caught Greninja and had him hold onto his back while Nic soared with great speed through the holes that the shuriken made. As they were about to reach Jose, of whom peeked over at the time, he got ready for a Wing Attack._

"You annoying Fairy Tail scum!" Jose shouted, unleashing another Dead Wave. His attack, however, was weaker than the previous shot, showing that he was running low on Magic.

Nic and Greninja were able to intercept the attack now that it was shown to be weaker. They were able to cancel it out with a Dark Pulse and Leaf Tornado combo, of which Nic produced by rotating his arms in two separate directions and making a variety of green winds and light green leaves appear and make a tornado strike the Dead Wave. The result was a small explosion that didn't push anyone back, but did shake up the place again and produce strong winds that lasted for ten seconds or so.

* * *

**With Erza and the others**

Every person cheered when they saw Nic slug Jose with a Wing Attack, of which was followed up by a Dark Pulse from Greninja. Erza was so relieved. She was almost gasping for air at the sight of him not being dead. She had a smile on her face as she quickly wiped away the few tears that had fallen while she thought he was obliterated into nothingness.

"What's with that guy! He made us worry for nothing!" Cana said in irritation. Erza could see that Cana was worried about Nic herself, but the two were glad that he was found unharmed. "I'm going to kill him for doing a stunt like that!"

"Not before I do." Erza told her.

"I want in too!" Mira added.

Makarov overheard the three girls talking and couldn't help but chuckle. He was just as worried as they were when he thought Nic was blasted, but it didn't prove necessary as the Multitype Mage and his Greninja came rushing through the ground and delivered a hit on Jose. It made him wonder how he pulled off such a trick. This also made him wonder as to what other tricks Nic's was hiding.

This also begged the question as to how much stamina the boy and his Greninja have. It's clear that they have above average stamina if they can match a Wizard Saint.

Arbok and Kecleon both looked up and were speechless. They should have never doubted Nic's skills. They've been with him long enough to know that by now. The two were almost wide eyed and practically smiling. They turned towards each other and smirked, knowing that Nic hasn't let them down yet.

"Nic had us there for a moment." Kecleon said to her slithery pal.

"Nic-sssama issss unpredictable that way." Arbok agreed.

They both then turned and looked back at the action that was transpiring with Nic and Greninja both now on equal grounds with Jose.

* * *

**With Nic and Greninja**

Jose did another Dark Pulse, moving his arm in a swift arc that was followed with explosions. Greninja easily evaded with Bounce with Nic being attached. In a split second, Jose was in the air with them and he tried to do a point blank Dead Wave, of which was intercepted with a point blank Dark Pulse and Energy Ball. The explosion created a violent tempest that had crashed all three into walls, with Jose being on the opposing wall. All three were slowly getting back up, and every single cell in their bodies were aching.

If you were to imagine it, you would see a big hole in the floor from the surprise shuriken, an entire wall shattered and revealing the Fairy Tail Guild looking up, three adjacent walls severely cracked, a shattered floor from multiple craters, giving it a more moon-like look, and no roof.

Greninja couldn't take much more, neither could Jose; however, Nic was holding up due to the energy he had repleted thanks to that Giga Drain and Leech Seed combo. That explosion did hurt him pretty bad, so it's not like that energy boost was long-lasting for him. They had to end this battle, as in now.

Jose had the exact same thought. It was time to finish this. He stood affirm and was gathering a very large sum of Magic energy, now making the place quake yet again. Thank god Natsu wasn't in this fight, otherwise he would be motion sick all over the place from the building shaking a multitude of times. Anyways, Jose's power skyrocketed once again.

"Say your prayers and bow to me before I obliterate you!" Jose demanded. He let out a maniac-like screech as he conjured a large amount of his Darkness Magic, the energy shaping with countless ghosts in purple energy. All of that power being concentrated into the center of him. It was so dense that the floor beneath him was beginning to crack and the air around him was distorting.

As Jose was preparing his final assault to end this for good, Nic quickly talked with Greninja, formulating a plan.

"That attack will destroy the place, and us if it hits." Greninja indicated.

"Yet it's directed at us, so if it misses then it would just obliterate this side of the building…" Nic was then going into more detail as he and Greninja both had roughly ten seconds before the blast was unleashed. After a nod, the two had agreed on a strategy to end this for good.

Greninja used Smokescreen and covered Jose's vision of them as Nic and his pal were in a thick black cloud of smoke. Jose smiled evilly. "You fools! That trick won't work! Speed or stealth, you can't hide from me anymore! NOW DIE!"

He got no response from within the smoke cloud.

Jose roared and unleashed his fury. "This is it! **Phantom Eradicator!**"

Jose had then unleashed the massive assault of Magic at them. The blast so large and so forceful that it could've leveled half of Magnolia. The wave of immense energy completely destroyed a third of the giant, showing that a small fraction of its left leg and its entire arm was obliterated. He didn't give a damn, so long as the guy and his frog was terminated for good.

However, he heard the ground from behind him break and Nic and Greninja jumped through, and Jose saw Nic looking at him dead in the eye, starting to glow a bright green.

"But how?!" Jose was at a loss for words. How could they have evaded his most devastating assault? He then noticed as he shifted his feet that the flooring wasn't as sturdy.

_Within the Smokescreen cloud, Nic and Greninja decided to go under again. The Ninja Pokémon put his hands on the floor and pushed through with Dark Pulse, breaking the ground beneath them. Since the floor was so thin, thanks to the repeated assaults and quakes that made the floor as it was, it could be blasted through with ease. As they fell to the floor beneath them, they saw Jose unleash his attack. They instantly began sprinting forward to avoid the blast's range as it annihilated the flooring behind them. _

_They were now directly under Jose by one floor. They side stepped so that they were behind when they came up and Nic used Seed Bomb and threw it up, making a big enough hole for them to leap out of with Greninja's jumping skills, enabling Greninja to drag Nic upwards with him as Nic was now slowly glowing a bright green._

Jose instantly turned around, infuriated beyond measurement. His last attack had took almost every bit of Magic from him. He had very little left.

"You Fairy Tail rodents! You'll pay!" Jose scowled.

Nic took in a deep breath and that was Greninja's cue to get out. He leaped out of the structure at the speed of a ninja and looked back at Nic.

"Bring it on home!" Greninja shouted, indicating Nic's big finish. He turned and was using Bounce one last time to get out of the giant monstrosity.

Nic then began to glow brighter as Jose was trying to muster up whatever energy he had left over, which was enough for one Dead Wave. Jose unleashed his attack at Nic, but the Dead Wave didn't even touch him as the light of pure green energy vaporized the blast of darkness.

"This ends now. **Legendary Arts: Seed Flare!**" Nic then unleashed a huge green explosion of purified nature.

Jose let loose an agonizing scream as the light green explosion engulfed him.

* * *

**With Erza and the others**

Everyone who was watching was astounded with Nic and Greninja were keeping up with Jose once more. They all saw Jose gather up energy and saw Nic and Greninja disguise their strategy with Smokescreen. They all stepped back and covered up as Jose had unleashed his destructive blast that was so large that a third of his building was gone just like that.

Everyone stood in deep shock as to the power increase Jose had utilized. Makarov stood there, feeling that the power spike was even bigger than last time. They all stood silent, hoping that Nic and Greninja didn't die, not again. They all were cheering once more when they found Nic and Greninja bursting from behind, Erza was surprised especially. That blast had come in so fast and so powerful. She knew Nic was fast, but not that fast to instantly start dashing forward to make a narrow escape.

What perplexed them was how Greninja was leaping out of the massive structure when Nic was glowing. Not many people didn't figure it out until they felt a huge amount of energy being unleashed in the form of a pure green explosion. They all covered up from the green light that engulfed a majority of whatever was remaining of the Phantom Lord Guild.

Some felt the foul Magic from all around just instantly vanish. They all felt the light vanquishing any and all that was polluted and foul, mainly remnants of Jose's Magic that was still fairly high in concentration.

The light had lasted for a god twenty or so seconds. Everyone down at the ruins of Fairy Tail was stunned to say the least. Greninja had landed with grace on shore and turned his gaze at the now fading light from the explosion of nature.

Erza was lost in her own gaze at the sight of the defeat of a Wizard Saint. Nic was this strong? Well, at least now they knew why Greninja had to evacuate.

"The heck was that all about?" Wakaba shouted.

"Yeah. Just what exactly was that?" Macao wanted to know, not sure as to what it was. Greninja turned and looked at the two adults.

"That, people, was none other than Nic's grand finish." Greninja grinned at Arbok and Kecleon, of whom grinned back at a job well done by everyone doing their part.

"You kidding me?" Macao shouted. "Nic unleashed that much power?"

"Who else could pull off a move like that?" Greninja rhetorically asked. The guild members had varied reactions to Nic's big finish. Some were cheering, as to where some were staring wide eyed in shock.

There was a small amount of silence, of which was finally broken by the sound of Phantom's Guild starting to crumble. The entire structure was slowly crumbling away into a pile of rubble. Chunks of debris fell and the structure shuddered as it was slowly breaking down. It was to be expected from the continuous battle that had happened throughout the place. The two people who really did the mist destruction overall was Natsu and Nic. Both were pretty destructive in their fights, it was hard to tell who was more destructive. They all silently played that Nic wouldn't become a second Natsu.

"With, Nic is still in there!" Mira shouted.

Everyone then went into instant panic mode. They all shrieked as the structure crumbled and fell apart with Nic inside. Mira and Cana both stood wide eyed as the event happened, as to where Erza was speechless. Is Nic going to make it out okay? Her mind was beginning to process over several different concerns in regards to him.

The only ones not freaking out or gawking at the site were the pokémon. They all stared out at the scene, looking ahead at the scene. Arbok hissed as Greninja smirked, and Kecleon tilted her head. They knew the outcome and knew for a fact that Nic was going to come out okay.

And he did.

Everyone saw dust beginning to fly from the structure, but that wasn't the only thing that was flying. Everyone pointed in surprise to see Nic soaring out of the wreckage in his Sky Plate Form. All of Fairy Tail cheered as Nic was sailing at them, coming back safe and sound. He flew in and came to a rather sloppy landing. He came inwards at an angle and he extended his legs out to land. He descended and his feet touched the ground and he ran a few feet as he transformed back into himself. Due to massive fatigue, he tubled a few times with the momentum from flying in and finally stopped with him on one knee and panting.

He then slowly got back upon his two feet, and he was found as the center of attention with all of Fairy Tail surrounding him. He was banged up a bit, but so was Greninja. He turned and noticed that everyone was staring at him. He did what came naturally: improvised.

Nic slowly scanned everyone and did a full three-sixty survey and saw everybody. He then stopped and did one of those awkward silent moments. "Uh, hi?"

Everyone got over their initial shock and they all erupted in loud and joyful cheers. They all swarmed him and everyone gathered around him for details. They wanted to know how he did all of those sweet moves and did that big finish. Too many questions were being asked and so little room to answer. Some were just happy to see him alive and well. Some gave him pats on the back and hugs were exchanged. In general, the public was happy with Nic's safety.

"You made our hearts jump too many times." Macao told him.

"What can I say, I keep things interesting to say the least." Nic said.

Roughly after a good few moments of glory, everyone grew silent and made way for Master Makarov and Nic's pokémon. The old man looked up and smiled at him.

"Nic, you did well. Here I thought Jose and I were a match for one another, now I see that there is another who can show Jose the flaws he had accumulated. You and your friends have done well to protect all of Fairy Tail. Thanks to you, Phantom Lord is defeated." Makarov praised him.

Everyone cheered again from such a worthy praise. Nic didn't know what to say.

"Gee, I guess I can say is that I showed him what it means to be a saint. Not a Wizard Saint, but someone who protets and stands up for those who are in need of help." Nic said.

Makarov nodded. "I couldn't agree more."

His pokémon then began to approach him. Greninja, Arbok, and Kecleon all stood in front of Nic. With no words to describe how proud everyone was with one another, Nic brought them in for a meaningful group hug.

"You guys are the best." Nic said to all three.

"We're the brightest stars out there." Kecleon muttered.

"Nic-ssssama. There are no wordsss to dessscribe how proud I am to be part of sssuch a great family." Arbok said.

"Same." Nic said. They all backed away and Greninja and Nic both grinned at one another. Both were mighty proud of each other's valor in battle. Nic was especially satisfied with Greninja's efforts to re-learn Water Shuriken.

"I just realized something." Nic said, getting everyone's curiosity.

"What?" Greninja asked.

"…I haven't eaten all day. It's chow time." Nic said in a casual manner. Everyone just laughed with Nic as he created slight humor.

Then three people emerged from the crowd. Nic didn't know why, but he felt a strange vibe coming from Erza, Mira, and Cana as they were walking up to him with sweet smiles across their faces.

"Hi, Nic." Mira greeted in a sweet voice. "We were so glad that you turned out okay."

Cana nodded, still smiling all too sweet-like.

"You made us worry Nic. You had us on edge." Cana said.

"We were so worried that something drastic happened." Erza said. They all took just one step further, and that was when Nic sensed a killing intent, mainly directed at him. "Especially when we thought you were killed from that fall."

It was then that Nic began to feel his appetite go south as he saw the black aura of certain death surrounding the three young women. He looked at Greninja, of whom felt sorry to be in his shoes right now. Nic had enough pain today, and he most certainly didn't want to deal with any more of it, he needed a break.

"What do you think, just this once?" Nic leaned in and questioned his pal. The three beautiful angels of death were slowly approaching him. He might as well poke some fun since all that has happened was non-stop brawling.

"Fine, but next time you're on your own." Greninja quietly said to his best friend.

The three women began cracking their knuckles while still wearing those sweet smiles. They looked as though they wanted to put the hurt on someone, mainly a certain Multitype Mage who made them worry.

"YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE!" Nic teased as Greninja applied cover for Nic with Smokescreen, obscuring everyone's vision for a brief few seconds. When the smoke cleared, Nic was very well almost out of sight.

"NIC!" The three girls screamed and chased after the hero. Everyone else just laughed at Nic's misfortune; that is, if he gets caught. Greninja and the other two smirked and chuckled at Nic's hilarious actions.

"He's on his own next time." Greninja amusingly grinned.

* * *

**One week later…**

The whole ordeal with Phantom had finally came to an end, and the guild was slowly progressing back to its old, loud, and rowdy self; well, as normal as it can get.

Within a span of a few days, a lot of stuff went down in regards to the incident. The Royal Army came to do a full investigation just after Phantom's defeat. Each of the members were thoroughly questioned and were given answers in regards to what went down. Master Makarov had to go to Era to speak with the Magic Council. Nic tagged along on behalf of Mira's request. She told him to go along just because it would be better to chaperone the Master, as well as keep a watchful eye on the Council.

At the meeting, Nic observed with mild distaste. He had animosity towards the Council and he prayed that this wouldn't take long, because he couldn't stand authority. He did find it amusing to see Master feeling the same as him, though Master slept in response rather than grit his teeth and frown the entire time like Nic did. He had to suppress every growl that came up his throat when he heard the Council talk about Fairy Tail and how destructive it always is. Nic made quick eye contact with Seigrain, the man who has a connection with Erza. Just what exactly is that connection? Nic had to restrain as much demonic glares as he could, he couldn't afford to get into trouble, not that he wasn't trying to. It's all pure instincts that's driving Nic mad at the sight of Seigrain being amused by Fairy Tail's antics.

However, Nic could tell that Seigrain felt uncomfortable around him, being annoyed and uneasy. Seigrain was trying to hide this from Nic, thought he was having as much trouble as Nic trying to suppress his demeanor.

Nic was so relieved that the meeting concluded. For some odd reason, Ultear kept gazing and leering at Nic, of whom felt very uncomfortable with her action.

Nic was just satisfied that the entire ordeal was over. Politics, rules, and authority was a big pain. In the end, the blame was put on Phantom Lord and no charges were put on Fairy Tail. Jose was even stripped of his title as a Wizard Saint and Phantom Lord was disbanded.

Throughout the last couple or so days, Nic had been taking it easy from the action. He definitely earned it. Mira was at the temporary bar, tending to stuff. Lucy was lounging about, rather bored from lack of work. The Guild Hal was getting repairs done, but expenses and materials were needed to be paid for. Everyone had been doubling the amount of jobs just to pay for those things. It wasn't as lively, but it was still Fairy Tail to say the least.

"Ugh. Job requests are so slow today. I can't seem to find a decent job." Lucy complained, resting her head on her hand.

A half-naked Gray looked over, though he didn't notice himself shirtless. "Just relax. Everyone isn't as picky when it comes to jobs, especially at those point. We need all of the money we can get if we're to fix this place. Nic even dipped into his savings and pulled out a chunk of his loot." Gray informed her, but that didn't make her feel any better.

"At least he has money. We didn't get squat from that stupid S-Class Galuna Island request." Lucy berated. Obviously, she wasn't in the best mood. She was running low on money and she needed to find a job that didn't involve Natsu obliterating something that sucked up their reward sum.

Nic was lying his head down on the far end of the bar, resting his head on his arms and just chilling after chowing down. After those events that transpired, he must have eaten as much as Natsu always does, if not more.

Speaking of which, Natsu was passing by, sitting a few stools away from Nic. He was sulking. Erza and Happy followed behind, where they both sat down. Happy sat on the counter in front of Natsu, who was right next to Lucy and Gray, and Erza sat right next to Nic, filling the gap between them.

Nic opened his eyes, still with his head lying on his arms, and looked at the sulking Natsu. "I take it that he got his goose cooked, yes?" Nic asked the red-head beauty that was right next to him.

"Aye, she destroyed him." Happy answered. Erza was helping with construction and Natsu kept asking for a challenge, of which Erza eventually accepted. They took that time for a quick battle, of which Erza won with ease. She requiped into her Heart Kreuz rather than her construction outfit and didn't have a single scratch.

"Next time, I'll get the win for sure." Natsu grumbled.

Erza had proceeded to ordering her usual strawberry cheesecake from Mira when she looked over at Nic, who looked rather appeased at this time.

Erza looked at him and saw how calm and serene Nic was when he closed his eyes once more. Compared to battle she saw, he was as tranquil as can be. She couldn't help but feel all calm herself. Nic gave off a calm vibe when he was like this, making others feel more comfortable around him. She then wondered what kind of vibe she would be feeling if she were to be battling him. She recalled seeing Nic having a variety of emotions with his battle with Jose. She saw those emotions range from strong confidence to a deranged monstrosity. She couldn't put her finger on as to what kind of fighter Nic was, it probably depended on the circumstances maybe.

Mira had arrived with her cake just as Erza was thinking about said conflictions. Mira gave Erza the cake, of which she thanked her.

Mira giggled, seeing how Nic was so calm and Erza was looking funny around him. She knew it all too well.

"Maybe I should call the people at Sorcerer's Weekly. They could use a male model that the girls would just love to get their hands on." Mira teased. At that instant, Nic's eyes shot open and both Erza and Nic's faces blushed a deep red.

Nic blushed because of the fact that Mira thinks he's hot. Erza was blushing because she couldn't help but picture Nic as a model, but then was consumed in the red of jealousy of the potential women that Nic might attract.

Mira giggled at the blushes on their faces, thinking how much they enjoyed that little comment, of which they really didn't.

Lucy then noticed that three people were walking up to them. It was Levy, Jet and Droy. Lucy immediately got up and ran up to Team Shadow Gear.

"Levy!" Lucy shouted. When they heard Lucy shouting Levy's name, everyone at the bar instantly arose from their seats and went to meet up with the now fully recovered trio.

"Hey Lucy!" Levy said, happy to see her friend okay as well. Jet and Droy were back up to one hundred percent thanks to that cranky healer of a Porlyusica. Lucy and Levy both exchange hugs of relief. Everyone was so glad that they were up and about, especially after such craziness. The three then approached Nic.

"Look who's up and abou-." He was interrupted with Levy hugged him as a thank you.

"Thank you so much, Nic." Levy said as she began to pull away.

Jet and Droy both stepped forward. "Yeah, if it weren't for you, Levy would've been in the same state we were in." Jet thanked Nic.

"You really helped us out back there. We owe ya big time. Name it." Droy said.

Nic smiled. "It's fine guys, really. I would never turn my back on someone who needs help." Nic having to save them from Gajeel that time was rewarding enough to him. It felt good that he did good, which was really good since he's good. It's a bunch of goodness.

All of the good then died when the sound of a snobbish blonde S-Class was heard. Laxus just had to go and ruin the mood. "Man! This guild has lost its edge. This guild has nothing but babies and frightened little dogs scurrying about."

Laxus was sitting at a table all by himself with an arrogant grin on his no-good face. He then looked back at Team Shadow Gear. "Especially you sorry morons. I'm glad I never learned your names. You guys are a big disgrace to this guild!"

Team Shadow Gear then looked down in pity, being berated by such an arrogant punk. It couldn't be helped, this was Laxus after all. Still, taking such a harsh reprimanding from him was something that no one could stand for.

He then turned and directed his insults at Lucy. "And that leaves you, the little Miss wannabe Wizard. No know, none of this would've happened if you would have just kept your feet engraved into your mansion." Laxus's insult was even more harsh than with Team Shadow Gear's insult.

Mira glared harshly at him. "Laxus! Shut it. The Master told that no one was to be held responsible for Phantom's assault. The matter is settled, so there's nothing to talk about now that's all behind us."

Laxus got up and smirked ever so arrogantly. "All behind? Hah! The Guild Hall is a pile of rubble now thanks to you sorry slouches!"

Erza and Natsu had just about enough of Laxus's smart mouth comments.

"You-!" Erza was just about to draw her sword when Natsu got ahead of her and encased his fist in fire.

"We've had enough of you!" Natsu shouted, lunging at Laxus, of whom wasn't even batting an eyelash.

The man kept his smirk on his face as the Fire Dragon Slayer. Laxus disappeared in a bolt of lightning at the last second, leaving Natsu to fall forward.

"Too slow you walking ember." Laxus said, reappearing behind him.

Natsu turned back in frustration, demanding that Laxus should fight like a man, something that Elfman would say.

"Come on Laxus, fight me for real!" Shouted an annoyed Dragon Slayer. Laxus chuckled at how Natsu wants to fight against a guy like him.

"You can't even touch me idiot!" Laxus berated.

He was about to make another comment about Fairy Tail and its sorry state, but was stopped cold when he felt something like energy touching his neck. Everyone gasped as Nic stood behind Laxus in his Meadow Plate Form with a Leaf Blade to his jugular.

"You're not the only one who acts in an instant." Nic said in a cold voice. "I would keep my mouth shut if I were you. Keep being a snob and you'll get no mercy from me." Nic was more ticked than Erza and Natsu put together. Everyone had sensed the vibe change emanating from Nic. It wasn't calm anymore, more like a threatening beast ready to unleash his fury if anyone were to get hurt by Laxus.

Laxus smirked. Once again, he vanished in a bolt of lightning and quickly reappeared behind Nic and put him in a one armed choke hold.

Erza and the others nearly flipped when they saw Nic getting choked by Laxus. Erza was just about ready to requip into a different set of armor the moment Laxus starts to tighten his hold.

"Heh! Just because you took down that geezer Jose doesn't mean that you're on par with me." Laxus said. Nic glowed and then disappeared almost instantly from Laxus's hold. Laxus tensed when he felt something with a sharp and dark energy-like tip touch the back of his neck. He was wide eyed in deep shock that Nic swiftly transformed into the Dread Plate and did a Feint Attack to disappear and had Laxus from behind.

Nic stood behind a frozen Laxus, with Night Slash positioned to strike. "Like I said, you're not the only one who acts in an instant." He said in a somewhat less menacing tone than from before.

If the guild members weren't shocked before, they were now. They all had the same thought. _'So fast!'_

There was a super intense silence that followed. Every single person in the guild could feel the air getting thick with anxiety. It was so thick that you could slice it with a knife. Just the slightest provocation from either person could lead to a full-on brawl to the death between the two. Laxus was beginning to spark all over as to where Nic had sharpened his Night Slash. If a fight were to break out, here and now, they might destroy the entire town of Magnolia, as well as themselves.

Everyone knew just how powerful Laxus was. He wasn't S-Class for any other reason. He could easily take on every single person in the entire guild and not even break a sweat. Nic, however, was an absolute mystery to them all. He had just defeated Jose, who was one of the Ten Wizard Saints, meaning he was one of the ten most powerful people in all of Fiore. Up to this point, Nic hasn't lost to anyone yet. The Mage with sunglasses always came out on top, whether it would be Lullaby, Natsu, The Nightmare, Gajeel, the Element Four, or Jose. No one knew what Nic was capable of.

The point being was that it wouldn't be pretty to see the two duking it out.

"That would be enough from both of you!" Makarov ordered, walking up to the scene. It was easy to tell by the look on his face that he wasn't too thrilled with the animosity stirring up with the two.

Nic reluctantly backed away and reverted back into himself. Laxus slowly stood up straight and tried to suppress his anger for the time being. He stopped with the sparks and looked at the upset Master, of whom was his grandfather. Laxus gave a distasteful grunt and began to walk away.

"This guild is going to be mine one day, don't you forget that. Whether you like it or not, your days are numbered Fairy Tail weaklings! I'll shape this guild into the most powerful guild in existence."

He then stooped and turned back to have a glare down with Nic. "As for you, this isn't over you amateur punk. Next time we cross paths, gramps won't be there to save your ass. You better watch your back."

"Same goes for you." Nic wasn't afraid of Laxus one bit. People were afraid of Laxus because of his power, but if anything, Nic's fury and unknown strength trumps the arrogant being's power.

Everyone was still silent as Nic stood there as Laxus departed in a lightning bolt. He looked on and snarled once more before settling down, glad that Laxus had left. He then went off somewhere to chillax.

"Where's Nic going?" Lucy wondered. Mira leaned over and watched Nic take off and towards another direction.

"He might be going off to ease himself. Can't blame him though. He's been through so much ever since he's joined Fairy Tail." Mira explained. "Coming from another world must be life changing."

* * *

**Two hours later…**

Nic was lying back against a wall that was being assembled. Charizard was helping out in construction for two reasons: one, he wanted to get some exercise; and two, because he can. He was working regularly, but he decided to chill for a little bit before getting back to work.

Charizard looked down at Nic. Nic was looking pretty calm with earbuds in his ears, listening to his music. Charizard tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention.

"Yeah?" Nic put his earbuds away and looked up at his flaming buddy.

"Nic, tell me, what is it that's been bothering you?" Charizard asked. He knew something was troubling Nic. He groaned slid back, now looking up at the sky.

"I don't know. There's so many people that are taking the wrong path. Gajeel, Phantom Lord, and now that Laxus guy. I'm not liking this atmosphere that's floating about." Nic admitted. This was fairly accurate though. A lot more hysteria has happened ever since they came to Earthland. Regardless, they had a mission to save the universe, and is they failed, every living thing would be screwed.

Charizard looked up and watched the clouds go by as well. "Same. More violent and crazy, I'll give it that."

Nic then turned his head towards his buddy. "Tell me, what do you think Arceus is doing right now?"

Charizard had to picture from what he saw through his poke ball. Arceus was fairly ill and was barely able to stand. Considering that was awhile ago, he might be in a more fatal condition.

Charizard paused before answering. "I don't know." Nic then turned his head back up and sighed.

"Hey Nic." The sound of Erza's voice made him sit back up. He instantly drew his attention up towards the red-head that was looking down at him. "You okay?"

To be fair, Nic is stressed with everything that has been going on. Various conflicts, the recent war, Natsu and Gray fighting, people getting hurt. It's all making Nic's head spin.

He took a deep breath and looked away towards the ground between him and Charizard. "Meh. Stressed."

Erza stepped by his side and sat down by him. She looked at him, seeing that he certainly hasn't been feeling himself. She tried thinking of something to cheer him up, but little options came to mind.

"We've officially made a team made up of me, Happy, Natsu, Gray, and Lucy." Erza said. "Our next job is heading off to Lupinus. Care to join, there's room for one more."

As much as Nic would love to spend more time with the guys, especially Erza, he couldn't help but feel tired. He just needed to sleep.

Nic looked at her and frowned. "I'll pass. Thanks though. Maybe next time."

Erza could see that Nic wasn't going to do much, this fighting was stressing him out. He needed more rest than any other member. She looked down at her lap and stared into space, thinking of another way to cheer him up.

An idea then came to her. She wasn't exactly certain as to whether or not it would benefit them both, but it was better than seeing him sulk from stress. She got up and looked down at him.

"Nic, how about we battle?" Erza suggested. Nic raised a brow, thinking how could she think of such a thing. The time was decent, and the place was big enough, but of all the people to fight, it just had to be Nic. Nic looked up at her in some sort of surprise.

"Eh, say you say what now?" Nic asked. Charizard got up from looking at the sky and looked over at the two, thinking this could get interesting.

Erza put on a smile. "I don't see why not. It'll get you out of that mood I see. Plus the fact that I've been meaning to see what strength you possess." She was looking pretty serious. It was true. She has been meaning to test Nic and his strength. If he could defeat a Wizard Saint, then he should have no trouble being on par with Erza; of course, you should also take into account that it was mostly a two on one brawl. She wondered how Nic would do on his own.

Nic was having trouble deciding what to do. Too many things were rushing into his brain at the moment, like how could he hurt the most beautiful woman he's ever seen, and how can he fight her if he had just defeated Jose not even a week ago. Then again, Erza did bring up a fair point. Testing his strength against her's would be a great way to get his mind off of the stress that's been piling up on his shoulders.

After a brief pause, he smiled and got up. "I guess you're right. It might as well knock me out of my stress. I can also see if I can beat an S-Class goddess with the same amount of effort I put in with Jose." Nic then picked up on something he said, mainly the word 'goddess'. Upon realizing he called her a goddess, he covered his mouth and silently cursed at himself. Charizard chuckled at Nic's behavior, but saw that Erza was turning away and went red to the face. She tried to hide her blush from Nic, which Charizard also found slightly amusing, but he realized that the two were about to quarrel and had to get them both to realize that as well.

"Okay, enough making a scene you two," Charizrd said. "You guys are going to battle, meaning that you better be treating each other like opponents." He had a point. Upon realizing that this was indeed true, Nic and Erza both shook off the embarrassment of their actions and looked at each other in the eyes, but these were gazes of serious competitors.

Feeling or no feelings, this was a battle. Nic had to disregard his feelings for her and consider her as an opponent. Same went for Erza.

The news spread faster than Jet's High Speed. Within minutes, all of the guild members surrounded the two as they were going to clash. They were doing it near the construction site, but it was on the leveled ground. If any damage were to happen, they could just rebuild.

"Well, now we'll see who's better, Nic or Erza." Gray said, finally having some clothes on this time. Natsu was looking, seeing who would come out on top. He wish he was fighting her again, but was somewhat curious as to what Nic could do as well.

"Man, that should be me up there." Natsu mumbled. Happy flew right next to him.

"You were destroyed last time, don't you think that you should take it easy?" Happy complained. Try explaining the phrase "taking it easy" to Natsu, it's not possible. No matter what, this was Nic's fight now.

Charizard proceeded between the two, getting ready to referee. "I expect a clean fight. The battle between Nic and Erza will now begin. This will be a one on one match, and the battle will be over when one side is unable to continue.

Nic and Erza both were ready to begin. Now the two were about ready.

"Don't expect me to show any mercy." Nic warned, thinking this might actually be fun. At least he wasn't stressing.

Erza requiped into her Black Wing Armor and held up her jagged sword. "I know not the meaning of mercy." She said with a grin. Nic responded by changing into his Dread Plate Form.

"This is a tough call. I don't know who to root for." Lucy said.

"Nic's got this. He hasn't failed me yet." Cana said with a grin before chugging down a barrel of booze, her eight one today.

"Let the battle begin!" Charizard shouted, now bringing his arm down and quickly getting out of the way. Almost instantly, Nic and Erza went right into each other. Erza was about to slash at him when Nic disappeared. She then turned around and anticipated his strike, seeing how he used Feint Attack to get out of Laxus's choke hold. She then brought her sword around and then Nic reappeared and had struck the back of the blade. The two attacks collided, both sides then backed away, now on opposite sides from when they started.

"**Night Slash!" **Nic then encased his arm in a darkaura with red outlining and he and Erza clashed once more. Since both were using forms that had high Attack power, it was hard to tell who was going to win; that is, until Nic played a trick in the form of Foul Play. He brushed away the sword by its edge, grabbed Erza, turned her around, and threw her. She skid as she tumbled before getting back to her feet in the process.

"Not bad." Erza admitted. "Now let's see how you fair against this!" She then flew in at high speed at Nic and started to slash. She was slashing in very swift motions as Nic was trying to dodge every strike. He couldn't keep up for long as Erza was becoming too fast for him. She was probably just as fast as Jose at her top speed, so Nic could read her movements fairly well with the experience in regards to speed movements. When he had found the right opportunity, he dodged right and used Knock Off, covering his arm in black sparks and swatting at Erza as she brought her sword to swing yet again, but was cut off when the sword flew out of her hand.

She watched as the sword flew out of her hand and clanged onto the ground. She flapped her wings and went back several feet to cover distance. Everyone was amazed. Nobody was quick enough to swat Erza's sword out of her hands.

"Nic's fast!" Mira exclaimed.

"Yeah. I haven't seen such speed since that quarrel with Jose." Gray said, now shirtless.

"Gray, clothes." Cana said. Gray then panicked and quickly tried to find his clothes as the battle progressed.

"Erza then grabbed her sword from the ground and pointed it at Nic. "I'm impressed. You're speed is remarkable. You were able to anticipate me faster than I could've imagined." Erza complimented. She specifically remembered Nic's speed and how fast he was during the battle with Jose. He was probably faster than her, if not equal.

"**Moon Flash!**" She then rushed at Nic, who was ready to attack. She then slashed at Nic in a cross pattern.

"**Night Daze!**" Nic shouted. He emanated a crimson aura and raised his arms above his head. He brought them down, creating a pink and crimson force field that expanded outwards that tied with Moon Flash. The two attacks then cancelled out the other, creating strong winds that made everyone cover up.

"WAAAHH!" Happy was clinging onto Lucy's shoulder as the wind was blowing him away.

"Man, they're cranking up the juice for this fight!" Natsu shouted as the wind ceased.

Erza then paused, as did Nic. Both sides have received no damage from the two attacks. Both sides then grinned at each other, very impressed with each other's skill set.

"Not bad. **Requip!**" Erza then glowed, revealing that she had transformed into a different armor. It had the resemblance of a cheetah. The breastplate had a cheetah pattern with some armor above it that had fur lining along the edges. The armor had revealing black shorts with a belt holding a cloth on Erza's left thigh. The arms had dark armbands reaching below her shoulders, with her left arm being protected by cheetah-patterned armor with a single pauldron and wide arm guard. Her legs had similar stockings that reached up to her thighs, with armor high-heeled boots, with the left being more armored and reaching up to the knee, which is protected by her cheetah-patterned knee guard; and so, that left the right boot reaching up to her calf. She had a collar and a tail hanging from the back of her shorts, and cheetah ears that were all plushy fur.

Nic then began repositioning himself for a more offensive approach.

"This is my Flight Armor. It increases my speed." She explained. Nic then awaited to use Night Slash, but was cut off guard when Erza was in front of him the next second.

'_Holy crap, she wasn't kidding!' _He didn't have any more room to think or mentally shout as she slashed at him with two swords, knocking him down and landing with a big thud on his back.

Everyone looked on in shock as Nic was being beaten in terms of speed, not to mention that the battle was escalating rather quickly.

"Oh wow! She was like a blur with spots!" Lucy exclaimed.

"That certain armor enhances her speed, making it a lot tougher for Nic." Mira explained.

"For a friendly battle to relieve Nic's stress, this is kind of getting out of hand." Levy said with a sweat drop.

Nic sat up and watched as Erza was awaiting for Nic to get up so that she could slash at him once again. He got to his feet and saw Erza positioning herself to strike.

"Time to change dynamics." Nic muttered. He jumped into the air and started to glow. He then shifted into his Sky Plate Form and took off into air. Erza began chasing after him and leaped after him. She was at the same elevation as he was and she tried slashing away. Nic, however, had the advantage in the air and used Gust to blow her away, also making her fall to the ground. She landed and skid along the field, regaining her balance and then saw Nic readying his assault.

"**Air Cutter!**" Nic then unleashed a barrage of wind-slicing energy waves at Erza. She swiftly shifted left and right, jumping about as she avoided the onslaught of Air Cutter attacks. She then leaped upwards and made a cross from her swords. Nic countered with himself using Wing Attack to intercept. Both attacks cancelled out as both backed away, with Erza landing safely and Nic descending to a lower altitude.

Nic was indeed having fun. For some reason, he found this more comforting because no one's life was at risk. It was relaxing, yet still painful, but it's not like he cared or anything. This also counted as a way with interacting with Erza. He got to know her as a very capable fighter. Her perception was impeccable and her sword strikes were powerful, not to mention her speed was way up thanks to that armor. He had to catch up to her speed, and he knew just how to do so.

"**Tailwind!**" Suddenly, Nic was enveloped in strong wind that was almost pushing him forward. He flapped continuously as the wind picked up, making him gain speed. "Let's go!"

Erza then dashed, and Nic flew close to the ground at the same speed, if not faster. Everyone had a hard time keeping track of them as they were dashing like crazy. Erza went at Nic with a multitude of slashes, as to where Nic evasively got of the way and countered with Aerial Ace, colliding often, as well as Acrobatics. For Acrobatics, it actually got the best of Erza as moved ever so nimbly that her swords didn't keep up and Nic had send her soaring and crashing after a good backhand of an Acrobatics.

Now everyone was stunned to see Nic keeping up with Erza's speed and actually winning. Erza was indeed S-Class, and Nic was keeping up with someone who had more combat experience than he did, yet he's been in battles before, as a Trainer that is, so he knew all of the angles when it came to battling.

"**Drill Peck!**" A glowing spear-like energy encased Nic's mouth and he rotated at high speed towards her. Erza wasted no time in countering with a sword strike. Sparks literally flew as Nic drilled into the sword. The two people, of whom were somewhat smitten with the other, kept their ground affirm as Nic tried overpowering, instead the sword began to crack and Erza jumped back as Nic followed through with the attack, hitting her on the side. She kept her position in a more defensive manner, as to where Nic soared passed her and swatted her with a Wing Attack from behind. She jumped and evaded the assault, but that left her open in mid-air for Nic to strike with Aerial Ace. Erza saw as Nic zoomed in and past her, hitting her in less than two seconds. She straightened out and landed on the ground and was on one knee, panting. Nic descended to the ground and was beginning to puff out some air as well. His Tailwind had just worn off as well. He was being put through his paces as well.

Some people were just unable to find the words.

"Titania is being beaten by Luminous." "Those two are equal." "I can't believe that those two are at an even match with one another."

Erza then got up on both her feet and grinned. "I'm very impressed Nic. Your skill in battle is clearly advance and should not be underestimated." She complimented. She was having fun as well. You could tell because she was still grinning while huffing and puffing. Nic was the same. Both then did one last change.

Nic glowed and transformed into his Meadow Plate Form. Erza requiped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. This was where things were going to heat up to an intense level.

"Oh man, now I really wish that were me out there!" Natsu whined.

"Your fight didn't even last two minutes." Happy pointed out.

Erza then took flight, with two swords in hand and a whole wheel of them circling around her. Erza made a battle cry as she and Nic went at one another again. Nic dashed forward with Leaf Blade at the ready. It was time to pit blade against blade.

Erza then slashed in an arc that Nic ducked from. He sprung upwards and attempted an upward Leaf Blade with his right arm. Erza intercepted by angling her other sword and making it collide with Leaf Blade. Nic then took a few steps back and lunged forward with his right arm back and swiped across, and Erza did a double-sword cross and blocked the assault. Nic took a baby step back and leaped into air and came down with the Leaf Blade in the form of a chop this time. He brought his right arm down and Erza intercepted with her two swords in the form of a cross to defend. She had yet to see Nic use his left armed Leaf Blade as he twisted his body and went in a crouch position upon landing for a swift half second before bringing his left armed Leaf Blade in an upward chop, knocking Erza's two swords out of her hands.

Every guild member's jaw dropped as Erza's swordsmanship was on par with Nic's usage of the Plates. For battling by himself, Nic was doing just fine.

Nic backed away and Erza flew upwards and summoned two more swords in place of the ones that were knocked out of her hands. She then grinned at Nic.

"I am very pleased as to how you can manipulate sword moves as well." Erza said.

Nic shrugged and smiled. "There's a lot of sword-like moves, but this one in particular is one of my favorites because it can do critical hits much more easily."

Erza then had the swords around her beginning to dance. They all made a tower around her that was rotating blades clockwise, counterclockwise, and clockwise on the upper part. It somewhat obscure Nic's vision of her, with her armor matching the color of the swords and all.

Nic had to take a risk. He ran ahead a readied another Leaf Blade. He then slashed in a sideways angle, another sideways angle, and a double chop Leaf Blade to finally break through the tower of swords. The swords scattered about in the air as Nic passed through, and Erza was out of sight. Nic was wide eyed as Erza wasn't anywhere. Everyone almost stepped back in surprise, but realized that they're not the ones fighting her.

Nic then turned his head to see that the blades from the tower slowly went upwards and they all shifted their pointed edged and each and every one of them was aimed at Nic. Nic didn't even have time to fully turn around when they all rained down on him. Nic yelped as swords past him and damaged him to a critical degree. They all then angle above and arced upwards and came to a full circle around Erza, of whom was descending from the height she soared to make that attack work.

"Do you concede?" Erza asked him as she softly landed, but she knew his answer all too well. Nic got up fom the ground with a grunt and positioned himself to attack once more. Erza then flew in at Nic as he jumped and used Razor Leaf. Erza had no trouble slicing through Erza leaf and closing in on Nic. Nic almost swallowed when Erza held up her swords in a delta formation.

'_Oh crud! I need to cut her off from using that attack!' _Nic thought. He then glowed white and puffs of cotton appeared and then disappeared, making Nic's body glow blue for a good moment just before Erza slashed her delta formation at him.

"**Trinity Sword!**" She then slashed at Nic and had him plummet to the ground in a dust cloud. The cloud quickly vanished as it revealed that Nic was still able to stand. He got up and cracked his back. Erza looked on in surprise as Nic was recovering from her attack. Erza descended and pointed her swords at him once more.

"You seem to have increased your stamina. No one has survived my Trinity Sword attack." Erza noted.

"You can thank Cotton Guard for that." Nic said. He then lunged at her with Needle Arm acting like a mace when Erza went in and slashed past him. Both sides had received some sort of damage in the blink of an eye and no one noticed. They were then stopped by the scene of Erza's swords following through with her attack, via Blumenblatt. Nic yelped as the swords went past him and he fell to the ground, feeling drained. He couldn't even stand on his own two feet.

Erza turned back and saw Nic barely able to stand. She frowned as she considered herself overdoing it, but then again, when doesn't she? She turned ad began to walk away, but stopped and went wide eyed as she saw Nic getting back up."

"I'm not…gonna give up…not ever."Nic struggled to say. Everyone was in awe as Nic began to stand back up. They've seen the great Titania fight before, but not a single person could last this lng against her. It was too amazing. "I WON'T QUIT!" Nic proclaimed.

Erza was almost taken by Nic's will to keep going. He certainly was impressive to her. Taking two major attacks and still being able to stand was no easy picnic, but she knew Nic wasn't going to fall unless she pull out more tricks from her sleeves, or in this case, swords.

She turned to look at Nic and grinned. "I see you've got Natsu's stubborn side. That gives you an incredible amount of stamina. You are the only one to stand after those attacks. Now, let's keep going!"

Erza then flew forward at Nic and stopped when she was twenty feet away. Nic readied a Leaf Blade and watched in a defensive manner as Erza had summoned forth roughly forty or so more swords. She then made the blades dance sort of speak. She made them make a large circle around Nic. Now swords were circling about him in high speed. Fortunately, thanks to his Meadow Plate Form, his senses were enhanced, making him react faster than usual. He then saw a shadow of Erza in a particular direction, and from that direction came a blast of swords. Nic pivoted and slashed at the oncoming swords. He managed to deflect and intercept every one of them. He then saw the shadow in another direction outside the circle and unleashed more swords at Nic, of whom could sense it. He slashed away and managed to knock them all away again.

"Whoa! Nic is awesome!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Yeah, no kidding. Using that form is pretty amazing if you ask me." Gray noted.

Nic kept seeing the shadow appear and reappear in another direction and kept dodging swords and slashed at a few that were coming rather close. He didn't have any room to make a counterattack as the swords didn't dial down.

Nic then remembered a similar situation like this and had the memory flood back into his brain.

_He had finally reached Coumarine City and had just gotten off of the train that had the city split into a northern and southern end. Once he had set foot into the Pokémon Center, he immediately went to heal his pokémon and lie down. Sure he was in great shape from the traveling he's been doing, but that doesn't mean he isn't allowed to be tired. _

_The next day, he went to check out the gym. The gym itself was embedded into a super large tree, the largest tree in all of Coumarine City to be more precise. The sides had lead up to a battlefield at the top. What was also strange was that there was also a small lace there as well._

_Nic saw a small old man with his eyes shut, he had on a green hat and had super large scissors. He had a red scarf around his neck and had green shoes, which was topped with black overalls. There was a belt that held his giant scissors. He had a green shirt with black buttons on as well._

_Nic walked up to the man and saw him having tea in a chair at a table in the small place. The old man looked content with his tea. Nic didn't want to disturb him, but had to know if he was the gym leader._

"_Hey, sorry to disturb you." Nic said. The man had just finished sipping his tea and looked at Nic. "Do you happen to know if this is the Coumarine Gym?"_

_The old man turned at Nic and smiled. He was rather happy with Nic's manners. He got up slowly and began taking steps forward. "Why indeed. This is in fact the Coumarine Gym. A pleasure. I am Ramos." He explained. Nic nodded and both walked up to the other. Nis was now in front of Ramos and looking down at him._

_Ramos looked up at him. "So, I do believe that you have come to challenge me, yes?"_

_Nic nodded; however, he didn't think it would do any good to do a battle with him in the middle of having some special tea. He didn't want to be a bother and thought that it would be best to come back later since he was just checking out the place. _

"_To be honest, I had no idea that you were having tea. Sorry to disturb you. I came to check the place out so I know what I would be dealing with. I'll take my leave if you wish." Nic didn't have anything against others or their desires or needs, unless of course they were really messed up, then he would step in._

_Ramos shook his head, still having an innocent smile. "Now, now. Don't trouble yourself. Sit down and have some tea, it's pretty healthy and gives you energy to last for a few days." _

_Nic shrugged and decided why not. He then joined Ramos in having some tea, sipping the liquid slowly. It was pretty delicious, though Nic despised tea, though he did it out of courtesy. It didn't hurt to drink it, but just this once was pleasant enough_

_Nic had a sense of patience, so he didn't rush anything. He did drink all of his tea pretty fast though. Ramos chuckled at his actions._

"_You like it?" He asked_

_Nic made a thinking face as he did consider it quite pleasant. He nodded. "It was delicious, thank you."_

_Ramos chuckled. "Now that that's out of the way, would you mind helping me with something?" Upon hearing that he needed help, Nic had no desire to turn away from those in need._

"_Sure." Nic said. Ramos then explained that he needed assistance in tending to his plants that were growing on the side of the gym. Nic helped out, though he had it rough. He's never gardened before, so he was just cutting weeds here and there._

_Ramos saw this action and went over to him after he had cut an unwanted vine from a grape plant. "Easy whippersnapper. I take it that you're new to this, yes?"_

_Nic looked up and took his trimmers away from the weeds. "Uh, yeah." Ramos then went over and revealed to Nic a tiny plant that was sprouting around weeds. Ramos uncovered it and showed it to Nic. If Nic hadn't been so observant, he could've cut the plant as well._

"_It's okay. It's not easy, especially if it's your first time. It's the little details that you should pay attention to. If you only focus on what's in front of you, you lose sight of what is really you're prime objective. _

_In Ramos's case, it would be making the plant have room to grow. For Nic, that was a moral lesson that he had applied only a few times._

It was time to apply that quote again. Nic had to be aware that his target was Erza, not the swords. The swords were obscuring his vision of her, and he had to focus on just her.

'_I can do this.'_ Nic inhaled and then exhaled. He relied only on his senses to detect Erza. He closed his eyes and listened, heard, and tried to locate Erza from where he was inside the sword barrier.

Everyone there was confused.

Gray was a bit angry. "What the heck is he doing? Is he giving up?"

Natsu was with him on this one. "Come on Nic, don't burn out yet!" They were both to clueless to realize what he was doing. Mira and Lucy could easily see that Nic was relaxing and focusing.

Nic was brushed left and right with swords coming his way. Though Leaf Blade was still active, he took it while relaxing and zeroing in on Erza. He stepped as he took each blow, which was a count of three. Going to his right, then left. Then right again. Of course he felt pain, but it's not like he paid attention to it.

After ten extra seconds, he shot his eyes wide open. He found her. He then lunged forward and saw more swords flying at him. With precision and speed, he slashed and intercepted each sword. He did a battle cry as he went in for his attack. He didn't slow down as he knocked every sword out of his way without getting hit once. He then darted his way into the barrier of swords, much to the entire guild's shock.

"Is he trying to cut himself?!" Gray shouted.

"Nic!" Lucy shouted.

Inside, Nic crossed his arms and made his Leaf Blade in the shape of an X. He then slashed with full speed and strength and completely destroyed the sword barrier, knocking every sword out of his way. Everyone there, including Erza, was beyond surprised to see Nic able to get to Erza like that. Everyone was even more surprised when Nic leaped into the air and saw now directly under the sun's rays as it caught Erza off guard with her barrier shot down like that.

Nic did a battle cry as he slashed with his left and then right. Nobody saw it as Nic posed behind Erza. After a couple seconds, Erza screamed as she then felt the pain and dust flew about. Parts of her armor shattered, mainly one of the feather lobes on her head band, part of her wings, and a tiny bit of her skirt was torn. Erza stepped back as the dust cleared, she felt that one for sure as she grunted.

"I don't believe it!" Lucy shouted.

"Aye, Nic is actually beating Erza!" Happy shouted. Erza then turned back and then flew in to Nic. Nic looked back and jumped to avoid her as she charged straight through and failed to slash at him. She stopped and turned to see Nic unleashing an Energy Ball at her from above. She pivoted and slashed at it with her sword, cutting the attack in two and making it explode behind her. She then summoned forth her swords that were used to make the barrier. Nic landed and watched as she made them spin.

"Dance, my blades!" She then flew up and all of her swords started rotating around her like a wheel. They were then pointed at Nic. "**Circle Sword!**" She then forced all of those blades at Nic. Nic didn't pay any attention as he was trying to keep his focus on Erza only. He then sharpened his gaze and then lunged forward as the blades came rushing at him.

"**Power Whip!**" He then charged straight for her right through the blades. He made his arm turn purple and extend. He then lashed sideways and at consecutive angles as he charge all the way. Power Whip wasn't called that for nothing, as the force behind each and every lash made a large bashing sound.

Nic then got in close and Erza lunged with two swords at the ready. Both were coming in fast at one another. Everyone was about to fall over on the tips of their toes from the anticipation.

"**Trinity Sword!**" Erza then requiped to a single sharp sword that was ready to strike. S Nic came ever so closer, he ceased his Power Whip and went back to Leaf Blade. He sharpened his eye site even more now, now making his strikes more precise. He then added a twist to things. In conjunction with his Leaf Blade, he had Needle Arm in his left arm, while Leaf Blade was his right.

Erza's Trinity Sword and Nic's Needle Arm collided. Nic kept up his endurance as the Trinity Sword was trying to overpower him, but his Needle Arm was not backing down. With everything he had, he had his forearm facing the delta formation, which also had a straight row of sharp needles, and slashed downwards, cutting the formation into two that went past Nic, much like his Energy Ball when Erza had cut it.

Everyone's heart skipped a beat when Nic then lunged at her and used Leaf Blade in a downward angle, then an upward angle, and then a quick swipe downwards. The blows caused Erza to scream as she almost collapsed. She was hit pretty hard, but she didn't have the defenses or reaction when Nic did a point blank Energy Ball, causing a very large green explosion. The ground shook a little and everyone yelped from the sudden blow.

"Whoa! What power!" Lucy exclaimed. When the dust cleared, Nic was breathing ever so heavily, having exhausted a huge amount of his power and was almost ready to collapse. Erza was lying on the ground, with large parts of her wings shattered, her head band was destroyed, bits of her breastplate chipped off, her entire skirt was torn up, and her sword that she used for the Trinity Sword attack was broken. She grunted as she couldn't even stand.

That was that. Charizard then raised his claw for Nic's side. "Erza is unable to continue, the winner of this battle is Nic!" He called. Everyone was in deep shock now. They were just lost. The great and mighty Titania, defeated by Luminous. As soon as a few people got over their initial shocks, they clapped in congrats of Nic's victory.

"Way to go!" Gray said, clapping for him.

"Yeah, that battle was awesome!" Lucy said with a proud smile and clapping the same as Gray. Natsu still had his jaw dropped, stunned to see that Nic had defeated Erza on his first try.

"What a showoff!" Complained the hotheaded Dragon Slayer. "Now I've gotta keep up with him now! You and me pal, right now!" Natsu stepped forward with a fist ready to fight. As he was approaching, Nic tumbled down onto the ground, wheezing and face turning pale from too much exhaustion.

"I don't think he'll be up for a while now." Lucy said with a sweat drop. Natsu grumbled and just walked back to where he was, disappointed. Nic had been in the guild for only a short while, but he's already made some great promise within people.

Erza requiped back into her usual armor, now conscious once again. She got to her feet and wasn't at all upset about her loss. Yes, it was a deep shock, but it proved how much promise that Nic had in the future.

Speaking of which, she looked and saw Nic panting while on one knee. He looked like he could keel over at any second. Erza looked down and knelt to him so that they were at eye level. The guild was in awe that Erza was taking this loss quite well. Normally, she would be asking for punishment and failure, but she wasn't at all like this.

"Nic, you did great. You're amazing." Erza said with a smile. She was banged up as well, but not as severe as was Nic. Nic still won, but he was in pain. Still in his Meadow Plate Form, he used Synthesis and his body was glowing with sparkles. The guild saw Nic's wounds slowly healing, and he looked much more alive than he was several seconds ago.

After a full twenty seconds of recharging, he changed back into himself and smiled back at Erza. "Thanks. You were amazing yourself." Though Synthesis didn't fully heal him, he was in good enough condition to be going about and talking. It sure was one heck of a battle. Erza was right about him being les stressed, he most certainly did look better now that his mind wasn't fixated on dilemmas. The two gazed at each other in amazement for a few moments before they each started to get a light blush in. When they both saw each other reacting as they were, they both looked away and the guild gathered around the two for compliments.

"Oh man, that was crazy!" Macao said. "Those blade attacks from Nic were insane."

"To think he could beat Erza. He's a real man for that." Elfman said.

Cana went over and patted Nic on the back. "Not too shabby there. You might make S-Class sooner than you think champ!" She blurted out.

Charizard then went over and he and Nic fist bumped.

"You got some sick skills there buddy." Charizard said.

"Tell me something I don't know." Nic responded with a smirk.

"Erza liiiikes you." Happy butted in with a roll of the tongue, answering Nic's question.

Erza then glared at Happy like she was about to skin him alive. "What did you say?"

Happy then tried flying away, but Erza caught him way too easily. She then proceeded elsewhere to give the cat a lesson as to why he had to keep comments like that to himself.

Everyone else just paid attention and gathered around a now healed Nic. They all kept on praising him for his strength and how he managed to take on an S-Class Mage on his own, though he took a toll and was drained afterwards. Everyone then just celebrated for Nic's growth and the pride and joy he was in Fairy Tail.

* * *

**In the shadows…**

Unknown to everyone in Fairy Tail, a figure was hiding among the shadows a safe distance away and out of site from them all. He witnessed everything with mild interest, though gritting his teeth seeing how brutal Nic has gotten since that incident in Freesia. His demon superiors from Tartaros has tasked him to keep a watchful eye out on Fairy Tail, since that was the guild that had caught their attention.

After the incident in Freesia not too long ago, he was to ensure that mistakes like those didn't repeat in the future. They had big plans after all, and they wanted no one interfering with their proceedings, especially a certain individual that could cause them to suffer again in the future.

"Nic Pularis." The man quietly said. He grinned ever so devilishly. "What do you have in store for us? I wonder."

* * *

**Aaaaannnnnnd done. My god, I overdid it this chapter! No joke, I was well over 16K when I finished! The fight with Jose, then the aftermath, and then another battle! **

**Hope you guys didn't mind the length of the chapter, but I hope you're not too upset with how this chapter went. Sure, Erza could've requiped into a more deadly armor, but this was meant to be friendly, not deadly. I really hope you guys don't leave comments on how bad the fight with Nic and Erza went, but I wanted to get that out of the way so I didn't have to worry about writing that in the future.**

**I hope you guys liked how Nic and Greninja's fight with Jose ended. Hope you leave positive comments on said brawl. And hopefully on his fight with Erza as well.**

**Ugh. I'm beat. I'm running a tad low on ideas, so I'll be shifting over to my other story for a bit until I can stockpile on some material for this series. I got an Original Arc to do and then The Tower of Heaven. To be honest, I only got the name of the next chapter, so feel free to supply me with ideas for an Original Arc.**

**I've put some thought into it, and I've decided. I know I said I wouldn't include ORAS or anything related in the story, but since I've started playing it a little bit, I am willing to make an exception on Nic having Dragon Ascent as a Legendary Arts when in his Sky Plate Form.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review if you guys enjoyed this chapter and/or story up to this point.**

**If you guys can't wait for Nic's last pokémon, then just shoot me a PM and promise me that you won't tell a soul when I say it to you. **

**Please Review this chapter! Feedback on my fights would be really appreciated.**

* * *

**Next Time: The Scarlet Fever**


	12. The Scarlet Fever

Chapter 12 – The Scarlet Fever

**Sup peeps, I'm baaaaaaack! You guys may be wondering why it was taking me so long; well, allow me to explain. I've been paying a whole bunch of attention to **_**EDventures in Kalos**_**, trying to update it with three new chapters in a span of two weeks. Add the fact that I also have school and life in general to deal with.**

**Now to answer some Reviews.**

**kingdom cure: Yeah, I thought that part itself was pretty hilarious myself. I appreciate you enjoyed the epic fight scenes.**

**Guest: Thanks for loving the fights. I played the game, so I had a pretty good grasp on Ramos's personality. About the length of the story, I have absolutely no idea. I'll be adding very few Original Arcs, so it's not like the entire story is shifted about. If I am lucky, I'll be on par with the anime. If push comes to shove, then I'll go by the manga. **

**So this Arc took some thinking, and I needed this time off for that reason as well. This is the result of what I managed to put together.**

**Enjoy!**

**To Recap:**

Though the Guild Hall was destroyed, the Fairy Tail Mages, and a recovered Makarov, destroyed Jose's shades. Erza and the others made it back to shore, leaving Nic and Greninja to fight Jose while everyone watched. The huge quarrel was extremely intense, but Jose was defeated and Nic and Greninja both won. One week went by and Phantom Lord has disbanded. Laxus and Nic both get into a little tiff, but stopped before things got out of hand. With stress piling on him, Nic wasn't thinking straight. Erza decided to battle him to ease himself and test how strong he was. Though it was intense as well, Nic managed to defeat Erza. With everyone celebrating, they didn't they were being watched.

* * *

**Chapter 12 – The Scarlet Fever**

Though things were just dandy on Earthland, the same couldn't be said in other worlds. With Arceus slowly dying, galaxies are colliding, black holes are fluctuating, planets' gravity fields are increasing and decreasing. A few places were safe at this time, mainly Nic's world, a couple of other worlds, and Earthland.

In a spacial dimension of blue and pink stardust, Dialga and Palkia both appeared through spacial portals. They both flew at each other and stopped when they met each other.

"So how's Arceus holding up?" Palkia asked the Being of Time. Dialga went to check on Arceus earlier in the deep, deep depths of the universe, and his condition was getting worse. He almost looked like a lifeless being. He was pale, his eyes were almost shaking, and his power was declining.

Dialga looked down and shook his long head. "Not good. He's not improving much."

Palkia sighed and looked down in grief. "Well, we can't do a thing about it. We can only hope for the best." Palkia and Dialga then looked at each other and could tell that the other isn't dealing with Arceus's condition very well. It was rough seeing a role model, as well as a god, beginning to die off. They both sighed and silently prayed that his condition gets better.

"So, how is Nic Pularis doing?" Dialga asked.

Palkia looked in another direction, as if not feeling too glee about his own answer. "Seven Plates."

Dialga looked down and tried to hold back any urge to shout. "C'mon Nic, you're running out of time." He muttered.

Palkia tried to reassure the irritated Being of Time. "Easy Dialga. If Nic could get at least nine Plates, then the universe can still be stable."

"Yeah, but barely…"

* * *

**Meanwhile, on Earthland…**

Nic arose from his sleep and looked about. Sleeping in a Guild Hall-in-construction did feel a bit weird, but it was better than a smelly alleyway, but just as rough as a rooftop, though he didn't complain about it. The only reason he didn't sleep on the tables was because they still had booze from when Cana did a drinking contest against Elfman and Macao, of which she won with ease.

Nic jumped into the guild shower that were repaired and refurnished from yesterday and felt the hot water ease his senses for a relaxing five minutes. After which, he had taken the liberty and prepared his own breakfast that was comprised of fresh fruit and an omelet. It wasn't long before the rest of the guild members had arrived and it was as loud as always.

His mind was zooming about in various directions. He was thinking about several things, and no, none of them involved Erza. His mind was solemnly concentrated on the universe, how he could possibly save it, how he could get more Plates, how he could save everyone he cherishes.

He was brought back to reality when Loke passed by.

"Hey man." Nic greeted. The young lady magnet stopped and turned towards Nic.

"Oh, it's you Nic." Loke greeted casually. For some reason, he was looking rather sickly. Nic caught onto this and looked somewhat concerned for his fellow Fairy Tail Mage.

"You don't look so good. Everything okay?"

Loke had some circles under his eyes, indicating that he's been sleep deprived and his shoulders were rather slumped. He looked just as troubled as he was.

Loke tried to grin, but it turned into a more grimace look rather than an assuring smile. "Don't worry, I've been having nightmares, should pass by soon. I'm just fine man."

Nic wasn't a fool. He knew that Loke wasn't all that well, his 'under the weather' façade was a weak cover. It was then that he remembered that this was the first time he has seen Loke within the past week. Wonder where he's been? He's barely around the makeshift bar, and the girls in town were stopping by to see if he was around, which he wasn't. It looks as though that Loke has been keeping to himself.

Nic wanted to help, but he could clearly see that Loke wanted no one in his business. Nic could relate, he had problems of his own, and Loke saw that too.

Nic dropped the subject. "Just don't push yourself."

Loke nodded gratefully and pressed on and he avoided Lucy when she turned to see if Natsu and Happy were coming, of which they were running a tad late. Nic turned away and almost groaned in discomfort of this drama.

* * *

**Later, on the train…**

Erza stared out of the window and watched the landscape come and go. Nic sat across from her on the cushion, leaning back and trying to breathe soundly while he had his earbuds in. If anything, you would think that Nic would be dozing off, of which he was trying to do.

"_Hey Erza, mind if I tag along on your job request?" Nic asked. "I'm feeling up for a job and I've been meaning to get out of town. It's getting pretty tedious around here."_

_He hit the nail on the head. Ever since reconstruction, the entire guild has been going on jobs, leaving the place quiet and quite uncomfortable to bear. A few stayed, but it wasn't as lively. _

_Nic had helped a bit in the construction, as did Charizard, but it still didn't change much of anything._

"_Sure, I could use the help." She replied._

_Nic let a smile come across his face. "Sweet. Ready whenever you are. Holler when it's time to go!" And just like that, Nic went off and chilled somewhere._

_Erza smiled as she watched Nic go. She couldn't help but reflect on how big of an impression he left on everybody, including herself. He defeated numerous opponents, some being S-Class, including herself, and a now former Wizard Saint. Not to mention that his personality overall is interesting. He never allows his comrades to fall and gets them back onto their feet, and he never surrenders to anybody. _

_Although, she had to wonder about herself, was that the only reason she was looking forward to this mission with him? Is it just because of his power and capability? Ever since the downfall of Phantom Lord, and the defeat of herself, she's been feeling funny around Nic. She unconsciously brushes a strand of hair that was out of place if Nic was around, she would sometimes find herself staring at him if he's close by and doing some reconstruction, and she gets somewhat riled up when she sees Nic go behind the bar with Cana whenever a fight broke out. Not to mention that she had a funny feeling back in the Phantom Lord giant._

_What did this even mean? Did she find him appealing in some way other than his looks and strength? Sure, he had a great charisma, just ask anybody and they'll say Nic is the bomb. But was that it? These foreign feelings was creating a turbulence of butterflies in her stomach and chest, making it hard for her to think whenever he was close by._

_She had to sort this stuff out later and try and pick out a job. Erza showed Mira a job request and the former S-Class waitress giggled._

"_I never knew you were this forward." Mira teased. "Taking Nic to a hot springs is a bit much for a first date, don't you think?" Mira's giggle turned into a small laugh when she saw how lustered Erza's face had gotten._

_Erza tried to maintain her composure as she took the request from Mira. "It's nothing like that. I can assure you." _

"_Oh chill Erza, you're just too much fun when it comes to teasing." Mira said. She then winked as she let out another sentence. "Okay, I'll tell the Master. Have fun, but make sure you give Nic a show to remember before y-!"_

"_Silence!" Erza was beyond mortified, and her face showed it. She turned and took off as Mira giggled at her reactions._

Erza was starting to show a very light blush, thinking back to what her friend had said. Curse Mira's imagination!

"Uh, hello? If you stare out the window any more intensely, the landscape might spontaneously combust."

She was brought out of her perverted thoughts when she heard Nic getting her attention. She turned her head a half-grin. "Lost in your own thought I see?"

"I was pondering about the mission at hand." She said. It wasn't a complete lie; she was thinking about it somewhat, but then her mind started drifting off into those unwanted scenarios that Mira had envisioned them doing.

Nic nodded. "For sure. We need a plan." Nic suggested, now up and looking serious.

The request was from a man who owned a top-class inn. For some reason, and as of recently, a series of people disappearing here and there whenever they come to visit from other towns. This was making people very weary and he wished to put an end to the madness so business could go on as usual.

The town was known as Balsam Village, also known as Spa Town Hosenka. Erza had gotten back from doing a mission with Lucy and the others from doing some freaky and crazy play on Onibus, and the team needed a little time to chill. Erza didn't want to chill, but wanted to stay at the top of her game and go on this job.

"Agreed. We should consult with the people in charge that wish the keep the peace. Not to mention if they have any leads on any speculations." Erza said.

Erza was rather surprised when Nic shook his head. "It's not that simple. If the one's we're after have sources dwelling about, then they'll be onto us. Plus if they were targeting a specific spot, they would attempt to lure us there. From what I've heard, the town rather vast in area, so his or her sources could easily blend into the crowd. If it were a small town, it would be easy to smoke them out, but this isn't the case and the numbers could be concentrated as groups throughout the area."

Erza was surprised by Nic's insight. What he had explained was all too accurate.

"Then how do we get around without being noticed?" She asked.

Nic crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. "Well, we'll have to play this game by the old fashion way. We'll most likely have to blend in as well, and given that our names are well-known now, we'll have to masquerade the whole gimmick. Name and everything.

Erza and Nic both sat still, pondering about what approach they could use. What sort of alias could they pull off without getting too much attention? Erza has been to Balsam Village before, and she was remembering what the town was well known for. From what she could remember, the place was known for its hot spring and also heard that it was a well-known spot for…

"Erza, why are you blushing?" Nic asked.

She had just remembered that other part. "I think I have an idea."

* * *

**Later, in Balsam Village…**

The "couple" walked into town and through the streets, looking for the specific inn that they would be staying at. Some of the townsfolk just passed by, not giving a care to the world about their arrival. Some just glanced at them as they passed, but didn't seem interested. They all shook off whatever suspicion since all they did was make eyes at each other. They looked like an ordinary young couple, or so they thought.

"Akio-kun, I thought I told you that the inn was due east." The woman said, pretending to be somewhat exasperated with him.

The man in sunglasses shrugged. "How am I suppose to know where east is? The sun hasn't set yet."

She sighed. "You're so bemusing."

"But you love me anyway." "Akio" replied with a cheeky smile and a high brow. "Akira" turned her head away so that "Akio" couldn't see her blush up a small storm.

'_Curse him. Why does he have to be such a smooth talker?'_

Nobody around had a clue, but Erza was feeling extremely embarrassed and a little awkward. The two agreed to undergo a temporary persona and act as a couple since this place was a romantic hotspot. They even picked false names to go with their disguises.

Erza was now Akira. She wore fake glasses and had her hair tied up into a bud with a few thick strands running down her shoulders. She had on black legging and a long skirt with a vertical and horizontal light orange stripes on dark orange coloring. She had on a button up red T-shirt to compliment the skirt.

Nic had on his sunglasses to not reveal his eyes. He had on a thin jacket and had his hood up, but the jacket was unzipped, revealing a green T-shirt and some plain old jeans.

They went down the path that "Akira" suggested. Nic made their roles much more believable by making small talk and keeping up with the other's fake personality. She had to admit, it was pretty nice to talk about stuff that wasn't in regards to the mission, though they were on one. After a few minutes went by, they have arrived and they found themselves staring at the classy looking inn.

"Not too shabby." Nic noted, somewhat impressed.

"Come on, time is wasting." Erza said. She pulled him along and he chuckled, still in character.

"Can't wait to get me alone, can ya Akira-chan?" He wiggled his eyebrows a bit at her and couldn't help but laugh from her comical expression. Nic had to admit that she was cute when she blushed like that, not to mention her comical expression in general. Erza was so stoic and stern all the time around the guild, it was nice to see this side of her; of course, it could be Akira, you never could tell.

They then approached the front desk. At the desk was a blonde receptionist with a smile.

"Hello, and welcome to the Chokichi Inn. How may we help you?" She greeted.

"Yeah, do you by any chance have a room for two please?" "Akio" asked.

"Why of course." She responded in a peppy manner. She then noticed their interlocked arms. "There are plenty of honeymoon suites available if you chose to."

The two undercover guild members had a slight tint of pink on their faces of the reminder.

"Yes, we would like one of those." Erza replied. "Perhaps by any chance with a balcony?"

The receptionist then perked up, remembering a good spot. "I know just the one. It has the best view in town. You get the best sunsets and the entire outlook on the town."

"That would be nice Tori, thanks." Nic said, quickly analyzing and saying the receptionist's name without pausing.

She handed them the room keys and filled out some forms. After which, they were brought to the attention of Tori ringing a bell and a bellhop appeared, giving them guidance to the flight of stairs.

"Please enjoy your stay and feel free to ask any questions." Tori said before they turned and went up the stairs.

"So, what brings you two around here?" The bellhop person replied. Nic and Erza then flashed back to what Nic said back on the train. This guy could very well be an informant of the people they wanted to catch. If they wanted to keep their covers, they had to choose their words carefully.

"Well, Akira-chan and I wanted a scenery change. We just wanted to get away from it all, ya know?"

"Ah, I get it." The bellhop said. "Working all of the time can lead to a dull life. Why here though? Not to sound pessimistic, but wouldn't the Hoshi Inn be a better choice?"

Nic was about to open his mouth, but Erza was a tad too fast. "Actually, that was our first choice, but we figured that the place could very well be crowded and heavily loud with the abundance of residence. We both prefer a more sound and less disruptive environment."

The bellhop smirked at the guy in sunglasses. "I can see who wears the pants in this relationship."

"Eh, but she's wearing a skirt." Nic deadpanned. The bellhop and Erza both dropped at the sense of humor he was making. "On another note, I heard this place is pretty popular by itself, but it seems rather quiet. Isn't it supposed to be packed by this time of year?" This was an opportunity to get whatever intel he needed.

The bellhop then stood back up and continued up the flight of stairs. "Well…that's something we don't like to discuss."

"About what?" Erza asked.

They then reached another floor and the bellhop looked around to see if anyone was around, of which no one was. "Alright, but you have to keep this classified." He lowered his voice into a loud whisper. "About three weeks ago, people from town had begun to disappear for some odd reason. Our sources say that a single group is accused, but others aren't sure if it's just one person. I even know a guy who've seen a hulking monster taking off in the thick of night with three innocence. It was too fast before he could get a good glimpse though. As you can see, the news has spread rapidly and other places nearby, and that's probably why you are the first in awhile."

"That's very unfortunate." Erza stated.

Nic frowned. "I'm sorry to hear."

The bellhop waved it off. "It's nothing really. Hopefully it'll come to an end. Our guards should just get off their lazy behinds and do their job. For real, they're ignoring the case like it's none of their concern!"

Nic clenched his fists in anger after hearing that. He didn't even know he was until Erza took one of his hands in both of hers and squeezed it, reassuring the easily annoyed warrior. She didn't like this either, but they had a job to do. To put a stop to the madness is why they're here after all.

The employee sighed. "Sorry for the trouble, it's been stressful."

"We understand." Nic said.

"Well, enough melancholy. You guys are on vacation and your room is just up ahead." The bellhop said, trying to sound peppy. They then stepped in front of a door that read "144" on it after taking a left from coming up the stairs.

They opened the door and the room was pretty classy. The room was high class, but not too much. It had a very calm and comfortable atmosphere all about. A small kitchen was on one side and a dining room was right next to it. The living room itself was very well furnished and the color scheme of peach and light tan made a comfortable place indeed. Beyond the living room was a set of double doors that lead to a balcony overlooking everything. Erza and Nic then went to inspect the bedroom and boy was it something. The pillows were so soft you could sleep just from the slightest touch. There were a few movie lacrimas that were on the counter top that stretched all the way across the one end of the room to where it was under the large mirror that was over the counter and the dresser. Across from it was a single large bed that was fresh and covered with fine fabric for sheets. A bathroom door was also connected.

Nic then noticed that there was something peculiar about something that left him feeling uncomfortable. Near the end of the counter was a light purple lacrima that did not adjust to the color scheme and had a fresh scent to it. Nic shook this off as the bellhop was speaking.

"Is it to your liking?" He asked.

Nic turned and grinned. "This will do very nicely." He then pulled out some jewels and gave it to the bellhop as a tip.

The bellhop looked rather surprised. "Thank you. Hundred jewels is rather much."

Nic shrugged. "Consider it a token for telling a story to us along the way."

"I'd best leave you two lovebirds to be. If you need anything, there's a small communication lacrima right next to the sofa in the living room."

The bellhop then shut the door as he left. Nic let out a large breath as he quickly changed back into his standard clothing in the blink of an eye.

"So, any suggestions on taking this course of action?" Erza asked, now out of her Akira persona.

Nic, still wanting to be in his role, struck a thinking pose. "Let's go explore the rest of town. We can get dinner and maybe even see those hot springs."

He was met with a glare from Erza and hands on her hips. "Nic, we don't have time for that." She berated. "Lives are at stake here. We are not here on vacation and we need to see the client as soon as we can."

"Easy Erza." Nic said, now acting like himself. "Just hear me out for a minute."

She then waited as he continued. "The most vital concept is reconnaissance. We have no clue as to who these culprits are or what they want with civilians, or where they hide, or how they operate. I'll have Kecleon do a quick survey of town and report back if she sees them anywhere. It's most likely that some people know of our presence, making us easy targets, and that would make it hard for us to snoop about, especially in a large area with a thick population as such. We need to keep our covers for a bit longer, at least until we meet up with our client. As soon as we know who these dim-witted numbskulls are, we strike them when they least expect it."

Erza was left speechless by his plan of action. "How are you so perceptive?" She was rather curious.

Nic shrugged. "I got around Kalos a lot back when I was in my world, and there was a place named Lumiose City. Same concept, large population and crimes, and I tend to get a little experience from that."

Erza was once again surprise because Nic was in a similar situation, or has seen it at least. She had to admit that she was rather curious of this Kalos place. Now she's even more interested of Kalos. She would have to get answers from him of that place soon.

Right now was the time to get their acting personas together again. Nic quickly changed back into his fake attire and extended his arm and looped it around Erza's. "C'mon Akira, let's find us some dinner."

Erza nodded, ready to go forth and initiate the plan.

Nic threw up a poke ball and Kecleon came out. She tilted her head and was ready for action.

"The gravy train is ready for pouring!" Kecleon shouted, shouting that she was ready. She even did a mock salute and had her tongue hanging out.

"You know what to do." Nic said. With that simple phrase, Kecleon rid herself of her silly expression and nodded. In a flash, she had made herself invisible and she was off. Once she was out of sight, Nic and Erza both exited the room and hooked arm and arm as they went to find a nice restaurant.

* * *

**Later, again…**

"Oh boy, I never seem to have time to eat anymore." Nic said. "Haven't had an omelet in several days." He scanned the various places that had food all about.

Erza looked at Nic and almost sighed at his statement. "Do you ever think of anything else?"

"It's not my fault that omelets are the food of the gods. I got it just as bad as your addiction to strawberry cheesecake." Nic boldly defended. "Though, I don't think I've ever eaten one before."

Mind blown!

He had her there. "You make a good point. We should look for a place that sells both."

"Sure, okay."

Then they passed by a middle aged man who stopped them. "Why hello there! My, you two look fabulous. This will be just perfect, please sit."

Before they could say anything or even ask what the somewhat pudgy man was doing, he rushed them onto the two wooden stools. Obviously he was excited. Erza shot Nic a confused look, of which the latter did the same.

"Smile!" The man said. He stood a few feet away right next to a blank canvas on wooden support.

Then there light blue flash and they both blinked.

"Nobody told me it was picture day." Nic complained, but the man wasn't paying attention.

"Oh no, this won't do. Please try and look more relaxed. Let's try this once more." He then set off another blue flash and this made Nic and Erza see stars.

"Okay pal, hold it right there." Nic testified in annoyance. "What's the big idea?!"

The man blinked a few times and came to realize he was too caught up in the moment. "Oh dear, forgive me. I got carried away for a moment. I am Joseph, an artist."

Nic blinked a few times, remembering that he himself is an artist. Sure being a trainer could bring you a bit of cash over a few victories, but Nic made some profit himself back in Kalos by taking what he could find and make art out of it. If he was in a rocky place, he could probably make a sculpture of something and sell it somewhere, if there was clay or colored pencils around, he could make some use of those as well. He's made decent art throughout the years while traveling that he could make just about anything from anything. One of his works was probably still up in Lumiose City's art museum as they speak.

"Well, then you must have made quite a few works." Nic said, trying to reach an understanding level. Erza then looked at Nic and he was giving an expression that said _'Let me do the talking'_.

"Why yes, I do. Sadly, no one bothers to remember my name." Joseph complained.

"Yeah, I hate it when that happens."

Joseph looked surprised. "You're an artist too?!"

Nic nodded. "Yeah, I do a little bit of art, but I'm not as famous as you." He wasn't lying, he was somewhat known through Kalos, though he hardly pays attention. He sees a few works of his own hanging up in cities and towns. He obviously did more than just train whenever he has free time.

"What a coincidence!...Oh! I did not even let you introduce yourselves." Joseph had just realized.

"I'm Akira and this is my boyfriend, Akio-kun." Erza gestured to the both of them.

"Ah, young love. Makes me wish I was in my twenties again. Good times." Joseph reminiscent. "This is just what I've been looking for! My next painting, depicting romance! And you two are just perfect!"

The two then blushed, thinking about that possibility, and Joseph caught up on it. "Don't be shy. This will only take a quick second, so just look natural." He then held up his hands like he was framing them and a small magic circle appeared. It flashed and then it was gone.

"A small warning next time would be really appreciated." Nic muttered.

"You can use Magic?" Erza asked.

"Why yes. My Memory Magic makes it so I can get every detail, which is why I'm so skilled in painting. The images are stored into my mind and the details are always there from that single moment. It's not useful in battle, but it comes in handy for blinding people to make a quick getaway if I need it." He chuckled on the last part.

"Now then, I have inconvenienced you two long enough." Joseph said. "Have a nice day you two." The pudgy man then went off with his canvas and wooden support.

"Huh, a bit eccentric, but in a good way." Nic commented when the painter was out of sight.

Erza agreed. "Let's hope he doesn't ambush every couple now."

They both then resumed their trip down the road to find some place to chow down.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Kecleon had snuck into the guard HQ with ease. She had it easy with no trouble up to this point.

"The captain wants everyone present. He says that this is vital." One of the guards said to an incoming guard who had come back from his shift.

The guard was a little confused. "About what?" Kecleon was paying attention to every detail and word that was transpiring about the atmosphere.

"Not a clue. Guess we'll find out." The guard said.

The two guards proceeded further into the building and Kecleon, still invisible, followed them upstairs to the second floor and into a rather big room where all of the other town guards were at. They were all lounging about and talking to each other about stuff. Kecleon snooped around and heard a few conversations.

"I heard they were back." A young guard said in a hushed tone, talking to three other guards.

"Not again." Another guard groaned.

"Maybe we should actually fight back this time." One suggested. "We have power in numbers, right?"

"You idiot, did you or did you not remember that they're powerful Wizards?" The eldest of them snapped. "We'd be lucky to get a few feet and live."

Kecleon processed everything up to that point. Just who were they talking about? They looked rather unsettled and a little intimidated just from thinking about them. _'I don't know what, but these guys sound like they have bad table manners.'_

After a few minutes, the captain came out with a man with a dark red cape following from behind. Silence fell before them and all of their attention was addressed to the person with the red cape. Kecleon took note that all of the guards were trying to avoid eye contact and they were very well in deep discomfort. Kecleon was feeling very unsettled herself.

The man with the red cape went to the podium stand and smirked down at them. Aside from the red cape, he had spiked up red hair and eyes that matched his cape. He had what was on a set of gauntlets and shin armor. He looked to be in his late twenties and he had what seemed to be a set of scars on both of is cheeks. His attire was also something somewhat similar to those guys Nic and Kecleon fought back on the outskirts of Freesia.

Kecleon was wide eyed when she made the connection.

"Hello again you pathetic lazy bunch." He spoke with confidence. "As you are aware, we're having another collection tonight."

Kecleon definitely recalled seeing and witnessing something like this back in Freesia. She saw most of the guards clench their fists.

The man wagged his finger. "Ah, ah, ah, you all remember the agreement. We pick and you don't intervene and your families will be spared. Our little project takes time, a magic bomb takes a lot of magic you know, but don't worry, it's almost done."

Kecleon was even more wide eyed than before. _'This is so not appetizing. A magic bomb sounds worse than Nic after he eats corn!'_

"As for those unfortunate souls that we swept two nights ago, they probably will have their Magic depleted in a few days. The ones from earlier this past three weeks are already in feeble states. Their cells are suiting to their frail and sickly bodies, I'm surprised they're not dead. But no matter, they will be soon enough." He then rolled his eyes. "Just make sure things go smoothly tomorrow or else…you can kiss your families goodbye."

Now the stakes have been raised. Kecleon had to get back to Nic and fast. Hopefully, things won't get any worse.

With the luck so far, it probably will.

* * *

**With Nic and Erza**

Nic chuckled once Erza had finished telling her story. "Natsu actually thought he found a dragon egg in the woods?"

The two were sitting at a table in a small diner they found, and to their convenience it served omelets and strawberry cheesecake much to their delight.

"He was pretty excited, I'll tell ya." She said. "We were all surprised it hatched into Happy and not a dragon. There's a picture back at the guild and we could show you when we get back."

"That must have been a crazy day." Nic said. "So what exactly happened to this Lisanna girl that Natsu was with?"

He almost instantly regretted asking that once he saw Erza express a despondent look. "Forget I ever asked that."

Erza shook her head. "No, it's alright…it's just something we never want to talk about. It brings bad memories, especially for Mira, Elfman, and Natsu…"

She then recounted the events that lead to an unfortunate fate for the Strauss siblings. They were on an S-Class mission and Elfman had undergone a Full-Body Take Over. Nic was fairly shocked to hear that Elfman was shy and Mira was a kickass beast that took on Erza back in the day. Unfortunately, the end result of all of that was Lisanna's death by the beastly Elfman.

"Nothing was ever the same after that." Erza said dispirited. "Elfman and Mira took it the worst."

Before he even realized it, the Multitype Mage had placed a comforting hand on hers on the table. He gave a comforting squeeze and she returned it. He felt guilty bringing up such a painful subject.

"I wish I could've met her." Nic said. "She sounded like a great person."

"She was." Erza said, she broke out a grin, thinking about Lisanna. "She was the sweetest girl you've ever met."

A few minutes later, a waitress brought them Erza's strawberry cheesecake, forcing them to (reluctantly) take their hands apart from each other. She cut a small part of her cheesecake and held it up to Nic.

"Open up." She said. Nic raised his eyebrows in confusion. "You said you've never tried it before, so here." She explained. Nic's face heated up a bit as he opened up his mouth and she fed him a piece of her cheesecake.

"So delicious." He reminiscent in the flavor for a bit before he turned to see her smile with content. She held up another piece to him. The two then shared the piece of dessert and talked about non-important stuff. It was nice to get to know the other more, even though they hanged out before, but that was under different circumstances. Regardless, it was still fun to know the other. It was the little details that they enjoyed, like how Nic's favorite color was violet and Erza has a like for sweet things.

Nic wasn't even aware that he was staring at her. Back at the guild, she was always so strict and uptight, not to mention demanding. She looked so relaxed. He liked hers eyes too. They looked so warm and so full of truth, he couldn't help but be drawn to them. Her hair reflected the ever burning fire that kept her strong and so full of care for her comrades. All in all she looked…

"Beautiful…" Nic murmured without even remotely thinking. He cursed at himself once he had caught up to what he had just said.

Erza, on the other hand, expertly hid her red face by pretending to look at the plants next to their table. Her heart had somehow began to race at what he said. She had been wondering why he was looking at her so intensely at that moment. Now the butterflies in her stomach were fluttering madly.

They didn't meet each other's eyes after that until Nic asked for the bill and left.

Nic cleared his throat. "Let's go and see those hot springs."

"Agreed." She said, unable to meet him directly.

The "couple" quickly headed towards their next destination.

* * *

**With Kecleon**

The swift creature was dashing invisibly throughout the city, looking for Nic. The red stripe was hardly noticeable since all it looked like was a blur. She couldn't help but see a woman pass by. She had recognized her from the Council, though she observed in her poke ball. What the hell was she doing here? Shouldn't she be at a Council meeting or something? Things were bad enough.

'_Oh great. This potato salad has gone really bad.'_

Meanwhile, Ultear was observing the townsfolk, with a rather small mischievous smile on her face. "Where are you, Nic?"

She looked all about as she went down the market area. She was set on that one person that interested her the most. Master Hades wanted a report on this young man as soon as she gets a notice of him. He could probably put a dent into their plans if left unchecked. If they weren't on opposite sides, he would've been a valuable asset. He would be a tough nut to crack since he's part of Fairy Tail; nevertheless, she could always…persuade him.

* * *

**Somewhere else…**

In some weirdo location, of which was also concealed, three people stood and observed the progress they were making. There were multiple contraptions that had a single person within each one and being depleted of their Magic. The individual machines were hooked up to a really large machine that looked to be a lacrima.

"Almost there, just a little more." The man who visited the police had said.

Another one nodded in agreement. He had dark purple hair that spiked to the side. His attire was almost identical to the other one if not for the brighter colors for the dark purple-haired one. "This weapon will annihilate anything within a five mile radius. Wish we could've gotten more of it though."

The third one there was actually a man, it wasn't even human. It was a hulking hybrid of some sort of wolf and a human that was almost eight feet tall. Its neck had a collar and a multitude of jagged spikes. It had long claws and red, bloodlust eyes. If it weren't for the other two, it would go on a never ending killing spree.

"You could look for another buyer, but then I would have to gut you." A new and sinister voice said. The three turned around and looked at the figure who had stepped out of the shadows. He was a large figure with a black cloak and a large hood to hide his face in darkness.

The three got to one knee and bowed at their employer and Master. "F-forgive us, our mistake." The dark purple-haired one said nervously. It was clear that you do not want to offend him. His body radiated such dark energy that made him demand such respect.

"Change of plans." The cloaked man said. "Instead of kidnapping a few civilians per night, I've found a new target in mind to speed things up. She's been spotted in the vicinity."

"But sir, we have no chance."

Unseen by them, he grinned evilly. "At ease. I'll take care of that personally. Just be ready by tonight, and catch a few more while you're at it as a precaution."

The three bowed and began with preparations.

The cloaked man turned and chuckled. _'Hades is so predictable. He thinks he's the one calling the shots in the Balam Alliance. Little does he know that he has a few of his lackeys hired by me. Heh, he's no more than a pawn.'_

He then turned to enter the shadows. _'Nic Pularis, I've been keeping an eye on you. Your power has been causing a ruckus lately, and that's been quite a bother. It won't matter. My demon masters can't be stopped.'_

He then ventured into the shadows and vanished.

* * *

**With Nic and Erza**

Since the pair didn't exactly have on their swimwear, they couldn't go in the hot springs, but they passed by it just to get a feel of the atmosphere. They both looked at the hot spring place entrance and could feel the warmth from where they were standing.

"Wish we could go in, unfortunately we have work to do." Erza said. "Come along Nic." Erza turned and started to walk back to the inn and saw that Nic wasn't budging. "Nic?"

Nic was fixated. He had this odd feeling rising up from within, like some radar went off.

He recognized it. _'Don't tell me…'_ Nic recalled the feeling of this, and it indeed happened twice. He could feel some sort of pull from his Plates and he could sense the power coming from within the hot springs.

"Nic?" Erza's voice snapped him out of his epiphany and he shifted his gaze towards her. "Let's get moving."

Nic blinked a few times and shook his head to shake off the feeling. He would have to come back later and check them out.

They got back to the inn a short while later and they managed to get hold of the manager, of whom owned the inn as well.

They walked through the lobby and knocked on his set of double doors. He yelled for them to enter and they did. When they entered his room, it was decorate with a few potted plants here and there. A large square rug covered most of the ground and lead to his work desk.

The man was very well in his early fifties and had a thin black goatee and thin black hair. He had brown eyes and had on the standard suit but was red.

"Can I help you?" He said, somewhat annoyed. They could guess that it was because of the crisis at hand.

The two proceeded forward and nodded in greetings.

"Yes, we are here for the job request that you have wanted us to take care of." Nic said. Erza then held up the job request and was somewhat startled that his request was actually acknowledged.

He examined them and scrunched his face. "Heh, you don't look like Mages." Nic and Erza then transformed into their standard attire, with Erza in her Heart Kreuz Armor and Nic in his V-neck, jeans, and long sleeveless coat. The business man almost flinched at the sight and was officially convinced. "Very well. I am Eito, the one who has send that request. I suppose that since you are here now, we shall discuss the matter at hand."

The two nodded and they proceeded with the ordeal.

Eito cleared his throat. "Now then, where to begin…ah yes. It all began about three weeks ago. Business went on as usual, a copious amount of customers and lots of money. Unfortunately, that's when trouble began. One night, we had witnesses see a large monster take off with several people. It was moving so fast that hardly anyone has seen it. This has been going on for awhile, and people are getting scared to leave their homes at night. At first, it was strays on the streets, then we had reports of the beast actually breaking into places and stealing people there."

"Are you sure that it was the work of one beast?" Nic asked. "We could believe that the beast might be taking them to where his comrades are, so it's likely to believe that he has accomplices."

Eito drooped his head. "Yes, we do believe that is possible, but our town guards can't even do a thing about it. And they sit around like slobs, not doing their job."

Erza narrowed her eyes. "Were they always like this?"

Eito shook his head. "No, they were good people who never shirked their work. Ever since this incident arose, they were acting like something was holding them back. They even mysteriously implanted these strange lacrima in all of the inns as a precaution."

Nic almost skipped a heartbeat. He knew something was odd about that light purple lacrima in their bedroom. If the guards put them there to repel these guys, then why aren't they working? Maybe…

Nic stepped forward. "Hold on. You said the guards have been held back and they implanted those lacrima in inns right?"

"Yeah, why?"

Nic paused before speaking. "Isn't it likely to believe that they are somehow linked to the beast? Think about it, if the beast is targeting the people and they couldn't do nothing about it, it would be reasonable to say that the beast has threatened them to stay out of its way. And might I add where all of these kidnappings take place?"

Eito narrowed his eyes, processing this. "Hmm…yes, they could be threatened by the beast if possible, but we would need more proof to do so. And most kidnappings take place in the inns, why?"

Nic mentally snapped his fingers. He finally made the link. He looked and shook his head. "We just wanted to make sure that this inn wasn't the only target."

Eito nodded. "Very well. I leave you to your work. If you succeed, your reward will be quite handsome." The two then quickly transformed back into their fake attire and turned and left.

They made way towards their room and shut and locked the door behind them. After that, they finally transformed back into their own attire once more. They both sighed and looked about.

"Nic, what you said back there, what is it that you are saying?" Erza asked, very interested and confused. Nic almost immediately made way towards the bedroom, where the light purple lacrima was kept. Nic stopped right in front of it and Erza saw that Nic had an uneasy feeling. He slowly turned his head and looked dead serious, just like the time in Phantom Lord.

"Erza, let me try and put the pieces together." He then told Erza of his possible explanation. "If questionable if the guards in this town are in cahoots with the beast, but the real problem is these lacrima." Nic then motioned and looked down at the lacrima. "He said that these lacrima were implanted by the guards, and they were placed in all of the inns."

Erza was starting to shape his idea and interpret it, but still looked somewhat hazy. "Yeah, those lacrima could have something to do with it, but what do they have to do with this ordeal?"

"He said the beast targets inns right? And these lacrima are implanted in all of the inns…meaning…" Nic was about to say more when Erza finally got the idea and almost went wide eyed.

"Those lacrima might attract the beast instead of repel." She finished. Nic nodded.

"Yes. My guess is that at night, when the beast strikes, the lacrima might give off some sort of signal in response to Magic energy, or it might give off a scent if the beast acts like a wild animal. We'll have to see when night falls…"

The two then heard something outside, coming at them. They both rushed to the living room, where they looked out at the balcony window. They kept hearing Nic's name over and over until they saw Kecleon appear in a flash coming from outside.

"NIC!" She screamed. But she was put to a halt when she slammed into the balcony and stuck there. Nic and Erza both looked on in shock as Kecleon slid down the balcony window and slid onto the floor. "Stupid invisible doors!" she muttered.

Nic awkwardly made way and opened the balcony doors, allowing Kecleon to enter. When they opened, Kecleon lifted her head up and zoomed in in a rather panicking state. She zoomed about and hopped uncontrollably.

"CHEESEBURGER! TERRIBLE MEAT! MASHED POTATOES! NO GRAVY! HUMANITY WILL EXPIRE! BOMB! EVIL! HELP!" She yelled. Nic swiftly clenched Kecleon and turned her to look at him.

"Kecleon! Easy, just relax." Nic said. He looked at Kecleon, who was huffing a bit. "Take a deep breath." He said calmly. He breathed through his nose and out of his mouth very slowly Kecleon then did the same a few times and slumped back onto the floor.

Nic then crouched down to meet his deeply horrified friend. "Now, explain it nice and slow." He said comforting Kecleon.

Kecleon took one more deep breath and spoke. "Okay…the guards of this place have been threatened to stay of the mastermind's way. He steals people and is making a bomb to destroy this place."

Nic and Erza almost stepped back in deep shock.

Erza turned to Nic. "A Magic Bomb?"

"That sounds like it needs a lot of Magic to power if it's to destroy a place as big as this." Nic guessed. It was reasonable to believe that this bomb could do more damage if activated.

"Nic…" Kecleon continued. Nic then loked at the troubled stealthy and awkward thing. He could tell that this next set of bad news was even worse. "…Tartaros…they're back."

Nic was dead frozen. He could not believe it. His gaze sharpened and he gulped. "Oh no."

Erza saw the horrified expression that Kecleon and Nic shared. She heard about them facing Tartaros and this creature called The Nightmare, but never thought that bringing them up this time around would freak him out.

"Kecleon, what is it that Tartaros is doing?" Erza asked. "It's clear that they are behind this matter, but why is it that they want innocence again?" Nic then turned to Erza.

"It's all they want." Nic said. He then retold the story of how he went to Freesia awhile back and fought Tartaros. How he and Kecleon were in trouble and how he fought The Nightmare. After telling the tale, even Erza was slightly shaken up.

"Those poor souls." She said, thinking how Tartaros was stealing such innocent people all for the sake of Zeref and unleashing demons into the world.

"Yeah." Nic muttered. "We're going to stop them again, even if I have to put my life on the line, again."

Kecleon then remembered something. "Oh yeah! Nic." Nic then turned towards Kecleon and awaited what she said. She sounded calmer and a little more peppy this time, maybe it was good news. "That lady from the Magic Council is in town. I think she wants you."

Nic almost paled at remembering Ultear. "You've got to be kidding me." He grumbled.

Erza remembered Ultear all too well. She was the one who flirted about with Nic. She had to hold back a growl and focus.

"What is she doing here?" Erza asked, almost annoyed and demanding.

Kecleon shrugged. "Maybe or Nic's number?" She was then silenced by a glare from Erza.

"…" Nic was thinking. This matter had gotten far more complicated than it should've been. First Tartaros, and now Ultear, not to mention a Magic bomb to destroy town. "…we'll wait tonight. It's possible Ultear doesn't know we're here, so we should keep a low profile and hang here for the remaining time." Nic said, trying to regain whatever composure he could.

The two others nodded and they all hanged about as the sun was beginning to set.

Later, after Kecleon was returned, Nic laid on the king-sized bed and stared at the lacrima with deep distaste.

'_A Magic bomb, Tartaros, and now Ultear. Just when things couldn't get worse, they do.' _Nic was in deep thought and then the door to the bathroom opened. Nic could've sworn his face went red when he saw Erza step out, all wrapped up in a pink towel. Her long, wet, silky hair running down her back and overlapping the towel. Nic thought he was gonna pass out from exposure to such a gorgeous sight. To make himself decent, he turned away and shut his eyes.

Erza looked at him and saw he turned his back. "You okay?" She sounded as though she didn't care. It made sense, considering that she bathed with Natsu and Gray before, though Nic was always alone.

Nic turned his head, still with his eyes shut, trying to avoid seeing her. "Er…nothing."

Erza approached him and stood behind him. "Is it something I did?"

Nic groaned and had to face it. He took in a deep breath and turned to face Erza. He felt his face turn even redder with her in front of him now, but still had to say something. "No. It's just…I'm not used to seeing people without clothes, so this is all kind of awkward to me." He confessed, letting out a sigh.

Erza blinked, seeing the red on his face. She then thought as to how the butterflies were fluttering inside of her again and almost blushed herself. She smiled. "Very well. You can go and take your shower now." She then immediately turned and allowed Nic to rush into the bathroom. She kept smiling as she requiped into her pajamas and laid in bed, looking up at the ceiling. She stared into space and thought of today. The thought of Nic's act today made the butterflies flutter even more now. It even made her wonder if Nic was really acting for the most part.

As she was pondering this, she felt something odd. She got up and saw the sun had set and the lacrima was glowing. She was about to get a better examination of the lacrima, but she felt something foul go through the air.

"W-what is this…? My Magic…" She muttered. She then smelled something coming from the lacrima. It was…poisonous sort of speak. Erza quickly pieced that the lacrima poisoned her Magic and drained her will and she collapsed.

Nic immediately felt something strange happening as he was about to step into the shower and he changed back into his attire and burst out of the door. He turned his head and saw that Erza was lying, barely conscious on the floor.

"Holy freakin protozoa! Erza!" Nic rushed to her and got to her side. He saw that she was pale and he saw that she was gasping. He almost panicked, but then he smelled it to. It was foul and corrosive, and he sensed it from the glowing lacrima. He immediately got out and grabbed the lacrima. He could tell that this lacrima was poisoning her. He quickly smashed the lacrima and the smell was quickly dispelled. Still, the tainted feeling was dwelling about in Erza, and Nic was hatching a remedy.

With little time to waste, he shifted into his Toxic Plate Form and reached for one of her arms.

'_I can't believe I'm about to do this.' _Nic thought. He sighed and he softly bit into her arm. She winced in pain, but then she relaxed as Nic was sucking up not her blood, but the poison instead. Since he was in his Toxic Plate Form, he could take in any and all substances related to poison. After a good minute or so, the color was coming back to her face. Nic had managed to sap up the poison and she looked better. Erza moaned as she opened her eyes. She saw that she was lying on the floor, but she could hardly move.

"Thank god you're alright." Nic said, he sighed and took in a heap of breath.

Erza looked and saw the worried expression and then recalled what happened. She turned her head and saw Nic smashed the lacrima. She then turned towards him and let out a small smile.

"Thank you Nic." She said. Nic nodded and Erza continued. "That lacrima, it unleashed a powerful poison that poisoned my Magic."

Nic was startled. "So your Magic was being poisoned, but not your body?"

Erza took a few breaths before entering. "Yes, the poisoned Magic then circulates at a rapid pace. It felt horrible and I couldn't move. Why weren't you…?"

"Remember, I don't use Magic, I use the Plates." Nic answered. That explained it, since the lacrima only poisoned Magic, Nic was as clean as you could get.

Erza then tried getting up, but she was still fairly weakened. She winced as she tried to get up. Nic helped her onto the bed and had her lay down. Her Magic was a little low now thanks to the lacrima, but it should replenish in no time.

"Erza, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah…I just need…to rest." She then closed her eyes and started drifting off. The tainted Magic in her system had to filter out, but it won't filter out in time for her to be safe from the beast. Then it hit Nic.

Nic had then realized something: The beast is attracted to tainted Magic. It made sense, considering Nic's assumption from earlier. This made Erza a target now. He had to do whatever it takes to keep her from harm's way.

"It's okay Erza, you rest up." Nic said quietly. "I'll take it from here."

* * *

**An hour later…**

Considering that Nic doesn't sleep on beds, he was on the floor and Erza was on the bed and was sleeping soundly, recovering. It was dark out and Nic should be expecting something to happen soon. When that happens, he'll swoop in and thrash him in the name of Erza.

He awaited in the shadows, still in his Toxic Plate Form, hopefully get the beast to follow him rather than her. If it were likely, the monster should be attracted to the poison, of which Nic's Toxic Plate Form had endless amounts of.

Nic was quiet and he heard something from the balcony. The wind stopped outside and everything all about was dead silent. Nic tensed up and bared his teeth as he felt the presence come closer.

He heard the door open that lead to the living room and the beast was about to enter the bedroom.

Nic clenched the floor and peeked over the bed and saw the door open. Nic almost shuddered when he saw a monstrous humanoid wolf appear. He lowered his head and watched as the heinous beast sniffed the air. It slowly proceeded and saw Erza, still unable to do much of anything with her senses weakened from the tainted lacrima.

The beast growled and snarled as it bared its long claws that had enough strength to slash through rock. He was about to reach for Erza to kidnap her.

'_Okay.'_ Nic thought. _'It's show time!'_

* * *

**Okay, sorry if this chapter didn't feel quite right, but making an Original Arc takes some effort. I do think that I got a fair grasp on Erza's personality, and some development with Nic's, so that was something to be proud of, especially since I got them to bond a bit. **

**Their fake personas might make it look confusing, but then again, you don't know what to expect from Erza or Nic. **

**This will probably go for two more chapters, one if I decide to make it insanely long again. I'm on Spring Break now, but do not expect updates to quicken, because I have a few plans over Spring Break and so I'll work on this stuff at night mostly.**

**Just a side note: I've been playing Pokémon Alpha Sapphire a whole lot, and now I have some ideas shaping from that, but I still need time. I know I said I won't include much of anything from ORAS, but I'm making some exceptions in regards to a few undisclosed ideas in future chapters; for now, I'm proceeding as planned. **

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review if you like this story and/or chapter up to this point.**

* * *

**Next Time: Stone Cold Brawl**


	13. Stone Cold Brawl

Chapter 13 – Stone Cold Brawl

**Hi guys. Got another chapter ready for ya.**

**AngelofDeath666: Thanks for being a huge fan, it makes me happy knowing you guys enjoy my story. I can't say much because I don't want to spoil some stuff, but I will say that the Tartaros fiend is an OC.**

**Alpha Dragonis: Yeah, sometimes I wonder about that myself. If it were considered to be written, then we would have to do some collaboration or something. That's as accurate as you can possibly get when it comes to that kind of description of FUN.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon nor Fairy Tail, they belong to Satoshi Tajiri, Nintendo, and Hiro Mashima. I do own the OC though.**

**On with the program.**

**FOREWARNING: Long chapter, get some snacks and popcorn while you still can!**

**To Recap:**

Nic and Erza both go on a mission as a fake couple and entered Balsam Village, a spa town that is targeted for kidnapping; unfortunately, they didn't account for the kidnappers to be Tartaros. And Kecleon caught sight of Ultear, which brings worries to Nic. As night fell, a lacrima intoxicated Erza's Magic, weakening her and making her a target. That night, a beast makes his way into the inn and Nic is ready to ambush.

* * *

**Chapter 13 – Stone Cold Brawl**

Nic springs up and unleashes a Sludge on the humanoid wolf that was caught off guard. The wolf yelped as it stumbled back from the assault. Erza opened her eyes, but could only watch as the battle was going to begin. Nic moved around the bed and was in front of Erza, ready to protect her. The wolf monster finally came out of shock and snarled at Nic. It bared its long and jagged fangs that screamed for bloodshed. Its gaze heavily sharpened and it raised its claws in preparations to pounce and gut Nic like a fish.

Nic growled in a low tone and leaned forward and the two rammed into each other head on. Their bodies clashed and the wolf slashed with his left claw, but Nic evasively ducked and did an upward angle Poison Jab that send the heinous beast flying a few feet. Nic then jumped and was going to do a downwards Poison Jab, but the beast was not one to have slow reactions. It brought its legs up and kicked Nic in the chest and sending him back a few feet, unable to land the Poison Jab.

'_Crap. There's no room to fight. Looks like I'm going to have to drag this brawl to the streets.' _Nic thought. He dashed into the beast and the beast lunged at him. Nic aimed a bit lower and used Poison Jab again. The beast winced and had no room to bite down on Nic as he rammed him through the door like a professional football layer. They made way into the living room, where the beast regained its footing and shoved Nic away. It then roared as it lunged at high speed with a sharp right claw. Nic readied himself and counter with Cross Poison. The two assaults created a very small cloud of smoke and the humanoid wolf stumbled back. It snarled and it failed to smell Nic through the smoke that was in the air. It was hit from the side with a Sludge Bomb that caused it to be send flying and break the balcony glass slide door.

The menace gripped the balcony flooring to avoiding hitting the railing from behind. Nic could tell that this guy was no pushover, literally. Add the fact that it might have a keen sense of smell. He had little room to pull of this task.

"**Smog!**" Nic then opened his mouth and a thick, gray cloud covered everything and the wolf was startled as it was engulfed in it. It growled as it couldn't sniff out Nic, but more importantly couldn't sniff out his Magic, which is what it could really smell. Of course it had no idea that Nic didn't have Magic.

Nic used this ten second gap and tossed out a poke ball. The ball opened and summoned forth Arbok at the ready.

"Nic-ssssama, what isss it that you desssire me to do?" The Cobra Pokémon asked obediently.

"Quick! Go and protect Erza while I deal with this guy! Don't let anything happen to her!" Nic managed to get out just before the humanoid wolf rushed out of the now dispersed Smog and rammed Nic into a coffee table and breaking it.

"Assss you wish." Arbok then slithered with lightning reflexes to Erza's room and made sure to keep watch and protect her at all costs.

The beast was now towering over Nic who was still trying to get up. Nic turned his head to avoid an oncoming claw that was trying to pierce his skull. He shifted right and did a Sludge and it hit the beast's chest. It stumbled back and Nic sprung up and made a silver light sparkle in between his hands. It then morphed into a black garbage bag with a purple outline. "**Gunk Shot!**" He hurled the massive attack at the wolf and it howled as the attack exploded upon impact, damaging most of the furniture and cracking the walls. The wolf was send out of the room and smashed through the railing and fell downwards over the edge. Nic leaped a little before running and jumping off the edge and sailing downwards towards the monster. As he sailed, he was glowing and shifted into his Sky Plate Form. He then saw the beast fall and used its claws and griped onto the inn as it descended, creating damage and leaving a long trail of its own claw marks running down. It managed to slow down and saw Nic catching up to it. It pounced as soon as he was close and hopped onto Nic, making him roll about and lose balance in the air. Nic straightened out a bit, but now the beast was gripping onto Nic's shoulders and its claws were almost piercing his skin. He winced and grabbed the menace's arms. Nic then shoved him off and the beast fell a bit more. Fortunately for it, there was a house under it and it turned and landed on the tiled roofing without any harm.

The monster snarled and started to dash from rooftop to rooftop, destroying some roof tiling as its feet and claws did as such. Nic stayed high into the air and tried to get a good lock onto it. Unfortunately, he couldn't use ant long range moves because he was aware that people were under those roofs and he couldn't use moves like Air Cutter or Air Slash, otherwise he might hurt someone. He had no resort but to follow and lower his altitude. He shifted and aimed an angled Gust at the humanoid wolf. The attack managed to make it lose balance and force it to jump off the roofing and land on the streets with a thud as it landed on all fours. Nic then soared down and flapped as he now was standing battle distance from the beast.

Nic glared at it as it did the same, growling and snarling with feral eyes.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Ultear was walking about town at night, something that nobody had done in ages since the kidnapping incident. She was still keeping an eye out for any sign of Nic and if possible get him to go to her side. She was walking quite patiently and then she saw a humanoid wolf monster fall from one of the inns. She looked on in shock as she had saw Nic jump and shift into his Sky Plate Form.

"Peekaboo, Ultear's found you." She muttered with an amorous grin. She was about to go and watch Nic fight the beast, but then she felt a strong presence from behind. This kind of presence made her shiver somewhat and she turned slowly to see what could have caused her to shiver.

"Guess who found you." The cloaked man had said. Ultear turned and frowned with distaste.

"And what might you be doing here?" She asked. She could tell that this guy was bad news all over. She sensed a very potent Magic from within this guy. _'What is he?'_

The cloaked being extended his arm out and stretched out his fingers. Ultear was awaiting for his attack so she could easily fight back with her Arc of Time Magic, but before she knew it she was trapped in some weird sphere.

"What the? What is this?" She was startled and when she tried getting out, her hands started to distort upon touching the sphere. She was wide eye and was forced to recoil, turning her hands back to normal. "What is this?!"

The man chuckled. "Oh, do you not enjoy my Spacial Curse? It's rather special now that you've witnessed it firsthand." He said with a sinister smirk. "I can make the space around the area distort or act upon my will, also…" He snapped his fingers and the area around Ultear was beginning to distort and imploded, causing small explosions from inside the sphere that incapacitated her. He enjoyed to hear her scream and yelp as the explosions from within the sphere kept going for fifteen seconds. Afterwards, he smirked even more devilishly when he saw her unconscious.

"Now, I'll just be borrowing you for awhile." He then used his powers to transport her while still in the sphere and returned to the shadows, having not paid any heed nor mind to the battle that Nic partook in.

* * *

**With Nic**

"Time for the real fight." Nic said. He shifted into his Flame Plate Form and the beast clenched the ground, making the cement on the street make claw marks. Another brief silence fell, and then narrowed his eyes.

At that instance, the monster lunged at Nic. Nic leaped forward and used Fire Punch to intercept its claw. The two contenders skid back and Nic regained his footing just a bit faster than it did and lunged at it with Flame Charge. He cloaked himself in flames and dashed head on into the beast's gut, making it howl as it flew back several feet and tumble. It soon jumped and landed on its two legs and started dashing on all fours towards Nic, giving it more force.

"**Fire Pledge!**" Nic slammed his right fist down onto the ground and a straight row of fire pillars shot up from the ground. The menacing monster moved to its left and avoided the oncoming fire pillars. It then lunged and was now coming down on Nic. Nic wasted no time in using Flame Wheel to drive himself forward and avoid the monster from coming down on him. The beast had left a crater from where it landed. It turned its head and was struck by the wheel of fire, making it skid to its side. It turned and growled.

Nic could see that the beast was running out of breath, not to mention the multitude of assaults that he landed on it, but it's not like it's gonna take this lying down. It got up on two legs and snarled before it opened its mouth wide.

'_What the…?'_ Nic wondered what it was doing, but then saw that the inside of its mouth was glowing and as soon as it leaned forward, it unleashed a rippling purple sonic howl coming at him, almost making the ground shatter and seeing its radius expand upon reaching maximum distance. _'…oh crud.'_

Nic was hit dead on as the force of the sonic howl made him soar back and smash into the side of a building. He was left in a crater of the building and the tiling from nearby houses were pretty much shattered. The next thing he saw was the monster dashing at him, this time making sure that it won't miss.

Nic used Flame Burst as soon as the beast was close enough and intercepted its claw. The flame exploded and the wolf leaped back. Nic used this to his advantage and dislodged himself and used Flame Charge again. It lunged at it and combined the attack with a Blaze Kick. The result was a huge leg of fire swinging in a swift arc upon lightning fast impact and making the beast howl as the forceful flaming attack made it soar to its right and crash through three light posts, two benched, and skid and tumbled until it finally stopped by barely gripping to the street.

The monster let out a huge heap of breath as it was getting tired. Its mouth was glowing and it unleashed a more potent sonic howl that rippled a created a shattering trail that Nic was unable to dodge. Nic screamed as he spiraled into the air and was flying about from the sheer force behind that howl. He was sailing through air as though he was a projectile that was launched by a catapult.

Nic then saw that he was about to land into the waters of the hot springs. "This is gonna hurt." He muttered and then was a human cannonball and splashed into the hot springs, creating a geyser that went twenty feet up from his splash. Nic even crashed into the bottom of the hot springs and winced as the air was coming out of him fast. He quickly came up for air and gasped as he reached oxygen again. He coughed up some water and shook his head from the dizziness he had accumulated. "Dang, that was harsh. Guess he was all bark and no bite, literally." Nic grabbed his back as he now felt the force taking its toll and making him feel somewhat tired. "Dammit. I need to-!" He then stood straight up as he then received some sort of strange signal from before.

This was similar and he had recognized it from when he passed by the hot springs earlier. There was no question about it.

A Plate was here.

Nic had to find it, and fast. He probably had a minute at most before that wolf monster comes and finds him. With its sense of smell, there would be no freebies for him if it were hide and seek. He used his Plates and quickly detected the whereabouts of the Plate. This one felt…strong. He could feel a stone cold feeling dwelling from one of the tiles from the hot springs. He could sense it coming from his left and somewhere in the water. He shifted into his Splash Plate in a split second and put his head under the hot water. He could visibly see something glowing from a hundred meters. He swam through the hot water and the Plates inside were going nuts. He then got close enough and saw the Plate engraved into the tilling of the hot springs. He blinked as he got a closer look.

The Stone Plate. It made sense since it was engraved in a stony bottom, not to mention that it could withstand various temperatures. Nic saw the glowing Plate and his body was glowing. He then touched it with just a single finger and then the whole underwater was shining.

* * *

**With Arbok and Erza**

Erza was trying her best not to move, but she kept tossing and turning in worry. She wanted to help in Nic's fight, but her condition said otherwise and there was no way she could do so now. She could only lay in bed and hope for the best as her Magic reserves recover. The odds were that she had at least a couple of hours as long as she restrains her movements.

"Nic." She muttered. She was tempted to help, but she was halted by Arbok.

"Hey, sssstay down." Arbok insisted, still a tad snobbish. "Nic sssspecccifically sssaid for me to watch over you. Recover."

Erza looked up at Arbok, who was in front of the door entrance and looking at her. Erza laid on her side and helplessly closed her eyes.

"How could I have let this happen to me? How could I have been so off guard?" Erza asked out loud and Arbok took note of her being troubled. Arbok slowly slithered forward a few feet and looked at Erza with a very slight concern.

"Look red head, thessse thingsss happen. You can only hope for the better. It'sss not your fault. No one knew, jussst sssleep. You should never doubt Nic-ssssama. He never failsss to sssurprise usss all." Arbok said with slight wisdom. Arbok didn't sound at all snobbish when he said this; in fact, he sounded he was respecting her slightly. Erza looked off into space and thought about it. It was true, Nic never failed to amaze her, and even now, he was doing so by fighting the beast. Erza took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Arbok rolled his eyes and resumed his post.

* * *

**With Nic**

The humanoid wolf slashed its mighty claws and shattered the walls that covered the hot springs. It pounced right through and turned its head to find where Nic was. It snarled as it picked up on his scent once more, he's nearby.

It didn't get to react fast enough when it saw a rock being thrown at it. The rock crashed into its abdomen, making it fall back and skid a few inches. It got up and saw Nic approaching from behind a large rock.

Nic's Stone Plate attire was comprised with an obsidian colored T-shirt with his sunglasses hanging on by the collar, though the casing was an amphibolite color. His pants were jeans that was colored granite. His shoes were rock climbing shoes that were light brown with dark brown laces and black obsidian soles. His sleeveless coat was an igneous gabbro coloring and texture that didn't remotely bother him. There was rock imprints, such as sedimentary sandstone with iron oxide bands running from the bottom to the back of his thighs. He also sported some gloves that had a gabbro coloring to it.

He cracked his knuckles and glared at the beast, of whom was snarling once more. "I'm gonna rock your world." Nic couldn't help but deadpan a pun into the fight. The beast had no sense of humor as it lunged at Nic, but he was more than ready.

Nic ducked once the beast tried to slash at him and he leaped back as it tried a downward swipe. "**Rock Polish!**" Light blue energy then sparked around Nic's entire body, increasing his Speed by a rather large margin. The monster paid no heed as it pounced again, but was shocked to see Nic dodge in a moment's notice. "**Stone Edge!**" Nic rams a fist into the earth and the earth rumbled slightly as a large glowing light blue stone pillar to rush from below and ram the beast in its gut. The monster howled as the force behind the stone-like blow made it smash through the hot spring walls again, forcing the battle back out into the streets.

Nic leaped out of the shattered wall and stood affirm. "**Rock Blast!**" The front of his jacket then started to glow silver, and he unleashes a straight barrage of silver energy waves in the shape of his sleeveless coat, meaning there were two coming at the beast that were two rectangles, then proceeded by another row and another. The wolf monster lunged and slashed straight through and cut through the Rock Blast. The individual silver energy waves were cut down and the beast made way to attack Nic. The Multitype Mage expertly spun towards his left as the beast slashed with its right arm. Nic jumped and leaned back to avoid yet another claw trying to pierce him by the form of a jab. He managed to do so and grabbed its claws. Nic held on tight with his Stone Plate gloves and the beast struggled to break free, but to no avail. Nic summoned up as much strength as he could and threw and slammed the monster overhead and into the pavement behind him.

The monster had some trouble as it could not muster up much strength, and Nic backed away and stood affirm, ready to unleash another attack.

"**Rock Slide!**" Nic's body glows white and multiple white rings appear in the sky. Large, gray rocks then fall through the ripples and come crashing down on the beast. The earth quaked for a bit and the dust cleared out after a few seconds. The beast was shown to have been defeated, with a majority of its body incapacitated from being under the rocks.

Nic huffed a bit and reverted back to himself. The monster was unconscious and it looked as though he won't be able to get up as long as those rock kept it in place. Nic turned and looked back at the inn Erza was at. "Okay, I think I'll come back for poochie later. Right now, I have to get back to Erza. Nic then began running and dashed back to the hotel.

As Nic dashed away from the scene, the dark red Mage that was hired by Tartaros walked out from the shadows and stepped in front of the incapacitated wolf monster, having to watch that entire scene.

He frowned at the sight of the defeated beast. It was truly a setback for him and for the plan in general. "I've never seen this guy go down before." He muttered. "I'm going to have to bring him back and alert the others about this." He then pulled out a long sword that was double pronged and touched every rock individually. Every time he did, the rocks from the Rock Slide shrunk down to the size of his fist. In no time, the wolf was free, but it was still barely conscious as it growled.

He then turned back towards the direction from where Nic was. He stared out and saw Nic was out of sight. "This might be a problem."

* * *

**With Nic**

Nic scaled up the inn in his Sky Plate Form and flapped onto the balcony, he shifted back into himself and peeked inside. He looked about and saw that the furniture was still just the way it was when he was brawling with the beast. He sighed and walked right in through the shattered doorway. He turned and saw Arbok at the bedroom entrance, following Nic's orders exactly.

He walked up to Arbok. "Was everything okay?" Nic asked. He was slightly concerned if anyone tried to enter during his brawl, of which he was satisfied when Arbok shook his head.

"Nic-sssama, no intrudersss appeared. She isssss laying in bed asss we ssspeak." Arbok reported. Nic peered over and saw Erza sleeping quite soundly under the covers. Nic took a breath of relief and looked up at Arbok.

"Alright, thanks a lot pal. You did a fine job. Return." Nic said. Arbok obediently bowed in respect and returned back into his poke ball, having done his part.

Nic walked over and was looking down at Erza. He was glad nothing happened to her. She was sleeping ever so soundly now and looked so adorable.

Nic smiled seeing Erza look so sound when she was sleeping like this. He turned his head and looked up at the ceiling, now worrying more on the matter at hand. He instantly frowned when the thought of the wolf came.

'_What was that thing?'_ Nic thought. _'Was it apart of Tartaros?'_ These thoughts consumed Nic's mind and he was getting somewhat anxious to strike at Tartaros. However, he a more primary concern, which was watch over Erza while she recovered. It shouldn't be long now, give or take maybe another hour until her Magic is go to go again. It was midnight right now, so they could only afford a few hours to recover. Nic had to because of his brawl. He walked on over towards a wall and slumped back down and laid on the floor, being more suitable for him.

* * *

**A little later…**

Erza tossed and turned about a few minutes and groaned. She slowly opened her eyes and found herself to get up and going about. Her Magic was fully filtered and she looked up at the ceiling. She wondered what happened while she was resting, besides the brawl that Nic partook in. She sat up and looked about the room. She didn't any signs of danger, or Nic. She then looked and saw that Nic was sleeping on the floor, a more suitable place according to him. Erza looked over and saw Nic looking somewhat sound. Could he really enjoy sleeping like this?

Just as Erza was getting up and requipped into her Heart Kreuz Armor, Nic flashed open his eyes and slowly got up. He looked over and saw Erza coming his way.

"It's good to see you're back up to speed." Nic muttered, still tired from his sleep.

Erza nodded. "Yes, and now we should proceed with the mission as soon as we can." It was around one or two at night, so they only had a few hours to stop the madness. They both stretched a bit and walked into the living room, where Erza saw the damage that Nic had done, though this was to be expected.

Nic shifted into his Sky Plate Form and turned around, looking over his shoulder back at Erza. "Hop on."

Erza was a little confused. What was Nic doing?

"Are you coming or what?" Nic then gestured for Erza to climb onto his back, of which she did. She slowly crawled on and Nic unintentionally took in her strawberry scent. _'She smells so nice…'_

Nic mentally punched himself to reprimand his slight distraction. As much as he would love to take in more of her strawberriness, they had a job to do. He turned around and darted for the wrecked balcony. He then jumped and flew off the balcony, enabling flight with ease. He soared through the air and looked down, Erza doing the same thing.

"See anything?" Nic asked.

"No. No signs of the enemy." She answered. No signs was right. Nic went wide eyed when he saw that the wolf from before was gone from the spot where he incapacitated it. Nic soared over the spot and quietly groaned as he passed over the spot.

'_Dammit. Where'd it-!" _He and Erza both then caught a glimpse of something moving along the street alleys. It looked like a man with dark purple hair, but that's all they saw. They saw him also saw him carrying some pudgy man that looked familiar to Nic.

Erza and Nic both almost flinched in shock when they'd recognized the unconscious man that was being dragged off by some tail.

"Joseph." They both said in unison. They all then saw the man then shapeshift his hand into some scaly reptilian hand and shoved a huge dumpster out of the way. A large hole was under said dumpster that was concealing it.

They both then saw the man dive into the hole, with Joseph and his scaly hand grabbed the bottom of the dumpster and moved it back over the hole to cover it.

As soon as the coast was clear for them, they both descended, with Nic slowly landing on the ground and Erza jumping off him. He shifted into himself and they both quietly and cautiously approached the site. When they were both in front of the dumpster, Nic and Erza both looked around it. They knew what they saw, and they knew how to get there.

There was no question that that hole led to the hideout where the kidnapped individuals were being held. Nic got to one side of the dumpster and used whatever muscle he could to move it. It was heavier than he had hoped it would be. Nic gritted his teeth and his veins popped out as he summoned up his strength and completely flipped the entire dumpster! Erza looked on with a shocked comical expression as she had witnessed Nic doing such a thing. And here she thought Natsu had destructive strength. Go figure.

Nic then peered down the hole and looked at Erza. "You coming? Tartaros is in for a rude welcoming for what they've done." Nic said. He said it in a cool manner, not to sound evil or reckless. He then hopped into the hole and Erza soon followed. The hole was rather dark, even though it was ten feet downwards.

Nic wanted to shed some light, so he got out his phone and used the flashlight function. He and Erza then slowly proceeded and venture down the now lightened up tunnel.

They continued onwards for a god five minutes, feeling the magical presence increase within every step. This ominous Magic was escalating very fast after they've been walking for ten minutes.

"Do you feel that?" Erza asked Nic.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Yeah. It's strong."

They then saw something up ahead, four hundred meters out. They saw a small pink light from up ahead. Light at the end of the tunnel. Nic turned off his phone and the two began to pick up their pace into a small run.

They then made it to the end and they finally made it out of the long, mile long tunnel. There, they almost froze in place as they saw the site of people in cells, contraptions hooked up to a large dark pink lacrima, and saw a few people hooked up inside the contraptions and having their Magic sapped into the lacrima, one of them being Joseph.

They were both speechless.

"What is this?" Nic muttered. They both then felt a strong magical presence coming from both their sides. This was strong, very strong.

They both got stiff and Erza turned to her right and Nic turned to his left to see their oncoming foes. The dark purple-haired member proceeded from Nic's end, and the dark red member proceeded from Erza's end. They could both tell that these two were no ordinary Wizards.

"This, you saplings, is what you would call our HQ." The dark red one explained.

"Now, Seazer, let's not be rude. They're our guests of honor." The dark purple-haired one told his pal with a smirk. This wasn't a friendly smirk at all.

"Ah yes, I believe we can arrange something for these two, especially the fine gentleman who brutally wounded our little friend." Seazer explained.

Nic turned to look at Seazer. "So you were watching me?"

Seazer smirked ever so evilly. "Exactly. He won't be up for awhile, but once we get the Magic sucked up from you soon enough, you'll be his special dessert." Nic narrowed his eyes in distaste for these guys and how they were simply toying with them for now.

_Sounds like these guys need to learn that my powers aren't for evilness.' _Nic thought.

Erza summoned forth a sword and pointed it towards Seazer. "Enough formalities. Tell me why you have kidnapped the innocent?" She demanded. Her answer came in the form of a slight chuckle from Seazer.

He then gestured over to his acquaintance. "Hybren, may you have the honors of explaining to our confused guests here what they will partake in?"

Hybren chuckled and crossed his arms. "Very well. You two will have the explicit honor of having your Magic depleted and finish creating this bomb so that those who do not know or worship Lord Zeref will do so in Hell."

"So Kecleon was right about the Magic Bomb part." Nic whispered to Erza. They both were now back to back, each facing their targets; Erza facing Seazer, and Nic against Hybren.

"Yes, it would appear so." She said. She then glared at Seazer with the need for justice and to put an end to Tartaros. "We'll have to defeat these guys if we are to save those trapped here."

Nic shifted into his Splash Plate Form and glared at Hybren with an extreme need for thrash him. "I couldn't agree with you more."

The two enemies shared a chuckle and they both got into fighting stances. Erza and Nic proceeded as such and the staring contest was over.

"Come at us." Both enemies said in unison. With no other words to be said, they both darted for their opponents.

Nic jumped and his arm was encased in water and shaped into a crab's claw. "**Crabhammer!**" He yelled as he came down with a mighty assault and Hybren grinned and his right arm grew and morphed into a large scaly, purple reptilian hand with big claws. He held out his hand and he easily blocked the attack. The shockwave rippled as the attacks collided. Both struggled to overpower the other, but Nic was still slightly faster. He quickly retracted his hand and hopped onto the ground and dashed into Hybren.

"Please." Hybren sighed as he then grew a large purple, scaly tail with a blood red spike silhouette reaching to the end. He swung it and Nic jumped and fired a Bubblebeam with his enemy's back turned. Hybren stepped back as he felt the hit. He grumbled as he turned and looked back at Nic.

"Okay, I admit pal. You caught me off guard with my tail swing, but I'm just getting started!" He exclaimed.

"Same!"

With Erza's battle, she spun and tried slashing at him, but he easily brushed her off with his sturdy gauntlets. He then stepped back and avoided another slash rom her sword. He kept avoiding her attacks with ease, moving towards his left and ducking upon her fourth missed slash. He gave an uppercut that got her in the abdomen, to which she grunted and skid back a few feet.

She adjusted her stance and Seazer did as such. Erza then adjusted her sword angle. "You're a lot quicker than I have imagined."

He only grinned and then he brought out his double pronged sword. He showed it to Erza as she crouched, awaiting what he would do.

He smirked. "Go ahead." He challenged. The great Titania wasn't one to back down from a challenge as she thrusts forward and swiped across his sword, hoping to have cut through, but to no avail. She went wide eyed as her sword actually shrunk to the size of her fist. She gasped and leaped back as a precaution.

Seazer chuckled. "Heh, what's the matter? Wouldn't you rather fight me with toothpicks? Is so, then I'll gladly arrange that with my Flucture. You like it? It can shrink anything that it touches and more." He chuckled again.

Erza was getting fairly annoyed. "You coward!"

Back with Nic, he narrowly evaded a claw by spinning to his right and shifting to his left to avoid the tail. He once again leaned right and ducked to dodge a swipe from his claw. The guy then turned and his tail swung like a wrecking ball that was coming at Nic.

Nic grunted as he had little time to act. He used Water Gun and aimed straight down, propelling him straight up and evading the tail. In midair, he used a downward angled Water Pulse, creating a blue sphere of water and launching it at him.

"Heh. **Scale Storm!**" He then retracted his tail and now his other arm was a large scaly reptilian arm with claws. He brought his arms across one another and slashed across in a double arc, unleashing glowing purple scales in the arc. The scales were unleashed at a fast rate and the Water Pulse was easily nullified, exploding in midair. The scales continued onward and exploded as they hit Nic and he grunted loudly. Nic back flipped and landed and skid backwards to regain footing as soon as he could. Hybren then chuckled and lunged at Nic with both giant claws.

"**Razor Shell!**" Nic shouted. His arms then turned into blades of light blue energy and were like swords. He lunged forward and collided with the claws with his Razor Shell attacking in the shape of and X. The two once again tried to overpower the other, but neither side was giving and edge. Nic acted fast as he crouched while still colliding and slashed across, not only making the claws go over his head while he lunged at a low angle, but left his opponent open for an in-your-face attack. "**Hydro Pump!**" A large mirror of water appeared and the guy was no match for an almost point blank high-pressure assault. Nic unleashed a high pressured water blast and the guys creamed as he was shot upwards at an angle and crashed into the ceiling with a harsh shudder. Rocks were falling and so was he, but he could still fight nonetheless as he retracted both his arms and morphed and grew his tail again and swatted the falling rocks at Nic. Nic used Razor Shell again and slashed through the oncoming rocks like they were nothing. Hybren landed on the ground and wagged his spiked tail in excitement.

"Well, it would appear that I am getting excited, for I haven't had an astonishing fight like this in ages." He admitted.

"Hey, guess what?" Nic said.

"What?" Hybren wondered.

"I don't care!" Nic took in a huge breath and unleashed a Brine at him. The saltwater attack was coming in fast, and Hybren swiftly retracted his tail and his feet then turned into two scaly clawed purple feet. He used the strength of his feet and jumped and evaded the Brine.

"**Scale Ripple!**" He then came down and slammed both feet deep into the earth. He not only created a crater that was a seven foot radius, but a huge ripple of scales shot up from the ground and made its way towards Nic.

Nic had little options to use for this attack. He had little time as well. He tried avoiding it by propelling himself upwards with Water Gun again to keep a distance, but the scales still were able to reach him and burst upon rapid impact. Nic yelped as he was hit and slammed into the ground.

Hybren laughed as Nic turned to his side. "Give up Luminous?"

Nic got one leg under him and then the other. He let out a huff of air and cracked his knuckles. "Please, I'm not taking this lying down scale brain."

Back to Erza, she couldn't even land a hit on her opponent. Not only was he fast, but he was using his double-pronged sword to shrink any and all of her swords that she had summoned. Erza had to see if she could outnumber him and to do so, she needed to muster up a lot of force.

"**Requip!**" Erza transformed into her (now repaired) Heaven's Wheel Armor and had twenty swords rotating around her. "Dance, my blades!" She then made the swords all around her rotate at high speed and pointed straight at him. "**Circle Sword!**" The swords then charged at Seazer and were striking him in numerous numbers.

He grunted as he could only shrink a few upon touching them, but the other swords attacked him and he fell back with a thud. He opened his eyes and looked up at Erza.

Erza descended to the ground and held up a long sword. "Just as I thought, you can only minimize those blades that make contact with only your sword, leaving you defenseless." She explained.

Seazer growled and rushed for her, but she had already trapped him in a spiraling swirl of swords. Erza had the swords all rapidly bombard him all about as he could not keep up and he was swatted about in all directions and could hardly move.

'_Crap! This lady is hitting me with outnumbering attacks!' _He thought, but was unable to process Erza now hovering above him as he assumed she would attack through the spiral. _'Oh crap!'_

Erza soared down onto him with her large sword now poised and ready as he was still scrapped about by the swirling sword spiral. "**Pentagram Sword!**" She then slashed at him in a pentagram shape and also completely shattering his sword. He yelled as he fell with a thud, defeated by the sheer force of her assaults.

Once he was defeated, his Magic was dispelled with the destruction of his sword and all of her tiny swords grew back into their original size. Erza huffed as she used quite a bit of Magic to fight this time. She dispelled all of her swords and requipped into her Heart Kreuz Armor.

Back with Nic, he also found a flaw with his opponent as he morphed his right arm and left arm.

He smirked, something that Hybren picked up on.

"What could you find so amusing?" He demanded to know.

Nic bared his teeth as he shifted into his Stone Plate Form. "Well, it appears that you can only morph two body parts at a time, with the bonus of having a tail. That leaves the rest of your body pretty much open." Nic explained.

Hybren picked up on Nic's analysis and was angry. He wasn't gonna be bested by this punk no way no how. He gritted his teeth as he unleashed his assault at Nic and Nic anticipated such an attack.

"**Ancient Power!**" Nic yelled. His body glows and creates a see-through afterimage of himself. The afterimage then spins and turns into a silver ball that Nic grabbed and hurled at the oncoming enemy. The attack exploded once it had hit him square in the face. He flew back and yelped as he quickly shifted both his scale arms to scale legs to increase its lower body strength and avoid skidding, but that didn't help him for what came next.

"**Rock Tomb!**" Nic outlined himself in white and multiple gray rocks outlined in white formed above him in the shape of a ring, then he motioned his arms forward and the rocks above sailed and were hurled at Hybren.

There were just too many rocks and he could only jump. He managed to avoid by leaping fairly high, but one gray rock got him in his left leg. He yelped as he was hit and descended just as the attack finished, making him crash and shatter into several gray boulders. He struggled as he turned. He was forced to retract his scale legs and slowly tried to get up. He grunted and winced as he could not move as fast.

"You'll pay for that!" He shouted. Nic then brought his hands together and created multiple transparent glowing gems around his head.

"That'll be the day! **Power Gem!**" He then extended out his hands and the gems lit up and unleashed a gleaming beam at his opponent. The blast made Hybren recoil as he had little to no room. He was surrounded by boulders and he couldn't jump or run.

"DAMMIT!" He shouted just before the attack enveloped him and exploded. A large shining cloud consumed the area around him and he yelled as even the boulders shattered upon impact.

Nic watched as the dust cleared, revealing the boulders from earlier to be no more, and Hybren had dropped to his knees with several injuries from the assaults. He then face planted and landed with a loud thud in defeat.

Nic glared at him and turned away, having this business done and over with. He and Erza both regrouped and Erza analyzed his new form. She looked at him starting from the bottom and worked up top.

Nic smirked. "You like what you see?" He playfully said, causing Erza to smile and look away blushing from his deadpanned comment.

"Nic." She said, still turned away, and still smiling as a matter of fact. "Though your new form is rather impressive, we must continue with the mission."

Nic blinked a couple times and shifted back into himself, acknowledging what she had said. "Right. I'll set the ones in the cell free over there and you get the ones out from the contraptions." He said. He then went right and Erza went left to do as instructed. Nic went over towards the cells and shifted into his Meadow Plate Form and used Leaf Blade and sliced straight through the iron bars that held captive maybe at least one hundred people.

"Quick, everyone outside!" Nic shouted and everyone had just rushed to where Nic and Erza both had just entered. Within a minute, they were out and heading back up to the surface. Only a few had stayed to assist those who needed to get out of the contraptions.

Erza had already done her part and used a sword to cut off the wire that connected the contraptions. The very few people inside were still somewhat drained and fatigued, so the people who stayed behind did their part and aid in them getting out and catching up with the crowd.

With every single person evacuated, they both turned their attention towards the large dark pink lacrima, aka the bomb.

"Okay…how do we stop it?" Nic asked.

They then heard someone else's voice in the distance. "You can't."

Nic and Erza both turned here and there to see where the voice was coming from.

"Show yourself!" Erza shouted, getting a sword ready. They then heard an evil laughter and then they saw the air in front of them distort and twist. Erza felt a cold feeling going up and down her spine, and Nic could feel the ominous presence growing with the familiar scent of Tartaros.

Nic snarled as he recalled the last three and The Nightmare. Those memories were fueling Nic with the need to break this guy into pieces, so he wasn't at all surprised like Erza was. The space finally distorted and some cloaked man with a hood appeared.

"So, it was you. You sick swine." Nic reprimanded the cloaked Tartaros member. He paid no heed as he chuckled.

"Well now. Thank you for clearing the stage you two." He said in a modest tone. "Those meat sacks were useless at this point anyway."

Nic didn't appreciate this, and he most certainly wasn't going to waste time with this guy. Erza felt the same when she got over her initial shock.

Erza held a sword towards the cloaked Tartaros member. "Enough! Deactivate and terminate the Magic Bomb!" She ordered.

The cloaked man evilly grinned and he snapped his fingers. Just then, the Magic Bomb started to glow. Nic and Erza both stepped back in defense.

"I suppose that I should warn you that there's only fifteen minutes until this thing blows." He amusingly said.

Erza stepped forward. "Why are you doing this?! Tell me!" She demanded with such authority. The man then chuckled yet again.

"I suppose…" He then reached and pulled off the hood that concealed his face. Nic snarled and Erza grunted as they saw him.

His eyes were white, but the iris's and pupils both were oval rather than circle. His iris were both dark pink and he had sharp teeth and his hair was combed back and was black with blood red strands going back as well. The circles under his eyes were black compared to his pale skin. He then took off his cloak, revealing a long jacket with blood red outlining and black. The sleeves were long and spacious, allowing room to show his muscles with black markings all about. His pants were baggy and black and had blood red markings that represented the Tartaros symbol on both his pants thighs.

He smirked even more evilly now. He was fixated on their demise. "You wanna know why? I'll tell ya! This world itself is meant to be brought into an eternal darkness, a darkness so pure that only those who follow in Zeref's footsteps shall live and those who don't shall burn in the depths of Hell and will forever be screaming for forgiveness in the name of Zeref. He shall be reborn and I shall announce that by destroying this whole town and everything in a five mile radius! This world shall be eradicated of the clueless and will thrive with demons and the Magic only Zeref shall grant them!"

Nic made an irritated look and snarled. He then pointed accusingly at him. "Zeref is overrated!"

"How dare you speak of the great Lord Zeref! Forever be damned and burn!" He shouted. Erza quickly got in front of Nic and had a sword that was ready to defend.

"Nic, be ready!" Erza warned.

"You filthy trash shall perish!" He exclaimed to the two Fairy Tail members.

Nic stepped forward and had his hands on his hips, all sassy like. You could easily tell he was going to deadpan something. He leaned his head forward and mildly spoke. "Yeah? Well you look like something I would leave in the toilet."

And that snapped a nerve.

"I, Riftalla, shall crush you into oblivion!" He then extended both his hands out and Nic could feel the air around him twist and he saw his left shoulder distort. He was stunned and he yelped as he felt his should twist with the air and the air itself distorting so that it made it hard to breath for him. "My Spacial Curse shall make you suffer before death!"

Nic clamped his own mouth shut and straightened out very slowly. He shifted with whatever focus possible and turned into his Sky Plate Form. He yelped once more before he took off into the air. Riftalla grunted as his target managed to escape. Nic flapped in the air, but his shoulder was all damaged. He would have to use Synthesis in his Meadow Plate Form once this is all over. Nic himself grunted as he sailed at him with an Aerial Ace and Erza quickly requipped into her Black Wing Armor and took off towards Riftalla as well.

He smirked as he had both arms out and the entire air in front of him began to distort. Nic and Erza both stopped in place to see what he was doing. They both went wide eyed when the air in front of them exploded. They both stopped in place to avoid being hit by the sudden wall of explosions.

"Do you like it? My Spacial Curse also allows me to distort the air particles and make them implode, causing explosions out of thin air.

'_Sounds a bit like Aria's Magic.'_ Erza thought. She then positioned herself to charge. _'If that's true, then I should cut through the air with no problem.' _Erza did a battle cry as she flew in and slashed through the wall with ease thanks to the immense attack boost of her armor. Riftalla was a little surprised, but was even more shocked when he was actually hit by Erza's sword. He skid back and easily brushed off her assault. Erza grunted as she thought this was going to be harder than she thought if her Black Wing Armor could only do this much.

Nic flapped in the air and used Air Cutter at Riftalla; however, he easily extended out his hand and he made the Air Cutters distort and implode as they soared at him. Nic grunted again and this time soared at him with Aerial Ace.

"Take this!" Nic shouted. Riftalla wasn't impressed.

"Nice try!" He extended his hands out again and was going to distort Nic again.

"Not gonna happen! **Tailwind!**" He then had a huge wind boost him and he managed to bypass the distorted space.

Riptalla went wide eyed when Nic did so and was hit with a fast moving attack. He skid back and he pivoted to keep ground, but didn't know that Erza was behind him thanks to the boost from Tailwind.

Erza was going to slash at him again, but he made the space in front of her implode so that she would have to back off. Erza flew back and up to evade the attack and looked down at Riftalla. He was no joke.

Nic was circling around, going to use maybe a Wing Attack with the combined Tailwind, but something caught his eye as soon as he went around. He noticed that behind the large lacrima was Ultear and she was unconscious and tied up and had some vines attached that drained her Magic to power the thing alone.

Nic was more than shocked. He remembered Kecleon reporting her seeing Ultear, but didn't except to see her like this. Normally, Nic would feel awkward around Ultear, but she was being used and held captive. Nic didn't waste any time. "Erza, keep him busy! I'm going to stop this thing by the source!" He shouted. Erza turned around and tried to see what Nic meant. She peered behind the pink lacrima and found Ultear. Nic was going to save Ultear.

The thought of Ultear was almost too much for Erza to bear. For one thing, she was flirty with Nic back when they were on trial, secondly, she never had a good feeling about her to begin with. Seeing her like this was making her feeling somewhat guilty though, and she wasn't one to abandon those in need. Erza allowed Nic to do his part while she stalled and tried to stop Riftalla.

Riftala saw Nic going for Ultear and blew it off. "Heh, like I wasn't one to anticipate such a thing." He then resumed his quarrel with Erza and she flew about trying to evade the small explosions.

With Nic, he fully went around the large lacrima and was making his way towards a trapped and helpless Ultear. _'Hang on, I'm almost there.'_

He was about to use Wing Attack to cut off the wiring, but then something swift caught him off guard and he flew back a few feet. The fast moving figure then landed in front of him and snarled.

Nic slumped forward. "Again? Seriously?"

It was the humanoid wolf, and it wanted to make Nic perish from earlier. The beast lunged forward and Nic flew up fast into the air thanks to Tailwind. He did a mid-air shift into his Dread Plate Form and went hurling downwards towards the monster. The beast pounced and had a claw out, ready to gut him upon impact. "**Foul Play!**" Nic shouted. He grabbed the claw in time, turned in the air and hurled the wolf from where it came from. It crashed hard and created a crater.

Nic landed safely and got into a more defensive stance as he awaited for the wolf to strike back.

With Erza, she had been trying to avoid the continuous assault of explosions all about and had difficulty focusing to aim an attack while doing so. She flew about above and about and was able to evade the explosions thanks to Tailwind, but the window was closing for her opportunity to attack. She only had so much time before Tailwind would end, thirty seconds give or take.

She descended and went at Riftalla from an upward behind angle. She made a battle cry as she got a sword ready. Riftalla held out a hand and trued to distort her sword, but Erza was swinging at an angle and he couldn't get a clear lock.

"**Moon Flash!**" Erza then rushed at him and slashed in a cross pattern with major force. The attack sailed and crashed into him with such intensity that there was a small explosion of white upon impact. Erza flew back to see what kind of damage was done.

She was annoyed that Riftalla was still standing, even after that. His durability was rather high if he could barely be scratched from that. Still, he gritted his teeth and clenched his torso.

"Okay, that one had some bite to it…BUT NOT ENOUGH!" He extended both hands and this time the markings on his hands lit up. The explosions this time were double in size when the air distorted, forcing Erza to take dire measures when she needed to evade the attacks.

Erza flew to the ground and landed softly. "**Requip!**" She then lit up and she was shown to have requipped into her Flight Armor. She could possibly get a few good hits in if possible, but his power boost was something to take note of. She readied a summoned sword and started dashing like crazy.

Back with Nic, I guess you could say it was hand-to-claw combat sort of speak. The beast was keeping up with an onslaught of slashes as to where Nic was continuously evading and having little room to counter. As the beast swiped across with its right arm, Nic ducked and did a Night Slash across its abdomen. The beast was startled and stepped back, giving Nic enough room to quickly strike with a Dark Pulse in less than two seconds. The monster howled as it jumped and flipped back and landed with its claws dug into the ground.

"Alright pooch, time for you to heel!" Nic shouted. The monster's only response was it opening its mouth and unleashing a sonic howl at him. The attack rippled and caused the earth around the sonic wave to shatter. Nic had to counter quickly. "**Night Daze!**" Nic's eyes lit up and his body was surrounded in a crimson aura. The aura around his arms thickened when risen and unleashed a force field of pink and crimson upon slamming them to the ground.

The two menacing attacks collided and strong winds blew about everywhere. Nic covered up as the winds and the small explosion was shoving him back. The wolf itself was gripping to the ground to avoid being shoved back. These powerful winds and small explosion even goy noticed by Erza and Riftalla, to see what was going on. The cables and vines that hooked up Ultear to the lacrima were all vaporized from being in the middle of the attack; thankfully, Ultear was out of range to not get swallowed up by the explosion.

Riftalla sneered and growled when the lacrima's power source was detached and Erza looked back to see that this was her opportunity to strike. She turned and dashed at him while he was looking away, causing him to flinch when she was two meters in front of him.

"**Sonic Claw!**" She shouted. She then slashed at him at high speed in every direction possible. It all happened so fast that his Spacial Curse couldn't keep up even if he tried. He yelped as he got to a knee and turned to look at Erza. She held a sword to his face. "Do you concede?"

He only grinned as he took note of her not moving. He then aimed his Spacial Curse and used it to distort the space around her legs. Erza screamed as her legs felt as though they were twisting and being torn apart from her.

"Ha! Looks like I got ya-!" He was cut off when the humanoid wolf monster was surprisingly send flying into him. He tumbled and crashed into the ground as did the wolf and Erza's legs were relieved from the distortion. She knelt down and clenched her legs. Nic came by just in time with a now free Ultear, yet she was still unconscious.

"Nic, how did you…?" Erza was shocked at how Nic was able to stop him.

Nic explained it as bluntly as he could. "Easy, when he's using his powers, he can only do either the distortion or explosions, he can't do both at the same time. He's open when he tried to unleash his powers because he can only focus on one space."

Erza was stunned to hear Nic's explanation. He was indeed perceptive. Nic set down Ultear and reached a hand out to assist in Erza. She grabbed his hand and was helped up. Though it was a little touching moment, considering they both were staring at each other for two seconds, they both turned and saw the two enemies getting back to their feet.

"Okay, time to finish this." Nic said. Erza nodded in agreement.

The two were about to launch a double attack, but they then felt the entire place shake and rumble. The ground was vibrating like crazy and their feet were beginning to quake and lose balance.

"Wh-what's happening?!" Nic shouted. Everyone there turned to see that the lacrima was now glowing just a little bit brighter and was beginning to slowly lift itself into the air. They all saw the lacrima slowly rising and started to break through the ceiling. The ceiling was starting to quake and was beginning to break apart as the lacrima was breaking through to the outside.

Nic quickly turned to Erza after he grabbed Ultear. "Quick, let's move!" Erza requipped to her Heart Kreuz and they began to make way towards the exit while Riftalla was chuckling and laughing. He then distorted himself and made way outside to the surface. The wolf creature scaled the walls and barely made it to the top with his gripping capabilities.

Nic and Erza both managed to make it to the surface after five minutes of running down the long tunnel they came from. They ran along the alley and Ultear was moaning, signaling that she was coming around. Nic turned his gaze to see Ultear starting to slowly open her eyes over his shoulder. He and Erza both stopped and saw Ultear finally coming around.

"…Unnngh…w-what the…what happened…?" She muttered. Nic turned to Erza with a confused look.

"I don't think she should be moving around much. Her Magic was depleted." He said. Erza agreed and Nic had set Ultear down, making her sit next to a corner of a street. She turned with her eyes open to see Nic and Erza.

"Oh, Nic! What are you doing here?" She asked. Nic got up to his feet and looked up to where the big lacrima was.

"No time for chit-chat! Stay here! Erza, let's go kick some ass!" He said. He and the Requip Mage then made way to the direction where they see the giant dark pink lacrima floating in the sky. Ultear looked on with a smirk on her face.

"Oh, daring now are we?"

* * *

**Eighty three seconds later…**

Nic and Erza both stopped once they were at the site. The large dark pink lacrima was floating about, high in the sky and glowing brightly.

"What's it doing?" Erza asked.

"I think it might be close to exploding." Nic assumed.

"That's right!" They heard a voice that was Riftalla. He reappeared in front of them through distorting the space. He laughed heinously and he grinned. "This bomb has got seven minutes left. There's no way you can save yourselves now!"

Nic was then going to use a Dark Pulse, but the humanoid wolf appeared out of the blue and tried slashing at Nic. Nic and Erza both leaped away to keep their distance and evade the onslaught of slashing aimed specifically at Nic. Nic back stepped and crouched for a Sucker Punch that landed successfully and made the beast crash onto its back.

Riftalla held out his hand and then the air in front of Nic exploded. Nic yelped and crashed onto his back and tumbled onto his stomach.

"Nic!" Erza shouted.

"Don't think I forgot about you!" Riftalla shifted his arm and aimed the distorted explosions at Erza. Erza had to leap back and zigzag to evade the oncoming explosions. The man laughed as he then extended both hands and made the area that Nic and Erza were in implode. The result was a rather large explosion that send them both soaring into the air. Erza yelped as Nic grunted loudly. He didn't even have time to register the wolf jumping up from behind and giving him a harsh kick to his side. Nic's body rattled as he crashed into the pavement and tumbled towards Riftalla as Erza fell and barely landed on her feet, exhausted.

Nic skid and heard something tumble as well. Nic recognized that sound almost immediately and regained footing and jumped back up and saw that his hone had slipped out of his pocket. Nic's heart almost stopped as the encase phone tumbled and landed in front of Riftalla.

Oh no…

Nic almost yelped when Riftalla picked up the foreign device with a disinterested look on his face. He turned the device over and just grunted.

"Heh. Pointless." He then tossed the thing aside and it tumbled and hit a wall of a nearby building. Nic looked on with horrified eyes as Riftalla just tossed his most valuable treasure away like it was trash.

Oh lord, he has no idea on what he had just done!

Nic was dead silent. Silent as a grave. He looked on with shock and disbelief.

Riftalla just rolled his eyes. "Heh. Whatever that was, it wouldn't help you anyways."

Erza stepped forward and requipped into her Black Wing Armor again. She held up a sword and was in fighting stance. "Nic, be ready…" But she herself wasn't ready for what was to come.

The air suddenly became thin and a strong wind blew. Everyone there, Erza, Riftalla, even the humanoid beast, felt this sensation of dread moving up and down their spines.

"What's this feeling?" Riftalla asked himself out loud. "It's like the atmosphere got dropped…!" He and the beast and Erza all turned to see Nic's gaze fixated on Riftalla, but this wasn't any old glaring gaze, oh no…this was a feral gaze. They saw his iris and pupils had shrunk and he was wide eyed. They saw his veins pop out from his arms and he bared his teeth. They all saw a menacing dreadful aura emerge from him that made the air around them cold.

"Nic?" Erza asked, a little bit creeped out. She heard that Nic went berserk on Gray before, and she saw him lash out attitudes, but this feeling trumped everything she heard and saw. She saw Nic's monstrosity.

Erza stepped back in a little shock. This will get ugly.

"You…" Nic muttered at Riftalla. "You…you…you-big-JERK!" Nic yelled at the top of his lungs. In a flash, he had shifted into his Flame Plate and fire stormed all around him, he was engulfed in a frenzy of fire that grew in heat and intensity.

Riftalla stepped back in deep shock. He slumped forward in deep revelation of what he was witnessing. Just what was this guy? The wolf himself whimpered and stepped back at the horrific site.

Nic stepped forward. As he did, the footprint he left was so hot that it charred a perfect imprint of his shoe. "You you've made me angry! VERY, VERY, VERY, **ANGRY!**" The fire around Nic expanded so that it was in conjunction with his seething rage, of which was tremendous!

Oh dear lord, there is no mercy for them.

A blazing Nic controlled the fire and made it compact into a super-heated Flame Charge that lunged at mach speed. Riftalla didn't have time to even react when Nic slammed into his gut with more force than he could've imagined. He gagged as he soared back over the forty foot diameter hole and skid another fifty feet and crashed into the pavement. The wolf himself was now somewhat scared. He couldn't move and he didn't have time when Nic unleashed a super-heated Blaze Kick and made him soar backwards and crashed and tumbled over to where the other guy was. Both were lying there for a moment.

"What the hell is this guy?!" He shouted. He got up and saw Nic rushing at him with intense heat. He quickly extended both hands and made the air in front of him explode. The explosion expanded, but Nic brushed it off with the inferno that was swelling up around him.

Now Riftalla stepped back in deep shock. "Stay back!"

"YOU NEVER EVER TOUCH MY PHONE!" Nic shouted. He let in a huge heap of air and unleashed a monstrous stream of fire, via Flamethrower. The wolf got in front and did a sonic howl. The two shattering attacks collided, creating a rippling fire throughout the air. The wolf flinched when Nic was in a huge wheel of fire, via Flame Wheel and it was huge! Nic zoomed in and bashed into the wolf. The wolf itself howled in agony as the beastly assault made it fly back even more and crash insanely hard into the pavement, making dust fly high and pavement shattering. The wolf laid there in the crater with a steaming abdomen from Nic's attack. It was defeat without mercy.

Erza looked on in shock the entire time. She was witnessing first-hand what Nic was capable of when infuriated to a great degree. She admitted to herself that this was far scarier than her, heck maybe even worse than Mira's Satan Soul. Erza could only watch and revert to her Heart Kreuz Armor as she could not do a thing about this matter. Now even she knows to stay on Nic's good side.

Riftalla looked back at the defeated monster with scared eyes and was almost quaking. He slowly turned his head around and looked up, seeing a blazing Nic a few feet in front of him. He was too scared to move.

"Y-you…you're…a demon!" He shouted.

"PREPARE TO BE TERMINATED!" Nic roared as he bared down a Fire Punch right in his face and created an inferno that rushed all about. Riftalla crashed and created a crater that was ten feet in diameter. Nic repeatedly using Fire Punch in rapid succession and created an even bigger crater afterwards. Nic picked him up, barely conscious, and he threw him into the air. "**FIRE BLAST!**" Then, he unleashed a monstrous fire from his mouth at Riftalla. The fire then turned into a star shape and send soaring and crashing and then eventually exploding upon massive impact. Riftalla fell and crashed straight downwards. He laid there with his mouth wide open and unquestionably unconscious. He was defeated no doubt.

Nic stomped forward and looked down at his defeated opponent. He breathed deeply and then roared high into the sky, releasing a massive Flamethrower to literally burn off the excess rage. After an intense ten seconds of spewing fire straight up, he turned around and looked at the ground, breathing rather heavily. He walked a bit, not bothering to look up as he was a little tired.

Erza was fairly shocked the entire time. _'So, this is Nic's true rage.' _She thought. She didn't know what to feel. She felt intimidated, stunned, surprised. This side of Nic she witnessed made the atmosphere give off a dreadful vibe. She was brought out of her thought when she saw Nic dash for his device.

Nic rushed over towards his phone and picked it up. He scrutinized every bit of it. Thankfully, the casing was still intact. He pressed the power button and it still worked. Nic dropped to his knees, thankful that his precious device was okay.

Erza saw this and couldn't help but let loose a very small grin. _'That thing must be very important to him…' _The glowing lacrima then began to glow even brighter, signaling that it'll explode in a matter of minutes. Erza looked up in shock that the lacrima was still going. "What?! How?!"

Nic put his phone away and returned to reality. He saw a shocked Erza and saw the lacrima glowing even brighter. "It must run on its own." Nic muttered. At this rate, it was gonna explode in three minutes.

There was no time to waste. Nic got out a poke ball. "Charizard!" Nic shouted. The Flame Pokémon then appeared out of his poke ball and Erza looked on as to what Nic was doing.

"Nic, what are you doing?" She shouted.

"This!" He shifted into his Sky Plate and flew up to the lacrima. As he flew, he yelled at Charizard. "Hey, give me a hand!" Charizard flew up and caught up with Nic.

As the two flew, Charizard turned towards Nic. "Let me guess, we're gonna drag this thing high into the air?"

"I don't see you coming up with any ideas." Nic said with a half grin. Both then flew to opposite sides of the big lacrima and they both clenched onto it. Surprisingly, it was light, maybe since it was floating and such. Nic and Charizard then pushed the thing upwards, soaring high and racing fast to get the thing out of the way.

"Nic! Get back here!" Erza yelled loudly, but Nic was determined to save them all, as was Charizard. The two flapped insanely hard, getting enough speed behind them and sailing high into the sky. They soared maybe at least eighty miles per hour. They were struggling to keep with as time was running out. At a certain point, they both kicked into overdrive and sailed now one hundred miles per hour up.

They kept pushing up and up, the lacrima glowing brighter after every minute passing. The lacrima's glow indicated less than a minute left.

"Nic!" Charizard yelled through the air. Thet were pretty much at the point where no oxygen was available.

"Yeah!" Nic knew it was time to make a run for it-or in this case, fly. The two gave it one mighty push with one arm each, sending the thirty foot lacrima soaring still. It was sailing high and Nic and Charizard did the exact opposite. The two coughed as they were somewhat oxygen deprived and they both flew downwards and away from the blast radius that was soon to happen.

After four hundred meters, they managed to make it back to oxygen and they could breathe somewhat again. Charizard and Nic both looked to see that the lacrima behind them and still far away was shining brightly.

They both turned and kicked it back into overdrive. They sailed downwards at a high speed. Once they were ten seconds into their overdrive, the Magic Bomb finally flashed and exploded.

The blast wave was a dark crimson with a mixture of dark purple and a small tint of white. It was expanding rather quickly, maybe eighty miles per hour.

The two panicked as they were going as fast as they could.

"Flap Charizard! Flap like your life depends on it!" Nic yelled.

"Yeah, because it does!" Charizard pointed out. Nic then remembered that he could do something.

Nic mentally face palmed himself. _'Oh, duh.' _He then heard the blast wave slowly catching up to them. "Not today! **Tailwind!**" Just then, Charizard and Nic were sailing downwards at an insanely fast rate. Potentially far faster than the sound barrier.

"Waaaaahhhhhhh!" The two yelled as they swiftly soared downwards and got away from the huge blast radius.

* * *

**With Erza**

She couldn't see anything from her standpoint. The great Titania could find the great and mighty Luminous in the sky; although, she did see a bright light far up in the sky. The light faded, but then she saw a rapidly expanding blast wave of dark crimson and dark purple.

"Nic!" She shouted. She couldn't see anything. She could only assume…

No, he couldn't be. Not again! Erza then felt some weird feeling again, something salty running down her cheek as she looked up at the sky. There was no way he could…

After almost a minute, she saw two projectiles fall from the sky just as the enormous blast wave dispersed throughout the sky, sending strong winds in every single direction, even down on the town.

Several tiled roofs were trashed and everything else was missing a window or two; but other than that, not a single person was harmed nor killed.

Aside from that, the two projectiles came into view and she almost skipped a heartbeat when she saw Nic coming back down. She couldn't help but grin. Although, they were coming in pretty fast…

The two tried to slow down as much as possible, but they had far too much momentum behind them.

"This is gonna hurt!" Charizard yelled. The two then slammed and flew off a rooftop, yelping as they hit. They then skid over towards the next building over and slammed on their roofing and then skid again. This kept for another roughly five or six times before they finally slammed into a building that was too far for the painful skid and the two slammed into the wall with a loud crunch sound. They were both comically twitching there and they both slowly fell onto their backs, leaving perfect impressions of themselves.

They both just twitched for a few seconds before they found the ground beneath them and turned to their stomachs and pushed upwards. The two managed to get to their feet, but almost every part of their bodies was sore and aching from the multiple crashes.

Nic pushed on his head, cracking his neck and relieving tension. "Aw man, I'm gonna feel that for a week." Nic complained.

Charizard stretched out his arms and felt his muscles strain. "I'm gonna feel that for a month."

Nic then shifted back into himself and he bend backwards, feeling every bone in his spine crack. He had his mouth opened as he heard the multitude of cracks. Nic slowly bend forward and groaned.

Charizard grinned, impressed how Nic could make that many bones crack. "Nice."

Nic turned to Charizard and the two fist bumped. "Well…you know what they say, any landing you walk away from is a good landing." Nic pointed out, to which Charizard nodded.

"Nic!" The two turned to see Erza running from around the corner and she was dashing at him with such energy. They both could see she was happy to see them alive. "Nic!" She then sprung forward and gave Nic a hug. Nic stepped back as Erza was fairly aggressive with her hug, but he received it with such warmth. The two shared the nice moment that they were both alive.

Charizard coughed, letting them know that he was still there. They both realized and Erza let go of Nic, dusting off her wardrobe.

"So…I guess we turn in those guys and sort everything out now?" Nic wondered. Erza then turned towards them and just stared blankly at Nic. "…what?" He asked.

Erza then pulled off a sweet smile and began cracking her knuckles. Onc she did so, Nic remembered what happened the last time.

He slumped forward. "Oh great."

"Oh Nic." She said sweetly. "You've made me worry again…" But before she could say any more of anything, Nic was already running in the opposite direction.

"Hasta la vista!" Nic shouted back to here.

"Get back here!" Erza shouted. She then dashed off towards Nic.

Charizard smirked and watched on as Nic tried avoiding Erza's sweet wrath again. "Ah yes, love hurts."

* * *

**Sometime later…**

Morning came about and the Rune Knights had successfully apprehended the fiends. The humanoid wolf, Hybren, Seazer, and Riftalla were all taken into custody and were taken away. Nic still had a feeling that Tartaros will still be snooping around, but at least they were taken care of for now.

The townspeople were even questioned about the ruckus. They all said they heard a lot of crashing and explosions last night and if possible went down to their cellars. They all had an eventful night with things getting smashed and pavements destroyed.

As for Nic and Erza, they had to tell the hotel who they really were, of which didn't change anything. The people were still very grateful for their service to stopping the kidnappers. The people around town all came to retrieve their loved ones and thanked Titania and Luminous for such a blissful thing.

They spend the whole next day sorting things out in town, with some cleanup and some answers, not to mention praises and investigations. The two did win a free night in the inn they stayed in, and the suite they stayed in was repaired in a flash.

The two Fairy Tail members were brought to their client, the inn owner. They entered his place and he turned with a grateful grin plastered on his face.

"Ah you two, you two did good. Destructive, but good." He praised.

Nic nodded, as did Erza.

"As promised, you two shall be rewarded." He then gave them a check that was read six million jewels.

"Dang, what a bounty." Nic whistled. _'Not exactly the S-Class like last time, but just as tough I guess.'_

"Thank you very much." Erza replied. "We shall take our leave first thing in the morning." She said.

The owner nodded. "Very well. You two have saved our town, not to mention this here business. People are coming back to this place specifically. Obviously this inn has advertised your stay, making it fairly popular."

Nic just shrugged, thinking it didn't matter. "Good for you then."

That night, Nic and Erza both went to bed, though Erza laid in the soft and cozy mattress as to where Nic slept on the floor. Erza peered over the edge and watched Nic quietly snooze about, turning over to his side and using his arm as a pillow. She did find him to look fairly sound when sleeping. Wonder what he would feel if he slept on the mattress?

The thought of Nic and Erza in the same bed made Erz's face instantly blush a deep red that was the same shade as her hair. She instantly laid down and shut that idea out before any carnal desires could potentially break through. She eventually fell asleep with a smile, obviously having a blissful dream, particularly a certain someone who had kept things interesting.

* * *

**The next day…**

It was close to eleven in the morning and the two were well on their way to the train station. At least they didn't have to wear their disguises anymore. The two didn't say much, just that they praised the other for their great and almighty skills.

They both turned the corner at the train station and they both saw Ultear there, all recovered.

"Oh, Ultear!" Nic said surprised. At least this time he wasn't creeped out, probably after the incident involving the other night. She was being used after all.

She stepped forward. "Nic, thank you for saving me." She said sincerely, but with a small hint of seductivity. Erza was almost tempted to growl, but suppressed it. "How should I thank my hero?"

And that was when Nic got shivers going down his spine again. She was getting a tad flirty with him. Nic had to say something.

"Uh…tell no one you saw us I guess. I really don't want to deal with those Council numbskulls." He said. Ultear smirked and stepped back. She looked down and worked her way up. She raised a brow and smirked even more.

"Hmmm…maybe there's more I can do." She said. He knew what she meant. He looked over at Erza and sweat dropped when he saw her encased in a black aura and glaring at Ultear. He swiftly turned back, trying to fix up this mess.

"Uh, no you're fine. Just please don't tell the Council or anyone, thanks." Nic said in haste. Ultear sighed and still had that seductive smirk.

"Very well." She then began to walk away. She only stepped a few feet before she turned her head back towards Nic. "Till next time…Nic-kun." She then turned and walk away. _'Very well Nic, I'll let your presence slide this time. Master Hades is still wanting me to report this, but I'll let this slide and tell him nothing.'_

Nic just stood there frozen. _'Did she just…?'_ Nic was mortified. Shivers went down his spine as Ultear had just crossed the line. "Oookay! Back on topic. Let's get to the train-!" He then turned to see Erza glaring in the direction Ultear disappeared, with the aura thickening and growling like crazy.

'_She did not just give him that suffix! That lady's got a lot of nerve!'_ Erza mentally screamed, obviously not enjoying Ultear calling him Nic-kun.

Nic waved a hand in front of her face. "You who! Hello? Earthland to Erza!" Nic shouted. Erza blinked and was brought out of her thoughts as she didn't realize that she was like that for fifteen to thirty seconds.

She got flustered and turned bright red when Nic looked at her. "Huh? Wha…I wasn't thinking anything!"

Nic chose to ignore and let the subject pass. "Fine. Let's go, we'll be late."

With that said and done, they made way towards the train and they made way back towards Magnolia.

* * *

**On the train…**

Halfway into the ride home, Erza was peering out of the window, thinking back towards the adventure the two shared.

Then the thought of what Mira said came back into her head. It wasn't a "date" one would say, but I guess this could count as a bonding experience to say the least. Sure they didn't get to be in the hot springs, but at least they shared a room and got to know each other more, much to the Requip Mage's delight.

She then looked over at Nic, who had his head down, daydreaming and had his earbuds in and listening to music on his phone.

The sight of that phone then brought back to the other night when Nic almost terrorized the Tartaros beings. Obviously that was something even Erza should never do. Still, curiosity rang through her head like a doorbell.

She couldn't take it. "Nic." She said. Nic was brought out of his blank space and pulled his earbuds out. He looked up at Erza and blinked.

"Eh, yeah?"

"I'm curious. Why is that device so important?" She asked. Nic was taken back by her sudden question, but then realized that she was there when he when berserk. He took in a heap of air and slumped back.

"Okay…I guess I should explain…. It's silly and not really anything, but why not." He paused and then continued and looked down at his phone. "Well…I got this device when I was fourteen, a year before I left home. It was a gift…a gift from my grandparents."

Erza was a little surprised by this fact. "You grandparents?"

Nic nodded. "Yeah. My grandma and grandpa were the best. They were my true role models. Whenever my deadbeat parents dropped me and my sister off to their place, they would always make us delicious noodles and mashed potatoes. They were the sweetest people you would have ever met."

Erza smiled. "They sounded like good people."

Nic looked up and nodded. "They were…" Nic then frowned and looked down at his phone. "…but there's an even bigger reason. The day after they gave me this gift…they both died."

Erza's own heart stopped when she heard this. She couldn't find any words to comfort Nic. He then continued.

"I was enjoying my gift and my parents told me the news. I was heartbroken, and they treated it like dirt. They didn't give a care to grandma and grandpa's death." She could see him clenching his phone tighter. "The two most grateful people in the world…gone like that. I'll miss their sweet smiles forever…their last gift to me is all that I have left of them…if I lose this…I…I…" Nic then began to shed a small tear in remembrance of his beloved grandparents, his favorite part of his childhood.

Erza had a hand on his shoulder and he instantly looked up. He looked to see that she too was starting to show a small tear in telling of his story. "It's okay. I understand now. That means everything to you. I wish I could've met them."

Nic smiled in sincerity and Erza leaned back to her seat across.

"Thanks Erza, you're sweet." Nic said, wiping off the small tear.

Erza could've blushed at Nic's compliment, but she didn't as she was taking this matter on a more personal level, because Nic was being serious with his statement. She then looked out the window and kept that content smile on her face. Nic then plugged in his earbuds and listened to more of his favorite hardcore music.

* * *

**Sometime later…**

Erza and Nic both made it back to Magnolia and were making their way back to Fairy Tail. They just went in comfortable silence, not having the need to say much of anything.

The two then passed by Loke, who was walking up towards them. Compared to earlier this week, Loke looked a lot better.

"Hey man, you look better." Nic said. Loke was smiling and pushed up his glasses.

"Why yes, thank you…hey listen guys, you need to know something." Loke said. It was clear that it was serious, but he said it in a cool manner.

"What might that be?" Erza asked.

"I am a Celestial Spirit." He explained.

Nic slumped forward with wide eyes. "Mind blown."

Loke then explained in detail of what happened while they were gone. Obviously he and Lucy got in some conflicts in regards to Loke's well-being. He then told his story as to how his former key holder, some chick named Karen Lilica, was abusive and Loke stood up to her. Sometime later, Karen died and Loke was indirectly responsible. He was banished from the Celestial Spirit World and was on Earthland for three years. He was just about to disappear when Lucy was trying to save him. It was then the Celestial Spirit King came about into conflict and Lucy defended Loke with everything she had. With some convincing, Loke was granted access to the Celestial Spirit World and has been sentenced to serving Lucy, much to his delight.

"That was insane. I had no idea." Nic said, impressed of Loke's story.

"Thanks Nic. I just came by to give you guys something." Loke then reached into his pocket and pulled out two tickets to somewhere.

Erza examined the tickets. "What are they?"

"They're tickets to a resort. Consider it a thank you gift." Loke said. He then turned. "I have to go give Natsu, Lucy, and Gray their's. I wish you all the best of luck." Loke then began walking away.

Nic acknowledges Loke's thank you gift and knew they wouldn't cross paths for awhile. "Until we meet again Loke." Nic said. Loke responded by holding up an arm, waving to Nic as he walked off.

The two smiled and looked as their tickets. They then looked at each other.

"Guess we're going on another vacation!" Nic said with a smile.

Erza put her hands on her hips. "Nic, that wasn't a vacation!"

"Oh really? Then how come you enjoyed it as we walked through town the first and last day?" Nic cheekily asked. Erza turned about, trying to find an excuse.

"That was Akira, not me!" Erza turned away and explained, trying to keep Nic from seeing her slight blush.

Nic rolled his eyes. "Fine. Let's go get ready!" Nic happily said. Erza turned back and smiled as she and Nic both walked through Magnolia and were going to get ready for the resort.

Little did Nic, nor anyone know, that smile would soon vanish.

* * *

**Got this little Arc done in a flash. I really didn't want to do two chapters, so I made this a long chapter. This is the last update this Spring Break because I'm going out of town this weekend, so no FanFiction this weekend, hope you guys aren't upset.**

**The fights weren't that great and the plot was moving rather quickly, but leave a Review if this chapter at least entertained you or if you actually did admire the combat scenes.**

**So Nic got the Stone Plate, making it eight now. More will come eventually, but who knows when. **

**The Tower of Heaven Arc is next, and I have huge plans there. You guys might want to prepare yourselves for what's to come.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review if you guys like this story and/or chapter up to this point.**

* * *

**Next Time: The Past Returns**


	14. The Past Returns

Chapter 14 – The Past Returns

**Hello once again! Insane Dominator bringing you more of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**. People are really liking this story, and I'm getting Favorites and Follows all about, which is making me all jumpy.**

**Alpha Dragonis: Yeah, a few people themselves were expecting Jackal, but I didn't want to utilize him for that Arc, rather save him for the Tartaros Arc itself. **

**The reason I say Tartaros rather than Tartarus is because I saw the anime with that one episode where Mirajane explained Dark Guilds and the Balam Alliance, and the screen said 'Tartaros' and 'Baram', so I felt like going with it. Don't judge me!**

**Okay, it's time for The Tower of Heaven Arc! I got some plans here, so best be ready. I had to re-watch the anime to refresh my thoughts.**

**Let's get this Arc rockin and rolling!**

**To Recap:**

Nic fends off against the beast and manages to incapacitate it and obtain the Stone Plate in the process. He races back towards the inn and rests up with Erza and the two go and search for the hideout. They then face off against the Tartaros thugs. Things got insane when Nic went berserk and thrashed the head of the group and he and Charizard both dragged the bomb into the sky. They manage to live and survive, and they stopped Tartaros yet again. Nic and Erza both make it back to Fairy Tail and Loke confesses of his life as a Celestial Spirit. He then gives them tickets to a resort that they then were preparing for.

* * *

**Chapter 14 – The Past Returns**

Akane Resort was a fine place to relax and have fun. The sun was shining and the beaches were covered in nice soft sand, not to mention that it was a huge tourist attraction with its five star hotels and amusement park. This was truly a paradise worth going to.

Lucy and a motion sick Natsu were skiing along the water, as to where Happy was tap dancing on the hot sand. Gray and Erza were having a swell time swatting a beach ball back towards one another, and Nic was…sleeping.

After all of the Tartaros stuff, you would think that an extra day wouldn't hurt. Nic was lying on his back in black swim trunks with his sunglasses covering his eyes, sleeping ever so soundly under an umbrella and hearing the waves crash onto the shore.

"Heads up!" Gray then swatted the beach ball that was meant for Erza, but a wind blew it into another direction, more accurately towards a sound Multitype Mage, of whom does not take a beach ball to the face likely.

Gray and Erza both stood in shock while Nic slowly got up and held the beach ball tightly in both hands. He was the opposite of happy. If there was one thing Gray ever learned, is to never mess with Nic, even if it was by accident.

"I was sleeping!" He sounded, and he threw the beach ball at Gray at high speed that even the wind couldn't throw it off its course. Gray sailed far out to sea, coincidentally knocking Natsu and Lucy off of the board they were skiing on. They all then plummeted into the water and came up for air, where Natsu and Gray began to quarrel yet again.

Well, since he was up anyway, Nic might as well enjoy the exercise. He stretched just a bit and then started to tag along with the others and play a bit. It wasn't long before they all started running along the beach, where the sand was tickling Nic's feet with every step. Everyone was having a swell time and were laughing and smiling. Nic and Erza were running alongside one another, not giving a care to the world. The two saw each other smiling ever so freely and that made them both feel more than lighthearted, despite Nic's rude awakening.

The day went by faster than a Ninjask at max Speed. The sun was down before they knew it. They went into the hotel and they were all beginning to prepare for the casino…well, almost all.

Erza was dozing off with her arms crossed around her waist, still in her black bikini. She was lying back on a chair and watched the sun go down. _'Today was truly blissful…' _She then started to dream of something that she really didn't want to go through again, and no, it wasn't a strawberry cheesecake famine, but something just as mind-scarring. Her dream was of her past and how she was on an island. There were numerous slaves in shackles, being tortured, forced to work, or drop to their knees and pray for their lives. She saw an old man taking a huge hit for her and being obliterated on the spot.

She opened her eyes wide and gasped loudly. She started breathing heavily and stared out, trying to calm herself.

Fortunately, Nic was inside and heard her loud gasp. "Erza!" Nic shouted. He darted out towards the balcony and accidentally slammed into the stool besides her, shattering the kettle and the glass of water. "Okay, ow." He then slowly got up and saw Erza still a little shaken, though he couldn't tell if it was from his fail or something else. "Hey, you okay?" He asked, very concerned for her.

Erza looked at him and stared down at her own hands. "I-I'm fine. It was just a dream. I must have fallen asleep." She was still looking kind of weary, a trait Nic picked up on. He could tell this dream was bothering her, but it should pass by. He really wanted to help, but now was a time of joy, not worry.

Nic held out a hand. "Come on, let's get you inside." He then grabbed Erza's hand and helped her up. She got to her feet and the two made their way inside the hotel room. Erza made her way towards the huge mirror and looked into it. She gazed at herself, taking a glimpse of herself in the bikini she was wearing, not to mention taking a few looks at Nic from the mirror. Nic had his back turned at the time as he was making his way towards the couch. Erza watched him pivot and fall onto his back and into the cushions, sighing in relief. She herself was smiling and beginning to see a very light blush.

Erza took one last look at herself and requipped into her Heart Kreuz Armor. She then looked at herself again, but with a more serious look. "I always feel more at ease wearing my armor; although, it's not the best wardrobe choice." She admitted out loud.

Nic got up and blink. "The heck you talking about? You look fine in your armor." He complimented. Erza turned towards him and smiled with sincerity.

"Your words are truly kind Nic." She said. The two then heard a door knock and they saw Lucy peek through the doorway. She had her hair done and she had on a nice red dress.

"Erza, Nic, get out of here and let's have some fun! There's games going on you know. Natsu and Gray are both waiting." She insisted.

"That's right. There's a casino here." Erza reminded herself. She then started to requip into a purple dress with a few red roses. She had on white gloves and her hair was in a bud. She then posed like a model. "So, how do I look?" She asked.

"A bit much, but whatever." Lucy said. As for Nic, he couldn't tell whether or not to die on the spot from exposure to a goddess or drop his jaw until it reached the core of the planet. Either was, he was speechless.

"Amazing." He said, almost acting that time when they had dinner on their mission from before. Erza turned and noticed he was gazing again, of which she didn't mind, she felt a slight blush rising up again from Nic's reaction.

"C'mon you two, let's go to the casino!" Lucy said one last time. Erza nodded and proceeded out. "Nic, you coming?" Lucy asked him. Nic crossed his arms and turned his back.

"Sorry, no can do." He firmly stated, opposing this idea. Lucy and Erza were a tad shocked by his response.

"What?" C'mon, don't be a party pooper!" Lucy insisted.

"Yeah, ain't gonna happen. I'm allergic to casinos, they make me bitter." Nic said, making an excuse, though he knew casinos just sucked people of their money, and he learned that because his parents went to a casino a lot and they lost a ton of money and used whatever money to feed Vanessa and not Nic sometimes, leaving him to uphold a very foul grudge against those places.

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Fine, but you're missing out. Later party pooper!" She then turned and left, but Erza went back in and walked up to Nic. He was gazing out at the sunset and he was as still as a Nosepass.

Erza watched him and she took another step forward. "Be back soon. Don't do anything crazy while we're out."

Nic turned his head. "No promises." Erza turned her head and then went out, leaving the door shut and leaving Nic alone. Too bad, she really wanted Nic to tag along, but if he really detests casinos, then it really can't be helped, she still has her friends who were waiting.

Nic looked back out towards the balcony and stared out again. "…I got a bad feeling in my gut…"

* * *

**Akane Casino**

Natsu was about to burst into flames when the machine scammed him of his number seventeen. When he thought he won, he yelled in joy, but when he lost, he almost trashed the machine.

"Come on seventeen I'll do anything!" He yelled, repeatedly smashing the machine. An employee had to restrain him, but to no avail as he was desperately wanting that number.

"Hey, you listen buddy." Someone said, catching Natsu's attention. His face was literally flat and he was nothing but shapes. His attire was a dark magenta hat, purple suit, a light yellow scarf, and a red tie. "Act like a grown up and hit the road. Or deal with me."

His appearance somewhat startled Natsu and Happy both.

"Blockhead?!" Natsu shouted.

"He's so square!" Happy shouted.

"Look buddy, you take two paths-." Suddenly, the man's body shined and his lower half morphed into blocks that restrained Natsu's arms and stuck him to the machine.

"Natsu!" Happy shouted.

The man then continued. "You can either live blissfully…" his arm then morphed into a rifle that aimed a red dot at Natsu's forehead, startling him. "…or die a poser. Now, where is Erza?" He demanded. Natsu then looked shocked. "Sing buddy!"

Then suddenly, it got dark.

"Hey! Who turned out the lights?!" Natsu shouted,

"Natsu, where are you?" Happy shouted.

"I'm right here! Wherever here is." He said.

"Goodnight buddy." The man said and fired a magic bullet at Natsu, of whom had his mouth open and yelling that he refused to be defeated and he was blasted into the machine.

"Natsu!" Happy screeched. The man then aimed the pistol at Happy and used a Sleep Bullet on him, knocking Happy out like a light.

"Millianna's gonna enjoy you kitty." He said.

* * *

**With Gray**

Gray was playing cards and then he heard someone coming up from his side. He looked and saw that it was Juvia. She was in an elegant blue dress and had a large Fairy Tail necklace around her neck, not to mention that she was staring with loving eyes at Gray.

"I'm Juvia. Do you remember me?" She asked shyly.

Gray was somewhat startled as he indeed remembered her. "Yeah, you're that Phantom chick from before!" He then took a quick look and noticed that she didn't pose a threat, so he walked on over towards a bar with Juvia attending from behind.

"I heard Phantom disbanded." He said.

"Yes, it was tough, but look, I'm a free Mage who can join whichever guild now!" Juvia said, keeping her spirits high.

"I see…" He said. He was a little creeped out by her, but could tell that she wanted to be part of Fairy Tail. "…and I take it you want to be part of Fairy Tail, yes?"

"Oh yes, very much so." She said with hope. Gray shrugged it off and looked ahead.

"I don't mind, but let's hope Gramps is forgiving."

Juvia then had big sparkling eyes and clasped her hands together. "I promise I'll do anything!" They then turned as a tall and bulky man approached from behind. He had a large fabric wrapped around his head. He had an eyepatch, one green sleeve, a long clothing with multiple red marks that looked like axes.

"Gray Fullbuster." He said, and then a periwinkle seal appeared on his eye and the entire bar crashed and exploded.

Everyone around was panicking and started to exit. When the dust cleared, Juvia was seen lying among the rubble and Gray was up and shocked. "Juvia!" He then turned towards the mysterious man. "What's the big idea buddy?"

"Where is Erza?" he asked. You could easily tell that he was dead serious and wasn't fooling about.

"Erza? Why would I tell you buddy?" He said. Just then, he stepped back and saw water forming in front of him. The water morphed into a now recovered Juvia with her arms out.

"You won't even lay a finger on my beloved!" She proclaimed. "You'll have to go through me first!"

"Juvia." Gray said. She then turned to have a very serious look in her eyes.

"Erza is in danger if he's after her. She needs our help." She said. Gray then turned towards the enemy.

"Yeah." Gray then got in a defensive stance as did Juvia in preparations for their enemy.

The enemy then held up two fingers to his head, as though he was contacting someone. They both reeled back as he was getting a message. "Ah yes, you've located her." The two then were very shocked to hear their friend was spotted. They had to hurry, but they didn't get a chance. His eye then turned red and the lights went out.

Gray and Juvia both looked around, unable to see anything. "What gives?" Gray demanded. The man then disappeared.

"**Dark Moment.**" He announced. He reappeared behind the two and prepared a large periwinkle seal.

* * *

** With Lucy and Erza**

"Wow! A straight!" Lucy said, amazed that Erza actually won.

Erza then struck a pose. "Looks like today is my lucky day." She said. Lots of people were very impressed that Erza actually won and was a decent gambler. "I have a feeling that I'm just getting started."

The dealer there then swapped places and a dark sinned individual with blonde hair. He shuffled the cards and smirked. "Oh really, then let's raise the stakes a bit this time." He said. He then handed out cards with black and white and letters on them that were shown to be spelled as 'DEATH'. This somewhat surprised Erza as she looked up to see this individual who handed out the cards. When she did, she was wide yed and almost forgot how to breathe.

"I-It can't be…Sho?" Erza said in shock. "Is that you? You're-you're alive." She was almost quivering at the mouth.

Sho then leaned back up. "It's been forever Erza."

Lucy noticed Erza was almost shaking in her seat. It was clear this guy meant something of sorts to her. "You know him?" Just then, the lights went out and they were in darkness. It wasn't even ten seconds later that they heard something like a pistol firing. "A gunshot?"

"What's going on here?" Erza demanded to know. The lights then flashed back on, startling the two and they turned about and saw that the people in the room had disappeared. They turned about, but didn't see them.

"I'm right here sister." Sho said, dropping cards that had screaming people inside. It was all of the people that were in the room. Sho had somehow turned them into cards and encased them.

"Oh no!" Erza said. "You use Magic?"

"You bet, you're not the only one with powers anymore." He said, tossing a card to the ground with a guy in a cat costume. Then out of the blue, they all heard a meow and a seal appeared under Lucy. An orange whip of sorts then entangled her body, restraining her movements.

"Lucy!" Erza shouted. A young woman then appeared behind Lucy. She had a few feline qualities, like red marks on her face for whiskers and had her hair have ears for some reason. She had on a yellow jacket with a pink shirt underneath with light blue kitty prints.

"Well aren't you a rosy." She said. By the looks on Erza's face, she was shocked to see her as well.

"Millianna? You too?" She exclaimed. She then had to think. "Let Lucy go Millianna. She's a friend of mine."

She didn't look at all fazed by Erza, and she simply meowed. "Meow. A friend huh?" She said.

Sho then chuckled. "We used to be friends Erza, remember?" Erza turned and grunted at the memories that they were indeed friends, really good friends. Lucy caught on to what they were saying.

'_Are they really friends?' _Lucy thought as she was entangled and failed to break free.

Sho then continued. "Remember? And then you -!" He was then caught off when a loud crash came through the ceiling and broke a table from a fair distance. The whole party shifted their undivided attention towards the broken scene and they all saw a figure emerge from the dust and rubble.

It was Nic, and he wasn't looking too thrilled.

Erza and Lucy both stepped back as Nic came to the rescue. "Nic!" Both Erza and Lucy said, one after the other.

"Oh? Another friend of yours?" Sho asked with a sick gaze. He shifted his body and took a good look at Nic. Nic stepped forward from the rubble and cracked his knuckles.

"I thought something felt funny, so I hanged about until I heard some shouting and people exiting the place." Nic said, stating his reason why he didn't go.

"Meow. You look like a fun kitty to play with." Millianna said.

"Easy Millianna, we're here for sister, remember?" Sho reminded her. Erza grunted and wasn't sure how to handle the situation. She couldn't fight her old friends, but she had to save Lucy. Her mind was just too clogged up to even make a decision. The only hope at this time was Nic.

"Well now, looks like we got ourselves a tough guy." They all heard a voice and the shaped man appeared right beside Sho. His presence startled Erza again.

"Wally?" She said.

"A blockhead?!" Lucy exclaimed and then fell down as the ropes bind her tighter and tighter.

"I see the outside has been treating you well; of course, we've been doing some Magic of our own Erza." Wally explained.

"Indeed." They heard another voice from behind Erza. She tensed up as she somehow recognized it. A dark mist surrounded the air behind her and formed a tall masked man. "It's pretty easy to deal with."

"Simon!" Erza exclaimed, turning and stepping back. All of her old friends were there now, and she wasn't at all comfortable with the situation.

"Erza, who are these people?!" Lucy shouted.

Erza took in a quick breath and looked. "We all grew up together." She said. "This was before I joined Fairy Tail when I was a little girl…tell me, what do you want?!" Erza said and wanted to know. Nic was getting ready if the situation called for it as he was ready to shift into a Plate at any given moment.

Wally then tipped his hat forward. "We're here to take you back with us babe." He said. Erza stepped back in shock that she was going to have to go back, but even more shocked when Wally aimed a Polygon Pistol at Lucy's head. Lucy almost flipped and Erza was in a tight spot.

"I'm begging you Wally, let her go!" Wally then started to gear up to fire. "Please Wally stop!"

Wally then shifted the pistol towards Erza and was able to shoot her, but Wally was slugged in the face with a quick Sucker Punch and the shot missed by a foot to her left. Wally reeled towards his left and smashed into a table.

Nic held up a fist and looked at the other three. "Seems you guys forgot about me." Nic got into a fighting stance and readied for and attack if it dared came his way.

"Well now, it seems we have to deal with you first." Simon said.

Erza's heart stopped when they were going to take on Nic. "Nic, don't!" She shouted. Nic looked back at Erza, seeing her panicking.

"Erza, we need to save Lucy. Try and cut those binds while I deal with these posers." Nic said. Erza was in no position to argue at all. "I'll handle these guys, you just work on getting Lucy free." Erza then just looked on as Nic then went and confronted Wally and his accomplices.

"We have no interest in you. If you insist on being a pest, then we shall dispose of you as we did of your friends." Simon said. Nic raised a brow, thinking of what he was saying.

"So, you guys got past Natsu and Gray?" He asked as calm as he could.

"Yeah, your little posy isn't all that it's cracked up to be, so we made it quick and painless." Wally said, slowly getting back up, but was shot back down in a flash with an insanely fast Dark Pulse.

"Don't you dare them weak! You guys have me to deal with!" Nic proclaimed. Wally laid in the rubble once more, struggling to even find his feet, leaving Millianna, Sho, and Simon.

"So be it." Simon said. "**Dark Moment.**" His eye then flashed red and everything went pitch black. Erza looked to see the light vanished again as she was struggling to untangle Lucy. "You shall not see with this spell. My allies shall remain at an advantage and you will be left to suffer." He and Sho and Millianna all then started to close in on Nic, of whom they thought couldn't see. Big mistake.

"Alright, I'll play hide-and-seek." Nic said with a deadly smirk. He then instantly disappeared out of their sight, much to the latter's shock.

"Hey, wh-where'd he go?" Sho asked, turning his head. Simon tried to pick up on him with his Darkness Magic skills, but was too slow as Nic struck him with an uppercut from his Feint Attack.

"**Assurance!**" Nic then leaped over Somin as he was falling backwards and gave him a menacing stomp to his chest, sending him into the casino ground with a loud crash sound thanks to the increased damage of Assurance.

"Oh no, Simon!" Millianna shouted. The Dark Moment then quickly faded as Simon was hit. Millianna wasn't gonna take this. "You big meanie! **Nekosoku Tube!**" A Magic purple seal then formed in front of her and out came an orange tube that was identical to the one that was restraining Lucy.

Nic turned and saw the tube spiraling about and restraining his right wrist. He turned his body and saw Millianna looking at him like he was a mouse. "Meow, this Magic will keep you from using yours, so no more playing dirty you big meanie-!" He was stopped in mid-sentence when Nic's arms were glowing black with red outlines. He easily slashed through the tube with ease and he flew right into Millianna, slashing across and posing behind her as she meowed really loud and fell on her right side.

Sho was wide eyed when he saw Millianna's Magic proving ineffective. He stepped back as he saw Nic turn and glare angrily at him. "It can't be! Millianna's Magic always worked!" He stated.

Nic stepped forward and Sho hesitated to bring out a card as his friends were slowly getting up. "Yeah? Well now it has. Look pal, just what exactly do you want with Erza?"

Sho then smirked and his face looked rather sinful. "Heh, like we would tell an outsider like you anything."

"Easy Sho." Simon said, now back onto his feet. "If memory serves me correctly, then he must be the one that we keep hearing about."

Sho then looked in shock of what Simon stated. "Y-you're saying…" he turned and looked at Nic. "…he's the great Luminous? The one who defeated a few demons and a Wizard Saint?!"

Simon then stepped forward next towards Sho's side. "That is correct. He's more stubborn than he looks from what I've heard. We can't win with an up-front approach. Wally!"

Nic and the others then turned towards Wally, who was aiming a Polygon Pistol at Erza just as she was freeing Lucy. She got up and flinched at the sight of her being pointed at by a gun.

Wally smirked as he was sitting up from the rubble. "Goodnight doll face." He then fired and Erza thought she was done for. She had no time to react as she thought she was hit. She closed her eyes for a split second and awaited impact, but didn't feel a thing for some reason.

She opened her eyes and was horrified by what she saw-Nic actually took a bullet for her. He jumped in just in time. A Magic seal was in front of his abdomen, the part where he took the hit. Erza and Lucy both looked on and gasped when Nic gagged and got to a knee.

"NIC!" Erza and Lucy yelled. Nic was panting heavily from the hit. He turned back and covered his abdomen and continued to exhale and inhaled while on a knee.

Wally then got up from the rubble and armed himself again. "Well now, you were right Simon, he ain't no pushover. Even my Sleep Bullet didn't knock him out." He then raised a brow. "Though I guess he does look rather drowsy."

Nic was starting to sway a bit towards both sides, and add the fact everything was starting to go hazy. He could only grunt as he had trouble getting up from the one knee. Erza was shaking on the spot as Nic and Lucy were both incapacitated. She was about to react fast to the situation, but she somehow couldn't find the will to strike against her old comrades.

"Now Erzy-werzy, don't fuss like a bad kitty." Millianna insisted as she made a Magic circle under her and now entangled Erza. Erza grunted and then fell towards the ground. The binds continued to tighten just a bit and she couldn't use her Magic to help her, leaving her in her dress.

Simon then went over to retrieve and held her bridal style. "We've captured our target. Let's go home." He said.

"ERZA! NIC! SOMEBODY!" Lucy yelled. Nic could hear, but everything was beginning to fade. He couldn't even do squat when Millianna tightened up Lucy's binds.

"Meow, you'll be all twisted up in five minutes." She said.

Wally then walked up towards her. "Hey Millianna, I got ya a little souvenir." He said. Millianna looked on in curiosity as Wally revealed Happy, of whom was still knocked out from earlier. When she saw Happy, she almost flipped out.

"MEOW! A wittle kitty-witty of my own!" She shouted. She yanked Happy and threw him into the air, petted him, and hugged him.

"Alright guys, we need to get moving." Simon said. Millianna meowed once more and moved with Happy over to where Simon and the others were. Erza failed to fight back as she was being restrained.

"Guys, stop this! Let them go now!" She pleaded, but they didn't listen. She could only watch as Nic and Lucy were stuck in their spots and she only shed a very small tear, "Lucy, Nic. I'm so sorry." She quietly said.

Sho then turned towards her. "Sister, I can't believe you're coming home with us to the Tower of Heaven." He said with tears of joy in his eyes. "Jellal will be happy to see you."

They all then turned and Simon now had Erza over his shoulder and walking away. Nic wasn't taking this very well. "Erza! Happy!" He growled. His sight was still rather hazy, but he could still see the enemy from his distance. He had to at least get to them before he toppled over. With whatever strength and will he had, Nic got his other foot under him and wobbled towards his left, using the momentum to speed his way towards his enemies. He finally zoomed in close enough when a rainbow Magic circle appeared above them. Nic finally toppled over at their feet and they didn't notice until they all started to teleport, along with Nic for being under the circle.

"Nic! Erza!" Lucy shouted as they were both teleported away. She was now alone; well, exclude the people trapped in cards that is. "They're both gone…" She then tried to struggle as hard as she could to get out of her binding, but ended up rolling on the floor continuously. "I swear when I get out of here, I'm gonna…!" She didn't finish her sentence because she continued onward with her struggling.

Her keys then fell out of her dress right besides her. She then figured that Cancer could get her out of her tight situation. It was worth a shot at least. She then swiveled so that her hands could reach and grab her keys. "Here goes nothing. **Open: Gate of the Giant Crab – Cancer!**" She waited until Cancer appeared, but nothing happened. "Uh, okay, Cancr?! Come on!" She panicked. "Fine, Taurus? Loke? Virgo?..." She then recalled that Milliana stating something earlier that she didn't take into account for. "…Oh right. She said Magic doesn't work with this thing on." She then continue to struggle a bit and then she felt a sharp poke along her arm.

"Ow!" Lucy shouted. She then looked downwards and saw that it was a man in a cat costume with a pocket knife.

"Oh, sorry about that!" He shouted.

"Hey, did you poke me?" Lucy asked, rather curious.

"Yes indeed, I had a pocket knife and I thought I could cut my way out of this thing." He innocently stated.

"Wait, even though he was inside the card, I could still feel it." She said. With a theory now hatching, she lowered her head and was now in front of the card with man in the costume. "Sir, I may be wrong, but I think objects on your side might be able to break through them!" Lucy stated, shocking the latter.

"Really? When I do this, does it look like the knife if sticking out?" He then proceeded to poke the card and to Lucy it was flat.

Lucy shook her head, but had no doubt. "No it looks flat, but if I felt it, then it has to have some kind of affect outside!" She then rolled over with her rope now on top of the card. "Do me a favor, can you try and cut through this rope?"

"I'll give it a shot!" He said, and then he went ahead and started to poke away like he did before. People in the other cards were rooting for him to not give up, of which he continued to help and try cutting the struggling Lucy. In about ten seconds, she was finally out and free.

"You did it!" Lucy shouted as the rope vanished into nothing. People inside the cards cheered as the man has done good. Lucy turned and picked up his card. "Thank you so much. I owe ya one!" She then dropped his card and started running towards the door. "I'll go get help!" She shouted.

Lucy was now running about and was making her way towards Natsu and Gray. _'I hope they're both alright! I hope they were wrong!' _She then finally made it to where Gray was down and in front of the shattered bar. "Gray, what happened?!" She shouted, running towards him. She knelt down to see him out cold. "Snap out of it Gray! Wake up!" She had a hand on his shoulder and felt that he was cold alright.

She nudged him and tried to wake him up, but then the next thing she saw was him turning into slid ice and shattering on the spot, making Lucy scream and panic like there was no tomorrow. Lucy shrieked and then jumbled his pieces together, or at least tried. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'll put you back together!"

She then had his pieces back together into a freaky sculpture, with his legs now on the top, and his torso now on his head, which was on his own behind, which connected to his arms. Lucy almost went pale, thinking she killed him. She looked away so that she didn't have to see him shatter once more.

"Relax, no need to panic." A feminine voice said. Within the broken bar, water began to merge and then it morphed into a serious looking Juvia.

Lucy stepped back in remembrance of her, of whom was the one who tried to kidnap her. "I remember you! You tried to take me hostage!" She boasted.

"Wait!" A voice said. Gray then appeared under the water under Juvia and Lucy gasped. "She's not our enemy anymore.

"Yes, I pulled Gray inside of me to protect him." Juvia said.

Lucy sweat dropped. "Okay, that's weird."

Juvia then got all up in her face his a triumphant grin. "Are you jealous he was inside me and not you?!"

Lucy then made an even bigger sweat drop. "Uh no."

Gray then yanked off his tie and started to unbutton his shirt. "I created an Ice Clone so that it would buy me some time while this dude casted a Darkness Spell." He explained.

"I used my Water Lock to keep the real Gray safe until the coast was clear." Juvia added. Then then finally took off his shirt (not surprisingly) and looked at Juvia.

"Yeah, and he got away because of you." He said, shocking and shaming Juvia. He then turned towards Lucy. "Now, where's everyone else?" He asked with his arms crossed.

"No, and the situation just got worse. They took Happy and Erza, and Nic as well!" Lucy said.

A huge mountain of fire then erupted from a machine and they all heard a roar that was bellowing below. Natsu was up and screaming at the heavens.

"Natsu?!" Lucy and Gray exclaimed. Natsu then coughed loudly and his mouth was steaming about. They all ran up to him and he turned towards them.

"Natsu, what happened?" Lucy asked.

"That guy shot me in the mouth!" He said with anger and pain. "Who does that? I mean, someone could get hurt." He said. Lucy, Gray, and Juvia all slumped forward at the irony.

"Uh, that could kill anyone who isn't a weirdo like you." Lucy sighed.

"I would most likely agree." Juvia said. Natsu then was steaming mad as the pain began to subside and he was tick marks all over his face.

"I'll show that guy! That blockhead is gonna pay!" Natsu shouted, running out of the casino and leaving a dust trail behind. The guy then stepped forward and watched him go.

"Uh wait, does he even know where they went anyway?" Lucy asked.

"Natsu has a nose that can put any animal with a keen sense of smell to shame." Gray noted.

Natsu then stormed out and onto the beach, tracking Wally's scent. "I'M COMING FOR YOU BLOCKHEAD!"

* * *

**Meanwhile, on a ship…**

The boat was sailing along the rough waters, not even shifting off its course. Inside, Erza was tied up against a pillar with Milliana's Binding Magic. She started to come about and opened her gaze towards her surroundings. She could tell there were crates all about.

"Where am I?" Erza asked out loud. She looked towards her left and saw that Nic was out like a light and curled up next to a nearby crate. "Nic!" She shouted, but she didn't even see him budge. He was fast asleep.

"Don't worry about him. He's just laying down longer because he was resisting Wally's Sleep Bullets." Sho said, walking forwards and in front of Erza. "As for your location, we're out at sea in a ship." He explained.

Erza was stunned. "A ship?"

Sho nodded. "Yes, and we're heading back towards the Tower of Heaven." He said. Erza looked on at Sho. She then slowly dropped her head down as she couldn't do much of anything,

"I see. I should've guessed it." She said. She then looked over at Nic and he still wasn't budging. He overdid it this time. Sho looked and saw that Erza was looking over towards Nic with deeply concerned eyes, of which he really didn't appreciate.

"You know.' He said. "Personally, I wanted to toss him overboard, but the other said no." Erza almost let a growl escape her, deeply hurt that Sho would say something like that. Still, she couldn't fight back.

"Sho." Erza asked. "Could you untie me? I won't do anything, I swear." She was being truthful to her word, even Sho saw this, but he couldn't.

"You're untrustworthy, I can't let you." Sho said. Erza then tried to break free of her bind, but still couldn't do anything. "Don't bother. Remember? Millianna's Binding Magic conceals Magic. Your efforts are in vain."

Erza then stopped and looked with saddened eyes and dropped her head in defeat. "Fine, but please." She begged. "Allow me to requip into my armor. I don't feel secure…I can't…I'm afraid…I need my armor." She admitted. "I wanna feel safe."

Sho then smiled and looked down on her. "But you look beautiful with that dress." He said. He paused and knelt down and gave Erza a long hug, somewhat shocking her. "I didn't want to do this. I really didn't." He then started to tear up. Erza could see he didn't change much in regards to his sensitivity. "I missed you so much…it hurts." He sobbed.

Erza felt a little sorry that she did go, leaving them all behind. She felt some shame in leaving such innocent family members in the hands of Jellal.

"Tell me…" He asked, pulling away. "Why…Why did you betray Jellal?!" He yelled in front of her face, shocking her. She stayed frozen and then slowly began to ease herself from his sudden outburst.

'_Jellal…' _she remembered.

* * *

**Later, in Era…**

You could say some time has passed since the casino brawl. It was sunrise and the Magic Council had already found out about the crisis. They dispatched Rune Nights to investigate the casino and the people inside the cards. Fortunately, they were all taken care of and had gotten out of their trap. One of them did mention something about the Tower of Heaven, which provoked worry amongst the Council members.

They had an immediate meeting in regards to the situation at hand. They all appeared on a large Magic circle, with all nine accounted for and arguing how to go about this matter.

"Are you saying the tower is still standing?" A Council member said. "Impossible!"

"A decade ago, construction began on the R-System. It was said to be used by Black Magic users." Another one explained.

"But all seven were destroyed!" A Council person barked. "That tower shouldn't be standing!"

Belno then brought up an image that was black and white, but was clearly showing the Tower of Heaven. "This was the last image we saw before our forces suddenly vanished." She explained.

"How did we miss such a thing? Is it complete?" Org asked.

"No word has gotten back, so even I have no word." She said.

Ultear then gazed at the image for a bit before answering. "Well it looks complete."

"Why would they revive the R-System? It doesn't make sense." A Council person asked.

Seigrain crossed his arms and looked down. "It's not the R-System, it's the Tower of Heaven." He clarified.

"Who cares?" Org said. "Forbidden Magic is used there. Chaos would go about if word got out about its existence!"

"I suggest we dispatch our military." Belno suggested.

Leiji denied this suggestion. "We don't even know who we're dealing with here. Dispatching our military will only put innocent soldiers in harm's way. I heard that the Black Magic no longer controls the tower, but a group of Wizards under the guidance of a man named Jellal."

The Council itself gasped at this information, as they have heard of this individual.

"Jellal?! Isn't he the name of your twin brother Seigrain?" Org asked.

Seigrain didn't say as he took a pause. "Sadly, yes. That's him."

* * *

**With Natsu and co.**

The small group had to use a small boat to get about across the sea as that was their only way of reaching the ship that took Erza, Happy, and Nic. They've been drifting for a short time now, but they were making their way for certain.

"…okay, I'll bite, where the hell are we?" Gray asked as birds sailed in the skies above.

"I don't know. We've been following Salamander's lead this whole time." Juvia explained.

Lucy turned towards Natsu. "Hey, can you get their scent from out here-?" She gawked when she found the Dragon Slayer having his usual motion sickness. Natsu was on the boat and was trying to hold in all of his sickness.

"You idiot, we need your sense of smell!" Gray scolded.

"How daring of you to disappoint my beloved with your sick behavior!" Juvia reprimanded.

Gray then turned away and groaned. "Man, we're pathetic. We got our asses handed to us and they took off with our friends with a clean getaway. Just how shameful can we get?"

"They were probably strong wizards if they were to beat her." Juvia said.

"What?! Erza didn't lose! You act like you know her but you don't!" Gray scolded.

Juvia panicked. "I'm sorry my beloved!"

Lucy looked down at her Fairy Tail mark and just gazed at it while the sun beamed down on the water. "Those guys who took Erza, Happy, and Nic, they said they were old friends of Erza's. Makes you think…if Juvia was right and we don't know her…"

Ntsu was feeling sick right now, but then some odd sensation spiked and he turned his head to the sides. Surprisingly, he had enough strength to stand, shocking everyone. "I just got a strange feeling." He announced.

Above them, they all saw the birds from above dying and falling into the water. There, they saw nothing but wreckage and dead fish to accommodate the death-like feeling.

"Look. That's wreckage of a Fiore Naval Ship." Gray analyzed parts of the wreck.

"Okay, I am officially horrified." Lucy proclaimed.

Still standing, Natsu turned his head and saw something large up ahead. "Hey, what's that?" He asked seriously. Everyone turned to see what was to be in front of them. It was a large tower that scaled up towards the skies. It was black with a decrepit outside and dark clouds all about.

"That must be…the Tower of Heaven." Lucy guessed with suspicion.

Juvia then created a seal over her. "I'll conceal us in my Water Dome." Juvia said. She then used the ocean water and create a massive blue dome of water as a use of camouflage.

"Thanks Juvia." Lucy said as they pressed onwards towards the tower.

* * *

**With Erza and Nic**

Erza looked on in shock as the once small structure was towering above her. She gasped. "The tower…it's been completed?!" She stated at the entrance.

"What do you expect?" Sho asked. "We've been working on it for almost ten years."

"So, it's been that long." Erza pondered. "It's wondrous how you've all changed too." She then looked over at Simon, who had Nic over his shoulder and still fairly unconscious. _'Nic, wake up soon.'_

* * *

**With Natsu and co.**

"I can't take it!" Natsu blabbed out, his motion sickness now kicking back in after losing focus. They were so close to the tower and they had to use this to their advantage.

"Take it easy Natsu, we're almost there." Lucy informed.

Gray just groaned, fed up with this. "That tears it! Next time, we're knocking him out!"

* * *

**With Erza and Nic**

Erza and Nic were placed in a cell that was considered rusty. They were put in there as of recently and Simon was looking about while Sho was talking to Erza. Nic wasn't awake as of yet, but he should he coming around, hopefully.

"The ceremony will be tonight. You'll be here until then." Sho said.

Erza was in binds over her head and couldn't move her arms well. Nic was lying on the floor and still out.

'_Ceremony?' _she thought. _'They'll activate the R-System?!' _

Sho bend towards his side and smirked. "This is what you get for betraying us."

Simon then decided that things were under control, so he took his leave and departed, leaving Sho all by himself.

"Jellal is making you a special honor Erza." He said, continuing.

Nic then started to slowly wince, but then slowly began opening his eyes. His back was turned, so the two didn't see him awaken slowly. Until the right time, he had to play possum. He continued listening his back turned and lying on the ground.

"You will be the sacrifice for tonight." Sho stated with a twisted face. Erza looked on with a serious face, trying not to panic. "It's sad we'll never see you again, but you're going to help us reach Heaven." Erza then slowly started to tremble a little, slipping her stoic self a little bit.

"Aw, is someone scared of being a sacrifice? You should be." Sho sneered. Nic had to hold in everything he had. This was just as tough as that time when Seigrain taunted Erza back at the trial. He had to hold it in, for he needed the element of surprise. It was tough, but he had to bare.

Sho then continued. "Doesn't this cell bring back memories? Remember? You got punished when I came up with the plan of making that big hole in the wall." He then looked out at the wall and there was indeed a large hole that a child could slip through. "I was too scared to say anything in defense…I'm sorry, it was my fault." He drooped his head, feeling guilty for that day.

Erza paused and spoke. "That's all history Sho. You guys need to know is how dangerous it is to resurrect someone with the R-System."

Sho smirked and shrugged. "Huh, didn't expect you to figure it out."

'_R-System? This doesn't sound good.' _Nic thought, still as quiet as can be.

"The Revive System. In exchange for numerous sacrifices, a single person is brought back from the dead. It's inhumane Sho, It's forbidden Black Magic!"

"Shut your mouth!" Sho scolded. "Who ever said Magic had to be humane to begin with? I say Magic wears away at humanity!" He had a creepy and sinister look on his face now.

"It's Black Magic philosophy. Don't tell me you're one of them." Erza said.

"Are you comparing us to those idiots? We've been enlightened by Jellal! He's the one who said that this tower will bring us to Heaven!" He turned and now his face was so dark that it wasn't even close to being funny. It could leave your spine crawling in so many ways that you could become immobile. Nic had to wait just a little longer.

Sho turned and started to walk a little. "Once we revive _him_, the world shall forever be reborn. And we shall become its rulers." Erza was beginning to boil up inside with the stuff Sho is saying. He's changed into something that truly disappointed her, and all she could do was stand there with her hands bind over her head while he continues talking. "The cult members that kept us prisoners all those years, the loved ones of the sister who betrayed us, the citizens who lived their ignorant lives, those fools on the Magic Council, we'll put fear in every last one of them all! They'll be stripped of their control and we'll be in charge! THEY WILL BOW BEFORE US!" Sho then did a maniacal laughter, of which Nic finally sprung from his still self.

'_Now!'_ He shifted himself while Erza was trying to get down and Sho had his back turned. He was in running position and shifted into his Dread Plate. "Not today you ignorant punk!" Nic shouted as he zoomed into Sho just as we was turning around and used Pursuit, driving a quick knee into his side and slamming him into the iron prison bars. Sho gagged and he fell unconscious, dropping to the floor.

Nic turned back to see a very surprised Erza. Erza herself was more than shocked. For one thing, she was glad Nic was awake; secondly that he managed to get the upper hand so fast and strike so hard, even though Pursuit wasn't that strong. But overall, she was stunned.

"Nic, it's you. You're awake." Erza said, hiding a hint of relief. Nic walked over and helped Erza down. He grabbed her waist and she slowly was let down. Nic then had Erza hold out her wrists while he used Bite, with his canines glowing, and bit down on the rope, snapping it with very little effort. Erza shook her wrists and gazed back at Sho.

The two turned to see the unconscious Sho. Erza then saw the sweet innocent boy from ten years ago, now turned into this. Erza was trembling. She didn't know what to feel. She felt sad, upset, anger, rage, everything along those lines. Nic could tell Erza was having a hard time, but he didn't dare to say much but words of encouragement.

Nic turned towards Erza. "I don't know what this Jellal guy did, but we'll get to the bottom of this." He said. Erza slowly stopped her trembling and then requipped into her Heart Kreuz Armor with a fierce look swelling in her gaze.

"Jellal, you're gonna pay!" She announced.

Nic then turned towards the cell door. "…sorry I had to do that to him, but lives are at stake." He said with a small hint of guilt. "Now let's get moving!" The two then burst out of their cell and leaped onwards towards wherever they're suppose to be going.

* * *

**With Happy**

In the meantime, Happy finally emerged from his long sleep and woke to the view that almost freaked him out like there was no tomorrow. Cat themed stuff _everywhere_! Cat chandeliers, cat furniture, cat plushes just about everywhere you turned. Ironically, Happy wasn't feeling comfortable at all.

"What the?! I'm surrounded by cats!" Happy exclaimed. He looked around to see that he was unfamiliar with the location. "Where am I? This place is creeping me out."

He then turned his head and Millianna had just showed up. She was staring at Happy with glittering eyes.

"Meow." She said.

Happy completely flipped out. "A psycho cat girl!"

Millianna then leaned forward, not paying attention to what Happy had just said. "So, how are we feeling today?"

Happy looked on with a blank expression, but did answer her question. "Well I've been better."

Millianna gasped and constricted Happy in a hug and wailed about in sudden joy.

"Oh! I got a talking kitty!"

"Hey. Easy! You're gonna hug me to death!" Happy complained.

"Hey Milli, you'd best be taking it easy on him before you crush him and such." Wally said at the doorway. He had a finger on his cap and crossed his legs.

"Meow?"

Happy looked in shock to see that he recognized Wally. "It's you!" He yelled accusingly.

Millianna walked on over after she let go of Happy and was right next to Wally.

"Sure a talking feline is dandy, but you know what's dandier? A feline that can talk!" He said. Millianna clapped her hands in agreement.

"There's no difference!" Happy protested. Happy ran up to them with a look that showed he was not in the mood for humor or feline girls. "How did I get here? And what did you do to Natsu?"

Wally smirked and pointed at Happy. "Keep your mouth at bay cat, or you'll end up sleeping with your little pink friend.

Happy recoiled as he was startled by not only his threat, but the mentioning of Natsu's downfall. Happy paused and looked at his paws. "There's no way Natsu could've lost."

Two guards then approached Wally and Millianna from behind. The way they ran up to them was a sign that meant trouble went down.

They stood at attention. "We've got a problem!"

"Erza Scarlet and Nic Pularis have both escaped their cell!" The other guard said. Both turned in shock at this development.

"Meow! That's Erzy for ya!" Millianna said, rather amused.

Wally tipped his hat. "She ain't escaping this time, and her friend that gave us a beating wil just have to deal with us." Wally said.

The guards then turned to allow them through. "Please follow us." They said. With a situation bearing down on them, Wally and Millianna both exited the room and dashed off, leaving Happy all by himself.

Happy was left pondering in that one spot while the two fled and ran off to stop Erza and Nic. "So, Erza and Nic are both here as well." Happy said. "I wonder about the others as well?"

* * *

**Era Magic Council**

The Council was just throwing about ideas as to how the situation should be taken care of. They all couldn't seem to agree with the other and conflicts were going about.

"We have to stop Jellal here and now!" Michello advised.

"We need to get information and intel!" Leiji advised.

"Send in the military at once!" Belno advised.

All of them couldn't exactly agree or listen to what the other had to say, not until Seigrain spoke.

"You blind fools! None of those tactics will do any good whatsoever." Seigrain said. Org was shocked to hear him say such sully things.

"Seigrain!" Org reprimanded.

"You dare mock us?" Belno reprimanded.

Seigrain paid no heed as he had his own idea, though it wasn't exactly subtle. "Listen to me, all of you. It's classified as murder to send in hundreds of innocent soldiers when the odds aren't in our favor. Only fools would do so. I'm telling you all it's far too dangerous!"

Org studied Seigrain, seeing where he was going with this. "Then what is it that you propose?"

Seigrain crossed his arms and took a brief pause to gather his wording. "This situation is beyond measurement and could lead to drastic consequences if resolved carelessly. If we want to stop Jellal and destroy the Tower of Heaven, we'll have to resort to the only thing that can do such a thing – Etherion." Siegrain explained.

The Council members all were surprised and stunned to hear such a drastic decision coming from Seigrain.

"Are you insane?!" Org shouted.

"That's heavily destructive Magic you're talking about!" Michello shouted.

"There's no way we can uphold such a power! It's only meant as a last resort! It's far more lethal than the R-System itself!" Belno protested.

"That weapon can obliterate an entire nation Seigrain!" Leiji scolded.

Seigrain understood completely, but he had to persuade them in some way possible. "Just hear me for a minute. The satellite can pinpoint any target within the region. If we focus solemnly on the tower, we can cause less extensive damage and be rid of the tower itself." His side of the argument did seem somewhat reasonable, but still wasn't enough.

Still, Ultear easily went along with Seiigrain's suggestion of using Etherion. She raised her hand in favor. "I vote we proceed with the use of Etherion." Ultear announced. Org turned with a displeased and shocked expression.

"Ultear, seriously?!" Org reprimanded.

"Three more votes will give us the majority to fire." Seigrain said. "But we can't wait around, we cannot allow contemplation to uphold our resolutions forever. Time is not on our side here. I implore that you all vote in favor with me on this one. We cannot allow Jellal to push any more boundaries than he already has and activate the Tower of Heaven! The danger is too great to even fathom!"

"But the Etherion blast has dire consequences. It will not only destroy the tower, but it will no doubt kill your brother." Org notified.

Seigrain looked down and seemed rather discontent with this news. "I realize that, but my brother and I have chosen two separate paths. I didn't want to end up killing him, but he's brought this upon himself. There's no justice on the side he's on." He said with discontent in his voice. "It's a sacrifice for the greater good in this world."

* * *

**With Nic and Erza**

The two angry individuals stormed through the hall and towards the outside after they viciously incapacitated some of the guards inside the tower. Erza was running, but Nic was tagging along with her.

When they turned towards the outside staircase, there were four guards in all with one monster with large protruding canines and a spiked collar.

"Hey, stop them!" The guard closest to them shouted, but he was easily silenced when Nic flashed into his Zap Plate and used Spark with such accuracy that his mask cracked and he fell on the step.

The beast barked heinously and began to charge at them. Nic had no time to play with a mutt from the depths of evil and he punched straight down on its head with a Thunder Punch. The beast slammed into the stairs and was out cold. Erza slipped past him and slashed at two other guards ahead. One landed on top of the beast and the other fell back against the tower wall.

The last guard himself was trying to get away, but Nic aimed an Electro Ball ahead and intercepted him, forcing him to stop and allow Erza to back him up against the tower wall and point a sword at his throat. The guard shuddered as he was effortlessly cornered and the mighty Titania and Luminous were giving him death-like expressions. It was clear they weren't going to take 'no' for an answer. Nic was encased in electricity and ready to strike when the situation called for it if he denied them their answer.

"Talk! Where is Jellal?!" Erza demanded.

* * *

**Meanwhile, at the top…**

In a spacious room, there was a rather large centerpiece that was crystal blue lacrima. The floor ladder piece that connected to the center was joined to the thrown. The thrown itself was very large and extremely tall with a hooded figure sitting on it. He was with blue hair and a red tattoo plastered on his face such as Seigrain was.

Jellal sat on his thrown and laughed about while looking through the lacrima and seeing an image of Erza and Nic both dashing through the tower with such determination.

"Master Jellal?" Vidaldus asked. Vidaldus was a mildly muscular being of average height and had long black hair that went down to his feet. He had a large hooked nose and rather hairy eyebrows that pointe upwards like spikes. He had on a sleeved shirt that was paired with plain armbands, pants, gloves, and shoes.

Jellal paid no heed as he continued to watch the screen. "Erza has grown into quite the young woman I see. I have to admit, I'm impressed. I'm also quite confound by her little accomplice Nic Pularis. His power is quite remarkable by itself. The mighty Titania and Luminous making their way. I'm rather anxious to see how this all plays out."

He then lowered his head and smirked with such confidence. "I wonder as to who will prevail in this fight. Will it be me or those two? We shall have ourselves a little game that tells of one's past and future, life and death. We shall see who wins this game once and for all."

* * *

**I have to say, this chapter was a bit on the boring side, but it's what I had to suffice for the time being. Things were slow, but they'll pick up for sure.**

**I have to ask you guys something. I want to make Erza's history a short dialogue that explains her past so we can get on with the story and Arc, but some of you might want a long flashback, but leave a Review if you want me to make a quick dialogue or the latter.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review if you enjoy this story and/or chapter up to this point.**

* * *

**Next Time: An Unfriendly Game**


	15. An Unfriendly Game

Chapter 15 – An Unfriendly Game

**Here's Chapter 15 guys! I'm thankful that I got a few Favorite and Follows, but I'm lacking Reviews. Since I got absolutely zero Reviews last chapter, emphasis on 'zero', I can only assume you guys were not satisfied last chapter. Please help get those Reviews up guys!**

**Wish I could say more, but nothing can be said other than hope you're better satisfied with this chapter than the previous one.**

**Let's get this plot moving!**

**To Recap:**

Nic and Team Natsu all make way and relax at Akane Resort, where they thought they would have a swell time, of which turned into a nightmare. At the casino, Natsu, Gray, and Juvia are ambushed by Erza's old friends. Nic shows up in time to try and stop them, but literally took a bullet for Erza and was teleported along with Erza onto a ship heading towards the Tower of Heaven. Lucy, Natsu, Gray, and Juvia all then go in pursuit to stop them and rescue Erza, Nic, and Happy. Nic and Erza escape their cell and the Magic Council is debating whether or not to use Etherion to destroy the tower and Jellal.

* * *

**Chapter 15 – An Unfriendly Game**

Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Juvia had just surfaced from underwater thanks to Juvia's bubbles that contained oxygen that sustained them long enough to get to the bottom and up the tower.

Natsu leaped out with his scarf around his forehead. Gray followed behind and the two saw they were in a stone-like large room with strange and bizarre markings on the sides and on columns that escalated far up.

"Looks like we're beneath the tower." Gray guessed. Lucy, in her bikini, and Juvia had just surfaced just as Gray was finishing his sentence.

"Better hope Happy and Erza are around." Natsu gritted, wanting to get his little feline buddy back.

"They're feisty, but they sure can work when the situation calls for it." Lucy said.

"I'm surprised you're here because I purposely made your air bubble smaller so you would have trouble with oxygen." Juvia said, trying to be better than Lucy. Lucy turned and groaned.

"Gee, what a pal." She sighed.

One of the pink guard beasts then roared, signaling the intruders. The guards instantly rushed in, some on foot and few on their guard beasts. They were blocking their way and all pointed their weapons at them. "Who are you?" One of them demanded.

Gray then cracked his knuckles and smirked. "It looks like the fun begins here." He said with joy that he gets to freeze a few guys for the heck of it. "Time we fight our way through."

"I must agree." Juvia said, getting ready for battle.

Natsu's entire body emanated heat, fire raging in his fists with a stern and crazy glare that yelled for no mercy. "Who are we?! We're Fairy Tail, and we're here to pound your ugly faces in!" He then slammed his fists into the rocky island they were on, creating a vast flare that was infused with dust. He and Gray, along with the others jumped at the surprised individuals and Natsu slammed a flying beast with a guard on its back with his fists and used a Fire Dragon's Roar on the ones on the ground. Gray followed it up with his Ice Make: Lance, attacking them yet again. All of them complained at first it was hot and then cold.

Lucy made her move as some guys were enamored by her bikini. "**Open: Gate of the Maiden – Virgo!**" Lucy shouted, summoning forth Virgo at the ready.

"How may I serve you princess?" She asked. At this point, all of the guys were drooling over her bikini, making Lucy feeling violated.

"Punish these pervs, if you would." Lucy ordered her Celestial Spirit.

"As you wish." Virgo said, her eyes outlined in red and she barge straight into the guys with the sound of a jackhammer, knocking them all off of the bridges they were standing on.

With Juvia, the guards couldn't seem to pierce her as her body was made of nothing but water, allowing the weapons to pass through. The guards were frustrated as Juvia didn't even flinch.

"Drip, drip, drop. **Water Slicer!**" Juvia shouted, creating a blue seal and moving her hand in a swift arc that made a rapid torrent pound the guys into the air. Basically the team kept kicking their behinds with Natsu's flaming fury, Gray's ice, Virgo's assaults, and Juvia's aquatic Magic. It only went on for another minute and then every single guard was done like dinner.

"Well, that was easy." Gray said.

"So much for a stealthy welcome." Lucy sighed. A doorway then opened up from one of the sides, spitting forth a pathway that lead straight into the Tower of Heaven.

"Huh, guess we got invited in." Gray said.

"BLOCKHEAD!" Natsu shouted, wanting desperate payback from earlier. He charged straight in with the others following.

* * *

**In Era, with the Magic Council…**

Leiji hesitated, but he soon came to make up his mind. With a shaking hand and a worried expression, he voted in favor of the Etherion blast comprised by Seigrain.

"I…vote yes." Leiji said with hesitation. Org looked on with astonishment.

"Leiji, are you for real?!" Org protested.

"It can't be helped, I can't find any other alternative." He admitted.

Seigrain was pleased that one more joined his side, but he was still remaining persistent with his proposal.

With unsettlement about the others, he kept pushing. "Only two more votes are needed. Please trust me on this one." He insisted. "Jellal would soon be onto us if we don't act now. The time for action is now, and soldiers that are innocent is a liability that we can't afford. We might not have much time if he does so!"

* * *

**With Natsu and co.**

"HEY BLOCKHEAD! THE HELL ARE YA?!" Natsu roared about, almost shattering Lucy's eardrums.

"Geez, watch where you're aiming your voice!" Lucy berated.

"No point in stealth, not after what we caused downstairs" Gray said.

They were all devouring food at a table, probably for lunch. Juvia was eating nicely while Natsu shoved every morsel into his body, as to where Gray had his hands on some nice chicken.

"Are you guys for real?! We're trying to rescue our friends and all you can do right now is eat?!" Lucy berated. Her growling stomach was against her and she just stood there almost fixated on eating the food.

"Please, dig in before there's nothing left." Virgo gestured towards the food that was slowly being scarfed down.

"Eh…how about no…though maybe a little taste." Lucy had one piece of chicken then and then she was back on track. The entire table was then finished, all thanks to a certain flaming being and partial credit towards an Ice Mage. Afterwards, they were set and ready to go.

"The door that let us in was for certain opened my Magic users." Juvia guessed.

"Our presence is well-known at this time." Virgo said.

"But why let us in?" Lucy asked.

"Could be they're luring us into a trap?" Juvia asked.

"Possibly." Lucy said. Virgo then realized that Lucy was still in her bikini.

"Princess, you're bikini is still on." Virgo noted. "I'll help you change." Her eyes then glew red and her face darkened as she inched towards Lucy. Lucy stepped back, but was unable to do anything as Virgo proceeded in changing her.

"Don't do it here!" Lucy shouted, but it was too late.

Natsu was devouring food still and Gray saw Lucy changing. His eyes twinkled and chicken dropped from his mouth, add to that his face blushing.

"…Oh my god…" He said.

"STOP LOOKING AT HER!" Juvia shrieked. Lucy then finished and she admitted that she looked pretty good. She had on a green bandana on her head. She had on a green dress with light green on the bottom and outlined in white zigzags. Her wrists had red ribbons on white wristbands.

"Oh wow, I sure like this." Lucy said, posing.

"That dress came from the Celestial World." Virgo said.

"Looking good Lucy." Gray said, provoking and upsetting Juvia.

"No complimenting!" Juvia implored.

"He looooves her." Virgo said, rolling her tongue. Everyone, except Natsu of course, turned white.

"What are ya, Happy 2.0?" Lucy asked.

"Since when were you and Happy buds Birdo?" Natsu asked suspiciously, getting name long as always. Virgo ignored him and bowed in respect towards Lucy, having spent a lot of time in the human world.

"I wish you the best of luck Princess." Virgo said.

Lucy smiled. "Thanks Virgo, you're the best." Virgo then vanished and departed back for the Celestial Spirit World. Lucy then realized that her friends didn't get any clothes. "Hold up, did you guys need a new wardrobe as well?" She then looked to see Natsu flaming and Gray airing out his shorts close to the flame.

"Nah, we're fine." He said.

"He's not a dryer!" Lucy berated him. As soon as she turned, all ready to go, they saw guards coming their way with swords and Magic guns at the ready.

"The intruders-!" They didn't get to blink when they were instantly slashed and pushed out of the way from behind.

They all sailed and crashed as Erza slashed her way through with Nic in his Dread Plate Form and assisting with Night Slash. Their appearance shocked the team as they were glad to be safe.

"Erza, Nic, you're here!" Natsu and Gray said.

"Thank goodness you two are alright." Lucy said, glad to see them again after what happened back at the casino. Erza and Nic didn't even notice they were there, but when they did, they both gasped in shock.

"It's you guys?!" Erza said, shocked to see them in the Tower of Heaven as well.

Nic was just as shocked as her, but sounded less defensive. "Hey guys, took ya long enough." Nic said.

"We came here to save you guys." Lucy said.

Juvia then stepped forward. "Greetings, I am Juvia-."

"Go home!" Erza shouted, shocking everyone. "This place is not meant for you!" The others stepped back to hear Erza decline them.

Natsu punched his palm with flame. "Like hell we're going anywhere! I got a score to settle with blockhead for kidnapping Happy!"

Erza blinked at this news. "They got him as well? Millianna must have done this."

"Where is he?! This is war I tell ya!" Natsu sneered.

"Who are you to declare war against?" Gray asked.

"THE NIMROD WHO TOOK MY BUDDY!" Natsu then stormed away, leaving a dust trail behind and going down a hall, leaving the others behind.

"Natsu, get back here!" Erza demanded, but he was gone and out of sight.

"Idiot." Gray said. "Looks like we're going to have to help."

Erza then had a sword in front of them, blocking them and shocking them. "NO! Millianna is a cat lover. She wouldn't dare harm Happy, I'll make sure those two come back with me when this all over. You all need to leave, that includes you too Nic." Erza sternly demanded.

"But we want to help!" Lucy pleaded.

"It's my burden alone. It has nothing to do with you." Erza said, starting to walk away. Nic stopped in front of her with a dead serious look on his face.

"We're not going anywhere! We've made it this far, and we ain't backing down now." Nic said, not allowing Erza to pass him. He could easily tell she wasn't being herself. Normally, she wouldn't mind the extra help, but she was different and he wasn't going to take this.

Erza gave him a glare. Even though she had feelings for him, this situation was meant for her and her alone, at least according to her. "Stand aside and leave!" She demanded, her body beginning to tremble. Nic stomped, stating his defiance.

"Like hell I am. If you think for even a remote second that I'm leaving you alone in this deathtrap with this Jellal numbskull, you are sadly mistaken." Nic said. Erza was trembling and looking down. She had to do this alone, not wanting her friends involved, though Nic said otherwise. "Erza, this tower is making you feel different. Those guys that took us before were friends of yours; well, we're your friends too, and there's no way we leave a friend in her hour of need."

Lucy pumped her fist. "You said it Nic! No matter what, we'll always be with you."

Gray smile. "For sure."

Erza was quiet, but was still shaking. "…No. Leave this minute!" She said. Nic still didn't budge. She was almost tempted to draw her swords, but it prove to fail for if she did, Nic might use Night Slash and cut her swords.

"I'm saying this one more time. We are not leaving you. Period!" Nic angrily said, almost fed up with Erza's strange and somehow cowardly behavior. "Erza, you're a strong and amazing woman. This is absolutely nothing like you. What happened to the woman who always had her friends to help? What happened to the woman who had no fear in battle? What happened to that cheesecake loving individual who loves to be with her comrades?"

It was then that Erza turned towards her side and started to shed a tear. Gray and Lucy were startled by this change in her, as to where Nic eased himself and shifted back into himself. Erza wiped away the lone tear in her eye.

"I'm truly sorry, but you can't me, not this time." She said, calming down. This battle is with me and me alone staring Death in the face."

"What do you mean?" Gray asked.

Nic then recalled something. He then remembered when he and Erza were 'hanging out' that one time that she admitted towards her past. About her lost eye, her friends, about this one guy who he now realized was Jellal. Nic stepped forward and had a hand on her shoulder.

"Erza…is this related to that thing you told me awhile back?" Nic asked. Erza turned and showed a grin.

"Yes. I have no point in hiding it any longer." She said, now backing up to make room. Nic stepped back and allowed her to speak. "I will have to share my story with you." She then started her long story.

"This tower is known as the Tower of Heaven, also known as the R-System. A decade ago, a division that practiced Black Magic began construction and use a forbidden spell that would bring the dad back to life. The spell required countless human sacrifices, so people were kidnapped and abducted from all about and build the tower as slaves." She then paused and turned away. "…I only know this because I was one of those people. Anyone who tried to run away would disappear and never be seen again. We had nothing but constant fear; however, we made friends and formed bonds with others. Though we all knew we wouldn't be together long, a boy I knew from then…was someone named Jellal."

"One day, the day I lost my eye, Jellal came and tried to take me back with him, but then we were ambushed by soldiers and we were forced to fight. They took me back to my cell, but I never saw Jellal after that. When they kept berating us and Sho was crying, I snapped and remembered that Jellal would want me to fight, so I did. I started a rebel in the name of our freedom. We hoped to save Jellal. He was a leadership figure back then, a strong sense of justice that I deeply admired and had never forgotten…however, something corrupted him. There's only a few words to describe him – unholy pure evil."

"We all fought back with everything we had. We grabbed whatever weapons necessary. Jellal was very important to us all…and me. We were going to move forward, but Magic Soldiers arrived and started to push us back. We all retreated, and we were attacked again, but then Rob saved me. He was an old friend of Makarov, and he defended me." Erza then started to shake, the memories flooding back. "Than…he sacrificed himself to save me." She then had a single tear run down. "It was only after his death that I learned to use my latent Magic powers and end the rebellion. I managed to get to Jellal, I was so happy I couldn't even describe my joy. I was hoodwinked the next moment when Jellal said he wasn't leaving and used Magic and killed someone in front of my eyes. He turned into a foul beast that I couldn't believe. He forced me to leave, not allowing the others to go. I was the only one who escaped and everyone was forced to stay and work for Jellal. He threatened to kill my friends if I ever set foot near the place again. When I got shore, I screamed." She finished.

Everyone there had absolutely zero words to describe what they've heard. Gray stood there with saddened eyes, the same with Lucy and Juvia.

'_Whoa…that's heavy…' _Nic didn't take it as well as the others. His face paled and he looked down in shock. He had to process everything up to this point.

This Jellal person was someone who Erza truly thought as a good person, someone who she wanted. That thought rang about in Nic's mind for only half a second and then he zoomed on towards the fact that people died in front of her eyes, not to mention Jellal turning evil and threatening to kill her friends. That was truly heavy info. He gulped and dared to not look up towards a mournful Erza. He knew she had a bad history, but not this bad. She really didn't discuss a lot with Nic back then.

He continued to still look down as Erza went onwards.

"I have to fight Jellal." Another tear ran down her face and dropped to the floor. "I have to…I have no other choice."

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Era…**

Still, the Council was debating, not surprising anymore. Seigrain still kept on insisting such a resort.

"The time to take action has and must be now. We must use the satellite square to direct the Etherion blast over the Tower of Heaven!" Seigrain insisted.

Ultear backed him up. "We all know that the R-System is forbidden Magic and must not allow it to sully recorded history; therefore, it must be terminated with the use of Seigrain's proposal." She said. She then looked and directed at Org. "Why is it that you cannot see such a thing?"

"The Etherion blast would annihilate any and all life forms that may or may not be in the tower." Org counter argued.

"Let's not forget that your brother's life would be forfeited. He would surly die from such a blast, are you sure you can live with such guilt?" Michello asked.

Seigrain paused and looked down. "As I said, we've chosen separate paths. I must show him the error of his ways. It's a sacrifice that I alone can't be certain to bare, but if it means for the sake of humanity, I must do what is justified."

"Lives will be lost, but it must be stopped." Leiji said.

Org stepped forward. "Can you imagine what would possibly happen? We would be going and destroying land and be classified as mass murderers!"

Belno crossed her arms and contemplated for a few seconds. "I for one would sacrifice my reputation in order to save the future." She admitted. "We have put an end to this calamity. I vote in favor of an Etherion blast." Belno raised her hand in signal of her vote.

"We need one more vote people. The fate of the world is at stake!" Seigrain pressured.

"How can we teach the future generation if the dead could be brought back to life? The R-System is to be destroyed!" Leiji supported.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

Nic really wanted to say something to cheer her up, but when he had his mouth open the words shot back down his throat, forcing him to clamp his mouth continuously. All he really signaled was a constantly open mouth that Erza and the others saw.

Wiping away any stray tears, she turned towards the Mage with sunglasses. "You okay Nic?" She asked. Nic looked up and swallowed one more time.

"I-I'm sorry." He said. "I just wanted to say it wasn't your fault." He then looked away as he continued to spew out the words. "You didn't have a choice. You were forced to leave the innocent." He cut himself off from there, thinking he said enough.

Erza sympathized with Nic trying to ease her guilt, but the only reaction she gave was looking down and frowning. "Yes, but still." She cut herself off from there as well.

Gray then tried to change the subject to stop Erza from feeling guilty. "So this Zeref guy, what's the big deal with him?"

Erza then turned towards him and spoke again. "Yes, he was a legendary Black Wizard. The one who created Lullaby. I didn't mention this until now, but I suspect Deliora was a demon from the Book of Zeref as well. And Nic went up against The Nightmare awhile back." She summarized.

Gray stood still, stunned to hear that a demon from the past was from an evil Wizard named Zeref.

"Why would Jellal want to revive such a person?" Juvia questioned.

"I don't know, but Sho mentioned that when it does happen the world will be reborn and they will become its rulers." Erza said.

Lucy crossed her arms and was suspicious as well. "I understand that, but what I don't get is why your old friends are accusing you." She said. "Don't they know that Jellal is the evil mastermind?"

"It's not their fault. Jellal must have filled them with lies when I departed." Erza said. "But I still can't believe I left them; in the end, I guess I did betray them."

"Don't worry." Nic assured. "When Jellal is taken down, it'll all be over."

Erza then looked up. "Yes, it will, but leave the fight with Jellal to me alone." Erza insisted.

'_Is she hiding something?' _Gray asked himself, remembering that Erza said she'll be staring Death in the face. _'What does that even mean?'_

They all turned when they heard footsteps coming towards them. They all turned to see Sho coming. Almost instantly, Nic and the rest were in a more defensive stance when a shaken Sho approached.

"Sister?" Sho asked Erza. "You can't be serious. You're lying!"

"Sho!" Erza said in shock of his arrival.

"Do you think you're going to get sympathy from your friends?! You know that's not how it happened!" Sho shouted.

Nic stepped forward. "Then tell us what you heard." He asked.

Sho then stared Nic with angered eyes, possibly not forgetting what happened earlier. "…Jellal told us Erza blew up the boats and left on her own. We could have drowned if it weren't for Jellal. He warned us not to trust inexperienced Magic users like you." He then shifted his attention over towards a now guilty Erza. "He said you didn't want anything to do with us!"

"Did you ever think he was taking you for a fool?" Gray asked.

"If you knew Erza, she'd never do anything as humane as you said." Lucy said. Shi stepped back, seeing counter arguments and he was wide eyed. Erza didn't speak as she was feeling guilt all about her body.

"You don't know her." Sho said, thinking he knew her better than anyone else. He started to swell up tears. "You weren't there! How could you side with her?! I've spent this whole time building this tower for Jellal's sake! Now you're saying it's all a lie?!" Everyone then looked up at Sho, feeling sorry for him and how sensitive he was to this situation. "You're trying to tell me that Jellal has been lying to us this entire time?!"

Everyone then stood still for a moment when they heard a voice they recognized from before. "That's right." The voice said. A black mist then formed from behind Juvia, revealing it to be Simon.

Gray stepped forward, recognizing him. "You lousy-!" He was stopped when Juvia had her arm extended.

"At ease my love, he does not pose a threat." Juvia said. "He did not mean any harm from before. Back at the resort, he knew he was attacking a decoy."

"How?"

"Since he was the one who casted the Darkness Spell, it had no effect on him." Juvia explained. "I came along to also wonder why he spared you."

Simon nodded. "I expect no less from the Element Four."

"I-I don't get it." Sho interrupted, becoming the center of attention again. "What do you mean?"

"I had to fool you and the others into thinking I killed him. I was in hopes our attack would lure them here." Simon explained. Sho was starting to tear up again, feeling betrayed yet again by a close friend.

"You too? Who could you do this to me?!" Sho said, shutting his eyes and tilting downwards. Simon came over and put a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm truly sorry. Jella had you under his spell, so I wouldn't be able to convince you, so I faked it and played along until the right time." Simon explained.

Erza was a little astonished by Simon's actions. "So you knew this whole time." She said. Simon turned around and gave Erza a sincere smile that was blocked by his mask.

"I've always believed in you Erza, and nothing can ever change that." Simon said with sincerity. Erza then smiled back, glad that at least he believe in her. "I mean those words from the bottom of my heart." Erza then hugged Simon.

Nic could tell by his voice that he was being more than sincere. He was more loving than sincere, something that Nic did nothing of. He could guess by his tone and faceless smile that he had feelings for her as well. He chose not to care for that and just pass of a grateful smile that they had a friend that Erza was happy to see once more.

"I never knew…" Sho said shakily, making Erza pull away and they all looked at him again. "I-I can't believe I was so blind these years. I doubted you, because you left me all alone! You have no idea how much that hurts!" He shouted. He dropped to his knees and pounded a fist on the floor and started crying.

Erza and the others looked on, now sad for Sho. Nic frowned heavily at the site.

'_He was innocent, like me.' _Nic thought somberly. Erza looked down with a frown, with the others doing the same.

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO BELIEVE ANYMORE!" Sho yelled, crying some more. Erza slowly approached and knelt down towards Sho.

"Sho, it's okay." Erza said, trying to calm him down. "No need to take it all in at once." She then tried to grin to lighten things. "Sho, you need to know that I never, not even once, had forgotten any of you." She then picked him up and pulled him in for a hug. "I'm truly sorry I didn't stand up to him before, but now I'm stronger. Please forgive me."

They all then took a minute for Sho to calm down before action could be taken.

"I suspect that you are ready to face Jellal, yes?" Simon asked. Erza got back to her feet and nodded. He then turned back towards the others. "I've waited all these years for this very moment, very powerful Wizards join forces and take down this tower and Jellal."

"So, what do you have planned for us?" Lucy asked.

"We'll all take down Jellal. We can do it if we work together." He said. Everyone nodded in agreement. Erza turned and looked on as her problems now became their's. She really didn't want her friends to do this, but there was no way out now. Her friends weren't meant to be here, and yet they came along for the sake of helping her. She would have to make it her new resolve to fight alongside her friends. Though there would be a chance they would all get hurt, they would take that risk if it meant saving Erza from a nightmare.

Simon then turned towards the direction where Natsu headed off. "We first have to keep Salamander and Wally from confronting the other again."

Nic stepped forward, being ready to take up this course of action. "Very well. You guys scale this piece of junk while I go and help Natsu." Nic said. He turned and shifted into his Sky Plate, using his Tailwind in a fast motion that made his back surrounded by wind. He turned his head towards Erza. "Erza, you and the others best be careful." He grinned. Nic then shifted his head back towards the corridor and flew at blinding speed towards the direction Natsu went down. Erza watched as Nic flew off towards the corridor and she instantly got worried.

'_Be careful.' _She thought. With the butterflies in her stomach fluttering very softly from slight worry, Erza and the others departed and left to find a staircase that lead upstairs.

* * *

**With Natsu**

"Happy?! Happy?!" Natsu then skid to a halt when he came across a large cat room with cat furniture. The whole thing was freaking him out a bit.

"Geez." He said, walking into the unknown chamber. "What's with this room? Somebody sure needs a hobby." He looked around, trying to see if Happy was around, but no luck, but he did find _something_.

As in 'something', that meant a giant green cat helmet with blue eyes, a heart on the forehead, orange nose, and red/brown stripes going about along the back of the helmet.

Almost instantly, he liked it. "Oh wow!" He ran over and picked it up. "It's like some sort of mask!" He was all excited and yanked it down onto his head.

He then began posing like a cat and much like Happy. "Let's go Happy!" "Aye sir!" He was just having a little too much fun with the mask, thinking of a few pranks. "Man, do I make a great cat." He then tried to take it off, but was stuck on his head. He screamed as he failed to get it off. He then began sulking. "This thing is stuck on my head. What am I gonna do?" He asked out loud. He then perked himself up. "Oh well, it looks cool, so it's no problem right?"

What he didn't know was that Wally was leaning back against the door railing and smirked as Natsu was talking to himself. Natsu just kept on cheering about, now thinking yet again of the potential pranks.

"Man, Happy is gonna flip when he sees me!" He laughed, posing and dancing about, completely forgetting that the mask was stuck to his face. "Maybe Erza will get a laugh at-waaaaiit a second…Lucy would just jump out of her underpants when I prank her!"

Wally then got his Polygon Cannon at the ready.

* * *

**With Nic**

Nic was zooming as fast as he could go, and he was reaching Natsu's destination fairly quick. If possible, he'll be there in no time, wherever "there" is. At any rate, he zoomed and was making his way.

"Hope that numbskull didn't encounter Wally yet; if so, I have to hurry!" Nic exclaimed. He made himself go by faster and then he saw something blue up ahead.

"Is that…?" He got a better look by speeding and found that it was indeed Happy and some robotic orange cat. "Happy!" Nic shouted.

Happy stopped his tracking and looked up to see Nic sailing his way. Though he was tired from playing with the robotic cat, he still had some energy to jump up in surprise.

"Oh wow, Nic it's you!" Happy exclaimed. He stopped in place and Nic slowly came to a halt and planted his feet. He retracted his wings and he knelt down towards Happy.

"Happy, I'm so glad to see you in one piece." Nic assured.

Happy smiled, glad to see someone else was here as well. "Aye sir! The same here, but do you know if anyone else is here other than you and Erza?"

Nic nodded. "Yeah. Natsu went storming off to find you and Erza, Lucy, Gray, Juvia, Simon, and Sho are all making their way up the tower as we speak." Happy recoiled at the fact the enemy was siding with them.

"Wait, what?! That water lady and blockhead's accomplices are on our side now?!" Happy exclaimed, shocked that he missed something important.

"Yeah, don't worry though, Simon and Sho are good people. Juvia is a great person too. Don't doubt them as long as the rest of the team is here. He then looked at the robot that meowed. "And who's your little tour guide here?"

Happy turned to see what Nic meant and realized that this whole time he was distracted by the orange inorganic feline.

Happy sweat dropped. "Uh, he entertained me while this crazy cat lady and this blockhead went to check out something." He said.

Nic blinked at Happy's mentioning of Millianna and Wally, meaning they were close by. Nic instantly got to his feet and barked at Happy. "Happy, tell me! Where were you taken too?" Nic said.

Happy looked up, confused. "I was in this cray cat room, why?"

Nic then had a feeling that if they went back there, the odds of finding Natsu there would be expanded with Happy's scent in the room.

"Quick! We need to get moving and help Natsu!" Nic shouted. "Odds are the enemy is ambushing him since you're not there." Nic then grabbed Happy, who held onto the cat robot as a soon-to-be weapon, and carried him while he flapped down the hall and towards the corridor Happy was directing him to.

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

The rest of them ran up the outside staircase that spiraled up the tower. They didn't slow down to take a break, as time was of the essence. Simon lead the charge as the others tailed behind. Simon was trying to use his Telepathy to pinpoint Millianna and Wally, but with no luck.

"I can't get a signal on Millianna or Wally to communicate." Simon informed. "I can't even get a lock on their location."

Even so, they continued onwards. Erza stopped and turned around to see a distraught Sho slugging up the staircase.

Erza looked down towards him. "Are alright Sho?" She asked.

Sho stared down, fixated on what seemed to be a blank space in his mind. His mind was all scrambled up thanks to the lies Jellal told him and how Erza was innocent this whole time.

He looked up, trying to uphold a grin with hazy eyes. "Everything's okay now that you're here." He muttered. Erza looked down with a sympathetic smile and the two went on to catch up with the others.

Gray, personally, was still maintaining doubts of Simon, still thinking of him as an enemy of sorts. "Juvia, are you sure we can trust this guy? I get he wasn't trying to kill us from before-."

"I will not make any excuses for my previous actions." Simon shouted from ahead. "Any Mage who was incapable of surviving that attack wouldn't hold a candle to Jellal. I had no doubt Nic and Natsu both could take it, I was certain they would survive with ease."

Lucy looked at him. "Uh, what about me?" She asked, but no one answered.

Simon then kept on explaining. "None of you could comprehend the extent of Natsu's Dragon powers. When they peak, evil shall be burned away; as for Nic himself, I can't even describe what he might have in store for us all."

Erza's mind then back flashed to Nic about to take off after Natsu. She was maintaining her confidence in him, but still had worry as to what this deathtrap had in store for him. She then thought back even more to that feeling she got when Nic went off to fight Jose back in the Phantom Lord Guild way back. That same exact feeling was resurfacing and she couldn't tell what it was. It most certainly wasn't a strawberry cheesecake craving, that's for sure. She wondered if this feeling was meant to be a sign that she was to give Nic something as good luck. Saying 'good luck'? Saluting him? May even be a hug, maybe? This was stirring the butterflies in her stomach even more and she had trouble focusing on the task. She, once again, with a slight hint of reluctance, shoved those feelings of Nic aside and raced up the tower.

* * *

**With Natsu**

Natsu sneezed from inside the cat helmet, and he couldn't find a way to get it off. "Ew, I can't wipe my face!"

He then tried to get it off of his head, but to no avail as it was stuck on tight. "Get off you stupid-gah! Get off!" He struggled.

Wally aimed his pistol when Natsu had his back turned. "Let me give you a hand with that pal." The shot was then fired, but was shot and it missed Natsu's head by an inch thanks to Millianna shoving Wally out of the way.

"MEOW!" Millianna screeched, getting Natsu's attention.

"Hey, knock it off Millianna!" Wally reprimanded.

"Hey it's blockhead!" Natsu exclaimed, seeing through the large cat eyes and recognizing his voice as a bonus.

Wally then shoved Millianna so that he had room. "The heck was that for?!"

Millianna paused, giving a glare at Wally. "You meanie face! You were trying to hurt the itty-bitty kitty-witty!" She shouted.

Wally then pointed at Natsu. "He's not even a cat!" Natsu had wanted to play around and see if he could pull off a cat to fool her, so he did.

"Meow." He said. Millianna then almost instantly lost doubt and truly thought he was a kitty.

"He's just the cutest thing ever!" She shouted.

"Oh, a wise guy huh?!" Wally shoved Milliana out of the way and readied himself. "I'm telling a toots, he's a weasel!" His body then turned into multiple little polygon rectangles that shot at Natsu. Natsu reeled back and ducked to avoid one and tumbled into a flip with his hands.

When Natsu found more coming towards him after a successful flip, he improvised on the spot with the help of a stuffed cat that was on the floor next to him. He grabbed it and used it as a shield as more of Wally's polygons came in the form of a barrage. "**Cat Make: Barrier!**" Natsu shouted, chuckling as he called that attack.

Millianna didn't want the 'witty-kitty' to get hurt. "No, don't hurt the kitty!"

"This slippery weasel is our enemy Millianna!" Wally shouted. He pressed on with attacking Natsu and he kept using his Cat Make: Barrier. He meowed to keep up the act.

Millianna was confused. "Slippery weasel? It looks like a kitty to me." She said.

"You idiot! It's Salamander in a cat costume!" Wally angrily said.

Natsu's cat stuffing was trashed from the continuous beatings and he meowed as he jumped and tossed away the stuffed cat. More polygons were coming his way and he had to act fast. Once again, he improvised. He lit his fists up in fire. "**Cat Fire!** Meow!" He punched with his flaming fists to deflect the polygons and destroyed a few stuffed cats in the process, making Millianna flip. Her toys were being hit by polygons and flaming fists from a cat.

"Drats! Jellal wasn't kidding when he told us this feline has sharp claws." Wally then turned towards Millianna. "Time to join the fight toots!"

Now believing Wally, Milliana's hair was standing on end. "Meow! Pretending to be a cat is playing dirty!"

Natsu raised a fist in protest. "Says you!"

A seal was in front of Millianna. "**Nekosoku Tube!**" A spiraling orange rope spiraled about and restrained Natsu's right wrist. "Let's put this bad kitty to sleep!"

"You said it doll!" Wally then launched more Polygons at Natsu, who was ready.

"**Cat Fire**…wait what?!" Natsu's fist wasn't flaming up, leaving him open to get hit in the face head on with Wally's Polygon attack. He flew back and skid on the ground. Wally and Millianna both smirked as Natsu sat up and looked at the tube restraining his wrist. "Is this thing blocking me from using my Magic?!" He tried tugging it off, but failed. Then, he was caught off guard when another tube tugged at his ankle, yanking him and flipping him over onto his stomach. He landed with a thud and Wally whole bottom half converged and body slammed Natsu's back.

"Bad kitty made me cry!" Millianna shouted, unleashing yet another Nekosoku Tube spiraling towards Natsu, tying him up and restraining his arms. Natsu yelped and fell back.

Wally reassembled himself in a flash in front of Natsu and aimed a rifle at him. Natsu flipped himself over and started crawling like a Caterpie to get away.

"This is so not good!" Natsu said.

"The jig is up Salamander. Prepare to eat lead!" Wally said. "I've been meaning to try this catch phrase. Too bad things had to end this way, but from the moment you met me-!" He was stopped when he was hit in the back of the head with an orange robot cat that was thrown by Happy. Nic hit Millianna with a Peck from behind, making her meow insanely harshly and making her fall to the ground like Wally.

Natsu turned his head. "Happy, Nic, that you two?" Happy flew over and Nic flapped in place.

"Yeah, it's us." Nic said. "But…what's with the fancy getup?" Nic was somehow intrigued by the costume, curious as to why Natsu had it on in the first place.

"I'll get it off!" Happy shouted, going to help his Dragon Slayer buddy.

"Hey pal, nobody interrupts Wally and lives!" He got back up and tried shooting Happy and Nic. Nic quickly evaded by moving about in the air with speed and dynamics, as to where Happy was panicking and trying to avoid being shot.

Millianna saw the cat trying to avoid being shot and she was almost crying. She got up and tried pulling Wally's gun away. "I won't let you hurt the wittle kitty witty!" She wined.

Wally was mad with her. "Last I checked, cats don't fly!" He aimed the gun at Happy again as he went to untie Natsu. Millianna was persistent as the cat-lover continued to pull Wally's pistol away. Wally then tried running forward to get a better shot, but Millianna didn't stop.

"No! Don't you dare Wally!" Sge cried, grabbing him by the scarf around his neck and pulling him back.

"Gah!" Wally choked. "Let me off ya lunatic!"

As Wally struggled, so did Happy as he couldn't get the Nekosoku Tube off.

"What's taking ya little buddy?!" Natsu shouted.

Happy yanked at the tube again, but couldn't find any way to untie him. "This thing won't loosen!"

Natsu rose up onto his knees. "Well then, it looks like I have no other choice!" This alarmed everyone as they all stepped away to see what secret weapon the Dragon Slayer had.

'_You mean he has a weapon to finish this?!' _Nic thought in shock.

"**Special Attack…Sad Kitty Face.**" Natsu then started making a distressed face with the cat helmet and meowing for the clincher.

Happy dropped and Nic looked on despondently, not accounting Natsu's strategy. "I should've known." He said.

Millianna almost went to tears seeing the cat in distress. It looked so sad to her. The cat kept meowing and tearing up and Millianna was beginning to feel guilty and completely forgot that it was a man in a cat costume. After ten seconds of guilt, she let the tubes tighten and he was free.

Happy and Nic both looked in disbelief. "What, that seriously worked?!" Happy exclaimed.

Wally was baffled that Millianna did such a thing. "The heck was that ya dingbat?!"

She had a handkerchief out and wiped her eyes. "The poor witty kitty looked so sad!" She teared up.

"For crying out loud!" Wally yelled.

Natsu got his feet and had his fists pumping in the air. "I'M A RAGING FELINE!"

"GO THRASH THEM NATSU!" Happy shouted.

Nic cracked his knuckles and flapped in the air. "Let me at them as well!" Both Nic and Natsu then charged towards the two and attacked.

"**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**"

"**Wing Attack**!"

Wally was hit with Natsu's attack and Millianna was hit by Nic's assault. The two could only take the two hits as they were both defeated just like that.

"That's what I'm talking about! You mess with the kitty, you get the claws!" Natsu pumped a fist into the air.

"That was too easy." Nic said, turning back into himself.

Happy flew about and made way towards Natsu. "I'm glad you're safe and all, but you mind telling me how long that thing's gonna be on your head?"

Natsu then drooped his head. "..till I can get it off."

* * *

**Meanwhile, at the top…**

A cloaked Jellal moved a piece that was a dragon, which was Natsu. He then had it knock over a piece that resembled Wally. He then moved a piece that was an angel with very small sunglasses that resembled Nic. He made his piece knock over a cat figure that resembled Millianna.

"Well now, Sho and Simon betrayed me." He grinned evilly. "Millianna and Wally have been defeated by Salamander and Luminous. The game is progressing quite well." He said.

Vidaldus came forward. "Master, shouldn't Erza be captured for the ceremony? I do believe this game-playing you do has to end."

Jellal remained unfazed by his comment and maintained his evil grin. "Vidaldus, I do believ you have a point." He said. Jellal then set three pieces onto the board that resembled a metal guitar, a pink-haired princess, and a bird. "Go."

Vidaldus then grinned and started giving off power. He then slowly began transforming, with himself screeching towards the heavens. When the transformation was over, he was now a ghostly white-skinned death-metal being. He had black eyeliner and some black around his lip. His chest was tattooed with the phrase 'Skeleton', with the 't' looking more like a diamond. He gave off a rock and roll sign in both his hands and his wrists had protectors with three red rings with purple on the top and bottom and three spikes along the individual red lines. He had purple pants on and purple shoulder pads with yellow outlining and loaded with spikes.

Two other figures appeared beside him. One was a pink-haired individual with had on a white dress or robe (I honestly don't know what it is nor even remotely care) with a black waist band with a single red line. The dress had her shoulders bear with a neck collar.

The last one was an individual who had an extremely muscular body with a bare upper body and green shorts with a flaming symbol, much like the woman's dress had on the lower corner. He also had a large rocket pack strapped to his back. The most freakiest thing about it is that his neck upwards…was an owl. _Who_ would've guessed?

Jellal smirked in glee. "Assassins from the Death's Hand Caucus. Vidaldus Taka, Fukuro, and Ikaruga."

"They'll all be burning in Hell tonight!" Vidaldus screeched.

Fukuro whooed like an owl.

"Life is a flower that soon wilts away and has its petals plucked. We are assassins from the Death's Hand Caucus. Trinity Raven is here for you sir." She bowed as did the other two.

"It's time you do your part." Jellal said, now casting a serious frown. "Now, go."

* * *

**With Nic, Natsu, and Happy**

Happy and Nic tried ever so desperately to get the mask off of Natsu. Natsu was fed up with it, even though without it, he wouldn't have gotten out of the trap he was in. Natsu was clenching to a wall, sideways as Happy and Nic pulled on each ear of the costume.

"Gah! Pull harder!" Natsu shouted.

"We're pulling as hard as we can!" Nic said. He reeled back, now yanking with everything he had. Happy tug as hard as he ever did.

"It feels like my head is coming off!" Natsu shrieked. After one long tug, the mask finally flew off, with Natsu gasping for fresh air. "Oh air, how I have missed you!"

Nic stumbled back from the harsh tug he did and fell onto his bottom. Nic looked up to see the costume headwear fly into the air and take up his face. It landed on his head with a _'plop'_ sound. Natsu and Happy looked back in shock that now Nic had to bear the cat costume.

"Oh come on!" Nic shouted. "Not only does it smell like snot, but now I'm gonna have a hard time getting this thing off!"

Natsu and Happy both giggled at the fact that Nic was a feline. Nic groaned, but didn't bother taking it off. "Meh. Who cares?" He said. "If it was useful in this fight, heck I might as well use it later on." He said happily, prompting Natsu to get insulted.

"Hey, you saying you can do better than me in that thing?!"

Nic turned towards him. "We won't know until it happens, now will we?" He pointed out, though he was joking in the first place.

Wally, without his sunglasses, soon came to his feet and looked at Natsu. "T-This isn't over punks!" He winced as his polygon-like body was hurt and he bend his knees and got to a knee.

Natsu looked back. "Look pal, I got my revenge and got Happy back, so there's no need for me to waste my time with you."

"Aye sir!" Happy said in agreement.

Wally then grunted and gritted his teeth. "Keep flapping your gums, because no matter what, we're getting to heaven." Even in the cat costume, you could tell that he looked just as serious as Natsu was when he heard what he said. "Jellal told us we have freedom now. A world where guys like us are calling the shots."

They all then heard a voice over the tower. "Greetings." It said.

"There you have it!" Wally said. Nic, Natsu, and Happy all quickly exited the room to see a statue with glowing red eyes voicing Jellal.

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

From inside the dark hallway, Erza and the others heard Jellal's voice.

"I am Jellal. I am pleased to see that all of the players have been arranged." He said.

"So, he knows we're here." Simon said. "He must be setting a trap."

Sho was shaking all about, very unstable from the situation of the person that manipulated him this entire time.

"I am pleased you came all this way to see me. Let's play something called Heaven's Game?

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

"I don't wanna play this cruddy game of yours!" Natsu berated.

"What's the meaning of this Jellal?" Wally asked.

Jellal continued on with his game. "The rules are fairly simple: I wish to use Erza as a sacrifice to revive Lord Zeref."

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

Everyone there grunted and narrowed their eyes with defiance. Sho was looking down, unable to be shaken.

"N-No! I won't allow that to happen!" He shouted.

"If successful, I will be crowned the winner. However, if you can manage to stop me, then you'll be the winners of this game. To make some fun happen, I've recruited three knights to do battle."

Simon stared upwards in confusion. "Three knights? Who are they?"

"The only way you can get to me is if you beat all three of them. To put it bluntly, it shall be a three on eight battle." Jellal paused before speaking again. "There's one more surprise. The Magic Council has the satellite square locked on the tower, and it's likely they shall take action. At this very moment, they are debating whether or not to fire an Etherion blast. There's no telling how much time is left. If the blast hits, death is imminent. No players left."

"What kind of game is this?!" Lucy shouted.

Erza was astonished to hear that the Council got involved in this matter. "Why would the Council resort to such tactics?"

Sho was reaching his breaking point. He couldn't take this anymore. He had to protect Erza, no matter what. He stared shakily and extended a hand.

With a gasp, Erza suddenly found herself trapped inside of a card in Wally's hand. Everyone turned in deep shock.

"Erza!" Gray yelled.

Simon turned towards Wally. "The hell is wrong with you Sho?!"

"Now…" Jellal's voice then began to diminish. "…let the game begin." Then it went quiet.

Erza began to pound her fists against the card, but it didn't prove to do any good whatsoever. "Sho, let me out of here!" Erza shouted.

Sho gritted his teeth. "I won't let him touch Erza! I'll beat Jellal all on my own!" Sho then began running off back into dark hallway, leaving the others and taking a captive Erza with him.

The others then began chasing after him. "Sho, don't do it!" Simon shouted

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

With Natsu satisfied that he'll be doing battle again, he punched his palm. "Now I'm fired up!"

"This Jellal guy is probably at the top, we'll have to scale upwards to reach him." Nic indicated, crossing his arms with the mask still on.

Wally couldn't believe that Jellal was doing such a thing. "Why would Jellal do something like this? If that thing fires, I's the end." Wally said, broken that Jellal was betraying him. "We're just trying find freedom." He drooped his head, saddened even more now that freedom might not get to him.

Nic, Natsu, and Happy all turned to see him like this.

Natsu smiled. "I don't know what freedom you guys want, but what we have in Fairy Tail is much like true freedom." He said, earning a gasp from Wally.

Natsu then turned towards Happy. "Let's bend these rules, shall we Happy?"

"Aye sir!" Happy then clenched to Natsu and Natsu used his feet to act as flaming thrusters to push them even more as they zoomed out of the tower and scaled the side of it, trying to reach the top.

Nic looked to see them off. "There they go again." He said. He took a step and shifted into his Sky Plate, spreading his wings. He turned towards Wally. "They're a wily bunch, but we'll end this game and get you the freedom you truly deserve." He smiled. He turned his cat head back and took flight after Natsu and Happy.

Wally smiled, grateful for the three's tenacity. _'They're stand-up guys.'_ He thought. He then collapsed due to damage and fatigue. _'And those are…dandy sunglasses and scarf.'_

Nic was sailing upwards and approaching Natsu. They were escalating went they caught a glint of something coming their way. It was coming from their left. Natsu and Happy took notice and stopped flying up, turning their backs and prepared for what might be coming towards them.

"Something's coming." Nic said, finally caught up and readied himself.

"Ho Ho Hou!" It shouted, sailing with a large rocket pack on his back and sailing at incredible speeds. It was none other than Fukuro, the owl man. Sailing at almost mach speed, he darted for Natsu. He and Happy both managed to evade at the last second and watched him circle around. Nic darted for him, using Tailwind and Aerial Ace as a double combo to attack. As Fukuro was turning for a U-turn, Nic smashed into his abdomen with his cat helmet first. Fukuro flew back a few feet and sped into Nic, of whom dodged by ascending. Fukuro continued his path and started following Natsu and Happy. The two flew in various directions, trying to shake the guy, but Fukuro surprised them by appearing behind them when they were flying up and they had their backs turned. Natsu and Happy turned around and received a forceful blow from the bird man's fist, making them fall back into the tower through a large opening.

"Guys!" Nic shouted. Fukuro didn't even get a chance to hit Nic when he instantly darted for his two fallen comrades. Nic zoomed back into the tower with Fukuro in pursuit.

* * *

**In the Tower of Heaven…**

Natsu crashed onto a cage that was chained and linked to many other cages about in the vast and dark room. Simon had just arrived to see Natsu crash with Happy lying on the cage and slowly getting up.

"Ugh." Natsu grabbed his head and got to his feet. "What was that all about?"

Simon was shocked to finally see Natsu. "Salamander!"

Natsu turned around and saw Simon. "Eh, alright, who's yelling at me this time?" Natsu said. Happy took flight right next to Natsu and got defensive.

"Stay sharp Natsu, he's with blockhead." Happy warned, of which Natsu got ready.

"That means he's with Jellal!" Natsu shouted.

"I'm not, I'm with you guys! I was pretending this entire time." Simon informed.

Happy crossed his arms just as Nic finally ventured and screeched to a halt at a nearby cage, of which caught everyone's attention.

"Ah Luminous, I see you've found Natsu, but…" He had a sweat drop. "…mind telling me what's with the feline disguise?"

Nic rolled his eyes. "This thing is super hard to get off." He sighed.

Natsu then had his turn talking again. "Anyways, are you sure you're on our side?" He shouted at Simon.

"Yes." He answered.

"Then who is this Jellal guy anyway? Why is he making us play this cruddy game?"

Simon looked away, pondering. "His humor is very twisted. He's the twin brother of Seigrain, a member of the Magic Council." When he mentioned Seigrain, Nic almost reeled back, remembering him all too well from after Lullaby and after Phantom Lord. The very thought of him almost made him want to growl. Simon continued. "That must be how he knows they might fire."

"So this is all between two brothers?" Natsu asked, backing up a step, starting to take Simon for a non-threat.

"It's possible, but we can't be sure if this is personal between them." Simon said. They all then heard an owl sound from above them. Making them jolt.

They all looked up and saw Fukuro on a chain with his arms crossed. Happy screamed, frightened by his appearance.

"What the heck is he?!" Happy shouted.

Fukuro pointed at them all. "I will not tolerate such rule breakers!" He announced. "Prepare yourselves for punishment!"

"A bird?!" Happy shouted.

"Some weird justice bird!" Natsu shouted aside Happy.

"And just when things couldn't any freakier in this world." Nic drooped his head and shook it with his cat costume still on, still unable to get it off.

"Oh no, **Dark Moment!**" A Magic seal appeared in front of Simon and the entire room went pitch black again. Nic, Natsu, and Happy all couldn't see a thing, of which Natsu complained about.

"I knew that guy couldn't be trusted!" Happy panicked.

"He don't stand a chance!" Simon shouted, grabbing Natsu and Happy. "Nic, come on!" He turned, but stood in place when he felt wind pass by. Fukuro was flying about freely in the dark.

"Ho Ho Hou! Even in pitch black, the light of justice still shines through!" His fist lightened up and he punched Simon when he turned around, letting go of Happy and Natsu. Simon crashed into a wall and fell onto a cage. The darkness ceased when he landed on the cage.

When the darkness lifted, Natsu and the others saw him lying on the cage.

"Simon!" Nic shouted in worry.

"You okay man?!" Natsu shouted. Simon slowly lifted his head, struggling to get up from that one power-packed blow.

"This guy is insanely strong." He warned. "He's an assassin from the Death's Hand Caucus. They don't ever take regular jobs, and they get paid to kill off people. The people we're facing is known as Trinity Raven, the ones responsible for killing every single Western officer in the Cabria War. His power is legendary! You can't beat them!"

"Wait, so birdbrain here is some sort of super killer?!" exclaimed Happy.

Fukuro tilted his head like an owl. "Ho Ho! And if you're evil, we'll kill you!" He warned.

"Eh, you got things backwards pal!" Nic shouted.

Fukuro then turned towards Natsu and Nic. "Salamander and Luminous, word from our guild is that you two alone are responsible for many evil deeds. I will not stand for such injustice as I am a knight of justice!"

Natsu responded by flaming his fists, and Nic transformed into his Flame Plate, engulfing himself into fire, and surprisingly enough, the cat costume actually started to burn away into embers. So sad to see the cat costume go, but it's not like it was appropriate for the situation at hand anyway. _'It was fun while it lasted, but now it's time I get serious!' _Nic thought, the last of his cat helmet cindering to ash.

"Magic Guilds are suppose to bring people together, not tear them apart!" Natsu announced, angry.

Simon looked to see that neither Nic nor Natsu were about to run away. "Don't do it you two!"

But they didn't dare listen to him.

"People like you make us sick to the bone." Nic said. "Natsu, care to finish?!" He asked angrily, having the heat surging more intense than before.

The fire in Natsu's fists were expanding with his rage. "With pleasure! Listen up birdbrain, I hate people who commit murder, and I also hate it knowing you think you belong to a real guild! YOU'RE GOING DOWN BIRDBRAIN!"

Fukuro wasn't fazed by Natsu's fiery determination and Nic's rage fused together, but he was stunned to see such power coming from both. "You two are mistaken." He said, having Magic seals at the bottom of his thrusters. "I'm doing this for the greater good in this world! You two must and will be destroyed! **Jet Ho Ho Hou!**" His thrusters then ignited and launched him at the two. Within the blink of an eye, he grabbed both Nic and Natsu with one hand each, grabbing them both as he sailed at mach speed in the air the consecutive twists and turns.

"Natsu! Nic!" Happy shouted.

Nic clenched Fukuro's arm and Natsu grabbed the other. "No way you dodo bird!" Natsu yelled as the two simultaneously hurled Fukuro behind them, forcing him to crash harshly into a cage that shattered upon impact. Fukuro hardly felt any damage and used his Jet Ho Ho Hou again, sending him downwards towards Nic and Natsu who had just landed on a cage. Natsu jumped while Nic used Flame Wheel at the incoming Fukuro. The two fighters clashed head on, with a wheel of fire intercepting Fukuro. The two tried forcing the other back, but Nic only managed to deflect him upwards. Fukuro used this to his advantage and propelled himself and grabbed Natsu's leg and dragging him up with him.

Natsu wailed as he was sailing through the air by a leg. Fukuro then turned and threw him towards Nic. Nic covered up as Natsu missed by a mere two feet from behind, making dust fly. Nic was lucky that Fukuro's trajectory was off a smidge, otherwise that would've hurt.

"Natsu!" Nic and Happy shouted, both turning to see if he was okay. He slowly got back up and used the chain holding the cage up as his support and finally got balance again.

"This guy's tough." Natsu remarked, already having a few bruises and what not on his face.

Fukuro stationed himself in the air and crossed his arms. "You two are indeed impressive. Your reputations uphold you. This job might actually be a challenge for once." He said.

Simon looked on as the battle was progressing. "I didn't think he was this tough. And there's still two more members." He noted.

* * *

**Meanwhile, with Jellal…**

He motioned Fukuro's piece and had it knock over Simon's piece, meaning he was defeated. He then had Fukuro's piece placed in front of Ikaruga's.

"Poor shame Simon." Jellal noted. "I had expected more from you, but you've seem to be in vain." He then placed Natsu's piece in front of Simon's fallen piece. He then placed Nic's piece right next to Natsu's. "It would appear that our next match is Fukuro against Natsu Dragneel and Nic Pularis. I was rather anxious to quarrel with those two myself, but that doesn't seem to be the case…then again, I might be wrong. Who knows what those two have in store, especially that young Nic Pularis himself. Just what is he, I wonder."

* * *

**This seemed like a fair place to stop for now. I could've gone onto Lucy and Juvia's fight against Vidaldus, but I think we should save that for next chapter. Anyways, please give me feedback on how you like the fights and plot going on.**

**I'm hoping to keep this Arc going for another three, maybe four, chapters. It's fine if it turns out to be five chapters, but I would have to shorten the little break that's between the Tower of Heaven and The Battle of Fairy Tail Arc. I got a great idea for the next chapter in regards to Nic getting a Plate, which will be of vitality when going up against Jellal for sure.**

**With all of these people and Magic users, I think I'll have the Pokémon make no appearances this Arc, give them a break if you would refer to it that way. I wanted Nic to fight with others besides his team.**

**If you like the development of Nic and Erza, feel free to leave a Review on that. **

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you people liked it. **

**Please, especially leave Reviews since I got absolutely none last chapter. I'd be very pleased if you did. Thanks!  
**

* * *

**Next Time: Thrill Chill**


	16. Thrill Chill

Chapter 16 – Thrill Chill

**Well, I got at least three Reviews last chapter, that's better than last time! Still wanting to get more in, so keep 'em coming people.**

**Alpha Dragonis: 'that owl pun made me hooting for laughter'. Haha! It's clear I'm not the only one gifted with puns here. Glad you enjoyed the story and wish you best of luck until June at the earliest for your story update!**

**Well guys, I've made it this far with the story, sixteen chapters in over four and a half months! That is a huge amount of writing there. Add the fact that I do another story and that has nine chapters up to this point. At this point, I'm holding up very well with the time I manage. Within the next couple months, things will get hectic with me graduating and prom and learning to drive and such and life in general moving me onwards towards college. Be expecting slower updates if likely in May and possibly June. **

**I'll do this chapter and jump over towards 'EDventures in Kalos' for a chapter and jump back to finish this Arc. I'm hoping for more people to enjoy this story within every chapter.**

**Thank you all for reading up to this point, so here's another chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**!**

**To Recap:**

Natsu, Lucy, Gray, and Juvia all infiltrate the Tower of Heaven, where they soon meet up with Nic and Erza. Erza explains her past about being a slave and how Jellal became such a sinister and wicked being. She wanted the others to leave, but they all stayed. Simon and Sho join their side and they all go off to find Jellal. Nic goes in search of Natsu and Happy and they defeat Wally and Millianna in the process. Jellal decides to play a 'game' and have the 'players' fight their way to the top. Nic and Natsu both fight Fukuro at this point, as he had already took out Simon. Sho also panics and traps Erza in a card as he runs off to fight Jellal all on his own.

* * *

**Chapter 16 – Thrill Chill**

Juvia and Lucy both paired up in search of Natsu's whereabouts, though it was easier said than done. They were in a rather large room with very large holes on the sides. The flooring was brown and there were rope-like frames around the holes much like a helix.

"Natsu!" Lucy called out from the center of the room, but no answer.

"Salamander!" Juvia called out, but she too was replied with only silence.

Lucy turned towards Juvia. "He's got ears like a dog so he must be hearing us fom wherever he is inside this tower." Lucy explained, but not getting as to why Natsu hasn't responded.

Juvia then turned, surprised that Natsu's abilities reminded her of an old friend. "Oh? Then he must be like Gajee." Juvia said. "Does he have a keen nose as well?"

Lucy backed away, a little shocked that Juvia had a pet name for Gajeel, the Iron Dragon Slayer. "Uh yeah. Gajee?" She said. Juvia turned away, fairly bored with this whole teamwork gig.

"Why of all people was I stuck with this blonde nuisance?" She muttered out loud.

Lucy gave her a sour look. "I can still hear ya know."

Juvia then began to lightly blush, remembering Gray. She remembered specifically that Gray told them to find a way up to the top while he goes and tries to get Erza from Sho. Though she interpreted it like he was saying with upmost love in his eyes. "Oh Gray, I would do anything for you." She fantasized. "But doesn't he know that leaving two romantic rivals together is a death sentence?"

Lucy groaned, not liking Juvia's imagination. "For the last time, I'm not into that ice stripper!"

Out of one of the holes blasted a loud wave of sound shredding about. When this sound reached Lucy's ears, she instantly covered them up.

"Gah! So loud!" Lucy shrieked. "Whatever this is, I'm not liking it!" She obviously didn't have a taste for metal, compared to Juvia.

Juvia stood there, unfazed by the metal shredding sound, rather appealed by it. "I think it sounds cool." She said calmly.

Lucy turned towards Juvia with her hands still plugging up her ears. "You are a messed up metalhead!" Lucy exclaimed. _'Geez, and here I thought Nic was a metalhead, now this crazy lady?!'_

The sound escalated as Vidaldus walked down and stopped at the hole entrance, shredding and down his guitar. His guitar was looking more like an axe-shaped base, with yellow outlining and blue all inside. It had patches of red along the arch and had gray pipes curing down the opposite end. Vidaldus continued with his shredding as he screeched like a metal screamer and doing massive head banging and whipping his long hair around like a psycho, of which you could say he was.

When his song finished, Lucy unplugged her hands and she and Juvia both gazed upon their opponent-to-be. Juvia stared emotionlessly as to where Lucy had a slight sense of worry with this guy playing his music.

"You chicks dig my solo!" Vidaldus asked, flicking his tongue.

Lucy did take note of his hair and how insanely long it was. "Holy cow! That hair!"

"I'm an assassin from the Death's Hand Caucus. Pretty rocking name right? It makes your bones rattle and shake like the vibrant metal." Vidaldus introduced himself.

"I do believe that you're one of the three knights that Jellal spoke of." Juvia said, paying no heed to his comments.

Vidaldus did a scale on his guitar and brought his head back. "I am the wings of Trinity Raven! I am Vidaldus!" He blinked his eyes and then his hair greatly extended, indicating an attack as he screeched again. "**Hair Whip!**" His large strands of hair then sharply turned towards Juvia and Lucy and went in to strike them down. Lucy panicked and screamed as she tipped over and narrowly missed an incoming hair lock. Another one came again and she got down again. Juvia didn't even flinch when a hair strand sideswiped her, passing through her water body, of which Vidaldus took notice of with a grin of pure wickedness.

"Dang, that's one insane body you got there." Vidaldus said. He then chuckled like a hyena.

Juvia was not shifting her gaze as she was focused on stopping Vidaldus. "My body is made of water; your attacks will not do any harm to me. Drip, drip, drop." She explained. He body was then enveloped in a small cyclone of water that expanded and separated into a flood that rushed at the Heavy-Metal assassin. "**Water Lock!**" The water then enclosed around Vidaldus, trapping him in a sphere of water.

Lucy looked on in shock as to how calm yet so lethal Juvia was. "Oh man, I'm so glad you're on our side now Juvia." Lucy exhaled.

Vidaldus didn't move, though his hair wasn't the same, his hair was squirming through the sphere of water like worms eating through dirt. His long hair expanded and began to take in all of the water, startling Lucy and Juvia both. His feet were planted as his hair took in the last drop of water, showing a long and shiny coat in his hair. His hair was then brought over his head and the water just disappeared, leaving him unfazed and having a lavished look on his face.

Juvia stepped back, unable to have anticipated such an ability. "My Water Lock just got soaked up!" She exclaimed. "How were you able to break free of my attack?"

Vidaldus stared haphazardly at Juvia. "It was too easy because my hair is so hardcore that it absorbs ant liquids. Just make sure it ain't oil or alcohol." He answered.

"So water attacks have no affect on him? That's not good at all." Lucy said.

Vidaldus stepped forward, smirking ever so larger than before. "Man, both you ladies are looking hotter than Hell."

Lucy frowned and was displeased. "Oh man, seriously, why are my looks a curse?!" He when blinked when Vidaldus pointed at Juvia, making her blink as well.

"Well babe, it's your lucky day." Vidaldus said. "I'm gonna make you my slave! Let's see how you fair with little solo. **Rock of Succubus!**" He then began to shred about on his guitar, making sparks literally fly. The turbines on his guitar began turning and the tubes connected began to pump out purple Magic. Vidaldus screeched as the purple Magic began closing in on Juvia.

"W-What's going on?!" Juvia screamed as the Magic engulfed her entire body.

"Juvia, get out of there!" Lucy shouted in concerns for her. Juvia was unable to move as the Magic made her lift into the air and she let out one final scream before everything flashed. "JUVIA!" Lucy shouted. Lucy shut her eyes as the flash obscured her vision for a brief two seconds before it dissolved and everything was back the way it was. Now a small mist enshrouded them from what had just happened. Lucy opened her eyes to search for Juvia, but got no answer. "Juvia?"

Vidaldus stood there, with his maniac smile plastered on his face over his success. He was not far from Lucy and began to chuckle. "Behold, my slave!"

The mist dissolved and Juvia was turned towards Lucy. Juvia's hair was going down her back, all the way down to her waist. Her skin was close to being considered ghostly white and had on black lipstick. She had a jagged ring around her neck and had on a leather magenta outfit as a shirt that was tied up from the abdomen down about six inches just above the weird insignia on her lower abdomen. She had a spied wristband on her right wrist and had on leather pants with white boots.

She smiled demonically at Lucy. "Say your prayers blondie." She said. "But you'll burn in Hell!" She then broke out in a laugh that scared Lucy.

Her eyes were all shaken and she almost quivered. "W-What has he done to do?" She asked.

Vidaldus then played a harsh chord on his guitar, making Juvia all riled up while Lucy was forced to cover her ears.

"Gaha! Don't even bother reasoning blondie!" Vidaldus shouted, doing a crazy head bang and had his hair spiraling like crazy. "My spell makes her my slave!" He then finished his chord and ceased the head banging for the moment. "So, I could've turned you both into my slaves, but that wouldn't be fun. I wanna see a catfight and see clothes getting torn!"

Lucy covered up as she felt offended to a degree. "You're a low-down monster!"

Vidaldus raised a brow. "Oh really? That's the best compliment I've been given. For that, we'll get this hot catfight underway!" He then played a note, to which Juvia responded by turning into a blob of water and creating a vortex around Lucy.

"Aw man, I just got this dress!" Lucy complained, having her outfit getting soiled up.

A liquid form of Juvia emerged from the vortex that was still raging and slashed at Lucy's clothing. "Come on blondie, show a little skin!" When she slashed, revealing Lucy's chest, Lucy covered up and screamed in embarrassment. Vidaldus kept rocking on and Juvia ceased the vortex and re-shaped into a solid and stuck her tongue out and did a rock sign.

Lucy used the band on her head and used it as a bra. "Don't do this Juvia!" Lucy shouted. Juvia didn't listen as she rammed into Lucy, making her step back a few feet. Lucy put a hand over her hurt forehead and was caught off guard when she was engulfed in a huge wave of water. Within, Juvia yanked Lucy's hair and threw her to the ground.

Still persistent after getting up after that, Lucy still tried convincing Juvia. "Juvia, if you wanna join Fairy Tail, this isn't really the best way of doing so!" But Juvia smirked and didn't fazed at all.

Vidaldus played another chord and head banged again. "Oh yeah! Make some screams!" Juvia then turned her right arm into a whip and started whipping Lucy's back, making her yelp repeatedly. "Yeah! That's what I want to hear!"

"Are you sadistic or something?!" Shouted a ticked off Lucy.

"Get this catfight hardcore!" Vidaldus demanded. Juvia then turned into water and began boiling.

"She wants my man!" She shouted, surprising Lucy. "She's my love rival!" She then expanded and rushed at Lucy.

"No I'm not!" Lucy shouted before being engulfed in water. The torrent pressed on with her starting to get swallowed up. _'He has control. I can't reach her.'_

"Hahaha! Prepare to drown little blondie!" Her voice echoed. Lucy tried to stand her ground and wasn't holding up very well.

'_I can't hold my breath…'_ Lucy then began to hear another voice, the real Juvia's voice.

'_Lucy, can you hear me?'_ Her voice echoed.

'_J-Juvia?'_ Lucy asked.

'_Lucy, I'm so sorry. I can't control my actions. I don't wanna hurt you, because you're my friend. And I hope you think of me as one too.'_ Lucy heard every word, making her feel all touched. _'I know we fuss because we both love Gray.'_

'_Eh, no.'_ Lucy counter argued.

'_But I've grown to be fond of you, and all of the people I've met at Fairy Tail. They care for others, they loved to have fun, they're so friendly and warm-hearted. Fairy Tail is like the sun that brightens up lives all around. Before I met you, I never knew a guild could be such a happy place…For the first time in my entire life, I thought I was growing to have friends who I could trust, but who would want to be friends with a girl who brings trouble?'_ Within the flood, Lucy began to feel bits of warmth around her.

'_Juvia, she's crying.' _Lucy thought.

"Time to end this babe!" Vidaldus shrieked. Juvia then spit Lucy out of her body and she landed with a thud.

Juvia turned solid and smirked in her still controlled self. "Oh yeah! Ready to be rocked?" She was stopped when Lucy began speaking and standing up.

"Someone like you." She started. "Someone who sheds tears for friends, will always and forever be welcome in Fairy Tail!" Juvia then looked shocked, and then she herself began to tear up again. Lucy then pointed at her and smiled. "I know you're a good person, and thanks to you, I have a plan!"

Vidaldus wasn't moved at all. He was bored with the catfight being on hold. He then played another note. "End this load of crap babe!"

"My Water Jigsaw will cut you to bits!" Her body, excluding her head, was swirling in water and had blades of water all around. Lucy grunted as Juvia went after her. "Get out of the way Lucy!"

Lucy held up a key, not moving. At the last second before impact, Lucy let out a scream as she jabbed the key into the water, shocking both Juvia and Vidaldus when the water didn't move forward.

Lucy was hesitating because of the attack, but she managed. "**Open: Gate of the Water Bearer – Aquarius!**" A blue seal formed and Aquarius emerged from within Juvia's water, astounding her.

"What?!" Vidaldus shouted.

"She summoned a Spirit by using my body?!" Juvia shouted in surprise.

"If there's water, I can summon a very vicious Spirit I know." Lucy said with a proud look. "And it's thanks to your body -!" Then then felt her heart stop when Aquarius gave off a threatening gaze and screamed.

"I came out here just for you annoying morons?!" Aquarius unleashed a humungous wave that even shocked Vidaldus, slumping forward in disbelief of the enormous volume of water.

"SORRY!" Lucy and Juvia shouted in unison as the water came down and flooded everything.

"So much!" Lucy started.

"Water!" Juvia finished.

Vidaldus then began to soak up the water with the help of his hair. "Haha! I can do this all day!"

Lucy and emerged from underwater, gasping for air, as did Juvia from not too far away.

"Where are you?!" Lucy shouted.

"Over here!" Juvia shouted. Lucy then turned and the two began swimming and reaching out towards the other.

"Juvia!"

"Lucy!"

Their hands then touched and clasped together, giving off a bright light. Then, the water inside the room began to swirl around the bright light like a whirlpool.

Vidaldus was overwhelmed with not only the water, but the Magic power given off to such extreme levels. "Whoa! Too hardcore! Too hardcore!"

"**Unison Raid!**" Lucy and Juvia shouted, both in a harsh light and skyrocketing the water in a powerful cyclone that had Vidaldus screaming. The water cyclone smashed into the ceiling with such force, cracking the ceiling. Vidaldus began falling, and then when things were looking bad for him…all his hair fell out in one pluck like a wig being taken off. All three fell in the water below and the sides off the room cracked, giving the water an exit and the room was soon left in small puddles.

Juvia was back into her normal clothes and Lucy was right next to her. They both looked to see Vidaldus defeated.

They both hugged each other. "We won!" Lucy shouted.

"And I'm back to myself!" Juvia said, happy that she was normal, to her standards.

"Thanks you for all of your help." Lucy said.

"No, I should be thanking you." Juvia said. "Because I you, I have a friend that's actually nice to me."

They were stopped when Aquarius's face turned dark and snarled, making Juvia and Lucy scream.

"Listen blondie, you better watch where you summon me for now on. If I'm found summoned in a toilet of in a marsh, or even in a glass of water, you're finished!" She threatened.

Lucy quivered in fear. "I'm sorry mam!" She squealed.

"I'm gonna have nightmares now." Juvia muttered, a little scared of Aquarius herself.

"Don't go being creative again." She then began to turn and leave when she turned back towards Lucy. "I'll be going on vacation with my boyfriend, SO DON'T DARE SUMMON ME!" She then turned away. "You'll understand when you have a boyfriend…like that'll happen." She then went back to the Celestial Spirits world, leaving a scared Juvia, and a little ticked off Lucy behind.

"Hey, I'm single by choice!" Lucy complained.

"I'm sure you'll find your true love someday." Juvia assure, now relieved Aquarius left.

Lucy then turned towards Juvia with a smile. "Yeah, hopefully." They both then looked over to see Vidaldus still unconscious and bald. With him defeated, she plopped backwards into the water. "We've defeated a member of Trinity Raven. I bet Jellal didn't see that one coming. We sure did a lot of damage."

"But I didn't do much of anything." Juvia said, thinking Lucy did most of the work. Lucy shook her head.

"No, we worked together. You were there when I needed you the most." Lucy said. "That's what friends do for each other. You mean a lot to me, so for now on, think of me as a friend you can count on." She said with a pure smile.

Juvia began to tear up, again, and looked at her hands. She dropped to her knees. "Lucy, I just can't stop crying. Thank you."

Lucy laughed a little. "You're welcome. You can cry tears of joy."

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Era…**

With the Magic Council, they've all finally came to the final vote. It was long and hard, but it soon ended.

Org announced it. "The final vote stands with in favor and five against. Therefore, an Etherion blast will not be accounted for." He stated.

Seigrain stood there in shocked and anger that the Council had overruled him. "You blind fools! You know full well that drastic times call for drastic measures!"

"Regardless, we shall seek a more peaceful resolution to this matter." Org said. "So you better watch what you're saying because this situation has been disputed long enough."

"You're wrong!" Seigrain insisted. "While we're here wasting our breaths, Jellal is reaching his goal of resurrecting the dead! I know you felt the negative energy surging about, and it's all because of the one man whom he is attempted to resurrect."

"And who might that be?" Org asked.

"Stop beating around the bushes." Michello said. "What's your point?"

"I dare not speak his name, for if I do, panic would arise; however, you've left me no choice." Seigrain exclaimed.

Now Org was paying very close attention, as was everyone else.

"Tell us!" Leiji insisted.

Finally, Seigrain said it. "He's resurrecting Zeref!"

Immediately, the Council went wide eyed and their hearts raced that Zeref himself was going to be resurrected. They all began muttering about this news.

Org tried to keep his cool, but did show signs of worry. "And you're for certain about this Seigrain?"

Seigrain paused and spoke. "There's no doubt." He said. "I know my Jellal's motivations and goals all too well, such as the link of brothers. If Zeref is resurrected, we all die." The Council then began to mutter some more and then silenced. "I call for one more vote. Are you with me this time?"

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

Fukuro zoomed in and tried to deliver a punch on Nic, but Nic blocked by using a Blaze Kick. The two attacks clashed and they both backed away. "**Flamethrower!**" Nic shouted. He then unleashed a stream of fire at Fukuro, who effortlessly dodged by flying up and zooming at a very sharp angle downwards. Nic saw Fukuro coming in fairly fast, but not fast enough. "Take this you sag of feathers, **Flame Charge!**" Nic cloaked himself in fire and lunged at Fukuro when his readied punch missed when Nic ducked. He rammed head on into Fukuro, making him spin and spiral until he hit a cage, making the sound of bars bending ripple about in the area.

"Ho Ho! Not bad Luminous, but fair against a kick!" Fukuro shouted. He zoomed at Nic again, but this time was readying a kick.

"My turn!" Natsu shouted. Nic crouched down and allowed his back to be used as spring board for Natsu to jump and use his forearm to block the foot. In midair, when Fukuro was off balance, he made another attack. "**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" He then spun upside down and his flaming feet kicked Fukuro. Natsu flipped and landed on the cage Nic was on as Fukuro soared back and into a large chain, making him yelp.

Both Nic and Natsu turned around to see the smoke clear as Fukuro repositioned his head upright and stood on a cage. "Sorry to disappoint you. Ho Ho!" He said.

"Those guys are going hit for hit!" Happy exclaimed.

"And now, the mighty hammer of justice shall judge you!" He crouched and two small seals formed on his thrusters, making wind fly. Everyone looked shock as he was going to unleash his rocket pack. "**Missle Ho Ho Hou!**" His rocket pack then went soaring at Nic and Natsu. Natsu leaned left while Nic leaned right to evade the oncoming rocket pack.

"You dodo, way to miss us!" Natsu said, holding his fighting face.

"Don't underestimate him!" Nic warned as he saw the rocket pack come back around. Natsu leaped into the air while Nic zoomed right to evade it. The rocket pack then arched up and turned towards a midair Natsu. The rocket pack then opened a compartment that had red hands in them, shocking Natsu.

"What?!" Natsu shouted just before the hands grabbed Natsu by his waist. Natsu screamed as though he was on a roller coaster. The rocket pack was soaring in a high speed circle.

"Around the world you go!" Fukuro said, watching.

Natsu kept yelling and soon his face was swollen his puffed cheeks, showing signs of motion sickness kicking in.

Nic saw this and gulped. _'This is bad. Natsu gets motion sickness.'_

"I know my opponents weaknesses, Salamander." Fukuro said, letting them know that he has knowledge of Natsu's weakness.

"Oh no, that's transportation!" Happy screeched.

Simon turned towards him, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Natsu has motion sickness!" Happy explained.

"Weaken your prey before the kill, that's the first rule in hunting!" Fukuro shouted.

'_Geez, that sounds like weakening a pokémon before catching it.'_ Nic momentarily thought. Soon enough, the hands let go of a dizzy and swirly-eyed Natsu and he plummeted straight downwards.

"I'm coming buddy!" Nic shouted. He sprung up to grab Natsu, and Fukuro lunged at Nic with surprise.

"I wouldn't be too sure if I were you!" Fukuro shouted, giving Nic a kick that he did manage to block with his arms but still flew back and hit a chain.

"Nic!" Happy shouted.

Fukuro then saw Natsu coming down towards him. "Now, **Capture Ho Ho Hou!**" Fukuro's owl mouth then heavily unlocked like a snake jaw and it opened tremendously, having Natsu fall in. Everyone there watched with shocked eyes as Fukuro started to eat up Natsu whole.

"He's eating him!" Happy shouted.

Nic just gawked, not to mention gagged at the scene. "I've seen Swalots eat giant truck tires before…but THIS?!" Nic shrieked, not taking the site of someone being swallowed whole. "I am officially scarred for life."

Just then, Gray jumped out of nowhere from above right besides Nic, surprising everyone.

Nic turned towards Gray. "You're here!" Nic said. Gray looked at the scene of Natsu getting eaten alive, which started to make him question the scenario.

"The heck is that thing?" Gray asked, trying to catch up with everyone. "And what's that thing doing to Natsu?" Just when he had finished asking, Natsu was just being swallowed.

"He swallowed him whole?!" Happy exclaimed.

Fukuro laughed. "My prey is not only satisfying, but I gain his Magic as well!" He explained.

"Surprised Natsu isn't giving him heartburn yet…oh right, still recovering from motion sickness." Nic muttered like a deadpan.

Happy soared into Fukuro with vengeance. "Regurgitate him right now!" He demanded. Fukuro then turned towards Happy, now having white eyes and a hint of Natsu's pink hair.

"**Fire Ho Ho Hou!**" Fukuro shouted. A seal then merged from his fist and shot Happy with fire. Happy was hit head on.

"Happy!" Gray shouted. Happy fell downwards onto a cage, damaged and heaving.

"When he ate Salamander, he gained his Magic powers." Simon said. "Their strengths combined is beyond comprehensive."

"Now to finish this!" Fukuro unleashed another stream of fire at an already injured Happy. Simon gasped, thinking Happy was gonna be hit.

"Oh no you don't! Gray!" Nic ordered.

"You don't have to tell me twice." Gray leaped and dove for Happy while Nic used Flamethrower to intercept the incoming Fire Ho Ho Hou. That gave Gray enough time to get Happy and jump to a nearby chain that hung a cage.

"That was close." Gray remarked. "Even here, that fire was still pretty hot."

"Ho Ho, and just who are you?" Fukuro demanded. Gray then turned towards Simon.

"Hey, I thought we were going to find Erza?!" Gray shouted.

"We were until this guy showed up!" Simon explained.

"We don't have time for this! We need to get Natsu out of that guy so we can go get Erza!"Gray shouted.

Nic turned confused. "Alright, what did I miss this time?"

Simon turned to Nic. "Sho trapped Erza in a card and he ran off to find Jellal!"

"WHAT?!" Nic shouted, stunned that Sho snapped and took Erza. "That maniac is gonna get the receiving end of a foot when I find him!" Nic flared up, quite literally as he heard this news.

"I'm sorry." Simon said. "I thought Sho could handle the truth. I didn't expect him to lose his cool."

Gray jumped onto a cage and set Happy down. "G-Gray." Happy muttered. "You and Nic…have to save him…please."

Nic jumped over to Gray's side and both slowly turned towards Fukuro. Gray didn't look too pleased with all that's been happening. Nic could read it in his eyes that saving Natsu didn't really pleased him all that much.

"When are you going to learn to stay out of trouble?" Gray said. "This is the last time I'm saving your hide, YA HEAR?!" Gray shouted, to which a reply was from Fukuro's stomach rattling by Natsu inside.

"In a mere ten minutes, Salamander's body will be fully dissolved!" Fukuro said. "With his powers permanently mine, I shall bring you to justice!" He then engulfed himself in a red flaming aura, making it look like a surge of power. Gray then jumped towards a nearby cage, getting closer towards the battle. Nic, on the other hand, just stood there.

'_Wha-what was that just now?' _Nic thought feeling a slight jump in his Plates when Gray began surging his Magic power.

"**Ice Make: Lance!**" Gray shouted. He unleashed long lances of ice at Fukuro.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Fukuro shouted, unleashing fire and melting the lances like they were nothing. Nic snapped out of his thoughts and countered quickly from his distance.

"**Inferno!**" Nic then unleashed a blue flame with dark blue rings at the incoming assault and cancelled out the attack.

"What?!" Simon shouted. "He should be twice as strong with Salamander's powers?!" Nic paid no heed as he jumped over to Gray's side.

"Nice job there." Gray said. He then jumped and readied for another attack. "**Ice Make: Battle Axe!**" He then created a giant battle axe made of ice. There, Nic felt a jump in something in him.

'_The heck? Even from here, I can still feel the cold.' _This was striking Nic as odd because he was in his Flame Plate, yet he felt cold?

Gray then swung downwards and Fukuro dodged by jumping back as Gray broke the chain that kept that cage up as well. Gray held onto the chain above as Fukuro then leaped to yet another larger chain.

"Ho Ho! **Fire Dragon's Roar!**" He then shot Gray and Gray was engulfed in fire.

"Gray!" Simon, Nic, and Happy shouted. Gray was still engulfed, but it's not lie he was gonna keel over just like that.

"**Ice Make: Freeze!**" The fire then suddenly froze solid, stunning Fukuro. Gray was heaving a bit, taking a bit of damage from that attack. "Natsu's fire is far hotter than yours pal." Gray commented. He then thought back to that time when he and Erza first met, how she was crying near a river after beating up Gray. Gray was determined to let Erza know that her friends were better than any armor. "Nic, we've got to stop this guy if we're to get to Erza, ya hear?!" He jumped to a nearby cage and cracked his knuckles.

Nic nodded, but then felt another chilled sensation going through him. _'What is this?!' _Nic wanted to know. _'I didn't feel this cold when around Gray before, so why am I -!'_ Nic then felt a pulse of his Plates. This pulse was similar to when he was in the forest. _'The forest…wait. I know this feeling, only it was with nature…but this time, it's-!'_ Nic shot wide eyed when he figured it out. He shifted back into himself. "That's it!" He shouted, making Gray look back at him.

"What?" Gray shouted, wondering what Nic thought of.

Nic turned towards Gray. "Listen Gray, freeze me!"

Everyone there then thought Nic lost his mind. Gray gasped. "Are you crazy Nic?!" Gray shouted. "We're trying to save Erza and Natsu, and you're here wanting me to freeze you!"

"Just trust me here Gray!" Nic shouted. "I've got a hunch!"

"A _hunch_?!" Gray scolded. "All of that for a _hunch_?!" Gray wasn't going to do it, and wanted to just finish off Fukuro.

Not wanting to waste time himself, Nic got a tick mark. "GRAY! DO IT!" He shouted. Gray was startled by Nic's roar, making him almost pale. Gray had to do it because of Nic's demand. Though with reluctance, Gray positioned himself to freeze himself.

"Fine." He said under his breath. "It'll save me the time to get Natsu out. **Ice Make: Freeze!**" Then, he froze inside a coat of ice, shocking everyone that he actually did it.

"What was that all about?!" Happy shouted.

"I have no idea." Simon said. "Could it be that Luminous has a plan with himself in ice?"

Fukuro laughed. "My, taking out a comrade? That's saving me the trouble of taking down you then." He said.

Gray then turned towards Fukuro. "I don't know what Nic's motives are, but he's got a plan. So best be dealing with me pal." Gray then made his hand get coated in ice and he lunged at Fukuro. Fukuro countered with a flaming fist that intercepted his punch. The two attacks soon broke with Fukuro making Gray flip and land on a cage. "**Ice Make: Saucer!**" He made a disk of ice and made it spin at Fukuro. Fukuro dodged by jumping and soaring down with a flaming fist.

With Nic, he was feeling so frigid, but he did ask for this. Now the feeling pulsed even more as he was getting colder and colder with every second passing.

'_I can feel the surge of ice flowing through me.' _Nic thought. _'Just a little more.'_

Gray and Fukuro clashed again with fists again, and then Fukuro kicked him and made Gray step back. "**Ice Make: Hammer!**"

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

Both attacks then collided yet again, and Gray's ice cold attack and the fire from Fukuro refused to give in. Gray's ice was so cold that it was actually on par with the fire.

'…_I feel my veins…freezing. Freezing…FREEZING!' _Nic then felt himself glowing. He was coated in ice and the ice itself was shining. Both Gray and Fukuro were turning, and Happy and Simon, all of them turned to see the ice now shattering.

The glow was finished, revealing Nic to have some new wardrobe on. "Hello Icicle Plate." He said. His sleeveless coat was now a blue with patches of ice coming up from the bottom to the back of his knees. He had on a white T-shirt underneath and had on snow shoes that were a crystal blue with patches of white around the sides and white laces. His jeans were now a thick dark blue to compliment the blue on his sleeveless coat.

Gray looked a little stunned. "You used my ice to get a new Plate?!" He asked, shocked used his Magic to his advantage.

"Ho Ho! No matter. Justice shall strike you down!" Fukuro proclaimed. Nic looked up and stared at Fukuro, the air around him began to freeze, the air itself was freezing up from Nic's new Ice-Type power.

"Brrr. I-is it c-c-cold in here, o-or is it-it j-j-just m-m-m-me?" Happy stuttered, feeling extremely cold.

"I know." Simon said, ignoring the cold. "It's Nic's new powers."

Fukuro paid no heed as he lunged at Nic. Nic didn't move as he waited for him to come closer. "Prepare to go down Luminous!"

Nic opened his mouth and fired a light blue beam at Fukuro, via Ice Beam. Fukuro was struck hard and he sailed backwards into the air. Gray used this to his advantage and created ice blades from his forearms and jumped up towards Fukuro.

"**Ice Blade: Seven Slice Dance!**" He then slashed at Fukuro repeatedly seven whole times with tremendous force. Fukuro screamed as he was hit.

Nic followed it up as Fukuro soared back from Gray's final attack. "Spit him out already, he'll give you indigestion! **Ice Punch!**" Nic zoomed as Fukuro screamed and cloaked his fist in swirling white and light blue energy and smashed his fist into Fukuro's abdomen. Fukuro then coughed up Natsu and he fell onto a nearby cage, all slimy and highly unsanitary.

"Natsu!" Happy shouted. Fukuro smashed into a cage, breaking the bars and causing the cage to fall into the darkness below in utter defeat.

"They…they won." Simon muttered. Gray and Nic stood there while Happy went over and hugged his buddy, disregarding he was all slimy and disgusting.

Gray looked over and Nic was looking back at him. The two were _cool_ with the other's wits and tenacity in the battle.

"That was too easy." Nic smirked, turning back into himself.

"Yeah, that didn't even send chills up my spine." Gray said, with his cold sense of humor.

'_Gray Fullbuster. Nic Pularis. Those two are far stronger than I thought they were.' _Simon thought. Gray then got to a knee and started panting.

"Hey man, you okay?" Nic asked. He saw that Gray exhausted a lot of power in that one fight, too much to even continue. Gray then fell on the cage, unable to continue. "Gray!"

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Era…**

When Seigrain mentioned Zeref being resurrected, everyone there was in on stopping him no matter what the cost. Zeref must never be revived. Another vote was cast, with everyone but Yajima in favor.

Org announced the results. "The final vote stands with eight in favor and only one against; therefore, we shall initiate the use of an Etherion blast to destroy the Tower of Heaven." Seigrain let loose a small grin in accomplishment, satisfied that his plan worked.

The Council frog people, er, humanoid toads, uh, you get the idea, then got word very fast that Etherion was being initiated. They scrambled all over the lace and prepared for the blast. They had one hour to get the Etherion fired.

Sunset was outside the large window that Seigrain and Ultear were facing away from. Seigrain was sitting in a chair, having a small frown on his face, serious as to the situation was going to be solved.

He opened his eyes when he heard a knock at the door to his domain. "Enter." He said. The door then opened with Yajima coming in.

"Please forgive me." Yajima said, entering.

"Yajima." Seigrain said, getting up in surprise.

Yajima then started walking towards the windows behind Seigrain and Ultear. "I don't believe this idea of yours is beneficial." He then stopped when he was in front of the window. "An intellectual person such as yourself certainly can find a more peaceful resolution."

Seigrain turned towards Yajima. "Trust me, I wish there was, but there is no such thing as a peaceful resolution when it involves a legendary Black Magic user being reborn. Stopping him with any means is the only way. You understand, right Yajima?"

Yajima raised his head and let it droop. "Yes." He sighed. "I have no disagreements with stopping Jellal, but can you bear with the thought and consequences of your own twin brother being killed by your own two hands?"

"Yes." Seigrain answered. "I am willing to uphold this sacrifice."

Yajima then turned back towards Seigrain with a very angry look. "THIS BLAST WILL KILL THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT PEOPLE!" This outburst made Segrain go wide eyed and gasped at Yajima's outburst. He most certainly never expected him to snap. He then turned back towards to window to look out. "This includes your own brother Seigrain! His death will be followed with countless others, and you alone will bear this unholy deed."

"I don't like this anymore than you do Yajima, but it has to be done." Seigrain said. It wasn't long after that that the center of Era was being transformed. The center stone went underground and four insanely large columns arose from under, each being a different color of red, green, yellow, and blue. In the center, a huge lacrima arose as the concentration piece. The four columns of lacrima all began charging up and transmitting energy towards the large lacrima.

"This is such a critical decision." A Council member said.

"Even with the chairman on leave due to health issues, it is vital we nine Council members maintain order." Leiji said.

"We're violating international protocol by using this attack, but we're protecting clause four of article twenty seven of the National Security Directive." Michello said.

"My real concern is taking out innocent lives with this blast." Org said, turning to Michello.

"But we have to stop Zeref's resurrection." Michello pointed out. "It's just as Seigrain said, drastic times call for drastic measures."

Seigrain was also watching the operations of the Etherion blast initiating, only we wasn't with the other Council folks. He was somewhere close by near the shadows. He watched emotionlessly and patiently.

Ultear stepped forth by his side. "The time has finally arrived Master Seigrain." She said.

Seigrain nodded. "Yes, indeed."

"Your dream will finally become a reality."

Seigrain then shifted his gaze towards Ultear. "Are you afraid?"

Ultear let loose a very very small grin, barely noticeable. "No, I have faith in your judgement and shall uphold you with trust."

"Indeed." Seigrain said. "At least your life isn't at risk."

"True." Ultear admitted.

"Honestly, I'm slightly worried." Seigrain said. "I my plan fails, my life is over."

What neither of them knew was that Yajima was behind a column and overhearing them talk. He was suspicious of Seigrain and his actions and was keeping a close eye on him. As it turned out, his hunch about him was accurate after hearing that his own life was at risk.

Seigrain clenched a fist and grinned. "Even so…" His expression was getting rather dark compared to his normal and calm self. "…my life is but a small price to pay, for destiny has great things for me in the future ahead!"

Ultear grinned again and lowered her head. "Yes." They both then watched the operations commence and the satellite square being manipulated and being fired within twenty-five minutes. Seigrain then silently bid a farewell to Jellal.

* * *

**With Sho and Erza**

"You monster!" Sho shouted, running through the halls with vengeance and betrayal swollen in his heart. He kept running down a large hallway with Erza still trapped in the card. "Jellal is gonna pay! He lied to us all!"

"Calm down Sho!" Erza shouted from within her flat prison. She then tried banging against the card. "You're going to need my help to fight him. You can't do this alone! Release me at once!" She kept pounding, but still was stuck.

"No! I won't allow that!" Sho barked with tears in his eyes. "It's for your own good." He then smiled a bit, thinking he did something good. "You'll be safe sister."

"Don't be stupid!" Erza shouted.

Sho then ran into a corridor that had a long bridge with red gates stretching all across towards the end of the bridge towards a pink tree. Large statues representing gargoyles were rising from the water below. Sho skid to halt when he saw Ikaruga in his way. Sho got cards at the ready.

"Greetings." She said. "I am the one called Ikaruga. And who might you be?"

Sho didn't care. He only wanted to fight Jellal. "Out of my way! I have to get to Jellal! Don't make me hurt you!" Sho demanded.

Ikaruga didn't look fazed by Sho lashing. "Oh dear. Why must I be bored by this young fellow?"

"I warned ya!" Sho shouted and then unleashed his cards at her. The cards increased in numbers when entering a green seal. Ikaruga held up her sword and had the cards come in at her. Without even blinking, she gave it one fell swipe. The cards all split in half, shocking Sho.

"But, how?!" Sho demanded. The cards faded in midair and Ikaruga stood there.

"My katana can cut through anything with the most enhanced precision. Your attacks won't even touch me." She explained calmly.

Sho backed away, unable to have seen this coming. He got more cards at the ready, and then a harsh clang sound was heard in the blink of an eye. Underneath him, the wood was cut in the shape of an X and his cards vanished.

He then slowly began to fall to the ground. "I-I can't move." He muttered, falling onto his back.

"I've simply severed your nerves without cutting your clothing or flesh." Ikaruga said. "My style is unparalleled." She then saw Erza trapped in a card and flying out of his pocket. Sho watched as Erza's card was flying through the air.

"Let me out of here! Release me Sho, she's too much for you to handle" Erza demanded, pounding away.

"No! I can't! I-I won't!" Sho managed to say.

Ikaruga was a little surprised to see the mighty Titania in a card. "Well now, I was wondering where you were Erza."

"D-Don't bother!" Sho shouted. "I casted a Shielding Spell, so you can't harm her!" Erza's card continued to flutter in the air.

"Oh really?" Ikaruga questioned. She repositioned herself with her insanely (I mean really) high heels shifting with her right one in front.

"Sho, that's no ordinary sword!" Erza shouted.

"You're safe." He hopelessly muttered. Ikaruga then slashed at the card, but it didn't break. "Trust me Erza, you're safe-!" Sho then went wide eyed when Erza got a fierce look in her eyes and brought forth a sword and started jabbing and slashing away, trying to break free. Sho was stunned to say the least. "Sh-she can cut across the dimensional rift?!"

Ikaruga then stepped forward again and readied her sword again, catching Erza and Sho off guard. With a multitude of slices, Sho screamed and his a statue as Erza was still being protected but slashing away at super speed and ferocity.

"Sister, no!" Sho shouted. The card then flashed brightly and Sho shut his eyes. With one final slash, Erza feed herself from the card and stood in front of Ikaruga with a slashed pose from when she did her final slash from inside the card.

"I had a feeling your attacks would weaken Sho's Shielding Spell, allowing me to cut my way to the outside." Erza said, opening her eyes to see Ikaruga.

'_A sword that can slice through dimensions is enough, but using that to her advantage is what makes her even more amazing.'_ Sho said, impressed and smiling a bit.

"Your name's Ikaruga, yes?" Erza asked, narrowing her eyes. "I came to fight Jellal, not you. Begone."

Ikaruga was moved at all. "Apologies, but I'll stay." She said, shocking Erza. She then felt her Heart Kreuz Armor crack and shatter. Erza gasped when her armor completely shattered and disappeared, revealing her white blouse and blue skirt. She got to a knee, feeling a slight pinch in her left arm.

"Sister, no!" Sho shouted.

Ikaruga's stare was dark and more menacing than before. "To be honest, I'd expected you to see that one coming." Erza got back to her feet, gritting and grunting at Ikaruga. It was go time. To win, she had to keep her guard up at all times. Ikaruga then sang a little song. "_Is what you gaze at the evil apparition far beyond the mist?_" Then she paused. "Your pursuit in Jellal has left you vulnerable to my katana flashing about.

Erza then grew a very dark expression over her face, one that could intimidate anybody.

Ikaruga smiled. "Yes, I've been waiting for that look."

Sho was paralyzed with such fear, never revealed to Erza being so dark. _'I-I've never seen sister like this! She's serious!' _He thought.

"You are indeed skilled, but your skills alone aren't on par with mine." Ikaruga said.

"You're my enemy." Erza said, using her Requip Magic and shifting into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. "And I will defeat you, no matter what."

Ikaruga then put a hand on her Katana, ready to strike. "Just try and stop me." Erza then pause and zoomed in. She slashed at Ikaruga, but she used her katana to block. Erza then flew into the air and summoned forth a wheel.

"**Heaven's Wheel: Circle Sword!**" She then manipulated the swords and they went flying at Ikaruga. Ikaruga stayed calm and opened her eyes.

"**Mugetsu Style**..." She then slashed in the blink of an eye at the speed of sound. Every single sword shot at her completely shattered and broke into pieces and missed her, piercing the ground around her. "…**Yasha-senku**." The swords then disappeared.

"Sh-she just cut every single one of them!" Sho said, shocked that over twenty swords wer slashed in less than two seconds. Erza then descended a fair distance from Ikaruga and Ikaruga slashed across, not moving from her spot. After three seconds, Erza's armor began cracking into very tiny pieces. Erza screamed as she felt pain when the armor shattered from her slash.

"**Mugetsu Style…**" She then began to heat up, with fire surging about. Sho couldn't move, even if he wanted o and Erza grunted as the attack was beginning to unleash. Ikaruga created a ring of fire and launched it at Erza. "…**Karuda-en!**" The blast wave from her sword then launched at Erza at the last second, she transformed into her Flame Empress Armor. This armor was mostly dark red with orange and black parts resembling dragon limbs. The breastplate had dragon like wings attached to it. Her gauntlets were orange and were dragon claw based. Her hair was also in pigtails.

"Oh, your Flame Empress Armor." Ikaruga said. "Not bad, but still not good enough." The wings and gauntlets were then shattered, making Erza wince. "How embarrassing to be dressed like that in that young man's presence. I suggest your attire should be the post powerful armor in your arsenal." She insisted.

"She's a monster." Sho muttered with disgust.

Erza then requipped with such rage. She had on black armor with spikes everywhere. Her hair was styled with spikes in every direction, with her right eye covered and a demonic shadow that obscured the upper part of her face. "**Requip: Purgatory Armor!** You'll regret making me wear this!" She then summoned forth a mighty spiked mace with long sharp spikes along the sides. When summoned, the mace unleashed strong winds when it hit the ground. "Nobody who has seen this has lived to tell about it!" Erza got in a ready stance.

"Is that really the best you got?" Ikaruga said, not impressed. "Let's see how far you get with that." Erza then jumped into the air and came down. Ikaruga dodged as the mace hits the bridge and send a straight shock wave through the water and smashed a very large rock. Erza then swung again, sending a devastating wind at Ikaruga. The forceful wind was about to mash her, but Ikaruga smiled with glee as she slashed again, cutting straight through the massive winds and shattering even some of the wood on the bridge. Now with monstrous rage enveloping her, he jumped and screamed as she came down with her mace. Ikaruga back stepped and leaped and watched the mace send another shockwave rippling from the attack. Ikaruga then lunged forward and her sword ran along the edge as she jumped by the use of the spiky edge and spiraled in the air, slashing Erza head on. Sho watched with wide eyes as Erza was hit. Ikaruga spiraled in the air and posed behind Erza. Erza stumbled after being still for a bit and her armor shattered with her screaming in pain.

Ikaruga turned her head. "Can't say I didn't warn you." She said, watching Erza's mace disappear. "There is not armor you have that can withstand my katana. Give up now."

Erza was shaking about, she wasn't gonna take this. She couldn't. If she wanted to get to Jellal, she just had to beat her, but no armor she had would work, not even her Adamantine Armor would do the trick, even if she tried. Erza gritted her teeth as she felt pain as she tried standing. She got up and started taking deep breaths, trying to ease herself. She had only one option left.

Sho was shaking. "N-No…sister. It's impossible."

Erza turned around and had a serious, but less lethal face on. She stood frozen for a moment and took in a deep breath as she began requipping again, but this time was different. She had two katana in her hands with her hair in a ponytail. Bandages covered her breast and she had on red pants with flames going up to her knees.

This shocked everyone there. "What are you doing Erza?!" Sho shouted.

"Is this a joke?" Ikaruga asked. "Why wear regular cloth?"

"Erza!" Sho shouted. "You don't stand a chance with that on! You've got plenty of armor! Stay strong!"

Erza stayed silent for a bit before speaking. "I can't." She said. "Because I've never been strong…it's all a lie." Erza closed her eyes and thought of everything. How she was alone from her past, and gradually gained trust and friends. "As a child, I watched my dearest friends suffer. I lost loved ones because I didn't have the strength to defend them from harm. When I was alone, couldn't hide my emotions, but around others, I had them bottled up under my armor. I convinced myself the only way to show everyone that I was strong, I would lock it away inside my very armor. No one could see that it was broken. I wear armor to hide my weakness from the rest of the world; without it, I was too afraid to fight."

Sho looked on in shock, and Ikaruga stood there disinterested.

"Armor or not, it doesn't change anything." Ikaruga said. "I'll strike you down in the end."

Erza continued. "I figured my armor would protect me, but it didn't prove anything. It only kept me distanced from others. My heart was too protected to be or connect with anyone; that is, until I joined Fairy Tail Everyone there was so warm-hearted and my cold shell began shattering, and I began to feel emotions again."

Sho shed a tear. "Sister."

"People reached out into my heart. They proclaim me as family and a comrade. I can't stand to watch my friends fall or risk their lives for me…but someone has made me feel more easy and that person never considered me weak. He encouraged me and never had doubt in my battling nor capabilities. He made me feel all warm inside and my shell began to leak out emotions for that person…no longer will rely on my armor. I know that I'm strong enough to defeat you without it, and so does he. Now, come at me!"

Ikaruga and Erza were both positioned to leap and strike. Both lunged at the same time and Sho watched as they both slashed. They both were now on opposite ends with a slight wind blowing about. The two remained sturdy for a good ten seconds before the sword in Erza's right arm shattered.

Ikaruga turned and heaved, thinking she won, but Erza remained unfazed. She then felt herself wore out. "Our battle…" Her katana then began to crack all over. "…is decided." Her katana then shattered and she fell to the ground in defeat. Erza remained positioned and then turned around at the defeated opponent.

Sho was astounded. "S-Sister. That was amazing."

Erza then turned towards Sho. "Are you alright?" She asked.

Sho then moved about on the ground. "I think so."

They both then heard Ikaruga muttering. She was smiling. "Ah, defeat is indeed bitter. Throughout my life, I've only known the sweet taste of victory. It doesn't matter that you beat me, because you and Jellal are doomed to fail."

Erza wondered what she was talking about, so was Sho. While clenching his arm, he got up. "What are you saying?" He asked.

"In fifteen minutes…" She reached a hand up into the air as she began singing. "_The light of justice shall come raining down from the sky. It shall kill us all._" Her hand then plopped to the ground. "What a sully haiku." She then fell unconscious.

Erza knew what she meant. "The Etherion blast." She said. She then turned to Sho. "Sho, go get Simon and the rest of my Fairy Tail friends and get everyone as far away from the tower as possible."

Sho turned shocked that Erza asked such a thing. "What? I just can't leave you." He insisted.

Erza smiled at Sho. "Please Sho. I know it's hard, but do this for me."

Sho was very hesitant, but he didn't argue. It was rough seeing Erza fight, but it was clear that he didn't have any say. He nodded slowly. "Yeah. But what about you?"

She turned and frowned. "I'm going to settle this, once and for all."

* * *

**With Nic, Natsu, and Simon**

Simon was given the greatest honor of carrying a sick Natsu up the stairs. Nic stayed close behind in case things looked troublesome. They saw the sun going down, meaning they didn't have much time. They had to get to Jellal and quick before it's too late.

Natsu started to come around. "Ugh." He groaned.

"Bout time you wake up." Nic said from behind.

"The last thing I remember was flying in circles in the air-!" He then had chunks in his mouth, which left Simon baffled.

"Are you serious?! Even the memory of it makes you sick?!" Simon exclaimed. They all continued upwards.

"Well." Nic said. "Natsu, you were eaten by that owl wierdo, and then me and Gray teamed up to save you."

Natsu was still feeling a little sick but he understood, though he detested the thought of Gray saving his hide. "That's just great." He groaned.

"He defeated the owl and took a lot of damage. Your little friend is carrying him away as we speak to a safer place." Simon explained, continuing from where Nic ended. When Natsu heard that Gray defeated the owl man and not him, he jolted up in fury.

"You've gotta be kidding me?!" Natsu shouted. "I lost to that owl freak, but Gray was able to beat him?!" He was annoyed for sure.

"And me." Nic added, but Natsu didn't care as much.

"I wouldn't say you lost. More like you were swallowed." Simon said, trying to reason with him

"It doesn't matter because he'll brag about this the next month!" Natsu complained. "This sucks big time!"

"I see your point." Simon sighed.

Natsu then got all fired up and angry. "I won't take this! I demand a rematch! Bring me birdbrain so that I can fry him!" Nic then pounded Natsu across the head, not wanting to deal with this. He then began dragging Natsu by the scarf along up the tower.

"No time for your crazy talk." Nic said.

"Indeed, we must press on." Simon agreed. Just then, Natsu jolted up and caught up with Simon with suspicion all over.

"Don't mean to be rude, but do I know you?" Natsu asked.

"I'm Simon." He said. "I was friends with Erza back before she joined Fairy Tail."

Natsu then dropped suspicion and put his arms over his head, feeling more relaxed. "Oh! Then it's nice to meet you!" Nic facepalmed at the fact Natsu met him before and didn't recognized him. Then, Simon clenched his abdomen, feeling something odd.

"Hey Simon, everything okay?" Nic asked.

"Yeah, everything's okay. I just got word from Wally." He explained. "He and Millianna found Lucy and Juvia and they're both exhausted. He said they took down a member of Trinity Raven all by themselves."

"Lucy and Juvia?" Natsu asked.

"Well, at least they're okay." Nic said. "And with that, that leaves one left, I think."

"They were confused because I said we're not enemies anymore and take them to safety…and Sho just contacted me…" He was receiving his message and said it. "…hm. It would appear Sho said the last member of Trinity Raven was taken down."

"I didn't get to do anything!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Then that just leaves Jellal." Nic contemplated.

"Yes, and Sho said she went off to find him." Simon said.

Nic and Natsu jolted at this development. "By herself?!" Nic exclaimed. He was shocked to hear that, but at least he knew Erza was free. And Nic knew full well that Erza was a brave and powerful individual. He figured she might handle this. He shouldn't be doubting her like this.

"Natsu, Nic, I'm sure you know she and Jellal have a history, it's as though they were meant to fight the other." Simon said. "I'm worried because Erza doesn't realize the full extent of Jellal's powers." He then turned towards them. "We have to go help her."

Natsu crossed his arms as did Nic. "Meh, she's fine." They both said in unison.

Simon's jaw dropped. "WHAT?!" He then grabbed Natsu and pushed against a wall and held Nic up by the other. "The heck's wrong with you?! You're Erza's friends, yet you refuse to help her?!"

Nic and Nic kept their confidence by grinning away.

"It's her fight. She can do it on her own." Natsu said.

"She wouldn't like it if we interfered with her personal issues." Nic added. Simon let them go and turned away.

"There's no way anyone could beat Jellal." Simon said, sparking a nerve in Nic.

"The heck you just say?!" Nic shouted, almost tempted to pin Simon to the stairs. "Listen pal, Erza's the toughest woman I know, so don't you dare go saying she can't beat this Jellal guy!"

Yeah pal! Watch your mouth!" Natsu shouted, backing up Nic. Simon turned towards them.

"You've misunderstood. I'm not saying she's weak." Simon said, making Nic and Natsu reel back. "I know Erza wants to take down Jellal, but in her heart, she could never kill the boy she desperately wanted to save from her childhood. Jellal now is too cunning for words. He knows all too well how to manipulate Erza's feelings to his advantage." He paused. "And that's not the only issue here. As you two know, the Magic Council is preparing to fire an Etherion blast. When that happens, we all die. If what Sho said is true, then we only have ten minutes left."

Nic's eyes widened, as did Natsu's, mostly Nic. "What?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"She told everyone to leave in order to face Jellal alone; if you know her, then you know what she's planning to do." Simon said.

Natsu gritted his teeth, staggered by this. Nic's eyes sharpen with fury. Nic knew all too well what Erza was planning to do. She was going to take Jellal down with her when the Etherion strikes. There was no way that Nic was ever going to let that happen. He would never ever abandon a friend if he or she was going to sacrifice themselves. Let them fight their own battles sure, but allowing Erza to sacrifice herself, he almost lost it there.

Natsu lit up in flames and Nic rammed Simon into the staircase, shocking him.

"WHERE IS SHE?! TELL ME WHERE ERZA IS!" Nic roared.

* * *

**With Happy and co.**

Sho, Millianna, Wally, Lucy, Juvia, Gray, and Happy were all on a small boat, getting away from the shores of the Tower of Heaven.

"Turn this thing around right now!" Gray demanded.

"No can do tough guy." Wally said.

"Yeah." Millianna said. "Erza said to get as far away as possible."

Lucy then turned towards them. "But now Erza, Natsu and Nic have no way to leave!"

"They'll be fine." Sho said, though he did show signs of doubt with the sweat on his face.

"Natsu means me there to back him up!" Gray said, though he winced with the pain he accumulated.

"Forget about it. Simon and that Nic fellow are strong enough." Wally said. Happy was looking back at the shores as the boat left. Everyone but him was arguing to turn the boat around. He heard Gray and Lucy demanding to turn around, as to where Sho, Wally, and Millianna all kept the boat leaving.

Finally, Happy lashed out, shocking everyone there. "JUST SHUT UP!" He hollered. Everyone turned in shock. "Just get along guys. I wanna go back and help as well, but we can't because that Etherion is gonna blast that place soon." He now had tears. "Natsu and Nic are gonna save Erza and they'll all make it out alive! Simon told me that's what will happen! He said when Natsu and Nic unleash their potential, Jellal won't stand a chance!" Everyone there was truly concerned, but Happy's words made them have nothing but confidence. If that's what Simon said, then that's what will happen.

Everyone just kept the boat going and hoped for the very best.

* * *

**With Erza**

Erza had just entered Jellal's chamber at the top, in time to see her piece move in front of Jellal's. Jellal sighed and arose from his throne.

"Don't tell me that the game's over already." He complained. Erza came forth with a sword in hand.

"Hard to believe you find that much torture to your liking." Erza admitted. Jellal started walking about, not caring much of the predicament.

"Between life and death is that small space that means very little." He said. "That gap called life is so boring, just waiting day by day until you rot away into nothing." Then he turned towards her with a grin on his face. "Long time no see, Erza."

Erza looked on at Jellal with fierce emotions, wanting to make him pay. "Yes." She said. "It indeed has. Sho and the others are no longer under your control."

Jellal just let it go over his head. "Fine by me. Now that the tower has been completed, I have no need for them." Erza then had a sword pointed at him.

"Too bad this tower will be destroyed." Erza said.

"By the Etherion?" Jellal laughed. His hood then flipped off, revealing his face. "The Etherion shall indeed strike this tower!"

Erza kept her composure. "Good." She then positioned herself to strike. "That means I only have to occupy you for only seven minutes. This nightmare will be over at last."

Jellal then began steaming Magic of darkness off of himself with a large demonic grin. "No! When the beam hits, your life shall be forfeited to Zeref!" His eye then closed. "This was always meant to happen." He then flipped it open, revealing a dark pattern around his right eye. "This is your only destiny!"

Erza then crouched, ready to leap if he dared to say a thing out of line. Jellal then retracted his eye and transferred its power to his fist, which had an eerie purple with red markings and expanding in creepy shapes.

"I cast off all fear. I shall relish in my death because I will be taking you down with me!" Erza proclaimed.

"Oh really?" Jellal asked. "…and how would you suppose Nic would take your death?"

When he mentioned Nic, Erza's stance almost broke apart. She had forgotten if Nic was still in the tower or not, along with Natsu. Still, she did wonder how Nic would take such a hit. She kept wer façade with uneasy eyes now that Jellal plucked at her strings. _'How does he know of Nic?'_

Jellal then unleashed his blob from his hand and it raced towards Erza. Snapping out of her thoughts at the last moment, she slashed away, making the blob go right past her and into the ground, making it tremble about. She lunged at Jellal, but Jellal caught her hands before she could swing and readied a dark Magic blast in his right fist. Erza quickly leaped away as the last rage forward, shattering part of the domain they were in. Unfortunately, Erza was caught falling with the rocky debris. She regained her balance and leaped back up towards Jellal before she could've lost anymore altitude.

"You're destroying the very thing you've created! What's the point?!" Erza shouted, slashing and missing as Jellal sidestepped and let loose another blast that Erza dodged by leaping up on the large lacrima and pouncing downwards and missing Jellal again, but did cut up his game board.

"Ha! Not my concern!" Jellal said. "Pillars are mere decorations"

Erza readied her sword. "They were there because people build them for you!"

Jellal lowered his brows and kept a creepy smile. "It seems you never fail to find my faults Erza." He then had a sphere of eerie purple ready with red marking. "I've never forced them to work, they chose to work for me." He explained. "They knew how important this tower was to me, and now it's finished!" His eye then showed that crazy symbol and he crushed the sphere in his hand.

Erza looked down to see a blob of eerie purple reaching out from below her. She didn't have time to react when she was lifted into the air and sealed inside a sphere. She struggled in shock as Jellal talked.

Jellal walked around the sphere containing Erza. "Your skills are impressive, but you are of no match for mine." He said.

Inside, Erza was struggling as she was being enclose in darkness. She then recalled something by that instant.

She remembered what Nic said. She remembered him saying Lucy and the others were her friends, and how even she needed help. He refused to leave her, explaining how he will never abandon her and how he started to grow extremely fond of her.

'_Nic.'_ She thought. _'Everyone...they all believe in me.'_ Then she smiled, remembering Lucy and the others. _'I'll miss them dearly.'_

Jellal was walking away when he heard his sphere slicing. He turned in deep shock and wide eyes that Erza was one the ground and out of the sphere that turned into thin air. He also noticed her pony tail was now straight down like her normal hair.

"Like I said." Erza said. "I cast off all fear!" She then lunged and slashed at Jellal. Jellal yelped as he was hit and flew back.

As he flew back, he was wide eyed. _'This isn't the weak girl I remember!'_ He landed with a thud and Erza advanced with a dark look on her face that shocked Jellal more. He then saw get on top of him so he wouldn't escape. He then saw Erza positioning a sword at his neck with that dark look still in her eyes.

She was ready to finish this.

* * *

**And we stop there folks. The fight scene with Fukuro, I thought, was a bit of a letdown because I wanted to do so much more, then I took into account the time Natsu had inside, add the fact that I got the rest of Trinity Raven in, but still, I had to do something in regards to get a new Plate. It was better than nothing.**

**I'll jump over for a chapter on 'EDventures in Kalos' to allow time for a breather before finishing the Arc with a killer fight scene. I have something insane planned for next chapter, and you all will just love it, at least I hope so.**

**To be honest, I was a little teary with Juvia talking to Lucy in the fight because I was also watching the anime at the time and I thought it was so touching. (I'm that emotional and sensitive, OKAY?!)**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you were interested and enjoyed it so far. **

**Keep getting those Reviews up guys!**

* * *

**Next Time: The Power of Sacrifice**


	17. The Power of Sacrifice

Chapter 17 – The Power of Sacrifice

**Time for some more fighting and such. I got a great idea in this chapter, and I really hope you guys like it.**

**Guest: I'm glad you like my Pokémon comparisons, I'll keep at it. As for Nic and Erza getting together, it'll be complicated to say. They'll be bonding more and more to say the least, but I do intend on some super strong sparks after this Arc is over with.**

**No more talking, let's go!**

**FOREWARNING: Long chapter, best be prepared.**

**To Recap:**

Lucy and Juvia both fight Vidaldus, of whom takes over Juvia. Juvia does manage to turn back over towards Lucy's side and the two unleash a Unison Raid to defeat Vidaldus. The fight with Nic and Natsu against Fukuro takes an unpleasant turn when Natsu is swallowed and Fukuro uses his Magic to fight. Gray shows up and he and Nic team up to free Natsu and defeat the creepy owl man, with Nic unlocking the Icicle Plate in the process. Sho encounters Ikaruga and is effortlessly defeated. Erza then escapes from the card and fights Ikaruga, though her armor never worked. She resorts to fighting without armor and wins. Sho and the others were then told to leave before the Etherion hits, leaving Erza to confront Jellal, and Simon, Natsu, and Nic all race up the tower to help her take him down before the Etherion does.

* * *

**Chapter 17 – The Power of Sacrifice**

Erza was pining Jellal against the floor with herself on top and using her free hand to clench his arm. She had her sword against his throat. Her gaze meant she was gonna show no mercy.

"Tell me what your goal is Jellal!" Erza demanded in a harsh tone. Jellal frowned and remained silent, unsatisfying her demand. "Talk! I know the R-System has yet to have been completed."

Jellal let a slight "Hmph." And having a sneer across his face.

Erza continued to press on. "Jellal, I wasn't just sitting around doing nothing all these years, I was relentlessly researching this place. Blueprints and everything. You're still forgetting something, something that's vital, yet so obvious."

Jellal then smiled. "Not at all, because your sacrifice will be a fine replacement."

"No." She said, making him frown. "It's far more basic then that…Magic energy." There was a small pause before she continued. "One flaw with your plan, the Magic energy you need is so massive, that all of the Wizards on the continent combined wouldn't be enough. This tower cannot handle that much energy to begin with. I found it to be a mystery that you haven't left yet before the Etherion hits."

Jellal slowly maintained his calm and collective self and grinned. "Three more minutes." He reminded.

Erza's eyes sharpen with fury. "Answer! Why are you risking your own life when you know your own dream won't come true?! Do you want to die?!" She then gripped his arm tighter, making him grunt in pain. "Is so, I'll hold you down and won't let go until the bitter end!"

Jellal then smiled. "That sounds wonderful." He said, making Erza feel rather surprised. She loosened her grip and froze. "I do not control myself. I have been possessed by Zeref himself. I am simply a tool for him to use."

"You were possessed by him?" Erza asked.

"I was unable to save myself, and none of my friends could have come to my rescue." Jellal continued, looking straight up. Erza's eyes felt shaken remembering the guilt. "I then realized there was no Heaven nor freedom. Everything was designed before it even began."

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Era…**

The Etherion was finished storing up power and the servants were announcing that the Magic energy was accumulated to full power. They were adjusting the satellite square to pinpoint the Tower of Heaven.

As the countdown began, all of the Magic Council members closed their eyes and looked down.

"Let us pray." Org said. Everyone then there started repeating 'let us pray'. It was clear this was the right thing to do, but it still could not make up for the countless lives they were about to annihilate. They all prayed that they would rest in peace amongst the stars.

The only one who didn't pray was Yajima, who stared monstrously at Seigrain. A glare that was so dark that you could shiver at his discontent.

The large lacrima in the center of Era then glow white and the light expanded into a small dome that covered the other four lacrima around it.

* * *

**With Happy and co.**

The dark skies were brightened up by a light that was directly over the tower. The waves were starting to pick up as the guys were looking back up into the sky.

"W-What is that?" Lucy asked.

"It's gotta be the Etherion." Wally said.

Happy turned and looked back with teary eyes. "Oh no. Hurry up guys. Get out of there right now." He muttered.

* * *

**With Erza**

The structure was starting to quake as the two anticipated the Etherion to strike any moment now.

"I knew the R-System couldn't be completed." Jellal admitted. "Zeref kept on pressuring me to make it happen. He forced me to continue." Small bits of debris was beginning to fall, and the center lacrima was shaking as well. Jellal then kept his smile. "I wanted to stop, but I didn't have a choice."

Era gritted her teeth, but her dark gaze turned less menacing, feeling a hint of pity swelling up.

"I give up." Jellal said. "Finish me." Erza reeled her head back a few inches and widened her eyes in shock. "Isn't that why you came here in the first place?" Jellal said with his mocking smile.

Erza's eyes were all shaken up again. Her breaths were uneven as she could only remain frozen in place with her shivering look. Images of Jellal back all those years ago reemerged and she could only she the boy she truly admired and not some heartless villain. She could only stay frozen and just think of him.

She could not do it. She retracted her sword, much to Jellal's surprised look.

Her gaze softened. "There is no point in killing you." She said, reeling up. "The Etherion will fire any moment and take us both out." Jellal went wide eyed and Erza dropped her sword and it disappeared and got up from him and turned around. "This is the end for the two of us."

Jellal sat up and slightly frowned. "It is a grim fate we share." He pitied himself and her. He got up and turned the opposite direction, now both her looking past the other.

"So you were Zeref's victim the entire time." Erza said.

"It's my own fault." Jellal said, looking down. "I allowed my own weakness get the best of me. Reality was too complicated for me to understand."

Erza then turned her head to look at Jellal with sorrowful eyes and frown. "The only people who were truly capable of saving you from your flaws…are those who you call your friends." She said.

"True." Jellal said.

"I'm sorry I couldn't save you." Erza said. "Please forgive me." The Tower of Heaven then began to quake even more now.

Jellal then turned towards Erza. "Erza…" The rumbling then began to increase. Now they were holding the other. "You've already saved me." They were both on their knees now and the two hugged as the roof was brightened up by the Etherion

In the skies above, a golden rectangle was sandwiched between a smaller ring above, and a larger ring on the bottom. Four small rings were around the rectangular part as a large sphere engulfed the center.

The Etherion flashed and finally fired.

The entire area was shaking and those on the small boat watched as the Etherion brightened up everything. Jellal had a menacing grin as the beam came crashing down, with his eye showing his façade.

'_Goodbye Fairy Tail…goodbye everyone…farewell Nic.' _Erza thought

* * *

**With Happy and co.**

"No!" Gray shouted.

"Natsu!" Happy and Lucy shouted.

The blast finally engulfed the entire tower and the water around the tower splashed into waves that crashed the boat and everyone fell out.

The waves kept coming, becoming more of a torrent. They were all surprised that they weren't drowning. They all gasped when they were in a sphere of water. Juvia was able to save them in time so that they wouldn't drown.

* * *

**In Era…**

Everyone there were getting reports of the massive energy fired.

"Target was hit." "Ethernano levels at high capacity." "Extreme weather conditions at once!"

Org rubbed his face, still shocked it happened. Belno had her eyes closed and frowned, along with everyone else there as well.

Org sighed. "Who knows how many lives were inside that tower." He said with a hand over his mouth.

"They were there to resurrect Zeref." Michello said, with frogs behind him and all sad it happened. "Their sacrifice had to be for the sake of others."

"I know Michello." Org said. "But I doubt their families will be taking this well."

* * *

**With Happy and co.**

Inside the dome, they all saw the huge tower of smoke rising up that covered the tower. Everyone there had watery eyes and gape mouths at what just happened.

"W-what happened out there?" Lucy asked with teary eyes, thinking she lost so many friends at once. Juvia and the others weren't taking it all that well.

"W-Were they killed?" Happy asked.

As the smoke cleared, they all felt their hearts skip several beats. The structure was slowly revealing itself to have not been destroyed. It was entirely different now. The structure was all light blue and crystal-like.

"What the heck is that?" Sho wondered.

"…no, that ain't crystal." Gray said. "That has to be lacrima."

Still, everyone was worried sick, they all looked sorrowful and hoped for the best.

"I hope they're still okay." Lucy said with a frown. "Maybe they survived."

"Yeah…wait." Wally said. "I know what that is! It's the R-System itself!" Everyone turned in shock that the actual lacrima was the R-System.

"So that tower was the R-System itself?" Gray asked.

Wally eased himself. "Yeah, but it's the first time I've seen it activated. That must have been what Jellal was talking about."

Lucy then turned towards them. "What's that suppose to mean? That Zeref will be resurrected like you said?"

"We don't know." Sho said. "We helped Jellal make it, but not once has it activated."

Gray then turned towards the direction of the tower. "And now Erza, Natsu, and Nic are trapped inside. Great, just great."

"Yeah." Sho said. "Along with Simon…and Jellal."

* * *

**With Erza**

Erza heard rocks crumbling when she should be hearing nothing but silence. She had expected herself to be dead, along with Jellal, only they were still in the other's arms. She soon let go and pulled away, looking around at what had just happened.

She couldn't believe what she was seeing; not only was she still alive and unharmed, but the tower itself was some large crystal-like lacrima.

"We're still alive?" Erza asked as Jellal got to his feet while she was looking at her own hands. She looked up in question, but her questioned look was replaced by a look of shock when she saw a dark grin plastered on Jellal's face.

Jellal couldn't be anymore satisfied with what had just happened. The Etherion had finally hit its mark. He was chuckling with his mouth closed at the success.

"What have you done?" Erza asked, like the unthinkable had just happened, of which it did.

Jellal stepped back and laughed heinously as he was satisfied with the lacrima al around. "It's finally here!" He shouted. "At long last, my hour of glory has arrived!"

Erza's eyes widened at this scene. Jellal was plucking at her heart strings this whole time. She was fooled.

"This is the true Tower of Heaven Erza." Jellal explained. "A giant lacrima crystal. Thanks to the Council and their Etherion blast, it's finally ready to be activated. The Etherion blast was the only missing piece. And so, the R-System is complete!"

Erza got back to her feet in drowned hope. She had failed to stop the R-System from activating.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Era…**

"Ethernano neutralizers detected!" "Impossible!" "Drop in fusion density detected!" "High levels of Magic energy detected!"

They were trying to restore the monitor, but it was all fuzzy. In a matter of moments, it revealed the giant lacrima version of the Tower of Heaven.

Everyone there was too shocked for words.

"Target is still standing!" "It's a giant lacrima!" The assistance shouted.

The Council members all had shocked expressions. Everyone there could not believe that the Etherion didn't work.

"The tower must have absorbed the Magic energy from the Etherion!" Leiji said.

Org stepped forward with his one open eye that was shaking all about. "Impossible!" He exclaimed in shock.

Seigrain shifted his feet and turned towards the monitor with a grin on his face.

Yajima was behind him and stepped forward, knowing his suspicions were true. "Seigrain, explain yourself!" Yajima demanded. When Seigrain turned his head, he started to fade away, shocking Yajima as he was now gone.

"H-He disappeared." Yajima murmured.

Just then, the railing in front of him began to break. Suddenly, the place was starting to break down and shake.

Everyone in the Council were turning their heads in confusion as the alarm was going off.

"What's happening to this place?!" Leiji shouted, seeing it crack up. "I-It's like it's beginning to age and collapse!" Dust began to pour from the cracks above and everyone was panicking. The only one who wasn't moved by this was Ultear herself.

"It must be the Arc of Time Magic!" Org shouted. "That Magic is said to be lost!"

Everyone there was evacuating as fast as they could without getting bombarded with falling rock and statue. Yajima was slowly proceeding when he saw that Ultear had a small Magic circle in her palms, seeing her stay still.

"No, Ultear!" Yajima shouted. "How could you?!" Ultear was still continuing to break down and she looked up.

"It's all for Master Seigrain." She said. "Or should I say Jellal." She then turned her head towards him. "His hard work finally paid off and his dream shall become a reality."

With nothing that could be done, the Council members all evacuated as the place fell.

* * *

**With Erza**

She was standing there, nothing but baffled as Jellal looked back at her.

She clenched her fists. "So I was being used." She said. "You used my feelings to your advantage." She narrowed her eyes. "You're so low."

"What can I say?" Jellal said. "I love your priceless expressions." He then shifted his gaze and Erza turned to see what he saw looking at. She gasped when she saw Seigrain approaching with a smile on his face.

"Glad to see me?" Seigrain said, putting a hand on his side. "It must be hard to see two of me after manipulating you. You must be seeing me all over the place."

Erza turned her body towards him. "Seigrain!" Seigrain then proceeded to walk past Erza and towards Jellal's side. "I don't get it, what are you doing here?"

He stopped when he was in front of her. "Remember when we first met?" Seigrain asked. He then walked towards Jellal's side and turned towards her. "You accompanied Makarov to the Magic Council, and you attacked me out of the blue."

"She must have mistaken you for me, but who could've guessed?" Jellal said.

"Indeed." Seigrain said. "You didn't let up until I said I was Jellal's twin brother; nevertheless, you were always hostile."

"You expect anything else?" Erza exclaimed. "If you truly cared about your brother, you would've tried to save him. I had a feeling you were spying on me, reporting me whenever you could back to him!"

"Is that so?" Jellal asked.

"A mistake, I assure you." Seigrain said. "Thinking back, I should've said something about finding and killing Jellal. My biggest mistake was encountering you of all people to begin with, especially with all of the trouble I went through to become a member of the Magic Council."

"Improvising isn't all that beneficial in the end." Jellal commented.

Erza lowered her head with a fighting face. "So, you were conspiring from the very start." She stated.

"Conspiring? Not so precise, but we'll give you a point for catching on." Seigrain said.

Jellal shifted closer towards Seigrain. "It's more muddling than you would expect it to be."

Erza gasped when she saw Seigrain slowly fading into a ghostly image, like a projection.

"We're not twins, but two faces of a single person." The two said in unison. "It's been that way from the very beginning." Seigrain then walked over and finally fused with Jellal himself. As he did, he was covered in a rainbow aura that soon faded. He flashed open his eyes to reveal Jellal merged with his thought projection.

Erza stepped back with shocked eyes. "But how?" she asked. "He was a projection this entire time?"

A small circle of dust rippled at Jellal's feet, feeling energy flow through him. "You never expected us to be the same."

"Then you're responsible for firing the Etherion!" Erza exclaimed. "Did you weasel your way just for that one trick?!"

The air around Jellal was vibrating with waves of energy that he had. "I hope you enjoyed the freedom you had all of those years, meeting people, getting enhance Magic. That was all part of my plan."

Erza had a fist clenched harder and her teeth were gritting like crazy. "How could you live knowing your life was nothing but a lie?!"

A purple aura outlined Jellal's body as he clenched a fist. Erza got her answer with a swift punch that she was hit with. She flew back and grunted as she tumbled backwards with her guard with, keeping as soon as she had the opportunity and regained her footing.

"Hmph, seems as though someone wasn't prepared." Jellal said with a grin.

Erza let out a growl and she had an insanely mad look in her eyes. She slammed her hand on the ground and a Magic circle appeared. She pulled out a huge and very wide sword that curved outwards at the ends. The length was far longer than the previous ones she's been utilizing.

"Jellal!" Erza shouted madly. "You're through!" She then slashed, but Jellal pivoted and stepped back as Erza's swing missed. She turned and summoned a second sword in her free hand that was of equal width and length and was black. She swung with both blades and Jellal reeled back to avoid the two blades and Erza followed it up with a side kick, of which Jellal ducked and pivoted as Erza was spiraling down with her two blades again. Jellal zoomed to his left and evaded the double swing that crashed into the ground. He was faster than what Erza expected him to be.

"As we speak." Jellal said. "The Magic Council's headquarters is destroyed thanks to Ultear. I couldn't have done this without her. She said she would give her life away if it meant having my dream become a reality." He then jumped onto a piece of lacrima. "Oh yeah, I should thank her for being stupid enough follow through with my plan."

Erza lunged forward and had both swords over her head. "Curse you!" She then brought them both down and Jellal dodged as the lacrima ledge he was on was shattered. He jumped onto a higher piece of lacrima.

Erza looked up in anger. "I'm avenging those who were blinded by your ideals!" She then lunged at him again. "Jellal, I'll kill you!"

Jellal narrowed his eyes and Erza felt something crawling up her arms from her left shoulder blade. Her blades dropped in midair and she saw the dark red bind expand. "What?! What's going on with my arm?!" She shouted as she went to the ground and feeling the snake pattern expand lower until her whole upper body was starting to get coiled up.

Jellal pulled off a confident smile. "I simply placed a Bind Snake on you when we were emotionally embracing earlier." Jellal said. Erza felt the snake tattoo then tighten, she let out a scream as she was being confined to being immobile. She yelped a lot as she was unable to break free, which only made it worse for her, which led to her yelping some more. Jellal then walked forward towards her. "Now that I have the Magic energy required, I still need one more piece of the puzzle."

Erza's mouth was open as the pain continued to escalate. Now she was like a helpless frozen doll. Jellal stopped in front of her. "This is where you come in, Erza." Jellal said. "The Magic energy within the lacrima itself must be fused with the very body of my sacrifice. When that happens, your flesh will break down and reconstruct itself to become Zeref!" He then held up a hand and a big lacrima piece arose from behind Erza that was flat on one side, which was where she would be going in by. With a devilish smile and creepy gaze, he shoved her in.

"GAH!" Erza screamed even more now as her body was being consumed by the lacrima. Her head, parts of her legs, and her right arm were still sticking out.

"You know." Jellal said towards a helpless Erza. "I did love you, but love is nothing but a fool's bliss."

Erza was very slowly being sucked in. "No! Stop!" She shouted with whatever breath she had. Jellal turned around and raised his arms, not hearing a word she said, nor paying any heed.

"Oh great and powerful Zeref!" Jellal shouted with closed eyes. "I call upon you and offer you this woman's body!"

Erza was going even deeper now, only having the front part of her head out. "Don't!" She pleaded, but Jellal ignored her. She had a tear swell up in her left eye as she begged for Jellal to stop. "Please, JELLAL!"

Jellal was still unmoved, but then he felt something come at him. He flashed open his eyes and turned around as Natsu was trying to swat at him with a flaming fist. Jellal leaped away and saw Nic pulling Erza out of the huge lacrima.

Erza opened her eyes and found that Nic was pulling her out with him doing so by hugging her upper body. Erza was wide eyed when she found Natsu keeping Jellal away while Nic got her out and to safety.

"Erza's coming with us!" Natsu said with a grin.

"You won't even lay a finger on her!" Nic stated with a less happy expression, rather more serious. Jellal watched emotionlessly as Natsu reared back towards Erza, who Nic gently put her head on his lap.

Erza looked up over her head and saw Nic with a small grin on his face. "Nic." She said.

Nic kept his grin and leaned down towards her. "Everything's okay now Erza." Nic assured. "We're here for you."

_As Nic and Natsu were racing up the tower, they saw a strong light come down. Nic was speeding to get to Erza as fast as he could with Natsu following just behind. The two _

"_Erza!" Nic roared, desperately wanting to get to her in time so that she wouldn't be hit with the Etherion. If Erza were to be destroyed by either the Etherion or Jellal, lord knows what Nic would do; whatever it is, it would probably mean everyone around was gonna pay the price._

"_We're coming Erza!" Natsu shouted from behind as the light got brighter. Everything then flashed and Nic and Natsu both stopped where they were as they were blinded and they were feeling everything around them morph._

_They both dropped to the floor, feeling everything was spinning for a bit before regaining their thoughts. When they both used their hands to get up, they noticed that the ground was smoother and felt like crystal rather than fabric or rock._

_The two had a hand on their heads, feeling as though they were hit hard by a freight train._

"_Man, what the heck just happened?" Natsu murmured. He slowly looked around and found that the place had changed._

_Nic was the first one up, with him gripping onto a lacrima piece to get up. "I don't know what this is." Nic stated. "But my guess is that this tower must have absorbed the blast or something and became a huge crystal lacrima or something." He said._

_Natsu then arose, looking out and up. "Yeah…"_

_Nic then turned towards him. "Hold it!" Natsu turned his head back at him. "If we survived, then maybe Simon and Erza did as well!"_

_Natsu stepped in shock. "Yeah?!"_

"_We're coming Erza!" Nic shouted. "We'll save you, no matter what!"_

Natsu knelt down towards her. "Man, why are you hanging with this jerk?" He asked, referring to Jellal. "If we don't hurry, Lucy ain't gonna pay her rent. You don't wanna frustrate her." He teased, although he also knew that Nic's frustration could be far more worse if not for him comforting Erza.

Erza head was on Nic's lap and she looked at Natsu. "Sorry guys, but I can't move." She said. Even though the Bind Snake wasn't on her anymore, she was still unable to get up, leaving her open for Natsu to get a little payback.

Natsu had a devilish grin on his face as he then started to tickle Erza, making Nic blink at his actions.

"Hehe! This is for bossing us and always hitting us from before!" He smirked as he continuously tickled her feet, under her arms, and the sides of her abdomen.

Erza was starting to break out in a laugh and she couldn't help but let loose her laughter as Natsu relentlessly tickle her. She was tearing up from laughter and couldn't do anything about it. Her laughter and her reactions to being tickled made Nic go wide eyed and made a slight blush. He then raised a brow with a sly grin.

'_Hm, I'll keep a mental note to tickle her sometime.' _Nic thought.

"T-thi-hisn't the-e- time! Quit it! Gahahaha! Stop stupid! Gahahaha!" Erza laughed with a smile. Natsu eventually stopped and Erza turned towards him, with her head still resting on Nic's lap. She then turned up towards Nic.

"Natsu, Nic." She said, getting serious. "You two have to leave."

Nic grabbed her head gently and placed it onto the ground, allowing himself to stand up next to Natsu.

"We ain't leaving you Erza." Nic said. "There is absolutely no way you're talking us out of this."

"I'm with him on this one." Natsu said with hands on his sides. "We didn't come all this way just to leave you. If you can't fight, then we'll do the fighting ourselves!"

"You two can't." She said. "He's far more powerful than I have thought. You two don't even know anything about him."

Natsu and Nic stepped forward towards Jellal, still looking with their bodies turned towards Erza. "Who says we have to know him to beat him?" Natsu asked.

"Yeah. I beat Jose, and the only thing I knew about him was that he was a douche." He then turned towards Jellal. "It's no different from this guy."

Erza started to tear up in her left eye again. "Please guys, do it for me."

Natsu then proceeded to reach down so that he could possibly knock her out, but Nic held an arm out to stop him. Natsu backed away and turned towards Jellal while Nic himself was crouching down towards her.

"Erza." Nic said. "Listen, this guy made you tear up. He made the very woman we care for cry. I ain't letting him get in away with what he did." He said it all so calmly and Erza was shocked to hear Nic saying that he will never let Jellal escape because he made her cry. Nic got back up and turned. "Erza. You did your part, now we're going to do ours. We're stopping Jellal for your sake."

"Nic, please don't-."

Nic turned towards her. "JUST SHUT UP AND LET US DO THIS!" He shot dark glares at her that almost instantly paralyzed her on the spot. Erza gasped and was wide eyed when Nic lashed out like that. She lost her breath as she didn't know what to do. It was clear that Nic _desperately _wanted to do this for her and her only. Erza had no more say, and all she could do was remain immobile.

"…alright…" She muttered with soft eyes. Nic grinned and turne his attention towards Jellal. "…just be careful Natsu and Nic." She then fell silent as she watched the two proceed.

Natsu and Nic both advanced a couple of paces and stopped, but clenching their fists so hard that their knuckles were cracking.

Jellal smirked. "Well, well, two-on-one? That seems a bit much, don't you think?" Jellal joked. Natsu remained still and Nic was doing the same.

"Look buddy." Nic said, spreading his legs slightly. "You did an unholy thing…you've made a goddess cry." Erza slightly blushed as Nic said this. Nic then shifted into his Flame Plate and his body was engulfed in flames. Natsu had flames in his fists.

"Look pal." Natsu said. "I look up to Erza. You're the one who was making her voice tremble in fear. That's not the Erza I know. I can say in place of Nic and all of Fairy Tail that Erza's a strong warrior." Veins then popped out around his eyes and the heat intensified around him as he looked angry.

"If you wanna get to her, you'll have to kill us first!" Nic snarled his sharp eyes of fury. "Time for payback."

Jellal held up a hand in readiness. "I see, the great Salamander and Luminous, this will be interesting." He smiled, hoping for one heck of a show down. "Let's see what a Dragon Slayer and a mystery can really do."

The ground underneath Natsu burned and smoke had arisen. He then lunged at Jellal first with Nic following behind. Natsu used his Fire Dragon's Iron Fist to strike, but Jellal used his hand to deflect as he side stepped and watched Natsu fall forward. He turned his gaze and Nic came at him with a Blaze Kick, of which he blocked with his left arm and deflected. Nic spiraled in the air and land on his two feet. Natsu turned around and was crouching just like Nic.

"**Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow!" **He shouted, having his right elbow light up and lunge at Jellal from his right side.

"**Flame Charge!**" Nic shouted, cloaking himself in flames. The two went at Jellal from both sides and Jellal jumped into the air to avoid them. Nic managed to use his reflexes and used Natsu's elbow as a springboard before it could hit. Nic lunged into the air and struck a shocked Jellal in the jaw, making him fall back. "Now!" Nic shouted.

Natsu turned his body towards a falling Jellal and sprung forward with his flaming feet. "**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" He then did a spiral flame kick on Jellal's back and he smashed into a lacrima piece behind him.

Both Nic and Natsu reeled back as Jellal was obscured by some dust from the blow. Two seconds later, he leaped from the spot and was in the air. "I hope you two can do better than that!" Jellal shouted in the air, which prompted Nic to lunge up with Flame Charge again and Natsu shooting up with his flaming feet propelling him. Natsu scored a clean punch towards Jellal's gut and Nic rammed his upper body, making Jellal gag slightly. He then sailed up even more into the air by an extra fifteen feet.

Nic grabbed Natsu's forearms and did a whole three-sixty spin in midair. "Let him have it!" Nic shouted as he threw Natsu towards him.

"With pleasure!" Natsu shouted, flaming his fists again. Jellal recovered from his momentary shock and was too late when he was struck by a fast punch to the face and he soared back downwards and crashed into another large lacrima.

In midair, Natsu inhaled a heap of air. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

Nic landed on the ground and stepped forward and unleashed his flaming attack. "**Flamethrower!**" The two attacks combined and created a vast and rather large stream of intense fire that blasted Jellal as he was dislodging himself from the lacrima. He was engulfed in a burning explosion that covered everything in front of the two flaming contenders. There was also some dust in the process that flew about insanely.

The two waited to see if Jellal was going to make a counterattack, but they only saw the fire slowly burn away, only having Jellal's cloak destroyed. He lashed his arm, ridding the flames and his cloak, revealing him in a sleeveless shirt. He had a grin on his face and he didn't at all fazed by their onslaught of attacks.

"Is that the best you two can really do?" He sneered. "I had expected much more from you two, considering your reputations."

Natsu got into a more defensive stance while Nic shifted into his Zap Plate.

"This guy isn't joking." Nic muttered.

Jellal had a hand up and clenched it. "I was hoping to witness your destructive behaviors combined, but I guess I should start ripping you two apart if that's all you got."

Natsu then started running towards him. "I'll show you!"

Jellal's eye then had that strange dark pattern emerge again, and his body had a yellow aura outlining him. "You two shall be punished for disrupting the ceremony. My Heavenly Body Magic is unmatched." His eyes then flashed. "**Meteor!**" He shouted.

Just as Natsu lunged and fire a fist, Jellal jumped at high speed and sailed like a mach speed comet past Natsu. Natsu was surprise to see him moving so fast.

Nic was just as surprised. "This guy is faster than Jose." He said. "He might have Speed on par with a Swift Swim Floatzel or max Speed Ninjask." Nic then braced himself, able to see a glimpse of Jellal before being hit head on by Jellal's yellow aura body. Nic skid back a few feet before Jellal zoomed behind him and struck him there. Nic yelped as he fell forward, and then then Jellal reappeared in front of him and struck him with another blow into his abdomen.

Nic yelped, but he did manage to grab Jellal's hand in time, shocking him. He held on tight as he used Thunderbolt and shocked Jellal.

Jellal yelled as he was shocked harshly. Afterwards, Nic shoved Jellal away, watching him stumble back a few paces and then Nic lunged forward with a Thunder Punch. Jellal used Meteor again and evaded Nic's attack by zooming left and hitting him with his leg onto his side, making Nic fly towards his right and hit a lacrima piece.

"Nic!" Erza yelped.

Jellal then flew in the air, evading an incoming stream of fire from Natsu in a flash. Now Jellal used lightning quick moves and hit Natsu in the back first, making him fall forward, just like Nic. Jellal then did a changeup as he reappeared over Natsu and stomped him into the lacrima ground, making a small crater. Jellal then reappeared here and there, just waiting for the two to get back up.

Nic dislodged himself and began running towards Natsu to regroup. Natsu did the same and the two were shocked to see Jellal reappear in front of them both and smirking.

"Too slow." He teased as he elbowed Natsu, but his swinging arm missed Nic as he ducked and used an upwards Thunder Punch that was able to hit Jellal, but just barely. Jellal's chin was grazed by the upward attack and he stepped back as the two were coming at him, but then disappeared by leaping super fast and evaded a flaming fist and a Spark.

"Drats, he's faster than I imagined." Nic growled. They both saw Jellal just shifting about in the air and the two were running side by side as they were trying to keep up with Jellal, although Nic could possibly do that since his team was nothing but fast to begin with.

"I'm gonna have to use all of my senses." Natsu said, closing his eyes. He was using his nose, smell, hearing, and feeling to indicate as to Jellal's next move. Nic was keeping his mind as calm as it can be so that he can feel Jellal's next attack. The two then had an indication and Natsu ignited a fist and pivoted.

"Gotcha!" Natsu shouted, turning around and Nic doing the same. Nic readied his own Thunder Punch, but the two missed Jellal, but barely. Though they did get a lock on him, they were still unable to match his Meteor speed.

'_Is he getting faster?!' _Natsu thought, regaining his footing in front of him.

Nic turned around the next second to see Jellal reappear in front of him, with Natsu turning around as well. Jellal was smiling with glee on his face. "Glad you got your hits in?" He sneered. "Enjoy them while you still can!"Jellal then started punching at high speed with his fists and relentlessly delivering blow on a defenseless duo. Natsu yelped and Nic felt every blow. The two were continuously being pummeled with no end.

'_Gah! Gotta hit the brakes on this guy!'_ Nic thought between punches. Even though it was a risky move, Nic did manage to use Spark and cover up his body in electricity. Jellal then punched Nic in the chest and was dealt with a shock to the body. Jellal yelped and reeled back to see Nic still standing and Natsu on one knee. Nic turned towards his flaming pal. "Hey, Natsu!" Nic shouted.

"I'm alright." Natsu grumbled.

Jellal got his smile back and floated into the air above with his yellow aura shining ever so brighter than before. "Now." Jellal said. "I'll show you the true force that I wield." He then soared into the air and conjured up seven seals from having both his arms overlap, with his top one only having two fingers while the bottom had all five. The seals then created a constellation of sorts. "Let's go! **Grand Chariot!**" The seals then unleashed a powerful light blast that went straight at them.

"Oh crud! Natsu!" Nic shouted, but Natsu had clenching his gut from that continuous onslaught earlier. "Damn. Fine, I'll have to weaken the impact somehow." He muttered, seeing them zoom in faster than he expected. "I hope this works! **Fiery Dance!**" Nic then summoned waves of fire all around him and he spun about a few times, having the flames scatter about with sheer force behind the flames themselves. The flames scattered and collided with the Grand Chariot that was sailing down towards the two and hits of explosions happened on the spot. The small explosions were a mixture of light and fire. Even after that, the spell continued to rain down, but the blasts were much smaller than from before and struck the ground in the same shape as the constellation. Nic and Natsu both screamed as they were caught up in the blasts and a massive explosion of light engulfed them.

"Nic! Natsu!" Erza shouted, still unable to do anything but watch. Seeing the two getting themselves hurt was too much for her to handle, especially since Nic was being outspeeded by Jellal. She was wide eyed and grunted when a large dust cloud obscured her vision for three seconds before seeing them both again in the air. The two had indeed taken the hit and the result was them being blown into the sky and fell down. Natsu and Nic both yelped as they fell and the two crashed into the ground. "No!"

Natsu was lying down on the ground and Nic was on a knee, heaving heavily. "He's…tougher than Jose." Nic heaved, He looked over and Natsu was twitching, meaning he was still god to go.

Jellal looked on, rather surprised to see them still in one piece. "Well now, that spell is as destructive as a meteor itself." Jellal informed. "Surprised you were able to weaken and still survive the blast Nic and Natsu."

Nic wasn't feeling much after that big hit, but at least he felt pain, meaning he was still alive.

"I suppose I overdid it." Jellal said, now turning towards the ground. "The R-System can't take anymore damage. The Magic is beginning to leak out."

Nic then gasped, now sprouting forth a plan from what he had just heard. _'Wait! If he needs the tower to be intact, then…' _He slowly turned towards Natsu, how was trying to push up.

Jellal had turned towards Erza, which meant they were in the clear for this next move. "Natsu, you still kicking?" Nic whispered.

Natsu rolled his head and turned slowly towards Nic. "Yeah." He muttered, now on a knee like Nic.

Both were panting, but were getting their breaths back gradually. "Listen." Nic said with a grin. "Let's do what Fairy Tail does best. Break stuff."

Natsu let out a grin and the two saw Jellal move towards Erza. "Now, let's make you a sacrifice Erza." Jellal said. Erza grunted and a small tear was beginning to come from her left eye.

"No." She muttered. Jellal then was getting closer and then he stood frozen when he heard a large crash from behind. He quickly turned to see Natsu punching the ground hard and cracking it. Nic then had some crystal lacrima fly about when he made his own crater with a Thunder Punch to the ground, making it crack up as well.

"What are you doing?!" Jellal demanded.

Nic and Natsu both looked up and grinned. "What's it look like pal?" Nic sneered. "We're breaking this thing!"

"Come on." Natsu said, now proceeding up to his feet. "Us Fairy Tail Wizards just love to destroy stuff!" He then ignited his fist and glared. "I'm really fired up now!"

Nic rose to his feet and he smirked, shifting into his new Icicle Plate. "Let's but this bozo on ice." He now had an icy aura emanating, ready to freeze the pants off of Jellal.

Jellal was looking very mad as he engulfed himself in his yellow aura. "DO NOT INTERFERE!" He demanded. He made a large Magic seal in front of him and he blasted forth at them with light spears. Nic and Natsu began darting at him, dodging the spears and the two leaped.

"**Ice Beam!**" Nic shouted. He then opened his mouth and shot forth a light blue beam at Jellal. Jellal jumped back from the beam that was beginning to make ice in the way and leaped into the air, which left him open for Natsu to deliver a fast and powerful blow to his face with a flaming fist. Jelled grunted and crashed into the ground. Nic and Natsu both landed on the ground and both readied for whatever Jellal might throw at them. Jellal did the same spell again, but it would prove ineffective.

"**Blizzard!**" Nic yelled. A huge blast of wind and snow then shot at the spears of light with such a wide range and collided with them, ultimately freezing them and shattering them as the Blizzard passed through.

"You annoying fool!" Jellal shouted, now unleashing a huge ball of light at the attack. The massive attack then collided with the Blizzard. The ball of light and the Blizzard was creating massive and cold winds spreading about uncontrollably as the two attacks failed to push back the other.

"Nic!" Erza shouted, worried about him.

Finally, the two attacks gave in and they both dispersed, leaving no one damaged. Jellal grunted as his attack was actually cancelled out.

"Haha! What's the matter, afraid to break your precious tower?!" Natsu taunted as he dashed towards Jellal.

Jellal yelled as he used another giant ball of light and shot it at Natsu. Natsu was soaring back in the air and Nic leaped to put his hands out and shove Natsu forward.

"**Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**" Natsu shouted. He brought two massive flames from both hands together and made a huge fireball that he hammered into the ground. Natsu roared as he smashed the ground and shattered lacrima all around in powerful fire.

"**Icicle Crash!**" Nic exhaled a strong icy wind from his mouth into the air and in midair the wind froze and a dozen heavy and sharp icicles smashed into the ground along with the flames, shattering the ground even more and puncturing large amounts of lacrima around.

Erza looked to see what they were doing as she was now beginning to move again. She got to her knees and watched them continue. "Wait…they're aiming for the tower." She said, realizing just now what they were up to.

The fire dispersed and the icicles were dispelled. The two then crashed and left large craters in the ground in accomplishment. Natsu grin heavily, satisfied to see the shocked look on Jellal's face.

"We're not done yet pal!" Nic said, lunging forward with Jellal having his guard cut off from that sudden combined attack. Nic was in front of him and created a few light blue balls of energy that crystalized into ice. He then launched his Ice Shard at such a close range that each shard crashed into Jellal with perfect accuracy. Jellal yelled as he soared back and tumbled into the ground with a thud.

Nic jumped back to Natsu's side and the two grinned, but Nic grinned less heavily. "You give up pal?" Natsu said.

Jellal slowly got up, now over his previous shock and clenched his fists. He growled, infuriated that the tower was becoming useless at this point, and after all of his hard work. "Now you two have really made me angry!" Jellal announced, clenching even tighter than before. "I didn't spend all these years building this lace just so some punks would tear it down! Zeref will be resurrected and you all won't stop me!"

"Oh yeah, well it looks like we're proving you wrong pal." Nic said with crossed arms.

Natsu was catching his breath, still a little more exhausted than Nic. "Heh, can't say we didn't warn ya." He said.

Erza watched with shaken eyes as the two were still standing. _'Natsu, you can barely stand. And Nic, I can't believe you're doing this all for me.'_

Jellal wasn't gonna take this anymore. "YOU'LL PAY!" He shouted. He crossed both of his hands in the shape of an X and a large yellow seal was made. From that seal, a super strong wind was conjured up, forcing Erza to cover up while Nic and Natsu both tried to stand their ground.

They all then saw their shadows going towards the lights, much to their shock.

Erza gasped. "What's going on?"

"Gah! What's with this guys Magic?!" Natsu shouted. "It's making me sick!"

Nic felt weird too. He still looked down and saw his shadow being swallowed up. "Just what is he-?!" He looked up and was wide eyed when he saw a black hole over Jellal. "…oh crud."

"PREPARE FOR THE END DRAGON SLAYER AND NIC!" Jellal yelled. The wind itself was now being sucked in and massive Magic energy was being made from within.

"That spell! It'll kill them both!" Erza shouted. With whatever instincts she had, she raced up towards them. "NO!" She then got in front of Nic and Natsu, much to Natsu and Nic's shock. Nic's heart almost stopped when Erza spread her arms out. "Don't Jellal! Unless you want to kill me too!"

"Erza!" Nic shouted.

Her eyes were still shaking, but she remained still. She wouldn't budge as Jellal gasped. He needed his sacrifice, so he eased the spell, now having everyone's shadow behind them again.

"You don't wanna lose your sacrifice, do you?" Erza taunted.

Jellal still had his position still, and he didn't undo it. "Yes, that you be a problem. The body needs to be strong, much like a Wizard Saint…however…I can find another! You're not the only one!"

Erza was shocked to hear that she could be replaced, and was even more stunned when the spell reactivated, making everyone's shadow and the wind all around getting sucked into the black hole that was made again.

"I'll find a replacement after your death!" Jellal shouted. The black hole was continuously expanding, gradually gaining even more power.

"What are you doing?!" Natsu shouted.

Erza kept facing the black hole and smiled. "It's my fault you two are in this mess. The least I can do is save your lives!"

"ERZA! GET OUT OF THERE!" Nic shouted. "WE CAN'T LOSE YOU!"

"Die! **Altairis!**" The black hole then became an orb that was heavily dense and he shot it at them. As he did, the orb's gravity practically crushed the ground beneath it, making a path as it was sailing at them.

"ERZA!" Natsu and Nic shouted. Nic raced towards Erza and she covered herself up, preparing for her demise. Nic was just by her side when the orb was about to touch her.

Then the blast didn't touch them. A large white seal was in front of them, and Simon stood tall with his arms out, taking the blast himself to save Erza.

Everyone there gasped in shock that it was Simon who was taking the hit. Erza was wide eyed and Nic's mouth gaped.

"Simon!" Nic screamed. Simon grunted continuously as he was being engulfed by the large assault. After a few moments, there was a massive explosion that rippled about that destroyed a large piee of the top they were on, scattering dust everywhere.

Nic, Natsu, and Erza were frozen in deep shock that Simon was still standing after that devastating hit. Part of his scarf was heavily torn up and his body had suffered extreme damage, showing endless bruises.

"It's you." Natsu murmured.

Erza was so still that she was like a statue. She saw only the images of Rob that she flashed back to. The same stance from when he risked his life to save her that time, now it was happening again. Erza's eyes were all swollen with water as she saw Simon now taking a possibly final hit.

"Simon." Erza said. Simon grunted and looked up.

"I-I did it…to save you…" He muttered before falling onto his back.

"Simon!" Erza shouted, racing past Nic's side and towards her fallen friend. Erza grabbed Simon and knelt down to him.

Jellal took a few steps forward. "Hmph, didn't know you were still around. It seems that there was a worm still squirming about after all." He said with disgust.

Nic and Natsu then both raced towards Erza's side and looked over Simon. They were both kneeling down.

"What the hell Simon?!" Erza shouted with eyes still the same from when she saw Simon take the hit. "Why didn't you leave?!"

Simon was breathing heavily, looking rather hazy in the eyes. "P-Please…don't cry." He muttered under his breath. "I would…happily give my life…for…you." He then coughed tremendously.

"Simon!" Nic shouted. "What were you thinking?!"

"Simon!" Erza had a tear in her eye that was swelling up immensely. "Stay with me, don't talk."

Simon didn't listen as he continued to talk. "You were…the only person…to make me…smile."

"Don't talk." Erza shouted. "Please…" Simon rested his head back and his breathing was starting to slow down.

"Don't you dare die on us." Nic said, now getting a bit of tears in his eyes as well. "Simon, you made it this far, we can't lose a friend like you."

Simon breathing was getting slower and he coughed, now turning towards Nic slowly. "N-Nic." He muttered. Nic leaned in and had some tears in his eyes that were just as bad as Erza's. "Nic…I know...just how you feel…about Erza." He said, shocking Nic. "I knew…when you left…to find Natsu…she was worried…"

"Simon!" Nic and Erza consecutively said.

"Stay with us buddy!" Ntsu said. "Don't you dare leave us!"

"Nic…promise me…you'll protect her…no matter what…" Simon muttered. Nic was gritting his teeth, now holding in whatever gasps that might possibly come out.

Nic was all shaken up and couldn't find anything to say. Erza knelt closer and she was tearing up terribly.

"…I…I promise." Nic muttered under his breath. Simon then slowly shifted his gaze towards Erza, now seeing the girl who he loved from all those years ago up to today. He saw the sweet eleven-year-old that he could never hurt.

"Simon!" Erza shouted. Simon then had closed his eyes very slowly.

"Erza…I've always…loved you…" he muttered before finally closing his eye and having a tear fall down. With a small smile, he started falling out of Erza's arms. Erza was wide eyed and was breaking down as Simon fell slowly and onto the ground. Simon had died.

Erza was tearing up insanely and was mentally breaking down. She lost a dear friend right in her arms. He was gasping insanely and she was crying so hard. Nic and Natsu both reeled back up to their feet, with Nic finally composed and having tears fall before his expression became that of Natsu's - frozen.

"NOOOOOOO!" She shouted into the sky at the top of her lungs. She then cried on her dead friend's body and was unable to do anything else.

Jellal was chuckling at the site. He then started to escalate into a laughter. He face palmed himself. "Just how stupid was he?!" He laughed. "What a fool! His death isn't going to change a thing! Simon died, but he should've known that none of you would've lived to begin with-!"

"SHUT UP!" Natsu roared, suddenly swatting Jellal out of the blue with extreme fury. Jellal crashed into a huge lacrima and yelled as he felt the pain.

Then he saw another attack coming from Nic. "**YOU!**" Nic monstrously roared as he rammed into Jellal with an insanely massive Wild Charge, catered by him shifting into his Zap Plate again, cloaking his body in harsh electricity. He crashed into Jellal with far more force than what Natsu's punch did. Jellal smashed through the huge lacrima and crashed and created a massive crater in the ground. He gagged even more and yelled.

Nic had sparks around him, taking recoil, but no pain, for he only felt enraged. "**You monster!**" He roared as he unleashed an Electro Ball at high speed and threw it at Jellal. Jellal was wide eyed and he quickly recovered and rolled towards his right and leaped away, avoiding the explosive electricity.

Jellal regained his footing and grunted from the momentary pain. "Drats, what the-?!" He, along with everyone else, saw Nic storming electricity all throughout the air. His eyes were light blue, and he bared his fangs as he screamed. As he screamed, even more electricity surged, rippling about through the Ethernano and cracking up the ground. Jellal stepped back in shock to this. "What is he doing?!"

Natsu reared back as he was dropping the Ethernano he was about to eat. This much force was never seen before. Natsu was still very mad, but he only saw the destructive force that Nic was unleashing. "What the?" Natsu murmered.

Erza looked up from her sorrow and saw Nic storming up power. They felt the ground quake as he was glowing with electricity was now giving off huge amounts of heat. "Nic!" Erza shouted.

Nic screamed to the heavens. "YOU'VE DONE IT NOW! YOU KILLED OUR FRIEND! GRAHHHHH!" Nic shouted. Now the heated up air was beginning to expand and now Nic was emanating swirling fire around him, signifying his rage. Nic continued to push on as the ground was now beginning to freeze, and then waved of ice spiraled around Nic as he kept screaming. The three types then began to go crazy and ice, fire, and electricity was engulfing the entire area. In the center, Nic was now in a glowing white dome that the three types surged from.

"Nic! Just what the hell are you doing man?!" Natsu shouted.

"PROTECTING EVERYONE!" Nic shouted. He gave one final and long shout as the light enveloped him, blinding everyone and the elements all turned into huge waves of light.

There was nothing but white and empty silence for a moment.

Nic felt his body in his normal state, he didn't feel any of his power surging and he flashed open his eyes with a loud gasp, much like he was coming up for air. He gasped harshly as he was composing himself.

Nic got to his knees and looked up at the black sky and heaved. He was regaining his breathing and he slowly began to turn his head down, revealing a scenery change.

"Wha…what the…" He said. He turned his head and slowly got to his feet. "Where am I?"

He was on a crystal ice floor that was layered with a very thin mist that only went up to his abdomen, but it was so thin that you could see through it no problem. Everywhere he turned, there were primarily ice crystals jagging up everywhere, and they were very large, much like the lacrima from inside the tower. There were hints of blue shining ice crystals here and there and he was in the center of a very large circle that had nothing but the mist and large spikes of ice here and there was flat ice for flooring all around. The sky was nothing but pure black.

The only thing he heard was just the silence. He turned, now composed, again, and looked about one last time. "Okay." He said with hands on his hips. "I'll bite, what just happened?"

"At ease Nic Pularis." A voice announced from nowhere. Nic stayed still as the mist cloud began to thicken and slowly form three huge mist clouds that he couldn't see through. The huge mist clouds were towards his sides and in front of him and then he heard large footsteps through the three mist clouds.

"We are not your enemy." Another voice announced. "We have come in service."

From Nic's right, a tall bipedal black dragon emerged from the mist cloud, creating a slight shake in the ground as it stepped out of the mist. It had red scleras and white irises and black pupils. The head was a thundercloud tip and it had a cone-like turbine for its tail that was lined with light blue.

"We came to help support your ideals." The black dragon said.

"We have come to help in the truth of your goals." Said another creature that emerged from the mist on Nic's left. This time, it was white dragon with blue scleras and black pupils. Its wispy mane reached all the way out that could resemble much like ears. Its tail was like a turbine as well, only it was covered in white and on the inside was heated orange and red.

Nic turned to both of them and they looked down at him. Nic was rather intrigued, knowing he went through something like this before.

Unlike last time, he kept a straight face. "Who are you?" He said.

"I am Zekrom." The black dragon said.

"And I am Reshiram." The white dragon said. "We have come to help you."

Nic was confused. "Help me? I don't even know where we are!"

Nic froze when he heard a third voice. "We are in your subconscious, here in this frozen landscape to enforce what must be done." The voice said. The ground thudded as Nic reeled back when he saw a less friendly creature come forth from the mist in front of him. It slowly crept out of the mist, revealing itself to be a dragon as well. Much like the other two, it was bipedal, but hunched forward. It had a blue head and snout and yellow eyes with no pupils. The covered up jaw had three teeth on both ends, and had two short arms that connected two its very bizarre wings that had two spikes each, though the right side looked damaged somewhat. Its conical tail had three spikes, though to Nic it looked like a damaged turbine.

When the creature fully stepped out, it glared at Nic, who gulped and got defensive.

"You may seek the path of light, young Pularis." The dragon said. "But you cannot rely on strength alone. I am Kyurem, and I am here alongside Reshiram and Zekrom."

Nic wasn't sure what to do. Was this a good thing, or a bad thing? If these dragons wished to help, then how can they be of any help at all if they were in his conscience? Nic was still processing what they were to begin with.

"Wait…" Nic then remembered an old tale he heard some time ago back in his world, about this place called Unova. He heard of some tale about these three Legendary Pokémon, about black and white, and one of ice. "…you're Legendary Pokémon, like Dialga and Palkia." He said calmly.

"Yes." Kyurem said. "We have come to grant you your wish, Nic Pularis."

"My wish?"

"The fact that you care so deeply about this Erza girl and the death of a friend, we had come to aid you in this time to seek justice as it shall be sought." Zekrom said.

"We shall not partake necessarily." Reshiram stated. "We shall give you our strength, so that you may further protect the universe."

"You already have the three Plates that make up for parts of our typing; that shall be an exception." Kyurem stated.

Nic turned in curiosity. "So what you're saying is that I'm getting new powers?" Nic asked, hopeful that they would comply.

The three stared down at him, all eyes on Nic.

"…tell us the truth." Reshiram said.

"And the ideals behind your truth." Zekrom added.

"Nic Pularis." Kyurem said. "You were chosen to be one with the Plates. What would you wish to do with this power?"

Nic stood frozen, thinking back towards his angry reactions. Nic stayed quiet as he wondered, looking down. He thought back through this entire experience.

"…What I would do?...I-I don't know." Nic said. "I wanted to avenge Simon and Erza…but looking back…I wasn't the big picture. I was caught up in my anger…I lost it as I saw her weep…Simon was a good man…he loved her, and without love, there would be no humanity." He then looked up at the three dragons and spoke. "I was too blind. I cannot only protect one person. I must save everyone I cherish my bonds with. I must do this for my pokémon, my family of Fairy Tail, for Simon, for Erza, for everyone. I won't tolerate humanity falling with such destruction. I will risk my life to protect those with my powers. I understand I cannot protect every single person I love and care for, but I will go down proving I would risk my life for family…that is what I shall-no! What I must do with this power bestowed to me. That is my answer."

Kyurem, Zekrom, and Reshiram all remained still, hearing out what Nic had just said. There was a long pause, with the dragons bearing down at Nic's determined face, now free of anger.

He awaited for them to respond. It took only thirty seconds, but after that, Kyurem lifted his head. "…Nic Pularis." He said. "You wish to save everyone and those who you consider family. Fairy Tail has changed you to be open…you shall be granted."

Nic gasped as he actually passed. He was given a chance to save everyone. "For real?"

"Yes." Kyurem announced. Kyurem and Zekrom, and Reshiram's bodies then slowly began to glow, with Kyurem glowing light blue, Zekrom glowing yellow, and Reshiram glowing red. The lights got brighter and brighter. Nic then heard Kyurem say something. "Good luck, Nic Pularis." And then the lights fused and enveloped everything.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in reality…**

"Gah, what is this light?!" Jelal shouted. Erza gasped as her eyes widened even more, not knowing what had happened to the guy who promised to Simon.

"Nic!" Natsu shouted at the light. The light soon began to slowly fade away. They all saw a faint image in the center that was giving off sparks of electricity and freezing the ground around him, creating stalagmites of ice.

They all unshielded their eyes as the light was finally gone. Jellal unshielded his eyes, only to find something that made him gasp in shock. Natsu and Erza both were at a loss for words for what they were seeing.

"What could that be?!" Erza said.

They were all seeing a figure that took Nic's place. He was a few inches taller and it had yellow eyes with sharp black irises and light blue pupils. Its face was bare and left alone. It had two wings that were put between its shoulders. The right wing was black and the base of the wing was similar to the ends of Kyurem's wings. The left wing was shaped like the right wing, but was colored like Kyurem's wings with the same base. It had the same humanoid structure, but the face was bearing short and sharp teeth that were visible as the large mouth was open. It had a yellow horn over the headpiece and the right half was black while the left piece was ice. It had black scales traveling down along the neckline and left the front part of the neck bare as the black scales converged on the chest. Its abdomen was bear with flesh, revealing a fairly toned body. The pants were a pure black with ice spikes on the knees. Slips of ice were seen traveling down the pants on both sides of the shin and stopped above the ankles, where the pants end. The shoes were now gone, revealing human feet that had black scales all over and had claws on the ends, with the middle toes crystal ice and seemingly larger than the others.

The right arm had black scales running along the top and leaving the flesh alone under the arm. The hands on that part was covered with black scales. The left arm was covered in a thick crystal ice that made the entire arm look like an ice gauntlet. The shoulder was frozen and the skin under the arm was left alone, but the entire and forearm was nothing but ice.

The now sleeveless coat was frozen with ice on the sides with crystal ice and jagged ice running down along the middle. The coat itself was black, with the underside being gray. At the base of the outer part of the coat, there were two circles, each separated by the ice that ran along the middle. One circle was crystal ice, and the other was an even darker shade of black. There was also a tail that reached from behind from under the coat. It was attached to the tailbone and reached out and was conical and had crystal ice as spikes that kept the long, black tail inside that curved up a bit and out. The tail itself was almost five feet long.

The creature stood still as the air was literally electrified and ice continued to rise from the ground as stalagmites. It let out a huge roar that unleashed even more blue electricity and the ice shattered all around, and a rippling shockwave engulfed the surroundings. Everyone covered up as ice and electricity and wind surged everywhere.

"**Legendary Force – Black Kyurem!**" Nic yelled, revealing himself to be the beast. He then glared at Jellal, of whom was stunned.

Jellal stepped back. "I can't believe this." He said. "He's transformed."

Nic roared much like Black Kyurem and shot an Ice Beam from his mouth. The blast of ice shattered and froze the ground as it was traveling towards Jellal, leaving a scattered trail of destructive ice. Jellal jumped in the air and Nic lunged at him whit his wings and soared into Jellal. His right arm's claws extended and glowed, via Slash. Jellal was wide eyed, seeing how much faster Nic was than before. He was then struck by Slash and Jellal crashed into a large piece of lacrima crystal that shattered. Nic then landed on the ground with a big tremor.

"H-He transformed." Erza said in deep shock that Nic actually powered up. She watched with surprised eyes as Nic was enveloped in blue electricity.

Nic turned towards his comrades. "Natsu." Nic said as the electricity expanded slightly. Natsu jerked up, stunned Nic called out to him. "Keep Erza safe. This is going to get ugly."

Nic was clearly the in control here, and Natsu could see it. He was mad that Jellal killed Simon and made Erza cry, and he did wanna help. He clenched a fist and held it up.

"If you think I'm letting you fight this one alone, you're mistaken pal!" Natsu shouted. Nic stared at Natsu, as did the latter.

"…very well then." Nic said. "We shall fight this together." Nic did not want to keep Natsu out of this fight, because he knew that Natsu would weasel his way eventually. Besides, he could use all of the help he could get. Natsu leaped to Nic's side and enflamed his fists.

"We're coming for you Jellal!" Natsu shouted as he propelled towards Jellal with fire.

"Natsu! Nic! Be careful!" Erza shouted. She was especially worried about Nic. She had absolutely no idea what would happen to Nic. She's never seem him like this before. Who knows what this will do to him afterwards.

'_Just what is this guy?!'_ Jellal shouted in his mind. _'His strength has surpassed dangerous levels!' _His thoughts of Nic's power were interrupted when Natsu was coming at him to a flaming kick. Jellal gasped and he pivoted right, letting the attack pass and he gave Natsu a downwards elbow strike into the ground.

His momentary smirk was short-lived when the corner of his eye caught a glimpse of Nic and saw a round of loops began circling him and fired a massive blue beam, via Dragon Breath. Jellal was hit by the side and he flew back. Nic's tail shined light blue and electricity twisted and turned as he flew towards Jellal and grabbed his shirt collar and threw him overhead, back to where Natsu was on his knee and saw Jellal open in the air.

"You made Erza cry!" Nic and Natsu both roared as they unleashed a combination of Dragon Breath and Fire Dragon's Roar. Jellal was hit head on and was enveloped in a blue and red explosion that send him upwards at an angle. Nic appeared in front of him as he looked and punched straight downwards. Jellal soared straight through the floor, shattering parts of it and huge bits of crystal lacrima falling. Nic soared downwards at high speed with his turbine tail.

He caught up towards a falling Jellal and used Slash and swiped at him and latched onto him, sending him crashing through even more floors and Jellal yelled insanely hard.

"You killed our friend!" Nic shouted. "You're not going to see the light of day after what you just did! I promised to look after Erza, and if you touch her, you're dead!"

Jellal opened his eyes and made a Magic seal. "Ask me if I care. **Meteor!**" Jellal then coated himself in light and raced past Nic and sailed up back towards the top. "Haha! Try and catch me now!"

Nic turned upwards and changed his trajectory. He lit up his tail again and he raced back up at a speed faster than Meteor. In a flash, Jellal hit in the guy by Nic, who was using Slash.

"Go down!" Nic roared as he ploughed Jellal straight through to the top again. Jellal yelled as hard as he could at the force behind Nic's abdomen-tearing Slash.

Nic and Jellal crashed straight through the floor that Natsu and Erza were on at the moment. Nic's surprise made lacrima fly everywhere, along with extreme and cold wind and electricity.

Natsu covered up and stepped back from the attack that sailed through the floor. Erza covered up and looked up to see Nic actually demolishing Jellal in shock. This power was like nothing she's ever seen.

"I-I WON'T LOSE!" Jellal shouted, still having enough energy after that attack. Nic stopped in midair and watched Jellal sail even higher, his abdomen envelope in bruises and cuts.

"To take an attack like that, you've got Natsu stamina!" Nic praised as Jellal grunted. _'He's more powerful than I have even thought! He must be an even greater Wizard Saint than Jose! His Defense is enormous!'_

Natsu charged at the high-sailing Jellal with his propelled flaming feet. Jellal saw Natsu and heaved a huge amount of air as he turned in midair and kicked him in the face. Natsu sailed downwards, but managed to land on his feet. Nic remained still into air as Jellal jumped off of a lacrima and even higher into the skies.

"I am destined to win and create a world for Zeref to rule!" Jellal shouted, showing signs of wincing. "He said I was the chosen one!"

"Who cares?!" Nic shouted. "Your dark ambitions will be your downfall!"

"SHUT UP!" Jellal shouted, unleashing spears of light at Nic and Natsu. Natsu dodged by leaping towards his left and leaping onto and off a lacrima.

"**Dragon Breath!**" Nic yelled as he was bounded by wind rings and shot forth an ongoing blue blast that effortlessly destroyed the oncoming assaults.

"You'll pay for your interference!" He was high in the air and created a golden seal that was very familiar. Natsu was wide eyed and so was Erza, as to where Nic narrowed his eyes.

"Why Jellal, why are you using the Abyss Break?! You'll destroy the tower that so many died for!" Erza yelled.

"I don't care! I can make another one in half the-!"

"**Dragon Pulse!**" Nic yelled from where he was flying. Nic opened his mouth and fire a multicolored dragon-shape beam that shot forth at the seal. The dragon end opened its mouth and smashed into the seal, ultimately making it explode.

Jellal screamed as the explosion made him soar ever higher and he had no balance in the air. "NO!" He shouted, then the pain came back to his abdomen and then clenched it, leaving him incapable as he started to fall. He looked and saw Nic flying insanely fast at him and right over him.

"You'll never learn what it means to be free!" Nic shouted. The ice spikes at the base of the wings then stretched back towards his tail, connecting it. Natsu and Erza both saw this as the blue chords attached began to generate extreme amounts of electricity and ice.

"With that spirit, you'll never live in the light like we do in Fairy Tail!" Nic roared. He put his claws together. In between the claws, a light blue-white ball surrounded by electricity became larger. "I won't let you hurt Erza ever again!" He separated his claws and aimed at a screaming Jellal. "**Maxus Legendary Arts – Freeze Shock!**" He then roared like an actual dragon. He then blasted the sphere with maximum force, rippling ice and electricity behind it as it crashed into Jellal. Jellal screamed at the top of his lungs. He was hit head on with the sphere from an upward angle. The Freeze Shock enveloped Jellal and it send him smashing and almost obliterating the top of the tower. The entire top's floor was electrified with air and the air actually froze when it was touched by the electricity. Jellal was send crashing down, and the floors of the tower exploded with ice and electricity, shattering everything that was touched after being shocked and frozen in half a second's time. Jellal reached the bottom in less than ten seconds, where the sphere exploded and the entire bottom of the tower had exploded in lightning and ice, making thunderous sounds that rippled about through the remains of the tower. There was electricity, ice, and smoke everywhere throughout the entire tower, and add the fact the tower quaked heavily.

When everything cleared very soon after, Jellal's body was seen with his mouth open in a deep crater at the bottom. His body, mainly his abdomen and parts of his face, was frozen. His left hand was frozen, and the rest of his body was in blue sparks that froze wherever and everywhere possible. It was hard to tell if he was dead, but nevertheless defeated.

Nic crashed onto the ground of the top and the top rippled with thunder sounds, and the air was rippling with a chill in it. Natsu and Erza looked in shock and amazement of what had just happened.

Erza's hair flew in the cold wind. She was too amazed for words as she cracked a smile. _'So.'_ She thought, seeing the wind die down and Nic standing affirm. _'This is Nic's power. This is the true power of Pokémon.' _

"Whoa…that's insane." Natsu murmured, still in shock. Nic's power was beyond comprehension.

Erza was smiling happily and she felt some butterflies in the stomach when Nic turned around and grinned. _'They beat Jellal. At long last, this eight year nightmare is finally over. Now Sho and the others can finally be free.'_ She thought happily looking down.

Sge was brought out of her happy thoughts when Natsu got to a knee from exhaustion and Nic dropped to his knees. When Nic dropped to his knees, his body shined a rainbow glow, and he transformed into himself again.

Erza saw Nic falling forward and she raced towards him. "Nic!" She shouted. She caught him just in time and found he was unconscious. That amount of power he used was tremendous, it exhausted his body. He was in Erza's arms and he held him with all of the care in the world. She felt her heart beat and her smile expanded into a loving embrace as she felt his heart beat. She held him and didn't dare let go.

"I never knew you had so much will to go this far for me and Fairy Tail, Nic." She said, resting her neck on his shoulder. "You're so amazing." She then snuggled a bit and Natsu grinned at the site. She then felt a slight blush engulfing her face.

"That Nic." Natsu grinned, amazed he had so much strength and never gave up to protect Erza.

Just moments later, the entire tower was beginning to quake and the ground was shining. Blasts of light then shot up from behind Natsu and around the others. Erza looked around, seeing that everything was breaking apart.

"The tower…" Natsu said. "…it's shattering."

"The Ethernano is becoming unstable!" Erza exclaimed, breaking apart from her embrace with an unconscious Nic. "We have to get out of here!" She turned towards Natsu. "Can you stand?"

Natsu arose to his feet, feeling wobbly. "Y-yeah. I can manage." Natsu said. He then went over as lacrima was falling and Erza had Nic's arm over her shoulder and Natsu was on the other side. They got to their feet and started to make their way into a direction out of the tower.

Erza turned and saw that Simon's body was starting to go into the tower, over a cracked edge. She was upset to see him go, but there was nothing that could be done. "Goodbye." She murmured before turning away as Simon fell into the darkness below. "Let's go." She shouted, trying to hold back tears. Natsu remained silent and did as told. Although there really was nothing that could be done, he still felt terrible watching Simon fall. They then started making their way, carrying Nic along with them.

They began speeding their way as fast as they possible could as the ground began to break. They were hurrying as fast as they could without getting hit by some Ethernano blast or falling debris. A blast from underneath came up from in front and Erza shoved the two others out of the way and she narrowly evaded. The three tumbled and hit the ground and Ntsu was havin trouble standing. He couldn't find his feet and he was in no condition to keep going.

Erza got to her knees and looked around, seeing the condition getting worse by the minute. "This isn't good." She said. "Nic's out, and Natsu can't stand. The Ethernano is becoming even more unstable than it has been. We'll be caught in the explosion." She gritted her teeth and looked down, desperately trying to find a solution out of this mess. Unfortunately, not a thing came to her mind. She pounded the ground. "No! I can't find a way! We're finished!" She then looked over and saw an unconscious Nic with a distasteful face. Erza took it as a sign. _'Wait, what would Nic want me to do?...I know. He would want me to keep going.' _She then grinned at Nic. _'It won't be easy guys, but I'll find a way out somehow.'_

She then got to her feet. "I can't believe I was doubting myself. I can't quit. I have to save Nic and Natsu's lives!" She turned and saw Natsu now breathing heavily and tired. _'Natsu, Nic, now I'll save you!' _She then began to think of a way, and she remembered what Jellal said. He said that her body would be one with the tower and infuse with the Magic energy. She gasped, knowing a way to stop the blast. _'I know now!' _She shouted in her head. She turned towards a big piece of lacrima. _'If I fuse my body with the Magic inside, I'll be able to redirect the blast!'_ She hesitated for a minute, thinking of Nic.

'_Nic…I'll save you.'_ She then slowly extended her hand inside the lacrima piece and she felt pain searing through her arm. She winced in pain, but she continued to slowly go in.

Natsu was finally catching his breath and Nic was regaining consciousness. Nic winced as he was beginning to open his eyes. He heard crumbling and shattering all about. He turned his head and saw Natsu on his knees.

"Natsu." Nic said. Natsu turned his head and saw Nic come around.

Natsu was now back to speed. "Nic. Glad you're still in one piece."

"Same…wait." Nic then went wide eyed and jerked back up. "Where's Erza?!" They both turned in shock as Erza was putting herself inside of the lacrima.

"Erza?" Nic asked.

Erza gasped and turned around. She went wide eyed when she saw Nic and Natsu up already. "Guys!"

The two stepped forward. "What are you doing?" Nic asked, rather looking unhappy with Erza, thinking she was doing something she would regret. "Are you? No! Don't go back inside that thing!" Nic demanded.

Erza didn't move. "I don't have a choice Nic. It's the only way you guys will live." She insisted.

"Erza, we can stop the Ethernano! There has to be another way!" Natsu shouted before the tower shook even harder.

Era grinned and stuck her arm in a little further. "It's the only option we have guys." She said. "If I fuse my body with the Magic energy, the tower won't explode." She then yelled in pain as her leg was being sucked in now.

"There's absolutely no way I'm gonna lose you again!" Nic shouted. Nic and Natsu both raced to her, but Natsu kept tumbling and Nic was army crawling at a fast pace. His body hasn't recovered from his Legendary Force.

"Don't worry guys!" Erza winced.

"NO!" Nic yelled as Erza's body was beginning to get sucked in. She yelled in even more pain as her whole body was off the ground.

"Don't do it!" Natsu shouted. The two then stuttered with everything they had and up towards Erza. They both slammed to the ground in front of her, with both heads looking up. Nic's heart raced and started to break when he saw Erza making such a sacrifice. His legs jerked him up and we stared wide eyed at Erza.

"Erza…please don't." Not pleaded.

"Nic." Erza said with a grin. "I have to…" With her free hand, she reached out and touched Nic's cheek. Nic stood frozen as he didn't know what to say nor do. Erza herself wasn't sure what she was doing, but this would be the only time she would ever get to say anything to him. "Natsu, Nic." Natsu looked up from the ground. "I can't imagine what my life would be like without Fairy Tail. It's an amazing place, full of heartwarming and happy people. If it wasn't for you or the others, I probably wouldn't be here. I hope you guys know how important you all are to me." She was almost beginning to stutter and she turned her attention towards Nic.

"Nic. I was so happy that I met you that day. I couldn't tell how happy I was to have gotten to know you. You're like a beacon of light that shines away all darkness. You've stuck your neck out for me. You protected me. I can't even begin to tell you how much that means to me." She began to tear up in her eye. "I'm gonna miss you."

Nic was frozen. He couldn't believe that Erza was actually saying goodbye. "…Erza." Nic muttered. She then let go of touching his cheek and she was pulled in further.

"I'm willing to make the ultimate sacrifice. I'll die saving you and everyone so that you all can live on." Her entire body was then engulfed in the lacrima, having Natsu and Nic go wide eyed even further.

'_Thank you for letting me live.' _She thought. Then she closed her eyes and allowed the lacrima to take her.

Nic's heart snapped.

The next thing anyone there saw, they saw Erza's body being thrown out of the lacrima and onto the floor next to Natsu. Erza landed with a big thud.

Natsu turned to her with teary eyes. "E-Erza!" Natsu shouted in shock she wasn't swallowed by the lacrima.

Erza rubbed her head and sat up. "What happened…?" She looked up and gasped deeply with wide eyes. Natsu then turned his head, and he too gasped in shock.

Nic was taking her place.

Nic yelped as he felt his legs and right wrist get pulled in. "Oh man! This _does _hurt!" She shouted. Erza gasped repeatedly as Nic was actually taking her place.

"No Nic, stop!" Erza shouted. "Let me do this!"

"No Erza!" Nic shouted. "Let me do this!" His left wrist was still free, but his arm was being sucked in. "I can't let you be sacrificed!"

Natsu was trying to stand, but had trouble. "N-No Nic!"

Nic's upper body was now being sucked in. "NO GUYS! DO THIS FOR ME!" He shouted. Natsu and Erza both froze in place, unable to comprehend Nic's motives. Nic let out a heap of air and grinned at them. "…You guys." Nic said. "You two are amazing. Natsu, you'll always get into fights. Battling alongside you was some of the highlights of my time with Fairy Tail. You're a strong warrior Natsu, and I know you'll find Igneel."

"Nic." Natsu said.

"Fairy Tail needs you both; without you two, Fairy Tail would never be the same." He said.

Erza then leaned forward. "But Fairy Tail won't be the same without you Nic!"

Nic nodded. "I know, and it breaks my heart leaving my rowdy and friendly family. You guys made me feel all welcome. Use me as an example. You don't die for your friends, you live for them." Nic said. "Erza, we would be shattered without you. We would never be happy again."

"Nic! Why are you doing this?!" Erza demanded to know.

Nic wanted to say something, but then he flashed back to Simon, and how he confessed before he died. Simon loved her and she was shattered when he died. Nic looked down. _'No.'_ He thought. _'There's no room for those words, it would hurt her too much.'_

Nic then thought of something else to say. He smiled as he was beginning to tear up again. "Erza…I pulled you out so that you could live on. I'm keeping my promise to Simon to protect you, no matter what. Sure I might die, but I'll die saving my friends and saving the universe, knowing that you and the rest could live." Nic then extended his hand and he reached for Erza's.

Erza gasped when Nic held her hand. He was smiling ever so peacefully. Erza was tearing up even harder now.

"Nic." Erza said. She felt his hands with hers. His hands were so comforting, so serene. She could've held on forever, but that wasn't going to happen.

Nic let a tear drop. "Erza…I was glad I got to have met you. Your smiles and your undying spirit is one of the traits I will never forget."

"N-Nic.." Erza felt her hand slipping as Nic was pulled in a little more, now only having his face and wrist out.

"I will always cherish the time we had. You're amazing Erza…and remember, you'll always be sweeter than any strawberry cheesecake."

Erza felt her heart break, hearing Nic saying those things. She truly loved all of that time she spend with him. She remembered the numerous times he lashed out, their battle, the bonding, the smiles. She was missing those already.

"Natsu. Erza" Nic's wrist was finally slipping. "I'll miss you guys too."

His hand and face finally got engulfed by the lacrima. Erza gaped and widened her eyes as Nic's hand was taken by the lacrima. Natsu himself felt some tears fall. Nic was now being taken away fom within the lacrima.

"NO! NIC! NIC! WE NEED YOU!" Natsu shouted, unable to do anything but pound at the lacrima. "ERZA NEEDS YOU! FAIRY TAIL NEEDS YOU!"

Nic spread his arms as his body began to glow from deep inside.

Erza got to her knees and yelled loud. "**NIC!**"

The lacrima shined very bright and flashed.

* * *

**With Happy and co.**

They saw everything through Juvia's dome. They saw massive explosions and everything throughout the area.

"What the heck is that?!" Happy wondered.

"I don't know." Gray said. "But either Nic or Natsu is really ticked off." They all then saw the tower floors exploding with ice and electricity. They all then saw that the tower was beginning to shake and pieces of it were beginning to fall off.

"What the heck is going on?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Oh man! That Ethernano is building up like crazy!" Wally exclaimed. "At this rate, it'll explode!"

"Explode?!" Happy shouted. "but what about the others inside?!"

Gray grunted and looked down. "There's no point going back." He said, though he really wished everyone inside did survive. Reluctantly, everyone did continue to a safe distance.

Everyone there was looking down and began to get all watery in the eyes. This was too much for them to take. They had to make sure everyone got out, they had to.

Lucy was beginning to sob in hopes and everyone was feeling just as upset.

They all then saw the tower glowing very bright. This was almost the end.

"Hold me!" Millianna shouted and squeezed Wally, much to his annoyance. The light then expanded and the Ethernano blast was shooting straight upwards.

"Hey guys, it's shooting into the sky!" Gray shouted and pointed out. Everyone looked to see that the blast was indeed shooting straight up into the sky!"

Lucy gasped heavily as she saw this. Then the tower unleashed a massive wave and wind all around. The entire dome then sailed away at high speed. Everyone yelped as the waves washed them away. Then the waves were dialing down, they all saw that the tower wasn't there anymore.

"W-Where the tower go?!" Happy shouted.

"NATSU! WHERE ARE YOU?!" Lucy shouted at the site of seeing the lacrima tower no more

* * *

**Sometime later…**

It was still night, with the moon shining bright. The beach sand was so soft that it was almost like a pillow. The waves washed up on the beach, where two people were lying down and started to come around.

Erza was the first one up, getting up to see that her feet was in the water and her upper body in the sand. She looked around, wondering what had happened.

Natsu then started opening his eyes and he jerked up, seeing that he too was on some beach.

He looked around. "Where are we?" He asked, seeing his lower body in the water like Erza.

"I don't know." Erza said. She looked around, trying to process the last thing that had happened. "What happened to begin with?"

Natsu stood frozen, thinking as to what happened. It didn't take that long before the memories came flooding back to them.

Erza jerked back to her feet, remembering what happened. She was wide eye and gasped to the remembrance of Nic sacrificing himself. Natsu gritted his teeth, but still didn't have the strength to stand. He growled, remembering exactly what Nic did.

"NIC!" Natsu shouted with fists. "YOU JERK! WHY DID YOU LEAVE US?!"

Erza then started breaking down, her knees into the water and she stared blindly outwards towards the sea. "No…Nic." She mumbled with shaken eyes. She was shaking up all too much, she had a tear falling from her face as she remembered Nic's words.

"_I will always cherish the time we had. You're amazing Erza…and remember, you'll always be sweeter than any strawberry cheesecake."_

Just then, from their right, the rest of the gang was running towards them. They all had big smiles on their faces and tears of joy in their eyes. They were all so glad to see them okay.

"Guys!" Lucy shouted. Natsu and Erza both jerked up, surprised that they were united yet again. She ran up and hugged Natsu tightly. Everyone around gathered towards the two.

"We're so glad you two are safe!" Lucy said, pulling away.

"You had us worried sick you flaming moron." Gray said.

"I gotta say, I was afraid you guys didn't…" Juvia stopped in mid-sentence and noticed that there was only two of them. She turned her head about looked, but no sign. "Hey, where did Nic go?"

Everyone else there noticed that Nic wasn't there. They all turned their heads, but no luck.

Gray turned towards Natsu. "Alright, spill it, where did Nic go?!" He demanded, holding Natsu by his shirt.

Natsu only gritted his teeth and he looked down. Gray raised a brow and noticed that Erza was tearing up again. Everyone was getting a bad feeling.

"Erzy?" Millianna asked. "Where's Simon?"

Erza then started getting back to her knees in the water and started breaking down again.

"…Nic…he…" Natsu started. "…he's not coming…"

Everyone around gasped and their happy expressions turned unhappy. What became joy became sorrow.

Happy had tears in his eyes. "No, what happened?" He asked Natsu.

Natsu clenched his fists and started shaking heavily. "That Simon guy died protecting us against Jellal. And Nic sacrificed himself to keep the tower from exploding." Natsu said with closed eyes. Everyone there was beginning to tear up even more.

Wally took off his hat. "Simon…"

Sho wasn't taking this well. He looked like we was making a waterfall from his eyes. "Simon…Simon!"

Millianna meowed sadly. Juvia looked down and began to tear up.

Lucy was sobbing and looked out to sea. "No way…he couldn't be…"

Erza screamed up into the sky. "Nic! You didn't have to do this for us! Not for me! Not for anybody!" She shouted. Afterwards, she started bawling again and weeped insanely hard, not taking his sacrifice all that well.

They all looked out to sea, eyeing the beyond that their two friends were in.

"Nic…" Erza muttered. "…I'll miss you."

* * *

**New record time! Two days with at least 16K! I was doing absolutely nothing all of Sunday but write this chapter.**

**I really hope you guys didn't mind the little change up I did with the fight scene. I had to get Nic some new power or something. Hope you guys enjoyed me adding Kyurem and the others. **

**Nic's Legendary Force was an idea I had back awhile ago, and now it's finally written. **

**I hope you guys enjoyed this one. To me, it was pretty good with the twist I added in the end.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the combat scenes and other stuff that took place.**

* * *

**Next Time: Emotions**


	18. Emotions

Chapter 18 – Emotions

**Insane Dominator is back and bringing you yet another chapter! Sorry for the wait, I just had my eventful senior prom and I'm trying to reorganize myself.**

** DeoxysSpeed: I'd never expected for people to actually cry while reading the previous chapter, that actually surprised me. I didn't mean to make you guys cry, but I guess it does reveal how powerful my FanFiction has gotten I guess. Thanks for liking the chapter. Sorry if I didn't write your full pen name, the Doc Manager wouldn't accept it, so I'll have to refer to you as DeoxysSpeed  
**

**DarkLord98: I had just looked up that manga when you mentioned it, and I never knew about the connection. I never even heard of that manga before, honestly.**

**Guest: It was rather heart breaking, but at least I know you guys enjoyed it. The Legendary Force was a pretty good asset I added to Nic's arsenal now. I'm not exactly sure when to have Nic do a White Kyurem Legendary Force, but my estimates are around close towards the end of the Oracion Seis Arc. As for Nic's name, Luminous, that was something on the spot, but if you look back you would see that he would finish things in a flash of light, like with Lullaby, The Nightmare, Jose, the Magic Bomb, and now Jellal and Nic's own sacrifice. If you piece it all together, that's how he got to be named Luminous.**

**magical fan18: I do intend on Nic utilizing more forms of his Legendary Force, but there has to be some development. That stuff will take a lot of time. I have no idea when, but more will come.**

**Okay people, it's time to finish up The Tower of Heaven Arc! I hope you all liked this Arc. I do plan on having this to be a 'reprieve chapter', meaning hardly any violence. I'm saving that for The Battle of Fairy Tail Arc.**

**Speaking of which, since we're practically there, I can say that that will be the Arc that Nic's last pokémon will be revealed. For now, just sit tight and kick back and watch the emotions happen!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon nor Fairy Tail, they belong to Satoshi Tajiri, Nintendo, and Hiro Mashima. I also do not own the OC that will appear in this chapter, she belongs to DeoxysSpeed.**

**To Recap:**

Erza and Jellal both confront the other until the Etherion fires, only to reveal the Tower of Heaven to be a lacrima. It was soon revealed that Seigrain of the Magic Council and Jellal were actually the same person. Jellal restrains Erza and was about to sacrifice her, until Natsu and Nic show up and do the rest of the fighting. They were doing well until Jellal uses Altairis, of which Simon used himself as a shield. Unfortunately, Simon dies, leaving Erza shattered. With anger and wanting to avenge Simon, and protect everyone, Nic summons orth power and briefly meets Reshiram, Zekrom, and Kyurem. The three bestow upon Nic their powers and Nic becomes Black Kyurem in his new Legendary Force. With that, he defeats Jellal. The tower soon begins to collapse, and Erza tries to sacrifice herself to restrain the Etherion. Nic loses it and pulls her out of a big lacrima, and he puts himself in. With a teary goodbye, he gets engulfed by the Etherion lacrima and shoots the Etherion upwards. Hours later, everyone is on the beach, mourning for Nic.

* * *

**Chapter 18 – Emotions**

Everything just happened in a flash, Nic had close his eyes, not knowing what was to become of him. All he could do was wait and see what things would look like in the next few moments.

There was an absolute silence brewing around him. His eyes twitched after so long. He was so still that he didn't know he could move again.

'_Am I still inside that cruddy lacrima?' _He mentally groaned. _'…no. I don't feel any pain. Does this mean…?'_ His thoughts had forced him to open his eyes, revealing him to be in a space that is all yellow with hints of white and orange. For the oddest reason, he felt bliss, and he wasn't sure why.

Was it because he managed to save everyone? Was it because he did a good thing and kept his promise to Simon? Nic couldn't understand it. He couldn't understand anything. Just where the heck was he?

Nic saw he was in his usual attire, not surprised, and he was drifting along the space he was currently in.

'_Oh right.'_ He remembered. _'I sacrificed myself.'_ Nic had a long moment of silence and he let out a sigh. _'Okay, let's see the damage I've done.'_ Just then, he gasped as everything went white and Nic was blinded for a few moments. When he opened his eyes yet again, he saw that there was a scenery change.

It was a gloomy day in Magnolia, the Kardia Cathedral cemetery was filled with the members of Fairy Tail all gathered in black attire. The rain was coming down on their melancholy expressions. Not a single person was smiling, not even Mira could crack a grin. Every single member of Fairy Tail had attended to this monument that resembled Nic quite a bit, though it was hard to tell if it was him. It was just some figure that had an orb in hand high in the air, as though it were to force darkness away.

Nic was feeling so light and so translucent that he felt like a ghost in the rain, of which he technically was. Nic looked and saw the flowers on the monument floor, as he also took a glance at the tears flowing down a multitude of faces. Elfman himself was trying to hold back a few tears, as was Gray and Lucy. He saw Cana pale, probably because she wasn't drinking a drop since his absence. Nic gulped, thinking how guilty it was to leave one of his closest Fairy Tail friends behind. Aside from Natsu, Happy, and Lucy, Cana was the one who he felt more in touch with. This reaches out towards the numerous occasions where they hid behind the bar as the guild rumbles about, though he suspected not a single punch was thrown because of this event.

He looked at the inscription on the stone:

NIC PULARIS

X7? – X784

FAIRY TAIL'S LUMINOUS

Nic looked at his own stone and frowned heavily. _'I see…Yup, I'm dead.'_ He accepted his fate, but he was far from happy. If anything, he regretted leaving everyone, but if he didn't do anything at all, Erza and everyone else might not be there today. He just floated about with crossed arms as he somberly watched his own funeral take place.

Master Makarov stood in front of everyone behind him and he looked upon Nic's monument. "Nic Pularis." He started. "His heart and his ever shining soul had touched many lives in his time of living. He not only touched us, but from his world, he has touched far more than maybe even we could fathom. His heart and fierce determination to save his comrades are as endless as time and space itself. His final actions reflected his love for those he would never see threatened."

Nic eyes lowered in hopelessness as he had to bear with Makarov talking about him. His frown drooped down and he started clenching his own arms. Still, what's done is done.

Makarov continued. "He moved at the speed of light, and fought with the ferocity and spirit of the wondrous beasts he had befriended back from his world. He has formed numerous bonds everywhere, and he had cherished them." Makarov began to choke on his words as he felt tears fall down his face. "It's a painful shame that this lone man symbolizes the concept that having love is a bliss, but losing it will render you useless." He was all shaken and he had several tears fall down his face. "Our Fairy Tail family will never be the same without its beacon of light…rest in peace Nic Pularis. We'll miss you for as long as we all live." He then turned and walked into the Fairy Tail crowd with his head down and crying.

Nic took in a deep breath and exhaled. _'Master…I'll miss you all.'_

Individually, every member of Fairy Tail went up towards Nic's monument and paid their respects with gasps in their teary breaths. Many knew Nic's time in Fairy Tail was ever so short, but the stuff he's done had far exceeded whatever they could do in their lifetime. Gray had said how he was lucky to have fought alongside a cool-headed brawler and to have met such a friendly and less violent person, unlike Natsu. Lucy was having plenty of tears fall. She said she would miss him, and that he helped her realize that family will never be harmed as long as they unit to protect those they hold dear. Happy slowly walked up when it was his turn and told Nic that he was so glad to have met such a joy, yet a monstrous individual. He said Nic kept his hopes high and he's never one to call quits. Elfman, Mira, and everyone else there had said such compliments that could make you tear up. Even Laxus had said something, though he only said something about his power could be better, but was still somewhat decent of him to say. Juvia was nothing but a puddle of tears by the time it was her turn. She thanked Nic for a lot of things, like saving her, proving you should never abandon your friends, and keep your hopes up.

Cana was next, and she was having a pale face with tears rolling down. "Nic, I have to thank you. You did seem like a great individual, and those times we avoided fights was an idea I never would have disagreed with. Without you around, I feel so empty around the bar, I couldn't drink at all. When I heard you died, I almost spewed up some of my booze. Not a single drop after that." Cana drooped her head. "Nic…please be safe wherever you are. I'm worried for my friend." She sniffled. "Please be in peace."

A few others went after her and they were going on about Nic, of whom was drooping with somber. _'Dang, I knew the consequences would be high, but I never expected so much sympathy before. I miss Fairy Tail already.' _He said to himself.

And finally, the last one up was none other than Erza. Erza was beyond devastated, and it was clearly shown by her swollen eyes from nonstop crying over someone who she had some feelings for. She was all shaken, and her face quivered, as though she was in a breakdown, which she kind of was.

She stopped and knelt down at his grave. "Nic." She said with her wet hair going straight down her back and over her shoulders. "Nic, I've never got to explain how I felt around you. I couldn't think at all. I was all jittery and felt my heart race as you smile. I wish I got to know you more Nic, because I feel happy whenever you're around me. You are truly the light that has brightened up my life. I can't imagine how devastated you would be if I was the one inside the Etherion." She paused and tears fell down her cheek. "Nic, when I first met you, I thought you were just some random and strong individual, but I was wrong. You're not random, you're luck. Your luck has spread about among us all. We had the luck of you. We were lucky, I was lucky to have met you…I-I'm so hurt right now Nic." She sniffled. "Nic…I learned a valuable lesson from you. You don't die for your friends, you live for them. Others lives would be unhappy without you, and it's true." She then drooped to her knees. "Nic, please come back to us. That's all I want now. It hurts so much…so much…"She had her face in her hands and sobbed. "I need you."

Nic wasn't sure what to say, though he couldn't anything anyway. Erza admitted that she wanted, no, desperately needed Nic to feel happy. Nic gritted his own teeth and shut his eyes. He gulped. _'Dammit, I've done harm! I knew all too well something like this would happen, but this was unbearable. What kind of person am I?' _He watched as almost everyone cried. Happy, Lucy, Cana, especially Erza.

He looked over in the far distance and saw fire raging about near the forest near Magnolia. It was without a doubt Natsu going on a rampage. He looked on as the fire blasted in all directions in the far distance. Who knows how long he was doing this? Accepting Nic's death was hard.

'…_I'm sorry guys. Really, I am. I had to do what was right. I know it was wrong to leave my family, but I wanted to save you all, and I've done my part the best I can.' _Nic had thought. He closed his eyes and choked a little. _'Erza, I'm sorry I did this to you. I'm sorry I did this to everyone…I don't want forgiveness, but I want to keep you all in one piece…'_

He then opened up his eyes again, now unable to see a teary Erza and everyone else. He was in that space of white with yellow and orange all about again, and he raised a brow. _'Am I going up to Heaven?'_ Just then, he saw a slowly expanding light from above. It started ever so small and began to grow, eventually engulfing the space itself.

'_What is this?' _Nic wondered, not sure as to what was happening. All he could really do was cover up while the light had engulfed everything.

It was silent yet again, and yet he felt something different this time. Rather than feeling light as he was before, he felt normal again. He could feel his energy slowly coursing about in him again. He slowly opened up his eyes and uncovered himself. He looked about and almost went wide eyed at the scenery he had been drifting in this time.

It was a black space, but a huge copious of stardust and pink and blue glitter all around. There were some pink and blue hazy clouds almost everywhere else, and stardust took up the rest.

Nic noticed something familiar about this place. He could've sworn that he was here before, though not exactly sure when. _'I know this feeling.'_ He contemplated. _'This is very familiar, yet the scenery is so different.'_ He could see that this wasn't his sub conscience. The feeling was somewhat relevant to when he encountered Kyurem and the other two a short while ago, but there were two different, yet similar energies traced throughout the dimension he was in. _'Wait, I recognize this energy-!'_

"It has been awhile, Nic Pularis." A familiar voice echoed about. Nic jerked straight forward and almost gasped at the resemblance.

"Indeed, your energy has spiked exponentially since last time." Another familiar voice said.

Nic blinked and let loose a hint of a grin. "…heh. It's been ages." He joked nervously. Pink and blue stardust began to converge right beside the other. The volume of stardust began escalating and soon there were two huge towers of pink and blue solid stardust at ten o' clock and two o' clock position, from his point of view of course. Nic narrowed his eyes as the stardust towers flashed for five seconds, forming two huge figures standing/floating in front of him. "So, what brings you two here, Dialga and Plakia?" Nic asked as they fully formed.

The two beats turned their gazes downwards towards Nic, both staring with uncertainty. Palkia leaned down slightly and he opened his mouth. "Nic, we are indeed satisfied with your power growth and the usage of your Legendary Force…however…" Palkia's gaze turned rather spiteful and Nic could've sworn he gulped down his saliva, if he had any. "YOU ARE COMPLETELY STUPID!" Palkia bellowed.

He got back up and Dialga leaned in a little. "Nic Pularis, Arceus didn't entrust you with the Plates just so you could die. We had a hard enough time fishing you out of that sea of energy as it was!" Dialga complained.

Nic raised a brow in confusion. "Hold up." Nic said. "You mean that I was still alive?"

Dialga nodded. "Indeed. Your body was barely found in that sea of energy. We were lucky to have found you thanks to Palkia's space capabilities."

Palkia turned towards Dialga. "Yeah, and you had to use a bit of your time powers. It took us a week to find him."

Nic sweat dropped. "Uh, can you let me in on what you guys are saying?"

Dialga sighed. "Very well. As you know Nic, a normal human's body may have been broken down in that sea of energy, but with the Plates within you, your body was able to sustain itself and remain in one piece for a far greater length of time."

Nic was surprised that his body wasn't broken down by the Etherion. It was a relief though. He actually thought he was dead. "I see." He calmly stated.

"At any rate Nic." Plakia said. "We are going to send you back soon to Fiore. Though it is without a doubt your pokémon would follow you in death, you and they should continue on with the mission at hand."

Nic had mentally face palmed himself. He had forgotten that his pokémon were gonna die with him, but knowing them, they wouldn't want it any other way. Every one of Nic's pokémon was family, and they would follow him to his grave. Though he had to admit his action was reckless and selfish a bit. He would be leaving Erza behind, not to mention his little sister back in Kalos. Looking back, he didn't necessarily get the big picture, the bigger picture. The universe.

"However, we do compliment you on your willingness to give up your life for that Erza girl and all of Fairy Tail." Dialga had said. "Arceus himself was watching everything, as were we."

Palkia turned towards Dialga. "Should we tell him?"

Dialga turned towards him and nodded. "Yes." He then looked down at Nic. "Young Pularis, Arceus's condition has been getting worse. At this point, a multitude of galaxies have been unstable, and stars have been exploding, even black holes were being made." He paused before he continued. "Arceus has barely any strength. His power is almost gone, and you are the only one who can maintain the universe in balance."

"I know." Nic said quietly, reminding himself that Arcus's life is fading away and he needed to get more Plates and quick.

"Nic." Dialga had said. "You now have nine Plates. Arceus would commemorate you, but we came in his stead. Since you have nine Plates now, that means you are at half capacity with keeping the universe in balance. With the power now solemnly in our hands, the universe is shifting back into stability with every Plate you have after this, but don't let us down."

Nic nodded. "I won't. Thank you for fishing me out."

Palkia nodded. "You are welcome. Now, since you're going back to Fiore, I will have to address something first."

"And what might that be?" Nic asked, curious.

"I shall address what shall lie ahead of you. In a land far, far away…" Palkia started. Nic mentally cursed at the hearing of Plakia going through that very same introduction again.

Nic groaned. "I've already heard this."

But Palkia continued and as he went on, Nic crossed his arms with extreme annoyance. He could have just plugged in his earbuds, but that would be somewhat rude, so he bared with it until Palkia had finally finished. "…is Fairy Tail." Nic sighed in relief that it was over.

He then felt his body glowing lightly. He looked down at his hands and saw them glowing. He then looked up at Dialga and Palkia.

"You may resume your mission, good luck Nic Pularis." Dialga said. Then Nic lit up entirely and then he had been blinded yet again. He felt the light and energy diminish and he had felt an energy change again.

He heard waves washing up in front of him, he felt a small breeze, and a cool, night air. Nic had opened his eyes to see that he was standing on a beach at night. He saw the stars within the sky as some diminished and some remained stable. He slowly lowered his head to look out at sea, the water stretching about endlessly and waves crashing up a few feet in front of him. His shoes were in the soft sand and he turned around to see palm trees under a moonless sky.

Nic turned back towards the sea and grinned. "Well, glad I was still alive to begin with." He said out loud. He turned left and then made small steps. "Well, since I am still alive, I guess I can head back to…" He then stopped with one foot in front of him as a thought crashed into his head. "Hold on, didn't Dialga say that it took him maybe a week to find me? If that's true, then…oh crud, they really do think I'm dead." Nic grumbled and slumped forward.

He then crossed his arms and stood straight back up. "If that much time has passed, then that means everyone will likely beat me silly when I get back." He sweat dropped. "…wait, if I was in suspension for a week…that means…" He then went wide eyed and dropped to his knees on the sand and raised his arms over his head. "I HAVEN'T EATEN IN AGES! NO!"

* * *

**One week later…**

It had taken Nic forever to find his way back towards Fairy Tail. His body hasn't recovered at all from the battle with Jellal, and using his new Legendary Force had taken a tremendous toll on him physically. He had to sleep constantly, preventing him from getting very far without needing to lie down. He could have had Charizard or Staraptor help him get back to Fairy Tail, but he couldn't because people would take notice of him in the air and his presence may stir up some drama. So he had to keep a low profile until he had reached Magnolia.

Fortunately, he was good with keeping himself hidden with the stealthy way he moves around. It would be hard for people to track him. In total, it took him a week before he had finally reached the hillside of Magnolia.

It was close to noon, so he expected the guild to be filled at the time. "Okay." He muttered. "Let's hope no one kills me."

About an hour later, he had found himself in front of the Fairy Tail Guild Hall. It was rough to avoid being spotted, but nothing he couldn't handle. He raised a brow at the new and completed look of Fairy Tail's newest Guild Hall.

It was way different from the previous Guild Hall, with the exterior having cemented bricks. It had three stories, and it strongly represented a castle, two battlements on the two upper floors, and the bottom having a western roof, with small square tiles that varied in size. Over the battlements, torches were lined up, and the top piece of the guild was a small tower-like dome with a bell with a tiled roof.

Two more towers were present on both sides of the building, with elongated glass windows and weather crocks that were shaped like Fairy Tail's symbol. The front part of the top floor had Fairy Tail's banner, while two smaller ones were on the sides, one being the Magic Council symbol, and another being unknown. The middle floor sported the most ornamental windows. The ground floor had balustrade o its top and windows lining up along the front walls, also having wooden support long the edges.

A stone fence surrounded the place with decorated railing, with pillars topped by torches and an open gate. It had an upper part that was covered in tiling and some railing below. There was also a sign that bearing the guild's name, with ornated decorations around it, including statues of fairies with dresses and wings and elongated ears.

Nic crossed his arms and raised a brow. "Huh, this is going to take awhile to get used to." He said. He continued praising the exterior of the Guild Hall for a few more moments before looking back down and forward. He took in a deep breath and exhaled. "Alright, time to be fashionably late. Now, how to do that…?"

* * *

**Meanwhile, inside…**

The first floor of the building wasn't that different from the original building, though it was larger, with more benches and tables with a multitude of wooden pillars on both sides of the hall. The floor was still made of wood and the upper part of the walls was brick.

The request board was to the immediate right and an information desk at the immediate left. There was now a stage with staircases behind it. The upper right corner of the guild had a rest/shower room, and next to the kitchen was another resting room. There was a café outside, and there was an indoor swimming pool behind the stage with an outside environment.

Everyone inside would have been satisfied with their work, but the news of Nic's death had left a huge hit on them. At this point, hardly anyone smiled, even if they tried. Fairy Tail just wasn't all that rowdy and joyful now that its light was gone.

It had been two weeks, and no fights had happened. Everyone just murmured towards the other and couldn't throw a punch.

Mira was frowning at the bar and looking about at the other Fairy Tail Mages. Elfman was at a nearby table and looking down. Cana was sitting on the table itself, but could barely even hold a mug in her hands without thinking back towards Nic. In general, Fairy Tail's spirits were rather low.

Natsu, Gray, and Lucy, not to mention Happy, all sat at a table and they all frowned.

"…I still can't get over it." Gray muttered.

"Yeah, it's unbearable." Lucy said quietly.

Happy had looked down at his fish and he nibbled at it a bit before he set it back down. "Yeah, he was too good to lose."

Natsu was cross-armed and looked at the table. "Man, he had to go and do that." Natsu felt like pounding away at the table, but he did so many times in the past few days that he couldn't muster up the flare. "That jerk."

Gray looked annoyed at Natsu. "C'mon Natsu." Gray said. "You and I both know Nic would never do something like that unless it were a last resort. How could he be a jerk if he gave his life for us?"

Natsu slammed his arms on the table and leaned in. "Because he is! There had to be another way!"

"Natsu, stop." Lucy said. "This isn't the time to be arguing." Though reluctant, Natsu did back off before making any scene and he slumped back down. "Believe me, I feel just as upset as you, but Nic would want us to go on."

Happy turned towards Lucy. "Yeah, although some have had it rough moving on." They all turned towards Happy and frowned.

"Don't Happy." Gray said.

"Yeah, Erza's been devastated this whole time. You can't go saying that. You'll only make things worse." Lucy said.

Happy looked down and had an upset gaze upon his fish. "I'm sorry…it's just that we still can't believe how hurt Erza is."

Gray turned away and crossed his arms. "Yeah. Either she's in her room or somewhere in the guild crying, or she's yelling at us for no reason."

"You can't blame her." Lucy said. "We've all been-."

The Guild Hall's doors then burst open with such force, and there was dust and smoke everywhere from a possible flame attack. Everyone jerked up and reeled back from the sudden surprise. They all yelped at the sudden change in mood and now they had to deal with some new possible threat.

Everyone who was sitting down was now up, and every single person turned towards the door, where the smoke was clearing up. Everyone was on edge.

Natsu got a grin on his face and flamed up his fist. "Yeah, I've been dying to punch something!"

Gray got into position and Lucy was ready to grab a key. Just about everyone there was ready to spring into action.

The dust and smoke was airing out and they heard footsteps approach. Natsu's nose twitched at the scent of someone very familiar. He widened his eyes and he froze. He took in another sniff and he knew exactly who it was. He was all shaken up by the familiar smell. This couldn't be right…

Gray and Lucy looked at a dazed Natsu. Lucy looked a little curious. "What is it?" Lucy asked. "Is it a threat?"

"…no." Natsu muttered. "…it can't be." They all looked at Natsu and everyone there was curious as to what the Dragon Slayer had smelled. They all saw a faint glow, signifying a quick transformation from within the dispersing smoke, and they all went wide eyed when they had felt this same presence.

Everyone in the entire Guild Hall froze in place as they all had recognized this power. Some almost lost their breathing and some hearts stopped.

"Now is that really a way to treat an old acquaintance?" The voice asked casually. They all heard a voice from the figure and they all gasped and stuttered. Nic had arrived as the smoke was dispelled. He was crossed armed and grinned. He stopped in place and looked about around the Guild Hall, everyone looked as though they had just seen a ghost.

Nic inhaled and then exhaled. "Hey guys, I'm back. And I'm tired" He added.

Macao managed to speak while frozen. "W-We…we thought you died?!"

"Y-You mean…that you're actually…alive?!" Elfman said. Nic kept a grin, but looked down, knowing they would be shocked like this.

"Pretty much." He said. Just then, he went wide eyed at the numerous people that now stampeded all towards him.

"NIC!" Everyone shouted. The next thing Nic knew, he was buried under twenty different people, many of which were taller and heavier than him. Nic had a bit of a struggling trying to breathe.

"Gah! Guys, can't breathe!" He gasped. They all then slowly got back up and cheered ever so happily upon Nic's return, even though he was still regaining oxygen. _'Well, at least I'm home.'_

"Man Nic, do you have a any idea how depressed we were?" Gray berated, but had a grin.

Nic looked down and tilted his head about, stalling. "Meh, uh yeah, I got some explaining to do." He rubbed the back of his head and did a half grin as he was about to explain, but then Master Makarov approached. Everyone had made way for Master.

"Nic." Makarov said. He stopped just a few paces in front of him and looked up at Nic. Nic looked down and his grin faded. Makarov showed a sad, but relieved face. "Nic, we have been so worried about you."

Nic nodded. "Yeah, same."

"I consider those who have been in this guild to be my children, and when we heard you died, I thought I failed as a parent. Every parent worries of their children and they have faith." Makarov straightened up a bit and pulled off a smile. "Well now, you can tell us the details later, for now we celebrate your homecoming." He then turned back towards the others. "Today we all celebrate!"

Everyone cheered and started to show some tears again, they all got their mugs and they were getting their party back on.

Nic watched them all cheer. Makarov looked up at Nic after seeing the guild being ever so rowdy again.

"You know." Makarov stated. "The guild hasn't been this lively since your death. You've really influenced us Nic Pularis."

Nic put his hands in his pockets and gave a smile. "Yeah, thanks." He took a huge look from his spot and he saw the various people starting to get their groove back. Fairy Tail was becoming itself just like that again. _'Boy, that was quick!_'

He then noticed something else, something was missing. He narrowed his eyes and pondered about it until it hit him two seconds later. He turned towards Master. "Hey, does anybody know where Erza is?"

When Nic had said that, everyone's voice dialed down until there was hardly any whispering. They all turned and looked at Nic with some hesitation. Obviously they knew something and the mood dialed back to the low settings.

Makarov looked down and sighed. "I suppose Erza will have to hear about your arrival." He said. He turned back up towards Nic. "You could say she took it harder than all of us put together." He said grimly.

"Poor Erza." Mira said. "She's been crying for so long. She couldn't get over you."

Lucy shifted her gaze towards Nic. "Yeah, she didn't handle it very well."

"Shattered would be an understatement." Gray said, looking down.

Nic sighed, knowing that Erza will find out soon, and when she does, he could kiss his body goodbye, as it will be Erza's punching bag. He did feel guilty all this time, and he wasn't sure how to make up for the time it took, but he had to go and tell…

"Nic?" A broken voice said from behind. Nic could've sworn he had a fusion of a yelp and a hiccup spring up from his throat. He knew just to whom that voice belonged to. Every single person there was dead silent as they all turned at the doorway behind Nic.

Swallowing his pride, he slowly turned behind to see Erza. Nic only needed a quarter of a second to process how unhealthy Erza looked. Her eyes were nothing but puffy and pink from continuous crying, her eyes showed signs of insomnia, and she did look a little pale.

"N-Nic?" Erza stepped forward once as she had tears in her eyes. Her mouth was slightly open, and she looked dead at him. Nic grinned and stayed still. Erza proceeded slowly and looked as though she could break down at any second.

Erza was now right in front of Nic, with tears now beginning to stream down her face. There was no way Nic was here. He had to be a figment of her imagination. Maybe her mind was playing tricks or something? Maybe she needed to lie down?

"Hey Erza." Nic said. "I'm back."

Erza gasped so loud that Nic reeled back a step, thinking she was about to enter a panic attack. She had her hands over her mouth and she could barely speak. "I-I…It is you." She managed to squeal. With everything she had in her, Erza lunged at Nic and tackled him, sending him soaring several feet backwards. He landed, crashing on his back with a thud with a sobbing Erza constricting him.

Erza couldn't help herself. She had to. She missed him. She had to show some sign that she missed him, and the first thing her brain processed was hugging him. "Nic…" She sobbed. "…I can't believe you're back." She then continued crying. She repeatedly muttered "You're alive."

Nic slouched back up, looking down at Erza crying relentlessly on his chest. He blinked and remained still, letting her let it all out. Everyone there could've sworn that that was the only time they've ever seen Erza so joyful in seeing someone.

Nic had to comfort her somehow. He wasn't exactly sure as to how he should handle this situation. Erza was showing so much affection. He slowly wrapped his arms around her, and just held her close. Nic held her as close to him as he possibly could. Erza had her arms around his waist tighten, and she slowly began to dial down the sobbing. Nic instinctively pushed even more boundaries and slowly took his right hand and began to slowly stroke her hair as gently as he could be.

Nobody dared to gasp, as they had expected something like this. At this point, they all knew that Erza had feelings for Nic and they had expected Nic to repay her with some form of affection. Some of their frozen expressions broke into small grins upon seeing Titania and Luminous reunited.

"Nic." Erza said, calming down. "Words can't describe how happy I am right now." She looked up at Nic with teary and soft eyes and with an ever so happy smile. Everyone there grinned. They've never even seen Erza smile so joyfully before. Nic grinned and that grin turned into a big smile. "I missed you so much." Erza said.

"Erza." Nic said. "You don't know how much I missed you as well. I could've been shedding tears in your place, but I'm here now, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon." He and Erza then shared a very close and super long emotional hug.

Nobody dared to say a word. They knew this was their moment, and this was just too precious to ruin. They all grinned and they each turned away, wanting to get the celebration under way.

Makarov nodded. "I'm glad you two are happy to see the other." He said. Erza and Nic both turned towards Makarov. "Now that your little reunion is over, we can get back to the celebration. What do you say?"

Nic and Erza both got back to their feet and remained turned towards Master. "Sounds good to me!" Nic said. "I think we could all use a little party right about now." He then turned towards the rest of Fairy Tail. "Am I right?!"

Everyone shouted and cheered along with him. He truly missed Fairy Tail and its rowdy self. Now that he was back, things could get back to normal, well, as normal as it could possibly get that is.

Erza looked on at Nic. She couldn't believe that he was back. Her smile had greatly increased. _'It's so great to have him back. Our light has finally been restored.' _But then she did recall something that had to be done. _'Well, it seems that I do have to give Nic something…' _Erza then walked over and tapped Nic's shoulder from behind.

"Yeah-?" Nic turned and he had a very creepy feeling as he saw Erza with a super sweet smile, much like the previous two times she attempted to put the hurt on him. Her smile was all too sweet and she looked so happy.

"Oh Nic." Erza said. "You've had me worried about you." A death aura then slowly arose from around her, making his heart beat almost skyrocket.

'_Oh boy, it's coming.'_ He gulped and he almost felt the sweat dripping.

"Do you have any idea on how much pain I was in? Well…I think you need a demonstration…"

Nic found his wits quick enough to find a back door to this situation. He pointed straight at the new counter/bar that Mira attended, getting glasses ready. "Isn't Mira getting a strawberry cheesecake ready for ya?"

Erza looked at the counter/bar and saw that there was no cheesecake, but a giggling Mira who found it humorous as to Nic's antics to avoid pain. Erza turned around, only to find Nic gone. She made a comically shocked expression and everyone pointed behind her. She turned around super quick and saw Nic turning the corner and out the guild.

"NIC!" Erza roared and stomped. "GET BACK HERE!" And she stormed off, leaving a dust trail behind her.

Everyone there then shook their heads, already pitying Nic.

"That kid's in for a world of hurt." Cana remarked, just before gulping down her first full mug of booze in weeks.

* * *

**Magnolia**

In town, everything was peaceful and tranquil as it could get. The sun was out, people having smiles, and a young lady was strolling about through the streets of Magnolia, rather confused and looking for something, to be more accurate, some place.

A young woman, looking roughly sixteen, was turning her head here and there. She was tall for her age and skinny, showing less, how you say…assets, than Lucy and Erza. Much like Lucy, she was blonde, but she had multiple bangs. She had two short bangs, one that barely covered her right eye, and the other going over her left one. The two longer bangs crossed each other over her chest. The rest of her hair reached down in a silky manner all the way down to her upper waist. She had green eyes and light pink lipstick. At this time, she her attire consisted of just a brown T-shirt and black pants that went down and stopped halfway down her shins. She had on light blue shoes.

The young teenager sighed and just rubbed the back of her head. "Man, just how do I get to this place?" She asked herself out loud. "Who told me these directions anyway. These directions are _diot_!" She said the last word in Hebrew. Nevertheless, she proceeded in the same direction and she saw something heading in her direction from up ahead.

"Huh?" She stopped as she saw a small dust cloud grow. She blinked as she saw that it was a lone person, and it looked as though he was running…very, very fast. He also looked as though he was running away from something.

"Oh! Maybe he can help me-!" Her thoughts literally ran right pass her and the guy as well, making her hair fly along the wind. She just stood there as she was just puzzled. "Okay, w-what just…what?" She was just baffled. She was hoping to get at least some form of direction from the guy, but it looks as though that ship has sailed.

"Oh well." She sighed. She turned backed towards the direction she intended to go, but then she saw a second dust cloud racing at the same speed. The teenager blinked and noticed that the dust cloud was indeed a person as well. As the person came racing closer and closer, she took note that she had scarlet red hair. "Hold up, isn't that…?" She had seen the person before one time, but that memory was a long time ago. She did however, recognize her as she was fifty feet away. She went wide eye and gasped. "It is, it's Titania Erza-!"

Before she could even finish closing her mouth, Erza raced past her at high speed, ferociously catching up to the person ahead.

"NIC! GET BACK HERE!" Erza had yelled as she was now out of sight.

The blonde teenager once again blinked and sweat dropped. "What was that about?" She contemplated. She just stood there, completely puzzled. She was still looking into the direction the two went off in, but had her body turned towards the direction she intended to go.

"Well, I guess I should try and keep looking." She resumed her quest to find this specific place. She then proceeded back to walking. "Cruddy directions…"

Back with a certain person running for dear life, Nic dashed past numerous stands and places that he didn't see, obviously this might be a new land speed record on the ground. He was running for dear life from the wrath of the one and only Titania.

"GOTTA RUN! GOTTA RUN!" Nic shouted. He himself knew that this was the wrong thing to do, but he panicked. It wasn't like he had any other options to play out with.

At any rate, he was storming through the streets and he looked over his shoulder to see that Erza wasn't behind him anymore. Nic could've stopped, but he wasn't sure if that was a good idea. Erza was thirty feet behind him, so where was she now?

Nic turned ahead and slightly lowered his pace in the confusion. He was dashing along and then he saw an alleyway up ahead. Nic was about to run passed it when Erza slipped out from the alley and right into Nic's tracks. Nic gasped and he screeched to a loud and disruptive halt, the pavement under his shoes had harsh skid marks as he skid ten feet to a stop…right in front of Erza.

Nic looked up and his heart almost pounced out of his chest, not just from the sprinting, but also from the potential near-death pain that shall be inflicted onto him.

'_Oh crud.' _He mentally squealed as he had realized that Erza had used a shortcut. Either she knew Agility or Teleport, or she knew Magnolia all too well.

Erza glared heavily at Nic and grabbed him by the V-neck collar and dragged him into the alleyway for his demise. _'This ain't gonna be fun.' _He thought.

Erza dragged Nic thirty feet into the alley and then slammed him into a wall, still clenching him by his collar. She was glaring daggers at him and then proceeded with the yelling

"YOU FOOL! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA ON HOW BADLY YOU SCARED ME?! DO YOU?! WE ALL THOUGHT YOU DIED!" She yelled, but Nic didn't show any cowardness nor cringing. "THINGS WERE NEVER THE SAME! WE WERE ALL SO UPSET, _I _WAS UPSET!" Erza was now shaking a bit. "I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep…I-I couldn't do anything!"

Nic was all too heart broken. He saw everything at his funeral, and he deserved to be punished.

Erza continued with small tears beginning to form in her eyes. "DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN YOU MORON!" She then had an armored fist ready and able to strike a defenseless Nic, who didn't seem like putting up a fight.

Nic lowered his gaze and thought that he should take this like a man. "Do it." He said. "I deserve every single bit of pain I made you feel." He wasn't trying to sound mean, but he felt far from okay after hearing Erza yell her worries out to him.

Erza was slightly caught off guard by this statement and she untightened her fist in the air. "Why do you say that?" She asked, calming down just a small amount.

"Because I was gone for so long and I wasn't there to comfort you when you needed me the most. I can't even begin to fathom the guilt and pain that I alone have for what I had done. I wasn't there when you cried so much." Nic admitted with a saddened tone.

Erza untightened her grip on Nic and her fist was now lowering a bit. "Nic, there's always something that makes others cry. You can't protect me from tears, we are human after all. But you still won't get away with making me heart broken."

"Yeah…I know." Nic said, not feeling light hearted at the slightest.

Erza slowly unclenched her fist and had her hand at her side now, as she was now pondering. _'This isn't like him. He sounds way to upset for that alone to be bothering him.'_ She thought. "Nic, tell me. What's bothering you? You seem more depressed than you're letting on."

Nic sighed and kept his gaze on the ground. He then shifted his gaze towards Erza at the corner of his eye. "Erza, I broke my promise to Simon. I wasn't there to protect you, no matter what. I couldn't protect you from the pain and the sadness. _I _hurt you Erza. I made you cry!" He exclaimed the last couple lines, shocking Erza. "I can't forgive myself for leaving you guys. I don't know what came over me. I couldn't let you die in my stead. I wanted you to keep moving forward. I saw you were stuck and I wasn't there to help you…I'm a terrible person." He said. "I broke your heart, and now I ask that you break me in return."

Erza felt her heart stop. _'Nic…'_

"Go on Erza, give to me what I deserve. I won't stop ya." Nic closed his eyes, awaiting for the punishment that he thought would begin to compensate for Erza's broken heart.

Erza was all shaken up inside. She couldn't believe that Nic had said that. She felt as though his own heart was broken. He made her sad. Erza didn't know what to do anymore. She couldn't hit him because of what he said, yet she wants to show how much she missed him. What was she to do?

Nic was still awaiting for his demise with closed eyes, but he didn't feel a fist to the jaw, rather it felt…soft.

Nic suddenly felt something soft, warm, and surprisingly wet gently press against his lips. It wasn't forceful, but it wasn't too light either. Nic suddenly felt his face get a little bit warm and he felt all sweet and strange, like bliss. Nic then opened his eyes in shock and realization that Erza was actually kissing him.

Erza had absolutely no idea what she was doing. She didn't know where the nerve and/or courage to kiss Nic came from. She herself was too confused. Was it a heat of the moment thing? Or was it something more? All she knew was that she missed him too much and was so happy to have him back.

After five seconds of sheer bliss that was shared, Erza reeled back with blushed cheeks. The two had their first kiss. Erza's first, and Nic's first. The two were at a loss for words. All they could do was blush at each other and remain silent.

After ten seconds, Nic actually managed to spit out some words. "E-Erza?"

"Nic." Erza said, not smiling. "It's not your fault, none of it is. I don't know, maybe you do deserve punishment, but I can't. I can't hurt someone who's just as badly wounded as me." Now she had tears again, but this was different, as she now had tears coming from not just her left eye, but now her right eye, astonishing Nic. "I missed you, and I can't begin to tell how happy I am. Yes, you've made me cry, but I've never felt so much joy when I saw you alive. Nic…" She then pulled him into a tight hug and she began to sob tears of joy down his shoulder. "I missed you so much. Promise me. Promise me that you'll never do something like that again. We can't lose you…I can't lose you." She then began to cry again over his shoulder, smiling ever so happily.

Nic was not only baffled, but so happy that Erza had forgiven him. He could feel so many things at this point; for example, joy, happiness, bliss, affection, and comfortable. Nic began to shed small tears of joy from his eyes and let them shine down Erza's armor. Armor or no armor, the two could fell their hearts beat in sync. Nic wrapped his arms around Erza and held her tight.

The two were just too happy to let this moment be ruined. Erza had honestly thought Nic was more than attractive this entire time, she saw him as a caring person who reached out for her, and now she's only scratched the surface. This was an emotional person who wouldn't let his friends suffer. Erza and Nic both knew the other had strong feelings now, but now that they know, they weren't exactly sure what to do now.

After some time, Erza and Nic pulled away and the tears had stopped. The two lightly blushed and smiled with sincerity.

"I guess we should be heading back now, right?" Nic asked her. Erza nodded and the two walked out of the alley and through the streets back towards Fairy Tail. The two walked side by side and had trouble looking at the other after their little "moment".

* * *

**Fairy Tail Guild Hall**

The guild was coming back together, thanks to Nic's safety. Their gloomy and unjoyful sorrow had sprung into sheer joy and craziness yet again. Mugs and dancing was everywhere now, with Cana resuming her booze barrels and drinking like she hadn't had anything to drink in eons, which she kind of was.

As usual, the brawling was picking up again and Natsu and Gray were getting caught up in the midst of it, and Erza wasn't there to stop them. They all knew they would be expecting a battered Nic to be back soon, and they all partied about at his arrival. Only, it wasn't Nic nor Erza at the entrance this time.

Makarov and a few other Fairy Tail members all looked and saw that a blonde teenager was standing at the entrance and looking on with a hand on her hip. And let them tell you, she was a goddess!

"Well, guess I've found the place." She said, hardly showing any sweat drops from the brawling and partying. As a matter of fact, she had expected Fairy Tail to be like this. She's heard so much of this place and she heard so many individual's names like Titania, Salamander, and even this one guy named Luminous. She sought to come to Fairy Tail and become part of the action.

Makarov stepped forward and looked up at the young woman. "Hello there." He greeted. "Can I help you with something?"

She looked down at the small, old man and saw he had a friendly disposition. She stepped forward and removed her hand from her hip.

"Hello." She said with a smile. "Eh, do you know where I can find this guild's Master?" She asked.

"Hmm, that'd be me." He stated, now getting a little serious. The woman then raised a brow, a little shocked.

'_Huh, didn't see that coming.' _She thought to herself. _'Talk about zaken.' _She thought the last word in Hebrew_. _She then shook her head and resumed what she had intended to do. "Yes, I actually came here to join."

Makarov then blinked. "Oh?"

She nodded. "I'm Sophie Lednick." She introduced. Makarov nodded and then called out to Mira. Mira then came over.

"Yes Master?" Mira asked with her smile.

"It would seem that we have ourselves another new member." Makarov had stated. Mira clasped her hands together and widened her eyes.

"Oh just the extra ticket we needed!" She said with glee. She then got her stamp out and she asked Sophie where she wanted the mark.

Sophie had her elbow rest on her hand as she thought. "Hmmmm…how about here?" She then pulled up her brown shirt and exposed her skinny waist. She pointed towards her right side and asked Mira to place it just below her ribs.

"Do you have a color you want?"

"Well…" Sophie then thought about it, and she looked back at Mira. "How about dark blue?"

Mira then placed a stamp on the bottom of her ribs and then removed the stamp, revealing a dark blue Fairy Tail mark. Unlike Gray's navy blue, Sophie's was dark blue.

"Congratulations!" Mira cheered. She then turned towards everyone who was partying. "Hey everyone, we have a new member!" Everyone then turned towards Mira and they all saw Sophie. Sophie smiled cheerfully and Mira introduced her. "Her name's Sophie."

Everyone cheered in joy that another member had joined. Natsu and the rest of his team had went up to meet her.

"Hey there!" Natsu greeted with a hand raised. "Welcome to Fairy Tail!"

"Thanks so much!" Sophie said. "It's so great to be a part of a guild now!"

"So what made you join?" Happy asked. Sophie turned and widened her eyes slightly at the site of a flying cat, but she did expect weird, nonetheless.

"Well." Sophie started. "My father is a wealthy merchant, and business was going great for him. The problem was that he has work to deal with and he has little time to entertain my wandering thoughts. I asked him what I should do, and he suggested that I should use my Magic and seek the adventurous world."

"Hm, sounds like your family gets along fine." Gray noted.

"Of sorts." Sophie noted. "We respect the other, and sad to say my parents divorced when I was an infant, but that didn't stop me from reaching out to them both."

Lucy felt a tad upset. "Gee, sorry about that." She herself remembered her relationship with her own dad wasn't good, but at least she met someone on a similar level to her.

"Thanks!" Sophie said. "Now my parents are back together and hope for the best for me!"

"Hey!" Gray chuckled. "You've got it made!"

"Yeah. I'm not one for business, so my parents wished me luck and I came here shortly after." Sophie had explained.

"Well, you're here now, so no need to worry yourself child." Makarov said. "Welcome to your home."

Just then, Nic and Erza both showed up from behind her. Everyone there had all turned, now seeing that Nic was back and surprisingly unharmed. Nic and Erza were both blushing lightly still and they proceeded in.

Everyone was rather confused. "Didn't take your beating like a man?" Elfman asked.

"You weren't there." Nic said, rolling his eyes. Sophie then turned towards the two and she almost stepped back in remembrance.

Sophie had just recognized them from not even forty five minutes ago. They were the exact people who had ran past her. Sophie was wide eyed and she approached the two by taking a step forward.

"Hey." Sophie stated. She knew the two wouldn't have recognized her because Erza was fixated on Nic's punishment that turned out to be bliss. "I think I've heard of you. You're Titania Erza, and you…" She had to admit, she wasn't exactly sure as to whom this guy was.

Makarov then turned towards her. "Ah yes, those two are Erz Scarlet and Nic Pularis, or as you could refer to them, Titania and Luminous."

Now Sophie gasped at the realization. She now knew who these two were. "Oh my god, I've heard so much about you two!" Sophie said. "It's a pleasure, the name's Sophie Lednick!" She said with joy.

"It's a pleasure for us as well." Erza said. Just then, they heard footsteps from behind themselves. Nic and Erza both turned and saw that it was Juvia.

Juvia now had cut her hair short, just above her shoulders. She now had some revealing clothing, with a blue skirt under a long blue overdress with white over the skirt. She also had a blue cap with white on the sides.

Nic blinked in shock. "Well." He said. "Glad to see you're here!"

Juvia was baffled to say the least. She was at Nic's funeral and thought he had died. Juvia gasped and she walked up to him. "N-Nic…you're alive." Juvia stated.

Nic nodded and he then gave Juvia a friendly hug. Juvia returned the hug and saw a growling Erza glaring daggers at her. The two instantly pulled away and Nic kept a smile, even though Juvia was startled by Erza.

"It's so good to see you've joined." Nic said.

"Yeah, I have to thank you!" Juvia stated.

Another person then came from the other side of Nic and he crossed his arms. "Hmph! Didn't expect you to still be standing after that incident."

Nic froze in place and went wide eyed at the sound of that voice. _'That voice…it can't…' _He swiftly turned and saw an unpleasant site. It was Gajeel.

Gajeel sneered at Nic, not forgetting about last time. "Don't get all feral on me. I'm not here to be your buddy either." Gajeel had said.

Nic had a sweat drop and wanted to sharpen his gaze, but he took notice of Gajeel's left shoulder. It was a black Fairy Tail emblem.

Nic then realized he joined the guild. As much as Nic was startled by his presence, he was apart of Fairy Tail now, meaning he can't kill him like last time. Though questions as to how he joined will have to wait, he'll have to make do with his presence.

"Yeah, I can see." Nic coldly stated. The two then glared at the other for a few seconds before Makarov stepped in.

"Now I know tensions are high, but Juvia had asked him to come along." Makarov explained. "And you know we seek those who are in darkness and bring them into the light."

"…True." Nic said, relaxing knowing that no quarrels will be dealt with at this time. "Well, you're here now, guess that's all I can say." He said towards Gajeel.

Gajeel grumbled and turned. "Same."

Sophie then decided to break up the argument. "Well." She started. "This is sure a welcome wagon!" She said, trying to lighten things up.

Nic turned towards her and grinned. "Yeah, glad you came. You're just in time for my little welcome back party." Nic said.

"Welcome back? Where'd you go?" Sophie asked. It was then Nic lost his smile and looked downwards. Everyone there, every single person, had stopped what they were doing and they all figured it was time for Nic to explain himself.

"Alright, time for an explanation." Elfman said. Nic then sighed and he walked on over towards the nearest table and all of Fairy Tail gathered around to hear his story. Not surprisingly, Natsu, Lucy, Happy, Gray, and especially Erza all sat at his table, with Erza sitting right next to him.

"Well." He started. "It all started when I was inside the Etherion…"

* * *

**An hour later…**

Nic had just finished speaking his last sentence and everyone was at a loss for words. Nobody could even begin to comprehend what Nic had gone through. Being at your own funeral, getting help from Legendary Pokémon, and having exhaustion.

They all had no idea that Nic was alive, and this was a huge shock that the universe was no dependent on him.

"So you're saying that if you die, we all die?" Elfman asked, somewhat startled.

"Of sorts." Nic stated. "If I can find a way to save Arceus, then the universe might be saved." He sounded a little tired and serious. He must still need rest.

"Hmmm…well, you're home child, and rest to sure that we can celebrate knowing that you're here with us." Makarov said.

Nic nodded and he slowly got up. He was escorted by Mira towards the infirmary and was followed by Erza. Everyone watched as Nic went off into the infirmary to recover. They all even saw something was different of Erza. She walked very closely with him and was smiling.

"Hm, seems as though Erza is looking better around him." He smirked, getting an idea as to what's going on between the two.

"Let's party!" Makarov shouted. Everyone cheered, exclude the party-pooper Gajeel, and the celebration resumed.

In the infirmary, Mira had Nic lie down on a bed. She told him to take it easy for a few hours. She then had to head back out and attend the little party that was happening, leaving Nic and Erza all to themselves.

Nic rolled over onto his side and felt drowsy. He figured a few hours could go by slow, so he figured some sleeping should do the trick. _'Maybe just a few hours.'_ He thought. He then began to close his eyes when Erza grabbed a stool and pulled it over in front of him. He then saw her sit on the stool and she watched him succumb to sleep with a smile on his face.

Nic wasn't sure whether or not if he was having a good dream or not, but he was still smiling.

"Nic." Erza said with a blushing smile. She then leaned over and, very gently, kissed his cheek, making his face brighten in his sleep.

Erza leaned back up and watched with joy as her light has returned and was sleeping soundly.

* * *

**Later…**

"Ah, now that's what I call a blissful sleep." Nic stated as he was stretching out his muscles as he strolled about through Magnolia. He figured he could be getting some fresh air from being inside the infirmary for a bit today, but it wasn't all that bad. Erza was there with him, so he had nothing to complain about. This day was just too good to even be true. He got back, his friends are happy, Erza kissed him, new members, what more could he asked for.

He was strolling along South Gate Park to get to the bakery to get Erza a strawberry cheesecake, with hands resting in his pockets with earbuds and sunglasses on. He then stopped and noticed some people under the big tree.

"Huh?" He looked down and saw Gajeel, Jet, and Droy, and Levy behind the tree. He stood and heard what they were saying.

"So what's the big deal?" Gajeel said, arms crossed. "Make it fast, I need to get to work."

Unlike Gajeel, who wasn't in the mood, Jet and Droy were mad. They still had trouble forgetting what Gajeel had done to them last time, and what almost happened to Levy. It was payback time.

"We have a bone to pick with you!" Jet said accusingly.

"After what you did to us, and our Guild Hall, there's no way we're allowing you to stay another day in our guild!" Droy testified.

Gajeel could see where they were going with this, but he didn't bother putting up a fuss. "C'mon guys, that's water under the bridge."

Levy nervously poked her head around the tree. "M-Maybe he's right." She said. "I mean, since he's apart of our guild now, he won't do it again, right?"

Regardless, Jet and Droy wanted to teach Gajeel a lesson.

"We gotta let this poser know." Jet started.

"That outsiders don't mess with us!" Droy finished.

Gajeel lowered his gaze, but still kept his position. Nic noted how Gajeel wasn't in a fighting stance.

'_Gajeel, just what are you doing?' _Nic wondered. True that he still holds a grudge against him, but as he was apart of Fairy Tail now, conflicts had to lessen.

Yeah, try telling Jet and Droy that.

Jet cracked his knuckles and readied himself for his payback. "Act tough you outsider!" Jet them ran high speed into Gajeel, making contact and making Gajeel reel back.

"**Knuckle Plant!**" Droy shouted. He threw seeds that landed at Gajeel's feet. Magic seals appeared and the seeds rapidly grew into vines that pummeled Gajeel continuously. Gajeel felt the full blows and then Jet zoomed in at him again.

"**Falcon Heavenward!**" He then unleashed an incredibly fast kick right into Gajeel's abdomen. Gajeel soared backwards and skid, making the ground trail under his feet.

At this point, Nic had his suspicions. _'Wait a minute, Gajeel would be able to handle and stop those attacks easily, so why…?' _Nic was beginning to piece it. _'Of course! He's not fighting back because he's letting them get their anger out on them!'_

Gajeel had a lot of bruises from just those assaults because his defenses were down. He winced and grunted at the slight pain. He then got back up, slowly.

"You want more?" Jet proposed.

"What happened tough guy?" Droy teased.

Nic frowned at the site. He didn't like it. It was true that Gajeel had a long way to go until he could get their acceptance, but was this really necessary? Nic then widened his eyes as he felt some electricity in the air, and very strong Magic. He had recognized this before, and his eyes sharpened with distaste.

"You picking on the new guy?" An arrogant voice asked from behind Levy that began approaching Jet and Droy. Jet and Droy both turned in shock and fear as the man approached.

"Laxus!" Jet exclaimed. Laxus was cross-armed and frowned at Gajeel. Gajeel looked up at a leering Laxus.

"But seeing how this guy wrecked our Guild Hall, I can get where you're going with this." Laxus stated. Nic growled heavily, getting an idea as to where Laxus was heading. This wouldn't be pretty. Nic watched as Laxus approached a one-kneed Gajeel. "I bet the old man only let you join because he wanted you on a tight leash." He then stopped in front of Gajeel and his face became very foul and dark. "The Magic Community started laughing at us because of you!"

Everyone was stillas a statue as they heard Laxus being mad.

"On my way back from my last job, people started talking about how weak and absent-minded our guild has become, and that pissed me off! Nobody dared to say that until you came!" Laxus then had sparks around him and a huge wave of lightning shot up from under Gajeel, engulfing him in strong lightning. Gajeel screamed in agony as he felt every bit of the lightning course through his nerves.

"You're gonna pay!" Laxus shouted, following up his attack with another lightning assault. He slammed a fist into the ground and a huge wheel of lightning swallowed up Gajeel and racd him through the earth and created a trail in the ground and dust flying about.

The dust cleared as Gajeel was severely damaged and in a shattered crater at the end of the trail. He was all fried and battered. Nic clenched his fists as he saw this. This was way too far, even Jet and Droy saw this going overboard.

"That's too far Laxus!" Jet exclaimed.

"I know Laxus is strong, but there's something I don't get. Gajeel is going down too easily." Droy said.

Jet then gasped and went wide eyed. "I get it! He's not fighting back!"

Levy had a hand over her mouth. "He's letting them get their anger out on him."

Laxus then stepped forward and began to proceed in stomping over Gajeel's face with lightning-coated feet. Gajeel yelped as he was repeatedly pounded.

"You never should've messed with Fairy Tail!" Laxus shouted. "Now you have to deal with me!"

Jet sought to end this. "Enough, leave him alone Laxus!" Jet shouted. Levy had her eyes covered so that she wouldn't have to see this.

Laxus then turned towards Jet, Droy, and Levy and looked mad. "I don't take orders from you!" He yelled, he then extended his right hand and then fired a lightning bolt.

The lightning bolt was halfway towards a shocked (somewhat literally) Jet and Droy and then a blast of fire intercepted the bolt. The interception was a standoff and the result was a small burst of electricity and fire, making Jet and Droy and Levy all cover up. Laxus remained emotionless as his blast was intercepted.

Everyone then turned to see where the blast of fire came from. Jet, Droy, and Levy all stood shocked and Laxus had wide eyes as they had seen Nic use a Flamethrower to intercept the attack. Laxus had his mouth gaped very slightly at the sight of Nic actually alive.

"That's enough you bastard." Nic scolded, walking down and jumping in front of Jet and Droy. He had his arms crossed. "When they say stop, you better stop." He sounded ever so menacing as he could not tolerate Laxus.

Laxus grunted and closed his mouth. "Hmph. Didn't expect to see you still alive."

"It takes a lot more than Etherion to kill me off." Nic said in a foul tone.

They then saw Gajeel get back up, but all wobbly and started walking away.

"G-Gajeel." Levy shouted in worries.

"Through yet? Leave me alone." Gajeel quietly said, walking away with injuries.

Laxus turned towards Gajeel. "I wasn't through!" He extended a hand that was coated in thick lightning and was about to fire it, but he was then shot from the side with Nic's Flame Burst, making his attack stop and he fell onto his side with a big thud.

Team Shadow Gear gasped in deep surprise as Nic had actually hurt Laxus when his back was turned.

"You forgot that I was here." Nic had said. Laxus's eyes shot open and he got right back up.

"You're gonna pay!" Laxus declared as he charged with a lightning fist. Nic squinted his eyes and awaited when Laxus was close. He saw Laxus punching at his left and he leaned right, stunning Laxus and Team Shadow Gear at Nic's reflexes.

"Enough of you!" Nic shouted as he used Fire Punch and shot a flaming fist at Laxus. Laxus then backed away quickly to avoid the incoming punch and watched it hit the ground, making a small crater from the force of the fire all swelled up. Laxus looked on and gritted his teeth.

Nic immediately glared at Laxus, as was the latter. The two then were coated in lightning and fire, both raging furiously at the other. Team Shadow Gear backed away to avoid the potential conflict. The two just stayed glaring at the other, not daring to make a move.

Fire and lightning that covered them both then began to dwindle and the two bared their teeth at the other. The lightning and fire both dispersed and the two turned away from the other. Laxus tisked and began walking away, fed up with this.

Nic began to walk in the opposite direction, turning back into himself. "Watch yourself." Nic gowled furiously at Laxus.

Laxus was super mad that Nic had actually stopped him. No one dares to stop Laxus and get away with it, but Laxus was able to bottle it in.

'_I can't take much more of this crap.'_ He thought. _'That Nic guy is a real pain in the ass. Because he's back, Fairy Tail thinks it can rely on him. Fairy Tail has become weak! The old man has done poorly! That's gonna change!'_

* * *

**I was a little late with this chapter and over my word limit, but I hope you guys liked the emotions and such. Just so you know, at this point, Nic and Erza know they like each other and are showing some affection here and there, but they're not an official couple at this point, just so you know.**

**If you guys liked the OC that appeared, the emotions in this chapter, and/or certain scenes, leave a Review.**

**Don't expect another chapter for another two or three weeks, I'll be working on **_**EDventures in Kalos **_**for awhile.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoyed it so far.**

* * *

**Next Time: A Planned Love**


	19. A Planned Love

Chapter 19 – A Planned Love

**Before you all start complaining about how long the wait was, let me say in defense that I had just graduated from high school, and I was working on **_**EDventures in Kalos **_**all this time. I am now shifting gears and coming back to this story.**

**I'll have Sophie be more active this chapter, and be expecting some action here and there as we are now in The Battle of Fairy Tail Arc. This time, the Pokémon will get involved.**

**On with the show!**

**To Recap:**

Nic is awake and witnesses his mournful funeral, to which he sees al of Fairy Tail shattered. He is then saved by Dialga and Palkia and they send him back to Fiore, though it was a week later. Another week rolls by and Nic arrives at Fairy Tail's new Guild Hall. Inside, everyone is unhappy, but when Nic arrives, everyone is overjoyed, especially Erza, who tackles him and hugs him. Afterwards, she planned to put the hurt on him and he takes off. He is cornered by Erza and he refuses to fight back, saying he deserves pain for making her sad. It was there Erza surprisingly gave Nic a kiss and forgives him. They arrive at Fairy Tail, greeting a new member, Sophie. Later, Gajeel is beaten up by Jet and Droy, and soon enough Laxus comes and attacks, but Nic intervenes and stops Laxus, forcing Laxus to turn and walk away in anger.

* * *

**Chapter 19 – A Planned Love**

A couple of days rolled by after Nic's return, and everything was ever so peaceful…well, as peaceful as it can get. As usual, the guild roughhouses and as usual, Nic stops them with an attack of sorts, all that sorts. Nic and Erza have been spending so much time together at the guild and around Magnolia since their little 'moment'. Nic surprises Erza by getting her some strawberry cheesecake, in which she responds with either a hug or a very small blush.

Anyways, Sophie had found a place of her own, and surprising enough, it was five places down from Lucy's. It was an apartment of equal size, but the color was more brown and white rather than brown and orange. The roof was slanted forwards and backwards, with three dormers and the dormers themselves all being curved outwards. The walls were that of white brock, and the paneling and lining was of brown, thick wood that supported the apartment. The upper half of the apartment had two windows, one on each side, both rectangular, separated by another arced window. The bottom half had two smaller windows on each side separated by the door, which had a domed shield over it, which was brown also. The door was arced and paneled in brown, and the actual door itself was dark brown.

Inside, the living room was located towards the right of when you walk in. There was a sofa, two coffee tables, a long couch, all connected towards the other, forming the letter E but without the middle line. Al of that was facing a fire place, where a fire lacrima was heating up the place. The fireplace had a bench over it, where there were pictures of Sophie and her mom and dad, both on opposite ends. The carpet was cream colored and the walls were a peach color that stretched fifteen feet high with the walls expanding over thirty feet in length.

When you enter through the left, you would find a kitchen, with the kitchen stretching expanding and connecting to the living room. There was your standard stove, sink, and countertops and silver wear all about. And a restroom resided towards the left of the stove and to the right of the refrigerator. To the right of the countertops was a square table, with two chairs and two stools set aside.

When you enter and go straight forward, a staircase separated the kitchen and the living room. It stretched up to where the second floor was, and the walls on both ends of said staircase went on for twenty feet, giving that space behind for the living room and kitchen to connect, which was ten feet. The upstairs was separated into a spacious hallway. On the left were two doors, one being the bathroom with a soothing bath and shower, and the other being a spacious closet containing supplies for the bath.

To the opposite of the two doors were two other doors, one being Sophie's room, and the other being a guest bedroom. The guest bedroom had a standard single person bed with purple sheets and light blue walls. There was a small desk and a lamp, and a small closet. In the middle of that room was a long coffee table that sat seven feet from some sort of movie lacrima system.

Sophie's room was a double person bed with dark blue blankets and light blue sheets. Her bedroom also had a desk to write and work and she had a table in the middle if she wanted breakfast closer towards her bed, giving a close reference to 'breakfast in bed'. The walls were navy blue and her window was adjacent to her bed. Her dresser and mirror were right next to each other, opposite wall of the bed. Her room also had a movie lacrima system that was in front of her table.

Sophie had privately invited Nic, Erza, Lucy, Gray, Natsu, and Happy to her new home and Nic decided to have Greninja pop out to have some fresh air, not to mention show what Pokémon are to her. Sophie was surprised that there were countless Pokémon from where Nic came from.

"Geez Nic, I never knew you encountered so many back where you came from!" Sophie said. "It's surprising alone that you're from another world!"

Nic was sitting down on a sofa, right next to Erza in the living room. Soophie was on a lne chair and a coffee table separated her and Nic. Greninja was on the couch, separating Gray and Natsu. And Happy was sitting on Lucy's lap, where she was right on another chair opposite of Sophie.

Nic nodded. "Yeah. I've met so many and fought so hard against each and every one." He then shifted his gaze over to Greninja. "We've really come a long way."

Greninja nodded. "That would be an understatement."

Erza turned towards Nic. "So Nic, how do you know these Pokémon so well? Species and all?" Nic turned towards Erza and started explaining.

"Well, most people would use this." He then pulled out a small device that was red with black ripples on the sides. There was a black outlining in the middle, where there was some blue hologram in the space between. "If people don't know what pokemon they're facing, they would use this thing called a Pokedex. It tells you of what a Pokémon does and its habits." He then looked over at his Greninja yet again. "The fact is that I know my Pokémon all too well that this thing is pretty much junk."

Happy flew over with his wings. "Oh, can we see how it works?" He asked.

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind seeing how that thing works as well. It'd be nice to know what these things can do." Gray commented.

Feeling in a good mood, Nic then held up his device and it opened upwards, the hologram middle expanding five or so inches surprising some of them there.

"Okay, I'll let you guys see my pokémon for an example." Nic said and then he angled the encyclopedia at Greninja, who didn't even bother blinking. The Pokedex then showed a picture of Greninja in a light blue flash, surprising Happy.

"Whoa! His picture popped up!" Happy shouted.

"Yeah." Nic said. The device then began to describe Greninja.

"_Greninja, the Ninja Pokémon. It creates throwing stars out of compressed water. When it spins them and throws them at high speed, these stars can split metal in two." _The device explained in a feminine monotone voice.

Everyone listened, and Erza was surprised Greninja's Water Shuriken could really do that. "If that were the case, perhaps my Adamantine Armor may have a struggle." She said.

Greninja wasn't move, but raised his hand in defense. "I was lucky to have re-learned that move." He commented.

Nic turned to everyone else. "You guys want to hear a few more?"

Everyone nodded, and Nic's device had the picture change towards Charizard.

"_Charizard, the Flame Pokémon. When expelling a blast of superhot fire, the red flame at the tip of its tail burns more intensely."_

Natsu leaned in forward. "Huh, maybe I should eat some of his fire sometime." He said. "I bet it's really tasty."

"Yeah, good luck with that." Nic said. The picture than changed to Kecleon.

"_Kecleon, the Color Swap Pokémon. It changes its shading to match its surroundings so it can sneak up on prey. Only its belly patterns stay fixed."_

Lucy went wide-eyed, remembering how Nic's Kecleon did just that when she and Reedus were cornered that one time. "Huh, I did remember your Kecleon helping us out. She was silent."

Nic nodded as the device went back to normal and deactivated. "Yeah, despite her quirks, she can get the job done in a flash." He remarked. He then put the device away. "If you guys don't mind, I wanna save the rest for the guild."

"Agreed. Everyone should hear what your friends can do." Erza said. Nic turned towards her and smiled, as did the latter.

Something then came across Lucy's mind. "Though, there's something I don't get." She said, regaining everyone's attention. "You said trainers can carry up to six, right?"

"Yeah." Nic answered.

"Right, and we've only seen five. What about your sixth?" Lucy asked. Nic crossed his arms stared blankly outwards.

It was then he turned towards Lucy. "Right, do you wanna dig your own grave?" Lucy blinked and raised a brow.

"Huh?" She questioned.

"The heck's that suppose to mean?" Natsu said, curious as to what Nic meant.

Nic leaned back on the sofa. "For one thing, he's my most powerful Pokémon. Second, he's exceedingly savage, always defeating his opponents without any mercy." Lucy can already picture something that Nic describes, and she got the shivers.

"Boy, and here I thought your Arbok was feisty enough." She commented with a shiver running along her spine.

Nic then lowered his head, and then his easy gaze looked more serious. Everyone saw this, and they all knew Nic wasn't kidding.

"You're not exaggerating, are you?" Sophie asked in a serious tone as well, following the mood change.

Nic nodded. "Yeah. He loves to battle, and he's, how to put this, instinctive. Using every bit of his senses to crush his enemies. All I can really say is that he's wild in battle and is my fastest aerial combatant."

"Then what's he like outside of battle?" Gray asked.

"He's tamed and mild, but he still can't help but lash out at even the slightest urge, but nobody on my team minds, we're family after all."

Sophie smiled. "He sounds nice outside of battle. Maybe we can see him soon." Sophie was trying to remain positive, just so the atmosphere doesn't die. Nic looked at her and grinned at what she was doing.

"Yeah, soon." He remarked.

Happy sat himself in Lucy's lap, surprising her. "He sounds just as tough as Laxus the way you put it." Gray, Natsu, and Erza all tensed up slightly when Happy mentioned him. Nic figured Laxus was strong; after all, they did get into a few quarrels.

Nic hunched forward and tensed up his arms when he was still crossing them. "Laxus, that jerk." He muttered.

Now Lucy was shuddering even more. "Geez, just thinking about those two fighting makes me wanna scream."

"Aye, he's super duper strong." Happy remarked. "Maybe Erza or Mystogan can beat him. Hek, maybe even Nic can take him on. Even Mira was tough awhile ago. Her nickname was The Demon."

"B-But she's so sweet!" Lucy said, shocked.

Happy turned towards her. "I think we should have ourselves a big tournament to see who's the strongest!"

Nic rolled his eyes and sighed. "Yeah, best be careful what you wish for." He remarked. Lucy then saw something sticking out of Happy's sac on his back.

"Uh, Happy? There's something there in your bag." Lucy said, pointing.

"Oh, right!" Happy reached and pulled out the object, which was really a piece of paper, to be more exact, a flyer of sorts. "Magnolia is participating in the Harvest Festival this year! You guys need to read the bottom of this!"

Lucy then took the paper and read it out loud. "Miss Fairy Tail Contest and the winner gets…HOLY COW! 500,000 Jewels!" Lucy shouted in shock. "That's enough to cover my rent for seven months!"

"Aye, but watch out Lucy." Happy teased. "Mira and Cana are entering as well." Lucy then drooped, thinking she had a lot of ground to cover up with such competitors.

Sophie didn't look amused. "You don't have to worry about me, because I don't enter those things." Lucy and Erza turned towards her in some shock.

"Wait, you're not competing?" Said a shocked Lucy.

"Nah, if it were a talent show, then it would be another story." Sophie spoke. Now everyone was in on what Sophie was talking about.

"Talent show? And what might your talent be?" Greninja asked.

Sophie got a big smile on her face. "I'm glad you asked." Sophie then got up from her seat and she stood in front of everyone there. Everyone watched as a Magic Seal appeared behind her and she had a finger pointed to her head for focus. A chain of memories was seen and they all saw some water appear in the form of a ring around her and some purple fire was making a helix around said ring, startling everyone. Sophie then had it disperse and in place was sparkles of purple and blue.

"Ta-da!" Sophie shouted. Everyone there clapped in response to her display.

"I've never seen anything like it!" Lucy said.

"Aye, is that Magic?" Happy asked. Sophie sat back down into her chair and relaxed.

"Yeah." Sophie said. "It's Memory-Make Magic."

Erza narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "I've heard of that type of Magic. It's been told to be some Ancient Spell. That type of Magic is long -since forgotten. Where did you learn to do that?"

Sophie smiled. "Don't worry, my dad found a book on it when doing trades for merchandise and he decided to let me have it. I can have an enhanced memory and can fuse Magic Spells that I remember. A type of Molding Magic if you put it mildly." Sophie explained.

Erza relaxed. "I see."

Nic got up from the sofa, as did Greninja. "Well, I think we should be heading out. It's close to nine, and Lucy has to prepare. Off we go buddy." Nic ordered Greninja. Greninja followed Nic and the two were making their way out.

Sophie looked back at Nic as he and Greninja had just exited. "Hmm." She then turned back towards Erza. "My, you two seem to like the other's presence." She teased. Erza twitched her eye and got up as well.

"I'd best be off too. I have stuff to do as well." She said as calmly as she could. She then walked out, thanking Sophie for her hospitality.

Sophie turned back towards the rest, and they had grins on their faces as well.

"She liiiikes him." Happy teased.

"We know Happy." Said Sophie. "Pray those two didn't hear that, otherwise _you_ should start digging your own grave."

Outside, Greninja and Nic were walking side-by-side, much like they were soldiers, with steps in sync. They were walking under the starry sky, and Nic had a curious smirk on his face.

Greninja took notice. "What's with that face?"

Nic turned towards him, keeping the same face. "Can't help but think."

"Of what?"

Nic was blushing somewhat slightly and looked away. "Nothing much, just if Erza was going to be in there too." He admitted sheepishly.

Greninja raised a brow, if it were possible. "You know, you and Erza are getting along well." Greninja examined. "It's clear that you two like each other."

"Yeah." Then Nic's smile turned into a frown. "But I just don't know how to push any farther than I already have."

They continued walking in silence for a good ten seconds, and Greninja was looking down in contemplation. He then looked back up at Nic after mentally deciding. "Hey, Nic." Nic looked down at his froggy pal. "Why don't you ask her out on a date?"

Nic came to a screeching halt and almost fell forward if not for him trying to balance himself. After steadying himself, he blinked and raised a shocked brow at his buddy. "Is that tongue too tight around your face? Why would I ever do that?" He barked.

Greninja wasn't fazed by his shocked expression. "For starters, you two want to know the other better; plus, maybe she would say yes."

Nic moved about in that one spot, startled, confused, and conflicted for the most part. "Uhhhh, I don't know."

"Hey, if not now, when? Ask yourself that." Greninja said. He had a point. If Nic doesn't ask her, either he never will or he'll be keeping her waiting for an even longer period of time. Nic almost paled at the thought of Erza waiting, she would not only be upset, but pissed. Nic shook his head multiple times and he stood straight up.

He then swallowed and sweat dropped. "Eh…"

Greninja gave his buddy some advice to ease his confliction. "Look, you can just go ask her right now, and I'll meet you at the guild. If she says no, at least you know she's not ready, right?"

Nic inhaled slowly, and then exhaled. Finally, he spoke. "Okay, I'll try."

Greninja smiled. "That a boy. Now go on! What are you waiting for?!" Greninja gestured for Nic to leave, and Nic was moving faster than an Onix with a triple Rock Polish.

Nic waived back. "I'll meet you soon!"

"Take your time, take your time." Greninja waived back and began his solo walk back towards the guild to sleep on some tables as always.

* * *

**Fairy Hills**

Erza had just entered her bedroom, and she requipped into her blue skirt and white blouse. She sat down on her purple queen-sized bed and sighed. It was then that she heard a knock on the window behind her. Erza jerked up in surprise and curiously looked behind her, seeing Nic tapping on her window.

Erza slightly opened her mouth and blinked. "Nic?" She went over towards her window, seeing him through the window. "What are you doing here?" She opened up her window and Nic hopped onto the windowsill, which was sturdy to have him perched there.

"Hey Erza." Nic greeted, trying to keep his cool.

Erza was somewhat curious as to what Nic was doing here? "What's your business here? You know Fairy Hills doesn't allow boys."

Nic kept a grin and looked to his lower right. "Right, I'm aware." He then shifted his gaze over towards Erza, who was wondering what Nic's business was here. It wasn't like him to appear out of the blue, this must be something important.

"Is there something wrong?" Erza asked. "You're kind of looking red." She could see the red on his face slightly, but just slightly.

"Yeah, you too." Nic joked. Really, she didn't, but when Nic said it, she began to blush.

Erza was beginning to have those fluttering butterflies in her stomach and her heart rate was increasing slightly. Was this just to say hello? To ask a question? Too…too…

Erza was beginning to have a deeper shade of red, with her mind somewhat slipping into the gutters with all of those smut novels she's been reading. Fortunately, this wasn't the case.

Thank God.

'_I know Erza is straight to the point, so I'd best make this quick before things get even more awkward.'_ Nic thought. He had his legs and feet inside the room, but only let them hang and not touch the floor. With whatever mentality he could muster up, he began his question. "Erza, I've been wondering something." He started.

Erza perked her head up, her face now flushing away into a light shade of pink, now knowing this was a question.

"Would you mind…if we…" He was beginning to stutter, and then he yelled at himself. _'JUST SAY IT ALREADY YOU NITWIT!' _He then spat out the rest. "If we go on a small date sometime?" He tried to calmly asked, though it felt rushed with the pressure he put on himself.

Erza froze in place, her cheeks become as red as they were last time. Her heart was pounding so fast that it might burst out of her huge chest. The butterflies were fluttering so hard that it tickled.

'_H-He wants to ask me out on a-a…a date!' _Erza thought. She was feeling all jittery inside, but tried her best to hide herself through her stoic face, though the blush was a giveaway. _'W-What should I-what should I do?!'_

She had to say something, but nothing came out. She just stood there, trying to process Nic's question. Nic was raising a brow, seeing her face getting even more red, putting any rose to shame.

He waived a hand in her face, but said nothing. He saw that she was lost in thought. "Uh, is that a maybe?" He wasn't sure if he approached this correctly. Did he mess up somewhere else? Did he break her? Was he not good enough?

His doubt was getting to him, and he was beginning to turn. "Well…maybe I should-!" He was then halted by a hand grabbing his wrist, which mad him stiffen. He didn't even have time to process the yanking and then the hug he was constricted in. All of this happened so fast, faster than a Floatzel using Agility in rain weather.

Erza instinctively had Nic in her hold, holding him tight and didn't dare to let go. Why was she acting like this? She never _ever_ felt so emotional…except maybe during that kiss a couple days ago.

Erza smiled over Nic's shoulder. "Yes." She finally said. "Yes, I'll go on a date with you."

Nic felt so relieved that she gave him an answer. An answer alone would've been fine, but now that she said yes, he was overjoyed. Over her shoulder, he smiled and hugged her as well. It was a rather long hug for the two of them, as they could hear the other's heart thump in rhythm.

At some point, they let go and looked at their joyful faces. The two were regaining their calm composures and they backed away slightly.

"So…when do you wanna have this little date?" Nic asked her.

Erza had a hand to her chin, thinking and staring off into space. "Hmmm…tomorrow is the contest, and the Fantasia Parade is also tomorrow night…" Erza and Nic were contemplating as to when to have this little date.

"Well…maybe after the Harvest Festival. I don't mind waiting until some heat dies down." Nic suggested, to which Erza looked back and smiled.

"Agreed. I would be delighted to have it after the Harvest Festival." Erza said. She then took a step closer to Nic. "Also…" She leaned in towards Nic's face. "I hope you'll cheer for me in the contest tomorrow." She then relied on her instincts and gave him a long kiss on his cheek, almost making Nic explode in red.

Nic was also curious as to if Erza was participating, now he knows. If he exclaimed her being part of the contest, that would be rude, so he kept his mouth shut and accepted her instinctual kiss. She pulled away and blushed at her own actions.

"I'll definitely cheer for you tomorrow." Nic stated. He then turned away and made haste for the window, not knowing what else to say. "See you tomorrow." Was the last thing he said before racing out the window and landing on the ground with grace and zooming off with energy of joy.

Erza looked on with a big smile, her heart thumping at the soon-to-be date that they arranged.

* * *

**Fairy Tail Guild Hall**

Greninja was using his arms as a comfort for his head, and he was staring up at the ceiling. He was thinking about these events that have been happening. He and Nic both have been through quite a bit. They battled a lot, they trained, they basically have been accomplishing a lot.

'_I wonder what'll happen. I have a strange feeling about tomorrow.'_ Greninja's thoughts were intervened by Nic coming through the doors. He looked over and saw that Nic was approaching with a grin on his face.

No words were needed. Greninja could see that Nic asked and he got a date. As for Nic, he had just read Greninja's worried expression the second he arrived.

The two read the other's mind, exchanging their concerns and such.

"Be ready for whatever comes tomorrow." Nic said.

"Same." Greninja and Nic then laid down on two different tables and they were drifting off to sleep.

Nic was still awake, but just barely. His mind was wandering about, thinking about the recent battle he had just partook in against Jellal.

'_I'm unlocking a whole bunch of stuff. First Plates, and now this Legendary Force. I don't know, and I'm not certain, but there has to be more than Kyurem, Reshiram, and Zekrom. We'll see.' _His mind then drifted into another subject. _'I wonder how Arceus is doing? Better question, how'd he get sick in the first place?...'_

* * *

**Meanwhile, in another dimension…**

Several figures were looking through a hole, down at Nic. They were frustrated because that human acquired Arceus's Plates, which they didn't account for.

One was a bipedal, humanoid creature with some feline characteristics. It was mostly gray with a long, purple tail. The top of its head had two short horns, and it had purple eyes. A tube extends from the back of its skull to the top of its spine, avoiding its neck. The three digits on each hand and foot have ball-like tips.

There was also a light purple Pokémon that had a v-shaped marking on its chest and bands around its wrists. There are pink markings around its head and a ponytail, and the sides of the head had curved horns. There was a yellow, ring marking in the center of its forehead, and it had green eyes with yellow sclera. Its arms weren't attached to its body and float next to it. There were golden spiked ends on each shoulders and arms. The bottom half only looked wispy, like its ponytail

There was also a black Pokémon that had a head with a white ghostly plume coming from its head, covering one of its bright blue eyes. It also had a red spiky structure around its neck. It had skinny arms and long black tatters hanging from its shoulders. It also has black hands with claws.

Finally, there was a large gray dragon-like Pokémon with a serpentine structure with gold rings around the back of its neck. A thick black stripe runs vertically along the front with red horizontal stripes. It took on a serpentine look, with six black ghostly streamers on its back with red spikes at the tips. It had gray legs with yellow spiked tips. It had a long tail with four spikes running along the sides. It had red menacing eyes that peered into the hole.

"Gah! This is stupid! Why can't we take him out now?!" the smallest one with multiple rings shouted.

"Silence Hoopa! You know full well that your power alone isn't a match against Palkia. He controls and warps space better than you ever could." Darkrai said. Hoopa just crossed his arms and pouted.

Mewtwo was standing still, conserving his energy. "We gave our power so that the God shall perish, not transfer his power. That human must be destroyed."

"What do you think we've been trying to do?!" Hoopa shouted, his voice echoing through the eternal darkness of which they were sealed in. "That Nic guy has to die!"

Darkrai looked over that the huge dragon serpentine. He looked up, seeing the monster's face peer down into the hole. His gaze was that of the demon of which will make you have eternal nightmares. His eyes were red with pain and sadistic suffering. If you were in place of the hole that they were watching through, you would find the beast looking over you at an unflattering angle with sharp eyes. An image that would scar you for life.

"Giratina?" Darkrai asked. The four were sealed away thanks to Arceus and Dialga and Palkia, and they were getting payback, but now their target has shifted. They used an indirect strategy to taint Arceus and make him suffer a slow and painful death. And that indirect strategy itself was a living being.

"…Arceus." Giratina said in a deep and menacing voice. "You're not the only one with a human on your side…"

* * *

**The next day, in Magnolia**

It was one heck of a festival to say the least. Many people have come far and wide for this Harvest Festival. It was clearly a big deal, and everyone came to witness two things: the Miss Fairy Tail Contest, and the Fantasia Parade that is to happen later on.

Right now, people and all of Fairy Tail gathered in the Guild Hall to witness the contest. The members of the Guild were in the crowd, cheering for the contest to begin.

"The long wait is over ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the one and only Miss Fairy Tail Contest!" A man on the stage shouted.

He was known as Max Alors. He was a slim young man of average height and beige hair that resembled a bowl haircut, and two large straight bangs covering the sides of his face. He had thin, dark eyebrows and dark eyes. Rather than his normal attire, he had a red bowtie and a white shirt underneath. He had on dressy shoes and a purple tux and white pants.

"I am Max Alors, and I'll be your host for this exciting event!" He shouted. Everyone was more than ready to see the contest, though some more than others. Gray was right next to Natsu, who was eating food, and was also next to Elfman.

"I'd expect to see Elfman here, but why you?" Gray asked Natsu, who was eating.

"Because he's a man." Elfman said.

"Because I can." Natsu muttered.

Nic was standing up behind them and looked on his hands in his pockets. He wasn't paying attention to them as he was awaiting to see, cheer, and root for his admirer; in fact, that's the only reason why he's here. He doesn't like to see people expose themselves just to win some prize, but for this, and Erza, he'll make an exception. He didn't mind really. Who knows? Maybe it'll be fun.

Sophie was right next to him, awaiting as well for the contest to begin. She personally wanted to see what these contests were like. Who knows? Maybe she'll like it.

"Alright, let's get started!" Max announced. "Contestant number one is the woman who can out drink you any day of the week. Please welcome Cana Alberona!"

Cana appeared on the stage behind Max and everyone cheered for Cana as she posed. She was in her usual attire, nothing new. Nic figured he would cheer for his friend, so he clapped.

"Yeah Cana!" Nic shouted in support of his pal. Cana shifted her gaze over towards him and grinned even more of the moral support. Cana then got out her tarot cards and had roughly eleven in her right hand and covering her face. The next thing anyone saw was her entire deck was spinning around her body, obscuring her from sight.

"And what might she be doing?" Max announced, seeing a glow from underneath. The light flashed and the deck was gone, and some men got nosebleeds from seeing Cana reappear in a swimsuit bikini. It was outlined in yellow, with horizontal orange and green. And she posed again.

"That prize money can cover my tab." Cana quietly said. Nic rolled his eyes, knowing she would be doing this for the tab; but still, she did look like she was having fun.

"Wait a go Cana!" Nic shouted.

Lucy peeked behind the curtain in envy. "She's doing a swimsuit? No fair!" She murmured.

Erza peeked under her with envy as well, seeing how Cana pulled out a sweet trick…and seeing Nic in the crowd. "That's not a bad idea." She muttered. "Maybe Nic would like it too."

Lucy was astonished to see Erza not only peeking under her, but was in this as well. "Wait, you're entering this too?!"

Erza then paused. "Whenever I hear the word 'contest', I get all excited." She said with passion. _'And I wanted to impress Nic a little.'_ She looked out and blushed slightly.

"And the chances of my rent died." Lucy wined.

Back on stage, Max had announced entry number two, which was Juvia Lockster. Nic clapped, knowing her as well. They were friends and respected the other, and she had her body transform into water. A wave enveloped her and when it vanished, Juvia was in a swimsuit bikini as well; only this time, it was all purple with periwinkle dots.

"And it looks like a fabulous day at the beach!" Max shouted, and Juvia was given a big applause.

"Look at me my beloved Gray!" Juvia said with sparkling eyes, though Gray didn't pay much attention at all.

"Another swimsuit?! This isn't a beach!" Lucy fumed, with Erza nodding in agreement.

"Contestant number three, her beauty spreading everywhere and everyone, and our model for Sorcerer's Weekly, please welcome Mirajane!" Max announced. Everyone then gave a big round of applause as Mirajane smiled and waved to the happy crowd. She then demonstrated her Transformation Magic by having her head transform into Happy, shocking every man in the crowd and leaving them comically falling over.

Nic laughed slightly at the reaction, but did find a little cute. "Not bad. Not bad at all." Nic remarked. "She knows how to make a crowd go nuts, that's for sure." Sophie laughed alongside Nic in agreement.

"Hahahahahaha! You're not wrong there!" She laughed.

She then did yet another transformation, and her face transformed into Gajeel, which made him spit out his drink in deep shock.

Happy joined in on the laughter as well, and Lucy had a hand over her mouth and tried to contain as much giggling as possible.

"Less competition for me." Lucy teased with a comical face. Erza nodded in agreement.

"Entry number four! The fairy queen who needs no introduction-!"

Erza and Nic both tensed up, knowing who was next. Erza then stepped out onto the stage. "That's my cue!" She then jumped and did a midair flip in the air and landed in front of the stage.

"-Erza Scarlet!" Max announced. Everyone there went crazy for her as she looked out.

"Geez, she's really popular." Lucy remarked.

Erza saw Nic, who was cheering ever so happily. She thought she would give him a quick wink just for the sake of it, and Nic began blushing. Erza felt amused to see Nic like this, and she liked it. She then continued to look at him for the most part. "Let me show you a Requip you don't see that often." She said, closing her eyes and smiling with pride.

"**Requip!**" She shouted, she then glowed and she then appeared wearing a goth Lolita outfit. It was a black skirt with black boots and black socks that went up to her knees. The arms had long black sleeves with white frillys on the ends. Her big chest had a white blouse and a red ribbon at the neck. Her hair was in a ponytail with a big black bowtie. Sje also had her bangs going down the sides of her face.

Nic was frozen. He wasn't sure whether to be happy or overjoyed to see Erza like this. One thing was certain – she was looking all too good.

"GOTHIC LOLITA?!" Shouted a shocked Lucy, seeing how her chances had died, yet again.

Erza looked at the audience and smiled.

She looked at a joyful Nic, who finally yelled at the top of his lungs. "ERZA! YOU'RE AMAZING!" Earning her a small blush and giggled slightly.

"Contestant number five!" Max shouted. "Petite and charming, her smarts are as big as her heart! Let's give it up for Levy McGarden!" Levy had her arms out and she was given a big round of applause, especially from Jet and Droy. She showed off her Solid Script Magic, revealing words that were made of the elements they spelled out, like 'SNOW', 'METAL', even 'FLOWERS'. She was given a joyful applause.

"Entry number six! The sniper that has her guns pointe at your heart, please welcome Bisca Mulan!" Max shouted. Bisca appeared in a magenta bikini, with her green hair going down her back. She threw four coins in the air and Requipped her shot gun, and aimed through all for at once. They all landed in between her fingers and she was given a round of applause.

"That's so hot!" Alzack shouted, blushing.

Sophie leaned in towards Nic. "This is actually pretty exciting." Sophie admitted. Nic looked over and nodded in agreement.

"No kidding." He commented.

"I just thought they'd be showing off their bodies, but I was wrong. Huh, maybe I should enter next time." She thought next time.

"Everyone would love your Magic." Nic commented. "I sure was impressed."

They then turned back towards Max, who announced contestant number seven. They then saw Lucy come out on stage, who was all nervous and such.

"Entry number eight!" A feminine voice called out, startling a few people. Everyone turned and saw someone walking up behind the other contestants. "I am the very definition of 'Fairy'." She said.

Nic then had a freaky feeling rising about in the atmosphere, as he narrowed his eyes in deep suspicion. _'Looks like Greninja wasn't wrong.'_

The woman had pink sandals with navy blue stockings that went up above her knees. She had a fan with a furry tip in her hand and the hands themselves had green coverings that went up just beneath her shoulders. She had a green dress and her guild stamp was on her right bosom. Her light brown hair was in a sideways ponytail and she had light pink lips and oval glasses.

"I'm the definition of 'Beauty' as well. I embody everything this contest stands for; therefore, the winner is me. The lovely Evergreen." She said with arrogance.

The Fairy Tail Mages all look on in surprise, knowing who she was.

"Whoa, she's back?!" Gray exclaimed.

"Then that must mean Laxus is here as well." Elfman stated. Nic stood straight up in shock, knowing she was affiliate with Laxus. This must mean bad news all over.

Sophie herself was a little startled by this new. She heard about Laxus and his power, and from what she heard from the guild itself, he was an arrogant punk that you never want to anger.

Sophie turned to Nic. "I suppose we should start worrying, yes?" She sounded serious.

Nic nodded. "Yeah."

"Give me a break!" Lucy shouted. "I really need this prize money!"

"Lucy! Don't look into her eyes!" Gray shouted, but it was too late as Evergreen took off her glasses.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Evergreen asked as her eyes glowed and Lucy gasped as she looked into them, she then immediately turned to stone, astonishing every person there.

"Lucy!" Sophie shouted. Nic grunted, unable to have seen a trick such as this. Everyone was beginning to panic slightly as Lucy was turned to stone.

"Everyone, evacuate!" Max shouted. In a moment's notice, all of the spectators ran for the exit in a state of chaos and hysteria. In a matter of moments, only the Fairy Tail Mages were left.

"Just what is the meaning of this Evergreen?!" Master Makarov demanded, walking up to her and looked down from in front of the stage. The curtain then rose from behind, revealing every one of the contestants have been turned to stone.

Nic gasped in deep shock as he saw Erza was turned to stone. "Erza!" Nic exclaimed.

"Mira!" Elfman exclaimed in worries of his sister.

"This has gone too far Evergreen. Return them to normal at once!" Makarov had demanded. They all then looked up and a sphere of lightning was in the air. It then shot down on stage, obscuring everyone's vision for a moment.

The light ceased, and revealed a certain arrogant S-Class punk. "Looks like the fans got up and left." He stated. "Pity, because the party is about to begin!"

Nic bared his fangs at him. "Laxus." He growled. Sophie herself grunted at the site.

"Laxus!" Makarov shouted. Everyone looked to their sides, seeing that two others were there as well.

One was Freed Justine. He was slim with waist-length light green hair. Two bits of hair was standing on his head in the shape of lightning bolts. He had blue-green eyes and he had a green guild mark on his right hand, just like Lucy. He had a double-breasted coat with cuffs and four yellow buttons. The waist had a belt and he had a sword sheathed.

The other one was known as Bickslow. He was a tall man with a dark cloth with vertical stripes on the upper half. His head had a tight hood, and only his face and hands weren't covered. The eyes were covered by a metal visor with eight elongated holes. He had large armbands and large shoulder ads with skulls in the center. His waist had a simple dark band, which held up a waist guard made of cloth. Underneath were baggy pants, each leg having an 'X' that reached down to his knees. They were tucked into light, armored greaves.

"Them too?!" Macao exclaimed.

"The Thunder God Tribe?! What the hell are they doing here?!" Wakaba exclaimed.

Laxus chuckled. "Come on, isn't it obvious? We're trying to have some fun!"

Makarov was heavily unamused. "We all want no part as to what you are trying to pull here." He then went wide-eyed when they saw a lightning sphere above Lucy's head. "Laxus!" Laxus gave them a warning by striking the bolt down a few feet from Lucy, making every member wince and grunt as his stunt.

"He's not messing around." Sophie whispered with seriousness still flooding her veins.

Laxus then wrapped an arm around Lucy. "I'm taking these chicks hostage. Break the rules and I'll shatter them one by one, or better yet annihilate them right now."

"If you're trying to have fun, you already killed it." Sophie commented. "What did they ever do to you?"

Laxus raised a brow at Sophie, looking slightly offended. "Oh nothing really. You wanna start a little commotion you stick?"

Sophie clenched her fists and really wanted Laxus to have a taste of her Memory-Make, but she knew better than to go no further or the girls would suffer. "You already did." She muttered out loud.

"Oh?" Laxus teased. "Well now that you mentioned it, I am starting a little event. The rules are simple; so simple that pink-headed twit can understand." He insulted Natsu. "The last person standing is the winner! It's The Battle of Fairy Tail!"

Natsu slammed a flaming fist into a nearby table. He was smiling. "Nice and simple, my style!"

Laxus was looking amused at Natsu's idiocy. "Glad you can see it my way. You got the right attitude." He said.

Nic and Sophie both face palmed at how ridiculous Natsu could get.

"He wasn't paying attention, was he?" Sophie asked, thinking she already knew the answer.

"Unfortunately." Nic said.

"That numbskull." Sophie said.

"Let's party Laxus." Natsu said, getting up. Everyone was looking at him like he was a fool, and they weren't wrong. "I've gotten stronger since last time!" He then charged at Laxus.

Laxus remained unfazed as Natsu was closing in on him. "Although…." Without even lifting a finger, he struck Natsu with a lightning bolt in midair, making him yell. "…that attitude is gonna get you in a world of trouble!"

"Ouch!" Gray remarked.

"Not very manly." Elfman remarked. Natsu plummeted to the ground, sadly out like a light.

"Poor guy, and he was just getting started." Happy remarked, hovering over his head.

"If you wanna have the girls back to normal, you're gonna have to defeat us first." Evergreen stated with a hand on her hip.

"But the odds aren't so bad. There's four of us and a hundred of you guys." Bickslow remarked before laughing, showing his black guild mark on his tongue.

"You have three hours before they're turned to dust." Evergreen stated.

"All of Magnolia will serve as the battlefield. The battle begins when and if you can find us." Laxus stated. A huge light flashed and everyone went blind. "Let The Battle of Fairy Tail begin!" His voice echoed about. When the light faded, Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe was gone.

Almost immediately, the members ran out in search of them. "Let's go and save the girls!" Elfman shouted. Everyone made it out, but the only ones who were still inside were Master Makarov, an unconscious Natsu, Happy, Sophie, the statues, and Nic.

"LAXUS! I WON'T STAND FOR THIS!" Makarov shouted as he ran for the exit. Just then, he face planted into an invisible wall that was at the guild entrance.

"What the?" Gray turned around and saw that Makarov wasn't coming out. "What's the deal?"

"A wall!" Makarov murmured. Gray went over and tried to pull.

"That's crazy! Come on!" He said, not believing it. It wasn't until he pulled that he saw Makarov still wasn't making his way passed the entrance. "What's the deal-?!" He then saw some lettering above the door. "What the heck? Is that some kind of writing?"

"It must be one of Freed's Enchantments." Makarov said.

"Enchantment?" Gray asked.

"A barrier formed by magic runes. Anyone who's inside is bound by its rules. The only way to escape is to follow them. These rules say 'Stone statues and anyone over the age of eighty years of age shall not pass.'."

"So you seriously can't break through, huh?" Gray asked.

"I'm afraid Enchantments are absolute." Makarov said.

Gray then took a deep breath. "Well, I guess it's up to us now. It looks like we're gonna have to fight without you gramps. Laxus won't get mercy for what he's done." He then turned and took off.

Makarov then turned around and saw that Nic and his pals were still there. "And why aren't you going?"

Sophie was curious herself. "Nic?" She turned towards her friend, seeing him standing still.

'_Laxus…you are so dead.'_ He thought, thinking he had to save his future date, along with the others. He then turned, and then everyone saw Natsu wake up.

"Wait! Where'd everyone go?!" Natsu shouted.

Nic and everyone turned and looked at Natsu. "We're looking for Laxus and his Thunder God Tribe." Makarov explained. "Go find him and beat him!" Natsu was all pumped and then began to run for the exit and he had face planted as well. Makarov and Sophie and Happy and Nic all had shocked expressions.

"WHAT?!" They shouted. Then then began to see the status on the Enchantment. It showed a bunch of battles, with some winning and losing. It showed Alzack beating Jet and Droy.

"What are they doing?" Makarov shouted.

"It must be Freed and his Enchantments." Happy noted.

"NO FAIR! I WANNA FIGHT TOO!" Natsu shouted. Then he jerked himself, thinking. "Wait…" He then turned towards Nic.

"What is it Natsu? Did you find a way out?" Makarov asked.

Natsu then pointed a finger at Nic. "HAH! YOU'RE HERE NIC! THAT MEANS I CAN FIGHT YOU!"

"Are you serious?!" Makarov, Sophie, and Happy all exclaimed. Nic turned and looked at Natsu, disinterested.

"Stop it Natsu. This isn't the time." Nic protested.

"What are you talking about? This is a tournament, so now is the perfect time!" He then flamed his fist. "Yeah, now I'm fired up!"

"No, Natsu-!" Sophie tried to stop him, but Natsu leaped and was coming down at Nic.

"YEAH! IT'S ON NIC!" Natsu said, coming down at him.

Nic had a tick mark on his head. This wasn't good if Natsu wasn't getting it. He kept calm and transformed into his Stone Plate form.

"Enough you idiot." Nic said calmly. He created a metallic gold orb surrounded in yellow energy, via Smack Down. Without even looking, he threw it smack dab at Natsu's head, making him fall to the ground. Out like a light, he laid there…again.

"Does he ever learn?" Sophie sweat dropped.

"Even I can't answer that question." Nic admitted. He sighed and looked forward at the exit and stared outwards. "I may not know where they went, but that doesn't mean we can still try and stop them. Come on Sophie!"

"Right!" Sophie then ran alongside Nic as they ran out passed the Enchantment and into Magnolia.

Makarov looked on at Nic as he made his way through and was in deep thought. Erza and Natsu may stand a chance against Laxus, but Nic was still a mystery. He's defeated a bunch of individuals and still came out on top. Just where was his limits? _'Nic, perhaps you are the only one who can stop him.'_

* * *

**Magnolia**

Nic and Sophie were entering town, and they haven't spotted any sign of Laxus or the Thunder God Tribe. They've been searching for over ten minutes, but no luck.

"Crap, these jerks are crafty." Sophie said.

Nic turned left and right, and still hadn't had a clue. He was still in his Stone Plate Form, and he wasn't sure what to do at this point.

A thought ran through his head. _'If I had enough experience with this Plate, maybe I could've freed them in no time…no, it's too risky. I might only make their conditions all the more fatal. We'll have to rely on defeating Evergreen to lift her Stone Eyes.' _Nic then flipped on his sunglasses.

Sophie looked over at Nic, concerned. "Is something wrong?" She asked. Nic turned to her and cleared his throat.

"Sophie, listen." Nic said. "Our top priority is finding and defeating Evergreen."

She didn't disagree with him there, he was right. If she was defeated, then she would have to lift the spell, and that means Laxus wouldn't have any hostages to hold against them. Sophie nodded. "Right, but the problem is her eyes. I can't get close enough without become like your girlfriend." She kind of teased about the last part, though she didn't mean it.

Nic raised a brow and looked away. "For the record, she's not my girlfriend!" He scolded. _'…I think.'_

"Right." Sophie sarcastically said. "Anyways, the point being is that you are the only one who can stand up to her."

Nic turned back to her, back on the subject. "Alright, but be careful Sophie. I think if I remember correctly, Freed has Enchantments all around Magnolia, so best watch your step, and keep out of sight."

"I'll do my best." Sophie stated. "I'll lay low until I come across either Bickslow or Freed. You'd best do the same."

"Will do." Nic said. They then turned into different directions, with Sophie running through a wide alley and Nic easily leaping and running from rooftop to rooftop.

'_Laxus.'_ Nic thought. _'Our little quarrel is going to have to wait. I'm gonna have to have a little talk with your little pixie puppet.'_

* * *

**Fairy Tail Guild Hall**

Makarov and Happy were both watching the status change on the Enchantment, with multiple people having quarrels with another. Still, Natsu was out like a light due to Nic accidentally hitting him hard. At some point, he was bound to get up, and when he does, he would be pissed.

"Evergreen vs Elfman. The winner is…Evergreen." Makarov said out loud, disappointed slightly.

"I thought Elfman wouldn't have any trouble beating her." Happy said. "And look, it says Gray is fighting Bickslow now."

Makarov groaned. "And now Reedus is against Freed. This is bad." Makarov stated. "If Reedus is blocked off, then that means we can't save the girls with Porlyusica's help."

In a matter of moments, the status changed, with Reedus being defeated. "Oh no! Reedus has been defeated!" Happy exclaimed.

"Not even forty are left. How can this be?" Makarov was shocked that over half of the guild was defeated in less than forty five minutes.

"Are you surprised?" Makarov turned around at the sound of his grandson's voice. Makarov gasped seeing a vision of Laxus appearing. This wasn't really him, but an image.

"A Thought Projection!" Happy shouted, knowing what it was.

The projection of Laxus had his arms crossed and smirked, looking over his shoulder and seeing Natsu out at the moment. "Boy, that Nic fellow really knows how to shut up nitwits, doesn't he?" He stated.

"Laxus." Makarov said with a deep grudge in his voice. "Just what do you want?"

Laxus turned back towards his grandfather and smirked victoriously, making Makarov groan in disgust. "How's it feel to have your own children fight one another, hey geezer?" He said, rubbing the situation in his face. "Seeing your children tear each other up one by one. It sucks for you that Erza can't join at the moment and Natsu's already out for the count, it would've been a lot more fun with them. Without them, you can't stop the Thunder God Tribe!"

Makarov looked up, easing his disgust slightly. "I wouldn't be too sure about that Laxus. Have you forgotten about Nic?"

Laxus's smirk dialed down to a frown. He didn't say anything, but he knew he was right. He forgot Nic for a moment. "Oh, that Nic guy? Fairy Tail's own Luminous? The light of Fairy Tail?" He then got his smirk back on his face. "Well, guess only time will tell. Like hell he'll be able to stand up to me and my Thunder God Tribe."

"You're forgetting that Gray's still in the game! He can do just as much damage!" Happy proclaimed, though he wasn't exactly sure, knowing that Gray could hold himself well. Though he also accounted Nic's little…monstrous side. Happy was just trying to be positive.

Laxus raised a brow. "Gray, huh? You're seriously putting your faith in Nic and Gray? Those two losers?!"

"I wouldn't underestimate the two Laxus. Underestimating those two would be a big mistake on your end." Makarov pointed out. Just then, the status board changed, and sadly, it wasn't good. Gray was revealed to have been defeated by Bickslow, and there were only thirty or so remaining. The numbers were dropping fast thanks to the Thunder God Tribe.

"Uh, you were saying?" Laxus said. He then started laughing in his arrogance. "And you seriously thought _he_ was gonna stop us?!" He continued laughing.

"Cheater!" Happy scolded. "You and your pals had to use some dirty trick to beat him!"

"Hey, don't look at me cat. I didn't make these Enchantments." Laxus pointed out. "Now, didn't you say Nic was gonna take the Thunder God Tribe down?" His smirk increased, highly doubting that possibility.

Makarov took in a deep breath. He was still, and he had little options. What was he to do? He couldn't do anything, and he relied on so many to take the Thunder God Tribe down. _'Should I concede? No, I can't. I won't have Laxus have his ways. I must not doubt Nic, or his new friend.'_ He then turned back towards the Thought Projection of his arrogant grandson.

"I won't give up Laxus." Makarov stated. "Like I said before. Your fault is that you can't even begin to fathom the full extent of Nic and his powers. He and his new friend Sophie are out right now trying to find a way to end this game."

Laxus still kept his confidence high, not believing Makarov. "Is that so old man? If you really want to end this, then just simply hand the guild over to me and retire." Laxus blackmailed yet again, but this was even more shocking, because it involved the future of Fairy Tail being under the control of a monster.

Makarov gaped his mouth in utter astonishment of Laxus's true goals. This has gone too far, and Makarov was a simple block that simply needed to be pushed over. "I should've known." He nearly twitched his eyes with deep scorn over Laxus's intentions. "This was your plan from the very beginning!"

Laxus had a very large and satisfied look on his face, feeling more pressure put on his grandfather. "There isn't much time left old man. Not even two hours, and then the statues will turn to dust. All you have to do is announce your retirement over the guild's loudspeakers all across town. That's your only alternative to end this." Laxus proposed. "Remember what's at stake here! What's your biggest concern, your children or your title? Choose wisely gramps." He warned as his Thought Projection faded away. His projection was soon gone, leaving a contemplating Makarov and a worried Happy, and out like a light Natsu, left in the guild.

"Laxus, I never cared about the title." Makarov muttered, knowing he wasn't there anymore. "I can never give this guild to you. You may have the strength, but what you lack is the heart and the conviction to run this family. Sophie and Nic won't let that happen. Both are new, but they're ready to stop you."

"We gotta act fast if he wanna save them." Happy said. "There has to be a way to turn them back from statues…" Just then, Makarov and Happy both heard some clanging and hardcore crunching from behind the counter. They both turned to see just who or what was causing the ruckus.

The crunching continued, and Gajeel appeared from behind the counter, leaning on the top and having bits of metal that he was chewing on. Gajeel turned and saw them.

"No way, you were here the entire time?!" Happy exclaimed. "Wait, you're eating the dishes too!" Gajeel couldn't care less what came out of Happy's mouth as long as something metallic went in his own. He stood up and finished swallowing his little snack.

"Gajeel." Makarov said, stepping forward. "Will you fight for Fairy Tail?" He asked very seriously.

Gajeel jumped over the top and stood in front of the counter. "Might as well." He grinned. "I got a score to settle with light bulb." He then began to make his way out of the guild. "Don't worry, I'll handle him." He then was stepping out when he face planted just as Makarov and Natsu did before, shocking Happy and Makarov.

"WHAT?!" The two exclaimed.

Gajeel groaned as he slowly pried his face off of the Enchantment and composed his demeanor.

"Are you secretly eighty years old too?!" Happy exclaimed.

"Do I look eighty to you?!" Gajeel retorted. Just then, the status board had changed, and everyone was eliminated, all but three.

Makarov was shocked. "Wait, there's only three left? That can't be. There's you and…oh no." Makarov had just realized the only ones left were Gajeel, Sophie, and Nic. He turned back and grunted. "Natsu, you fool! Wake up soon!"

"Hey, what about me?" Happy pouted.

* * *

**With Nic**

Nic was dashing along the rooftops, seeing a bunch of defeated Fairy Tail members below. He gritted his teeth at the unfortunate site. All of his Fairy Tail friend shave fallen at the hands of the Thunder God Tribe. No one had stood a chance against them.

Nic clenched his rocky gloved fists in anger. If you could remove his sunglasses, you would she sharp eyes that had a thirst for payback.

"Laxus, you and your Thunder God Tribe have done more than enough." He scowled lightly. "Hurting your comrades, blackmailing the guild, almost killing Lucy…I can name a lot of things to resent you for. I won't stand for this."

"Is that so?" A feminine voice asked from nowhere. Nic tensed up, knowing just who the voice belonged to. Internally, he was glad. He had just found his target; or in this case, she found him.

Evergreen appeared and pose on the opposite rooftop with her Fairy Wings folded. The street was under them, and they both glared right at the other.

Evergreen had her fan in her hand. "Well now, seems as though Luminous is my next victim. I can't wait to turn you into a beautiful statue." She remarked confidently.

Nic stayed calm, not wanting to make any outbursts so that he wouldn't waste his moves. He just grinned. "You know what's funny? I was just looking for you." Nic commented.

Evergreen folded her fan. "Oh really?"

"Yeah. I wanted to give you a little piece of my mind before I go and knock on Laxus's door." Nic said. "But it seems I'll have to ring the doorbell instead."

Evergreen was smiling and chuckled. "Well now, let's see how you fair against Fairy Tail's true Titania. Erza doesn't even deserve that title."

Nic narrowed his eyes, but was trying to be witty. "Really? You call yourself the Queen of the Fairies? You're more like a witch." Evergreen's amusement instantly died at that insult. She frowned and glared heavily at him. "You're never deserving of that title. I'll change Erza back to normal by taking a scum like you down."

Evergreen then unfolded her wings and began to slowly take flight above her rooftop. "Quite a pest you are, Luminous. Perhaps we'll see whose confidence lasts the longest."

* * *

**I zoomed as quickly as I could through this update. I wanted to make up for lost time for these past couple weeks. I hope this chapter wasn't too bad. I had a heap of trouble writing out the last part because I didn't think that far,**

**Updates will be slightly quick thanks to the fact that I'm a high school graduate now, but they should remain steady because I'm looking for a part time job for the summer. Don't worry, I'll still be working on FanFiction on evenings.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are enjoying the various emotions and plot twists that I have.**

* * *

**Next Time: Monsters**


	20. Monsters

Chapter 20 – Monsters

**Insane Dominator here, bringing you another exciting chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**. With that being said, I'll answer some Reviews.**

**Alpha Dragonis: Updates won't be slow, I mentioned they'll remain moderately quick. I'm out of school and looking for a part time job, but I'm still operating as much as I can on FanFiction.**

**AngelofDeath666: You hit the nail right on the head. They were after Arceus before, but now their target is Nic.**

**Last chapter took me three days to make, just so you know.**

**This is also the chapter that Nic will reveal his last pokémon, so be ready.**

**To Recap:**

Everyone meets up at Sophie's new home for a short while, where Nic explains about his Pokedex a bit. After they left, Greninja urges Nic to ask Erza out on a date, to which he was hesitant. He eventually tries and asks her, to which she says yes. Unbeknownst to Nic, he's being watched. The next day, Erza and the girls, excluding Sphie, compete in a contest, and Evergreen and the rest of the Thunder God Tribe turn the girls to stone, with Laxus holding them hostage. He then forces a battle royal and everyone is pit against someone in Magnolia. It was all up to Nic and Sophie to stop the Thunder God Tribe, and Nic conveniently runs into Evergreen.

* * *

**Chapter 20 – Monsters**

Evergreen increased her elevation and she began to remove her oval glasses. Nic had to prepare for what was to come. Though he knew he would be safe because of two properties he had: His sunglasses and his Stone Plate.

Thanks to his sunglasses, Evergreen's Stone Eyes couldn't faze through since there was no direct vision between them. Secondly, in his Stone Plate Form, Nic can manipulate any and all stone, and that includes himself. The only reason he didn't utilize it to free Erza and the others was because he was fairly inexperienced with it and he was trying be cautious.

"Let's see how you like this. **Stone Eyes**!" Her eyes then flashed, and Nic was unharmed by her Magic. Nic just stood there, crossing his arms. He looked on with a raised brow.

"This ain't no staring contest you pixie. You can stop now." Nic said. Evergreen grunted as she had forgotten that Nic had sunglasses. "Look, let's try something else." He then pulled up his sunglasses. "Try again, unless you think you can't." He just wanted to play around a bit and test out his Stone Plate. It was risky, but it should prove once and for all he was safe.

Evergreen smirked. "Well now, seems as though you're getting cocky Luminous. Very well then. **Stone Eyes**!" Her eyes then flashed and Nic's eyes did the same. Just in that instant, Nic's body was turned to stone. His body was as still as a statue. Evergreen put her glasses back on and chuckled. "Well now, that takes care of him. Guess my sense of confidence was-!" She then went wide-eyed as she saw Nic's body actually shrinking the rock. The rock that covered his body was molding and minimizing, and it was quickly being absorbed into his coat.

Soon enough, in less than ten seconds, he was free and he smirked. "Did I break your confidence yet?" He taunted, flipping his sunglasses on.

Evergreen reeled back slightly in shock that Nic had actually freed himself without delay. "What?!" Evergreen was baffled to say the least. Her Stone Eyes were stopped two times in a row. She grunted as she was being toyed by Nic.

"We can do this all day lady, but apparently I got urgent business to take care of." Nic explained. "Now, care to turn everyone back to normal?"

Evergreen kept herself collected as she regained her grin. She chuckled and she went forward slightly, now hovering over the street. "You must be a fool Luminous. You seem to have failed to account for another Magic that I specialize in." She then began to scatter about some dust particles from her body that was beginning to surround Nic.

'_No more experimenting.' _Nic thought. _'Time for some action.' _Nic's body then sparked with light blue energy, via Rock Polish. As soon as the dust was scattered about enough, Evergreen's smirk increased.

"Too late! **Fairy Bomb: Gremlin**!" She then had the dust ignite, having said particles explode. The entire rooftop that Nic was on was covered in an explosion. Having think she had won, Evergreen laughed. "Don't tell me it's over already." She said, wanting more fun.

"Nope, it ain't over." Nic's voice said from behind, startling Evergreen. Evergreen nearly choked as she couldn't believe Nic was able to avoid the attack. She turned around and looked at the rooftop behind her, only she was hit then with a few floating gems in hard, light purple energy.

"**Power Gem!**" Nic unleashed then as she turned and got her. The gems explode upon crucial impact and Evergren yelled. Evergreen flew up from the dusty explosion, having few scratches on her.

She looked very unamused and angry. "You dare assault the great Titania?! Here, I'll make you bow before me! **Fairy Machine Gun: Leprechaun!**" She waved her arms and then unleashed a torrent of energy needles made from concentrated fairy dust.

Nic began to dart towards his left, having Evergreen continue to unleashed the torrent upon Nic. Nic had a tactic and he began to leap into the air while on the rooftop. "**Rock Blast!**" His coat then glowed silver and then he fired four rounds of silver energy in the shape of his coat. The rock-hard energy easily went through the needles as it was too dense to suppress by the torrent. Evergreen grunted and she maneuvered her way out of range and watched the four explode. Evergreen escaped just in time and was now angled high above Nic.

"Not too shabby, but let's see you reach me from up here!" She then unleashed another barrage of her torrent of dust needles and showered them down onto Nic. Thanks to Rock Polish, Nic managed to evade the continuous onslaught. He was typically dancing all around with hardly any room to counter.

'_Crap, she's not letting up is she?'_ Nic thought. _'And I can't reach her from this distance. Rock Slide isn't a liable option either considering there's civilians and injured Mages below!' _He had to think all of this while still dancing about and around the attack. _'And I can't shift because she might use those Stone Eyes on me. It looks like I'll have to get some good old backup.'_ With enough diligence, he leaped high into the air, barely evading the attack.

Evergreen had noticed that Nic was getting out a poke ball, which left her curious. "Alright you witch, time to turn the tides! Staraptor, go!" Nic yelled. He threw his poke ball and Staraptor had come out, flying in the air and sailing at Evergreen with no delay.

"Let's just see who wins in the air, right?!" Staraptor fiercely proclaimed.

Evergreen had a grin. "My, is this one of your accomplices Luminous? It's a shame that it won't be of any help. **Fairy Bomb: Gremlin!**" Evergreen scattered her dust at an incoming Staraptor. Staraptor was no fool. She knew how to maneuver in the air better than what Evergreen could. Staraptor flapped her powerful wings only once, and that was enough to deflect the dust around her, keeping her safe and out of the explosive range.

Staraptor flapped in place as the explosions al around her ceased. "It's gonna take a lot more than that to keep me down!" She shouted. "**Aerial Ace!**" She then zoomed in at high and accurate speed at a startled member of the Thunder God Tribe and she was hit head on, making her screech and jerk back several feet in the air.

Evergreen had little options now that Nic had help. She began to fly off, prompting Nic and Staraptor to chase her along the rooftops.

"You coward!" Nic shouted, dashing after her with slight annoyance by her trick.

"I'm a coward you say? Let's who's the coward after this!" Even during mobility, she unleashed yet another torrent of her attack and Nic grunted as he was forced to evade while running.

Nic was forced to take action as he was leaping from roof to roof and evading. "**Rock Tomb!**" Nic was outlined in white energy and a ring of gray rocks with outlines emerged from over him. He thrust his hands forward and the rocks went sailing continuously to shield Nic from Evergreen's attack. The rocks from Rock Tomb sailed forward over Nic's head and into the attack, allowing him to have room to close in on her.

Evergreen took note of Nic's counter and turned back and she gained altitude. "Not bad, but let's see how you hold up against double the amount." Evergreen then extended her arm with the fan in it and he waved it, unleashing an even bigger torrent with more needles showering Nic.

"**Rock Polish!**" Nic yelled, covering himself in more light blue sparks, increasing his Speed even more. With the extra needles coming his way, he had to cover as much ground as possible. With his Speed going up, he was dancing again and dashing even more, now sprinting towards Evergreen, effectively avoiding her attack.

"Hold still!" She shouted.

"You're forgetting about me!" Staraptor shouted, making her way from her side. Evergreen gasped as Staraptor was coming in fairly fast. Evergreen turned and changed her target over to Staraptor. With her arms waving once, she unleashed a huge barrage of her Fairy Machine Gun: Leprechaun at Staraptor.

"**Double Team!**" Staraptor shouted, she then made several illusionary copies of herself that had spread about all throughout the attack, throwing Evergreen slightly off with the multitude of numbers. She could only see maybe twenty or so of them evasively flying throughout the needles.

"Hah! You think that'll stop me?!" Evergreen boasted as she kept up her onslaught. One by one, she saw them vanish upon getting hit in the attack. She then laughed. "The great Titania can't be stopped by some mere bird! I am the true Fairy Queen!"

Just then, she saw that all of the copies were gone, and the actual Staraptor wasn't there. "What?!" She was caught off guard by this sudden change and she cancelled her onslaught. She then heard an incoming sound from an upward angle. She looked up and saw the real Staraptor coming at her with a Steel Wing.

"Take this!" Staraptor swung her right wing down at Evergreen. Evergreen was reflexive enough to reel back just enough to barely avoid by the skin of her teeth.

Evergreen used this to her advantage and she pulled down her oval glasses. "Time to see you drop and shatter!" Her eyes then glowed, and she gad Staraptor look at them as she was still following through with her downward Steel Wing. Staraptor kept her gaze on her, and nothing happened still. Evergreen was beyond baffled now that her Stone Eyes failed to even petrify the likes of Nic's Pokémon. _'C-Can my Stone Eyes work only on humans?! I don't believe this!' _Evergreen backed away as fast as she could as Staraptor balanced herself.

"You're finished!" Staraptor shouted as she raced at Evergreen with another set of Steel Wing. Evergreen tried to counter with her needles of dust, again, but Staraptor deflected them by swatting her wings. _'This is just like battling a Fairy-Type. Too easy!' _The needles didn't hit Staraptor once and she let loose a direct hit, passing Evergreen with a swift assault with her Steel Wing.

Evergreen screamed as she felt excess pain from the attack. She didn't understand it, but that pair of Steel Wing actually hurt.

"Nice one Staraptor!" Nic shouted. He sought this to be his chance as Evergreen scream and fell. "**Stone Edge!**" Nic stomped his foot forward, making the ground shake slightly. Glowing light blue pillars of rock then erupted from the roofs and the attack rush at Evergreen. The attack completely smashed into her, making her scream and enveloped in a rather painful explosion. Evergreen was found being hurled and smashed into the side of a tall building, almost embedding her into the side.

Evergreen groaned and was badly bruised. She was hardly even able to move as she was severely damaged. Taking several consecutive attacks really took a whole bunch out of her. She looked at Nic and his Predator Pokémon with unsettled eyes. She was nearly trembling as she hardly even laid a scratch on Nic, yet he nearly destroyed her.

Nic approached her and stopped fifteen feet away. Staraptor flapped to his side and landed right by his side, both staring intensively at a defeated Evergreen.

Staraptor chose to remain quiet while her Trainer spoke lightly.

"False ambitions aside, you're still apart of Fairy Tail." Nic stated. "I don't even get why you even call yourself something you're not. In case if you haven't noticed, Titania is Erza's title. If you can't respect others and what they stand for, then I guess you truly are nothing but scum."

Evergreen grunted at Nic's words. She was appalled and she didn't wanna tolerate it.

"I'll only say this once, turn Erza and the girls back to normal." Nic demanded.

"We won't hesitate to arrange your demise if you don't comply." Staraptor added.

Evergreen sweat dropped, but she did have a certain trick up her sleeve. She smirked. "Hmph. Nic, was it? I don't suppose you know that my Stone Eyes grant me another ability as well."

Nic raised a brow. "Oh really?" He sounded very unamused by the tone of her voice.

"Remote control." She said. This made Nic and Staraptor both narrow their eyes in dislike of her boasting. "Concede and kneel before me or I shall shatter your precious friends!" She blackmailed.

Nic gasped slightly, he was slightly caught off by this demand. If he were to concede, then the girls and his future date would be free. Nic, however, never seems to take these things likely.

"I was right about you Evergreen. You really are nothing more than a coward…" Nic then glowed, and Evergreen's smirk died, revealing a heavily stunned face. Nic shifted into his Zap Plate, having a big lightning cloud surging above them.

The cloud of lightning was thundering, signifying Nic's rowdy rage. "You now pixie, I really didn't wanna have to resort to this, but you're threatening the lives of innocent Mages." Nic sounded a little more low-toned than normal, meaning he was angry. Evergreen could've swore she almost had a hiccup escape from her throat. "If you really do intend on shattering them, I'll have no trouble in annihilating you and fry your soul into oblivion." He spoke very cold.

The lightning was beginning to surge heavily, and thunder boomed extremely over Evergreen, making her heart race and skip several beats. "Uh…" She was petrified in fear. "Uhhh….can we talk?"

"No." Nic said, and then a brutal Thunder attack was looking to hit her square on the head. Evergreen screamed so loud that all of Magnolia could've heard it. She thought she was a goner, but she was still alive when she was looking to see Nic intentionally releasing his Thunder attack right in front of her. The lightning bolt smashed into the ground, booming ever so ferociously a few feet away from Evergreen's face. The warning attack lasted for ten seconds, nothing but sheer lightning power brutally smashing the roofing area near her.

When it stopped, Evergreen was still looking blindly in front of her. She was completely scarred for life at Nic's ferocity. She had to admit this was worse than Laxus. Nic was in front of her the moment the Thunder attack ceased, and he gave her a dark look that could scare even you nightmares away. His Staraptor was supporting him by remaining five feet away.

"Next one won't miss." He warned. He then narrowed his eyes. "Do _you _concede?"

Evergreen was so scared that she had trouble forming words, but her quivering lips and petrified throat was managing to squeal. "Y-You w-w-win." She squealed, almost looking as though she was gonna pass out. Her eyes glowed, signaling that she was reversing the process. Once she did, her face paled and then she slumped down towards the roof and off the side of the piece she was on and passed out.

Nic turned away, seeing that it was over. He then inhaled and exhaled. He then turned towards Staraptor. "Well I guess we should-!" He was then stopped by a strange feeling that felt like they weren't finished. Nic had a bad feeling, and he was right when Staraptor told him to look up into the sky.

Nic gasped when he saw almost three hundred yellow spheres with spiked collars and lightning bolts floating all around Magnolia. Nic and Staraptor both turned about and saw the sky had a big ring that stretched all around.

"Well…this ain't good." Nic said. "And just when you think it's over."

"We were suppose to get that Laxus guy, but it seems as though he sprung another trap of sorts." Staraptor indicated. Nic shifte back to normal and he looked solemnly at the one that's twelve o'clock high.

"Staraptor, get me up there." Nic asked. With no delay, Staraptor grabbed Nic with her talons and gripped his shoulders. She then began to flap her wings and sail upwards towards the lacrimas floating high above. Nic and his pal made their way up to where the closest one was.

The lacrima itself wasn't too bad. It was the size of your average person, but Nic still had a bad feeling. His Staraptor flapped there as he pondered. "Hmm, no doubt this is one of Laxus's traps." Nic stated.

"Agreed, anything you wanna try?" Staraptor ask, somewhat tempted to smash them. Nic had a feeling that Staraptor was raring to go, but he had to make sure for himself. He was given a good distance and he gave the lacrima a small kick. Not too hard, but to test what was being dealt with.

When he had just kicked the lacrima, he then felt a small shock of electrocution that sprung from his body. He was jolted very slightly, like a harsh tickle. Since he did a small kick, he hardly hurt himself from that shock.

Nic grunted slightly at his ticklish shock.

"Nic, how were you shocked?" Staraptor asked, looking down at her Trainer. She was shocked (pun intended) to see Nic be dealt with electric damage, but how was this possible?

Nic raised a brow, then looked back up. "Hmmm. Staraptor, put me down." Nic said. Staraptor then sailed back down and plopped Nic onto the flat roofing. She landed by his side and saw him looking up. He then turned towards her. "Staraptor, call me cray, but I think when I kicked the lacrima, it countered by hitting me with some of the small force applied."

Staraptor looked up once again and looked back at Nic. "It's possible. It's not that I don't doubt you, but I still can't understand how that lacrima could do something like that."

"I don't blame you. Perhaps it's one of Laxus's defense mechanisms." Nic theorized, crossing his arms. "I noticed that when I kicked the lacrima, I felt the same amount of pain, which was but a harsh tickle. Imagine what would happen if someone destroyed one…"

"I rather not." Staraptor said. "If that's true, then there's no way we can take all of them out without getting electrocuted. It's like Destiny Bond, only with an Electric-type quality to it."

Nic narrowed his eyes. Staraptor had a point, the odds weren't so well if they were only going to get electrocuted. Probably taking out just one might prove fatal to a weak guild member. He stared up at the lacrimas, pondering about their qualities. _'We have little time and these things will electrocute you with equal power…wait.' _Nic almost gasped at what had to be done. He then turned to his feathery pal. "Staraptor, I know how these things can be dealt with."

Staraptor was all ears, if they were visible that is. "If you mean dealing with Laxus, that might work, but if not, then regardless the odds are we'll get shocked."

Nic smiled. "Oh contraire. There's one guy we know that can't get shocked, even if you tried." He didn't say anything after that and allowed his pal to think for herself. After a few moments, she blinked and let out a small gasp.

"Don't tell me. _Him_, yes?"

Nic nodded. "Exactly. He's the only one who can stop these things in time, not to mention Electric-Type moves or anything electric in general have absolute zero affect." He then got out a poke ball. He then spread his legs, and Starpator stepped back. "Now, let's go!" Nic tossed up the poke ball, and it opened high in the air. The white energy came crashing down and made a small crater in the roof. The energy formed a large draconic Pokémon that was taller than Elfman. He had a large shark-like fin protruding from his back and he had claws for hands. He had the head of a hammerhead, and yellow eyes of a behemoth.

He roared so loud upon coming out that all of Magnolia heard his voice. Small shockwaves rippled about, and they simmered down soon enough with him heaving a brief snarl. He turned towards Nic and Staraptor and approached them. The two weren't even remotely fazed as their family member towered over them with his ferocious look.

The three all looked at each other and after a few seconds, the ferocious creature smiled and he downed down to hug Nic and Staraptor. The three had a happy hug, seeing how friendly he can be outside of battle. He let go and Nic smiled and pet his pal's head.

"So Garchomp, how's it feel to be able to stretch your legs?" Nic asked.

Garchomp reeled back up and smiled, but more sinisterly. "All too good. When do I start the smashing?" He asked in a not-so-calm and sinister tone. He chuckled and then turned to look up at the lacrima. He could hear everything from his poke ball, so he knew exactly what to do.

Nic smirked, knowing Garchomp was all too eager. "Start right now." Nic ordered. "I need you to destroy those lacrima all over town. Meet up with me when you're finished." Garchomp nodded without looking, and then after stepping forward, he leaned at an angle upwards and lunged, sending himself soaring up at the speed of sound; in fact, he was so fast that he had the air rippling at the spot he lunged from.

Garchomp grinned and he had a swift glance all around, seeing how many. "This is gonna be fun!" He shouted as he readied a Slash and roared as he completely smashed the first lacrima in a flash. He was then found being electrocuted, but it had absolute zero effect on him. "Gee, that kind of tickles." He then went sonic speed in a clockwise direction, destroying lacrima like they were glass. Each and every single time, he was unaffected by the electrocution, proving the strong points of a Ground-Type.

"I give him ten minutes at most." Staraptor commented.

Nic got out another poke ball. "Yeah, he'll get it done. He is a monster you know." He then threw up the poke ball, and out popped Greninja. "Greninja, you and Staraptor both work together and find the rest of the Thunder God Tribe. Find and help Sophie if she needs it." Nic ordered.

"You don't have to tell me twice." Greninja commented. With that said, the frog and the bird went off in search of Bickslow and Freed together, and Garchomp was in the middle of having some fun annihilating the Thunder Palace.

Nic then leaped down and eased his way safely through an alleyway. "Nothing's stopping me now Laxus." He then darted off in search of the S-Class jerk.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Fairy Tail's Guild Hall…**

All of the girls that were statues were found turning back to normal in a confused state. They were free from Evergreen's Stone Eyes thanks to Nic and Staraptor.

"W-What happened?" Juvia asked, rubbing her head from a small headache.

"The last thing I remember was seeing Evergreen, a-and things went fuzzy from there." Levy said.

"Evergreen must have used her Stone Eyes on us." Erza stated.

Gajeel, Happy, Makarov, and a now awake Natsu all ran up to where the girls are, seeing that they were alright.

"Lucy! You're okay!" Happy cried, flying up and hugging her in her breasts.

"Hey, whoa! Who said you could hug me there?!" Lucy said, startled.

Makarov turned back to the board and saw the status. "Nic vs Evergreen. The winner is…Nic!" Makarov exclaimed in joy. "He's done good. I knew I shouldn't have doubted him."

Erza was satisfied to hear that Nic was the one who freed them, but she needed to know what was happening.

Everyone there was grinning at the fact they were okay, and then Makarov briefly explained the situation at hand. After he finished explaining, all of the girls nodded in understanding.

"I see, so Laxus has tried and pull strings on his own." Erza said.

"He called this The Battle of Fairy Tail. That walking lamp had gone and pushed one too many buttons." Gajeel said.

"Yes, but now it's over. I've played along with his silly game because your lives were at risk; but now that you're all okay, this game can end." Makarov said.

"What do you mean?! I never got to fight anyone!" Natsu shouted.

"You did, but Nic just wasn't in the mood for you." Happy pointed out, flying close to him.

"This guild is rather fun, isn't it Gajeel." Juvia said.

Gajeel looked away and crossed his arms. "It ain't boring, I'll say that."

Everyone then saw the runes on the board turn red and dark red, and they started flying up into the air and forming a huge skull.

"What's that?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"If Laxus is pulling up another trick, he's gonna have to fight us this time!" Bisca warned.

The skull above them then spoke, with Laxus's voice. "Can you hear me old man?" Laxus communicated. "The rest of you should be listening to this too. Due to Nic throwing a rule out a window, it appears I'll have to make a new one. To put this bluntly, I prefer to not have The Battle of Fairy Tail early and I think I'll add a twist."

"What twist?" Makarov demanded.

"The twist?" Laxus then chuckled. "I bet you'll love this one old man, it's my Thunder Palace."

"What?! Are you out of your mind?!" Makarov shouted.

"You have one hour before I have all of Magnolia fried, unless you wanna have the guild handed to me, _master_." He said master with some form of dislike and the the skull was dispelled, the runes disappearing.

Makarov was far beyond pissed that Laxus was now targeting all of Magnolia rather than the girls. He had veins coming from his head and he was screaming. "YOU'VE DONE ENOUGH BOY! I WON'T LET YOU DRAG INNOCENT PEOPLE INTO THIS-!" Just then, he froze and he started gasping rapidly. He grabbed his chest and grunted.

"MASTER!" Erza shouted, rushing towards his side.

"Is he okay?" Natsu asked. Mira went rushing to go get some medicine while the girls rushed to Makarov side. Erza had Makarov in her arms, seeing him clench his own chest.

Gajeel shifted his gaze and looked out the window. He then saw the Thunder Palace. "Guys, you better come see this." The girls and everyone else rushed outside and saw the Thunder Palace up above them.

"The heck are those?" Natsu asked.

"They're lightning lacrima created by Laxus." Erza detailed. "They overflow with Lightning Magic."

"Yeah, and they're scattered about all over town. Let's just hope he doesn't set them off." Cana said calmly.

"Wait, what happens if he activates them?" Lucy asked.

"…everything inside with burn." Cana coldly said. Everyone was startled for a bit, and then Bisca pulled out a rifle.

"Enough! Let's see Laxus stop-!" She was about to aim, but then she saw something coming from her left. Everyone saw what was coming. "What's that!?" They all saw Garchomp roaring and ploughing through the lacrimas with ease. They saw him using Slash, cutting and slicing through ten lacrima in less than ten seconds. He continued onwards, tearing them up with his sharp claws and roaring.

"I can do this all day!" Garchomp shouted as he passed everyone, with the girls and everyone watching him go on.

"Just what is that thing?" Natsu exclaimed.

Erza then pictured something she recalled last night. Something about Nic describing his last Pokémon hungry for brawling and ferocious. Showing no mercy was one of the traits they witnessed, as Garchomp had moved like a monster.

Erza narrowed her eyes. "I'm not sure, but I think that's one of Nic's last Pokémon that he described." Erza said out loud, shocking Natsu, Lucy, and Happy.

"WAIT! That thing was with Nic?!" Startling Lucy. She imagined it being ferocious, but seeing how it was brutal in taking out a multitude of lacrima.

"Seems about right. That thing fits Nic's description." Happy remarked. "And it seems to be taking out the Thunder Palace too!"

"With that incredible speed, it'll be done in no time." Juvia remarked.

Erza then turned back towards the girls. "We can't waste anymore time. Laxus needs to be stopped regardless. We'll go and search for him while Levy keeps an eye on the Master until we can contact Porlyusica." Erza said. "When she does arrive, Levy will break the Enchantment and have Natsu and Gajeel track down Laxus."

Everyone agreed and they went to do as told. Erza went as well and she was dashing out of the guild faster than the others. _'I'll be there soon Nic. Don't fight Laxus on your own.'_

* * *

**With Laxus and Freed**

Laxus was angry before with Evergreen losing to Nic, but was beyond infuriated with Nic's Garchomp tearing up his new rule. His teeth were gritting and his eyes were almost bulging out of his head. Lightning and static was thundering and booming deep inside the place where he was spectating everything.

Freed was behind Laxus, unemotional and unfazed by Laxus's demeanor flaring about. Being the head of the Thunder God Tribe, he had to remain positive and support Laxus. "Laxus, even with that thing destroying the Thunder Palace, we can still win." Laxus's face was shadowed and the lightning simmered down into sparks. "We don't need hostages; and even if we try, I'm afraid Nic and his fellow accomplices will stop us."

The lightning stopped and he grunted. "That geezer is probably counting on Erza now, and Nic's still running rampant…the others are annoying." Laxus then set off another round of lightning surging. "Mystogan is bound to find me eventually, so I'll take care of him. I know he's here, I can feel his Magic…Freed, before you go back out and fight with Bickslow, I need you to do a little Enchantment…" He then grinned slightly. "…that Nic is as good as dead when I'm finished with him.

* * *

**With Sophie**

Sophie was on a rooftop and was looking above and seeing Nic's Garchomp terminate multiple consecutive lacrima. She saw him get electrocuted, and he looked as though it did absolutely nothing. She blinked in surprise that she had seen Nic's Garchomp. "Boy, just when things are crazy already." She commented. "Just where could Laxus and his Thunder chumps be?"

"Lightning chumps" "Lightning chumps" Some weird floating tiki-looking dolls repeated behind her. Sophie turned and was surprised that they were with Bickslow. Just then, Sophie saw them shoot green beams at her, surprising her.

Sophie panicked and then making haste after she ducked and avoided the lasers. The lasers kept on going from the five or so dolls. She squealed and squirmed as she made way behind a corner, where she heaved and the lasers ceased for the time being. Sophie peaked her head around the corner and saw the five dolls floating in the air. Floating gently above downwards with a maniac-like laugh was none other than Bickslow.

Bickslow laughed and landed on the roofing. "What up newbie." Bickslow greeted wickedly.

"What do you want you _mifletzat_!" Sophie demanded, calling him a monster in Hebrew and sticking her head around the corner.

"Oh nothing really. Just thought I'd stop by and give ya some regards before we get to the fun part!" Bickslow warned, sticking his tongue out.

Sophie sweat dropped. "I hate to ask what your definition of 'Fun' is." She mildly said.

"Fun." "Fun." "Fun." Bickslow's 'babies' said.

"How about we show ya." Bickslow then paused and then stuck his tongue out once more. "Time to tear it up babies!" The dolls then made their way over and in front of the corner Sophie was hiding and they started to shoot. Sophie turned back and she tucked and rolled forward, evading the firing. She then began darting forward as the beams were trailing from behind.

"Haha!" Bickslow mocked. "Pretty reflexive for a newbie. It's too bad I can't go easy on ya in this war!" He then moved both his arms in opposite arcs. "**Line Formation!**" The dolls then got a lock on Sophie and they stacked on top of the other, creating a totem pole. A large, vertical crescent that was green was launched from the stacked 'babies'. The crescent made its way towards Sophie, cutting up bits of the roofing and leaving a trail. Sophie turned around and saw the attack coming her way. She made haste and dove towards her right and barely missed the vertical assault by a few inches.

She quickly got to her feet and grunted. "You know, your 'babies' ne better adult supervision!" She then relaxed herself and pointed a finger at her head. Just then, a chain of memories flowed behind her.

"Oh, what kind of Magic is this?" Bickslow curiously asked.

"Let's see how your precious 'babies' handle my Memory-Make Magic. **Stone Lightning!**" From the sky, Sophie had then unleashed yellow lightning that shot downwards and the bolts of lightning all struck the dolls, not only shocking them, but then turning them into stone upon said impact. They all fell to the ground and shattered into dust.

"My babies!" Bickslow cried. "Oh no-o-o-o-ooooooo!" He cried in a panic.

Sophie smirked. "Not very responsible with your 'babies' now are ya?" She joked. Bickslow continued to panic about his poor babies.

"What am I gonna do? My poor babies-!" He then almost immediately had a big smile and stuck his tongue out. "-kidding!" Just then, a rather large green blast had just launched itself out of nowhere and exploded at Sophie's feet, making her scream and slam back against the roofing, akmsot making her go over the edge. She was fortunately still on the roofing and she grunted as she was getting back up, but gasped to see toy dolls floating in the air in place of the dolls that were turned to stone.

"But…how?!" Sophie said in astonishment.

Bickslow crossed his arms and his 'babies' flew about. "Look behind me." Sophie then did as told and she saw that it was a toy store. She wasn't getting it until she looked back at the new dolls. She piece it all and realized Bickslow was using the toys from the toy store to attach her.

Bickslow then proceeded to explain. "I have Seith Magic, meaning I can control souls and move them freely to any inanimate object I want. This is more than just a store, it's an armory! You can break as many of these toys all day long, but I can simply move their souls to another. Sucks to be you now, huh."

The toys then proceeded in the offense. They began to shoot green magical beams at Sophie and she grunted before leaping towards her right again and started running. She had no room to counter as the toys now charged at her. They flew in at her from an angle and one doll swooped in front of her to make her momentarily stop, which was when a secondary doll swooped in directly at her, tackling her in the abdomen. The toys laughed as they saw Sophie get hit. Sophie fell back, but then another doll zoomed in from behind and hit her back. Sophie yelled as she was hit from behind and she fell forward with a rather large thud.

"Fun. Fun." A few of the dolls shouted and the other dolls laughed. Sophie then tried to stand up. She managed to get a knee under her and a hand to the ground for support, but she looked up and saw the dolls floating in front of Bickslow.

Bickslow did his laugh again. "End of the line for you newbie. Don't worry, your soul will be taken care of. **Baryon Formation!**" The dolls then positioned themselves in a pentagonal shape. A harsh whirlwind goes around the outside of the ring and a powerful green energy was being generated. The beam was then fired, and it was hurling towards Sophie.

Sophie was in a little panic, though she knew just what to do. "Sorry pal, but I'm allergic to having my soul taken." She said it as a lame excuse. "Memorize…then…" The beam was closing on her as she had a finger at her head as a focus point. "…forget." She then said it, and the blast was almost dispelled just like that. The attack had dispersed in almost a millisecond.

Bickslow jerked back in surprise. "Oh what?!" He shouted. "How'd you do that?!"

"Surprise. Surprise." His 'babies' repeated.

Sophie then got to her feet and smirked. "Wanna know how I did that? Simple, my Memory-Make made me memorize your attack, and then I chose to have it forgotten."

"What?" Asked a confused Bickslow. Just then, he saw a Water Shuriken attack tear through his dolls, destroying each and every one. "What the-?!" Bickslow was very confused because he had no idea where that attack came from. He then heard a flap from behind and turned around, only to get hit in the waist by Staraptor's Steel Wing. Bickslow flew back and skid. He then felt startled and he pivoted to see Sophie again. "Alright, what kind of trick are you trying to pull?" He then saw Greninja leaping in front of Sophie, and Staraptor was flying in place right by his side.

Bickslow was a little shocked and then he confidently grinned. "Well now, what do we have here? You two must be those Pokémon things that I've been hearing about." Bickslow said. Greninja and Staraptor both got themselves ready for Bickslow.

Greninja looked back at Sophie. "You okay?"

Sophie nodded. "Yeah." _'I got saved by a frog and a bird. What are the odds?'_

Bickslow grinned. "Let's see how you fair with me. **Line Formation!**" New toy dolls from the store then stood atop the other and they unleashed a vertical crescent at Greninja and Staraptor.

"Let's just see who's sharper than the other. **Water Shuriken!**" Greninja swiftly created compressed stars of water and he unleashed them at the Line Formation heading towards them. The shuriken and crescent then came into contact, and fortunate enough, Water Shuriken slices the crescent into several pieces and exploding on the spot, sparing them.

With Bickslow caught off guard with that _sharp_ offensive, he didn't see his toys get destroyed by Staraptors quick Aerial Ace. Bickslow grunted and reeled back at the swiftness the two had. He had new 'babies' set close to him right after that. He clearly underestimated them.

"Grrr. Never thought I had to resort to this." Bickslow said. He began to remove his metal shield from his head, and he undid the hood from his head. It revealed him to have some weird navy blue human puppet symbol between his nose and eyes and over his forehead. He had navy blue hair that was cut along the edges, revealing black, and making it look like he has three rows of navy blue, with the middle and top being a Mohawk of sorts.

"This doesn't look too good." Sophie remarked.

"**Figure Eyes!**" Bickslow then opened his two eyes and they began to glow green. He then became surrounded in a green aura, and the three had no choice but to look away.

"Guys, don't look!" Sophie shouted, and Greninja and Staraptor both shut their eyes along with Sophie. "I've read about this type of Magic! If you look into the eyes, you turn into those creepy dolls!"

"Well now, aren't you just a bookworm." Bickslow stated.

"Bookworm. Bookworm." The dolls glowed green and they all zoomed in and started bashing them. Sophie covered up, as did Staraptor and Greninja. They all felt little bumps by them thanks to Staraptor's Intimidate halving the assault.

Sophie and the others grunted as each hit nudged their sides slightly, and the worst of it was that they couldn't look.

Although, they could do the reverse.

"Greninja." Staraptor said, using her brains. "You know what to do, right?"

"Yeah, and what are you, Nic?" Greninja stated, saying he prefers to have Nic give the orders. Regardless, he knew just what Staraptor meant, since everyone on Nic's team could read the other's thoughts and minds.

"**Smokescreen!**" Greninja made ninja hand signs and he aimed from where Bickslow's laughing was coming from. He huffed out a huge cloud of smoke. The Smokescreen had completely obscured Bickslow and his dolls' vision. He wasn't even able to open his eyes as smoke was getting into them.

"Gah! My eyes!" Bickslow screeched, unable to open them through the Smokescreen. Greninja and Staraptor and Sophie all then opened their eyes once more. Bickslow's Figure Eyes were put to a halt, and that meant they could counter attack.

"Now it's…" Staraptor started, flying into the cloud.

"…our turn!" Greninja finished as he jumped into the air. "**Bounce!**"

"**Aerial Ace!**"

Staraptor flew straight in and with her keen vision, she hit Bickslow and he yelled in a scream through the smoke. Staraptor then flew passed him so that Greninja could come down on the Seith Magic user. Greninja then immediately jumped down on Bickslow from above with such force that the Smokescreen dispersed and smashed Bickslow in a crater, creating powerful winds and some dust flying. He then jumped off of him and leaped back towards Sophie.

Bickslow screamed yet again, he felt pain everywhere. He even had yellow sparks that indicated paralysis. "Gah!" He trembled as he struggled to get up. "This can't be happening!"

"Oh, it's happening." Greninja said. Staraptor flapped right next to Sophie and Greninja's side.

"Everybody ready?"

"Yeah!" Sophie and Staraptor both shouted.

"**Dark Pulse!**"

"**Steel Wing!**"

Sophie made a chain of memories. "**Baryon Lightning Impact!**" From the memories, she unleashed a huge beam that was green and was enveloped in lightning, made from the memories of Laxus's lightning and Bickslow's Baryon Formation. The Dark Pulse and Baryon Lightning Impact then both made contact with Staraptor's Steel Wing, making it look as though one wing was being thrust by darkness and one by the green and lightning beam. Then Staraptor began to spin, combining her Steel Wing and now all three attacks combined and fused into a spiraling missile of gray, black, purple, green, and lightning. The combined spiraling assault was far more immense, shattering and creating a deep trail going through the roofing.

"You're going down!" Staraptor shouted, being the center of the whole attack and going at Bickslow. Bickslow's scream howled through Magnolia as the attack engulfed him and Staraptor bashed into him, making a rather large and thundering explosion at the edge of the roof and sending a huge impact through a straight row through Magnolia, said being Bickslow hurling and smashing through the streets and finally ending one mile away with a major dust cloud.

The three stood atop the roof with grins on their faces, satisfied that Bickslow was finally defeated. Sophie even marveled at the strength Greninja and Staraptor had together.

'_Wow…talk about meturaph.' _Sophie remarked, with the word 'crazy' in Hebrew. Staraptor and Greninja both turned back towards Sophie and grinned at her.

"That wasn't so bad." Staraptor said.

"Thunder God Tribe, more like Thunder Peasant Tribe." Greninja joked.

Sophie laughed. "Yeah, and we just stole their thunder!" She joked. The three just shared a laughed for awhile and then they saw Garchomp coming close by, using his Dual Chop and shattering a whole bunch in less than a few seconds. They even saw him use Slash and tear up even more, all the while taking no damage from electrocution.

Greninja blinked. "Looks like he's having a blast." He commented.

"He might be done in the next minute or so." Staraptor noted, only seeing roughly one hundred left and Garchomp was heading for them.

Sophie raised a brow. "Don't tell me, he's Nic's last one?"

The two nodded, and Sophie sweat dropped. "For peat's sake, that guy's a maniac. He must have a violent way of the word 'fun'. I guess he's a _mifletzat _too."

* * *

**With Mira and Elfman**

Mira was having Elfman over her shoulder and was helping him. She found him earlier and was helping as they were trying to find Laxus. They were getting close to a bridge.

"Mira, really, you don't have to help me. I'm a man you know." Elfman muttered.

Mira smiled. "You might be a man, but you're still my baby brother." She teased. Elfman grunted, but was very grateful his sister was there for him.

They then saw an explosion on the bridge, making them stop and look in surprise.

"What's that?" Elfman asked.

"It must be Cana." Mira said in concern. They then saw Cana on the bridge, and they saw her use her Card Magic once again. She had a green Magic Seal emerge and she unleashed the cards in streams of green at Freed, who was the opponent.

Freed's right eyes turned black with a purple and light purple iris. "**Dark Ecriture: Reflect!**" He inscribed runes in the air by his sword and the cards bounced off of the inscription. The attack then launched back at Cana and she screamed upon impact. She was caught in a powerful explosion and the bridge collapsed under her.

"Cana!" Mira shouted in worry. In the rubble, Cana was struggling to find her feet. Cana was on her knees and Freed looked down from the fraction of the bridge that wasn't destroyed.

"I'm pressed, you're strong." Freed said. "A reflection to your many years of service in the guild. You're tougher than that Phantom girl that I defeated earlier. **Dark Ecriture: Suffering!**" An inscription was written on Cana's head and Cana had felt immense amount of agonizing pain coursing through her system. She screamed up to the sky and could take no more as she finally fell back into the rubble in defeat.

"No, Cana!" Mira shouted, seeing her defeated friend down. She turned towards Freed. "This has gone too far!"

"Yeah! How dare you!" Elfman agreed, now standing up.

Freed turned towards them, but was more directed at Elfman. "I'm sorry Elfman, but those who were defeated cannot enter again. You already lost to Evergreen."

"You can't stop me!" Elfman retorted.

Mira stepped forward. "We're in the same guild! We shouldn't be fighting!"

Freed looked away. "That means nothing." He then looked back at them. "But the purpose of this game is to overhaul all that Fairy Tail stands for. To break these pointless bonds. Laxus's enemy is mine as well."

Elfman jumped onto the bridge, ready for battle. "I'm ready to take you on any day of the week buddy!" He then ran forward with a punch. Freed held up his sword and then he zoomed past Elfman, leaving him confused as he didn't feel anything. He then saw that he had an inscription on his chest.

"What the hell is this?!" Elfman said, startled.

Freed looked back with his Dark Ecriture eye. "Those who have re-entered shall receive a punishment far beyond death. Those runes on you will give you unimaginable pain. **Dark Ecriture: Pain!**" The runes then vanished, and then Elfman was glowing pink all over. Elfman then grabbed his head and started wailing and screaming at the pain he's being inflicted with.

Mira was shocked Elfman was getting beaten up, and he's already endured enough. "Elfman!" She shouted in concern. "You have to stop Freed!"

Freed did not listen, as he was doing as instructed by Laxus and eliminating them all. He held up his sword and slashed at Elfman again. "**Dark Ecriture: Fear! Suffering!**" He did both attacks consecutively, making Elfman stumbled and he screamed with bulging eyes and glowing pink again. He was panicking and wasn't stopping as Freed made him experience pain and fear, not to mention suffering.

Mira wasn't taking this too well. She was sobbing and crying in her hands, see couldn't bear to see Cana down or Elfman experiencing such dread. She wasn't able to do anything but cry and plead. "I'm begging you. I'll do anything you want. Just stop." She desperately asked.

Fred did not listen as he continued to punish Elfman by repeatedly using Dark Ecriture: Pain on him, making the latter scream and fall onto his knees, feeling as though he was bleeding and having his inners exploding over and over.

"NO!" Mira shouted, covering her ears, not wanting her any of this anymore.

Elfman was given a moment and he heaved. He dropped to his hands and gasped repeatedly.

Freed was readying his last assault on him. The final strike. **Dark Ecriture:…Death.**"

Everyone stopped just then. Nothing moved, not even the water was motioning about. A wind breezed by as Mira slowly lifted her head with shocked eyes, finally snapped. Everything looked do dark around her as the wind was the only thing that blew after that last word.

"…death." Mira squealed. All she could hear just then was a heartbeat. The clouds above began to part.

_Elfman roared as it was night and he was out of control. Lisanna spread her arms out and smiled at her monstrous brother._

"_It's okay big brother. We still love you." She sweetly said before Elfman swatted at her harshly._

_Mira reached out helplessly with tears. "LISANNNA!"_

Mira was feeling the whole world around her shake and quiver, though she was standing perfectly still with a dark shadow casted over her face in frozen shock. Her iris and pupil both sharpen, giving her a feeling as though she was scarred for life by fear and eternal dread.

"_M-Mira…" Lisanna muttered, lying on the ground with hazy eyes. "I feel...so cold. Where'd you go…Mira?" _

_Mira was tearing up and holding Lisanna's hand as Lisanna was looking up. "I'm right here." She managed to squeal._

_Lisanna struggled to move her head, having her hazy gaze on her teary sister. "M-Mira…I just…I just…w-wanted…you to know…" Hardly any words were coming out after that._

_Mira was tearing up harshly now. "Lisanna…Lisanna…__**LISANNA!**__"_

There were heartbeats heard as the ground under Mira was beginning to glow under her hair in the wind. Freed to notice from above on the bridge and he stepped back in shock.

He could sense an enormous amount of power. "Such power…what is she?"

Mira was crying insanely hard, and she was having small screams escape. She was building up so much distress that she finally had it and let out an insanely loud scream up into the sky with the light below signaling her Magic power release, which was enormous. The rocks nearby shook and some floated in the air at the power given off. There was a huge dark purple seal that appeared over her as she screamed. Freed blocked himself as the light was getting brighter.

The light shining below was turning dark purple as Mira underwent her Take Over. Her hair went up and she got pointed ears, much like a troll. She had crack-like zigzag running down on the right eye with dark lips. She had a pink ribbon tied around her neck and her forearms and hands gain scales and fin-like protrusions and gauntlets. She gained a stocky tail made of metal-like scales. She had a skimpy suit that revealed her arms and legs, exposing her belly and wide cleavage, and upper back. She had high heeled boots that had high-thighs. They were decorated with light motifs on the upper parts, taking the shape of black blades with yellow outlining.

The transformed Mira was howling as she was sounding much more deep in the screams, they started a slow grunts at first, and then she let out a demonic roar at the sky.

Freed was beyond shocked to be witnessing Mira rising back up to her glory days. The light faded all around and she finally went in with her ferocious offense. She leaped up to where Freed was and struck with her gauntlet, barely missing and making a crash echo as there was dust rising from the harsh blow.

Freed was fine, but due to this change, he had to switch to defense. "**Dark Ecriture: Wings!**" Freed then had rune composed wings created and he was given the capability of flight and flew high speed away and up. Mira was no fool as she then looked up and she sprouted her own wings, but they were black membranes rather than runes. She soared upwards at him and attempted a slashing motion, but Freed looked back just in time and he jerked out of the way and she turned back and gave him a swift kick to the waist. Freed felt the attack and was forced downwards and then he looked again and was delivered a direct punch to the face. Freed soared back down on the bridge with a large crash.

Freed got up again and he flew in the opposite direction this time. Mira chased after him and was catching up fast. Freed looked back to see if she was following, but he gasped when he turned back to see the demonic waitress glaring at him with death-like intentions.

"Die." She coldly stated.

Freed was getting in a defensive stance. _'This is her Take Over: Satan Soul!' _He didn't see this power first hand until now. He was rather scared that he was seeing a disaster in from of him.

Mira held out a hand. "**Darkness Stream!**" Dark tendrils of energy was released from a Magic seal and shot at Freed. Freed managed to evade and deflect them off with his sword and he had little room to counter.

When he had an opportunity when the tendrils stopped, he turned and was about to strike with a Dark Ecriture of sorts, but Mira showed up in his face and gave him a knee to the sword, shattering it and he fell back from the force. He grunted and was left with no choice but to flee again, turning and go.

Mira wasted no time in hunting him down as she was catching up to him quickly. Freed looked back at his opponent that was tailing him. "I have a few forbidden spells of my own you know!" He then flew up and wrote an inscription in front of himself. "**Dark Ecriture: Darkness!**" Freed was then engulfed in darkness and he transformed into a bulky demon. It had excess dark hair on the shoulders and had horns jerking up from the head. The belt and lower half of the suit was spared and he was given big monstrous-like feet and hands. It had a half-scale face with a pitch black eye and had elf ears.

Mira and Freed met and finally clashed with a fist each, rippling a shock wave that shattered the ground below. They backed away and Free enveloped a fist in black energy with red outlining, while Mira outlined her black energy in purple. The two then proceed in trading and colliding horrific and mach-speed blows with demon qualities. Not surprising, Mira was delivering much harder blows and was having Freed receive a couple of punches with energy.

Eventually, Mira clenches Freed and drives him into the ground, sending the two crashing into an underground cavern. As she held onto him while pushing, she used her left hand that was ignited with electricity. "**Evil Spark!**" Electricity drove all throughout Freed and he screamed as Mira let go and had Freed smash through various stalagmites and stalactites with electricity coursing through, sparking his body with every hit until he was found on his knees in a heap of rubble.

"I-It's true. Her power's uncanny." Freed muttered as Mira lapped her wings in front of him, looking at him with disgust. "I've heard tales of her powers, but I never imagined them being this strong."

"Hmph." Mira scolded.

Freed got up and channeled Darkness magic through him. "I cannot afford to lose, no matter what!" The ground began to quake as he then unleashed a destructive dark magic in the form of a tornado. "**Darkness Breath!**" Mira covered up as she was hit with the tornado and blasted out of the caverns. With swiftness, Freed was above Mira and had a sphere-like bomb between his hands. As soon as the tornado stopped, Mira looked and saw him. "**Darkness Flare Bomb!**" He threw it down onto Mira and it had high pressure boom that made Mira soar into the river down below, making water fly.

Freed looked down to see if he had won. "Is it over?" He then gasped when seeing a whirlpool and then the water actually rotating. In the center, he saw Mira controlling the water through her hands and twirling it around her.

"**Evil Explosion!**" She then send the enormous volume water in the form of a whirlpool. The attack smashed into Freed and he shot back. In the blink of an eye, Mira appeared and gave a headbutt that made him yelp and reel back a distance.

Mira then gathered energy between her hands, which took the form of a black globe with spiraling purple around it. "**Soul Extinction!**" She then held the globe forward and unleashed a severely devastating black-purple beam at Freed. The range was greatly high, as it engulfed Freed and the surrounding area. Freed screamed as he was swallowed up and then the entire attack exploded, covering a range far greater than anyone could've imagine. All of the magnolia people saw the attack from their point of view.

Down below, Elfman and Cana, now standing and with Elfman holding an unconscious Juvia, saw the horrific assault. They both rushed to where the attack took place.

Freed was on his hands and knees, now deprived of his wings and demon-like qualities. His suit was all trashed up and he was wounds everywhere. He was struggling to get up from a sizzling crater when Mira landed in front of him and had demonic red eyes that shot at him.

"Freed!" Her demon voice howled and she rushed at him. Freed freaked out. "S-Stay back!" He shouted, but Mira shoved him to the ground and was on top so he couldn't escape. _'I don't stand a chance against such a force!'_

As Mira screamed and was punching downwards to finish him off, an image of Lisanna appeared.

_Lisanna smiled ever so sweetly and she closed her eyes, saying she loved them both._

Mira came to a halt not even a centimeter away from his face, and the force to stop it made air and dust ripple around. Freed looked with scared and shocked eyes full of fear at the site of being spared.

Mira huffed and heaved as her fist was shaking. She stayed still and then eased herself. She had enough and relaxed. She slumped back on Freed and she reverted back to herself. She looked down at Freed with a frown.

Composing himself, Freed relaxed. "I don't understand, why didn't you finish me off?" He asked.

She let loose a small grin and looked down. "Because this battle was pointless."

Freed didn't buy it. "Don't give me any false pity. Just finish me."

Mira got off Freed and sat by his side, looking down at him. "I won't do that because we're allies. We're both apart of Fairy Tail." It was at that time Cana and Elfman arrived.

Mira continued. "Being apart of Fairy Tail means we work together. We celebrate together. We all grow together."

"No you're wrong! Laxus is my one and only ally!" Freed denied.

Mira kept her sweet smile. "It doesn't have to be. Listen, we've all been your friends since the very beginning, even when you think we weren't. It's perfectly fine to have that one person you trust more than anybody else; but no matter what happens, we'll always be there for you. We're all part of something bigger than you know. We're a family."

Freed gasped in realization and Mira gently held his hand with both of hers. "I promise you, if you just reach out, even a little, there will always be someone by your side." She then had a tear shed from her eyes. "Once you are able to see that connection, it stays in your heart for as long as you treasure it."

The sunlight was beaming through the clouds onto them, and Freed was taking in every word and Mira smiled even more sweetly than ever. "You're surrounded by people who care for you, people who respect you for who you are."

The sunlight dimmed and Freed began to cry on the ground, looking up. He let loose a few shed of tears in his mistake. He was heavily ashamed for even hurting his comrades. Guilt rise up and he continued on crying.

He grabbed his face so he could ease his tear shedding. "I never wanted…to hurt you guys…" He sniffled. "…I'm so ashamed…forgive me…"

Mira shed a few tears, but she smiled in joy. "You already have been forgiven." She said. "And next year, we'll enjoy the Harvest Festival together."

Freed continue to cry and felt joyful that he was forgiven for his actions. Elfman and Cana both had tears in their eyes hearing Mira talk. They couldn't help but feel happy for the situation.

"That's my sis." Elfman said. "She's a man with the biggest heart."

Cana wiped away a tear that was being shed. "She's amazing."

With Freed defeated and not wanting to turn his back on Fairy Tail again, and with Mira unable to go on, the status on the board was 'Freed vs Mirajane: Both Mages forfeit'.

* * *

**With Nic**

Nic was witnessing Garchomp a mile away and had just annihilated to last remaining lacrima, with himself unaffected by the shock. Nic heard his roar and the next thing he saw was Garchomp going mach speed and landing with a rippling quake in front of him. Garchomp let loose a triumphant roar as he was breathing rather heavily.

"That felt great." He commented, stretching his claws and arms. "I've never felt so much energy."

Nic nodded and Garchomp looked back at Nic. Garchomp simmered down and he lowered his head and smiled, letting Nic pet him.

"Thanks so much buddy, now all of Magnolia is no longer under hostage because of you." Garchomp retracted slightly and stared at Nic. "Now there's only one obstacle left, and that's Laxus."

The mention of him mad Garchomp snarl with a demonic grin. "I'm ready to tear things up again!" He said, leaning back up and holding his claws.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "I know, but I need you as a last resort, and I think he'll expect me to unleash you guys on the spot." He then looked ahead. "I have to have do something for me." He turned back to Garchomp. "I know you have little patience, but please, stand by until I give you the signal for you to strike."

Though it sounded like waiting, Garchomp knew full well that this was a no-lose situation, so this had to be an important role Garchomp has to play. Garchomp nodded. "Okay." He then roared demonically and hid away in the ground using Dig. He dug deep into the earth and awaited until Nic will called out for him.

Nic looked down the large hole with a nod. "Okay, now that that's settled, let's try and find him."

Only one small flaw…he had absolutely no idea where to start looking.

"Okay, this may be an issue." Nic said, walking down Magnolia. "I guess if I want find him, I'll have to be smart about this. Gee, I haven't felt this stress facing someone since…" He then gasped and went wide eyed. "Since…wait a minute…" He then began to dart off in a sprint towards a particular place. _'Laxus thinks he's a champion, and I know the champion in Kalos battles in that huge place, so…he must be at one of the biggest and emptied places I know!' _

He was heading off towards Kardia Cathedral.

Along the way, Nic was beyond shocked when he saw a figure slowly walking up ahead. He had recognized him all too well, and the irony was that he couldn't be recognized.

Nic slowed down and he matched his speed. He looked over and the figure stopped. Nic then stopped as well, and the two looked at the other.

It was a five second silence, and Nic finally finished with a grin. "It's been awhile."

Mystogan remained silent and nodded.

"Are you ready to fight Laxus?" Nic calmly stated.

"Indeed. Laxus shall understand not to harm his fellow comrades." Mystogan stated.

With an understanding nod, the two turned and went Mystogan's pace, which was walking, towards Kardia Cathedral. Nic didn't mind the speed; besides, it's best to save his energy.

'_I know Mystogan's S-Class, and I know Laxus is too, let's see how Mystogan and I fair against him.'_

* * *

**With Laxus**

Laxus was sitting on a stair with lightning surging around his body. He was beyond infuriated knowing that his Thunder Palace was destroyed completely and that Bickslow and Freed were down.

"What pathetic rats." He muttered. His lightning was coursing with his anger. "I've had enough of this. It's time to finish them off. Nic, I may have underestimated you, but you have no idea what I can do."

* * *

**Once again, three days to make. I got two updates in just about a week's time. I'm making up my time pretty fast. **

**I hope you guys didn't mind Nic's last pokémon being Garchomp. I wanted something violent in battle, but mild and sweet outside of battle. I hope you didn't mind the Thunder Palace being taken down by him, but I didn't want the Thunder Palace to be a bother later on.**

**When I was writing Mira and Freed's talk at the end of their battle, I literally cried. I'm that sensitive, okay!**

**I think The Battle of Fairy Tail Arc will go on for another two chapters, then another reprieve chapter, and then we get to the Oracion Seis Arc, at least to my plans.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are enjoying the battles and the plot up to this point.**

* * *

**Next Time: Lightning Round**


	21. Lightning Round

Chapter 21 – Lightning Round

**Making this into a two-part battle. Either you'll be shocked (not literally), surprised, wanting more, or all of the above.**

**For the record, last chapter got 8 Reviews, so that's an achievement. I'll keep up the progress.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon nor Fairy Tail, they belong to Satoshi Tajiri, Nintendo, and Hiro Mashima. I also do not own Sophie, as she was an idea from DeoxysSpeed.**

**To Recap:**

Nic had Staraptor help him in defeating Evergreen and turning the girls back to normal. Just after, Laxus makes his Thunder Palace, but Nic countered by having his Garchomp destroy every single lacrima. Sophie gets help from Staraptor and Greninja in order to defeat Bickslow. Freed takes down Cana and nearly kills Elfman, which was when Mira snapped and unleashed her Satan Soul to defeat Freed, but forgave him in the end. Nic meets up with Mystogan and the two walk over towards the Kardia Cathedral, determined to stop Laxus.

* * *

**Chapter 21 – Lightning Round**

"_So boy, why is it that you're not participating in the Fantasia Parade this year?" Makarov asked seriously towards a younger Laxus, who literally turned his back._

"_Nobody even cares if I'm there or not." Laxus said. He then turned sharply back at his grandpa. "In case if you haven't noticed, everyone always refers to me as your grandson." He sounded rather accusing and harshly. "I'm never called Laxus, I'm just called Makarov's grandson! It's like I get no credit. It's like my life is in the shadow of the Guild Master!"_

_Makarov narrowed his eyes. "Ah, so that's what this is all about."_

"_It's bad enough living in your shadow, but you crossed the line expelling dad!"_

_Makarov looked down at the floor in slight remorse and quite little guilt for his son being overlooked. "I'm sorry.'_

_Laxus pointed a finger at him. "Don't give me that crap old man! Where's your heart?" Makarov huffed and sighed. "You didn't have to kick my dad out!" Makarov sighed and looked even more upset and guilty for such actions. "Why?!"_

_Makarov looked back up at his grandson and explained. "Your father had tried and put great harm on all of us. He had dealt pain to Fairy Tail."_

_He had a point and Laxus couldn't disagree. "Okay, so he made a few stupid mistakes, but that still doesn't change the fact that he's my dad! He's your son dammit!"_

"_Flesh and blood or not, an member who would endanger the lives of his brethren must be banished without exception! That's how this guild was preserved over the years, and it's the way Fairy Tail always worked!" Makarov barked._

"_Then why not kick me out too, huh?! That way I can go join his new guild and me and dad can work together!" Laxus retorted with such disturbing information._

_Makarov gasped at the fact Ivan had his own guild now. "He's established his own guild?! Where is it?! Where is he?! If you know, tell me!"_

_Laxus turned his back and ignored him. "Find him yourself." He then began walking away._

_Makarov reached out. "Please you must tell me at once! Ivan left with information that could harm Fairy Tail! It's life or death! The guild is at stake!" Makarov explained with a hint of plead._

_Laxus stopped, but didn't bother to turn around. "That's your fault. I'll surpass you one day, but for my sake alone." He then turned with a cold look. "And you'll live under my shadow."_

"Can't say I didn't warn you old man." Laxus coldly stated, getting up from the step, feeling a strong Magic energy approaching outside. "The Thunder Palace may have been destroyed, but I guess I should fight to the very end."

The doors open, revealing Mystogan and Nic calmly walking in. Laxus had a grin on his face as he had expected to see the two. "Well, well. Mystogan and Nic. Been expecting you two.

The two stared at Laxus with discontent.

"Laxus, your Thunder Palace had tried and brought harm. If it wasn't for Nic's friend, this situation would be far more drastic." Mystogan said.

"Give me a break." Laxus said. "You only came to find out who the strongest is." Laxus chuckled. "I'm surprised really. Didn't expect you to be the competitive type."

"He's not." Nic stated cool and collected-like. "This isn't even a competition, it's a massacre you were about to make."

"Oh really?" Laxus grinned even bigger. "How are you so sure?"

"Don't play games Laxus. We've had enough of that already." Mystogan said. "The strongest in Fairy Tail doesn't come from just blood."

"You're on to talk. I wonder if you are really on par with me, Mystogan." Laxus said.

"Don't be so witty as to forget Erza. If you can't put her into the equation, you're a blind Zubat in a storm" Nic said.

Laxus raised a brow. "You kidding me, that red-head. I admit she has spunk, but she's weak, and so are you Mystogan, or should I say-!"

Nic and Mystogan both snapped, Nic as Laxus called Erza weak, and Mystogan for almost having his alias mentioned. Nic transformed into his Meadow Plate Form and launched a Magical Leaf, as to where Mystogan used the Magic stave in his hand and fired a blast from it. Laxus used his reflexes and fired a lightning blast to intercept the two attacks.

There was a vast explosion that resulted from the collision. The blast shattered the class all about and some of the pipes were damaged on the organ behind Laxus.

* * *

**With Erza and Co.**

Erza had just met up with Sophie, Greninja, Staraptor, Natsu, Lucy, Gajeel, and Happy. The four rendez-vous at the center of town, where they all reported with no sight of Laxus.

"Was anything found?" Erza asked.

Happy and Lucy both shook their heads. "No, not a trace of him." Happy said, floating right next to Lucy.

"Man, Laxus has gone and hid himself better than we'd expected." Lucy said.

"That jerk is a _pechdan _and a _mamzer_! He should know better than to harm his allies." Sophie swore calmly.

Erza turned towards her. "Well since the Thunder Palace is down, we can find Laxus with more time."

Natsu had a fist in his palm, having so much energy from being free from the Enchantment thanks to Levy. "We better find him and soon. We owe him some serious payback."

Sophie nodded. "Agreed."

Erza nodded as well. "We should split up again and take different-!" They then heard an explosion in the distance. They heard it echo slightly, alarming the group.

Everyone turned northeast, where the sound came from.

"Sounds like a serious ruckus to me." Gajeel confirmed with crossed arms. They all saw smoke rise slightly over at the Kardia Cathedral.

"It's at the church!" Natsu confirmed.

"So, that means it's at Kardia Cathedral." Erza stated.

"So, who could it be?" Lucy questioned, seeing the smoke clear.

"Only one way to find out." Natsu grinned and he started running.

"Sounds like the fun begins." Gajeel grinned and started after Natsu.

Erza, Sophie, Lucy, and Happy all ran in pursuit and they headed off towards where the church was.

* * *

**With Nic and Mystogan**

The dust and smoke had cleared, and Mystogan's cape was flowing about gently, as was Nic's coat, even Laxus's. The wind had ceased and the three were left untouched by the attack.

"Tell me." Mystogan said. "How do you know about _that_?"

Nic turned towards Mystogan with some suspicion. This sounded so classified that not even Laxus was suppose to know. Nic tried to brush it off and focus back on his own worries.

"And you just called Erza weak." Nic added, finding Laxus calling Erza such a weakling in front of him was something that shouldn't be said.

Laxus grinned, rather shocked and amused. "My, my. I expected Nic to go on an outburst like that, but you Mystogan? You were always to calm and collective type." His grin then went rather dark. He had his gaze solemnly on Mystogan as tensions were running rather high now. "How about this Mystogan: Beat me, and I swear I'll tell you everything that I know." He sounded ever so confident as ever.

Mystogan grunted, rather annoyed. "Laxus."

Nic looked at Mystogan yet again and noticed something was a little off. Earlier, he sensed great power from him, but after that one shot, he didn't feel as much power from him.

"Hey Mystogan, are you okay?" Nic asked in concern. "I don't sense as mush Magic."

Mystogan's stance shifted and he looked more defensive, holding the stave in an angle. "Yeah, I think so."

Nic narrowed his eyes in suspicion, but he could feel everything in his meadow Plate Form, even various powers from such a fair distance. He narrowed his eyes even more, sensing Erza and the others coming. "They'll be here soon." Nic assured.

Laxus smirked. "You done talking?" His tone was more menacing, and his phrases afterwards sounded far more menacing. "Listen up Nic, you'll never compare to me! Mystogan and you will see just how much stronger I am!"

"I'll go first." Mystogan said. All of his Magic Staves then drove out from the sac they were on his back and the ends stuck into the ground, each stick different than the other. All of them lined up across Mystogan.

"**Skyscraper.**" A dark Magic seal appeared in front of him. Just then, Nic saw Laxus panicking slightly, as he saw Laxus get all wobbly and he was seen screaming in a panic. He then had a belt entangle him as Laxus shouted a demon was in front of him.

Nic narrowed his eyes, wondering what Laxus was seeing; then again, he knew it was for the best he didn't find out. Nic turned to Mystogan.

"Do not be alarmed. He is under the illusion of Skyscraper." Mystogan explained. "Attack while you still can."

"Got it." Nic nodded and then jumped into the air. He created a glowing football-sized seed that was glowing light green. "**Seed Bomb!**" He then threw the attack at a startled and disoriented Laxus, but Laxus was enveloped in lightning and screamed, shattering the belt and his vision returned to normal. He unleashed more lightning in a veil of sorts to protect from Seed Bomb as it was hit with the veil of lightning and exploding mildly, causing no damage towards Laxus. Nic grunted as he didn't expect Laxus to shake it off that quick.

Laxus has a manic face on him and laughed like a psycho. "Now that's funny!" He sounded extremely pissed. "Did you two really think a stupid illusion could stop me?!"

Nic then remained still as he saw five multiple colored Magic sealed that Mystogan over Laxus. _'Whoa, that shift of those stick things was quick! Did he snuck those in while Laxus was blocking my Seed Bomb?'_

"Not bad." Mystogan admitted. "But you are too slow as ever." Laxus was enveloped in a purple light and the circled all aimed down on him. "**Five Layered Magic Circle: Sacred Song!**"

Laxus grinned. "You think I'm slow? Just look under both your feet!" Mystogan and Nic then looked down in surprise that a yellow Magic seal was under them.

"No!" Mystogan shouted.

"This ain't good! Brace yourself Mystogan!" Nic warned as Mystogan's attack drove downwards a concentrated beam on Laxus, as a lightning beam shot up from underneath Nic and Mystogan.

Laxus merely laughed while Mystogan yelled and Nic grunting, not taking as much damage. There was an explosion of purple on Laxus's side and yellow on Nic and Mystogan's side. The explosions collided and winds and dust scattered all around.

When it cleared, Laxus was seen with a grin, hardly looking hurt. Mystogan also seems unfazed as he had Air Magic to float upwards through the dispersing dust. Nic was still on the ground and grunted. "Hmph. That packed as much as a wallop as did a Thundershock." He muttered. _'He's warming up.'_

Mystogan grunted as he felt much less Magic energy than before. _'What is this draining sensation? It's like my spells take up far more Magic than I imagined. Is it because Laxus did this?' _He had to pull off another spell for the sake of taking down Laxus. "**Ground Shattering Wave!**" He put his index fingers together and made a Magic seal. Laxus then looked around and saw purple Magic tendril streaming up from all sides. Laxus moved fast enough and leaped into the air and avoided the attacked that arched downwards, centering where he was and watching it explode.

Laxus then looked back to Mystogan, but Nic wasn't one to be left out of the action. He leaped in front of an ascending Laxus and used Needle Arm. Laxus immediately shifted into a bolt of lightning that soared upwards, evading the angled swing by Nic.

Laxus laughed in his lightning form and Nic fell safely to the ground. He shifted his target solemnly to Nic and he dove down onto him. Nic pivoted his right foot and his feet foot swung back, giving him a batting stance with Needle Arm still in play.

"Batter up!" Nic then deflected the bolt with his sharp arm just as it made impact and Laxus, which was the bolt, was bit like a downwards baseball being swung at by a bat at perfect timing and Laxus's new and forced direction led him into a pillar at the far column. The bolt crashed, shattering a fraction of the pillar and dust flew slightly.

Nic retracted his Needle Arm as Mystogan dropped to his side and heard Laxus laugh from in the dust. Laxus got up with a big smile and wiped his chin with his sleeve.

"Say, that wasn't too shabby." Laxus admitted at Nic. "Surprised that you were able to deflect me just in time." Nic knew Laxus was fast, but from awhile ago, he remembered that he was able to corner Laxus with his own speed. "I have to admit Nic, your speed and reflexes are even faster than what I had expected, they might even be better than last time when we almost quarreled after that Phantom skirmish."

"You caught me off guard with that ground shot, but that shook me awake." Nic said.

Mystogan narrowed his eyes and he had lost a lot of his Magic energy. It didn't make sense; this never happened before. He was just about low, and it hasn't even been two minutes. He looked over and saw that Nic himself was unfazed. This didn't add up until Mystogan stepped forward.

"Laxus, what have you done?" Mystogan demanded. Laxus had his smirk and a raised brow.

"Oh dear Mystogan. It's not like you to lose that much Magic energy now." He taunted. Nic had a suspicion that Laxus had done something earlier so that Mystogan would be put at a disadvantage.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Enough beating around the bush. We've had enough of that already. Best start talking, please."

Laxus stopped his toothy grin and he just smirked. "Is that so? Well then, since you've asked so nicely, I'll let you in on something." He then turned his head towards the exit/entrance doors where Nic and Mystogan came in and the said two turned as well and saw that there was an inscription far above. Laxus chuckled while Mystogan grunted. "I had Freed write an Enchantment that makes anyone but me exhaust far more Magic than usual. I've heard that Nic's Magic is like anything Fairy Tail's ever seen, and I wanted to see for myself just how invincible his Magic is."

Mystogan and Nic both turned back at Laxus. "So, this was your plan. You wanted to quarrel with Nic alone." Mystogan said.

"That was a coward's play Laxus." Nic reprimanded.

Laxus chuckled. "Oh really? Well, seems like we'll have to see who the real coward is here. I wonder how much Magic you have? You've gotta have a huge reserve if you can keep this up."

'_Looks like he doesn't know that I don't have Magic, but I use the power of the Plates instead.' _Nic noted.

Mystogan grunted, seeing how this situation was bad and his Magic would be exhausted. Apparently, this wasn't a battle in his favor. There was no choice. "Nic, I'm sorry, but I can't resume."

Nic gasped and turned to Mystogan. This was a startling play as he never expected Mystogan to do such a thing.

"I know this is a bad move on our part, but he's got me in a bind and if I use maybe one more spell my Magic would be depleted. The others should be here soon to help you. You have to warn them about Laxus's trap." Mystogan said.

As much as Nic wanted to protest Mystogan for passing the baton over to the ones coming, he couldn't argue. Nic just had to accept this and nod with uncertainty.

"I apologize, but I must forfeit." Mystogan then had his body turn to mist and he quickly dispersed, leaving in thin air.

Nic then heard his name being called out by Natsu and Erza from just outside the church. He saw them rushing at the entrance and stopped at the entrance.

Nic turned towards the guys, as did Laxus. "Well now, seems as though your cavalry came just in time." Laxus noted.

"Guys!" Nic exclaimed rather alarmingly.

Natsu stepped forward into the church, not knowing that he had stepped into a trap. "Grr. Laxus, just what have you done?!"

Nic held his arm out at them. "No! Stay back!"

The others looks surprised that Nic told them to stay out of this. Natsu took a few more steps forward and held up a fist. "What are you talking about Nic? You can't take him alone!"

"It's not that, it's-!" Nic then saw a lightning bolt coming from Laxus from the corner of his eye. Nic ducked and evaded the oncoming bolt as it rushed onwards and blasted a small fraction of one of the enormous windows.

"Come on now, did you forget where your attention is suppose to be?" Laxus warned. Nic looked back and grunted at him.

Everyone then came in and they all stood in battle-ready positions. Erza requipped into her Black Wing Armor, Natsu had a flaming fist ready, and everyone else was just about set.

"This has gone far enough Laxus." Erza stated, holding her sword in a stance that poised to strike. "End it so that this will all be dropped."

"If anything is dropping red-head, it'll be your bodies!" Laxus then extended his hand coated in lightning and shot a bolt at them. Everyone braced to stop and attack it, but Nic proved himself to be faster than you give him credit for. He leaped in front of them and intercepted the bolt of lightning with his Energy Ball. The two attacks zoomed into the other and neither attack gave in and they ended up exploding. There was a brief explosion that left everyone okay. Nic glared Laxus down. Laxus himself grinned.

"It's me you wanna face, isn't it Laxus?" Nic taunted. "That is why you had Fred make that Enchantment in the first place after all. So why go and hurt them?"

Everyone there was confused. Enchantment? Lucy blinked and spoke. "Wait, Enchantment? Nic just what is going on?"

Nic didn't take his gaze off of Laxus as he explained. "Laxus set a trap that'll make anyone but himself exhaust more Magic. He wants to get rid of you guys more quickly." Everyone looked on with a few gasps as Nic explained what Laxus had Freed do.

Erza gasped and she turned around. She looked at the entrance to see lettering at the top in purple lettering. It said 'Anyone who is not Laxus Dreyar will exhaust more Magic when used'. That would explain why Erza herself felt some of her Magic get used up more than usual when she requipped. Erza narrowed her eyes while reading. "We were tricked."

Laxus laughed. "Oh come on! You're telling me you're all Fairy Tail Mages and you didn't see _that_ coming?" He mocked. " Though I guess I shouldn't expect anything less from a couple of chumps."

Sophie grunted. "You _pechdan_." Sophie reprimanded, calling him a coward in Hebrew.

Gajeel crossed his arms. "So he's had us set up as soon as we stepped inside this dump."

"Laxus!" Natsu shouted. He jumped into the air and had a flaming fist ready. "You aren't getting away with this!"

Nic saw Natsu jumping over him and had to stop him before he used Magic, but it was too late as Laxus took off his headphones and coat and had a fist coated in lightning. Natsu jumped down and collided fists with Laxus, sending lightning and fire in a small area around them. Natsu then set his feet on the floor and he was grabbed by Laxus. Laxus snagged his arm with his left and he delivered a punch coated in lightning to the face. Sending Natsu flying and skid to the front of Nic.

"Damn you!" Erza shouted as she rushed at Laxus with a sword.

'_Well, no stopping now.' _Nic thought. He then moved his arms in different directions and unleashed a tornado of green winds and glowing leaves at Laxus.

Laxus still had his arrogant smile and he countered with a big lightning blast against the Leaf Tornado, dispelling both attacks on the spot. Erza then swooped and slashed downwards, but Laxus stepped backwards and Erza raised her blade again and slashed at Laxus's left, but he remained motionless as he had his lightning-enshrouded arm block the attack, feeling nothing.

"Oh come on." He grinned. "Don't tell me that's the best you've got dollface."

Erza grunted and Nic's eye twitched. He didn't like hearing Laxus call her that and he leaped high into the air and glowed, shifting into his Icicle Plate.

"**Aurora Beam!**" A bluish green orb appeared in front of Nic's mouth and he fired a glowing black and green beam at a steep angle. Laxus saw that coming a mile away; he zapped Erza's body, making her yelp and she stumbled back and Laxus leaped back and evaded Nic's midair assault. Laxus looked right and saw Natsu darting at him. He then saw Gajeel coming from his left.

"Time for me to get in this action!" Gajeel exclaimed. Both the Fire and Iron Dragon Slayer leaped at the same time.

"**Iron Dragon's Club!**"

"**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**"

Both assaults went darting at Laxus, but Laxus wasn't strong for any reason. He jumped, avoiding the long column and electrified his own body, and then he made contact and landed on the club, shocking Gajeel and making him grunt. Natsu came in and fired his fist, and Laxus leaned left as the fist swung, dodging it. He leaped off the column and gave Natsu a right knee to the stomach, sending him flying into a nearby column.

Nic stood still and had an orb of light blue energy in front of his mouth. "**Ice Beam!**" He then unleashed multiple light blue beams at Laxus, and Laxus countered with his blast of lightning, making the two attacks have a standoff that resulted in an electric and ice fused explosion.

With this time to her advantage, Erza used the explosion as cover and dove in from above over the cloud. Laxus waited and then spun about in a whole three-sixty, having his fists charge up during which and Erza brought her sword down. Laxus used his right fist to swat the sword from its side, deflecting it. Laxus then brought his left fist forward into a hook and drove it into Erza's face, making the latter smash into a nearby pillar.

"Erza!" Nic shouted. He then growled at Laxus and Laxus sparked in lightning with a smile. He gave Nic a rather sadistic look that would creep a normal person out.

"Oh, did I strike a weak point?" He then looked at Erza and proceeded blasting at her while she was trying to dislodge herself.

Natsu dislodged himself from his own column and jumped off from it, hurling towards the attack. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" He cuffed his hands and unleashed a blast of fire while still zooming in from an angle. The flame attack intercepted the lightning blast just before it could get close to Erza. There wasn't a big explosion, but it did provide Erza some cover and time to dislodge herself and leap back to Nic's side.

Gajeel regained his composure and darted in from ten o'clock, from Laxus's view that is. He lunged and he straightened out his arm. "**Iron Dragon's Sword!**" His arm then became a jagged steel blade that he swung straight down. Laxus was too quick as he easily evaded by leaping backwards.

Natsu and Gajeel leaped back and were by Nic and Erza, the four composing themselves. Sophie and Lucy, not to mention Happy, all looked on. Unfortunately, they knew Laxus was extremely dangerous and they were nowhere close to being as powerful as him. All they could do was just watch from a safe distance, much to their displeasure.

Nic and everyone their bared their unhappy frowns, seeing as how Laxus was intercepting them. Erza had to resort to a Requip.

"**Requip!**" Erza glowed and now had golden armor and light bluish in color. The breastplate had gold trimmings and thin plates surrounding her neck. Her head got a band with two ribbons, one on each side, and her hair was styled in a long braid. Her spear was very long and was also shown to a shield-lie circle decorated on it, which also had a ribbon.

Laxus raised a brow. "Ah, your Lightning Empress Armor." He said. "Not bad, but I doubt that thing can stop me!" He then fired a lightning blast, of which Erza went ahead of the others and put the spear down. Her spear then created a lightning barrier and the blast smashed into it. Erza gritted her teeth as she was struggling by the force of the attack. After five seconds, the lightning blast ceased, but the barrier shattered.

Laxus chuckled and turned into lightning. He shot straight up and arched downwards onto her. "Your armor can't stop me this time!"

"Hey, you're forgetting about us!" Natsu shouted. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Iron Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Blizzard!**"

All three attacks went surging at the lightning Laxus. The three attacks closed in on each other and fused into a gray, fire, and snow layered attack that rushed at him. Laxus was no fool as he spiraled around the attack and had it shoot up and smash into the ceiling, having rock and debris fall. Below. Laxus worked his way around the attack like a serpentine and finally closed in on the guys. He then bashed into all three, making a flash and a thundering boom upon impact. Natsu skid back, as did Nic and Gajeel. Natsu and Gajeel both grunted as their breaths were rather heavy.

"Man." Natsu said with a tired look. "Looks like…I am losing Magic." He heaved.

"It's just as Luminous said." Gajeel growled. "That light bulb is having us exhaust far more Magic."

The two straightened up. "Well I guess we better take him out faster!" Natsu shouted. Natsu and Gajeel both lunged into Laxus while Erza twirled her spear in the air and then fired multiple lightning streams at Laxus.

Laxus showed his teeth and he looked on with crossed arms as the attacks came in. "This is too priceless." He saw Natsu's Fire Dragon's Iron Fist and Gajeel's Iron Dragon's Hard Fist coming at him and he pressed his palm down on Natsu's incoming forearm and leaped and came across his face with a knee, driving Natsu into Gajeel and making them fall to the ground with a big thud.

He turned and stood perfectly still, letting himself get hit with Erza's attack. He was hit head on, but his body only sparked blue and he looked unharmed.

Erza went wide eyed. "But how?"

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Is he able to absorb lightning?"

Laxus now had the blue sparks turn yellow as he absorbed it and amplified his power. He laughed. "Come on, you can do better than that!" He then had his hands coated in lightning and he brought both forward, making it a double punch. The fists unleashed pressurized and brutal lightning beams at Erza. Erza had to leap over Laxus's head, to which he trailed his lightning blasts on the roof and following her, making the building shake.

Sophie, Lucy, and Happy all covered up, glad yet not glad they weren't fighting.

"This blows." Sophie said as the rumbling ceased and saw Erza flip and was behind Laxus now.

"I know, right?" Lucy wasn't liking this either. They wanted t help, but knew their Magic would get drained quickly.

Erza twirled her spear and she had to use another blast of lightning, but more powerful and see if it'll damage him. Laxus grinned and chuckled as he was then hit and was severely electrocuted, but didn't even budge.

Erza grunted as she saw Laxus smiling and taking in the entire blast. Erza ceased and Laxus's body then glowed yellow and the sparks became yellow. "Now it's my turn red-head!" He unleashed a pressurized blast of lightning at her and she tried blocking with her spear, but the blast was too powerful as it zoomed with such velocity into her. The attack enveloped her, breaking her spear and making her yelp.

"Erza!" Nic and Natsu shouted. Erza flew back close to the steps and her armor was steaming slightly from the extreme intensity. Even if the armor weakened Lightning Magic, Laxus was all too strong to let some Lightning Empress Armor get the best of him.

Erza sat up, but that's when Laxus punched the ground and had a ring of lightning trail at her, breaking the ground as it went to her. Nic leaped in just in time and was in front of Erza.

"**Frost Breath!**" His mouth glows light blue and he releases a snow in wind with blue sparkles; and since Frost Breath was always a critical hit, this one was able to not only disperse the lightning ring heading their way, but also blow and make Laxus skid. Laxus grunted as he then looked behind himself and saw Nastu and Gajeel both remaining still as Laxus continued his skid.

Natsu jumped. "**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" He then did a side kick as Laxus tried turning his body and was hit in the chest by Natsu's right leg, making him skid towards Natsu's left now.

"**Iron Dragon's Club!**" Gajeel jumped in and hit Laxus's right side with an extending column. Laxus was send soaring into a column with dust flying. Gajeel retracted his column and the Dragon Slayers grinned, thinking they actually damaged him.

Laxus emerged from the dust and he had his smile of arrogance turn to a half grin. He felt that one. He cracked his neck and turned towards the Dragon Slayers. "Hmph. Not too shabby, though aren't you getting a little tired?"

Natsu and Gajeel were wincing as they felt their Magic reserves were almost out. This Enchantment was making them lose huge amounts of Magic for just a few good hits.

"Crap. I can't take much of this." Gajeel muttered, feeling his Magic run low.

Natsu growled as he enveloped his body in angry fire. "Laxus! I'm not through with you! **Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" He lunged with a headbutt in flames and Laxus awaits until he was close enough.

He coated his foot in lightning and had it up. "Here it comes!" He then stomped on Natsu's head, ceasing the attack and having Natsu's head in a crater. Natsu gagged when Laxus raised his foot and was punched straight down on his back by a lightning coated fist. The attacks force made Natsu yelp and the crater increase in area slightly.

"Natsu!" Erza shouted. She got to her feet and requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. "Enough Laxus! This ends now!" Then she flew into the air and summoned twenty swords, which chunked of some more of her Magic. _'The Enchantment is taking a toll. I have to stop him with the few moves that I can use.' _"Dance, my blades!" The swords then began to spin around her and were aimed at Laxus. Laxus saw this and he grinned. "**Circle Sword!**" The swords separated and flew into Laxus.

Laxus lunged forward and yelled as he unleashed a lightning explosion that was short ranged. Natsu, who was getting up, was tumbling away and the ground under Laxus shattered under the pressurized release. The small explosion expanded slightly and shattered the incoming swords into tiny fragments, shocking Erza as she floated in the air above in disbelief.

"What is this? So much Magic energy I can't even tell how large it is!" Erza exclaimed. The explosion ceased and Laxus looked up with his grin back and coated himself in lightning and lunged at Erza.

"**Aurora Beam!**" Nic shouted, unleashing a beam that was able to hit Laxus just as he was closing in on her. Laxus was engulfed in an aurora-like explosion and he fell back to the ground safely. He was glaring at Nic, but had his half-grin. Nic was glaring at Laxus and then Laxus shot a blast at Nic, to which Nic countered with his Ice Beam, creating a more potent explosion of electricity and ice scattering about. Natsu and Gajeel covered up, as did Erza, as sparks and ice flew about. Ten seconds later, it ceased. The three saw the dust and elements clear out, seeing Nic and Laxus both locking and trying to crush the others fingers.

Nic pushed Laxus back slightly, but Laxus shocked Nic, to which the Multitype Mage with an attitude countered by continuing and clutching Laxus's fingers and doing an almost point blank Icy Wind, having his mouth glow light blue and releasing winds and snow similar to Frost Breath.

Both Mages backed off and shoved each other away, with Nic feeling some pinch to that zap, but Laxus just felt his face being super cold. Laxus chuckled mildly and then he lunged at Nic. He had a lightning coated fist ready and Nic readied Ice Punch.

Laxus closed in, but for some reason felt slightly slow. _'What's this? Why am I feeling so-!' _He about to thrust his left fist forward, but Nic delivered a blow across Laxus's face, making the latter fly towards Nic's left and skid while on one knee.

Laxus grunted and regained his flooring. He got back up and saw how Nic wasn't even fazed by Laxus's Magic or power. "You know." Nic said. "I've fought worse."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Laxus's voice boomed, now unleashing booming thunder and lightning from his body. "I'm way stronger than any Fairy Tail half pint! I'm even stronger than you!" He showed his rage and his voice echoed just like that time Nic quarreled with Jose. Nic wasn't even fazed by Laxus's rage.

"I fail to see how power alone can give you strength." Nic said.

"You're wrong! My power trumps everything!" Laxus berated. "I'll take the guild by force if I have to make my point across!"

Erza flew over Laxus's head and she went over towards Natsu and Gajeel. The three stood in a row and she looked at the two.

"We'll have to put every last bit of our Magic into this attack in order to stop him." Erza said. Natsu and Gajeel agreed and Erza summoned as many swords as she could, roughly fifty were summoned.

"Ready?" Erza shouted. "**Blumenblatt!**" Erza then send all of her swords at him with every bit of effort she could ever put in her attacks.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Iron Dragon's Roar!**"

"Don't forget about me!" Nic shouted from the distance. "**Blizzard!**"

All four insanely brutal attacks went flying at high speed with so much force behind them that the very wind itself was sliced, frozen, burned, and crushed. The two roars, Blizzard, and fifty swords went at Laxus and all of the assaults exploded. Laxus was engulfed in a rapid and heavy explosion that nearly shattered nearby columns. Erza, Natsu, and Gajeel all stood in that row with heaving breaths, just about out of Magic energy thanks to the Enchantment.

Erza heaved as she was out of Magic. "That should…do it." She huffed.

Natsu and Gajeel were huffing and grinned.

"Yeah…we got him." Natsu said. "He couldn't stand a chance against us." The explosion was dispelling, but then the explosion itself dispersed rapidly, sending winds flying everywhere. Everyone there covered up and felt electrifying winds tackle them, nearly knocking them over. Erza, Natsu, and Gajeel all gasped and were wide eyed at the site of Laxus's lightning booming with incredibly dense power, so much that the whole place was shaking.

"No…but how?" Gajeel muttered. Nic grunted, not expecting Laxus to have this much power after those assaults.

'_This guy, he's more than a monster. He's not even human.' _Nic thought, though knew he himself was exaggerating. Laxus looked unfazed by all of their attacks and had a dark look on his face.

Laxus showed his teeth and frowned. "You know." He said as the lightning and booming dialed down. "I think you guys had your fun, now I do believe that it's my turn to have fun." He then raised a clenched fist and then he had lightning get drawn into the air into a concentrated bolt above.

"Resounding through the air, the roar of thunder, lunge from the heavens and reap destruction!" The enormous bolt then concentrated into dense lightning that was ready to be launched down onto the three.

"Guys! Get out of the way!" Nic shouted.

Natsu growled with shaking eyes, not giving up. "Laxus!" Natsu was charging forward with a fist.

"Don't be stupid!" Erza shouted.

"Too late you fools! **Raging Bolt!**" Laxus brought down his fist and the huge bolt of lightning shot at Natsu, Gajeel, and Erza. They all looked and shouted as they were hit with the whole impact. The bolt made whole contact and there was a boom and a blinding flash.

"Guys! Erza!" Nic shouted as he was forced to cover up. Everything was so bright and electricity boomed about. Nic opened his eyes and uncovered himself. He looked with wide eyes and a shocked expression that the three were in a crater and their bodies were sparking. They were all lying there, with Era's armor completely shattered and Natsu and Gajeel on their sides. The three looked like they were out for the count. Nic's eyes twitched and he grunted. "No! Erza! Guys!"

Natsu and everyone there barely looked conscious. He saw a few twitches coming from all three, and Nic heaved. _'Good, at least they're still alive.'_

Laxus laughed. "Well now, that's three down on the spot. How's it feel to be helpless you punks?!" He then laughed at the ceiling and Natsu could barely even move.

"H-How did-did he get so much power." He muttered. "I-I can't…I can't move."

"Damn you Laxus." Erza muttered with whatever consciousness she had.

"This guy drained us." Said a twitching Gajeel. "W-We can't keep going like this."

Laxus laughed even harder now. "You guys can't even begin to fathom the full extent of my power! And you're helpless now that you guys are out of Magic!"

Nic rushed in towards the fallen members. He rushed with such worry he nearby stumbled. He rushed towards everyone and got to his knees to examine them. "This is bad." Erza was trying her very best to keep going, as she was trying to move her arm over towards Nic. Nic saw this and gasped. He shifted over to where she was and he held her. "Erza, are you okay?"

Erza winced and she looked up at Nic and his worried expression. "Nic. I'm so sorry." She said, her eyes seeing his. "Freed's Enchantment outdid us and we can't stop him. Our Magic is depleted."

Nic frowned even more, not being able to step in front and take the hit. Nic huffed and spoke softly. "It's okay Erza. You and the others just take it easy. You did a great job."

Erza smiled and she tilted her towards Nic's abdomen, resting it. "Can we count on you?" She spoke softly.

Nic nodded and leaned in. "Yeah, I won't fail." With that said, Nic gently set her back down and she smiled continuously.

She managed to mutter for him to be careful, and along with Gajeel and Natsu, all went unconscious.

Nic frowned and he rose back to his feet and turned towards Laxus, who had a smile of triumph on his face, which irritated Nic.

Nic narrowed his eyes and got into a stance of authority. "Lucy, Happy, Sophie." He ordered, still having his gaze on Laxus. "Get these three out of here and away to safety." He spoke with such a cool demeanor it was almost terrifying. He took a few paces towards Laxus and stopped. "I'll stop him."

The three really didn't have any say. They knew Nic would lash out if they questioned him, and they knew that option wasn't a good idea. The only way they could really help was get them to safety. With simple nods, the three rushed over and Happy carried Natsu away, Lucy grabbed Erza, and Sophie had Gajeel over her shoulder. The three then rushed out of the church as fast as they could possibly go, leaving Nic and Laxus alone.

Nic glared coldly at the blonde maniac. He clenched his fists and kept a straight face. "Looks like you got your wish. It's just you and me now."

Laxus's grin got even more diabolical as sparks circuited around his body. "Yeah, and once I finish you, I'll go claim my title."

Nic shifted into his Dread Plate Form, he had his sunglasses hooked onto his V-Neck and he went cross-armed. "There's more to a person than a dumb title. Titles mean nothing, it's the person himself that makes up that title. You're not worthy of such a thing, and you won't deserve it in a lifetime."

Laxus now gritted his teeth and now some lightning flared about. "You better wish that you never said those words!"

* * *

**With Lucy and Co.**

They were moving as fast as they could through the streets. They were rushing back to the guild so that the guys could get treated.

They were running with the three injured on their backs when they saw Levy running through the streets, along with Greninja and Staraptor. Greninja and Staraptor went back to the guild earlier to see if everything was okay there, and it wasn't okay.

"Levy!" Lucy shouted. Levy and the other two saw them and rushed towards them.

"Lucy!" Levy shouted with some distress in her voice. She finally caught up to them and they all stopped and exchanged worried looks. "Lucy what happened?"

Lucy looked down in sorrow. "Laxus had Freed make an Enchantment that would make us exhaust more Magic and he got the better of us." She explained. Levy covered her own mouth in shock, as it explained how Natsu, Gajeel, and Erza were all damaged badly.

"Now this situation has gotten worse." Levy remarked. "This is really bad."

"What is?" Sophie asked.

Levy wanted to say more, but she almost choked on her words. This was painful to say. Levy turned over to Greninja and Staraptor, and the two nodded in understanding and took over.

"To put it bluntly, Makarov is on his death bed." Greninja pointed out with distaste in saying it. Lucy and Sophie, and Happy as well, all gasped in horrific shock as this was happening. Greninja continued. "There isn't much time. We have to find Laxus and tell him."

Staraptor flapped her wings and she hovered over Erza and Gajeel. With her immense leg strength, she gripped both by their clothing and took them off of Sophie and Lucy's backs. Staraptor then turned back down towards Greninja.

"Greninja, me and that cat over there will take the injured back to the guild." Staraptor said.

Greninja nodded in understanding. "Okay, then I'll stay with Levy and accompany her." Greninja then turned back towards the others while Staraptor began to fly away and holding the injured two and Happy carrying Natsu back to the guild. "Where is Laxus?"

"He's doing battle with Nic as we speak in Kardia Cathedral." Sophie said. Greninja and Levy then went off to the battle and tell Laxus about Makarov's condition. As to where Lucy and Sophie followed Sophie and Staraptor back towards the guild to check up on their Master's condition.

* * *

**With Nic**

The Multitype Mage narrowly evaded Laxus's lightning blast by shifting left and then charged in to do a Night Slash, but Laxus jumped into the air and evaded the horizontal slash of darkness. He reached his arms down while in the air and used his Thunder Bullets, which were a rapid succession of lightning orbs at Nic from above. Nic used Feint Attack and vanished on the spot, evading the exploding bombs.

Laxus grunted as he was reaching a critical point in the air and was about to fall back down. His eyes squinted as he felt Nic from above. Nic came down with an axe kick for his Feint Attack and Laxus narrowly blocked by using his arm just in time. Laxus then brushed Nic's leg from above and grabbed it, doing a three-sixty and throwing him. Nic grunted and straightened out in time before he could hit the intended column. Nic straightened his body and he went feet fist onto the column and used the force being that throw to force himself off the column and lunge at high speed back at a descending Laxus.

"**Crunch!**" He opened his mouth wide and his canines glowed white and extended, becoming almost three times the normal size. He launched into a surprised Laxus and snared his fangs into his arm that he used to block, prompting the maniac to yelp at the biting power behind that assault.

Nic still had his fangs in Laxus's arm and he turned his whole body and flung Laxus into the ground below at an angle. Laxus crashed into the flooring below with some dust flying. Nic was beginning to descend when Laxus lunged from the small dust cloud with a huge coat of lightning on him and drove his body into Nic's abdomen, making the latter gag. Laxus made no haste then as he drove his lightning coated knee into his abdomen and followed that up with lightning coated fists punching Nic across his face twice. Laxus then did a sharp and brutal jab and drove the punch into Nic's chest.

Nic yelped as he had felt sharp and painful sensations coursing through every bit of his body, and it got worse when he smashed into the ground on his back and tumbled backwards, hitting the flooring twice more, and finishing with a booming thud.

"Okay, even I had to admit that one had some bite to it." Nic remarked as he got to a knee and was getting back up. Laxus landed far from Nic and he used another lightning blast. Nic grunted as he didn't recover from that consecutive counterattack by Laxus. He couldn't move, so he had to intercept. "**Dark Pulse!**" He unleashed his attack at Laxus's lightning assault. The two attacks collided and exploded yellow, black, and purple all about.

Laxus coated his legs in lightning and lunged at Nic as the explosion died down. "You're going down you punk!" He then swung his left leg, but Nic jumped and dodged. Laxus followed through with his kick and he pivoted and leaped to Nic's elevation, which was fairly low. Laxus then brought his right leg coated in lightning and proceeded to kick Nic's left side.

Nic used his left arm to intercept and then he grabbed Laxus's leg, knowing he would be shocked slightly. "Come on, don't tell me that's all you've got!" Nic said, wincing with a shut eye as he felt zapped when grabbing Laxus's leg. "**Foul Play!**" He then yanked his leg, bringing Laxus forward, where Nic grabbed his waist, spinning a whole three-sixty, turning Laxus around in the process, and then threw him into a column. Since Laxus had so much more strength, this Foul Play did a shrieking amount of damage, driving Laxus into the column, smashing it entirely, and making him smash into the ground behind said smashed column, all the while screaming in pain.

Nic landed and huffed as much as he could. He felt fairly exhausted and drained. He shifted back into himself and took a few steps forward, seeing how Laxus was now under quite a bit of rubble.

"…he's got plenty more." Nic said, not doubting Laxus's strength. He was right. The entire church was beginning to quake slightly as Nic could feel a huge, and I mean huge, amount of Magic swelling up from under the rubble. He narrowed his eyes and then saw a lightning blast zooming in from within the now destroyed rubble. Nic ran towards his left, evading such a blast and he leaped and ended up avoiding the blast. He huffed and puffed some more and saw some dust flying about slightly. Laxus simply walked back in opposing position and had lightning coursing all around his body, though he did have some scratches here and there.

Laxus had a frown on him. "Hmph. I have to admit, you've got more potential than I give you credit for kid." He said in an arrogant tone. He then broke out in a smirk. "That last one actually hurt. You're holding out better than I thought you would, I guess I'll let you have a hint of my power as well."

Nic didn't like the sound of that. If Laxus wasn't using his true powers now, then this could get really ugly for Nic. "I don't like where this is going." Nic said out loud with narrowed eyes.

Laxus chuckled. "I bet you won't either. I never showed this power to anyone in the guild because of the old man's lectures…but I can make an exception with you." Just then, his canines had begun to sharpen and grow slightly. His body then began to spark tremendously, and his upper body began to get monstrously bulky, ripping and tearing off his purple shirt. His arms began to bear the resemblance of scales, and he had increased in height by a large margin. At this point, he was even more bulky than a Machamp and an oversized Gurdurr put together.

Laxus roared up to the air and he let loose insanely brutal lightning around his body, frying the air and causing a brief quake. Even Nic could sense such an immense power increase. This was Laxus's true power he was witnessing. "Well…this is the opposite of good." Nic deadpanned. "You're a Dragon Slayer. I didn't that one coming." He tried to speak calmly.

The thundering lightning diminished, leaving Laxus in tremendous sparks. "That's right, and you won't live to tell a soul." Just then, Laxus vanished in a flash of lightning, surprising Nic.

Nic was about to freak out, but then he remembered something, something that made Nic know that titles did not matter. As he thought about this, he felt some power surging through his five senses and veins.

_It was the final battle. Nic's Greninja against Diantha's Mega Gardevoir. Both Pokémon had taken large amounts of accumulated damage. Greninja was able to hold up this long thanks to his Speed and ninja-like movements, but he was soon hit with a powerful Moonblast that made him feel pain all over his body._

_Greninja was heaving heavily as he had taken a big blow. Mega Gardevoir was also panting slightly from some damage taken earlier by Greninja._

_Nic also felt the pain of his Greninja, as the two were one after all. They have been on this journey for over eighteen months now, and they've all gotten this far. Their pain was Nic's pain, and vice-versa. _

_Nic grunted as he saw Diantha smiling. "Your Greninja, it's gotten so strong since the very beginning." She said. "You're pokémon have been by your side, taking blows and sticking through to the end of their fights, just like how I finish through with my roles."_

_Nic wasn't sure whether or not to be complimented, or annoyed, or both. Throughout their battle, Diantha kept saying 'Checkmate' whenever she delivered a finishing blow on his team. The only one that was left standing was his Greninja, and the two were exhausted._

"_You and your Pokémon had been through so much up to this point. Your role as a Trainer has brought you very far. As the roe of Champion, I must not let your role surpass mine!" Diantha continued._

_Nic grunted, as did Greninja. To be perfectly honest, Nic's only purpose of going on this journey was to grow and see the world in a better light, unlike his hell prison back home. This battle meant a lot, as it would prove that he and his Pokémon had ventured and bonded ever so much into a family. If he lost, would those bonds mean nothing? No. He refused to accept that._

_Their quarrel was in Diantha's Champion room, which was large and had huge clear curtains and symbols of all of the types in a big circle. _

"_Listen here." Nic said. Diantha looked on in surprise that Nic didn't concede. "You can blast us all day to kingdom come, you can keep saying checkmate, you can talk all day long about roles and such, but what you cannot do is keep us down! Even if you defeated five of us, we all put our solemn fate in Greninja and myself. I will never doubt what we have worked so hard to achieve."_

_Diantha blinked in surprise. "Oh dear." She smiled. "It seems that this final battle has proven to be exciting. I have felt every connection with your Pokémon, and you all have come to care deeply for the other. I do not underestimate that. I assure you." She then extended her hand out. "Use Thunderbolt!"_

_Mega Gardevoir engulfed herself in electricity and she unleashed a bolt at Greninja. Greninja squinted and he knew exactly what Nic was thinking._

_The two nodded in unison without looking at each other. "Go, __**Water Pulse!**__" Greninja created a sphere of blue energy and forced it at the incoming Thunderbolt, with the attack taking the hit and exploding blue and yellow. Using that to their cover, Nic had Greninja use Bounce. Greninja leaped insanely high into the air, making Mega Gardevoir surprised when the explosion ceased._

"_It's coming from above, use Moonblast!" Diantha shouted. Mega Gardevoir gathered energy from the Moon and formed an orb of pink energy and fired it above. _

"_Deflect it!" Nic shouted. Greninja then got ready as it was falling onto Mega Gardevoir. Greninja had the orb touch his fingertips and he swooped his hand under him, making the Moonblast attack shoot at an upward angle and exploding above Greninja. Greninja came down on a heavily shocked Mega Gardevoir, having the latter then smash into a crater on the floor, not that there were many already from earlier._

_Greninja hopped off of Mega Gardevoir as she was slowly getting up, but not without being held back by the paralysis from Bounce. _

"_Mega Gardevoir!" Diantha shouted. "Don't let them get checkmate. Use Thunderbolt!" Mega Gardevoir unleashed her attack again, and this one had zoomed in with such force at Greninja. Greninja was blasted head on as he was descending from jumping off of Mega Gardevoir. Greninja yelped in searing agony as he was blasted and crashed into the floor with such intensity from Thunderbolt._

_Nic stood frozen, looking down and not giving off any expression. He knew all too well what had happened._

_Dinatha closed her eyes and smiled. "Checkmate." Greninja ended up in a small crater with dust flying about. Mega Gradevoir was sure this Thunderbolt would have finished Greninja off._

_She was wrong. Greninja slowly got up from the dust and crater, with endless bruises and scratches on his body. He was badly shaking up, but he showed a hint of his grin, shocking Mega Gardevoir._

"_What?!" Diantha shouted in surprise. "That's almost impossible!"_

_Nic grinned. "You should never doubt the bond me and Greninja, and the rest of my team share. I had faith in Greninja from the very beginning." Greninja said his name and crouched. His body was then cloaked in a blue aura, meaning Torrent was activated._

_Diantha smirked. "I never doubted your bonds, but I never knew they would have you last this long. Mega Gardevoir, __**Shadow Ball!**__" Mega Gardevoir then created a sphere of black and purple with black static around it. She then fired it._

"_**Dark Pulse!**__" Nic shouted. Greninja then fired his attack and the two attacks collided, making a black and purple explosion engulf the area between the battlers._

"_Don't give up Mega Gardevoir, use Thundrebolt!" Diantha commanded. Mega Gardvoir let loose a bolt of lightning, but Nic and Greninja knew just what to do._

_Nic moved his arm in an arc. "__**Smokescreen!**__" Greninja made hand signs and then huffed out a huge smoke cloud. The Thunderbolt ventured into the cloud of smoke and they heard a crash sound, meaning the bolt had hit and crashed into the ground._

_Mega Gardevoir saw Greninja over the smoke cloud. Diantha ordered Mega Gardevoir to use Moonblast and the pink attack went sailing into Greninja._

"_Greninja, __**Water Pulse!**__" Greninja created a bigger blue sphere of energy and fired it. The sphere launched with such force behind it that it left rippling water flow as it zoomed into Moonblast. The attacks collided and created a huge explosion. Mega Gardevoir was pushed back several feet from the sheer force. Greninja jumped back down and Nic and Greninja both looked back at the other and grinned._

"_I'm proud of you buddy, we've come a long way. Now let's end this here and now!" Nic shouted. Greninja turned back and shouted his name, agreeing._

"_Very well then. Mega Gardevoir, __**Moonblast!**__ Give it everything you got!" Diantha ordered. "Make this scene the best one!" Mega Gardevoir yelled as she then collected as much concentrated energy as possible and fired the heavily compressed orb that almost make the air break. _

_Greninja crouched and he and Nic braced themselves. Diantha smirked as she knew they wouldn't dodge. "Checkmate." She muttered._

_The attack rushed at Greninja, and that's when Nic and Greninja had their arms out in unison and acting as one. Greninja had the Moonblast touch his hands and he held onto it. He grunted as he was driven back and trailed, breaking the ground while still holding onto Moonblast. He stopped right in front of Nic and Greninja heaved ever so heavily, he had finally stopped trailing and he was found to still have the Moonblast in his hands._

_Mega Gardevoir yelped as she had never saw this coming. Diantha had the very same reaction. _

"_Mega Evolution or not, Type or not, we don't back down!" Nic shouted. "All the way buddy! __**Water Pulse!**__" In conjunction with the Moonblast in his palms, Greninja created his super enhanced Water Pulse. The Water Pulse had fused with the Moonblast itself, making it look like an orb of blue with a super bright pink center._

"_How can that be?" Diantha was beyond speechless. Did Nic and Greninja pull the combination off because they knew they could? They never even tried. _

"_It's just like you said Diantha, checkmate!" Nic said, using her logic against her. "Now, put the hurt on Mega Gardevoir!" Greninja gave it everything he had and he yelled and threw with extreme force, shattering the ground as the attack flew, creating a trail. The attack zoomed into Mega Gardevoir, but Diantha wasn't going down without a fight. She was the Champion after all._

"_**Thunderbolt!**__" She shouted. Mega Gardevoir then unleashed a bolt at the incoming unison attack. The two attacks made contact, but Greninja's attack was slowly pulsing through._

"_ALL THE WAY!" Nic shouted, and Greninja in his name. The attack pulsed through Mega Gardevoir's attack and Mega Gardevoir went wide eyed as the attack roared as it came at her. She screamed in sheer pain as the unison attack blasted her, sending a light up slightly and making a compressed blue and pink explosion. The explosion expanded and engulfed everything, the battlefield, the Pokémon, the trainers, the entire Pokémon League building itself was quaking with such compressed force._

"_Mega Gardevoir!" Diantha shouted. The explosion lasted for a long thirty seconds until it finally settled down. Both people looked out as the smoke cleared and they saw the shattered and destroyed floor that happened into explosion. They both saw Mega Gardevoir and Greninja perfectly still. _

_Nic and Greninja both smiled and turned towards each other, leaving Diantha stunned. Her Mega Gardevoir fell forward and she reverted back to just a regular Gardevoir. Nic had just won._

"_WE DID IT BUDDY! WE WON!" Nic ran up to his froggy pal and the two hugged. "We rocked buddy! We made it!"_

_Diantha was baffled and she let loose a smile. She nodded in silence and returned Gardevoir. She then looked at her poke ball. "That was truly amazing Gardevoir. That was a battle worth remembering." She then walked up to the celebrating duo. She stood in front of them and clapped, getting their attention. "You're battle touched my heart. I'm so choked up that I can't even find the words."_

_Nic and Greninja both turned to Diantha. She continued. "I guess…I was so glad to be Champion and good enough to be one. It gave me a chance to battle you and all of your wonderful Pokémon."_

_Nic nodded. "Yeah, this whole experience in general has really done some good. I formed new bonds and have a family that I fight alongside with." He then turns back at Greninja and the two nodded in unison._

_Diantha continued to smile. "Well now, seems as though my role has come to a close."_

_Nic stood still. He was super happy he won and all, but was the title even worth it? He didn't travel to be the best Trainer in all of Kalos, he wanted to see new people and adapt to the world. This had absolutely nothing to do with him getting the title._

_Diantha continued. "Congratulations Nic Pularis, you are-!" She was stopped in mid-sentence when Nic held up his palm._

"_Stop." He objected, shocking her. Greninja remained silent, knowing Nic's intentions inside and out. "Listen Diantha, I'm really happy I won and all, but I don't want the title."_

_This shocked Diantha very much, hearing Nic turn down the very title she herself worked so hard for. _

"_I came on this entire journey to meet people and Pokémon. I had no intention on roving to be the best. Don't get me wrong, I earned the title, but to me, a title is just a title."_

_Diantha was interested by where Nic was going with this. "Huh? Go on."_

_Nic continued. "You're the Champion, and a famous movie actress, those are two titles you respectfully earned. I do not wish to deprive you of something you have worked so hard to achieve. The title of Champion would make people forget how I got it in the first place. I worked for it, but they don't know that, nor care. They only care about the title, a burden that I do not wish to engulf what made me and my team who they are now." He turned towards Greninja, who smile and nodded. He then turned back towards Diantha. "Keep the title Diantha, I just wanted to win to prove me and my team came this far down the road."_

_Diantha was so moved. She couldn't even begin to wonder how Nic could think of such a thing. He beat her, yet he refuses the title? This guy is something else. Though Nic had a point. The title itself was all that people ever talk about. Nobody really cared about said individual, but mattered about their strengths. This is why Nic had her keep it. It was nothing special, and Diantha realized that._

_Diantha put a hand on his shoulder. "Nic, your words have brought out a pure light. You have let me keep the title, of which I will accept. You are a true and kind soul. Though not having the title, you are the real Champion at heart, you and your Pokémon."_

And that's how Nic will win this fight, with his senses and heart.

He closed his eyes and concentrated. Just then, he shot his eyes open, throwing his arm above him and blocking a downward punch by Laxus.

"What?!" Laxus was baffled. Nic then remained stable and then he clenched Laxus's own fist. He then used his powerful core and drove Laxus into the ground in front of him.

Nic then leaped away a safe distance and Laxus arose from the ground and he had lightning surge about insanely like when he finished transforming earlier. Laxus was enraged big time.

"GRAAHHH! YOU'VE MADE ME MAD NIC PULARIS! JUST DIE ALREADY!" He roared at the top of his lungs. He then brought his head back and made a Magic seal. Nic readied himself for such an impact. "**Lightning Dragon's Roar!**" He shouted and echoed through the electrified air. He shot forth a very destructive and concentrated blast of lightning at Nic.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Laxus…" He felt a big surge of energy swell into his mouth. "I'll show you what happens…" He felt the energy concentrate at the center of his mouth. "WHEN AMBITIONS GET THE BEST OF YOU!" He yelled. When he finished yelling that last part, he expelled the energy, which was an insanely dense and destructive dark purple energy with dark black energy around it. The beam drove straight into Laxus's Lightning Dragon's Roar and was starting to overpower the roar, pushing it back with pulsating force behind it.

The attack drove into a very surprised Laxus and he screamed as he was just hit with the full force of the attack, causing a very dense and rippling explosion. The shockwave made the ground in the church shatter, leveling out the entire place, and columns everywhere in the church were either cracked or arts were chipped off.

Nic didn't move as he couldn't anyway. His body had just exhausted so much energy and he has to recharge from such an attack that was out of the blue.

Nic blinked. "Er…was that Hyper Beam just now?" He said out loud. The wind had ceased and dust was scattering slightly less than normal, revealing a still standing Laxus, but he had a few scratches here and there due to that brutal force. Nic grinned and looked at the surprised fool. "Well Laxus, seems as though I unlocked the Normal Plate!"

Laxus clenched his fists and thunder booms about. Nic only had a little bit of time to recover before Laxus would attack. Laxus gritted his teeth with such rage. "I never knew your power could reach such power levels. That one bit me pretty hard, but now let's see if that'll save ya from me!" Laxus then lunged at Nic with lightning-coated fists at the ready.

'_Crap, still need to recharge some more. Looks like I have no choice then.' _Nic calmly thought and took a deep and quick breath. "…Garchomp!"

Just then, from under Laxus, the ground completely broke apart, and something menacing rose up and bashed head on into Laxus with so much intensity that it made the Dragon Slayer gag. Garchomp rushed Laxus upwards and Laxus flew in the air and grunted in pain, having felt that Ground-Type attack.

Laxus skid back several feet upon landing and looked at the hammerhead that was in front of Nic. "Crap, the hell is this thing? And why did that attack hurt so much?"

Nic grinned. "Sorry to keep you waiting Garchomp."

Garchomp turned his head and showed his fangs that showed displease. "Another ten seconds and I would've gone nuts! Holding back with all of this action going on up here made me itch all over!" He stomped on the ground, making it thud and turned towards Laxus. Garchomp clawed the ground with his feet, leaving claw marks in the ground. "Finally." He smirked ever so demonically at a sparking Laxus. "Now I get my turn."

Nic, now recharged, walks up to Garchomp's side. "Yup, he's gonna learn a painful lesson about Ground-Types."

Laxus, now sparking even more, gritted his teeth and stomped on the ground. "What the hel are you talking about?"

Nic cracked is knuckles and grinned. "Laxus, I didn't wanna have to do this, but you left me no choice. Meet my rather violent friend, Garchomp." Garchomp roared at Laxus and stepped forward, almost eager to strike upon the word.

Laxus grunted and figured it should be easy to take them down; little did he know, he was in a world of trouble.

"Garchomp." Nic declared. "Let's go!"

* * *

**I know there's no such thing as a Normal Plate, but I wanted Nic to unlock some new Plate and I wanted him to get his Normal-Type under his belt. Though I doubt you guys mind anyway. I figured with Nic wanting to be himself, the Normal Plate seemed reasonable at that time.**

**I hope you guys aren't too ticked off with how I set up the fight with my own couple of twists. I know you guys might be ticked with Erza and the others out, but I hope the flashback and fight onwards made up for that.**

**I'll do a chapter on **_**EDventures in Kalos**_** for a little bit, just so Reviews can filter through and give me some time to process them.**

**Hope you guys leave positive Reviews on the fight.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are enjoying and loving the action and plot twists I input into this work.**

* * *

**Next Time: Painful Reconcile**


	22. Painful Reconcile

Chapter 22 – Painful Reconcile

**Okay, time to finish up The Battle of Fairy Tail Arc. I haven't got much planned except finishing the brawl and the post-brawl. I'm not exactly sure how long the reprieve should be until the Oracion Seis Arc, maybe a chapter, maybe even half a chapter, we'll see.**

**GoldenCyclone4: Fair point. At first, I was simply skimming through for grammar errors, but I have recently began to change my style and now read the whole story for any and all errors. Sure it takes longer, but it's worth it.**

**magical fan18: In the Normal Plate, Nic is just himself, nothing changes. The only change is that he'll be able to use Normal-Type moves along with said Plate being his standard form/attire. If Garchomp did Mega Evolve, that would be somewhat overkill, but I'll save that for later on in a future Arc.**

**Guest: In a way, I'm in the same boat. I, personally of course, Super Train and max out 2 stats of any and all new Pokémon in my games, of which I personally call that "getting them conditioned". I also do Pokémon Amie constantly. I utilize both all the time and my Pokémon benefit from it to a great extent.**

**PokeguardianZ: I appreciate you admiring my work and Nic's new Plate, all I ask is that you at least respect Guardian Fairy. That story is an inspiration. As for that individual with the dark legendaries' powers, he'll appear later on, maybe after the Oracion Seis Arc.**

**Okay, time to get this brawl under way! Hope you all like how it ends!**

**To Recap:**

Nic and Mystogan both find Laxus in the Kardia Cathedral and begin their quarrel. Mystogan is easily taken out by the exhaustion of his Magic, thanks to an Enchantment Freed made so that Laxus could face Nic alone. It was fortunate Natsu, Gajeel, and Erza all join in, but even they were unable to ignore the Enchantment and were deprived of more Magic as the battle raged on, resulting in them losing. Levy and Greninja rushed towards the battle in order to tell Laxus that Makarov's life was slipping away. At this point, it was Nic and Laxus alone, and Nic was holding up well, and then Laxus showed his true power - The Lightning Dragon Slayer. Nic was cornered for a brief moment, until he thought back to when he had beaten Diantha, and that's when he regained the advantage and unlocked the Normal Plate. It was not long after that that Nic called upon Garchomp and he came bursting out from under Laxus with the need to fight.

* * *

**Chapter 22 – Painful Reconcile**

Laxus let loose a small chuckle upon seeing Garchomp by Nic's side. He couldn't help but just laugh maniac-like. "You honestly think that walking hammerhead can help you? I'm a Lightning Dragon Slayer! No one can save you!" He boasted with sparks soaring madly around him.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "You know, you'd best be praying, you walking lamp."

Laxus was ticked off by Nic's comment and growled. "Fine! Let's see how you fair against this!" He reeled his head back and made a Magic seal. He then brought his head forward and let loose another destructive blast of lightning at the duo. "**Lightning Dragon's Roar!**"

The blast was coming their way, but Nic made no attempt to budge. He simply crossed his arms and his Garchomp grinned. "Garchomp." Nic casually implied. Garchomp stepped in front of Nic, taking on the entire impact. The blast engulfed Garchomp and an explosion swallowed the area, having yellow and dust surge about.

Laxus chuckled as the dust was clearing out. "See? Like I told ya, nothing can save-!" Laxus went wide eyed as the dust had cleared, revealing Nic untouched thanks to Garchomp taking the entire blast and coming out without even a scratch.

Garchomp raised his head and gave a sharp monstrous glare at Laxus. "That tickles." Garchomp commented.

"Impossible!" Laxus shouted. "My roar destroys anything, and even if it were to survive, it shouldn't be moving!"

Nic then looked at Laxus. "Laxus, Garchomp is part Ground-Type, meaning any and all attacks that involve electricity of sorts will have absolute zero effect on my friend here." Garchomp growled in agreement.

Laxus twitched his eye and bared his fangs. "I couldn't care less of what that thing is! I'll take it down any means necessary!" Thunder and lightning engulfed his entire body and he then rushed at Garchomp.

"Big mistake pal" Nic said. "Garchomp…enjoy."

Garchomp grinned with brutal intentions and he crouched forward in excitement. "You don't have to tell me twice!" And he launched himself at mach speed, making the ground from where he stood ripple dust from the force behind his lunge. Laxus unleashed a lightning-coated right fist at Garchomp, who simply used Slash, with his claws glowing white and expanding slightly. The two attacks collided with the other, with neither side budging. White and yellow sparks went everywhere, and Laxus was pushing with everything he had.

He noticed that Garchomp was not even fazed by his assault and was grinning. "Are you even trying?" Garchomp mocked, surprising Laxus. "Didn't you hear Nic? Anything with lightning, is like being hit by a fluffy pillow!" Garchomp then proceeded through the Slash and he easily made Laxus stumble back, leaving Garchomp to rush in and had his arms raised overhead. He then had his claws and arm fins glow green and he brought them both down at the same time at high speed, via Dual Chop.

Laxus smashed into the ground, making some rock fly and he yelped. He grunted as he got his hands to the floor to proceed to get up, but Garchomp did another Dual Chop, making Laxus yelp in agony yet again.

"Did you really think that an arrogant thunderhead like you had a chance against me?!" Garchomp yelled. He then used his left claw and put it under the extremely bulky Dragon Slayers right arm, forcing him to get up. "Smile!" Garchomp then did an angled Slash straight to the face, making Laxus zoom back from the force behind that attack. He ended up in a skid and stopped. He grunted as he looked back at Garchomp, who wasn't even trying.

"What the hell is this? How the heck are you that strong against my Magic?!" He demanded, only for his answer to come in the form of an incoming Slash. Laxus saw this and he had to counter fast. "**Lightning Dragon's Roar!**" He unleashed yet another gruesome blast of lightning, but Garchomp's Slash easily went straight through, cutting the attack straight down the middle, proving his Ground-Type superiority. "Impossible!"

Garchomp was now in front of Laxus and grinned. "Go down!" He then ceased his Slash and his claws and arm fins glowed green, signaling Dual Chop. Garchomp did a hook with his right, in a way so that the fin bashed Laxus horizontally, and then delivered an even harder swipe with his left fin, making Laxus stumble towards his left.

Laxus regained his footing and then he saw that Nic wasn't where he was before. Before he even had time to act, or even blink for that matter, he was found having a foot over his head and slammed said part over Laxus and onto his back, making the Dragon Slayer scream. Laxus was on his abdomen and Nic jumped off and backed away towards Garchomp's side.

"Sorry for the Body Slam, but you needed that beat down." Nic said. "Do you concede yet?"

Laxus grunted and was slowly getting his feet under him. He was growling with distaste. "Dammit. You have a brutal pal, I'll give you that much." Laxus said, now back on his feet. "So what if my lightning doesn't work? In the end, Fairy Tail will be mine." He then proceeded forward a few paces with several gashes and scratches, not to mention bruises, from Garchomp's vicious assaults. You could see that his face had a plethora of them. "I can see you won't kick the bucket, so it looks like I have no choice! You two, Natsu, Erza, Mystogan, all of those pathetic bunch that are weaklings, all of Magnolia…" He then thundered and boomed so much as of that moment that the cracks between the floors were shown to have lightning emanating from them. "…YOU'RE TIME HAS COME!"

Laxus clenched his fists and the ground from under him was protruding light. Nic felt a super dense Magic energy flowing through Laxus, and this meant really bad news. Garchomp crouched forward, aware of the power bonus.

"Garchomp, you feel that?" Nic asked, getting super defensive.

Garchomp growled. "This is where things get rocky."

Laxus had the light cease and then he put his hands close together. In between those hands, there was a bright light of Magic energy, and a huge amount encased in that small sphere in between his hands. Nic and Garchomp both nearly went wide eyed at the level of power this guy had in front of him.

Laxus then laughed maniacally. "You know what I'm doing ya punks? I'm casting the Fairy Law Spell!"

Nic grunted. "I'm gonna go so far as to say that's forbidden or something, right?" He asked casually, trying to maintain as calm as he possible could.

"You're right kid, but I don't care. This spell will destroy any who I see as my enemy!" Laxus declared. Nic and Garchomp then got in more defensive stances. They knew if they were hit, it would mean bad news. Laxus began to yell as he conjured up even more light to enclose the sphere and the light was getting even more potent.

Suddenly, a voice at the entrance made everyone turn. "Stop Laxus!"

Garchomp, Nic, and Laxus all turned to see that Levy and Greninja were both at the entrance and they had deep concerns plastered on their faces. Nic went wide eyed upon seeing Levy.

"Levy?! What are you doing here?!" Nic shouted.

"Laxus!" Greninja shouted. "You have to see your Master, as in now!" Laxus still began to charge up his Magic with those solemn white eyes with no pupils, meaning he was slightly berserk. He wasn't paying attention as he was concentrating on casting the spell.

"Your grandfather…is close to death!" Levy blurted out. Nic jerked in shock, and Garchomp tensed up. Laxus was about to keep up the spell, but heard what Levy said about Makarov dying. He brought his head up and the pupils in his eyes returned. "Stop this now, please!"

"Your grandfather is on his death bed. Cease this and go see him!" Greninja implored with Levy.

Laxus and everyone else there was as stiff as a paralyzed Nosepass. No one moved, even though the spell was still in Laxus's hands.

"You serious?" Nic muttered. "He's really doesn't have that much time?!" Nic was concerned for the Master and he stepped towards Laxus. "Laxus! Do as they say you nincompoop!"

"Please Laxus! I'm begging you!" Levy began to shed some tears, deeply begging him to do so.

Laxus's eyes were all shaken and the light was beginning to dim slightly, meaning he was backing off. He then had his eyes firm again and an evil grin slowly arose upon his face. "This is just too perfect." He muttered. "Now that the old man is near death, my chances of being Master have gotten even bigger than they have ever been."

Levy gasped in horror. "No…you can't." She couldn't believe what Laxus was saying. Greninja held her as she was beginning to sob at how cruel Laxus was.

"You…you…you bastard." Nic had trouble making words as he was in a huge rage that Laxus was that monstrous, letting his own grandfather pass on without a care to the world. He clenched his fists and his body was shaking. Garchomp snarled drastically and was now shredding up the bricks under his feet with his bare foot claws.

"You're so low. Damn you." Garchomp muttered.

Laxus then began to conjure up some more light, and the sphere was even brighter than it was before. Some broken rock was levitating from the amount of power given off. Now light was peering from under the cracks under Laxus and now all you could see around Laxus was just light.

"This is the beginning of a new era! The ultimate guild is within my grasp!...**Fairy Law!**" He then pressed his palms in between his light sphere and then the sphere turned into a golden Magic seal with a Fairy Tail emblem on it. You could've heard a bell rung from the use of that spell. Just then, the light expanded and everything was swallowed up. Nic, Garchomp, Levy, Greninja, everything within Magnolia was pretty much swallowed up by an enormous light.

Everything was blind to Nic and everyone, as they couldn't even tell if they were even alive or not. They then felt the light fading and then all that covered them was dust.

Nic looked over towards his left and saw that Garchomp was still there, and the latter was surprised his trainer was still in one piece as well. Both Nic and Garchomp blinked and realized that Laxus's spell didn't affect them.

The two then froze and they nodded at the other, seeing as to how this was their chance. The two zoomed in through the fading light and scattered dust.

Laxus was laughing triumphantly and he showed his teeth in glory. "Finally." He muttered. "I surpassed the old-!" He was stopped in midsentence when he was hit with a Slash in a downward angle on his chest. He was also hit with glowing blue hands that smashed into his right shoulder and part of his chest as well, the attack being Crush Claw.

Laxus flew back and landed with a huge thud and yelped. The dust cleared completely, revealing a surprised Greninja and Levy still at the entrance.

Laxus got to his feet and gasped in deep shock that they were actually still alive, and Nic and Garchomp were giving deep, cod, death-like stares at Laxus, making him step back.

"W-What in the…? How are you still alive?!" Laxus exclaimed. "The hell is this?!"

Levy was coughing slightly from the dust, and Greninja covered her up. "Hey, you okay?" He asked. Levy finished coughing and managed to reply.

"Yeah, I think so." She replied. "You guys okay?" Nic and Garchomp both looked back with nods.

Laxus now was back to his original physique due to the exhaustion of Magic. He was wide eyed and looked down at his own two hands in disbelief. "I hit them with so much Magic energy." He muttered. "

Just then, Freed entered the building, right by Greninja and Levy's side. "The citizens and all of the other guild members were left unharmed as well." He stated.

"Freed." Laxus said.

Levy was shocked and Greninja was getting defensive, daring to strike if Freed was able to strike. Greninja then saw that Freed was badly injured and he was leaning against the entrance. Greninja backed off slightly, seeing how he wasn't able to do much of anything.

"Your spell didn't work." Freed continued. "Not a single person was killed."

Nic and Garchomp both looked back at Freed, seeing how he didn't pose as a threat. Even Garchomp knew not to strike him. "That's impossible. I cast the Fairy Law Spell perfectly!" He was all shaken up in the eyes and was growling in disbelief.

"Perhaps, but that spell looks into your heart. You may have the Master's strength and power, but you've also ascertain the Master's heart." Freed added. "Believe it or not, it's evident that you care for your comrades. Fairy Law only affects those who the caster sees as their enemy. Since no one was hurt, we know your true feelings." He then grinned.

Laxus looked down at the ground and was growling even more and was all shaken up. "No. That's a big lie." Laxus said, regaining himself. "Anyone who dares to stand in my way is my enemy!"

Freed then lost his grin. "This has gone on long enough!" He protested. "You need to go see the Master!"

Laxus began to surge some lightning again, and he was slowly bulking up to his berserk physique. He was accelerating his own rage and his pupils were beginning to vanish, leaving only white again. "Let the old man die!" His entire body was shrouded in more lightning and he was beginning to shake up the place again. "I am Laxus! I'm not some old man's grandson! I AM LAXUS!" His yell echoed and lightning arose everywhere from the ground and some rock levitated again with the extreme power given off.

Levy, Greninja, and Freed all covered up from the sheer Magic given off.

'_Such monstrous power.' _Freed thought.

Nic and Garchomp both turned to Laxus and they were cracking their necks and bones, meaning they were going to punish Laxus big time. "You sorry excuse for a Fairy Tail Mage!" Nic yelled. "Who cares about the power you possess?! You may be Makarov's grandson, but you're no better than any of us!"

Nic and Garchomp then rushed in at Laxus, who then charged at them as well with lightning-coated fists. "You must die!" Laxus shouted as his lightning-coated fist collided with Garchomp's Slash and Nic's Crush Claw combo again. Laxus punched with everything he had, but no matter how he saw it, he failed to surpass Garchomp's Ground-Type and Slash and Crush Claw was shoving him back, making Laxus create a trail with his feet as Nic and Garchomp were pushing with their attacks.

"YOU DARE TRY AND CHALLENGE ME?! HOW DARE YOU!" Laxus shouted and managed to avoid the full impact by leaping into the air and having Nic and Garchomp follow through under him. He then brought both feet down and stomped on Nic's back, making the latter grunt heavily as he felt his back bones crack and he fell hard on his abdomen. Laxus turned and saw an incoming Slash. He grabbed it with his right hand and he threw Garchomp overhead. Garchomp used the momentum from that throw and then folded his body and began soaring into the air. Garchomp then sailed through the church as Laxus was trying to attack with lightning, but didn't even land a single hit, and only left a trail that ran along almost the entire left side of the church. Garchomp lowered his altitude and then straightened out. He now was facing Laxus head on and was forty feet away.

"So what if my Magic won't work, I'll use my fists and kill you!" Laxus declared, but then forgot that Nic was directly underneath his feet, literally. Nic took this opportunity while Laxus's focus was on Garchomp and he opened his mouth.

"**Boomburst!**" Nic shouted. The inside of his mouth turned light blue and then fired a very brutal sound wave that launched directly in Laxus's face, making the latter soar up and crash into the ceiling. Nic then got up and leaped away so that Laxus would fall straight down. Laxus began falling and looked at Nic and Garchomp, who were side by side again. With even more rage, he coated himself in lightning and shot at them from midair.

"WHY WON'T YOU JUST DIE?!" Laxus roared as he had a lightning-coated fist with their names on it.

"Because you'll never understand what's at stake here Laxus!" Nic shouted as he scooched left and avoided the incoming Dragon Slayer. "You have no idea what's at stake if you kill me!" Nic then ducked to avoid a left jab of lightning. As Laxus proceeded his punch over a ducking Nic, Garchomp attacked with Slash and easily ploughed and shoved Laxus back. Laxus skid and then saw Garchomp over him.

'_The hell?! That thing's so fast!' _Laxus thought and then Garchomp brought his Dual Chop down, but Laxus lunged to his right and avoided a devastating attack that broke the bricks underneath. Laxus then drove a knee into Garchomp, which made the dragon growl and did an uppercut to his jaw. Garchomp skid back and landed with ease, hardly feeling it.

"Is that the best you can do?" Garchomp mocked. Laxus clenched his fists so hard, you could've heard the bones break. Laxus lunged his bulky body at Garchomp, who lunged back. Laxus did a jab and a cross, but Garchomp went wild and easily used Slash in swift motions, blocking and leaving gashes in Laxus's hands. Garchomp then did a Slash downwards, but Laxus leaped back and evaded it.

'_This thing is even more gruesome when I'm not using Magic?! Just what is going on here?!' _Laxus was mentally pissed.

Nic ran forward and then looked at Garchomp. "Garchomp, **Dig**!" Nic shouted. Garchomp then soared up and then went in an arc into the cement bricks, breaking and shattering them with ease. Nic then ran towards Laxus and Laxus shifted his focus over towards Nic.

As Laxus prepare a spell, Nic stopped in place. Nic was going to take a big chance with this next move. He covered up and watched as Laxus made the seal in front of his fist activate.

"**Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!**" From the seal then shot an oversized fist composed of lightning. The fist then closed in on Nic, who still had his hands up and was planning to block.

'_This is gonna hurt.' _Nic thought. The fist smashed into him completely, making a big explosion that made everyone at the entrance cover up. The dust and debris flew for a good roughly ten seconds, and then it began dialing down, having Freed, Levy, and Greninja to uncover themselves and look on with curiosity.

"Is he…is he okay?" Levy asked, concerned if he was still alive.

The smoke cleared, revealing Nic to have been on his feet still, but leaning forward and was heavily scratched and was covered in sparks. Nic winced in great pain as he felt as though he was just hit by a mountain.

Greninja looked on as his buddy was still standing. "Yeah, he'll be okay." Greninja assured. "I've been with Nic's side all this time, and I know for a fact that he's got more stamina and endurance than the toughest of Steel-Types."

Freed looked at Greninja. "And what is that suppose to mean exactly?"

"It means that no matter what you throw at Nic, he won't fall." Greninja said.

Laxus grunted. "You're still standing, even after that?" He said in disbelief. He then saw that there was a red glow around Nic.

Nic let loose a smirk. "I've felt worse pal." He boasted as the sparks ceased, stunning Laxus. "Is that the best you can throw at me?"

Laxus surged in lightning that equaled his fury and then he disappeared in a bolt of lightning, but Nic stayed calm and smirked. Laxus then appeared from behind and gave a severe elbow to Nic's right shoulder and drove a knee into his back. He then grabbed Nic'seft shoulder and turned him around, making him look at Laxus. Laxus then delivered a brutal punch of lightning into Nic's chest, making the Multitype Mage fly back and keep his footing as he trailed. His red aura thickened as he huffed and puffed. They were now on opposite sides of each other.

"Is that all you've got Laxus?!" Nic mocked, heavily breathing. "Come on!" He deliberately dared Laxus to hit him with everything he had.

"That was your last mistake kid! Now I'm gonna annihilate you!" Laxus roared. He then raised both arms and a huge yellow Magic seal appeared above his head.

Levy covered her mouth as a gasp escaped. Greninja tensed up upon feeling the huge amount of Magic in the attack that Laxus was conjuring.

"That spell…" Freed muttered. He then stepped once. "Don't Laxus!" Just then, Greninja had an arm to keep Freed from going further. Freed gasped and looked at Greninja, who was still spectating.

"Trust me." Greninja remarked. "Nic has a plan."

"You're done kid! **Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd!**" Laxus then threw the attack, which resembled a spear composed of lightning, with sheer force.

The spear was making its way at Nic, and Nic's red glow thickened even more.

"Nic!" Freed shouted. Levy closed her eyes and looked away, not wanting to witness the seemingly devastating blast.

Greninja just grinned, seeing how Nic was going to pull it off.

Nic's eyes sharpened and then the red glow stopped. "This one's for Erza! **Bide!**" Nic then let loose a huge, power-charged, white beam at Laxus. The blast's force was double that of the Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist and the consecutive attacks Laxus unleashed combined. The white beam made dust fly about on the sides and the intensity of such attack almost made the columns that it passed by crumble.

The Bide's beam made contact with Laxus's powerful spell, but the spear itself was no match for the doubled power that Bide has, and that obliterated on the spot.

"What?!" Laxus gasped. Laxus then stepped back and was unable to move due to the fact that one of his strongest spells was taken out just like that. Laxus then screamed as he was hit head on with the brutal white beam. Laxus was engulfed in a mind-blowing explosion that rippled shockwaves throughout the church.

Freed, Levy, and Greninja all turned so that their bodies were outside the church and watched as dust rushed out and violent winds made everyone on the streets back away and evacuate the area as this wind and tempest was spiraling like a hurricane inside.

"What power!" Freed shouted as he covered up and his hair and coat went mad in the wind. Levy covered up as her hair, of which was in a ponytail, was beginning to go wild as well. Greninja covered up and then they all had to wait until the shaking and wind stopped.

The three all peeked inside to see what happened, and they saw that the dust had simmered and Laxus was on one knee and was heavily damaged. There was nothing but scrapes and scratches and gashes, and bruises all over Laxus, literally almost every inch, and he was all shaken up.

Nic himself was feeling under the weather, as he was also shaking and was badly bruised, but was at least on his two feet.

"Incredible." Freed marveled that Nic was beaten Laxus.

"Yeah, Nic's amazing." Levy smiled.

Greninja nodded. "See? What'd I tell ya?"

Laxus punched the ground under him, the lightning in his arm wasn't enough to even pull off an effective punch. Nic dared him to use his strongest move, and that he did, which cost him almost every bit of his remaining Magic.

"Damn you. Damn you Nic Pularis!" Laxus swore under his breath.

Nic then straightened himself out and heaved a load of fresh air. "I told you Laxus." Nic started, and then he began the glow yellow. Laxus and everyone else there went wide eyed as Nic used Recover while Laxus was still down. "I'll show you what happens when ambitions get the best of you." He then stopped glowing, and he was shown to have recovered a bunch of energy. Everyone there saw how he had far less bruising than before, and Nic himself didn't feel a broken back or damaged shoulders. He still winced at some damage he still had, but he looked far better than what Laxus was showing.

"D-Did he just heal himself, just like that?" Freed almost fell under shock from what Nic had portrayed. "He was able to suppress Laxus, and now he can heal himself."

"There's something you don't know about Nic." Greninja told. "In these situations, he's your worst nightmare."

Laxus gritted his teeth and grunted so much that it began hurting even more for him. He tried finding his feet under him and he was able to stand, but not without gagging. "You cannot win! I won't let you!" Laxus yelled.

Nic frowned and then squinted his eyes. "Buddy, do you know what I am?" He scolded. He stepped forward. "You forced me to show absolute zero mercy, you're out of Magic, and now…" He then snapped his fingers to give a signal. "…you're up against _two monsters_!"

Just then, the ground completely shattered under Laxus, and rocks and cement flew about as he was smashed from underneath by a certain Dragon and Ground-Type that was begging to thrash the S-Class blonde.

Laxus gagged as he soared in the air, not recovered from the attack Nic dealt on him and the sudden Dig he took. Garchomp watched as Laxus sailed at an upward angle and was now sailing over Nic's head slightly. Nic turned around and shifted into his Stone Plate.

"Laxus, you wanted no mercy? Here's no mercy for ya!" Nic yelled. He made a pink energy in between his hands and carbon in the air began to compress. "You will never be forgiven for what you have done!" The energy was then converted into diamonds as he took his hands away. From there, countless pink diamonds were swirling and was about to be unleashed. "This one is for all of Fairy Tail! **Legendary Arts – Diamond Storm!**" He then yelled and then unleashed all of the diamonds at Laxus, who was still sailing above.

"Don't forget me! **Dragon Rush!**" Garchomp went mach speed, far faster than Diamond Storm. The appendages on his head glow blue and then released a dragon-shaped energy that covered his whole body. He then rammed Laxus with full force, prompting the Lightning Dragon Slayer to scream as Garchomp rammed him straight through the ceiling. The ceiling was completely demolished in the spot Garchomp rammed Laxus into and he smashed him through the roof itself and into the air. Garchomp flew and backed off as Diamond Storm was coming in.

"NO!" Laxus shouted in the air, but his limbs wouldn't respond after getting crushed by that Dragon Rush, which left him unable to do anything as he screamed at his apparent demise of the bombarding diamonds that swallowed him.

Levy, Greninja, and Freed all were baffled and wide eyed at the sheer force the two attacks dealt. Dragon Rush nearly destroyed Laxus and rendered him unable to do anything, and then they only see a pink light in the sky.

"A-Amazing…" Levy trailed off as she watched the pink in the sky turn into sparkles and eventually became nothing. "He really is called Luminous." Everyone then saw Nic turn his back as Laxus fell back down into the floor. Laxus crashed and was now lying on his back, heavily gashed and demolished and what not. His mouth was gaped and he was back to his original physique as he laid on the floor with white eyes, defeated.

"They…they won." Freed said. "They beat Laxus."

Nic turned his head at the defeated Dragon Slayer. "Be careful for what you wish for."

Garchomp then flew down from the sky and he slammed his feet into the ground right next to Nic. He roared, sending small shockwaves in victory. Garchomp then settled as he knew the fun was over.

Nic then looked back at the defeated Laxus while using Recover one more time, glowing yellow and now feeling all of his limbs feel revived. "This is what happens when you threaten my new family."

* * *

**The next day…**

Everyone in Magnolia was oblivious to the Fairy Tail situation; some even thought it was part of the festival. Some were frankly disappointed that the parade wasn't happening tonight but was pushed back to tomorrow night. They all heard that the Master was sick and they respected that.

Nic came into the guild after checking up with Master and telling him that he took down Laxus. Everyone there turned towards him and some were hoping that the Master was okay.

Nic turned to everyone there and grinned. "I got some good news." Nic said. "Thanks to Porlyusica, Master Makarov will be back on his feet very soon." Everyone there then raised there mugs and cheered ever so loudly. They were very happy that Master wasn't kicking the bucket yet. Fairy Tail wouldn't know what to do without their beloved gramps.

"Thank goodness." Lucy told Erza. "I was getting a little worried."

Erza nodded in agreement. "I feel the same. I was very worried what would have been the other outcome."

"Lucky for us, Nic was able to stop this madness." Gray said. "And don't forget, this is gramos we're talking about."

Nic then frowned. "Well he isn't young you know, so any added stress can harm him." He then turned towards everyone else. "Listen up, no roughhousing. Understood?" He announced.

"AYE SIR!" Everyone shouted out of understanding, and a hint of fear. The members heard everything. Nic,] and his vicious Garchomp, both taking down Laxus. Word got around fast and now everyone knew Nic was stronger than Laxus, which kind of freaked them out slightly, and add the fact he was a big authority figure as shown in the Phantom War back when he even took down Jose, a Wizard Saint. He honestly never fails to impress anybody.

"I gotta ask ya something Nic." Sophie said. "How is it that you and that monstrous dragon of yours were able to stop him? That guy was a _mifletzat_."

"It wasn't easy, I'll tell ya." Nic said, standing right next to a smiling Erza. "He had some strength in him, and it took a lot out of us to keep him down; well, a lot out of my part that is."

Erza was somewhat bandaged, but so was Natsu and Gajeel, who were both at the same table as the others, surprisingly. Not so much that they looked like mummies, but a few here and there. The three were expected to be well for tomorrow night.

Erza leaned in towards Nic and smiled, as did he. "You did amazing. Wish I could've witnessed it."

Nic blushed slightly and looked down. "Yeah, I guess me too."

"You guys liiiike each other." Happy teased, only for him to receive a small bump on the head catered by Erza.

"Gee, you think Happy would've learned by now." Gray remarked with a sweat drop.

"I would have to agree. Not even a week after joining and this happens." Sophie commented.

"Hey Nic." Natsu called out. "Fight me!" Natsu then got up and was looking at Nic.

Nic just frowned at Natsu. "What did I just say?" Natsu just back off by flinching.

"Boy, Luminous really knows how to throw down the gauntlet." Gajeel commented. "Even Salamander is spooked."

"What's that you say?!" Natsu barked at Gajeel. "You're just as spooked as I am you metal head!"

The two were glaring daggers that the other. "Oh yeah? I'm more terrifying than you salmon head!"

Nic stomped his foot. "What did I say?" He said in a warning tone. Both Gajeel and Natsu sweat dropped and instantly backed off.

"Boy, Nic can be terrifying." Sophie commented.

"Yeah." Gray sweat dropped. "Be glad that you never saw his bad side."

"Huh?" Sophie had a visible question mark.

"You see, Nic is rather brutal and cannot be stopped." Erza pointed out. "You should try and be calm and do as he says."

"Uh, I'm right here you know?" He said, raising his hand. Erza then walked closer to him and she was gesturing with her head to go somewhere. Nic followed Erza away from the group so that they could talk.

This didn't go unnoticed by Sophie. "What's up with those two?"

"Aren't they the sweetest two you ever see together?" Lucy asked, earning yet another visible question mark from Sophie.

"Those two have feelings for the other, let's leave it at that." Gray commented.

Sophie raised a brow. "Really? Interesting."

Out of the crowd, Erza looked Nic in the eyes and blushed slightly. "I was worried you know."

Nic tried to look away, but Erza kept her gaze solemnly on him and he couldn't look away from the beauty that was Erza. Nic sighed. "I know, I'm sorry." He then smirked. "But you know…" His voice then turned into a whisper. "Our little date is still on."

Erza blushed and she looked away so that no one could see how red her face was. She wasn't thinking straight again as she had those butterflies fluttering again, thinking of the potential date.

Just then, everyone stopped celebrating as they all heard and saw a certain Mage come through the entrance. Everyone went dead silent and gave cold stares.

It was Laxus, and he was far from okay. Under his fur-line coat, you could see that his entire upper body was covered in bandages, his forehead was wrapped up, he even had patches on his cheeks, and bandages were on his neck as well. Nic and Garchomp messed him up bad.

"Whoa, it's Laxus." Wakaba remarked as the S-Class Mage came walking in.

"Just what are you doing here?!" Macao demanded.

He had a grumpy look plastered on his face, but this didn't show arrogance like before. "Where's the old man?" He asked.

Several members were beginning to block his way and shouting for him to get lost and they wouldn't tell him anything. Nic watched on and saw that for some reason, Laxus had a less lethal vibe. Nic wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing; regardless, he took his chances.

"QUIET!" He shouted, making everyone silence almost immediately and making room for him. They all made a few steps back so that they weren't in Nic's way. He just looked at Laxus dead in the eyes, seeing what motives he had.

"I take it you wanna see your grandfather, right?" Nic asked. Laxus paused and nodded, not saying a word. Nic took a moment and decided that it was okay. "Very well. Master is in the infirmary."

"Are you serious?!" Jet protested, but Nic narrowed his eyes at Jet, who then backed off. Laxus then began to walk ahead towards the infirmary. Nic remained still while Erza was by his side. Erza remained stoic, unnerving due to Laxus's presence. Natsu wanted to stop Laxus and deliver a beating, but Sophie held an arm out, blocking him. Natsu turned to her sharply, but all she did was shook her head. Natsu then saw Nic and Laxus stare at the other.

Just then, Laxus stopped in front of Nic, making Erza almost jerk for a sword. Everyone felt as though tensions were high again. Laxus stared down at Nic and Nic did the same. Nic saw straight through Laxus. He kept an emotionless expression, but felt settled, as he saw that Laxus had no fight in him. It was clear that Nic was the better man. The two just kept the stare going until Laxus decided to finally turn away and proceeded pass them.

Erza and Nic both turned around and saw Laxus walking. Just then, Laxus waive his hand back at Nic, acknowledging his strength and superiority. Nic knew this was a true sign that Laxus had no brutal intentions. Nic just smiled and looked at Erza, who was grinning slightly.

Nic then turned towards everyone else. "Enough gawking everyone! Time for some preparations!" Everyone there yelled in agreement and they all began to drink their mugs and commence with the preparations for the Fantasia Parade.

* * *

**With Laxus and Makarov**

The two could hear the sounds of mugs hammering, stuff being organize, and the never-ending noise that comes from everyone.

Makarov was in his bed and was looking up at the ceiling, while Laxus was leaned up against the wall by the door and looked down and away, hearing them.

"They're a rowdy bunch, aren't they." Laxus quietly said, hearing them even with the door shut. Makarov just breathed and closed his eyes, hearing the sound of his guild as it should be, rowdy and happy.

Makarov then sat up on his bed and he turned his gaze over towards Laxus. His gaze was nothing but sheer seriousness.

"Laxus, I don't think you understand the severity of the damage you brought onto us." Makarov stated. Laxus tried to then look away so as not see the cold stare given by his grandfather. He had a guilt trip beginning to crawl about him, and he didn't have any way around it.

"Look me in the eyes young man." Makarov ordered. Laxus then had no choice but to slowly turn his head and eyes and look at Makarov. He saw at his cold stare as the sunlight beamed through the window and reflected off his grandfather's gray hair.

"Laxus, Fairy Tail is a place where friends can gather, where Mages can find work, and for people to call home. It gives children with no kin something called family. It's not something that can be owned nor taken. It's not only essential for every member to not only be loyal, but trustworthy among others. If not, then no bonds will be formed and Fairy Tail would be nothing."

Laxus listened very carefully as he was settled into the Master's speech. "Your actions prove that you lack both qualities. To make matters worse, you've threatened the lives of your comrades, that's unforgiveable."

"I'm sorry sir." Laxus apologized. He then clenched his fists in distress. "Honestly, I never meant to hurt the guild." Makarov could tell from Laxus's tone that he was being true to his word. "I just…I just wanted to make it stronger." He looked down with the guilt that fell on him.

Makarov paused after observing his grandson. He got up and out of his bed and put his arms behind his back. "I swear, you're just as high strung as I am." Makarov walked over and faced Laxus. "You better relax or you'll end up in a bed just like me. Take some time to smell the roses. If you do, you'll hear and see things you never could before." His gaze eased up slightly after that. "Life can be joyful it you want it to be."

Laxus paused and took the Master's words by heart and looked down towards his lower left, pondering.

Makarov then closed his eyes and sighed. "Over the years, I've watched you grow into the man you are today." He then looked down with opened and upset eyes. "Where did we go wrong? What lesson did you not learn? I keep asking myself these things over and over with little to no clue, but the past is in the past. I am left now with only one choice."

Makarov paused as Laxus was looking down and was going to take whatever punishment was necessary. Laxus was preparing himself for the worst, but he couldn't help but shake up slightly.

"Laxus…you are hereby expelled from Fairy Tail."

Laxus looked on with heavily shocked eyes as he was burdened now with the worst punishment he ever got, excommunication, which is expulsion. Regardless, Laxus took it.

"I understand." Laxus said. He then turned away and began making his way out the door. Makarov turned and crossed his arms, looking out the window. "Thanks for everything…" Laxus then stopped and grinned without turning around. "…grandpa."

Makarov didn't hear Laxus call him that for the longest time. It truly touched his heart and he was beginning to sniffle and his eyes were all watery.

Laxus grinned while staring down at the ground. "You take care of yourself, 'kay old man?"

"…please just go!" Makarov almost choked on his words. With a grin still on his face, Laxus left the room.

* * *

**Later…**

Under the huge tree in South Gate Park, Laxus broke the news to his Thunder God Tribe.

"NO! YOU MUST BE JOKING?!" Evergreen shouted in front of his face. "Why would he kick you out and not the rest of us?!"

"Yeah!" Bickslow agreed. "We're just as guilty as you are!"

"Justice. Justice." His 'babies' repeated.

Laxus didn't buy there persuasion. "Guess the old man doesn't see it that way."

"Well then I'm leaving too!" Evergreen said.

"Why should we stick around if you're not gonna be here?" Bickslow asked.

Laxus just sighed. "You guys can be a pain. Can't you just accept it and move on?"

"I don't understand, we're at fault too, so why are you taking all the blame?" Freed asked Laxus.

Laxus shook his head. "You've got it all wrong my friends. You can say whatever you three want, but I know you're more attached to this guild than I could ever be."

Freed didn't fuss, but Evergreen and Bickslow were still persistent. "Maybe if we talk to the Master, he'll change his mind!" Evergreen suggested.

Bickslow stepped forward. "Yeah, and Nic respects you, so he'll take our side."

Laxus just looked in another direction, hearing, but not following their ways. He caused this, and knew he would be a burden if he stayed. He then turned towards the three and smiled. Instantly, they ceased, seeing how he won't go back.

"So this is it, you're really leaving?" Freed asked. The Thunder God Tribe then saw Laxus turn with his belongings and waved back as he started walking away.

"Take care of yourselves." Laxus said back to them without turning around.

Evergreen began to sniffle and Bickslow looked down as his 'babies' comforted him. "Man, I can't believe this." He muttered.

Freed took it better than the other two. At first, he frowned. Soon, it broke into an earnest grin. _'We'll meet again someday, Laxus.'_

As Laxus was making his way through the streets, he saw Nic making his way towards them and the two stopped and looked at the other.

"I heard what happened." Nic said, approaching Laxus. "Sorry it had to go down like this."

Laxus just shrugged it off. "It's what had to be done. No worries."

"I see." Nic paused and stopped in front of Laxus, looking up at the expelled Dragon Slayer. "I guess this is farewell."

Laxus stood still and nodded. "Yeah."

Nic then paused and held out a hand. Laxus looked down at it and back at Nic. "We're cool?" Nic wanted a hand shake in honor of acknowledging each other.

Laxus grinned and held out his hand and the two shook. "Yeah, we're cool."

Nic then turned. "See you around." Nic then walked away, leaving Laxus to go his own way.

* * *

**The next night…**

Fireworks were everywhere in the night sky, going off almost every two seconds. The amount of people there was enormous. So many were dressed up in honor of the Harvest Festival, with headbands with names of the people's Fairy Tail Mages, Happy costumes, light-up swords that resembled Erza's, even funny hats like Makarov wore sometimes.

There were so, so many floats going through the street. Everyone cheered as the floats had Fairy Tail Mages on them. So many floats had so many designs on them, like simple animals

On Cana's float, she was using her Card Magic to have pink hearts around the cards and have them circle about. She had on an orange dress with small fairy-like wings on it. Macao was rotating his signature purple fire over his head while wearing some silly clown attire. Wakaba was using his Smoke Magic and blowing out pink hearts of smoke. He had on his usual green shirt and brown pants, but he did sport what seemed to be a cape.

The three were on a float that had two large light blue Fairy Tail emblem statues facing the other. Their float in general was rather circular and appeared much like a stage. Macao and Wakaba combined their Magic and in the sky, and created a pink heart that Cana shot her cards through, much like an arrow through a heart. There was a pink sparkly array left in the air and everyone loved it.

Laxus was in an alley, watching with a smile on his face as he watched the parade go by. He saw the joy and smiles on everyone's faces. Was he really gonna try and take that away?

On another float. Droy was in a pumpkin that took up his entire lower body, as to where his upper body was comprised of nothing but clovers. Jet wore just a simple caterpillar costume. Max just had his suit, the same one that he wore when he hosted the Miss Fairy Tail Contest. Alzack had on his usual cowboy hat, which was a plain yellow. He also sported his standard cloak, which was brown. He waved to the crowd just like the rest.

Another float had what seemed to look like a pink jewel on top of a purple heart with a blue center. Connected to that center was a light coming up from under and from the center, where four other lights made it look like either a horizon or a star. This was the Miss Fairy Tail Float, and on the circular flooring, Levy, Bisca, and Lucy all had matching pink dresses that had white skirts. They had white high-thigh socks and they had big flags as they danced around, waving the flags in fashion.

The float behind them was more of a sideways rectangle, of which had dark blue fencing around it. It had what seemed to be four green helixes at the corners and came together in the center above, much like a connected chain. In the green center was Sophie. Sophie had on a long dark blue skirt with a sea-blue top. Sophie made a chain of memories, showing off her Memory-Make Magic. She had the helixes materialize into what seemed to be shards of iron, catered to seeing Gajeel's Magic, and then she controlled and shapeshifted them into a ring of iron shards above. She then had the iron become hot, making it into a liquid that now materialized into a solid ring of iron. Sophie then used her Memory-Make yet again and had the midair ring get sliced up as she shot a multitude of sharp blades, combining Erza's swords and Bickslow's Line Formation. The result was the iron was turned to dust and became green again. As it fell, Sophie had it reshape behind her, spelling out 'Fairy Tail' behind her. The crowd went nuts over her talent.

On the float behind. It resembled much like a castle, with Elfman on the bottom in his Take Over: Beast Soul and roaring at the energetic crowd. At the top of the castle was a big flower, of which slowly bloomed, revealing Mira. Mira had on a simple blue dress as she waved to the crowd and they all went nuts over her. She then proceeded to transform, making the crowd anticipate. They all deadpanned comically shocked faces when they saw Mira was now a big pink salamander and was on Elfman, practically making him feel dizzy under lizard-like feet.

On the float behind, Gray was in a blue cape and what seemed to be a prince outfit, as to where Juvia was the princess, wearing an elegant blue dress. Gray made an enormous ice castle on the float. The two looked out at the crowd and Juvia made arcs of water appear above them both, of which Gray froze. Juvia and Gray nodded at each other and Juvia raised her arms and a huge water arc was around the ice castle. Gray then managed to freeze the top of the arc, spelling out 'Fairy Tail' made of ice, which made the crowd cheer even louder.

A couple of other floats passed by and then came Erza's float. Hers had two swords on the ends and a white curtain behind, with dark purple curtains behind that. It had a pink outlining that encased the curtains. Erza had on a white long skirt that had red armor with gold outlining on the lower waist. The waist itself was covered in yellow armor with hints of white in front. There was a feather-like symbol that was over her white breastplate. She had golden gauntlets with silver hands and had silver armbands with half-wings on them. Her head had wing-like structures behind her ears. She grinned as she controlled at least sixteen swords that had matching white ribbons with sides made of feathers and the blades having red with golden outlining along the flat ends.

Erza spun around with a smile and requipped, having the curtain close briefly. When it opened, she had her hair in four pigtails. She only had two swords this time, but those swords had really long ribbons and her attire was different, revealing her to have normal brown armbands and wristbands. She had a collar with what seemed to be a seashell or something. She exposed a little more cleavage as she had on a bra with white-winged patterns. Her lower body had pink cloths and white ribbons on the sides. She twirled about, showing off for the crowd, of whom was even more energetic.

Behind her was none other than her future date, Nic. Nic's float was original, at least according to what Fairy Tail described. His float was a complete circle with small lights on the outside. The circle was a big poke ball. Behind Nic was the red, while the front had white. There was a black line on his left and right and he stood in the middle, on top of the white button that was his stand. Around the entire red part were three Fairy Tail emblems, one green, one red-orange, and one blue. Nic's attire was…still the same, mind-blowing.

All of his Pokémon were posing behind him. Greninja, Charizard, Kecleon, Staraptor, Arbok, and Garchomp were all giving off various poses. Greninja and Charizard collaborated and unleashed a Dark Pulse and Flamethrower combo into the air, making a vast array of orange, black, and purple sparks that scattered about through the sky, amazing the crowd.

Nic transformed into his Splash Plate and then collaborated with his Arbok, shooting a Bubblebeam at an upward angle, as to where Arbok used Gunk Shot, making contact and the two attacks exploded in the sky again, making sparkles of blue and purple.

Nic then shifted into the Stone Plate and then pressed his hands on the float, using Stone Edge and making a ring of pillars around them all. He allowed Garchomp to let loose a Dual Chop, shattering half on one side, while Staraptor let loose her Steel Wing, swatting and crumbling rock, both showing off their gruesome force.

You could hear the crowd going nuts. "Hey look, that's Luminous!" "Yeah! I heard his name was Nic!" "He has some amazing creatures! What I wouldn't give to find one for myself!" "I heard he took down a Wizard Saint!" "He's awesome!"

Behind Nic was Natsu, who was in his own attire as well. Happy himself was in a small green suit. To his sides were a bunch of jugs that spewed fire. He had a wall of fire that followed behind him. Natsu aimed his head up and spewed fire that shaped into letters, also spelling out 'Fairy Tail'.

Makarov observed as several more floats went by and everyone was having a blast. He wasn't so chipper after he had to kick out Laxus, but it's what had to be done.

"Hey Master." Gajeel got Makarov's attention, surprising him.

Makarov turned and saw that Gajeel wasn't in the Fantasia Parade.

"Oh, you're not in the parade Gajeel?" Makarov asked with surprised eyes.

Gajeel just crossed his arms. "Nah, I don't like being in the spotlight."

Makarov turned away back towards the parade. "Suit yourself party pooper."

Gajeel just rolled his eyes and remembered something he had to give Makarov, something very important. "Here." He handed Makarov a small piece of paper. "Sorry it took so long, but I finally tracked down your son Master Ivan." Gajeel informed.

Makarov politely took the small note and stashed it away. "Thank you boy, you've done a lot of good. I'm sorry it was so dangerous." Makarov said.

Gajeel just shrugged and a grin came across his face. "Don't be, it was kind of fun actually. That deadbeat has no idea that I'm a double agent."

Makarov reached down from the float he was on and put a hand on Gajeel's shoulder. "Thank you Gajeel, I appreciate what you've done." He then expressed a serious look. "We can't let Ivan do as he pleases."

"Hey, ready Master?" A fellow Mage called out from atop the float.

Makarov then put on his cat hat and waved at the Iron Dragon Slayer. "Sorry, but that's my cue!"

Laxus was walking through the streets and was spectating. He was actually leaving and people were pointing out the Master was there, making Laxus turn to see his grandfather on top of a fellow float. They pointed out his funky outfit, which was a feline tail with green pants and a big pink bowtie. He also sported striped sleeves and red gloves that let his fingers show. On his head was a red hat with cat ears.

Makarov was being silly and waved his hands around for show. He was having a heap of fun as the public witnessed Makarov showing off like a silly clown.

"Hey look, that's the Master!" "Is that him? He's wearing some fancy outfit!" "You say fancy, I say funky!" "I for one like it." "Me too!"

Laxus was looking at his silly grandfather and grinning. He looked happy. Laxus closed his eyes and chuckled slightly at Makarov's humor. A thought then arose in his mind, thinking back to when he was just a boy and the Fantasia Parade was coming up.

"_So how come you aren't going to be in the parade this year?" A very young Laxus asked his grandfather._

_Makarov looked at his spirited young grandson with a grin. "Because this is your big moment Laxus, but I'll be watching you from the sidelines." Makarov explained._

_Laxus still wanted Makarov to see him, even if the Guild Master wasn't going to be in it. "Well, when I look into the crowd, how will I find you?"_

_Makarov didn't mind the boy's enthusiasm. "Don't worry about me. You're the star today."_

_Little Laxus scratched his head. "Well, if you say so." He then sprout an idea on the spot. He snapped his fingers. "Oh! I know! When I'm in the middle of the parade, I'll do this!" Laxus then raised his right hand high into the air and pointed his index finger upwards towards the sky and his thumb out. Little did he know, he had just created the Fairy Tail Salute. "You can see that, right?"_

_Makarov was interested as to where Laxus was going with this. "And just what might that be?"_

"_It's a message!" Laxus cheerfully said. "It means that even though I can't see you, I'm still looking your way!"_

_Makarov then had big watery eyes and sniffled at how touching his grandson was going that far. "That's my boy." He almost choked on his proud words._

"_Be sure to look for it, okay?" Laxus asked. Makarov proudly nodded._

Laxus looked down and grinned, seeing how he was doing the very same index finger, thumb out sign. He stared down with satisfactory that it wasn't forgotten. He then turned his head up and saw Master shaking his behind and turning around in joy at the crowd.

Laxus kept his grin and he looked away. He turned and was slowly making his way into an alley. Suddenly, he felt some weird feeling and he went wide eyed. He wasn't sure exactly, but something in the back of his mind told him to slowly turn around. Laxus then went with his feelings and slowly turned his head back around. When he did, his eyes shot even wider in shock.

His grandfather had stopped moving, having a serious face, and was holding his index finger up in the sky with the thumb out, said being the very same salute.

Laxus gasped and gaped his mouth in shock that his grandfather actually did the same thing he did all those years ago. Laxus was marveling at the spectacle.

One by one, Fairy Tail Mages were following their Master's way and looked forward with smiles on their faces, doing the index finger upwards and thumbs out. It was one by one, and soon became float by float. Eventually, you could see every single member of Fairy Tail was doing the Fairy Tail Salute with smiles and grins on their faces.

Cana's float was giving the salute, Gray and Juvia's float proudly gave the salute with Elfman and Mira by their sides. Sophie raised her right hand into the air and did the salute in honor of Fairy Tail and Laxus. Lucy, Levy, and Bisca all having smiles and looking forward and honoring Laxus. Erza was in her original armor from when the parade began and did the salute with a grin.

Nic himself was grinning and did the Fairy Tail Salute for the sake of Laxus. Even his Pokémon tried to do the salute, with Garchomp raising his right claw, Arbok raising his tail on his right side, Staraptor holding a wing high in the air, and Kecleon, Charizard, and Greninja using their end fingers/claws to give the salute. They knew what it meant if they used their middle fingers/claws.

Happy was flying in the air next to Natsu and the two grinned and smiled as they also raised their right hands into the air and pointed their thumbs out and shot their index fingers up in respect.

Makarov was still giving the honorable salute, and Laxus had tears in his eyes that everyone in Fairy Tail went this far in honor of him. How could he have tried and hurt his own guild like this? They made his gesture into the symbol of the bonds that Fairy Tail held onto dearly.

Laxus was beginning to choke as he now had streams of tears going down his face. He was so ashamed of who he was. He should never have done such a thing. He nearly destroyed what everyone else cherished. Laxus began choking even more as the tears were thickening slightly. "Grandpa." Laxus managed to say. He was so happy to be blessed with a great man for a grandfather. Makarov took his salute and kept it at heart for all of Fairy Tail to share and spread.

Laxus turned his head down and turned back around and began to move through the alley with tears scrolling down his face.

'_I may not be able to see you. There may be hundreds of miles between us, but I'll always be looking your way.' _Makarov thought. _'I'll be watching over you forever, I promise.'_

As though it were some family link, Laxus responded. _'I know. Thank you grandpa.' _And then he was officially out of sight, walking into the unknown.

* * *

**No joke, I seriously bawled my eyes out when I watched the episode where Laxus was given the salute in the anime. I still got the feels whenever I think about it.**

**I wasn't getting a lot of sleep the past few nights, so that was a factor to why the fight may not be as you would want it, apologies. If you guys didn't mind and could actually picture the fight and like it, and appreciated the length of it, leave a Review.**

**Up to this point in **_**The Fairy Contender**_**, what was your favorite battle? Nic versus who? The Nightmare? Gajeel? Jose? Jellal? Laxus? Who or what exactly? Leave a Review or shoot me a PM, I'm just curious as to how that one fight trumps the rest.**

**Pace wise, am I moving just about right, or should I be picking it up slightly?  
**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are amused and appreciate the work and effort I put into this fanfic.**

* * *

**Next Time: Honorable Heart  
**


	23. Honorable Heart

Chapter 23 – Honorable Heart

**Thanks for the feedback guys, I was very curious as to what were your favorite fights and now I now. A majority said it was Nic against Jellal because of the feelings and power I put into it. At least now I know what kind of fights you guys like.**

**I made a few people cry last chapter, so that means I got the emotions and feelings just about right when Laxus was excommunicated.**

**This will be a reprieve chapter, so don't expect much of any fighting of sorts.**

**I was having Writer's Block for over a week now, so writing this out took a lot of effort. Hope it pays off. I had to get some help with the date part of this chapter, so credits to this chapter also goes to PokeguardianZ.**

**FOREWARNING: I attempted maybe one or two incidents that involve breaking the fourth wall. Figured I try it out just this once. Also, it's another long chapter.**

**To Recap:**

Garchomp and Nic corner Laxus and the Lightning Dragon Slayer initiates Fairy Law, one of the three Grand Fairy Spells. He fails however because the spell saw into his heart and no one was killed. Nic and his brutal buddy continue brawling with Laxus, with the duo finishing him off with a consecutive Dragon Rush and Diamond Storm attack, defeating Laxus. The next day, Laxus was expelled and left his Thunder God Tribe behind, making amends with Nic as he was leaving. Everyone loved the Fantasia Parade, and as Laxus was about to leave, everyone gave him the honorable Fairy Tail Salute, bidding him farewell and leaving him crying as he departed.

* * *

**Chapter 23 – Honorable Heart**

Deep within the beloved place we all know is called the cosmos, there lied a sickly and severely pale Arceus, watching, and reading, the recap of Nic's battle and unlocking yet another Plate. To him, this was an accomplishment for the young human. If Arceus could grin, it would be a big one.

Dialga and Palkia were convenient enough to have watched the battle as they were checking up on him. "Gee, Nic is more skilled than we give him credit for." Dialga stated. "For a human, he's got reflexes."

"Next time we should bring some popcorn." Palkia joked. They watched the recap where they saw Nic's Garchomp use Dig and send Laxus soaring, to which they then saw the Dragon Rush ram Laxus through the roof and Nic used Diamond Storm.

"Nic's battling skills have exceeded our expectations to say the least." Dialga stated. "He has ten Plates as of this moment. At this rate…" He then looked back at Arceus, who was in a sitting position. "…no, who am I kidding. Nic needs more time."

Palkia looked back and saw Arceus, and he was agreeing with Dialga. "Nic's powers and capabilities may have accelerated in Fiore, but what I don't get is why we even agreed to send him there rather than have him back in his world?"

Dialga turned sharply towards Palkia. "Don't you remember? We send him there for safety measures." He then turned towards Arceus. "I still don't get how _he _was able to achieve the powers of the Dark Legendaries."

"…" Arceus's thoughts drifted back to a short time before they chose Nic that day.

_The universe was stable and Arceus was drifting about in the deep depths in stardust. He was actually minding himself and he was traveling through a cloud of stardust and then he felt some odd sensation growing in the depths somewhere._

"_What is this power?" Arceus asked. He couldn't see it, but he knew it was somewhere. Arceus had to travel through dimension holes to get from galaxy to galaxy until the signature was close. The problem was that it was swelling up in so many galaxies that the negative energy was too vast for it to be concentrated._

_Arceus grunted as he was unable to keep track of the energy reading. "How is this possible? Is the energy being spread by one force?...No, there are multiple forces. I can feel it." Arceus looked on and rather than sense the whole energy itself, he transported through a dimensional hole from a different galaxy and picked up not the energy itself, but the similarity and feeling of the signatures._

_After a short while, he picked up four signatures. "I can sense so much negativity in these energy signatures." He hadn't felt this much negativity and potent disaster since-! _

_And that's when Arceus recognized the four signatures: Hoopa, Darkrai, Mewtwo, and the brutal of them all, Giratina. Arceus frowned. "I should've known! Those four must have collaborated after I banished them to the black dimension. How could their energy leak out like this?"_

_Arceus then grunted again at unseeing this mishap. "Did they have help-?!" He stopped when stardust was beginning to dispel from all around, and that the stars were beginning to dim slightly. The negative energy was beginning to close in on Arceus, and he had no choice but to seek justice and chase it away._

"_Begone!" He shouted. His eyes flashed and then the dark energy was instantly ceased and was retreating. When it did retreat, the energy was regrouping. "I found you." Arceus said. He then transported back to where the energy was converging after Arceus used his almighty powers to keep it away from him._

_Arceus saw black and purple stardust beginning to spiral into a single point. "Alright, reveal yourself!" He demanded. The stardust then began to compress into what seemed to be a cocoon of sorts that was purple and black. Arceus waited as the cocoon was immobile for a few brief minutes and then it burst, releasing such vile energy upon breaking._

_What appeared out of the cocoon was something even Arceus didn't see coming. It seemed to look like a human, but was it? He had very pale skin and his eyes were all sharp and feral, with the color of vermilion. His hair was like a mane that was black with hints of blood red on the sideburns, small streaks on the hair, and on his beard. His suit was pitch black, but with a cloudy yet spiky collar that reached halfway down the coat. The sides of his ribs had what seemed to be golden claws, much like Giratina of sorts. His hands had on black gloves, but had purple rings on the back of them. His pants were pitch black and on the sides were purple and red horizontal lines. The freaky part was that he also had a purple tail that was lined vertically with red and black rings, and on the bulb end were two small golden spikes on opposite ends._

_He gave a cold and evil glare at Arceus, showing killer intent. Arceus was startled._

"_Who are you?" Arceus demanded, but the figure made no answer as darkness swelled around him. "Answer me!" Arceus demanded with glowing red eyes. The figure slowly extended his right arm out and had his fingers spread apart._

"…_perish." He said in a quiet and monotone voice. He then had his eyes flash vermilion and then a sharp flash of purple swallowed Arceus._

_Arceus's screams howled about as the light was piercing every cell within his own body. By the time Arceus looked back for a brief moment, the figure had already vanished._

Arceus stared blankly forward as he remembered that cold feeling, his cells were dying, his insides felt like they expired, he couldn't even use Recover or Refresh to be rid of the tainted negativity that was slowly killing him. That feeling was growing and he was dying because of it.

Dialga and Palkia both looked into Arceus's shaken and sickly eyes, seeing the thoughts that he was reliving.

"That one who tainted Arceus, it was in fact human, but had Pokémon influence. Arceus sensed that." Dialga recalled.

"He must have used those fours' powers to enable him to travel through space with little difficulty." Palkia said. "If what Arceus said from before is true, then the human must have exhausted energy when poisoning Arceus with evil and must have retreated back towards Earth."

Dialga nodded. "Right, and with Arceus in no condition to do anything, he needed to fight fire with fire. If that human was influenced with such vile and hatred, he needed a human that could take pain and make him or her push forward. He needed someone who could be one with his own Pokémon and fend off the negativity…which led us to Nic."

"Nic had what we were looking for. The strong bonds he shared with his six were strong enough to uphold the force of this task. Looking back at it, it was right to send him to Earthland rather than back to Kalos. If what we recapped was correct, then that tainted and corrupted individual would've tried and killed Nic Pularis, so we send him there to buy time. Correct?"

Dialga nodded. "Yeah, but we still haven't got much time on our claws. That evil human may be hunting and searching Nic anytime now. It's no doubt that Darkrai, Mewtwo, Hoopa, and Giratina all shifted their focus towards Nic."

"…" Arceus narrowed his sickly gaze and tried to think as Dialga and Palkia were conversing.

"Wait, why are we recapping this anyway?" Palkia asked, a little shocked.

"Don't ask me, I don't write this stuff." Dialga said, surprising the readers by breaking the fourth wall.

"Aside from that note, we need to make it so that Arceus can recover while Nic is increasing in power." Palkia stated. "But how is it so that it can be done?"

"…Dialga…Palkia…" Arceus muttered. Almost immediately, they turned up at the space that Arceus was laying on, comprise of stardust and stars behind him. "…I may…have found…a way…"

* * *

**Fairy Tail Guild Hall**

The guild had returned to its rowdy and rambunctious self in no time. Some people couldn't believe Laxus was expelled, Natsu of all people didn't like it, but it happened. The Thunder God Tribe was trying to be more open towards the guild and its members, which turned out just fine.

A week rolled by and the results for the Miss Fairy Tail Contest were in. Everyone saw that Erza was in first place, Lucy in second, and Juvia in third.

Nic saw these results and he was the happiest person out of everyone there, because the woman he had feelings for won. He began to walk off somewhere while Lucy moped about not getting the rent money and Cana complained that she needed a man. When he was alone and no one was looking, he let loose a mental party and showed the biggest grin anyone could've ever seen on his face; that is, if they saw.

'_YAY! Erza won! I knew she could pull it off! She's the best! She's so beautiful that I wouldn't pick anyone else!' _He mentally exclaimed. He had his little mental celebration dial down and his grin returned back to the way it was after a short while.

Mira then came walking up towards Nic, who was still raptured about Erza winning.

She giggled. "Looks like someone's happy."

Nic almost flinched and jerked up at the sound and surprise of Mira standing before him. He blinked and looked back. "Oh! Hey Mira…uh, you didn't hear anything, right?" He asked in a quiet tone, hoping that he didn't let any sugar-sweet comments of Erza let loose.

Mira had her signature smile going. "Hmmm, maybe just a few." She joked, which made Nic yelp in surprise and embarrassment. Mira giggled at Nic's reactions. "Just kidding!"

Nic heaved at the relief and he huffed and puff from that surprise. He then gave a pouty face at Mira. "Did you have to go and do that?"

Mira just held her tray and continued with her smile. "Perhaps, but the actual reason why I came to you is because I wanted to make sure that you heard the news." She informed.

Nic's attention was officially peaked. "News?"

"Yup, a reporter from Sorcerer's Weekly is stopping by later to interview us!" She said with such glee. "Fairy Tail is gonna be their next cover story."

Nic raised a brow at this news. Out of all of the news he could ever want, this is not what he had in mind. He's heard of Sorcerer's Weekly magazine quite often, catered to Macao and Wakaba sneaking peeks at the Master's latest issues every Wednesday. Aside from the models, Nic heard that's where you could get intel of Mages and their apparent abilities, which would be a big problem on Nic's part.

"Gee, uh, thanks for the heads up." Nic thanked Mira as she walked away and tended to a nearby table. Nic was left in that one spot and was pondering about the upcoming interview. Nic honestly detested interviews because you have to answer consecutive questions, questions that he never likes answering. To Nic, this was insanity and he wanted no part of this. He had his reasons and he ain't sharing them.

Makarov was sitting on the bar table while observing Nic. He watched as Nic interacted with Mira and saw the small contemplation that he was in. Makarov then saw Nic exit the building, leaving Makarov to contemplate for himself.

"Hmmm…Nic Pularis." Makarov murmured. Makarov was thinking back to when Nic had defeated Lullaby by falling from the sky. He sensed such power, and he sensed even more of it while Nic was quarreling with Jose. What Makarov himself couldn't imagine was how Nic was able to take down a Wizard Saint, and followed that by hearing how he brutally destroyed Jellal. To Makarov, Nic was some sort of prodigy, then he thought back even further to how he heard he took down the demon known as The Nightmare and Gajeel not long after. And recently, he heard he defeated Laxus, one of Fairy Tail's former strongest. Makarov was staring off into space, thinking as to what to do with Nic. "Hmmmm…"

Makarov's thoughts were interrupted when Mira called out beside him. He turned and looked a little surprised as his thoughts fogged up his surroundings. "Oh, hello Mira."

"Hey Master, should we get ready for the reporter that's coming later?" Mira asked as she went back to tend to her bar.

"Uh, oh yes. Yes we should." Makarov said, trying to get out of his thoughts, which didn't go unnoticed by Mira.

Mira looked curious. "Master, is there something wrong?" She asked.

Makarov then grumbled and crossed his arms. He had to come clean or else the entire guild will be concerned and then the atmosphere wouldn't be as lively. "I'm afraid it's just that Nic has done so much." He stated, making Mira wonder. Makarov looked at the exit that Nic took. "Nic has so much power, and yet he still is new. The things he's done up to this point surpass what any of us could do. Multiple Demons, two Wizard Saints, Erza, Gajeel, Natsu, and now Laxus. If Nic can beat them…I don't know."

Mira herself realized this and thought the Master was right. Nic had done so much, even risking his life on a multitude of occasions. "What do you think Master?"

Makarov turned towards Mira. "Mira tell me, what should we do with Nic?"

Mira was pondering around a bit, just as stumped as Master Makarov was. Nic certainly surpasses the rest of Fairy Tail, and his powers can do so much. Maybe…

"Master." Mira said, getting an idea. "…what if you made Nic an exception?" Makarov raised a brow at what Mira was getting at. An exception to what? Mira then looked up to where the second floor was, where Makarov looked up as well.

True, you couldn't go up onto the second floor from before, but now you could. It doesn't matter if you're-!

And that's when Makarov realized what Mira meant this whole time. The very of Nic becoming something like_ that_ made him almost gasp. True, there had to be a tradition to uphold such a thing, but Mira stating that Nic becomes an exception made his old mind vibrate with such strong confliction.

Makarov grumbled as he looked down at the table. "I don't know. There's exams for that you know?"

"Yes Master, but you forgot that Nic went on an accidental S-Class mission and came out just fine. And he never fails to surprise anybody. Perhaps this one time we can surprise him." Mira suggested.

Makarov contemplated even further and his mind came to a conclusion. He turned towards Mira. "We'll talk with the guild after Sorcerer's Weekly. We need to make sure Nic doesn't hear about this."

Erza then came up to the two, making them cease their conversation almost immediately. "Master, have you seen Nic?"

Master then nodded. "Yes, he just went outside just about a minute ago."

Outside, Nic was at the top of Fairy Tail's Guild Hall, sitting on the ledge of the bell tower and looking out at Magnolia.

"…I need to keep away." Nic said, thinking about the reporter coming later. The idea was truly something that Nic refused to go through, him answering questions and all. He was too busy in his own thoughts that he didn't realize that Erza was looking up at him. She scaled the building and then Nic noticed her coming up. Nic kept calm and Erza finally met up with him at the top of the Guild Hall.

"Nic." Erza said.

Nic turned and smiled at Erza. "Hey Erza, congratulations on winning."

Erza looked away and had a small blush catered to Nic congratulating her. Nobody personally commended her on winning the contest, so to Erza, she was very happy, especially since this came from Nic.

"Why thank you." Erza said. Her blissful thoughts diminished when she saw Nic's eyes through his sunglasses that were on. She could clearly see they were distant and engulfed in a thought at the moment. "Nic?" Nic kept his gaze on Erza, but he lost his grin. "Is something bothering you?"

Nic looked back out at Magnolia, keeping his gaze there. "Tell me, do you know when the reporter is suppose to be here?"

Erza was a little surprised. "Not long. Two hours."

Nic then turned his head back towards her. "Okay, thanks."

"Why is it that you asked? Is it so that you could get ready as well?" She smiled. She actually was about to get ready once she was finished talking to Nic.

"No." Nic said. "So I know when not to be here."

Her smile faded and she blinked. "Not to be here?"

"Exactly." Nic then turned his body and he stepped inside the bell tower, facing Erza. "The truth is that I refused to be interviewed, and I cannot be around as long as he's here."

The Fairy Queen was a little in shock. Nic not wanting to be interviewed? Just what was he planning? Erza narrowed her gaze. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. Erza listen, this magazine gets spread everywhere. Everyone reads what a Mage can do, the weekly spells, all of that malarkey. My point is that if he asks where I learn my 'Magic', I can't say I got them from a Pokémon, they'll think I'm deranged. The Council is already at odd's ends with my animosity towards them. You don't know if they look at this stuff. If they do, they'll take me in for questioning and that's when I'll have to spill the beans. It sounds silly, but it would make sense. They would think I'm crazy and that's when I'll have to call upon the ones who send me here to scare them, and then there will be conflict with the cruddy Council and Fairy Tail since that's my guild; furthermore, think about what else the reporter would ask, like where I got my team? I can't say I got them from another world. And what if he asked about how I fight with my 'Magic'? I can't stick around Erza. For the sake of the mission that I uphold and the fact that I can't have Fairy Tail in anymore conflicts than it already has with that cruddy Council."

Erza was beyond baffled. Nic actually had a valid point. If he did get asked those, and if the Council reads it, there goes subtlety. Erza actually pondered what Nic said for a brief moment and he had a one-way argument in his favor. This was the right choice for him. "I don't disagree with you there Nic. You are right. The Magic Council would be picky with someone like you, especially since you are from another world. However, I heard that the Council is being reestablished, so I guess you just might be in the clear, though we can't be certain."

Nic then sighed and turned away. "Yeah. You can go ahead and get yourself ready, I'm going to be out for awhile." Nic then leaped out of the building tower top and he skillfully made his way down without even a scratch. He then began zooming faster than what his admirer could track.

"Nic." Erza then smiled out at Nic, thinking about the guild's safety. She then proceeded downwards and begun preparations for the reporter.

* * *

**With Nic**

Nic was in the forest just outside of Magnolia. When he said he wanted to get far, he wanted to get far. He was walking through the grass with the sunlight peeking through the leaves of the trees above. He was now thinking about how the date should go tonight.

The biggest flaw now is that he needed help in thinking about this date. He doesn't even know where to begin. He then saw that the trail was ahead of him and he saw someone walking along it. Nic then decided to be sneaky and he silently rushed up to the bushes. Nic watched to see who or what was walking along the trail, and to his relief it was Sophie. Nic sighed that it was just his friend and then he sprouted a big idea.

As Sophie was making her way back from a job, she heard someone calling out to her from her left. "Sophie!" Sophie stopped and she turned in surprise that she saw Nic coming out from the forest line.

"Nic?" Sophie said, actually shocked that Nic appeared out of the blue like this. Nic went up to Sophie and looked at her through his sunglasses.

"Hey Sophie, got back from a job?" Nic asked.

"Yeah, and why were you in the shrubs? Please tell me you weren't taking a leak." Sophie said.

Nic shook his head, and Sophie sighed in relief. "Okay, point being is that I need advice." Nic said.

Sophie blinked and raised a brow. "Huh?"

Nic then began to explain to Sophie that he is going to purposely miss the interview so that the guild wouldn't be in trouble and that he also needed this time to think of a way to woo Erza.

Sophie clasped her hands with a big smile. "Oh my gosh! You and Erza are going to go out on a date?!" Sophie exclaimed with such joy. "That's so _chamud_!" She said 'cute' in Hebrew.

Nic almost panicked when she shouted it out, so he clamped his hand over her mouth and shushed her. He looked around, fortunate that no one was around. He then leaned in. "Can you keep this between you and me?" He whispered harshly. Sophie just nodded while her mouth was clamped. "Good."

The two then went on the trail side and they began their little conversation there, so as not to be in anyone's way.

"So?" Sophie was very curious about what Nic had in store. "What are going to do for your 'special lady'?" She teased. Nic almost blushed a deep red and he stuttered, trying and failing to counter argue her.

Sophie giggled at Nic's embarrassment and she rolled her eyes. "You're a fun one to tease, that's for sure."

Nic wasn't sure if that was a backhanded compliment, but she did seem mildly amused by it. Nic just gave a pouty expression and looked away.

"Sure, whatever." He said. He then looked back at her with a more serious expression. "Look, can you help me?"

Sophie pondered for a brief moment, and then smiled. "Don't you worry one bit, I know just what to do when it comes to this dating stuff!" She declared.

"Yeah, okay. Can you give me advice? I've never been on a date before, and I haven't thought this through."

Sophie then smirked, held up her index finger, and closed on of her eyes. "Now, just follow exactly what I say."

'_Something tells me this may take longer than needed.'_ Nic thought.

Sophie then began her preaching. "Well, what you need for a terrific date is to be not only comfortable, but also very happy. True, dates can have their awkward moments, but by cracking a few jokes, you just might get a couple of laughs out of her."

Nic then thought about this one part, and then thought how Erza laughed when Natsu tickled her back in the Tower of Heaven. He also made a mental note of tickling her sometime. Maybe he could try tickling her when she has her guard down, though maybe a sneak attack wouldn't end well.

"You two need to get to know each other while having fun, that's one of the biggest priorities when it comes to a date. Dates might also be times where you can confess stuff if you trust her, as will she. Dates like ones you're wanting should be somewhere memorable, like at a park, or your favorite or her favorite restaurant, maybe even the first place you two met." Sophie stated.

Nic raised a brow. "If you mean like five feet over, then that's very romantic." He sarcastically implied. Sophie was confused at first, and then it hit her when Nic was saying she met Erza on the trail, maybe a few paces over from Nic's left.

"Well, whatever works as long as you two are happy." Sophie said. "Anyways, in general just be yourself and be willing to do as she asked. Try and wow her with something she would treasure. Since this will be your first date, you need to make it very memorable."

"Very memorable?...I guess I can try." Nic said, trying to think of a way to make this date amazing.

Sophie smiled and then she looked back at Magnolia. "Well, I have to go Nic. Make sure you get _mazel_." She teased with a wink.

Nic wasn't exactly sure what Sophie meant by the last word, but he had to guess it meant lucky, meaning…

Nic's face blushed insanely at the implication Sophie gave him and she was having such a good laugh. Sophie just loved to joke with Nic, he was a fun person to tease as long as you don't get annihilated.

Nic composed himself and he glared at Sophie, who was happily walking away. "Haha, very funny." Nic sarcastically said. He then had a smirk run along his face. "Though I do wonder something."

Sophie turned around to see Nic shift and transform into the Splash Plate. Sophie wasn't sure if it was such a good idea to stick around, for Nic had a glare and a smirk on his face. "I've always wondered which one runs faster: You or your makeup!" He then began to inhale some air and was prepping for a Water Gun.

Sophie screamed at Nic's prepping and she ran as fast as she could back towards Fairy Tail to avoid getting her makeup wet. All that was left was a slight dust trail catered by Sophie's panicked screaming and running. Nic ceased his joke and he looked on with a slight smug on his face.

"Yeah, like I'll be that lucky. That Sophie, thinking a little too far now." Nic rolled his eyes and shifted back to normal and then he ventured back into the shrubs and into the woods. He looked around and thought as to how he could imply Sophie's advice. "Let's see…" He was pondering hard. "Memorable. Something that she would treasure and remember. Let's see; she likes strawberry cheesecake, armor, Fairy Tail, competing, her friends…wait a minute."

Something then dawned upon Nic, something that was beginning to rise up inside. "Her friends. Natsu, Gray, Happy, Lucy, and…who else is she close to that isn't those guys…or me?" It didn't take Nic ten seconds to remember Erza's old friends. "That's right! Wally, Sho, Millianna, and Si-!..." Nic stopped in mid-sentence when he was about to mention a certain friend's name. He blinked and the excitement in him instantly died. "…Simon." Nic then felt his appetite go south as he remembered that Simon died so that Erza could live.

Simon. A strong, capable, and very close friend of Erza. He was in love with her and confessed before he died in her arms, leaving Erza broken. Simon made Nic promise to keep watch over her and make sure that she would live on. And that he did. Simon entrusted Nic with the most precious thing he had – Erza, the most important gift ever bestowed by a great man.

Nic didn't even realize that he had a tear in the corner of his eye and he was on his knees. The thought of a dead fiend clearly affects him and he didn't even realize it until now. Nic just recapped that moment when Simon stood with arms out and taking Jellal's Altairis. He was reliving the scene of Simon on his back and Natsu, Nic, and Erza all rushing towards his side as his breathing was steadily decreasing. He remembered all too well how that guy did the noble thing and took the last hit he ever took. Nic begged Simon to stop talking, but Simon refused and made Nic promise to keep Erza alive, no matter what.

Nic felt even more tears swelling up remembering Simon's noble actions and he even saw Erza calling out to him, but for him to only say he loved her; and with that said, he closed his eyes and fell to the ground with a smile, leaving Erza and Nic swelled up inside, and the worst thing of all for Erza – The loss of a dear friend.

Nic punched the ground under him with a tear dropping, having just finished recounting that painful memory. It was truly something he wished never happened. If only he had done more, maybe Simon would still be here today. It couldn't be helped anymore, he may be gone, but not forgotten. Nic got up and stood in complete silence. He calmed down and inhaled slowly and greatly, and then he exhaled out through his mouth. He repeated this process for a good twenty seconds and he opened his eyes.

Nic turned to a nearby rock and looked at it. He blinked and grinned. "Okay." Nic said, shifting into the Stone Plate. "I know what I'm gonna do."

* * *

**Later…**

Nic was actually able to use his coat as a substitute for sandpaper to smooth out every detail of the finished product. It took him almost three painful hours, but he was able to get every detail possible. It wasn't easy to make, as it took him nearly the entire time, possibly three hours at least.

Nic got up to his two feet and looked around the masterpiece for full examination. He looked at every detail he could possibly remember and he nodded, seeing how this piece looked amazing, at least he hoped so.

Nic shifted back into himself and slowly picked up the two foot artwork made of rock. He slowly turned with said thingamajig and began his walk towards Magnolia.

"Okay." Nic said. "Gotta get this to the Kardia Cathedral…"

* * *

**Even later…**

It was close to sunset, and Nic had heard that the reporter had just left awhile ago, and now he was heading back to the guild to see if Erza was around. He traveled through the streets in silence and he was making his way to the now visible Guild Hall and went inside.

When Nic stepped inside, it wasn't surprising that there was yet another rumble. He just looked on in somewhat deep surprise that the guild was in yet another rumble. He hasn't seen one of these in a little while. In the center of it all, Nic almost had his shoulders droop as it was Natsu.

"I should've guessed." Nic muttered. He looked to see the person who was duking it out with him and it turned out to be Gajeel. What were the odds?

"That song earlier was terrible you metal face creep!" Natsu bellowed as he flaming fisted Gajeel across the face.

"I had a song from the soul Salamander, and you weren't going to stop it from coming out!" Gajeel argued as he gave a column of iron across Natsu's face. The guild itself got caught up in the crossfire and a majority of the members were in on the ruckus. Nic just rolled his eyes and assumed his position behind the bar with Cana.

Nic turned to Cana. "Yo."

Cana grinned with her barrel besides her. "Hey, what's up? Haven't seen you all day." She remarked. It was decent to hear from Cana since the ruckus involved stuff flying about, but Nic could hear her, though if the brawling escalates, he'll have to end it.

"I don't like being asked questions." Nic stated. He then gave a light grin. "Anyways, how was it?"

"Nothing big." Cana looked away, looking rather displeased. "Though Jason wouldn't sit down for a drink. That guy's got too much sugar in his diet."

Nic raised a brow. "Let me guess, Jason was the reporter's name, yes?"

Cana looked back at him. "You're dead on as always."

"Am I missing something back here?" Both Cana and Nic jerked upright and almost yelp that something was actually listening. Nic turned around and saw that Sophie was giggling at their reactions while leaning over the counter. "This the sanity corner I take it?"

Cana and look looked at each other, exchanging 'what' expressions. They then turned back towards Sophie. "Er…more or less." Nic said.

"Surprised you aren't part of the action." Cana said.

Sophie got up and worked her way around the bar and accompanied Nic and Cana. "Don't get me wrong, I love Fairy Tail, but this kind of melee ain't my forte if you get what I'm saying." Sophie explained. She then squinted her eyes and a grin came across her face. "And shouldn't you be getting ready for your date, Nic?"

Nic nearly tensed up and he immediately covered Sophie's mouth again. Cana raised a brow, intrigued by this set of news.

"Oh, you trying your luck with Erza I see." Cana slurred.

Nic turned back and he couldn't fight it. I guess she was bound to realize it sooner. He drooped. "Yes."

Cana smirked. "My, how bold of you. I was wondering why Sophie here was running into the guild with such a panic. Looks to me that she found out."

Sophie giggled. "Guilty is charged, but I hope Nic applied what I said." Sophie said.

Nic turned sharply towards her. "What do you think I've been doing this entire time?" He said it calmly so that he didn't get much confliction. The fighting must be getting to him. He sighed and he shifted into his Splash Plate. "Hang on. I gotta end the fun."

Cana then commenced downing her barrel as Nic hoped over the counter. "He can be a kill joy, but he's got heart." He managed in between a gulp.

Nic crossed his arms, examining the conflict happening before him. He saw Natsu and Gajeel still bashing other with columns of iron and flaming fists, he heard Elfman shouting he's a real man and threw some guy overhead, Max got a broomstick shoved up his behind, and saw that Juvia was looking from afar as Gray was duking it out with only his underwear on, not surprising.

"Okay, guys!" Nic bellowed. "I am going to give you until the count of three!" More glass and chairs were being thrown as the fight escalated even further. Makarov watched from the second floor as to how Nic will stop the madness.

"One…" Nic's arms uncrossed and he had them besides him. The guild wasn't even noticing him. "Two…" The ground was beginning to quake slightly, and everyone there was actually feeling the vibrations of the ground. Everyone was starting to take notice of the palpitation, but the brawl still went on. "Three…" Nic's arms were slowly coming up, and some muddy, brown water was forming in front of him. Anyone who wasn't fighting took notice and steered clear, running and hiding behind pillars or were running out of the guild in a panic. "I warned ya…**Muddy Water!**" He then unleashed a huge wave of brown water that began towering above the rest of the guild members that were brawling still. The members all stopped and looked on with pale skin as they silently muttered for their mommies. The huge wave crashed down and shook the entire guild. Everything was submerged for a few brief moments until it dispelled thanks to Nic.

The guild members that were all washed up were groaning with dizzy eyes, and all of them were pretty much down for the count.

Cana peeked over, as did Sophie. Cana looked unfazed as to where Sophie had wide eyes.

"Holy Cow_._" Sophie muttered.

"No surprise there." Cana explained. "That boy is an authority figure. You best do as told."

Everyone on the floor was beginning to come around, and Erza walked in. "Okay, what's going on he-?" She then looked around and the entire place was literally swamped catered to a certain person that she had feelings for. The situation was understandable. "…never mind."

Erza walked passed the others that were getting up and she stood right by Nic. "They were getting messy again, weren't they?" She said it in a way that made it sound like she already knew the answer.

Nic grinned and crossed his arms as he transformed back into himself. "Yeah, so I had to silence them." He then turned towards her and the two blushed slightly in unison.

It was time for their little date.

Natsu flipped a table over and stomped over to where Nic was. "Hey man, that wasn't fair, I was just getting star-!" He was stopped when Nic and Erza both glared at Natsu, which made him almost choke and recoil.

"You are finished with the fighting." Nic said. "You and everyone else here will clean up everything so that I have clean tables to sleep on tonight, got it?" He seemingly demanded.

Everyone else who was swamped all turned and nodded vigorously, so as to appease Nic and so they do not feel his wrath. That wave was bad enough, a wave and a Nic full of fury will make you stay down for a week at least. Everyone arose and they began gathering towels and such and commenced with cleaning.

Sophie looked awestruck and petrified by fear. "Wow Cana, you weren't kidding…hold up, he sleeps on tables?!" Her whispered voice then became a shocked voice.

"Yeah." Cana remarked. "You see, he sleeps on rooftops, tables, counters, floors, you name it. He said he hasn't slept in a bed in forever, not until he was taken to the infirmary a little while earlier."

Sophie was baffled. "You mean to tell me that the great Luminous doesn't have a home?!"

Cana nodded and then commenced downing a barrel again, leaving Sophie stumped that Nic never had a place to begin with.

Nic and Erza both began walking out of the guild and Erza continued onward so that it wouldn't look suspicious when she stops with Nic, which would indicate her waiting for him for something. Erza left the building and Nic turned around. "I'll be back later guys, I need to run 'errands'." And then he went off.

Everyone there blinked, but shrugged it off and they commenced with their little chore given to them by Nic.

"Gee, that guy really expects us to clean up after ourselves." Gray noted, pushing back up a table. "His character and heart is in the right place, but don't get me wrong, he can be a little too demanding."

"You mean like a male Erza?" Natsu asked. The actual thought of Erza having a male counterpart actually almost scared him so much that his cleanup time doubled.

"Boy, Natsu really doesn't wanna feel either of their wraths huh?" Lucy said as she looked at Natsu.

"Nobody does." Gray said, sweat dropping at the thought himself.

"Gray, your clothes are still off." Cana sighed, putting down her barrel. Gray shrieked as he realized he was still in his underwear.

Makarov just waited after everyone was still cleaning and finishing. In less than five minutes, the place looked as though it had never been demolished.

'_Nic is much like Erza. A strong and very demanding authority figure, though when not so demanding he can be more laid back. Everyone seems to depend so much on him. That young one has touched the hearts here in so many ways.'_

Makarov grumbled as the guild was finishing up.

* * *

**With Nic and Erza**

The two were walking through the streets of Magnolia as the sun was beginning to set, leaving the sky in a reddish orange hue. Nic looked over at Erza, who was walking on his left, and he was in awestruck by the sky matching her hair. "…wow…" He didn't realize that he muttered again and Erza looked over towards him with a curious expression.

She saw that Nic was staring at her again, and she felt slightly embarrassed, yet admired the attention. She had her hands to her hips and grinned. "Are you staring at me again?" She happily asked.

Nic snapped out of his gaze and his face turned deep red. "Uh…uh…maybe?" He replied. Erza giggled, expecting this from him. Nic composed himself quickly and looked out at the sunset. "The sky and your hair. They're both so similar. So red. So beautiful."

Erza felt a light blush of shock overwhelm her. He basically complimented her red hair and called her beautiful. Erza looked out at the sunset herself and felt her cheeks feeling warm with Nic around. Erza then turned towards Nic. "Nic." Nic turned towards her. "So tell me, what do you have in store for this little date?"

Nic showed his casual smile and grabbed Erza's hand. "I'll show ya. Follow me." Nic pulled Erza gently as he was getting a little too excited for this date. Erza herself blushed almost insanely since Nic was holding her hand. Even with her armor on. She could still feel his comfort.

Erza made Nic stop when she glowed, signaling a requip of some kind. Nic stopped, but didn't let go of her hand as he turned around and saw Erza in a white blouse and blue skirt. Erza smiled even more now that she could feel Nic's touch under these better circumstances.

Nic blinked and he smiled with a blush that he was also feeling Erza's hands. She was so soft and her hands her very comforting. To be honest, he could try and hold on forever, but lord knows she needed that hand to hold a sword. He'll just enjoy it while he still can.

Nic and Erza walked over towards a local food restaurant called 'Sunset Shiner', which was known to have such delicious dinners available. And the two lovebirds ventured on in. Fortunately, you didn't need a reservation for a classy restaurant such as this one, but it was optional. The inside had lovely peach-colored walls, with multiple rooms and flowers hanging from pots that were between with spaces that were implanted in the walls. Lots of framework that had sunset-like scenery, much like beaches, mountains, rooftops, even treetop photos and paintings of that sorts.

After the double door entrance, Nic and Erza stepped over a black rug with the restaurant's name written in red cursive on it. They then passed another set of double doors and right in front of them was a wooden podium where a fellow brunette worker was tending to those who entered.

"Hi, welcome to Sunset Shiner." She greeted. "Do you have a reservation, or should we have you be seated?"

Nic stepped forward. "Yes, I had a reservation scheduled. I understand that we're on time, yes?"

The waitress went through the workbook and papers and indeed found Nic Pularis and Erza Scarlet reserved. "Ah yes, here we -!" She stopped in mid-sentence when she had recognized the names. "Wait, Nic Pularis and Erza Scarlet…you both are from Fairy Tail!" She almost sounded excited and heavily surprised that two of Fairy Tail's most powerful Mages actually came around to eat.

Nic and Erza raised a brow. "Uh, yeah?" Nic wasn't sure if this was a good thing or a bad thing, but it turned out good when the waitress instantly grabbed some menus from under the podium and she perked a smile.

"Quick, I'll show you to one of our finest tables!" She looked so overjoyed that it almost too priceless.

Nic turned to Erza. "Big fan." He figured, with Erza nodding in agreement and they went off and followed the waiter to their table.

It was a table big enough for two people, but it had a glossy top and was in the left room and right next to the huge window that showed the elegant sunset that was slowly going down. The place was fairly crowded at this time, so the two were fortunate enough to have a reservation.

"One of our best spots." The waitress stated. She set the menus down on both end and the two took their seats. "We'll have a waiter with you very shortly." She said with an overexcited smile and she skedaddled away, leaving Nic and Erza alone.

Erza turned towards Nic. "So, you went through all of the trouble to pick a reservation?' Erza stated. "I'm a little speechless."

Nic let loose a sheepish smile. "What can I tell ya? I aim to please."

They just sat there, admiring the other for about thirty seconds until a fellow server arrived. "And how are we today?' He greeted.

"Very well, thank you." Erza said.

"Same." Nic added.

The server then took out a notepad. "And what will you have as a beverage to start out with?"

Nic turned towards his date and raised his brows as a gesture. "Ladies first."

Erza then looked at the waiter. "I'll just have some water." She ordered.

"Water. And you?" The waiter asked Nic.

"Yes, I'll have some water as well."

The waiter jot down both sets of orders for beverages and took his leave to retrieve them. The two were left alone again and they looked back at the other. The two were left to look at the menus for a minute before they talked again.

"So, how was the interview? I didn't get to ask you earlier." Nic stated.

"It went fine. The reporter was just overexcited and he asked me to answer a few question." She answered.

Nic was a little curious as to what exactly she was asked. "Like?"

"Well for one, he asked how many requips I could do. I can do over one-hundred"

Nic was a little taken by this number. "One-hundred? I lost count already." He has seen her Requip several times, but he only saw only a few. He didn't know she could do so many.

"My personal favorite was the bunny girl." She continued.

Nic looked even more surprised that she had a bunny girl requip. "Bunny?!"

Erza nodded. "The ears are simply adorable." Nic could potentially see her wearing some dark purple bunny girl suit with heels and dark purple bunny ears. The very thought itself made Nic blush up a storm, which didn't go unnoticed by the red-headed Mage that was his date. "You okay?'

Nic snapped out of it and was heavily embarrassed. "Oh, uh sorry." He apologized. "It's just that the very thought of you as a bunny girl had me a little surprised."

Erza giggled, seeing how she knew Nic would feel like that. "Who knows, maybe I just might show you someday." And that did the trick. Erza got the perfect reaction from him, with Nic's face almost looking mesmerized and as red as the sunset itself.

'_Why must I be cursed with these thoughts in my mind?!' _He mentally screamed, not understanding why he's envisioning her like a bunny girl.

The waiter had come back with two glasses of water, bringing Nic back to reality. He mentally thanked the heavens that he was now focused on ordering.

"And have you decided what your meal shall be?" The waiter asked. He got out a notepad and awaited for what the two were going to have.

Erza went first, catered by Nic's persistence with the whole 'ladies first'. "I guess I'll order some Marinated Shrimp Scampi." She ordered. The waiter jotted it down and then turned towards Nic.

"And you?"

"I think I'll have some Shrimp Alfredo." Nic ordered, and the waiter jotted that down and then left to leave Nic and Erza to continue.

Erza turned towards Nic. "Didn't know you like shrimp."

Nic grinned. "Great minds think alike." He joked, leaving Erza to giggle slightly. Erza then went on about how Jason was a little surprised that the great Luminous wasn't around, but he was still cool with Titania, Salamander, and Black Steel. She just explained in general that Jason was full of energy.

Nic almost sweat dropped. "I guess overexcited would be an understatement." Nic said. "Now I'm really glad that I wasn't around."

Erza then felt a little curiosity echo through her head. "Speaking of which, where were you this whole time?"

Nic looked down, remembering exactly what he did and he slowly turned up to her. "It's a surprise I planned at the end." He quietly said, but only stated it with a half-grin. Erza grasped Nic's mood just like that, thinking it might be something serious.

"Is there something wrong?" She asked.

Erza saw that Nic blinked and he struggled to find something to say. "Hmmm…I don't know. I can't think of much of anything, but when I just mentioned the surprise to you, it's like my mojo went south."

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"…more or less. It was just a sense of doubt." Nic then looked off in space, but then he looked down, feeling Erza's hand lay on his. He looked back at her and saw her smiling.

"I think I'll love the surprise." She sincerely stated. Nic had a soft smile cover his face.

They just waited for another half hour and their orders arrived. The two just ate their meals in silence, unless you count Nic and Erza chewing, along with the background music.

Once their meals were pretty much finished, the waiter retrieved their emptied plates. "And will that be all?" He asked.

Nic then took a swift glance at the dessert menu that was right next to him and he looked back at the waiter. "Actually, I think we'll get a dessert."

The waiter had set aside the empty plates and got a notepad out, again. "Okay, and what would you lie to have?"

Nic then looked over at Erza, who looked a bit confused as to what Nic will get as a dessert, though she personally wanted…

"Strawberry cheesecake, please." Nic ordered. This left Erza a little surprised that Nic got what her mind was thinking of right now.

When the waiter left to fill the order and Nic turned to see her, she looked amused and delighted. Nic smirked. "You love your strawberry cheesecake, don't you?"

Erza nodded. "Yes." She almost stuttered.

Not much could be said after that. They didn't dare say anything after that, not until the slice of strawberry cheesecake came by.

The two were given their forks and Nic gently pushed the plate closer towards Erza, leaving her to look up at him in a little confusion. "I actually got that so that you could have it." He stated.

Erza nearly let out a surprised gasp. For real? Just how romantic is this guy? Erza then grabbed her fork and then commenced to chow down, and Nic watched the tranquil face she made when taking bites of her favorite food.

* * *

**Fairy Tail Guild Hall**

Only Cana and Sophie knew Nic went out for a date, so everyone else just suspected he went to run errands just as he said. They didn't know how long the 'errands' would take, so they had to be snappy.

"Listen up!" Makarov shouted. "I need everyone present to listen!" The Mages all stopped what they were doing and they all turned towards their Master.

"Are we getting complaints again?" Gray asked.

Makarov shook his head. "I'm afraid not this time my boy. It's something far more important to discuss." Now this had the guild's attention. "Everyone, I'm afraid there's something we need to announce."

"Okay? But what exactly?" Lucy asked.

"I haven't got a clue smarty pants." Natsu said.

"But she's wearing a skirt." Happy explained.

Lucy just sweat dropped and looked annoyed. "It's an expression cat."

"Now listen." Makarov started. "As we all know, Nic Pularis has done a whole lot for us, and Mira and I had been conversing about it. The decision is factored into you guys as well." The guild was intrigued. What did Nic have to do with any of this? "He has encountered and had vanquished so many enemies all in a short while, and the fact remains that he has defeated demons known as Lullaby and The Nightmare. He has also defeated the former Wizard Saint known as Jose, and from our sayings that he has also defeated Jellal, another former Wizard Saint. As of recently, he has also defeated Erza Scarlet, and finally one of our former strongest Laxus Dreyar."

"Boy, that guy's kicked serious butt." Natsu remarked. "I gotta fight him again."

Lucy turned towards him. "Right, and do you want would you like knuckles in that sandwich? You know he'll just send you flying again." Natsu almost paled when Lucy mentioned 'flying', which made him silence.

"It is with those reasons that we need to reach an affirmative agreement." Makarov stated. He paused before looking back towards his 'children'. "An agreement if Nic should be promoted to S-Class."

The entire guild nearly went silent before they all did a unison "WHAT?!"

Natsu stomped on the ground. "Hey gramps, what's with this?! Why does he get to be promoted?! Doesn't he have to go through the trials or something?!" He protested.

"That's another factor we put in, but he's already defeated two of our S-Class Mages Natsu. And could you do any of which I listed?" Makarov pointed out.

Natsu struggled to point out a flaw. "Well no, but…he…"

Cana raised a mug in the air while sitting cross-legged on the countertop. "Well I for one think the kid's got more than enough spunk."

Mira looked over at Makarov. "Master, I think Nic should be given this promotion. He has done so much."

Makarov grumbled a bit, seeing how a few agree he should be given S-Class status.

Elfman crossed his arms. "I think he's man enough to become S-Class. After what he's been through, he's a real man among men."

"The guy's made promises, and he didn't let us down." Macao pointed out, having a mug raised.

"Yeah, he's earned that promotion." Wakaba said next to him. "Better not stand in his way or he'll mow you down like grass."

Natsu was still a bit pissed that he didn't get pick. "Come on gramps, this isn't fair! That jerk wasn't in Fairy Tail for as long as I have! He even went on that S-Class Mission and he didn't get punished for it!"

"Natsu, none of us knew it was S-Class, so it wasn't anybody's fault; besides, he aced it." Mira pointed out.

Makarov looked up at his fellow guild. Most if not all were leaning towards having Nic be an exception. Maybe he should get promoted? Was it okay?

"Master." Mira said. "I'm sure First Master wouldn't mind this one exception. Wouldn't you agree?"

Makarov sat as still as a statue, thinking of Mavis Vermilion. If she were still alive, maybe she would accept Nic. "I hope you're right Mira." Makarov said.

* * *

**With Nic and Erza**

After Nic paid for their meal and left, he and Erza both had just enough light in the sky to venture off into SouthGate Park, which was where Nic had something else for her. The duo managed to make it to the park, and fortunately people weren't anywhere around at this time. This meant it was just the two of them.

Nic turned towards Erza had just entered the park and they felt as ease. The meal was satisfying and they were just happy to be in each other's company.

Nic decided to give something a shot. Something he recalled from awhile back that he meant to do. "Hey, Erza?" The Fairy Queen turned towards Nic with curiosity. "Do you wanna see one my favorite attacks? I think you just might love it." It was meant as a small joke, but Erza didn't know that.

Erza felt a little curious. "Is it something powerful?"

"No, but you'll get a few good laughs from it." They had just exited the last step that led down to the area that the Sola Tree was located. They stopped and they turned towards the other.

"I guess it would be okay." Erza had no idea what she was getting herself into when Nic meant one of his favorite moves.

"Okay." Nic then closed in and showed his hands. "Don't say I didn't warn ya." Erza was expecting Nic to shine a light up or something, but when Nic said she would get a few good laughs, he meant it. "**Tickle!**" He then proceeded to tickling Erza's sides, to which she almost instantly began to squirm. Nic grinned as he knew she would love it. "You can't fight the Tickle attack!" He announced as he continued tickling her sides.

Out of all of the attacks she had to take, it just had to be Tickle. Erza began laughing like crazy as she couldn't stand the accursed Tickle attack. "S-s-s-s-s-sto-ssto-o-op! Hi-I-I can't-I can't take it!" She wheezed as she was being tickled. Erza kept squirming in that one spot as Nic continued on with the surprise tickle attack. To Erza, this felt…fun?

Wait, was she actually enjoying this? Being tickled? Erza couldn't believe it herself, but she actually felt like she was having a blast. Nic truly was full of surprises, and this was no exception.

Nic had ceased his Tickle and backed off, but not without laughing along with Erza, who was still laughing slightly. Erza eventually composed herself and she looked back at a smiling Nic. "Thank you, I needed that."

Nic smiled even greater than before. "Anytime. You know, you're really cute when you laugh." He admitted, which made Erza turn away with an insanely deep blush. Nic grinned, seeing how adorable she can be when embarrassed.

"Admit it, you liked Tickle." He said, turning back towards the sunset.

Erza turned back towards the sunset as well, but kept her gaze away. "…maybe."

The sky was now a strange hue of purple, orange, and yellow, meaning so little time. You could only see a faint light setting off somewhere along west of the area. Nic and Erza both stopped under the Sola Tree. Nic took in a rather large breath of fresh air and exhaled, relaxing the anticipation.

He turned towards Erza. "So Erza, do you like sunsets?" He asked, almost as though he obviously knew.

Erza crossed her arms with a grin. "Who doesn't?"

Nic turned sideways. "Good." He then glowed, meaning that he was shifting into a Plate. When the glow ceased, he was in his Meadow Plate Form. He turned his head towards her. "I hope you like high altitudes." He then pointed his left arm up at a branch far above and a Vine Whip emerged from his sleeve and he had the vine coil around said branch. He then used his free arm to grab Erza by her waist, making the latter surprised. "Hold on tight." He then brought them both up by using his Vine Whip as a way of getting up. They managed to safely reach the branch and the two sat on it and looked out at the view they now had, seeing the last bit of the sun's rays over the town.

"Nic." Erza said, getting his attention. "Thanks so much for this opportunity to relax and enjoy. You're a very sweet person." She meant it in the most honest way possible, and she meant it in sincerity.

Nic smiled while he looked out at the sunset, and this time he chose to have his sunglasses off, though they were off this entire time. "Oh please." He replied. "If anyone's sweet, it's you. Remember? You're sweeter than any strawberry cheesecake."

Erza remembered full well that Nic indeed said that, but that memory made her frown, as that was also one of the last things he said before he 'died'.

The memories came flooding back to her, that time when Nic amazed her by using that Maxus Legendary Arts to completely destroy Jellal and the Tower of Heaven, the sacrifice she had to make of herself, and also saying goodbye to Simon as he died. It was also at that point that she remembered that Nic pulled her out and chose to sacrifice himself rather than see her do it.

Erza's expression was as blank as a piece of paper as she recounted that day. Simon's breathing was slowing down and she begged for him to keep going, but he chose to say he loved her and he bid farewell, finally stopped his breathing and fell to the floor, leaving Erza crying and shattered emotionally.

Erza was all shaken by that thought, as Nic could have seen.

She then recounted how Nic swore to demolish and obliterate Jellal, which was where she saw him transform into his Legendary Force – Black Kyurem. The very remembrance of Nic's transformation now had her goosebumps paralyzed and shiver from the very feel of the air. She saw how he took Jellal down and Nic transformed into himself.

Erza then had a warm smile upon remembering running up to an unconscious Nic and holding him tightly, and also remembering that she was also smiling.

Erza then frowned again, remembering how she needed to save Natsu and Nic by giving herself up to the lacrima. She frowned even more that Nic took her place and he held her hand, and then Erza had a very small tear forming as she remembered Nic saying she's sweeter than any strawberry cheesecake and then he disappeared.

Nic saw that Erza was shaking, frowning, smiling, basically an array of emotions. Was she having a breakdown? He wasn't sure what to do. The next thing he knew, he was being pulled into a hug by Erza, who completely clung onto him. Nic gaped his mouth in shock, but then saw the tear that was scrolling down her cheek as she clung onto him.

"Nic." Erza said. "I'm so glad you're back."

Nic closed his mouth and he slowly grinned. He then wrapped an arm around her and comforted her as the last bit of the sun's rays was beginning to diminish. "Yeah, I'm glad too."

They just stayed there as the sun was officially set and now the sky was black with hints of purple and orange over the horizon. The two parted from the emotional embrace and Nic and Erza both got down from the branch thanks to Nic using Vine Whip again.

When the two reached the ground, Nic retracted his Vine Whip and turned towards her. "Hey, do you wanna see something cool?" Erza tilted her head in curiosity, and that's when Nic released a light green ring of energy from his feet and it spread about all over SouthGate Park.

Erza looked around, seeing as to how any of the grass in the area was instantly looking fresh and all too healthy. Some of the flowers there almost immediately went into full bloom. It was amazing that there were flowers spread about all over SouthGate Park in the healthy grass. She turned towards Nic. "This is Grassy Terrain. The downside is that it restores any Pokémon's energy by a little, including the opponent, but on the upside Grass-Type moves get a big boost in power." Nic explained. Nic turned and crouched down towards some white and red flowers beside him. "I only saw this move used maybe once or twice, but I just love how it makes nature feel refreshed." He began plucking out flowers and when he had enough in hand, he then got up and handed her the handful of flowers he held from the stems to Erza. "So, were you happy?"

Erza looked down at the handful of flowers Nic gave her and she slowly turned back up to see his curious grin and she began to have a soft blush envelope her face. She nodded. "Yeah, this date is just amazing." She admitted. She held the flowers in one hand and she used her free arm to reach around and pull Nic in for a hug.

The two just shared that hug for as long as they possibly could. Erza felt the butterflies in her belly flutter with joy and happiness and her heart thumped rapidly. Nic's own heart was thumping slightly as well, and he held onto her for a short while.

The two eventually broke apart, and that's when Nic's joyful smile turned back into the half-grin. He once again retrieved flowers and he turned towards town. "Erza, you ready?"

Erza was curious. "For what?"

Nic turned towards her. "The surprise." She honestly forgot that Nic mentioned a surprise earlier. Was this it? Maybe it was more cake? Was it new armor? "Come on." He then had Erza follow him and they trailed off to the Kardia Cathedral Cemetery.

Erza raised a brow in confusion. "So my present is in there?" She didn't see this coming. What could possibly make it so that Nic would have her gift here? Was it something to die for? Was it drop-dead astounding? Just what exactly.

Nic turned towards her, his grin now gone. "Trust me Erza, just close your eyes. I'll take you there." Erza then reluctantly closed her eyes and she felt Nic grabbing her free hand and then escorting her through the solid terrain. They passed by a few monuments, including Nic's. They didn't take it down, but did erase the stone from it. Nic didn't mind really. He would even say hi sometimes to his 'dead' self as a small joke.

After three minutes of walking, Erz felt a left turn, then a right turn, and then Nic stopped and turned her left. She then heard Nic sigh. "Alright, brace yourself." He warned. Erza then felt her muscles tense up, thinking it might be something that she would have to fend off against. After five seconds passed, Nic gave the signal. "Okay, you can open them now."

Erza then opened her own eyes. At first, she wasn't sure what to look at, but when she turned her head down slightly, she then realized what Nic was trying to prepare her for. Erza went wide eyed and gasped at the masterpiece that Nic had created just for her. Though it was only two feet, it looked like the real deal.

It was a stone monument of Simon. The details were almost perfect. His muscles and scarf around his head were perfect. Nic had captured every detail as he could have possibly remember it. And it had writing engrave at the base.

SIMON

A LOYAL AND GREAT FRIEND

Erza was a little shaken up. She never expected this, not in a million years. She had tears beginning to form.

Nic then turned towards her. "You see, I never really told much of anyone about this, but I have some art skills. I actually didn't know I had them until I started my journey a long time ago. So I used every ounce of my art skills and sanded, molded, and sculpted whatever way I could remember in order to pay my respects to him." Nic then saw her cry. "I'm sorry if I made you cry."

Erza sniffled, but then turned towards him with a smile. "Nic, you didn't make me cry. It's just that I'm so happy. You spent all of this time just to make me happy. I never got to pay respects to Simon, but you made this so that I can finally pay those respects. It's so beautiful, it looks just like him." She explained with teary eyes. "Your heart is truly the light."

Nic smiled and looked down at the two foot monument. The two crouched down and they paid their dearest respects to Simon. Erza and Nic gave their flowers to Simon's monument after their respects and prayers they departed.

As the two were walking through the now night sky of Magnolia, they were getting closer to Fairy Tail. A thought went through their heads at the same time.

Erza truly thought this was a great experience. She felt joy, happiness, sorrow, basically every bit of emotion possible. _'I need to thank him.' _Erza thought.

Nic wasn't sure if he should give her anything else. He gave her a dinner, a Tickle, a view in the tree, and made a monument for their dear friend. He then figured he'll just push his luck just one one more time. _'Maybe just one more gift.' _Nic thought.

The two then stopped, and Erza was intentionally turning her head very quickly to give Nic a kiss on the cheek.

Nic was doing the same. And both of them didn't look where they were aiming until it was too late.

Their intentional kiss on the cheek turned into a sudden kiss on the lips.

Both Mages went wide-eyed in shock as it was all just too sudden for each to take. Erza and Nic were blushing like there was no tomorrow. The two were too stunned to even pull their lips apart. They were just in suspense for ten seconds before the two pulled apart at long last.

Both of them stuttered and Nic and Erza turned their heads away from the other, unable to see the other's face after their accidental kiss on the lips. Though Nic had to admit that her lips were so soft…

"So…yeah…" Nic tried to say, trying not to make things too awkward, but that ship had already sailed.

Erza herself cleared her throat and she tried to look forward. "Well now…uh…" But even she cracked under the sudden blissful moment they shared. One thing was certain to Erza, she would love to do it again.

Nic composed himself at long last as they looked ahead and saw the guild. "Well, I guess that's a wrap for our date." He said, though he wished it could've gone on for a little longer. Then again, it was close to ten at night.

Erza smile and she kept her gaze forward as she requipped into her armor as they approached the guild. "It would appear so…" Her smile also had pink on the cheeks. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Nic said as they were approaching inside. They still couldn't look at each other after their little moment, but at least the awkwardness stopped now that the date was finished.

The two made their way inside, but only for everyone in the guild to turn towards them, mainly at Nic. The sudden stare was seemingly uncomfortable, but then it ceased when the entire guild shouted at him.

"SURPRISE!" The entire guild shouted. Mira and Sophie both blasted confetti from the sides and lots of people clapped, much to Nic and Erza's shock.

Nic looked baffled and beyond surprised. He blinked. "But, today ain't my birthday." He explained. Everyone made way as Makarov walked up to Nic and stood before him. Nic looked down at the Master and kept a raised brow. "Is there a celebration going on here or something?"

Makarov just ignore his comment and he spoke. "Nic, we have something very important to tell you." Nic erased any surprise that was inside of him, as he could tell by the Master's tone that this was indeed serious. "Even though your time here hasn't been long, you have exceeded all of our expectations by a large margin. You continue to grow and you had become strong, so strong that you took down numerous enemies that stood in your way." He paused. "As a parent, I am beyond proud and cannot be anymore satisfied with what you have accomplished."

"Master." Nic was actually baffled that Master Makarov was praising him. Was there something big that was going to happen to Nic?

Makarov turned back towards the guild and nodded. The guild, in unison, all nodded their heads to signal the Master of their approval. Master Makarov then looked back at Nic. "We have come to a decision. Though there are suppose to be trials for this promotion, we have decided to expunge those and allow you to be an exception. You have proven yourself of great promise boy."

Erza was getting hints of what Master was doing, and it didn't take two seconds for her to realize what he meant by expunging the trials. She turned towards Nic with wide eyes and with a shocked look. Nic himself stood rather speechless, yet still curious at the same time.

"Nic Pularis, from this day forth…you are officially an S-Class Mage of Fairy Tail." Makarov smiled. "Congratulations to you my boy!"

Nic looked shocked to say the least. He was just promoted on the spot and nobody told him about this…well, unless you count five seconds ago. Nic didn't even have the words for this moment. The guild members just cheered and threw mugs into the air in honor of Nic's promotion.

"Gee, I didn't see this coming." Nic muttered.

Erza also failed to foreshadow this event. "Neither did I." Normally, she would object to what the Master had just said. Something like this had to be dealt with trials, but looking back on what happened the past month and a half or so, it did seem justified. Besides that, Erza would probably agree that Nic's power exceeded anyone's expectations. In the end, she would agree Nic deserved this little promotion.

"You've done Fairy Tail proud boy, so best be keeping it up!" Makarov cheerfully announced as even more confetti was launched by Mira and Sophie. Now out of his initial shock, Nic smiled cheerfully and looked on as the guild celebrated. He went over towards a fellow table and people gathered around him while Erza looked on with a smile.

Sophie went up towards Erza, trying to contain as much excitement as possible. "So, how was your date?"

Erza blushed in shock and she turned towards Sophie sharply. "It went very well." She truthfully stated. "Nic and I had a spectacular time."

"Depends on how you say 'spectacular time'." Sophie teased. Erza blushed even more furiously than she ever had before, understanding Sophie's implication. Erza was almost tempted to pull out a sword.

"Silence! That's not what happened!" Erza scolded. Sophie just grinned and she just decided to end it there before she gets thrown over Fiore. She just giggled and scooted away, leaving Erza to calm down as she looked on with Nic celebrating.

"You're truly a one in a million kid." "You definitely earned this!" "I just wonder if S-Class is worthy for _you_." Many people just came around and congratulated Nic and he couldn't help just blush lightly from the attention and praise he's being showered with.

Cana wrapped an arm around Nic's shoulder and had a full mug of booze in the free arm she had. She smiled cheerfully. "Wait a go champ! You've gone and set new heights for Fairy Tail. I told ya you would make S-Class in no time!"

Nic smiled. "I never doubted ya-!" But as Nic was about to thank Cana and agree with her statement, Cana had taken the liberty and poured the entire mug of booze down Nic's throat as he had his mouth open. Cana and everyone else cheered as Nic was forced to down booze.

Yeah, terrible idea.

When Nic was freed from the mug from his mouth, his face looked slightly red, and his gaze looked a little feral. Though nobody realized what Cana had just done, they were too raptured in celebrating Fairy Tail style.

Natsu stomped up behind Nic. "Hey, Nic!" Natsu bellowed, making red-faced Nic turn back with a sharp glare. Natsu had a fist ready. "I say we brawl again!"

Nic immediately shifted into his Toxic Plate. Some people were a little surprised by this sudden change by Nic. It wasn't like him to get into a scrap fest that easily.

Nic cracked his knuckles while snarling. "You want to fight me?!" He mocked. "You think you know better? You're a freakin toothpick compared to this mighty oak! A TOOTHPICK!" He then blasted Natsu with a Sludge right in the face without warning, sending him crashing into a nearby table.

"Whoa there!" Macao said. "You okay there?"

Nic turned sharply back at Macao. "Don't talk back to me!" He then fired another Sludge attack at Macao, sending him flying into a nearby pillar.

Everyone sweat dropped. They didn't see this coming. Just what happened? Even Erza, Sophie, and Mira saw this odd as they were observing from afar.

"Uh…" Mira sweat dropped. "I don't think alcohol and Nic don't go well together." They watched as several more people went flying just for looking at Nic.

"I guess alcohol makes him feel tyrannical." Sophie thought. She then turned towards Erza. "Shouldn't we do something?"

Erza nodded and then proceeded up towards Nic. "Okay Nic. I think you need to settle down." She clapped her armored hands to get his attention.

Nic turned sharply and somewhat recognized her. He pointed towards her. "Silence red-headed goddess!" He demanded. Almost instantly, Erza froze on the spot with a comical shock. Out of all of the things he had to say when drunk, he just had to go and yell that out loud in front of everybody. Erza's face turned as red as her at not just the fact he called her a goddess, again, but also he said it out loud. She just stood in silence as was everyone else.

"Did he just call her a goddess?" Warren asked.

"I know those two like each other, but isn't that suppose to be a private pet name?" Max asked. Nic turned sharply towards them, which freaked them out slightly.

"Silence!" Nic bellowed and then fired multiple globs of green liquid from his mouth and blasted Max and Warren away, the move being said was Venoshock.

By now, the guild was in a bit of a rumble, with Nic being the center of it all. By this point, Natsu and Gray were a tad freaked out by this side of Nic, along with everyone else. Nic would just order for people to shut up and turn away or they would get blasted with a Poison-Type move of sorts.

"Um, Master? Should we do something?" Mira asked Makarov.

Master Makarov just sighed. "I suppose our lesson just has to be learned the hard way. Make this a note: Don't ever give Nic alcohol if you want to live."

Erza was still a bit frozen in shock as she also watched as Nic still ordered people around for no reason.

"Gray, put your clothes on! Natsu, stop destroying stuff!" Nic demanded with feral gazes pointing at both of them.

"But I already have my clothes on." Gray pointed out, actually checking this time and was surprised he didn't strip down to his underwear as of yet.

Natsu just pouted. "But I haven't destroyed anything yet! You're hogging all the fun!"

"Don't talk back to me!" He then coated himself in dark purple and he unleashed a Sludge Wave that blasted everyone there around him, making them panic and yelp under his tyrannical behavior.

"We're gonna die." Jet groaned as he laid on the floor after being blasted by Sludge Wave and twitching slightly.

"I didn't say you could lie down and groan!" Nic roared, unleashing more of his fury as Jet squealed.

This melee went on for another fifteen minutes before Nic started settling down. The benefit of the Toxic Plate was that it could absorb and nullify toxins at a faster rate than what the normal human could, so Nic could only be drunk for a very short period of time, and he was just about coming around.

Nic was in his normal self, looking rather disoriented and dizzy as he sat cross-legged on a table. "Oooiiiii. So much craziness." Nic groaned as he rested his chin on his hand to keep from swaying back and forth. "I only remember fragments. Me telling people to stop talking, and then I blast them." He murmured.

Everyone there looked all heavily exhausted and pale to the faces. "It's finally over." They all said in unison.

Erza was out of her shock and let out a breath. "Well now, are you feeling better?" She asked.

Nic was still dizzy, but he could hear her. "Of sorts, yeah." Nic then heard everyone cleaning up the melee Nic started and he could only stay sober in that one spot. "Uh, did I say anything stupid while I was a tyrant?" He muttered to her.

Erza looked down and then thought for a brief moment about how Nic called her a red-headed goddess, which was embarrassing, but at the same time very sweet. Erza looked back at him with a grin. "No, you just blasted people for no reason."

Nic grinned while feeling the dizziness fade. "Remind Cana not to do that again."

"Believe me, we've all learned the hard way." Erza explained.

"Okay…" He then felt sleepy after the eventual day he had and his eyes began to close. He managed to turn his head towards Erza. "Hey." Erza then looked at him with curiosity. "Thank you for the best first date." He then closed his eyes and he fell back onto his side and let sleep consume him on the table.

Erza's heartbeat quickened as Nic thanked her. She was truly touched that Nic did so much for her in one day. Erza smiled at the sleeping being and she also saw that everyone was leaving the building. Seeing how it was night and everything was just cleaned up. She waited until it was just her and Nic. She then turned towards him and quickly pecked him on the cheek. "Thank you Nic." She then got up and left the building and locked the doors behind her, leaving a very happy smile on her face.

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**I'm really bad at romantic scenes, but I tried my best. Still, credits also go out to PokeguardianZ for giving me tips. I'm not sure how you guys felt about this chapter, but if you guys enjoyed it, leave a Review.**

**I was intentionally going to initiate the Oracion Seis Arc, but I got caught up in trying to make the date a good one. The Oracion Seis Arc will start next chapter, no doubt.**

**If you are wondering, Nic and Erza are still not official. There is still a huge amount of stuff to be done before that happens. Then again, you never know if they will become official.**

**Okay, my question this time is what your favorite chapter was up to this point. I got feedback from your favorite fight, now I ask what your favorite chapter is. This time, shoot me a PM if possible so that Reviews could be for the chapter itself and not feedback on favorite(s). I repeat, shoot me a PM of your favorite chapter.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoy the story and the various emotions and surprises that I add.**

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**Next Time: Forced Unity**


	24. Forced Unity

Chapter 24 – Forced Unity

**24 chapters in, and I'm at the Oracion Seis Arc. My plan is to go up to the GMG Arc, but that's a loooooooooong way. That would mean that there will be A LOT more chapters. Still, if you are willing to support this story to the end, keep reading.**

**GoldenCyclone4: I'll take your word for it. You remember the dark legendaries and their human that they have under their influence? **

**Regardless, I'll just keep going as usual.**

**FOREWARNING: Since this Arc is long, that means most of the chapters will be long and may have some fights shortened.**

**To Recap:**

Nic decides to ask Sophie for a little advice for a date. He then takes Erza out for a first date, which involved dinner, a sunset, and a monument for their dead friend Simon. Nic and Erza then share an accidental kiss to finish up their date. When Nic gets back to the guild, he was promoted to S-Class on the spot. Master Makarov and the guild unanimously agreed on this and Nic deserved S-Class. Cana gets Nic drunk, which showed a tyrannical side and everyone now knows to keep him away from alcohol.

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**Chapter 24 – Forced Unity**

The next morning, Nic was seen up and quietly eating an omelet right beside his ninja pal. Greninja just sat with mild tranquility, just watching the guild members converse. Greninja looked over at his pal and found his expression to be somewhat melancholy.

"Hey, you okay buddy?" Greninja asked Nic, who was nibbling at his omelet rather than enjoying it. Nic looked back at Greninja and stared. Greninja could see just by Nic's gaze that he was lost in thought. He then saw Nic slide his omelet over towards Greninja.

"My appetite's down for a little bit." Nic informed, looking away and putting his head down.

Greninja sighed and then took in the entire omelet, eating it and swallowing with little hesitation. He looked at his pal, seeing this many times before. "…that same nightmare about your past again?"

Nic tilted his head up towards Greninja. "…yeah."

_Nic's father wasn't one to be hardy. When he and Nic's mother had returned, Nic was already asleep on the couch. The two brutes saw their eleven-year-old son snoozing peacefully on the couch, to which they didn't appreciate._

"_Hey, get up you slob." Nic's dad groaned, reaching for a nearby rolled up newspaper and swatted Nic's head with it. The impact made Nic jerk up with utter surprise and with a sharp pain running on the side of his head._

"_Geez. It's like three at night." Nic groaned._

"_Ask me if I care." Nic's father said. "What are you doing on the couch? You think that since we told you that we'd be gone for two days, you think you own the place?" His tone was beginning to boil._

"_You were only gone for the night." Nic stated, which earned him an elbow to the gut._

"_So what?! Just because we were kicked out of another casino, doesn't mean we didn't win anything!" Despite his words, that's all that did happen. He won jack squat. "We didn't win a single thing this time. And now we're pissed off bad."_

_Nic's mother grabbed the back of Nic's shirt collar and yanked him up from the couch. "Didn't your father say you weren't allowed on the couch?" She mocked. His parents then called for Nic's father's Magneton, who was like a jail warden for Nic. It always looked after Nic as a guard and was ordered to shock him if he did anything, and I mean anything._

_At this point, Magneton wasn't all friendly with Nic, as it had Nic's father's orders. "Magneton, why was Nic on the couch?" Nic's father's tone sounded sarcastic, as though that was a cue of sorts. The mom then shoved Nic in front of Magneton and was given a Spark. Nic was yelping as his parents forced their Magneton to deliver an abusive assault. Nic yelped and he grunted as Spark had then some damaging voltage through his cells. _

_When Magneton backed away, Nic dropped to his knees and grunted. It was much better than some time ago when he couldn't take an attack, and even so he would be panting for dear life._

"_Now, what do you say?" Nic's father sadistically asked. Nic was still catching his breath, which drove his parents mad._

_Nic mother smacked him on the back of the head. "Hey! Your father asked you what do you say when you've done something wrong!" She smacked him again._

_Nic was looking up, but he didn't show much plea as his parents wanted. "I did nothing." Nic stated. His father then got a sharp look in his eyes and then kicked Nic right in the face, making the poor eleven-year-old fly back and slam into the floor._

_Nic's father then went up to Nic and examined his facial pain. Nic was gritting his teeth as his dad then repeatedly stomped on his gut. "You think you can do whatever when we're gone! Like hell! You do as we say! You always listen to the adult, do you hear me?!" He then stomped once more and Nic gagged. Nic's father backed away and he turned. "Sweetie, go upstairs and change. I gotta put this one's lights out." Nic's mom then went upstairs and Nic watched as his dad was walking away as well. "You know, I wish you were Vanessa, she's so good. Magneton, put him to sleep."_

_Magneton's body became surrounded in sparks of light blue energy. The magnets flashed light blue and fired multiple light blue orbs at Nic, via Magnet Bomb. That was the last thing Nic saw before his lights were out._

Nic was all fixated, the heinous memories flooding back. His parents just hurt him for the fun of it. He was their punching bag when they were angry. They were sadistic as they believed they could take their anger out on anyone, but was mainly on Nic.

Greninja managed to snap him out of it. "Hey, it's alright. It's in the past now." He assured. Nic looked at his froggy pal and he tried to let a small grin pass over his face. "You have Fairy Tail you know."

Nic looked down and let loose a relieved sigh. "Yeah, I suppose you're right." Erza then sat down right next to him on the table. He noticed her and pulled up a grin. "Hi Erza."

Erza had a happy smile. "Good morning to you Nic." She greeted. She sat comfortably close to him, of which he didn't mind. "And how did you sleep?"

Nic's eyes then cascaded down to the table, his grin turning into a frown. "Not so well." Erza blinked and she frowned as well. He then explained about his nightmare of his haunting and very painful past in as few words as he could. At the end, Erza was a little in shock. Nic had his chin rest on his hand as he saw the guild interact. "It's terrible, I know."

Erza didn't have much of any words to say. What was there to say? All she felt was slight guilt. Erza tried to keep herself cheered up and perked a grin. She then leaned in closer to Nic and she had a hand on his, making him turn to her. "Don't worry. It matters not what happened. You became a strong person. Stronger than me even."

Nic gave a generous smile and looked at their hands touching, even though she was in her armor. He could still feel the warmth of her hand. "Thanks. I'm glad I'm with such caring people." Greninja grinned at the site. He just turned away and saw Reedus making what seemed to be a chart. He watched as Reedus finished the big chart. Everyone around the guild had taken notice of the chart and they gathered around.

"What's all of this?" Lucy asked.

Sophie seemed to have recognized the chart from a diagram she had read up earlier. She had recently looked through some books and found what was seemed to be some insight on dark guilds. This must fit the bill. "I'm no wiz, but it seems like a diagram comprised of various dark guilds." Sophie explained.

"Oui, Mira wanted me to draw it out so we have a better visual." Reedus explained.

"I see. There are far more than I have realized. This is troubling indeed." Erza explained.

"Boy, talk about getting the big picture." Greninja stated. "Nic, look in the middle." Nic then followed his eyes to the three big ovals. One said Grimoire Heart, Oracion Seis, and then came to what Greninja was trying to pull out. Tartaros.

"I see." Nic's eyes narrowed, recounting to when he came across Tartaros twice. Both weren't pleasant meetings, but this left Nic extremely careful of the name.

"The dark guilds have been more active as of recently." Mira explained. "Meaning we need to strengthen relationships with our fellow guilds."

"What's the big circle in the middle suppose to be?" Gray asked.

"That's the Baram Alliance." Nic explained. Everyone turned to him, surprised that he knew such a thing. "I've encountered Tartaros from before. They're a nasty bunch. And I would assume those other two right beside it are members of the Baram Alliance."

Everyone, exclude Sophie, did remember that Nic told them of the S-Class mission he went on, and the memory came back. Erza remembered when they teamed up to face Tartaros a second time, at least to Nic's count.

"Yes." Juvia said. "They have less powerful guilds in their division to do their dirty work. All three are extremely powerful. However, Raven Tail remains independent."

"Oh man, I recognize Eisenwald." Lucy said, seeing the name.

Erza nodded. "I'm sure. That's the guild Erigor commanded. And they appear to have been a sub-guild under Oracion Seis."

"So do you know which of the dark guilds exactly have been active?" Sophie asked. "It would make sense if one of the Baram Alliance dark guilds are active. If it's this distressful, it should be by their doing."

"Yes, primarily it's been Oracion Seis." Mira explained.

"From what I hear, that guild's only got six members." Wakaba brushed off, feeling lax of the situation.

"I wouldn't count my Fletchling before they hatch if I were you." Greninja explained. "Think about it. If those six comprise one of the toughest dark guilds out there, then underestimating them would be a huge setback on our part."

"Speaking of the Oracion Seis." Makarov spoke from behind, making everyone turned around and looked in surprise as to what Master might bring up about that guild. "We must destroy them!"

"WHAT?!" Everyone exclaimed, all but Mira, Greninja, and Nic.

There was nothing but complete silence for ten straight seconds. Someone wasn't sure how to break the intensity in the air; well, only one could.

"Welcome back Master!" Mira cheerfully said, making all but Nic and Greninja fall flat on their faces at her missing the point. "I hope you had a good time at the conference!"

Sophie arose with a stunned expression. "Uh, Mira? I think you're missing the point." She explained to her.

"Somehow, this set of news didn't surprise me." Nic stated. "Anyways Master, I would assume you have a plan, yes?"

Makarov stared at Nic, not asking any questions and getting to the point. No arguments nor questions, but this was Nic after all. Makarov set that trait of Nic and his Greninja aside and proceeded with the explanation. "Oracion Seis has been the primary topic at the conference. They must be dealt with at once. We must take them down before harm is inflicted on those whom we're sworn to protect."

Nic turned to Erza, thinking as to how Makarov had just said his words. Nic will indeed try and protect her no matter what. He then turned back towards Makarov as he resumed explaining.

"This enemy is far more powerful than any we have fought in the past. This will be dealt with more than just Fairy Tail. Fairy Tail will not be alone in this fight." Makarov stated as he walked up to his guild.

Nic and Greninja got an idea as to what Makarov was going on about. Both trainer and his pokémon crossed their own arms. "Let me guess." Nic stated. "When you mean that we won't be alone this time, you mean we're doing a collaboration of sorts. Am I right?"

Once again, everyone was stunned of Nic's insight. He was able to understand the situation more thoroughly than anyone else, he was able to pick out Makarov's speech and decipher it into his own phrasing. He even jumped to the assumption that a collaboration will be a resort. Makarov was once again impressed that Nic was able to do all of that in a short period of time. This guy was truly a prodigy when it comes to understanding the situation if it's that severe.

"That is correct." Makarov stated. "Fairy Tail will take part in an alliance."

"AN ALLIANCE?!" Everyone exclaimed except Nic and Greninja.

"Fairy Tail. Blue Pegasus. Lamina Scale. And Cait Shelter. These four guilds with send representatives in support of the Allied Forces. Together, we shall defeat the enemy!" Master declared.

Natsu stood up with his trademark grin. "But we can handle them ourselves gramps; in fact, I can do it alone!" He proclaimed.

"Naïve fool!" Erza scolded, shoving a palm in his face, making Natsu crack his neck. "The Master is thinking of the consequences afterwards!"

"Uh guys." Lucy was given the chills. "We are talking about six people here, right? I mean, are they seriously that powerful?!"

Makarov nodded. "Indeed. We shall send our representatives in one hour."

* * *

**Later…**

Team Natsu, Nic, and Sophie were all in the carriage…well, unless you count Nic dashing through the trees like a pro, and heading towards the designated place to gather.

Lucy was once again complaining. "Why am I here?! I'm not that strong ya know!"

Sophie looked at Lucy. "Lucy, I don't think complaining will get you anywhere."

Natsu was motion sick as always, and Lucy and Happy were pouting. Erza then spoke. "We're here because Master had put his faith in us!"

Lucy still felt less confident. "But when it comes to fighting, Gajeel or Juvia are a better fit."

Happy then talked while nibbling on a fish. "Well, they were both busy with other jobs."

Natsu slumped back, his motion sickness getting worse. "I don't care." He sulked. "I just…wanna…get…there…" He then had puffy cheeks.

"I just feel it's always us picked for this stuff." Lucy complained.

They then heard Nic yell through the tree branches. "Lucy, I can hear your complaining from out here. It's getting very annoying!" He told.

Lucy sweat dropped and she silenced. Erza looked out from the carriage and she smiled at Nic, who took a quick glance and smiled at her.

"Gee, I didn't know Nic could hear us from out there, let alone dash through the trees." Sophie stated.

Erza then turned towards her. "Nic likes to rely on himself for transportation if possible. He also said that he underwent some speed-like training back in his world to help in his maneuverability through trees. You'd be wise not to keep yourself at bay is possible." Erza explained, somewhat gritting the part where Lucy annoyed Nic.

"Oh my, getting defensive for your Nic, are ya?" Sophie teased while squeaking out a giggle. Erza was more than tempted to silence her on the spot, but then Happy pointed ahead.

"I can see it!" Happy shouted. "The rendez vous point!" The place itself had a large window in the shape of a heart. The structure was mainly pink and resembled that of a villa. They all went inside and saw that there were pegasus statues on the sides, and the inside had a big staircase that had a red carpet. The walls were mainly pink and white.

Everyone went inside and saw the decorum.

"Gee, this place's decorum is seriously creepy." Lucy pointed out as the lights finally came on.

"This is Master Bob's villa." Erza explained.

"H-Him?!" Gray groaned, remembering just who Master Bob was, of whom was the creepy cross dresser man that was bald and fat. Gray looked disgusted. "Don't remind me."

Erza herself looked like she was groaning. "Gray, be nice." Erza said while maintaining her creeped out expression. "Master Bob may be a little 'eccentric', but he can give our Master a run for his own money."

Sophie for one was a little stumped. She turned to Nic. "So just who is Master Bob?"

Nic sweat dropped. "Uh…trust me, you don't wanna know."

"Yes! They're here at last!" A voice called out. Everyone turned to see where that came from. They saw a spotlight appear in front of the staircase. They heard synchronized clapping.

They were greeted by Hibiki, Eve, and Ren. Hibiki was a slim young man with spiky brownish blond hair. He had dark eyes and long eyelashes. He had on a suit with light lines at the end of the sleeves and lower pant legs. Under the suit he had a blue shirt.

Eve was a small boy with blond hair in a bowl cut. He had dark eyes. Like Hibiki, he had on a suit, but rather than light lines, his had cross-like motifs. He had what seemed to be a light purple shirt with a dark purple tie.

Ren was a slim young man with dark spiky hair that reached down to his shoulders, he also had a short ponytail, with long strands framing his face. He had dark skin and had spiky eyebrows. He also had a black suit, but with the jacket open. He had a yellow shirt and a guild mark in yellow on his left shoulder.

Everyone there was surprised, but Erza remained stoic and Nic tensed up, poised in a position if he were to strike.

"We are the Trimens." The three said in unison.

"Hundred Night Hibiki." Hibiki introduces.

"Holy Night Eve." Eve introduces.

"Still Night Ren." Ren introduced

Lucy had sparkles and pink in her cheeks. "The Trimens from Blue Pegasus." She squealed.

"Good god, they're so _chamud_ and _yafa_." Sophie marveled.

"Hibiki's at the top of the list for Sorcerer's Weekly's Most Eligible Bachelor's List!" Lucy explained, making Hibiki feel all humble. "He's been in the top three for the last few months!"

"How can we compete with those guys! Where are my clothes?!" Gray was scrambling around for his clothes while Nastu was leaning against a column and was trying to settle down from his motion sickness.

Almost immediately, the Trimens began closing in and giving liners to the three ladies present.

"I've heard tales of your beauty Titania, and they are oh so true." Hibiki tried charming her, but the second he finished Nic was between him and Erza with a fiery aura, just tempted to blast him for flirting with Erza. Hibiki stepped back as he watched Erza walk up and lean on Nic as a sign to the Trimens to not tamper with the two. Though that didn't stop them from flirting with Lucy and Sophie.

"My, you ladies must be tired from your stroll here. Shall we cater to you?" Eve tried to woo Sophie, but Sophie was just left irritated.

"_Ma im lo_." She said in Hebrew, stepping back and telling him no.

"Here, made you a glass. I don't want it." Ren said, holding out a glass of a beverage towards Lucy.

Lucy sweat dropped and back away. "Now this one's playing coy?!" The Trimens continued admiring Sophie and Lucy for just a little bit longer, giving liners that only irritated them further. They would've especially flirted with Erza, except she'd prefer to be with Nic.

"Calm down men." A silky smooth voice called out from above the staircase. Everyone turned to see someone walking down from the stairs. "Keep these ladies at bay."

Lucy shivered. "Whoa. That voice. It's so silky." It was so silky that it creeped her out.

"Ichiya-sama, it's you!" Ren called out.

Erza's entire being shivered. This wasn't good one bit. Erza was nearly trembling. "I-Ichyia? Oh dear."

Ichyia was a short and stout man with a distinctive rectangular face. He had a shining flat nose and prominent cheekbones. He had dark eyes and thick eyebrows, with some stubble around his mouth and chin. He had orange hair that was wavy and curved spikes jutting upwards. He had on a white suit and a blue rose.

"It has been awhile, Erza-san!" Ichiya shined on the stairs.

"Along time, yeah." Her voice was heavily shaky and she began to inch away from the stairs as slowly began making her way behind Nic. "I never expected you to be joining us."

"I have longed for you, My Honey." Ichiya said. When he just mentioned calling Erza his honey, that snapped Nic out of shock and into a defensive manner in front of Erza. "Don't cry, for I am here."

"MY HONEY?!" Exclaimed Lucy, Happy, and Sophie.

Erza was shaking with worry behind Nic as Ichiya was in her presence, with troubled her extremely.

'_Good lord, I've never seen Erza so creeped out.' _Nic thought.

He then saw Ichiya sliding down the railing with his tip toes. "What a surprise." Ichiya said.

"A surprise." The Trimens repeated.

"A reunion."

"A reunion."

Ichiya flipped and posed at the bottom of the railing. "Oh yes, oh yes, oh yes."

The Trimens clapped. "We know she was your girlfriend Ichiya-sama." They said in unison.

"You know that is not true!" Erza shouted from behind Nic. "Everything coming out of that man's mouth is a lie!"

Ichiya then turned towards the rest. "It seems that destiny has brought us-."

"I can vouch for Erza!" Sophie testified. "She is so not yours, she's Nic's!" Erza and Nic both turned in shock that Sophie is saying this out loud. "And I should know, because they went on a date last night."

Everyone then froze in the room. "WHAT?!" Everyone but Erza and Nic exclaimed. Nic and Erza turned in embarrassment. They were slightly blushing and they tried looking away from the rest.

"Sophie!" Nic pouted with annoyance. "Did you have to go and say that?!"

"Yes." Sophie deadpanned. "Besides, you two are so cute together!" Nic and Erza then blushed even more.

"Did you guys kiiiiiiiss?" Happy teased, to which Nic and Erza both shot harsh glares and Happy flinched in fear.

Ichiya was a tad shocked that someone had beat him to her, but he still persisted. "No matter." They then sniffed the air and he looked so amused. "Sweet parfum!" He gave thumbs up while pointing at the ladies.

"Back off you playboy wannabes!" Gray protested. "You better learn to keep away from these ladies. Can you even fight?"

"Try us." Ren snickered.

Natsu heard the word fight and he was raring to go. "Fight?! Count me in!"

"Everyone calm dow-!" Erza was cut off when she felt Ichiya's presence from behind. Erza nearly stood stiff if not for scooting behind Nic.

"Playing hard to get, that makes your parfum all the more desirable!" Ichiya was getting closer to the Fairy Queen, but Nic snarled with extreme anger.

"Get away from Erza you perv! **Mega Punch!**" Nic then enveloped his fist in a gray orb of energy and slugged Ichiya right in the middle of his nose, hurling him at high speed out the door.

"MEN!" Ichiya hollered out as he was slugged in the face, with Sophie and Lucy commenting how Nic went and did it. Ichiya was send head first out the door, but was easily caught and his head was covered in ice.

"You dare greet us with this monkey?" The man asked. He had a white jacket that went down to his waist. The jacket also had dark fur trimmings. Underneath was a red tunic that was dark purple with light purple edges. He also had snakeskin pants that had black lines and shapes. He had spiky and wavy white hair and black eyes. "Lamina Scale deserves no such greeting."

"Lyon!" Gray said startled.

"Gray!" Lyon said in the same startled fashion. Lyon then threw Ichiya aside, all the while Ichyia shouted men inside his iced head.

"The heck man?!" Gray reprimanded, but Lyon showed no interest.

"He started it Gray." Lyon stated.

"That's our leader you're messing with pal!" Ren warned.

"**Doll Attack: Carpet Doll!" **A feminine voice hollered. The rug under Lucy then arose and knocked her off her feet.

"Why me?!" Lucy hollered and she got back up to find that it was Sherry who did that attack. Sherry had blue eyes, long loose pink hair, sizeable cleavage, and a pink dress with black trimmings. "Wait, you joined Lamina Scale too?!"

Sherry giggled. "I was hoping you guys didn't forget who I am. Oh! And I see you brought along two extras unlike last time. Best they didn't know the past me."

"Still crazy." Lucy sighed.

"More parfum!" Ichiya pleaded.

"Stay away from her!" Nic shouted, making a white needle and sheathing it much like a sword. "I'll use Cut on you if you as so much as come even a step further!" Tension was increasing dramatically between the three groups, then they heard a huge staff hitting the floor.

"Enough!" The man yelled. He was a tall and very muscular man that was bald. There were oval-shaped marks above his black eyes that lacked eyebrows. He had a bare chest with black belts. Around his neck was a mantle with horizontal blue and white stripes with yellow strings hanging along the edges. His waist had a long loincloth that was held up by a belt. His green scaly armbands composed much of his forearms. "We are here to create an alliance to take down the enemy!" His booming voice made everyone cease their actions. "We must not fight amongst ourselves!"

Lyon looked back. "Yes Jura-san."

Erza looked surprised. "That's Jura?"

"So that's him, Iron Rock Jura." Ren stated.

"Who?" Natsu was confused.

Happy turned towards him. "He's one of the Ten Wizard Saints."

Nic frowned, remembering the Ten Wizard Saints. With Makarov as the only exception to this point, his experience with the Ten Wizard Saints have been eventful to say the least. Jellal and Jose were so annoying to Nic. He just hoped Jura wasn't like them.

"There are three guilds that are meant to be present, that means only Cait Shelter is to arrive. From our resources, they are sending only one member." Jura explained.

"Just one?" Erza asked.

"Is that even allowed?" Sophie asked. "Shouldn't there be more?" She then looked at Nic.

"Don't look at me." Nic said. "I just listen, I don't make this stuff up."

They then heard a face fall flat. They all looked at the doorway and saw the little girl get up. Erza and Nic both looked in shock that this girl came. She was a small girl with fair skin. She had long dark blue hair that went down to her waist. She also had brown eyes. Like Natsu and Gajeel, she had elongated canines. She had a simple dress that was striped with yellow and blue with a big white ribbon on the chest, and with pointed white edges at the bottom. Her arms and wings had wing-like attachments.

"Um…I'm sorry that I'm late." She apologized while being shy. She then smiled. "I'm from Cait Shelter. My name's Wendy!"

"A little girl?" Lyon stated.

"Wendy." Natsu repeated.

"Just what was Cait Shelter thinking, sending a little girl?" Sherry said.

"She isn't alone." Another feminine voice called out, surprising everyone there. "You shouldn't jump to conclusions!"

Everyone, especially Happy, was surprised to see a white, female cat with brown eyes that were smaller than Happy's. She had a pink bow at the end of her tail. Her top consisted of a mustard yellow and pink with a red skirt.

"Whoa, she's just like Happy." Natsu stated.

"And it can talk just like Happy." Lucy said.

Wendy turned towards the white cat. "Whoa, Carla did you follow me here?"

"Of course I did." Carla stated. "You're far too young to be going alone child."

"Pretty kitty." The Trimens said.

"You flirt with cats too?!" Lucy exclaimed.

Carla looked at Happy and saw that Happy had hearts for eyes, meaning he's fallen in love at first sight. He was all shaking and he was gazing at her. Carla just sneered and looked away, shocking Happy. Happy then went up to Lucy's leg.

"Lucy, can you give her some fish of mine for me?" Happy pleaded.

"Eh? This love at first sight?" Lucy said.

"Looks like it." Sophie stated. "So much _ohevet_." She then crouched down to Happy's level. "Now Happy, you need to make the first move yourself, otherwise it won't be as effective." Sophie explained. She then saw Happy get all nervous and decide to be such a tease, and Lucy decided to join in.

"You liiiiiiiike her." Lucy and Sophie said in unison.

"You're both mimicking me! And you're rolling the tongue three times longer!"

Back on topic, Wendy was looking down. "Um…I-I can't fight at all, but I can use Magic that can support you. So…please don't leave me out!" She almost cried. Everyone there just looked at Wendy as she was all nervous.

"Child, it's because you're weak in the knees that people look down on you." Carla scolded.

"S-Sorry." Wendy apologized.

Somehow, Nic didn't seem like sending her back; in fact, it was the exact opposite. For some reason, this girl made Nic think of his sister back in Kalos. His sister was so nice, so caring. She wasn't at all bratty. You'd expect her to be a princess with the full attention she gets from their parents, but no. Nic's sister was fairly shy, but wanted to help Nic no matter what. And Wendy resembled her just like that. And not just that, but…this feeling. Her Magic seems…different yet resembling.

Nic stepped forward with a sincere smile, yet being aware. "It's alright. We were just shocked was all, absolute no offense to you. We are more than welcome to have you here Wendy." Nic greeted.

Wendy looked up and smiled. She marveled at Nic and how welcoming he was. "R-Really? Thank you so much!...wait, I've heard of you! You're Nic-san! I can't believe it's really you!" Wendy stated.

Nic nodded. "The honor is all mine Wendy."

Erza looked on with barely noticeable pink cheeks at Nic's hospitality. Initially, she was going to say the same thing, but Nic was just a little quicker. Nic was also making Wendy feel very much welcome. Erza admired Nic for so much more than just that type of quality. She then took notice of this Magic coming from Wendy, as Nic was sensing.

Carla looked up at her. "I've heard of you and how strong you are."

"I smell it." Ichiya said, sniffing the air and talking to Jura. "You sense it too, that child is not ordinary."

Jura nodded. "Yes, and it seems that Nic and Erza have noticed it a swell." He could see their similar expressions as Hibiki was wooing Wendy. Eventually, Ichiya told the Trimens that they were here on business.

'_This Magic from Wendy…it feels similar.' _Nic thought. He turned towards Erza. "Hey Erza?" Erza turned towards Nic. "This girl. Despite her looks, you can sense that power too right?"

"Right. I can't tell what kind of Magic it is, but…Wendy has a very unique Magic. Perhaps we should be cautious." Erza indicated.

Nic grinned. "Relax goddess, she doesn't mean any harm." Erza blushed when Nic quietly told her she was a goddess. "Aside from all of us, her support is very much needed, and she is much more friendly than…than…" Nic trailed off, his brain kicking it into overdrive. He then flashed into his Meadow Plate, though no one took notice nor cared because they were focused on Wendy. Nic almost went wide-eyed when he sensed her nature.

Erza noticed this. "Is there something wrong?"

"…I know now." Nic said. He then closed in on Erza so no one could hear them. "That Wendy, I know why it's similar yet different. When I compared it to Natsu, it felt similar in a way, yet the properties felt different." He then hushed the next part. "Only Natsu and Gajeel shared this similar feeling, that means that she could be…"

Erza realized what Nic meant and looked surprised. She figured out what Nic was saying and had realized that Wendy could very well be a Dragon Slayer. She turned back to him. "You really think she can be one?"

Nic nodded. "Positive. I couldn't get it from Laxus for some reason, maybe because that type of Magic wasn't active at the time. Maybe this Magic is still dormant. We'll have to save this matter for later, looks like the meeting's about to start." He then saw Ichyia get some lights and a rug. Nic shifted back into himself and the two made their way to where they all gathered around Ichyia.

"Now then." Ichyia started with a pose. "Let us debrief the mission at hand." He then struck another pose.

"You're going to brief us through interpretive dance?" Lucy asked.

"Sounds entertaining." Sophie commented.

Ichyia just continued with poses while Happy admired Carla. "Now then, our top priority is to determine the location of the Oracion Seis!...But first I must inspect the restroom's parfum." He then scooted quickly like a Krabby towards the restrooms, leaving everyone alone for a bit.

Sophie turned towards Erza. "So, are you and Nic official?" She teased in a hushed whisper.

Erza blushed and she crossed her arms and kept her composure. She made it so that no one could hear. "No…" She then got even redder. "…at least not yet."

Jura turned towards Nic. "I have heard tales of you Luminous-dono, your lone victory against the former Wizard Saint Jose, and the defeat of many others. I have even gotten word that you were promoted to S-Class. It is an honor to fight alongside one whose skills are at such a high level."

"The same goes on my end as well. It's a pleasure to be accompanied by another peaceful Wizard Saint other than Makarov." Nic stated.

They then saw Ichiya scooted back in place with a new pose. "Much better, now pay close attention." He then began. "To the North lies the Worth Woodsea. The Ancients had sealed a Magic within the forest. Its name is…Nirvana!" He then struck a pose.

"Those poses are getting annoying." Gray stated.

"I guess I can't be wrong when saying he's a 'poser'." Sophie joked, earning a few squeaks from the group. Nic and Erza were keeping their guard up, as this 'Nirvana' didn't sound too good.

"Never heard of it." Lyon testified.

Ren then spoke. "We don't much but the name itself, and only that it's very destructive in nature."

"Destruction Magic huh?" Natsu said.

"I knew I had a bad feeling." Lucy said.

Hibiki continued. "We assume that's why the Oracion Seis ventured to the Worth Woodsea. They want to get their hands on such a destructive force."

"The name Nirvana." Nic stated. "If you ask me it's ironic. The Ancients made such a destructive weapon, yet they named it ever so pleasant. Just a hunch, but maybe they sought peace at a time and this Nirvana would be the answer. That would make sense if you think about it."

"Your insight is fairly accurate Nic-dono. Perhaps that's one thing that history had forgotten, though your hunch will be taken into our considerations." Jura stated. "The name Nirvana stands for peace. And with Nic's hunch, we could say that this force was used to do as told. This force would have been sealed away later on."

"Along those lines, yes." Ren stated. "Like we said, we only know its name."

"Though what Nic did say does sound like a possibility." Eve said.

"If I may ask, what lead you to making such a conclusion Nic?" Hibiki asked.

Nic then spoke. "Well, about two years ago roughly from where I came from, there was this group that went by the name of Team Flare. I got into a scuffle with them on several occasions and managed to come across their biggest plan yet. To start, their goal was to create a more beautiful world, and to do so, they needed to gain the powers of these creatures known as Legendary Pokémon. One was of life and one was of destruction. They were known as Xerneas and Yveltal. They needed Xerneas's life powers to give life and operate this three thousand year old weapon called "The Ultimate Weapon". From there, they would use Yveltal's destructive powers and have said weapon unleash massive destruction. In the past, it was meant to bring Pokémon back to life, but Team Flare used this weapon as a means of destruction and kill of everyone. What was meant as a means of life was turned into destruction."

Everyone there looked all too surprised that Nic actually had a similar situation like this before. No wonder why he was so keen on Nirvana and its background, despite the little information he had.

"A-Amazing." Hibiki said. "So you're saying that these beings of life and death were meant to turn into others' demise?"

"Precisely." Nic said. "Fortunately, I was able to stop them, but that's left undisclosed. Right now we have to deal with Nirvana and how what was meant for peace was brought into destruction."

"Yeah." Gray agree. "I think Nic knows more about this situation than what we give him credit for. Though Nic, you're saying these legendaries were being of life and death?"

Nic nodded. "Yes. Xerneas's life powers were meant to give life, when the weapon itself wanted death. That's what worries me about Nirvana. The name sounds like life much like Xerneas. The destructive force reminds me of Yveltal. Put those two properties together, and you can see the resemblance of Nirvana and The Ultimate Weapon."

"I see." Erza was beyond surprised. Nic must have been through more than what she had realized. If he had dealt with a similar situation, then he knows how to start. "So Nic, did you know what this Team Flare did in order to grasp this machine?"

"Yes, I do. Team Flare just needed a trigger. They sapped power from a power plant just north into the badlands. They then got the legendaries and they started up the machine. Somewhat simple. If possible, the Oracion Seis are doing just that. If I had to guess even further, I'd say they either have the trigger, or they are looking for it in the Worth Woodsea along with Nirvana."

Once again, Nic has stunned the group. If the Oracion Seis were there for that purpose as well, it may be possible for Nic to have already figure out why they were there.

"Once again Nic, I praise you for your insight. If we can possibly kind their triggers along with taking them down, then maybe Nirvana will be kept alone." Hibiki said. "We'll have to get some intel on these Oracion Seis, give me a minute." Hibiki then snapped his fingers and appearing beside him was a translucent floating keyboard and screen and pressed the keyboard with ease.

Jura looked surprised. "That's Archive magic." Jura stated. "That's very rare."

Just then, photos of the six Oracion Seis members were revealed to them all.

"First up is Cobra, the Snake Wizard." Hibiki said. Cobra was a slim and average height man with spiky maroon hair that went upwards. There was a tuft and bangs that were his sideburns. He had slanted eyes, similar to Natsu. Flat nose with canine teeth showing. He had a white coat with purple inner lining and a high collar. He also had crimson leather pants. Aside from him, the picture showed his giant purple snake named Cubellios.

"Snake eyes and a smirk. He looks like trouble." Natsu said.

"That's basically you." Lyon stated.

"Next is a wizard who most likely uses Speed Magic. Racer." Hibiki said. Racer was a tall long-faced man, with the middle part of his hair being a yellow mohawk and the black sides shaven. He had long blond eyebrows and a hooked nose. He also had sunglasses, much like Nic. He had white racing suit, with the jacket being partly red and white pants.

"Then comes the one guy who will wipe out an entire military unit for a large profit, Heavenly Eyes Hoteye." Hoteye was the tallest member and his body resembled to that of polygon shapes, having no round parts. He had long wavy orange hair that went below his shoulders. He had blue eyes with eyelashes, flat nose and feminine lips. He had a loose black shirt with the sleeves having merged rhombuses. He had a white collar and a necklace made of beads.

"He kills to make a profit?" Sherry exclaimed.

"How despicable." Jura stated.

Hibiki continued. "Next is the woman who is gorgeous, but no less vicious, Angel." She had a dress with white frills on the skirt and a dark-sleeved blouse over her dress. She had a dark blue ribbon in her short white hair. She had what seemed to be angel wings and also wore long dark blue gloves. She also had dark blue stockings and feathered boots.

"The next guy we don't know much about, but his name is Midnight." Midnight was cross-legged and slept on a flying carpet. He had spiky black hair above his white hair, as well as what seemed to be dark lipstick. He had a black vest and yellow pants that were lined in black.

"That's an odd name. Does it correspond with his powers?" Erza asked.

"Only time will tell." Nic said, making Dialga sneeze in another dimension.

"Finally is the leader, Brain." Brain had shoulder length silver hair, dark eyes, and dark skin. His face had black marks that looked like lines. His bare chest had the Oracion Seis mark on it. He had blue pants with light blue long arrows pointing down just at the knees. His legs had what seemed to be a spiral of feathers on each leg. His top was a coat that was also a white cape the feather lining. He had what seemed to be a skull staff with a blue orb in the mouth and leafy headwear.

"There you have it. Together those guys are far too formidable." Hibiki said, making the images disappear.

Lucy and Wendy were shaking heavily, while Sophie was shivering slightly. Lucy raised her hand. "Um, can I stay behind and not die today?" She asked.

"Me too, I don't wanna die either." Wendy squealed.

"My friends, perhaps we may also do more than just mortal combat. We have also the job to find the enemy's stronghold and perhaps do as Nic estimated." Ichiya said, posing again. "We shall lure them there."

"How do we get them there?" Gray asked.

"WE BEAT THEM UPAND DRAG THEIR BUTTS THERE!" Natsu said with fists ready.

"Somebody's a little too excited." Lucy said.

"What's the next phase?" Erza wondered. Ichyia then pointed up and everyone else looked to see a giant ship in the shape of a Pegasus, with the front part of the chest looking like a red center, much like a cannon.

"We give them a one-way ticket to oblivion! Catered to the Christina!" Ichyia exclaimed.

"Isn't that overkill?" Lucy asked.

"This is what we need to take down this type of enemy!" Jura said, shocking Lucy. "Now listen, under no circumstances should you engage the enemy in solo combat! This is a joint operation, so we should have at least two Mages for each fight." Everyone was okay, getting a nod. Nic didn't nod. Personally, he despises taking orders. He'd rather be giving them, but still he kept himself assured and he kept his mouth shut.

Just then, they all saw the door smash open, with Natsu doing the work and running. "ALL RIGHT! LET'S GO BASH SOME HEADS!" He then left a large dust trail as he was too eager to stop.

The team from Fairy Tail just watched with sweat drops as Natsu just went for the charge.

"There he goes again, impulsive as always." Nic sighed.

"I fear that his mental health may need some checking up to do." Lucy stated.

"Who here bets that he didn't even listen to the plan?" Gray said.

"Five fish." Happy said.

"Enough gawking, let's move!" Erza said. Just then, she started and then Gray, Sophie, and a whining Lucy followed, with Nic obviously leading them all due to his speed.

"I don't wanna die today!" Lucy whined.

"Lucy, shut up back there!" Nic shouted. Lucy instantly clamped up and she proceeded with running. The rest of the Allied Forces followed suit, leaving just Jura and Ichyia.

Jura turned to Ichyia. "In any case, the operation has begun. We should meet up with them quickly."

Ichyia then posed. "Hold your nose, I have heard that you are one of the Ten Wizard Saints. Is this statement true?"

"Indeed I am." Jura said.

Ichyia then posed again. "It's quite a privilege to fight alongside someone as skilled as Master Makarov."

Jura then held up a hand in objection. "I wouldn't go that far. The title of the Ten Wizard Saints is given by the Magic Council. Comparing me to that of Makarov is that of Heaven and Earth."

"I see. That might be the best news I've heard all day." Ichyia said, startling Jura. Ichyia then released a parfum that Jura was beginning to choke on. Jura then fell to his knees. "This parfum drains the enemy's will to fight." Then then released a red parfum that shocked Jura, tormenting him even further. When Jura fell on his back, Ichiya then turned into a puff of smoke and in his place were two small blue creatures with dark eyes and opposite frowns and grins and straps along their bodies.

"We're back to normal." One said.

"That copy was so smelly and gross!" The other complained.

They both then saw Jura get up, and Jura saw that Angel was spectating on the sides. "What?! No! Why are you here?!" Jura struggled to say.

Angel pouted. "Isn't it obvious? We copied your comrade darling. You've been fooled thinking that Gemini was the real dumpy thing. Copied memories, Magic and all."

"Now we know your plan." One of the Gemini twins said.

Jura was beyond surprise. "No."

Angel winked. "Yes. Two down and twelve to go." She ten saw Jura fall. "There's no stopping the Oracion Seis."

* * *

**With the Allied Forces**

Natsu was moving fast with excitement, and Nic, Gray, and Erza were the first ones to catch up to him.

"Slow down numbskull!" Gray shouted.

"In your dreams pal!" Natsu protested, smiling as he was actually speeding up.

"That's an order Natsu!" Erza shouted.

Natsu tilted his head towards her. "Oh come on now. You afraid I might show you up?"

"Say what?!" Erza exclaimed in irritation. "STOP MOVING YOUR FEET RIGHT NOW!" Her dark demeanor was booming, startling Natsu.

"Gah! Just kidding around!" Natsu shouted in a freaked out manner. He then slipped and he started falling down over the cliff. Nic shifted into the Sky Plate and zoomed in and caught him just before he was lost in the tree canopies. Nic flapped as he grasped Natsu's body with one arm. Nic flapped in place as he was gaining composure.

"Listen you impulsive match stick." Nic said to a now motion sick Natsu with puffy cheeks. "We aren't here to get on each other's nerves. Now come on!" He then gradually escalated back up to the cliff's edge and he arose and dropped Natsu on the edge, barely holding in his vomit. Nic got to the ground and shifted back into himself. "Just for once, can you just not irritate us?"

"Well, at least he ain't moving." Gray said.

Erza walked up and pressed her foot on Natsu's head as he was still getting out of his motion sickness. "Natsu, you should know better than to be joking around. You are not to engage the enemy alone. Am I clear this time?!" She exclaimed the last part as she was irritated from Natsu riling her up. She heard a gurgle from him, meaning a yes. "Good." She then stepped off of Natsu and backed away, only to see a large bump.

"Well he hasn't changed much." Lyon stated. "To think I clashed fists with him. This rather embarrassing."

"It's another form of love." Sherry said. The others behind were slowly catching up. The group continued onward deep into the forest with Nic now hopping about through the trees as a more easier route; but more than that, he might get a good view of the enemy if they might be airborne or are hiding up ahead.

As they kept getting deeper, Nic had a spooky feeling as they continued running. It was either the enemy or some ominous force. Nic was still leaping through the trees and shifted into the Dread Plate as a way to not only detect the spooky sensation in a more concentrate manner, but also keep his spine and senses going crazy.

'_This is very peculiar.'_ He thought. _'Ichiya said that Nirvana was deep within the woodsea. Could it be that this Magic Nirvana has had seeped into the trees and forest itself? Or could it be that Nirvana may be close at hand…no. I can't get sidetracked, no matter how annoying it may be. Who knows? Maybe the Oracion Seis is close by?'_

They then came into a rocky clearing, where everyone had finally caught up. There was a shadow above everyone's heads as they had ventured through the rocky clearing, with Nic still keeping his guard up by staying in the Dread Plate.

Natsu looked up, only for him to slow down drastically and have Gray dash into him.

"Oh?! So we're dishing out cheap shots huh?!" Natsu retorted with a glare at Gray.

"If I wanted to beat you I'd do it head on!" Gray retorted.

"Focus!" Erza shouted, getting between them and shoving them away from each other.

"Lyon!" Sherry said, looking up to the sky.

"I see it too." He said. Everyone there was seeing the Christina venturing above them.

"That's the Magic Bomber, Christina." Erza said with a slight sense of awe.

"I want one!" Natsu said.

Nic turned towards Natsu. "You couldn't even go two seconds with me in my Sky Plate you know?" Natsu then looked pale, realizing it involves being transportation. As the bomber sailed over their heads, Nic looked around. "Okay, split up in groups of at least two and find their ba-!" Just then, the right side of Christina exploded, shocking everyone. They all saw the Magic Bomber exploding bit by bit from all around.

Everyone there watched at Christina fell far ahead and into the forest, creating a gigantic explosion. Everyone gasped with harsh shock at the horrific spectacle.

"This can't go well!" Lyon exclaimed.

As the explosion dialed down, everyone could sense the atmosphere change, the first one noticing was Nic. He tensed up. "We have company."

Natsu sniffed the air, realizing that Nic was right. "Yeah, they're here."

"I guess we should stay sharp." Sophie stated. Everyone then tensed up and got into fighting stances, all except Wendy, who coward behind a rock.

From the smoke, everyone saw six figures walk out. All of them gave off a demeanor that gave them chills, but Nic was in his Dread Plate to keep from doing so. Nic and everyone else saw the very same people they saw from Hibiki's Archive Magic.

The Oracion Seis.

The six members, plus snake, all stared and glared at the Allied Forces. Brain looked at them and examined them all with no interest.

"Low life insects, just swarming about." Brain said.

"It looks like shorty ain't gonna make it to the party." Amgel informed.

"And that bald guy." "We took them down." The two Gemini twins said.

The Trimens and Lyon were shocked. "Impossible!" Lyon shouted.

"No way! Boss was out just like that?!" Hibiki exclaimed.

Cobra smiled evilly. "The sounds of their screams, it was a symphony."

"The quicker the better." Racer said. "I'll run over you so fast, your heads will spin."

"Money determines strength in this world!" Hoteye said, holding a book. "Oh yeah! If you save a penny today, it'll become a mere fortune in the future!"

Erza glared at them. "I have to admit, I didn't expect you to show yourselves."

Natsu cracked his knuckles. "You ready?"

"More than you ever know." Gray said. The two then raced at the Oracion Seis in a haste.

"Deal with them." Brain ordered.

"Yes sir!" Racer said. Racer then vanished just like that, and Nic was fairly in shock at the speed behind this guy. To Nic, this was like seeing a max Speed Ninjask. Nic dealt with this in battles, so detecting these movements may be possible if he used his senses. He watched as Racer appeared behind Natsu and Gray and turned upside down. "**Motor!**" He spun and spiral kicked Natsu and Gray.

"Natsu! Gray!" The two Lucy's shouted. The two Lucy's turned in confusion, and then one Lucy got her whip and started whipping the other Lucy.

"Hope you're having fun!" The fake Lucy smiled.

"Why am I whipping myself?!" Lucy exclaimed. Angel watched as Gemini was having fun.

"Sherry, let's do this!" Lyon stated, accompanied by Sherry as they dashed towards Hoteye. Hoteye put two fingers close to his eyes and then he slowly opened them.

"Oh yeah! **Liquid Ground!**" Just then the ground under Lyon and Sherry was turned into quicksand and they were stuck. Hoteye then released a shockwave and the two were caught up in a tidal wave of liquid ground.

The Trimens were going after Angel as she was vulnerable, but Racer stopped them cold and delivered harsh blows, knocking them all down. Racer then saw that Nic was right in front of him. "Surprise, **Feint Attack!**" Nic then vanished, surprising Racer.

"What? Where'd he go?" Racer looked around and zoomed about so as not to be surprised. Racer was in midair as he was turning, and Nic shot a kick across the face, making Racer fly into the earth.

"I've seen that speed before." Nic said. He then saw Erza in her Heaven's Wheel Armor and sending forty swords at Cobra, but none had landed.

"But how?! Is he reading my movements?!" Erza exclaimed. She then turned around and saw that Racer was quarreling with Nic, to which she saw Nic's Sucker Punch miss and Racer was about to land a harsh blow to his face, but Nic anticipated it with the reflexes he had and caught his punch.

Racer tried getting away, but Nic kept a firm grip. "Like I said, I've seen things just as fast as you." Nic then kept his grip extremely tight, but Racer was tempted to get away as he then delivered a multitude of kicks. Nic felt every blow to his body as each kick felt painful. Nic grunted, but still didn't dare to let go.

"You little punk!" Racer squabbled.

Nic turned towards Erza. "Hey Erza, trade ya!" Nic then threw Racer by using Foul Play and hurling him towards Erza, who then accepted the offer and they gave smiles to each other before Nic sprinted into Cobra.

Erza slashed at Racer, but Racer recovered just in time to block with a kick and disappear and reappear behind and kick her. "Your little boyfriend may be fast, but he's nowhere close to me!"

Erza was angry, yet flustered that Racer accused Nic as Erza's boyfriend and she turned with a red face.

"Silence!" She then requipped into her Flight Armor and she dashed into Racer, but Racer was not one to be considered still as he also evaded all of Erza's slashes.

"Your buddy there had some dirty moves. He obviously knows more of speed than I give him credit more." Racer said, still evading Erza left and right, over and under.

Nic glared at Cobra for a brief moment before he looked at his snake, Cubellios. "That your snake?"

Cobra raised a brow. "Yeah. What's it to ya?" Cobra then heard Nic's thought and he heard him pit some weird creature against Cubellios. "…interesting."

Nic got out a poke ball. "I got a friend that your snake would love to meet! Get out here Arbok!" Nic shouted, throwing the poke ball as Gray was being hammered by Gemini and Natsu was pummeled by Racer briefly, all the while Hoteye launched another torrent of Liquid Ground at Lyon and Sherry.

Arbok came out of his poke ball, hissing. "Nic-ssssssama, what isssss it that you dessssire me to do?" Arbok asked as to how he may serve his trainer.

Cubellios hissed harshly at Arbok, seeing a threatening snake in her presence. "Huh?" Cobra turned to see that his beloved Cubellios was tensing up with the need to take on Arbok. "Cubellios, I've never seen you like this."

Nic then pointed at the snake. "See that snake?" Arbok looked and saw the snake munch the air and bare its fangs, making Arbok tense up with the same ambition that drove Cubellios. "Show it you're the king cobra."

"Assssssss you wish." Arbok said with slight haste as he almost immediately lunged at Cubellios.

Cobra could see that his pet snake wanted to get into the action and he couldn't stop it. He decided to let it happen. "Go Cubellios!"

Cubellios then lunged at high speed at Arbok. The two snakes hissed loud as Arbok readied his Ice Fang, encasing his fangs in ice and making them grow. Cubellios opened her mouth and the two snakes bit into the other, thrashing about insanely, with Cubellios repeatedly squirming as to where Arbok was keeping his fangs into her long body. Cubellios bit Arbok's tail, but Arbok was more persistent and he let his Ice Fang loose and then used Ice Fnag again closer to her neck, making Cubellios roar in pain and Arbok tossed her, making her squirm.

"Cubellios!" Cobra shouted, but was stopped when he heard Nic's thoughts and he turned and ducked an incoming Sucker Punch. "Saw that one coming!" He then punched Nic in the gut and Nic grunted and stumbled back. Nic then chose to switch tactics and then he switched into the Zap Plate. Cobra then sneered. "I've never seen Cubellios this riled up before. You must have brought some fierce competition."

Arbok was bit on his side by Cubellios and was driven up into the air and thrown into the ground, making the Cobra Pokémon yelp in pain. He saw Cubellios come straight down and he turned over, watching the bigger snake miss and swerve off in another direction so as not to hit the ground head on. Cubellios circled around and serpentine her way on Arbok's left. Arbok looked and he awaited until it was right.

"That'ssss it you pitiful sssscale facccced freak. Come here!" Arbok was raring to lay some serious hurt. When it was just about right, Arbok showed his pattern and it glowed red, signaling Glare. Cubellios was too late as she was engulfed in a red aura and yellow sparks enveloped around her, making her temporarily numb. "You're mine! GRAH!" Arbok then opened his mouth and initiated Ice Fang, biting down on Cubellios's snout and raising her into the air and slamming her down, making a serpentine-like crater. There was a bit of dust and Arbok looked on as Cubellios was lying there.

"Had enough yet?!" Arbok said. Cubellios opened her eyes, making Arbok grunt and she opened her mouth and bit Arbok's body once again, driving him back in the process and then throwing him afar. Arbok tumbled as he was hitting the ground a few times. Arbok stopped in a skid and he used the skid to his advantage and made some momentum, making him serpentine faster than before and circle back towards Cubellios. "**Ice Fang!**" Arbok refused to go down as he wanted to come out on top. Cubellios then lunged at Arbok and the two snakes had bit into each other's sides again. Arbok clamped down as Cubellios pressed harder, but then paralysis kicked in and Cubellios let go, leaving Arbok to then drive her into the dust and thrash her about. "You think you could take me on! I won't let a sssssnake like you trash me around!" Arbok proclaimed.

Erza pressed on with slashing at high speed, still unable to land a hit on Racer. Racer was still dodging and then Sophie was trying to get a clear shot to use an original Memory-Make, but Hoteye stopped her by using Liquid Ground beneath her feet and then had Sophie swirl in a cyclone that crashed into Erza, knocking them both down. Still, Erza managed to get up while Sophie struggled.

"Coward!" Erza shouted, proclaiming that Racer was running away and had already took down Natsu and gained up on the Trimens as he did before. "Face my sword head on!" Erza zoomed in and Racer still dodged with incredible speed, even scoring a kick in her abdomen.

"I like fast women, but you still have a lot to learn red!" Racer sneered, still in combat with Erza.

Nic was letting loose a Thunderbolt that Cobra dodged, and then Cobra foresaw Nic using Thunder Punch. Cobra dodged by ducking and leaning back to avoid a spiraling Thunder Punch and then a downward strike.

"It's no use. I already know your move before you even make it!" Cobra proclaimed. He then caught Nic's arm as his Thunder Punch missed. The two were in a lock as Cobra was holding Nic's arm and the two were in a cold stare against the other. Nic grunted as Cobra even blocked Nic's left-armed hooked Thunder Punch and gripped his arm as well. "Like I said Luminous. I can hear pain, your thoughts, everything…" He then heard and actually saw into Nic's past. Cobra heard and saw Nic getting pummeled by his parents and taking major shocks from Magneton, even seeing him come into this world. Cobra went wide-eyed and gasped.

Cobra was all too surprised. "What-What are you?" Cobra muttered.

Nic saw him in this shocked state. Leaving him open. "Got you! **Spark!**" Now Nic grabbed Cobra and was engulfed in electricity, making Cobra feel a brief yet powerful physical shock run through every nerve in his body. Cobra yelped in pain.

Nic then let go and shoved Cobra away. He leaped away to cover some distance and then was going to use Shock Wave, but Racer showed up from his left and dealt a fast blow to his face.

"Cobra! Get with the program!" Racer shouted. Nic turned to Racer and then fired a Shock Wave at him, which then actually send streams of electricity that Racer evaded, but when Racer reappeared, the electric blast had followed him. This kept up until Racer was eventually hit by the trailing Shock Wave that even followed him as fast as lightning. "I-Impossible! Why?!"

"Because some attacks can never miss!" Nic retorted, but was then stopped as he leaped back to evade a Liquid Ground that came at him by Hoteye.

"Oh yeah! Money trumps attack that never miss!" He proclaimed, making the ground beneath Nic turned into liquid, which prompted Nic to start dashing to evade the ground.

Cubellios shot glares at Arbok and then struggled to break free of Arbok's Ice Fang. She was freed from Arbok's fangs and then Arbok lunged again, but Cubellios slammed her tail into Arbok's side, making him stop and she then swatted Arbok's other side, making him fall onto his side. Arbok grunted and then Cubellios closed in and tried to bite him again, but Arbok was a glutton for punishment.

With witty reflexes from training, he sprung back up and evaded the bite from Cubellios. She then looked at Arbok and hissed.

"You're no fruit cake either lady!" Arbok stated. Cubellios lunged at Arbok again, but Arbok made a silver light in front of his abdomen and then it made a black garbage bag with purple outlining. "**Gunk Shot!**" Arbok launched the attack at Cubellios with so much speed behind it. The attack smashed into Cubellios's face as she opened her mouth, making a large purple explosion upon gruesome impact. Arbok waited to see what happened, and it was seen as when the smoke cleared, Cubellios was badly damaged in the scales and scratched up. She hissed at Arbok and Arbok grunted.

"She hassss a death wish." Arbok mumbled. The two snakes then closed in and they bit into each other's bodies again, trashing about and squirming as they even spiraling about and slammed each other with Arbok's Ice Fang not letting up with Cubellios's gruesome fangs as well.

Nic shifted into his Toxic Plate and then he was going to use Sludge Wave, but then saw that there was a black and red bombardment heading right for him. Nic immediately shifted tactics and cartwheeled to evade dashed about to avoid the attacks. He turned to see where the attack came from, which was revealed to be Cobra, but his right arm was coated in crimson scales with a milky smooth underside.

"Wait a minute." Nic said. "Just what…oh no." Then he realized what Cobra was, seeing those scales on his arms. It reminded him of Gajeel and Natsu. "Don't tell me…"

Cobra smirked. "I'm impressed Luminous, nobody has been able to hit me like that in a long while. It looks like you're going to have to quarrel with a Poison Dragon Slayer now!"

"You have got to be pulling my freakin leg." Nic mumbled, and sure enough, Racer appeared and grabbed Nic's leg and tossed him up.

"Nic!" Erza shouted, but she was occupied with evading Hoteye's Liquid Ground that send a rippling wave at her. She leaped and then zoomed in at him, but then Racer gave her a knee to the right side, throwing her off and she was now on a knee and panting. "Curse you."

Nic saw Cobra make a Magic seal and then he held his arm out. "**Poison Dragon's Twin Fang!**" Cobra then moved his arms in a cross, making elongated snake-like masses that spiraled towards Nic. Nic countered by using Sludge Wave, sending his own wave of poison to counter Cobra's. The two attacks collided, making black, red, and purple spiral about uncontrollably. The two came out unscathed, with Cobra smirking.

Nic turned and was going to do a Cross Poison, but then he saw Erza and she was cornered with Hoteye and Racer. He saw Hoteye put two fingers close to his eyes and then two waves went towards Erza as she was still on a knee. Nic knew this was bad, however he saw it.

Nic didn't want to see Erza take this, so he did what his gut told him and he ignored Cobra and leaped in front of Erza and he put his arms up and was preparing for Hoteye's waves.

Erza looked too baffled. "Nic! What are you doing?!"

"Protecting you!" Nic shouted just before the waves then turned into a massive spiral and smashed into Nic, swallowing him up and spiraling him into the air. Erza watched helplessly as the spiral spit Nic out high in the air and Racer drove a knee into his face, making Nic gag and flip in the air.

"That guy's persistent!" Cobra said. "Time to shut his lights out! **Poison Dragon's Roar!**"

"Let my Liquid Ground cover that poor fellow!" Hoteye then used his Liquid Ground again and then made a spiral again that serpentine around the massive Poison Dragon's Roar.

"…so this is what Luminous could really do." Brain muttered. "He has a lot of potential, but not enough. **Dark Capriccio!**" Then then fired a green beam with red spirals from Klodoa and all three attacks had combined, going at Nic with intensive force.

The worst of it all was that Nic was unable to shift after gagging from the knee to the face by Racer, meaning he was all too open. Erza looked on with a horrific gasp and wide eyes as Nic was about to be hit.

'…_oh shi-!' _That was all the time Nic got before he was hit head on, making him gap and nearly grunt. Sadly, the combination of all three horrendous attacks was too much and Nic went wide-eyed and yet no screams from him, but extreme pain that rivaled that to his childhood when he took a Zap Cannon a bunch of times from Magneton. There was a heinous tempest of black, red, green, and earth in the air above, spreading tremendously and Erza watched helplessly as she saw Nic get swallowed up.

"…no." She muttered. She saw a huge smoke in the sky and then saw Nic fall straight down while spiraling, smashing into the ground, creating a big crater that was the size of himself. Erza was frozen stiff as she saw Nic take a horrendous hit. A small tear was beginning to form from her eyes. "…no. Nic."

She was then surprised with a gasp as Racer appeared in front of her and kicked her repeatedly in front, and then using Motor and sending her spiraling towards an unconscious Nic. Erza landed and she grunted in pain and she struggled to get up. She couldn't even get to a knee as she was almost crying for Nic.

"N-Nic. I'm so sorry." Erza began to tear up. It was because of her that Nic took all of those hits for her. It was her safety alone that Nic wanted to keep protected. He tried his absolute best; and if it wasn't for his actions, perhaps they would've been in opposite circumstances.

Nic was down and out like a light while Erza and everyone else was struggling to even get up. Cobra ceased his Poison Dragon Slayer Magic and then he called out to Cubellios, who was still quarreling with Arbok. "Cubellios!" Cobra shouted. Cubellios was all battered up, as was Arbok and both sides were shaken up, but were still looking for more scales to crush. Cubellios turned to Cobra in curiosity. "We're done here." Cubellios hissed and turned back towards Arbok and then sneered. Arbok then watched as Cubellios reluctantly turned and slithered back and around her master.

Arbok sneered with deep disgust. "Thissssss isssssn't over! You hear me?!" Arbok and Cubellios then hissed at each other and with that done, Arbok turned with extreme shock and horror as his trainer was all battered up and beaten to a bloody pulp. "NIC-SSSSAMA!" Arbok rushed extremely fast towards Nic's side and looked at him with a low bow. Arbok saw that Nic was out and Arbok drooped and had his head down in shame. He was heavily ashamed of his failure to protect Nic. He was so caught up in his rivalry that his senses were too focused on Cubellios and not Nic. Arbok drooped his head and looked sad upon seeing his defeated trainer that he came to learn to respect as not only a trustworthy master, but a family.

"Nic-ssssama. I am sssorry. I failed you." Arbok muttered.

Brain sneered. "Now, I suppose this is the end for you!" He then held up Klodoa and began gathering such dark energy all around. Everyone conscious could sense such darkness coming up from the ground and being concentrated into Brain's staff. "**Dark-**!" He then saw that Wendy was hiding with tears behind a rock and was looking while being timid.

The Oracion Seis, and Cubellios, all turned to Brain. "What's the matter Brain? You gonna cast the spell?" Racer asked.

"Wendy?" Brain said. Wendy, rather curious, peeked around the rock. She looked to see that brain was baffled to find her. "No doubt about it. That's Wendy, The Maiden of the Sky."

Gray looked up in some confusion. "Maiden…of the sky?"

Wendy hid behind the rock and panicked. "What does that mean?!" She panicked, not understanding what was going on.

Brain grinned. "We didn't expect to see you here. It looks like we have found ourselves a nice present." He then made a Magic seal in front of Klodoa and a green energy extended far into the air and made a hand that grabbed Wendy, making the girl scream.

Lucy and Sophie gasped as they saw Wendy being grabbed.

"Wendy!" Happy and Carla shouted. "Help me!" Carla was racing along with Happy to get to Wendy as fast as they could.

Natsu struggled and was now beginning to get up. "Man! Striking us while we're down, that's dirty!"

"All is fair in money and war, oh yeah!" Hoteye then made the ground under them all ripple with huge waves and the landscape was pretty much now curved spikes on the ridges, and then it came crashing down and everyone was send flying again, unable to help Wendy. Wendy was going to reach for Carla.

"Grab my paw!" Carla shouted. Wendy reached and she was fortunate to grab a paw…though it wasn't Carla's.

"Uh oh." Happy said as he was caught by Wendy.

"Wrong cat!" Carla shouted. It was too late as Happy and Wendy screamed as they were swallowed up by the green energy and taken away from them and disappeared.

"Wendy!" Carla shouted.

"Happy!" Natsu shouted.

"Begone with the rest of you! **Dark Rondo!**" Brain then unleashed a huge amount of heinous green energy that then began to rain down from above.

"Look out!" Hibiki grabbed Lucy and covered her, while Eve and Sophie tried to get away.

"I got you!" Lyon shouted, getting Sherry.

"Oh yes, it's love!" Sherry said.

The Dark Rondo then was coming closer, and then Jura appeared out of the blue. Jura was able to make a Magic seal in front of himself from his left hand. "**Iron Rock Wall!**" The rock around the ridges above them then formed a multitude of columns that stacked and protected everyone there. The Dark Rondo Spell kept blasting away, but the shield of rocks that Jura made had the spell stop.

"Just in time." Jura said.

"That was awesome!" Sherry exclaimed, now safe.

"Thank you Jura!" Eve said.

"Yes, we can't thank you enough." Sophie said.

The dust was clearing out, and most of everyone was getting back to their feet. Natsu was determined to go for round two. "Okay." He said. "Let's take them down!"

But when they looked, they saw that the Oracion Seis wasn't there. They were all gone, along with Wendy and Happy.

"What?!" Natsu shouted. "We let them get away!"

Carla looked on as she had a sad expression on her face. "…Wendy."

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**Let's be real here, the fight in the anime was just as scrambled as was mine, though the snake fight was all my handy work. Yeah, Nic was overpowered, but everyone was. Still, if the fight was decent for your tastes, and you are okay with how I made the situation, leave a friendly Review.**

**Not the best flashback of Nic's childhood, but at least you get the idea as to what he had to go through.**

**Credits go out to DeoxysSpeed with his help of Sophie and her Hebrew.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys support and are loving the fights and the suspenseful twists I give off.**

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**Next Time: Divide and Conquer**


	25. Divide and Conquer

Chapter 25 – Divide and Conquer

**I have nothing to say except a lack of Reviews for last chapter, so on with the program.**

**To Recap:**

Nic, Sophie, and Team Natsu all combine forces with Blue Pegasus, Lamina Scale, and Cait Shelter to take down the Oracion Seis. Conflicts arrive rather quickly, but they all manage to cooperate. They all race to find the Oracion Seis's stronghold, but were disrupted when the Oracion Seis themselves appear. Though it was a tough fight, the Allied Forces were hammered and Nic went down protecting Erza. Brain captured Wendy and Happy and fled.

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**Chapter 25 – Divide and Conquer**

The Allied Forces were getting up, all scratched up from their scuffle that ended up turning into their painful experience with the Oracion Seis. "We wiped the floor with us." Ren muttered.

"They're stronger than what we thought." Eve said, getting up right beside him.

"The Oracion Seis. Just six members yet they wield unimaginable power." Lyon stated.

The members turned their heads at the wreckage that was aside from them, revealing it to be the Christina. Sherry was slightly shaken. "Just look at what they did to Christina in the blink of an eye."

Jura turned back towards the others. "According to Angel, they know everything about our mission, plans and everything. We were fortunate that there were no casualties."

"What about everyone inside Christina?" Asked a worried Sophie.

"Don't worry pretty lady." Hibiki assured.

"Christina is equipped with a remote control setting, so no pilot is required." Eve stated.

"We were about to climb aboard once we've found their base, but as you see we didn't make it that far." Hibiki continued. Sophie sighed in relief that there wasn't anybody inside and everyone came out alright.

"We were fortunate that you came out unscathed." Lyon said to Jura. Jura turned with some disappointment.

"Unfortunately, I had sustained some serious damage." Jura said. "I barely made it out alive. Their power terrifies me." He then looked at Ichiya, who was scratched up, but was posing like a boss. "I hate to admit it, but if it weren't for Ichyia-dono's Pain Relieving Perfume, I wouldn't be standing as of now."

"Detestable Oracion Seis." Ichyia stated. "Instead of facing your foes, you have chosen to flee." Then he posed like a champion. "Which means we win by default!"

"THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS GENIUS!" Gray reprimanded.

Ichyia then turned towards the others. "Now, we may be down, but are most certainly not out! Here! Take a whiff and let my Pain Relieving Perfume ease you!" Then he opened up a tube and a turquoise scent came rising from the tube and everyone saw the scent disperse, making their pain from their injuries dispel significantly.

"Wow. What a relaxing scent." Sherry commented. "My pain just died away."

"It works so efficiently." Sophie commented. She then turned towards Ichyia, who was posing and saying men again. "If only that _timhoni_ and just stop that _nilag _posing."

"Nice going chief!" The Trimens cheered.

"They called him something different again?!" Lucy exclaimed.

Natsu was up on his feet and was downright annoying. "What the heck we do now? Those punks took off with Wendy and Happy." He then took a leap forward and began running. "I gotta go find-!" He was then tugged by his scarf by a flying Carla and Natsu fell to the ground onto his back.

"You mustn't be reckless!" Carla scolded. "You need to calm down and relax."

Everyone behind her were whispering about her Aera Magic and how some if not all didn't witness it yet.

"That's so cool!" Eve admired.

Carla turned towards them with a slight sense of surprise. "You've never seen Aera Magic before? Well then, I suppose it's only natural that you would be surprised."

"You're trying to copy Happy, aren't you?" Natsu stated.

"Am not!" Carla retorted. She then turned towards the others again. "Though I am concerned for Wendy and that tom cat, I'm afraid we cannot go up against them again until we have a plan of attack."

"I agree Carla-dono." Jura said. "The enemy is far stronger than what we could have predicted."

"Men." Ichyia said.

Carla then turned. "But first…we have bigger priorities at hand." Everyone turned to see what she meant. They all saw a severely damaged Nic, still in his Toxic Plate Form, unconscious and lying down on the ground. Erza and Arbok were looking over him with upmost worries. Erza was wincing in her failure to help Nic, and Arbok was hissing in his failure to aid Nic as his fight with Cubellios clogged up his senses.

"Nic, I can't believe I let you get beaten before my eyes." Erza muttered with a small tear forming. "I can't be forgiven for what I have done." She was replaying Nic's bold actions, reliving him getting hit with Hoteye's attack, followed by Racer's and then a triple spiral combo that completely shut off Nic's lights. She let a few gasps escapes.

"Nic-ssssama. I sssswear to you. I shall make amendssss for my failure." Arbok stated, looking down with sadness at his trainer.

Everyone rushed over to where Erza and Arbok were tending Nic. They all saw the damage that Nic took. Almost seventy percent of his body was bruised and scratched. They saw big marks on his face from Racer's knee to the face, and even saw his sunglasses had fallen off and landed close by.

"Oh man, is he alright?!" Natsu stated in worries.

Lucy had a clenched hand close to her chest. "It looks really bad. Nic had taken several attacks head on."

Sophie looked depressed and she clenched her fists. "We gotta do something! If we don't act now, and as in right now, he might…!"

Arbok bared his fangs while Erza turned sharply towards Sophie. "Don't you dare draw to that conclusion!" Erza scolded with a dark look on her face.

"You sssay Nic-sssama will perish, then I'll make you go down firsssst!" Arbok scowled in defense of his battered up master. Sophie stepped back in shock that the two were being this heavily defensive.

"Oh man, poor guy." Gray muttered.

"Agreed." Lyon said. "One of our strongest is out of commission, and just when we needed him the most."

"What a disappointment. You fairies should be a shame of-!" Before Sherry could even say another word, she froze in shock as Arbok was in front of her and was staring with a demonic expression, everyone being on edge.

"Keep talking ssssmack of Nic-ssssama, and you die." Arbok warned, making Sherry shake in absolute fear. Sherry was unable to even move, let alone speak a single word after Arbok's dark warning. They watched as Arbok retreated back to Nic's side faster than the speed of sound.

"This tension is very worrisome." Jura stated. "Ichyia-dono."

"Men! Do not freight, for I shall cure he who makes My Honey happy. **Pain Relieving Perfume!**" The turquoise scent was even bigger than last time, but was all concentrated on Nic. Erza and Arbok backed away slightly, but hovered over him as they saw a very small fraction of the bruising and scratches fade away.

Over some time, they saw that Nic wasn't budging still, which brought up even more worry. "Men?" Ichyia himself was beyond baffled that his Pain Relieving Perfume wasn't working.

"What's wrong? Ichiya-sama's Pain Relieving Perfume has never failed before." Eve stated.

"The damage must be greater than what we could ever imagined. He got hit with three massive blows at once." Lucy stated. "I'm afraid it's going to have to take more than what Ichyia has to get rid of his wounds."

Erza looked back and was panicking like there was no tomorrow. Her heart was racing about a thousand miles a second. Even her own face felt pale at the thought of losing Nic. The very feeling even made her shed a tear that fell upon Nic's cheek. Arbok was choking up inside. It was Nic who he respected and if Nic were to kick the bucket right here, who knows what will happen? You know, other than the universe dying and such.

Erza laid a hand on Nic's cheek with Arbok close by. "Nic, wake up! Please wake up! We need you now more than ever! We can't go on without you…I can't…" Another tear was shedding off of her, to which she was about to wipe.

She was surprised to feel a scaly, yet smooth tip brush the tear off like that. To her shock and gasp, Arbok gave a serious look towards her as he had wiped away the tear. Erza remained quiet and surprised that Arbok had helped her shield her weakness.

"Nic-sssama would not want you sssulking thissss way." Arbok stated. "We musssst tend to him."

Erza turned back towards Nic and she put her head on his chest, trying to hear his heart beat. She heard his heart beating slowly, but it was faster then what she had expected. She jerked up towards the others. "His heart is okay, but we need to heal him and fast! NOW!" Erza roared the last part and everyone could see the stress piling onto her. She turned back to Nic and examined his closed eyes. She closed in onto his forehead and she nearly made contact with her forehead as she was all shaken up and she looked like she was going to cry again. Arbok gave a low hiss at his own discomfort.

Everyone there looked and saw how the great Titania Erza had a weakness – Nic. They all saw with some despondency at how this looked bad as the Multitype Mage's breathing was slow, as was his heartbeat.

"That combination of brutal attacks, it was terrifying." Sophie said. "I was still in shock that the Oracion Seis had their own Dragon Slayer. We were lucky that Nic was in his Toxic Plate to take that roar, otherwise he would be decomposing."

Natsu rammed a flaming fist into his palm. "So, that jerk was a Dragon Slayer huh, he's gonna pay!"

"This is not the time to think of revenge." Jura protested. "As of now, our priority is to sustain Nic-dono's health and life. If we don't find a remedy to accelerate his recovery progress, then I'm afraid this will be the end." With that, Erza turned towards the others with a gasp and teary eyes at the news. This meant they didn't have a lot of time on their hands. She sharply turned back and she narrowed her eyes in even more worry for Nic.

Carla examined the situation and spoke. "We need Wendy. She can heal him." She state, shocking everyone, especially Arbok and Erza, who jerked towards Carla. "This is no time to sit and watch an ally fall from a severe overall body damage. We need a plan to get Wendy back…and that tom cat I suppose."

"Wait a second, are you saying that Wendy can restore Nic?" Sophie asked.

"Not only just that, but she has anti-venom, relief pain, and cease fevers." Carla boasted.

Ichyia then scooched into the conversation with a denial-like pose. "Excuse me, put I feel as though my role in the group is weakened by this news and I find that unsettling."

"That's crazy. Healing Magic is lost Magic." Sherry said, which made Arbok hiss very loudly.

"We need all the help we can get!" Arbok shouted. "You, albino feline, hurry up before I get really mad!"

"I am heavily insulted! I am not albino. My fur is white, and it's not even flesh you pestering snake!" Carla retorted. "But since there is no more room for arguing I must proceed on with your demand. Wendy is a Sky Dragon Slayer. She's Wendy the Sky Dragon!"

Everyone there gasped loudly in shock of this news. Wendy was the Sky Dragon Slayer. Erza turned towards Carla. "So Nic's hunch was true! She was a Dragon Slayer!"

"Details can come later." Carla said. "Right now she's the only one who can save your friend, and I'm afraid the Oracion Seis needed her as well." Erza turned back to Nic and leaned in and kept and _extremely_ close eye on Nic to wait and see if she'll get any sign of him moving or if his breathing changes.

"In that case, we now have two priorities." Lyon stated, with everyone now giving determined looks.

"We have to rescue Wendy." Eve said.

"And we're doing so for Nic's sake!" Sophie stated.

"And Wendy and Happy too!" Lucy stated.

Natsu clenched a fist. "OKAY! ARE YOU WITH ME?!" He raised a fist in the air. Everyone, exclude Erza and Arbok, all gathered in a circle and shot fists up too and they all shouted yeah in agreement.

"It's clear that the Oracion Seis is still out there, so we must split up and cover more ground in our search. We will split up in small groups. A couple need to stay behind to look after Nic." Jura stated.

Almost immediately, Erza turned towards them. "I'm staying to watch over him!" Her tone sounded almost heavily demanding, and nobody blamed her. Arbok raised in tail in agreement.

"Very well, and Lucy and Hibiki will be as lookouts." Jura said, earning nods. "That leads the rest of the Allied Forces to search!" They've all agreed and the groups were Lamina Scale, Blue Pegasus, and the rest of Fairy Tail as their own group. The group of Natsu, Gray, and Sophie, and Carla all ventured off together while Lamina Scale and Blue Pegasus went their own way, leaving Hibiki, Lucy, Erza, and Arbok to tend to an unconscious Nic's life-threatening damage.

"Nic. Don't worry. Help will be here soon." Erza said. Erza was so caught up in trying to save Nic that she was still in her Flight Armor. When she had realized that, she transformed into her Heart Kreuz Armor yet again and watched over him, as did Arbok.

"I'll use my Archive Magic to keep tabs on the others, and to keep note of our position as well; that way when they find Wendy and Happy they'll be able to locate us and save Nic." Hibiki said, making a keyboard appear in midair again and he pressed buttons.

"Oh wow. You have just about everything covered, don't ya?" Lucy said.

Hibiki turned to her. "You can thank Ichiya-sama. I'm just doing what I was taught." He then pressed buttons and then a bunch of red marks appeared on the top screen. "I found Natsu's group."

* * *

**With the Fairy Tail group**

The team ran through the woodsea in search of Wendy, though Natsu was still rather curious.

"So Wendy's a Sky Dragon Slayer." Natsu stated. "So what does she eat?"

"Air of course." Carla said.

"Does it taste good?" Natsu asked.

"Natsu, you breathe air!" Sophie stated. "That's almost like the same thing!"

"I still don't get why Erza didn't come along? Normally she would be all ready and up." Gray said.

"True, but don't forget that this is Nic, Erza's…whatever he is to her." Sophie was honestly a little bit confused. Was Nic Erza's boyfriend or best friend or what exactly. "Let's just say that he's a necessity to her, agreed?"

"Yeah, we all know that." Gray said.

"And I don't think she will have anyone come within five feet of Nic." Sophie then shivered. "She can be _mavhil _that way."

"She's always like that." Gray informed.

"The only reason Wendy came on this mission was to meet you." Carla said to Natsu.

Natsu turned his head to her while running. "Why me?"

"Because you're a fellow Dragon Slayer. There was something she wanted to ask you."

Natsu was surprised. "What was it?"

"She said her dragon that taught her the Dragon Slayer Magic mysteriously disappeared seven years ago. She was hoping you knew her whereabouts." Carla said.

"I need more info. What was the dragon's name?" Natsu asked.

"I believe Wendy called her the Sky Dragon Grandeeney."

Natsu then looked to the ground while pondering. "Grandeeney. Seven years ago." He then failed to look up and he ran into an overhead root head first, knocking him to the ground. Gray and Sophie both turned back to see Natsu get up, focusing on the dragon and not the pain. "Hold up, maybe Laxus knows!"

"That guy's a loser." Gray said. "And remember, Gramps said that he wasn't a real Dragon Slayer."

Carla then gasped, which made Natsu and Gray and Sophie all turn front and they too gasped in shock.

"Holy cow!" Sophie shouted. "That the heck is this?!" In front of them, they saw absolute darkness. The trees were even blacker than the night sky. There was a death-like fog that encased the evil that was in front of them.

"The trees, they're black." Gray said.

"Blacker than the night sky itself." Sophie commented. "Does this mean that Nirvana might be close by?" Suddenly, they heard footsteps from behind and they saw two ape-like creatures approach in human clothing with a bunch of other monkey-like creatures now surrounding the team.

"Word on the street bro that this Magic be so powerful that the earth itself can't take." The large ape with green hair and red tip said.

"Yup, everything just withers and dies bro." The ape with an afro said.

"Whoa! Those two have got be the dumbest set of monkeys I've ever seen!" Natsu cheerfully said. They then saw the monkeys get riled up when Natsu called them stupid. They were starting to shout and they showed anger.

"Great." Sophie said. "Now they're going to drive us bananas."

"Hey whoa, you wanna drive _us _bananas? I got news for you blondie, we're part of the Oracion Seis, so don't go messing with us!" The afro ape said with a vermilion fist ready.

"This must be the dark guild that Lucy told us the other day." Gray said.

"They've got us surrounded." Carla stated. "They made us think we were facing six Mages!"

Gray got a misty and solid hand ready while Sophie had a finger pointed to her head. Sophie grinned. "How about we put these monkeys in a barrel of pain? " Sophie joked, ready to initiate her Memory-Make.

"Bring on the monkeys!" Natsu teased, imitating a monkey and scratching his head and making monkey sounds.

"You guys are crazy!" Carla proclaimed.

"We ain't leaving until they tell us where their base is." Gray stated.

Natsu then got a flaming fist and rolled it about in the air. "Where's Happy and Wendy?" The monkeys then closed in and they began their assault and they were met with Natsu immediately pounding the ground with fire, sending a big wave of fire that swallowed up and inflicted pain on a number of the members.

Gray grabbed and held a face and froze it. He then threw the body and left a shattering trail of ice that crashed through many more members.

Sophie grinned. "I guess it's my turn now huh?" Sophie then created a chain of memories and then she created countless halberds in the sky that were made of nothing but fire. "Let's give this a shot! **Firestorm Halberds!**" The countless halberds of fire then went raining down and then bombarded every single ape there, creating huge pyro explosions upon impact. Every single one of the apes yelped and when the smoke cleared, it was revealed that they were all down. "Not really much of a challenge."

With the fight easily won in less than a minute, Natsu went up to the afro ape that was barely conscious and held him up by the collar. "Alright blabber-ape! Where's your base."

The ape turned his head. "I ain't telling you, stupid!" He protested. He then laughed, making Natsu angry and deliver a severe headbutt that conked the ape's lights out.

"You guys are insane." Carla said.

* * *

**Meanwhile, at the Oracion Seis Base…**

In a cave with a multitude of candles, Racer had just set down a coffin that was purple with chains. "Sorry it took so long." Racer said. Brain looked with a heavily satisfied look on his face, appeased to see this T-shaped coffin was in his presence.

Racer took a breath. "Being so heavy, it was hard for me to build up any speed. I thought I was fast but after that trip I'm starting to doubt myself."

"Rest assure Racer, you're speed is unmatched." Brain said, easing Racer's self-doubt.

Wendy and Happy both looked in confusion at the purple coffin with a gold goblin-like seal on it, all wrapped up in chains. "What is that?" Wendy asked.

"It's a coffin." Happy said with deep worries.

Brain gave a dark smirk. "It's time Wendy. Are you ready to use your Magic to resurrect the man inside?"

Wendy protested almost immediately. "No! I won't and you can't make me!" She shouted.

Brain's face then became even more dark than it has ever been. "I'm sorry, I didn't make myself clear. You have no say!"

The red knob on the latch to the chains then glowed, and then the chains began prying themselves off and fell to the ground. The front of the coffin began to disintegrate in a light blue, giving off heinous steam and a faint blue-green light was seen from inside. The steam was beginning to dispel rather quickly and everyone looked to see who was there.

"Whoa! What the-?!" The rest of the frontal section of the coffin dispelled and it revealed a man with a huge amount of marionettes of blue-green on the sides of his face and on his arms. The man that was in the coffin was one that Happy and Wendy recognized all too well.

It was Jellal.

Wendy gasped super harshly, seeing Jellal. Brain smirked and turned. "I believe that you should know him. Allow me to introduce you to Jellal. A brilliant wizard who once infiltrated the Magic Council!" Brain said.

Happy stepped back in shock. "There's no way. That can't be him!"

Brain grinned with an evil smirk. "But it is him. Once he's revived, he'll lead us to Nirvana."

"Revive him?!" Happy exclaimed. "What do you even mean by that?!"

"It's really him." Wendy said.

"What?!" Happy exclaimed. "You know him?!"

"Overexposure to Ethernano caused him to go into a hyper sleep sort of speak. He's far from dead, that is certain." Brain explained. He then turned to Wendy. "You are the only one that can revive him. Isn't that the least you can do?" His tone made it sound fairly obvious.

Wendy stood frozen in absolute shock. "Jellal..I don't understand."

Happy then informed Wendy with a serious tone. "That guy is bad news. What the heck is he doing here?" Happy demanded to know.

Wendy turned to Happy. "What are you talking about? Do you know him?"

"We aren't friends one bit. He tried to kill me, Erza, and a bunch of others. He even made us thought Nic was dead. He's the one who got the Magic Council to fire the Etherion Cannon."

Wendy's bangs casted over her eyes as she was shaken slightly. "I know, I heard about that."

Happy stepped forward. "But I thought Jellal was ancient history?"

Brain then frowned. "He is indeed. A shell haunted by a ghost, full of foolish ideals. But humanity gave him the greatest gift."

"It did?" Happy asked. "What does that mean?"

"This is Wendy's chance to return the favor and revive him!" Brain stated firmly.

"Don't do it Wendy. No matter what this guy says, don't wake him up!" Happy stated towards a shaken up Wendy. He then had a sad expression upon seeing how she was heavily conflicted. "Please don't."

They both then saw Brain pull out a knife. "Are you refusing?" Then he proceeded to slowly thrust the knife at Jellal.

Wendy panicked. "No stop!" Brain then gave a warning by purposely missing and barely got Jellal's right ear by a mere centimeter. Wendy then dropped to her knees. "Please, I beg you."

Brain then extended his arm and then burst the ground beside Wendy, making her yelp and jerk. "Revive him. You are the only one who can do so."

"Wendy, that's the last thing you want to do." Happy said, seeing Wendy even more shaken up.

"But I…I have to repay him." Wendy squealed. "I wouldn't be here if it weren't for him." This information confused Happy. Wendy then began to shed some tears, having them fall in her clenched fists. "He looked after me." Happy saw her sadness and now even he was conflicted to a great degree. "I've heard all of those horrible stories of him…but I don't believe them!" She then stood up.

"I swear to you, they're as real as they get-!"

"He's not the kind of person who did that!" Wendy shouted, making Happy silent for a bit.

"But he did Wendy." Happy stated softly.

Wendy was still having confliction. She heard of what he did, yet she didn't know what to do. "…please…just…just give some time to think about it."

Brain stood quietly, his half-grin fading. "…very well. You have five minutes."

* * *

**With Natsu and co.**

After the three effortlessly took down the Naked Mummy Guild, the ape with green hair and a red tip muttered. "Okay, they're all yours." Then he fainted in defeat.

The three then stood still. "What does that mean?" Gray said.

Sophie then gave it some thought in a flash. "Probably a trap of sorts." Just as she finished, they then heard a maniacal laugh and they turned to see where it came from. Sophie then spot where the laughter came from and saw a man with white hair, a black coat with yellow edges that went down to his legs with a dark shirt underneath and some white pants. "Up there!" Sophie pointed, with Natsu and Gray turning to see where she was pointing.

"Well, well, well, it looks like you pesky little flies are still buzzing around." The familiar man said with crossed arms. "That's why I was summoned here to come and swat you down once and for all."

It was someone from a long time ago, it was Erigor.

Gray and Natsu's gazes sharpened. "No." Gray said.

"You've gotta be kidding me." Natsu stated. After a brief pause, he waived an arm at him. "Hey! Long time no see breezy! How's it going? I haven't seen ya since Chapter 3!" He cheerfully shouted, breaking the fourth wall.

Erigor was in deep revelation and him, Gray, and Sophie all face palmed.

"What?! We're enemies you idiot!" Erigor reminded.

"I suppose you know this guy?" Sophie sighed.

"Apparently yes." Gray informed. "He was the one behind the plot to kill Gramps and the other guild masters with Lullaby."

The memory then flooded back to Natsu. "Oh yeah! I remember now! Wasn't he that wind guy I toasted? Talk about a jerk."

Erigor then used his Air Magic and slowly levitated to a fair elevation above Natsu, Gray, and Sophie. "After the fall of Eisenwald, I used my expertise and became a free agent in the service of the Oracion Seis." Erigor said with a devious smirk. "I was biding my time until this very moment, the moment where I would have my revenge! The day Erigor the Reaper would rise again!"

"Never heard of you." Sophie stated.

"I'd expect not, considering I was laying low." He then looked battle ready.

"So, you came looking for a rematch huh?" Gray asked.

"Sounds fine by me." Natsu said. Erigor then grinned and he didn't even give a warning before launching a full-scale tempest that blasted Natsu, Gray, and Sophie and send them crashing through the forest and into a nearby rock quarry. They were lucky to have hit no trees and they all sustained little damage. That must mean Erigor must be getting warmed up.

Natsu, Gray, and Sophie all got to their feet.

"Looks like this joker wants to play a mean game." Sophie said.

"Yeah, he means business." Gray said.

"I got this guys!" Natsu said before jumping. "**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Erigor didn't budge at all, rather he was waiting and he held out a hand and when Natsu made contact, he blew wind from his hand as a counter. Sophie, Gray, and a now out-from-the-trees Carla watched Natsu collide with wind.

"Fire doesn't seem liable against wind, right?" Carla asked.

"You'd think. Natsu may have had a tough time beating this guy, but he's a lot stronger now than before." Gray informed, showing confidence.

"Good thing I've memorized everything up to this point." Sophie said, hoping all of this Magic she saw in her previous surveillances and encounters will come in handy, as this will be a new edition.

Erigor was surprised that Natsu was actually pushing back his wind attack. "Impossible!"

"**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" Natsu's feet ignited and he dealt a spiral kick that landed a direct hit on Erigor, making the former Eisenwald leader get shoved back in the air with some pain dealt into his abdomen.

Erigor grunted, not expecting Natsu to have grown and get stronger as he did. _'This guy's on a completely different level than before!' _He thought in frustration. He descended as Natsu landed on the ground. "I see you've grown you little fly!"

"Glad you noticed!" Natsu said. He then gave an angry glare and he ignited himself in his flames. "But I haven't got the time to chat right now! I gotta kick your butt quick so I can rescue my friends!"

Erigor got annoyed really quick. "You still got a big mouth. This will shut you up!" The then put two fingers from each hand together and made a light purple seal. "**Emera Baram!**" He then unleashed a heavily concentrated blast of wind blades. The blast consumed a huge amount of the area they were battling on, sending rock and dust spiraling in just about every direction. Gray grabbed Carla and covered up, as did Sophie. They awaited to see the dust and win cease to find Erigor laughing.

"What do you think pest? You're not the only one who's improved. Ever since our last encounter, I've been training nonstop to enhance my destructive powers. Building up my strength to take you down for good." Erigor explained with a sense of mockery and pride.

As the smoke cleared, it was shown that Natsu was engulfed in flames and didn't looked damaged at all. The only thing he did look was mad. "That's just pitiful. If you only thought of revenge, then you haven't changed one bit!"

Erigor descended slightly and was surprised. "What?"

"Guess I should be flattered." Natsu said. "I didn't realize I was that important to ya!"

Gray smirked, as did Sophie. They both saw how this was gonna end, and they knew Natsu would never give into someone with a heart as black as Erigor's.

Erigor had a scowl on his face. He then smirked and chuckled. "You don't know a thing." He calmly stated. "This has nothing to do with Eisenwald, nor on behalf of the Oracion Seis. It's not about you at all! It's about me!" Erigor declared. "I won't be beaten!"

"We'll just see about that." Natsu argued. He then made the ground shake with rocks flying and fire spiraling all about. "YOU AND ME! RIGHT NOW!" Erigor charged at Natsu with wind enhanced fists, to which Natsu countered by leaping up at him. "I'll blow you away!"

"Not a chance! **Magic Wind Palm!**" Erigor clasped his hands together and moved them towards Natsu. A powerful vortex was unleashed at Natsu and the area around him was engulfed in a rapid cyclone and crumbled with immense strength.

Still, that wasn't enough to stop Natsu. Natsu leaped up and he lit his fists in super intense flames. "**Crimson Lotus: Fire Dragon's Fist!**" He then bombarded Erigor with a rapid succession of explosive flaming punches that Erigor was no match for. Natsu bombarded him repeatedly, and after one last hook, everyone watched as Erigor was deprived of pupils and fell to the ground with a crash in defeat, as to where Natsu stomped his feet on the ground upon his landing, looking away.

Gray crossed his arms. "Why'd that take so long ya dumb pyro?"

"My, that was impressive." Carla noted. "I had no idea the Salamander was this powerful."

Natsu then picked Erigor up by the collar and started shaking him. "Alright up miserable jerk, wake so you can tell me where your creepy friends took Wendy and Happy!"

"Geez." Sophie said.

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

The team at the camp was trying keep tabs on the enemy, which was Hibiki's job. Using his Archive, he could track down their comrades and keep positions. While he was busy doing that, Lucy was looking out and Erza and Arbok were tending to Nic.

Lucy looked back at them. "How is he?"

Erza looked back at her for a brief moment. "Not too well. His pulse is remaining steady, but his body still suffered lethal damage." She turned back to him and didn't see him move still.

"This is bad. Those guys need to hurry." Lucy then looked forward to keep a watchful eye. Erza and Arbok both looked back and they kept close to Nic.

"Nic." Erza said. Her brown eyes kept locked onto his closed ones. She didn't dare look away.

"Nic-ssssama. We will make thisssss right." Arbok vowed. He shifted his gaze to see a shaken up Erza. He turned towards her. "You care deeply for him, do you?"

Erza's worried gaze turned upsetting. "Yes, I do. I was broken when I thought he died. I don't want to go through that again." She then turned towards Arbok. "Tell me, what was Nic like to you?"

Arbok hissed and looked back at his master. "He'ssss a pure being. At firssst, thingsss were fairly rough." He then looked up at the sky. "Let me ssstart from the beginning…"

_Arbok was still an Ekans at the time while in Route 14, all coiled up in the trees along with the rest of its group. It was in the morning, about daybreak in the hazy light given. A horde of Ekans is fairly hard to come by since they're not as easy to find compared to hordes of Skorupi and Bellsprout, of which dwelled below. It was here in Nic's world that the pokémon weren't able to speak human, so you couldn't tell what they were saying._

_Ekans awoke with a cranky disposition, hissing in spite of the morning. The horde was beginning to wake up and were about to look for something to eat. They were about to descend to do so, but some smell had got picked up. Something…human?_

_The Ekans were beginning to turn their heads and they heard rustling a few trees away. Ekans opened his mouth and was more than ready to destroy what was to come. They all slithered through the tree branches and they had seen what looked like human indeed. Ekans at this point didn't realize it was a fifteen-year-old Nic that was beginning to learn to climb the trees._

"_Geez. This isn't easy one bit." Nic stated, talking to himself. "Now, since I just started climbing trees about yesterday or so, that's a first step. Now I just need to…" He then heard rustling in the trees beside him and he turned and saw a horde of Ekans, all focused on Nic. "…seriously?"_

_The Ekans all began to open their mouths to launch a Poison Sting. "Uh oh!" Nic tried to evade by grabbing a nearby tree branch and he narrowly dodged. He latched on tightly while hanging upside down like a sloth. "I don't see how this is fair!" _

_The Ekans all closed in on Nic, so Nic had to resort to drastic measures. "Okay, okay. I guess I'll have to fight as well." He let go of the branch, having only his legs latch on and leaving him upside down. He used his hands to grab a poke ball. "Frogadier, a little help please!" He tossed the ball straight up and Frogadier appeared on the branch adjacent to Nic._

_Frogadier said his name and Nic used his core to prop himself up. "Okay! Now we got ourselves a fight." The Ekans all hissed and they all sneered at Frogadier, though Ekans himself was more than anxious to clobber Frogadier for disrupting his morning. Though Frogadier's Attack fell a lot by four Intimidates, Ekans was the only one with Shed Skin. "Frogadier, __**Smack Down!**__" Between Frogadier's hands, a golden orb with orange energy was made and then it was launched with expertise at an Ekans without any trouble with the tree branches, considering Frogadier was more limber than Nic at this point in time. An Ekans screamed as it had met its apparent demise as the Smack Down bashed into it, making an orange explosion and the branch it was on fell into the swamp below._

_The four remaining Ekans all looked on with shock as their member was taken down. A fellow Ekans used Screech, making its mouth turn red and emit red sound waves. Frogadier and Nic both covered their ears as another Ekans accompanied the Screech with its own, making it even more painful and Frogadier could feel his Defense drop. Ekans lunged at Frogadier with a Bite, but Frogadier saw it coming and he leaped to another branch, leaving Nic open as Ekans lunged at him. Frogadier tried ever so hard to react fast enough but he couldn't as he saw Nic hold out an arm and had Ekans bite his arm. _

_Nic winced, but with the training he had with his team, this was nothing. He just had Ekans latch on as he gave a command for Frogadier to unleash a Water Pulse on the other Ekans, to which he didn't argue. Frogadier unleashed a Water Pulse and the Ekans all screamed as even their Poison Sting attacks didn't even faze the incoming attack. They all were hit and there was a blue explosion. The three Ekans all fell into the swamp below._

_All that was left was the lone Ekans that was trying to bite Nic's left forearm. Frogadier was tempted to strike out with his new Bounce move, but he was afraid he might hurt Nic. _

_Nic looked at Ekans as the snake was giving sharp spiteful glares. Nic didn't even flinch. "You can stop now." He said. "You have no idea what I do." _

_Ekans blinked and then he surprisingly let go, but coiled up as a way to keep his guard up. He hissed at Nic and then Nic stood up on the tree branch, startling Ekans even more. _

"_Buddy, I train with my Pokémon, meaning that my strength has grown as well. I deliberately have them come at me with everything they have. I learn to dodge attacks far faster than anyone, I can take a multitude of hits and still get back up to my feet, and I return the favor. Everyone on my team has reflexes that reflect mine; and if you think that a mere Bite is going to shut me down, you're an even bigger fool than I thought."_

_The Ekans slightly recoiled, hearing how this human told his tale. It was true, Ekans Bite didn't do much of anything. It was a fluke. There was no way Ekans could match that power in his current state. The two things that ran through his mind were to either attack or flee._

_Ekans was planning to do the latter, but then everyone there heard the branch Nic and Ekans were on snapping. Nic and Ekans both looked down and they knew that their weight was a little bit much. They were about to get away, but the branch snapped and the two began to fall._

_Froagdier gasped and he reached and grabbed Nic's hand, catching him just in time. Nic held on and then he kicked his feet up backwards to use his calves to catch Ekans. "I got ya!" Nic shouted. Froagdier was using both his arms to try and pull Nic up, but Nic was so heavy that this was taking every bit of muscle he owned._

_Nic didn't look down as he feared that if he did, he might fall. He then heard Ekans yelp in shock and Nic had to do what he did not want, which was look._

_They were forty feet high above the ground and if they fell, the least that they would receive would be searing pain. No chances were going to be taken. Nic was one to show mercy after all._

"_Hang on!" Nic shouted. Frogadier was grabbing Nic's left arm, which left his right arm open. He turned back and focused on Ekans. "Listen to me! Do you wanna end up like your pals?!" Ekans turned his head towards Nic. "Now listen, just do as I say and we'll be alright! Now look, hold onto my arm and don't let go!" Ekans was surprised, as was Frogadier, both saying their names._

_Nic looked up at Frogadier. "I know what I'm doing!" He then turned back at Ekans. "Listen, just bite my arm and keep a grip, okay?!"_

_Ekans was reluctant, but this human was trying to save an enemy. Even though it wasn't Ekans style, he slowly slithered and used Bite, grasping Nic's arm. Ekans would normally try and attack with no mercy, but Nic was giving him a chance. Nic then turned back towards Frogadier._

"_Okay, Frogadier!" Frogadier looked ready. "I need you to use Bounce and drive us into the air. That way we can land somewhere along the canopy." With a nod, Froagdier spread his legs and he then took in a big breath and he leaped with his legs, dragging Nic and Ekans with them. The three went an extra sixty feet in the air. The three then sailed downwards close by, though no one was screaming. The three all landed in the thick tree canopies close by, feeling more leaves than spiky branches, which was fortunate for everyone's sake._

"_Ohhh man. Talk about a jump." Nic groaned. "Nice job buddy." Frogadier said his name and Ekans had let go at last. The three slowly made their way to the branches below, now able to chill. Nic and Frogadier both sat on a more sturdy branch and Ekans was wrapped around the branch. Nic turned towards Ekans. "Well, you're spared. You can be on your way." _

_Ekans blinked and he kept still. He was slightly hesitant as this human and Frogadier went out of their way to spare him. Ekans wasn't sure whether to be thankful, but he didn't budge._

"_Are you going?" Nic asked. Ekans remained still as he hissed and nudged Nic, which wasn't his way, but he did so just this once. Ekans hissed and realized this human had made him change slightly. Ekans bowed._

"_What a minute…" He turned to Frogadier, who was thinking the same thing. Nic then turned towards Ekans, who remained still and bowed to allow himself to be captured. Nic just proceeded with a kind heart and tapped Ekans's bowed head with a poke ball and he went inside._

"It wassssn't much, I know. But that human lying there wassss the one who ssstuck hisss neck out for me." Arbok said. "That day, Nic-sssama wasss the first and only thing I had ressspect for. I alwayssss did asss I wasss commanded. Not onccce have I disssobeyed him. He hassss my ressspect now and forever." He turned towards Erza. "I have never been more honored to fight alongsssside sssuch a great human being." He then turned towards an unconscious Nic. "He'ssss a good man."

Erza nodded at Arbok's tale. "Yeah, he is. It sounds like he can make the darkest of hearts see a light."

Arbok turned towards Erza and hissed again. "You need him, his team doesss to. Without him, we wouldn't be where we are today."

Erza smiled. "Nic has grown strong, as did the rest of you. We'll get Wendy back and heal him for all of our sakes."

"Thank you…Erzzzza-ssssama." Arbok finally recognized Erza as a figure that earned his respect. He watched with no hesitation as Erza leaned down and gave a quick peck on Nic's cheek when no one was looking.

* * *

**With Natsu and co.**

Natsu, Gray, and Sophie were looking over a deserted camp ground close to a waterfall. Close to that was a cave.

"This it?" Natsu asked with a flaming fist ready. "Happy! Wendy!" He called out.

"Quiet. The enemy might be down there." Sophie stated. "Do you want to blow-?" Before she could even say another word, she saw a glint of something racing at high speed from the cave. "…never mind."

Racer raced right past them, knocking Carla, Natsu, Gray, and Sophie all back and had them skid.

Natsu was the first to react upon ceasing his skid. "The heck is this guy doing here?" They all turned up (ha!) and looked at Racer, of whom was standing on a low tree branch.

"Gray and I can hold this guy off while you go and rescue Happy and Wendy." Sophie stated.

"Yeah, got it." Natsu said.

"Hmph!" Racer was then racing down the tree to intercept them. "You're staying put!" He then slipped all of a sudden because they didn't see that Gray had froze the tree trunk. Racer landed on his back with a thud.

"Come on, give me your wings!...Uh…" Natsu turned to see that Carla was still out of commission from being knocked into by Racer.

"Here, use this instead!" Gray quickly made an ice slide, which made its way down to the camp grounds.

"Alright, let's go!" Natsu grabbed Carla, who was conscious and screaming, and he skid down the slide.

Racer appeared behind Gray and Sophie. "You little punk. Nobody dares to put the brakes on me."

Gray and Sophie turned towards Racer. "Traction ain't your thing." Sophie regarded.

At the bottom of the slide, Natsu was on his feet and had puffed up cheeks. Carla looked at Natsu.

"Are you sick?" She asked, not realizing that Natsu had some motion sickness. After a minute of composing, she and Natsu began to call out to Wendy and Happy repeatedly, trying to get where they are.

"Natsu!" A faint cry from Happy called out. Natsu and Carla both turned to where the cry came from and found that it came from the cave. They raced towards the cave and they went inside in no time, only for Natsu to freeze.

His eyes widened at the site. "…no." He muttered. "…but how?"

Natsu and Carla saw Wendy and Happy on the floor, but standing up from the coffin was Jellal.

Happy turned with tears. "Natsu."

Wendy was crying. "I'm so sorry."

Natsu was shaking immensely and he saw the blue-haired being turn to him. "Jellal."

Wendy was wiping her eyes. "Sorry." She said. "I'm so sorry. I had to." She then dropped to the floor, drained and tired.

"Wendy!" Carla shouted and rushed to her side. Jellal just looked on with no emotions.

Natsu clenched his fists. "I don't know why you're here, nor where you came from…" He then engulfed his fists in flames and rushed towards him. "But you don't belong here!"

Jellal turned with no surprised and held out a hand and unleashed a blast of yellow that swallowed Natsu and made him yelp and crash into the side of the cave, making rocks bury him slightly.

Brain walked towards Jellal. "Thank goodness that you still have your immense power."

Jellal then turned towards Brain with no emotion and moved his arm in an arc. The ground under Brain was engulfed in yellow and exploded, making Brain yelp.

Happy rushed to Natsu's side as his upper body was under rubble. "Natsu!" Happy turned and then watched as Jellal looked forward and walked out of the cave. He then looked back still tried budging Natsu. "Come on, get up!"

Immediately, Natsu's body sat up and flew rock off in a flash. He swayed his head left and right. "ALRIGHT! LET'S ROCK! BRING IT ON!"

Carla crossed her arms. "He just left."

Natsu then got up. "That coward!"

"I'm aware that you guys have a history with him, but our biggest priority is to take Wendy back to the others as soon as possible." Carla pointed out. Natsu just stood there with clenched fists. "You do want to save your friend, right?"

Natsu stomped his foot and roared. "MAN I HATE THAT GUY!" He then looked forward. "But you're right. Nic's in deep trouble. Let's go!"

"Aye sir!" Happy said. Happy then grabbed Natsu and Carla grabbed Wendy and the two flew out of the cave, leaving Brain alone…well, him and a sleeping Midnight.

Brain arose with dust flying and he looked where Jellal blasted him, which was a big hole in the ground. He blinked. "That was unexpected, but perhaps I removed his shackles too early. On that note, his hostility towards me means a grudge of sorts. Was he aware all of this time? Did he overhear us discuss our plans for Nirvana?"

Then Brain gasped as he came to a serious conclusion. "No it can't be! Does he intend to take Nirvana for himself?! IT SHOULDN'T HAPPEN! IT'S OURS! Cobra, do you hear me? Jellal has escaped to claim Nirvana! Stop him at once!"

* * *

**Deep in the Worth Woodsea…**

With his Sound Magic, he heard him. "I hear you loud and clear boss man. As loud as I hear that coward's footsteps." He grinned and Cubellios hissed.

* * *

**With Gray and Sophie**

Gray and Sophie were shoved into a tree trunk and Racer went in to drive a knee into their faces, but the two saw it just in time and they both ducked and rolled away to avoid the knee. Gray and Sophie both looked up and saw Racer vanishing left and right in an upward motion, watching him disappear into the leaves and watch him reappear on a branch.

"This guy is crazy fast." Gray said.

"That would be an understatement_._" Sophie remarked.

"I'm the fastest man alive." Racer stated. "You'll never beat me, because you'll never catch me. That's why they call me Racer." He then looked up and then saw that Natsu and Wendy were being carried.

"They found them!" Sophie said.

"But how? Brain was there! How did they get passed him?!" Racer exclaimed.

"Don't ask me?" Sophie said. "This is Natsu we're talking about."

"Well, end of the line." Racer then vanished, and Gray and Sophie could guess that they were after them in the air.

"HEY! LOOK OUT!" Gray shouted. Natsu looked down, but that was all as Racer appeared and knock them all down with a swing of his kick from above. Happy and Carla were hit and they screamed as they fell. Natsu landed and crashed, but then he scooted as fast he could and caught her. He saw the cats were down, so he had to pick everyone up and started running.

"I told you it's the end of the line!" Racer then went after them.

"**Memory-Make: ****Jagged Barrier!**" Sophie made a chain of memories and she pressed her hands down on the ground. From there, a huge wall of stone with ice spikes covering it rose from the earth and Racer went wide-eyed as he came to a screeching halt so as not to touch the spikes. This made Racer stop in his tracks.

Natsu looked back. "You guys okay?"

Without looking back, Gray and Sophie continued to hold off Racer. "Hurry and get back to Nic!" Sophie stated. "Don't worry, we can hold him!"

"You guys sure?" Natsu questioned.

"Just go already!" Gray shouted. "We can stop him, no matter what! GO! Nic's life is at stake!"

Reluctantly, Natsu then turned and ran away with Wendy and the flying cats. "Fine, but once he's healed, we're coming back!" Natsu shouted back.

Gray grinned. "I know."

Racer then looked down. "Impressive. This is the second time you two stopped me."

Sophie turned to him. "Yeah, and it most certainly won't be the last."

Gray then turned towards Racer as well. "When we're through, you're going to slow way down pal."

* * *

**With Natsu**

Happy was regaining consciousness under Natsu's arm. "Uhhhh…Natsu?"

Natsu was still running as fast as his legs could carry him. "Rest up little buddy."

"But Jellal is out there." Happy reminded.

Natsu's frown grew. "I know. I'll make sure he doesn't stick around too long."

'_Natsu.'_ A voice called out. Natsu stopped and turned left and right.

"Who? What? Where?" Natsu frantically said.

'_Can you hear me?' _The voice called out.

Natsu turned and looked at a tree. "Is this tree talking to me?"

'_Can you hear me Natsu?'_

"Yes Great Tree." Natsu said, confusing Happy.

'_Great what? The tree isn't talking Natsu. This is Hibiki. At any rate, I'm glad I could reach you. Nobody else responded so far.'_

"Wait, so you can talk through trees?" Natsu asked.

'_No; keep your voice down. The enemy has scouts throughout the woodsea. That's why I'm speaking directly into your head. What's the status? Where's Wendy and Happy?'_

"Uh, they're both with me. Wendy's unconscious but okay, and Happy's already awake."

'_That's wonderful. Hang tight, I'm gonna upload a map into your mind. You can use that to find your way back to the temporary camp we've set up.'_

Natsu was suspicious. "Hold on, what's this upload stuff?" He then saw a bar appear above him and then it went from blue to yellow, with the word 'downloading' on it. When it was filled, Natsu marveled with the map in his brain. He then started running.

"Natsu, I think you need to see a professional" Happy said.

"Not now, I have to follow this map inside my brain!" Natsu said. "I can even see where Nic and Erza are! This upload stuff is so cool! Thanks Great Tree, er Hibiki!"

"Okay, now you really need help." Happy said.

'_Hurry.' _Hibiki said.

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

Hibiki had just finished talking to Natsu and he turned back towards the others. "I'm afraid time is not on our side." Hibiki stated coldly, looking at a badly injured Nic. Erza was still close to him, as was a worried Arbok. Erza grunted and clenched her fists.

"His pulse is getting weaker." Erza warned.

Lucy turned to Hibiki. "Hey, how did Natsu know where to go?"

"I used my Archive Magic to send it to him. It packages the information so that the information itself can be transmitted and shared with others much faster than verbal responses." Hibiki explaned.

"I had no idea that was even possible." Lucy remarked.

Hibiki turned to her. "Magically converted data like this is a fairly new concept, so I wouldn't expect you to know."

Erza turned towards Nic. "Did you hear that Nic? Wendy will be here soon. I promise you, just hold on for a little bit longer." Erza then kept close again and Lucy and Hibiki watched as Erza tried her very best to comfort Nic.

"The damage he must have taken was too drastic." Lucy said. "That triple attack would've killed any one of us. We were lucky that Nic's body was in one piece."

Hibiki smiled at the affection and attention Erza was giving Nic. "It's nice to see some light in the darkness."

* * *

**With Gray and Sophie**

"Once I'm done with you two…" Racer disappeared and reappeared behind Gray and Sophie. "…I can catch up to that fire-breathing nincompoop." He then disappeared and reappeared repeatedly, making their gazes shift left and right repeatedly. "This won't take long."

"You're going down!" Gray shouted. He then shot his hands to the floor and then spikes of ice went at Racer, who easily vanished.

"You think you can stop me?!" Racer shouted, reappearing behind and kicking Gray.

"Gray!" Sophie shouted. "Hold on!" She then pointed her finger at her head, but that was all the time she got before Racer appeared in front of her and kicked her side. Sophie flew back and skid.

Racer then stopped. "Tell you what you two, I'll let you off the hook if you lie down." He bargained. Gray and Sophie turned towards Racer.

"Over our dead bodies." Sophie said.

"That can be arranged." Racer said with a smirk. He then raised his arm up. "Let's kick it into overdrive!" Then then brought his arm down in a chop. "**Dead Grand Prix!**" When he said that, Sophie and Gray heard a lot of engines running. They then saw lights in the forest.

"This looks bad." Sophie stated. The two then saw a multitude of green motorcycles appear and coming after them without riders.

"What the heck is that?! Vehicle Magic too?!" Gray shouted. Just then, Sophie and Gray ducked and swerved to evade all of the Magic Cycles that were flooding by.

'_This is bad.' _Sophie thought. _'At this rate, he'll mow us down like grass. And the crazy part is that I can't seems to 'forget' his Magic since I can't figure it out! They're so strange!'_

Racer rode on a red cycle and he bashed his cycle into Gray and Sophie, sending both Mages flying. They both landed with a thud and were surrounded by Magic Cycles that were circling them in.

"You can seriously ride these things?" Gray exclaimed.

"Watch it you two. These things are almost as fast as I am." Racer explained

"Oh really?" Sophie cued for her and Gray to both get one each. With perfect timing, both Mages jumped on their own Magic Cycles and followed Racer. "I love me a good race!" She then 'memorized' the vehicles for further use in the future.

Fortunate for them, Gray and Sophie inserted the plugs onto their wrists and they had the vehicles under their control, much like what Erza did a long time ago with Eisenwald. "I sucks. This thing is sapping away my Magic, but let's go!" Gray then picked up the speed and accelerated, as did Sophie.

"Both of you seriously want to race me? Get real!" Racer exclaimed. They then began racing side by side, a three way tie. They were both going at least a hundred mph and they were starting to come across a terrain shift. The terrain went from forest to a rocky cliff side.

Racer watched as they evaded large rocks with swerves. "You know, for a pathetic guild, your guys' instincts are top notch!"

"Don't count us out yet buddy! **Ice Make: Lance!**" With a free arm, Gray launched ice lances.

"Let me try!** Charge Blades!**" Sophie used her free hand and pointed a finger at her head, making a chain of memories. Following the lances were giant rock blades that were trailing Racer with yellow on the tips for an extreme blast of lightning upon impact. The lances barely missed Racer as did the blades, which resulted in a small explosion in which Racer left unscathed and raced off a cliff, with Gray and Sophie following.

"We're not letting you _choleh _jock get away!" Sophie exclaimed. They then raced down the steep slant and Racer was getting even more speed.

As they were entering another section of the forest, Racer turned back with an arm. "Try and take this faries!" A green-blue Magic seal appeared and then tires went shooting at them both. "**High Side Rush!**" The tires then went at the two.

"Oh no you don't!" Sophie made yet another chain of memories. "**Pyro Saucer!**" Using the combo of Natsu's flames and Erigor's wind blades she had recently witnessed, she made rapid fire saucers that countered the incoming tires. The saucer had cut up the tires and then tried hitting Racer, but Racer looked and he shifted about and sped up to avoid them.

"Hey, not too shabby there!" Racer commented. They then entered a tunnel and Racer turned his Magic Cycle sideways. "End of the line!" The back of his bike then opened up and blasted away at Gray and Sophie. Sophie yelped as she and Gray narrowly escaped and watched the tunnel explode behind them.

The two narrowly escaped. "Man, this guy has some tricked out gear!" Gray commented.

"I gotta get me one of these when I have enough jewels!" Sophie huffed.

"What's the matter? Too intense?" Racer mocked. The sides of the front and the front itself then opened up to reveal more blasters, which made Gray and Sophie both worry tremendously.

"Run –er, I mean, drive!" Sophie shouted. The blasters all fired away and the two were driving as fast as they can to avoid a full on blast, which resulted in an explosion behind them. Then Racer blasted away some more, the attacks still missing.

"We have to protect Nic, we're not gonna loose to this freak!" Gray declared with Sophie nodding in agreement as they avoided more shots aimed at them. Racer then stopped firing and he drove over a long root that went over a trail.

He was spotted below by Sherry and Lyon, to which Sophie and Gray both saw.

"Lyon! Your timing couldn't be better man!" Gray shouted.

"Yeah, we need all the help we can get!" Sophie shouted. "This guy is on fast turkey!"

"Hop aboard!" Gray said.

Lyon looked shocked. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me! Come on, let's go!" Gray said. With that, Lyon reluctantly hopped behind Gray, and Sherry hopped behind Sophie. The four then ventured onwards in a chase, in which led to a grassy field.

"Gray, did you find Wendy?" Lyon asked as they were in pursuit of Racer.

"Yeah, and Happy as well. Natsu is taking them back as we speak!" Gray explained.

"Good. What's the plan?" Lyon asked.

Sophie then closed in on the guys right beside them. "Me and Gray can't aim well while riding. You and Sherry will have to do just that!"

"Oh? So it would seem you two can't do this without me." Lyon said, rather humbled.

"It's so much love!" Sherry exclaimed.

Gray sweat dropped. "Less talking, more casting!"

"Very well then." Lyon then used two hands to make his eyes, to which Gray realized that Lyon has only used one hand this entire time.

"Lyon, you never casted with two hands!" Gray noted.

Lyon paused and then grinned. "…that is how Ur taught us right?" Gray then grinned.

"**Ice Make: Eagle!**" Lyon then launched several eagles make of ice at Racer and his vehicle, to which Racer looked back and saw the incoming attack. With no choice, Racer disappeared and his vehicle was trashed by the incoming eagle attack.

"Did we get him?" Sherry shouted.

"No, I don't think so!" Lyon shouted, and Racer appeared above them all.

Racer looked dissatisfied. "You're gonna pay for trashing my ride. **Motor!**" He turned upside down and then kicked in a painful spiral. Lyon, Gray, Sophie, and Sherry all got off and evaded just in time so that they didn't sustained much of any damage.

"**Ice Make: Ape!**" Lyon created a huge ape made entirely of ice and it tried punching Racer from behind, to which Racer vanished and reappeared close to Gray.

"**Ice make: Hammer!**" Gray made a Magic seal and a huge hammer of ice was above Racer. Racer vanished as the hammer came down, literally, and missed.

"**Memory-Make: Scorn of the Armored Winds!**" Sophie made a chain of memories and then small twisters of iron became noticeable and then they closed in on Racer, beginning to corner him. Racer disappeared and evaded the winds that vanished once they combined.

"Not too bad, but you'll have to do a whole lot better than that!" Racer then appeared and kicked Lyon in the chest, sending him flying. He appeared in front of Gray then and he kicked him as well. He reappeared in front of Sophie and kicked her also.

Everyone except Sherry, of whom was a fair distance away and acted as a standby, was on a knee as Racer appeared in front of them all. "If you want to land a hit on me, you'll have to be faster than lightning." He boasted. Then he disappeared.

Gray and Lyon and also Sophie got up. All were back to back.

"We're not getting anywhere!" Gray shouted.

"Don't lose your cool Gray!" Lyon shouted.

"I see him! He's coming at four o' clock!" Sophie exclaimed. "We can do this guys! Nic's life is on the line!"

"We hear you loud and clear." Lyon said. "With us three working, that creep won't get far."

"Alright…" Gray and Lyon then took their tops off, making them topless. "Let's get him!"

Sophie turned red and looked back at them in deep shock. "S-Seriously?!" She then groaned. "Fine. Whatever."

Racer was confused as he was running towards them. _'That's weird, why are they taking off their clothes?'_

Sherry was blushing passed the trees. _'Oh wow, Lyon-sama's stripping too! It must be out of love!' _

The trio then kept their focus and they watched as Racer was zooming in. They watched as Racer was leaving dirt marks as a way of tracking. When they got a visual, they were able to predict where he was coming from.

"In front of us!" Lyon exclaimed.

"**Ice Make: Geyser!**" Gray slammed his hand on the ground and then he made a tower of ice shoot upwards. Racer was evading the ice as he escalated and disappeared again.

"**Ice Make: Snow Dragon!**" Lyon then made an ice dragon that went and tried to crush Racer, but Racer dodged that as well.

"**Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**" Using a mixture of ice and some of that Dark Rondo she saw earlier, she made several ice mirrors on her sides and she launched green blasts of energy that blasted away at Racer, but Racer was still too fast and evaded them.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Gray exclaimed.

"He's faster than before?!" Sophie exclaimed. Racer raced through their formation and they all yelped.

Racer had a smirk on his face. "What's the matter, getting tired?"

Lyon then opened his eyes and then saw something that was a key – He saw birds flying super fast. _'The birds…wait, I know how to beat him!'_

Racer then came to a halt. "You can attack me for eternity, and you won't even come close to hitting me. Been fun, but I'll make this as quick as possible."

Lyon then grinned at Gray and Sophie. "Don't worry you guys, we've won. I figured out how we're going to beat this guy." Gray and Sophie then closed in as Lyon then whispered and explained his idea.

Sophie and Gray went wide eyed as they realized what Racer was able to do. They then nodded with Lyon's plan.

"Strategize all you want, but you're still going down." Racer said.

Just then, he saw a Magic seal of Lyon's appear under Gray. Gray was then covered in spiked ice. "There can only be one ice wizard running this show." Lyon said. He then made the ice increase in height and Gray looked as though he was in a tower of ice.

Sherry and Racer were confused. "Why are you freezing him like that?!" Sherry shouted.

"Quit screwing around! You can't take this guy on by yourself!" Gray shouted.

"Heh, just sit back and watch the show." He then turned towards Sophie. "Sophie your time is up, you better be getting your butt away from this fight." He then used his Magic and then made a big eagle and it grabbed Sophie, though she didn't scream.

Racer watched as he saw Sophie get taken up into the sky. Racer crossed his arms. "Man that was kind of harsh. Is that how you treat your friends?"

"Those two are not my friends." Lyon boldly stated. "The one without a shirt and I simply trained under the same master when we were young, and the blonde I send packing was annoying."

Sherry rushed out by Lyon's side. "I don't understand, we need their help!"

Lyon kept a grin. "No need for those two. Together we'll give Lamina Scale its finest victory. Now let's get to work."

"I'd be careful if I were you guys." Racer commented. "Your arrogance may get too high, and you're sure to lose."

"**Doll Attack: Rock Doll!**" Sherry then made a big doll from the earth that arose to attack Racer. The monster punched, but Racer dodged.

"Nice trick girly, but it's too slow to catch me!" Racer then vanished and he began bashing the doll in a rapid succession of blurs. "It's standing still!"

"Fine, how about this! **Doll Attack: Wood Doll!**" Sherry dispelled her Rock Doll and an animated tree puppet from an actual tree came forth and attacked. It continuously swatted, but Racer dodged left and right. Sherry then extended her arm and had several branches trap Racer. Racer was seemingly caught, but he vanished.

"But how?!" Sherry exclaimed before delivering a quick blow.

"Gotcha!" Racer shouted. He then narrowly evaded an ice dragon from behind. Racer turned to see where Lyon was and then he saw Lyon running.

"Over here slow poke!" Lyon shouted, running into the forest.

Racer then sneered and then raced at high speed at Lyon. "I don't know about you pal, but you got things backwards!"

Lyon then pivoted and skid to a halt and put two hands together. "Your speed doesn't matter if your attacks have no power! **Ice Make: Hedgehog!**" He then coated his body in long and very sharp ice, resembling a hedgehog. This tactic made Racer stopped just like when Sophie had put up that wall from before. "Don't get too close or you'll end up a shish kebab." Lyon then turned and leaped away, getting more distance in between. "What's the matter Racer, afraid that speed of yours will get you skewered?"

Racer then smirked. "Not a chance kid. **Gear Change: Red Zone!**" A blue-green Magic seal appeared under Racer and then he lit up red. Suddenly, he reappeared faster than what Lyon could blink. Racer reappeared in front and kicked Lyon across the chest, the impact coursing through his body and shattering the ice on Lyon's back.

Lyon crashed into the ground with dust flying about as Racer landed. "Did you honestly think that I was using my full speed from the beginning?" He then saw Lyon get up from the dust and witnessed him running away.

"Come get me!" Lyon insisted.

Racer then reappeared in front of him. "You are so on!" He then kicked Lyon and send him overhead. Lyon landed and ducked and rolled and then continued running through the forest. Racer caught up and delivered a kick behind, making Lyon yelp. Still being as persistent as could be, Lyon still kept running as Racer was pounding him left and right.

Racer watched after beating Lyon senseless as the Ice Make Mage ran through the forest. "Boy, talk about a glutton for punishment."

Lyon ran through the forest, close to a clearing up by a cliff side. He turned as Racer came after him. "**Ice Make: Eagle!**" The eagles crashed into the ground, making patches of spiked ice. Racer raced past them all and he delivered a bunch of attacks from all directions at Lyon. Racer then delivered a quick kick and drove Lyon into a log. Lyon gagged as he was unable to get up and was trying to catch his breath.

Racer appeared in front of him. "You honestly think I don't have the power to land a decisive blow?" He asked, not in a mocking tone. He chunked off an ice spike and held it like a knife. "Why don't I show you!" Racer then brought the ice spike down. When Lyon thought he was a goner, Racer stopped the ice spike from an inch from his neck.

Racer then spoke rather more seriously now. "I don't need that power to put the brakes on this fight. As fast as I am, I can take you out way faster than you can use any sort of fancy Magic. Don't get me wrong, you got serious skills kid. You would've been fine if you never crossed paths with me…but I'm one of the Oracion Seis. Six Generals. Six Prayers. Six Pillars that can't crumble. Anyone who gets in our way will pay the final toll. So, say goodbye."

As Lyon finally caught his breath, he finally spoke. "Just as I thought. I figured out the truth being your Magic. While I was fighting with Gray and Sophie, I noticed that the birds in the background were flying incredibly fast."

Racer then gulped, realizing Lyon was catching on. Lyon continued. "You were never as fast as lightning. You just altered our perception of speed so it would seem that way. You used Slowing Magic, that's all. Once I got outside the perimeter of your Magic, I realized what was going on. Despite your name, you're just as slow as the rest of us. Now that we're out here, Gray and Sophie are outside the perimeter and can take you down."

Far away, Racer saw the top of the ice pillar Gray was on shatter, revealing Gray to have ready an arrow of ice. Just right beside Gray, Sophie was on the eagle and she used her Memory-Make to make a spear made of the energy from that Dark Capriccio she saw and encased it with spiraling ice energy.

"Now that you can't move, Gray and Sophie will have a clear shot." Lyon stated.

"Wait! You guys weren't arguing, you were giving them sniping positions!" Racer shouted.

* * *

**With Gray and Sophie**

"Now this is more like it!" Gray commented from atop the pillar. "Fresh air and I can see it all!"

Sophie grinned as she narrowed her eyes. "Ready…aim…"

* * *

**With Racer and Lyon**

"There's no way they can hit me from there." Racer commented. "They're both a mile away!"

Lyon grinned. "Oh, they'll hit alright. If there's one thing I learned, it's to never underestimate a member of Fairy Tail. There's no stopping them."

* * *

**With Gray and Sophie**

"…Fire! **Memory-Make: Piercing Frigid Darkness!**" A lock-on for Sophie appeared so she had a better perception and then she moved her hands in opposite arcs and she remained still as she launched the spear with her Memory-Make.

"**Ice Make: Super Freeze Arrow!**" Gray then unleashed his arrow of ice. Both attacks increased in speed thanks to the gravity and air pressure, making them fly at Racer at blinding speed.

* * *

**With Racer and Lyon**

The two attacks came in a mixture of light blue and a hint of green and red. All of the blinding colors shooting at Racer.

Racer covered. "No! It's too fast!" The light then got even closer until all he saw was light and his sunglasses broke.

'…_My prayer…To be fast…faster than anyone else…that's all I want.'_

Both attacks smashed into Racer and he was engulfed in a powerful array of light. Feeling the full force of the combination of ice and darkness. Racer screamed as he had fallen.

Sherry, Sophie, and Gray all caught up to Lyon after the fall of Racer.

"Boy, I still can't believe that worked." Gray noted.

"What I can't believe is that there are five more." Sophie said.

"On another note, could you try and include me in on future plans?" Sherry asked.

"Don't look at me, Lyon's the man with the plan." Gray said.

Lyon turned to Gray with a grin. "Thanks."

Gray then extended a hand. "You need a hand getting up?"

Lyon turned away. "I just need a bit more time." He said with pride, which got a giggle from Sophie and Sherry.

They all didn't realize that Racer was getting up and he unzipped his jacket. "IT'S NOT OVER!" Racer shouted, making everyone turn towards him. Sherry provided herself to keep Lyon up. "I swear in the name of the Oracion Seis, I'll take you with me to death!"

Strapped to his abdomen was an actual bomb with yellow lacrima at the five ends and in the middle was a big red one.

"Is that what I think it is?" Lyon asked.

"That's no question, that's a Bomb Lacrima." Sophie stated in worry.

"Is that guy insane?" Gray asked.

"We're crossing the finish line together!" Racer heinously proclaimed, running towards them.

"Oh no you don't-!" Sophie was about to point a finger at her head to initiate her Memory-Make to get some distance, but she and Gray both dropped to their knees.

"Crap! We're on empty!" Gray shouted. "We used a lot on those Magic Cycles and we used up every bit on that last shot!"

"_Ze lo tov!_" Sophie exclaimed as Racer was getting closer.

As Racer was getting closer and closer, they all thought they were screwed…that is, until Lyon made the choice of pouncing and tackling Racer, throwing them both off of the cliff.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Gray exclaimed with wide eyes.

"No! Lyon-sama!" Sherry exclaimed. Gray, Sherry, and Sophie all watched in shock as Lyon fell off the cliff with Racer and the bomb was about to detonate. An orange light was beginning to swallow up Lyon and Racer.

As Lyon was diving down latched to Racer, he grinned and closed his eyes. _'Gray…the things I do for you kill me…'_

Lyon and Racer then disappeared under the trees and then there was a big white flash and the bomb went off, making everything explode in a white dome. There was an immense booming noise as the bomb went off that echoed about through the area.

Gray, Sherry, and Sophie all looked with wide eyes and deep horror as Lyon had sacrificed himself to save them just like that, and with no warning.

Sherry and Sophie had their mouths covered in horror while Gray was as still as a statue. He could not believe went out with a bang, literally. After the dome subsided, an enormous smoke cloud arose from the ground and up into air.

Sherry screamed in horror as her love was taken from her right before her eyes. She dropped to her knees and looked over the cliff. "NOOOOO! THIS ISN'T HAPPENING! HE CAN'T BE GONE!"

Sophie dropped to her knees and she had tears in her eyes. She just watched as a human being gave his life up just like that.

Gray clenched his fists as he had tears in the corner of his eyes. "**LYON!**"

The three there just watched as the smoke kept rising.

* * *

**With Brain**

Still in the cave and awaiting for Jellal to be stopped, he felt a sheer pain rushed through him, which felt like a headache.

He clenched his head with his left hand and one of the lines on the left side his face slowly vanished.

"Racer's been defeated, but how?" Brain said to himself. "That's impossible. How could one of the Oracion Seis have been defeated?!" He swerved as he was composing himself, knocking over a bowl and a skull.

"No." He said. "It would appear that I have underestimated our adversaries." He then he turned towards Midnight. "I'd never thought I would have to resort to sending _him_. Wake up Midnight."

Midnight was leaning against the cave wall and his head slowly went up. He then opened up his eyes from his slumber, revealing his red eyes.

"You have work to do." Brain ordered. Midnight grumbled and he got to his feet. "Find our foes and eliminate them."

Midnight scratched his head and looked at Brain. "Yes…Father."

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

Everyone there heard some sort of blast from afar that echoed about, making them all turn. They were very alarmed by this and wasn't sure if it was an ally or an enemy.

"What was that?" Lucy asked.

"I don't know, could be an adversary launching a very devastating attack." He suggested. He turned to her. "You should be ready." Lucy nodded and remained alarmed, ready to pull out a key if anyone approaches.

Erza looked down at Nic again and saw his face getting pale. This was very bad. The damage was making his body suffer the longer Natsu takes. Arbok hissed and he grunted.

"Where'ssss that damn pyro? How long doessss it even take to get here anyway?" Arbok impatiently asked.

"If we're lucky, he should be here in less than half an hour." Hibiki said, tracking Natsu.

"But we don't have half an hour!" Erza shouted. "His injuries are too drastic and he's internally suffering!" She then put a hand on Nic's chest and she looked in desperation at his face. The bruises were practically black and blue, scratches were everywhere. There might be a chance that…that…

Erza was begging for an answer, and then she felt a small vibration echo through Nic's chest. She gasped as she was feeling something pulse through him. She quickly put her head to his chest to see if it was a heartbeat, but it wasn't. His heartbeat was still slow and weakening. The feeling was more centered and it echoed even further inside of Nic.

"Erza, what's wrong?" Hibiki asked.

Erza slowly looked up. "I think Nic's body is reacting to something."

* * *

**With Natsu  
**

Natsu stopped when he had heard a loud explosion. He turned towards the direction of the explosion and he looked with worry.

"What the…what was that?" He asked. "Was that rumbling? Happy, did you hear that?" He looked down at Happy, who was still tired from being hit by Racer from before and he wasn't able to move much.

"Aye." Happy groaned. Natsu grunted and he reluctantly pressed onward with such energy to get to Nic as soon as he can. Happy's eyes opened as he was getting some energy back. He turned his head and then saw something in the darkness of the trees on their left.

It was hard to tell, but it looked as though it was a quarter mile away; still, Happy was able to see a dim light in the darkness. "…that light…what is it…?"

* * *

**When I want to get the plot moving, I get the plot moving. I would say the rest of the Oracion Seis Arc will go on for maybe four chapters roughly, if not more or less. **

**My computer almost backfired as I was finishing up, so I was super lucky to have this uploaded before I checked out the problem.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys support this story and love the action and battles I make.**

* * *

**Next Time: Change of Heart**


	26. Change of Heart

Chapter 26 – Change of Heart

**Hey guys, I have returned! I am so sorry for not updating. I had technical difficulties, and I guess I should be explaining myself. The hard drive on my computer was damaged and that's where all of my FanFiction is related to, meaning while it was getting replaced, I was unable to do any work. It took all this time to find someone and get the parts to fix it. I was so bored these past couple weeks without it, but now I'm back and I'll be cranking as many chapters in order to catch up.**

**GoldenCyclone4: To answer your first question, in a way, yeah. Since Laxus and Cobra have Dragon characteristics. Secondly, Cubellios would just be Poison in terms of Type if related to Pokémon. Also, thanks for the correction for Lamia Scale.**

**Okay, I'm finished explaining. Now is the time to enjoy the reading. I might be a little rusty after all of this time off. Also guys, no big deal, but as of July 3****rd**** was the 6 month anniversary of me joining FanFiction.**

**Also, thanks to RavenousEds for helping me in aiding with the fights for the rest of the Arc. Check out his stories.**

**FOREWARNING: Really long chapter, well over 17K. Longest chapter up to date!**

**To Recap:**

With Nic having lethal injuries, Erza and Arbok decided to remain behind at base camp with Hibiki and Lucy. The rest went to find Wendy and bring her back to heal Nic. Natsu and Fairy Tail encountered Erigor again and Natsu defeated him. Wendy was forced to revive Jellal, much to Natsu's shock. Racer quarreled with Gray and Sophie, with Lyon and Sherry aiding as well. Though Racer went down in the end, he was found to have a bomb and Lyon jumped off the cliff with Racer in order to save his comrades.

* * *

**Chapter 26 – Change of Heart**

As Natsu was running through the forest, Happy squirmed in in arm, making the former stopped and check on Happy. "Hey Happy, what's up buddy?" Natsu wondered.

Happy was slowly accumulating his strength, but all he could do was point out towards the darkness within the forest towards the dim light. This didn't go unnoticed by Natsu as he looked and saw the light as well.

"Whoa. What is that?" Natsu was peeked to know what that was, but he didn't have time as Nic's life was at stake. He turned back towards the front and looked ahead. "I can't worry about that right now. I gotta get back to Nic." Natsu grumbled.

Just then, Natsu ceased a step ahead as he heard Hibiki talking through his head again. _'Natsu, it's me. Hibiki.' _The voice echoed through his head. _'There's something up. Nic's body is beginning to react to something. Erza felt a strong feeling echoing through Nic's chest and she thinks Nic's body is fixed on something like a radar.'_

Natsu narrowed his eyes and he then remained still. "Is that a good thing?"

'_We don't know. Whatever it is, it's close. Can you guys tell me what's in your surroundings?'_

Natsu then looked about in all directions, seeing nothing but plants here and there. He looked towards his left and saw the dim light in the distance. Maybe…

"I think there's something." Natsu said. "There's some sort of light in the distance not too far from us. I can't make out what it looks like."

Natsu heard Hibiki let a slight gasp escape and heard some mumbling from the group with Hibiki. Natsu blinked and then he saw the light fluctuate in brightness, meaning the signal was getting weaker and stronger depending on the range, which was in the middle.

'_Hang on, I'll make another map and have you take a path that goes towards the light. Maybe that's what might help Nic, but we can't be sure. I'll put that in conjunction with the map I already downloaded into your head.'_

"Hey hold on, I thought I told you to stay of my head?" Natsu argued, but it was of no use as he was now having a bar over his head that quickly reached one hundred percent. Natsu went wide-eyed as he now had a new map to follow.

'_Unfortunately this route is a little longer, so be super quick and check it out. If possible, have Happy fly you back. We'll be waiting.' _And with those words, Hibiki ceased signaling through Natsu's head and left the Dragon Slayer to make way through the woods.

Natsu showed his teeth within his frown. "Hang on guys, we'll be there soon." Natsu muttered before jumping over some underbrush and ran towards the light. Natsu tried to pick up the pace if it were possible and he dashed as much as possible.

Within two minutes of trekking through the forest, Natsu actually saw the light and it was revealed to be in the hole of a large tree, though he still was making way. "Geez, it's like this part of the forest is thick…and sticky?" Natsu could feel the ground and bushes around looking as though they had really thin cobwebs, meaning there were probably insects all about. He still pressed on and finally made it towards the light within another minute.

The light looked to be coming from what seemed to be a light green rectangular plate of sorts, wedged in the hole of a tree that was surround with cobwebs and spider nets from nearly every corner of every branch, giving the tree and area an ominous feeling.

"Man, it's like every nerve in my body is tensing up." Natsu noted, feeling goosebumps while holding Wendy and Carla as well. He then felt Happy squirm in his arms, now having some strength.

"Aye." Happy groaned.

"Happy, are you okay?" Natsu asked. His feline pal nodded but groaned as he was still tired somewhat, but even he felt uneasy with this sensation.

"Natsu? What is this feeling? It's like bugs are crawling up my back but they're not there." Happy explained. "Is it because of that thing up there?"

Natsu began to walk closer towards the tree. "I don't know, but whatever it is let's hope it doesn't slow us down." Natsu was going to scale the tree, but he stopped when he felt an ominous feeling, as though he was being watched.

"What's wrong? Why'd you stop?" Happy asked.

Natsu turned left and right, wondering what that was just now. "I don't know. Something feels off."

"Maybe you just got gas or something." Happy commented. "Or maybe you need to go to the bathroom?"

Natsu stood affirm, zeroing in as to what this feeling is. It was creepy, and it felt as though they were being observed. Natsu looked down in pondering of what this was.

He remained still as he then blinked, realizing something. There was a shadow over his, and it had appendages much like a…

Natsu gasped and looked up, seeing something that could give even the toughest of Machamps nightmares. This was an _enormous_ spider. We were talking fifteen feet long and ten feet high. It was primarily black and looked to have Wolf-Spider like resemblance in the head, the mouth all fury and the black eyes fixated on Natsu and the smaller ones. It had a large posterior with spiky fur and the appendages were lined with gray.

It was hanging upside down and right above Natsu, hanging from the thick string of thread from the high-above branches.

Natsu and Happy shrieked in fright as they never saw this coming. "GWAAAHHHH!" Both screamed. The creature hissed and it bared its front legs and dropped from above. Natsu leaped back and evaded the giant spider's assault. Natsu landed a fair distance away and grunted as he and the others were in trouble.

"That's a big spider!" Happy squealed as the large creature gazed at them.

"Yeah I know. It's gotta be the biggest bug I've seen." Natsu stated.

"But spiders aren't bugs Natsu!" Happy exclaimed as Natsu gently set Wendy and Carla down along with Happy himself.

Natsu kept his gaze on the arachnid and grinned. "Doesn't matter, it'll get squished anyway. Happy you watch them while I take this freak of nature down."

Happy wanted to say something, but there was no time as Nic's life was slipping away with the wounds he had back at camp. "Hurry Natsu!"

Hearing this, Natsu bared a fist. "Alright you eight-legged freak, let's dance!" The large spider hissed and it made a large jump into the air catered by the strong legs. Natsu saw that the spider was screeching as it came barrowing down on him, but it wasn't Natsu's nature to run. He leaped and flamed a fist.

"**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Natsu let loose a brutal flaming punch as the heavy creature came down, effectively making the creature screech as it soared back up in the air. The Dragon Slayer landed and he propelled himself by using his Fire Dragon's Claw and shooting back up to the spider. He turned upside down and spiral kicked the creature across the prickly face.

The spider hissed harshly as it hit a nearby tree with its back. The foul creature land with a crumbling thud back on the ground and it got back up. It saw Natsu descend and it open its horrendous mouth and shot a stream of thick thread, hitting Natsu and sticking him upside down to a nearby tree.

"Gah! Hey! That's fighting dirty!" Natsu retorted while being upside down on a tree trunk. Apparently his appendages were hardly moveable and he struggled but to no avail. "Come on! Come on!" Natsu had a hard time prying himself as the spider hissed and was moving towards him.

Happy shrieked. "This is bad!" Happy exclaimed, unable to think as to what could be done with Natsu like this.

The giant spider was making its way towards its captured prey. The creature's eyes were targeted onto Natsu and its legs made it pounce, making it leap into the air and bared its fangs as it was coming down.

"Natsu!" Happy shouted.

Natsu saw the huge beast screeching and having its mouth open and was about to come down on Natsu, but the foul creature did not take into account that Natsu had the ability to breath fire.

Natsu sneered and he took in a quick breath. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Still upside down, he unleashed a stream of fire and scored a direct hit, engulfing the spider in fire. The giant being screech and hollered as it was being incinerated in midair.

"Whoa. Nice shot." Happy muttered as he witnessed the stream of fire ending and saw the giant spider beginning to fall. It looked completely cindered thanks to the blast of fire.

Natsu coated himself in fire and he easily pried himself free with the threads being burned off. He straightened out and then he lunged off of the trunk head first at the falling spider. "We haven't got time for freaks like you! Our friend is barely hanging on to his life and you're making a snack out of me?! You'll never harm my friends!"

Natsu smashed head first enflamed into the creature's cindered abdomen. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" He headbutted the spider and it let loose one final screech before Natsu propelled even further and hammered the creature into the cobwebbed tree with the glowing plate of sorts. The creature and Natsu crashed into the tree, making smoke burst about and effectively bringing down the tree as well. Happy watched as the weird plate went flying into the air, and he used his Aera Magic and he spread his wings, zooming up and catching the shining light green plate before it could fall to the ground.

"Got it!" Happy exclaimed, though he had to admit that it did feel kind of heavy, not to mention the creepy feeling was still all around him. He looked down from midair to see that the smoke cleared, seeing as how the big tree with webs was pretty much knocked to the ground and there were scattered webs everywhere. Natsu was standing on the spider that was on its back and had its legs curled in, absolute no movement, meaning Natsu had won.

Natsu looked up with a proud grin. "And that's how Fairy Tail rolls!"

Happy floated in the air, holding the shining plate and spoke to Natsu. "Are you finished down there?"

"Yeah, piece of cake. Come on let's get moving!" Natsu leaped off of the spider and ran over towards Wendy and Carla and picked them up and he got to his feet. "Alright then, let's go." He then turned towards his flying comrade, who was hovering above. "Happy you stay in the air and follow me with that thing!"

"Aye sir!" Happy shouted, carrying the plate and allowing Natsu to keep a fast pace. As Happy and Natsu were now getting back on the path they were currently on, Happy noticed that as they got closer to base camp, the brighter the plate was glowing.

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

Erza was looking carefully at Nic, with Arbok doing the same. She still had a tender hand on Nic's chest, hearing his heart getting slower and slower, yet feeling some force within him palpitate. It was growing stronger and stronger.

Lucy and Hibiki gathered around to check on Nic's conditions, and it seemed to be that his injuries were beginning to make him suffer even more.

"Come on Nic. Hang in there." Lucy muttered.

Hibiki looked as Erza was tending to Nic. "We hardly have any time left. If nothing is done very soon…" He was then silenced by a glare from Erza, a shadow cascading over her forehead.

"Do not come to that conclusion Hibiki." Erza threatened. Arbok hissed harshly and he showed his fangs, almost tempted to unleash an Ice Fang.

Hibiki's eyes narrowed. "But you know I'm right." He said unemotionally. With this stated, Erza then softened her stare and she slowly dropped her head, seeing as how he was right. Arbok remained still, but he glanced back at Nic. In truth, this was a fact that cannot be denied.

They were just about out of time.

They then heard some rustling from some underbrush nearby. Almost immediately, Lucy jerked up in wide-eyed surprise and turned towards what might be coming. Erza was ready as well, getting up to her feet and summoning a sword. Arbok sprang to their sides and readied Ice Fang.

Natsu with Wendy and Carla appeared, with Happy carrying the shining plate. "You miss us?" Natsu cheerfully exclaimed.

Seeing this, Erza and everyone else eased. "Natsu!" Lucy said, happy to see that Natsu was back with Wendy and Carla.

"I gotta say, we're lucky you're here at last." Hibiki said. He then stepped forward with a frown. "How's Wendy?"

"She's fine!" Natsu said, setting her down and began shaking her. "Time to wake up! Come on!" He continuously shook her to no end.

Lucy looked startled. "Geez Natsu! Don't be so harsh!"

Erza was more than happy to have Wendy here to heal Nic, but then she saw the glowing plate that Happy was carrying, which was glowing fairly bright. She turned towards the flying feline. "Happy, is that what you guys found?"

Happy nodded. "Aye. We found it not too far from here. It keeps getting brighter and brighter the more close we got to here for some reason."

Erza blinked and nearly jerked back at Nic, who was still lying on the ground. She specifically remembered that Nic had to look for these Plates that were essential to save the universe and what not. Erza stared at Nic, seeing him still not moving.

"You fool!" Arbok sneered. "That'sssss at Plate! It'ssss one of the essssssentialssss that Nic needssss!" Arbok's sudden tone startled Happy and made him nearly drop it. "Careful you flapping feline!"

Erza turned towards Arbok while the Plate was shining brightly. "The Plate matter is for later, right now healing Nic is our priority." Erza desperately wanted to save Nic, even more than she wanted to see what happens with the Plate.

Wendy began to open her eyes and after a few moments, she went wide-eyed and squealed. She pushed herself away from Natsu in order to get room. She looked around quickly and she looked scared.

Lucy and the rest were surprised Wendy was scared like this, which made them blink.

Wendy clenched her head and closed her eyes. "I had to do it! I didn't mean to, but it happened!" She shouted. Natsu knew exactly what she was talking about and was standing with a blank expression. While everyone else was confused. Wendy was almost trembling.

Natsu got to his knees and bowed to her, making her look back at him. "I'm willing to overlook that right now." He explained with a bowed head. "Nic was nearly killed taking a combined assault! He's losing life! Please, you gotta save him!"

Wendy slowly took her hands off her head and look innocently at Nic. "He's hurt?" She then saw that Nic was severely bruised and damaged to a great degree.

Erza looked at Wendy. "We need Nic in order to stop the Oracion Seis. We don't have enough force without him. Please Wendy." Erza stated, almost as though she was begging. Now Erza got to her knees and was on hands and knees. "I'm begging you. Please…please save him." She was almost shaking. "People need him more than you know."

Arbok lowered his head. "Pleasssse Wendy."

Lucy was on hands and knees as well. "Please Wendy. We need Nic now more than ever."

Seeing how everyone was begging her, Wendy knew she had to do this. She had her fists clenched. "Yes, I'll try and save him! NO, I WILL!" She proclaimed. Everyone looked up from begging with smiles, but no one was as happy as Erza. They all watched as Wendy walked over to a wounded Nic and sat on her knees and looked over him.

Everyone there watched in anticipation, hoping for the very best. Erza had an armored fist clenched tightly at her large chest, hoping for a miracle to bring back Fairy Tail's light.

Wendy had her hands over Nic's chest and a blue-green light took place. As the light was commencing to heal Nic, Wendy began to mutter. _'I heard Jellal did terrible things to them all.' _They all watched as Wendy's magic was quickly ridding and vanquishing the bruises and damages Nic had gained. His internals were being rebuild and his heart was beginning to pump faster.

'_That's hard for me to believe.'_

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Deep within the woodsea, somewhere in a rocky terrain that had rooted rocks, Jellal was walking quietly with Erigor's clothing. Jellal looked around in silence in front of what seemed to be a light purple object that seemed to have branches of sorts and was chained to the rocks, though it was hard to tell if said object was in light purple cobwebs. Jellal continued onwards towards the large object.

Cobra was sneaking around and following him, tracking his movements. He looked behind a rock and scrutinized Jellal's footsteps. He seemed to be rather perplexed in the process. _'For some reason, I can't hear his inner voice.'_ Cobra thought. _'If I could, I wouldn't have to be following him around like this.' _Cobra then saw Jellal stop in place, looking up at the chained contraption, whatever it was.

Cobra saw the huge object. "What the hell is this place?" He muttered. He then looked up along the tree or whatever it was, and he had a nervous smile. "Could this be what Brain said? Is this where Nirvana is sealed…?"

Jellal stared at the tree thingamajig and he gazed solemnly up front, where he was planning something, though not sure if this was instinctive. With no other way, Jellal slowly brought his hand up and placed it in front of the tree thing.

Slowly, as he was making contact and keeping his hand on the object, the object was lighting up, giving a faint glow that soon turned into a bright light that erupted the ground beneath, sending forth a bright light into the sky.

"We found it!" Cobra shouted. "Our future!"

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

Wendy wiped her forehead. "Well, I repaired his wounds. He should be up again soon. All we have to do is wait." She said.

"WAIT?!" Everyone exclaimed.

Happy was still holding the shining Plate from a close distance while everyone else was observing to see if Nic would come around. Nic was still not moving, which concerned Erza and Arbok. Natsu and Lucy were getting a little anxious as well, even Happy was getting anxious.

Everyone kept their composure to the best of their abilities, and sure enough it was beginning to pay off. Pretty soon after a short few moments, Nic's eyes winced once, then twice, and then finally after the third wince they slowly opened.

"Ooooooiiiiii." Nic groaned.

"HE'S OKAY!" Natsu, Lucy, and Happy exclaimed. Happy jumped for joy while Natsu and Lucy high-fived. Erza got to her knees with both hands over her mouth as she was so relieved that Nic was okay. To be perfectly honest, she felt like shedding a few tears of joy, but she had to remain composed in front of everyone. Still, she was far more happy than the entire Allied Forces put together.

Happy went over to a stoic Carla with a free hand. "Don't leave me hanging!" Happy shouted with joy.

Carla looked away and held up a paw. "Fine, just this once." They then high-fived.

Nic was slowly coming around, his eyes blinked and he turned his head both left and right. "What happened?" He quietly asked. "The last thing I remembered was taking a gruesome-!" Nic winced as he still felt a sting somewhere along his abdomen from the attack. Wendy's Magic healed him of his injuries for the most part, but still left a stinging sensation through his body.

He turned his way and saw that Erza and Arbok were on his left. He sat up and noticed how relieved their expressions were. He saw Erza smiling a concerned yet happy expression. Seeing how happy she looked, he tried to pull off a weak smile. "Hey Er-!" He was then grabbed by Erza as she instinctively hugged him and held him close, as though he might disappear if she loosens her grip.

Nic blinked as he then felt Erza getting shaky and he felt her scarlet hair press against the right side of his face. He decided he would just let it flow and he wrapped his arms around her waist, accepting the embrace.

"You were almost dead." Erza muttered with eyes closed over his shoulder. "You were blasted in front of my eyes. I almost thought I-we lost you again. I was in a panic as your heart was slowing down. I couldn't…" She paused as she was feeling a small tear coming and glistening in the corner of her eye. "…I couldn't leave you, not this time. We need you now more than ever Nic, we did everything in our power to get Wendy back. For your sake. For our sake…for my sake. I thought you were almost gone for good." She was shaking even more now and a tear slowly fell. "I wasn't there to help you when you needed me. I'm not worthy of such forgiveness, but please…please don't ever do something like that again." She begged. "I can't bear it if you sacrificed yourself like that again. I can't live with such guilt. Please promise."

Nic softened his eyes and he felt sorry for himself, but he didn't know what came over him when he took that assault. What made him make the bold move? Was it his heart? Right now wasn't exactly the time as Erza was making him promise. Nic saw the pain within Erza's voice. It was almost broken, like when he returned after his 'death'. He could feel the guilt twisting him over and over as did the last time.

Nic reluctantly pulled away and gently eased Erza off of him, despite wanting the embrace to go on. "Okay, I promise." Nic said. He recalled the pain he saw in Erza's eyes when he returned from his 'death', and when he saw Erza at his own funeral. Both sights were unbearable. He almost left again, and this was the second time he did it impulsively to save Erza. He was hoping in silence that he wouldn't have to do that again.

Erza shed yet another tear and she then forcefully kissed his right cheek, regardless of whoever was watching. She almost lost him again, and she was more than happy to have him here in front of her again. She maintained that one kiss on his cheek for a few moments before she recoiled and she looked at Nic with a slight blush, to which Nic just smiled in sincerity, feeling the same way.

Though this was a fun time to tease, Happy knew as well as the others that this was meant to be a personal moment, so he just stood by while watching the heart-warming site. Everyone there had smiles and looked with satisfaction that Nic and Erza were embracing, to which no one argued.

Arbok slithered towards Erza's side and lowered his head and bowed before his master. "Nic-ssssama, my deepessst regretsss for not helping you. I am at fault for not aiding you in taking down the enemy. I have sssullied mysssself in pity. I am sssory I have failed you."

Nic blinked and he sighed. He let loose a happy grin and he laid a hand on Arbok's head and gently petted his pal. "No one's to blame Arbok." Nic said. "Nobody saw it coming. No one single individual is to be blamed, especially you." Arbok gasped slightly and jerked his head up towards Nic. "You were doing exactly as I told you, and I am still proud of you in the end." Nic then slowly arose to his feet with Erza and Arbok spotting him. "You did well in quarreling with Cubellios. Thank you."

Seeing as how Nic was still pleased with Arbok giving it his all, the Cobra Pokémon couldn't help but smile and have his head in Nic's chest, letting him pet his head even more. "Thank you Nic-sssama."

Arbok slowly backed away and Nic pulled out his poke ball. "You and the others' loyalty have no bounds, as my loyalty to you guys. It's best that you rest your worries and conserve your energy." Nic then looked out at the woodsea. "I have a feeling we'll be running into them soon; until then return."

"Asssss you wish." Arbok obediently went back into his poke ball for some well-earned rest, leaving them all to feel relief with this situation going well.

Natsu turned towards Wendy. "Hey, that was amazing Wendy, thanks!" Natsu thanked Wendy for helping to save Nic. The two Dragon Slayers then high-five just like everyone else. Natsu had his trademark smile showing his teeth. "Looks like we owe you one!"

"Well now, since your friend is healed please refrain from having Wendy use anymore of her Sky Magic." Carla stated. Everyone then turned towards her. "She'll insist that she's okay after using her Sky Magic, but it exhausts her regardless."

"That won't be an issue for me anymore, don't worry." Nic assured. He was then glowing yellow, everyone watching as Nic had the power to use Recover and his stinging feeling was gone. When the light ceased, Nic looked like he didn't even see battle. "You won't have to worry about healing me anymore. Now that I am conscious again, I can restore myself. Thanks to you again Wendy."

Wendy blinked and nodded, looking happy.

Lucy pumped a fist. "Alright, look out Oracion Seis! We're coming to get you!"

"Aye! You won't get Nirvana!" Happy shouted, still holding the shining Plate. As Nic was about to turn towards the Plate, the entire group saw the forest ahead of them glowing. The sudden glow and shine startled them as they weren't sure what this was.

"What is that?!" Lucy exclaimed. They all saw the light dim, but saw it shoot up into the sky to no end. They saw the white beam ascertain fragments of black within its beam and saw a chaotic tangle of black energy surrounding it.

Wendy looked with concerns. "A giant pillar of black light."

"No way." Carla said.

"Nirvana has been unsealed!" Hibiki exclaimed, shocking everyone. They all saw the pillar of black light continuously going on and the earth itself was shaking slightly and then subsided. "That's gotta be it."

"Seriously, then how did the Oracion Seis get there first?" Lucy exclaimed.

Natsu stood there with clenched fists, seeing the pillar of light there in the sky. "That pillar of light…I know Jellal is there!"

Lucy and everyone else's eyes opened wide in shock at the mention of Jellal. They all saw Natsu rush off to where the light was, where Jellal was.

Lucy didn't have enough time to register after the shock of Jellal that she saw Natsu flee. "Wait, how is Jellal here?" But Natsu was already out of sight.

Erza was left still with a super shocked expression, hearing that Jellal of all people were here. She was completely baffled that someone from her past returned, again.

"Jellal?" She muttered.

"No way." Nic muttered. He was baffled as well, though not as badly as Erza, who looked as though she was transfixed. He turned towards her. "I-I thought…I…"

Erza turned towards Nic as well, just as stunned as was he. "Yeah…I thought so as well."

They all saw Wendy trembling and she had her hands close to her mouth. She looked very upset, like she was going to break down. "N-N-No…what have I done." She said in utter regret. "This is all my fault."

Everyone was perplexed, but Erza and Nic were stuck in their own worlds.

'_Jellal.' _Erza thought.

Nic was clenching his fists unconsciously. He had a few images of Jellal and the pain he caused. It was he who caused Erza to suffer. It was he who turned towards the darkness. It was he who tried to kill Erza. It was he who killed Simon. It was he who Nic thought he would never have to see again.

'_Jellal.'_ Unconsciously, Nic's teeth looked sharp as though his anger was making him bear his canines. _'That bastard…I gotta stop him. I need to protect Erza!' _

"Why would Natsu bring up Jellal?" Lucy exclaimed.

"We'll explain later, right now we need to stop him!" Happy said. Suddenly, they heard Carla let loose a quick yelp. They all turned, seeing that Nic and Erza had disappeared.

"Of all the nerve!" Carla exclaimed. "Where are their manners?! They didn't even warn us!"

Happy then realized something else as well. "Gah! Nic also took the Plate!" Everyone there saw this phenomenon and they too were shocked. Natsu, Erza, and Nic were all gone.

They all then saw Wendy clench her head and she was starting to break down even more. "T-This is all my fault! I should have never healed him! Natsu would have never taken off. And Nic and Erza would still be here. Nirvana would have been left alone…this is all my fault…"

Hibiki looked at Wendy and quickly extended a hand. "**Force Blast!**" Hibiki then used his Archive Magic and made several Magical screens in front of Wendy and they all exploded, making her fly into the air and land on her back.

"Wendy!" Lucy shouted.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Carla exclaimed.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Happy exclaimed. They all then saw that Wendy was being carried on Hibiki's back.

Hibiki then looked back towards the others. "I'm sorry, but I simply knocked her out." He stated, and then he started running with the others following reluctantly.

"Why?" Lucy demanded.

"Wendy may be a whiner, but that's no reason for you to strike her!" Carla exclaimed.

Hibiki paused and he looked down. He then eventually came to a stop. "I'm sorry…but I did it for her safety." Everyone was confused as to what he was doing or where he was going with this. Safety from what? Then Hibiki explained after a longer pause. "…I haven't been completely honest with you guys. I know Nirvana know than I originally had let on."

Everyone jerked in surprise.

"What? Why didn't you tell us?" Happy said.

"I couldn't." Hibiki stated. "The very nature of the Magic itself should've been unheard. Just mentioning it now is risky and will endanger us all. That's why Guild Master Bob only told me about it. Ichiya and the others have no clue."

"What was it exactly he explained in detail?" Carla asked.

Hibiki then turned towards the others. "Nirvana is a terrifying Magic like no other. It alone has the power…to turn light into darkness."

Everyone there nearly gasped and they were a little freaked out right now. "For real?" Happy said in surprise.

"It can really switch them?" Lucy asked.

"Yes, but that doesn't happen until its final stage." Hibiki explained. "The first stage is that black light that's ahead of us. It then goes in search of those who are mentally weak and will switch anyone wavering between light and darkness. In other words, the good guy who's feeling down…will fall to the dark side."

"So that's why you knocked Wendy out." Carla said, understanding.

"Yes. She was a target because of her guilt. If I didn't step in, she would've fallen to the dark side. Such negative and self-doubting thoughts attract Nirvana."

"So when Nirvana activates, everyone on the Allied Forces can turn evil?" Lucy asked.

"Quick question." Happy said, raising a paw. "If it turns us evil, does that mean the Dark Guild guys will turn good?"

"It's possible, but one cannot be certain." Hibiki explained. "The scary part about Nirvana is that it can be controlled to do as the caster seems fit. I'll explain; let's say a Mage uses Nirvana against a guild. They can have the members start killing each other, or make them go to war against other guilds for no reason. And they barely have to lift a finger."

"S-Seriously?" Lucy was rather terrified right now.

Hibiki then began walking a few paces forward and then spoke once more. "We wasted too much time. We need to go and stop Nirvana."

* * *

**With Jura**

Jura knew full well that a member of the Oracion Seis was hiding among the forest. He stood affirm and awaited for a response, but the enemy was still remaining hidden. Jura remained calm and collected with his serious frown, only turning to where he senses a strong Magic energy.

Jura turned his head and narrowed his vision slightly. "You don't honestly think you can hide from me, right?" He stated. "Show yourself at once." Jura turned once more and the ground around him was beginning to get wavy. Jura then saw waves of Liquid Ground emerge and try to attack him.

"How silly of me, taking on a Wizard Saint." Hoteye stated. He then saw Jura using his expertise and solidified the earth just before impact, making it solid and spread apart, allowing Jura a quick shot and shot stone columns at Hoteye.

Hoteye kept calm and chuckled. He put two fingers close to his eyes and they burned a bright red. His eyes created a yellow field in front of his face that not only stopped the attack from Jura, but also heated up the rock itself and made it liquid, making the attack plop to the ground as though it was mush.

Hoteye chuckled as Jura stared seriously at him, awaiting to see what will be done next. Hoteye then spoke. "We both use Earth Magic and yet our powers are so different. Mine heats up and softens the soil while yours solidifies it. Oh yeah!" He judged. "I wonder whose power is the strongest, don't you?" He maintained his usual smile.

Jura kept two fingers up and positions if ready to strike. "No! Magical ability is irrelevant, the stronger ideology always wins." Jura explained.

Hoteye still looked proud and happy. "I'm afraid you're wrong. No matter how hard you try, the ones who triumph – are the rich! Oh yeah!"

A few moments before they were about to commence, they heard and felt the earth shake and palpitate to a vast magnitude. Both sides were able to keep balance, but they looked up and saw that a white beam that was soon mixed with darkness came forth from a far distance and they both looked on as it went on to no end.

Hoteye's hair flew about as he and Jura looked on in deep surprise and horror at this huge beam of light that shot forth from nowhere. When the light subsided somewhat, only having the beam shoot up, Jura turned towards it.

"What's happening? What's that light?!" Jura exclaimed.

Hoteye recomposed himself. "It's Nirvana! Oh yeah!" He exclaimed. Jura turned back towards Hoteye in a horrid shock that Nirvana had activated. "There's no reason for you to get all worked up. Its main operation hasn't been activated yet!" He assured the Wizard Saint with sincerity. "The light simply means that the seal has been broken." He then paused again. "It's also a sign that we'll be rolling in dough! Oh yeah!" He then chuckled at the amusement he was having.

Jura looked at Hoteye with some astonishment and unsure awareness. This was bad, now that Nirvana was unsealed who knows what will happen? Jura's calm demeanor was getting broken as he clenched his fists in worry that Nirvana might destroy everything now.

'_Fighting this buffoon will mean wasting time. Then again, defeating the Oracion Seis is the prime objective of our mission. Should I stay and fight, or should I go and stop Nirvana?' _Jura was conflicted as to what two options he had. The bigger question was who was the bigger threat? Just who was the biggest worry, the Oracion Seis or Nirvana? Jura contemplated to an exhausting level as Hoteye continued to chuckle.

Hoteye couldn't stop chuckling; that is, until he spat out more money talk. "Money. Money! The world will be incredibly wealthy-!" Just then, he stopped and went very wide-eyed. He gasped as this was happening. Suddenly he tensed up and he was still.

Jura gasped as he saw Hoteye now screaming as he clenched his face. Hoteye screamed as he couldn't stop this overwhelming feeling taking over him of sorts.

"W-What has gotten into him?" Jura wondered.

"GRAAAHHHH!" Hoteye shouted in agony. "Money! Money! Money!" He shrieked in agony.

"It's like he's been possessed!" Jura concluded.

"MONEEEEYYYYYY!" Hoteye yelled, startling Jura even more. Just then, Hoteye suddenly turned all bliss and had sparkles, meaning he shined sort of speak. "…is the root of all evil. Oh yeah." He finished.

Jura then looked in a comically shocked expression. "That's not what you said a second ago!" He retorted with confusion.

Hoteye then had joyful tears stream down his cheeks as he felt anew. He never felt so alive for so long. This felt all too good to be true that he was tearing streams down his face with facial sparkles. "You see, I have been desperately searching for my long lost younger brother, and I thought if I accumulated enough money I'd be able to find him. Oh yeah!" He joyfully expressed. He then began clenching his fists and was shaking. "However, I have finally realized how foolish it was of me to think that way! I was wrong!"

Jura still had his comically shocked wide eyes with no pupils, beyond baffled. "Huh?!"

Hoteye then opened his arms out. "Jura! What do you say we bury the hatchet and become friends? Oh yeah!" He tearfully exclaimed. "The world around us is overflowing with love! Oh yeah! All to burst with sweetness and compassion! ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE WITH THE POWER OF LOVE ON YOUR SIDE! Oh yeah!" He joyfully proclaimed to the world, unable to stop the flow of tears.

Unable to hold such grudges, Hoteye hugged Jura and streamed tears on his bald head, though Jura was still in shock as to what this phenomenon is. "What do you say we work together to put an end to my former comrades' plans? We must teach them of peace, love, and harmony. Are you with me?" Hoteye was just so full of joy he was almost squealing.

Jura blinked as the river of tears fell down his bald head. "S-Sure." He managed to croak out from the embrace of a new comrade.

* * *

**With Gray and co.**

After Lyon had met his demise, Gray assumed that he could very well be alive. He knew Lyon better than anyone, and even he knew Lyon wouldn't go down so easily. There was absolutely no way Lyon was destroyed, so Gray and Sophie began to search at the bottom of the cliff in the ravaged terrain comprised of a multitude of shattered fragments of wood and tree trunks.

Gray and Sophie were working hard to find Gray's sibling student, as to where Sherry was standing with a dark shadow cascading over her entire face. "Lyon's gone…someone's gotta pay…" She muttered. Sherry was in deep shock that she was unable to even move. All her mind could fixate on right now was Lyon. With him gone, what was she? "…someone has to fall…"

While she was in horrific shock, Gray and Sophie both threw away more debris. Gray wiped his forehead. "I know he's here somewhere. We just gotta keep looking." Gray wasn't going to stop looking for Lyon, even if anyone would convince him otherwise.

Sophie wasn't complaining. If she had a sibling student, there was no way that she would give up searching for said student, even if Armageddon were to happen. Sophie threw away even more wood, trying to help find Lyon. "I know Gray. We'll find him, no worries." Sophie said. "We have to find him for all of our sakes."

Sophie's encouragement and factorization was undisputed. At this point, they assumed Nic was knocking at Death's door since they got no word on Natsu and Happy. There priorities were to get Lyon and race towards the Allied Forces as quick as their legs could carry them.

Gray tried calling out to Lyon. "Hey! Answer me Lyon! Hey! Can you hear me?!" Gray shouted over a vast distance, trying to see if Lyon was around, but no signs.

"Lyon! Answer us! Are you here?!" Sophie hollered, but even her voice fell on deaf ears.

Sherry stared coldly at the two. _'Those two must fall…'_

Before anymore hollering and searching could be done, they all saw a vast light deep within the woods. Sophie and Gray turned to see the light diminish and a black beam was shooting upwards, making the ground palpitate slightly.

Gray and Sophie were heavily startled at the site. "What is that?! Is that Nirvana?!" Gray exclaimed.

"This is bad!" Sophie exclaimed. As the light beamed upwards and the rumbling was subsiding, Sherry's shadowy gaze looked even more ominous than before, as her blue eyes looked hazy and her forehead was of shadows, giving her a possessed vibe.

Seeing the light for a moment made Gray get sidetracked. "We have to keep looking for-!" Suddenly, Gray was being binded by roots and he was being constricted as though he was trying to be suffocated.

"Gray!" Sophie shouted. She then turned sharply to where the roots were coming from, which were from Sherry's Wood Doll. "Sherry! What the hell?!"

Sherry gave no immediate response as she had that evil look in her eyes and the roots binded Gray tighter, making him scream. Sophie grunted and quickly turned towards Gray and she quickly had a finger at her forehead. "**Memory-Make: ****Pyro Saucer!**" Sophie created vast blades comprised of fire and she had cut the roots with ease, freeing Gray and he fell to the ground.

Gray landed with a thud, but was nevertheless conscious. He was on his hands and knees in no time and coughed. Sophie called his name and ran towards him and checked on him.

"Are you okay?" She knelt down towards her comrade and Gray slowly got back up.

"Yeah, thanks for the save." Gray said. Now back on his feet, the Ice Mage and Sophie both turned towards Sherry. "What the heck was that for Sherry?! What's wrong with you?!" Gray and Sophie both turned to see that evil gaze and the Wood Doll behind Sherry was waving even more roots around.

"I must avenge my love. You all shall fall." She coldly concluded, giving Gray and Sophie chills.

The two stepped back. "What is it with her? Is she possessed?" Gray wondered.

Sophie narrowed her eyes. "It could be Nirvana, but we can't be sure." She and Gray both then gained fighting stances as Sherry's Wood Doll was making the roots wiggle about as they came ever so closer. "Whatever the case may be, we have to knock her out before any harm happens."

"Agreed." Gray said. "Here she comes!" Sherry then extended her arm and the roots went at them, hoping to bind them. Gray countered by making Ice Make: Sword and easily sliced and cut through the roots. Sophie just used her Memory-Make Magic and she cleverly made more Pyro Saucers that cindered and had cut through even more roots. The roots kept on coming and they continued to intercept.

Sophie then used her Memory-Make again and made the armored winds she used against Racer and completely shredded up the roots, but that's not all Sophie had done. Sophie had also made a few other twisters that were surrounding Sherry and her Wood Doll.

"Take this!" Sophie swiped both her arms, converging the armored winds and ultimately directing all of the attack onto the Wood Doll, shredding it up and leaving hardly any trace. The armored winds expanded like a burst and Sherry flew back and tumbled, leaving her even more scratched up than before.

Sherry slowly got back up and looked back at her doll as excess winds blew about, leaving slight tears around her dress and her hair blew about and covered up. As the winds dialed down, she looked back at them again. "I will avenge my love. Fairy Tail must fall."

"Not gonna happen you puppet. **Ice-Make: Ice Geyser!**" Gray pounded his hands to the ground, and under Sherry a tower of ice emerged, sending her flying and the ice shattered upon impact. Sherry let loose a harsh scream as she was hit and fell with a thud.

Gray and Sophie both stood affirm with their Magic at the ready if she is up again; fortunately, Sherry was shaking as she tilted her head towards them.

"I must…avenge…my love…" Sherry then blacked out and she was left unconscious, leaving Gray and Sophie up still.

The two remained calm as they went over towards and unconscious Sherry. The two looked down and stared at her as she still looked like a hazard.

"What do you think happened?" Gray wondered, still looking down at her.

"I don't know. Like I said, it could be Nirvana." Sophie explained. She paused as she saw Gray pick her up and put her on his own back.

"Well we can't just leave her here; and besides, we have to continue looking for Lyon." Even after this quick melee, Gray was intent on searching for Lyon. Sophie had no arguments as she turned towards the light.

"You're right. Perhaps he managed to escape and he took off to stop Nirvana. Perhaps we need to keep going. I can only assume Natsu got Wendy back to Nic in time." She guessed.

Gray nodded. "Okay then, let's move!" Gray and Sophie then pressed onwards from the debris fields in hopes of finding Lyon.

'_Nic, I hope you're okay. Erza and everyone is counting on you.'_ Sophie thought.

* * *

**With Natsu**

Natsu was dashing along a small cliff that led down to a river in the forest below. Natsu was determined to put an end to Jellal, as was Nic, of whom went off on his own along with Erza, though no one was for certain if they went their own way or not.

Natsu was dashing when he caught a whiff of something, or in this case someone. Natsu stopped in his tracks after a screeching halt and he sniffed the air again. "Wait, I know that smell." He leaped off the cliff and skid down its slope, making way to where he came across the trees and grass. "I knew it!" He then saw that Gray was lying in the water on his stomach, and head tilted upwards, looking unconscious.

Natsu made way into the water to aid his waterlogged comrade. "Yo Gray! This ain't no time to take a nap, and what happened to that speedy dude?" Natsu asked, now in front of him. He got no response after a few moments and he was left to call out to him again. "Wake up!" Still, Gray didn't respond as he was out cold. Natsu turned and he saw the dark beam up ahead, still going up into the sky. This was no time to be down and out. Natsu had to get Gray up and fast. He turned back towards his fallen pal and tried to pick him up by the shoulders.

"Come on Gray, we gotta move." Natsu urged, trying to shake him if possible. "I'm in a hurry. Wake up dude." A few moments passed and Gray was back to his feet slowly, relieving Natsu. Natsu looked appeased, but he then frowned and looked startled at the dark and dread-like expression Gray was giving off. Natsu backed a foot away, freaked out. "Er, you okay man?"

Just then, Natsu was beginning to feel wobbly and then a long raft made of wood and rope appeared from being submerged, stunning Natsu as he and Gray were now on a raft. Natsu was beyond baffled, giving off a comically shocked face. "Gah! How did you even hide a raft down there?!" Natsu exclaimed. He then began to wobble a bit and swayed his head until he finally plopped forward onto the raft with puffed up cheeks, his motion sickness getting the best of him.

"Poor Natsu, your motion sickness will be the death of you." Gray sneered coldly. Natsu wasn't able to hold it in and he let loose a bit of his vomit, which made him feel even worse.

With his mouth empty, he slowly turned his head up towards Gray. "What gives…?" Natsu muttered while shaking up. Gray then stomped on his defenseless head and kept him pinned.

"Let's face it, fire and ice never mix!" Gray retorted with disgust. He then made what seemed to be a big spear by his Ice-Make. "It's time we end this for good!" Gray then gave a dark smirk as he was ready to finish him.

As Gray was bringing down the spear, it somehow was shattered in a flash. The ice pieces shattered about and Natsu was spared from a terrible demise. Gray sneered and he turned towards the Magic he sensed some distance away.

He stood up and readied Ice-Make: Lance with one hand. "Show yourself!" He then launched the attack at the shore of the river, and it was as he launched the lances he saw arrows pierce his lances, making him grunt.

It was Lucy alongside Sagittarius and the rest. Lucy and the others got there in time and Lucy summoned Sagittarius in the last moment.

"Mind telling me what the heck is going on?!" Lucy pointed and demanded.

Happy was on the ground with big shocked eyes. "Looks obvious to me!"

Sagittarius had a bow in one hand and saluted with the other. "It would seem we have foiled his foul play." He stated.

Natsu turned his head towards Lucy and the others and he looked pale. "Nice…shot…Lucy…" Natsu managed to say before he spewed over the raft's edge.

Lucy was disgusted and appalled. "I knew you were motion sick, but watching you spew after saying my name is killing my self-esteem!" Lucy exclaimed.

Sagittarius salute at Lucy. "Shall I shoot him?"

"NO!" Lucy exclaimed.

The raft then came to a halt on the river at last and Gray stood and glared at Lucy and the others. Happy called out to him. "What the heck is wrong with you Gray?! You went way too far…unless he stole your fish then it's completely fine!"

"What is wrong with you stupid cat?!" Lucy reprimanded.

Gray looked disinterested, but still maintained a sadistic smirk. "Mind your own business! Don't worry, you'll get your turns after I deal with Natsu here!"

The others looked in shock that Gray was behaving very foul-like, which made them unease. "Is he under Nirvana's control?" Lucy wondered. "It already switched one of us to the dark side?"

"Get me…off of this thing…right now." Natsu muttered with puffed up cheeks and looking very sick.

"How are you still sick when it's not even moving?!" Lucy exclaimed, sounding rather annoyed.

"Hang on, I'll come and get you!" Happy initiated his wings and flew in to help get Natsu off. In a flash, Gray effortlessly froze Happy without even blinking. The feline was in a block of ice and he fell onto the grass.

Lucy was greatly upset by this. "How can you do such a thing?! That's no way to treat a friend!"

Gray wasn't even fazed by her reprimanding attitude. "Happy may be able to fly, but he can only carry one person. He doesn't possess any combat skills, that's all the info Gray has on him." 'Gray' explained.

Lucy raised a brow. "You're not making any sense at all. What's gotten into you?"

Hibiki looked back at the scene after he sat Wendy beside a tree log so as to have her rest. "My guess is that he fell victim to Nirvana, he switched to the dark side." Hibiki then got to his feet and he turned towards Gray.

'Gray' just kept on going. "Gray's got plenty of info on Lucy; a new member of Fairy Tail, easy on the eyes, he likes the whole package."

Lucy's eyes looked like circles and she was blushing with a ton of steam erupting from her body from embarrassment. "U-Um, am I hearing this right?!"

'Gray' pressed onwards. "She can be as hot-headed as Erza, but even those two put together aren't enough against Nic's wrath. Lucy is terrified by Nic when he's angry and Nic is among the fastest in Fairy Tail. Lucy also seems to have a heart as pure as his…and oh, she's a Celestial Wizard?" His voice raised at the info of Lucy being a Celestial Wizard and he got into a battle stance that startled Lucy.

'Gray' then smirked and he conjured up ice and he went and blasted Lucy with it, sending the ice her way. Lucy was still in shock from the sudden…'words' 'Gray' mentioned of her body. Fortunately Hibiki was able to intercept in time and he was able to use his Archive Magic in order to make several small screens and barricade the attack from hitting him and Lucy.

As the ice shattered, Hibiki's eyes narrowed. "That's not Gray." He explained. His screens vanished and he called out to 'Gray'. "I can tell you're an imposter! Drop the act!"

Lucy was confused. "What are you saying?"

'Gray' was just standing there, taking in more information on Gray and his allies. "Accessing information on Hibiki. Hibiki is a member of Blue Pegasus, and a lady's man, nothing else it seems." He said.

Hibiki's eyes narrowed as his suspicions were growing even more anxiety as his information was accessed, but was fortunately left to that much information.

Carla was right next to Happy, of whom was in a block of ice. "We're wasting our time with this nonsense. They should incapacitate the fool so we can get to Nirvana." Carla said.

Suddenly, Lucy realized something when Carla mentioned Nirvana. "That's it." She said. "Only those whose emotions waver between good and evil switch to the other side. So that can't be Gray because he's as cool as they come!" Lucy then got defensive and stood affirm. "Who are you?!"

'Gray' smirked and then he chuckled, giving an uneasy feeling and he had his eyes become black circles. And then just like that, he turned into a puff of smoke and everyone expected it to be the enemy, but it wasn't.

'Gray' had then transformed into 'Lucy' with a heinous smirk. Lucy let out some gasps in disbelief as she saw herself. "M-Me?!"

"You've gotta be kidding me." Hibiki said, fed up with this act. "You honestly think we can be fooled? We know Lucy is right here, so you might as well show your true form." He insisted.

'Lucy' had a hand to her hip. "Oh, I'll show you alright. And I think you'll find it as real as that bimbo." Just then, everyone saw 'Lucy' grabbing the bottom of her shirt and then Lucy nearly pale when 'Lucy' pulled up her shirt and bra, revealing her huge breasts to everyone there. Lucy shrieked as she clenched her clothed chest, seeing the humility the doppelganger was bringing to her and Hibiki and Sagittarius gaped their mouths and almost passed out. The two men were perking smiles and pounding their fists on their own hands as if an epiphany emerged. Natsu, however, could not enjoy this sight as he was motion sick.

"Yup, they're real alright." Hibiki and Sagittarius proclaimed in unison.

Lucy then kicked them both, sending them spiraling. "I HATE BOTH OF YOU!"

Carla looked unimpressed and sweat dropped. "Think about the example you're setting for Wendy you fool!" Good thing Wendy was still knocked out at this point in time.

Lucy then turned back towards Carla as 'Lucy' was redressing. "B-But that's not me. I-I mean it is, but it isn't!" She then got her knees and comically pouted. "Why does this stuff always happen to me anyway?!"

'Lucy' then gave a dark grin. "Sorry blondie, but it's only gonna get worse from here. You see, I now know which Keys you have." This bit of news now brought Lucy out of her pity and she almost went wide-eyed.

'Lucy' continued. "_You _had an audience with the Celestial Spirit King? How'd a newbie like you get to do that? Whatever." 'Lucy' then pointed at Sagittarius and smirk. "Listen up Sagittarius…destroy them."

Hibiki then turned towards Sagittarius, but was too late as Sagittarius shot arrows at Hibiki, damaging him.

"Did I do that?!" Sagittarius exclaimed, disbelieving what he did and saw Hibiki fall on his back. Sagittarius was all shaken up and Lucy and Carla turned towards Sagittarius.

"Are you crazy?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"You only take orders from Lucy!" Carla reminded the confuse Celestial Spirit.

Sagittarius was shaking still, now seeing his body was acting by itself. "Sorry my lady. 'Tis not I, but my body is out of control!"

Lucy went over quickly and examined Hibiki, who was shaking as he clenched his shoulders. "Hang in there, it's gonna be alright!" Lucy then turned towards 'Lucy' with frustration. "Tell me, how are _you_ controlling Sagittarius?"

'Lucy' made a pose. "I'm an exact copy of you, so your Spirits are forced to take my orders." She devilishly explained.

Sagittarius was doing his best not to move, but he was being controlled and he was aiming arrows at them. "F-Forgive me Lady Lucy and Sir Hibiki, I'm fighting with all of my strength, b-but I cannot...hold it!" Saggitarius then fired arrows at them, but fortunately Hibiki had up screens just before he was shot earlier, though some didn't save him from before, but this time there was enough to suffice while Lucy gets an arm and helps Hibiki in support.

"Carla, get Wendy to safety and as fast, go!" Lucy shouted as arrows continued bombarding the screens. Carla picked up Wendy and flew up into the air in a flash.

"I was just waiting for you to say that." Carla sneered as she was high in the sky.

When the arrows from Sagittarius subsided, Lucy pulled out his Key. "I'll close your gate so you can take a break! Don't worry, I know it's not your fault!"

Sagittarius turned towards Lucy with a salute. "I regret that I could not aid you further Lady Lucy!" Sagittarius said. Sagittarius then vanished.

'Lucy' looked pleased. "It's about time. **Open: Gate of the Archer – Sagittarius!**" A Magic seal came forth and then Sagittarius was summoned forth once again in a salute.

"I am happy to jump back into the fray Lady Lucy!" Sagittarius exclaimed with a salute.

"HUH?!" Lucy exclaimed in shock. Sagitarius came back just like that, but was now on the enemy's side.

Sagittarius then went wide-eyed and realized that he wasn't serving Lucy, but 'Lucy'. He too was baffled. "H-How did…? This cannot be! That means you have summoned me!" He turned towards 'Lucy' with accusation.

"Keep your mouth shut and you'll live longer." 'Lucy' said. She turned to pull off a charming face. "All that matters is that I summoned you so you have to do as I ask."

But Sagittarius was no fool as he was loyal to Lucy. "I shall betray Lady Lucy, no matter what you say." He stated affirm.

"Oh really, let's test that." She then pointed up at Carla and Wendy high in the air. "Shoot right in the middle of that white cat's back!"

Sagittarius was actually being commanded to shoot Carla, to which he had some trouble resisting. "I-I cannot do that." He protested.

"What's that?" 'Lucy' asked in a sadistic manner. "Are you disobeying an order from your master?"

Sagittarius was doing his absolute best to resist as he was shaken up now, confliction upholding him. "You may share the appearance and abilities of Lady Lucy, but comparing you to her is a travesty!" Unfortunately, Sagittarius wasn't doing well in the fight as his body was being controlled and he was taking aim with an arrow at Carla.

"Keep fighting her!" Lucy shouted.

"Please, send me back my lady!" Sagittarius pleaded as he was trying to hold the pose.

Lucy frowned. "Okay, I'll close your gate!" Lucy then held up Sagittarius's Key and forcing a Gate Close, but when she swiped it nothing happened. "Huh?"

'Lucy' then smirked. "Moron, you forgot _I _summoned horse face, so only I can force him back." Lucy was startled as she was now unable to do much of anything except watch. 'Lucy' pointed at Carla. "Shoot that cat already, come on."

Sagittarius was very close to firing the arrow, and he would have shot it in about a couple of seconds if not for footsteps coming.

"That's quite enough. Nirvana is close at hand so the brat is useless." A feminine voice said from the other side of the river. "Quite wasting energy my pets."

'Lucy' crossed her arms and sighed. "As you wish." 'Lucy' then turned in a puff of smoke, and Sagittarius was beginning to vanish again.

"Sagittarius!" Lucy shouted.

Sagittarius, though in vain, salute one last time before his vision was gone. "My deepest apologies Lady Lucy. I shall be stronger next time we meet again." He was then gone and send back to the Celestial Spirit World.

From the smoke, 'Lucy' revealed herself to be none other than Gemini. "Peedy. Peedy." Gemini chanted.

It was revealed that Angel was there on the other side and greeted Lucy. "Hello Lucy darling! How does it feel to gaze upon an angel?" Angel modestly implied herself.

Lucy was shocked to say the least. Angel was pulling the strings. "Wait, you're with the Oracion Seis!"

Angel chuckled. "Indeed. Have my pets been entertaining you? I for one adore their trick."

"I'm Gemi." The male part said.

"And I'm Mini." The female part said.

"Peedy. Peedy." They chanted in unison.

"I believe you know them as the Gemini Twins." Angel said, and then her expression grew dark. "Celestial Spirits are just fun pets to tear others apart."

"You're a Celestial Wizard? That's beyond revolting!" Lucy proclaimed. _'I don't think I'll be falling over to the dark side, and I doubt Miss Psycho Swan will be fighting for justice with her ambitions. At least I won't have to worry about Nirvana at the moment. Hibiki is hurt, and Natsu is motion sick. It's all up to me.' _Lucy gave forth a determined expression.

Lucy then had a confidence booster in terms of a river, which brought a grin upon her face. _'We're near water, and that means I can call upon Miss Sassy Fin herself.'_

Angel grinned with glee. "Your Gate Keys would make a lovely addition to my arsenal of pets. Hand them over now or you'll be teared apart!" She threatened.

"Never in my life!" Lucy shouted, pulling forth Aquarius's Key. "Here we go! **Open: Gate of the Water Bearer – Aquarius!**" Lucy swiped the Key and Aquarius appeared floating above the water, ready.

"Get lost you two." Angel then sentenced them back to the Celestial World, now seeing Aquarius and waited patiently as to where this was going.

Lucy pointed at Angel. "Take her down! I don't care if you have to take me with her!"

"You didn't even need to ask me." Aquarius said. "I was going to do that anyway." Aquarius then began to conjure up as much water as she could from her thingamajig (I still don't know if it's a jug or a pitcher) and was looking ticked. "I'M GONNA BEAT THE CRAP OUT OF EVERYBODY!"

Angel wasn't at all flinching nor terrified as she had a countermeasure against Aquarius. Angel smirked and held up a Golden Celestial Key. "**Open: Gate of the Scorpion…**"

Lucy looked on in astonishment as she had a scorpion on her side. "What did she say? Oh god!"

"**-Scorpio!**" Angel then swiped the Key, summoning forth a Celestial Spirit with a tan body with red hair on one side and white hair on the other on top of his head. He had gauntlets and a red attire where it looked like frills around his neck and a cape-like structure below the big belt. The emphasis on him was not only his rock-on hand sign (yes I'm a metalhead, sue me!), but also the big curved, silver plated tail that was also black and at the end was a gun of sorts within the sting-like end.

Scorpio smirked and chuckled. "I was born to be wicked!" He echoed.

Just then, to everyone's extreme surprise, Aquarius was…different. Aquarius looked infatuated and she looked all too happy. "My hunk of a man has arrived!" She blissfully cheered.

"HUNK?!" Lucy shouted in surprise. Lucy shook in revelation as she saw Aquarius snuggle up to Scorpio.

Scorpio also looked pleased to see her. "Well what do you know, it's my mermaid of delight, Aquarius! Back that wicked tail up for me!" He said, to which Aquarius did and she was all rosy in the cheeks.

"Oh you don't know how much I missed you love muffin." Aquarius sighed in joy.

"N-N-No way." Lucy stammered, unable to believe what she is seeing. She slowly pointed an accusing finger. "Please don't tell me that Scorpio…"

Aquarius was still pink in the cheeks and put her hands to her cheeks. "Yes, my boyfriend!" She joyfully squealed.

Scorpio turned towards Lucy with his rock-on signs. "I've heard a lot about ya. Finally got to see who my blue bombshell's Mage is. Wicked." Scorpio said.

Lucy was now freaking out, just peeked to wonder what Scorpio heard. "Gah! So what exactly has she told you?!"

Just then, Aquarius got up in Lucy's face with a dark expression in her menacing narrowed eyes, making the blonde shrink in fear. "Look here blondie, if you want to live then hear me; if you even so much as think of embarrassing me in front of my Scorpio, your soul will drown with your body in the depths of my wrath. Are we clear?"

"Yes! Crystal clear!" Lucy squealed, being more terrified than usual. She then turned her back and sulked. "She's going to kill me one day, I swear."

Scorpio wrapped an arm around Aquarius and they had hearts around their background, giving it a romantic vibe. Scorpio turned with his girlfriend and waved back at the others. "I'm taking my lady out for a night in the town Angel, you got this right?"

Angel had a quick out and waved to them. "Have fun." She said, making Lucy realize that one of her most powerful Spirits was exiting the battle.

"H-Huh?!" Lucy turned and extended a hand and raced to them in the still river. "Wait, you can't leave me here-!" But it was all too good to be true as Aquarius and Scorpio vanished, leaving Lucy and Angel once more. She got her knees and sulked. "WHYYYYYY?!"

Angel shook her head as she approached Lucy. "How do you survive this long without knowing how the Celestial Spirits relate?" Angel then picked up her leg and kicked Lucy, sending her flying. "A mere novice such as yourself has no chance in beating me!" Lucy fell into the water, with her headband floating away, leaving all her hair to silk down.

'_How am I suppose to take her on without my strongest Celestial Spirit?...wait!' _Lucy realized that she had a backup and she opened her eyes underwater and shot back up to the surface with another Celestial Key. "Aquarius isn't the only power house I can call! **Open: Gate of the Lion – Loke!**"

Loke emerged and was ready for battle. Loke had his glasses on as always, but his orange and spiked hair was more wild than when he was human. He had on a black suit and a red suit and was cross-armed and grinning.

"Your handsome prince has arrived." Loke said. Hibiki looked on in utter shock as he had recognized Loke from his past when he was under a contract with Karen, Hibiki's love. Seeing Loke again was starting to bring back those memories. Hibiki was still while he remembered Karen, her death, and how Loke wasn't heard from until now. He was under Lucy's care.

"L-Leo?" Hibiki said.

Lucy pointed at Angel. "We have to beat this woman. The entire guild and everyone alike will be in danger if not stopped!"

Loke looked amused as he kept his cool. "Sounds easy enough."

Unfortunately, it wasn't smooth sailing for them as Angel had yet another plan to deal with Loke; this time, someone who would leave them all speechless. Angel kept her amusement and she giggled. "You're a slow learner, aren't you Lucy?" Angel mocked. "I will have to give you yet another lesson in relations."

Angel brought forth another Golden Celestial Key. "**Open: Gate of the Ram…**" When Lucy and Loke heard that phrase, they both immediately tensed up, remembering just who was to be summoned. Lucy narrowed her eyes and Loke's eyes were astonished. They both saw a pink-haired girl with locks on the ends of her hair that went down to her shoulders. She had soft brown eyes and ram horns. She had on a wool dress and she looked away. "**-Aries!**"

Aries looked away in awareness of being in the presence of an old friend. Aries hasn't seen Loke in such a long time and this is how they meet again? Aries couldn't even make eye contact. "I hope you can forgive me, Leo." Aries timidly said.

Loke gasped and was deeply wide-eyed, seeing Aries once again. "It's you." Loke stated.

"No way." Hibiki was still damaged from earlier, but even he was able to see Aries again, another Celestial Spirit that was under a contract with Karen. Hibiki was even more baffled. "It can't be…Aries?"

Lucy clenched her fists. "How did she get her hands on Aries? I thought she was one of Karen's Spirits?" Lucy curiously asked. She then looked on and realized she can't have Loke do this. Not to an old friend. No one should bear with the guilt of hurting a friend, even if it was on purpose. Natsu and Gray is one thing, but Celestial Spirits is another. Even Lucy wouldn't dare hurt a friend, and this was no exception.

"There's no way." Lucy started. "I…I can't have Loke fight against a dear friend he protects with his life."

Hibiki was stuck in his own little world, feeling ominous and he didn't feel any signs of good. This situation in general was terrible. Hibiki seeing Aries again made the past even more potent in negativity. "Aries. How is she here?" He was almost shaking.

Lucy narrowed her eyes and demanded. "How did you end up with one of Karen's Spirits?!" She sounded very forceful.

"Simple." Angel said nonchalantly. "I killed her."

Hibiki and Loke both jerked in horror as no words could even begin to describe what they were feeling. Karen was killed by Angel's own hands. Angel put Karen six feet under and left Hibiki alone and Loke with guilt until Lucy reached out to him before they went to the Tower of Heaven.

Angel closed in and patted Aries's soft head, much to everyone's disgust. "And I got whatever Keys she had on her."

Aries looked very uncomfortable. "Please, just stop." She begged, but to no avail as Angel kept explaining and frustrating everyone there.

"She wasn't much of a fighter. She tried to open two Celestial Gates at once, yet she could barely even stand. The fool practically handed her keys over to me." Angel finished, leaving Loke to grit his teeth in anger as to hearing how Angel stomped all over Karen like a bug. His eyes were nearly twitching.

Angel's expression then grew dark. Very dark. "So many Celestial Wizards have lost their lives and their Spirits to me that I cannot count. You're just going to be another lost soul swimming in the abyss of despair." She explained, making Lucy's spine scale up and down with goosebumps.

Hibiki was clenching his right arm in pain as he was shaking in misery. _'Karen. How could she fall? How could she fall to someone like Angel?' _Hibiki could barely keep himself up as he was hurting emotionally and physically. _'Angel…took my love away from me! Karen was murdered by one of her own. A Celestial Wizard…I hate them all! They'll never be forgiven-!'_ Hibiki then remembered of Nirvana for a brief moment, recalling something. That something could have drastically changed him if he did not recall it that second. He shut his eyes and he bend downwards, clenching his fists. _'No, don't! This is exactly the kind of thinking that allows Nirvana to change people! I can't give in! I gotta shut all hatred out!'_

Lucy was very upset herself. "Loke, you and Aries finally get to see each other again and you have to fight?" She sounded as though she was going to break down. Lucy wouldn't allow this. She had Loke's Key in her hand. "No, I won't let you go through with this." As she swiped, Loke grabbed her arm, forcing her to cease moving.

"I don't need you to protect me Lucy." Loke explained. Lucy turned towards Loke. "It's true Aries and I are like family, but if we're summoned to fight for the Mages that summoned us, then we will." He stated firmly.

Aries nodded in agreement. "That's right." She pointed out. "I may owe you my life Leo, but in this instance you are my opponent and we must fight!"

Lucy narrowed her eyes in deep sorrow, seeing friends being forced to fight though they don't want to. She watched as Aries conjured up pink wool while Loke's hand glowed in light.

"For a Celestial Spirit…" Both said in unison, now running towards each other. "…IT'S A MATTER OF PRIDE!" The then began their unbearable brawl.

Lucy held a clenched fist to her chest as she was shaken up inside. _'This isn't right. This shouldn't be happening.'_

In slow motion, Loke delivered a punch that Aries blocked, but she pivoted and Loke tailed her and delivered a right hook comprised of light that landed a hit on her, making her wince and jeer away.

Even Angel was surprised by this event. "Well what do you know, they're fighting. Didn't see this coming, but who am I to stop such a good show?"

Loke delivered a punch that made Aries yelp in pain and she regrettably returned the favor by shooting pink wool at Loke, who had to cover up from the attack.

Lucy was shaking. "Stop it!" She saw Loke miss a punch and Aries saw this as an opportunity and delivered a pink uppercut, hitting Leo and making him wince. True, Aries assaults were never powerful, but it wasn't the attacks themselves that hurt Loke, it was in truth the fact Aries and him were fighting. They both were regrettably going on as Lucy watched.

Lucy was now beginning to tear up slightly. "Friends shouldn't try and hurt each other." The tear scrolled down her cheek. "I beg you."

"**Wool Bomb!**" Aries extended her arm out and a spiral of pink wool was send towards Loke. Loke was surrounded in pink wool, unable to see Aries. He encased his hand in light and he punched downwards, cutting through the wool.

Aries popped up from behind and leaped from out of the wool and gave a downward wool encased punch. Loke turned and leaned back to avoid the downward assault. With his left hand he grabbed the fist and the two were in a stalemate. Loke and Aries were in place, with Loke giving a determine expression and Aries was giving a shy and less confidant expression. Regardless of their expressions, the two dear friends looked at the other's eyes and saw struggle.

Loke then proceeded with a right hook and Aries backed away quickly to evade and Loke circled around and Aries and Loke remained still for a few seconds. The two caught their breath again and they refocused on offense. Aries moved in to kick, but Loke leaped behind her and then lands behind. He was about to strike, but Aries coated her hand in wool as a scapegoat and ducked as Loke took the bait. Aries leaped and got a fair distance from Loke.

"My, my." Angel said, surprised. "I never expected Aries of all Spirits to be going up against a combat-oriented Spirit. But am I gonna worry? I think not." Angel casually pulled out a Silver Celestial Key and waved it as though it were a wand. "**Open: Gate of the Chisel – Caelum!**"

Angel opened up another Celestial Gate, summoning forth a Celestial Spirit. The creepiest part about it is that Caelum wasn't a living humanoid figure, but was a metallic spherical-shaped being that was silver on the top and bottom and was a dark gray along the middle with a green dot in the middle of it all, resembling a poke ball. It also had a halo.

"Are you ready? I got some fresh targets for you." Angel implied. Caelum just floated in the air, awaiting for Angel's command. "As soon as Aries stops Leo in his tracks, do what you're good at."

Caelum slightly opened in response, revealing red lining and the circles on his sides popped out. Caelum then glowed and began to shift into a new shape. In the new cannon-like form. Caelum's sphere was split and between the two pieces was a gun with black on the top and bottom with the center where there was the charging point. Around the gun was the halo, and the piece atop of the sphere was like an adjusting point for leverage.

Caelum was quickly storing energy at its tip and Angel gave off a sadistic smirk as the mechanical being was fully charged. Caelum then let loose a forceful green blast of energy that that heading not just towards Loke, but unfortunately Aries, who was in the way.

"Guys! No!" Lucy shouted and helplessly watched with horror and an even more horrific gasp as the beam pierced Aries in her abdomen and was followed up by Loke in that very same line and place. Both Celestial Spirits were pierced in the abdomen in one strike and the two were left paralyzed and dazed as they felt as though they were torn up from inside.

Angel let loose an amused yet sadistic laugh at the glorious spectacle. "Now that's a great ending to a show, I swear." She wheezed.

Aries and Loke were both falling with their bodies starting to turn into gold light. The light started from the holes in their abdomens and their bodies were slowly being sucked back into the Celestial World.

"No Leo!" Aries reached out as she was falling slowly in the opposite direction of her dear friend.

"A-Aries!" Loke also reached out to her as he was also starting to vanish back to the Celestial Spirit World. The two friends were trying their best to reach for the other. "Sorry Lucy, I failed you." Loke regrettably let down Lucy, whom he swore to protect with his life.

Loke then saw Aries actually pulling off a smile and was starting to cry. This wasn't pain, but envy. Loke had a caring and compassionate Mage to guide him and Aries was left with a heartless person. Aries couldn't help but feel happy for her friend.

"Someone who cares for you. Wish I was as lucky." Aries said, now having more tears come as Loke's and her own body were vanishing. Their bodies were gone and now the only thing slowly left out was the hands. The hands were reaching out towards one another. "…until we meet again…" Aries's words echoed as the hands and fingers finally turned into light before they could even touch, leaving the two Celestial Spirits to head back to their world without the grasp of friendship.

Lucy was dead silent and she looked as though she had seen a ghost. Her gaze was blind and in shock as she replayed Aries and Loke getting hit and they failed to reach out towards the other. She was incapable to even lift a finger.

Angel looked on, not giving a care to the world. "You see, that's how you pull of multiple Gates." She said. Caelum then shapeshifted back into his original spherical form. "Looks like your down yet another pet."

Lucy was finally shaking with clenched fists. Her eyes had tears. "You disgusting psycho." Lucy growled.

Angel raised a brow. "Are you crying?" She teased. "They didn't die you know, so why bother wasting tears?"

"THEY DO FEEL PAIN!" Lucy shouted, making Angel silence. "They're not mindless dolls for you to control! A real Celestial Wizard would respect their Spirits!" She exclaimed.

A dark grin covered Angel's face as she looks sadistic-like. "Oh?" She wasn't even fazed as she simply chuckled.

Lucy pulled out another Golden Celestial Key. "**Open: Gate of the Golden Bull – Taurus!**" Lucy summoned forth Taurus from a Magic seal and the cow man came forth ready for action.

"Moooooo!" He shouted.

Angel smirked and waved Gemini's Key. "Gemini, come out and play." She said. In a puff of smoke, the twins reappeared back beside Angel.

Caelum assisted by shapeshifting yet again. Now Caelum had a spherical end with a black handle. Ninety degrees from the handle was a long black sword with a halo.

Taurus's grip on his axe tightened. "Making Lucy cry was the worse mooove of your life. Get ready for a rodeo of pain-!" Taurus was about to attack, but then was left a little surprised by Gemini transforming. "Moo?" Taurus blinked as he saw Gemini transforming into Lucy.

Gemini gripped Caelum and she got in a sexy bend pose, giving off quite a hot show of her curves. "Come get some you beastly hunk." Gemini seduced Taurus, of whom was one of the biggest pervs you would ever know.

In a split second, Taurus dropped the axe and went dashing like a madman at Gemini. "I am in the mooooood!" He shouted. Lucy screamed in disgust as Gemini was using a more seductive side much to her horror and Taurus's weakness.

Just like that, Gemini swung Caelum like a bat, sending Taurus flying and spiraling overhead. "And he's out!" Gemini exclaimed as Taurus vanished in the air.

Lucy stepped forward. "No, Taurus!" Lucy then felt her body get weak and she grunted and fell on her knees into the water. She had her hands to keep her up. "No, I used so much Magic." She concluded.

"You're outgunned." Angel said. "My power exceeds a novice like you."

Lucy's eyes winced, seeing as she had no options. "No way." She muttered. Gemini then went on the offensive and kicked Lucy, making her fall back. Gemini then sung Caelum and hit Lucy. Gemini relentlessly continued to kick Lucy about and hitting her with Caelum, making Lucy suffer.

Angel chuckled at the sight. "Poor thing. Why you hitting yourself?" She mocked and then she broke out into a loud laugh that proved to be malevolent. She saw Lucy get swat by Caelum into the water and was on her hands and knees, trying to get up once more. "I think she needs more pain."

Hibiki was looking down at the ground and his eyes were hazy. "More…pain…"

Lucy was trying to get up, but she could only turn and fall back down. Lucy barely had the strength to stand. She looked up and she leered at Angel.

Angel saw this and she was discomforted. "Quit staring, it's creepy."

"Release Aries from her contract." Lucy demanded. Gemini, still as Lucy, stopped moving and went wide-eyed at this demand. A fellow Spirit wanted to be freed and Lucy wanted to make it happen.

Angel raised a brow. "You're joking, right?"

Gemini looked down as Lucy continued.

"Karen tortured her, broke her almost every day." Lucy got to her feet at last. "She deserves to be happy, but that won't happen until she's free."

Gemini's eyes were shaking for a moment at Lucy's words, but Gemini stayed strong and she frowned and then used Caelum and swatted Lucy yet again, with the latter hitting a small island in the river.

"What do we say when we want something from someone?" Angel taunted. Gemini's feeling somehow were conflicted as Lucy was reaching out for other Celestial Spirits.

Lucy clenched her arm and she looked up at Gemini and Angel. "Please. I'm begging you, release Aries." Lucy had her head down and she was wincing. She was beginning to cry for the sake of freeing Aries. Now Gemini looked guilty. "She deserves to be with Loke, and we can make it happen for them." She looked up at Angel. "I don't care what you do to me, just release Aries so she can be happy!"

Angel raised a brow in amusement. "For free?"

Lucy had her head down again. "You can have anything. EXCEPT MY SPIRITS! YOU CAN EVEN TAKE MY LIFE TO GIVE ARIES FREEDOM!"

Angel's expression grew dark. "Oh my, what an offer. Gemini, finish her!"

Gemini slowly raised Caelum into the air, but she saw Lucy was shaking and was almost beginning to cry once again. Gemini had shadows over its eyes as it was still, stalling to bring Caelum down on Lucy for some reason.

Angel grew impatient. "Now!"

Gemini leaned sideways somewhat, shaking. "Huh? I hear a voice. It's in my head." The twins' voices echoed, feeling a flood of Lucy's memories of Celestial Spirits emerge.

'_I love Celestial Spirits so much mama! Can you teach me how to summon them? CELESTIAL SPIRITS ARE MY FRIENDS, NOT MY SHIELDS! I CAN'T SIT AND WATCH MY FRIEND DISAPPEAR RIGHT BEFORE MY EYES!'_

Gemini was feeling the emotions emerge as it heard Lucy's voice cry out about the deep love and friendship she had with her Celestial Spirits, making Gemini shed some tears in place. "No, I can't."

Gemini was now crying and it was beginning to sob over the intense feelings. "She loves us. She's willing to give up her life for us. We envy her Spirits." It cried.

Angel gasped at Gemini defying her and not wanting to hurt Lucy, leaving her also in shock.

Lucy looked up at Gemini slowly. "Gemini."

Angered, Angel swipe Gemini's Key. "Begone!" Gemini then vanished, leaving Caelum floating in place. Angel then looked in frustration at Gemini's Key. "You'll regret ever doing that." She threatened to the Key. Angel turned and she saw Hibiki behind Lucy.

Hibik looked dazed as he was now on his knees and Lucy gasped when she felt his hands around her neck, holding her. Hibiki grinned slowly.

"H-Hibiki?" Lucy asked.

Angel laughed. "No way! Your friend switched sides!"

Lucy was worried, but she then felt Hibiki's hands travel down to her shoulders, where they started glowing. Hibiki's eyes looked normal. "Relax. This will feel funny. I'm gonna use Archive to teach you a powerful Magic." His hands then quickly grabbed her head and Lucy gaped and was feeling his hands glow. "This is a one-shot, so make it count!"

Angel and Caelum backed away as Lucy screamed and a golden Magic seal appeared right underneath her and Hibiki. There were several download bars around Lucy as she was feeling some pain.

'_Talk about a close call.' _Hibiki thought. _'I was on the brink of light and darkness for a bit. But then the love you feel for Celestial Spirits drove every bit of evil away. If anyone can do this, it's you Lucy.'_

Angel was panicking, not knowing what was happening. "Caelum, finish them!" She demanded. Caelum then shapeshifted back into a cannon.

When most of the download bars reached one hundred percent, Hibiki fell backwards in exhaustion. _'I have faith in you, Lucy.'_

When the last download bar reached one hundred, the area around Lucy and everyone else became surrounded in a blanket of what seemed to be cosmic. Then a huge amount of what seemed to see colorful spheres that looked like planets appeared.

Lucy was caught in a trance as she began to chant. "Those stars far and wide that embody the Heavens. By thy radiance reveal thy form to me. I implore you, oh Tetrabiblos, ruler of the stars. Let your unrestrained rage flow."

"What?! I've never seen a Spell like this!" Angel was panicking even more now, desperately wanting to end it. "Caelum, hurry and blast her!" Caelum was charging as fast as he can.

"With the eighty-eight Heavenly bodies…" A silence bloomed, and then Lucy's eyes shot open with a gold seal. "Shine! **Urano Metria!**"

As Caelum unleashed his beam at Lucy, Lucy's body began to glow, and the water that was left circling her within the spell cancelled out Caelum's assault. The blast was nullified and all of the numerous planets around shined.

Angel gasped and she was terrified and she covered up. All numerous planets then went blasting at her, making Angel scream in agony as she was feeling the full impact.

The area then returned back to normal, the landscape as it was. Lucy's eyes got back from their hazy state. Lucy blinked as Hibiki smiled. Lucy then flinched when she heard Angel fall into the water with a loud splash.

Lucy looked in shock and some confusion. "Did I win?"

'_I knew you could do it. Well done Lucy.' _Hibiki thought with a proud smile before he blacked out.

Lucy looked around and was confused. "Wait? What happened to everybody?" She then saw that Hibiki was out and Happy was still frozen. "Hibiki! Happy!" She turned to find that Natsu was still where he was before – motion sick on a raft. "Natsu, are you alright?" To which the Fire Dragon Slayer was twitching and immobile due to his weakness.

Lucy walked on over to Natsu, but then heard a sudden burst of water behind her. Lucy got stiff as she turned and saw Angel and Caelum emerge from the water. Angel looked badly damaged and she had a creepy look in her eyes.

"I will kill you!" She declared. Caelum became a cannon once more and began charging. "I am one of the Oracion Seis! I will not lose!"

'_Why is she all banged up? Was that my doing?' _Lucy wondered.

"I'll use the last of my powers…TO BRING YOU TO YOUR DEMISE!" Caelum then unleashed a piercing green beam of energy. The energy beam was rapidly making way towards Lucy, of whom was unable to move due to exhaustion.

The blast then actually curved itself, sparing Lucy as it actually hit the tree stump that kept the raft in place, destroying it.

Seeing this, Angel was in revelation. "No, you missed. Traitor!" She yelled at Caelum. Caelum simply beeped twice and then he vanished away. With all of her strength gone, Angel fell back into the water, unable to continue.

'_My Prayer…was too vanish…into the Heavens…like an angel, pure and white…'_

Angel then splashed into water. "But I ended up all wet!" She pouted.

Lucy looked back and saw that Natsu was beginning to float downstream. She called out to the motion sick Dragon Slayer.

"Natsu! Hang on!" Lucy shouted. She trudged as fast as she could through the water towards the swift raft. "It's moving too fast! Natsu you've gotta pull yourself together!" She exclaimed as she tried her best to get to Natsu.

Lucy was close enough and she extended her arm out. "Come on, I know you can do it! Take my hand!" Natsu was looking as though he was traumatized and he was still pale, yet he heard Lucy's call. With whatever strength he could muster up, he slowly reached out to her.

Lucy and Natsu managed to grab the others hand. "Got ya!" Lucy smiled and Natsu perked a smile though his shaken white eyes said motion sickness still.

Suddenly, the raft fell down a small waterfall, with Lucy being dragged onto the raft with Natsu. She yelped as she and Natsu were then found zooming down rapids.

"Where did these rapids come?!" Lucy exclaimed as she and Natsu zoomed down the bumpy and wavy river, much to the latter's extreme discomfort. Lucy looked ahead and saw something even more troubling. "No way! A waterfall?!"

* * *

**With Nic**

He had his sunglasses back on his face, but now the lenses were red and hexagonal, like a multi-cell lens. The sunglasses also extended to the front of Nic's ears, looking like curved yet large compound eyes. Nic's sleeveless coat was replaced by a thick, white web in the design of the sleeveless coat that reached down towards the back of his shins, enabling everyone to see his light green T-shirt. His pants were now a darker shade of that green, but on it were pure white spider web designs all about the pant legs. His shoes looked to be of his running shoes, but of grasshopper green with patches of light green and laces. He had four wings, two on each side, sticking out through his web-like sleeveless coat. The wings were clear as a dragonfly's and reached out a foot farther than Nic's arm span on both sides. He also sported green gloves with very small spikes and his shoes were the same,

Nic was dashing through the trees and easily leaping towards the light of evil. Nic kept a very narrow gaze as he tried to move as fast as he could.

'_Jellal isn't going to even touch Erza!'_ Nic growled, now sprinting through the trees like a ninja. Thanks to his new Insect Plate, his gloves and shoes made it so that he could even scale the largest of trees and leap without the worry of falling.

'_I have to protect her! I can't let Jellal get away with this!' _Nic had to move fast to get to where he needed to go, which was where Jellal was. He had to get to Jellal before Erza does. That is a must.

His multi-cell red sunglasses then detected thermal levels that were close by, and his lenses also enabled him compound vision, meaning he could see in almost every direction. As he was now reaching the tree line, he saw what appeared to be a waterfall. He sensed and saw what appeared to be two signatures that were about to go over.

"That can't be good." He said out loud as he then jumped once more before becoming airborne and use his quadrupled wings to fly the last remaining bit out of the tree line and saw Lucy and a motion sick Natsu now going over. Nic recognized them very fast and he flew in at fast distance, but even that wouldn't be enough because he remembered he's one person.

He had to make a quick move so that he could catch them. "**String Shot!**" Nic then shot a long and thick thread from his palm and the thread quickly tangled itself around a falling Lucy that was carrying Natsu. Lucy opened her eyes when she realized she was no longer falling and she found out that her body was tangled in thread, but only wrapped around her body a few times and not her entire upper body.

"Huh?" She turned her head about and saw Nic in the air above, holding the String Shot with both hands. "Nic!"

Nic grinned. "Are you two alright?" He called from ten feet up.

Lucy looked back at a still motion sick Natsu. "Yeah we're okay, but we should get to land pronto!"

"Alright!" Nic then turned and headed away towards a low level of land in order to drop off Lucy and Natsu safely. Silently, Nic hoped Erza doesn't get to Jellal before he does.

* * *

**Oracion Seis Hideout**

Brain watched as the black beam of light was continuously going upwards to no end, now casting a smirk of triumph. He then felt a painful sensation through his marks again and he went wide-eyed and gasped at this feeling, much like what happened to Racer.

Brain held his right cheek. "This is beyond impossible. Angel has been defeated as well." He grumbled. He let go of his cheek and a mark on that side vanished, leaving two on each side.

He then looked up at the beam again with anger. "Hear me out, I shall avenge you all. Soon the light in this world shall be turned into darkness!"

* * *

**With Angel**

Angel laid on her back staring up at the sky while still in the water in hopeless defeat.

She had a despondent expression cascading on her face. "I'm still alive you know." She remarked sassy-like.

* * *

**With Erza**

The famous Titania ran through the forest towards the light in hopes of stopping Jellal. That man had done horrible things and Erza was determined to stop him all by herself. Though the last time, she couldn't do it and Nic and Natsu had to step in and do the rest.

Erza was contemplating if it was the right choice to go off without Nic, who seemed to have taken a different way to stop Jellal. Maybe if they stopped Jellal together…

Erza's eyes narrowed at this feeling when she thought of the word. Together. Together forever? Wait, what? Was Erza even thinking right?! This wasn't the time to be thinking of such things…right? I mean, Jellal was Erza's first love, but the major factor was that he was cruel and tried to kill her.

Erza kept on running towards the light. _'Jellal. He's come back.' _Erza then got images flooding through her head of him. Those dark recent images of Jellal's cruelty. _'How is that possible? Nic destroyed him, so why is he here of all places?'_

Erza looked down as she was in even deeper contemplation of Jellal. An image of the Jellal from her past was in her head and she felt her heart cringe for some reason. This boy from her past was back, again. Now Erza had to confront this head on. Her head was in a full-scale war of the two Jellals she remembered. She was thinking of the evil one, and the good one from all those years ago.

Her eyes narrowed and eased in her confusion. _'I wish I knew what I was suppose to be feeling right now. I have to get to Jellal to stop him and protect Nic.'_

Suddenly, Erza was having images of Nic now, his cool and calm self, yet serious now, a true-hearted individual who has an absolute-zero tolerance for evil and will use his strength to protect his friends and her, not to mention they know they had feelings for the other and went on a date. Now Erza was feeling even more torn up. True she needed Nic, but Jellal from all those years ago was also there. Who was she to think of?

Erza pressed on, closing in on Jellal and to stop Nirvana. _'…Jellal…Nic…'_

* * *

**Again, I am truly sorry for the late update. I am doing my best to keep up. I got this one done in three days. 7K one day, 9K the next day, and I finished the rest the next day. I am moving as fast as I can and shifting to **_**EDventures in Kalos **_**and back. I need to get those views back up to a high number on both stories.**

**I know you were all bored this chapter due to the exceeding length, but I ask that you bear with me for just awhile longer. I want to get the Oracion Seis Arc done in the minimal chapters so I can get started on the Edolas Arc. The next two or so chapters may be of this length, but please bear with me. I know it's a lot to take in, but we're getting to the climax. I promise you once the Oracion Seis Arc is finished, I shall be going back to normal length chapters.**

**Please favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys welcome my return and are satisfied with this plot and upcoming events.**

* * *

**Next Time: Light within Darkness - Part I**


	27. Light within Darkness - Part I

Chapter 27 – Light within Darkness – Part I

**Hey peeps, bringing you a two-part chapter for the Oracion Seis Arc. As explained earlier, I'll be cramming a lot for you to take in, but please enjoy the climax of the Oracion Seis Arc.**

**Not much on Reviews, but I expected that since it's been awhile. Can't be helped. On with the program.**

**To Recap:**

Natsu and Happy find the Insect Plate on their way back and arrived just in time and had Wendy restore Nic, greatly relieving Erza and Arbok. Jellal unseals Nirvana and the mention of his name brings worries as Nic, Erza, and Natsu separately went to confront the revived man. Gray and Sophie had to knock out Sherry since she was under the influence of Nirvana, and Hoteye turned good while battling Jura and teamed up with him to take down the Oracion Seis. Lucy, Hibiki, and an unconscious Wendy encounter Angel, and Gemini had Hibiki weakened, leaving Carla to get away with Wendy and Lucy was left to confront Angel. Though a struggle, and thanks to Hibiki downloading Urano Metria, Lucy defeated Angel and Natsu and Lucy both fall over a waterfall, but Nic found them in his new Insect Plate Form and carried them off. Erza was left in confliction of Jellal and Nic as she closed in on Nirvana.

* * *

**Chapter 27 – Light within Darkness – Part I**

The sun was beginning to set and cascade an array of dark orange and red hue among the sky. The day had gone by faster than anticipated with the endless combat with the Oracion Seis.

Wendy and Carla were against a big rock that stood along others a fair distance away from the other. They ended up there after Lucy told them to get away. Wendy was looking down past her knees and looked gloomy.

"Maybe this was a bad idea, joining the alliance." Wendy murmured.

Carla looked over at Wendy. "Child, quit beating yourself up over the matter. It wasn't your fault."

It didn't help as Wendy curled up even more. "Yes it was."

Carla just looked back at the sunset. "You're hanging by a thin thread Wendy, Nirvana can change you."

Still, Wendy continued to sulk. "I'm a coward Carla. I left rather than stayed to fight."

"You know full well as I do that you would simply be in the way…Still child, if you didn't come, then they would have lost Nic." Carla tried to find a sense of morality within this dark situation.

"Yeah." Wendy then looked back up at the sunset. "But the Oracion Seis found Nirvana because of me." She then set her head on her knees.

Carla turned towards Wendy. "That's enough child. It's clear a part of you is glad to see Jellal alive and well; and while on that subject, can you please explain who he is? He seems to have some positivity in your life, but I'm confused. If he's so important, why'd you never told me about him?"

Wendy turned towards Carla and smiled. "It's nothing personal. It just never came up. I met him seven years ago, not long after Grandeeney disappeared…

_A very young Wendy was walking through the forest full of tropical and various vegetation. Wendy was alone and crying, lost without a guiding hand ever since Grandeeney went missing a short while ago. Wendy couldn't stop crying and she had nobody around. No relatives, no nothing._

"_Grandeeney, where'd you go? Please come back." Wendy cried, stopping for a moment and wiped herself away of tears briefly and she looked up into the sky, watching the clouds roll by and the sun beaming down. The clouds blocked out the sun briefly and Wendy saw someone walking by._

_Wendy saw a young person with blue hair, though it wasn't as dark as hers, a red tattoo around his right eye, and a staff that was attached to a travel bag. The young man stopped and saw that Wendy was standing in front of him and was teary-eyed still._

"_Why you crying?" The boy asked Wendy._

_Wendy began to tear up even more. "She left me!" Wendy then ran up to him and held onto him, crying still. "She left me all alone!" Wendy cried even more and then the blue-haired boy held Wendy and comforted her._

"We traveled from that day forward." Wendy explained. "We weren't sure where we were going, but it didn't seem we cared. It was a fun time. He managed to find food and do a whole lot to take care of me. But then one day, he started acting strange. He told me not long after that he had to go somewhere alone, and I didn't want to leave. He said that there was a guild up ahead past the forest, which was Cait Shelter. We got there and then we parted." Wendy finished with sadness.

Carla felt a little pity for Wendy, seeing as how two people left her. "So, what happened after you parted ways?"

"That was the last time I ever saw him." Wendy explained. "I heard rumors every now and then. First people said there was a Council member who looked like him, and most recent ones on how he did evil deeds." Wendy smiled. "It's silly. He'd never do something like that. I wonder if he remembers me?"

* * *

**With Erza**

Erza had finally made it to the location where Nirvana was unsealed, where harsh winds and dust was flying into her. Erza covered up so as to get passed all of that. She took it step by step and then looked passed the wind and dust the next time she opened her eyes, revealing Jellal looking up at Nirvana.

Erza gasped at the sight. Jellal was back. Being shocked was an understatement. She heard about, and now there he was? Was he the same? Was he anew? She had to know what he was doing here to begin with. Erza stood frozen in as she gazed at him.

Jellal felt something behind him and he turned around with no emotions as he saw Erza. The wind and dust almost immediately subsided and the two were in a stare down. An unemotional Jellal against a surprise Erza. The two just kept their eyes locked and they held still.

Cobra and his pet Cubellios were eavesdropping behind a rock so as not to be seen. Cobra looked back at Erza, recognizing her. _'How did she get here? Why didn't I sense her approaching? I can't let her take down Jellal before Nirvana fully activates!'_

Erza's scarlet hair casted down smoothly as she looked with some disturbance at Jellal. She then remembered as to why she was here in the first place. She was fortunate enough that Nic didn't get here before she did, and she did constantly tell herself to protect him like he did to her. Her look of surprise subsided with a face of seriousness. "Jellal." She boldly said.

Jellal looked up slightly. "Erza." He said.

Erza then glared at him. "Now tell me, how did you end up here?" She demanded. Jellal had a shadow over his eyes as he was silent.

It took a few seconds for him to speak. "I can't answer that." He said. He then looked confused as Erza stared at him. "Erza…who is…that?" Erza's cold stare softened with a small gasp, startled as to what Jellal said. "I have no memory, yet I remember that name."

Erza's gasp was now heard loud and clear as she almost took a step back in even more shock than last time.

Cobra, who was still looking from behind a rock still, was wide-eyed.

Jellal clenched his head in frustration. "I don't know who I am. Or where I came from." He said in a very desperate tone. This was serious, he did lose his memories? Erza looked in surprise still. "Can you tell me? Do you know?!" He looked at the ground as his voice increased. "Please. At least tell me who Erza is."

Erza's eyes were starting to show signs of tears. Jellal is lost in this world and he may have returned. The Jellal from before seemed to be back. Erza's eyes were now beginning to show water.

Cobra, on the other hand, was baffled. _'You're kidding me. His memories have been wiped clean?'_

Erza wasn't sure what she should be feeling, but it felt a mixture of pity and sorrow. "Oh Jellal." Erza said. Jellal looked on in hopes that Erza might tell him who he is.

Erza was going to feel a sense of joy overwhelm her; she really was, but then recalled that she might not be out of the woods yet, literally. Jellal was an amnesiac and he could possibly be lying, but the second part wasn't likely. Not to mention all of the terrible things he has done, like enslave Erza's friends, and then the tears failed to come from her eyes as she remembered from that memory how Nic came into her life, in a way making her feel really happy. Just what is to be done? What was she to do now that Jellal was an amnesiac?

She narrowed her eyes and then remembered that he nearly killed her, and it was because of him that Nic 'died'. Erza was heartbroken when Jellal became cruel, but Nic's seeming demise broke her entirely, and she will never in a million years let that go unjustified.

She took a step forward. Then another, until she was walking towards him with a serious face. "Jellal." She boldly stated once more.

Jellal panicked as Erza came closer and he extended an arm. "Stay back!" He shouted in anxiety, shooting a yellow blast at her as a warning. The knight stood her ground and she took the blast and she was covered in a few scratches. Erza had nobly took the entire assault and kept her stance as her hair flew about.

Jellal was taken by this act of nobility and he was in shock that he had hit her, yet she looked unfazed. What was she? Who was she?

"If I can't come to you, then you come to me!" Erza declared. "I'm the person you're looking for. I am Erza." She stated, answering Jellal's question. Her gaze turned rather angry as Jellal was standing and paying attention. "And you are Jellal. There was a time when we were close friends."

Jellal's eyes widened slightly, hearing a little of who he was and who Erza was to him. "We-we were?"

"Yes, but that was before you were taken by darkness. You did wrong to too many. Desecrated the dead. Enslaved and hurt my friends. Destroyed the Magic Council. Killed Simon. And almost took someone else from me as well." Erza explained, her voice sounding more and more accusing as hearing her own words brought anger.

Jellal's eyes were shaken pretty bad as he was hearing of who he was and what he had done. He had expected something low-key like some guild member or something, but he had been baffled and he couldn't find his breathing as he heard that he was once a nice person, but was now swallowed by darkness and nearly destroyed everything.

"If you try…" Erza was now very angry, as seen with her eyes. "IF YOU EVEN THINK OF FORGETTING THE PAIN YOU'VE CAUSED, I'LL TAKE MY SWORD TO YOUR HEART!" Erza backed slightly and her voice dialed down slightly. "Now, come here and face your atonement!"

Jellal had done wrong. Very wrong. So wrong that even justification cannot even begin to make up for. He was a monster. He was a fiend and one who was violating the dead. He killed a friend of Erza's, and she said Jellal's reckless desires almost made her lose someone dear to her heart.

Jellal wasn't taking this bit of news well as he looked down and started to cry, unable to ponder as to what his memories were. "I-I did that? I did all of those things you said?" He had a hand on his forehead. "What have I done." His tears were starting to hang from the corner of his eyes. Jellal looked up at Erza and he was almost clenching his own head with his left hand. "Please tell me it's not true! Tell me, how can I make amends?!" He sounded extremely desperate of learning how as he heard of the past sins he's committed. Erza's gaze looked despondent in seeing the frustration Jellal was going through.

'_Is this the same Jellal?' _Erza wondered.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in the forest…**

Lucy had awoken with some new attire. She had on a blue dress with a yellow design with yellow trimmings down the middle. She had blue bands on her wrist with frills and her hair was in two short pigtails.

"Ugh." Lucy stirred. She felt her arm as it was bandaged up. "Who did this?" She then realized her attire was different. "Question two, two changed my clothes."

A voice explained behind her. "I thought garments from the Celestial World would suit you; as for the one who changed you, that was me." The feminine voice explained.

Lucy turned around in astonishment. "Virgo?!"

"Yeah." Lucy and Virgo turned their heads to see Nic in his usual attire and his sunglasses on still, cross-armed and leaning against a tree. "When I got you guys to shore and inland, you were both pretty wounded and blacked out before I set you guys on the ground. I used my String Shot as a substitute for bandages until Virgo appeared and did the rest."

Even Natsu's attire was different, as he had on orange pants that complimented his blue long-sleeved shirt with yellow lines on the sleeves and running down the shirt with what seemed to be a heart design with the yellow trimming running through the middle.

Natsu finally awoke. "Okay, now where am I?" He said.

"I also provided Sir Natsu with clothes as well." Virgo said.

"Totally not necessary." Lucy sighed.

Natsu arose to his feet, getting back to the matter at hand. "We're wasting time! Where's that light?" He demanded. He turned his head and he saw the black light racing up to the sky. Natsu and the others noticed that instead of being black, it was just a simple white beam, which didn't go unnoticed.

"Well we're closer, but it looks different than before." Lucy said.

Nic uncrossed his arms and put his hands in his pockets and walked over to them. "Yeah, for some reason the negativity in the beam subsided. You can't even see the black feelers that were surrounding it from before. My guess is that the negative energy must have been either released and is no longer there or the energy went dormant and is building up until a given point."

Natsu stepped forward with a very frustrated look and was showing tick marks everywhere on his face, which Nic and Lucy both saw. Suddenly, he calmed down and he sighed.

"Eh?!" Lucy never saw Natsu calm that fast before. This was something new, even Nic found it odd as he blinked. He then turned sharply towards Lucy, which startled her, and once again his gaze softened.

He gave a quick grin. "Hey, thanks for saving my butt back there Lucy." Natsu said.

Lucy blushed and she was taken by Natsu thanking her. "Uh, yeah. Don't mention it."

"She loooves you." Virgo said, copying Happy.

Lucy immediately cringed and she turned sharply towards the maid. "Don't copy that stupid cat like last time!"

"Speaking of which, where is Happy?" Natsu asked.

"I haven't seen him." Virgo said.

"Yeah, and he wasn't around when I saw you guys." Nic added.

Natsu had hands to his sides. "Now that I think about it, wasn't a certain blonde suppose to stay with Erza and Nic?"

Lucy sighed and she groaned. "Yeah, but Erz and Nic ran off like you did."

"Then what are we doing here?" Natsu said. "We have to be running towards the light."

Virgo then bowed towards Lucy. "I'm happy I could serve you Princess. Until next time." Virgo then vanished.

Lucy then blinked, realizing something. _'That's right, I didn't summon her. She must have used her own power to cross over. Does this mean I'm out of Magic?'_

The bushes from Lucy's side then rustled, and she and Natsu both stepped back while Nic took a more defensive stance. Luckily from out of the shadows was Sophie and Gray carrying an unconscious Sherry.

Lucy and Natsu both looked happy. "Gray! Oh man it's good to see you!" Lucy exclaimed.

Gray then grinned slightly with Sherry still on his back. "Yeah well, let's be glad that most if not all of us are alright." He then saw Nic. "Hey, you're okay man!"

"In the flesh." Nic stated. "Wendy sure did wonders. Speaking of which, where is she?"

Lucy turned towards him. "While we were fighting Angel and Gemini, Carla took her somewhere safe."

"I see." Nic said in understanding.

Sophie smiled and walked up to him. "It's so good to see you again Nic." Sophie said with glee.

Nic crossed his arms again. "Yes, as am I." He then examined most of Fairy Tail that was present. "It's nice to see that most of us are back together again. That just leaves Erza and Happy." Nic then took notice of Sherry. "Is she alright?"

Natsu examined the girl. "Hey, wasn't she from Tuna Fish Island with that dog and the spiky blue hair guy?"

"Galuna Island, and you've seen her since then." Lucy reprimanded.

"I must have been at Freesia at the time." Nic said.

Gray turned back to see Sherry stirring. "Ugh…" She was blinking.

Sophie turned back towards Sherry. "She attacked us out of the blue after the light shot into air. We had to incapacitate her. It was odd."

"Did anything else happen?" Gray asked.

Natsu pointed towards him. "Yeah, I owe you a punch in the gut for that trick you pulled on me." He exclaimed in accusation.

"Huh?" Gray asked.

Lucy turned towards Natsu with hands of objection. "Uh Natsu, that wasn't really Gray back there."

Sherry was now awake and she realized that Gray was carrying her, to which she tried to move. She shook herself off of him and she fell to her knees, with the Fairy Tail members jerking towards the angry Sherry that was still struggling to get up.

"You won't live!" Sherry declared, shaking. "I must avenge Lyon!"

Suddenly, a voice spoke close by. "Avenge me for what exactly?" He asked. Sherry turned her head and gasped at the sight.

It was Lyon, alive and well. He still didn't have a shirt, but had his jacket and had an unconscious Racer being dragged. "Honestly, I would've thought you had more faith in me than that." Lyon testified.

"Is it really you?" Sherry asked, almost believing she was seeing his ghost.

Gray and Sophie turned towards her. "Of course it is. The man's a whole lot tougher than he looks."

"What a surprise. We couldn't find you Lyon. Where'd you end up?" Sophie asked.

"It was closer than I had thought." Lyon explained. "It took me everything I had to keep the blast out of our reach."

_As Lyon and Racer were both falling, Lyon saw the light from the bomb getting brighter and Lyon had very little time to act fast. Lyon quickly covered his left arm in ice and he had cut the straps of the bomb._

_The bomb was now above Lyon and Racer as the latter was starting to black out. Lyon and Racer both touched the ground and the bomb above finally made a short ding sound it finally went off._

_Lyon had put of a shield made of ice to contain the blast and to keep him and Racer in one piece The blast nearly swallowed them as the roaring explosion echoed about, but Lyon didn't give as he kept his shield up and he grunted as he used up a lot of his Magic to keep the shield from failing. When the explosion subsided, the shield finally shattered into fragments and Lyon got to his hands and knees and was panting. He used up so much energy and he had little energy to move. _

_He looked back at an unconscious Racer and he picked himself up and started making way into forest to avoid detection and to recover._

"Sounds like you had as rough of as we did." Lucy noted.

Lyon turned towards Natsu and he grinned. "Wow Natsu, where'd you find that getup?" He teased Natsu of his clothing, to which the Dragon Slayer didn't appreciate.

"Say what?!" Natsu angrily protested.

Sophie sighed. "Well, it is eccentric for Natsu's taste." She added, which made Natsu grow a tick mark.

Sherry had tears in her eyes as she then fell to the ground and closed her eyes. "Oh my…love." She then fell unconscious and then black energy eroded from out of her body and into the air, which everyone noticed.

"Whoa, what's that?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"See, she was kind of possessed." Gray noted, seeing the darkness fade away.

Sophie sweat dropped. "Not to mention _obsessed_."

"No kidding." Lucy said, referring to Gray's comment. "We're running out of time."

Nic looked up at the pillar of light and stared at it. _'Erza, don't worry. We'll be there soon.'_

* * *

**With Erza and Jellal**

Jellal and Erza both looked down in disappointment. Jellal for the crimes he committed and Erza for the pity she feels for Jellal's memory loss.

Cobra emerged from behind the rock. "If you lost your memory, then that explains why I couldn't hear your thoughts." He explained, his sudden appearance startling Erza and making her turn her head sharply towards him. Cobra then began to walk forward. "But now I got a lot of questions that need answers."

Erza showed her resentment with her teeth. "I should've known we've been followed."

Cubellios appeared and slithered herself around Cobra and she glared at Jellal. Cobra stood still and he glared solemnly at Jellal. "I'd like to know how you found Nirvana." His face then darkened, as did Cubellios's. "Even more than that, I want to know how you broke its seal!" He demanded, with Cubellios hissing and baring her fangs.

Jellal looked down at the ground, trying to process his thoughts and how he did unseal it. He then explained. "While I was unconscious, I heard a voice. 'I must have Nirvana' it would say. It's strange, but for some reason when I woke up, I knew precisely where to find it." He paused as Erza and Cobra were both listening. "Somehow, I could also sense how dangerous and powerful it is. And so…I've broken Nirvana's seal, to obliterate it!"

Cobra and Erza both gasped as Jellal explained he wanted to destroy Nirvana, not use it for himself. Cobra gaped his mouth in utter shock as to where Erza composed herself rather quickly.

"How do you intend on destroying someth8ing like that?" Erza aske, almost feeling anxiety grow.

Jellal remained still as he explained, his eyes slightly narrowed. "I rigged this monstrosity with a Self-Destruction Circle. It's only a matter of time before Nirvana collapses upon itself." Jellal then revealed the spell itself. A huge purple circle slowly revealed itself like a fade and then some blood red inscriptions along the circle. The circle itself was so complicated in design and so massive as well.

Cobra had Cubellios unwrap around him and allowed the Poison Dragon Slayer to run up to the blood red inscriptions that were spread all about. He ran up to the edge and grunted in frustration as to how Jellal initiated a Self-Destruct Spell. Even Cobra saw it to be impossible to disarm without aid from Jellal.

"I've never seen a Magic Circle like this with so much complexity!" Cobra stated, backing away and getting anxiety again. "If I can't stop this, we'll lose what we've been working for!" He then looked at Jellal, who appeared calm. "Spill it Jellal! Tell me how to disarm it or I'll beat the answer out of ya!" He threatened.

Suddenly, Jellal winced and he clenched his abdomen, startling Cobra and a worried Erza. He grunted as he felt a sudden pain boiling and his eyes continued to wince. "Erza. Whenever I hear that name, a calm washes over me." Jellal said,

Erza looked on as Jellal said her name made him feel better, but looked even more worried when Jellal was coughing, meaning something wasn't right.

Jellal continued. "Happiness, kindness, even warmth and loyalty. That's what I think and feel when I hear that name." Erza's lips parted as Jellal looked down and paused before speaking again. "I know that I cannot be forgiven for the pain I have caused you; believe me, I don't blame you. I would probably feel the same."

Jellal felt even more pain and then he tried to perk a small grin. He struggled slightly as he continued. "If I am your friend…then I cannot allow such hatred…to restrain you of such freedom." The pain intensified as he then winced harder and grunted and coughed.

Erza was slightly confused. "But…what are you saying?" Erza spoke softly in worries. Erza nearly stepped back yet again when she saw Jellal give a relieving sigh and a purple light faded on his chest, of which when he took his hand off revealed to be something horrific.

Jellal placed a Self-Destruction Spell on himself. It spread slowly over his chest.

Jellal looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry you suffered because of me. I'll do everything I can to make it right."

Cobra saw what Jellal did and he gritted his own teeth. "You didn't." He snarled. He then saw Jellal slowly fall backwards.

Erza looked in deep horror at seeing Jellal actually trying to destroy himself in order for Erza to have no pain. Her eyes weren't filled with just horror, but with shaking worries that can't seem to stop. Jellal from a long time ago was back, and she didn't want to see him die in front of her.

She saw Jellal perk a sincere smile.

"Feel freedom Erza. From your hatred. From your past. I will take your pain, and your sadness, all of it. It must not choke you ever again." He said, falling backwards.

Cobra's eyes twitched as he saw what Jellal was doing. "It can't believe this. He's actually gonna sacrifice himself!"

Erza began shaking insanely as she witnessed Jellal falling backwards into the Self-Destruction Spell on Nirvana. He kept smiling as his back hit the ground and his eyes closed. "Farewell…Erza…"

Erza was beginning to cry. She can't lose her friend. Not again. She can't have Jellal sacrifice himself like Nic did for her sake. The very remembrance of that day made Erza's heart pulse that she can't let something like that happen again.

"**Jellal!**" Erza shouted at the top of her lungs, reaching out to grab Jellal before he met his own self-demise. She ran as fast as she could towards him. "Don't do this!" Erza ran to his side and grabbed the collar on his coat and saw Jellal's spell on his chest then began initiation a signal, meaning he was getting closer to his demise. Erza's gasps and wide eyes couldn't compare to the unexplainable feeling she had, like when she held Nic's hand at the Tower of Heaven before his sacrifice.

Cobra stood by, unable to do anything of sorts. _'If he goes then this whole place does! There's gotta be a way to shut down that Self-Destruction Circle with him.'_

Erza began to show tears as she gripped tighter on the collar. "Listen to me! You can't! I won't allow you to die like this!" She continued to persuade him to stop this madness, and then something in her spat out. Even she didn't realize it until she had said it. "Please Jellal, dying in vain won't solve anything! You have to live to atone for your sins! You've done wrong, but you've done good for once!"

Jellal's now hazy eyes opened as he kept listening and Erza's tears began to boil. "When that someone defeated you, the tower was going to collapse and I was about to sacrifice myself! He took my place to let me live and I can't let that happen to you! He gave me another chance and your misdeeds had allowed me to express my need for him! I can't live without him around and the thought of losing him breaks my heart! I can't have that happen to you too!"

Jellal's hazy eyes now returned to normal and he gasped as Erza was now having tears scroll down her cheek and onto her armored fist. "The evil you've committed made me realize how important others are to me, and how I can't bear to live without them! Jellal you can't run from problems like this! FACE JUSTICE AND LIVE!"

There was a silence that brewed about as Erza remarked all of that, admitted her feelings about Nic and how his sacrifice can't be repeated by Jellal, meaning he was vital to her as well.

Jellal smiled at her. "Erza, don't cry." He said softly. Erza was taken by this sudden remark as she then jerked back upright and saw the tears on her right hand. She gazed at them and then she shut her eyes to block out anymore tear flow.

Even after what Erza said, Jellal wasn't one to be persuaded so easily. "You're a good person, don't forget that." Jellal then closed his eyes one last time and allowed himself to await as the spell was awaiting to be detonated, leaving Erza panicking like her life was over.

Erza called out to Jellal. "Jellal." No answer. "Jellal," No answer still. "Pull yourself together dammit!"

There was then footsteps that came from behind as Erza was beginning to lose hope. It was Brain, and he didn't look appeased as to what he was seeing. "What's meaning of this." He demanded.

Cobra looked and saw Brain in quite a bit of surprise. "Brain."

Seeing as how the enemy was back again, Erza wiped her tears from her eyes and she turned back towards Brain and grunted, seeing as how he almost ended Nic's life earlier.

Brain walked forward and examined Jellal's handiwork. He recognized it and he narrowed his eyes. "A Self-Destruction Spell."

"This is Jellal's doing! We've gone through all this trouble to bring about Nirvana, and this idiot is trying to destroy it!" Cobra defended.

Brain didn't respond for a moment, analyzing the situation. He just stood still and a smirk came across his face in a slow manner. "Spare me the details." Brain brushed off. "I don't answer to the name 'Brain' by chance." He treated the entire ordeal as though it were nothing. "Do you know why I am called that?"

Brain stepped forward and began explaining. "I once worked at the Bureau of Magical Development. During my employment there, I created countless spells. They were meant to bring destruction such as this one. I still hold that knowledge to this very day." He stopped in front of the huge circle that was on the light.

He then shifted his gaze down towards Jellal. "As a matter of fact I taught you how to use them, or have you forgotten Jellal?"

Erza's eyes were swelled with shaking and anxiety from the fact Jellal learned from Brain, leaving her stunned to a degree.

Brain saw that Jellal was under a Self-Destruction Spell. "So it would seem that he's place one on himself. He intends to take the disarm code to his grave I see."

Cobra had a hand in his pocket as Brain looked at him. "I don't think he'll be traveling down memory lane anytime soon Brain. Sorry, but it seems the Ethernano wiped his memories."

Brain then began to chuckle. "Is that so?" He amusingly said. He then turned towards Erza and Jellal. "How comical."

Erza's eyes began to show great irritation at Brain's disgust. She was boiling and wanted to strike him down if not for Jellal's well-being at hand.

Brain turned back towards the Self-Destruction Spell. "We have no use for him now." Brain then put a hand up to the spell's center. He then grinned. "I know full well how to nullify this Magic circle quite simply." With a simple reverse chop with hand and arm in the air, the entire circle began to slowly become enveloped in light blue and it slowly dissolved and broke about.

"No!" Erza shouted.

Jellal opened his eyes slightly, seeing his spell being nullified. "You can't."

Brain laughed and he turned with such catastrophic joy. "You've tried your best Jellal, but as of now Nirvana is now under my control!" The last of the Self-Destruction Spell then broke.

Erza then summoned a sword and ran up to Brain. "We'll see about that!"

"Nirvana! Arise!" Brain shouted.

As Erza ran up to him, the ground beneath het began to shatter immensely and then rocks crumbled everywhere within the terrain. The ground itself was splitting apart in so many ways as everything was beginning to be swallowed up in light.

"Yes! I hear it!" Cobra exclaimed. "I hear the sound of the future shattering!"

Erza was falling with a bunch of rocks and she reached out towards Jellal. Jellal was several feet below her and was reaching out to her as well. Both tried to reach as the distance between them lengthened somewhat.

"No! Jellal!" Erza called out.

"Erza!" Then Jellal and Erza's images were both enveloped in the light that was expanded upon the rise of Nirvana.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

The light had expanded to enormous levels, to which it was almost three times as big as it was before. This didn't look well as the ground was now beginning to palpitate like Earthquake, though the ground itself wasn't shattering as of this point.

Lyon felt the quake and looked up at the expanding light. "So our mission is a failure."

Natsu, Gray, and Lucy all looked up in utter disbelief. Nic looked on with the sunglasses covering his stunned eyes.

"NO WAY!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Hope that's not as bad as it looks." Gray hoped.

The quaking was getting even worse, and Natsu began to feel kind of sick.

"Nope, it's pretty bad." Lucy said.

Nic showed deep concern. "And Erza's right in the middle of it." He muttered. Just as he was finishing up that last sentence, the ground shook far harder than it ever did as in the distance, unbelievably massive tubes emerged from the ground and arose in numerous arcs.

"What the hell?!" Sophie exclaimed. "They're everywhere!"

"I got that bad feeling coming again." Lucy quivered.

"Here it comes!" Nic exclaimed. The ground under them then shattered completely, making way as an enormous tube raged from under them and had drove everyone except Lyon and Sherry up to an incredible height.

Nic clenched on as he then shifted into the Sky Plate and took flight as the tube was beginning to subside its quaking. He flapped once and sprung up into the air even further to get an overview as to what had just happened.

"What the…?" Nic's eyes narrowed under his sunglasses as the bowl of dust began to clear out and showed signs of buildings that were made of what seemed to be cobblestone if not porcelain. "Nirvana…it can't be…" Nic remained uneasy as Nirvana was revealed to be a large city that had six enormous legs keeping it up in the air like a spider.

* * *

**On Nirvana, with Brain and co…**

Brain looked over the site of Nirvana's resurrection and Cobra watched with Cubellios by his side. Cobra had a smirk on his face that had bad news written all over it, as to where Cubellios was being stuck to his side and saw the place stand above the very earth itself.

Brain held his arms out as the last bit of sun was in view. "Yes! At long last I have obtained it, the ultimate weapon for destroying light! The Legendary Reversal Magic Nirvana! Those fool hardy guilds may have fellowship and unity, but even that and the world itself won't stand a chance. Those trivial factors shall be deprived of such meaning!"

* * *

**With Erza and Jellal**

With her right hand, she was hanging from the edge of Nirvana's many open doorways and held onto the edge as she had Jellal in her left hand, desperately trying to get back to their feet.

Erza was struggling to keep a firm grip as Jellal called up to her softly. "Erza." Erza heard her name being called from Jellal and she looked down at him.

"The Magic circle you've placed on yourself, you must undo it this instant." She struggled to say yet ordered. Jellal looked up at her and at her struggle and plea. "You have to stay alive." She continued.

Jellal looked down as his eyes were shaking in disappointment. "I've failed. I wasn't able to destroy Nirvana."

Erza continued to struggle still and she had little time. With the strength in her right arm, she pulled herself up over the edge and she finally had an arm to use and used her upper body to get over first and she got the rest of herself over and she pulled Jellal up and by her side. The two were now on solid ground and Erza heaved as she tried to catch her breath. Jellal was on his hands and knees at the fact he failed.

"Now, the world is doomed." He sulked.

When Erza got her breath back, she looked down and showed a smile. She turned her head and she had an even happier smile, seeing someone. "No, there's always a way. Look there." She said. Jellal looked and the two saw Fairy Tail making its way up the leg.

Natsu led the charge with Gray, Lucy, and Sophie all taking up the rear. They even saw Nic flying close by above them, soaring up towards Nirvana. They then saw Wendy and Carla in the distance, and on another leg they saw Hoteye helping Jura up the leg.

"You see as long as continue to breathe in this world, we shall keep hope alive." She said. Her hair flew about in the weak winds and she turned towards Jellal with the sun's rays illuminating her, making her the most beautiful thing you could ever imagine. "That hope will guide you throughout your life. So lease, live."

Jellal, hearing Erza and seeing her, realized that he must and will atone for the crimes by living to bear with them. He smiled. "I will."

Erza got to her feet and she held out an arm to assist in helping Jellal up. Jellal grabbed her hand and he then got back to his feet. The two stared at each other with smiles on their faces. For some reason, Erza didn't want to stop as she continue to hold Jellal's hand. She could feel his new resolve and she knew he was back. Honestly, Erza felt beyond happy to know her old friend was back and with her again.

Erza blinked and felt as though this moment should be prospered. She wanted to hold his hand, thinking of how she cares for him. Was this the same feeling as she felt to Nic? Could it be Jellal…or Nic…just the fact Jellal was here was good enough to suffice her discomfort and she and Jellal pressed onwards to find a way onto Nirvana.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Ichiya, unfortunately tied up, blinked as he hung upside down on the edge of a cobblestone building that was fairly high compared to other buildings within Nirvana.

"Man?" He said, and he was displeased. "What a revolting development. Where'd those juvenile snot-nosed punks run off to?! For that matter. WHERE AM I?! THIS IS NO WAY TO TREAT A MAN!"

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

The legs of Nirvana began to move slowly, the legs picking themselves up and was beginning to move like a spider. Natsu almost immediately began to show puffy cheeks and stopped moving.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Gray exclaimed.

Lucy looked down at Natsu, who was lagging behind. "You can't get sick now!"

"I-I'm sorry." Natsu choked. "C-Can't help it." He then began to slump even further. "It just keep moving."

"It may be moving, but it's not like a vehicle." Gray protested. "Don't think of it that way."

Natsu tried his absolute best to think of Nirvana as something besides a vehicle, and Natsu suddenly felt better to an extent. "Yeah!" Natsu then began to run slowly up the leg as it kept moving, but he then began to slow down and he paled. "Not working."

"Just think of it like an octopus!" Lucy shouted. "Being on the back of an animal doesn't bother you, does it?!"

"Octopus in the woods is all kinds of wrong." He said.

Nic descended to Natsu's side. "Do I have to carry you or something?"

Suddenly, Natsu's cheeks puffed even more at the thought of Nic being transportation, of which didn't go so well last time. He looked even more sick and he started to slide slowly off the leg, which didn't go unnoticed by everyone else.

"You idiot, stay alert!" Gray exclaimed, but Nirvana kept moving about and this left Natsu unable to keep his footing. Nic was about to fly down get Natsu as he was falling, but the caught a glint of an incoming projectile, more accurately a certain friend that was thawed out. Nic saw this and he watched as Natsu's feet popped off and he started falling.

Lucy and Sophie shrieked as Gray looked down at a descending Natsu. "Natsu!" Gray shouted. He then turned towards Nic. "What's wrong with you, why aren't you saving him?!"

Nic turned to Gray. "Trust me, you'll see."

Natsu began to fall at an alarming rate and screamed to no end, plummeting to his dangerously painful and life-threatening crash into the woodsea below.

The sound barrier had been broken as a winged creature zoomed faster than the speed of sound and grabbed Natsu by the scarf and carried him into the air. Natsu realized he stopped falling and he turned his head upwards with a big smile.

"Nice timing Happy!" The Dragon Slayer shouted.

"Aye sir!" Happy shouted, ascending with Natsu.

Lucy perked a smile. "Awesome catch Happy!"

Gray let out a sigh. "Stupid pyro nearly gave me a heart attack. You could've said something sooner Nic."

Nic just shrugged it off. "Sometimes you just have to play with the deck you're dealt with. I saw Happy coming and I knew he would catch Natsu." He then flapped his wings. "I'll go on ahead!" Nic then flapped and he easily went up further into the air and Natsu and Happy both were right by his side. The two, or three, flyers zoomed up faster than they ever had and then they both finally reached the top.

When they reached the top, they saw the cobblestone city, startling them.

"Oh man, weird." Natsu said

"Yeah. It looks like some creepy city." Happy commented.

"Yeah. I didn't know Nirvana had such ancient qualities such as a city." Nic said. "It could be a façade. Maybe the truth lies within." Nic said. Everyone there tried to contemplate about the matter as to why a city was there in the first place, but Nic looked down at the city more intensively, trying to understand something.

There was a brief silence as Nic remained his position, and after a severe ten seconds he got a pinpoint on something. He went wide-eyed as he felt a small echo within his chest. _'No. Not one here too.' _Nic turned towards Natsu, who glared at the big tower in the middle.

"I smell them." Natsu growled.

Nic blinked as he figure that Natsu pinpointed the Oracion Seis. Nic shifted into his Insect Plate at that moment, with his sunglasses becoming his compound eyes and he zeroed in and saw a perfect image on Brain, Cobra, and Cubellios.

'_This is bad. Natsu's going to enter the fray, but I can't.' _Nic told himself as he looked back down at the city. _'Why of all places must one be here? I can't believe that I'm sensing another Plate from within; furthermore, Dragon Slayers going up against each other is problematic. Let's see, Cobra can handle Natsu and vice versa. It looks like Natsu will be needing a hand in this brawl.'_

Nic turned towards Natsu. "Natsu, you be alert this fight. And Happy you be careful."

Natsu and Happy looked at Nic with confusion. "Say what? You mean you're not going to join us?" Natsu asked.

Nic looked back down at the city and narrowed his eyes in regret. "I'm afraid so, sorry."

"What?! But why?!" Happy asked, wanting an answer as to why an S-Class person is sitting this one out.

Nic's dragonfly-like wings vibrated in the air as he was still. "You know that Plate you guys found earlier? I am sensing yet another, and it's down in Nirvana." Natsu and Happy both remained silent as Nc told his reason. "But don't worry, I'm leaving you two with friends of mine."

Nic got out a poke ball. "Okay Staraptor, get out here!" Staraptor appeared out of her poke ball and spread her powerful wings in the air.

"Really and able!" Staraptor proclaimed.

"Staraptor, I need you to aid in this fight as a support." Nic said, getting out a second poke ball. "You'll have to act as Arbok's wings, heads up!" Nic threw the poke ball in the air, revealing his Arbok that scowled in the air.

"Nic-sssama, what isss-!"Arbok had just realized he was summoned while in the air and he looked down and then forward and blinked. "Uh oh." Arbok began descending from above, and when Arbok came to a close point, Staraptor grabbed Arbok by the hood below its head and Arbok took it by surprise. He looked up and saw that Staraptor was carrying him and he looked back at Nic.

Nic pointed at the enemy that was a fair distance away, to which with Staraptor's vision saw Brain, Cobra, and Cubellios. Staraptor got a quick idea as to where Nic was going, considering the Pokémon can hear things from inside their poke balls.

Nic pointed towards them. "Time for your round two Arbok."

Arbok and Staraptor turned and Arbok then hissed harshly, recognizing that scent he smells with his nose and tongue. "That'ssss Cubelliossssss." He snarled.

Nic then turned towards Natsu. "Alright, I'll leave you to it!" He then descended into the stone city below. "Good luck guys!"

Natsu clenched is fists. "Alright guys, let's get'em!"

"Aye sir!" Happy exclaimed

Staraptor grinned. "You ready for a tag team Arbok?"

Arbok hissed. "Upon Nic-sssama'sss orders, we shall take them down." The flying Dragon Slayer and the flying snake then flew high into the air and got a lock on their targets.

* * *

**With Brain and Cobra**

Cobra walked up to Brain's side and he looked nonchalant yet peaked. "Alright boss man, where'd you have in mind for a target?"

Brain's face was dark. "I know exactly where we're going to strike first. A certain Guild Hall."

"So we're starting with a bang aren't we?" Cobra turned and looked out at the city beneath them. He figured this was going to be a blast.

Brain raised his staff. "There, the first of many lights shall be extinguished!" He moved the staff in an arc and then a huge array of hexagons with gold gears appeared and had quickly set a perimeter around the entire pinnacle of the tower they were on. "Nirvana! Begin your march now!" In front of Brain, a huge gold master control piece with wings and an upper piece appear.

Cubellios had her tongue sticking out and she hissed harshly, feeling as though something familiar was coming. Cubellios bared her fangs as she sneered at the sky above.

"Huh? What is it Cubellios?" Cobra asked. He turned to see where and what Cubellios was sneering at coldly and there was a glint of something in the sky and was coming in fast.

This caught everyone's attention as they saw Natsu and Arbok incoming with their flying accomplices. Natsu had a flaming fist at the ready.

"I'm putting the brakes on this thing!" Natsu was intending to strike Brain, but when Brain sidestepped, he unintentionally allowed Natsu to shatter the master control.

Brain grunted. "No the fire dragon-!" Brain then failed to see an incoming Aerial Ace from Staraptor that was still latched to Arbok. Brain yelled as he felt his back getting hit with such sheer aero dynamic power.

"Don't count me out of this fight!" Staraptor shouted bas she and Arbok circled around in the air and repositioned themselves. Happy had Natsu straighten out and they regained altitude.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Natsu unleashed a large stream of fire that went barrowing at Brain, who wasn't a fool as to take another assault like he did before.

Brain had a green shield up, protecting him from Natsu's roar and he grunted as it still felt strong and rather hot. "Cobra! Stop them now!" He ordered behind his shield.

"I hear ya! Cubellios!" Cobra exclaimed. Cubellios then hissed as she then lunge up at Natsu as he was finishing up his roar. The poisonous snake was going to ram Natsu out of the air, but she then caught a glimpse of a certain snake that was incoming.

"It'sss me againssst you sssnake!" Arbok shouted with Staraptor flying him in and the Cobra Pokémon opened his mouth and his fangs were encased in ice and extended, said using Ice Fang. Arbok and Staraptor zoomed in and intercepted Cubellios and Arbok bit down on the enemy snake's snout, effectively sending pain throughout the snake's head and Cubellios fell backwards in an arc in slow motion (you know, for effect).

"Cubellios!" Cobra shouted, seeing his snake take a painful bite and saw her fall back down with a thud on the tower top. "Are you alright?" Cubellios slowly arose from her fall and she shook her head and hissed harshly at Arbok, as did the latter back. Cobra grunted. _'I forgot. That's Luminous' pet snake, and that bird must be his as well.'_

"Nice save buddy!" Natsu thanked Arbok.

Arbok opened his mouth and sneered, startling Natsu, though the former was still eyeing the enemy. "Be alert pinky, come on! Thissss isss the ssssecond time I'm helping you in a fight, ssssso you better be grateful." He said snobbish-like as always when not addressing Nic.

Natsu frowned, but then grinned with anticipation. "Yeah, and this time we're gonna do better! Yeah, I'm fired up now!"

Cobra looked uneasy as he then heard Natsu's thoughts about him doing another roar. He had Cubellios use her tail and allowed Cobra to hop on and the snake swung her tail propelling him up to Natsu. Cobra was going to unleash a punch across Natsu's face in order to cease the foreseen roar. As he was closing in, he heard Arbok and Staraptor's voices and they were coming from his right and he saw Staraptor using Steel Wing. Cobra heard the thought and he shifted his body as Staraptor did a downward strike and Cobra intercepted with a midair block.

Cobra grunted as he was actually hit that time and he was still stuck in the air and was open for a latched-on Arbok to strike. "Get lossst you freak!" Arbok swung his mighty tail around and struck Cobra in his side. Arbok followed through and he turned and he propelled him into Natsu's incoming roar, unable to block.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Natsu unleashed his flaming roar and blasted Cobra with an intensive stream of fire. Arbok and Staraptor jerked out of the way as Cobra was blasted right passed them and they watched as Cobra continued falling even after the blast ceased down towards the tower top. Fortunately for him, Cubellios caught him and he winced in pain.

"Damn." He said, shaken up from that teamed up attack. "I was sure I had them there. This is frustrating. Even though I can hear their thoughts, I can only process so many movements and so limited thoughts." Cobra then grinned. "Well I guess this will be a challenge then." He then jumped into the air. "Cubellios!" The snake beckoned to his call and she moved her body through and about in a serpentine fashion as the snake then unfolded her own set of wings and took flight with Cobra latched on.

Cubellios hissed and sneered with her baring fangs to intimidate Natsu and Arbok, but the latter sneered back. The two snakes glared harshly at each other while Natsu panicked.

"Gah!" Natsu shrieked, seeing a snake with wings.

Even Happy was startled. "That ain't right! Snakes aren't suppose to fly!"

Arbok heard this and he turned towards his left and looked back at Happy while baring fangs. "Exxxcussse me?!"

"Nothing! Nothing at all!" Happy panicked.

That set aside, the team looked back at Cobra, who latched onto his snake. "What's the deal, I thought vehicles make you motion sick? So you should be puking your guts out right now." He said towards Natsu.

"Happy's not a vehicle he's my friend!" Natsu berated.

"You tell'em Natsu!" Happy said.

Cobra had read Natsu's thoughts about his motion sickness. "I get it, so you gotta stay up here in the air because being on Nirvana while it's moving will make you throw up." He stated. "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

"Well it makes sense to me!" Natsu exclaimed. "Besides, I'm gonna stop this oversized piece of junk."

Arbok bared his fangs. "And you are gonna pay for what you did to Nic-ssssama!"

Cobra crossed his arms as Cubellios sneered back at Arbok. "You mean Luminous? I'm sure he's already gone by now."

"You're wrong." Staraptor said. "He was fully recovered and he's on Nirvana as we speak."

This bit of news startled Cobra. "What? Seriously? He should have died by now!..." He then regained composure. "Oh that's right, you guys got your little Dragon Slayer girl to heal him, didn't you?"

Staraptor and Arbok's eyes narrowed. "Yes, and now we're simply going to return the favor!" Staraptor declared, flapping her wings.

"You can try but there's no way me or Brain is going down." Cobra warned.

"Brain?" Natsu looked down at Brain as he was observing. "You mean he's driving this thing?"

Cobra got in a stance as he was ready to fight while on Cubellios. "Bring it on Fire Dragon Slayer."

Natsu happily took the invitation. "You got it! I'm gonna burn you to a crisp!" Natsu then flew in towards Cobra, but even Cobra knew what Natsu was thinking.

"I'm coming for ya!" Natsu then shifted and he then dove down passed Cobra and Cubellios towards Brain. "Psych! Right for Brain!"

They didn't get far as Cubellios knew full well what to do. The giant poisonous snake swung her tail lie a bat and slammed Natsu, knocking the wind out of him and sending him and Happy latched on spiraling and spinning about in the air.

Staraptor and Arbok looked as the two straightened out and turned back towards the poisonous duo. Staraptor flapped in place. "That snake is strong, and it's like it's in sync with the enemy." She stated.

Arbok hissed harshly. "She will go down, don't you dare doubt that!" He stated aggressively.

Staraptor continued to look at Cubellios. "I know Arbok."

Natsu's eyes had swirls while Happy was focused. "Natsu, you okay?" Natsu blinked and he was focused again. "That guy, it's he knew we were gonna do that."

"I can hear your movements before you make them." Cobra explained. _'Though too many at once will be hard to understand. Not mention Cubellios' urge to fight that other flying snake.'_

"Enough sssstalling!" Arbok hissed. "I came to fight, not to hear! Let'sssss sssettle thisss!" Arbok and Staraptor then flew in at Cubellios, who sneered despite Cobra being startled.

The two snakes bit into each other's sides, with Arbok using Ice Fang and Cubellios hissed and her bite loosened and Arbok let go and he jerked back and changed his intended target and used Ice Fang on the side of Cubellios' face, making the latter roar as Arbok thrusted her away in the air with Cobra.

Cobra couldn't do much with Cubellios acting on her own like this, meaning this fight is going to get messy.

* * *

**Meanwhile, on Nirvana…**

Carla was exhausted as she was regaining her breath after carrying Wendy all this way up to Nirvana. Wendy saw Carla being exhausted and she felt guilty.

"I'm sorry I wasn't much help. I wish I could do more." Wendy apologized.

Carla finally caught her breath and she sat up. "Don't be so foolish child, no need for apologies. Although I would like to know why we're up here in the first place." She saw Wendy's face grow despondent as she looked down at the ground. Carla then had an epiphany. "Hold on, you're trying to find Jellal aren't you?" She said in an accusing tone.

"I'm not!" Wendy denied almost immediately.

Carla then frowned still and her face grew with worry and desperate for truth. "…Truthfully." Carla pleaded.

Wendy then got flustered and she looked off while having a finger rubbing her cheek. "Well…in a way I guess." She then looked up at Nirvana's buildings. "But still, Nirvana has to be stopped." She then clenched a fist and looked determined. "So, now that I'm here there's something I can do to be of help to make that happen!"

Carla blinked at Wendy's resolve and she looked at the ground in agreement. "Maybe."

Wendy then smiled at Carla for agreeing with her. Wendy then heard a sudden gasp coming from Carla and she looked to see that Carla had horror eyes and looked like she's seen the end of the world. Carla remained still as she was looking out at the site of Nirvana moving.

"Is something the matter?" Wendy asked innocently. She watched Carla get to her feet and she watched as Carla walked like she was possessed or was dazed. Carla looked worrisome as she continued walking towards the edge of Nirvana. Wendy walked up to Carla's side as Carla finally stopped.

Carla's eyes were still shaking. "I-I don't know. And I'm not certain, but…" Wendy and Carla both looked out at the array of mountains and forests that lied beyond their eyes. "If Nirvana continues down its current path, then…then it'll trample right over the Cait Shelter Guild Hall."

* * *

**With Natsu and co.**

Cubellios hissed as she used a tail to swat Arbok, but catered by Staraptor, Arbok descended and evaded the assault and then ascended back to where they were and then he hissed and used Ice Fang yet again and lunged at Cubellios. The giant female snake jerked out of the way and watched Arbok follow through with his attack.

Staraptor caught a quick glimpse of Cubellios and her fangs over them and Staraptor steered Arbok away to avoid the downward venomous bite that would've rid her poisoned. Staraptor flapped as Arbok hissed at a rivaling Cubellios, both sides ready to enter yet another colossal brawl.

Natsu wasn't going to be left out as he came in with a fist full of flames from Cobra and Cubellios' right, but Cobra heard this and the flying snake swerved her head and slammed Natsu yet again and the Dragon Slayer and flying feline flew left and had to rebalanced themselves quickly, of which allowed Cobra to hear the thoughts of Staraptor and Arbok, hearing them say something about an Aerial Ace and Ice Fang attack.

Cobra turned towards them and saw a vast blur shooting towards him and his flying snake. The snake hissed and she flew in and used her tail to swat the Pokémon's' side, but Staraptor spun and avoided the tail by now flying upside down and quickly straightened out before impact on Cubellios' head, the giant snake taking an Aerial Ace and an Ice Fang to the head, making her roar in pain and jerk backwards in utter agony at the searing chill and unimaginable pain.

Cobra saw this while still riding his beloved pet and he was horrified. "Cubellios!" Cobra then grunted as the snake hissed with her baring fangs, not calling quits yet. Arbok narrowed his eyes and hissed back as they backed off.

Natsu came from behind with a Fire Dragon's Iron Fist, but Cobra made Cubellios fly upper left and easily avoid the attack from behind. "Say what?" Natsu said as he stopped and he turned around thanks to Happy and saw Cobra and Cubellios glare at them at they descended. Cobra smirked as Cubellios bared her fangs and she swatted upwards, spiraling Natsu and Happy into the sky above.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Arbok exclaimed, seeing how Natsu and Happy can't seem to strike like they did before.

Staraptor looked back and saw the enemy incoming. "Look sharp!"

Arbok turned his head back down as he saw Cubellios flying towards him aggressively and had her fangs with Arbok's name all over them. Arbok was quick enough to act, as was Staraptor, to steer about as Cubellios missed her chomp and she circled around fast and she charged again. Staraptor and Arbok saw her turn and saw her coming and they flew in to meet her head on. Cubellios slowed down as she then lashed her tail at them.

"**Steel Wing!**" Staraptor's wings glowed a metal-gray color and had batted the tail away with ease, making Cobra grunt at the sight. He then heard Natsu and Happy coming from above and diving straight down with flaming feet.

"Come on! You guys are starting to make this look easy!" Cobra then had Cubellios steer right as Natsu's axe kick missed and he and his little pal were now below and they then flew back up at them.

"Oh yeah, well we'll hit you hard!" Natsu shouted, but it was no contest as Cobra sneered, hearing their frontal assault.

"Seriously? I'm not blind you know." Cobra said, looking down at Natsu. Just then, he felt Cubellios rock immensely and he had to keep balance as his snake was acting on her own and was in a fang clash with Arbok, with Ice Fang biting into the giant snake's right side and Cubellios biting Arbok's right side below the hood, avoiding Staraptor. "What?!" Cobra then looked down again and saw Natsu have a flaming fist and he jerked out of the way on his own while still on a struggling Cubellios. Natsu and Happy both backed away to regroup as Arbok and Cubellios thrashed about in the air, both sides shaking and nearly starting to squirm like they did before, but being in the air was much different from the ground. Both sides released their grips and backed away. Cobra and his pet jerked away while Arbok and Staraptor both regrouped with Natsu and Happy.

"Man, it's like he's untouchable." Natsu murmured.

"Yeah, the only reason he scored that roar on him was because he wasn't riding that snake of his." Happy implied.

The sun rays were finally gone, leaving no more pink nor violet in the sky, but it was now night. Natsu then noticed the tower again and saw the golden master control again. "Hang on, didn't I destroy that thing?" Natsu wondered out loud.

"Either we missed it or someone fixed it." Happy stated.

"Why's it matter? I bet if he take that guy with the tattoos down, then it'll vanish for good." Natsu said.

Cubellios eased as did Cobra and Cobra smirked and chuckled. "You make it sound easy, but you're dead wrong."

Staraptor flapped her wings while still holding onto Arbok's hood. "Don't go underestimating us."

Brain, still observing, looked away and aimed his focus on the master control. "Cobra, deal with them."

"With pleasure. Cubellios really wants to tear that other snake apart." Cobra said, and Cubellios hissed in agreement. "Go Cubellios!" The giant snake then flew in towards them.

Natsu had flames at the ready and brought them together. "Oh no you don't! **Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**" He then threw the fireball at an incoming Cobra and snake, but they both swerved right and easily avoided the attack and the fireball exploded in the city.

"You missed him!" Happy shouted.

Natsu created yet another Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame. "That's alright I'm just getting warmed up!" Natsu then unleashed more of the same attack as Cubellios easily slithered through the sky with a grinning Cobra, seeing how easily he can hear Natsu's thoughts.

After launching repeatedly, there was dust flying about everywhere below in the Nirvana city and Natsu was huffing and puffing.

"You've gotta be kidding me." Natsu said.

"You didn't even hit them once!" Happy said.

Staraptor and Arbok then felt Cobra and Cubellios coming from behind to whack with a tail and the duo ascended quickly and evaded, but Natsu and Happy were still arguing somewhat and they were slammed backwards in the air.

"I told you, I know your every move before you make them!" Cobra said again. "There's no way-!" Cobra couldn't finish as he then saw Staraptor and Arbok coming, making him redirect his focus. "Gah! Cubellios!" The snake bared her fangs and she flew at the incoming duo.

"**Ice Fang!**" Arbok shouted. He initiated yet another Ice Fang and he and Cubellios both bit into each other once more. Arbok sank his fangs into her left side this time, while Cubellios struck on the left of Arbok below the hood, the two ending up in a hectic one-way clockwise spiral in the sky, with neither side ceasing as they both sank their fangs deeper.

As Staraptor was carrying Arbok, she began to pick up something. Using her keen eyes and a good battle memory, Staraptor noticed something about Cobra's hearing abilities.

Cobra went wide-eyed as he read Staraptor's mind, finding out she knew his weak point. "Damn." He muttered.

Arbok then tilted hi head downwards to drive the giant snake in an up-down motion until Cubellios released and Arbok continued to keep his fangs sink in and he thrashed her about in the sky and then released her, sending Cobra and Cubellios spiraling and spinning until they regained their balance.

"Oh man, just what are those two?" Cobra wondered and then he heard Natsu's thoughts from behind and Cobra turned around and he leaned right to avoid an incoming left punch and he gave a right hook, sending Natsu and Happy away a few feet.

"Aw man, come on! This isn't fair!" Natsu had tick marks showing his frustration. "That Arbok and bird managed to hit your snake but I only hit you once!"

"Struggling, aren't we?" Cobra sneered. He then looked down and saw Cubellios' injuries from fighting Arbok. Cubellios had a multitude of scratches and bite marks scattered all across the upper part of her body. Her head seemed to have some scratches as well thanks to the few assaults earlier.

Cobra was getting worried. Very worried. His most important friend, his only friend, was hurt bad. If he could hear her voice, he would know what to do, but he can't. All he could do is guide his beloved pet.

"Cubellios." Cobra said. "Keep still, limit your movements. It's my turn."

* * *

**With Nic**

Nic was using the Plates in his body like radar, and he was flying at ground level on Nirvana. His sunglasses when in his Insect Plate Form was fairly handy as night vision and thermal detection since the sun is down and night has fallen. He scanned about as used his wings to fly about but to no luck as he can't seem to pinpoint the Plate. He knows it's there, but it's deep within Nirvana. He needed to check closer to another area.

Surely enough, he was so close to the ground that he actually decided to start running, which proved just as effective thanks to his gifted speed. He zoomed about in one direction, and he was more than fortunate to feel the signal getting stronger.

"Alright, it seems that I'm starting to pick up where it may lie." Nic said. Nic dashed continuously, noting that the signal was fluctuating in certain areas, meaning that if he searched for a pattern, maybe he could trace it and find a precise place to find it. He knew for a fact it was within Nirvana, but he needed a way under.

He then spotted something ahead. "Wait, That's…" Nic blinked and saw Sophie, Gray, and Lucy ahead. "You two!"

The three both turned towards Nic, who dashed towards them "There you are Nic." Gray said. "Glad you regrouped. Any idea what this place is?"

Nic shook his head and looked down. "No, it's possible it's a façade, but we can't be sure. Aside from being a powerful Magic and having ruins, and the possible outcome I said earlier at the rendezvous, I'm not sure." Suddenly, he turned around when he sensed something, or someone.

"What is it Nic?" Sophue asked and she along with the others turned in surprise as well.

"This is the mystical city of Nirvana!" Hoteye said with his smile.

Jura was right by his side and grinned. "And seeing you guys and Luminous here puts the odds back in our favor."

"That's Jura from Lyon's guild." Gray said.

"And that's one of the Oracion Seis!" Lucy exclaimed. Nic immediately tensed up, demanding to know what's going on with Hoteye by Jura' side.

"WHAT THE HECK?!" Lucy and Gray exclaimed in confusion.

"There's no need to worry. Hoteye is now our faithful ally." Jura gestured to the happy man, and making Nic ease slightly.

"He is?" Gray asked.

"All you need is love! Oh yeah!" Hoteye exclaimed to the world, startling Lucy, Gray, and Nic to an extent.

"This is all sorts of messed up." Sophie shook her head and groaned.

"Isn't he the guy who screamed 'money this and money that'?" Lucy whispered to Gray.

"Maybe, baldy must have beaten some sense into him." Gray said.

Jura grinned still and gestured to a happy Hoteye, of whom was yammering on about love. "No so, we were about to enter battle and then he had a change of heart.

Sophie then sweat dropped. "Huh, strange. The same happened with Sherry but the opposite. She turned on us."

Jura felt startled by his comrade's act of twisted mindedness. "What? Is she okay?" Jura worried.

"Yeah, chill. She's safe with Lyon." Gray said.

With that crazy matter now simmered to a contained point, Nic took a good look around while still trying to pinpoint the Plate. He narrowed his eyes in disappointment as he felt the signal weak. "So what's with his city?" He tried to get back on topic.

Hoteye also resumed the topic after Nic mentioned it. "Ah yes! As I left off, this ancient city is where the Nirvits once thrived and prospered. Oh yeah."

Sophie then frowned. "Strange, I have no memory of them. Not even books from when I was young."

"I can't say I'm not surprised." Hoteye started. "There was no record of them nor any written form of architecture for that matter. They lived four hundred years ago in times of savagery and warfare. The Nirvits tried to keep themselves out of reach, but the bloodshed and losses were escalating so high that they had no choice but to intervene. They had created a Magic that would bring balance to the world. Oh yeah."

Lucy looked worried. "Don't tell me, it's Nirvana."

"That is correct. They were so confident in their creation that they named it after their homeland, a word that symbolizes peace. Oh yeah."

"So this city of ruins…" Sophie started.

"…is Nirvana." Nic finished. He then looked about in realization at the story and how it related to his situation awhile back. "It looks like my hunch was right. Nirvana was meant for peace and life, like 'The Ultimate Weapon', but now it's been turned against the world, just like I explained earlier." He then looked disappointed. "To think low-life dwellers would do such a thing. Using such a creative matter of life and using it for the opposite reasoning."

Jura nodded. "Indeed Luminous, but it can't be helped. Humanity has to have a counterbalance. With no Ying, there's no Yang and vice versa."

Everyone's gaze cascaded to the ground they were standing on, feeling the sadness at that realization. It was true. In life, all good things must come to an end. If something dies, something else is born. If there is good in the world, evil will try and break it. If there is light, darkness will always try and swallow it. It's a never-ending cycle of which can't be helped but be acknowledged.

Hoteye had to get the group to move on from the depression and get back to the primary factor that is Nirvana. He spoke softly so as not to make anyone anymore uncomfortable than they already are. "In any case, now that Nirvana is active once more, it poses a threat to all of humanity and the world itself. We must do everything in our power to destroy it. Oh yeah."

Nic looked up and grinned. "You're right. Now that we're here, we'd best try and work together to stop this monstrosity." Everyone followed suit and they looked back up and pursed soft grins in agreement. At least they had a light to shine away that sully moment. If one person could see the light, then said person must make others see it as well.

The torches around Nirvana's Royal Throne Tower then began to ignite catered to Brain controlling it. The torches were enflamed thanks to the Fire Lacrimas and everyone there took notice.

"The torches, they lit up." Lucy observed.

"It must be Brain. He should be controlling Nirvana. Lucky for us, he's unable to use any other form of Magic while doing so. It's the perfect time to strike. Oh yeah." Hoteye urged.

"I do wonder though, where is this thing going?" Sophie said in seriousness.

"Sadly, Brain did not share the particular with any of us." Hoteye regrettably informed his new comrades.

Out of the blue, another voice spoke up in objection. "That's what you think. Father simply didn't trust you enough, and it was a good thing he didn't." Everyone turned to see a man on top of one of the many small houses made of cobblestone.

Recognizing the man, Hoteye frowned. "Hello Midnight." He sourly greeted.

"One of the Oracion Seis." Gray analyzed

"He's the creep that's always napping!" Lucy shouted.

Midnight jumped down from the building and in front of the group. "You betrayed us Hoteye." Suddenly, another Midnight appeared, in an alley behind them and the Midnight in front was gone. "You've got a lot of nerve to go against Brain."

Hoteye and everyone there tried to maintain composure at the sudden transportation Midnight made. "I haven't betrayed anyone. I have come to realize Brain's misguided ways."

"Oh?" Midnight was on the other side of the building and leaned against it. He then opened his eyes after blinking and reappeared behind the group. "What was that? Why not come say it to my face?"

"How's he doing that?" Lucy asked.

Sophie picked up on something. "Hang on, you said 'Father'. What's that suppose to mean?"

"I can't say for certain. Stay alert." Nic said.

Hoteye tensed up. "I say he is misguided because he truly a person's heart can be altered by Magic, but love is far stronger than any form of Magic. Oh yeah." Hoteye explained to Midnight, everyone seeing Midnight stand still.

What happened next caught everyone off guard. Midnight's eyes sharpened and shrunk as he unleashed a horrific shockwave that shattered the buildings that were being hit. The guys were going to dodge, but then they fell into a soft crater for some reason.

As the dust cleared out, they saw that Hoteye had saved them with his Liquid Ground. "Wha-what happened?" Asked a dizzy Lucy.

"Hoteye liquefied the ground so we wouldn't be hit. It happened so fast I barely saw it." Jura explained.

Hoteye was in front of them and glaring at Midnight. "There's no time to waste. Get to the Royal Throne as quickly as possible! I'll stay behind and take care of Midnight. Don't worry about me, all members of the Oracion Seis are equal in power." He assured as the group got to their feet.

"You think you're a match against me?" Midnight scowled.

Hoteye put his right arm forward. "**Liquid Ground!**" A brown-yellow Magic sealed appeared in front of him and then the ground in front became a huge wave of earth that Midnight saw coming. All Midnight had to do was swipe his arm and the attack breezed right past him, leaving him completely untouched.

Gray looked at the site. "Who'd ever guess the Oracion Seis would turn on each other." He muttered.

"Again, messed up." Sophie reiterated.

Nic and Jura narrowed their eyes. "Be careful Hoteye." Jura said.

"I will, now go!" Hoteye exclaimed. With a brief moment to spare, he turned towards the others. "Also…I wouldn't prefer for you to call me that anymore. The name's Richard. Oh yeah." He explained.

Acknowledging this, Jura nodded. "Thank you, Richard."

Nic then turned, leading the group. "Alright, let's go. Come on!" With that, the group departed, leaving Richard to fend off against Midnight.

* * *

**With Natsu and co.**

They've been fighting for another two minutes or so, with Natsu and Arbok gaining up on Cobra as Cubellios was damaged from fighting Arbok primarily and that left Cobra with little options.

Finally, Staraptotr held Arbok with her talons and flapped as Natsu missed yet again. Angry, the Dragon Slayer pouted in the air. "Aw man, come on! You're a big punk who's scared to take a hit!"

"It's like his Magic can see in the future or something." Happy said.

Arbok hissed at them, surprising them. "You foolssss! He ssssaid earlier he could hear thoughtssss!" He berated.

Cobra looked mildly surprised. "Humph! Looks like that snake and bird combo isn't as dull as I gave them credit for." Cobra said. "I'll give you points for the right answer, but that's all."

Staraptor then narrowed her eyes. "Then I guess as Charizard would say, we'd also get bonus points."

"Huh?" Confused, Cobra blinked and it came to him that Staraptor had figured out a weak point from earlier, which gave him a feeling of insecurity.

"True you can hear our thoughts, but the problem is that you can only hear and listen to one thought at a time. Meaning that as you hear one of our thoughts, you can't process the other, meaning you're open." Staraptor explained, making Happy and Natsu blink and look back at Cobra.

Startled that he had his weakness revealed, he gave a nervous grin. "Keh. Alright pal, I'll give you those bonus points." His nervous grin then crooked into a feral one as he then swelled up Magic in his body and had it began changing him. "It looks as though I'll have to resort to Plan B."

Natsu jerked back while Arbok tensed up, the latter recalling what other Magic Cobra had. He narrowed his eyes and the snake saw crimson scales emerge on Cobra's hands and arms with sharp claws and a milky smooth underside. They all saw poison oozing about around him.

"Go ahead and hit me, you'll just decompose to the Poison Dragon Slayer." He sneered.

"No way, I forgot." Happy said.

"Yeah I know, I forgot he was a Dragon Slayer." Natsu said. "Well I guess I should be trying even harder!" Natsu then went in and Cubellios swung her tail and Natsu dodged upwards and that left him open as Cobra moved in and slashed with poison, making Ntsu spiral and regain balance.

"Are you okay pal?" Happy asked, seeing the blood red poison oozing about on Natsu's cheek.

Natsu put a hand on his own cheek to relieve the pain and numbness. "Yeah, but that attack made me feel as though I lost feeling there."

"There's plenty more where that came from!" Cobra shouted. "**Poison Dragon's Fang Thrust!**" Cobra then made a large wave of poison in the shape of a fanged snake head. The attack went at Natsu and Happy, who were still regaining themselves after that sudden numb strike.

Staraptor and Arbok flew in in between and Staraptor used Steel Wing and used it as a shield to defend her and her allies. The Fang Thrust 'bit' into her wings, but the poison was ineffective as it was nullified by the Steel-Type move.

Staraptor swatted with her wings and the poison was brushed off and then she and Arbok went in to attack. "**Aerial Ace!**" Staraptor became a blur with Arbok and the latter had yet another Ice Fang and was coming in fast.

'_These guys are fast!'_ Cobra silently remarked. "**Poison Dragon's Twin Fang!**" Cobra moved his arms in a cross and poison separated into many elongated snake-shaped streams that them. The poisonous assault spiraled through the air and Staraptor dove in, taking chances.

"We're not scared!" Staraptor shouted and then they came into contact with a spiral of poison that Arbok decisively took with Ice Fang.

"Nicccce try!" Arbok shouted, his chilled fangs intercepting and allowed for them to press onwards. Staraptor's Aerial Ace had hit its mark and passed by Cobra and struck him on his side. Cobra grunted harshly at the side impact.

"Alright, now it's our turn!" Natsu shouted. "**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" Natsu then turned upside down and his feet ignited, coming down on Cobra.

Cobra foresaw this and he pivoted and jumped into the air. "**Poison Dragon's Spiral Jaw!**" Cobra turned upside down and rotated as a huge sum of poison lashed out and had struck Natsu and Happy, effectively ceasing their assault and they were going down and they crashed into a lacrima with a torch on it. The lacrima effectively broke apart upon Natsu crashing face first and the entire lacrima exploded.

Staraptor and Arbok looked on in shock as their allies were swallowed up in fire that scattered about, unable to comprehend the force behind that solemn blow.

"Whoa." Staraptor said.

"Yeah - headssss up!" Arbok warned as he then saw a huge barrage of poison-shaped scales that went showering at them.

"Haha!** Poison Dragon's Scales!**" Cobra continuously shot scales at them and Arbok took it for the most part. Arbok winced with every scale pounding his scaly skin. Thankfully, he was a Poison-Type, meaning little effect was dealt with him.

Arbok kept getting pounded as he stood his ground, or air in this case, and he sneered with his fangs showing. When the scales subsided, he was shown to have only a few scratches. "Isss that the bessst you can do?"

Cobra sneered back. "You're one tough guy, but your little friend down there is pretty much done like dinner so…!" Cobra and everyone there heard and saw the fire from below getting swallowed up. "Wait…there's no way!" They all witnessed Natsu doing what he did best and he devoured and sucked in every bit of fire.

He and Happy were back in the air. "Yeah, now I got a fire in my belly." Natsu growled.

Cobra's attention was directed at Natsu. "Gotta say I've never seen that before, but now that you had your final meal let's end this!"

"With pleasure!" Natsu ignited a fist and he flew in towards him, but Cobra and Cubellios easily avoided and dodged with a round-about serpentine. Arbok and Staraptor came in this time and Arbok had an ace in the hole he had yet used.

"Lookssss like it'sssss time! **Glare!**" The pattern on his stomach then glowed and then Cubellios suddenly felt every nere in her body become paralyzed. Cubellios was paralyzed by Glare and was now stuck in the air as she was enveloped in yellow sparks to signify paralysis.

"Wha-what the-?!" Cobra looked to see that Arbok had paralyzed Cubellios and he got angry, very angry. "Alright, that does it! **Poison Dragon's Fang Thrust!**"

"**Ice Fang!**" Arbok, catered by Staraptor, flew in and the two fanged attacks collide, with Arbok's extended Ice Fang against the sheer poisonous fang. Arbok and Staraptor both gave it everything they had and they were beginning to push back the Fang Thrust, ultimately making Cobra cease and he and Cubellios barely jerked out of the way, though Cubellios wasn't spared as Arbok had followed through and bit into her tail, making the giant snake roar.

Arbok then used his raw muscle within his body and he whipped Cubellios around in the air with Cobra and he gave it one last swing and he send Cubellios soaring and spinning to no end and left Natsu to attack.

"Alright, **Fire Dragon's Iron Fi-!**" Natsu was caught off when Cobra leaped from his snake and clenched Natsu's face with his scaly hand and did a point-blank poison burst that made Natsu yelp and Happy jerked him back.

"Natsu, you okay?" Happy asked. Natsu clenched his sizzling face that was burned from the poisonous touch.

Cubellios stopped spiraling and straightened out while still wincing from her paralysis. Cobra was on her and he sneered. "You guys are really pestering me." He said, clenching his side from the earlier Aerial Ace. "I need some fuel myself." Just then, Cubellios responded by opening her huge mouth and she spat out a thick poisonous mist that obscured everyone from seeing Cubellios and Cobra.

They all waited and then they heard the same sound that Natsu makes when he eats fire. They all looked with utter surprise as the poisonous cloud was being sucked into Cobra's mouth,

"He's eating the poison." Staraptor said.

"Hope that ssscaled bassstard rotssss by it." Arbok sneered.

Cobra wiped his mouth with his crimson-scaled hands. "Alright now I got a fire in _my_ belly. Tasty."

"That's my catch phrase copycat!" Natsu protested.

Cobra hot a heinous look on his face and he then smirked. "Now, take this! **Poison Dragon's Roar!**" Cobra fired a vicious and massive stream of poison that swallowed up Natsu and Happy both as to where Staraptor and Arbok got out of the way thanks to Staraptor's gifted aerial dynamics. The poisonous roar engulfed Natsu and Happy and the two were send hurdling into the air.

When they looked back at the enemy, they both had purple sacks under their eyes and poison oozing all over their body. Somehow, this felt terrible.

Natsu tried to remain strong. "Big deal, you call that a roar?" Suddenly, they started to lose altitude and Happy was looking very weak.

"Uuuuugh. So weak." He murmured.

Natsu was panicked. "Happy pull yourself together! We're gonna fall and I don't wanna touch the ground!" He exclaimed.

"I-I can barely flap my wings." Happy said.

Arbok and Staraptor saw their weakened friends and their state. "They looked like they were poisoned." Staraptor noted, using the general concept of Poison from their world.

"How do you like my Poison Dragon's Roar?" Cobra coldly asked with a sinister and killing intent. "Your body is being flooded with viruses. Every passing second makes them spread and you'll end up dead." He then looked on as Happy regained some altitude and Natsu also came at them again.

"Like hell we're gonna die here!" Natsu shouted. "**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**" Cobra and Cubellios easily avoided by flying about, despite Cubellios being slower due to paralysis. They went under them and a Magic seal emerged.

"**Poison Dragon's Twin Fang!**" Cobra unleashed his powerful attack, spiraling the two and Natsu and Happy were left barely able to move after the assault.

"Natsu." Happy murmured. "I can't go on."

"N-no! We won't go down!" Natsu stammered, though the poison was weakening him. "There's only one thing to do. Happy…drop me on him."

Happy went wide-eyed. "What?! You said you could barely move anymore!" He exclaimed.

"That's why I have to finish this now." Natsu muttered.

Cobra cocked a brow. "Oh please, I can hear your thoughts, remember? A full power Fire Dragon's Roar? I can hear your thoughts you loser!"

Happy reluctantly dropped Natsu and then Natsu descended. Cobra jumped off of Cubellios and lunged at Natsu.

Arbok then sought this to be the big finish. "It'ssss time we settle the ssssscore!" Arbok told Cubellios. Cubellios sneered in agreement and the two snakes (and bird) flew in towards each other. "You're going down!"

Cobra closed in and was about to clench onto Natsu and crush his skull, and that's when Staraptor narrowed her eyes.

"You ready Arbok?" Staraptor exclaimed. To which Arbok nodded. Staraptor then gave it everything she had and she used her feet and threw Arbok at an incoming Cubellios.

Both snakes went at each other and both of their fangs were bared, with Arbok using Ice Fang one last time. As they drew ever so near, Cubbelios suddenly stopped and winced as the paralysis kicked in. Yellow sparks engulfed her body and the snake roared as she was stunned, quite literally. She was unable to do anything as Arbok sank his Ice Fang into her underside, close to her neck. Cubellios roared as Arbok then thrashed her about in the air and Arbok finally released his grip and Cubellios began to fall.

Arbok made a silver light in the middle of his hood and he sneered. "I'm done with you! **Gunk Shot!**" As he was starting to fall, Arbok launched the garbage bag outlined in purple at Cubellios. Cubellios roared one last time as she was bombed head on with a full-force Gunk Shot, exploding smoke and purple everywhere in a powerful explosion. The smoke was clearing out and Arbok continued to fall. Arbok landed on a flat rooftop, but was unharmed as he watched Cubellios fall down from the sky.

"This is the end for-!" Cobra was about to unleash an attack as he was clenching Natsu as he fell, but he went wide-eyed and gasped in horror as he saw his beloved Cubellios fall to the ground with a crash and dust flying, shattering a fraction of a building in the process.

"No…C-Cubellios." Cobra's eyes were shaken at the sight. His pet and comrade was defeated, and he was unable to do anything. Suddenly, he felt a brush of wind from behind and tensed up. He was too in shock to counter.

"**Close Combat!**" Staraptor used her feet and clenched Cobra's coat and pulled him off of Natsu and turned him around, where he was bombarded and was left defenseless as Staraptor unleashed her fury with a multitude of talon, beak, and winged strikes. She danced around in the sky, pounding and ruthlessly bashing Cobra to no end. With one final wing slam, she finished Close Combat and Cobra gagged as he started falling.

"Natsu!" Staraptor signaled from above and the Dragon Slayer was caught by Happy at that moment, allowing him balance. This was it.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" With everything he had, Natsu blasted Cobra in midair and the barely conscious Poison Dragon Slayer saw the attack, unable to move.

Cobra let loose whatever scream he had and was swallowed up in an intense firestorm.

'_My Prayer…Cubellios…my only friend…is to hear your voice…'_

Cobra fell back down and crashed with a tremendous thud, his body sizzling if not badly hurt as his eyes were also deprived of pupils. Cobra laid beside his pet snake, both defeated.

"We did it?" Natsu blinked, and he then smirked. "Yeah! We actually beat him!"

"Aye…" Happy then descended and was about to touch Nirvana.

"No-o wait! Happy! Happy!" Natsu warned, but it was too late as they crashed onto the ground with dust flying and Natsu immediately had puffed up cheeks.

"Gurgh!" Natsu felt pale and he couldn't move, and Happy was lying on the ground, completely exhausted.

Arbok slithered downwards and he stared at the defeated Cubellios. The giant snake was finally defeated, just as Nic ordered him earlier to do earlier. Arbok hissed in relief that he finally did it, that he took down Cubellios.

"It issss done." Arbok nodded. Staraptor flapped her wings and she landed right beside him, both staring at their defeated enemy.

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**I may have told you guys that this was going to be my longest chapter ever, but as I was doing so, I was having a mental breakdown. I found out that I get extreme anxiety when writing too much K for a chapter, so I had to cut the chapter off here. I'm having anxiety just thinking of going over 16K again, and I do not want to go through that again. Due to this, I am left with no choice, much to your shock, to add a chapter to the Oracion Seis Arc. I was intending to finish by the next chapter, but after what I tried to do, I will be playing it safe. Make this a note folks: Insane Dominator must not overdo his writing capacity, it shall give him extreme anxiety. If the grammar was bad, I'm sorry. I didn't check thoroughly as I felt rushed.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys like the action and support this story and etc.**

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**Next Time: Light within Darkness – Part II**


	28. Light within Darkness - Part II

Chapter 28 – Light within Darkness – Part II

**Hey guys, I was intending to end the Arc at this chapter, but due to the exceeding length of it, it'll have to go for another chapter. I'll have to rethink as to how many chapters will be put in the Edolas Arc, hopefully no more than six or seven.**

**Pace wise, I feel as though I am slow, and I'm not sure as to how I can speed up with all of the vitality this Arc covers, so I ask you bear with me on this one just like I said before.**

**GoldenCyclone4: I just got anxiety because there was so much to cram in, expectations, satisfaction, etc. All of that combined was starting to get to me, so I cut off the chapter a little over 15 or 16K.**

**On with the show!**

**To Recap:**

Erza finally confronts Jellal, but he lost his memories and he tries to destroy Nirvana along with himself. Erza pleads for him to live and atone for his sins. Brain disarms the spell and he takes control of Nirvana, revealed to be a huge city that has six legs. Everyone boards it and Nic senses yet another Plate and leaves Natsu and Happy to team up with Arbok and Staraptor, and with their combined efforts, Cobra and Cubellios were defeated.

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**Chapter 28 – Light within Darkness – Part II**

"He was a tough one." Staraptor said. "At least he's over with."

Just then, they heard footsteps coming. Natsu was still pale and sick as Brain walked up to them, staring at them. Immediately, Staraptor spread her wings and Arbok bared his fangs, ready for yet another tough brawl. Nic didn't train them to be slackers after all.

Brain had one of the lines on his face fade away, which signified Cobra's defeat. He stared at the unconscious Dragon Slayer and his pet snake and looked back at Natsu and Nic's pokémon.

"How pathetic, Cobra being struck down." Brain scolded. "To think he was bested by another Dragon Slayer. And also two creatures that seem to follow Luminous' lead." He stared coldly at them and grinned. "This is quite a predicament. Three of the Oracion Seis has been defeated, yet we still have Nirvana."

"Humph. For ssssomeone named Brain, you're assss dull asss that guy lying on the ground." Arbok mocked, referring to Natsu.

"Are you ready to go another round Arbok?" Staraptor asked, clenching the ground with her talons. Arbok hissed in agreement, despite the damage and scratches he's accumulated.

Brain chuckled. "With Nirvana, I can easily make the weak follow me. I can even make you all follow me; after all, your power is beyond exceptional."

"Friends don't come from power! They come from hardships and trust!" Staraptor scowled.

Arbok hissed. "I am loyal to Nic-sssssama. If I follow you, I will kill you merccccilessssly." Arbok threatened.

"I doubt that. I doubt that very much." Brain said with a dark look on his face. "Your power shall make Nirvana all the more threatening."

Arbok and Staraptor tensed up, ready to fight, but then a voice spoke up from behind Brain. "If you were as so much as lay a finger on my Pokémon, I swear you'll lose that entire arm of yours." The voice threatened. Arbok and Staraptor turned to see that Nic and the others have arrive, much to their joy.

Brain turned around. "Oh? What's this?" He looked to see Nic in his Insect Plate Form still, Sophie, Lucy, Gray, and Jura all there and ready for action.

"Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed, seeing him motion sick. He turned and groaned, seeing that his eyes were deprived of pupils.

Sophie face palmed. "Oh right, motion sickness."

Arbok hissed and Staraptor scowled at Brain from behind, making him turn towards them and he turned back towards the others. He remained confident. "Seems as though you have me cornered." He said calmly.

"Please guys, help." Happy called out, looking up at the sky and unable to move.

"Are you okay?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Sir Cat is still alive." Jura said.

Staraptor turned towards Arbok, and both turned towards Nic. Nic saw that Natsu and Happy were stuck and unable to move. "Staraptor! Arbok! Bring Natsu and Happy over here!"

"Asssss you wish." Arbok obediently said without the slightest hesitation. He grabbed Happy and he slithered over in the blink of an eye, surprising Brain and everyone else.

"Consider it done!" Staraptor flapped and picked up a motion sick Natsu, who seemed to have felt slightly better, but not much. Staraptor flew back with incredible speed as well, surprising everyone there again. In no time, they were back by Nic's side and had Lucy hold Happy while Natsu was set back on Nirvana, much to his discomfort.

"My, what incredible speed." Brain remarked. "If they are that fast then they must have no trouble taking down their prey."

Nic leered harshly at Brain, gritting his teeth. "Don't ever talk about my Pokémon being the bad guys." He turned back towards his Staraptor and Arbok. "Are you two okay?"

Staraptor nodded. "Yeah, it was tough but we managed."

Arbok hissed. "Nic-sssama. I have defeated Cubelliossssss."

Everyone looked and saw that Cobra and Cubellios were behind Brain and laid in defeat.

"Whoa! It's true!" Lucy exclaimed.

"That snake charmer and his pet looked like toast!" Gray exclaimed.

Nic turned back with satisfaction. "Even if you didn't Arbok, I'm still grateful you did your absolute best. You too Staraptor." Nic then pulled out their poke balls. "You guys earned a nice rest, return." Just like that, Arbok and Staraptor returned back into their poke balls with satisfaction of helping taking down a member of the Oracion Seis.

Brain just glared at the Allied Forces that were in front of him and he walked a few paces forward. "The Oracion seis has been chopped in half, meaning half of us have been defeated. I was about to have that buffoon and those pets join my side, but it seems that since they're with you insects then you must go down first."

Sophie stepped forward. "If you want Natsu, then you'll have to go through us first. Natsu's heart will never cross over to the dark side."

Brain grinned. "I will make it so that even you will be forced to obey me."

Natsu gurgled on the ground. "Guys…stop…him…and stop…this thing…" He then feel sick and paled.

Gray frowned. "Oh, we're gonna stop it alright, but not just for your sake."

"Yeah." Lucy said.

Brain was then engulfed in an evil green aura, signifying his Magic power. "Is that so? _You'll_ stop Nirvana? Try your best, but don't waste time as we are quickly approaching our first target." Everyone's eyes narrowed at Brain giving his target. "The Cait Shelter Guild Hall."

Everyone went wide-eyed at his answer. "That's the guild Wendy and Carla belong to." Happy stated exhaustingly. "Why them?" Brain just grinned and chuckled.

"What is your objective?" Jura asked in a demanding tone. "What do you hope to gain from their demise?"

"The world on its head." Brain answered. "In a mere flash, this guild shall be consumed in darkness. The glorious future. What splendid horrors await us!" He smirked with such satisfaction about the potential future.

"Never! We won't let that happen!" Sophie protested.

Gray stepped forward. "You're not going to get away with this scumbag…" Just then, he felt such an immense amount of Magic, and I mean massive. Gray stiffened as he felt Jura's anger behind him.

"You still haven't told me!" Jura said, making Gray slowly turn his head and see a scary and intimidating look on Jura's face. "What do you hope to gain?!"

Gray found his breathing to be harsh, as he was actually feeling even more anxiety. He and everyone else there then heard Brain let loose a chuckle that soon exploded into a maniacal laughter.

"I DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER TO YOU! I OWN LIGHT AND DARKNESS ITSELF! KNEEL BEFORE ME AND ASK FOR ONE THING ONLY…FOR MERCY!" Brain then had that dark look on his crazy face as he laughed out to the sky.

Nic's eyes narrowed and his gaze turned sharp. People like him have misguided minds that like to twist the lives of others and make them suffer. Nic will never tolerate such behavior.

"What a bothersome fool." Jura said, stepping forward ahead of everyone else.

"Jura?" Sophie wondered.

"This fool is far too delusional to hold a conversation." Jura was then engulfed in his Magical aura again, this time feeing more potent.

Brain ceased his momentary laughter and pointed his skull at them. "Did you hear me?! I asked you to kneel-!"

It came in a furious blur. Nobody saw it coming nor going. Even Brain was extremely shocked what happened in those next three seconds. Within that time span, in a great mad dash that left even Jura baffled, Nic struck Brain right in the chest over his Oracion Seis mark with a Megahorn, which was an attack where Nic grew a large ramming horn made of green energy and drove it into Brain, making him gag at the severity and sudden impulse. Brain flew into earth, sending a vast amount of dust and wind flying about uncontrollably.

The ground was shaking as Natsu and everyone else gaped their mouths comically in surprise and astonishment. Jura himself was surprised that Nic was faster than he had expected when driven to a certain point. Jura was slightly wide-eyed at the fact Nic landed a brutal move before he did.

As the dust subsided, Nic was vibrating his wings in the air and glaring harshly with his sharp glare piercing through his multi-cell visuals. Brain was in a heap of rubble and was shaking from not just the surprise, but he was nearly wounded on his abdomen.

"His power and speed. It's…it's incredible." Brain remarked.

Nic stared coldly still. "You didn't answer his question." He said in a firm tone.

Jura composed himself yet again and he frowned in seriousness. "He's right. Stand! Once you've explained your intentions on the Cait Shelter Guild, then we'll let you rest!" He said.

Brain just looked on in utter surprise as two cold stares bared down on him. Jura and Nic both were glaring for an answer while Brain was remaining still in utter surprise.

"Whoa, baldy and Nic aren't messing around." Gray said.

"Nope, they're dead serious alright." Lucy added.

Happy looked on as he was still exhausted. "Iron Rock Jura is one of the Ten Wizard Saints, just like Master Makarov."

Sophie blinked and narrowed her eyes. "Iron Rock Jura and Luminous Nic going against the leader of the Oracion Seis? The thought gives me goosebumps. We may need to stand back guys, this could get ugly."

Brain finally composed and grinned. "My, how interesting. You've caught me off guard Luminous. I admit I'm a bit surprised, but it seems that attack seemed too strong of a start, meaning it was an impulsive action, though I commend you for being able to catch me off guard." Brain got to his feet and looked on.

Nic frowned at this fact. It was an impulsive action somewhat. Megahorn is the strongest Bug-Type move, so he had to be alert as Brain deduced this factor.

"I know there are numerous guilds closer than Cait Shelter." Jura said with a threatening expression on his face, his eyes sharpening. "To go so far out of your way, it defies a specific intention."

Brain grinned as he then held up his staff. As dark green energy began surging in his staff. Nic quickly flew back to Jura's side as Brain was initiating his assault.

"Before we get there, I'll kill you all! **Dark Rondo!**" A dark green beam of energy then launched at them and was coming in fast. The intense Magic blast of energy went zooming in and Nic looked over at Jura, who wasn't moving. He assumed that Jura had a plan to act.

At the last second before impact, Jura had three stone pillars emerge from underground and crisscross to intercept, protecting him and Nic from Dark Rondo. "**Iron Rock Wall!**" The Dark Rondo had failed to pierce as the rocks in front were left without even a scratch.

"Whoa." Gray awed.

"That move was awesome." Lucy stated.

"You can say that again." Sophie said.

"That move was awesome." Lucy stated once again.

"Sir Nic." Jura signaled as the Dark Rondo was finishing. Nic's wings vibrated and he zoomed straight up and over the wall, so as to get a clear shot at Brain.

"**Pin Missile!**' Nic brought his arms and hands forward, unleashing white orbs with green streams of light at high speed at Brain, who didn't seem to notice until last moment. Brain ceased his attack and he jumped backwards to avoid the missiles, watching them burst and send rock flying upon missing. Brain then glared at Nic as the light of Fairy Tail remained positioned in the air.

"Jura and I demand an answer. If you won't tell us, then we'll have to force you! **Signal Beam!**" Nic put his two hands together and unleashed a streaky pink beam with multiple blue shapes at the misguided man.

Brain readied an interception. "Why would I tell an insect like you? **Dark Rondo!**" The attack fired yet again and then Signal Beam and Dark Rondo collided in midair. The two forceful attacks were pushing with all of their might. Nic and Brain were both intercepting until the attacks finally cancelled out, making an explosion that rippled a small shockwave about, making the ground shake slightly.

"You're attacks are pointless." Jura said, jumping on top of his Iron Rock Wall, right next to Nic. "Answer us or we shall do this Sir Nic's way!"

Brain merely grinned. "Oh really?" Suddenly, Brain vanished, reappearing several meters behind Jura's wall. The speed was rather quick, surprising everyone watching.

"Behind you, watch out!" Sophie warned. Jura and Nic both turned around as Brain initiated yet another attack.

"**Dark Capriccio!**" Brain then launched a green beam laced with a fire spiral at it. Jura used his skills and he moved his arm around and the Iron Rock Wall behind them bended around and came in front of them, shielding them from the attack. The Dark Capriccio kept on driving its way, still hitting the rock and everyone watched. "Your defense is pointless. The Dark Capriccio pierces through everything it hits! Your rock will be crushed like paper!"

Sure enough, Nic and Jura evaded and got out of the way as the Dark Capriccio started to crack the rock and ultimately broke through, crumbling the rock like it was nothing. Jura landed on the ground while Nic was still in the air.

"**Attack Order!**" Nic's sunglasses/multi-cell lenses then glowed up, giving it a bright red color. Just then, a multitude of Combees made of green energy were created and unleashed a multitude of multicolored beams at Brain in all directions, leaving him unable to defend from so many directions. He grunted as he was blasted in all directions at once. There was smoke and when it subsided he was shown to be okay and the makeshift Combees vanished.

"You'll pay boy! **Dark Capriccio!**"

"**Signal Beam!**"

The two attacks then collided, just like with Dark Rondo, only this time Dark Capriccio was much stronger than the previous attack and then Signal Beam was giving out, making Nic grunt.

"I got this. **Iron Rock Wall!**" As Signal Beam finally gave in, Jura summoned forth three huge slabs of rock in front of Nic and himself. The Dark Capriccio smashed into the Iron Rock Wall, slowly breaking through towards them.

"You're just avoiding the inevitable! No matter how many walls you put up, my attack shall reach you!" Brain shouted.

"Don't bet on it!" Nic then dashed forward and he then got to his knees and awaited as Dark Capriccio finally broke through. Then he fired yet another Signal Beam, he aimed low just below the Dark Capriccio, deflecting it upwards and making it miss.

"WHOA!" Sophie, Lucy, and Gray exclaimed in unison.

Brain grunted, not seeing this attack coming. "Another evasion. This will hit you head on!" He conjured up even more Magic energy in his staff. "**Dark Capriccio Scream!**" A much stronger and faster version of Dark Capriccio went driving towards Nic and Jura.

Jura initiated his defense yet again. "**Iron Rock Wall!**" Jura then created even more of the same attack; this time, there were ten Iron Rock Walls lined up for ultimate defense. The Dark Capriccio Scream was easily crashing through the rocks, breaking them with ease.

"Jura, watch out!" Lucy exclaimed.

Brain grinned as his attack finally blasted through the last Iron Rock Wall, he was sure to hit Jura this…wait, where was-?

"**X-Scissor!**" Nic erupted from Brain's left and his hands glowed light blue. He put his hands together and a light blue 'X'-shaped energy appeared with magenta outlining. He then slammed into Brain's left, making Brain's attack lose its trajectory and missed Jura, curving towards his left.

'_Luminous! He attacked me while my attention was on that Wizard Saint!' _Brain thought as he was stumbling backwards and Nic leaped away and looked back at Jura. Nic nodded at the Wizard Saint, to which Jura knew he meant this was their chance to finish. Jura nodded back and he put two fingers behind his extended left hand. Just then, rocks glowed and rushed at Brain. The rocks quickly enclosed him in what formed a huge mass.

Everyone observing was beyond baffled that Nic and Jura's team-up was extraordinary. "They…they trapped Brain under all of that rock!" Lucy exclaimed.

Jura then brought his hands together and a yellow rippling wave of light engulfed the ground. "**Supreme King Rock Crush!**" The rocks then crushed completely, with Brain taking the entire attack. Brain yelled as he felt the full force and he was soaring in midair.

Everyone's mouths gaped in utter shock at the strength of the attack. Gray looked at the display. _'Now I see why Lyon respects him so much.'_

Brain was deprived of pupils as he fell on his back on the ground. "They did it! Nic and Jura defeated the leader of the Oracion Seis!" Gray exclaimed.

"We won!" Sophie exclaimed with joy.

As Brain laid on the ground, his pupils returning, everyone stepped towards him and surrounded him. Nic glared at Brain as he reverted back into himself. Jura walked up with his serious face. "Now, answer me. Why is it that you are targeting Cait Shelter?" Jura said one more time.

Natsu was still on the ground and had a hand over his mouth. "S-Stop this thing, like right now!" He pleaded in a muffle.

"You've lost, so you better answer us while you still can." Nic argued over Brain struggling. Brain just looked up at the sky as he was unable to move.

"N-no. I never imagined I would fall like this…losing a battle against a light guild." Brain said, talking out loud and ignoring everyone else. "Hear my words Midnight, don't lose…that is my Prayer…don't let the Six Prayers disappear." Everyone there listened closely at Brain's words, processing what he was saying. Nic especially paid attention. "You're our last hope…of keeping _him_ at ease…" Brain then fell unconscious, and the last line on his right cheek vanished.

With Brain now out of commission, this left everyone to ponder. Jura stood affirm, processing the last part. "Keeping who at ease?"

Nic blinked with narrowed eyes as he then put his sunglasses on his V-neck. He was left bewildered by this as well. Just who was Brain talking about? "I'm not sure, but whoever it is, he seems to even intimidate Brain."

Gray crossed his arms. "Hold on, is it my imagination, or one of those black lines on his face vanish?"

Lucy tried to wave it off so as not to panic. "Gray, I think you're trying to scare me."

Sophie herself was no fool. She knew what Gray talked about. "No, I saw it too. And from my memory, didn't he originally have six lines?"

Nic looked down as his memory from the beginning arose as well. "Yeah, you're right. And if you put it together, that leaves two lines, meaning Midnight and Richard, but Richard's on our side but even so, with every member falling those lines disappear. Just what could this mean?"

Before any questions could be given or answered, they heard a shout from close by and saw Wendy and Carla running towards them. "Hey, guys!" Wendy called out.

"It's Wendy!" Lucy said.

"Just as I thought, only those hooligans can cause such damage." Carla stated as she was right by Wendy's side.

Happy saw Carla and felt more than satisfied to know she's okay. "Carla!"

Wendy ran up to the guys and looked very worried. "We got bad news guys! I think this thing is heading for my guild for some reason!"

Gray crossed his arms. "Don't worry, everything's gonna be fine." He stated nonchalant-like. He then gestured down towards the defeated Brain, to which Wendy and Carla took notice. Wendy gasped at seeing the leader of the Oracion Seis lying in defeat. Gray then looked over his shoulder at the defeated Cobra and Cubellios. "That snake charmer scumbag is down for the count as well."

Wendy smiled, seeing how two Oracion Seis members were down before her eyes and it was done by the people in front of her. "Wow."

Sophie smiled in the relieving situation. "From what we know, Brain was also controlling this thing and that means Nirvana should be still soon."

Carla wasn't necessarily satisfied with this outlook. "It doesn't sit well with me. He may be down, but did you ever find out his reason for targeting our guild?" She said sternly.

Gray shrugged the matter off. "No, I guess it's what bad guys do."

Nic also wanted to find out the reason, but even he was left unsatisfied. Aside from Cait Shelter being the first target, that same thought as to who Brain referred to lingered within. _'Still, who is he?'_

"I may have lingering concerns, but the worst is over." Jura stated.

"No." Everyone turned in confusion as to where the sound came from, and they saw that it was from a motion sick Natsu, who had his head up. He looked pale and sickly. "Guys please…stop this thing." He then had puffed up cheeks.

"Aw you poor thing. Are you poisoned too?" Wendy asked. Sophie, Lucy, Gray, and Nic all shook their heads at Wendy.

Nic then turned to the top of the tower. "All that aside, I think we'd best get up to the top. It may lead to a way to stop Nirvana if not sooner."

Jura agreed and stepped forward. "Very well Luminous, well shall follow your lead." Nic then turned towards the top and he and everyone else, save Gray for carrying a motion sick Natsu, made their way up the tower in no time, getting to the top and observing their surroundings. Aside from pillars, there wasn't anything.

"This is odd, there's nothing here." Gray said.

"Yeah, talk about perplexing." Sophie said. "If there was a master control or a control panel, it would be easy to spot. Don't you think?"

"Right, but it seems that either there is one or it's hidden; either way, we can't detect it." Nic said in his own observation.

"Then how are we suppose to stop this thing? I thought for sure if Brain went down then this thing would stop, but it's still going." Lucy said concerning the matter at hand.

Wendy watched over a motion sick Natsu, unsure as to what was wrong with him. She looked back at everyone who was confused. "What do we do? I casted a spell to dispel the venom, but he's still sick."

"Natsu and vehicles don't mix one bit." Happy explained.

Carla looked unamused by Natsu's weakness. "That is so pathetic."

"I really don't think my stomach wants to be inside me!" Natsu squealed.

Wendy blinked. "Motion sickness?"

"Yup." Happy answered.

Wendy then put both of her hands on the sides of Natsu's head. "In that case, I'll cast a spell that'll restore his balance. **Troia.**" Her hands glowed blue and Natsu's face had flashed blue and Wendy had removed her hands, allowing the spell to kick in.

Almost immediately, Natsu's paled face and sickly gaze turned back to normal. He jumped into the air in relief. "Yeah! I feel alive!" Natsu cheered, jumping repeatedly. "I feel a zillion times better!"

Wendy smiled at her success. "I'm glad. I thought that might work."

Nic looked over at Natsu. "Okay, now that that's out of the way, we still need to figure out as to how Nirvana can be stopped." He explained to the group. "Richard did explain that this would be the most accurate place as to where Nirvana could be controlled."

"Was Hoteye - er, Richard lying?" Lucy wondered.

Jura stood affirm and did think as to how he and Richard became allies. "No, I believe him to be a man of his word."

"There are no physical controls. And the Royal Throne is taken by us and the one who was piloting it has been defeated, so perhaps we should ask why it's still functioning as it was before?" Carla reasoned.

Gray blinked. "Do you think it's on an auto pilot? If so, then it could be programmed to fire too."

Wendy looked down at the floor and was looking exceedingly melancholy. This thing didn't look like it could be stopped and it was about to destroy Cait Shelter. The situation looked hopelessly grim as the Sky Dragon Slayer was shaking and started to cry. Wendy had hands over her mouth as she was losing hope. "My guild is in trouble."

Natsu and Nic looked at her and they gave off a determined vibe. This little girl's guild, her home, was about to be trampled. That will not happen, not while Fairy Tail is still kicking. Seeing her so fragile like this almost reminded Nic of his sister.

Nic remembered his sister all too well, though they haven't seen each other ever since he left home. A kind, sweet, and very proud girl to have such a strong and very enduring brother. Nic gazed at Wendy, not wanting to see this girl cry again. Nic crouched down and he put a hand on a melancholy Wendy's shoulder. The Sky Dragon Slayer looked up from sadness to see a grin on Nic's face.

"Wendy, if this is your home you protect it with your life. Everyone who is there didn't send you so you can watch them fall, they send you because they believed in you. And for those in Cait Shelter, for the one's you hold dear, you have to pick yourself up and stay strong to the bitter end. Be proud Wendy, we've made it this far, and we're most certainly going to keep going and stop Nirvana, for all of our sakes."

Nic's speech had gotten every person's attention as they had felt inspired. Nic was right. If their home was threatened, they wouldn't run, they would defend it. Wendy stopped her crying and she wiped away the tears on her face as Nic stood back up.

"You're right." Wendy said, feeling herself get picked up by Nic's words. Even if this was a dark time, she had to stay strong. "I will! I'll be strong!"

Nic nodded, satisfied with Wendy's resolve. Everyone there grinned and they too felt uplifted.

* * *

**Meanwhile, at Cait Shelter…**

The people were gathered inside a Guild Hall that was more like a tent in the shape of a cat's head. Inside, the people gathered around and gazed upon a short old man with gold arm bands, a thick beard, and an Indian top. They were murmuring and grumbling about the situation at hand as to sending Wendy.

A fellow member went through the tent entrance in a panic. "I got terrible news! Nirvana has been activated! It's heading this way!"

"Seriously?!" "Not even the Allied Forces can stop that monstrosity?!" "Even with Jura, Erza, and Nic on their side?!" The members were panicking as to the strong forces combined weren't stopping Nirvana. They all then turned towards the guild master, Roubaul.

Roubaul poured a glass from a jug and had the glass sit and he then surprisingly held the jug in his hand still and drank out of it. The members of Cait Shelter all face palmed and gaped at his action. "Why pour glasses when you're just gonna chug from the bottle?!" One member questioned. The master simply kept chugging, trying to keep himself occupied.

"Please sir, Nirvana will be here any minute!" A female member urged, to which Roubaul finally reacted and he sharply turned with a gaping mouth and the drink erupting from his mouth and spilling like a waterfall.

"Don't tell me that confound thing's heading our way?!" He exclaimed with the drink spilling out, revolting and comically making the guild hit the floor.

"At least swallow before to shout Master!" "Why?!" "Does he always have to react like this?!"

Finally composed a minute later, everyone turned at Roubaul, who now spoke. "Nirvana has awoken and is now setting its sights on us. Could this be our fate or coincidence now?" He contemplated.

One member looked at another. "If the coalition failed, what happened to Wendy?" He asked.

The member turned towards him. "I don't know. I fear the answer won't appease us." He worried.

At that moment, Roubaul was drinking another jug when he heard the doubt of Wendy. He sat the jug down and spoke. "Do not worry." He said, forgetting to swallow again and spilling the contents of his drink. The same reaction happened with the people as did the first time.

After the contents spilled, literally, he looked serious. "Fear not, the Magic of light is alive and well! This factor alone shall lead us to victory!" Master proclaimed, to which everyone cheered. Still, some members were left concerned.

"Still, this doesn't feel like a coincidence, does it?" "At this point, somebody's figured out who we are." "That's why they're coming for us."

"Please guide us Nabula." Master Roubaul said.

A guild member scratched his head. "All do respect, for as long as I've known you, what does Nabula mean?" That question went unanswered as the guild continued to have doubt and panic.

"Should we evacuate? We're not strong enough to handle Nirvana-!"

"YOU FOOLS!" The Master exclaimed, spilling his drink from his mouth yet again. The members were shocked by his outburst, yet disgusted still by his drink waterfall habit. After it all spilled, Roubaul spoke in an affirmed manner. "Have you all forgotten that Mages are fighting to stop Nirvana? We must have faith that they succeed and not dishonor them by running away."

Roubaul then drank from his jug yet again and the members looked on in worry. Sure they were scared, but hearing Master say that dishonoring Mages was unqualified, they were resilient as to what has to be done.

Roubaul put his jug down, and the next time he spoke there was no waterfall of drinks, rather him speaking softly. "Trust me I know. It's hard to keep faith close to you in hard times…" His eyes looked out in deep regret. "Perhaps the time has come. We knew our transgressions would find us one day…"

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

"So if there isn't a control panel, what do we do?" Happy asked with a raised paw.

"Destroy it of course." Natsu said in an obvious tone.

Lucy cocked her head with a sigh. "Leave it to us to destroy and entire city."

"Arbok could easily break a city with his Earthquake, but even so we're not sure what else Nirvana can do." Nic stated.

"Not to mention that's a pretty tall order." Gray added, stating there was more than city, but also Nirvana itself, in which Arbok's Earthquake would not reach unless they were inside it.

"We shall confront Brain to see how Nirvana can be stopped." Jura suggested.

"I doubt that horrific excuse of a human being would share such information with us." Carla doubted.

Wendy narrowed her eyes and looked away. "If he won't tell us maybe Jellal knows." Wendy muttered. She then had a quick remembrance as to what happened, with Jellal emerging with Natsu's anger. She let a concerning gasp escape.

Sophie looked at Wendy, seeing her look surprised. "Is everything okay Wendy?"

"Anything that might help?" Gray added.

Wendy turned nervously away. "Well I'm not quite sure, but I may be the best option we have so I'll do my best to find it." She said. Wendy then turned away and began to run towards the doorway in which surprised everyone.

"Wendy?" Carla grew her wings and flew. Everyone looked on as Wendy went away to find Jellal.

"Huh, she is determined." Lucy said with some confusion.

Just as she finished saying her sentence a voice echoed in the air, a familiar voice. _'My friends, can you hear me?' _The voice said telepathically. Everyone looked in the air as they heard the voice. _'It is I, the wizard name Hoteye.'_

"Uh, am I hearing things?" Lucy asked.

"No Lucy, I hear it as well. It's Richard." Sophie said.

"Did you defeat Midnight, Richard?" Jura asked loudly.

'_I tried my best, but in the end my Magic wasn't strong enough to defeat him.' _He regrettably informed his comrades. _'Do not concern yourselves by rescuing me. You must work together to take down Midnight for good. If you defeat him, Nirvana's power will be rendered dry and the city shall stop.'_

Natsu, unlike everybody else, hadn't got a clue as to who was talking. "Am I suppose to know this guy?" He asked in confusion.

"Wait, so we can stop this thing without breaking it?" Gray asked to Richard's voice.

'_Quite possibly yes. He's directly below you. His power is not to be underestimated. Please be careful my friends!'_

"The same to you Richard!" Jura said to their friend.

"What are we waiting for?" Lucy asked, ready to take on Midnight.

"Alright, now we're talking. I'm all fired up now." Natsu grinned and punched his own palm.

'_Only one of the six Prayers is still on the battlefield. Every ounce of confidence and trust belongs to you my friends. Defeat Midnight, and stop Nirvana once and for all!'_

* * *

**With Brain**

"...I wish you luck…my faithful comrades." Brain skillfully tricked the Allied Forces masquerading as Richard's voice. With little strength, he grunted and he laid back down on the ground passing out.

'_Sir Richard!' _Jura exclaimed, hearing the grunt and still believed it was Richard.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

"Alright, now that we know Midnight is right below us we shall stop him once and for all." Jura stated. "We must do so for the sake of Sir Richard and all good people."

Everyone nodded in agreement and raced downstairs and readied for battle, all except Nic, who lagged behind. Before he exited the roofing he looked out at the city, unsure.

The thought of Erza boggled his mind. Erza hasn't been seen and that was beginning to get to him. Nic truly cares about Erza and he hoped that she was okay, wherever she was. Still, a hint of guilt coiled Nic's insides. Perhaps he was too hasty in his need to take down Jellal earlier. Nic narrowed his eyes and he looked and pondered.

'_I hope she's okay.' _Nic thought in worry. He then ran and joined the others down at the stairs. He noticed that as the door was opening, catered by Natsu, Nic saw a huge light behind the door and then everything went blank for a brief moment.

It happened so fast that Nic didn't even have to register it and use Protect or shift into his Stone Plate or use Wide Guard. All that could really be heard was an explosion and rocks everywhere.

After what happened, the group was found covered up by a shield of rock. Natsu and Nic were the first two to open their eyes,

"Is everyone alright?" Natsu hollered through the small rocky shield that covered them like a dome.

"Yeah, don't go shouting it like a megaphone." Gray said, opening his eyes.

"Aye." Happy groaned.

"Are you kidding me? We're from Fairy Tail. I can't believe we fell for that trap so easily." Lucy complained as she got up and she had hit her head on the ceiling of the rocky shield.

"Well apparently we're dumb enough to get buried alive." Gray said getting up, to which Lucy panicked.

"Wait…" Sophie looked around under the rubble where her comrades were. "Where's Jura?"

Natsu punched repeatedly to get through the ceiling of the dome and he finally breached through, getting some air. He looked forward and he was shocked with horror, to which everyone arose and they too had horror plastered on their faces.

Jura had his arms out and had shielded everyone. He was breathing heavily as he had took the attack head on.

"No!" Gray shouted.

"Jura!" Nic exclaimed.

Sophie and Lucy both had hands over their mouths in horror as Jura's eyes were deprived of pupils. "H-He…he risked his life..." Sophie started.

"…to protect us!" Lucy finished.

The area in front of them all then disintegrated and dust scattered slowly as it now revealed the outside.

"Pops, hang in there!" Gray exclaimed towards Jura.

The damaged Wizard Saint slowly turned his head as he was breathing heavily, exhausted to the point of death. He tried to choke out the last words he spoke.

"The strength of bonds and triumph in your guild. You're all so lucky." Pretty much everyone there was shaking tremendously as it looked like Jura was dying and Sophie still had hands over her eyes.

"It brings me…great relief…to know you're still alive." Finally, Jura fell backwards and dropped to the ground.

"POPS NO!" Gray shouted.

"You can't die on us!" Sophie shouted with tears.

"JURA!" Natsu shouted. Nic himself was horrified. No words came to mind. Absolute none. This was the second time someone risked their life right before his eyes, and it was hard to take in. In less time than it took for Gray to strip, Nic rushed to Jura's side and he immediately checked on him.

"Jura! Jura! Listen to me!" Nic exclaimed. "You can't die!" Nic then looked at Jura's wrist and he immediately checked his pulse, to which was low, but not fatal at the moment. Nic let out a deep relieving sigh and he turned towards the others, who were there by his side and looking over Jura.

"He's alright for now." Nic said. "He's just badly damaged, but he needs help as soon as possible."

"Hang in there pops, we'll get help for ya!" Gray called out to the unconscious Jura.

Natsu and Nic had clenched fist, they were more than ready to stop the last of the Oracion Seis after what happened here.

"Ridiculous." A ghastly voice said within the broken tower. This made the guys jump to their feet and leer around to see where it came from. The voice continued. "Brain was a fool. He used the last of his power to make that trap, yet only one of you fell."

"Show yourself!" Nic demanded.

Happy turned with the group to see where the voice and saw a small glint of something hovering towards them from the dust. "Over there!" Happy pointed, getting everyone's attention.

"He was a pitiful leader. A disgrace to the Six Demons!" Everyone there was astonished, save for Nic just tensing up, to see the very staff that Brain was carrying levitated about. The orb in his mouth and the eyes glowed an ominous light green. "But our goal is not suppressed yet, Midnight still stands."

Klodoa slowly levitated towards the group and was in front of them, making them tense up just as Nic was.

"Since he's not here, there's nothing stopping me from disposing you myself." Klodoa said. As everyone was ready to go on the defensive, Happy let a gasp escape.

"THAT CANE TALKED TO ME?!" Happy shrieked.

"As a talking cat, I wouldn't find that all surprising." Lucy stated.

Happy then shrugged. "I guess." Klodoa's eyes and orb then glowed yet again as he then broke into a maniacal laugh that made Sophie's spine tingle.

"That's crazy! That's the staff Brain carried." Gray exclaimed in recognizing it.

Klodoa continued his laughter, with the teeth clanging on the blue orb. His crazy laughter was now starting to intimidate the group. Not surprising Natsu clenched Klodoa's staff and he continuously banged Klodoa against the ground.

"Would you stop that creepy laugh it's annoying! I had just about enough of you and your cruddy boss!" Natsu just went off at a nonstop rant as Klodoa was repeatedly hit against the ground.

Lucy looked baffled. "You don't know where that's been!"

"Well, at least that stopped the laughter." Sophie sweat dropped.

"Stop this thing you rotten driftwood!" Natsu demanded, and Klodoa was released from his grip and he got up in Natsu's face.

"How dare you insult me by calling me a wood that I am clearly not!" Klodoa barked back. He then got back a little his eyes glowed a little brighter. "I am the seventh member of the Oracion Seis, and we shall destroy you all…"

Natsu grabbed him again and banged him against the ground repeatedly to shut him up. "I said I had enough out of you! Stop this city!" Natsu demanded as he comically repeatedly hit Klodoa against the ground.

Lucy blinked. "Hold on, I thought there were six members in the Oracion Seis?" Lucy wondered.

Sophie turned towards Lucy. "Me too, maybe that skull doesn't have a brain?" She tried to joke.

"Who cares? Numbers or not, that cane is talking about kicking our butts." Gray reminded everyone.

"He's right, stay alert guys." Nic warned.

Happy shrugged. "Look on the bright side, it can't really kick our butts since it has no feet."

Klodoa slipped out of Natsu's clutched hand and he jerked away. "You violent brat." Klodoa reprimanded as he then floated off a distance and looked out from the city. "It won't be long now until that wretched guild is close at hand."

"You mean we're that close to Cait Shelter?!" Sophie panicked.

Klodoa turned and his eyes glowed. "Indeed! And once we destroy them, we shall commence our rein of darkness once and for all!" He then broke out in yet another evil laugh.

* * *

**Meanwhile, with Erza…**

Erza was shocked to the core when Jellal fell before Midnight, landing on his abdomen and grunted. Jellal couldn't get up as he was very much weakened from earlier. She was left wide-eyed that Jellal was struck down in one simple assault, in which Midnight simply distorted air and send Jellal flying.

Midnight wasn't amused. "Is that all the great Jellal has? That wasn't even close to impressive." He scowled, Jellal lying beside the formidable Midnight. Erza was still fairly in shock as to what happened. Midnight continued to taunt Jellal. "Did you forget your memories _and _how to use Magic too? That's too pathetic to even describe."

Finally coming around and seeing Jellal on the ground struggling, Erza thought to herself. _'Memories or no, he should've gone down so quickly. That Self-Destruction Spell he placed on himself earlier must have used up more power than what I originally initialized.'_

As Midnight was now approaching Erza, he stopped moving forward and looked back when he heard Jellal grunting and trying to stand, but to no avail

Midnight chuckled, now slightly amused. "At least you're determined." He commented lightly. Midnight then turned towards Jellal with a hand on his hip. "I can't wait to see how much pain you can take."

Midnight then heard the sound of a sword being summoned and his attention was focused on Erza, who was running towards him with sword in hand. Erza slashed at Midnight, but the latter simply stood still while the slash was deflected and he wasn't even touched.

Erza gasped at Midnight not being hit, trying to comprehend what was going on. Midnight grinned as Erza's slash followed through. "If Erza Scarlet wants her turn that badly, who am I to keep her waiting?"

Erza then leaped back repeatedly to gain some distance between her and Midnight and she baffled at her attack. "My sword didn't even hit him!"

Jellal went wide-eyed, seeing her take on Midnight. "No you mustn't take your chances with him, he's far too dangerous!"

Erza pressed on with her attempt at trying to hit Midnight by summoning a second similar sword into her left arm and swung at him again, but to no avail as the slashing motion was deflected. _'How's he doing that?!'_ Erza didn't even get to answer her own question when Midnight moved his arm in an arc and released distorted air that made Erza skid back several feet.

When Erza stopped skidding, her armor was beginning to change for some odd reason. Was the distorted air the cause? Every single part of Erza's Heart Kreuz Armor was beginning to tangle around her and constrict her entire upper body, making her drop her swords. "What is this?!" Erza then felt the collar of the armor distort and bind her neck all the way up to her chin.

"Erza!" Jellal shouted. Midnight simply watched as Erza was being binded by her armor. Erza struggled as the constriction was harsh on her. She opened her eyes from suffering and grunted ever so heavily as she mustered up her strength and her armor glowed. She let out a yell as she then finally broke free and her armor was dispelled, revealing only her blue skirt and white blouse.

Midnight saw Erza's strength and went a little wide-eyed, seeing how she broke free. Even Jellal was impressed. Erza then glared at Midnight as she requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. "Now I get it. You use Reflector Magic!"

Midnight smirked. "That's right, clever aren't we? Whatever attack you throw at me, I'll be able to twist and manipulate all of it. Aside from impermeable defense skills, my Magic trumps my opponents."

"Reflector Magic, it's too formidable." Jellal said as he was on the ground.

"Every opponent has their flaws. You are no different." Erza warned, holding up a blade. "I shall be your end! Dance, my blades!" Erza then summoned and unleashed endless numbers of swords. Even with all of them heading towards Midnight, his Distort Shield merely deflected them all, annoying the Fairy Queen.

Midnight crossed his arms. "Even sheer numbers won't help you this time." Midnight said. He then distorted the air even more and the hundreds of swords went flying back at Erza. Erza then repeatedly slashed in defense of her own attack. The multitude of swords went at her and she was fending off every single strike with precise swings and blocks by her swords in hand. The last few swords finally made a clang sound as they pierced the ground.

Midnight then extended his arm and then Erza's Heaven's Wheel Armor was beginning to coil around her body like a mummy, effectively making her wings on the armor shatter in pieces and left Erza to struggle even more. This time, Erza choked and yelped at the same time with wide eyes.

"Much better." Midnight said. "Now sooth me with the sounds of your screams!" The armor then tightened and Erza screamed in agony as she was being constricted even tighter and tighter and made her continue screaming. Midnight sadistically smirked, satisfied with Erza's screams of ongoing pain.

Erza used the only sword in her left hand and twisted her body and threw it. Midnight saw it coming and he calmly leaned towards his left as the sword passed him. Erza narrowed her eyes, grunting.

However, just at that moment, she had realized something crucial. A weakness.

The sword pierced the rock behind Midnight. "Impressive. **Spiral Pain!**" He moved his arm in an arc and a huge tempest of spiraling and distorted air engulfed Erza and her surrounding, tearing her up and her coiling armor.

The armor on Erza completely shattered and left her in her white blouse again. Erza let loose a very loud agonizing scream as she was caught in the midst of the attack. When the wind subsided, Erza yelped helplessly after her continuous screaming and fell on the ground with a harsh thud.

Jellal looked with wide eyes as Erza was struck down as well. "No, Erza." Jellal looked and saw that Erza was not moving, meaning she was down.

"Finished already?" Midnight scowled. Erza didn't move still as she had suffered so much damage and no noise came from her.

Jellal finally got his hands under him and arose to his knees at last and looked back at the creep who took down Erza. "C-Curse you."

Midnight was left disappointed with the fight. "You can't die on me. I still wanna play." Erza still didn't respond. "I need entertainment, at least until we reach Cait Shelter!"

Jellal glared up at Midnight. "What is this Cait Shelter?" He demanded.

"Our first target of course." Midnight answered.

"And what earned them that honor?" Jellal wondered, wanting an answer to that as well.

Midnight then turned around and stood in front of Jellal, his body turned away. "An excellent question. Long ago, a peaceful tribe, the Nirvits, created Nirvana in hope of stopping a cataclysmic war. They realized the weapon itself was far more deadly than the war itself, so they sealed it away. They were so afraid of it, they swore to watch over the burial site. Their descendants took up that task and made a guild that still remains to this day – Cait Shelter. The Nirvit bloodline must end if we are to continue." An even bigger smirk ran across his face. "We shall use Nirvana for what it was intended for. We shall send the word spiraling into such sweet chaos!"

Jellal grunted at Midnight's deranged ways. Midnight continued. "And we'll start by crushing Cait Shelter. If the Nirvits wanted no part, we'll make them go into war! Nirvana will taint their hearts into sweet despair! They'll slaughter each other!"

"Heartless monster!" Jellal scowled at Midnight. Midnight then shifted his gaze down towards Jellal.

"Do me a solid and cease this fight-for-justice crap." Midnight walked closer towards Jellal. "Your heart is so foul it may even trump mine. One could say that you're the very quintessence of evil." He spoke the last part slowly and quietly.

Jellal grunted and turned to look Midnight in the eye. "That's a lie!" He protested, but Midnight sought to keep pressuring Jellal.

"Look at what you've did. Forced children into slave labor, murdered one of your closest friends, and even tried to kill Erza for the greatest power in existence." Jellal looked sharp-eyed and was being taunted by his destructive past. Sure he forgot he did all of that, but was this really what Jellal intended to do? "Do you know how many people you left in despair and sorrow? They all feared you, trembled upon your wrath. An entire ocean of tears was all because of you." Jellal looked away as he was continuously pressured. "You inspire me Jellal, join me."

"Wait, what?" Jellal gasped and saw Midnight sticking a hand out.

"You are destined to be the newest member of the Oracion Seis." Midnight finished. As Jellal was left to doubt what good intentions he had, they heard a certain female struggling to get up.

Erza was grunting as she was using whatever strength she had to push her damaged self up. She slowly but surely got to her own knees and eventually got to her feet, to which Midnight and Jellal looked to see Erza tripping and almost stumbling. She finally got up completely and stood still, with her hair shadowing her eyes.

"Don't listened to him." She said. Erza then glowed and opened her eyes. "The light you have inside you is brighter than ever." Erza had on her Robe of Yuen. It had a short sleeveless tunic with a multitude of flower motifs. It was open on the sides and revealed much of her chest. The openings were closed by a dark obi with a red rope. A pink flower-patterned cloth enclosed Erza's waist, which had a long purple cloth coming from her tunic. Another cloth was held on her sides by a large red ribbon. The cloth was yellow-bordered and was edged several times. She had pink stockings and simple sandals. Her sword she carried was a bisento, the blade having a cove at the blunt side of the blade with a hole, looking somewhat like a halberd.

'_Erza.'_ Jellal saw Erza was keeping him in the light, not wanting to lose him.

Midnight turned towards her. "Well now, I'm surprised you can even stand." Erza glared at Midnight, her eyes fixated on defeating him.

Jellal smiled, thinking. _"That hope will guide you throughout your life."_

Jellal looked at Erza with a soft smile on his face. _'Your words are the light, Erza.'_

Midnight walked up and stared at Erza coldly. "I get my real fight after all."

Erza twirled the blade in her hand and then pointed the tip at Midnight. "I swear on this blade that I wield, I shall end this chaos, and your life."

Midnight grinned in delight of having an opportunity to tear Erza apart even more. "Come on Erza, or should I call you Titania? I want to see your strength with my two eyes, but I won't feel it." He was sure he could beat her easily.

Erza readied her bisento and she then dashed into Midnight and she slashed the weapon twice vertically, both of which were simply deflected by Midnight in an instant. They were deflected and hit the sides of buildings.

Jellal was stunned by the speed of her attack. "She moves so fast." He remarked.

Erza slashed yet again, and the attacks went through Midnight this time, yet they still hit buildings instead. Midnight chuckled. "You can be the fastest being alive, but you can't touch-!"

Erza then surprised everyone by hitting Midnight in the chest with a palm strike, stunning Jellal and Midnight both. The latter gagged and he crashed into a building side in a crater engraved.

Midnight slowly dropped to the ground and he looked at Erza in deep surprise. "No, you hit me!"

Erza remained posed with her palm still out and she held two fingers up. "Two. There are _two _crucial weaknesses in your Reflector Magic." Midnight went even more wide-eyed as Erza realized his weak points. "It's true you can bend weapons and Magic attacks, you can't do that to manipulate the human body. If you could, then you wouldn't have twisted my armor."

Midnight arose and he extended his hand and distortion appeared around him. "Who cares? I can make those clothes you wear squeeze you until you pop."

Erza's Robe of Yuen then entangled her, but Erza didn't feel all that constricted as she continued explaining. "Now your second weakness…" Erza made a Magic Seal above Midnight, summoning forth a multitude of swords and blades that pointed straight down on him. Midnight panicked as he was very wide-eyed as the weapons came down. He barely dodged the weapons, but he still got damaged from the attack continuously coming down on him. He landed on the ground with a yelp and thud.

Erza remained still as she still explained. "By you twisting my armor, you dodged my sword. Why didn't you change its trajectory? Simple, it's because you can only control one space at a time. Either your enemy or yourself, but not both. While you're bending me, you're defenseless."

Jellal looked on with amazement as Erza was able to figure all of that out in a short span of time. _'Amazing. She was able to figure that all out that quick?'_

Erza then started to move her arms as her robe was elastic. "One more, this is my Robe of Yuen, by far the most elastic in my collection, and immune to your Magic." Erza's robe then returned to normal and she requipped her bisento once more. She smirked. "Huh, I guess that would count as a third weakness."

Midnight pounded the ground under him in agony. "No! No! No! It's too late!"

"Yes, it is. This battle is over." Erza implored. She then grunted in shock as Midnight suddenly started laughing.

His laughing stopped and he looked up with a dark look. "That's not what I meant. Too late for _you_. You should have defeated me earlier. Before midnight. You missed your only chance to rest in peace!" This news startled Erza and Jellal both.

A bell then sounded from the distance, striking midnight. Era and Jellal both looked around, hearing the bell. "What is that sound?" Erza wondered.

"A bell?" Jellal said.

Midnight then arose and a red Magic seal appeared above him. Erza and Jellal both then watched as Midnight actually began shapeshifting. His body morphed in a horrific manner, gushing bubbles from everywhere and he grew in size tremendously. He grew teeth and feral eyes as he unleashed a feral laughter.

"What is he?" Erza asked, seeing an enormous and monstrous demon in front of her. Erza tensed up as the demon before her made a black sphere in between the hands with a white glow. He threw it as Erza jumped to attack, but the sphere exploded, pretty much annihilating almost half of Nirvana's city, leaving everything in debris.

"**There was no freedom in the Tower of Heaven, not even after the uprising. I was still too afraid to sleep at night.**" Midnight said.

"What?" Erza heard this and she realized that they too were there. She went wide-eyed and was beyond stunned. "You were there?! All of you were there, in the tower?!"

Midnight jumped. "**Titania, you're just as guilty as Jellal!**" He went for a punch but Erza blocked and fended with her bisento. "**You turned your back for all those years. Jellal caused so much pain! You're at fault because you could've stopped it and you didn't. Just ask **_**them**_**!**"

Erza turned around in horror and wide eyes as she then saw a makeshift image of both Simon and Rob, horrifying her.

"Grandpa Rob…Simon…" Erza was temporarily paralyzed but she fought back and slashed through the lie that Midnight was, but she had slashed through Rob and Simon and they disappeared.

"**Aw you've done it again, you've killed them again.**" Midnight taunted.

"SHUT UP!" Erza slashed at Midnight again, but he was gone and in place was Jellal, with her slashing him. Erza went wide-eyed and gasped.

"**That's right, make him pay for the trouble he's caused.**" Midnight taunted even more. Erza slashed at Midnight and he sidestepped and pierced her, making the great Titania scream in bitter agony as she felt her inside explode and her being destroyed.

"ERZA!" Jellal shrieked.

Everything suddenly disappeared. Everything vanished back to what it was before the Magic seal and Jellal was wide-eyed.

Midnight nearly had no pupils as Erza had delivered a powerful blow, posing several feet behind him. As the bell finished toling, Midnight fell to his knees.

Midnight turned his head back in shock and pain. "N-n-no. My illusion failed! She saw right through it!"

'_I…It was an illusion? This whole time? But it was so real. Horrific.' _Jellal thought.

"Another weakness is not knowing I'm immune to Visual Magic." Erza stated.

Midnight raised his arms in the air and he looked up at the sky. His eyes started to get all misty and had tears in the corner of his eyes. "No, I've lost! But I'm the strongest! I'm the strongest of the Oracion Seis! No one can touch me." He then blinked and tears fell. "I'm suppose to be the strongest Mage of all time."

Erza explained to Midnight as she still looked away. "Someone who can mock others so callously has a very long way to go to achieve greatness." She stated.

Midnight looked up at the sky as he cried still. "All I've ever wanted…my prayer…my Prayer…was to find a quiet place…and finally sleep in peace…" With that, Midnight fell backwards and was finally out, defeated.

Jellal looked on as Erza had taken down Midnight. _'This is who Erza truly is.'_

The wind blew as Erza explained. "If one truly desires greatness, you must know what makes you weak, and more importantly…" She turned back towards Jellal with a smile. "Live with an open heart." She then walked away from the defeated Midnight.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

Natsu screamed as he unleashed a flaming fist, but Klodoa swerved upwards by curving his stick and he spiraled vertically and hit Natsu, sending him rolling like a bowling ball.

"Natsu!" Gray exclaimed as the Dragon Slayer rolled into a wall.

Nic grunted. "Stay alert, this one's strong as well."

Sophie cocked a brow. "How a skulled cane can be kicking our butts is something I'll never question."

Klodoa then rammed his head into Gray and made the latter gag. Natsu grabbed Klodoa's stick, surprising him.

"I got you now!" Natsu stated. Klodoa then curved and he repeatedly headbutted Natsu, and when Gray came in close, he repeatedly headbutted him as well, annoying both.

"Keep him steady!" Nic yelled as he was in a running position. "**Quick Attack!**" He was outlined in blue and he dashed at an alarming rate as Klodoa was targeting Natsu, making the skull turned in confusion and Nic rammed into him, sending the skulled cane into Sophie, who caught the stick part and swung him like a bat into the wall.

"Ouch!" Klodoa yelped as he felt that one. He then curved his skull head at Sophie. "You little girl!" He whipped his stick repeatedly, Sophie clinging on but even she was overpowered. She was thrown into Nic, who caught her.

"You okay?" He asked, letting Sophie down on the ground on her two feet.

Sophie nodded. "Yeah, but he's strong."

"Let's get him!" Gray exclaimed as he and Natsu went at him, only to get swat by the stick and were on their knees, flinching.

"Annoying children, **Evil Shock!**" Klodoa's blue orb then became surrounded in lightning and he shock Natsu and Gray both with a fair amount of electricity.

"Gray! Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed in worry.

"That skull isn't fooling around!" Happy exclaimed.

Klodoa floated in the air as Gray and Natsu were on the ground in blue sparks, as to where Nic and Sophie were both standing and awaiting for Klodoa's next move.

"Poor babies. You may be young, but you got a ways to go." Klodoa said. Just then, he turned as he felt a strange foreboding feeling. "-eh?!" He then floated still as Natsu and Gray got to their feet.

"Now what?" Natsu asked impatiently.

"Why did he stop attacking?" Nic wondered.

Just then, Klodoa got images of the individual Oracion Seis members and their defeats. All six were taken down, much to his horror. "No. This cannot be. They all have fallen." Klodoa was baffled as he was now starting to panic. The orb in his mouth even fell out and cracked on the ground. They all saw Klodoa with a gaped mouth.

"Gah! The horror! The Great One is coming!" Klodoa warned.

Natsu crossed his arms. "What's he yammering about?"

"Something isn't right." Nic said. "Is this 'Great One' the one Brain mentioned earlier?'

"This won't be great for us." Sophie said in irony. Klodoa was trembling in the air, terrified beyond measurement. His teeth were chattering like crazy.

"Who the heck are you talking about?" Gray asked.

"It's Brain." Klodoa answered with a shaken voice.

"But we've already kicked his butt." Natsu stated.

Klodoa was looking away and was uneasy. "I'm aware of that, but you all don't know is that there is yet another personality that dwells inside of him."

Nic then felt uneasy. He raised a brow in suspicion. "You mean like multiple personalities?"

"Of that kind yes, but just one other." Klodoa answered. "You've seen Brain, the cool-knowledged man that is to be the surface, but there is another face that craves destruction and destruction only. They call him Zero." He hissed the last part.

"Zero, huh." Nic muttered, narrowing his eyes. "Nothing but destruction. That sounds similar to Yveltal." Before he could rethink to _that_ day, pressing concerns were at hand in regards to Zero's uprising.

"Brain was bad enough." Sophie stated.

"Zero's worse?" Happy asked.

"That is correct." Klodoa said. "He had an incredible thirst for power. Fortunately Brain was able to seal him away using six Magical Keys."

"And those 'keys' must be the Oracion Seis." Sophie indicated.

"Correct. Bound by Body Link Magic, and once those six bodies fall, Zero shall be set free to roam the land and destroy.

Everyone was on edge. If Zero was unleashed, then things will be far more challenging. Natsu of all people wasn't one to back away from a challenge.

"Sounds like a challenge." Natsu said, uneasy.

Everyone then jerked away as a wall from close by burst and send dust flying everywhere. Nic and everyone both looked and were tensed up like crazy.

Zero was here.

Klodoa panicked and he was gaping his mouth once more and he turned as Zero, in Brain's clothing, showed up. The skull nervously turned and he swiftly bowed before his greatness. "Master Zero! I welcome your return!" He pleaded helplessly.

"Master Zero?" Lucy said. Nic narrowed his eyes as he was in a defensive stance, glaring at the man before them.

"Things have taken quite a turn, haven't they Klodoa?" Zero's voice was similar to Brain's but lighter toned and a little more scruff-like. "Even Midnight fell."

Klodoa looked up at Zero. "Please sir, I ask for your forgiveness!"

"You misunderstood. I'm not displeased, but the contrary. It's been far too long. This feeling. This flesh. This power. I've longed for it!" He then disposed Brain's cloak and cast it aside. "It's time to begin the task that I have been summoned for!"

"Yes sir!" Klodoa swiftly stepped aside as Zero unleashed a green light, showing not just a raw amount of power, but also him transforming and his body now had a green military outfit. His skin was pale with his hunger for power. He had huge red menacing eyes that spelled bloody murder and small black pupils. Unlike Brain, the silver hair was all wavy.

His power was giving Lucy shaken eyes.

"I must say." Zero started. "You've done a remarkable job destroying my guild. But as its Master, I am bound by my obligation to kill you all." He threatened with a menacing tone, a scary look on his face that even startled Nic. Nic grunted as he saw that Zero had far more power than what Brain had.

"No way…" Sophie started. Zero glowed green and the ground shook. "His power is so terrifying it's making the ground itself tremble."

Gray and Natsu smirked. "You ready to go Natsu?"

"You bet, I'm all fire up now!" Natsu stated.

Zero looked amused. "I'll start with the one with the bald head! The one who finished this man's body I was imprisoned in!" He aimed a Dark Rondo at Jura, who was still down. Gray stepped in fast and he made Ice Make: Shield, making a shield that stopped Dark Rondo.

Even so, it was a struggle. "You'd really attack a man that's down?!"

"You coward!" Nic scowled. "Trying to take down someone that can't fight!"

"Spare me your pity…!"

* * *

**With Erza and Jellal**

Erza looked back to see that Jellal was clenching his side, still hurting. Erza, still in her Robe of Yuen, looked at him.

"Can you continue?" She asked with little emotion.

"Yeah, I can manage." Jellal managed to speak, but he was hesitant to say.

Erza then looked down at the ground in some form of pity. "Forgive me." She paused and looked neutral at the ground in contemplation. "I've been focused on taking down Nirvana that I am not concerned for my friend's safety." She looked at him. "You're badly damage, and you have lost almost all of your Magic power. I need to be aware of your condition. Please, rest."

Jellal blinked at Erza's words. He grinned and looked away. "Erza, that's kind of you. But don't worry about me. I unleashed Nirvana upon this world and must do everything I can to destroy it just like you guys. There's no other choice for me."

Erza stared at Jellal for a few moments before she looked back at the ground. "How long?" She started, confusing Jellal. "I can't help but ask myself, how long must I keep fighting the never ending wrongs in this world?" Erza looked up at the sky and stared deeply into the atmosphere over her head. Her head was in the clouds.

She thought of the world, but more than that, the universe itself. This world has unending evil, does it ever end in the universe? Why must bad always rise?

Jellal saw her contemplate and he softened his gaze. "Erza." Erza turned towards him. "Think of it this way. As long as bad is in this world, good will stop it. If one person keeps fighting, follow him, you must you him as an example. If he is your light, let him shine away any and all despair and darkness in your mind. Let him fight the evil and never fall. Always remember what you're fighting for. It's for that reason why good always trumps bad."

Erza was a little shocked. There actually was someone they both looked up to. Jellal's light was Erza's words, as to where Erza's light was…

"Hey!" A voice called out. It sounded all happy. "I've found you!" The voice was directed mainly towards Jellal. It was Wendy.

Erza turned and casted her thoughts aside and put on a smile. "Look who's here. We were worried about you. You okay?" Erza asked Wendy.

Wendy and Carla nodded. "Uh huh." She then turned towards Jellal as Carla deactivated her wings. Wendy blinked as Jellal looked at her. "It's good to see you." She finally spoke to him after such a long time, and those were the first words in ages.

Jellal stared for a moment, confused. "Do I know you?" He innocently asked, much to Wendy's shock and displeased frown.

Wendy looked down at the ground and was sad. Seven years and she was forgotten. Her eyes looked upset. "I knew it, he doesn't remember me."

Erza herself frown at Wendy's discomfort, seeing as how this matter looked personal. Erza's sad expression was kept on her face as she closed her eyes. "It's not personal. He's just not himself." She explained. This news made Wendy and Carla both look rather surprised. Erza then looked at Wendy again. "Unfortunately, he lost his memories."

Wendy looked back at Jellal, seeing him looking away in disappointment. _'He lost his memories. I see, so that's why.' _Wendy figured since Jellal's memory was wiped, she would have to start from the basics. "Jellal? My name's Wendy Marvel."

Jellal looked at Wendy still. "Your name is Wendy Marvel? I'm sorry, but I don't know you." He regrettably said.

Carla turned back towards Jellal after seeing the sad look on Wendy. "You've lost your memory? If that's the case, then you forgot how to stop Nirvana haven't you?!" She said towards the amnesiac.

Immediately, Jellal denied the secondary part. "No, I tried." He looked down, remembering his failure. Erza looked to see that Jellal was upset he couldn't stop this monstrosity, and she too felt sadness and pity creep upon her face. Jellal paused and he further explained to a shaken-up Wendy. "I failed. My Self-Destruction Spell didn't work. There's nothing more I can do." He regrettably informed yet again. "I'm sorry."

Now Wendy was in a little panic. "What do we do?" She questioned.

"Don't give up so easily!" Carla exclaimed, making everyone turn towards her. "Our guild is about to be destroyed! You can't turn your back on us! There's got to be something we can do-!"

The ground began to shake tremendously, shocking the others and making Jellal get back to his feet.

* * *

**Cait Shelter**

The members were gathering close to their Master, seeing how they were unable to escape the fate that was before them. Nirvana was here, and it was conjuring white and purple in its cannon-like hole in the front.

The members all remained still in fear of their fate. Roubaul was surrounded by his people and he too saw Nirvana charging up an incredible amount of power. He kept a still look.

"I ask that you please remain calm." He stated unemotionally. "Don't you see? There's no escaping the fate before us."

Several people in the guild were crying as they didn't want to end like this. They all held onto each other, praying for a miracle to happen before Nirvana could strike.

Roubaul's eyes widened. "From this day, we shall be punished for our sins!"

* * *

**Nirvana**

"What's that?!" Erza exclaimed. They then ran towards the front of Nirvana as fast as they could, seeing that the front had a very large hole. The hole was spiraling with an eerie sound, a mixture of white and purple was spiraling as big as Nirvana itself in front of the hole.

Erza was too stunned. "It can't be?!"

"That's Cait Shelter!" Wendy exclaimed, seeing her guild from that distance away.

Erza was trying to understand as to what was going on. "What's going on? So much Magic power being generated!" Her eyes were then seen with horror. "He's going to fire Nirvana!"

Nirvana was charging even more power. You could even hear the power being stored like a high-powered generator. The light had gotten brighter and brighter, and more Magic was swelling like crazy.

Carla was horrified. "The guild…it'll…"

Wendy began to shout. "Please! NOOOOO!"

Nirvana finally fired, unleashing a very devastating black and white beam of energy, even more gruesome than Jupiter. The beam of horrendous energy shot at a devastating rate and Erza, Jellal, Wendy, and Carla all watched with horror-filled eyes as the guild was about to be destroyed.

It seemed as though time had slowed down as the small group watched as the beam inched closer and closer…

A beam of light shot through the clouds high above, aiming a strong aerial beam on one of Nirvana's legs, causing the entire structure itself to tilt and the beam of catastrophic energy's trajectory was shifted. The blast had gone over the guild by a mere couple inches, barely getting the cat ears on the structure.

Wendy and everyone saw this and were beyond baffled. "Wha…what just…?" Jellal was too in shock, as well as everyone else.

Even more shots from the sky came down, energy beams bombarded the city and the blast subsided. Wendy clenched onto Erza as she held Wendy. "What was that?" Erza wondered as the entire structure was tilted slightly.

A large shadow was below them and everyone looked up. Erza was extremely surprised. "No way, it can't be!" She and everyone else couldn't believe it either.

It was the Magic Bomber Christina. The whole thing was flying, but was still badly damaged from earlier.

"Oh wow!" Wendy smiled.

Erza grinned. "The Magic Bomber Christina saves the day!"

Jellal was confused. "Is it an ally-?"

Suddenly, everyone got a signal. _'Can you hear me?' _The voice said, and everyone there could hear it. _'Anyone, please respond!'_

Erza smiled. "I know that voice, it's Hibiki!"

'_Erza and Wendy! Good to know you're alive and well.'_

Another voice came up. _'In case if you're wondering, I'm alive, but not quite well.'_

'_Master Ichiya! Glad to hear it!' _Hibiki responded to his boss.

"I can't believe it, I'd never expected to see the Magic Bomber fly again." Erza stated in relief.

'_It wasn't easy.' _Hibiki said. _'It was hard work. For a group that doesn't know each other, we can get the job done. One of Christina's wings was destroyed so Lyon molded one using his Magic. Sherry and Ren are combining their Magic to keep the damaged hull intact. Our attack on Nirvana was thanks to Eve's Snow Magic. Unfortunately that took the last of his overall strength, so he's out at the moment.'_

"We owe you one." Erza said.

Wendy was up spirited. "Because of you, my guild is safe. Thank you."

'_I'm sure you know everyone is running low on Magic energy. I'm afraid we can't attack from the ship anymore. Just flying out here was bad enough.' _Hibiki regrettably informed everyone. _'Don't worry about us, we're gonna be fine.'_

Hibiki paused before he let loose the most vital part of his message. _'Listen up. There's one last thing. I've finally found what we've been looking for. I found the way to stop Nirvana!'_

Erza and everyone there was stunned to say the very least, they had finally found the one and possibly only way stop Nirvana once and for all. "Please, tell us!" Erza shouted.

'_You know the six appendages we thought were legs? Well they're not, they're pipes. They suck Magic from out of the earth. At the base of each leg is a lacrima that controls the Magic energy. From my understanding, if all six are simultaneously destroyed, it'll force Nirvana to shut down. They must be destroyed at the same time, otherwise the other five will repair the one.'_

"Simultaneously?!" Erza exclaimed. "How do we do that?!"

'_If I could, I'd use my Telepathy to time the strike. I'll give you guys a synced timer.'_ Blue bars then appeared above everyone's heads. And when they'd reached one hundred, the download was complete.

Wendy blinked. "Twenty minutes?"

'_That's how long you guys have until Nirvana reaches full power.'_

"We have to destroy…" Erza started.

"…all six at once." Jellal finished.

'_Man.'_ Ichiya said coldly.

Suddenly, someone came into the connection and it gave everyone a chill. _'Care to tell me?'_ It was Zero.

"Who are you?!" Erza demanded.

"It's that creepy Brain guy!" Wendy stated.

Zero laughed. _'I am Zero, Master of the Oracion Seis! First of all, allow me to commend you, you fooled me. I'd never thought other Mages would have Archive Magic like Brain. Now heed my words! All of you! I am going to obliterate all that you hold dear! I have already begun by destroying five of your friends! A Dragon Slayer. An Ice Wizard. A Celestial Wizard. A Memory-Make Wizard. A Mage with sunglasses. And a cat!'_

'_He got Natsu, Nic, and the others?!' Hibiki exclaimed._

Erza eyes shot wide with dread at the hearing of Nic's demise. Erza was left frozen as she felt her heart drop. Nic. Him eliminated? Her pulse palpitated uncontrollably. In an act of impulse, she hollered up to the air. "That's a lie!"

Zero laughed in the background, and he felt too good at destroying those people. Another voice then entered the background.

'_Who said we were defeated in the first place?' _The calm yet serious voice echoed. Zero went wide-eyed, as did Erza. Erza recognized the voice all too well and she was more than satisfied that she then heaved a sigh and grinned.

It was Nic, and his voice was heard with the others as well. _'We're not down yet!' 'That Zero creep may have got the drop on us, but now we're ready!' 'That creep's gonna pay!' 'You're right girl! No way that Zero jerk is gonna win!' 'Aye!'_

The voices ranged about thanks to Hibiki's Telepathy. Everyone there was beyond glad they were okay. Zero was beyond furious. _'Curse you! How did you survive?!'_

Nic grinned. _'We were a little surprised with you attacking us with such raw power, so we had to lie low until we could regroup.' _Nic then began explaining.

_Zero's Dark Rondo ultimately blasted through Gray's shield. The Ice Wizard and Jura were about to be hit, but Nic was fast enough to cover some ground. "__**Protect!**__" Zero's entire attack was completely stopped, making the maniac grunt._

_Natsu came from above with a Fire Dragon's Iron Fist, but Zero simply flicked his finger and a shockwave made Natsu spiral up and hit the ceiling._

"_Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed. She was actually petrified by fear, seeing the feral look on Zero's face. Zero then unleashed yet another shockwave by extending his hand and had seemingly blasted the group._

"_Oh no!" Sophie exclaimed._

_Nic was able to react fast enough. He transformed into his Stone Plate as the shockwave was coming at them like a tsunami. "Get behind me!" He shouted, everyone getting behind. "__**Wide Guard!**__" A neon wavy multitude of screens eroded in front of Nic as the shockwave was blasting dust and rock at a very high level. The debris flew right passed them as they took notice Nic had saved them._

_As Wide Guard was still going, Nic held an arm up. "Guys, we need to regroup! Everyone get down! __**Rock Slide!**__" Nic had then glowed white and multiple white rings appeared above them. Large rocks then fell down from above and was aimed above the group._

_Nic then raised his arms overhead. "__**Wide Guard!**__" The wavy neon strands then appeared over them and the rocks landed on the shield and the rest fell on the sides, looking as though they were buried. When all of the dust cleared, Zero looked to see no trace of them._

_Zero grinned evilly as Klodoa was beside him. "A brilliant job Master Zero! Very well done!" He fearfully told his master._

_Zero was sure that since he didn't see their bodies, he assumed they were crushed by the rubble and he smirked evilly. "Humph! That was too easy!" He then turned away as Klodoa followed him in fear._

Hearing his, Zero's eyes showed extreme anger and wincing at the fact he was duped. _'You fools! YOU TRICKED ME!'_

Nic grinned. _'It was a close call. After the coast was clear, Natsu, Gray, and I all moved the rocks so we can get some fresh air, but we still hid within them to ascertain our low profiles. While there, we were recovering our strength.'_

Everyone except Zero was smiling at Nic's crafty handiwork. They didn't see that one coming, not ever.

'_The guy nearly gave me a panic attack, but it was all good. I gotta say he's a lot more reflexive than we have originally thought.' _Gray explained.

'_We managed to recuperate some Magic, but just very little.' _Sophie explained. _'If what you say is true Hibiki, then we should have more than enough to take down Nirvana, right?'_

'_That is correct.' _Hibiki said.

They all then heard Zero groan, of which turned into a dark statement. _'Oh really? You think you can destroy all six lacrima simultaneously? Well you can try, but I am standing in front of one of them, and I have no intention on moving!' _Zero then laughed maniacally. _'As long as I'm here, it'll be impossible to destroy all six at once!' _Brain then had cut his connection off, giving a slight sting to Hibiki's head.

Erza punched her own fist and looked angry that Zero was intercepting them at one lacrima.

"Though it seems impossible it can be done." Jellal stated. "Each Mage can destroy a lacrima at once. Each Mage has a one-in-six chance of running into Zero. Unfortunately, it seems only Erza stands a chance here.

The Telepathic connection was then put back online. _'Do not fear My Honey.' _Ichiya said. _'I am able-bodied and at your service…though I'm kind of tied up at the moment.'_

'_Master Ichiya! That's three.' _Hibiki said.

'_You can't forget about us!'_ Sophie shouted.

'_Sophie and the others, then that makes eight. Good, we have more than enough. The remaining two should pair up and assist those who are going to destroy the lacrima.' _Hibiki was then temporarily cut off as he was extremely exhausted. Christina's wing that was made by Lyon shattered and Sherry gave out. Christina was then starting to fall, much to everyone's shock.

'_G-Guys…my telepathy is about to run out.'_ Hibiki warned with exhaustion in his voice._ 'Awhile ago…I uploaded a map into your minds. I numbered them so that you could find them.'_

Nic himself was more than satisfied, knowing that thanks to the map and the continuous usage of the Plates up to now, his radar was able to focus more. The energy was still faint, but it felt stronger in certain parts. He was able to indicate the strongest point. Before he could think some more, everyone began calling dibs on lacrima.

'_I'll take one!' _Natsu called out.

'_Two!' _Gray shouted.

'_Three! Though I hope Zero isn't there.' _Lucy said.

'_Then I shall take number four.'_ Ichiya said. _'I can tell it's close by due to its parfum.'_

"You mean because of you see it on the map." Erza pointed out in a sigh, leaving Ichiya in revelation.

'_My Honey, why must you insist on making a fool out of me?!'_

Erza ignored him. "I can take number five."

'_Erza, it's great to hear from you.' _Nic said, relieved.

Erza smiled. "Yes, as am I Nic." Her smile widened, remembering that she didn't see him at all since the mention of Jellal earlier.

"Then I'll take-!" Jellal was cut off when Erza clasped her hand over his mouth to silence him.

'_Whose voice is that?! Is there someone with you?!' _Natsu shouted.

'_That voice…why is it so familiar?' _Nic wondered, trying to ponder.

Erza turned towards Jellal. "Nic and the others aren't aware of your amnesia yet. Nic still thinks you're an enemy, so try and keep quiet." She reasoned, to which the blue-haired man nodded silently. Erza then looked up at the sky, Christina had finally fallen into the woods again with a crash. Everyone there heard it and the telepathic connection was cut off.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

"What happened?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Our connection was cut off." Nic said.

"That means…" Lucy looked at the ground. "…Hibiki…"

* * *

**With Ichiya**

Still tied up, but on the ground, Ichiya struggled to break free and muster the strength to get up. As an alternative, he turned on his stomach and hopped with the stick like a bunny.

Ichiya did his best to hop. "Men! Men! Men! Men!" Ichyia only made a couple of hops in when he fell back on his side with a thud. Ichiya was exhausted as he was all sweaty and clear snot dripping from his flat nose. He was tired.

"Come on Ichiya, you've gotta stay strong." He told himself. He was huffing and breathing heavily and twitched slightly. "I have to make it to lacrima number four…everybody's counting on me…" He said in between his exhausted breaths. "The last thing I want to do is let my new comrades down."

Ichiya turned back on his abdomen and he mustered up the strength to keep hopping. "I'm not out of breath! I got this! I may not look it, but I'm a young man! MEN!"

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

Erza and everyone with her was wide-eyed and shocked that Christina crashed to the forest. And Wendy covered her eyes.

"Oh no!" Wendy squealed with covered eyes. Erza and everyone else looked down with closed eyes, looking away as they had hoped for the best for those onboard Christina, praying that they were alright.

With no time to mourn, Carla turned towards her comrades. "We have six Mages now, let's move!"

Erza nodded in agreement. "I guess Zero's at lacrima number one."

Wendy gasped. "But that's where Natsu is heading!" Jellal's eyes widened as Wendy mentioned that name.

"He's got a nose unlike any other. And I can guess that Nic may have teamed up with him as well." She said, believing those two were teaming up for Zero. "Natsu must have chosen knowing Zero would be there. If anyone can stop them, it's those two."

"We've gotta go-!" Wendy was caught off when Erza showed a smile.

"It wouldn't be wise to underestimate those two. They can do it. I have faith in Natsu and Nic. Let's just get to our posts." Deep down, Erza was worried about Nic, but even she knew that worrying about him when he's strong was her mistake. She should be worrying about destroying her assigned lacrima.

"Nastsu…Nic…" Jellal muttered quietly. "…Nic…"

"Let's split up, I'll take lacrima number five and you take number six." Erza said as her back was turned and walked away towards the lacrima. She then heard Jellal wince and she stopped and turned towards him. "Is there something wrong?"

Jellal had a hand to his head. "No, I'm fine." He said. He slowly turned and he began limping away, much to Erza's suspicion. She looked on with some concern as to what Jellal was doing. He wasn't fine, that's for sure.

"Nic…Pularis…"

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

Happy turned towards the others. "Alright guys, that's six people! Let's go! And if you see Zero, take him down!"

Everyone grunted and they then nodded.

Sophie held up a clenched fist and looked at Lucy. "Lucy, I'll accompany you to lacrima number three. Since all of them were taken, I'll go with you, okay?" Sophie asked.

Lucy nodded. "Okay."

Everyone then began splitting up, and that left Nic to stay in place. He knew something. He remembered full well that Natsu had a nose unlike any other, and knowing his combatant ways, Nic assumed he would be going where Zero was.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "So Zero is in chamber one…" Nic then felt his Plates pull at him again, and they detected the signal yet again. Nic went slightly wide-eyed upon realizing this feeling earlier. He jerked towards the hallway Natsu ran down to and he began his dash.

Nic dashed faster than anyone there, easily catching up to Natsu as he was about to enter the tube that went towards chamber one. Nic turned towards Natsu, as the latter was surprise.

"Whoa, Nic?" Natsu turned towards him with surprise. "Why are you here?"

"Relax Natsu, I'm coming to aid you in this fight." Nic stated. The Dragon Slayer was a little surprised by Nic joining him. Even though Natsu wanted to take Zero on alone, he knew full well that teaming up with the man responsible for taking down Jellal would be an ideal victory if they worked together.

Natsu looked ahead and he saw a light, meaning they were close. He was running and Nic was slowing his pace to match with his, which didn't bother him. "Alright!"

Nic then looked ahead as well and narrowed his eyes. "And besides…Zero's in front of something I need."

* * *

**Okay people, that makes the next chapter the big finish to the Oracion Seis Arc. I was fortunate that I got this chapter in quick. My pace is very fast. I guess you could say I'm all caught up. I hope you're enjoying this story so far and the plot and the twists and turns I try to make.**

**I have a vital chapter to do as a transition into the Edolas Arc, and after that comes a very special Arc I personally made up. I can say you will have a lot more Pokémon appearances starting in the Edolas Arc.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving the action and the ongoing series in general and are anxious for more.**

* * *

**Next Time: Despondent Flames**


	29. Despondent Flames

Chapter 29 – Despondent Flames

**Last chapter in the Oracion Seis Arc. Hope this chapter is a good one.**

**FOREWARNING: Longest chapter up to date.**

**To Recap:**

Nic and Jura defeat Brain with ease and the group head up towards the Royal Throne, to which was a trap set by Brain and Jura is left unconscious. Erza defeats Midnight, seeing his weaknesses. Klodoa briefly battles Nic's group until Zero, the true Master of the Oracion Seis, arrived and seemingly eliminated them, though Nic saved everyone there. Nirvana misses Cait Shelter as Christina flew over and Hibiki explained that the only way to stop Nirvana was to destroy all six lacrima at each leg, one of which Zero was guarding. Everyone splits, with Natsu and Nic heading to where Zero was, as well as another Plate. Jellal on the other hand, started to remember Nic.

* * *

**Chapter 29 – Despondent Flames**

Natsu and Nic both ventured down the corridor, where the explosive and deadly duo emerged into a very large chamber. The chamber was large in area and height, with two columns, one on the ground and one on the ceiling, both holding a large spherical gray lacrima in place. The bottom of the lacrima was in a pit with some tubes from all sides running out.

The two were filled with energy as they were ready to take on Zero, who was waiting patiently in the pit. He had both arms behind his back and smirked ever so heinously with his red, demonic eyes.

Zero had let loose a hardy chuckle, seeing Nic and Natsu glaring at him. "Well now, fancy meeting you two here. Your little rouse was clever Luminous, I've heard that you defeated Jose and that Jellal punk, you have my reverence for your accomplishments."

Nic said nothing as he was solemnly focused on preparing for battle against this guy. Even from here, Nic could feel the vile, the hatred, and the intensity of Zero's power. It felt twice as strong compared to Brain. This fight may come close if Nic doesn't play his cards right.

Zero continued. "You two are looking for a fight? You both found one."

Natsu of all people felt excited; so excited, he was grinning and was having a fight-crazed look in his eyes. Natsu let a few chuckled of his own escape. "I wonder who'll make it out alive, us or you?"

Zero kept his calm self. "You seriously wondering who will come out alive brat?" His left arm reached down to his side and he put two fingers out, and Magic was surging and glowed dark green. "What a silly question, _I _shall be the victor!** Dark Capriccio!**" Zero shot his left arm out and from the two fingertips, the Dark Capriccio went at them both with a lot of power behind it.

Nic kept calm and bent his knees. At this point, he pinpointed the Plate. The Plate itself was inside the lacrima, meaning once that lacrima breaks, the Plate will be his, but his present concerns lied with the incoming attack, of which he skillfully took action of.

He shifted in font of Natsu. "I'll be the diversion, you find an opening." He ordered. The attack was coming in fast. "**Tri Attack!**" Nic opened his mouth and extended out his palms, to which three charged orbs came forth. From each, his right palm shot a Thunderbolt, his mouth shot a Flamethrower, and his left palm shot an Ice Beam, though it was one attack but three different beams. The Flamethrower section collided with the Dark Capriccio, where the Thunderbolt and Ice Beam went towards Zero.

Zero frowned as he didn't expect such a strong start. Zero moved his arm in a harsh arc, where the Dark Capriccio actually changed directions and looked like a worm. The Flamethrower section kept on going and caught up with the other two beams as Dark Capriccio circled around Zero and came in from his side and shot across, making a shield. The Tri Attack blasted the moving spell that intercepted them. The Tri Attack continued, which then resulted in the Dark Capriccio exploding in a small burst, scattering smoke about and making Zero cover up. This small burst of energy also stopped Tri Attack.

When the wind and smoke started to settle, Zero uncovered to see Natsu emerging from the smoke with a flaming fist. "**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Natsu let loose a right hook that Zero dodged by ducking at the last moment. Natsu followed through the punch and he skid and pivoted to look back at Zero. He let in a heap of air. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

The inferno streamed towards Zero, who had took the assault head on, making a burst of flames erupt with smoke appearing not long after. Natsu tensed up as he awaited for the smoke to clear. He grunted as Zero was left without even a single scratch. The evil menace grinned in delight.

"Not too shabby. You both are doing a fine job in offense and defense." His eyes then narrowed. "But that was just the beginning!" Zero then unleashed another Dark Capriccio at Natsu.

"Natsu!" Nic shouted from his original position. He jumped in the air and landed in front of Natsu. Nic held out his arms and he then glared at the incoming attack. "**Copycat!**" Nic then emanated a black aura as he recalled how Zero unleashed Dark Capriccio. Nic then let out a battle cry as he then pointed two fingers from his right arm at the incoming attack. Nic then unleashed his own Dark Capriccio that collided with Zero's, both attacks streamed into the other with powerful foul winds being thrown about.

Zero raised a brow in interest as his attack was being intercepted yet again. "Oh, I see that someone can copy Magic, am I right?" He asked in a loud tone as the attacks continued to push the other back.

Though Nic was struggling, he was able to keep the attack at bay as he announced. "I can do a whole lot more than that!" Nic let out a yell as he gave his Copycat Dark Capriccio more juice and Zero grunted as Nic was pulsating more energy into his attack.

Natsu jumped over Nic as he did a midair forward flip with a flaming axe kick. "**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" Zero looked up and saw Natsu incoming fast. As Natsu was coming down, Zero grinned and used his spare right arm and grabbed the back of Natsu's leg, halting him in midair.

Natsu let loose a small gasp as Zero caught him, the Fire Dragon's Claw unable to make contact. Zero shifted his gaze and he made his Dark Capriccio make a shift in the direction. Zero arched his attack towards the left, to which Nic's Copycat followed the lead. The two Dark Capriccios were angled and had crashed into a part of the pit close by, sending debris all about.

Nic saw that Zero changed the direction of their attack and then saw him spin in place and throw Natsu towards him. The Dragon Slayer yelped as he was being send towards Nic. Nic held his place and had his arms out as he caught Natsu, but he has skidding backwards harshly, Zero's power being remarkably physical as well.

Regardless, Nic had a plan. "Natsu!"

As if by instinct, Natsu understood what Nic was going to do. He looked back at him as Nic was still skidding backwards harshly, almost making the rocks smooth. "Ready!"

"Okay!" Nic summoned up his strength and clenched Natsu's shoulders. As he did, the Plate wielder glowed and shifted into his Icicle Plate Form. He managed to shift to his side and he then summoned the force to do a whole spin and throw Natsu at Zero.

Using the momentum, Natsu ignited himself. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" He went for a high speed headbutt that got Zero right in the abdomen, briefly knocking the wind out of him. Natsu propelled further as he ram Zero further, making him go backwards several feet from his original position. Zero grunted as he then got some ground and skid with Natsu still forcing his way.

"You little brat!" Zero brought both hands up and made energy in between both and he slammed the huge wave on Natsu. "**Dark Wave!**" He slammed his fists into Natsu's back and the Dragon Slayer smashed into the ground below, cracking the ground and sending dust soaring all about, rocks flying and Natsu grunting harshly.

Zero jumped into the air and was about to fire energy of darkness yet again, but he looked at the last moment and saw Nic launching his assault.

"**Ice Beam!**" A light blue ball came from Nic's mouth and fired multiple light blue beams from the ball. The Ice Beam attack had forced Zero to change his trajectory and then shot a Dark Rondo as an interception. The dark green and light blue clashed in midair, ultimately both assaults cancelling out the other in a small burst of dark green and light blue.

Zero landed on the ground and he saw the Dragon Slayer getting up and had an ignited fist. Natsu rushed in towards Zero and Zero leaned back to evade the flaming right hook. He also evaded Natsu's downward punch by sidestepping towards his right. Natsu then went for another right hook, but Zero caught his wrist and he pivoted and threw Natsu.

In midair, Natsu grunted yet he took in a deep breath, as to where Nic had made a glowing bluish green orb in front of his mouth.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Aurora Beam!**"

The two individual attacks of fire and green and black energy went shooting at Zero, who remained still. Zero narrowed his eyes as he smirked. He extended out his arm and fired several spheres of darkness. "**Dark Delete!**" The multitude of spheres blasted away in order to intercept both incoming attacks. The result of all three attacks was yet another large burst of energy that shook the ground.

Smoke arose that quickly dispersed into thin air as the three were in a brief stare down. Zero saw the two side-by-side as they glared at him. He let a hardy 'hmph' out. "You two are no slouches, can't say I'm surprised."

"Yeah? Well we're just getting star-!" Natsu was left in midsentence when a sudden blast of fire shot at him from out of the blue, knocking the Dragon Slayer to the ground and narrowly missed Nic. Nic went wide-eyed as everyone turned to see where the attack came from.

"Who's there?!" Zero demanded.

Nic turned with very wide eyes and a slight gasp escaped his throat, too stunned to briefly move. Natsu was on all fours as he skid slightly from that brief burst of fire. Both Nic and Natsu looked with anger at the man who was above the pit they were brawling in.

"Jellal!" Natsu burst out, seeing the man smirking.

"You! Jellal!" Nic hollered with anger.

Aside from the two adversaries, Zero saw Jellal with a smirk on his face. "Well now, I take it that your memory has returned?"

Jellal kept his expression as Nic and Natsu both glared with feral eyes at the man who brought sheer misery and torture. The man who made Erza cry, of which Jellal will pay for. Nic of all people there started showing some feral teeth and a low growl as he was almost going to strike Jellal in the heart.

Jellal kept his pause before he spoke. "…yes."

Natsu was getting back up to his feet as he was mad at Jellal. "You shouldn't have come here." He struggled to warn. Jellal just glared at the two.

"You foul being." Nic snarled. "How are you here in the first place?!" Jellal didn't answer, which made both angry people rush at him impulsively, though Nic was faster.

"Jellal!" Nic and Natsu shouted in unison.

"Stop!" Jellal proclaimed, making fire in his hand and firing it at the two. The blast of flames burst upon impact, though it was directed more to Natsu than Nic, who stopped in place upon seeing the attack. Nic shifted into his Flame Plate just as the fire was coming at him and Natsu was engulfed in fire.

The Dragon Slayer brushed away some fire so that they could all see his face. "Did you forget flames don't work on me?!"

Jellal kept his smile. "Yes briefly, but I remembered just in time." This bit of news made Zero lose his smirk and narrowed his eyes. "Natsu, Nic, you two are the only ones who can take down Zero."

"What?!" Zero exclaimed, jerking back in shock. Natsu and Nic both stood in some surprise that Jellal had said that.

Jellal's hand went back to his side slowly. "Correct me if I'm wrong Natsu, but as a Fire Dragon Slayer, doesn't fire amplify your power?"

Nic turned towards Natsu, seeing how he was just as surprised as he was. Natsu looked as his body was coated in fire. Natsu was just as confused. "Yeah that's true, but why?"

"Liar! By your actions, it reveals your memories were not restored!" Zero accused.

Jellal stood as he frowned at the evil being. "I didn't lie to you, only my memories of Natsu and Nic have returned. I remembered how Nic unleashed his full power to stop me. I am determined to stop Nirvana, and the return of my memories will not affect my goal."

Nic narrowed his eyes even more. "I don't understand Jellal, what happened?" Nic demanded.

Jellal turned back towards Nic. "When I had awoken, I had appeared my memory had been wiped clean." He explained.

Natsu and Nic both gasped at this fact that this man who brought torture to a lot of lives had forgotten who he was. "What?!" Nic exclaimed, unable to believe this.

Jellal kept calm and he continued to explain. "Though I have absolute zero recollection of behaving like a disgrace to human nature, it seems that was the case. I have not only brought harm to you, Natsu, and Erza, but to all of Fairy Tail. It's time to atone for what I have done. I will help you protect Wendy's guild. I want to put an end to Nirvana, but we have to work together!" Jellal insisted on the last part.

Nic took a mad leap and sprung to throw a vicious right hook, leaving a bruise as Jellal stumbled back. "I don't believe you! I can't! Not after what you've done to us!"

Though pain flowed through his cheek, Jellal turned back towards Nic as Natsu came up as well with clenched fists. "Nic please, just accept my help and we can all move on." Jellal was trying his hardest to persuade an angry Nic, but that only led him to get clenched by the coat collar and drawn closer, staring into the heinous and feral eyes of Nic Pularis.

"You may have forgotten, but we all haven't." Nic growled.

"We remember everything Jellal." Natsu growled.

"YOU HAVE ERZA CRY!" Nic howled in front Jellal. "YOU BROKE HER SPIRITS AND THAT WILL NEVER BE FORGIVEN!" Jellal looked down at the ground as Nic yelled in his face. He then resumed his low growl as he clenched Jellal's coat tighter. "You've tortured her, nearly killed her, you shattered her, the woman that we can all never live without." Nic chose 'we' rather than 'I' as a cover up.

Natsu closed in with small angry pupils. "You killed Erza's friend and even though Nic took you down, he nearly died as well. Erza was shattered even more for weeks! WEEKS! You did this and you're gonna pay."

Zero shook his head at the sight. "How pathetic. If you three are going to argue, must you do it in front of me?" He then pointed two fingers and fired an unexpected Dark Capriccio at them. "Quite wasting my time!" The Dark Capriccio swerved and went shooting at Nic and Natsu's back. The two were too caught up in scolding Jellal that they didn't realize the attack was aimed at them.

When the beam was close, Nic and Natsu both turned their heads to see that assault about to hit them, unable to move. The Dark Capriccio was making impact…but it wasn't either.

Jellal slipped out of Nic's grasp and he zoomed passed both Fairy Tail members and held his arms out by his sides to protect them, but to their surprise. The Dark Capriccio made a direct hit on Jellal and made a burst of energy as the blue-haired man stood there, taking it all.

To say Nic and Natsu were horrified would be an understatement. Nic especially because it reminded him how Simon looked as he took Altairis. The brief memory of Simon protecting them all shrouded Nic's mind, a strong and caring individual taking his final blow.

Something within Nic snapped as he was completely still, unable to comprehend that this was happening a second time. It didn't matter if it was Jellal, the same concept was being used again, and someone was taking a possibly final hit. "…no, not again." Nic muttered with still eyes, fixated as Jellal was in agonizing pain.

Natsu had terribly shaken eyes as he too saw it, both were still as Jellal had heavy breathing going and he then slowly began to fall. Jellal was unable to stand as he was too hurt and he was breathing even more deeply and he fell to his knees.

Natsu looked down at Jellal. "Jellal!"

Jellal was looking down at the ground and was terribly exhausted. This very man that had caused misery had took a powerful blow for the sake of Nic and Natsu taking down Zero. The amnesiac huffed repeatedly as he had to use what energy he had left.

Jellal turned his head back to look at the confused and shocked duo. "If you want to kill me by all means, do what you must." He lowly said, almost choking. "I'm on my last legs anyway."

"…Jellal." Nic muttered, somewhat confused.

Jellal held up his right hand facing up. "But first, please allow me to bestow Natsu power." A golden flame then emerged and Natsu and Nic stared at it. The golden flame flickered in Jellal's hand.

"Golden flames?" Natsu murmured, staring at the flame.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in the other chambers…**

Sophie, Lucy, and Happy all ventured down the lacrima corridor, seeing as how this was going on forever. Thanks to Nic saving them earlier, they were up and able to stand. They were just dirty was all.

"Lucy? Sophie?" Happy asked, getting the two that were walking to look down at the feline. The two females awaited as Happy looked up at them. "Should we rest for a bit?"

Sophie blinked and she reeled back and turned away back up towards the corridor. "That's not necessary Happy. We may be hurt somewhat, but even if we were torn to ribbons, we'd still have to keep going."

Happy's concerns were still leaving the cat with a worried look. "Guess not." The problem wasn't the group he was worried, but was mainly towards Lucy, who was scratched up just like everyone else. "But Lucy used up all her Magic."

Lucy kept walking as she remained silent. The Celestial Spirit Mage was indeed out of Magic and she needed a lot of time to recharge. She herself was aware of her Magic depletion and how it was too good to be true.

Seeing how Lucy was down, Sophie let a small grin rise on her face that was suppose to be sincere. "Don't worry guys. We got this. Lucy may have used up her Magic, but I still have a little left, and that will be enough."

Feeling assured, the trio ventured down the corridor, relying on Sophie to take on the lacrima.

In corridor number four, Ichiya was inching as fast as he could like a Caterpie, though he was still roped to a stick, but that didn't stop the stout man from going on.

Struggling, Ichiya kept on worming forward and was all dirty and sweaty, but the world was at stake, and he couldn't let anyone down. "I am Ichiya Vandalay Kotobuki of Blue Pegasus." He struggled to say. "I will fulfill my obligation to my guild and comrades!" He continued inching with struggle to no end down the corridor.

In the chamber that was labeled lacrima number five, Erza noticed that Zero wasn't there.

"Master Zero isn't here, I knew it." She cursed. She was as dirty as everyone else on Nirvana, but at least she was on two feet.

The redhead looked up at the lacrima, with some form of concern bellowing about a certain man who she hasn't seen all day. Her eyes narrowed. "It's all up to you, Nic."

Wendy and Carla were walking down the corridor that led to chamber six, which was where Jellal was meant to go. Carla was carrying Wendy, both carrying concerns for Jellal.

Wendy looked up at Carla. "Thank you Carla for carrying me…" She then had her gaze back up front, seeing a small light up ahead. Her head was even more concerned than ever. "I'm worried. I hope Jellal is okay."

Carla showed some uncertainty as well. "I know Wendy, but I am concerned of your well-being, are you sure about this?"

Wendy gave a nod. "I'm sure. I'm the one who caused this, so I'll do whatever I can to fix it." She then thought back to when Erza had left and Jellal had muttered Nic's name.

"_What's the matter? Are you feeling alright Jellal?" Wendy asked as she looked up at Jellal, who was clenching his own head._

_Jellal tried to ease the Sky Dragon Slayer's worries. "I'm fine." He said, though it was clear that he was not. "Forgive me if I'm wrong, but don't you use Healing Magic? Natsu and Nic are going to face Zero, so their energy need to be replenished. Think you can do that?" He requested._

_Wendy was about to speak up, with her mouth open and about to say yes, but Carla was just a little more quick-witted than her. The white feline held up a paw in unyielding objection. "Do you know how draining her Healing Magic is, and how many times this poor child had to use it today?!" Carla exclaimed, caring for Wendy and keeping her safe. "Sorry, but this where the line is drawn!"_

_Jellal stil had his hand covering his left eye as he heard how this was tiresome to Wendy. "I understand." He said, slightly disappointed, but he thought of an alternative thanks to a certain memory. "It's fine. I can replenish Natsu's energy myself, but Nic's energy is something he has to work on his own."_

_Wendy and Carla both blinked, hearing how Jellal said he could do such a thing as replenish Natsu's energy. His hand left his face a she had both eyes revealed. "I've gained a memory. I remember that Natsu wields the power of hope, and what's more is that Nic is the light everyone follows, unyielding and sees through to the end. I also recalled that Nic has an undeniable force that can assure them victory."_

_Jellal then approached Wendy and crouched down to her level. "It's a tall order, but I'm asking you to destroy lacrima number six for me."_

_Wendy let a slight gasp escape. "Me? B-But I can't." She said._

_Jellal was left unfazed as she stared at Wendy. "Why must you doubt yourself? You're a Dragon Slayer. Your Magic is so powerful, it was once used to face the most powerful dragons in the land." Jellal explained, making Wendy slightly wide-eyed._

"_Unleash the power that lies dormant within you."_

_Hearing this, Wendy knew there was no turning back. "I'll do my best."_

Wendy was standing in front of the lacrima and was determined to save everyone. "I'm gonna do it. I'll unleash the dragon inside of me!"

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

Jellal winced and he fell on his back, still holding the golden flame. He tried to smile as he was very well exhausted.

"Natsu, this known as the Flame of Rebuke." He explained, his energy starting to drain rapidly. Nic and Natsu were on their knees and looking over Jellal as he was bestowing Natsu these flames.

"What's the Flame of Rebuke?" Natsu asked seriously.

Jellal simply held up the flame as he continued to smile. "You two. Natsu. Nic. I do not ask for forgiveness, for I can never reason for such a thing. All I want is to give you strength."

Nic blinked, slightly narrow in the eyes. "Why?" He was wondering not only why Jellal was giving strength, but also why he took that attack. Nic could've used a move, but Jellal took it instead.

"Because…" Jellal said. "…I believe in you." This made Nic jerk slightly. Jellal said he believed in him and Natsu. Jellal continued. "Nic, I'm sorry that I don't have the strength for you, but I ask only, and only, that you find the truth behind my actions."

Truth. Nic blinked as he suddenly felt something in him snap, like when Simon died, he did so because the truth behind his action was to keep his loved one alive. The truth Nic sacrificed himself was because he made a promise to keep Erza alive. The truth behind his dedication to Fairy Tail was because they were family. The truth behind Jellal's action was because he believed in the two.

"Jellal." Nic muttered. Truth, the word that echoed through Nic, it was like a fire was starting to ignite within him. This fire was growing as he was realizing the truth of Jellal's actions.

"Erza trusts you two more than anyone, and so…I shall as well." Jellal said. Natsu went wide-eyed as Jellal believed in what Erza believed in. Nic was clenching his fists as Jellal's truth was because of one person that came to Nic's mind, Erza. The fire within Nic was beginning to surge throughout his veins, and this wasn't at all because he was using the Flame Plate right now, this was something more drastic. Nic narrowed his eyes as a brief memory flowed through him.

"…_tell us the truth." Reshiram said._

"_And the ideals behind your truth." Zekrom added._

"_Nic Pularis." Kyurem said. "You were chosen to be one with the Plates. What would you wish to do with this power?"_

Nic was lost in thought as Natsu has hesitant, but he slowly reached out at a smiling Jellal. Natsu finally grabbed Jellal's hand and the Flame of Rebuke engulfed Natsu. The golden fire engulfed Natsu as the Dragon Slayer was glowing gold.

Natsu stared at a smiling Jellal, grateful to have helped Natsu. Natsu then opened his mouth and started to take in the flames. Natsu was chewing as much as he can from the flames all around his body, eating them.

'_The truth.'_ Nic thought. Now a cold chill was surging through in conjunction with the inferno within him. _'…and the ideals behind the truth…'_

Natsu swallowed the last bit of flames as Jellal's hand dropped to the floor. "I'm counting…on you…Natsu…Nic…" Jellal then fell quiet as he was no longer able to move from using all of his Magic.

Slowly, Natsu and Nic arose to look ahead. Natsu wiped his mouth. "Thanks for the chow Jellal…but that doesn't mean you're off the hook, not yet." Natsu stated.

"The truth…" Nic muttered.

Zero had a grin on his face, seeing what has happened. "Dragon Slayer, you have made a grave mistake. By eating the Flame of Rebuke, you now share the sins of your enemy."

Natsu glared darkly at Zero. "A couple of sins won't stop us. Everyone's got their share, but the biggest sin is turning your back on someone…" Natsu began to flicker golden flames slightly and his feet nearly crushed the ground. "Especially…" He was tensing up. "When they want to give you power to fight evil!" He turned towards Nic. "Let's go-!"

Natsu, Jellal, and Zero were seeing something different. Nic's entire body was giving off a fixed amount of heat, of which was making the Dragon Slayer feel hot. Impossible as it was, this was no ordinary heat as Natsu actually felt heat. The heat around Nic was making the chamber slightly shake, causing Zero to shake up slightly.

"What the?! What is this?!" Zero demanded.

Nic kept on pouring more of his feelings and power into the heat, making fire surge from the heat. Nic's flames then began to circle around him and spiral at a dangerously high level, making him become enclosed in several rings of fire like a veil of sorts.

"The truth…" Nic started in a normal and serious tone. "…The truth behind the matter is…" His voice escalated slightly as the flames expanded slightly, almost making Nic get incased in a cocoon of fire. The freakiest part was that as he was doing so, the air on the outside was freezing. First hot, now cold? Just what was Nic doing? The air was condensing into fragments of ice that began to circle like rings as well. The fragments of ice began to circle rapidly just like the fire, only the rings were separated by the opposite. The layer was fire and then ice, and fire, and ice, and so on. The heat and the cold were now enveloping Nic in a full veil of fire and ice that began to enclose on him and the fire and ice turned into orange and light blue lights.

"The truth of the matter is…I WON'T LET MY COMRADES FALL TO EVIL! BECAUSE THEY ARE THAT IMPORTANT TO ME!" The orange and light blue lights then started to make the ground shake even more. The power unleashed was unbelievably massive, of which that enveloped Nic. Nic was starting the glow with the lights now merging and basically it was an entire dome of light that made everyone there go blind and look away.

As the light shined and the chamber shook, they all heard a loud draconic roar of some kind. A giant wave of light engulfed everything and everything fell silent for a few brief moments.

When the light was beginning to dim, Zero opened his eyes briefly. "This light?! Just what happened?!"

When Natsu was finally able to see as well, including Jellal, the light was fading away and a brief image had taken place. Natsu also noticed that the air was incredibly hot as small waves of fire bounced about through the air, and Natsu looked down to see that the ground all around them was frozen, small stalagmites all around the faint image.

"What is that?" Natsu marveled. The image was clearing out, making everyone gasp in shock as to what it was.

The figure had taken Nic's place with stalagmites all around him and flames spiraling in the air. It was a few inches taller than Nic and it had yellow eyes and black irises with light blue pupils. The face was left as it was, but had fanged teeth showing. It had the end of Kyurem's wings all around the shoulder blades and the pointed ends sticking out backwards. The structure was humanoid, though there was a yellow horn in the middle of the headpiece. The yellow horn went backwards and split the two sides; the right was frozen ice while the left side of the beast's headpiece was a long, wispy protrusion. There were white scales that ran down the back of the neck and left the front side bare. The scales converged to the chest, where it was slightly feathered on the scales there. There were two thin, white lines that went down from the chest area and stopped when they reached the fairly toned abs. The jeans were replaced by white pants that had long, hooked ice spikes that were curved downwards and located on the knee caps. Small, curved ice spikes ran down from the top of the shin and traveled down to the base of the ankles, where the pants stopped. The spikes were separated by the shin itself. The curbed spikes were at a total of four, two on both sides. There were no shoes, revealing human feet that had white scales and claws on the end. The middle toes were crystal ice and larger than the rest.

The left arm had white scales that left the underside of the entire arm bare. The hands were covered in white scales on the back side and bare on the palms, and the fingertips and nails were replaced with sharp, white claws. The arm had a gray armband on the biscep and there was another one located on the wrist. There was a large, white wing that was attached to his forearm. The right arm was much different, however. The right biscep had white scales and the underside was bare as well, exclude the armband. The forearm was different as it was covered in crystal ice, like a gauntlet. The ice gauntlet even had the hand frozen as were the claws. The frozen forearm sported a wing identical to the white one on the other arm, but it was solid, thick ice in the shape of an attached wing.

The sleeveless coat was now a pure white, with the inside being gray. There were curved, crystal ice patches that trailed down the coat. There were three trails total: One on each end and one running down the middle. The two outside trails were curved inwards towards the center trail, which was curved downwards. At the base of the outer part of the coat, there were two circles that were separated by the middle trail of ice. One side was crystal ice while the other side was a brighter shade of white. There was a tail was reached out from the tailbone and under the coat. It was gray and conical and had sharp-edged crystal ice spikes that kept the long, wispy, white tail inside that had feathers sticking out, and sixty degrees apart from the other. The tail was close to being five feet long.

The creature remained still as the stalagmites increased in height slightly and the fire was spiraling above in a pressurized stream. The beast clenched its fists and let out an earth-shaking roar, one that made all of the stalagmites completely shatter and scatter everywhere, as to where the fire dispersed rapidly, heating up the air immensely. The icy ground itself shattered upon the brutal roar and a shockwave rippled about, making everyone cover up.

"What the-what is that?!" Zero exclaimed. He saw the fire and ice was no more in the area, but the beast was giving off a chill, a chill that actually…burned?

Natsu was wide-eyed, as was an immobile Jellal. Natsu himself had this cold was actually burning, like a freezer burn. _'This chill given off, it's like giving my body a serious burn upon touch. What's happening?'_

Zero went wide-eyed at the power this one had. _'This level of power, it's beyond anything measurable. It's not even Magic, yet…it's incredible.' _Zero gritted his teeth. "What are you?!"

"**Legendary Force – White Kyurem!**" Nic roared, making another rippling shockwave that made everyone cover up.

"No way…" Natsu muttered.

"Legendary Force?" Jellal muttered weakly on the ground several feet away.

Zero narrowed his eyes. "So, you simply powered up I see." The wisps all over Nic's body waved about, like it would on Reshiram. "This level of power you've just unleashed, just what is this power I wonder? Can it match me?"

Nic glared harshly at Zero, making the latter suddenly feel chilly. "Listen you pathetic swine." Nic declared. "You should be asking if _you_ can match me."

Natsu looked at Nic's new form, looking at it with suspicion. "This power, it's like that one time…back at the Tower of Heaven." Natsu then got an image of Nic using his Black Kyurem Legendary Force and how he defeated Jellal with ease. "It's like this power is similar, yet different. And why does he have white scales instead of black? And why fire instead of lightning?" He muttered this all in confusion.

Nic turned towards Natsu as the golden flames were still flickering like crazy around the Dragon Slayer. "Natsu, let's go!" He shouted.

Natsu immediately retained focus and he showed his teeth in his determination. He then turned back towards Zero. "Yeah you're right! This jerk is going to pay for trying to hurt Wendy's guild!" His eyes narrowed. "And Jellal."

Jellal looked in some surprise. "Natsu."

Natsu remained still as the Flame of Rebuke went through his system, and he felt his power increasing to high levels. "What? It's like my power…" Scales began to cover his forearms and around his eyes. "It's like my power doubled, maybe even tripled!"

Zero was even more in shock. "So, this is a Dragon Slayers true power is. Dragon Force." He said. Nic and Natsu both turned towards Zero as he announce that Natsu had went into Dragon Force. "Your strength in Dragon Force is suppose to rival that of an actual dragon; however, I wonder whose power is stronger: Mine or both of yours?" His question was demonic as he stared coldly at the two.

Nic and Natsu turned towards the other and nodded and turned back towards Zero. "US!" They exclaimed in unison as Natsu lunged with golden flames coating him, while Nic's left claw glowed white, via Slash. Both Mages smashed into Zero, making the evil being gag as the two slammed their attacks into his abdomen in a speedy flash. The double impact made a brief single ripple shockwave as the force made Zero smash into the column on the ground, imbedded into it.

Zero winced as he was immobile for a small while as he had one eye open. Zero grunted as he got feeling in his limbs back and he pried himself free from his crater imbedded into the column. He glared with distaste as Natsu clenched his fists on the ground and Nic had taken flight, ten feet in the air and both glaring at Zero.

Nic brought his head back and opened his mouth. A round of loops circled him and fired a massive blue beam at Zero upon bringing his head forward. "**Dragon Breath!**" The beam went shooting at Zero, who held out both arms forward and unleashed a Dark Capriccio to intercept.

Even with Dark Capriccio, Dragon Breath was holding it off and was also starting to drive through it slightly, shocking Zero. "What?! My Piercing Spell is…being pierced?!" Dragon Breath eventually got the best of the Dark Capriccio and it went at Zero, lunged left to avoid the blue beam as the attack followed through and made a blue explosion.

Zero was able to dodge Dragon Breath, but that left Natsu to come in and deliver a multitude of punches at a fast rate, repeatedly bashing Zero and after a powerful uppercut, the empowered Dragon Slayer grabbed Zero and threw him overhead, making him fly overhead and the menace was quick enough to straighten out, landing on his feet and lunged at Natsu at a remarkable speed. Zero drove a knee into the Dragon Slayer, but Natsu held on as he let a small grunt escape and he drove an elbow into Zero's abdomen and did a powerful kick to send him flying in an upward angle.

Zero grunted in midair and he was going to fire at Natsu. He gathered energy as he was in the air, but Nic appeared in front of his face, emanating a freezing heat still that made Zero's body cold.

Nic delivered a swift kick to Zero's left thigh, throwing him off balance and stopping his attack. Zero flew down and crashed into the ground again, dust flying everywhere. Nic was just getting started. "**Ice Beam!**" Nic made a blue ball at his mouth and fired a terrifying multitude of light blue beams at Zero. When they hit the ground, each single beam had frozen the ground, leaving destructive trails of ice that converged on Zero.

Zero saw this through the dust he was lying in and he unleashed a huge burst of darkness energy, exploding like a dome energy and intercepted the Ice Beam. Nic saw that the dust expanded even more from that burst of Magic and then he saw Zero lung at him from the dust cloud. Zero went for a punch, but Nic caught it with his left hand. Zero smirked ever so evilly and he used his right hand that was encased in Magic.

"**Dark Wave!**" He rammed his fist forward into Nic, but Nic wasn't a fool as he was quite the reflexive type. With Zero's left fist clenched in Nic's left claw, he let go and grabbed the wrist and yanked towards his left, changing the direction of the Dark Wave. The burst of energy was aimed towards the left, missing Nic. Nic then let go of Zero's wrist and he spun in the air and slammed his tail into Zero, making him grunt harshly as he was send downwards and Natsu ran up to land a powerful punch on the falling man.

Zero saw Natsu coming as he fell and regained balance. "I'm not done yet! **Zero Slash!**" Zero straightened his body out and he made Dark Capriccio and it was attached to his arm, he then used it like a whip and he struck Natsu as he was coming in, hitting the Dragon Slayer while he was lunging in.

Natsu smashed into the rock with a harsh thud, making a small crater from Zero Slash. Zero turned to look up at Nic and he whipped his arm again. "I most certainly didn't forget about you!" Zero slashed again and this one was directed at Nic. The White Kyurem Legendary Force utilizer roared and he did Ice Beam again. The entire Ice Beam blasted the Zero Slash, not only stopping it cold (pun intended), but also completely freezing it, shattering in midair.

Zero gasped in shock as his Zero Slash was nullified. Nic then fired a Dragon Breath yet again and Zero saw it coming. Zero lunged right to evade and pivoted to move forward. Natsu was back up and he lunged his mighty fist into his gut, with Zero too focused on one opponent.

Zero was temporarily stunned from that blow, which led Natsu to unleash a golden Fire Dragon's Roar from below Zero, shooting him upwards and smashed into the ceiling with a fair amount of debris falling from the blow.

Nic and Natsu watched as Zero plummeted and crashed into the caved-in ground, making a crater. The two powered-up heroes regrouped as Zero was shaking as he struggled slightly.

Nic turned towards Natsu. "We got less than five minutes."

"Got it." Natsu said. "We'll make this go by quicker." The two then saw Zero emerge back on his feet and he was looking at the ground with a smirk. He was scratched up slightly, but nothing he couldn't handle. He then looked back up at the two.

"Well, well, well, I must say. This double teaming power you two possess, it's even more formidable than I could have imagined. Too bad you'll be eliminated." He then conjured up energy and fired spheres of darkness. "**Dark Delete!**" The attack went soaring after Nic specifically and the gruesome spheres went at him as he was merely keeping his position in the air. The spheres bombarded Nic, sending smoke flying and Natsu covering up as Nic was blasted head on.

Zero laughed as Nic took the hit. He stopped the attack and he awaited for the smoke to clear with a smirk. "See? I told you you'd be-!" He then stopped in midsentence as he gasped and went wide-eyed as he saw Nic emerge from the smoke cloud with hardly any scratches.

Nic glared at Zero, who was shocked to say the least. "So tell me, was that your best shot?" Nic asked before he roared down at Zero, making Zero cover up as Nic's breath was so cold, yet powerful and felt like he was getting burned as well.

When Nic ceased, Zero looked back up. "What's this? You took that attack head on?! And you didn't even have a scratch?!" Nic slowly descended back to the ground as Zero was still baffled. "Just what power do you have Luminous?!"

Nic narrowed his eyes. "The truth is something you'd never comprehend. I hold the powers of a Legendary, something you will never hope to defeat. **Blizzard!**" Nic's mouth glowed light blue and unleashed a powerful Blizzard attack at Zero, who even had his arms to block and still flew back and crashed from the sheer chilled assault, not to mention it was a powerful Ice-Type move.

Zero was getting up from his crater and he grunted from the attack he just took. He felt as though he was hit with a compressed blizzard that ravaged the arctic. "Curse you Luminous." He growled. He then fired a Dark Rondo from the crater that crashed into Nic, making him only grunt with little damage inflicted.

"I'm not done with you!" Natsu rushed in and had a flaming fist at the ready. Natsu jumped and rammed his fist downwards. Zero rolled left and Natsu's attack smashed into the ground, leaving Zero to strike the Dragon Slayer.

"**Dark Gravity!**" Brain slammed his hand on the ground, of which some light shined underneath Natsu, and suddenly the entire ground under the Dragon Slayer burst, making Natsu yell as he started falling downwards.

Zero jumped down, going to follow Natsu, but he had no idea Nic could be faster. The turbine on Nic's tail glowed red as the flames started to fuel up his burst of speed and the White Kyurem being suddenly dashed towards the lower levels of Nirvana faster than Zero dropping. All Zero saw was a mere stream of red as Nic sailed down and had caught Natsu before he could fall off Nirvana.

Nic grabbed Natsu by the shirt and stopped when they were on the lowest level, just before Natsu could drop. Nic changed direction and he and Natsu landed safely away from the hole. Nic looked up to see Zero coming after them from above, preparing a spell.

"**Dark Rondo!**" In midair, Zero unleashed several streams of dark green energy that converged onto Nic and Natsu, but Nic easily got to react faster.

"**Dragon Pulse!**" From his mouth, Nic unleashed a multicolored dragon-shaped beam of energy at the Dark Rondo, which easily nullified the attack from advancing. There was a big explosion of multicolors and dark green, which Nic took precaution of and backed away. Natsu followed suit and Zero emerged from the explosion above, landing on a knee and seeing the two on their guard.

"You're not getting away with that! **Zero Slash!**" Zero made a Dark Capriccio as a whip again and he went to whip them both, but Natsu and Nic both used their agile reflexive capabilities, with Natsu rolling and twisting in midair, compared to Nic simply shifting and leaning with ease.

Zero saw that Natsu was taking in fire as he was in midair and dodging. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Natsu unleashed a blaze that engulfed Zero and stopped his assault. Natsu landed as to where Nic remained still in the air.

Nic narrowed his eyes as he saw Zero wave his arms out and shrug off the inferno, much to Natsu's shock. "Persistent, I'll say that much."

Zero narrowed his eyes with a smugged grin. "Well now, it seems that this battle has taken quite a turn. I can't believe that I'm beginning to fall at your mercy." He said in a coincidental tone. "I have to admit, taking two adversaries on may be a mistake on my part…so I'll have to level the playing field."

Nic narrowed his eyes in slight discomfort. "And how are you going to do that?" He asked in a demanding tone.

Zero shook his head while chuckling, slightly amused. "Ah Luminous, there's some things some people have to find out the hard way." Zero extended his right arm forward and then Nic went wide-eyed as he felt some pain in his abdomen intensify.

"Gah! What? What is this feeling?" Nic asked as his pain was starting to flood about. He was clenching his abdomen and he then felt something on his chest. When Nic looked down, he gasped at seeing a complicated purple circle that had taken up the space on his chest.

Natsu turned to see that Nic had some spell placed on him and he turned back towards Zero. "You monster! What did you do?!"

Zero let out a cliché evil laugh as he rejoiced in what he placed on Nic. "Simple young Dragon Slayer. Since I can't beat you both at a time, let alone that one with white scales, it seems I'll have to eliminate him." Nic's pain was held at bay for a short while as Zero paused.

Zero's evil smirk never left his face. "I've placed a Self-Destruction Spell on him. In a few minutes he'll be nothing but a memory."

Natsu and Nic both gasped in deep horror that Zero had taken the cheap way to victory. Nic bared his fangs and he clenched his claws and fists. "You foul coward!"

Zero raised a brow. "Am I? In the end it won't matter. With you out of the picture, I can easily take down that Dragon Slayer."

Natsu fumed as this logic; Zero was saying that Nic was stronger than Natsu, which he was. The Dragon Slayer felt offended to the upmost degree and flames ignited. He gritted his teeth as he was very displeased. "You coward." He scowled with a clenched fist. "You better disarm that thing now before I beat the code out of you."

"Just try Dragon Slayer, but I highly doubt you'll succeed." Zero arrogantly implied. Without any delay, Natsu engaged Zero in some combat, to which both were on par. Natsu let loose another barrage of attacks with his fists, scoring a few blows that Zero didn't block in time. Within the melee, Zero gave a harsh kick towards Natsu's chin and spun in midair, delivering a side kick into the Dragon Slayer's abdomen. The Dragon Slayer grunted as he skid back, trying to keep his footing.

"**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" Natsu ignited his feet and he used them as boosters to lung at Zero at a much faster rate. Zero got a glimpse of Natsu turning and delivering a kick with his right hook, to which he blocked with his left arm and smirked.

"**Dark Rondo!**" Zero unleashed a point blank Darkness Spell at Natsu and the green beam had engulfed Natsu, to which the Dragon Slayer screamed as he was hit and soared into the air.

Nic could only watch as he feared any critical movement might quicken the countdown. There was no guarantee for sure, but Nic can only play it safe. But even so, this was unfair as Zero pulled a fast one on him. Then again, when are bad guys ever fair?

Nic wasn't going to sit around much longer; it's either do or die, and he most certainly wanted to live to see the light of tomorrow. Though people never should underestimate Nic's cunning when it came to battling. He knows full well that these situations could be dealt with in a certain way he was able to do.

Nic smirked as he knew just what had to be done. As he saw Natsu and Zero duking it out, Nic began to release a vast amount of energy yet again. He was making the place shake as he was unleashing a cold air yet again from his body, catching Zero and Natsu's attention.

"What is he doing?!" Zero exclaimed. "His power is shaking up the ground once more!...And this chill." He narrowed his eyes. "I can actually feel it burn my skin. How is a human doing that?!"

Natsu covered up with his scaly arms to keep the chilling yet burning air from hitting his face. If he could feel the burn, what exactly does this mean? The two adversaries watched in awe as the spell casted on Nic was…freezing?

Zero went wide-eyed as his Self-Destruction Spell was turning into solid ice, the spell was starting to become pure crystal ice as Nic kept unleashing such power. The walls themselves started to show frost gathering, and the spot where Nic stood was frozen and expanded slightly. The Self-Destruction Spell was now solid ice and the whole thing completely shattered in front of everyone's eyes.

"What? He nullified my spell just by freezing it?!" A shocked Zero exclaimed. "No one should be able to do that! Who are-what are you?! Tell me!"

Nic lowered the output, making the place cease its quaking. All there was now was a mist that was being released from that lowered chill burst. The mist soon dispersed throughout the area, making frost everywhere it touched on the ground.

Nic answered as he let out a cold icy breath. "I am Nic Pularis, your demise." He then brought his head back as he gathered energy quickly. "**Dragon Pulse!**" He unleashed a powerful multicolored dragon-shaped beam at Zero, of whom was still left in shock that Nic still froze the spell off of himself. Zero took a step back, but he didn't have any more room as the ground shook from the incoming Dragon Pulse. The attack swallowed up Zero and a multicolored explosion took place, hearing the anguish in Zero's howling yell.

Zero was revealed to have been several feet from where he stood, on his rear in a small crater that was at the end of a tarnished trail from the skidding thud he'd endured from Dragon Pulse. The maniac was grunting in searing pain as he wasn't expecting such a comeback, let alone a countermeasure.

As he got to his feet, Zero was hit right in the abdomen by a Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow catered by Natsu. Zero gagged as he was hit once again by an assault he wasn't prepared for. Zero flew back several more feet and did a skipping thud. He landed on his back first and then on his chest and then finally on his back.

The maniac arose yet again and he was left with several bruises and scrapes from the onslaught he had just endured. "You…little…brats!" He scowled under his breath. He coughed as he tried to say more. "You've done it. You've unleashed Hell. You missed your only chance to die at my hands, but now your very existence shall be erased." He grimly warned.

His tone had made Nic and Natsu both get on edge as he announced their demise. Was he holding back? The ground was beginning to shake yet again as Zero was exerting even more Magic energy than before. He was emanating a green aura, signifying his power.

"It's too bad I can't use your power for myself, such a shame. As an alternative, I'll destroy you both with my most powerful spell, one that shall erase you from existence and send you to the void of eternal despair!" Zero wasn't joking, he was preparing a move as he gathered a very large sum of Magic energy at his fingertips.

"Like hell we'll let that happen!" Natsu proclaimed. "No matter what, we'll win! You know why? Because our friends are counting on us! Their giving us every amount of support they can!" Golden flames were beginning to wave about him as he was unleashing a huge amount of Magic as well.

Nic stepped forward. "Agreed! We won't be erased because our hearts will never leave the other!" Nic not only recalled the trust everyone had, but he also remembered the most recent bonds he's made with the Allied Forces. The Allied Forces, reluctantly Ichiya, Jura, everyone, even Jellal. Jellal expressed comradery in a way that Nic couldn't repay. Nic did remember they had less than a minute to destroy the lacrima, so they had to smash it along with Zero.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

The time was super close, and Gray stepped forward. "Well, I guess it's time." The Ice Mage then put a fist in a palm and summoned a Magic circle. "It's time to ring this walking freak show to go down."

With Lucy and Sophie, Sophie took in a deep breath as she pointed a finger at her head. "Okay, it's time we destroy this thing!" Lucy and Happy both nodded.

Ichiya used a potion on himself to enhance his body to superhuman levels, and his muscles were beyond enormous. He rammed both his fists into each other. "Hibiki, Ren, Eve, give me the strength…" He prayed, hoping for the best for his comrades. He then looked up at the lacrima with determination in his eyes. "YOU'RE ABOUT TO GET AN IMPORTANT LESSON IN STRENGTH AND DETERMINATION, CURTESY OF THE BLUE PEGASUS GUILD!" Ichiya then began to conjuring energy. "**POWER PARFUME! TO THE MAX! MEEEENNNN!**"

With Erza, she spun in a full circle. "**Requip!**" Erza glowed and she requipped into her Black Wing Armor, holding a long sword and stared at the lacrima. "I'll use the last bit of my power in this shot!"

With Wendy, she was beginning to feel the energy surge. _'I can feel it, the power rising up.' _Wendy's hair was beginning to fly about as winds picked up.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

"They're all depending on us to take you down, to send you back to Hell! We'll stop you!" Nic proclaimed. The tip of Nic's wispy headpiece was glowing orange, signifying a tremendous heat signature, and the spikes on the back of the ice pieces shot out and attached to the conical section of the tail. The tubes then glowed orange and the turbine and tail alike glowed orange and there was an extremely pressurized force swelling inside Nic. The air around Nic was beginning to intensify with burning frost for some reason as the area around Nic was expanding even more in terms of ice. Nic then began to emanate a circular reddish-purple aura around his body.

"Our friends' determination is pulsating like crazy, and we won't let them down!" Natsu declared as the swirls of golden flames kept on going. "**Dragon Slayer's Secret Art – Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade!**" Natsu swung his arms in a circular fashion, unleashing the golden flames and the flames went spiraling towards Zero, who had begun his final move.

"You two shall be swallowed by oblivion itself!" He declared. He brought forth both hands and the darkness energy became purple. "**Genesis Zero!**" A giant have of thousands of phantoms then gushed out, wailing about as they reached for Natsu. The golden flames were starting to diminish as the sheer number of phantoms were starting to swallow Natsu, starting to bring him into the void from where the phantoms came from.

"Wha-n-no!" Natsu was being overwhelmed by the number and the phantoms were starting to take Natsu whole. Zero grinned ever so satisfied of his victory…

Though they then felt an immense amount of force being emanated from Nic.

Suddenly, the phantoms were starting to burn away as the aura around Nic expanded. The air was freezing, and in turn was somehow cindering every soul that was devouring Natsu. Natsu went wide-eyed as he saw that he wasn't in a void, but was on the ground and on his feet thankfully.

"What the?!" Natsu turned to see that Nic was exerting his aura and the sphere around him was chilling the air to an extreme degree.

"Zero!" Nic shouted at a distraught Zero. "You!"

Zero stepped back as he was wide-eyed, actually feared for his life. "Y-you! You'd just burned away the souls…with ice?! That's impossible!"

"No more shenanigans! Time to obliterate you!" Nic lunged forth at Zero, his icy reddish-purple aura ever so large and Zero was helpless as Nic grabbed his shirt and he hurled him upwards, Zero's abdomen frozen upon touch. Zero was beyond helpless as Nic soared after him and yelled in the air as he charged so much energy. "**Maxus Legendary Arts – Ice Burn!**" Nic's entire body had then unleashed a multitude of reddish-purple beams that looked like fire that stormed everywhere in sight. The raging Ice Burn attack flared about, and Zero screamed as he was hit head on, swallowed up by the Ice Burn and he was shot forth at the speed of light, crashing repeatedly into several floors above. The flames touches everywhere, freezing the very spots they touched. Nic roared at the top of his lungs as with every floor hit, it was swallowed up in an inferno, freezing almost every floor in ice. When the Ice Burn shot Zero back up to where the chamber was, he crashed head first into the lacrima, completely obliterating it. The entire lacrima burst into a million pieces as something shining went flying from the middle upon shattering, something that was impossible of breaking. A shining pink Plate flung high into the air as Zero continued onwards and smashed into the ceiling. Upon gruesome impact, Zero was imbedded into the cracked ceiling and the area around the chamber was sizzling and the steam itself was cold.

Zero was deprived of pupils as his mouth hung open, frozen in the ceiling as his abdomen was cindered yet completely ice. His chin and the area around his eyes was solid ice as steam erupted and the very steam was leaving frost on his body. The ceiling itself was practically covered in ice thanks to Ice Burn's destructive power. Zero was beyond defeated as it was even hard to tell if he survived as his body was practically frozen yet cindered.

Jellal was still on the ground, and was not within the area that Ice Burn ran wild. He looked with wide eyes as Ice Burn actually nearly maimed Zero. Jellal's mouth was slightly open as he was baffled. _'This unbelievable force…is it that much more devastating than Dragon Force?'_

Nic zoomed back up towards the chamber, he came to a halt as he was in midair and saw that Zero was defeated and frozen on the ceiling. Nic also saw something falling from a spinning flight, to which was the Plate that came out when Zero smashed into the lacrima. Nic saw it falling and he caught it with ease. The Plate shined ever so brighter upon reaching Nic and it blinded everything when Nic touched it.

Jellal gasped as he saw the Plate being infused into Nic, the pink Plate was shining the second the lacrima shattered.

When the light faded, Nic blinked. Even though Nic was infused with the new Plate, he wasn't in his new form at the moment, probably due to him already using Legendary Force. Regardless, it didn't matter as Zero was finished, the lacrima was destroyed, and he had gained a new Plate. Nic let loose a loud roar in victory.

Jellal grinned as he saw the accomplishment Nic achieved. _'Nic and Natsu's power, they exceeded my expectations. Nic has made promise, seeing the truth.'_

The place was then beginning to shake about tremendously as the floor was beginning to come apart, startling everyone. Nic looked down below to see that everything was breaking apart. "Nirvana, it's breaking down." He said. He then looked back up. "If so, then that means all six were destroyed at the same time!" He grinned. _'Wait a go guys.'_

Nic noticed that Jellal was back up on his feet and he saw the predicament he was in. It was clear Jellal couldn't fly. "Jellal, hang on!" Nic exclaimed. He only flew a few feet towards Jellal when the ground behind the blue-haired man was breaking apart, making both individuals turn to see something coming from the ground.

"What on earth is that?!" Jellal shouted.

The dust cleared as Nirvana was shaking, revealing Natsu and no longer in Dragon Force, but that wasn't it. It was the person that had him under his arm. Nic gasped in recognizing the figure that had Natsu.

"Richard!" Nic shouted. "Thank goodness!"

Richard looked up and kept his smile. "Oh yeah!"

Nirvana was beginning to come apart even more, as the ceiling itself was shattering and Zero's body attached to the ceiling was coming off and the everyone began to fall, including Zero, who plummeted towards the open hole that was the pit and fell to who knows where. Nic flew about, evading debris that was coming down. Nic looked around, seeing how this was looking bad.

"Richard, we need to get out of here, now!" Nic exclaimed.

"Right-O! I hear you!" Richard complied. Richard then carried a surprised Jellal under the opposite arm, now Richard had Natsu and Jellal to lead to safety. Richard looked back up at Nic. "And what about you?!"

Nic didn't show any reluctance. "Don't worry, you have your hands full. Besides, I'll find my own way out. Just get Jellal and Natsu to safety, now go!"

Without any arguments, Richard plunged into the ground, carrying Natsu and Jellal both, leaving Nic to look at the corridor and the turbine on his tail turned orange and he zoomed in a flash through the entrance back into the corridor as the chamber completely fell apart.

* * *

**With Gray**

Gray leaped out of Nirvana's giant hole, leaving him to fall and tumble down a hill as the monstrosity collapsed behind him. The earth was thundering behind him as he tumbled downwards and eventually got a grip and he now slid down.

"That was a close one!" Gray muttered as he was sliding down the hill, noting how he barely made it out. Gray made it to the bottom of the hill and he just kept running through the woods through with an open view of Nirvana crashing down from a distance.

Gray stopped and finally turned around to see the dust flying in the distance as Nirvana fell apart. "Man, I hope the others are okay. That thing's crumbling fast."

"Gray!" Gray heard a feminine voice called from behind. He turned around and saw Erza was alright, though she was in her white blouse and no armor.

"Erza!" Gray shouted in relief. When Erza caught up, the two turned back to see someone else who had escaped Nirvana. "And…"

The muscular and hulking figure ran joyfully towards the others, though he had a multitude of bumps on his head from rocks repeatedly pounding his head from when Nirvana collapsed. "I'm so glad you're safe My Honey!" Ichiya exclaimed.

Erza and Gray both paled and yelled in comical fashion alike as Ichiya was coming at them, mainly for Erza. When he stopped in front of them, Erza leaped back in fear and requipped a spear.

"Who are you?!" Erza exclaimed in fear.

"You heard her! Answer the lady or else!" Gray exclaimed, being appalled as well.

Ichiya raised his hands as a means to stand down, seeing them freaking out on him. "Please, calm down! Can't you see I'm your ally?" Ichiya assured, holding up a small tube that had his Power Parfume. "My Power Parfume has temporarily changed my outward appearance, but inside…" He began making manly poses for Erza. "I am still your beloved Ichiya, and you're My Honey!"

Erza was looking away in revelation, appalled by Ichiya even more as he was continuously posing and sparkling.

"Looks like your admirer went to full-scale stalker." Gray noted, in revelation like Erza.

"Don't remind me." She said. "I'd kick him out of the alliance if I had the chance."

From the sky, a giant grandfather clock emerged, startling them. The clock was revealed to be none other than Horologium, one of Lucy's Celestial Spirits. "'I am sooooo dizzy.' Miss Lucy stated with fatigue. 'Tell me about it.' The second blonde sarcastically implies." He repeated.

"An enemy." Ichiya said.

"Calm down." Erza said.

"Yeah chill, it's just one of Lucy's Spirits." Gray assured.

Lucy, Happy, and Sophie all exited Horologium and looked back up at him with hints of confusion. "Thanks for saving us Horologium, but I don't get it. I didn't summon you?" Lucy question.

"You didn't. I came on my own accord." He explained. "Hope you all don't mind."

Happy smiled. "You can rescue us anytime you want! Thanks!" Happy exclaimed.

"Miss Lucy's Magic is getting stronger by the day, so it's likely that you'll see more Celestial Spirits doing the same. I can be provided more useful as I can prevent oxygen deprivation, insect bites, and blemishes." Horologium explained.

Erza was beyond stunned. "No way! He prevents acne?!"

"Didn't know you had that issue?" Sophie said with a raised brow. With that. The clock vanished and departed back to the Celestial Spirit World.

Right as he left, Jura, Wendy, and Carla appeared. "Look, it seems everyone is alright!" Jura exclaimed.

"Even that silly blue tomcat." Carla said.

"Carla! You're okay!" Happy shouted in joy, though Carla paid no heed to him.

"Wait, is Natsu and Jellal okay?" Wendy asked in worries as they all finally regrouped.

"I'm afraid we haven't had word." Ichiya explained. "They might still be inside."

Lucy looked down. "Okay, now I'm worried."

Gray looked away. "I bet that pyro's lost somewhere in the woods. He'll come around."

"Natsu!" Wendy shouted out, trying to get where he was at, but no response.

Erza looked on in worry as she saw Nirvana collapsing in the far distance. She was worried about her teammate and her long lost friend. "Natsu. Jellal. I know you're out there."

Suddenly, the ground in the middle of the group began to liquefy and something emerged from it. Everyone there turned in shock as to what was coming up. The liquefied earth had solidified in the middle, and on solid earth was Richard carrying the two mentioned people. Everyone gasped.

"Love triumphs to save our friends! Oh yeah!" Richard exclaimed.

Gray grinned. "There's that pyro, always some form of dramatic entrance."

Richard had set Natsu and Jellal down and Wendy ran up with teary eyes at Natsu. She was overjoyed to see that he was okay. "Natsu!" Wendy hugged the Dragon Slayer's waist. "You did it! You kept your promise!" Tears scrolled down her face as she was happy. "You saved my guild."

Natsu blinked and then smiled down at Wendy. "It wasn't just me Wendy, we all saved your guild, including yourself." Wendy looked up a bit surprised.

"R-Really? But I didn't do much!" She testified.

Natsu brushed it off. "Don't be silly, you destroyed lacrima, that's a big job that you accomplished!" With that, the two smiled and high fived.

After a brief moment, Sophie blinked in remembrance, as though a necessity wasn't present. When she looked at everybody, Sophie nearly paled in realization.

"GAH!" Sophie shrieked comically, getting everybody's attention.

"Yeah? What's up Sophie?" Gray asked nonchalantly.

Sophie sweated and looked nervous. "Um, guys?" She asked. "I think we need to do a head count."

"Huh?" Almost everybody was confused as to what she meant. They looked around in wonder, and that's when Erza gasped with shocked eyes. Erza turned everywhere and there was no sign of _him_.

The Fairy Queen turned sharply towards the group. "Where's Nic?!" Everybody else gasped in shock in the realization that Nic wasn't there. Where was he?

Richard had a frown. "It would appear that Nic had decided to find his own way out." Everybody turned towards Nirvana in the distance, seeing it fall apart, which worried them greatly. "I'm afraid that young Nic may very well be in Nirvana still."

"Oh no." Sophie squealed as her friend was still inside Nirvana.

"You've gotta be joking?! Nic's still inside that thing?!" Gray exclaimed in disbelief.

Erza looked up as Nirvana was collapsing in the distance. Unconsciously, she walked forward a few paces and had a worried expression on her face. She stopped and she frowned even more. She saw the remains of Nirvana breaking down. "Nic please, come back to us." She muttered.

As if her call was heard, everyone there heard a loud boom from Nirvana's crumbling state and saw something bursting through the top, which made Erza gasp. They all heard a draconic roar and saw something icy and white soaring into the air that was streaming orange as it propelled up the night sky. Everybody there saw the figure was then changing direction and it was curving downwards…and was coming at them!

"Uh…i-is it me, or is that thing…?" Lucy panicked.

Sophie nodded. "Yeah, it's coming right at us."

Natsu gave his trademark grin. "Took him long enough to find an exit." He said.

Gray turned sharply towards him. "Wait, that thing coming towards us is Nic?!"

Everybody started spreading out as Nic sailed from above, all getting a large diameter. Nic landed with a loud and thunderous thud, making the land shake and dust fly. Everyone covered up for a few brief moments, but looked back to see that Nic was back on the ground and let loose one last roar.

"No way! Nic?!" Lucy exclaimed. Everyone there was greatly shocked to say the least. Nic was still in his Legendary Force and he had just gotten out of Nirvana.

Nic looked around and saw everyone, including a very satisfied Erza. Nic gave a general grin towards the group as he shined a rainbow glow, and he reverted back to his normal state. Nic was exhausted, and it was shown by his breathing.

"Hey…guys…" Nic huffed. "Sorry…for the…delay…"

Sophie raised a brow. "Well now, I guess Natsu isn't the only one who can make an entrance, but I gotta ask, what took you?" She wondered.

Nic tried catching his breath and he let out a relieving sigh. "As I was making my way out, my body gave in for a few moments. Using that last attack to annihilate Zero exhausted every bit of energy from my Legendary Force. I felt the aftershock as I was traveling through the corridor. I was drained and was immobile for a few moments. I gave it one last push and that brings us to right…now…" As Nic was finishing, he started collapsing forward, startling everybody.

As if by chance, Erza had caught Nic before he had fallen and held him. Erza felt the happiest person in the alliance with Nic safe and sound again. Erza's hold slowly grew into a hug as she smiled as Nic's tired head was on her shoulder.

"Nic…thank you." She said.

Jellal took notice of the joy that Erza was seeing, giving off a grin.

Some time passed by, allowing everyone to catch up to speed. Nic was lying comfortably against a flat rock as he rested up from exerting so much power when he used Legendary Force, at least this duration was longer than the first time when he was Black Kyurem. Natsu told the group of how Nic and he entered Dragon Force and Legendary Force and how immensely powerful Nic was. Jura explained how Richard became god and was on their side, and that left everyone up to speed.

"I'm glad we're all okay and all." Happy said. "But what about him?" Everyone turned to see who Happy was referring to, which was Jellal leaning against a rock. Everybody was confused as to who he was.

"Is he a pretty boy from Blue Pegasus?" Gray asked.

Erza shook her head. "No, it's Jellal." Lucy and Gray were in shock. Now that they thought about it, they never saw him in person. "He's changed. He's lost his memories."

Gray blinked as he still had doubts, but Wendy tried to explain while Natsu stared up at the sky, pondering how Jellal saved him and Nic earlier. Nic was somewhat conscious as his thoughts were focus on that matter as well. Nic was contemplating as he saw Erza and Jellal converse away from the group, which he felt unsure. Even after what he did to save them, he still had some form of worry when around Erza.

Erza leaned against the same rock Jellal was. "Thank you." She said. "We couldn't have done this without you." She smiled at him with sincerity.

Jellal glanced at her. "That's not true." He then looked back down at the ground.

She didn't care as she then was filled with curiosity. "What will you do now?"

Jellal's hair left a shadow over his face. "I don't know. I wish I knew."

Erza looked back out at the group. "It's alright. I'm sure you're not the only one feeling like that. Who knows what will happen next?"

Jellal began to tense up, which Erza took notice of. "I fear…" Jellal started. "I fear, that my memories will return."

Erza blinked and she saw Jellal struggling. "Don't be." She said and then smiled sincerely. "It wouldn't make any difference." This shocked Jellal as he turned towards Erza. Erza crossed her arms as she then shifted her gaze towards Nic, who was still spacing out and slightly drained. She then looked back at Jellal and smiled. "Whatever happens won't mean anything, because I care about you. I'm glad you're back."

Jellal blinked as he turned at Nic. He picked the pieces together faster than anyone could. He remembered full well that she smiled when she heard Nic earlier, and he saw the sheer joy she was feeling when she hugged him earlier. Jellal grinned. "I'm sure…" He started, making Erza blink and lose her frown. "You have plenty of people to care about."

Erza tried to understand, but she just took Jellal as a priority. "Yeah, I suppose so…but still…"

"MY HANDSOME FACE!" Ichiya exclaimed, making everyone stop what they were doing and the ones that were lying down got up.

"What now?" Gray aske in annoyance.

"I wanna go pee, but I ran into an invisible wall!" Ichiya exclaimed.

Wendy blinked. "Look!" She pointed at the writing on the ground that enclosed them in a large square.

"It can't be." Jura said, reaching outwards only for the hand to stop at a certain point.

"An enchantment." Nic growled.

"MEEEEN!" Ichiya exclaimed.

"Okay, who did this?!" Natsu exclaimed. "Show yourselves!"

Just then, on the trail, a large group of Rune Knights were walking, with a man with black hair and glasses leading. A carriage followed behind. The Rune Knights surrounded everyone in the enchantment, making everyone grow cautious.

"Who-who are all these people?!" Wendy asked, scared of the Rune Knights.

The man leading them walked forward. "There's no need for panic. We mean no harm." The man said. "Our apologies, but we had to restrain you."

"Who the heck are you?" Happy shouted.

"I am the caption of the new Magic Council's Fourth Custody Enforcement Unit, Lahar. And this is my army." He announced.

"No way?!" Natsu exclaimed, freaking out.

"A new Magic Council?! That didn't take long!" Gray exclaimed.

Lahar began his speech. "It is my duty to uphold the law and take in any and all evil doers, and keep justice throu-."

"Get to the point." Nic demanded, stunning Lahar. Nic paid no heed as he loathed the Magic Council and he wasn't afraid to show it. "We've had a long agonizing day, get to the point." Natsu and everyone else looked at Nic in astonishment, as though he was insane, even Erza was fairly astonished.

Lahar was baffled, but he could see the group was slightly desperate. He would allow the matter to pass just this once. He cleared his throat. "Very well then. I am here to take the Oracion Seis into custody. I ask that you cooperate and hand over the man codenamed Hoteye."

Richard and Jura both gasped and Lucy and Nic turned in shock. Richard, their new friend and faithful ally, was to be taken away from them.

Jura stepped forward and had both arms out by his sides. "No! Never!" The Rune Knights were armed and they tensed up, showing their weapons. They were slightly afraid of a Wizard Saint going cray on them, but then thankfully for them that Richard stepped forward.

"It's alright, I'll surrender." Richard said, startling everyone.

Jura turned back in shock that his new friend was giving up that easily. "Richard, why?"

Richard looked down at the ground and smiled. "I cannot fully embrace a life of virtue when my past transgressions continue to haunt me. It's my chance to atone for my sins." He then looked back up at Jura, still giving a sincere smile. "That way, I'll have a clean slate when I find my brother. That way I have nothing to hide, don't you agree?"

Jura paused with a frown, but he smiled when he realized the logic in Richard's actions. Even Jura would do this for the sake of a new and happy life. Jura then turned back towards his new ally. "Agreed. Shall I continue the search for your brother in your stead?" He requested.

Richard blinked and jerked that Jura would do such a thing for a friend. "You'd do that for me?"

"I'd be honored." Jura explained. "I just need his name."

Richard then spoke his name. "His name is Wally. Wally Buchanan."

The name a bell for Natsu, Lucy, and Gray, but for Erza, she recognized it, as did Nic somewhat. When it clicked, Natsu, Gray, and Lucy all exclaimed the guy who said 'dandy' a lot. "THE BLOCKHEAD?!"

"He's your brother?" Erza asked in shock.

Richard looked down at the ground, remembering his times with his brother before they were separated. "I miss him dearly. He was a good kid. The best little brother a guy could ask for."

_A young Richard and Wally were in a wasteland, using gardening tools to get through the soil in front of their very small home. It was just them, no parents, leaving them to look after the other._

"_Geez, this soil is hard as rock!" A young Wally complained as he kept hitting the ground with his tools._

"_I know, but we've gotta keep working." Richard put down his tools and wiped the sweat off his forehead. "It may seem hopeless now, but if we just stay positive and keep working, it's bound to become rich soil eventually."_

_Wally was inspired by his big brother and he smiled. "You're right big bro! As long as we stay positive, there's nothing we can't do!"_

_Richard smiled as he was joyful, seeing his younger brother look up to him. Both brothers smiled through the hopelessness they endured as the days went by, and to which with their hard work, they managed to create a rich soiled field._

"My brother and I struggled to survive after losing both of our parents." Richard explained. "We worked diligently to grow vegetables in our garden. Unfortunately when it came time for the harvest, we were left…disappointed."

_In their small garden, both Richard and Wally were upset as all of their plants were wilted and dead. _

_Wally began to cry out of failure. "I can't believe all that work was for nothing bro! Not a single vegetable grew! This sucks!" He cried tearfully._

_Richard turned towards his somber brother without tears, trying to stay positive. "Come on, don't cry Wally." Richard looked back out at the small garden, seeing all of the dead plants. Richard felt sadness as well until he spotted something among the dead plants. A lone, healthy, plant was growing in the middle of the garden._

_Wally saw it and he instantly perked up and humped for joy. "We did it! We grew one!"_

"_Oh yeah!" Richard exclaimed._

_After the potato grew, it was steaming and was fresh on their table. Wally looked at the potato, almost begging for it. "I don't know about you, but I'm ready to chow down!"_

_Richard sat patiently and looked at Wally. "We're not eating anything until we say Grace." Richard and Wally both sat down and clasped their hands together. He then started. "A single potato may not look much, but in our eyes it's a harvest that has given us determination and hope. Thank you for this blessing."_

"_Yeah, thanks a lot for the food." Wally butted in, grabbing the entire potato. "Time to chow down-!" As he was about to shove the entire steaming potato into his mouth, he froze as he saw the nervous smile plastered on Richard's face. "…oh, right. You get half." He sheepishly reminded himself._

"_My stomach's been bothering me today." Richard lied, wanting to see his brother eat. "You can have it."_

_Wally was shocked. His brother would starve to see his brother eat. Wally looked down at the potato and he then split it in half, surprising Richard as he held out a half to him._

"_Why'd you do that?" Richard asked._

_Both their stomachs growled. Wally answered in a lie. "Well, my stomach's been bothering me too, and I can't eat this all by myself. Help me out will ya?" He held out a piece with a smile. _

Richard smiled. "Even though many years have passed by, I can still remember the taste of that potato."

Eraz stepped forwards toward Richard. "I know your brother Richard." She answered with a smile.

Jura and Richard both turned towards Erza in shock. "You do?!" He asked.

"Yes, he's an old friend of mine. He's happily traveling across the continent as we speak." She answered.

Hearing his long lost brother, about how he was healthy and alive, not to mention well, Richard began to tear up in sheer joy. Richard was having streams of tears scroll down his face and he grabbed his face and looked down.

"A-All these years I kept telling myself that…if I stay positive a miracle would happen. And Lord behold, it has!" The happy man sank to his knees and cried in his hands. "Thank you…thank you…thank you."

He sobbed. Everyone watched on with a smile as Richard cried in joy as his brother was told to be alive. After he'd finished his joyful sob, he happily got up and allowed the Rune Knights to take him away into the carriage.

Seeing their friend go, everyone frowned. "I feel bad for him." Lucy said.

"Me to." Happy said.

"It can't be helped." Gray answered.

"It must have been hard, but I think he'd made the right decision." Carla answered.

Nic looked on as he saw the last image of Richard before he went inside the carriage. "He's a good man."

"I'm glad he's happy and all, but release the enchantment so I can go pee!" Ichiya exclaimed.

Lahar wasn't moved. "Sorry, but that's not an option. That is, not until we've captured our true objective." He explained.

Now everyone was on edge, their true objective? Even Ichiya was on edge as they all tensed up.

"A fiend who destroyed the Magic Council, and fired Etherion. A man more villainous than the Oracion Seis." Lahar propped his glasses closer to his eyes. "I'm referring to you Jellal. Comply and come with me."

Everyone there gasped as Lahar announced that Jellal was to be taken into custody. Erza had horror in the eyes as her friend was to be taken away. Nic went wide-eyed as Jellal, a new comrade, was to be taken.

"Leave him alone!" Wendy shouted as Jellal looked down at the ground.

Nic clenched his fists. "You monsters!"

Erza was looking at the ground, still shocked in the eyes that Jellal was going to be taken once again. Erza looked on in sadness.

"Us the monsters?" Lahar scowled. "Fools, Jellal Fernandes is cold and black of heart as they come. He must be brought to justice!" Jellal was surrounded by Rune Knights and his hands were cuffed in front of him, and all anyone could do was watch. "Jellal Fernandes, you are under arrest."

Erza gasped as Jellal was held by two Rune Knights and was taken close to Lahar. Natsu clenched his fists and grunted. But Nic was having an even harder time, seeing another good man being taken from them.

"Please don't take him away!" Wendy shouted. "He didn't even know what he's done! He doesn't remember anything!"

"Ignorance of one's crimes isn't a defense." Lahar explained from the codes he remembered. "You may remove the barrier."

"Hold on!" Wendy implored.

"It's alright." Jellal said. "I will not resist arrest…please forgive me Wendy. I wish I could remember you, I'm sorry that I cannot."

Carla stepped forward. "When she was lost and alone, you took her in."

Jellal looked on with a pause. "Did I? I may never know the harm I may have inflicted in the past, but at least I knew I helped one person."

Nic looked back at Erza, seeing the sadness that was on her face said it all. Nic was slightly in shock as to what expression he read, but it was clear that Erza didn't want Jellal gone. Erza looked down at the ground and she was upset to say the very least, that was scratching the surface. Nic saw the sadness in her eyes, her brown eyes said everything; Jellal means so much to her now that he's back.

Something in Nic tugged at him, as if an impulsive thought ran through his head, yelling at him to make Erza happy by keeping Jellal here with them…but another half said that it was wrong, like the good and bad of a human being.

Nic looked back to see Jellal looking at him and Erza. Jellal spoke. "Erza, I won't ever forget your kindness." He then turned and allowed the Rune Knights to take him. Erza closed her eyes and she winced in despair, to which made Nic's heart tug even more.

'_Nic.' _Nic told himself. _'What the hell are you doing? Why are you just standing there, go and get Jellal!'_

'_But he made Erza cry…'_

'_He made amends! Just look at her!...Erza needs Jellal!'_

'_This wouldn't be fair!'_

'_Fair to who? Yourself!?' _

'_But…I…'_

'_Forget that! Erza needs Jellal more than you know! They were separated and now they're being pulled away again!'_

'_...This hurts!'_

'_Don't be selfish! Do it for Erza! If she cares more about Jellal…then so be it.'_

Erza remained still as she clenched her fists. _'I can't let this happen. It's not right, it's not fair. All these years, he was sleepwalking through darkness and now he's seen the light!'_

"Any more words?" Lahar asked as Jellal passed by him.

"…no." He answered.

"You'll get at least a life sentence if you're lucky. At any rate, you'll never see these people again." Lahar said, everyone looking on as Jellal was walking closer towards the carriage.

Wendy started to tear up. "He's gone."

Jellal was ten feet from the carriage, and Erza was more desperate than anyone else. "I can't let him go-."

"DON'T YOU DARE TAKE HIM AWAY!" Nic hollered with him and Natsu both punching Rune Knights out of the blue, shocking Erza tremendously and Jellal stopped to turn back in shock. Everyone was in deep surprise as Natsu and Nic repeatedly bashed Rune Knights as they tried to gain up on them, but the Dragon Slayer and Nic both easily used melee combat and Nic bashed repeatedly against all of the numbers.

"He's one of us!" Nastu shouted, shocking Jellal. "And that means he comes with us!" Erza's pupils shrunk in surprise.

"Erza needs you Jellal! Don't let her be!" Nic shouted, kicking with great force against a Rune Knight and sending him into others. "She needs you…more than any of us!"

Erza gasped that Nic had just said that. _'N-Nic…' _Her heart just pulsed

"Stop them now!" Lahar commanded, the Rune Knights running towards Nic and Natsu. The Rune Knights were coming and Nic and Natsu bashed repeatedly, and eventually Gray joined in the ruckus.

"Keep going guys!" Gray shouted as he blocked us Rune Knights and punched them. "There's no way you guys can stop us! This is wrong anyway! Jellal helped stop Nirvana! He just saved a whole bunch of people!"

Jura punched a palm. "You'd punish him for his sins, yet chose not to reward him for his good deeds?!" He was prepared to fight as well as Rune Knights advanced.

Ichiya joined in and punched guys with his muscular body. "It pains me, but if you take him away, it'll hurt Erza more!"

Lucy was swiping away cowardly, unintentionally hitting Rune Knights. "Hey, I can't see who I'm hitting so I'm innocent, right?"

Sophie was joining in as well. "Stop this! Jellal deserves a chance!"

"Erza needs you! She did it all for you!" Nic shouted as he was bashing victoriously. Jellal was looking down as his new comrades were fighting for his freedom. "You're one of us now!"

Erza had a shadow over her eyes as she was lost and her heart raced. _'…Nic…Jellal…'_

"Arrest them all for obstruction of justice!" Lahar shouted.

More and more Rune Knights were coming and Nic and everyone kept fighting. Erza showed her teeth and she was choking. She couldn't bear this anymore. She wanted Jellal to stay, but she couldn't bear to see everyone fighting for his freedom. Seeing and hearing Nic yelling for the demand of Jellal's freedom tore her up, and then she finally snapped.

"**STOP!**" Her voice echoed coldly, making everyone freeze in place, her hair leaving a black shadow over her eyes. Everyone turned to see that Erza was putting a halt to this. She then spoke. "I apologize for this disturbance. It's gone too far. I am accountable. Now please…take him away."

Jellal paused and then he looked back down at the ground with a grin.

"But why?!" Natsu shouted.

"Sit down!" Erza demanded coldly, to which Natsu obediently did like a dog.

"Erza! The heck is wrong with you?! You need him!" Nic yelled.

"Enough Nic!" She yelled.

"NO!" Nic retorted coldly, making Erza step back in shock. "Don't you get it?! I nor anyone can bear the pain you would endure with Jellal gone! We're doing this for you both!"

Erza looked down at the ground. "Nic…"

"Nic." Jellal called, making Erza and Nic alike both turn towards Jellal. "It's alright. She has you guys. It's true that she cares about me, but she has others that are bigger priorities, and she should see that as well." He smiled. Erza was left speechless as Jellal turned away. The Rune Knights continued to walk him back towards the carriage.

Jellal then stopped as he had some realization. "I remember…" He turned his head back around and towards her. "It's the color of your hair."

A light wind blew as Erza was frozen. Jellal had remembered. Jellal then finally stepped into the carriage with his back turned. "Take care old friend." And with that, Jellal's image was gone and into the darkness of the carriage.

Erza's eyes were fixated on the last image of Jellal and when he left. Everyone looked on hopelessly as the winds blew and the Rune Knights left and Erza was left standing still, her lip quivering.

Everyone looked in sadness, but Nic felt like a failure. _'Erza…'_

Erza then walked off to find peace of mind.

* * *

**At daybreak…**

A few brief hours rolled by rather quickly and everyone sat around dejectedly, still upset about earlier.

"Hey you guys, does anybody happen to know where Erza went?" Wendy asked.

Natsu grumbled as he stared up at the sky.

Lucy answered with sadness. "She just needs to be alone for awhile."

Sophie sat around dejectedly, knowing someone else whose presence wasn't exactly cared for. _'She wasn't the only who needed to be alone.'_

* * *

**Somewhere close by…**

As the sun began to rise, Erza had her head on her knees against a rock perched high on a cliff, clenching both her arms and a shadow still cascaded over her eyes.

Out of sight, Nic leaned against a rock, seeing Erza in depression. He was as quiet as they came, so she had no idea he was there.

Nic looked on in sadness as he was in his new Mind Plate Form, trying to understand the pain Erza was going through. His sleeveless coat was black still, but the entire coat had nine pink circles, three rows for three circles, with smaller circles in them, like targets or ripples. He had on black shoes with pink lining. He also sported a dark pink T-shirt and cream-colored pants. His sunglasses were also framed with dark pink.

Nic looked on, and using his mental powers provided by the Mind Plate, he saw through Erza's thoughts, which was a flashback.

"_My name is Jellal Fernandes." A young Jellal in the tower said._

_Wally raised a brow. "That's a tough one."_

_Jellal didn't mind. "Yours won't be a problem, Wally Buchanan." He then turned towards Erza. "And what about you?"_

_Erza smiled and looked at the ground. "Just Erza, that's all I got."_

_Jellal blinked. "Well you need a last name." He then felt Erza's hair, surprising her. "Ohh." He marveled._

_Erza shook him off. "What's the big idea?!"_

"_Your hair is pretty is all."Jellal answered, making Erza blush. "I got it! How about we make your last name Scarlet?"_

_Wally wasn't that moved. "You can't just make up a last name on the spot."_

_Erza looked away. "I-I like that a lot." She praised. "So now, I'll be Erza Scarlet."_

There were no words to describe this feeling Erza had that Nic was sensing. It was unspeakable. She was hurt really bad, and worst of all, it was hurting mostly in her heart. If Nic could gasp right now, he might if not for Erza being there.

Nic had no idea Jellal meant _that _much. He felt as though he did more than fail, he felt as though he had nothing to give, not that he had anything to begin with. It was obvious now that Erza loved Jellal, and Nic's head turned down at the ground.

His eyes never left Erza as she started to show streams of tears. She was so broken and depressed losing her childhood friend that she finally had enough and she let it all out. "Jellal." She muttered. She started to cry immensely and bawled. Her mouth was open as she let it all out and bawled nonstop.

Nic felt some small tears swelling up in him as well. Without a single sound, he departed the somber scene and he escaped the madness. Nic quietly made it far into the forest, far away from Erza's crying and far away so that the group wouldn't hear. He shifted back into himself and without warning started punching a tree. Nic punched repeatedly to no end, furiously letting out his own frustration.

Nic kept going for awhile until the frustration had ceased the violent part and he had a fist imbedded into the tree trunk, his fist bruised from nonstop punching. A tear streamed down his cheek.

Nic was in pain. His body was shaking as he couldn't make his fist leave the tree. Another stream of tears went down his face. Nic's heart was hurt, not just from seeing Erza cry far worse than last time, but he felt as though he didn't deserve someone who loved another person, not that they were together anyway.

Still, Nic harbored feelings for her, and it pained him to a huge degree. He felt hollow and a failure for not keeping Jellal with Erza. He rested his head against the trunk, silently weeping at the turbulence going on inside of him.

* * *

**Later, in Cait Shelter…**

The Allied Forces were in front of the entire Cait Shelter. Most of everyone was wearing clothing in honor of Cait Shelter, though the ones who wore their own attires was, the Trimens, Ichiya, and Nic. Not that Nic was disrespectful, but he was in no mood.

Nic looked over and saw that Era was no less upset. She may or may not had taken a bigger blow than him. Even with this joyous occasion, she wasn't looking happy. Nic couldn't even look at her in the eyes.

Roubaul and all of Cait Shelter gathered. "Fairy Tail. Blue Pegasus. Lamia Scale. And Wendy and Carla. You have saved our village from Nirvana's wrath." He said. "Speaking as a representative of our guild, I, Roubaul, give you my gratitude." He bowed forward to them. "We are in your debt."

"Men!" Ichiya proclaimed. "We were happy to help you, Master Roubaul! Though quite the long battle it was, we have won! Through the darkness shined a light of friendship that had brought victory! Men!"" He posed nonstop with sparkles and the Trimens clapped for Ichiya.

"I suppose it's over now." Sherry said.

Jura laid a hand on both Sherry and Lyon's shoulders. "I am very proud of you both."

"Thank you sir." Lyon said.

"We deserve a victory arty!" Natsu proclaimed.

"Aye sir!" Happy shouted.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!" Ichiya shouted. "Oh yes!" Everyone was pretty happy to want a party, except Erza still, and let's not forget Nic. The two looked on at everyone else. Erza seemed disinterested as she tried to take a small glance at Nic, but Nic kept looking away, hurt. Erza blinked and she looked back down and her heart pulled again. She remembered something Jellal said.

"_I'm sure…" He started, making Erza blink and lose her frown. "You have plenty of people to care about." _Erza remembered what he meant.

She also what Jellal also said. _"Nic." Jellal called, making Erza and Nic alike both turn towards Jellal. "It's alright. She has you guys. It's true that she cares about me, but she has others that are bigger priorities, and she should see that as well."_

True, Erza misses Jellal, but she also knows that people worry for her, and she did care for someone deeply, though she was still conflicted at the moment. She missed her dear friend, but she also knew a reason why her heart was tugging. She just looked back at the group that was happy.

"Is the Cait Shelter up to getting down?" Ichiya asked, but the entire, and I mean the _entire_ village just had frowns and looked slightly dejected, almost immediately dying off the mood. Everyone froze and Wendy and Carla all looked back to see that even Roubaul was cascading a sad glance down at the ground.

Roubaul looked back up at the shocked group at their disappointment. "I'm truly sorry, I'm neglected to tell you of the Nirvit people. Please accept my sincere apology."

A long, long pause passed and someone tried to break it.

"It's alright Master." Wendy said sincerely. "You don't have to tell us if you don't want to."

Roubaul sighed. "It's important. I ask that everyone listens closely." The atmosphere died to a low level, making it a more ominous and suspenseful feeling. "Listen to the tale I will tell…let me start off with something. The truth is that we are not descendants of the Nirvits."

Wendy jerked back in shock. "What?"

"…we are the Nirvits themselves. Four hundred years ago, Nirvana was created by my hands."

"By you?!" Lyon exclaimed.

"I don't believe it." Lucy said in shock.

"Four hundred years?" Sophie wondered.

Wendy stepped back in shock and had shaken eyes as Roubaul explained more. "I thought if I had made Nirvana reality, I could end the war. I would do so by changing the ambitions of those waving between light and darkness." His eyes narrowed. "We made our home there and prospered in a dark and shadowy world…however, it came at a horrific price. Nirvana didn't chase darkness, but absorbed it sort of speak."

Erza, Nic, and Wendy all looked on with surprise.

"With no light, there may be no darkness, without pros there are no cons, no purpose to be realized. Light is born from darkness and vice versa." Roubaul said.

"Yeah, that's what happened with us." Sophie said, remembering Sherry and Richard.

Roubaul continued. "All the evil, taken by those who were consumed in it was transferred to the Nirvits…it was hell." Roubaul remembered every detail of people slaughtering each other and killing each other off. "We slaughtered each other until no one was left standing." Everyone's mouths were gaped in horror, hearing this killing that went on.

"Though…I am the only survivor. Then again in this particular situation, survivor is misleading. In truth, my body ceased to function many years ago, what you see before you is just a projection of the man I once was."

Wendy's eyes had sharp pupils as a wind blew in ominous surprise as Roubaul was a projection this entire time.

"As punishment for my sins, this spirit that I am stood over watch for four hundred years, awaiting for Nirvana's destruction and relinquish it into history."

Roubaul paused and smiled after a long time. "…and now…I shall begone as Nirvana has been destroyed."

Everyone stood frozen as Roubaul announced his spirit will go away. Wendy clenched her fists and looked angry. "No, why didn't you tell me?" Erza saw the despair Wendy was feeling as well. The Fairy Queen gazed at the scene.

Roubaul closed his eyes and he sighed. Suddenly, his body looked wavy as though the projection was fading. He stood there as one member vanished behind him, followed by another, and then another, until people were starting to vanish left and right. Some were giving smiles as they saw Wendy one last time.

"What's happening?!" Wendy exclaimed in confusion. "Don't go!"

The members didn't answer, but they all smiled at her, glad for Wendy to have come this far. The members all then began to disappear forever.

Hibiki was wide-eyed. "Everyone's disappearing, right before our eyes!"

Wendy was starting to tear up. "W-Why are you doing this?! Please don't go!" Still, more smiling members disappeared.

Roubaul looked down at the ground. "I've deceived you Wendy; for that I am truly sorry. All your fellow guild members were illusions."

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Natsu exclaimed in deep shock.

"Illusions with their own personalities?" Lyon questioned.

The illusions were almost gone, which left only Roubaul and a few others that were disappearing. Every single one of those people were gone. "For many years, I have lived in this deserted village alone, keeping an eye on Nirvana…until one day, a boy came with a young girl looking for help." Wendy gasped, realizing he meant Jellal. "His eyes burned with intensity and sincerity that I had no choice to take the girl in. I was to be in solitary existence, but there she was."

He remembered somberly as to how he gave Wendy a home. A family of Cait Shelter. He regretted doing this to her.

He continued. "I filled this village with illusions so she wouldn't be alone."

"S-So you created an entire guild just for Wendy?" Lucy asked in shock.

"NO ONE WAS A REAL PERSON?! HOW COULD YOU DO SOMETHING SO CRUEL TO ME MASTER?!" Wendy cried.

Roubaul kept a smile, despite Wendy's anguish. "Do not fret my dear. Calm down." As the last illusionary members vanished, he pointed at the Allied Forces. "You and Carla don't need imaginary friends. You're surrounded by real friends who care for you."

Nic's gaze at this spectacle was that of everyone, which was upsetting and mournful. First Erza, and now Wendy was losing someone.

Roubaul's body began to sparkle and he very slowly started to glow. Even in his last moments, he chuckled. He smile at Wendy as the young girl was crying nonstop as Roubaul was disappearing right before her eyes.

"A bright future awaits you child …" Roubaul's image then began to fade away.

Wendy ran as Roubaul was vanishing. "Master!" Everyone looked on despondently as Wendy lost her guild. Wendy was in the spot Roubaul was in as the last bit of light he was fluttering in the air.

His voice was heard in the wind. "To each and every one of you, I owe my deepest gratitude. I know I can leave Wendy and Carla in your hands…thank you…farewell…"

With that, the last light of Roubaul faded into nothing, leaving the man to rest in peace, his long task now finally over.

Wendy was on her knees as she was streaming tears to no end, everyone she knew was gone. Her Cait Shelter guild mark was disappearing on her right shoulder.

Wendy cried up to the sky. "**MASTER!**" Wendy broke down and cried while wiping her eyes to no end.

Everyone there looked on even more despondently than before. You could see the sorrow Ichiya, Lucy, and everyone felt for Wendy losing everything she held dear.

Everyone could only look on, with Nic looking upset, and he and everyone else went wide-eyed. Nic saw in surprise that Erza was kneeling behind Wendy and had a hand on the young girl's shoulder.

Erza kept her hand on Wendy's shoulder looking just as sad as anyone there. She remembered the last images of Jellal.

"I know all too well, the pain of losing someone you loved." Erza explained. "But you'll heal, we'll help you." Wendy turned around with tears in her eyes as Erza was comforting the poor thing. "Come with us, come to Fairy Tail."

Nic knew what she meant of someone who was loved, and he knew she meant Jellal. Nic's gaze lowered as he felt ever more torn up, seeing as how this will be much harder to fix for himself. Too many people lost one another today. Wendy lost her guild, and Erza and Jellal lost each other. Nic was left in question if Erza really had anything for him. All he could do was just watch as Erza comforted Wendy, with his heart damaged in all of its strings.

* * *

**Good news, I didn't get anxiety writing so much, probably since I knew where to stop. This was longer than I thought, so don't go hating me. I told you guys that these chapters would be insanely long in this Arc. Feeling sorry for Nic? Conflicted? Review if this chapter was good enough to give you the feels.**

**I should probably address something in regards to Nic's Legendary Arts. When Nic is not using Legendary Force, he's using Legendary Arts. When he's using Legendary Force, the Legendary Arts used are Maxus Legendary Arts, which are Legendary Arts at their most terrifying peak; furthermore, the Maxus Legendary Art has to match the Legendary Pokémon Nic is taking form of, get it?**

**Now that the Oracion Seis Arc is finally over, we can get back to normal length chapters! I have a plan for next chapter, and it'll be the small bridge that connects to the Edolas Arc.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys have enjoyed the battles and emotions I had set up and portrayed.**

* * *

**Next Time: The Eyes of Satan**


	30. The Eyes of Satan

Chapter 30 – The Eyes of Satan

**Well, I was quite disappointed with the lack of Reviews for last chapter. I was expecting a whole lot more, but I guess I should just keep on going. Still, I implore you to leave Reviews, I could really use them as evidence to show that you enjoy and support this story.**

**Nothing else vital to say, so on with the program!**

**To Reap:**

Nic and Natsu quarrel against Zero and Jellal steps in and gives them strength and comradery. Natsu enters Dragon Force and Nic enters his White Kyurem Legendary Force, defeating Zero with no problem and stopping Nirvana once and for all. The Rune Knights surrounded the group not long afterwards and they took Richard, and the group fought for Jellal's freedom, but Erza told them to stop, though Nic lashed out. With Jellal gone, Erza cries, and though Nic obtained the Mind Plate, he too cried, feeling upset about Erza. The next day, everyone learns the secret of Cait Shelter and Roubaul and the guild bid farewell as they all depart for the afterlife, leaving Wendy in tears and for Erza to comfort her. Seeing how Erza cared very deeply for Jellal, probably more than him, Nic was left heartbroken.

* * *

**Chapter 30 – The Eyes of Satan**

Roughly two weeks have passed by after the whole Nirvana incident. Everyone from the Allied Forces returned home and Fairy Tail went back to being its usual self. A lot of events transpired within those two weeks; and one of them included the return of Fairy Tail's Ace named Gildarts. Erza recovered quickly from losing Jellal, though someone took the matter more personal than it should've been.

The sky was partly cloudy and Fairy Tail was being as rowdy as a Tauros with Anger Point. Nothing serious was going down, the usual went on, which consisted of Lucy complaining of being broke, Cana drinking, and Natsu and Gray starting brawls, but this time around, someone wasn't there to stop it, so Erza halted them.

"You looking to pick a fight stripper?!" Natsu glared with an orange aura at Gray, who had a blue aura in return. Both sides were glaring face-to-face.

"Are you seriously wanting to go up against me flame brain?!" Gray scowled.

"That's enough!" Erza got between them and pushed her arms out, cracking their necks. Both of them fell back and were out briefly. Erza looked down and sighed. "Honestly, can you two ever learn to get along?"

"That's Natsu and Gray for ya!" Happy said.

"Say, Erza hasn't changed much." Gildarts said, looking from a stool from the bar. In case if you were wondering, Gildarts was a tall, muscular man with shoulder-length orange hair that was slicked back. His body had lost an arm and leg as of recently, so instead he had wooden prosthetics. He had a long, black, high-collared, tattered cloak with shoulder plates. He had a waist guard around his simple belt as well. He had loose dark pants that tucked into his simple boots. He chuckled as he saw Gray and Natsu groan on the floor.

Makarov was sitting on the bar table and took a breath after drinking from a mug. "Much time has passed Gildarts; you'd be surprised of what you missed."

Gildarts turned towards Makarov. "I don't doubt you there old man. Everyone's all grown up. This will take some getting used to." He looked around and saw the happy smiles on everyone's faces.

Team Natsu settled down and gathered at a table, where Wendy joined in as well. "So guys, do you think that we'll be going on another job?" The Sky Dragon Slayer asked.

Lucy sweatdropped with a nervous smile. "Let's try and take it easy Wendy."

"We all know you're excited joining Fairy Tail, but don't forget that we just got back from one yesterday." Gray reminded her.

Out of the entire group, Erza was the only one standing up. She was actually turning her head left and right, as if looking anxiously for something. She had her eyes narrowed as she couldn't find what she was looking for. She looked back at the group sitting down. "Have any of you seen Nic around?"

Lucy and everyone turned towards Erza. "Erza, you've been asking that same question every other day." Lucy said.

"I don't know what's up with the guy." Natsu said with crossed arms. "For some reason, he's been acting really weird."

"Yeah. Ever since we've came back from stopping Nirvana and the Oracion Seis, Nic's been more…distant." Gray added.

"Aye. We only get glimpses of him before he takes off again. He's almost never around anymore." Happy followed up.

Fortunately for Team Natsu, Cana was right next to them and was chugging down another barrel of booze. If anyone knows what Nic's up to, it's her.

Cana was chugging down her usual booze when Erza came up to her. "Cana." She asked, getting the brunette's attention. "Have you seen Nic around lately?" She couldn't help but sound slightly anxious.

Cana looked at Erza, seeing the slight plead in her eyes. The brunette let a displeasing hum escape as she looked down blankly at the tabletop. "Sorry Erza, but Nic's out on another job." She then glanced back towards Erza. "He's been on jobs left and right, so he and I converse briefly."

"I see." Erza's voice had some signs of disappointment in them. "Have you seen Sophie as well? You and Sophie are close friends of Nic's, so it's natural to belief that you two have an insight as to his condition."

"You make it sound like he's dying Erza, chillax." Cana casually asked, to which the redhead gave a dark glare, to which Cana groaned in defeat. "But since you asked, Sophie's on her own job and will be back tomorrow, maybe you can ask her then if Nic's isn't around by that time. The guy has his own problems too you know."

Erza thanked Cana and then turned back towards the group, having a small frown on her face. She hasn't seen much of Nic ever since they came back, and she was getting concerned.

* * *

**Lupinus Town**

A small group of raiders was bothering the townsfolk as of recently, and some of them possessed Magic, which called for this job to be B - Class at the very least. The raiders normally hid in the alleys and stole from people when they venture too close, hence the events that lead to this point of time.

A Brine attack was seen launched from the alleyway, flooding out several members from the gang. They all gushed out onto the streets and whoever was able to move made a run for it. A couple of members were out just like that and the rest that escaped made a break for the south down a slant into town.

"You're not getting away that easily!" A figure with sunglasses on his face, the sunlight bouncing off and he was dashing out of the alleyway and used his amazing speed to catch up quickly. The figure was identified to be Nic in his Splash Plate Form, and the job he took was to deal with these raiders.

The guys were trying to get away, but Nic was clearly too fast and they saw him leap over their heads and fired a Bubble attack right in front of the group of eight. The group was stopped from advancing as Nic landed behind them and he clenched his own fists briefly, making them crack just like that.

"Now." Nic lowly said. "Are you going to surrender?"

One of the raiders looked at Nic and he grunted. "Yeah right, you've just messed with the wrong guys buddy!" The raider made a red Magic seal and a stream of fire went burrowing at Nic, who didn't even flinch.

"Pitiful." Nic shook his head. "Those flames are weak judging by the loose pressure."

As the fire continued down its path at Nic, multiple compressed stars of water shot from out of nowhere and practically sliced through the fire with ease, dispelling it.

"Gah! What the?!" The one who shot the Fire Magic exclaimed.

"Where did that come from?!" Another member exclaimed. The group was in a little panic as they were clearly out maneuvered. They remained still as they heard the sound of feet hitting the ground behind them, making them all turn around and yelp.

"This can be difficult if they keep resisting, right Nic?" Greninja said towards Nic, who was on the other end of the group. The two had the raiders cornered on both ends.

"I suppose so." Nic casually implied. He had hands in his pockets as he looked at the shaking group. "Now, this is your last warning. Give up, or we'll have to suppress you with more drastic measures."

A fellow raider had a sword in his hand and he was shaken up too, but still showed resistance. Yeah, not the best course of action. He held up the sword. "As if! Back off pal!" He scowled with clear signs of being a coward. As he brought the blade back and was about to run up to Nic foolishly, a Water Shuriken from Greninja completely bisected the sword, cutting it down, as well as getting a few strands of hair from the man's head. The raiders all froze at this swift counterattack.

"We don't bluff. That was your last warning." Greninja informed them.

Nic then began to crack his knuckles and grinned as he shifted into the Meadow Plate. "Alright Greninja, let's rough them up."

The two then jumped into the air and was over the raiders' heads. Nic looked down and fired a Razor Leaf attack in conjunction of Greninja's Water Shuriken, making falling compressed stars of water and green-glowing leaves rain down on the group. The terrified group wailed and some peed their pants as the attacks came down on them. They wailed again as they were hit and their weapons were destroyed and they ended up being swallowed in a burst of energy, sending dust flying.

Greninja and Nic landed side-by-side as the smoke cleared, revealing the unconscious group of raiders and their groaning of agony. They were all a wreck and Nic and Greninja didn't even try.

"Honestly, they call themselves raiders?" Nic asked Greninja with crossed arms.

"Nothing can be said about their actions." Greninja reasoned. "It's best that they learn the hard way."

"Very well, let's just wrap things up here." Nic said. He transformed himself into the Mind Plate and he used Telekinesis to lift the unconscious ones and he transferred them towards the remaining few that were knocked out earlier. Greninja and Nic waited until the Rune Knights came and arrested the raiders and took them away. Nic briefly met the client and was given his payment as promised, after which Nic and Greninja left.

It was now a moonless night and Nic and Greninja were traveling by tree as they always do. They were expected to reach Magnolia by tomorrow close to noon at the pace they were going. They were going to stop ahead soon enough and rest up for the rest of the trip back.

As Nic had his sunglasses on his V-neck and dashing through the trees, Greninja was right by his side and looked at Nic. "So how much longer until we stop."

Nic kept leaping and looked forward. "Half hour, maybe an hour. Depends on how much further we can see."

Greninja kept his glancing back and forth between Nic and forward as they continued to proceed. Greninja was silent for a bit until five minutes or so rolled by. He looked back at Nic and kept his gaze on him. "Nic." The great Luminous of Fairy Tail looked briefly at his froggy pal. Greninja paused before shifting his glance towards the ground below. "Let's call it quits for the night."

With that being said, Nic blinked and he looked at the ground and he proceeded another two feet before stopping on a strong tree branch. The duo took a moment and recharged their lungs with oxygen before descending to the ground below and landed on their feet.

Nic turned towards Greninja with a blank look. "We should start recuperating for the next job request. When we get back we'll try and take an A–Class job, possibly a monster-slaying mission." He explained. He slowly crouched down and he sat cross-legged and he bent forward to stretch his spine.

Greninja remained quiet as he saw Nic stretch his legs and spine and he finally decided to speak up. "You know, you've been going on mission endlessly. It wouldn't hurt to take an easy job or take some time up to regain some strength."

Nic opened his eyes and took in a good long breath. "I know, but I'm S-Class now, that means there's a whole new level of expectations to be made." He then laid on his back with his arms being a headrest for him as he gazed up at the midnight blue sky. "Besides, I don't mind the extra work, the distance helps keep my speed in top form."

"Yeah, you haven't taken a train once." Greninja noted. He then looked up and out at the sky as well, leaning back and used his arms for support behind him. "Speaking of jobs, you've got plenty of money now, so why bother going on jobs when you're practically rich?"

Nic hummed as he gazed up at the sky, trying to find a believable answer. "I don't see why not. I could share my winnings with Cana to pay her tab you know?" He informed the Water and Dark-Type.

Greninja tilted his head down towards Nic. "Nic, that's basically what you've been doing, and any excess cash left over would be directed to your account." He deadpanned.

Nic grinned. "Well, Cana is my closest friend along with Sophie. I wouldn't mind lending a helping hand every now and again."

Greninja turned his head back up towards the sky and got quiet briefly. He then looked forward at a tree. Now was the time for Greninja to get to his point."…that's kind of ironic Nic, considering you're hardly ever around the guild anymore."

Nic's grin dimmed slightly as he turned his head up towards Greninja. "Yeah well, being a Fairy Tail Mage doesn't mean I can stay idle in a solemn place for too long."

"Yeah, true, but you seem to have a reason in doing so."

Nic lost his grin, having a feeling where this was going. He just awaited as Greninja turned to look towards him and continued. "Tell me, does it have to do with the whole Nirvana incident?"

Nic blinked as he could've sworn he felt his breathing increase at Greninja catching on. "Well, I wouldn't say that, but after what happened, I figured that I should get stronger so I can handle battles for myself." He lied.

Greninja didn't buy it. "That answer doesn't suffice me Nic." Greninja stated somewhat coldly, his body fully turning towards Nic. "Me and the other Pokémon caught on fairly quickly, and we deduced that you've been slipping in and out of the guild and saying high to Cana and Sophie if they're around."

Nic sat back up and he stared at Greninja, his best buddy explaining their scenario. "You're just popping in and out, not even saying but a few words to others. Furthermore, it seems you're doing so on purpose."

Nic nearly jerked back with a gasp of shock, but kept sitting down. "How'd you figure that out?" He stated calmly.

His buddy's eyelids lowered, giving a 'really?' look. "The second you got home you took a job, you practically missed the annual Blossom-Viewing Festival, and you only showed up and won that Twenty-Four Hour Endurance Road Race because it was mandatory." He listed.

Nic looked away. "Yeah well, Jet wasn't too bad for his High-Speed Magic."

"Nic, your normal speed is comparable to Natsu's Fire Dragon's Iron Fist Booster, you practically used Quick Attack to match Jet's speed, and then when you used Extreme Speed…"

"I was faster than what Jet could ever be." Nic finished. He sighed. "Yeah, no one saw that coming."

"Now you're pretty much the fastest in Fairy Ta-!" Greninja jerked his head and he shook violently, realizing that Nic was trying to dodge the statement. "That's not the point! The point is, that you only showed up for that and nothing else. And we can guess what it is."

Nic remained silent, he should've known. His Pokémon knew him all too well. Their minds were practically one in the same. Still, Nic gave it another go at evading the statement as he turned back towards Greninja. "Is that so? I also heard that this Gildarts guy came by and…"

"It's about Erza, isn't it?" Greninja intervened.

There was a tension in the air as Nic remained silent with slightly wide eyes. Greninja had a very serious look plastered on his face as he awaited for how Nic would respond to this predicament.

All Nic could do was keep silent for a few moments before he looked down at the ground. "What about her?"

"Don't beat around the bush Nic, we know you better than anyone." Greninja reasoned harshly. "You're one of the most courageous, not to mention atrocious, people we've ever known. And when we got back from Nirvana, you couldn't even so much as look at Erza."

Nic's lower and upper jaws clenched as Greninja was pointing oit his flaw in the past two weeks. Greninja continued. "You've been on nine jobs in the past two weeks and you were in and out of the guild just like that. And to make matters all the more unbearable, you only went in when Erza wasn't around. You're practically avoiding her."

"So what if I am? I just need some alone time." Nic explained.

"Alone for what? Wallowing in self-pity?"

Nic turned towards Greninja sharply with a glare. "No."

"Then what? How long are you going to be avoiding her Nic? What did she ever do to deserve unjustified neglecting? Don't you wanna see her again?"

"Of course I do!"

"Then why are you avoiding her?!" Greninja's had a cold and loud tone that gave even more tension, the two starting to argue. "She's recovered and is happy with her comrades, while you are always away and haven't even spoken a single word to her!"

"There's nothing to say to her! _What_ is there to say to her? _How _do I say it to her?" Nic barked back with clenched fists. "I don't even understand it myself!"

"Nic!" Greninja exclaimed. "If you don't understand, then why not ask for help?!"

"This is nobody's problem but mine! It hurts okay?!" Nic roared with sharp eyes at Greninja. Greninja fell silent with shocked eyes, seeing the anger and frustration in Nic's words. Nic was breathing in and out as he exasperated so harshly. Nic was left quiet, allowing only his breathing to catch up as the air was as still as a Nosepass.

A still tension was brought back down as Greninja and Nic's eyes both softened. "What hurts?" Greninja asked in a quiet voice.

In defeat, Nic looked down at the ground and he shut his eyes and he bit his own lip. His fists were still clenched. "…my heart." He answered lowly.

Greninja ease his tense self and narrowed his eyes with some signs of sadness brewing about. "How does it hurt?"

Nic turned towards Greninja with a look that seemed desperate for pity. Just the mere sight of his sad face could probably put a frown on anybody's face.

"Ever since I saw Erza comfort Wendy and her loss of Jellal, I couldn't help but blame myself. I saw the sheer sadness she was in when she was crying. She clearly cares about Jellal deeply and all I could do was just watch as she cried. I've never felt so horrible in my life. She loved him, and I saw that with my Mind Plate. I just felt empty all this time. These past two weeks, I was hurt. When I think of Erza, a part of me is happy, but another part of me is crushing me up from the inside. I can't even look at her, for if I did, I'd feel even more turmoil in my head, but…" He cascaded a glance down back towards the ground. "It's mostly hurting in my heart. When I think of her and Jellal, a wave of pain and sadness washes over me. As time goes by, it just makes me feel even more self-pity."

Nic continued to look at the ground as Greninja fell completely quiet in realization of Nic's reasons. Now it all made sense. Even Greninja felt sorry for Nic, for he was suffering a broken heart, and a pretty bad one as well.

Greninja's somber expression tried to pull off an empathetic grin. "You love her, don't you?"

All Nic could do was just keep silent as he took a moment to gather up his memories and look back at how Erza meant so much to him, she was very dear to him, and though he hated to admit it, Greninja was right. Nic loves Erza.

Nic looked down even more coldly and he slowly took a seat on a log behind him, burying his face into his hands. "It's so stupid. Why did this have to happen to me of all people? I'm on a life-or-death mission for the sake of all of the universe and I had to go and fall in love."

Greninja sat right beside Nic wand still gazed at his troubled pal. "Maybe it's not a bad thing. Experiencing new stuff is never all that easy. Once we care for someone, it's hard to accept their feelings if they don't return them. I'm no expert on love, but learning from what I've heard and seen in these three years, I can tell the human heart has its ups and downs."

Nic looked up at the sky above, seeing the night clouds scrolling up. He stared at the sky, as if lost in this abyss and can't seem to climb out, just hopelessly gazing up towards the light that may never be reached. This light being Erza.

"Sometimes I ask myself 'Did she really care about me? Was I just a cover-up for her first love?' I highly doubt she even thought about conversing with me after our return." He looked down at Greninja, seeing frustration. "Well I got news, I'm nobody's Plan B nor failsafe. Either you choose me, or I just disappear."

After a few minutes of silence, Greninja gave a sympathetic grin and put a hand on Nic's shoulder. "Tell me, did you feel a connection with her?"

Nic looked back at Greninja with surprise. "Yeah?"

"Did you make her happy this whole time?'

"…I guess."

"Did she cry for you?"

Nic blinked in remembrance. Erza did cry for both him and Jellal. After some hesitation to speak, his gaze lowered. "Y-Yes."

"And why do you think she did that? Why did you give your life for her on several occasions?" Greninja persuaded. Nic remained silent as he was lost in Greninja's words. "You know why? Because you both care for the other. It doesn't have to be a loving care, but a genuine care. Like I said, I don't know much about this stuff, but I can say that I know you, and I think you should consider Erza's feelings as genuine as they can get."

Nic kept quiet for a few brief moments and then pulled off a slight grin. His buddy sure had a way with words like he did.

Greninja looked back up at the sky. "And let me tell you this, you have our support. We'll walk with you no matter where you go. If Erza is that important to you, we'll be there to push you back in her direction."

Greninja's dedication made Nic grin even more, his worries going away. "Thanks Greninja, I needed a good counseling." He then got up and looked at the sky again with a grin still on his face. "Maybe if Erza's around when we get back, maybe I'll say hi. I wonder if she's okay?"

* * *

**Meanwhile, in another dimension…**

Peering down the visual hole and unable to do anything but watch coldly, Giratina kept a devilish and stern glare set on Nic. If you could actually see the dimension where Giratina and his comrades were, if you were looking up, you'd be looking at the unflattering angle his face was in, his face angled down slightly, but his eyes that were of nothing but pure bloody murder. If you looked at him, you would be looking into the pure eyes of not just any Ghost-Type, nor any demon, but the foulest among anything you've ever read. You could've been given a glance by Satan himself.

Hoopa was rather anxious. "Gah! This is taking forever!" He complained. "Are we able to get him or not?!"

"Silence Hoopa." Mewtwo savagely and quietly said, making the small space-twister shut his mouth. "We shall kill him yet. We shall do so before the eighteenth Plate is unlocked. His soul and existence shall burn before that. We shall see to that."

"That is a must." Darkrai said, his body almost matching the pitch black space they were concealed in. "His nightmares shall come to life, after meeting a certain someone." He turned towards the gigantic Giratina. "Giratina."

The huge and hazardous creature turned his serpentine body towards Darkrai as Darkrai himself asked him something. "Is _he _there?"

"…" The bloodthirsty Ghost and Dragon-Type stared coldly, his red glare making Darkrai stay still. Fter a brief moment of death-like silence, Giratina peered down towards the hole again. "Yes." He answered in his deep and menacing voice. "_He _shall let Nic Pularis know that we won't allow Arceus to survive. Neither will he…"

* * *

**With Nic and Greninja**

It was as if the wind had become hollow, like an ominous feeling that told them to watch out. Leaves blew and bushes rustled, to which this feeling was caught on by Nic and Greninja both.

"Hm?" Nic narrowed his eyes. He got up and he slowly took a few steps forward. He felt this wind giving his spine the chill that could even kill goosebumps. This was no ordinary feeling, this was unique. The leaves and bushes stopped rusting and they were left completely still, and the wind was blowing right by them like a ghostly blow.

"What is it?" Greninja wondered with suspicion.

"Something's wrong." Nic said as he looked up at the sky. The clouds that were moving had stopped in place and they looked far darker than usual. "Something is _very_ wrong."

Greninja got up and he was just as uneasy as Nic. The two then walked and were back-to-back, seeing where this feeling was coming from. They weren't sure, but this felt as though Hell wasn't waiting for them any longer sort of speak.

They both looked up and saw more clouds coming and converging over their heads, as if focused only on them. They were getting ever more anxious as this feeling of evil and vile grew and this hollow and lifeless wind subsided, only to be replaced by a still and dreadful air that was actually making it hard for the two to breathe for some reason.

It was as if the air was suffocating them and their breathing and heart rate intensified. Now this was _very_ wrong. If this feeling was this powerful, just how much more power was to come their way?

Due to the still and death-like air, you could only hear a heartbeat and Nic looked around unsettled as to the cause. The trees and leaves were as though they were frozen, afraid that if they moved, even an inch, they would die.

"Can you feel it?" Nic asked.

"Yeah." Greninja answered, his spine violently shaking.

"It's getting stronger-!" Suddenly, he fell silent as he heard shadows moving in from in front of them. The two turned upfront to see that there was an actual haze of pure shadow coming towards them, hearing the 'whoosh' sound it made as it traveled passed the trees.

The hazy shadow converged in front of them, fifteen feet to be more exact. Nic felt his body shaking for some reason, as he had never felt this freaked out in a long time. The Dread Plate itself couldn't suppress such evil.

"What is this?" Nic was unable to comprehend the shadows converging. They all converged to make a human-size cocoon of sorts. This was very peculiar as the shadowy cocoon thickened. Greninja and Nic were ready to strike if that thing exploded, but it didn't as it slowly dissolved, giving them a frightening image that made them show horror in the eyes and gasped.

They saw a man, but was he really a man? He had pale skin and feral, evil, and hollow vermilion eyes. Blood red sideburns with his hair being like a black mane. Pitch black suit with a cloudy yet spiky collar. Golden claws were on his rib cage and over his coat. He had black gloves with purple rings. Purple and red horizontal lines were on the sides of his pitch black pants. The part that freaked them out the most was that he had a purple tail with vertical lines comprised of red and black rings, and on the bulb end were two golden spikes on each side.

The man stare coldly at Nic and Nic only. For some reason, Nic felt as if he had become hollow himself. His entire being felt as though it was like a demon was actually in front of them, but this was way different compared to The Nightmare, Lullaby, and those cursed guys from Tartaros. This was far more corrosive as the man was giving off a dark purple aura and the area around him wilted, as though he was killing off any life that was standing in his way.

"Who are you?" Nic demanded, though still felt exceedingly uneasy. His ninja pal was just as uneasy as he was.

The man said nothing as he still gave Nic a feral stare, his vermilion slits showing him an empty shell. "Nic Pularis." The man said in a low monotone voice. "What a pleasant surprise. It was about time we come face-to-face."

"What?" Nic was surprised that this man knew who he was. Who was he to begin with? Nic only clenched his fists and readied a defensive assault. "I'll ask again, who are you?"

The man said nothing for he only stared coldly at Nic. He then closed his eyes and let lose a hardy chuckle. This chuckle was not only annoying, but it gave goosebumps as well. The man then opened his vermilion eyes back up at Nic. "Who I am doesn't matter, and for you to know is purposeless." He answered. The dark purple aura around him thickened as he practically had a misty cloak around him, making the air die.

"I am what you may call someone who will be your end, but that'll be all. There is no need for anymore hiding Nic Pularis. I have found you at long last, now I can do what I was meant for…killing you."

Nic jerked back in surprise that he was going to kill, and by the tone, he was dead serious (pun intended). Nic's anxiety was beginning to swell as Greninja also felt this way.

"Why just Nic? Why only him?" Greninja asked with hesitation.

The fiend turned his head towards Greninja, giving him a cod stare as well. "That question is of no meaning. His life being suffocated by darkness is all that is required for you to know."

'_I don't like the look of this guy. I've heard of Mirajane using Satan Soul and Erza being scary before…but this guy, he's the embodiment of something far worse than anything anyone can imagine.' _Nic pondered as the man's aura kept crawling around his body, the leaves close by dying. _'Furthermore, whatever Magic he's using, it's even fouler than Zero and Jose. It's like hatred itself.'_

A few brief moments passed by and Nic was on edge. Out of all of the opponents he's ever fought, this one was different, but he can't seem to understand why.

The man then turned his head away, as if taunting Nic. "How pitiful." He turned into shadows with bits of purple and vanished, startling Nic and Greninja. The man reappeared right behind them, his body sideways. Nic and Greninja were both too in shock and paralyzed from the dreadful proximity. "Why don't you just accept death now so this won't be a hassle?"

Nic and Greninja both turned around, only for the man to be gone, which startled them. "Do you not see that you are just avoiding the inevitable?" The man asked from another spot, the grass dying there as well. "The universe and Arceus were bound to become unstable eventually." He said, reappearing in another spot.

"Wait…" Nic's eyes shot wide with deep, deep shock. "You know about Arceus?!"

The man chuckled. "One could say that, but those factors are for if you can put the pieces of the puzzle together; that is, if you last long enough."

Nic grunted with gritting teeth. "Fine, I guess I have no choice. I'll have to beat what you know out of you! **Quick Attack!**" Nic was outlined in blue and he dashed at the man in the blink of an eye. The man didn't even flinch as Nic was zooming in towards him. Nic went and had a direct hit, only he found himself right behind the man and went wide-eyed. "What?!" He turned around and saw that the man didn't even had a scratch.

Nic went right through him.

Nic turned around towards him. "A Thought Projection? Illusion Magic?"

The man with his dark purple aura turned his head around slowly. "I thought you would be smarter than that Nic Pularis, or did you forget that Normal-Type moves don't affect Ghost-Types?"

Nic was in a horrific shock, and his eyes showed it. "What?! Impossible! How do you know about them?!"

The man turned his head back towards the front. "Your time in Fiore obviously clogged up your knowledge. Surely you also know that Ghost-Type moves don't affect Normal-Types, like the one you are right now."

Nic narrowed his eyes and he grunted as he leaped over the man's head and was right by Greninja's side. Nic transformed into the Dread Plate and he and Greninja were side-by-side, doing a double Dark Pulse. The man stood his ground and looked slightly wide-eyed at Nic and Greninja both gathering power for a double Dark Pulse.

"You should also know that Ghost-Types…are weak to Dark-Types!" Nic exclaimed.

"**Dark Pulse!**" Both comrades shot their Dark Pulse attacks in unison. The two attacks combined as they trailed towards the unknown assailant, sending dust flying as it shot at him. A brief explosion of black and purple engulfed the area in front of Nic and Greninja, both of them were on their guard, thinking that he wasn't done yet.

"Impressive." The man said, reappearing from a moving shadow in midair above. "Looks like you're not as dull as I give you credit for Nic Pularis, and your accomplice there is rather strong. If that did hit me, that would have been super effective."

Nic and Greninja looked up in surprise that the man dodged it at the last second. "He's fast." Greninja stated. "And how it that he has Ghost-Type characteristics?"

Nic narrowed his eyes. "I don't know." Nic was contemplating as he was staring at the pale man with demon vermilion eyes. _'Whatever he is, he is beyond strong. Just how is it that he knows about Pokémon in the first place? More importantly, how is it that he's part Ghost-Type?' _Nic then went wide-eyed and his breath hitched as he came to an assumption. "Could it be…he has the Ghost-Type Plate?"

The man raised a brow as his purple aura still cloaked him from above. "Hmph, how pitiable. Like I need any use for such a thing." He said.

"What?! You mean you don't have the Plate for Ghost-Types?!" Nic exclaimed.

"That is correct. I got my powers from another source, the same source that wanted Arceus dead in the first place, but it seems that they've taken quite an awareness of your Plate gathering Nic Pularis, or should I say the great Luminous of Fairy Tail."

Nic grunted as he clenched his fists. "Dammit, just when things weren't bad enough." He then shifted into the Mind Plate and took a stance. "Greninja, back me up! I'll keep him still while you strike him with a Dark Pulse!" Greninja nodded in understanding.

Nic looked back up and his eyes glowed light blue. "**Psychic!**" Nic focused his mental prowess on the man, yet the man was still cross-armed and scowled in the air, unaffected by Psychic. Nic's eyes widened. "Impossible! How did Psychic not affect you?!"

"Did I forget to mention something?" The man said, having some black rings with purple outlining of his own. "I also have Dark-Type characteristics." The man then shot his right arm forward, unleashing a pressurized and powerful Dark Pulse drilling through the air and coming at Greninja, who was unleashing his own Dark Pulse. The two Dark Pulse collided in midair, sending a shockwave of purple about, and sure enough Greninja's Dark Pulse was giving out, much to his shock.

"Greninja!" Nic shouted. The Dark Pulse was being shoved back until it finally exploded in midair, which send the Water and Dark-Type flipping backwards and skidding on his feet, leaving a dust trail.

"Dammit, that was powerful." Greninja grunted. "Just what kind of power is that?"

Nic leaped by Greninja's side. "I don't know, but he said the same ones who want Arceus and me dead were the ones who gave him both of those attributes. We've gotta be careful, he's a Ghost and Dark-Type." Nic then shifted himself into his Toxic Plate.

"Oh? Are you aware that Poison isn't that effective on me?" The man scowled from above.

"Who said Type mattered in this case? Now Greninja!"

Greninja quickly puffed his cheeks. "**Smokescreen!**" Greninja blew out thick, black smoke to cover themselves up, so as the man doesn't see them.

The man narrowed his eyes. "Interesting. Trying to launch a surprise assault I see." He then saw a stream of thick, purple liquid shoot at him from within the Smokescreen. The man brought his arm on the other side of his body. "Trying to distract me and use Toxic, good, but not good enough! **Ominous Wind!**" He moved his arm in an arc, unleashing a violent purple wind that completely rid of the incoming Toxic and also blew away all of the Smokescreen, leaving Nic and Greninja to cover themselves up from Ominous Wind.

When the wind stopped, the two looked back up at the assailant. "He…he blew away my Smokescreen!" Greninja exclaimed.

"You should've seen that coming. Now for some scurrying around." The assailant but his hands together and a black and purple ball. "**Shadow Ball!**" He threw the ball down towards Nic and Greninja and the two zoomed away towards different directions, avoiding the heavily explosive Shadow Ball that shook the ground upon missing.

'_So much power!' _Nic thought as he skid to a halt on the assailants left side down below while Greninja took the right. The duo then launched more attacks at an upward angle. "**Sludge Bomb!**"

"**Water Shuriken!**"

A forceful brown glob of sludge and multiple compressed stars of water shot at the assailant, and he took notice of how fast they were coming in. In a blink of an eye, he turned into a shadow and dispersed, leaving the attacks to smash into the other in midair, creating a light purple and blue explosion.

"He's even faster than Greninja's Water Shuriken?" Nic muttered under his breath in disbelief.

"Boo." Nic suddenly gasped as he felt pure hell from behind, his goosebumps screaming for him to move. He quickly pivoted to see the assailant reappearing from his shadow form behind, with his arms covered in black shadows with purple outlining. "Perish Nic Pularis, **Shadow Claw!**"

Nic had to avoid looking into the eyes so he wouldn't be caught up in paranoid fright. The assailant relentlessly slashed away while Nic took evasive actions and dodged every Shadow Claw that was meant to rake him. All of the slashes were diagonal, so Nic could read them easily. He then pivoted when there was an opening and he brought his left leg up and struck the assailant in the abdomen, making him wince for a split second. Nic then kicked in a round-house form, forcing the assailant behind him, where he pivoted and thrusted forward with Poison Jab. The assailant turned into shadows at the last second and Nic grunted, but then grinned.

As Nic stood affirm, he and Greninja grinned. "Now I get it." Ni called out to the still air that had dead plants all around them. "You rely on your Pokémon powers, leaving your physical body incapable of hand-to hand combat, something I have an advantage in; what's more, is that since it didn't faze through you, it means it counts as physical, yet not a Normal-Type move."

He and Greninja then heard a loud laughter in the air, making them frown and keep their guards up as they looked around. "Impressive. You're much more gifted than I had expected…but still." His voice bellowed in the air. He reappeared ten feet in front of them, making them turn his way. "You'll still die."

Nic took a fighting stance and shifted into the Zap Plate, electricity starting to charge up in him. The assailant merely grinned as Nic held out his arms. "**Thunderbolt!**" His body sparked and he unleashed a yellow bolt of electricity at the assailant. The man grinned as he simply extended out his arm and then suddenly, a small spacial portal appeared, taking and swallowing the attack.

Greninja and Nic then went very wide-eyed. "What?!" Nic bellowed. The man then tilted his wrist slightly upwards, and the two saw that there was an even larger portal right over their heads. Nic and Greninja both gasped and the assailant brought down his arm and the Thunderbolt Nic shot downwards. Nic saw the Thunderbolt coming from the portal and he shoved Greninja out of the way so he didn't get blasted. The frog was shoved and he crouched when he landed, and he gasped as Nic grunted harshly as he was being hit with his own attack.

"Nic!" Greninja shouted, seeing his pal get swallowed up in lightning. When the Thunderbolt finished, Nic was sizzling, but was still fine since that move wasn't very effective. Nic's upper body drooped as he grunted.

The assailant shrugged. "Are you surprised? I can bend space, meaning I can send attacks back at you at will." Nic looked back up at the man with a frown on his face, and he saw the assailant smirk. "…and that's not all…"

Suddenly, Nic and Greninja felt their goosebumps die as the air was even more follow as a harsh wind blew, the clouds above started to circle. They then saw the teeth he had in his mouth undergo changes. Nic and Greninja nearly paled when they saw the white teeth turn blood red and become pure canines. The other change was the eyes. The vermilion feral eyes thinned and the white part of the eyes turned completely black, pitch black.

Nic and Greninja were something they haven't been in a long while – terrified. This man's face, it just had blood red fangs, and his eyes were begging for someone to get slaughtered right before him. They paled even more when he gave a full smirk, showing every detail of his monstrosity of a face and eyes that could be your worst nightmare.

Nic and Greninja knew this guy definitely wasn't human nor demon, those eyes that resembled Satan himself shot through their bodies, making their blood pulsate and their heartbeats race faster than Rapidash on a track.

Suddenly, the smirking man emanated a gruesome Ominous Wind without waving his arms. The Ominous Wind pulsed throughout the entire area, obliterating trees and shrubs. Nic and Greninja gasped as they fell onto the forest floor. The debris flying everywhere like a hurricane. Everything but them was completely gone, leaving a large clearing with cut grass.

Nic and Greninja were in horror that this man did all of this damage, a large area gone just by an Ominous Wind, was caused by just him looking at them.

"Oh my god…" Greninja murmured.

"I know." Nic said, turning towards his pale pal. "If we don't do something…we _will _die." They both then looked at the man again with the blood red teeth. "…he's worse than a nightmare, he's worse than becoming one…he just may be the Underworld's very own nightmare."

"…I never finished." The gruesome assailant said, startling Nic and Greninja. He extended out an arm and then his eyes glowed light blue. "I also…can do this!"

Suddenly, Nic was outlined in light blue and he could feel his body getting lighter and lighter and he found himself being manipulated and he was slowly risen up into the air, much to both him and Greninja's shock.

When he was high enough, the assailant kept that monstrous smirk and he then brought his hand down, making Nic yelp as he was hurling into the ground, shaking the earth. Nic gagged as the air was knocked out of him and the assailant brought him back up again without a beat of rest and then threw him down again.

This time, Greninja was able to get under and he leaped up and he caught Nic as he was being shot down with tremendous force. It took everything Greninja had in his leg muscles to keep Nic from not crushing him.

The assailant saw the struggle and he gave Greninja relief as he dragged Nic back up into the air, the latter wincing as he was unable to move, not even a finger.

"N-No way." Nic muttered. "He can use…Psychic-Type moves as well?"

"I'm full of surprises." The assailant remarked. "Now let's get this over with." He then kept his arm extended, but he clutched his fist, making the Psychic suffocate Nic. Nic's body tightened in midair as he was feeling his body being crushed, making him yelp in pain. Nic was unable to move as he was yelping like crazy.

"Yes, that's it. Scream until death claims you." The assailant said. "That shall be the start of a new era…"

"**Smokescreen!**" Greninja let loose a thick blanket of smoke yet again, obscuring the assailant's vision temporarily. This bought some time for Nic to react as the Psychic's intensity loosened due to the assailant's concentration weakened.

Nic glowed in midair as he was affected by Psychic. Nic had shifted into the Dread Plate, to which nullified Psychic and he started descending. As he started falling, Nic could still feel the intense evil swelling about within the assailant, even within the Smokescreen. As a precaution, Nic vanished with the use of Feint Attack.

"No use." The assailant announced as he widened his eyes and yet another shockwave of Ominous Wind wailed within the vicinity, the attack repeating what had happened before, but now the clearing was deprived of living grass. The man noticed neither Nic nor Greninja were around and then he felt their presence. "Futile."

Nic reappeared behind to deliver his Feint Attack, but the death-like man didn't even need to turn around as he caught Nic's right leg swinging at him, startling the Plate wielder immensely. He also sensed Greninja coming from above, said using Bounce. The monstrosity made no haste as he whipped his arm and hurled Nic upwards right into an incoming Greninja. Greninja saw Nic coming and he loosened his body so as not to hurt Nic with Bounce. Both Trainer and Pokémon collided in midair, hearing a couple of Nic's bones crack in the process.

"**Dragon Breath.**" A round of rings engulfed the man as he then shot Nic and Greninja with a blue beam straight up.

The duo went wide-eyed as they saw a Dragon-Type move heading their way. "D-Dragon-Type now?! What is going on-?!" The two were swallowed up by Dragon Breath, ending up yelping as they were enveloped in a blue explosion.

When the explosion was subsiding, they were seen descending and scratched up fairly bad. Fortunately they weren't paralyzed. Greninja and Nic both managed to straighten out before landing and they both winced when they landed. Nic looked to see that the man was still glaring coldly, but his smirk was gone.

The assailant then vanished instantly in a light purple hole, leaving the two baffled as he disappeared again. They turned in all directions.

"Can you sense him?" Greninja asked.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "No. I-!"

A light purple hole opened up over his head and the assailant erupted from above stomping on Nic's back and sending the latter into the earth with a fairly sizeable crater. Nic gagged and yelped as pain erupted in his backbones.

"Nic!" Greninja yelled, seeing his buddy underneath the dreaded feet of the monster. The man reached down and pulled Nic up from underneath him, clenching his head entirely. "Release him!" The Water and Dark-Type demanded. Greninja unleashed Water Shuriken at the assailant, but the assailant didn't even budge. The Water Shuriken clashed into his back, but he only turned his head back at Greninja.

"Was that suppose to get my attention?" He mocked. "Water-Type moves don't have much effect on Dragon-Types. Stay out of my way." He turned back towards Nic, who was still stuck in the man's solemn clutches.

"First Ghost…th-then Dark…Psy-Psychic…and now Dragon." Nic struggled to say as he felt his head being clutched by a solemn grip. "Four Types. Answer me this time? How?!"

The man narrowed his eyes as he then whipped his arm upwards, sending Nic spiraling into the air. As Nic was unable to react, the maniac cloaked the bottom of himself in shadow and soared up at Nic, extending his left arm to use Dragon Claw, his arm engulfed in a light blue claw-shaped energy.

He shot like an arrow upwards, almost mere feet away from Nic when he'd finally straightened out. Nic saw that the assailant was gonna pierce him like a spear to a target. He had no way to stop it except for one move.

"**Sucker Punch!**" Nic made a desperate attempt at stopping the attack, to which both attacks were actually on par in terms of speed. Sucker Punch would've scored a hit if they had less proximity, but Dragon Claw was to close, so Nic had to use it for defense. When both attacks cancelled out surprisingly, Nic grabbed the assailant's cold arm. "**Foul Play!**"

Nic spun in the air with the assailant attached and he then turned him around and threw him to the ground. The assailant descended rather forcefully and grunted. As he fell, a grin was plastered on his face. Before he could descend any further, he flipped himself so he was facing Nic as he fell, still having a grin on his face.

"**Miracle Eye.**" His evil and vermilion feral eyes then flashed purple, and a shockwave of purple went around the area around Nic as he was descending. The man then kept his grin as he then turned back down towards the ground. "And now…" A large hole appeared in the ground, a special hole that he was falling into. "**Legendary Arts -**..."

Nic's eyes were shaking as he saw the man enter the hole and the hole vanished. "Legendary Arts?!" Nic bellowed. "Oh no, this is _very_ bad-!"

"…**Hyperspace Hole!**" A hole appeared above Nic and he didn't even have time to look as the assailant dived down on him, coated his shadowy energy that made him even more terrifying as he collided his entire hollow and shadowy being above Nic, making the latter yell as an erupting of darkness swallowed him upon impact. The earth was shaking and Nic was in a horrific yet dazzling display of hyperspace energy bombarding him upon one punch.

Greninja was in shock as his buddy was swallowed up just as he was leaping upwards to save him. He was horrified as he heard Nic screaming. He wasn't realizing his body was still jumping upwards to reach out towards Nic.

When the chaos ceased, it was revealed that Nic was falling head first downwards, very badly damaged. He couldn't even grunt his agonizing pain. _'C-Curse him!' _Fortunately as he fell, Greninja snapped out of his shock and grabbed him. Greninja leaped away from the clearing as he use Smokescreen to cover up their retreat.

The menace was floating above in the air, sensing where Nic was taken to. The Smokescreen cleared out and the man had an amused grin. "Hmph, interesting. Though he can't hide from me, it'll be fun to see him squirm some more." The man with blood red teeth turned into shadows and disappeared.

Greninja was leaping endlessly with a hurt Nic on his shoulder, the Water and Dark-Type jumping with some signs of struggle with Nic's weight. When the frog had reached a lengthy distance from the disastrous clearing, he got back down from the trees and he aided Nic in trying to stand.

"Can you stand?" Greninja asked his pal as he was getting off his shoulder. Nic couldn't feel much of anything after that attack. The only feeling he had was dread and his insides and muscles cramping. To make matters all the more terrifying, he was severely bruised.

"I-I need to rest." Nic weakly said. "Who knows how long we have until he finds us." Greninja then set Nic down and the Plate wielder leaned against a tree for support. His breathing was harsh as he was shaking.

"That last attack, did he just say what I think he said?" Greninja mentioned worriedly.

Nic was still too exhausted to move much, but since Greninja was on that topic, he shifted his focus there as well. He glanced over at Greninja. "There's no mistaking it. That was a Legendary Arts. I was lucky to have come out conscious." He continued breathing heavily as he looked back down and was trying to put the pieces together.

"Ghost…Dark…Psychic…Dragon…Arceus…Legendary Arts…" Nic heaved in between breaths. His eyes narrowed. "I think I get it for…the most part."

"Enlighten me, you don't think…"

Nic turned towards Greninja. "There's no mistaking it buddy, that man was influenced by Legendary Pokémon who want Arceus dead."

"Clever." The same demonic monotone voice echoed, making Nic wide-eyed. Underneath him, he saw his shadow blacken and he knew what was coming next. He attempted to lean back and lung backwards, but the Shadow Sneak attack came after him in an angle, thus hitting Nic in the abdomen. Nic flew backwards, landing with a thud.

Before Greninja could turn back towards Nic, he too was struck from a Shadow Sneak from below, making him wince as he was send soaring into the air and backflip and land on his feet right by Nic's side, who was slowly getting to a knee.

The assailant reappeared from within the shadows of the darkness he was waiting in. His upper body was sticking out from the shadows and he glared with the same eyes at them. "You caught on fast. Here's a bonus, not only do gain all of their Types, but I can use all of the moves from every single one of their movesets."

Nic grunted with distressing eyes, as to where Greninja jerked in shock. The assailant pulled off a menacing smirk. "Four Types and several movesets? That must mean there's more than one conspiring!" Greninja accused.

"Yes, they all want Arceus dead so that they shall create a new universe born from darkness." The assailant remarked as he fully emerged. He then had Shadow Ball beginning to emerge from his right hand. "And to make things even more hopeless as they are now…" He turned into a shadow and emerged behind Nic, who was even more wide-eyed. "It was I…who tainted Arceus." He whispered harshly.

Something in Nic went lose, a nerve was struck as he suddenly looked sharp-eyed and slightly feral. As the assailant was unleashing a Shadow Ball forward, Nic's pain was ceased for a moment as he was filled with anger. He turned around as the Shadow Ball was coming at him from close range and he swatted it away, the attack deflected and knocked down a tree upon impact.

"Murderer!" Nic yelled, unleashing a Night Slash in a quick motion that made the assailant cover up, his arms taking the full force. This made the assailant skid back several feet as Nic then stepped forward and lunged head-on into the man. He had several more Night Slash attacks aimed at him. "You did this! You nearly killed him!" He bellowed as he repeatedly slashed at the assailant with his Night Slash, to which the menace covered up and stepped back as Nic kept pushing forward.

Nic stopped Night Slash and grabbed his adversary's arm and threw him overhead, allowing Greninja an opening to shoot Dark Pulse and the attack pulsated towards the enemy. While in midair, the enemy straightened out and he grinned.

"Yes, that's it. The angrier you get, the more it fuels me." He growled. He then put his hands together and between was a light blue sphere of energy. "**Aura Sphere!**" The Aura Sphere then went shooting forth and the Dark Pulse didn't stand a chance. The Aura Sphere drilled straight through and Greninja gasped as the attack that was aimed for him never misses. Realizing it was a Fighting-Type move, things were looking grim.

"Greninja!" Nic shouted just before Greninja was hit with Aura Sphere, making the Water and Dark-Type scream as he went soaring backwards, smashing down a row of tree trunks and finishing with a harsh skid.

Dust flew everywhere as Nic watched grimly as he could barely see Greninja struggle to move as he was hit with Dragon Breath suddenly. Nic wanted to move, yet his body had trouble reacting. He managed to lean left, but his right leg wasn't so lucky. He yelped harshly as he tumbled about and rolled and landed on his side. He opened his eyes with a huge struggle as his leg was very badly wounded.

"When I say I was gonna kill you, I meant it." The man said, levitating in front of Nic with shadows and purple around him. "If either Arceus or the Plates are gone, the universe shall collapse. It's already fairly unstable with the cosmic turmoil."

"I won't…I won't…give up." Nic muttered as he was getting back up. The man shook his head and he disappeared and reappeared on Nic's right.

"**Feint Attack.**" He drove a knee into Nic's right side and send him skidding and tumbling slightly. Nic managed to stop and was on a knee, huffing and puffing.

'_He's catching me off guard so easily.' _Nic thought. _'I need to think faster!'_

"There's no peace where you're going Nic Pularis!" The assailant shouted, his blood red fangs protruding as he readied an Aura Sphere. Nic was ready to counter with a Sucker Punch, and Nic himself lunged forward, though he winced and he was slow due to the leg injury. He punched, but the assailant caught it with one hand, with the other one holding Aura Sphere.

"Gah! Sucker Punch always goes first! How did you catch it?!" Nic exclaimed.

The menace's eyes narrowed. "The darkness and shadows of foul human nature are my power. **Aura Sphere!**" He drove his right palm with the Aura Sphere towards Nic.

"…oh no" Those were Nic's last words before he met an agonizing Aura Sphere right into the abdomen. He screamed in intense pain. There was a light blue light and everything just went blue.

A hideous explosion of light blue swallowed the area in front of the assailant, his smirking expression never left his face as the earth shook.

Greninja made it back to his feet when he saw a very battered Nic send hurling his way, smashing into him and sending Greninja into another tree. Greninja gagged harshly as he fell and was leaning against the tree, Nic being several feet in from of him and barely conscious.

"N-Nic." Greninja muttered.

The man reappeared in front of Nic and he proceeded to pick him up so as to finish him, but Greninja went wide-eyed and he lunged at the assailant. "You leave him alone!" He bellowed with sharper Water Shuriken thanks to the blue aura he was giving off. Torrent had activated, making Water Shuriken slightly more powerful. In a flash, Greninja launched them.

The larger and sharper Water Shuriken flung at the assailant, who turned to see the attack and he was hit. The attack bashed repeatedly into him, making the man get caught off guard and stumble back from that fast and powerful repeating blow.

Greninja followed it up again, but the man wasn't a pushover. "**Barrier!**" A blue rectangular screen appeared in front of the man, increasing his Defense and making Water Shuriken hit with less power. "You annoying frog. I'll take you down so as I can kill him without interference."

"**Water Shuriken!**"

"You annoying frog! **Psycho Cut!**" The man moved his right arm in an arc, unleashing a pink crescent-like blade. The attack ruthlessly blasted through the Water Shuriken, but exploded when the last shuriken hit just before it could reach Greninja. When the smoke cleared, the man was gone and Greninja was left to determine where he was, only…it was too late.

"**Phantom Force!**" The man came from a light purple hole from above and struck Greninja as he was turning his head around. Greninja went wide-eyed as he was struck sharply in the back and started falling forward.

'_Sorry Nic, forgive me.' _Greninja thought as he was losing consciousness as he fell forward.

The man showed no mercy as he shot at Greninja as he was falling forward. "**Aura Sphere!**" The attack shot at Greninja's back once more, even though the latter was pretty much down. There was a blue explosion that engulfed the area, making the earth shake.

Nic watched with horrific eyes as he couldn't even move. He was living a nightmare as he saw Greninja get taken down right before his eyes mercilessly. He saw his pal lying in a crater, his body bruised to a deadly degree, his body sizzling from the intensity of the assaults. Greninja was down and unable to keep going.

"You savage demon." Nic muttered under his growling. "You've nearly destroyed everything. Arceus, the universe, me, and now Greninja." You could really hear the anguish and frustration in his tone. "You're gonna pay, ya hear me?!"

The man reappeared in a blink of an eye in front of Nic. "Oh, but I already have young Nic Pularis." He brutally kicked Nic in the face and made him fly back and onto the ground. He landed with a thud and gagged. The man then went over and he picked Nic up by the throat and held him in the air.

Nic was barely conscious and he had no capability of moving. The assailant made his clutch even tighter, making Nic choke and something he never liked arose.

Nic coughed up blood and it spattered slightly along the dead grass.

Nic was wincing and his vision was getting blurry. "B…blood…"

The man used his free left arm and made Dragon Claw, the claw part sharp enough that it'll slice Nic. "This is the power you have now?...Pitiful."

As he was jabbing his Dragon Claw into Nic's abdomen, something from a nearby tree struck the Dragon Claw and the man was forced to use Dragon Claw to intercept the Magic blast of energy.

"Who did that?!" The man demanded.

"Your power is beyond measurement, but exuberance out of death is not humane." The deep yet calm voice announced, the owner of the voice.

"That voice…" Nic muttered. "Wait…!" He went wide-eyed as he remembered who that voice belonged to. It sounded similar, yet it wasn't. Nic's blurry gaze went upwards and he saw a certain someone who was a mystery.

"It's been awhile Nic Pularis." He said, floating thanks to his Air Magic.

"Nice of you stop by…Mystogan." Nic muttered before the assailant tossed Nic towards a tree and he crashed with a thud, making him gag some more and he wasn't able to move.

Mystogan was in the air and looking down at the assailant, who turned to see him. "Nic Pularis shall not be fallen by darkness like you have. You'd best be learning your place."

The assailant grinned and chuckled. He suddenly vanished, surprising Mystogan. "Watch your mouth." The man said, reappearing behind him and delivered a punch into Mystogan's back, sending him falling downwards and crashing into the earth with dust flying.

Mystogan slowly got up as the assailant kept a grin and turned into shadows and disappeared and reappeared in front of Mystogan. "My adversary is Nic, not you. Learn your place or you'll perish with him." He extended an arm and unleashed Dark Pulse at him.

Mystogan tried countering using one of his Magic Staves to shoot a Magic Beam, but even that was starting to give out. He grunted endlessly as Dark Pulse and this uncanny power was too strong. Seeing as how his blast was failing, he quickly tried to make an alternative.

"**Three Layered Magic Circle: Mirror Water!**" Mystogan ceased the blast and made three Magic circles in hopes to reflect the attack, unfortunately it didn't work as what the enemy was using was not Magic.

Mystogan went wide-eyed as he was hit full on, his spell failing. He was engulfed in a black and purple explosion that send him skidding back several feet on his back. Near the skid, he slipped back to his feet and he leaped into the air and he brought forth his Magic Staves to surround the enemy. When they were encircling him. Mystogan did another spell.

"**Five Layered Magic Circle: Sacred Song!**" The blast of Magic was shooting up from the upmost Magic Circle and got more powerful as it shot downwards.

"Please." The assailant snapped his fingers and a spacial hole appeared above him, just as the whole Magic blast was coming down. Mystogan was shocked as the assailant had nullified his Magic spell. He snapped his fingers with the blood red smirk and a spacial hole appeared above Mystogan. He went wide-eyed as he then grunted harshly as he was hit full on with his attack. The attack made an explosion and dust flew about immensely. The assailant paid no heed as he saw Mystogan still standing, though with some scratches and shaken up slightly.

"So, you use the same powers as Nic does." Mystogan stated. "That would explain why my Three Layered Magic Circle didn't affect you."

The man chuckled. "Indeed, though since you are in my way, I guess you'll-!" Suddenly, he felt something from behind and his body was wrapped in vines. "Grrr. This is…"

Mystogan and the assailant turned to see that Nic was standing, but barely. He was in his Meadow Plate and he'd struck the assailant with a Leech Seed. Right now, Nic's sunglasses on his V-neck were glowing and his body shined, revealing him using Synthesis.

"Thanks for buying me some time Mystogan." Nic thanked.

Mystogan nodded and the assailant turned and he clenched his fists. "You tricked me! Die!" He slashed at Mystogan with a Shadow Claw and he leaped away, but he wasn't that lucky.

The Shadow Claw raked his mask and head gear, tearing it off. When it came off, Mystogan grunted and took a greater distance. His face was uncovered, making Nic go wide-eyed.

"…no way." Nic muttered with shaken eyes. "I can't be…_you're _under the mask…" Nic was speechless as he'd recognized the face.

Jellal.

"Nic, I'm sorry you have to see me like this." Mystogan said, unleashing a magic blast from one of his staves that the menace dodged.

Nic snapped out of it and he grunted, with what strength he had, he lowered his head. "**Horn Leech!**" Horns made of green energy formed on his head and shot beams at the assailant. The attack went in fast and the menace grunted at he was hit. He also felt extra energy being absorbed thanks to Leech Seed. Green orbs came from the impact and went back to Nic, but he didn't let up.

"**Giga Drain!**" Nic summoned forth green beams from his arms that went over and wrapped around the enemy, sapping away more energy. The assailant grunted as he did not expect Nic to make a comeback as he was regaining energy.

"Now take this!" Nic then made a glowing green sphere in front of him. "**Leaf Storm!**" A massive rage of green leaves swarmed about, swallowing the enemy. The assailant went wide-eyed as Nic was putting everything he had into these attacks. When the Leaf Storm reached him, there was a green explosion and the earth shook.

Nic shook immensely, as he used up so much energy and gained back only enough for those attacks. Mystogan was a safe distance as he saw Nic putting everything into those three attack.

When everything cleared out in a few moments, the assailant was still there, but since he was caught off guard and those attacks weren't very effective, he didn't feel too much pain. The Leech Seed even rotted away due to how corrosive he was.

He smirked. "It seems I've underestimated you somewhat. You managed to catch me off guard and sap energy. That last one hurt somewhat I admit…" He then loosened his smirk. "Very well." He started floating back up into the air.

The two watched as he was up in the air. "I'll see to this as a reconnaissance to the extent of your powers. I shall spare you this once, but only this once." His eyes narrowed as the shadows were engulfing him. "Be thankful you had backup, because anyone who gets in my way next time shall perish with you. You've been warned. The next time I see you…will be the last of anything you'll ever see." His voice on the last part echoed as he turned entirely into thick shadow like his entrance and then he began to vanish into thin air, the eerie dread and horror was taken with him.

When the shadows of him were gone, the tension in the air subsided and the night sky returned to normal, with the cool night breeze brewing about.

Nic looked at the airspace his adversary left and narrowed his eyes. "Something wasn't right…he was so…evil, so…vile…it's like I fought Satan…and yet, why did he feel so…familiar?" He muttered.

"Nic." Mystogan said. Nic looked back down at Mystogan, and Nic still felt scratched up, and his breathing was still heavy as he had little energy, but could stand for a little.

Nic looked at Mystogan, who was similar to Jellal. "We need to talk."

* * *

**I've been doing long chapters for so long, I'm having a hard time compressing words for fight scenes. I was trying to make a nice and dreadful fight, but I had a really hard time, so sorry if the fight sucked. Also, sorry this was over 12K. I'm trying to get back to the 10-12K range, but it's tough.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are entertained with the twists and plot that is being made and are enjoying the action.**

* * *

**Next Time: 'Edolas'cence**


	31. Edolas'cence

Chapter 31 – 'Edolas'cence

**Hey guys, Insane Dominator squeezing in another chapter. Those of you who've supported and left a positive Review on my story up to this point, I thank you. And I'm glad people liked the fight last chapter.**

**Let's just keep moving forward.**

**To Recap:**

Nic's been away from everyone ever since he came back, unable to face Erza. He's admitted he loves her, and his Greninja said he'll help Nic and Erza stay strong. Suddenly, an assailant with Pokémon powers like Nic nearly thrashes within an inch of his life. Mystogan arrives, but is easily shoved away and allows Nic some time to counter. The man spares Nic and he disappears, leaving Nic to discuss with Mystogan, who looks like Jellal.

* * *

**Chapter 31 – 'Edolas'cence**

The two were sitting in front of a campfire that Mystogan made, and they were more or less discomforted from what had just happened earlier. Nic had to shift into the Mind Plate and use Heal Pulse to heal a damaged Greninja, who was now resting in his poke ball. Nic was still torn up pretty bad from the fight and he was left uneasy, especially since he saw 'Jellal'.

Nic looked at Mystogan with the mask no more. For the most part, Nic could move, but after using Recover continuously, his body was just stinging instead of searing pain. "Okay, time for some answers."

Mystogan just looked at Nic and then his gaze followed downwards towards the fire. "Agreed, on both of our parts."

Nic was pretty sure that Mystogan was as confused as he was, and the topics may or may not be similar, but they needed to find answers from the other. The two were pretty quiet, mainly Mystogan. Mystogan was told to have been the silent type, and Nic respected that. Nic was trying to be patient, so as to know why 'Jellal' was out of prison. The situation was already awkward with the silence after they asked for answers.

"You first." Nic calmly implied out of the blue.

"Very well then." Mystogan then looked away from the fire and back towards Nic. "Now Nic, I understand that you're on a mission to achieve Plates and keep the cosmos stable, correct? If that's true, then it's no wonder Fairy Tail avoids talking about it. If word got out that Fairy Tail harbored the only thing that could save the universe, a cataclysm is sure to happen."

Nic narrowed his eyes. "That is certain. Master and every single member even try to forget so they wouldn't be worried, but what does that have to do with your question." He asked in confusion.

Mystogan looked up at the sky. "Take a look." Nic followed his gaze up towards the night sky. Nic noticed what Mystogan meant.

There wasn't a single star in the sky.

"The stars in the sky have vanished as of a few nights ago, why do you suppose that is?" Mystogan asked.

Nic was discomforted as he too was slightly confused, but got a sense as to why this was happening. "Perhaps I'm running out of time. I have acquired twelve Plates roughly, but perhaps…" Nic's eyes cascaded downwards and he looked grim. "…perhaps Arceus's life is slipping away faster."

"I see, so you need both the Plates and Arceus to live." Mystogan indicated, coming to understand the dilemma at hand.

Nic glanced back at Mystogan. "And now I get my answer."

Mystoagn stayed still as the fire flickered between them. "I know what you're gonna say. And I'm sorry, but I'm not the same Jellal that you know."

Nic tried to façade his surprise, but his eyes failed to show such a case as he was fairly surprised. Now he was even more confused. "Then who are you exactly."

Mystogan rest his arms on his thighs as he glared down at the fire. He closed his eyes as he was trying to put his words together. "It's hard to understand, but for someone like you, you should be able to relate."

"Hm?" Nic questioned as Mystogan opened his eyes and turned his head towards him. "Nic, you and I are much alike. You see…I'm not from Earthland either."

Nic went wide-eyed as his entire body jerked. "What?"

"Yes, I am technically Jellal, yet I'm not." Mystogan's eyes narrowed. "Tell me, have you ever wondered what it would be like to have two of yourself?"

Nic stared at Mystogan and his gaze shifted towards his right towards the fire. He indeed know the concept of having two of himself. A certain event that transpired a long time ago. Nic, remembering as to what happened, was starting to sense where Mystogan was going with this.

His eyes remained glued at the fire. "You mean like a counterpart?" He answered nonchalantly.

"That is correct." Mystogan said, slightly surprised Nic understood. "How did you understand?"

Nic then glanced back at Mystogan. "It's a long story, let's just say that I met myself once and leave it at that. Resume." Nic gestured for Mystogan to continue.

"Alright. As you are aware, we all have our counterpart, like Ying and Yang. As to where every single individual has their own counterpart, Earthland itself has its own counterpart." Mystogan paused as he looked down at the base of the fire. "It's my homeland, Edolas."

Now Nic was wide-eyed and showed it, his lips parted as he tried to keep his mouth shut as Mystogan continued.

"I was send here by a Dimensional Magic called Anima. I was here ever since. I used my Magic Staves to suppress them if possible, but lately one has gotten ever so large."

Nic narrowed his eyes, slightly worried. "Explain what an Anima does."

"Anima sucks up Magic from Earthland, to which is transferred to Edolas. Unlike Earthland, which has limitless Magic, Edolas has a finite level. The other factor is that in Edolas, one cannot use Magic." This made Nic jerk in surprise. "Instead, Magic is used in weaponry, like my Magic Staves. The fact that the Magic levels are so different is what separates Edolas and Earthland. I came here to stop any and all Anima possible, to keep the balance in both worlds together."

Nic cupped his chin and looked at the ground. "Now it makes sense, why you wear a mask. If people mistake you for Earthland's Jellal, then your mission would be compromised." Nic then grinned. "I wonder how Wendy would take this?"

Mystogan's breath hitched in shock. "You saw Wendy?" He asked shockingly.

Nic looked back at Mystogan. "Yeah, she just joined Fairy Tail not too long ago." Then his expression turned sincere. "You should clear things up with her."

Mystogan then got up and turned around. "I will. I'm sorry Nic, but I must depart. I sense an enormous Anima…and I have to hurry or all of Fairy Tail will be in danger."

Nic gasped as he jerked to his feet. "What?! Why?!"

Mystogan turned around towards him. "I'm sensing an Anima is being conjured in Magnolia. I have to go or all of Fairy Tail will be send to Edolas to fuel their Magic."

Now Nic was very concerned. "I'm tailing with ya."

"I'm sorry, you cannot." Mystogan regrettably said, making Nic clench his fists. "You haven't fully recovered from your battle. It's best that you rest for a few hours before trying to head back towards Magnolia." Mystogan then began to walk away. "If possible, warn any members you see on the road."

Mystoagn then left, leaving Nic to sit back down in distaste. He didn't argue that Mystogan was right when he said that he needed to recover. He needed to heal fast and warn anybody he sees.

Still, Nic was left pondering. "Jellal's counterpart, huh? That explains their different usage in Magic." He paused as he started to drift off. "I wonder where mine might be?" He yawned and drifted off into a fast sleep.

All Nic could see was white went his eyes shot wide open with a gasp. He had no idea what was going on as all he saw was white.

'_What's going on? Am I awake?...No, this is familiar. I might be dreaming, but even so, how am I conscious?' _Nic took in a deep breath as he then relaxed and he turned his eyes left and right, the white space was starting to diminish and now everything was coming into view.

He was floating in a black space, and a huge array of pink and blue stardust was all around him, as far as the eye could see. Pink and blue clouds of stardust were above Nic and many were far out of reach.

"Wait a minute." Nic pondered, realizing this space before. "This is-!"

"Greeting yet again Nic Pularis." A voice echoed.

"It has been quite some time since our last meeting." Another similar voice announced.

Nic expression remained emotionless, yet he was serious on the inside if _they_ called him. "It most certainly has, Dialga, Palkia." Nic announced.

Stardust of blue and pink began to converge and the stardust made two towering images that flashed for five seconds. When the flash of blue and pink ceased, Dialga and Palkia both stood/floated in front of Nic, who raised a brow.

"What is it this time? Gonna scold me for not using Charizard as a campfire?" Nic joked, knowing that's not what they came for.

"Amusing, but no" Palkia said.

"Listen very carefully Nic Pularis." Dialga started. "This is very important, we are forced to take drastic actions."

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Drastic actions, how drastic are we talking?"

"So drastic that it will help keep Arceus's life at bay." Dialga announced.

Nic instantly perked up in deep shock. This level of drastic is very drastic if it'll save a god's life. Nic was ready to take action the moment he had heard that.

"I am ready." Nic said.

"One moment." Palkia intervened. "We understand that you are willing to help, but there is something that you need to know. You are in danger as-."

"I know, I was attacked earlier by a man who was influenced by Legendary Pokémon." Nic said coldly, shocking Dialga and Palkia.

"Y-You were?" Dialga asked, shocked that the assault had already begun.

"Then we have bought only a short amount of time. This is bad." Palkia said.

"The details can wait after this drastic case." Nic reminded them as to why they called upon him.

Dialga and Palkia turned towards the other and nodded. Both turned their heads down towards Nic. "Arceus has been able to find a solution to this problem in concerns of his health and the Plates."

"Nic Pularis, we ask that you transfer your energy that you've accumulated over towards Arceus. It shall be able to re-energize him for a short period while you gather more Plates." Palkia continued.

Nic blinked and he glanced in confusion. "Transfer? What do you mean by that?"

"Here's how it'll work." Dialga instructed. "First off, Arceus feeds off of the Plates' energy. The more you use a Plate and its powers, the more energy is stored. Since the Plates are with you, and you've used them on numerous occasions, you have accumulated a fair amount of energy in every one of them. Think of each Plate having their own tank and the more the better." Dialga phrased.

Nic crossed his arms. "I get it, so by transferring the accumulated energy to Arceus, I'll be feeding him sort of speak."

"Correct, it'll prolong his health." Palkia explained. His head then raised into the air. "However…" This made Nic worried as Palkia said that. "There is a drawback."

Nic's eyes narrowed. "What's the drawback?"

Dialga glared down at Nic. "When you transfer the Plates' energy to Arceus, the Plates will shut down temporarily as they transfer power, meaning they will be inactive for a whole twenty-four hours."

Nic raised a brow. "You mean like a reboot?"

"Yes, as you humans would say. The Plates shall be 'rebooting' as they transfer energy. You will be defenseless in that timespan and cannot change into the Plates that are already under rebooting, which will be the ones you had at the time. Are you still willing?" Dialga explained.

Though it was difficult, it's what has to be done. Besides, Nic remembered he had his Pokémon by his side, so it'll be like old times. What could go wrong within twenty-four hours?

Don't answer that.

"I'm ready. Let's do this so that Arceus can last longer while I'm searching and unlocking." Nic announced.

Dialga nodded. "Hm, good answer." Both Dialga and Palkia roared up into space, and then Nic's body was shining a multitude of colors. Not surprising, the colors matched all of the Plates he had on him, which meant he was shining twelve different colors.

Nic felt his body go numb as he couldn't move. "It-It's like I'm being drained!" Nic grunted as this procedure was beginning to sting slightly, adding what went down earlier, this process of multiple lights going off was making Nic wince.

Finally, after his body flashed for several moments, Nic let loose a powerful multicolored light that shot straight up like a beam into the unknown space above. The beam reached the god, though they couldn't see it. They knew the Plates' energy was transferred as they saw the last bit of light vanish.

Both Dialga and Palkia looked down to see Nic grunting as he was a bit wobbly. Nic turned to look up at the two before him. "It's done." He managed to say. "I feel so…light."

Dialga nodded. "That's what happens when you transfer power."

"Remember that you cannot change into your current Plates as they are under reboot. You'll have to rely on your physical abilities and your Pokémon to assist you." Palkia said.

"I understand." Nic said. And then things were slowly starting to become white again, startling Nic. "Wait, hold on-!" Nic wanted to ask about the Legendaries that influenced his attacker, but everything disappeared.

Nic awoke with yet another gasp and eyes shot open. Nic jerked up to his feet and he was panting weakly. He breathed in and out slowly as he was calming down. It took a few minutes, but he eventually settled. He allowed his memories to flood back to him, about the whole Plate thing.

Nic stretched his body as he contemplated. _'So I'm vulnerable for a whole twenty-four hours. It looks like I'll be needing my team now more than ever if things get out of hand. Speaking of which, I wonder how Mystogan is doing?'_

Nic looked towards the sky, as he saw some shades of blue and yellow, meaning daybreak was emerging. He turned back towards the path he and Greninja took and he climbed the trees, though without some pain. When he got to a sturdy branch, he stood but winced. "Curses! My leg hasn't fully recovered." He muttered in distress. "It looks like I'll be running then."

Nic reluctantly crawled off of the tree and he landed on the ground. It took up quite a bit of leg strength to jump from branch to branch, which is how Nic got such powerful legs. His second mode of covering distance was old fashioned running. Nic ran off in said direction and made haste in his pace.

* * *

**Later…**

It was now close to noon and clouds were gathering about in the distance. Nic had on his sunglasses and looked out from where he was running and saw that dark clouds were emerging over Magnolia, which was not far from where he was at.

Nic 's leg was feeling much better and noticed the clouds and he was getting suspicious. His eyes narrowed as he was running his usual speed, which was equal to Natsu's Fire Dragon's Iron Fist Booster, which was fast. "Those clouds, I got a bad feeling…"

"Nic!" A feminine voice called out from the trail. Nic turned his head in wonder as he looked to see where the voice was coming from on his right. "Nic!" From the trail, Nic saw that Sophie was running towards him. "Hey Nic!"

Nic stopped and allowed Sophie to catch up to him, when she did, she skipped to a halt and Sophie was all perked up from seeing her friend again.

"Now there's a sight for sore eyes, how are ya Nic?" Sophie cheerfully asked.

"Nic raised a brow in irony of the situation at hand, just played along. "Been better. I see that you came back from a job."

Sophie nodded and she then pursed her lips. "It wasn't much of a hassle. I was guarding and escorting a rich family as they went on a day's trip. Simple job, not much happened. I did manage to get 60,000 Jewel from that C-Class job, so it wasn't a hassle."

"I just rid a group of raiders from Lupinus yesterday." Nic shrugged. "B-Class, it was 80,000 Jewels, but the client added an extra 5,000 Jewel since I got it done in less than two hours upon arrival."

Sophie went all white and was comically surprised. "Wh-What?! Lucky!"

Nic grinned and his sunglasses shield his disinterested gaze. "Relax Sophie, I was gonna give you some anyway."

Sophie then looked on in surprise. "Oh. Really?" She then figured this was a recurring factor. Nic was giving a bit of his sharing to Cana and her, mainly since he doesn't have a place of his home. "You know Nic, it's not necessary. Are you bothered by something?"

Remembering his talk with Greninja from last night, Nic frowned and he took in a deep breath. At this point, he would ne all of the support he can get.

Nic turned towards Sophie. "Well, it's…"

"Let me guess." Sophie then smirked and cocked a brow. "Is it about a certain redhead?" She teased with a slight chuckle. She tried to pull off a bit off humor to tease Nic of his feelings towards Erza; only Nic kept a straight face and his frown emphasized his mood.

Sophie almost fell silent as she saw Nic's blank yet upsetting expression through his sunglasses. "…Oh." Sophie said, as if she had done wrong. "I see, you're still bothered."

"Not as much as I was earlier." Nic admitted. "I'm alright now, but I'm still slightly uneasy about talking to Erza again." He looked down dejectedly at the ground.

Sophie showed some pity in her frown. She felt bad for making Nic feel uneasy. She hummed and crossed her arms. She turned towards Magnolia and tilted her head towards Nic. "You know Nic, Erza's worried about you." She informed him.

Nic jerked up in surprise and he turned towards Sophie. "Sh-She is?!"

Sophie gave a sincere nod. "Almost every day, she would ask if you were around. She would even ask me and Cana repeatedly since you converse with us mostly. She fidgets about, just waiting and ending up slightly upset when you're not around. When we tell her that you stopped by, a small grin gets plastered on her face."

Nic was pleasantly surprised that Erza becomes happy when he gets mentioned, even when he still thought Erza wanted Jellal. I guess he thought wrong. Nic looked down at the ground. "Well, at least I know she still thinks of me in a way."

Sophie looked curious in mixture with her discomfort. "Is it that bad?"

Nic then turned his entire body towards Sophie and he told her everything, about why he kept away from the guild, why he avoided Erza, and how he loved her yet thought she thought he was a failsafe. When Nic finished explaining, Sophie had hands over her mouth.

"Oh my, that's even worse than I'd thought." Sophie said, baffled as to what Nic explained. A brief silence brewed about them, and then Sophie perked up a very confident grin. "Don't worry! As your friend, I'll do everything in my power to make you two strengthen your severed relationship!" Sophie declared.

Nic blinked and sweat dropped when Sophie even had a fiery aura around her, showing her determination. "Uh, thanks?" He said unsurely. But seeing as how Sophie was dedicated to helping him and Erza, a sincere smile was put on his face. He felt a little better knowing that his Pokémon, and now Sophie, had his back.

"I'm glad you have my back Sophie. I couldn't ask for a more supportive friend." Nic thanked.

"Don't mention it. When we get back, heck I'll shove you into Erza, or better yet, I'll make a trap so she'll 'accidentally' fall on you and you'll look into the other's eyes and…"

"Alright, don't push your luck." Nic growled, making Sophie zip her mouth as she was getting all caught up in her little romance fantasy. Nic sighed at his friend's romantic amusement and he turned towards Magnolia and he narrowed his eyes, catching a glimpse of something.

"Wait, is that a…?" Nic squinted even more as the clouds covered the sun over them and the dark clouds ahead started to show rain, but that wasn't the issue. The big issue was that Nic saw the skies above Magnolia was beginning to spiral. "Mystogan said…Magnolia is in danger of an…Anima…"

"What are you mumbling about?" Sophie asked, not understanding what was happening. She had no idea what was happening. "We should hurry towards Fairy Tail before we get too wet Nic."

Suddenly, Nic shot wide-eyed and he looked at the swirling sky above Magnolia as he recalled what Mystogan said.

"_I'm sorry Nic, but I must depart. I sense an enormous Anima…and I have to hurry or all of Fairy Tail will be in danger."_

_Nic gasped as he jerked to his feet. "What?! Why?!"_

_Mystogan turned around towards him. "I'm sensing an Anima is being conjured in Magnolia. I have to go or all of Fairy Tail will be send to Edolas to fuel their Magic."_

"Oh no." Nic muttered. He then turned towards Sophie sharply. "Sophie! We gotta go! Now!"

"Whoa, Nic! Are you that freaked by the…rain?" She then looked at the swirling vortex up ahead. She narrowed her eyes. "What is that?"

"No time to explain! Come on!" Nic yanked Sophie and he carried her bridal style and then he broke into a mad burst of energy, moving as fast as he possibly could.

Sophie wailed as Nic was moving fast and didn't allow herself to process what was happening. "Nic! Slow down! Hit the brakes! I'm gonna soil myself!" Sophie shouted in distress of Nic's rush, but it fell on deaf ears.

Nic raced as fast as he could as the rain down poured even harder. The two were dashing through the woods like crazy. Nic's leg injury was feeling better so it didn't bother him as bad as one would think, but still, this was no time to worry about himself as all of Fairy Tail and Magnolia was in danger.

"Nic! What's going on?!" Sophie squealed as she was still being carried by Nic.

"Anima!" Nic shouted, reaching the outskirts of Magnolia and finally stopping to see the giant vortex of clouds over Magnolia. His eyes were horrified as he had little to no time to act. "This is bad. I'm too late!"

"Nic, what is that thing?! And did you just say Anima?" Sophie questioned towards him. Nic set Sophie back on her feet and he glared back up towards the sky as the clouds continued to swirl.

As the more clouds swirled, the center of the swirling vortex flashed once, then twice, and then it started flashing nonstop, meaning things were going to become very bad.

"This isn't good! We'll get sucked into Edolas!" Nic exclaimed, remembering what Mystogan said earlier. The sky continued to flash and Nic turned towards Sophie. "Sophie, we gotta hide!" Nic pulled out a poke ball quickly and he threw it. "Garchomp, get out here!"

The poke ball opened, revealing Nic's brute of a beast, Garchomp. When Garchomp emerge onto the ground, making it crack, he let loose an earth-shaking roar that send a shockwave through the air, blowing away any rain that was presently coming down. The brutal beast's roar echoed about, making Sophie pale.

The vortex in the sky finally lit up completely and then sparks were erupting from said vortex. The lightning was shot everywhere in Magnolia. Nic, Garchomp, and Sophie all felt the earth shake immensely and they were beginning to grow startled and worried even more as they all saw the Kardia Cathedral suddenly turn white and then it slowly began vanishing.

Sophie gasped as Nic's eyes widen. Garchomp remained startled yet wanting to smash any rocks that would come their way. Another place in town began to get sucked up into the sky, then it turned into rows upon rows of everything until all of Magnolia was beginning to turn into light.

"Garchomp, get us cover! **Dig!**" Nic commanded. With a quick roar, Garchomp raised his claws and he hurled his entire body into the earth, making it quake slightly even more and dust flew about, making Nic and Sophie temporarily cover up.

Nic quickly turned towards Sophie. "Sophie, into the hole!" Nic ordered hastily, seeing another row of houses turned into light and sucked up into the sky.

Sophie panicked even more now. "Wh-Wh-What?! You want me to jump into a hole with that raptor shark thing-?!"

"YOU WILL DO AS TOLD!" Nic yelled into her face and grabbed her shoulders and then he threw Sophie down the hole, much to the latter's protests and then Nic jumped in as well. It was a good thing as well because the last row of houses before them vanished and the landscape was caught up in a turbulence.

Underground, Nic was suffocating because not of oxygen shortage, but because Sophie was squeezing him because she was scared out of dear life. Nic nearly paled as Sophie hugged Nic so tightly, Nic was beginning to feel his spine crack.

They were probably thirty feet underground just like that, catered to Garchomp's amazing Dig speed. The Dragon and Ground-Type was left still underground as Sophie was crushing Nic, all while the earth was trembling. Sophie slowly eased her grip, allowing Nic to breathe yet again as the shaking was beginning to stop.

After a whole thirty seconds of silence fell, the three all began to move with the small tunnel Garchomp made and they looked up at the darkness that engulfed them.

"Did it stop?" Sophie wondered.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "I don't know." He turned towards Garchomp. "Alright Garchomp, get us back up to the surface."

Garchomp nodded and then he lunged upwards and began to burrow upwards, with Nic and Sophie watching from below as Garchomp was digging fast and largely.

"Just what is that thing?" Sophie questioned.

"Your end if you face him in battle." Nic said.

When they heard breaching from above, they heard Garchomp descending and landed in front of them with a slight shake in the earth. Garchomp looked the same as always, yet uneasy.

"What is it Garchomp? What did you find?" Nic asked.

"You'll have to see for yourselves." Garchomp said. With some state of confusion, Nic and Sophie both grabbed hold of Garchomp's sturdy back fin and he scaled the hole he dug straight up. The brute of a dragon then shot back up to the surface and into the air with Nic and Sophie clinging on as they looked out at the area.

What they saw made their eyes open wider with every single detail taken in. Sophie had a gasp escape her mouth as she and Nic both took in the scenery.

The entire landscape all about was covered in snow, but there were clouds all about, and little rain bubbles were floating _upwards_, not _downwards_. It's as if the entire aspect of nature itself had flipped everything.

"Nic…what happened?" Sophie quietly and fearfully asked her comrade.

Nic narrowed his eyes, he feared something catastrophic would happen, thanks to what Mystogan indicated, but he didn't necessarily speculate to this level. "I don't know." He bluntly said. He then looked towards Garchomp. "Garchomp, set us down."

Garchomp then gradually lowered himself and he set his two reptilian feet onto the mystifying ground. Sophie and Nic both jumped off and landed on the snowy earth, looking about in all direction. They saw mountains in the distance, yet that was all that was untouched. Every single little speck of Magnolia was gone.

Nic looked down at the ground, seeing water bubbles come from the ground. He trailed his eyes to see them slowly escalate upwards the vast portal above. Nic took a glance at said object and frowned grimly.

"It's as Mystogan foretold." Nic said, making Sophie turn towards him and Garchomp glancing monstrously at Nic. "When we met earlier, he said that an Anima would swallow up Magnolia. It looks like he wasn't successful."

Sophie looked up at the sky, her face expressed the sorrow and anguish at the fact Fairy Tail was gone. "What now?"

A small bump in the ground arose, catching everyone's attention. Nic and everyone else there jerked their heads to see what was popping out of the ground. Garchomp instantly bared his claws as if an unknown enemy were to emerge, he would cut it through with his Slash.

The bump grew and grew and the trio tensed up until it finally burst open, revealing a gasping human who was beyond confused. Nic and the others backed away in surprise as they'd recognized him.

Their fellow guild mate gasped for air as he crawled out of the snowy earth. "Geez. What the hell just happened?!" His eyes showed irritation.

"Gajeel?" Sophie stammered. They all then saw a stream of light shoot up from a close distance behind them. They all turned around and looked up as the light shot at lightning speed into the Anima above. The strangest part wasn't the fact that the light was hooting upwards, but the strangest part was that they heard a wailing feminine scream from the shooting light into the Anima.

Now Sophie was even more confused. "Okay, if I don't get answers in the next minute, I think I'll be going into a breakdown!" She exclaimed.

Nic turned towards Sophie. "Calm down Sophie. I'm just as perplexed as you, but we need to stay calm if we're to understand what's going on."

Gajeel crossed his arms. "Oh really, and who made you the expert Luminous?"

"He's right." A familiar voice explained, making everyone turn forward and see Mystogan emerging before them. The man walked up towards them with a serious look on his face. "This situation is perplexing indeed, and we'll need all the help we can get."

Sophie went wide-eyed. "Hold up, Jellal-er, I mean, Mystogan?!"

Gajeel crossed his arms. "Well speak of the devil. 'Bout time we get some answers."

"I'm sorry Gajeel, but I can't explain as much as you want me too right now. I'll debrief you as to what happened to your friends in the shortest words possible." Mystogan explained. The small group then waited with little haste for the rundown as to what was going on.

"Your friends and all of Fairy Tail were taken to a place called Edolas, Earthland's counterpart. There, your friends were turned into lacrima to fuel Edolas' supply of Magic."

"What?!" Sophie exclaimed.

Mystogan nodded. "In Earthland, we have a limitless supply of Magic, but Edolas has been taking Magic from Earthland through the use of Anima, a gateway to their world. Your friends were turned into a power source and it is imperative that we free them."

"And how do suppose we do that?" Nic asked.

"We cut down the enemy that took them!" Garchomp suggested, really wanting to trash into an enemy.

"That is a last resort." Mystogan explained. "And besides, humans cannot utilize Magic in Edolas. Instead, they use Magic weapons."

Gajeel narrowed his eyes. "So let me get this straight, none of us can use Magic in this so called Edolas place, right?" He paraphrased.

"That is correct; however, there is an answer as to how we can free them." Mystogan reasoned. This made everyone's eyes open slightly. "The answer…lies within the powers of Dragon Slayers."

Nic blinked and looked on in surprise. "Wait, so Gajeel can free them?"

"Indeed, I know for a fact that Dragon Slayer Magic is different in Edoas, as it can revert your friends back to what they were. From what I can tell, you have to hit the lacrima with your Dragon Slayer Magic, thus your friends can be free."

"Seriously?" Gajeel smirked. He clenched a fist and held it up to everyone. "If that's the case, then this'll be a breeze."

Garchomp snarled into the air, startling everyone. "I'm a Dragon-Type, I'd be crushing stuff too to save Fairy Tail."

Mystogan glanced down towards the ground and stared at it in quick pondering. "That is true. If what you are saying is true, then it's likely that your dragon-like qualities should count as something, though one cannot be sure as to this claim. Though I do find it to be reasonable to think any further, we cannot afford to waste anymore time." Mystogan then pulled out a small glass bottle with red spherical pills inside.

"What are those? Pills?" Sophie questioned.

Mystogan held up the glass bottle in his palm and showed it to everyone. "Not exactly. They're called X-Balls. Like I said before, Earthland Mages can't use Magic in Edolas, but once they've eaten an X-Ball, they'll be able to use Magic in Edolas."

Gajeel jerked forward. "No way, seriously?!"

Mystogan then opened up the lid and then he poured out two little red balls. He held his hand out to the group. "Sophie and Gajeel, eat these so that you may use Magic to help get our friends back."

Reluctantly, Sophie and Gajeel grabbed a small X-Ball each and they looked at them with suspicion before they flung one into their mouths and swallowed them. They didn't feel any different, but maybe they'll feel a difference in Edolas.

"Nic, your powers clearly do not require any X-Balls, but even so, use whatever strength you have to get Fairy Tail back." Mystogan asked.

Nic turned towards Garchomp awkwardly, as Mystogan had no idea that his powers were on reboot at the moment. Nic then tilted his head towards the sky and looked up and stared. _'Well no matter what, powers or no powers, I'm going in.' _Nic then turned towards Mystogan. "So Mystogan, something's been bothering me. You said earlier that every single person has their own counterpart in Edolas, correct?"

Mystogan nodded. "That is correct. There is a possibility that you may encounter your own Edolas counterpart; however, your counterpart may very well be the opposite of you if not the same."

"Wait, you mean I could be very forgetful?" Sophie questioned, trying to see herself with short-term memory loss, to which made her shudder.

"Possibly. Though your counterpart may be the same, it all varies depending on the person itself. Now listen, there may be a resemblance in your appearances, but be aware that your counterpart may be a bad influence and may prove themselves to be a threat in our plan. Either they're an ally or an enemy. If they're an enemy and try to stop us…"

"We annihilate them!" Garchomp declared menacingly, baring his sharp claws.

"If that is the case, then I'm afraid so." Mystogan said. He then walked up towards Gajeel and held out the bottle with the X-Balls. "Gajeel, I'm sending you first. If you happen to find the lacrima and free them by hitting it with Dragon Slayer Magic, give these to your friends." Mystogan said.

Gajeel was then given the bottle and he looked back up at Mystogan, who stepped back. "I'll be sending you to Edolas. Meet up with Nic and Sophie as soon as you find each other."

Gajeel rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say."

"We're counting on you." Mystogan then held out his arm and Gajeel was engulfed in a light, of which was similar to the one they saw earlier. Nic, Sophie, and Garchomp all watched in awe as Mystogan had send Gajeel in a comet of light into the Anima above.

After he was gone, Mystogan turned to look at Nic and Sophie. "And you two. I can only transport one at a time, so we'll have to make this quick." As Mystogan was going to extend his arm, Nic held up an objecting arm.

"There's no need Mystogan, we can find our own way into Edolas." Nic declared, turning his head towards Garchomp, whose grin showed his vicious fangs.

Sophie turned towards Nic. "Hold up, we're gonna fly on your dragon again?" Sophie almost paled at the remembrance of being thrown into a hole with that Dragon and Ground-Type. Now she has to fly on him?! "Uhhh…maybe I should stick with Mystogan transport-!"

She was stopped when Nic grabbed her shirt collar and hauled her close to Garchomp. "There's no time Sophie. We need to get moving pronto." Nic grabbed onto Garchomp's back fin and he forced Sophie to latch onto Garchomp's back fin as well, much to her disliking.

"Why me?" She comically wined.

"Next stop, Edolas!" Nic shouted. Garchomp let loose another roar that made shock waves ripple and then he repositioned his footing for takeoff. Garchomp crouched and then he finally shot upwards at almost the speed of sound.

"Hang on guys, we're coming for you!" Nic declared as he was hanging onto is Mach Pokémon, who was living up to his name. Garchomp let loose yet another monstrous echo as they escalated at an extreme pace.

Sophie hanged on like her life depended on it, because it did. Sophie had comically teary and huge white eyes as she was screaming for this nightmare of a ride to end. "I'm gonna die! I'm gonna die! I'm going to soil myself and vomit, and then I'm gonna die!" She wailed in agony. "Mommy! Stop this crazy thing!"

Garchomp raced as fast as he could go. He was going so fast that you might actually start crying for no reason, though Nic was as hard as a rock thanks to the training he's done back in Kalos. They were escalating through the sky, reaching the portal. As they were going through the portal, they felt as though they were traveling through space. Rings upon rings of flashing and lines coming from a single point up ahead. A huge light was at the end of the passageway and Garchomp and everyone went sharp-eyed as they passed through the Anima, awestruck by the sheer passage they were heading.

A rainbow light flashed up ahead and everything went white. When Nic and everyone else opened their eyes, they were in another completely different world. The sky was green-yellow rather than blue, and there were countless islands floating in the sky, and I mean countless. There were large spherical planet-like rocks in the far distance. There were a huge assortment of purple trees and other animals that scurried about underneath them as they soared into the air, clinging onto Garchomp.

"Wow, just…wow." Sophie was at a loss for words. She's never seen such a place before in her entire life. She was so awestruck that she had forgotten that she was terrified of Garchomp's mach speed from before. "Just look at all of this! Whoa, a river in the sky!"

They all saw an actual river of water hilling about in the sky, seeing giant fish-like creatures swim in said river.

"I know, it's like a dream." Nic said. He then turned his head towards Sophie. _'I wonder how she would react if she went to my world? She might be even more surprised by the Pokémon themselves.'_

"Nic." Garchomp's deep and aggressive-toned voice ranged in the air, catching both of their attention. Nic looked down at Garchomp as he continued soaring. "So where is this metalhead?"

Nic looked ahead as the wind blew in his face and you could see his eyes slightly from the sunglasses he wore. "You're right, sightseeing will have to wait. Our mission is to locate Gajeel. From there, we'll locate the lacrima that Fairy Tail is in and then Gajeel will take care of the rest." He summarized with as much accuracy as he could and broke down the situation at hand.

He turned towards Sophie. "Sophie, we'll need your Memory-Make. With your excellence in memorizing, we'll find a map or a town then work from there. If we find Gajeel in the process, the three of us shall indicate where our comrades were taken and initiate a plan."

Sophie and Garchomp nodded after the other, and then Garchomp proceeded ahead and his mouth slightly opened when he saw dust fly in the distance. "Heh? What is that?"

Nic narrowed his eyes and saw the huge dust cloud as well. "I see it too. It looks rather large."

"What do you think happened?" Sophie asked.

"I don't know." He looked down at Garchomp. "Garchomp."

"I hear you! Let's tear up some troublemakers!" Garchomp then zoomed ahead at his high speed again, this time with Sophie less panicky than before, because she was prepared to face what might happen ahead.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in the area ahead…**

There was a woman with long, wavy, scarlet hair with a loose tie in the back. Her attire was rather revealing, as her armor had a halter-type breastplate that revealed her stomach and much of her cleavage. She had light-armored gauntlets and greaves on her forearms and thighs, as well as her thighs. She had a dark bikini bottom with a cloth on her hips. She also had a dark scarf around her neck.

She was currently looking down from a creature known as a legion. These were giant creatures with smooth yet dark blue fur. It had a flat and pointed angular head with white beady eyes. Its sharp teeth were in conjunction with the maw, and fur hanged from the chin. It had two very large horns on top of its head. It had wavy jet-black wings with white spots that ran along the folds. Its small black paws had five talons on the font and four on the back. Its long whip-like tail had a broken eggshell-like end.

The redhead looked down from atop her legion, seeing the cindering cater where a Dark Guild was before teleporting away just before her legion could squash it.

"Cowards." She cursed.

On the ground, a tall male with blue eyes with pompadour-style blonde hair and sideburns appeared. He had a defined face and a cleft chin. He had light pink shiny armor with gold chain mail and bronze belt, and black briefs. He also had a white cape with the Edolas insignia on it.

The man walked in his armor and peered down the huge smoldering crater. "Mmmmmm, Teleportation Magic. To think they'd use a spell that would use an enormous amount of Magic power. My, Dark Guilds sure are wasteful when it comes to Magic."

The redhead turned to look down at the man who appeared. "I didn't expect to see you here Sugarboy."

Sugarboy turned towards the female on the legion. "Surprise Knightwalker? This situation is most concerning. Those Fairies are rather resourceful."

"You shouldn't praise insects, you should squash them." Knightwalker scolded.

"Hmmmm, and they've managed to escape how many times now?" Sugarboy pointed out. "They're resilient, but they'll come around eventually." He then changed the subject. "Did you hear that the giant Anima project was a success? Anyway, we should be returning to the Royal City."

Knightwalker understood. "So Earthland's Fairy Tail has been destroyed?"

"To be more accurate, they've been absorbed." Sugerboy said. "The King sure has style, right Erza Knightwalker?"

The woman, know revealed to be Erza Knightwalker, had a shadow over her eyes. "And what of the Earthland Mages?"

"In the lacrima as well, I assure you." Suarboy said

"Splendid, then Edolas' Magic supply should suffice for awhile now." Knightwalker remarked. "Come on Sugarboy, we should get moving."

"Right behind you." Sugarboy was walking towards the legion and he only paced a few steps before he stopped. He turned his head around and looked off in the distance.

Knightwalker noticed Sugarboy's disruption. "Is there something wrong? What's the wait?" She asked impatiently.

"I think…I think there's something coming." Sugarboy jerked back as he saw what looked like two figures on a flying shark heading straight for them.

Knightwalker held her spear and she looked on as she too saw something coming their way. She narrowed her eyes as well to see what was coming their way. Knightwalker went wide-eyed when she saw a man with sunglasses and a blonde girl riding a fast flying shark creature that roared in the air in a menacing voice.

Before they could act, the flying creature that was revealed to be Garchomp landed on the ground in front of them, making the earth shake slightly as dust flew about with some forceful winds. Sugarboy and Knightwalker looked in surprise as they were witnessing an unknown creature emerging from out of the blue. Knightwalker jumped down from her huge legion and she walked to Sugarboy's side. The two gave off uneasy stares as the dust was beginning to clear out.

Suddenly, Garchomp let loose another roar, sending a powerful shockwave of air that completely scattered the dust. Sugerboy and Knightwalker both jerked back at the menacing pitch the roar was at.

After Garchomp stopped, he settled to a low snarl and Nic and Sophie both hopped off of his back. The three stood affirm in front of Knightwalker and Sugarboy, taking a good look at the foreigners. The wind was blowing slightly, making Nic's sleeveless coat wave about, as well as Sophie's blonde hair.

Knightwalker narrowed her eyes and held out her spear. "I demand to know who you are at once! By the order of Erza Knightwalker, the Captain of the Second Magic War Division, you are to identify yourselves at once!"

Nic let a slight gasp escape as he got a good look at Erza. He was momentarily in shock. "E-Erza? It can't be."

Sophie turned towards Nic. "Nic."

Knightwalker pointed her spear at Nic. "Talk, answer me or I'll kill you on the spot!"

Nic jerked when he came back to reality when he heard Erza threatening him, of which she would never do. Nic then remembered what Mystogan said in regards of counterparts.

"_That is correct. There is a possibility that you may encounter your own Edolas counterpart; however, your counterpart may very well be the opposite of you if not the same."_

"_Wait, you mean I could be very forgetful?" Sophie questioned, trying to see herself with short-term memory loss, to which made her shudder._

"_Possibly. Though your counterpart may be the same, it all varies depending on the person itself. Now listen, there may be a resemblance in your appearances, but be aware that your counterpart may be a bad influence and may prove themselves to be a threat in our plan. Either they're an ally or an enemy. If they're an enemy and try to stop us…"_

Nic blinked in remembrance of what Mystogan said took a deep breath. He then looked at Knightwalker. _'I know she's not my Erza, and I know for a fact that she is different in terms of personality, but if she's causing harm, I have no choice.'_

Nic spread his feet apart. "I am Nic Pularis of Earthland, and I'm here to get my friends back." He declared, making Knightwalker and Sugerboy grow wide-eyed.

"What? Earthland?" Sugerboy stated.

"That's right, and we came here to get my friends who turned into lacrima." Nic explained. "And I'll ask you this, where are they?"

Knightwalker blinked and then she gave a sly smirk. "My, how noble of you. You've come all this way just to pick up some tools that we'll be needing."

Sophie narrowed her eyes. "By the looks of it, it seems she's Erza's counterpart. Be careful."

Nic stepped forward. "I know." He stopped when he a few feet from where he was oroginally. _'Of all the times to have my Plates on reboot. Erza is very powerful, and I should know. This may be tough, but there's no way out since she appears to be on the enemy's side. I'm going to need Garchomp for this fight. Also…' _Nic then took a fighting stance. _'Thanks to my training, I'm a top-class hand-to-hand combatant. I'll have to pry that spear if I'm to get an advantage.'_

Nic glanced towards Sophie. "Sophie, you'll handle the one with the pink armor, and I'll take care of Erza." He explained.

Sophie was nervous, but complied. "Okay, just be careful. She's a monster."

Nic raised a brow under his sunglasses. "Sophie, trust me, you'd better pray you don't see _my_ bad side." He warned.

Knightwalker casually pointed her spear at Nic. "I take it that you're from Earthland's Fairy Tail, yes? If so, then this will be as easy as killing off those insects that always scurry away." Nic suddenly got uneasy as to where she was going with this. "I am known as the Fairy Hunter. I've killed about half of the members of Fairy Tail that always evades us."

Nic's eyes widened as Erza proclaimed she actually killed half of the Fairy Tail Mages in Edolas, his pupils sharpening.

"Ah yes, Fairy Tail has always evaded us, as to where the rest of the Dark Guilds have fallen." Sugarboy gestured casually with shrugged arms.

Sophie's breath hitched and her nerves grew uneasy as well. "So, Fairy Tail is a Dark Guild here huh?"

Nic tensed up slightly. "Even so, they're not our primary concern…though Erza killing off half of the members just crossed the line. We'll have to take her down if we're to proceed any further."

Erza chuckled. "Really? You wanna take _me _on? The Fairy Hunter?' She then held her spear behind her. "Well I suppose killing an Earthlander will suffice nicely for Fairy Tail running off. Your death shall add to my reputation Nic Pularis!"

"Now Knightwalker, we have to get to the Royal City at once." Sugarboy stated. "I do believe wasting our time here would be of little meaning since Fairy Tail was our target, yes?"

Sophie raised a brow. "The Royal City eh?"

Nic then cracked his knuckles. "I'm afraid cutting us down isn't going to be so easy. You're siding with the enemy, therefore we must take you down. Though you resemble our Erza of Earthland, you're twisted if you think killing is a way of living. Erza would never stoop that low in her life." He announced.

Knightwalker was curious. "Hmph, so you claim that Earthland has its own Erza? Well I might prove to be quite the challenge then. If I spare you, you just might become a meal for my legion."

Her legion then let off a menacing roar as it showed its hulking mouth.

Sophie panicked slightly by the humungous beast behind Erza, but Nic wasn't even close to being fazed. He grinned and he looked at it.

"Really? Is that your best shot?" Nic asked, shocking Sugarboy and Knightwalker alike. Nic then turned his body towards Garchomp, who bared his claws. "I've got a friend who will make you pray that you wished you stayed in bed this morning."

The legion roared again, but Garchomp stepped forward on cue after Nic's words and he roared menacingly back. The legion took a step forward as it was prepared to attack, only it had no idea what would be coming its way.

Nic then turned back towards Knightwalker, but extended his arm out towards the legion. "Garchomp…get rid of that monstrosity!"

"I'll tear you apart!" Garchomp declared and his feral expression shot daggers at Knightwalker and Sugarboy as they suddenly saw the Mach Pokémon lunge in an upward angle, making the ground crack from where it launched from and air shockwaves emerged. In no time flat, Garchomp flew into the legion and his claws glowed and he used Slash and struck the pointed end of the beast's head, sending a severe pain as the beast screeched as it got on its back legs and screeched in pain towards the sky. Garchomp shot upwards and was now above the legion and he then had his claws and arm fins glow light green and he brought them down, via Dual Chop. The Dual Chop attack struck with immense speed on the legions face again and then the legion was fell backwards and landed on its back, shattering the ground beneath it and made the land tremble.

Knightwalker and Sugarboy looked behind them with gaped mouths and wide eyes as they saw Erza's legion being struck down effortlessly. They had a mixture of shock and horror.

"What is that thing that attacked just now?!" Erza demanded, still looking at the scene behind her, seeing the legion scratch the air, but Garchomp evaded and used Slash to counter a talon, which made the beast screech again.

"Whatever that shark thing is, it's monstrous!" Sugarboy stated.

Nic crossed his arms. "Now, I do believe that it is our turn."

Knightwalker turn back towards Nic and grunted harshly, frustrated to see that he had the upper hand with Garchomp brutally thrashing like a rampaging behemoth. "You'll pay with your life!"

Nic got back into his stance. "Get ready Sophie, here they come!"

"Let's do this for our friends!" She declared.

Knightwalker aimed her spear, which was four jagged ends and curved inwards, at Nic and she lunged at him head on. Though Nic didn't have the Plates available, that didn't mean he was helpless. Nic then began his dash towards her.

Knightwalker started by jumping upwards and aiming the spear at Nic, who was ready to counter. As he was about to strike, he looked at Knightwalker's face for a moment and something in his mind flashed a mental image of Erza. Her sincere eyes, her smile, her flowing red hair, all of her beauty and kindness, all of which flooded his mind and he was momentarily dazed with wide eyes.

Knightwalker grinned as she figured this to be an easy kill, as she saw that Nic was momentarily still when he gazed at her. She thrusted her spear downwards and Nic backed away in haste, avoiding the spear as it hit the ground and chipped a piece of the ground where he stood in shock.

Nic skidded back and he grunted at the close call. _'Dammit, Erza's still in my head. I can't seem to strike efficiently when I see her, she reminds me of Erza. This is going to be harder than I thought.' _Nic thought in frustration, his sunglasses shielding his eyes.

Knightwalker landed on the ground and she kept her grin. "I see that you had a struggle there, though you were fortunate to evade the almighty Magic Spear: Ten Commandments, one of the greatest weapons forges in Edolas."

Nic arose back to his feet and grunted. _'This is no good. She's like Erza in terms of weaponry. She masters a spear rather than a sword. I guess I can refer to the training when I have the Pokémon come at me with attacks relate to their claws. I'll have to be weary.' _Nic then struck a battle stance yet again. "Alright let's go!"

With Sophie, she squared off with Sugarboy. "Well now little missy, this ain't no place for little insects like you. Scurry along." He said.

"Who says I'm running pinky!" Sophie declared. "If anyone's to be running, it'll be you! I'll see to it!" Sophie then pointed her finger at her head as a focus point, just then, a chain of memories appeared.

"What's this? Magic without weapons?" Sugarboy was caught off guard by this phenomenon as he didn't expect for someone to use Magic without Magic.

"**Memory-Make: Stone Lightning!**" Just then, Sophie unleashed lightning down from overhead and it was rampaging all around Sugarboy, who was frantically panicking. He dodged the lightning and watched as any material that was on the ground get turned to stone. Sugarboy sped away and turned backtowards Sophie when the attack finished.

"It appears that you have a trick or two up your little sleeves I see." He said. "Mmmmm, then this could get interesting." He then drew a blade, which was a double-edged blade that had a thin hilt and enlarges at the tip, giving it a fan-like appearance. The massive flat part between the cutting edges had three lacrima where the blade began to widen. The handguard took the form of a large rose that sprouted front the hilt.

"Now little missy, this here is my trusty blade known as Rosa Espada. Now you'd best be watching yourself now." Sugarboy warned. She then rushed towards Sophie with sword on hand.

Sophie tensed up and then she did another Memory-Make Magic. "Oh really? Let's see who will watch who! **Memory-Make: Jagged Barrier!**" Sophie then pressed her hands onto the ground and a large stone wall with ice spikes emerged from underground, intercepting Sugarboy.

"That should keep some dis-!" Sophie was cut off when she saw the barrier was beginning to liquefy in front of her. The whole barrier of stone and ice was beginning to become mush and water. Sugarboy smirked as he was holding out his Rosa Espada.

"Nice try little missy, but my Rosa Espada is no ordinary sword. In addition to cutting up enemies like .any usual sword, it can soften anything it touches to the point where they are liquefied." Sugarboy explained, showing off his blade to her. Sophie grunted as the advantage looked as though it was slipping from her.

Back with Knightwalker and Nic, the Fairy Hunter was slashing away with her spear, to which Nic easily evaded by leaning in all directions and sidestepping to avoid any and all attacks. Knightwalker brought her spear forward and she lunged at Nic. Nic waited and at the last second, he shifted right and he extended an arm out as Knightwalker was following through with her attack. Though it was hard for Nic to stomach, he had to remind himself that even though she looked like Erza, she was not her, which justified his next course of action. He lunged forward as Knightwlaker was following through and did a lariat with his left arm, thus making her gag and he slammed her into the ground. Nic followed through and he started circling around Knightwalker with his great speed.

Knightwalker arose to her feet and saw how fast Nic was as he shot glares through his sunglasses. "He's faster than I had thought. He appears to have sharp reflexes and agility if he was able to dodge every single one of my blows." Knightwalker then grinned. "Very well then. **Velocity Spear, Silfarion!**"

Just then, the end of the spear glowed, making Nic narrow his eyes as he saw the spearhead change to an arrowhead with a black inside and silver outlining. The base had a golden circle with a white middle.

'_Is that a Requip?' _Nic wondered. Just then, he was cut off when the spear's arrowhead glowed yellow and Knightwalker rushed with blinding speed, her body glowing with the speed increase. Nic only had time to register Knightwalker lunging at him yet again before he could react. Nic's reflexes took over and pivoted on his right foot, barely evading the lightning-fast Knightwalker.

'_That was faster than before! It's like Erza's Flight Armor.' _Nic thought as Knightwalker skid to a stop and lunged back at Nic. Silfarion was aimed at Nic and Knightwalker zoomed at Nic again with her spear in a slashing motion. Knightwalker went for a downward slash, but Nic leaned back so he wasn't slashed in the head, but barely. Knightwalker followed through and skid to a small halt and turned around to slash, but Nic ducked and lunged forward, having a strong left hook and rammed it into Knightwalker's abdomen, making the latter skid back.

Knightwalker grunted in annoyance. "Even with Silfarion, he's still too agile." She cursed under her breath. She then saw Nic zoom into her and grabbed her left arm and he pivoted and he threw her into the air behind. Knightwalker went wide-eye at how fast that was. She then straightened out and landed to a harsh skid again. She dashed with Silfarion and jumped high into the air, startling Nic somewhat.

"You have impressive speed, but it won't help if I don't let up!" Knightwalker exclaimed, bringing Silfarion down like an axe. Nic narrowly escaped at the last second by leaping right, though his sleeve was cut with a small gash in his biscep, but Knightwalker immediately regained footing and she pivoted and swung her spear like a bat.

Nic remembered to pay attention to the elevation the slash was, and to his fortune, it was low. Nic managed to pick his feet up as if he was falling backwards, to which he was. The spear followed through and Nic managed to avoid getting slashed, though a small part of his jeans was slightly torn. He rolled onto his back and did an immediate handstand and spiraled on his hand stand and spread his legs apart and did a spiral kick on Knightwalker right in her face and he stopped and then he lunged a knee with the spiraling momentum right into her chin, making her fall backwards and then did a round house with his right leg, sending Knightwalker several feet away and landing with a tumbling thud.

Knightwalker grunted as she was beginning to stand and she looked back when she heard the continuous roars of Garchomp thrashing on the legion. The legion screeched as it swung its tail, only for Garchomp to use Dual Chop and bounce the tail back. The legion turned its head back towards Garchomp, but as it turned, its side was open.

"Go down! **Dragon Rush!**" The appendages on his head glowed blue and released a dragon-shaped energy that engulfed his body and he lunged into the legion's side with tremendous speed. Knightwalker looked with wide eyes as she saw Garchomp use Dragon Rush and crashed into the legion's side, making a big blue explosion. The legion roared as it fell on its side, making the ground tremble.

"How is that possible? That creature defeated the legion! Is that a…a dragon?" Knightwalker wondered with shaken eyes.

She jerked in shock when she heard a few footsteps approaching. She turned just in time to intercept a punched to the face by Nic.

"Don't underestimate me Knightwalker!" Nic declared. As that battle progressed, relating her to Erza Scarlet seemed to die down as he saw her as an enemy.

"Curse you!" Knightwalker cursed as she redirected her attention towards Nic.

Back with Sophie, she just used her Scorn of the Armored Winds and unleashed several small twisters of iron at Sugarboy, but his sword merely did the work for him, with one touch, the sword liquefied the twisters, turning them into mush.

Sophie grunted as Sugarboy countered her Magic. "I gotta admit, that sword of yours is no easy picnic to get around, I'll say that much." She said scornfully.

Sugarboy held Rosa Espada up at her and grinned. "Mmmmm, a compliment, but alas those words shall be cut short. You can use Magic without weapons, but even so, you still shall not harm me."

Sophie scowled at his proclamation. "Perhaps, but we'll see." Then she spread her feet apart. _'That sword of his can liquefy anything it touches, whether it'd be rock or ice…hold up!' _Sophie then went wide-eyed suddenly. _'All of those properties are bound by solids! And I saw him dodge my Stone Lightning Memory-Make. I wonder…'_

Sophie then gave a nervous grin. "I hope this theory works." She pointed her finger at her head and a chain of memories came forth. She then unleashed her attack. "**Memory-Make: Baryon Lightning Impact!**" From the memories, a huge green beam coated in lightning erupted and was send towards Sugarboy, shaking the ground upon incoming.

Sugarboy held out Rosa Espada and grinned. "Honestly little missy, learn your pla-!" Sugarboy went wide-eyed as he saw the beam of energy coming towards him and he realized the issue before it was too late. He was swallowed up in the impact, making a green and yellow burst of energy erupt and shake the ground.

Smoke cleared and Sugarboy's armor was damaged, and he was on a knee and still had Rosa Espada in his grasp, but was very much weakened. Sugarboy looked up at Sophie with scratches on his face, unable to move due to the lightning embedded in the attack. "H-How?"

"You must be _nilag _if you didn't think you had a weakness." Sophie pointed out with crossed arms. "Your Rosa Espada can liquefy matter, but only those that are solids. I noticed that you dodged the Stone Lightning, and that's when I figured out that you can't liquefy energy itself." She said. She then pointed a finger at herself. "Alright you _timhoni_, light's out!"

Back with Knightwalker, she altered her Silfarion and it was now Vacuum Spear, Mel Force. The spear was now a wide spearhead, with the edges on the sides curving inwards close to where it was mounted. A silver colored glowing orb enveloped in diamond spiked connected to the shaft. There was a blue orb engraved at the head of the spear.

She unleashed a strong vacuum wave at Nic, who was pushed back with intense force. The rocks on the ground were send flying and Nic covered up and grunted as he was losing footing. Nic was unable to counter thanks to her Vacuum Spear, and he couldn't get enough ground and he was skidding back with his struggle in vain. He fell backwards and tumbled until he was on his hands and knees.

When the Wave Blast stopped, Knightwalker altered her spear into its Default Form and she lunged at Nic, to which the man with sunglasses dashed ahead to engage with combat with Knightwalker.

Suddenly, the ground between them started to crack and Nic looked down and came to a frozen halt. Knightwalker proceeded, thinking he was giving up, when actually he was waiting. When Knightwalker stepped onto the cracked ground, she suddenly felt the ground under her burst entirely, yelling as she soared into the air.

From the ground, Garchomp roared as he scored a hit with Dig, making Knightwalker land on the ground with a loud thud. Knightwalker got back up slowly, holding her spear as she was surprised when Garchomp was seen in font of Nic. "But how? I thought-?!" She turned around and gasped when she saw that the legion was on its side and had a multitude of gashes and scratches from Garchomp's savage onslaught. The thing was barely conscious.

"No way!" She turned towards Nic with the spear pointed at him. "Tell me, how is it that your creature took down a legion?"

Nic grinned. "Garchomp's never to be underestimated Knightwalker. He's as fast and brutal as they get."

Garchomp roared in agreement at Knightwalker. "That furball was a klutz!"

"Curse you!" Her spear's head altered into a triangular-shaped blade with two curvy yellow lines at the center. The red edges started out wavy and straightened towards the middle to make a sharp point. The blade was supported by an invert diamond shape that had a dark center and silver exterior. "**Explosion Spear, Explosion!**"

"Garchomp! **Dual Chop!**" Nic commanded. Garchomp snarled at Knightwalker and his arm fins and claws glowed green and he lunged at Knightwalker and the two attacks collided, the spear upon impact made a huge explosion.

Due to the wild explosion, Nic skid backwards and he suddenly went wide-eyed as he felt something slipping from his pocket. Nic's arms reacted and his left arm caught his precious phone that was falling out of his pocket. He grunted as he saw the smoke clear.

Garchomp grinned. "That tickled." He snarled.

Knightwalker prepared to attack, but then she noticed that Nic had caught something in his left hand. She raised a brow. "What is that?" She demanded.

Nic growled. "Back off!" He scowled, securing his phone back into his pocket tightly.

Knightwalker blinked and found a weak point. She smirked sadistically. "Oh really, is that thing important to you? Well then, before I gut you open, I'll break it right before your eyes." She threatened.

Suddenly, Nic became still as he heard Knightwalker's threat and his gaze was frozen. He became silent and he slowly had his eyes fixated on her.

Garchomp jerked up in shock as to what Knightwalker had just said. Garchomp fell silent for awhile and he slowly glanced back at Nic and saw that through his sunglasses, you could see the horror of the threat she laid on him.

Knightwalker held her spear. "Now, let's get this over with…" Before she could act, the air became noticeably thin and slightly cold, as if a bad omen had been committed and she could feel it. "What's this feeling?"

Garchomp's eyes shrunk to horror, as Knightwalker had just unleashed something that was even more terrifying than Garchomp himself.

"Oh god." Garchomp muttered, backing up a few steps. "What has she done?"

* * *

**Didn't want to make the first fight in Edolas that big of a deal, but things will pick up next chapter. Sorry if you guys didn't get a lot of Hebrew from Sophie lately, DeoxysSpeed is my translator and I haven't heard from him in awhile.**

**Speaking of next chapter, I need to re-watch the Edolas Arc to plan ahead because this Arc is that complicated. The next chapter won't be for quite some time because I need to think through this Arc. Until then, I'll be shifting over towards **_**EDventures in Kalos**_**.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the twists I put into the plot and are loving the fights.**

* * *

**Next Time: Nebulus**


	32. Nebulus

Chapter 32 – Nebulus

**Hello loyal and faithful readers! Okay, nothing important to say except hope you guys find this chapter entertaining!**

**To Recap:**

Mystogan explained that he was from Edolas, a counterpart world, where he is the counterpart of Earthland's Jellal. He warns Nic of an upcoming Anima that'll suck up Fairy Tail and use it to power Edolas. Nic was left to recover and Dialga and Palkia tell him that his Plates are to be on reboot and he can't use them for a whole twenty-four hours. He and Sophie meet up and the two evade the Anima just in time, but looked and saw that all of Magnolia was sucked up. Nic, Sophie, Garchomp, and Gajeel all get send to Edolas to save everyone and Nic, Garchomp, and Sophie encounter a man named Sugarboy, and Erza Knightwalker, Eartland Erza's counterpart. Nic only had his expert combat skills and reflexes, and he was holding up very well, until Knightwalker threatened to break his phone, which was something she would soon regret.

* * *

**Chapter 32 – Nebulus**

In the cosmos somewhere, Arceus was sitting down on some space stardust like a pillow and was bathed in a bright light as he was feeling apart of his strength return.

Arceus let a relieving sigh out as he felt the energy Nic gather ease his tainted pain. "Nic has my gratitude. He's unlocked several Plates and I feel a lot of fresh energy flooding away the taint in my body."

Arceus's pale body had some color come back, but not much. He couldn't stand as of yet, but hopefully the next time Nic has more Plates upon being called for reboot.

As Arceus was recovering some strength, Dialga and Palkia both looked up at their creator, feeling satisfied that they chose the right guy for the job.

"Dialga, tell me." Palkia asked. Dialga turned towards Palkia in question and curiosity. "Tell me, is it okay to have Nic Pularis on reboot. What if he gets into trouble?"

Dialga too felt uneasy about this situation. Palkia wasn't wrong, but there was no need to get too caught up in a panic. Nothing too terrible would happen, right? I mean, twenty-four hours isn't that long to some people, and too Dialga that's basically all the time in the world…or in this case universe.

"I wouldn't imagine." Dialga said. "Remember, even when he's on reboot, Nic Pularis can unlock new Plates and utilize them. They wouldn't be affected by the reboot because they weren't present during that period."

"I see." Palkia then looked back up at Arceus with a straight face. "Though I can't help but wonder if what you said about unlocking Plates is certain, but let's just hope Nic Pularis also isn't caught up in melee…"

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Edolas…**

You would think that Nic's casual self was tolerable, but nobody had any idea as to the unholy thing Knightwalker had done. When someone threatens a precious memento from Nic's past, something given to him by his grandparents, you'd best pray you come out with your own life intact.

Nic's horror-filled eyes were starting to glitch as he was on brink of going feral. The ominous feeling in the air was starting to crawl upon everyone's skin, as Sugarboy and Sophie both stopped their little battle and froze.

"Hmm? Strange, now what is this feeling?" Sugarboy questioned. "It's like the air dropped and died, being replaced with a foul feeling of sorts."

Sophie turned back to where Nic was and saw Garchomp backing up. Seeing Garchomp, the feral and vicious battle-crazed behemoth on Nic's team, back up meant something _really_ bad was coming.

"Strange. Uh…I don't recall the air being this sickening. And why is Garchomp…?" Sophie was filled with questions, but nothing else could be said.

Garchomp backed up in front of Sophie and he turned is eyes down towards her, and Sophie saw…fear?

"If you want to live blondie, do as I say and get back." Garchomp warned, putting his arm in front of her and blocking her off.

"Wait, just what is going on?" She questioned. "What about Nic?"

"Trust me, he's the least of your worries, you'd be worried if Knightwalker will survive."

This made Sophie peek from behind Garchomp so she could understand what was happening.

Yeah, big mistake.

A lone wind blew as Nic was as silent as a grave, and his sunglasses shielded his feral and dark expression. A dark shadow was over his eyes and he was starting to twitch. Veins starting popping out all over his body and he opened his mouth, his canines super sharp, and emanating a low growl.

Knightwalker was left in confusion and a tint of dread. But she had a reputation. "Humph, you'd think this feeling will stop me?" Her spear changed again into its Default Form and she aimed it at him. "You think you're so scary? Well you're not. Now die!"

Knightwalker lunged at Nic, but the latter refused to move as he was hitching his growls into snarls and then with whatever strain of logic he had left, he slowly reached up and slowly took his sunglasses off and gently put them on the ground.

As Knightwalker was getting closer, Nic feral gaze turned his gaze that was shadowed towards her. Knightwalker was only focused on killing him and didn't look into the face of Death.

"I'll cut your limbs and crush your precious memories right before you!"

…and that was all the time she had before her neck was suddenly clutched out of the blue.

Nic gripped her neck and let loose a feral yelp as he drove Knightwalker into the ground onto her back, breaking the ground and her spear flew out of her hands, a distance away.

Sugarboy was left surprised as it happened so fast. "My word! What happened?!"

Knightwalker only saw a blur and heard a loud feral animal before she was yanked up back to her feet and felt an earth-shaking punch right into her cheek, making an air shockwave ripple and saliva and hints of blood splashed lightly from her mouth as she flew back and did a skidding thud and tumbled backwards and landed onto her back with a huge fountain of dust surging about.

Knightwalker only had little time to look as she struggled to stand. "What just…happened…!" Knightwalker froze in shock and a loud gasped escaped her mouth as she recoiled suddenly, much to her surprise. "Wh-What the hell is that thing?!"

She was looking into the bloodshot eyes of Nic. His eyes were blood red from pure anger and his eyes were as feral as a monster that was left to rot all its life. Veins popped out everywhere and Nic was snarling and focused on Knightwalker, and the dark shadow over his eyes gave him an even more monstrous appeal.

Sophie gasped and covered her mouth as she was seeing the full force of Nic's wrath. _'Oh god, what is Nic?'_

"YOU SICK WITCH!" Nic bellowed, making Knightwalker jerk in surprise. "YOU NEVER, **EVER**, THREATEN MY PRECIOUS BELONGINGS!" Nic then made a mad dash towards Knightwalker, of whom tried to subdue Nic by trying to run right passed him to retrieve her spear. Knightwalker ran towards the ominous vile that was Nic and jumped up and tried getting over him, but Nic grabbed her left leg as she was jumping over him and he hurled Knightwalker into the earth in front of him, making earth and dirt fly as she felt her upper body crack from that slam.

Knightwalker gagged before Nic drove a power-packed fist straight down into her gut, making her body react and she coughed up a bit more blood, not to mention that she was screaming in agony. There was only a split second gap when Nic reeled his fist back and then drove a right hook into Erza's cheek again, sending her flying and tumbling towards Nic's left.

Knightwalker tumbled a few times before straightening to her feet, finishing the skid. Her face and upper body was savagely bruised and her mouth had blood on the sides. She made a break for the Ten Commandments and she somersaulted forwards and retrieved it from the ground as Nic was just glaring vicious at her. He then turned and he sped at a disastrous speed towards Knightwalker.

Knightwalker turned back and she thrust the spear forwards. "Die monster!" The Ten Commandments went at Nic, but when the four sharp ends reached Nic, he yelled and he grabbed the bottom two blade ends, disregarding how sharp they were.

Nic easily gripped the two spear ends and Knightwalker was left horrified that Nic stopped her attack with his bare hands. "I'LL TEAR YOU APART!" Nic grunted and gave a snarling yelp as he pried off the two ends he was gripping, shattering them and throwing them aside and leaving Knightwalker to reel back, unable to take in what just happened. Nic rushed in passed the remaining part of her spear and drove a knee into her gut, making her gag. The next thing anyone saw was Nic getting behind her and gripping her left arm and holding it out and Knightwalker tripped towards her left and was left unbalanced as Nic left her dangling by her left arm. He then brought his left foot up and he let out a feral snarl as he mercilessly stomped onto her left shoulder plate, completely fracturing it, and her arm was completely dislocated.

Knightwalker let loose an agonizing scream as her left arm was dislocated and her plate was damaged. Nic then pivoted and threw Knightwalker over his head and into the ground while still holding onto her left arm.

Sophie paled completely. She was too scared to move, she couldn't even look away from the mauling before her. This is what Garchomp meant. "…mommy, I'm scarred for life." She squealed. "A-a-a-a-at least I-I don't h-have to w-w-worry about soiling myself."

Nic yanked Knightwalker towards him and let go of her left arm as he stomped on her abdomen again, making her gag a bit more saliva and blood. Nic then grabbed her left leg with his left arm and tossed her as though she was a ragged doll.

As Knightwalker was left twitching and struggling to get up, Sugarboy tried to fend off against Nic. "Alright you scalawag, time to taste steel!" Even though he said it with confidence, he was internally horrified.

Nic started to emit a royal blue aura as he was snarling, his bloodshot eyes staring coldly at Sugarboy, paralyzing him. "I WILL TEAR YOU LIMB FROM LIMB! I SWEAR!" The ground began to quake and everyone was panicking as stones were defying gravity and now Nic was glowing royal blue with a tint of coral red. Nic let loose one last loud, and this time draconic, roar that make the ground shake even more.

A bright flash appeared, startling everyone as Nic was engulfed in a bright Nic. When the light faded, the quaking ceased, but the catastrophic chill in the air still gave them goosebumps still. They all gasped when they saw Nic.

Nic sported royal blue running shoes with coral red laces, but the tips of the shoes were adorned with three coral red nails, similar to a dragon's claw. The pants themselves were very loose and baggy and royal blue, but the whole thing had huge shin guards that were black with rows of coral red spikes going down the entire thing. His T-shirt had tattered ends with no sleeves, and was coral red. The sleeveless coat had the same design with flames flickering up to the back of the thighs, but the flames were coral red and the coat was royal blue, with the shoulders having black plates with coral red spikes going back. The most distinct feature was the pair of royal blue draconic wings with coral red membrane. The wings were very scaly and rugged and if spread out was twice the length of Nic.

Nic let loose a massive dragon-like roar that made shockwaves throughout the air, making everyone's hair fly. Sugarboy was shaking terribly, and he looked into Nic's feral bloody gaze with the shadow over his eyes. Sugarboy tried to pull up his Rosa Espada and he gave everything he had into lunging at Nic without looking into his eyes, but the air was still making his skin scream.

Nic wasted no time in attacking with his hands emanating light blue claw-shaped energy and he let loose a feral yell as he spread his wings and lunged at mach speed at Sugarboy. "**DRAGON CLAW!**" Nic's Dragon Claw attack brutally and effortlessly slashed and shattered Rosa Espada, making Sugarboy scream in terror.

"Impossible! It liquefies and cuts anythi-!" He was cut off when Nic used his left Dragon Claw and slashed Sugarboy, sending him into a crater right in front of Knightwalker, making dust fly. Nic didn't even remotely let up as he opened his mouth and a multicolored energy began charging. "**DRAGON PULSE!**" Nic unleashed a beam of multicolored dragon-shaped energy at the two Edolas adversaries, swallowing them in a big multicolored explosion and everyone heard their loud and agonizing screams of pain.

The smoke cleared, revealing Sugarboy and Knightwalker both twitching and the two were barely able to move. "S-S-Sugarboy, run!" Knightwalker muttered. "We n-need to run away. Let's-!"

She was cut off when Nic came crashing down, stomping onto her back when she was already on the ground, making an even larger crater. She gagged again and Sugarboy crawled away as Nic was brutally picking Erza up with one hand and smashing her repeatedly into the earth, bones being cracked with every single strike.

Sophie felt like she could cry, but she was too scared to even do that. "Okay…I understand what you mean earlier." Sophie squealed behind Garchomp. "Curse my good memory. Even with my Memory-Make, I'll be too scarred for life to forget."

Sugarboy finally retrieved the damaged Ten Commandments and he looked back at Knightwalker, nothing but a gruesome pulp.

Nic's gaze took note of Sugarboy and the latter could've sworn his soul had just left his body, for he knew he was a goner. Nic grabbed Erza by the head and did a full spin and threw with tremendous force right into Sugarboy. The two smashed into the other, Knightwalker and Sugarboy screaming alike. They both had hit a nearby piece of rock and smashed it. The two laid there in debris and rubble, unable to move.

Fortunately for them the legion was starting to come around and got spooked by Nic and his terrifying feeling he was emanating. The beast grabbed Sugarboy first by the teeth and picked him up by his cape and threw him onto its back, and then grabbed Knightwalker by the scarf and tossed her onto its back as well. The legion was flapping its wings and started taking flight when Nic rammed its side with Dragon Rush, making a big explosion and the legion roared in searing pain. The beast's priority was to get back home, but Nic was just about done.

"DON'T EVER THREATEN MY BELONGINGS AGAIN!" Nic shouted viciously and then fired one last Dragon Pulse attack that went at the wobbly legion and scored a huge hit on its right wing, making it scream and shake the air as its wing was feeling wrecked.

Knightwalker and Sugarboy were both wide-eyed and each had bits of blood everywhere, mainly Knightwalker. She never experienced something so painful, so terrifying, so feral in her entire life. She was left immobile and speechless as the damaged Edolas team disappeared into the sky.

Nic let loose a huge roar that shook the ground and then Garchomp and Sophie remained still. With Knightwalker and Sugarboy severely hurt, and their lesson was learned, Nic started breathing heavily and he started to calm down.

The tension and ominous feeling in the air was starting to settle, and the atmosphere was starting to decrease to what it was before. The goosebumps and menacing feeling all about were starting to die off, and Nic was keeping his breathing steady.

Garchomp turned towards Sophie. "See, Knightwalker was super lucky she survived. This is a warning to Edolas that we're not fooling around."

Sophie kept quiet as Nic starting to ease, his teeth looking normal again, and his bloodshot eyes were becoming a light pink. It would be awhile before they return to being white, but were still perfectly fine. His eyes eased and the shadow over his eyes vanished, meaning he was feeling much better.

He turned towards Garchomp and Sophie, still laced in his new Plate. He stared at them and Garchomp slowly approached. Garchomp stopped in front of Nic and bend down. Nic gave a soft grin and pet his head.

"I'll be okay buddy." Nic assured. Garchomp was feeling mild now that the battling was out of his system and he nudged Nic and the Trainer smiled.

Sophie, on the other hand, was still recovering from that gruesome display of Nic's demonic wrath. _'Okay, I'd best prefer to be scolded by Erza.'_

Nic turned towards Sophie and she jerked. "I apologize that you had to witness that." Nic said.

"I-It's okay, I understand." Sophie said, though she didn't mean it. She never saw Nic that angry before, and she wasn't entirely sure what caused it.

Nic pet Garchomp some more and he reverted back to his normal self. He then looked at his arms and legs. "I guess in that mayhem, my power pulsating through my veins caused me to unlock the Draco Plate." Nic said.

"Meaning you can use Dragon-Type moves." Garchomp said, to which Nic nodded.

"Since I just unlocked it that means it's the only Plate in my arsenal until morning." Nic walked over and he picked up his sunglasses, untouched from the onslaught of brutality and he put them on and turned back towards the team. "Alright guys, let's find shelter. When we see a town up ahead, we'll be traveling on foot to avoid suspicion."

Nobody argued since Nic was pretty good with these scenarios and the two got on Garchomp. Sophie then turned towards Nic. "Nic?"

"Yeah?"

"What was that? Was that your anger?"

Nic looked down and he narrowed his eyes. He paused and avoided looking at Sophie. "…I don't like to talk about it right now."

Sophie said nothing as she saw the hurt on Nic's sunglasses-covered face. This matter seemed fairly personal, and she felt she shouldn't press the matter. Garchomp then took off at high speed, back on track to where they would find a potential town.

* * *

**Royal City**

In an outside hallway with columns that had no windows, there were three people present.

One was Hughes, Captain of the Third Magic War Division. He was a young man with arrow-like eyebrows with messy purple hair with a thick lock of white on his right side. His long bangs obscured his forehead and had on a white uniform with a long white coat with gold trims and metal shoulder guards over his white pants. His shirt was dark green with olive green crosses.

Another man was Byro, Chief of Staff of Edolas's Royal Army. He was a short and elderly man with a strangely shaped nose and wide eyes. Aside from his horn-shaped eyebrows and tufts of hair on the sides of his face, he was bald. His face had a few liver spots as well. His attire was of a cape with a wide, adorned collar with ornaments in front. Underneath was a dark robe with light edges.

And the last man, or cat, was Panther Lily, Captain of the First Magic War Division. He had the head of a black panther, but the muscular physique of a man. He had a white muzzle, small red eyes, and a large scar going over his left eye. He had battle armor with a long cape around his body and adorned a helmet.

The three were walking down the open hall and Hughes was more than excited about the giant lacrima that the King had 'found'. "Oh man, can you believe how awesome this lacrima is? It's like, super-mega awesome!" He shouted. "It's the coolest thing I've ever seen!"

"That would be enough Hughes." Panther Lily argues in distaste of Hughes hyperactive self. "You need to learn to calm down."

His grumpy disposition didn't faze Hughes all that much. "Bah quit your worrying, you should learn to lighten up!"

Panther Lily grumbled in distaste as they continued heading down the hall. Byro just found this amusing as he chuckled evilly. "Well now, I see Hughes is far more loose than you'll ever be Panther Lily, though I'm sure an Exceed like you can sympathize with our joy, right?" He asked curiously/

The Exceed right down at Byro. "I assure you, my loyalty is to the King after I was exiled." He then faced forward. "And for the record Byro, your laughter is insidious and obnoxious."

Byro snickered and he lowered his head slightly in pondering. "Whatever you say, but that lacrima is our top priority." He then stopped, making Hughes and Panther Lily stopped and turn around at the elder. "Speaking about priorities, I wonder when Miss Erza will wipe out that Fairy Tail Guild?"

"Ah quit worrying old man, you'll get even more wrinkles that way." Hughes said. "Besides, I'm sure that Erza and Sugarboy should be here anytime now."

As if on cue, they heard footsteps and they turned from direction they came from. Hughes smiled. "See, what'd I tell-!"

Hughes, Panther Lily, and Byro all went wide-eyed and stared in horror as they were seeing both Knightwalker and Sugarboy severely battered and scraped and partly bloodied, Knightwalker especially. They used the other as support as they were barely able to stand by themselves. Sugarboy's armor was fractured and parts were chipped off. Knightwalker's left arm was dangling since it was dislocated and her shoulder blade severely fractured. Her entire body was scraped and her face was scratched and her mouth had blood on the sides. Her Ten Commandments was seen laced to her back, but they saw that half of the Default Form was destroyed.

"Erza! Sugarboy! What happened to you two?!" Panther Lily shouted in shock, unable to comprehend that Erza and Sugarboy both never looked so messed up in their lives.

Erza could barely speak. "I faced Hell, it was a bloody nightmare." She exaggerated.

Sugarboy was able to tell more of it. "Yeah, apparently there were two people from Earthland. One boy, and a girl, and the boy seemed to have a dragon at his disposal."

Everyone gasped with shock when they heard Sugarboy mention this. "A dragon, for reals?!" Hughes shouted. Knightwalker and Sugarboy nodded ad they winced, starting to feel uneasy.

Knightwalker looked at them again. "They were from Earthland's Fairy Tail, and the one I fought was named Nic Pularis." She was starting to shake and nearly lost her balance at the remembrance of his heinous face and his deadly attacks, nearly killing her. "He's the one who did this."

Byro was slightly uneasy, but pulled a chuckle. "Well now, fill us in on the details with his majesty when we get you to first aid right away."

With that, Panther Lily and Hughes both took Sugarboy and Knightwalker away towards a nearby place to recover and get their wounds treated.

'_I've never seen Erza so devastated. This Nic Pularis was that terrifying?' _Panther Lily thought. _'Perhaps we should warn his majesty and watch out, for he may have come for the lacrima.'_

"Nic Pularis…" Knightwalker muttered. "…a nightmare…I'll remember this…he'll pay…" It was only moments later that she lost consciousness.

* * *

**Louen**

The rocky town known as Louen was the town that Gajeel ended up in. He was draped in a cloak and looked out from the alleyway.

"Now what? Where the hell am I suppose to go from here?" He muttered. "I guess there's no point hanging around. Better start asking."

Gajeel unhood himself and he walked out of the alleyway in an attempt ask people. He made it out onto the streets and he turned his head and looked at various people. He picked the closest individual and turned towards him.

"Yo, mind if I ask ya something?" He asked. The man gave a twisted look of animosity and he walked away. "Get back here!" The man kept walking away to avoid Gajeel. Gajeel turned towards another person, but he too walked away and avoided, and the process repeated and walking towards them only made it worse.

He grew a tick mark with a raised brow. "Man, the people in Edolas make the jerks I put up with at home look like a bunch of angels." He then looked over and saw three guys huddled together and eyeing him and chuckling.

He then grinned. "One thing's the same no matter where you go, there's always clowns that can help you." Gajeel then went up to the three and the three gave him looks of animosity.

"You looking to start something pal?" The one with a magenta jacket asked.

"Step off ya horsefly!" The short one with an afro said, earning a laugh from his group.

Gajeel's eyes narrowed as he glared at them. "You've got a lot to learn about insults pal."

They weren't even moved by his rough voice. "We haven't got time for a lecture." The leader said.

"Yeah, like horsefly house maggots!" The short one said, earning another laugh from his group.

"That's not funny." Gajeel growled, making the group stop laughing immediately and Gajeel headbutted the leader in the face, making him fall to the ground.

"That's it! You want a piece of me?!" The two lackeys shouted in unison, doing a double punch to Gajeel's forehead, but Gajeel didn't move as he merely grinned as his skin was rough like iron. The two guys' hands were swollen and they reeled back, allowing Gajeel to punch them down to the ground.

As the leader was getting up, Gajeel grabbed him by the jacket with one hand. "Listen! A giant lacrima should've popped up around here somewhere, and you're gonna tell me where it is." He threatened.

"I-I don't know where it is!" The leader shook his head and shouted, afraid.

"Oh really, maybe I need to jog your memory." Gajeel said, reeling his head back.

The leader paled. "Gah! I swear! We don't know where it is! Right fellas?!" His lackeys nodded in unison.

Gajeel sighed and let go. "Fine, I'll ask someone else. You're off the hook, now go scram."

The three gave a relieving group sigh and looked confused. "What's with you Gajeel? How'd you get so strong?" The leader asked.

The short one crossed his arms. "Yeah, I didn't know you'd be the kind of guy picking fights."

Gajeel turned back towards the group. _'They must be talking about that counterpart thing Luminous and Mystogan were talking about.' _

Gajeel then narrowed his eyes. "Tell me, what does the Gajeel here do for a living?" The three were once again confused. "I'm not him, we just look alike okay?"

"You joking? You look exactly like him." The leader said.

"Just answer the question or it's knuckle sandwiches for you all." He threatened.

"He's one of them journalists and has a reputation of being nosy." The leader said. "That guy's been making articles talking smack about the king."

"Nobody can stand him." The short one said.

"That would explain why nobody would give me the time of day here." Gajeel then turned away and started walking, leaving the group puzzled and they walked off too. "This Gajeel's a journalist huh? Better get the scoop on him." With that, he walked back into the alleyway to avoid detection and suspicion.

* * *

**Later…**

Nic and Sophie had just entered the town of Louen, where it had a rocky exterior. Nic recalled Garchomp before they got close, so no suspicion would rise. Nic and Sophie were currently making way through the alleyways so as to avoid the public.

"So all we need to do is find a map for me to memorize and then we'll be heading to the Royal City in no time." Sophie summarized as they silently made way through the alley.

"Right, but our profiles must be kept at a minimum. It's likely Knightwalker has informed people about us and the threat we pose."

"More like the threat _you _pose." Sophie muttered.

"Pardon?"

"Uh, nothing!" She objected, trying to cover herself up to avoid Nic's fury. Nic crept about until they were at the corner of the alleyway and they looked out.

Nic's eyes under his sunglasses narrowed. "So I take it that we'll be finding a map either by paper, and asking directions may prove to be unlikely given we never know what our counterparts can do."

"What do you mean?" Sophie asked.

"Don't tell me you forgot, because it's very hard for you to forget things Sophie. Listen, in this scenario we may never know if our counterparts are good or bad. If they have a bad reputation or have caused destruction like Knightwalker, it's likely the public will turn us in."

"So you're saying…"

"He's saying that in order to get around, you need a man from the inside." A voice said from behind. Nic and Sophie turned around and were shocked to see a cloaked figure with a rough voice walk up to them.

Nic suddenly recalled this voice and he eased himself. He grinned as he saw the hood come off, revealing Gajeel.

"Gajeel, it's you!" Sophie said.

"Yeah, it's me blondie. 'Bout time you two showed up, I was beginning to wonder if you were taking a break and having a tea party." Gajeel joked.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "I wouldn't say tea party Gajeel. There's something we need to mention to you."

"Same here. Apparently I got intel on someone." He said. This made Nic and Sophie go silent as Gajeel had the whole floor to himself. "I don't know about your guys' counterparts, but I was told that the Gajeel here is a journalist that talks smack about the King."

His explanation earned a gasp from Nic and Sophie. Nic stepped forward. "You're serious?! Tell me, where can we find him?"

Gajeel turned away with a grin. "Relax pal, bet he's somewhere in that Royal City. And I managed to find a map too." He pulled out a scrap of paper and revealed it to be town labels. "It's not much, but it's what I could've managed without being spotted."

"Sophie, you're getting all of this?" Nic asked, having Sophie take a really good look at the water, the town labels, and the Royal City location.

"And…memorized!" Sophie said with satisfaction. She perked up and was feeling confident. "Alright, now that we know where that city is, we can go and take back our friends with Gajeel!"

Gajeel crossed his arms. "Easy there, this place ain't no picnic. Remember, we can't go running off. Like that Mystogan weirdo said, we have to plan if we're to get those bunch of morons back."

"I don't doubt you there." Nic said, putting his hands into his pockets. "And I'm sure getting to the Royal City on foot is of best transportation. We'll have to continue by the sky until night falls."

With that arranged, the trio tried to maneuver their way through town, silent as a Ghost-Type. The trio made it out of Luen with ease. When they were a safe enough distance, Nic turned towards his team and Gajeel and Sophie nodded.

Nic pulled out a poke ball. "Alright, come on out!" Nic threw his poke ball into the air, revealing Charizard.

Charizard stretched out his wings and roared.

Gajeel stepped forward. "Say, I remember him. That lizard that could breathe fire like Salamander and transform."

"That is correct." Nic said, walking towards Charizard.

Charizard had Nic and Sophie to both get onto his back and he looked forward. "Two people on my back? This'll be fun; I've been wondering how much more weight I could bear when flying about." The Fire and Flying-Type announced. Due to constant training back in Kalos, he could handle carrying Gajeel with his bare arms, and that's precisely what he did.

"Alright everybody, time to catch some air." Charizard added, the Flying-Type ascending slowly, with Sophie grabbing onto Nic as she doesn't fall.

Charizard took note as he turned his head back, but he shook his head as he remembered where Nic stood, feeling uncomfortable about Erza still. _'I can't be thinking about that. What matters is that we stay by Nic's side to the death.' _He then gave a confident roar and Charizard flew in the sky at high speed, with him carrying the three.

Before they knew it, it dusk was upon them, and the sky was beautiful with glowing planets and stars, giving it a more cosmic feel. Sophie looked up in amazement, surprised and took it all in, memorizing every bit.

Eventually, Charizard caught a glimpse of some super large city ahead, and his eyes narrowed. Charizard then curved downwards and eventually reached the ground.

"What's the matter? Hungry?" Sophie asked.

Charizard shook his head as Staraptor pointed it out far up ahead. "No, look." Nic and everyone else blinked and were surprised they've made it that far already.

"Hey look, is that…?" Sophie started.

"Yeah, it's that big city where our guild is." Gajeel said.

"This is as far as we can go." Charizard warned. "Any further and the possibility of aerial surveillance would've spot us, and I doubt they want to see barbequed soldiers in the morning." Charizard said.

"We'll travel in low, thanks Charizard. Return." Nic then returned his Charizard until later. The trio then turned back towards the Royal City that was barely in their eyesight.

"So how long you give it?" Gajeel asked.

"It looks to be an hour, those two sure know when to stop, but I guess better safe than sorry." Sophie said.

"Agreed. We need to head inside the city and find shelter." Nic said. "We'll strategize tomorrow." The trio then made way into the Royal City, with as much stealth that they could afford. It wasn't really all that hard to get in, there weren't any drawbridges or outposts of that sorts, but big openings that had guards posted.

The trio managed to bypass the outposts by keeping in the shadows, which enabled them easy access into the city. They paced themselves so as to keep their profiles low and to avoid guards that could have been around the Royal City on the interior.

In general, the Royal City looked like a festive kind of place where the city itself had banners and seemed more lively than ever. Even at dusk, party town was still going on, which was what provided the perfect distraction so they had time to snatch some food from a market, in which Sophie went in and they were very well hidden within the vicinity of an alleyway.

The group ate at dusk, conversing. "Now that we're in the Royal City, we should be able to detect our friends and be able to stop this mad King of sorts." Nic said.

"Right, and since you took down Knightwalker and Sugarboy, that'll weaken their forces." Sophie added.

Gajeel turned towards the two with his face stuffed with iron he scrounged for. "Knightwalker? Sugarboy? Take it they're what held you up?"

"Indeed." Nic said. "To be more accurate, it's Erza Knightwalker, Earthland Erza's counterpart. We don't know who Sugarboy is exactly, so he's in the dark. At any rate, Erza is a killer here, disbanding Dark Guilds and killing off Fairy Tail members."

"Man, I don't know who's worse." Gajeel said.

"My powers will be back up in the morning, so I'll use the Mind Plate to give you the details then." Nic said.

Sophie's face paled. "Trust me Gajeel, you might want to brace yourself for what you are about to see in the morning."

Gajeel raised a brow in confusion, but didn't bother to wonder until later. The group eventually found secluded shelter and fell into slumber.

From atop a roof, two shadowy figures were looking down on the three and looked down at Nic and the one with a hood grin.

"Heh, didn't expect to see him here of all places." The male with a hood said.

"Hey look, it's-." The blonde one said, pointing at Sophie, but was cut off.

The man turned towards the blonde. "Remember, we can't draw attention to ourselves. We'll have to talk about this with Gajeel."

"Got it, only I got a question."

"What?"

"What are we talking about?"

The one with the hood groaned and turned. "Come on."

* * *

**The next morning…**

When dawn arose, everyone was starting to get up, including the three that were asleep. Gajeel, Sophie, and Nic had awoken and they were starting to get up.

Nic turned towards Gajeel and Sophie. "Okay, now we can formulate a strategy…" He was cut off when his body was shining a multitude of colors, making Gajeel and Sophie step back.

Nic was feeling his body vibrate as he felt a strong magnitude coming from the Plates within him, meaning they were reactivating. "My powers are back." He said as the light faded.

"Alright, now that we're all not helpless, can you explain the details as you said before?" Gajeel said, reminding Nic to inform him of the battle.

"Very well." Nic then glowed, shifting into the Mind Plate. He then proceeded in front of Gajeel and he closed his eyes. Nic then recalled the battle, and his own blinding rage regrettably, and he tapped Gajeel's head with two fingertips. Gajeel remained still as Nic was sharing his memories with him through mental images, as though seeing a movie.

Gajeel went wide-eyed as he was frozen, taking in the entire battle and he witnessed Nic's rage, which made him quiver entirely.

Sophie look down and shook her head. "I warned him, didn't listen."

Gajeel saw Knightwalker screaming in terror and freight as Nic demolished her. After the entire recap of the 'movie', Nic retracted his two fingertips and Gajeel was left standing there with hints of fear in his shaken eyes.

After composing himself for a few minutes and calming down, Gajeel spoke. "Man…I didn't see that coming." Gajeel muttered. "Remind me never to get on your bad side."

"Now that we're scarred for life, let's find a plan." Sophie noted.

"Yeah." Gajeel said, finally composed. "And I think I know what our first move is." The two listened carefully as Gajeel continued. "Remember that other me I mentioned yesterday? Perhaps he has some insight since he talks smack about the King."

"So you're saying we should snoop around town and find this Gajeel, am I right?" Nic asked. "If so, we should at least listen about for what others say about that giant lacrima."

With that mentioned, the group took off and went about town to find answers. They went on about an hour with no evidence nor information that could benefit them in any way. They eventually came across a local pub and went inside.

"Did you hear? They're extract power from the lacrima around tomorrow." A person said, catching the trio's attention. The group made way towards the bar, where they sat down and remained still as they overheard conversations.

"It honestly freaks me out. Where'd they harvest that power from to begin with?" "Hope they know what they're doing." "Careful, sounds like you're questioning the King." "Wh-what? No, no, I'm loyal!" "Relax, everything will work out just fine."

The three arose with enough information and wanted to speak to them. Gajeel took the lead, but another man with glasses, a nice blue suit with a matching hat was right next to the group, not taking notice of them.

"Interesting conversation." Gajeel and the man said in unison. "You three care to tell me in detail?" Gajeel and the man realized the similarity in their voices and they turned towards the other in shock. "Huh?"

Nic and Sophie went wide-eyed as they realized the identity of the man. "It can't be." Nic muttered.

"Gajeel?" Sophie wondered. "_Two _Gajeels?"

"Whoa now, this is a surprise." The Edolas Gajeel said.

The confused group made way to a circle table in the corner of the pub and Edolas Gajeel was full of questions, to which the three calmly answered and told their side of the story. It was a grueling half hour, but the three remained composed the entire way.

Edolas Gajeel then stood in front of the group. "So to summarize, you were sent to this world by a man named Mystogan, defeated Erza Knightwalker, and now you're on your way to use your Dragon Slayer Magic to turn the lacrima back into your friends?"

"That could summarize our lives." Gajeel said. "Getting used to this place ain't no easy picnic. I'll tell ya that."

"Mhm." Edolas Gajeel jotted down even more notes and looked at the group. "This has got to be the most bizarre story of my career."

"Hello? How often do you meet yourself in a bar?" Gajeel sarcastically said.

Nic and Sophie both held their mouths shut as the two Gajeel spoke.

"Looks like you've a name for yourself as a muckraker."

Edolas Gajeel sat down on a nearby seat. "Indeed. Investigative reporting is my calling in life." He said. "Seeking truth and giving it out to the public."

"The truth isn't easy to swallow, bet you got some haters." Gajeel smirked and pointed at himself. "In fact, there were a couple of bozos who thought I was you."

Edolas Gajeel grinned. "While I thank you for taking care of them, I apologize for the matter." He then looked forward and frowned. "Truth be known, my articles have caused countless problems across Edolas. As long as I can put pen to pad, I'll write the truth."

The group in general was silent as the two Gajeel looked forward towards the public.

Gajeel then spoke. "You know when I heard about this place, I thought it'd be completely different from my world."

The two Gajeel then stared at the other and stood up and smiled, putting an arm around the shoulder's shoulder. "But me and you are almost exactly alike!" They said in unison.

The four then walked out, and Nic was seeing this matter to be amusing, the two Gajeel getting along very well. The two Gajeel had arms around their shoulders as they had smiles as they walked through the streets.

Gajeel spoke again. "You not only don't take crap and fight the man, but you dress good and write fancy words like I do if I cared!"

"And your unkempt wild looks reflect my soul! We have so much in common Mister Me; of course, I'm also skilled in playing instruments and singing."

"Ohh me too! We're a musical genius!" The two then turned towards the other and forearm bumped the other with smiles on their faces.

Nic grinned with crossed arms. "Glad to know we're against a common enemy. A pleasure to meet your acquaintance Edolas Gajeel." Nic said. "I'm Nic Pularis."

"And I'm Sophie Lednick." Sophie said.

Edolas Gajeel turned towards them. "The pleasure is all mine."

"Now that we're here, we'd best understand where our friends are." Nic said. He turned to look around a corner and saw guards posted towards the middle of the Royal City.

"Apparently this guy here is right." Gajeel said. "Honestly we're not sure if our other pals have escaped along with us, to be honest they're a bunch of morons, but they got it where it counts when causing trouble." Gajeel and everyone turned towards Edolas Gajeel. "When they do…"

Edoas Gajeel turned away. "Yes, I'll let you know the moment they strike. I've got contacts everywhere. The King can't scratch his own nose without me knowing about it, so keeping tabs will be easy…in fact, I got two contact present."

"Oh really?" Sophie wondered.

"Indeed. They're my best resource of intel. Though it hasn't been long, we three work pretty well in getting dirt about the King." Edolas Gajeel then looked at an alleyway and gave a hand gesture. "And I'm sure you would want to meet them."

Nic and everyone else proceeded into the alleyway and they saw a shadowy figure making way towards them. When the figure was close, everyone saw she was in the shadows.

"It's okay, I'm sure you'd like to meet them." Edolas Gajeel assured.

"…Okay, but who was I meeting again?" The female voice asked.

"Huh?" Sophie went wide-eyed, as did Nic, as they had heard the voice, which was all too familiar. "I-It can't be…" Sophie was at a loss for words as she recognized that voice.

From the shadows emerged a blonde girl with multiple bangs. Two short bangs, one that barely covered her right eye, and the other going over her left one. She had two longs bangs that crossed over her chest. The rest of her hair went down towards her upper waist in a silky smooth fashion. Green eyes pink lipstick was on her face. She had on a black tank top with a long skirt going down, the skirt being black with light brown trimmings. She also had a sash over her waist that was light brown as well. Under her skirt were black stockings and she had on sandals.

"Well now, didn't see this coming that's for sure." Gajeel said.

"I'm quite surprised as well. I didn't see this coming either." The blonde said. She extended out her hand to greet Sophie. "Hi, I'm Sophie Mentalli."

"Uh…pleasure. I'm Sophie Lednick." Sophie responded slowly, shaking her counterpart's hand.

"Can she help us?" Nic asked.

"And how, she's one of the best contacts I have. Despite her…issue." Edolas Gajeel informed.

"Issue?" Sophie asked.

Edolas Sophie blinked and she smiled. "Oh don't worry about what he said, I'm sure I can scoop up-!" Suddenly, Edolas Sophie gasped and had her hands covering her mouth when she looked at Sophie. "Oh my god, it's me!" She eagerly held out her hand. "Hi, I'm Sophie Mentalli!"

Everyone sweatdropped except Edolas Gajeel. "Yeah, that issue. She has short-term memory loss."

Sophie was shaking and twitching as she was in comical revelation. "My worst fears have been confirmed." She dropped her head and sulked.

Nic snickered and he walked towards Edolas Sophie. "Don't worry about Sophie, she's just shocked because she has a great memory. So anyways, you can help us?"

Edolas Sophie nodded. "Yeah, we can jot notes and keep in the shadows. Not once have we've been caught."

Nic raised a brow. "We?"

They all then fell silent as they heard footsteps emerge from the shadows behind Edolas Sophie. Nic looked over and saw the figure come into view.

"You know it's impolite to stare." The voice said. Once again, everyone gasped in deep, deep shock as they recognized the voice. Nic especially went wide-eyed.

"I-I know that voice…it can't be…" Nic muttered.

"Yes, and it sure has been a long time, hasn't it?" The similar voice said. From the shadows stepped out a young man with short, slanted spiked hair that was black. He had on a sky blue T-shirt with a hood over his head. The hooded black coat had sky blue edges, two strings so that the hood was adjustable, and the coat itself was long-sleeved with sky blue on the edges as well. The coat reached down to his shins, where the shin and ankles alike were adorned some material that made it look like a cross between shin guards and leg weights. He had on black shoes and blue baggy pants that connected to the shirt by a black sash.

The most noticeable feature Nic picked out was that even under the hood, he could still see sunglasses.

The hooded person smirked and turned his head up towards the group. "It's been how long again?"

Nic was left startled for a few moments, but then he too smirked. "Almost three years." He said. "I honestly didn't expect to see you again."

"The same on my end as well." The hooded figure said, pulling up his hood and revealing himself, shocking Sophie and Gajeel.

It was Nic's counterpart.

"I see that these past few years have been treating you quite well." Nic's counterpart said.

"Yeah, the same for you too, but then again, you are me after all." Nic said.

Nic's counterpart chuckled. "You got a point." He then frowned and looked serious, much like Nic. "But catching up will have to wait. We have a mission to stop the King once and for all."

Edolas Gajeel then turned towards everyone. "Ah yes, my second contact. Everyone, meet Nic Nebulus."

"So the whole gang is here huh?" Gajeel said.

"Yeah, but we have to think as of now. Time is of the essence." Nic said.

Nebulus nodded. "Agreed. Gajeel shall continue getting dirt while Sophie and I fill you in on details."

Edolas Gajeel then turned away. "I see you got the gist of things Nic. I'll leave you too it. Until then other me and everyone."

Gajeel glanced back at his counterpart. "Don't keep us waiting." With that, Edolas Gajeel left.

Nebulus turned away and started walking away. "You guys better follow me." Everyone then proceeded to follow Nebulus into the alleyway.

"Wait…who are you again?" Edolas Sophie asked.

"I'm so doomed." Sophie sulked.

* * *

**Later…**

In a secluded residence within the Royal City, the two Nics and Sophies were left to discuss the matter at hand.

"We should nourish ourselves before heading out to the middle of the city." Nebulus said.

"Why there?' Sophie asked.

"Because that's where they're holding a special speech in preparations for extracting power from the lacrima." Nebulus answered.

Sophie gasped in shock, as to where Nic narrowed his gaze.

"At any rate, the King himself is to make a speech." Edolas Sophie said. "We should also eavesdrop while we still have the element of surprise."

"Agreed, so when should we depart?" Nic asked.

"Depart for what?" Edolas Sophie asked, making Sophie facepalm.

"An hour at least." Nebulus answered. "There's a food market in the southwest of here."

"I'll get food." Sophie answered immediately. _'Oh god if my Edolas version did this job, we'd be starving!' _Without a word, Sophie bolted out the door.

Edolas Sophie turned back towards the group. "Why is she in a hurry?"

"Can't say for certain." Nic said. Nic and his counterpart were then left to turn towards the other, both cross-armed.

"I can't believe you've changed Nic." Nic said to Nebulus.

"I can say you haven't changed much, but you seem more serious than from what I remember." Nebulus responded.

"Still, the last time we met was in the Mirror World."

"Yeah, still couldn't believe Reflection Cave held that universal secret from us. Heck, I still remember our near bloody confrontation."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Nic reasoned. "But still, you've changed."

_As a fifteen-year-old Nic was venturing through Reflection Cave, he was looking at the wall and saw his own reflection. He looked into the crystal mirror and looked at himself and his attire._

"_It hasn't been too long…and yet, I feel so different." Nic said. He looked to see that his body looked in great condition, and his face was plastered with a straight face._

_Outside the cave, it was storming like crazy, so waterfalls of water were seen all about the place, and you could've heard thunder booming. _

"_I still wonder how Vanessa is doing? Wherever she is, she's in better hands now…"_

_Just then, a huge bolt of lightning surged and hit a breach in Reflection Cave's roofing, making a fraction of the roofing crack and some rocks were falling. Nic turned around to look and saw the rocks and the cave shaking slightly and he abruptly tripped and fell backwards with a yelp and he actually started to fall through the mirror._

_Nic landed with a harsh thud and he found himself in some other place, but the rain stopped. _

_He got up and rubbed his head. "My aching…" He then noticed that the rain wasn't continuing and the ceiling wasn't cracked. "Where am I?"_

_Nic looked about as he found the nearest exit. He went wide-eyed when he saw that the sky wasn't blue, but…green? Everything else seemed similar, yet it wasn't._

_Nic walked about as he was completely confused. "Just what is going on here? Where am I?" He wondered. He then stopped and held his chin. "Wait, I've heard tales of some alternate universe in Reflection Cave, but I didn't expect it to be real. This is just as discomforting as that time Frogadier as a Froakie used his sticky frubbles on a Furfrou and it had to be trimmed. We were lucky it didn't have to be shaved entirely." He sweatdropped at that memory back in Lumiose City._

_Suddenly, he heard some clashing in the thick trees towards his right and heard yelling. "Come on! I've raised you better than that! You cruddy trash!"_

_Nic was slightly confused. "Wait, what?" He made a break into the woods with stealth so that he wouldn't be detected. He looked about when he reached a clearing and he went wide-eyed and his eyes were also shaken. "No way…I-it can't be…"_

"_Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kick you in the face!" The figure shouted at his Charmeleon, who was on the ground and tired from hitting a fellow tree. The figure had sunglasses, short slanted black hair, jeans, a white T-shirt, boots, and he had a small gray jacket with brown sleeves._

"…_me?" Nic saw that it was a look alike of himself. Just what was going on?_

"_You have three seconds to stand! One…Two…" Nic Nebulus was prepared to kick his tired Charmeleon, when Nic Pularis's impulses got the best of him._

"_STOP!" Nic ordered, making Nebulus freeze in his tracks, saving Charmeleon._

_Nebulus turned around and he looked to see where the voice came from. "Who the hell said tha-!" He went wide-eyed as he saw Nic Pularis emerge from the tree line into the clearing. "Impossible?! A-An imposter?!"_

_Nic crossed his arms. "Just what the hell were you about to do to that defenseless Charmeleon?" Nic demanded._

_Nebulus snickered. "That's none of your business." Nebulus then walked towards Nic and he glared coldly through his sunglasses and vice versa. "And just who are you fooling with that fake version of me?"_

"_Funny, I didn't recall myself being that blind." Nic said. "I am Nic Pularis."_

_Nebulus sneered. "Ask me if I care. I'm Nic Nebulus, and I'm surprised that you care so much about weaklings. If so, then you're just a coward."_

_Nic raised a brow. "Oh really, then how come I'm not running for the hills yet?"_

_A tick mark rose on Nebulus's face and he snarled. "Are you mocking me?" He then had veins popping out, meaning his temper was easily provoked unlike Nic's. "In case if you haven't noticed me, I won't tolerate weaklings. I have standards."_

_Nic narrowed his eyes. "You've got a lot to learn about empathy pal."_

"_What was that?!" Nebulus shouted. "Fine! You've asked for it! I challenge you!"_

_Nic blinked. "A battle?" He grinned at the thought. "Funny, never would've expected that I'd be going up against myself of all people."_

"_After I win, then we'll see whose left crying." Nebulus then turned away and he ran back several feet, battle distance. "We'll use four Pokémon each."_

"_That's the same amount I have." Nic said. "If I had to guess, I'd say we'd also have the same kind of Pokémon as well."_

"_Perhaps, but this will show whose better than who. Now let's go!"_

Nic turned towards Nebulus, both grinning. The two recalled that battle all too well. They remembered it as heated as an Inferno attack.

"I still remember that battle to this day." Nebulus said. "I was such a jerk, I was too blind and dull. Thankfully you beat the sense into me."

Nic looked down at the ground and reminisced in that day. "Yeah, the aftermath of that battle was…eventful." He worded the last word son that it didn't sound too drastic.

Nebulus nodded. "I still couldn't believe we were on par until my Frogadier fell to yours, but it was all my fault for being too pushy…"

_After Nebulus's Frogadier was defeated, with Nic's Frogadier panting ever so heavily and unable to move from extreme exhaustion, Nebulus was left fixated as his eyes were shaken._

"_It can't be…I…I lost?" He muttered in disbelief. "I lost…to the other me?!" He was clenching his fists as he was popping out veins. He got to his knees and gritted his teeth with a shaken body. "DAMMIT! THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE!" He pounded the ground in frustration._

_Nic walked up and crouched own towards his Frogadier. "You okay Frogadier?" His buddy nodded, but still couldn't move as he felt ready to collapse. Nic picked up Frogadier and he carried him over towards a nearby tree and set him down to rest. "Now you just rest while I talk some sense into myself."_

_Nic then proceeded forwards as the other Nic was frustrated and he looked down at the defeated Frogadier. "Hey, are you alright?" Nic asked._

_Frogadier was shocked that Nic was in front of him, and yet he wasn't being a punk or told him to train twelve hours straight, this Nic was being as gentle as gentle could get. _

"_Here, let me help you." Nic picked up Frogadier's counterpart and he placed him right by the same tree that his Frogadier was at. Nic then walked away towards Nebulus, who was still clenching the grass._

_Both Frogadier looked at the other, with the counterpart confused. "(W-Why?)" He muttered exhaustingly. "(Why did he reach out to me?)"_

_Frogadier turned his head towards his counterpart and grinned softly. "(That's Nic for you. He won't stand for abuse and will fight to the bitter end to free others of corrupted lives.)" Frogadier turned his head and looked up with a smile. "(He's had an interesting life, especially now that he was freed from his shackles and goes about happily..)"_

_Frogadier's counterpart then grinned and looked at the ground. "(I wish I was as lucky as you. Someone who truly cares and doesn't take advantage of others.)"_

_Nebulus was still heavily frustrated. "I NEVER LOSE!"_

_Nic looked down at his counterpart, pitying himself. "…that's pathetic. To think that you're my counterpart." He scowled._

_Nebulus stopped and looked back up with veins in anger at Nic. "Shut up! You don't understand a thing!" Nebulus rose to his feet with clenched fists. "I won't be weak! I won't face the weakness, rather I'll kill it!" Nebulus then angrily went to punch Nic, but Nic saw that coming a mile away and sidestepped and gave a right hook to the face, sending Nebulus's sunglasses flying. _

_Nebulus stumbled back, but rebounded by lunging forward with even more rage and he tried punching Nic, but Nic barely caught the punch and he was skidding back from the sheer force. He was still struggling as he saw the rage within Nebulus._

"_Nic…your rage isn't power!" Nic hesitated as he was holding up the clenched punch. "If this is what drives you, then I'll stop you!" He then ceased the clenching and ducked and rammed an elbow into Nebulus's abdomen and then scored an uppercut, making Nebulus stumbled back, but Nebulus yelled viciously as his eyes became very angry._

_Nic gasped as he saw this, and the air was becoming silent and foul. "His anger, it's spiked just like mine that day!"_

_Nebulus then lunged at Nic. "DIE WEAKLING!" Nic did a whole three-sixty and kicked Nebulus across the face, making him fall into the dirt on his side._

_Nebulus slowly got up, feeling every spot where Nic dealt severe blows. "How?" He growled. "How are you so damn strong?!"_

_Nic narrowed his eyes as he took his sunglasses off and set them aside. "I train with my Pokémon, meaning I spar with them every single day. When they grow, I grow. We bond and learn to connect with one another on the battlefield." Nic said. "You have to look in their perspective."_

"_The hell with them! I won't be weak! I won't be a helpless puppy like my sister!" Nebulus shouted._

_Nic then grew silent as he heard of what his counterpart said. "…what did you just say?"_

_Nebulus growled before cracking his knuckles and continuing. "I was raised just fine. My parents loved me and they raised a winner! Vanessa was a mere accident, unwanted, pathetic, she was just trash. She was given little food, and nothing but the clothes on her back as mom and dad constantly pummeled her. I refuse to end up like her! I REFUSE TO BE WEAK AND HELPLESS!"_

_Suddenly, the air became even more foul, as Nic himself had veins popping out. "You…you sick bastard."_

"_WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!" Nebulus shouted before feeling an odd feeling as his feral eyes got a glimpse of Nic and his body shaking, a shadow going over his eyes and his eyes being fuse with blood red._

"_You-sick-BASTARD!" Nic bellowed like a feral animal. "SHE IS YOUR SISTER! YOUR __**SISTER**__! AND YOU DIDN'T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT HER SAFETY!"_

"_I DON'T CARE WHO IT IS! I WON'T BE WEAK! I'LL GUT YOU ALIVE TO PROVE MY POINT!"_

"_SHE LIVES A BLOODY HELL! SHE'S FAMILY!"_

"_SO WHAT?! THAT'S WHAT SHE GETS FOR BEING AN ACCIDENT!"_

"_**YOU'RE HER ONLY FAMILY!**__" Nic bellowed, making nearby Staravia flee._

_Nic's Frogadier went wide-eyed. "(Oh dear god, there's going to be blood.)"_

"_SHE NEEDED TO LEARN ABOUT BEING TOUGH!" Nebulus shouted. _

_The two Nic's yelled and roared at each other as they both charged for the other, baring their fangs._

Just then, the door went open as Sophie returned with a huge amount of food. She had bags of meat, salads, and some odor-eating lacrima that was super expensive.

"Well, that was the last of the money. We should be wise and find a way to get back to Earthland after we save our friends." She said.

The two Nics shook their heads and looked at Sophie. "Oh, uh, thanks Sophie." Nic said.

Nebulus turned back towards Nic. "Still, if it wasn't for you, I'm not sure if my sister would've been alive right now."

Nic then frowned. "So how is she?"

Nebulus then looked up at the ceiling. "After we've settled things, I rushed home and called the police. I turned my parents in and my sister was given custody to a safer family. Super friendly." He added, but then frowned. "However, I now live my days to repent for simply watching my sister suffer. I now atone by living on and being a role model for her. Until the day I die, and beyond death, I shall be her family, no matter how far away. I know she's in great hands."

Nic smiled and nodded. "Vanessa is doing well…but I haven't seen or heard from her since I've left to go on a journey, but I know she'll be fine. Though I also have to ask how got here Nic?"

Nebulus looked down at the ground, his face all puzzled. "Not sure, I just woke up one day and then I eventually bumped into Gajeel and Sophie."

'_Could it be that when I went to Earthland, Nic went to Edolas as a balance?' _Nic wondered. _'Or what exactly happened?'_

The two were left in silence as they didn't know what else to say, then Nebulus got an idea. "Say, why don't we let our Pokémon say hi?"

Nic grinned. "Agreed. Though I'm not sure their personalities will be the same."

"Why not? Your personality and mine are alike, so why doubt your own team?"

Nic grinned and chuckled. "I suppose you got me there."

"Come on out guys!" Both Nic's shouted in unison, all of their Pokémon popping out. They all turned towards their counterpart and looked puzzled, but expected this because they can see and hear everything in their poke balls.

The Greninja duo looked at each other. "It's been awhile." Nic's said.

Nebulus's Greninja nodded. "Indeed. You look as bright as rain."

"The same to you. I'm glad we could converse once more. Nebulus treating you well?"

Nebulus's Greninja nodded. "He's become a good person."

Kecleon tilted her head and she looked at her counterpart. "Hello me."

Nebulus's Kecleon was stiff and very proper. "I must say, it's nice to be acquainted with myself at long last. I am hoping that Nic's past ambitions didn't obscure your perspective on me. I for one am hoping we are on good terms." She said with an intelligent voice.

Kecleon tilted her head again and smiled. "I can share my steak with you any day."

Nebulus's Kecleon chuckled. "Of course that's a yes."

The two Arbok stared at each other, with Nic's talking first. "Hmph, didn't exccccpect to ssssee myssself for the firssst time." He scowled.

"He have a lot of talking sssincccce we didn't battle, and I for one don't wanna be sssnobish to myself." Nebulus's Arbok scowled back.

"…You're right." The two Arbok shared a chuckle.

Both Charizard looked at the other. Nic's spoke. "Hm, you seem more confident."

Nebulus's Charizard nodded. "Yeah, it was thanks to that battle. After Nic reformed, we all began trusting him and my confidence boosted." Charizard said.

Nic's Staraptor looked at her counterpart and smiled. "It's nice to see we're on better terms than before."

Nebulus's Staraptor nodded. "Yeah, same here."

The two Garchomp, however, just stared at the other coldly, seeing each other for the first time. They both bared their claws slowly, and they were mirroring the other's movements. After awhile, they fin bumped the other, seeing as they were both alright with the other.

The group then settled down for lunch and were fueling up to investigate the lacrima later on.

* * *

**A few hours later…**

The group of Nic, other Nic, the two Sophies, and Gajeel, all went into town hidden, with Gajeel and Nebulus pulling up their hoods. They noticed that a large sum of people were gathered about in a solemn spot. "That's weird. Is that where you said the lacrima would be?" Gajeel asked.

Nebulus nodded under his hood. "Yeah, and a speech of sorts as well. Careful, guards are posted all about, so we need to look from secluded spots."

Nebulus then led the group to a corner where there were minimal people and they all peered from an alleyway, seeing the festivities and confetti.

Sophie and Nic went wide-eyed and gasped. Gajeel himself was left in awe and shock. "No way." Sophie muttered.

What they saw was a humungous lacrima that was tied up in rope and surrounded by numerous guards. Everyone was cheering at the source of power they would have to last a long time.

"There's no mistaking it, that must be our friends." Nic said. He looked at the lacrima as a whole and gritted his teeth. He then noticed something. "Wait…Nic isn't that…?"

Nebulus nodded, seeing the similar thing Nic saw. "Yeah, I see it too. There's a-!"

They all fell quiet when they saw an elderly man rise up a super large podium with the Edolas mark draped on the front. The man had long, wavy, grayish-white hair that reached down to his shoulders, and a big beard that reached down to his upper chest with a similar mustache. He had a rectangular face with prominent cheekbones and a flat nose and wrinkled eyes. He had a brown coat with buckled belts that covered the lower part of each sleeve over a darker vest. He had light baggy pants in simple boots. He also had a light brown mantle that covered his shoulders with fur-line edging. His headgear was that of a mitre, getting larger upon the top and had white lower edges with a semicircular front part that was brown as well with the Edolas symbol on it.

He held up a scepter and everyone cheered, making the hidden group narrow in the eyes.

"Is that who I think it is?" Nic asked.

Nebulus nodded. "Yeah, it's King Faust. Sophie and I have been keeping a watchful eye on him."

They then fell silent for the duration as Faust made a speech.

"Children of Edolas, it brings joy to my heart to tell you that our Anima Program has produced enough Magic for a decade." He proclaimed. "Let us rejoice, sing, and dance. Let us make merry for the prosperity that we shall uphold with this power!"

The crowd cheered ever so louder as Faust made his proclamation, making the hidden group narrow their eyes even more.

"The power within this lacrima belongs to all loyal subjects. Today we hold our future in our hands to ensure joy! Therefore we must swear to protect this lacrima with our very lives!" He then paused as his power-crazed eyes gazed down at the oblivious public.

"Let me make a pledge! " He then pierced the lacrima with his scepter, making a slight crack in it. "I will bring you more power!"

Then the smallest hints of the lacrima pieces from the crack fell to the ground. As the pieces laid there on the ground, Nic and Sophie's eyes were shaken his anger. That lacrima didn't belong to them, it belonged to Earthland. Their friends, their family was in there, and the King just took a very small chunk off.

Nic had to suppress himself, but his body was shaking and he was growling. "…those monsters."

Sophie was feeling the same, but not as lethal as Nic is. "They're all gonna pay."

Nebulus gritted his teeth. "Faust has gone far enough. Nobody harms innocent lives. We'll get them out and stop him. That is a promise." He too shook like Nic, and they were growling at the King for harming their friends in the lacrima.

"Those dummies. They fell for his rouse hook, line, and sinker." Gajeel swore under his breath.

The group then turned away from the cheering group and made way towards their secluded hideout so as not to bear anymore of this torment as the King laughed.

* * *

**At dusk…**

In the same secluded location, the two Sophie were left sulking about, still remembering the harm the King did.

"Man, this sucks." Sophie said, looking at the ground.

Edolas Sophie also felt terrible. "Yeah, even though I can't remember who he was, I still feel terrible."

Sophie looked up at her counterpart and grinned. "Even with short-term memory, you still got a heart like me."

The two Nics were cross-armed and looked out at the city, their sunglasses covering their unsatisfied expressions.

Nic turned towards Nebulus. "So how long must we wait?" He asked coldly.

"Tomorrow is when they start the extraction." Nebulus explained. "And I'm aware you told me that Earthland Gajeel can free them." They looked over at Gajeel, who was leaning against a wall.

"Yeah." Nic then turned and looked at everyone and back at Nebulus. "I would assume you knew what I saw earlier as well, yes?"

Nebulus nodded. "Yeah, that lacrima…it wasn't whole."

"Huh?" Gajeel asked.

Sophie then got up. "You're right. I remembered that the lacrima had a piece that looked as though it was cut off."

"Then that means that the lacrima that we saw…" Gajeel started.

"Is only a mere fraction of the main lacrima." Nic and Nebulus said in unison.

Gajeel grunted and looked away. "Great, now what?"

Nic and Nebulus both turned towards the other and they looked at the other while pondering.

"Nic." Nebulus said. "Gajeel is the key, and we have to find the main lacrima."

"Yeah, and Edolas Gajeel said he'd keep tabs with us, so we should hear from him soon." Edolas Sophie said. Nic then looked out at the scenery again. He kept quiet as he was left pondering.

"Nic?" Sophie asked.

Nic then turned back towards the rest. "Okay guys, I have a plan…"

* * *

**Surprised? I figured since Nic's counterpart changed, I figured their Pokémon may act similar. You could assume their personalities were different before Nic's counterpart changed, so after he changed, his team had become much like the actual Nic's. Although Kecleon would be the exception.**

**Hope this chapter was interesting with Knightwalker and Sugarboy thrashed. If you had noticed, then you've probably figured that this a different turn I took rather than following the anime with Natsu and co. **

**The Draco Plate will be of importance later on in this Arc, primarily at the end in the big battle.**

**I didn't necessarily get to where I wanted this chapter, so I'll try and pace myself much quicker next time.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are satisfied with the plot twists and the upcoming action and the flashbacks that transpired.**

**Reviews would very much be appreciated!**

* * *

**Next Time: Knightwalker's Light**


	33. Knightwalker's Light

Chapter 33 – Knightwalker's Light

**Hello people, Insane Dominator is bringing you yet another thrilling chapter! I'm pretty excited to be getting close to the Arc I made that'll be right after this one, but I'm still working out the final details.**

**Alpha Dragonis: I don't mind one bit if you use ideas from me, I'm more than willing to give ideas that'll be beneficial to both our stories in general.**

**Okay people, ready for another chapter? Then here you go! Chapter 33!**

**To Recap:**

Within Nic's rage that Knightwalker had set off, he mercilessly attacked Knightwalker and Sugarboy, unlocking the Draco Plate out of rage and nearly killing them, but they narrowly escaped. Nic and Sophie soon meet up with Gajeel and the three made it to the Royal City, where all three met their counterparts. Nic's was revealed to have a history with him in the Mirror World in Kalos, and that explained why the two got along so well. The six then snooped around town and saw the giant lacrima and hear King Faust's speech and the six left the scheme.

* * *

**Chapter 33 – Knightwalker's Light**

When the next day arose, the group had set out to initiate their strategy as to how the lacrima would be reverted back into their friends. Edolas Sophie had regrouped with Edolas Gajeel to explain the plan and he followed through. Their objective was to find a weakpoint in the guard posts around the lacrima.

As they were wandering through the plaza, Edolas Sophie looked confused. "Wait, what are we doing again?"

"We're trying to get the soldiers to come to one side so Gajeel can get at the lacrima." Edolas Gajeel said.

"Wait…there's another Gajeel?!" Edolas Sophie exclaimed, to which Edolas Gajeel chuckled while shaking his head. He then looked up at where Gajeel was positioned, up high on a building and waiting to strike.

Not too long after, crowds began emerging and the two made another attempt to find answers. Edolas Sophie went behind a soldier posted in front of the lacrima.

"Oh look, a parade!" She saw drums and masked people coming forth and saw Magic Staves equipped to drain Magic. She then looked at her notes and then remembered what to do. "…Okay." She then turned towards the guard. "The process is going to begin soon."

The guard nodded. "The kingdom will be much more stabilized."

"We're on the south side, right? You guys look pretty big in numbers." She reasoned.

The guard then explained. "Well only here, not anywhere else because there's not enough room for anybody to hide."

That was the ticket she needed and she made a façade in the form of a surprise. "Really?"

The guard realized what he said and turned towards Edolas Sophie, of whom was a journalist. "Gah! Please don't write that in the article! It'll get me in trouble!"

Sophie smiled. "Relax, I wouldn't dream of being accountable for you getting fired for such a claim."

The guard was eased and Edolas Sophie walked off. Within the crowd, she gave Edolas Gajeel her notes that she would've forgotten and he understood fully.

"So there's troops stationed on the north and south, but weak in the east and west. According to this, the ceremony will be held on the south side." Edolas Gajeel muttered. He then looked back up towards where Gajeel was stationed, tipping his hat and he pointed towards the south side of the lacrima.

Gajeel looked to see the area around the lacrima and he grinned as Edolas Gajeel and Sophie both ventured off towards said area. Gajeel's grin widened. "I see, this'll be fun."

Gajeel made his way down to where the crowd was, still cloaked with a hood and glared at the ceremony that was about to get underway. Edolas Gajeel and Sophie were both stationed right next to the other, awaiting for the chance to come.

When the masked guards emitted a blue light from their scepters moments later, the chance had finally arrived. Edolas Gajeel and Sophie both brought out what seemed like a cylindrical rod and a fellow crowd folk took notice.

"Hm? What's that?" He asked.

Edolas Gajeel turned with a fake smile. "Oh these? They're fireworks for the ceremony." He then turned towards Sophie. "Associate, if you would demonstrate?"

"Demonstrate what?" She asked.

"The fireworks."

"Oh right!" Edolas Sophie then pointed it upwards and a firework exploded in the sky, making the crowd very much pleased.

What they didn't realize was that Gajeel took notice that the firework spelled out the latter 'N'.

"Guess one isn't enough!" Edolas Gajeel then pulled out four more. "How about some more!" He then shot all four up consecutively, each one exploding and bursting, giving the crowd even more satisfaction.

Gajeel took notice that the fireworks then spelled out 'O', then 'R', and then 'T' and 'H'. Gajeel then pieced it together. "North?"

Edolas Gajeel then tipped his cap. "And the rest is up to you." He turned away. "Come on Sophie."

"What are we doing again?" She asked, following Edolas Gajeel. He simply sweatdropped and the two proceeded out of the crowd to allow Gajeel to take care of the rest.

"Soldiers!" Gajeel announced with his back turned. "That must be some kind warning! We have to protect the lacrima! I suspect there's someone suspicious on the north side of the plaza!"

The guards were left shocked. "What?! That's the rear side of the lacrima!" "We don't have many men positioned there!" "Keep your forces here and I'll take mine north! Push the crowd back for their safety!"

As the crowd was ordered to move back, Gajeel remained still and smirked. "Alright, it's time." He said under his breath.

"We said move back!" A soldier ordered to Gajeel. All the Iron Dragon Slayer did was turn around towards the guards and lacrima and threw off his cloak, revealing himself.

Gajeel then lunged at the soldiers. "**Iron Dragon's Club!**" His attack then bashed through several soldiers at once, knocking them all down to the ground. Gajeel then went for the lacrima. "**Iron Dragon's Sword!**" He then went and pierced the lacrima in a small area.

"I'm not done yet!" Gajeel then jumped into the air and brought the sword down on the lacrima yet again, breaking even more of it. It was after that attack that the lacrima started glowing and shining a harsh light.

Gajeel landed on the ground and he saw through the light and he went wide-eyed. "Whoa…no way…"

Gajeel and everyone else witnessed the lacrima shrinking and then separated into two entities. When the two human-size lights faded, it revealed themselves to see two Fairy Tail members.

It was Erza and Gray, though the latter was shirtless.

Gajeel looked on as the two were on their knees. "Looks like Luminous was right after all, it was only a chunk." He noted. He then yelled out to the two. "Alright you're free, so look alive!"

Erza and Gray got back to their feet in no time and they opened their eyes, revealing that they were in an unknown place.

Gajeel grinned. "I was worried they'd fried your brains."

"Gajeel?" Erza loked with surprise.

Gray then turned and looked about, seeing the craziness that was happening. "Hey, what's going on?"

"We can talk later, right now we gotta scram!" Gajeel warned as soldiers were coming at them.

As soldiers were coming at them, Gray put his hands together, but no Magic was present. "What?! I can't use my Magic!"

"Seriously?!" Erza tried summoning a sword, but that proved useless as well.

"I said we'll talk later! **Iron Dragon's Roar!**" Gajeel unleashed a whirlwind of iron that had send almost everything flying, leaving the three a path and an escape route.

When the trio was clear and in a safe location, Gajeel turned towards the confused duo.

"How come you were able to use Magic?" Gray asked suspiciously.

Gajeel grinned and held up the glass bottle filled with X-Balls. "I'll tell ya once you take one of these."

"What is it?" Gray asked.

Erza was fed up at this point. She had an armored hand to her hip. "Enough waiting, tell us what happened."

"The two of you were turned into a giant lacrima." A voice called out, Gajeel turned with a grin to see his counterpart walking up towards him, with Edolas Sophie as well.

"Told ya it would be easy." Gajeel said.

"Indeed, but I'd expect no less from Earthland me. I knew you were the right man for the job." Edolas Gajeel said.

"Wait, what job?" Edolas Sophie asked.

Gray was baffled. "Sophie?! And two Gajeel?!"

"There's two, and what's with Sophie?!" Erza shouted. Gajeel walked on over to his counterpart and grinned.

"Although we do look alike, we are quite different, Edolas Gajeel at your service."

"And Edolas Sophie and…! Oh my god! Two Gajeels!" Edolas Sophie gawked, making Gray and Erza sweatdropp.

"Wait, what do you mean we were turned into a giant lacrima?!" Erza shouted.

The two Gajeel and Edolas Sophie then explained as to how they got to Edolas through an Anima and were turned into a giant lacrima to fuel Edolas's limited Magic supply.

"I know it's crazy, but all of the Earthland Fairy Tail Mages will be turned into power for the King to use." Edolas Gajeel explained. "The one in the plaza was quite large and at first, but Nic Pularis and his counterpart figured there was a main lacrima."

When Erza heard Nic's name, she almost jumped. "Wait, Nic's here?!" She demanded, almost anxious for an answer.

Gajeel sweatdropped. "Yeah, apparently he and that Sophie chick made it to Edoas just like I did; apparently they ran into your counterpart Titania."

Now Erza was even more shocked. "Wait, what?!"

Edolas Gajeel then explained. "It's presumed that Earthland and Edolas are counterparts of the other, and right beside me is the Edolas version of your guys' Sophie. The real Sophie is out near the King's domain, trying to understand what the King has in mind."

Gray had his arms crossed. "So you're saying we all have a counterpart of sorts?"

Gajeel then continued. "Yeah, and apparently Nic came across Titamia's…and let's say it was very unpleasant." He got nervous as he recounted the memory. "When Edolas Erza tried to kill them, that Luminous went crazy, and in turn nearly killed her."

Erza and Gray were very much surprised. "What?!" Erza shouted in shock, hearing that Nic went on a rampage again.

"Yeah, he tore your counterpart up really bad, and not long we regrouped and got a strategy to free you." Gajeel finished.

Erza wanted to ask so many questions, like how was Nic doing? What did Erza's counterpart do to set him off? Was he alright? Where was he right now?

Gray intervened. "It's nice to know that Nic saved his own skin, but what is that stuff you're forcing on us?"

Gajel then presented the X-Balls. "These are called X-Balls, and apparently you can't use your Magic unless you've eaten one of these."

Erza looked at one of these pills in her hand and looked back at Gajeel. "Oh? And who told you that?"

Gajeel grinned. "It's what Mystogan said before we came here."

"You saw Mystogan?!" She exclaimed.

Gajeel grinned. "Yeah, he got me here while Luminous and Sophie came here by themselves."

Then then heard something from afar, and the entire group turned and tensed, expecting guards. Fortunately, it was just Sophie on Nebulus's Charizard. When they arrived and Charizard landed, they had a look of shock when seeing Erza and Gray right there.

"Guys, you're alright!" Sophie exclaimed. "It looks like Gajeel's Dragon Slayer Magic was the key."

"Key?" Gray asked.

Gajeel turned towards the confused bunch. "Yeah, Dragon Slayer Magic is much different here in Edolas, it even had the power to reverse you two back to who you are now." This earned a gasped from Erza and Gray. "Once Luminous and his counterpart find that main lacrima, then I get to work."

Edolas Gajeel then turned towards Sophie. "At any rate, what did you pick up?"

Sophie looked down at the ground. "Not good one bit. They've captured Natsu and Wendy and are going to use their power to exterminate the Exceeds."

This made Edolas Gajeel and Edoas Sophie gasp. "Those poor…what are they again?" Sophie face palmed.

Nebulus's Charizard then turned to them and explained. "They're what your friends Happy and Carla are. The King wants to use Natsu and Wendy's power to activate this device called the Dragon Chain Cannon and use the main lacrima and crash it into Extalia, which will make Magic rain down." He then looked up into the sky. "Nebulus and the rest of us for that matter have been in Edolas for awhile, and presuming from what we've heard and gathered, the humans believe the Exceeds are superior."

Everyone there gasped and Sophie continued from that point.

"I've heard this all while I was blending into the crowd that the King made an announcement called 'Code ETD'. He wants to use the lacrima that's high in the sky and crash it into Extalia."

"…I see. Try and locate Luminous and have him go and find Salamander and that Wendy girl." Gajeel said.

"He's doing that as we speak." Sophie said. "He told me to pass it onto you Gajeel…"

* * *

**With Nic and Nebulus, a few minutes earlier…**

As Nic used Dragon Breath while in his Draco Plate Form, Nebulus dealt with a multitude of guards with his hand-to-hand combat, which outclassed the spears they wield. Nebulus's Charizard was also present and using Flamethrower to scare the soldiers off.

The two Nics objective in this mission was to locate the main lacrima, and nobody told them that it was high in the sky as of yet.

"Find it yet?" Nic shouted over towards his counterpart before moving his head in an arc and using Dragon Breath yet again, cutting down more forces.

Nebulus shook his head after knocking a soldier into countless others just with a mere punch. "No. not yet."

The two Nic were back-and-back to the other as they examined the reinforcements surrounding them, of which Nebulus's Charizard easily breezed through with Heat Wave from above.

"Nice work Charizard." Nebulus thanked.

Just after the reinforcements were cut down from that Heat Wave, Sophie appeared and was running towards the group. "Nic! Second Nic! Glad I found you!"

Both Nics and Charizard turned towards Sophie. "Sophie!" Nic shouted. Sophie finally caught up and she took a brief moment to catch her breath. "I take it that your part of the mission was successful?"

Sophie nodded. "Yeah, while sneaking around the borders of King Faust's domain, I saw him turn an Exceed into a lacrima, saying he'll initiate something called 'Code ETD'." She explained.

Both Nic were held up in shock. "An Exceed turned into a lacrima?" Nebulus asked.

"Right, and I heard him say he'll unleash something called a Dragon Chain Cannon…" Sophie went on in brief detail as to how King Faust had captured Natsu and Wendy and shall use their Magic to destroy Extalia, which left them all in surprise.

"He's going to destroy innocent lives!" Nebulus retorted. "We need to stop this mechanism at once!"

Nic turned towards him. "Now hold on. First off, this mechanism is powered by Dragon Slayer Magic, meaning if my guess is correct, it'll be just as effective as Gajeel's."

"Hold on, if I'm understanding you correctly, you're saying that if we turn this thing on the giant lacrima, it may have a possibility of reversing your friends, yes?" Nic nodded in agreement to Nebulus's statement.

Charizard turned towards the sky above, seeing something far upwards. "Guys, far up in the sky!" The group then turned their heads upwards and saw what Charizard was looking at. They were slightly baffled that they didn't know that there was a heap of rock far up in the sky, barely visible. "That must be it!"

Nebulus gulped. "Yeah, no wonder we couldn't find it."

Nic narrowed his eyes and turned his head to look at Sophie. "Sophie, go find the others and spread this information. Tell Gajeel that he'll be in charge of reverting everyone." He explained.

Nebulus turned towards his Charizard. "And you Charizard, assist Gajeel and get him up there."

"Okay, but what about the two of you?" Sophie questioned.

Nebulus and Nic turned to look at the other and back at Sophie. "Tell us where we might find Natsu and Wendy…"

* * *

**With Sophie and co**

"And that's what he said." Sophie finished. "So Gajeel will be hauled into the sky by Charizard to revert everyone while Nic and his counterpart finds Natsu and Wendy."

"Boy, talk about thinking ahead." Gajeel wondered.

She nodded. "Yeah, you'll be heading up to the lacrima as to where the rest of us will head over to help Nic." She then paused. "They asked me where they were and I saw Happy and Carla carrying Lucy towards the west tower. And then they were gone just like that."

Erza turned towards the group. "Alright, listen up. We'll rendez vous with Nic and we'll stop the Dragon Chain Cannon from activating. Edolas Gajeel and Edolas Sophie, see if you can find help."

"You can count on us. C'mon Sophie." Edolas Gajeel then turned, with Sophie smiling back at them and leaving.

"Later whoever you are!" She shouted before the two left at last, allowing for Erza, Gray, and Sophie to make way towards the tower, leaving Charizard to carry Gajeel up with one huge flap of his wings.

Just like that, Charizard shot up like a rocket, Gajeel holding on as they ascended with no time to waste.

As they were making way up into the sky, the two took notice of the huge blue lacrima on an island in the sky. "We're closing in! You know what to do?" Charizard asked.

"Well duh!" Gajeel shouted. "I did what that Mystogan guy said, so don't go being the supervisor!" As the two were closing in upon landing on the island, Gajeel realized just how humungous the lacrima was compared to the one in the plaza. "Man, that thing is humungous. Talk about a high maintenance guild." He joked, looking at the size of the lacrima.

As Gajeel cracked his knuckles, Charizard narrowed his eyes upon sensing something from behind and he pivoted and caught a glimpse of a sword swinging downwards, and a super large one. Upon his second-nature reflexes, he got in front of Gajeel and used Dragon Claw and struck the downward sword strike, making a small burst of energy that made Gajeel turn his back around and see a small explosion and dust fly about.

Gajeel covered up and skid back a few feet. He looked back and saw that Charizard's interception was a success, as both were unharmed by the flying Exceed known as Panther Lily.

Gajeel looked in shock. "That cat's got a major sword!"

Panther Lily held his huge sword, which was the Bustermarm Sword. The sword was four times bigger than Panther Lily and was decorated to look like a monstrous cat's face. "I am the Edolas Royal Army's Captain of the First Magic War Division, I am Panther Lily!"

Charizard and Gajeel both sneered as Panther Lily continued to speak. "I must protect this lacrima, and so you shall fall!" He then went in and attacked. "**Buster Bomb!**"

He brought the huge sword down again, but Gajeel and Charizard both countered with an Iron Dragon's Sword and Dragon Claw combo, making a full-scale explosion that mad a small fraction of the ground shake and get chunked off.

When everything cleared, Charizard was in the air against the Exceed and Panther Lily was glaring at both Gajeel and Charizard. "I must say, nobody has countered my attack!" He the rushed in again. "But it proves fatal!" He swung the sword at Charizard, but the Fire and Flying-Type effortlessly dodged and he quickly appeared behind Panther Lily, startling the latter. "What speed!"

"**Flamethrower!**" Charizard gushed out a stream of fire that Panther Lily was too slow to react to and he was hit as he turned around and flew downwards towards Gajeel. Gajeel jumped and he readied a morphed arm.

"**Iron Dragon's Club!**" He unleashed a long column that struck Panther Lily in the back, making him gawk and he was forced back towards Charizard.

"I'm feeling up for volleyball! **Flamethrower!**" Charizard gushed out another stream of intense fire, but Panther Lily flapped his wings and ascended to avoid the stream of fire that struck the ground rather close to Gajeel, practically melting it.

'_Just what is this creature? And that one with the iron morph is a Dragon Slayer.' _He turned towards Gajeel and looked down on him. "I will not concede to you."

Gajeel grinned. "I was hoping for a fight!" He turned towards Charizard. "Hey you, go find your master! I can handle this guy with ease!"

Charizard wanted to stay and fight, but seeing the serious look on their faces, it was fair to believe this matter is best left with one-on-one. Charizard then turned with no objections down below.

"Come back coward!" Panther Lily shouted, ready to swing at him, but Gajeel cut him off with a column of iron that got in his way, forcing Panther Lily to look at Gajeel.

Gajeel smirked. "He ain't running, he just knows when it should be a one-on-one fight, right?"

Panther Lily took a moment to consider and grinned. "I don't know whether you're foolhardy or valiant. Let's find out!" The two then began their solo fight.

* * *

**With Lucy **

Lucy was on the ground, very much exhausted as Knightwalker was with several soldiers behind her. Knightwalker had her Ten Commandments, but it was still damaged. Her shoulder and arm had popped back in place, but you could see bandages as a sign it was still fractured and almost broken. Her body was still covered in scrapes and scratches, but nevertheless her demeanor was ruthless still.

As she was on the ground, Lucy could've heard screams of pain coming from Wendy and Natsu down the hall. "What are you doing to them?!" Lucy demanded, not able to move well.

Knightwalker smiled. "In order to terminate the Exceeds, we must acquire power from the Dragon Slayers present."

Carla was on the ground as well, hearing Wendy scream. "No…please stop." She muttered. The screams from Natsu and Wendy from down the hall wasn't coming to an end, and a fellow soldier had Happy in his arm.

"We've captured the Fallen." He then tossed Happy on the ground in front of Knightwalker, who stepped forward.

"Happy!" Carla shouted in concerns.

As Happy was coming to a stand, Knightwalker was above and she gave a grin. "Time to say goodbye!" She was then bringing down the spear and suddenly a huge icy mist clouded up everything and Knightwalker blinked and jerked back, turning back and seeing where the mist was coming from, sparing Happy. "What's going on?"

Everyone turned to see two figures walking through the mist and towards them, stopping when at a close distance.

"You've got a lot of nerve hurting our friends lady!" The male voice shouted. "They're with us and you went and messed with them!"

"Anyone who would lay a hand on our guild mates shall be dealt with accordingly." Female voice said.

"And anyone from Fairy Tail for that matter will not tolerate such mistreatment, so you better prepare your wills!" A second female voice said.

The figures were revealed to have been Gray, Erza, and Sophie, in that order.

Lucy could've sworn she had a smile on her own face upon her friends at the rescue. "Gray! Erza! Sophie!"

As the last bit of mist cleared, the guards plus Knightwalker were left in shock, seeing Erza, Gray, and a familiar Sophie from last time. Knightwalker's eyes have shown deep shock, seeing another version of herself glaring at them coldly.

"Wait, Captain Erza?! Gray Surge?!" "No, those two are Earthlanders" "How did they get here?!" The guards were baffled beyond recognition.

"Where are our friends?!" Sophie shouted, making a quick chain of memories that turned into Pyro Saucer. The attack rushed at the guards and they hollered as they fell to the ground with little resistance. Knightwalker dodged just in time and jumped from the curved ceiling and aimed her Ten Commandments at Gray and Sophie alike. Before she could hit them, Erza summoned a sword and intercepted the spear, making a huge amount of wind fly.

The two glared at the other coldly as their weapons pushed one another back.

"I…It's Erza against Erza…" Lucy muttered with a slight tint of fear.

A faint voice cried out down the hall. "You've asked for it! I'm gonna beat the crap out of you all!"

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted, hearing his voice.

"Go on guys! I can handle this!" Erza urged, staring at her counterpart the entire time. The three made a getaway as Erza and Knightwalker clashed their weapons yet again, and when they separated with a screeching echo, ERza had a small cut on her cheek while Knightwalker had one on her nose, otherwise the two were unfazed.

"I never imagined I would've fought against myself." Knightwalker admitted before she moved her left arm to adjust her spear, but flinched upon the pain of moving it. She grunted and resumed. "I'm the Captain of Edolas's Second Magic War Division. My name is Erza Knightwalker."

Erza remained calm as she had previously saw Knightwalker flinched upon her injury from Nic's rampage a couple days ago. _'So it was true. Nic nearly did kill my counterpart.' _Erza stated in her thoughts. "I'm an S-Class Mage from Earthland's Fairy Tail. My name is Erza Scarlet."

Knightwalker grinned. "It's nice to meet you in battle Earthland version of me, now let's see what you're made of!" Her Ten Commandments changed into Silfarion, surprising Erza. Knightwalker rushed in, with Erza barely dodging the first time.

"She's fast!" Erza admitted, seeing Knightwalker turn back and strike with her spear yet again. Erza slashed and the two weapons made a clang sound with sparks flying. Knightwalker zoomed about with Erza following close behind.

"**Requip!**" Erza glowed and she requipped into her Flight Armor to be on par with Silfarion. The two females zoomed into each other repeatedly, slashing and clashing, and repeating.

'_She changed her armor and her speed had suddenly increased?' _Knightwalker was left stunned, but still aware of Erza rushing in from in front, slashing her sword. Knightwalker jumped and dodged with ease, changing her spear as she was in midair.

When she landed, she aimed the spear at Erza. "**Mel Force!**" A huge vacuum wave swallowed up Erza, sending her smashing through a solid wall and grunting when her back hit the next wall behind. Knightwalker jumped and her spear changed yet again and it glowed red.

Erza was slumped on the ground, getting up and seeing the spear change. "A Requip? No, she's just altering her weapon."

"**Explosion!**" She brought the spear down like a hammer, unleashing a massive explosion that destroyed the wall and send debris flying everywhere, not to mention dust as well.

Erza was in the room behind, which seemed like a cement block passageway with King Faust statues all around.

Erza was fast enough to have been saved by requipping into her Flame Empress Armor, and her Fire Sword was sizzling from the heat given off by the attack, otherwise no damage.

Knightwalker went into the room and saw Erza's Requip, shocking her. "How does she keep transforming her armor like that?" She asked herself out loud. "Your Magic allows you to change your armor and sword simultaneously?" She asked, jerking her left arm in the pain still.

"Seems unfair isn't it?" Erza said, looking in Knightwalker's perspective. "All you can do is alter your weapon."

Knightwalker grinned. "Perhaps, but my battle prowess alters along with my weapon."

"That's the same concept as The Knight Requip that I use." Erza said in relation to their changing weaponry tactics.

Knightwalker held her spear up. "Let me give you-!" She grunted as her shoulder blade was in agony still, so she was forced to keep the spear below her head. "Damn these injuries." She cursed.

Erza tightened her hold on her sword. "It seems Nic did an even greater number than I have imagined." She then gave a soft smile. "Perhaps I need to thank him the next time we met."

Knightwalker rushed towards Erza, the two clashing their weaponry and there was yet another explosion from the one Knightwalker had upon contact, sending debris scattering and making the passageway rumble with a strong magnitude. The two Erza's clashed yet again, and another explosion engulfed them, making even more debris fly and the two skid away from the other. Erza lunged with ferocity and Knightwalker jumped, missing and slicing off a chunk of a statue with ease.

Knightwalker turned towards Erza and sung her spear, primarily with her right arm, and Erza looked back and dodged by keeping backwards to her left, covering up as Knightwalker's Explosiojn destroyed the rest of the statue.

By now, the area was desecrated with rock and little debris, to which fell pass the passageway into the darkness below.

Knightwalker and Erza zoomed into the other yet again repeatedly in a matter of a few seconds, slashing with ferocity and accuracy that made sparks fly and various areas get sliced up. The two were on par and Knightwalker and Erza both slashed once more, their weapons clashing and the two giving off monstrous battle cries and glares.

They didn't realize that Natsu was free and he had just entered the domain, apparently angry. "I'm coming for you sick jer…" He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the two Erza's attacking the other, making scary faces and growling.

What Natsu saw was pure terror and his face turned purple. "GWAAHHH! TWO ERZA'S WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!" He rushed off in the direction he came from, scared out of his pants.

The two Erzas didn't notice as they were trying to take down the other, the passageway was nearly cracked and rocks were falling from their sheer force.

"You're skills are on par. I must admit it is rather impressive seeing how you have that left-sided injury." Erza pointed out.

Knightwalker grunted, panting as she was barely keeping up since her body wasn't fully recovered. "Consider yourself lucky, but I'll make this go by even quicker!"

From somewhere far out and upwards in the passageway, two figures watched the battle that raged.

"This takes us back, right?" He asked his counterpart.

The second figure, revealed to be Nebulus, smirked. "Indeed, though those two don't really seem menacing."

"Agreed, but that was because we were maiming the other. Those Erzas down there are merely barking at the other compare to what we did." Nic reminisced.

"Yeah, I couldn't feel anything for two weeks."

"Same."

The two saw the two Erzas glare at the other and Nic turned towards his counterpart. "I think it's time we stop this madness. Agreed?"

Nebulus turned towards him. "Yes."

As the two Erzas were closing into the other, a battlecry from each one, they suddenly stopped when two figures appeared out of nowhere, stopping in the midst of their way. The two Erzas were left frozen and wide-eyed as both Nic and his counterpart were side by side, but Nic was looking at Erza while Nebulus was looking at Knightwalker.

Erza (Scarlet) was left in deep shock. She knew Nic was here, but didn't expect to see him here as of this moment, but something in her went off. She had shaken eyes, yet they were soft. She wasn't exactly sure whether it was because she was glad to see him after such a long time, or she was satisfied knowing she had backup. "N-Nic…?"

Nic (Pularis) let a soft grin loose as he looked at Erza. "Hi Erza."

His counterpart glanced over at Nic and Erza, letting a brief smirk cross his face and then he narrowed his gaze at Knightwalker, who was left in deep shock.

"We admit, both of you are fierce battlers." Nebulus said.

"But we don't have a lot of time, and we don't want a repeat of what we went through." Nic added. "So we'll take over from here."

Erza requipped into her Heart Kreuz Armor and looked with surprise and shock. "What did you say?"

Nic's soft gaze then turned serious, his grin disappearing. "You heard us Erza. As much as I would like to catch up and watch you beat Knightwalker, we can't afford to waste time." Nic then turned away, both Nics facing Knightwalker. "I know you want things settled Erza, but somethings are simply too obvious to realize."

Nic made a point and Erza stepped back as she took into account the left-sided injury Knightwalker possessed.

Knightwalker shuddered immensely and was shaking with a tint of fear and adrenaline. "It's you!" She howled, pointing her spear at Nic. "You monster! Y-You did this to me! Scarlet, stand aside! I got a score to settle with this one"

Nic wasn't moved by Knightwalker's shuddering, and nobody blamed her. If Erza (Scarlet) was there or in her place, she might be terrified of Nic as well.

Nic and his counterpart glared at Knightwalker and back at the other. "Shall we?"

"You're not gonna transform into a new suit like that dragon one?" Nebulus asked.

Nic snickered. "Now that wouldn't be fair to myself; besides, our hand-to-hand combat is more than enough anyways."

Nebulus showed his teeth. "True. In that case…" He then crouched down and he slowly took off the leg weights he had, hearing the clanging as they dangled from Nebulus's hands. "Now this is much better."

Knightwalker raised a brow "You think you can beat me by dropping a couple of pounds of weight-?!"

Nebulus smirked and then dropped the two leg weights beside him, making the passageway shake immensely, startling both Erzas alike, and Knightwalker was left pale from the sheer sound of the crash of the weights.

"Just how heavy were those things?" Knightwalker muttered.

"Now I can move freely." Nebulus said, cracking his knuckles that echoed. "Now, it's time we show Knightwalker the error of her ways!"

"It's time she sees the light!" Nic shouted. The two Nic's then dashed into Knightwalker, both on par with speed this time and Erza (Scarlet) was left wide-eyed.

'_They're working together?!' _She thought.

Knightwalker gritted her teeth and she changed her spear into the Double Dragon Spear. The spear divided into two, one blue and one red. The blue spear has a triangular-shaped diamond pommel, with the head having a plain, triangular blade with simple ornaments. The red spear had the same concept and design, but in red. The heads of the two spears had fire and ice with their respective spears.

Knightwalker yelled as she slashed her two spears, though her left arm was slightly off and the stream of fire was off by a few feet. The stream of ice and fire shot at the two Nics, but each one ducked and they lunged into Knightwalker's abdomen with a double fist, forcing her back several feet with a skid.

She winced and looked at the two. _'They were in sync? Impossible. How could they…?'_

Nebulus rushed in at blinding speed, startling Knightwalker and he stopped right in front of her and he got to his hands and swung his feet about, making Knightwalker trip and she started falling backwards. As she was doing so, Nic rushed in and used his counterpart's back as a springboard and he flipped in midair and came down directly above Knightwalker, stomping her into the ground and making her gag, leaving her in a crater.

Nic jumped off with a backflip and Nebulus cupped his hands and Nic landed on them and sprung off them again with a backflip in the air and Nebulus jumped and Nic had an arm out and grabbed Nebulus while in midair and spun and shot Nebulus towards Knightwalker like a missile. Knightwalker went wide-eyed and she jerked back up and leaped away to avoid an incoming Nebulus, but Nebulus was no slouch as he quickly got his feet under him before landing and he leaped from where he landed and lunged forward and grabbed Knightwalker's right leg, shocking her with his combat skills.

Nebulus didn't hesitate as he pivoted and hurled Knightwalker behind him towards Nic, who drove a knee straight up exactly at the point when her back was close enough and it brought her up a few feet with a gag and Nic did a spin and swatted her with a backfist, all in less than a second's time.

Knightwalker grunted when she went face first onto the ground. Erza (Scarlet) was wide-eyed, seeing as how both Nics were equal in speed, offense, reflex, reaction timing, and dishing out the hurt onto Knightwalker. _'Those two, even though they're different, they act as if they know what the other is thinking.'_

Knightwalker jerked up, fairly exhausted with more scratches and she winced in pain from her fractured shoulder blade. She tried to ignore it and used the blue spear to fire ice at Nic (Pularis), but he shifted right and evaded with ease. Both Nics rushed from behind and forward as Knightwalker jumped so she could see the two run into the other, only that didn't happen.

The two Nic's smirked and then Nic crouched and skid and Nebulus jumped over him and jumped onto Nic's back and using his back this time as a springboard and jumped up towards Knightwalker and scored a vicious uppercut to the jaw, rendering her immobile as Nebulus grabbed her scarf in midair and did a three-sixty spin with her and tossed her straight downwards, where Nic had just stopped skidding and came lunging back with an elbow strike right into Knightwalker's right biscep, making her yelp and she tumbled onto her side and Nebulus was coming down and landed his two feet on Nic's shoulders and jumped off from there and did a flip in midair and was directly above a tumbling Knightwalker a came down with a vicious foot and crashed right into Knightwalker's back, forcing her to stop tumbling and she yelped and debris went flying.

Erza was just watching in even deeper awe as the two Nics were taking on Erza without letting up. She was witnessing Nic's hand-to-hand combat at potentially its highest level quite possibly, but then again she had no idea just how much more combat training Nic taught himself. Though she had to admit it was nice to see him kick her Edolas counterpart, as to where they were practically on par. Erza admired how Nic's counterpart and himself were as one.

Nic stepped off of Knightwalker and landed right by his counterpart's side, both witnessing a scratched up Knightwalker slowly rise back up, though she nearly toppled over. She face very much exhausted.

"Knightwalker, this has gone on long enough." Nebulus stated. "Please surrender and you won't have to take anymore."

"Never to the likes of you!" Knightwalker pointed her two spears at the two Nics and a torrent of fire and ice surged in one attack rather than two. The two Nics then acted as quick as they could and Nic shifted towards his left while Nebulus shifted right and the two passed the torrent and rushed in from opposite sides and pivoted and turned towards Knightwalker, the two doing a double knee strike and turning to make it a round-house knee strike, ceasing her torrent that missed and she landed on the ground with a thud.

Knightwalker opened her eyes and she somersaulted backwards and got to a knee, exhausted. She looked over at Nic and her eyes were glaring harsh daggers, but Nic was left unfazed, and in turn was making her even more nervous. "I will kill you for what you did to my reputation!" She swore.

Nic and Nebulus both narrowed their eyes and glared coldly as Knightwalker lunged with her two spears changing into her single spear that was her Silfarion yet again and went at them with blinding speed.

The two Nics then waited until the spear came at them in a horizontal slash, to which they timed perfectly and did a unison jump and a unison kick right into Knightwalker's face. The two landed and as Knightwalker was falling backwards, Nebulus grabbed her left wrist while Nic grabbed her right wrist with the spear and yanked her forwards and delivered a unison punch with their opposite fists, landing hits in her cheeks and making her tumble backwards and land on her abdomen.

Knightwalker tried one more time to stand, and she panted like crazy as her face was bruised quite a bit, including the rest of her body. "Damn you both."

Nebulus narrowed his eyes. "Knightwalker, stop."

But the only answer they got was Knightwalker rushing at them both with a fury to match an angry Ursaring. The two Nics then waiting as Knightwalker let loose a batlecry while zooming towards them.

The two counterparts thought nothing of it as they dashed forward and evaded the spears trajectory, startling Knightwalker. Nebulus lunged forwards as Knightwalker practically came his way and he rammed his fist into her gut, making her gag. Nebulus didn't let up as he then elbowed her abdomen, and then unleashed a vicious multitude of punches, all of which Knightwalker was unable to evade nor block. When Nebulus gave a left hook to her face after the consecutive fast punches, he brought his right leg forward and gave a searing kick that send her flying straight up. Nic jumped and stood on top of Nebulus's shoulders and had caught her legs and he jumped off from his counterpart's shoulders and slammed Knightwalker's entire body into the earth, making debris fly.

Knightwalker could barely move and she only saw blurs as Nic then whirled her up into the air and he did a handstand with bend knees. His counterpart then dashed and turned while jumping so as to land on the feet and looking up at a sailing Knightwalker. When Nic kicked, Nebulus shot at Knightwalker with a full-scale knee strike to the back. Knightwalker yelped as her Ten Commandments fell out of her grip and dropped to the floor, meaning she was left open.

Nebulus then grabbed her wrist while still in midair and turned their bodies so they were vertical and he spiraled repeatedly and he let loose a battlecry as he spiraled and smashed Knightwalker into the floor full-force, making immense amounts of dust fly and winds scatter as they heard bones and debris crack.

When Nebulus got to his feet and back towards Nic's side, the two, and Erza, looked and saw an unconscious Knightwalker lying in a crater.

The two Nics turned towards the other. "That took long enough." Nebulus said.

"Yeah." Nic turned towards him. "I gotta say, you're combat skills are just like mine. They weren't so reckless like last time.

"Well, like you do, I started training with my Pokémon to understand them more, understand their pain, and now I see just how demanding I was." Nebulus stated.

Nic grinned. "Well, at least you changed for the better."

"True. I guess if not for you, I wouldn't have defeated Diantha myself."

Erza was left in deep, deep shock. She used Magic and yet she was on par, and yet two Nic's outclassed Knightwalker with mere combat expertise. _'Amazing. Nic was able to take down Knightwalker. Of course I wonder how they know each other.'_ She was left curious, but chose to keep it settled as she walked up to the two Nics and they turned towards her. "I appreciate your efforts in stopping her you two."

The two nodded and Nic turned towards his counterpart. Nebulus pulled out some handcuffs he found while coming here and he placed them behind Knightwalker's back, keeping her hands from moving. Her Ten Commandments was close by, but no one touched it.

Seeing Knightwalker there, unconscious, for some reason, it made Nic feel…guilty. He frowned and Erza saw it. She looked to see Nic frowning as Knightwalker's face, all bruised and yet so peaceful. Erza looked back at Nic and he looked down at the ground and contemplated.

He then walked forward, shifting into his Mind Plate and he knelt down at the unconscious Knightwalker. A light pink ball of energy appeared in between his hands. "**Heal Pulse.**" The orb broke apart and a multitude of waves of light pink energy made contact with Knightwalker. Nebulus remained calm, understanding what Nic was doing.

Erza watched in shock as Heal Pulse made the bruising on Knightwalker go away, and the scratches on her seemed to decrease a lot. Erza blinked. "Nic?"

When Heal Pulse was finished, Knightwalker had no bruises, but a few scratches and a peaceful face. Nic slowly got up and looked down at the ground. He slowly clenched his fists as a silence brewed.

"I don't know, but…seeing that face, good or bad…I just can't leave it like that." He muttered. "Whether it'd be you Erza or Knightwalker, I can't leave someone who could have a chance to reform behind like this."

Hearing this, Erza fully understood what Nic meant. He didn't have the heart to leave her in a bloody pulp like that unless like last time. Erza slowly smiled and walked up to Nic. When she stood in front of him, he looked up at her.

"Don't worry." Erza said. "I would've done the same thing." She then made Nic and Nebulus both look away as Erza copied Knightwalker's hair and attire.

The two then looked back and shared a smile and a brief moment to look at each other after such a long time, and Nebulus blinked and saw the connection, and he snickered in amusement.

Nebulus then turned to look at the two "Hey you guys, I got this. I'll watch Knightwalker and you two worry about your friends; and while you're at it, stop that cannon too."

Nic then got serious and reverted back into himself. "Understood. Let's go Erza!" Nic then dashed off with Erza following behind. At least Nic could face Erza once more.

This left Nebulus to look at Knightwalker, who was already coming around. "You know…" Nebulus thought, seeing her calm face as she stirred. "She does actually look pretty when not being sadistic."

Knightwalker started to slowly open her eyes and she realized she was on the ground. "What happened…?" She tried moving her hands to get up, but she couldn't for they were handcuffed behind her back. "Handcuffs?"

"I gotta say, you had some endurance taking all those attacks from me and the other me. You were lucky that we didn't rearrange your body parts for the killings you've committed." Nebulus said.

Knightwalker sat up and looked at Nebulus. "It's you…no, you're Nic Pularis's counterpart."

"Relax Knightwalker, the matter is settled." Nebulus stated. "So don't go picking fights like you did."

Knightwalker growled and she was more than willing to grab her spear and drive it into Nebulus's throat, only two factors came into play: Nebulus was a master of hand-to-hand combat like Nic, and her hands were cuffed.

Knightwalker watched as she saw Nebulus walk on over to where he dropped his leg weights and he strapped them back onto his legs. "Even if you do kill me, it won't change anything." Knightwalker stated.

Nebulus turned towards her and blinked. "Who said I was gonna kill you? Who said anything about anybody dying? Not on my watch."

Knightwalker moved her shoulder and arm, and she felt them feeling much better than the time she fought Erza. Nebulus explained. "My counterpart healed you. He felt it wouldn't be right to leave you in the state you were in." He walked on over and sat in front of her.

"Why?" Knightwalker asked, confused. "Even if he's my enemy, he should've left me to die."

Nebulus shook his head. "Knightwalker, listen." He then looked to his right, spacing out. "We're human, but that doesn't mean we can treat each other like rag dolls that can be disposed. I won't deny that human nature has it's downsides like greed and selfish desires." He then looked back at her. "But from those traits, compassion and understanding are born."

Knightwalker scowled at him while looking away. "Why's it matter? So what about human nature? It doesn't change the fact that.-."

"It does matter Knightwalker." Nebulus butted in. "Nic could've killed you, yet he didn't. Why? Because he would feel guilty. He doesn't take lives that actually have a chance to live." Knightwalker whipped her head towards Nebulus with a gasp. "You tell me what one thing the King has done for you that you should be grateful for. Slaughter innocent Fairy Tail members? There's nothing grateful about that. You tell me Knightwalker." He paused. "You tell me, how would you feel if you were in their shoes at Death's door before they drive their spear into your heart?"

Knightwalker looked down at the ground, pondering and suddenly feeling a sense of guilt run through her. "Why are you telling me this? You know we need Magic to live."

Nebulus narrowed his eyes and looked to his right again. "If that's true, then why are you still alive?" Knightwalker went wide-eyed and gasped. "You don't have Magic and neither do I. True, Magic is nice to have, but it's not a factor in survival."

Nebulus looked back at Knightwalker before speaking yet again. "Knightwalker, I'm much like my counterpart. From where I come from, we humans don't use Magic. We only have the resources and some valuable creatures to help us as long as we help them."

"What are you saying?"

"From where I come from, there's these creatures called Pokémon. They don't have 'Magic' per se, but they do have unique traits that make them powerful. Think of them in relation to Exceeds in that sorts. But they don't trump us, and we don't trump them. We work in symbiosis and learn from the other."

Knightwalker's eyes were soft as she heard Nebulus speak of these humans and creatures working together. "So…you're saying…that you live in peace with them?"

"Most if not all, yes." Nebulus then got quiet and he looked back at Knightwalker, his blue eyes seeing into hers. Knightwalker saw Nebulus's eyes have a strong sense of guilt. "Sometimes Pokémon despise humans, and sometimes humans abuse them…I was unable to comprehend that fact. I only sought power and glory. And that brings me to why I'm telling you all of this. It's because I was just like you, until three years ago."

Knightwalker blinked in curiosity, her killing intentions gone. "What? And why did you interfere with me and Scarlet?"

"It's because me and my counterpart did the exact same thing, and we don't want a repeat of that incident…"

_The two blood-crazed Nics yelled at each other as they charged closer to each other, the two finally colliding and their heads smashing into the other and both blood red eyes staring coldly into the other as their heads bashed like two Rampardos. _

_Nic shoved Nebulus's head with his right arm and used his left arm to push Nebulus's head into the ground, but Nebulus grabbed Nic's left arm and pried it off of his head and hook punched Nic's gut, making Nic jerk and Nebulus drove a power crazy knee into his face, making Nic stumble back, but Nic was not even remotely out. _

_Nic instantly jerked forward and his fangs bared as his left arm choked his counterpart and he repeatedly bashed his fist into his face with fury. Nic kept this up until his counterpart struck and clenched Nic's rib cage, breaking a few bones and you could've heard the cracking sound, and Nic shook his head and roared, backing off briefly and Nebulus brought a hammer fist downwards onto Nic's head. Nic nearly face planted, but he got his feet under him and he used the momentum and drove a forceful blow into Nebulus, making the monster gag blood._

"_PERISH!" Nebulus shouted, driving a knee into Nic's face before he could throw another punch. _

"_YOU WATCHED YOUR SISTER SUFFER! YOU SICK DAMNATION!" Nic bellowed, ignoring the bruises on his face and the two heinous beasts charged at each other yet again, bashing their bruised heads and they shoved the other away, leaving scrapes on their faces and Nic and his counterpart didn't let up as they both turned back towards the other and their fists collided, making the air ripple with their hands cracking. Nic lunged his left hand and grabbed his counterpart's face and tossed him towards his left, where Nic struck by bringing his arm back and yelling as he rammed his fist deep into Nebulus's abdomen, making him cough up blood._

_Nebulus snarled and didn't bother to stutter back as he forced an uppercut that made Nic lose oxygen and didn't get enough time before Nebulus brought his arm up and brought down a hammer fist on Nic's left shoulder, the power of the force completely popping it out of place, making Nic gag and Nebulus drove a fist deep into the gut, making Nic cough up his own blood._

_Nic and Nebulus looked dead into the feral eyes of the other, still not budging briefly before Nic grabbed the fist that was still connected and he yanked so hard on the left fist that the left arm of Nebulus also got dislocated, and Nic snarled as he turned his hand, ultimately twisting the wrist joint._

_Nebulus yelped and he snarled back, turning the pain into anger. "WHY WON'T YOU JUST GIVE UP?!" Nebulus used his only available arm and he grabbed Nic's face and drove him backwards into the ground, and he didn't let go as he snarled as he made Nic skid, as though he was dragging him. Nic, while still getting skid harshly on the ground, brought his right leg up and struck Nebulus's right thigh, making him stop getting dragged and Nic jerked up with a frenzy and struck the thigh yet again with his right elbow, making Nebulus screech._

_Nebulus barrowed down and struck Nic's already severely scraped back with a double hammer fist, the force equal to a Hammer Arm that broke a few parts of Nic's spine, making him stiff briefly and Nebulus struck a left knee to his face, making Nic fly backwards and cough up blood. _

_Nic hit the ground and immediately made a counter by swerving onto all fours and charged at a low altitude again. Nebulus did so as well, but he was slowed down by the thigh attack. The two Nic's left arms were out of commission, so they only their right fists to clench the other's neck and bring the other forward into a headbutt yet again, making them jerk back. Neither side refused to quit, and Nic brought his hand back and lunged it forward and grabbed the already dislocated arm of Nebulus and let out a disastrous batlecry as he brought it up and then twisted the entire arm with raw power, making Nebulus scream in anger and agony._

_Nebulus wanted payback more than anything, so he grabbed Nic's left shoulder that had the dislocated arm and he brought his bruised leg up high and gave a severe kick, breaking the shoulder bone and making Nic screech in pain._

_Both Nic's were devastatingly exhausted as their Frogadiers watched from the tree they rested on with horror on their faces._

_Nic snarled, his left side and ribs hurt severely. "YOU'RE GONNA REGRET NOT SAVING YOUR SISTER!"_

"_THE HELL WITH THAT! I REFUSE TO BE WEAK!"_

"_SUCKS TO BE YOU, BECAUSE YOU ARE!"_

"_**DAMN YOU!**__" Nebulus shouted, smashing his fist into Nic's already hurt left ribs, breaking almost all of them in one shattering impact. Nic's face twisted almost entirely as he felt all torn up, but wanted to trash his counterpart and he drove his right fist into his counterpart's left side as well, snapping a few ribs of his own. Both Nics were in the most unimaginable pain you could ever imagine, and yet they refused to keel over. _

_Nic and his counterpart snarled even more and Nic rammed head on into Nebulus's sternum, making Nebulus gag as he had no oxygen for five seconds as Nic bashed him into a tree. Nic clenched Nebulus's throat with only his right arm and he resorted to driving his knee into his gut again, but Nebulus thought the same thing, both knees colliding and the knee caps vibrated with such force. Both of them yelped and Nic backed away, and allowed Nebulus to grab a low tree branch and completely snapped it off of the tree like a twig with his right arm, and this was one of those skinny yet sturdy branches._

_Nebulus brought it up like an axe and brought it down, using only his right arm, but Nic's feral eyes showed defiance as he grabbed it with his right hand as it was coming down. Nic snarled in searing pain as he yelled and snapped the branch in half, half in Nebulus's hand and the other half in Nic's. The two bared their huge canines as they swatted each other across the face, making a snapping sound as the left sides of their cheeks was dark red blood from the whack. It was so powerful the separate branches snapped even more, rendering them useless. _

_The two were practically shaking as they had blood loss, bruises, searing pain, dislocated joints, and broken bones. "I AM NOT WEAK! I NEVER WILL BE!" Nebulus defied as he lunged a right fist._

_Nic came forth as well, but at the last second, he opened his fist and caught Nebulus's fist and twisted the wrist, making him scream. "YOU ALWAYS HAVE BEEN!" Nic thrust Nebulus into the same tree, this time harder, and both Nics stared coldly as Nebulus was pinned against a tree by Nic having his left knee in his abdomen since his left arm was no good, but Nic himself had just about had it. _

_The two coughed up blood at the exact same time, their blood colliding in the air and splattering back on their faces. The two heaved with hot blood all over their faces and blood-crazed looks. Nebulus couldn't use his arms and his right leg was bruised badly and yet he used it too much. His left leg was able, but he was weak in the left side._

_Nic brought a fist back and let loose a battlecry at a pinned Nebulus, the fist coming ever so closer to smash Nebulus's face into the tree. Nebulus's snarl turned into a flinching gasp as he knew this was the end for him._

_There was a very harsh crash sound and Nebulus heaved as he went wide-eyed when he didn't feel dead. He looked and saw that Nic was giving the coldest stare that any beast would give anybody, blood red eyes dialing down to a light pink and heaving as his fist was two inches to the left of Nebulus's head, embedding the tree and leaving Nic's knuckles bruised to the upmost degree._

_Even the two Frogadier were baffled. "(Whoa…just…whoa…)" Nebulus's Frogadier muttered._

_Nebulus slumped down when Nic retracted his knee, but he fell to the ground and both spit up a little bit more red and now Nebulus's eyes were a light pink. As Nebulus was slumped to the ground and Nic was heaving and panting like his counterpart while looking up at the sky._

"…_you…you didn't finish me?" Nebulus heaved, the blood clearly on his face and he had his anger calm down._

_Nic didn't even have the strength to move his head. "…No…it's just not worth it."_

"_You're twisted…I swear."_

_Nic raised a brow, which was the only thing he could do. "Do you know why I spared you?"_

"_Let me guess, so that you could gloat?" Nebulus scowled before clenching his left rib cage._

"_No, because I know what it's like to be weak." Nic said. There was a long pause before he continued as he looked up at the sky. "You and I are much different. I was the one to have been the mistake. My parents abused me for fifteen years, practically scarring me for life."_

_Nebulus looked away. "And what does that have to do with how strong you are? I still can't believe I lost to you, twice now."_

"_It's because I was helpless for fifteen years that made me strong." Nic reasoned, confusing Nebulus. "I endured Hell for fifteen years, and I was nearly dead a couple of times, but I pulled through because I believed one day that nightmare would soon end." His eyes softened as he smiled. "The only other motivation I ever had other than my phone really to keep me sane and alive was my sister."_

_Nebulus went wide-eyed when he heard this. "That's right Nebulus, while you were pampered, I was tortured for the amusement of my parents. While your sister was suffering just like I did, my sister was healthy…but you know…she never felt truly happy." His smile vanished. "My parents considered my sister their new lease on life, and they treated her like a princess. Whenever they saw me, they'd wanted me battered, not accepting their past. I suffered endlessly, glass hitting me, deprived of food and water like a dog, I was even forced to stay outside for the winter. The only reason I survived that entire time was because my sister Vanessa saw how much pain I endured, how I put up with it, and how I took every single beatdown so that she wouldn't have to go through it."_

_Nebulus was completely speechless. He had no words to describe what his counterpart had went through. Nic continued. "My sister smuggled food and water when they weren't home, and she would be there for me to comfort her big brother. She was the only real thing that made me smile in my childhood." Nic started to get misty in the eyes. "I was her only role model. She despised our parents for what they did to me. We were the only family to the other, and Vanessa would pull off a fake façade just so she wouldn't suffer like I did. I would gladly take every beating for my little sister just so she would be safe and unharmed." A small tear streamed down Nic's bloodied face. _

_Nebulus was imagining the horror as Nic continued even more. "When there was a tiff a few months ago, my sister tried protecting me for once in her life. She got yelled at like I did and she got smacked so hard she almost fell unconscious. I snapped and I battered my parents, but they got the best of me. I got stabbed in the abdomen, and tortured with Magneton shocking me so hard my nerves stiffened. I nearly died that night and fled to find help the next day, but the police caught me. I spoke in front of everybody present and my parents almost killed me in front of the police, but they stopped them, but they were super violent as they almost killed a few themselves." A small smile appeared on Nic's face as the clouds in the green sky passed on by. _

"_I left soon afterwards to go on a journey, and my sister was given a real home to the neighbors. It broke my heart to say goodbye to my sister, but it was for the best. I needed to be a role model and be able to see the world, and taste true freedom."_

_Nic then had some strength before he looked towards his counterparts. "I got strong not just to protect my sister, but I got strong so I wouldn't have to rely on anyone else, so they wouldn't be hurt like I did. That's what it means to be strong."_

_Nebulus stared up at the sky in a daze. He's always been preached about this stuff, but he didn't think highly of it, but after what he and his counterpart had went through, it was fair to say Nebulus's closed doors have been opened._

_A small tear went down his face as Nebulus felt too guilty. 'Is this the real me? How could I have been so blind? Why didn't I look in others' perspective?'_

_Nic panted as he was all too exhausted and hurt too much to speak. "You got it easy…because you didn't understand anybody else's feelings…if you did…you'd be a better person."_

_Nebulus's lips quivered and he gritted in pain and guilt and a few tears fell. "Why…am I …crying?"_

_Nic grinned. "That's the first step to being human Nic." At the same time, both Nic's blacked out, their injuries taking their immense toll, both now lying on the ground._

Knightwalker was left too baffled to even begin to speak as Nebulus told his mind-boggling tale. She felt almost everything; she could've imagined the horror if she was there in person. Perhaps she would've been mind-scarred even more.

Nebulus continued. "We awoke not long after and I helped Nic get to the portal before it closed. I stayed in the Geosenge Town Hospital for two weeks because it was that bad. My Pokémon had forgiven me and then things were peachy after I went home immediately afterwards to free my sister."

Knightwalker looked down at the ground as she was still sitting up. She never heard of something like that; something so forceful. "Nic, I need to know…" She looked up at Nebulus again. "I know you told me so as not to kill my counterpart, but why do I need saving? I never was in danger."

Nebulus got up and he looked down at Knightwalker and closed his eyes. "You were this whole time." He opened his eyes. "You were wandering in darkness, and someone had to pull you out and into the light." Knightwalker went wide-eyed.

Nebulus then walked on over pass Knightwalker and he undid the handcuffs. "I won't tell you what has to be done, but I will say that trust your gut. We're human, and our conscience matters. You know Faust is harming innocent lives within that lacrima." He turned away. "If you cry…that's the first step to being human." He then turned and saw Knightwalker with misty eyes. "Oh, and by the way Knightwalker…your red hair is nice."

Knightwalker felt a faint shade of pink engulf her cheeks as she looked away. She was free to choose her side. If she were still loyal, she'd be stabbing him through his neck, but after hearing his experience and trying to reach out to her, Knightwalker was feeling unbalanced.

She honestly didn't know what to think anymore. She wanted Magic, and yet Nebulus doesn't have it and he's satisfied. She was the Fairy Hunter for slaughtering half of the lives, but then what did they ever do to her? So many questions popped into her head and Nebulus saw the confusion, and light pink, on her face.

He crouched down and gave her a smile. "Like I said, trust what you feel in here." He pointed at her heart and she looked down at it. She held a brief pause.

Just then, the ceiling burst and debris fell from above and crashed behind Knightwalker, shaking the passageway and Nebulus looked calmly as Nebulus looked with satisfaction. His Charizard burst through the ceiling, flapping his wings and roared, of which echoed about.

Almost instinctively, she grabbed her damaged spear, but Nebulus reassured her. "At ease Knightwalker, he's just one of my Pokémon, Charizard." As Charizard landed on the debris, Nic walked up to his Fire and Flying-Type buddy and grinned. "So Charizard, how did it go?"

Charizard frowned. "Apparently the lacrima isn't destroyed yet. Gajeel is taking care of an Exceed named Panther Lily as we speak."

Knightwalker looked shocked. "Wait, Panther Lily?!"

Nebulus turned towards her. "I take it you know him?"

"Yes, he's the First Captain." She answered. "If he's still in combat with this Gajeel fellow, then he must be more skilled than I thought." She pondered.

"Perhaps." He turned towards Charizard. "We're catching up with the others." Charizard nodded and Nebulus hopped onto his back and Charizard flapped and started down the dark hallway.

Nebulus looke back as Knightwalker was leaving his sight. "Remember, from your heart." Then he was out of sight.

Knightwalker was puzzled as she narrowed her eyes. She looked to the ground and when she muttered incoherent sentences, she gave a slow nod. "I have to know something."

* * *

**With Nic and Erza**

As Nic was making way with Erza, he looked back at Erza and grinned. Before he could say an apology for leaving her for two weeks, he realized that they were looking ahead and seeing Natsu, Gray, Sophie, and a knocked out Sugarboy.

"Remember the plan?" Erza asked Nic before stepping out of the shadows.

"Yeah. As we discussed." Nic said, and they stepped out of the shadows.

"I've found you, and it seems that you have the key." 'Knightwalker' said.

Gray was holding a makeshift key for the Dragon Chain Cannon. He, Natsu, and Sophie both looked in shock as to seeing 'Knightwalker' with Nic.

"Whoa, it's Erza!" Natsu shouted.

"Wait a minute…is that…?" Sophie muttered.

"Hold on…she's from Edolas." Gray said. "…No."

Natsu was shaking in the eyes. "It can't be…our Erza lost? And why is Nic…?" Nic then lunged forwards and he smashed the key Gray had in his hand, shattering and he put the two in a double headlock, leaving Sophie to remain stiff as she recognized Nic.

"Uh, what's going on?" Sophie nervously asked.

"Good work." 'Knightwalker' said.

Just then, they heard a roar from down the hall and everyone turned back and saw Nebulus. He got off Charizard and returned him, then looked back at the others.

"Looks like I'll be partaking this rouse as well." Nebulus said.

Natsu and Gray both paled. "TWO NICS?!" They screeched, almost immediately choking after Nic tightened his headlock.

"Keep your voices down." Nic warned.

"We're all doomed! It's the end of humanity with those two demons!" Natsu squealed.

"Stop Natsu, he's here to help." Sophie said.

Erza sighed and looked back at Nebulus. "So, what of Knightwalker?" Nebulus then gave a brief recap of what he told her, to which everyone sans Nic went wide-eyed.

After the summary and a hint of the backstory, Erza gave a very nervous look towards Nic. "I see." She then walked towards Natsu, Gray, and Sophie. "Listen up you three, Nic and I came up with a plan…"

* * *

**Sorry to cut it off here folks, but if I continue any longer then it'll probably be at least 16K again. I hope you won't mind this Arc going another chapter after the next one. Don't worry, I'll do another chapter pronto. This means instead of 4 chapters, this Arc will be 5 chapters, which I personally dislike extending, but it has to be done.**

**I would imagine you guys are scarred with the whole Nic brawl in the flashback, apparently the whole solemn fight there in that scene was the reason why this has to be extended. Review if you were mind blown and had a little hint of feels from Nic's explanation.**

**Now you know two things that kept Nic sane: His sister and his device, and you will see a bit more of his past as we continue on after the Edolas Arc.**

**I just can never get to where I want in my chapters huh. *sighs* Oh well, I can make do with what I have, though I'll have to sort things out for next chapter.**

**Also guys, check out a story called **_**Pokemon Indigo League: Ed Version**_** that garyisstupid made. He makes pretty good Pokémon stuff.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the confliction and the development the characters are creating and are waiting for another chapter.**

* * *

**Next Time: Erza's Answer**


	34. Erza's Answer

Chapter 34 – Erza's Answer

**I only got two Reviews, which discouraged me. Please show your support guys! Okay, let's answer stuff.**

**Alpha Dragonis: I get what you're saying about one Nic/Erza pair, and I can understand if you can get confused, but I'm trying my best to keep every pair to themselves sort of speak. As for Nic's sister, it's a surprise.**

**Let's press on. Two chapters left in this Arc, and on to the next Arc I have planned.**

**To Recap:**

With the efforts of Edolas Gajeel, Edolas Sophie, and Gajeel, the lacrima in the plaza was reverted back to reveal Erza and Gray. After an explanation, Gajeel was taken up to the lacrima, where he fought Panther Lily. Elsewhere, Erza, Gray, and Sophie arrive to help Lucy get Natsu and Wendy. Erza fends her weakened counterpart off, but the two Nic's intervene, saying they'll handle it. They took out Knightwalker and left Erza and Nic to plan and run towards their friends while Knightwalker is told of how Nic and Nebulus almost slaughtered the other, and now she was left to decide where her loyalty was.

* * *

**Chapter 34 – Erza's Answer**

'Knightwalker' was dragging a seemingly knocked out Gray and Natsu, as to where a fellow 'guard' was dragging Nic (Pularis) and Sophie. They made way towards a humungous anti-Magic door and guards were present.

"Glad to see you unharmed Captain Knightwalker." A fellow guard said, saluting her.

"Do you need assistance Captain?" The second guard asked, seeing her drag Natsu and Gray.

'Knightwalker' stopped, with the 'guard' stopping by her side. "Don't trouble yourselves." She said.

"Who are they?" The first guard asked.

"Keys to the Dragon Chain Cannon." She answered. She looked down at Gray. "Is his Majesty inside?"

"Y-yes ma'am." The guards stepped aside, allowing 'Knightwalker' and the 'guard' to pass through and the door slid upwards very slowly, shaking the ground lightly.

'Knightwalker' and her 'guard' walked into the dark room, where there was a slot where a key is suppose to be and a large energy circuit of sorts. Two Faust statues were on both ends and guards lined up that led to King Faust himself.

The two stopped when they were present in front of Faust. He looked down onto them. "I've heard you've retrieved the key. Is this true?" He asked.

"Not entirely your Majesty. It was destroyed." 'Knightwalker' said.

"Explain at once!" He demanded fiercely.

'Knightwalker' threw a tied up Gray in from of everyone, making him grunt upon hitting the floor. "This one can fabricate an exact replica of the key."

"No way!" Gray defied, playing along.

"Who is he?" Faust asked.

"An Earthland Mage sir." 'Knightwalker' explained. "And a comrade of the Dragon Slayers."

"And what of those two?" He also asked.

'Knightwalker' turned down towards an untied Sophie and Nic, who played unconscious. "They were the ruffians who attacked me a few days ago. They have been dealt with and can no longer defy us."

Faust nodded and looked down at Gray. "And is he connected to the lacrima that vanished from the plaza?"

"He is indeed." 'Knightwalker' said.

Faust then gave a twisted face and he looked at 'Knightwalker'. "Free him now, then make him produce the key." He ordered.

'Knightwalker' slashed the ropes and Gray got up. Once he did, he saw 'Knightwalker' pick Natsu up by the scarf and had a sword to his throat. "Don't do anything rash. You will make a key and activate the Dragon Chain Cannon."

Gray hesitated, but then looked at his unconscious pyro maniac of a friend and back down at the 'unconscious' Nic and Sophie. He grunted, seeing he had no alternative. "…fine."

Gray then put his hands together and made the key in front of everyone's eyes, making them quietly comment how crazy Earthland Magic was.

"Here's your key." He said hesitantly. He walked up and inserted the key into the slot, making it turn with a clanging sound. _'This is our only shot.' _He thought as the charger up above shaped like a dragon skeleton glowed orange. The Faust statue eyes glowed as well.

"Yes!" Faust shouted in glory.

Outside, the entire Royal City glowed red, and energy was emanating all over. A brief moment and it stopped. The next thing anybody saw was the Royal Palace was being taken underground and was replaced with a beaming red light that shot up straight into the sky, and the entire city shook once more and from the beam, a massive serpentine dragon head was aimed.

Erza leaned in towards Natsu. "…now." Just then, she shoved Natsu out of her clutches, and Nebulus quickly emerged from his costume and Nic and Sophie opened their eyes and they lunged at the guards.

"**Fire Dragon's Wing Atack!**" Natsu unleashed waves of fire that struck many guards.

"**Swift!**" Nic moved his arms in opposite arcs and unleashed yellow stars with golden sparkles that burst upon hitting even more guards.

"**Memory-Make: Scorn of the Armored Winds!**" Sophie unleashed many iron twisters that swallowed up guards and send them crashing into the ground.

"Charizard! **Heat Wave!**" Nebulus shot up his poke ball and Charizard came forth, unleashing a wind of flames that hit even more soldiers and making it look as though they were caught in a firestorm, making the place shake.

"What's this?!" Faust shouted. Natsu, Sophie, the two Nics, and Charizard all then looked at Faust with sheer eyes. Faust then suddenly found himself with a sword at his throat by Erza.

"Stop the launch at once!" Erza demanded. All of guards thought she was a traitor, but they didn't say that in fear they would be killed. Suddenly, everyone saw Erza glow, revealing herself in her Heart Kreuz Armor, shocking the guards and Faust alike as Nic and the rest grinned. "I am Erza Scarlet! I am an Earthland Mage!"

Gray gave the thumbs up. "Nice timing! Looks like we'll save them after all!"

"HA! THEY FELL FOR IT!" Natsu amused.

Erza had her sword at the King's throat and looked at the guards. "Aim the Dragon Chain Cannon at the lacrima at once!"

"And I want you to fire it at the rock!" The King demanded.

"Now what?" "What do we do?" "That's a low move taking hostages!" The guards complained.

"We don't care what you think." Gray said.

"Our friends are in danger, and we will get them back by any means necessary." Nic stated.

"Yes." Sophie nodded. "Even if it means deceit you all. So shut it and aim at the lacrima!"

"Fire it now!" The King demanded. "Eliminate the Exceeds!"

"Set coordinates towards the lacrima!" The guards ordered, and the canon shifted slightly.

"You cowards." The King yelled with extreme outrage. "You're tossing away the only chance of having everlasting Magic!"

Suddenly, a glint appeared above them high in the room, and dropping from above was a familiar figure. Erza and everyone else for that matter looked up to see something very shocking.

"SCARLET!" Knightwalker yelled, coming down with her Ten Commandments and Erza went sharp-eye as she was forced to release Faust and intercept Knightwalker with her sword. Both Erzas glared at the other, but for some reason when Erza looked at Knightwalker, she didn't see that major killing intent like from before.

"The King is free!" "Quick, aim at the original target!" "Locked on target!" The guards shifted the cannon back towards the rock now that their King was not under threat.

The two Erzas glared at the other while Nic turned towards his counterpart. "What happened?! I thought you changed her?!"

Nebulus turned towards Nic with a frown. "No, I think she's trying to figure out something. Look." Nic and Nebulus looked at Knightwalker's gaze, seeing as how it wasn't as sharp as Erza's.

Upon realization, Nic blinked. "You mean she's trying to find answers through fighting?...well you did say trust your gut." Nebulus shrugged.

Knightwalker and Scarlet clashed their weapons as everything went red from the Dragon Chain Cannon's energy. "I thought Nebulus had you incapacitated!"

Knightwalker scowled. "He did! And then I was given a chance to find where I lie!"

'_Wait, where she lies?' _Erza questioned while she was still clashing her sword with the Ten Commandments.

"**FIRE!**" The King shouted with a maniacal laughter. The outside of the cannon core turned red and began spinning in separate directions like gears. The citizens marveled and watched as the turbines increased to max power.

Erza backed off and went wide-eyed.

"DAMMIT!" Nic and Erza shouted in unison.

The Dragon Chain Cannon fired, the blue eyes of the beastly dragon skeleton-like chain slithered up at an alarming velocity and roared like a feral dragon. The head roared and bit into the rock of the lacrima, making it shake.

On the rock of the lacrima, Panther Lily and Gajeel were still in battle when they felt the ground shake.

"What the hell was that?" Gajeel wondered

Panther Lily smirked. "The Dragon Chain Cannon attaching."

Gajeel went wide-eyed. "No, they didn't make it!" The blue eyes of the dragon head then sharpened and shrunk, and burrowed even deeper into the rock and the entire lacrima on the island turned a heated lava-like red.

"Attachment complete!" A guard shouted.

"NOW SMASH IT INTO EXTALIA!" The King shouted.

"NO!" Natsu shouted.

Suddenly. The wall burst from the side, and debris started flying as a legion flew through the wall. And on it was Lucy in some weird clothing when she fought Byro earlier, and a young girl named Coco.

Coco was a lean and short female with a face that bears the resemblance of a puppy, with a small nose and green headgear with 'floppy ears'. She had brown eyes and long brown hair that was kept in a blue spherical ponytail that went over her right shoulder. She had on a blue battlesuit that was under a yellow dress and had white gloves and bare feet.

"Hey you guys!" Lucy shouted from atop the legion that landed. "Get on its back!"

"Lucy?" Natsu asked.

"Is that you?" Gray asked.

"Boy, Edolas really changed her for the better." Sophie joked, purposely thinking Lucy was the legion.

Lucy fumed. "This ain't the time Sophie, just hurry!" Natsu, Gray, Erza, and Sophie all then got onto the legions back and the legion started taking off.

"Impossible, how are they in control of a legion?!" Faust demanded.

"It's because this one is mine!" Coco shouted.

Faust went wide-eyed at the traitor. "Coco." He growled.

Nebulus's Charizard went over towards his trainer. "Nic, we need to move."

Nebulus turned towards his Charizard. "You're right." He said with the sound being slightly hollow.

Nic shifted into his Draco Plate Form and took flight as well. As he was catching up, he got out a poke ball. "Go!"

From the poke ball emerged Charizard, now both were present. "We're on it!" Charizard shouted, flying upwards with Nic on his back as well.

As they ascended, Erza looked down from the legion and stared at her counterpart, who was frustrated out of her mind. Knightwalker stared coldly at her counterpart as she showed her teeth. She still couldn't believe that she and her counterpart were so similar in appearance. It frustrated her even more knowing everyone fell for the rouse.

She was tempted to grab her Ten Commandments and do something crazy. Knightwalker slowly got her spear and was slowly pulling it up to her hair. She was going to distinguish herself by cutting her hair short. When her blade tip was so very close to her hair, she caught a slight glimpse of Nebulus, who looked down at her.

Knightwalker froze when she saw that face from the first and only person who reached out to her, who made her feel as though the King was doing bad, and in truth she couldn't disagree, but she needed power. A small thought ran through her head at that point.

_Nebulus then walked on over pass Knightwalker and he undid the handcuffs. "I won't tell you what has to be done, but I will say that trust your gut. We're human, and our conscience matters. You know Faust is harming innocent lives within that lacrima." He turned away. "If you cry…that's the first step to being human." He then turned and saw Knightwalker with misty eyes. "Oh, and by the way Knightwalker…your red hair is nice."_

Knightwalker's arm was shaking and she gritted her teeth and closed her eyes. She absolutely cannot deny that fact now. Exceed or not, lives were going to be lost, and if they were in their place, she wouldn't wanna die.

Knightwalker slowly retracted her spear, allowing her flowing hair to remain as it was. She still had that frustrated expression and she pointed her spear at the sky. "…prepare the Second Magic War Division Legion Platoon!" She ordered.

"Yes ma'am!" The guards ordered.

As Knightwalker was walking towards the exit, she stared coldly forward. _'What's wrong with me? I have to understand what it is I'm feeling. I have to find out if Scarlet can convince me as well.'_

Faust closed in eyes. "I shall be going as well." Guards were left in shock that their King was to enter battle. "Deploy…" He opened his eyes. "The Dorma Anim."

In the skies, the spine-like chain was slowly dragging the lacrima towards Extalia, the force of the drag making the island seem like a meteor.

"What is this?" Gajeel questioned. "Is this thing moving?"

"Yes, according to our military's plan, we are to smash it into Extalia and harvest unlimited Magic." Panther Lily said.

Gajeel looked out at Extalia, which was closing in. He was wide-eyed. "You've gotta be kidding me. That's completely insane!"

* * *

**In the air, incoming…**

"LET'S GO!" Natsu shouted with yellow and blue rag clothing. The legion roared as it made its way towards the lacrima, with everyone holding on.

Both Nics were riding their two Charizard that were flying as fast as their wings could go, with was surprisingly fast and slightly ahead of the legion.

"We have to hurry Charizard!" Nebulus shouted.

"Don't worry! We won't fail!" Nebulus's Charizard shouted.

As Nic was riding his Charizard, his Charizard asked something. "So what's the plan?"

"Stop it! Whatever means necessary!" Nic shouted.

Charizard lowered his head and focused on the lacrima. "Of course, I should've guessed. We're coming guys!" Both Charizard roared in the sky as they shot like rockets with the legion from behind.

The legion roared as the large beast rammed its giant head into the side of the lacrima, with the two Charizard following suit. The legion roared as it continued pushing, and both Charziard were pushing with as much force as they could muster.

"Give it everything you got!" Coco shouted.

"Come on Charizard!" Nebulus and Nic both shouted.

"Grrrrrrr! This this is a real pushover!" Nic's Charizard shouted, still feeling himself get driven back, as well as the legion.

"Alright then! I'll jump in too!" Nic flapped his own wings and he soared away at an alarming speed. When he got to a certain point, he turned around and sped into the meteor-like island with as much momentum as he could muster up. Nic let out a draconic battlery as he shoved his hands into the island, just like the two Charizard. Even that wasn't nearly enough as he was grunting as he was being pushed back.

"Nic! Hang on!" Erza shouted.

"This thing has too much mass and momentum!" Gray shouted.

Natsu ran up to the legion's head and bashed his body against the lacrima, trying to shove it back as well.

From above, there was a blue Exceed that recognized Natsu. "NATSU!" Happy flew down and he looked sad. "…I'm sorry…I didn't mean…"

"Huh?" Natsu gave his trademark grin as he was still pumping out more force. "Give me a hand buddy, would ya?"

Happy had misty eyes as Natsu thought nothing of it, and still had him as his best friend. Happy then smiled. "AYE SIR!" He shot down and joined Natsu.

Gajeel grinned. "Alright, temporary truce!" He then started running.

Panther Lily didn't like that Gajeel was running. "Hey, don't run from me!"

"Don't worry furball, we'll finish this later!" Gajeel shouted without looking back. "I'll stop this thing, then beat you!"

"You can't!" Panther Lily shouted. "Once you start it, you can't stop it!" He then shut his eyes and grunted as he looked on the island he stood on. "This is it, Edolas will change forever, and none of us will live to see the aftermath."

Gajeel smirked as he turned back towards Panther Lily and pointed at him. "Wrong." He said, shocking Panther Lily. "We ain't dying. When this is over, you're coming with us to Fairy Tail." His eyes narrowed. "You'll be my cat even if I have to drag you there!" Gajeel then chuckled and turned away, jumping over the ledge and Panther Lily watched as Gajeel proclaimed such a thing.

They were still drawing near, and everyone was pushing as hard as they could. "Give it everything you got!" Erza shouted.

"We always do!" Nic (Pularis)'s Charizard shouted and roared as he pumped out even more muscle power. As the group had finally collided into Extalia, every single person was shoving and the island stopped temporarily moving.

The two Charizard and Nic let loose a super loud draconic roar as they shoved back even more. "THIS WON'T HAPPEN! NOT EVER!" Nic and Nebulus both shouted.

"WE'RE PUSHING THIS THING BACK EVEN IF IT KILLS US!" Nebulus's Charizard shouted.

"ALL THE WAY!" Nic's Charizard bellowed.

Erza was pushing as well and she saw Gajeel land right beside her and started pushing. "Gajeel! Why are you down here?! You should be turning the others back to normal!" She testified.

"YOU WANNA DEAL WITH THE BLACK CAT, BE MY GUEST!" Gajeel shouted.

"Everybody shut up and push!" Sophie shouted

Panther Lily looked down and saw Coco pushing as well. "Coco! What are you doing?!"

Coco looked up and saw her friend. "Lily!" She then smiled. "I'm stopping this thing! Who needs eternal Magic when you can have eternal smiles?"

"THAT'S NONSENSE! GET OUT OF HERE COCO!" Lily shouted. "These people can't stop Extalia's destruction!"

"Be quiet!" Nebulus shouted. "We're not through yet!"

"FAIRY TAIL MAGES KNOW NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE!" Natsu shouted. The tip of Extalia's island was cracking, but was still intact. Lily watched in shock as everyone refused to give up.

* * *

**From close by…**

A female blue cat looked worried as she saw the ground crack nearby. "Honey, what is that?"

"I DON'T KNOW! BUT IF IT HURTS MY CROPS, IT'LL GET HELL TO PAY!" The male white cat shouted.

* * *

**Back at the lacrima…**

Suddenly, a green meteor shot forth as Lily flew off the island and watched from afar. The light crashed into the island, revealed to be Carla, who was pushing with everything she had.

"Carla!" Happy shouted.

"I'm not giving up! I'm protecting Fairy Tail and Extalia!" She proclaimed, with tears. "I can't watch my home be destroyed!"

Suddenly, Happy and Carla saw another black Exceed, with a portion below the nose being white, with a rectangular tail. He had round eyes and small white eyebrows and triangular ears on his super large rectangular head. He had on a black jacket and yellow pants. He rammed his head into the island right next to Carla and Happy.

"Why are you here?!" Carla shouted.

"Because I want to protect Extalia too!" Nadi shouted with tears. "Your courage inspired me."

Lily watched as all of Extalia's Exceeds came forth in green meteors and shot forth from Extalia towards the island, refusing to have their home destroyed. And one of the Exceeds was carrying Wendy towards the lacrima. All of the Exceeds gathered and started pushing as one, and Lily was left in confusion.

"_Lily, you saved a human child!" A Council member of the Exceeds stated._

_Lily was on one knee and held a boy with a bandaged head, the boy being unconscious. "If I hadn't, he would've perished." Lily stated bluntly._

"_How foolish of you to bring such trash here!" Another member said. "Your actions make my stomach turn!"_

"_Sorry, I cannot ignore any living creature that suffers." Lily testified_

_All of the Council was in front of the Exceed Queen, who was in a robe and huge fake wings, in reality under the robe, she had a short body just like Happy and Carla's. She had pink jewels around her face._

"_Lily, you are hereby deemed a Fallen." A Council member said. "And hereby exiled from Extalia!"_

_Lily looked up with deep shock plastered onto his face. "Exiled?! You can't be serious!"_

_The Queen looked down with regret and said nothing. The decision has been made._

_Later, Lily and the young boy were both in clothing and walking through a dusty desert. Lily looked back one more time at Extalia and turned back towards the boy, who stopped and looked up at the Exceed who saved his life._

"_What's the matter?" Lily asked, kneeling down and putting a gentle hand in the boy's bandaged head. "Don't feel guilty. You're not to blame for my people's actions, and the first thing that must be done is get you home."_

The Queen's Magic had ran out and she fell out of the sky, falling and screaming. Lily quickly caught her, much to everyone's surprise.

The Queen opened her eyes and found that Lily saved her. "Panther Lily." Every Exceed looked in shock, while Gajeel grinned.

Lily said nothing for a short while and he spoke. "Tell me, have you finally grown weary?"

The Queen looked down with sadness and tears. "I'm sorry."

"You know…" The Queen looked up to see Lily looking at the lacrima and tearing up. "No matter how much I try to hate it…Extalia is…still my homeland!"

"Lily."

"But…even with all of us together, we can't stop it. FORGIVE ME PLEASE! THIS IS ALL MY FAULT! IT DIDN'T HAVE TO HAPPEN!" He shouted up to the sky. "I COULD'VE STOPPED THE HUMANS, BUT I DID NOTHING!"

The Queen grabbed his wrist cuffs, making Lily look down at her. "Don't worry." She said. "Your words will reach them."

"JUST KEEP PUSHING!" Natsu shouted.

"ALL THE WAY!" Nic shouted.

"WE AIN'T GOING DOWN LIKE THIS!" Gajeel shouted.

"Come on!" "We can do this!" "Push everyone!" "Put everything you got into it!" "Aye sir!"

"**GRRAAAAAAHHHHH!**" Every single living creature was giving it their all and green light was waving all over the place, the energy emanated was immense and suddenly, one big push and the entire island was pushed back, leaving only a small fracture in a tip of Extalia's island.

Lily looked with shock. "They did it, they actually used their solemn strength and stopped Code ETD." Lily marveled.

Suddenly, the entire island turned blue and a light shot up and down from the blue lacrima still intact.

"What's going on now?!" Wendy shouted.

"This isn't good!" Sophie shouted. The light then shot upwards, and everything was blinded, the Exceeds, and everyone else felt a sucking force that took in the entire light.

When the light faded, everyone was being held up by an Exceed, exclude Nebulus, who was on his Charizard, and Nic was flapping with his Draco Plate draconic wings. Nic stared out at the island where the lacrima was.

"…the lacrima…" Erza muttered, having an Exceed carry her, but found her super heavy.

The lacrima was gone, being replaced with a huge crater. Moments later the island itself and the Dragon Chain Cannon began to glow and disappear, leaving nothing left completely.

"It disappeared, is that good?" Sophie asked.

"What happened to all of our friends?" Lucy asked, worried they might have…

"Don't worry, they're alright." A familiar voice said. Lily and everyone looked by to see a white legion, which was smaller compared to other legions.

The voice came from the man who was riding the legion. "Mystogan!" Nic exclaimed. "It's you!"

"Sorry for the wait, but finding the right Anima for everything took longer than it should've been. Without your efforts, I never would've been able to save them. You have my gratitude." Mystogan said.

Natsu laughed happily while Happy was in slight shock. "Everyone's back to normal?!"

Mystogan nodded under his mask. "Yes. By passing through the Anima, the lacrima will return to its original form in Earthland." This made everyone smile, even the two Charizard. "It's finally over."

The Exceeds were beyond ecstatic. "We really did it!" "We saved Extalia with our bare paws!" The Exceeds all cheered loudly that they had accomplished the impossible.

Mystogan then looked down at Lily, who gave the Queen to her servants to help her fly. "Lily, long ago you saved me." Mystogan then unmasked himself with a smile. "I'm glad I could return the favor."

_The Edolas Jellal looked up with a smile at Lily, who in turned smiled back._

Lily had a hand over his chest as he had streams of tears that were joy coming down his face, seeing him once again alive and well. "Yes, and I couldn't begin to thank you…my Prince."

Coco clasped her hands together and had tears as well. "Our long-lost Prince is home!"

"HE'S WHAT?!" Lucy shouted.

Nic's Charizard was smiling, but then went wide-eyed when he saw a beam of energy being shot at Lily from behind. "Behind you!" Without another word, Charizard rushed in at high speed of which surprised everyone and as Lily turned around, Charizard reeled an arm back and used Dragon Claw as an interception on the beam. The Dragon Claw collided with the beam of energy and there was an explosion in the sky, swallowing Charizard and Lily alike.

"Lily!" Mystogan shouted.

"Charizard!" Nic shouted, everyone gasped in shock as to what happened and how it happened so fast. When the explosion subsided, Charizard was wincing and Lily was scratched up completely. Even so, Charizard and Lily were still looking pretty tough.

Charizard turned towards Lily. "Are you alright?"

Lily nodded. "Thanks for the sudden save."

Charizard then looked back and he glared at where that beam came from. "Who did that?!"

Knightwalker had her Cannon Spear out and it was sizzling on the end. She grunted as her attack failed to impale Lily. She glared coldly at Charizard. "You get out of my way so that he shall be dealt with!" She shot from her legion again a beam from her Cannon Spear.

Charizard intercepted by using Flamethrower, of which collided with the beam of energy, making a large explosion in between the two.

Knightwalker grunted as the smoke cleared, revealing that Charizard wasn't even remotely through yet. Charizard used Flamethrower yet again and Knightwalker jumped off of her legion onto another one as the previous one took the super-heated Flamethrower and fell out of the sky.

"Out of my way!" Knightwalker shouted.

"It's the Edolas Erza!" Natsu shouted.

"The one called Knightwalker!" Happy shouted.

Nebulus glared at Knightwalker coldly. "Knightwalker!" Knightwalker looked and saw Nebulus, those brief thoughts coming to her again.

_Knightwalker looked down at the ground as she was still sitting up. She never heard of something like that; something so forceful. "Nic, I need to know…" She looked up at Nebulus again. "I know you told me so as not to kill my counterpart, but why do I need saving? I never was in danger."_

_Nebulus got up and he looked down at Knightwalker and closed his eyes. "You were this whole time." He opened his eyes. "You were wandering in darkness, and someone had to pull you out and into the light." Knightwalker went wide-eyed. _

Knightwalker narrowed her eyes and she announced. "I'm finding my answers Nebulus! Scarlet!" She shouted.

Erza glared at her counterpart from the Exceed that held her. "It's Knightwalker."

Knightwalker pointed her spear at Erza. "We need to settle things once and for all!"

"Allow me." Mystogan said aboard his legion. He looked down at Knightwalker on her legion and spoke to her. "Enough of your insolence Knightwalker. I am aware of your state of confusion, but that is no reason to turn arms against a fellow Captain! Do not point your weapon at me, the Royal Prince of Edolas!"

"Prince?!" Erza asked with shock in her eyes. Knightwalker merely stared coldly at Mystogan.

There was a brief pause and then suddenly, a loud maniacal laughter was heard. Everyone turned to where the sound was coming from and the laughter stopped.

"**You? The Royal Prince of Edolas? Pathetic! You don't deserve the title because I never thought of you as my son!**" Faust's voice echoed.

The King's voice was heard all around, and Coco recognized it right away. "That's the King!"

Faust's voice ranged through the air yet again. "**You can't just run off for seven years and return and take the throne! I've known all along that you were in Earthland sealing the Anima! You're a traitor!**"

"Where are you? Show yourself!" Nic announced.

"Your Anima plan has failed." Mystogan announced. "Surrender peacefully, and we shall not engage in conflict."

The only answer that came was from the run-down colosseum that was far below them on the ground. From the center of the humungous colosseum, a light green light glowed and the King's voice echoed. "**Ridiculous! I don't need a reason to destroy every last one of you!**"

"Do you guys hear that?!" Gray shouted, hearing energy charge.

Lucy nodded. "Yeah, it sounds bad!

"It's coming from underground! And I can feel the immense swell of Magic!" Sophie exclaimed.

Nic's Charizard grunted. "If things aren't bad enough, it's about to get worse."

From the quaking ground, from the green light, a huge mechanical creature was compressed into an egg shape, and it was humungous. "**This isn't a fight, this is retribution!**" Faust testified as the egg-shaped mechanical beast continued to rise, surprising everyone. "**This is the extermination of those who dare oppose their King!**" The egg-shaped beast had six chains that attached it to the ground.

"What is that?" Lucy asked.

"Something that isn't too pleasant I presume." Nebulus warned. "Everyone watch out!"

"**Since you insist on standing in my way, I'll just have to exterminate you, regardless of who you are! If I dispose of you now, I won't have to worry about my Animas being sealed! I shall take all the Magic I want! LIMITLESS MAGIC SHALL BE MINE!**"

The chains all snapped and the egg-shaped beast rose up and was outlined in white energy. The light soon ceased outlining and then the entire things started popping out and morphing. The Exceeds and everyone alike looked in shock and horror as the beast began to unfold every bit of its body.

When everything unfolded, a metallic foot hit the ground, making it shake. There was a huge metallic tail that was connected to a metallic beast.

It was the now unsealed mechanical dragon – Dorma Anim.

The Kings let out a maniacal laughter as the mechanical dragon roared, making ripples in the air. Erza, Nic, and everyone else narrowed their eyes and slight gasps escaped their throats. The Dorma Anim was sizzling after being unsealed and the red eyes glowed.

"The Dorma Anim has been unleashed!" Mystogan warned. "From our old language, it means 'Dragon Knight'. It's enhanced dragon armor!"

Lily was left in shock. "I never thought I'd see it with my own eyes. This Magic power is terrifying."

Charizard flapped right beside the Exceed. "That level of power is uncanny, not to mention it's mad."

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Dragon armor, huh?" His mind was left to ponder about dragons for a brief moment. _'Natsu, Wendy, and Gajeel are Dragon Slayers, and since I have ascertained the Draco Plate, what does that mean on my part?'_

"Is it Magic armor?" Wendy worried.

"It's an enhanced armor made from Anti-Magic lacrima called Wizard Canceller." Coco explained, recalling the stories of Dorma Anim. "It's terrible for us because our attacks won't have any affect! The King must be inside of it, controlling it's every move!"

The Dorma Anim raise its head and opened the mouth, revealing a cannon. "**As your King, I order you to capture the Exceeds at once!**"

The soldiers followed their orders and flew on their legions towards the Exceeds in order to capture them. They had devices to shoot the Exceeds and they began shooting at the Exceeds so to turn them into lacrima.

"Hurry, fly for your lives!" Mystogan shouted. The Exceeds all scattered, save Lily, who merely flew by Mystogan's side. Mystogan turned towards him. "Lily, are you sure?"

Lily nodded. "I will follow you anywhere my Prince." He said.

Charizard made way back towards Nic, who looked down at the Dorma Anim still. "Charizard, we need to stop the soldiers at once!"

"That's pretty obvious." Charizard narrowed his eyes and looked to see the soldiers launching cannons that turned more Exceeds into lacrima. "I'll stopped those lunatics."

Nic nodded, having faith that Charizard has more than enough strength left. "Do your best."

"Naturally." Charizard grinned and then he sailed towards the incoming platoon.

Nebulus saw this as well. "Charizard, you go too."

Charizard turned his head towards Nebulus with shock. "What?"

"Trust me. Remember that our priority now is to save the Exceeds and stop Dorma Anim. We can only handle one at a time."

"…true." Charizard then looked to see Nic's Charizard zooming towards the platoon, the Magicalizing Cannons having no affect because Charizard doesn't have 'Magic'. Charizard narrowed his eyes. "Alright, just be careful."

"When aren't I?" Nebulus asked, jumping off of Charizard and then threw forth a poke ball. "Garchomp!" Garchomp came forth and roared as Nebulus landed on his back.

Nic grinned and he reached for one of his poke balls. "Time for us to team up one last time! Garchomp, come out too!"

Nic's Garchomp bellowed a massive roar and bared his claws in the air. "Where do I start tearing up my enemies?!"

"Let's go guys!" Nic shouted, Nebulus's Garchomp, Nebulus, and Nic's Garchomp all following Nic.

Knightwalker remained silent as she looked on, the Exceeds screaming before being turned into lacrima. The concept of having Magic boggled her mind yet again. She knew that Edolas needed Magic, and yet she was alive and didn't possess it. She had to get answers, and there was only one way she could do that. "Scarlet!"

Erza turned towards Lucy and Sophie. "Keep anymore Exceeds away from the Royal Army." She said. "I'm going to try and take down Knightwalker."

"We must do what we can to dodge the Dorma Anim's attacks and save the Exceeds!" Mystogan said, flying on his light legion.

"**I will obliterate all that gets in my way!**" The cannon in the mouth then fired. "**BEGONE!**" The Dorma Anim unleashed an immense Magic beam of energy that made the ground shake.

The beam came at the group on the legion and everyone panicked and gasped as the intense attack was coming at them, but the attack didn't it for everyone went wide-eyed when Mystogan was found to be blocking with a purple Magic seal with his Magic Staves to stop the attack.

"Mystogan!" Erza shouted.

"Erza, everyone, get out of here while you still can!" Mystogan shouted.

"What about you?" She shouted back at the S-Class Mage.

"Forget about me!" He shouted. "**Three Layered Magic Circle: Mirror Water!**" The entire beam that was meant for Mystogan was reversed, heading back towards the Dorma Anim.

"**What?! He reflected my attack?!**" Faust shouted. The Dorma Anim was hit full on with the reversed beam, making a destructive explosion erupt from where it stood.

"Wow, Mystogan did it!" Sophie cheered.

"He ain't S-Class for any other reason, hope that got him." Gray said. He was proven false when the smoke cleared and the Dorma Anim didn't have a remote scratch.

Faust laughed. "**That tickled. You've forgotten you fools! The power of the Dorma Anim's Wizard Canceller! You can attack all you like, but you cannot stop me! The Dorma Anim is impervious to all forms of Magic!**" Faust declared before firing yet another beam at Mystogan.

Erza gasped when Mystogan was thrown off his legion as the attack barrowed right pass them. Mystogan yelled as he fell. "Mystogan!"

"My Prince!" Lily shouted, shooting down to save Mystogan. He quickly caught Mystogan and they descended into the forest close by.

As everyone was going to take action, the Dorma Anim shot more beams that trailed the skies. Forcing everyone aboard Coco's legion to hang on as the beast was forced to dodge.

Even with the beam dodging, it still had the power to turn Exceeds into lacrima, making them fall to the ground.

"**What a beautiful site.**" Faust commented, seeing raining lacrima that were the Exceeds. "**I'm gonna turn every last Exceed into power!**" He shot continuous beams of energy that continued to trail the skies.

Gray was pretty much annoyed. "This sucks! How the heck are we suppose to hit this thing?!"

"Hand in there Legi!" Coco told her legion as it traveled the skies.

Erza then realized something. "Guys, where's Nic-?!"

Something struck the Dorma Anim from above, crashing into it with draconic energy that exploded upon contact. This made the Dorma Anim flinch.

"**What?!**" Faust shouted. Suddenly, two very fast figures slashed and punched the Dorma Anim, leaving huge dents and scratches. And then a club had hit the underside of the Dorma Anim. "**I don't understand! The Dorma Anim shouldn't be taking damage!**"

From above yet again, Natsu and Wendy combined.

"**Sky Dragon's-**"

"**Fire Dragon's-**'

"**ROAR!**" A blast of fire and wind combined, blasting the Dorma Anim and making explosions erupt.

The mechanical dragon skid back several feet. "**You lousy-!**" He didn't get room to attack when the ground under him shattered and out burst another Garchomp and struck the Dorma Anim, making it stumbled back and almost lose balance.

"**What is happening?!**" Faust shouted. He then went wide-eyed when he saw Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel, both Nics, and both Garchomp present.

Natsu grinned. "That a nice roar Wendy."

"Thanks." She answered.

"I knew my Dragon-Type moves would work against this beast." Nic said.

"Of course, fight a dragon with a dragon." Nebulus said.

Nic's Garchomp snarled. "Let's see what other damage we can do!"

"I couldn't agree with you more!" Nebulus's Garchomp said.

"**It was you.**" Faust sneered, the mechanical dragon looking at the seven that were in front of him.

"Nic!" Erza shouted. As Erza was starting to lean forward, Sophie put an arm in front of her. Erza looked to see Sophie grinning.

"Trust me Erza, those two Nic can handle themselves, plus their Garchomp are super lethal." Sophie assured.

Erza wanted to say something, but she knew Sophie was right. Nic could handle his own. "…alright." She grinned. "We'll leave it to them."

"Natsu! Be careful!" Lucy shouted.

"Don't worry you guys, who better to stop a dragon than Dragon Slayers?" Gray said.

"But Nic isn't a Dragon Slayer." Lucy reminded him.

"True, but that form that we've never seen until down did some damage! Maybe it's some Dragon Form!" Happy cheered.

"Let's hope so." Erza looked down as the legion was moving away from the sight. They were getting back into the battle and Erza was about ready to settle matters with Knightwalker. "…good luck Nic." Even though she hasn't seen him and all they could do was plan, with no time to catch up, Erza still had faith in him.

"Good luck!" Their two Charizard shouted as they also ventured off into the fray with Legi.

Now it was just the Dragon Slayers, two Nics, and two Garchomp, staring at a mechanical dragon.

"Let's do this Salamander." Gajeel said.

"Great, I have to team up with you again." Natsu whined.

Nic and his counterpart turned towards the other and grinned. "You ready for one last team-up?" Nic asked.

"Like you have to ask." Nebulus said.

Both of their Garchomp bared their fangs and claws and roared at the Dorma Anim. "Let's tear that scrap metal to shreds!"

"**You'll try.**" Faust threatened.

"Then let's get started! **Dragon Dance!**" Nic was then surrounded in a dark red energy mixed with black that spiraled about around him, yet gushed like crazy in the process, making a jumbled burst from his body. He was enveloped in red and he could feel his Attack and Speed increase.

"I'll do that to!" Wendy shouted. "Fast winds that run the heaven…**Vernier!**" A sky blue Magic seal appeared under Wendy, Natsu, Gajeel, and Nebulus, startling the last three.

"Whoa, what the…?" Natsu was feeling himself getting lighter all of a sudden.

"That's crazy! I feel so much lighter!" Gajeel called out.

"It must be because of her Spell." Nebulus said. "In that case, let's trash this guy!" Nebulus then undid his leg weights once more, the weights making the ground rumble, startling Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy briefly.

As the Dorma Anim shot a beam of Magic at them, Natsu was surrounded in a red spherical aura, while Gajeel was in green and Nebulus was in purple. Nic flapped his wings and the two Garchomp joined in and all six lunged at the Dorma Anim, dodging the beam and the six split up, scattering so to mess up the Dorma Anim's lock-on sequence.

"**That's this? They're moving faster! I can't lock my target onto them!**" The Dorma Anim couldn't lock on and was stumbling repeatedly left and right, seeing multiple fast targets.

"**Slash!**" Nic's Garchomp's low-toned monstrous voice bellowed. Out of nowhere, his claws glowed white and he slashed the Dorma Anim's face. The beast recoiled and was seen being slashed yet again by Garchomp, who made it recoil even more, making it almost stumbled off balance.

"**Slash!**" Nebulus's Garchomp then appeared and then struck the Dorma Anim's opposite side of the face repeatedly, making the heinous beast recoil and forced to step back with both Dragon-Types in its face.

Suddenly, the two Garchomp backed off and Nic was seen coming in from the front with light blue claw-shaped energy around both of his arms. "**Dragon Claw!**" He slashed downwards, making an explosion upon impact on the Dorma Anim's head.

When the dragon composed, it looked at Nic surrounded by both Garchomp. "**You'll pay for that one boy!**" But Faust didn't get time after that when Nebulus came in and delivered a fast blow to the Dorma Anim's neck and making it flinch.

Then Natsu came in. "**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" He struck the mechanical creature, and Gajeel came in from the other side with no delay in his attack.

"**Iron's Dragon's Club!**" He struck the jaw with an iron column morphed from his arm. Everything continued flying about, with Natsu, Gajeel, and Nebulus all striking blows close to the face, with Nic covering ground by aiming lower close to the neck with Dragon Claw and the two Garchomp's going mad with Slash attack nonstop.

Faust was dumbfounded. "**I don't understand! The attacks shouldn't be affecting me!** **Why is the Dorma Anim taking damage?!**"

"**Dragon Pulse!**" From his mouth, Nic fired a multicolored dragon-shaped energy beam at the Dorma Anim, right in the abdomen, making an explosion that made it go numb briefly.

Both Garchomp rushed in to attack at mach speed. "**Dual Chop!**" Both Garchomps' arm fins and claws glowed a light green and struck the Dorma Anim's chest simultaneously, making a light green burst of energy that damaged the mechanical beast even more.

"**You troublesome miscreants!**" Faust shouted.

"And now it's my turn!" Wendy made a light blue Magic seal that appeared in front of her and below Natsu, Gajeel, and Nebulus. "O strengthen the arm to cleave the heavens! **Arms!**"

Just then, Natsu, Gajeel, and Nebulus' arms glowed their respective colors, feeling power surge immensely through them.

"Alright! Let's get this clown!" Natsu felt his Magic surge and he made a huge fireball. "**Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**" He unleashed the huge sphere of fire as he jumped and it crashed into the Dorma Anim, and Gajeel followed it up as well.

"**Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!**" He then unleashed a multitude of iron spears from a large Magic seal, striking the Dorma Anim.

Nebulus followed it up by unleashing a battlecry and kicked the Dorma Anim's leg, making it kneel forward and allowing Nebulus's Garchomp to use Slash on the face, making it recoil.

Now Faust was angry. "**It's her! She's increasing their power! You're done for brat! Dragon Rider Missiles!**" From the back, a multitude of seeking missiles at Wendy.

"Wendy!" Natsu shouted.

The missiles were coming in close and Wendy was prepared to didge, but Nic was just a bit quicker than her. "**Twister!**" Nic landed in front of Wendy and flapped his wings and shot a twister that swallowed up the missiles and saved them both.

"Nice timing Nic!" Nebulus shouted.

"**I'm not done yet!**" Faust shot two solemn missiles at Nic, but this time Natsu intervened.

"I got this!" He shouted, running towards the two missiles.

But Nebulus and Nic alike both knew the nature of those two missiles was different. "Hold up! Wait-!"

Nic's warning was a little too late as the missiles stopped and exploded in front of Natsu, hearing him scream and a full-scale explosion engulfed him.

Nebulus went wide-eyed. "Oh no!"

Nic turned towards him. "Don't worry, he's fine!"

Faust laughed. "**It's about time you learned your place! Now for the rest of you…**" He then hearing a slurping down and looked through the Dorma Anim to see something odd going on. "**What's this?! Is he…**" Natsu was sucking in as much fire from that explosion as he could. "**…eating the flames?!**" He then heard a loud crunching sound from behind and he turned the head of the dragon to see that Gajeel was clenching onto the tail and eating a small chunk off. "**Is he eating the Dorma Anim?! Is he insane?!**"

"Man, that was some nasty fire right there." Natsu said, wiping his mouth.

Gajeel jumped down from the Dorma Anim and wiped his mouth too. "The iron on that thing tastes bad too."

Faust was twitching. "**Unbelievable, are all Earthland Mages this powerful?**"

Nic and everyone else regrouped. Nic's Garchomp sneered with a snarl. "That lousy scrap of metal is tough, it's making me want to tear it up even more."

"That fake dragon's got a thick skull! I want to break it some more!" Nebulus's Garchomp added.

Nic and Nebulus smirked, both turning towards their respective Garchomp. The two then turned back towards the Dorma Anim.

"Don't worry." Nebulus said.

"We've got plenty more hits to get in, leaving you all the slashing you can achieve." Nic added.

* * *

**With Erza and co.**

The legion and the two Charizard made their way to where Knightwalker was on a legion as well, the latter grinning. "I've been waiting for you, Scarlet."

Erza narrowed her eyes. "What do you want?"

Knightwalker frowned and looked serious. "Let's see if you can do better!" Her legion then went after Coco's, and then the entire platoon started surrounding them.

"It's a trap!" Gray shouted.

"Let's get out of here Legi!" Coco shouted, her Legion ascending. An endless ray of Magic shots shot upwards towards the sky, and Legi was holding up the best it could. Both Charizard themselves took evasive action, easily evading every shot. Legi was finally struck from below, making everyone aboard fall downwards. "Legi, no!"

Everyone screamed as they all fell to the ground. Both Charizard saw this and they dived downwards, trying to catch up.

Nebulus's Charizard turned towards his counterpart. "Hey!"

"I know!" Nic's Charizard went for Erza while Nebulus's Charizard went and caught Lucy, Gray, and Coco.

As Erza was falling, Charizard had caught up to her and grabbed her gauntlet. "Erza!" Erza looked at Charizard as she was still falling with Charizard maintaining a grip on her gauntlet. "I'm gonna hurl you up to Knightwalker!"

Erza nodded in understanding and Charizard nodded as well. Charizard then stopped and spread his wings and spun around and aimed Erza straight at Knightwalker. "Have a nice flight!" Charizard hurled Erza with all his might, the latter soaring like a rocket.

Erza shot up and appeared right above Knightwalker on a legion, startling her and Knightwalker saw Erza come down with a sword and she blocked with her damaged Ten Commandments. Erza landed and Knightwalker slashed, but Erza dodged and slashed back, but ended up getting intercepted.

"I've had enough of you Knightwalker! It's time we finish this once and for all!" Erza shouted, backing off and backflipped off of the legion and Knightwalker jumped after her.

The two safely landed on top of two old buildings that was on ruins of an island. Knightwalker snickered, her wavy hair flickering, as was Scarlet's. "The ruins of the cats' cities. A fitting place for one of us if we end up dead."

"Never by you." Erza testified. She started glowing. "I can't believe that someone with my face would cause so much pain to Fairy Tail!" She was found to have requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor.

Knightwalker narrowed her eyes as she remembered that. And yet again that brief talk with Nebulus stirred her up. "Yes." Her spear glowed as well, changing. "And I can't say I was aware of the consequences…" Her spear became her Vacuum Spear.

Erza was left slight off guard. "The consequences?"

Knightwalker got into a battle stance. "Never mind! Let's finish this!" She admitted, making Erza wide-eyed. _'Convince me! Come at me! Just like Nic did with his counterpart!'_

Erza saw the resolution on Knightwalker's gaze. She was serious. Nic's counterpart really did make her feel conflicted, and Erza was going to have to help by seeing if she could beat her. "I will be more than happy to!" The two Erzas then went at the other, their spear and sword colliding once more.

"_Why?" Knightwalker asked, confused. "Even if he's my enemy, he should've left me to die."_

_Nebulus shook his head. "Knightwalker, listen." He then looked to his right, spacing out. "We're human, but that doesn't mean we can treat each other like rag dolls that can be disposed. I won't deny that human nature has it's downsides like greed and selfish desires." He then looked back at her. "But from those traits, compassion and understanding are born."_

Knightwalker jumped away and she unleashed Mel Force, to which Erza dodged, the huge wind shattering apart the roofing and making debris fly.

Erza started flying in the air and she held up her sword. "**Trinity Sword!**" Erza then slashed in a delta formation.

"**Gravity Core!**" Her Vacuum Spear changed into her Gravity Core. The blade became long and dark. The lower section indents and then jutted back out when reaching the tip. The blade was supported by a dark orb with a design and two tubes went around the orb and connected to the blade.

Knightwalker lunged and made a huge gravity orb that was collided with Trinity Sword. "**Gravity Blast!**" The two attacks collided and created an immense explosion, making both jerk out of the distance.

The two glared at the other and Knightwalker change to her Double Dragon Spear. "**Blue Crimson!**" She unleashed a wave of fire and ice at Erza, who dodged with ease by jumping. As she dodged, Knightwalker shouted at her. "Tell me Scarlet, why are we so different?!"

Erza landed on the ground behind Knightwalker and looked at her counterpart. "We believe in different things Knightwalker, and with that comes different aspects."

Knightwalker turned back towards Scarlet. _'And yet those two from before were in perfect sync.'_

Erza looked down at the ground. "What's wrong with you?"

"They stopped us earlier because they nearly got into a bloody massacre." Knightwalker shouted, making Erza go wide-eyed. "Nic told me how they nearly killed the other because of what they believed in was too different! And yet one spared the other! Why didn't they both? Why does that go through my mind?!"

_Knightwalker scowled at him while looking away. "Why's it matter? So what about human nature? It doesn't change the fact that.-."_

"_It does matter Knightwalker." Nebulus butted in. "Nic could've killed you, yet he didn't. Why? Because he would feel guilty. He doesn't take lives that actually have a chance to live." Knightwalker whipped her head towards Nebulus with a gasp. "You tell me what one thing the King has done for you that you should be grateful for. Slaughter innocent Fairy Tail members? There's nothing grateful about that. You tell me Knightwalker." He paused. "You tell me, how would you feel if you were in their shoes at Death's door before they drive their spear into your heart?"_

Erza grunted and shook her head. "**Requip!**" The leather-like material was mainly orange and yellow, which took the shape of several wing-shaped pauldrons that covered her shoulder and waist, with the shoulder ones having white-winged protrusions. The pauldrons on Erza's waist was held up by a dark pink belt from the front. She had a one-piece suit with matching metal arms and large knee guards over high-heeled armor greaves that covered her calves. Erza's hair was in tangled buds and had a choker with a red-pink gem. This was Erza's very own Morning Star Armor.

Erza looked at Knightwalker. "I don't know, but Nic settled the matter peacefully by sparing himself!" She then brought her two sabers together and fired an energy blast at Knightwalker. "**Photon Slicer!**"

"**Sealing Spear, Rune Save!**" Knightwalker's spear changed into a white and gold color and it glowed yellow when it sliced through Erza's attack, startling her.

"She cut through my attack!" Erza exclaimed.

"**Silfarion!**" Her spear changed and she jabbed her spear into Erza. Erza blocked by crossing her sabers over the other, but was still pushed through several buildings.

Knightwalker kept up. "I got you know!"

"_Why are you telling me this? You know we need Magic to live."_

_Nebulus narrowed his eyes and looked to his right again. "If that's true, then why are you still alive?" Knightwalker went wide-eyed and gasped. "You don't have Magic and neither do I. True, Magic is nice to have, but it's not a factor in survival." _

Knightwalker grunted as her confusion was getting to her. _'No, we do need Magic…do we?' _She snapped out of her thoughts when she saw Erza's feet requip and the greaves and footwear was replaced with swords that Erza's feet used to intercept Silfarion. Knightwalker gasped and she backed away.

As Knightwalker changed to her default form and Erza slashed with her feet swords twice to intercept and jerked away, propping the swords into the air and into her hands, lunging towards Knightwalker and their weapons collided. "Nic passed that trait on and now his counterpart wants to bring out of the shadows!" Erza shouted.

"I know!" Knightwalker grunted, trying to push. "But I don't get why me? I just did as told! His Majesty has supplied me with plenty of power!"

"You've used that power for selfish purposes! **Photon Slicer!**" There was a big explosion that made both Erza skid back a long ways from the other, of which also shattered practically every little thing in between them.

"His Majesty had granted me this power, and use it I shall!" Knightwalker said, her spear starting to glow. "We may be even, but not for long Scarlet." Erza's eyes widened as Knightwalker was going to alter her Ten Commandments one last time.

When the glow faded, the head changed to a straight point with four edges that curved inwards and downwards, separated by a horizontal golden arrow that came from out of the head, and the diamond-shaped center having a red crystal. The grip had a red orb with a teeth-like structure to keep it on the shaft.

"**Saint Spear, Ravelt!**" Knightwalker announced, pointing the spear at Erza. "It was made by the greatest blacksmith in all of Edolas! A solemn blow will shake the entire earth beneath!"

Erza glowed as well, now startling Knightwalker as she had emanated a strong Magic force, meaning her most brutal requip was uprising. When the light faded, Erza had on a simple pink breastplate that connected to the collar, of which had a heart between the two wing-shaped decorations. The pauldrons were structured by two pink plates that looked like wings, surmounted by one another and pointed downwards. Each pauldron had an ornamental wing structure. The gauntlets enveloped her entire arms and had feather-like decorations that pointed backwards in correspondence to her wrists. The tasset had upper white edges jutting over a brown belt that separated it from the breastplate. The greaves reached up to her thighs and possessed feather-like ornaments that protruded from the upper part of the greaves and the lower edges of her knee guards, and each had small wings that attached to the knee guards and ankles. A large tiara was on top of Erza's head, with horizontal feather-shaped protrusions with a light purple cape to compliment the entire armor. Her hair was also braided.

"**Armadura Fairy. **My strongest armor." She aimed a sword at Knightwalker. "It's named after my guild because it embodies all of the qualities I love about Fairy Tail."

"We'll see who is better." Knightwalker said. "What do you say?"

"Now!" Erza shouted.

Knightwalker lunged with Ravelt emanating a harsh pink energy and she let loose a battlecry. "**Ravelt Shocking Spear!**"

"**Fairy Piercing Sword!**" A massive amount of green energy came from the sword she wield and now Knightwalker and Erza looked like two pink and green meteors shooting at the other.

The two emanated a battlecry as Ravelt and the sword collided, huge amounts of pink and green expanding as they both made impact, making a loud boom echo throughout the entire area around them. The energy was so entirely massive that the explosion became severely destructive, shattering the _entire_ floating island.

The two were both enveloped in a light briefly before everything clear, and they realized they were on a falling rock as the island was breaking apart.

Both Ravelt and Erza's Fairy Piercing Sword broke apart, shattering into many pieces. Knightwalker's clothing was ravaged slightly, the cloth on the side torn up, and her scarf was in little bits at this point.

Knightwalker was shaking immensely. "No, my Ten Commandments."

Erza realized that her Armadura Fairy was also destroyed, leaving only a pink skirt and a tattered purple tank top that barely covered her breasts. "My armor was destroyed too?!" They also noticed the rock they were on was going down. "Did the shockwave from the blast make the island unstable?"

Knightwalker was on a knee. "And to make matters worse, we both don't have any Magic left." Knightwalker said.

_Knightwalker blinked in curiosity, her killing intentions gone. "What? And why did you interfere with me and Scarlet?"_

"_It's because me and my counterpart did the exact same thing, and we don't want a repeat of that incident…"_

Knightwalker's eyes narrowed and she arose to her feet. "Scarlet, I won't quit!" Knightwalker ran towards Erza, but Erza was faster as she delivered a fast hook with her right fist. Knightwalker backed away to avoid another blow and avoided an incoming knee strike as well. Knightwalker leaped away and lunged forward with a punch to the face, making Erza wince and stumble back.

"Knightwalker! Do you have any idea what's at stake?!" Erza shouted, but was cut off when Knightwalker grabbed her chin and pinned her to the ground.

"Everlasting Magic!" She shouted.

Erza narrowed her eyes. "I don't know how you can live with yourself, knowing how many lives were lost for such a foolish thing!" Knightwalker narrowed her eyes at then mentioning of lives lost, and Erza threw her off and overhead, making Knightwalker tumble and land behind her. Erza turned towards her side and looked at Knightwalker. "You'll do anything to achieve it, even if it meant destroying innocence and hatred!"

Knightwalker looked back at Erza. "That's huma…my nature Scarlet." She managed to redirect her words. Knightwalker was dealt with an uppercut by Erza.

"That's not true!" Erza shouted. "You can understand love and compassion! You just never experienced it!" She then added to that. "It's human nature to stand up for each other, and take up arms to keep our comrades safe!" The two then clashed heads as they tried pushing the other back. "Tell me, how is it that you aren't moved?!"

Knightwalker gritted her teeth, If only Erza realized that Knightwalker heard of all of this before, and that left her confused as to what she had to believe in, and now Erza was starting to get to her.

Knightwalker yelled back at her. "I'm not like you!" She kicked Erza away. "I never had anyone to rely on but myself! It's me and my power alone! I won't have anybody have it!"

"It's not power! It's the one who wields that power that makes one trustworthy!" Erza testified, tossing Knightwalker away with a skid.

Knightwalker got back up and glared at her. "It may be where you're from, but not here!" Knightwalker went up towards Erza and started punching repeatedly, all while Erza was blocking. "You wouldn't understand the desperation we feel! We're not as lucky as you! You've never been without it! If you were in my shoes then you'd understand why we need it!"

Erz grabbed Knightwalker's wrists and the latter grunted. "Then why are you still alive?!" Knightwalker went wide-eyed at hearing this. "You don't need Magic to survive!"

_Nebulus looked back at Knightwalker before speaking yet again. "Knightwalker, I'm much like my counterpart. From where I come from, we humans don't use Magic. We only have the resources and some valuable creatures to help us as long as we help them."_

"_What are you saying?"_

"_From where I come from, there's these creatures called Pokémon. They don't have 'Magic' per se, but they do have unique traits that make them powerful. Think of them in relation to Exceeds in that sorts. But they don't trump us, and we don't trump them. We work in symbiosis and learn from the other."_

Knightwalker's eyes were shaking as Erza continued. "The two of us have run out of Magic, but we're still alive! Magic is nice to have, but it's not vital! The concept of power is your own desires, and you can't have it take over or you'll be overshadowed by greed!"

The rock they were on kept falling at an alarming rate and Knightwalker was left baffled as she started feeling something rise within her. Something that felt like guilt.

"Don't let fear and anxiety take over! Living life means to be free!" Erza shouted. "I can see it in your eyes Erza! You possess my strength and weaknesses! You refuse to let go what is dear, therefore you have to treasure what you have and those who look up and support you!"

Knightwalker suddenly got misty in the eyes. _'Is this the real me? Is this what Nic felt?'_

Erza went wide-eyed very slightly when Knightwalker started tearing up slightly.

"_If you cry…that's the first step to being human." He then turned and saw Knightwalker with misty eyes. "Oh, and by the way Knightwalker…your red hair is nice."_

"I promise you're not alone!" Erza shouted, making Knightwalker gasp loudly just before the rock had finally crashed to the earth below, making a loud sundering sound that echoed about entirely.

Dust and debris flew about like crazy and the earth shook. When everything cleared, Erza and her counterpart were twenty feet apart, and staring up at the sky on the cracked crater they were in.

Knightwalker zoned out briefly before coming to her senses. "Great. We can't even move."

"Maybe, but we're alive." Erza said.

Knightwalker looked up at the sky. "…I've fought hard, but your heart trumps my own. You win Scarlet."

Erza smiled. "I don't think it's fair to say either of us won. You and I are the same."

Knightwalker turned her head and chuckled. "That's true." Knightwalker then paused as they were lying on the ground. "Scarlet…you were right…I wasn't alone."

Erza looked at her counterpart with some confusion and surprise at the same time. Erza was using herself as a reference from before, she was surprised Knightwalker was talking about someone else.

"Pularis's counterpart went through the same thing, not wanting to be weak." Knightwalker said, talking about Nebulus. "He watched his own family suffer, and he didn't care who it was. He wanted power and to show everyone he wasn't weak." Her eyes narrowed. "We were both wrong, and our counterparts made us realize that." Knightwalker then looked back up at the sky and gave a long pause. "…I think I've found my answer."

Erza looked back up and smiled. "And what might that be?"

Knightwalker smiled. "That the power and wisdom you and Pularis shared can change any hearts, even our own. Learning to be strong is to hold everything dear in your heart, and protect it." She then frowned. "But I have nothing dear."

Erza frowned and turned her head, but then grinned and turned her head. "Not entirely. You still have Nic." Knightwalker gasped. "You both were brought out of the darkness, at least you both can relate to one another, that should be enough to hold dear. So be strong, for both your sakes."

Knightwalker grinned, thinking how Nebulus was the first person to reach out and see the error of her ways, and how he made her mind see the flaw in her loyalty to Faust. Knightwalker smiled. "Pularis and Nic are our own lights I guess."

Erza looked back up at the night sky that had planets in the atmosphere. "Yeah, you're right." Erza then went quiet, thinking as to how her 'light' hasn't been around ever since the Nirvana incident, which made her grin turn into a half grin. _'Nic, I hope you can tell me what was going on, soon I hope.'_

* * *

**I managed to squeeze this one in, so thankfully my plans won't be altered. The next chapter is the finishing touch to the Edolas Arc. The Erza fight was slightly confusing because I needed to see how I could squeeze in Nebulus's influence to make Knightwalker change. It was pretty hard to think of, but Review if you thought it wasn't too bad.**

**The rest of the fight will be next chapter, and I got an idea that you guys will be anxious to see. **

**The next update may not be until of late next week because I got exams coming up, but I'll do what I can to get the next chapter done.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving the upcoming action and the battles transpiring.**

**Reviews show that you are supporting and loving this story guys!**

* * *

**Next Time: Dragon Force – Pokémon Style**


	35. Dragon Force - Pokemon Style

Chapter 35 – Dragon Force – Pokémon Style

**Hey peeps, Insane Dominator here and giving you the last chapter of the Edolas Arc. I put a huge twist at the end of the chapter that'll lead to the Arc I planned, hope you find it interesting.**

**PokeguardianZ: Glad the fight is meeting to your liking. Let's not be drawing to conclusions too early just because I gave a chapter title now. Just sit tight and read.**

**Coral the Leviathan: The reaction could very well be the latter. Remember, Garchomp is Nic's most savage Pokémon, not to mention he brutally attacked Laxus. The odds are that everyone there would be scared out of their pants.**

**Pokenerd: I was hoping someone would ship those two, and I'm glad I ain't the only one. I'm glad that you're loving the story, it makes me happy knowing that you enjoy how I arrange everything in the plot. As for Nic getting out of Edolas, he has this nifty thing called wings, very useful, especially when flying.**

**Glad everyone is leaving a Review or two, now let's see what you guys think of the fight and aftermath. Let's get this show on the road! Time to finish the Edolas Arc!**

**To Recap:**

Despite the rouse everyone planned, Knightwalker reappeared and stopped them, allowing for the Dragon Chain Cannon to activate and fire at the lacrima. Everyone hurried to save Extalia and push back the lacrima with everything they had. The Exceeds from Extalia joined in, and with their combined efforts, stopped Code ETD. Mystogan, revealed to be the Royal Prince of Edolas, arrived and transported everyone who was in the lacrima back home. As an epic battle raged, King Faust activated the Dorma Anim, a mechanical dragon. The Dragon Slayers, Nic, Nebulus, and their Garchomp, worked together to battle against the Dorma Anim. Meanwhile, a distraught Knightwalker battles Erza. In the end, Knightwalker admits defeat and found the answer she was looking for within Nebulus.

* * *

**Chapter 35 – Dragon Force – Pokémon Style**

The Dorma Anim glared coldly at everyone present as the battle over the vast distance occurred, where the Edolas Fairy Tail joined in and the two Charizard swept through any legions with ease. Natsu jumped into the air and unleashed a Fire Dragon's Roar at the Dorma Anim, to which the beast blocked with its arms. Gajeel jumped from behind in a surprise attack and then used an Iron Dragon's Spear and struck the Dorma Anim's back, making it jerk forwards.

Nebulus rushed in on his Garchomp to attack the Dorma Anim. "**Slash!**" Nebulus commanded.

"With pleasure!" Garchomp's claws glowed white and he zoomed in and slashed at the Dorma Anim's head. At that instant, Nebulus leaped off of Garchomp and flipped in the air and stomped on the part where Garchomp struck, making it dent even more. Nebulus got back onto Garchomp and backed off as Nic and his Garchomp zoomed in separately.

"**Slash!**"

"**Dragon Claw!**"

Garchomp and Nic's attacks then slashed at the Dorma Anim, in the same exact spot where Nebulus and his Garchomp attacked. The two attacks slashed downwards, creating an explosion and the two backed away. The four returned to the ground right by the Dragon Slayers and they were seeing smoke clear.

Everyone there could've sworn that they had triumphant grins on their faces, because when the smoke cleared, they saw that the Dorma Anim's head had taken so much damage from that combined assault that it left a small hole on the spot they struck.

Faust was greatly displeased. "**You…**" He growled. "**You fools actually broke through the Dorma Anim's armor?!**"

Both Garchomp roared, making air ripples as Faust finished his statement. "We'll gladly tear you apart some more." Pularis's Garchomp stated.

Faust let a low growl escape. "**So, it would appear that Dragon Slayers can damage the Dorma Anim. And it would appear that you two and your dragons can damage it as well huh?**" Something was wrong. Was he…curious?

Nic narrowed his eyes. _'What is he thinking?'_

Suddenly, they heard Faust's breathing accelerate and he huffed. "**Such power! It's fantastic! I will have it even if it kills me!**" Suddenly, everyone saw the Dorma Anim shaking, and they could feel a tremendous power spike within the air. The Dorma Anim's eyes glowed and everyone looked around and saw waves of dark energy getting sucked from the air and drawn all around the robot.

"What the hell is going on?" Gajeel asked, seeing the energy getting sucked from the air.

"This energy, can you feel it?" Nebulus asked.

"Yes, all too well. It seems to be manifesting into the Dorma Anim." Nic stated. They all saw the beast become engulfed in chaotic energy that made its power swell, and the ground was starting to vibrate because of this power. The energy became more black and then the Dorma Anim seemed to be morphing from within that energy. All anybody could see was the glowing red eyes.

"**If I capture you call, I can restart my Anima plan.**" The King growled within the darkness that swelled. Everyone could feel the energy changing the mechanical dragon, and the dragon emerged from the darkness. Its new appearance startled everyone present and they all looked to see that the Dorma Anim's injuries were all healed; and on top of that, its armor changed.

The draconic beast looked a lot like a knight in comparison to its draconic form. Its silver armor changed to a pure black. It stood straight up rather than hunched over, and both arms gained sword blades that were bigger than the arms themselves.

"**No! You're weapons, that's it!**" The King shouted. "**I should use your power all for myself!**" The Dorma Anim's red eyes flashed. "**I shall rob you from your power with Dorma Anim: Black Sky!**" He declared, unleashing an air wave as the beast was fully transformed, making everyone cover up.

"What in the world happened?!" Gajeel questioned.

Both Garchomp sniffed the air, their instincts picking up traces of heinous energy that they found pungent. Both lowered their heads and snarled at the adversary before them. The two tensed up, feeling the power of Dorma Anim, they bared their claws and began to shudder.

"Garchomp?" Nic looked over and saw that his Garchomp and Nebulus's were tensing up, meaning this was _very_ serious. The only other time this happened was when…

_As a Gabite, he looked up and saw the two Legendary Pokémon, Xerneas and Yveltal emerge from the machine. Gabite looked up in shock alongside Nic and his Greninja as the two Legendaries looked at them, as if they were insane._

"_This isn't good!" Nic shouted._

_Gabite could feel this power the two Legendaries had. It made him nearly shudder from the sheep power they held. However, as Nic was startled, as was Greninja, Gabite was bared his claws and he had a big snarling smile. _

"_(This power, it's making my blood boil!)" Gabite proclaimed. Gabite loved to brawl, especially anything and everything. When he felt this power, he couldn't help but accept the challenge. The anticipation was ecstatic and he couldn't hold still. He was definitely acknowledging the two Legendaries as they glared at Greninja and Nic alike._

_Suddenly, Gabite started chuckling, making Greninja turn towards him. Greninja saw the feral look in Gabite's eyes, of which was more vicious than before and it freaked him out._

"_(Uh…Gabite?)" Greninja asked._

_Gabite grinned. "(I've been waiting a long time to take on something this formidable. Let's go!)"_

Garchomp broke out in a grin as he looked even more vicious, if that were possible. "It's been a long time since I've felt this energy!" He turned towards his counterpart. "Today, we shall show this tin can what power really is!" He let loose a big roar that made air ripples, meaning he accepted the challenge against Dorma Anim.

Natsu was sweat dropping. "Uh, is he alright?"

Nic turned back towards Natsu. "Don't worry, it's just his way of acknowledging a serious adversary." He turned back forwards with a grin. "Garchomp, what do say we hit that thing even harder?"

"YES!" Garchomp screeched.

Nic then extended his arm out. "Alright, then let's go! **Dual Chop!**" Garchomp lunged at massive speed with such energy that made dust fly as he went in and unleashed his super fats Dual Chop on the Dorma Anim's chest, so fast that the robot didn't even have time to block.

Garchomp jerked back, seeing the burst of energy dispersed and revealed that the armor wasn't scratched one bit. That didn't stop him as he used Slash again, and that proved to be ineffective as well. Garchomp then saw the big spear aimed for him and he zoomed upwards to evade. In two second's time, he was a quarter mile above the Dorma Anim. "**Dragon Rush!**" The two appendages on Garchomp's head glowed and unleashed a draconic energy that surrounded Garchomp and he rushed downwards towards the Dorma Anim.

"**Don't make me laugh!**" The King shouted. "**You think that you can stop me?!**" The thrusted forth his sword blade on his right arm and it glowed, and the tip struck the Dragon Rush, making a huge draconic explosion that echoed about through the atmosphere.

The Dorma Anim didn't budge one bit, and Garchomp landed in front of the Dorma Anim. "**You honestly think that you can damage the Dorma Anim?! If so, you're pitiful!**" As the Dorma Anim raised its right arm, Nebulus's Garchomp appeared from the ground below, shattering the ground and causing the Dorma Anim to get caught off balance momentarily and it stumbled back as Nebulus's and Pularis's Garchomp zoomed at mach speed and used Slash in unison. They both slashed at the face, but they only left very faint scratches, making them both growl. The mechanical dragon warrior then spun and struck both Garchomp with the back of the right blade, knocking Nebulus's and Pularis's Garchomp several feet away and made them both regain balance in the air as they straightened out.

The Dorma Anim then shifted targets and aimed the glowing spear from before at the Dragon Slayers and two Nics and tried attacking. The two Nics dodged with their gifted speed, but the Dragon Slayers all landed with a thud somewhere.

"Guys!" Nebulus shouted. He turned and saw the Dorma Anim look at him and turned and aimed the spear at him. At the last second, Nebulus jumped and landed onto the spear's backside and began running up the blade.

"**Pathetic!**" The Dorma Anim swatted its arm, forcing Nebulus off and backflipping in midair as he went to a skidding halt.

Nic landed right by his counterparts side and both looked to see that the Dragon Slayers were getting up as they were spread around from the last attack. "The beast's power increased." He said, watching both Garchomp rush in again and try to attack with Slash, but left little scratches in the blades that shielded the Dorma Anim.

"Yeah, and he has an even thicker coat of armor." Nebulus remarked. "It would make sense since our Garchomp can't cut through it like they would anything else."

Nic nodded in agreement. His Garchomp was always very eager to solve a problem just by attacking it. Knowing Garchomp, he never quits just like everyone else on Nic's team. Nic knew Garchomp all too well, and he _always_ tears up his adversaries, or at the very least defeats them. No matter what, Garchomp is resilient and would not rest until his intended target is torn apart.

"That armor and those weapons are tough. We gotta keep hammering away until it weakens!" Nic declared. "**Dragon Dance!**" He shouted, making energy go ballistic around him like last time. He could feel his Attack and Speed increase yet again. He then flapped his wings and went towards the Dorma Anim. "**Dual Chop!**" His arms glowed light green and he brought them down onto the Dorma Anim, but it immediately blocked with its shield, ultimately not making anything more than a little scratch.

Faust laughed. "**Why keep resisting? Your fate is inevitable! I shall harvest your power!**"

"Not a chance!" Natsu shouted. "**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" He went and punched the shield, but it once again proved ineffective. The Dorma Anim thrusted the shield forwards, making Natsu's attack bounce right off.

"Natsu!" Wendy shouted in worry.

Gajeel, Nic, and Nebulus regrouped with their Garchomp, and Wendy saw Natsu's attack get bounced off. Gajeel grunted. "That thing didn't even flinch!"

Faust laughed as he turned towards them. Dark energy was surging within his spear blade. "**Can you feel it?! This Magic power is fantastic!**" The energy converged and the right blade shined. "**No one can slay this dragon!**" He brought the huge blade down and a massive shockwave echoed about that surged through the air and ground, rising up into the sky. Everyone, including the two Garchomp, yelled as they were swallowed in a massive Magic shockwave that was as big as the colosseum they were battling in.

Then the shockwave mellowed out, everyone landed with a harsh thud to the ground, every single bone in their bodies stung from that huge attack. The two Nics and their Garchomp landed on their abdomens, feeling pain all over.

The four slowly got to a knee and got back up. The two Garchomp immediately bared their claws back at the Dorma Anim. "Damn you!" They yelled and lunged again with a Dual Chop in unison. The Dorma Anim put its large shield up and the two Garchomp struck the shield, making the mechanical dragon warrior jerk back slightly, but the attacks nevertheless bounced off, leaving small scratches yet again.

Faust laughed. "**Oh please, is that the best that you can do?**"

Natsu arose and his scarf flailed as he looked at the Dorma Anim. "This world has no Magic power, and yet you hog it all. I'd like to know why their King has more than his fair share." He coldly asked.

Faust explained within the Dorma Anim. "**You'd be lucky to find a King who hasn't imposed a tax onto his people. That's Monarchy my boy! The Dorma Anim requires a constant Magic power, so it's gathered from all over the world!**" He then paused as everyone looked coldly at the beast.** "That's why it was sealed away. It's a forbidden weapon that I had unleashed and I shall be victorious.**"

Nic narrowed his eyes, remembering how this was just like "The Ultimate Weapon" he fought against a long time ago. If he could stop that weapon, he was sure that he could stop this one.

"You don't care about the aspects of others." Nebulus stated. "There's innocent lives at stake and you only believe Magic will keep them alive. You won't win."

"You don't give a crap about this world, that's why you're stealing all of its Magic." Gajeel added.

Faust chuckled. "**Oh really? Just try and stop me! I have complete control over Magic here, so I can use however I see fit!**" He then pointed his spear at them and unleashed light purple energy that shaped like spears at them all.

As the attack was aimed at them, Nebulus and Nic easily dodged with their agility and made way towards the beast and Garchomp and his counterpart followed suit, using Slash to counter and intercept every single energy arrow aimed at them.

Gajeel rushed in as well. "You should share it with your people! Not hog it all you greedy geezer!"

Natsu was doing the same, evading the attack and rushing in, everyone following the two Nics and their Garchomp. "If you think you're indestructible, then you're wrong!"

When the attack stopped, Nebulus gave Wendy a boost into the air and she inhaled. "**Sky Dragon's Roar!**" The huge vortex of wind went at the Dorma Anim, but the mechanical monstrosity blocked by using the shield it had. The attack didn't even make it budge.

Faust laughed. "**I keep telling you not to waste Magic power! It's futile!**"

Nic's Garchomp snarled at the machine. "We're not through with you yet!" He lunged in and used Dual Chop once more on the chest armor, a green explosion erupting and Garchomp backed away in the air as the explosion was calming down.

Within the explosion, the Dorma Anim used its arm and swiped away the smoke, revealing to be barely scratched again. "**Persistent, I'll say that.**" He said. He then had his spear glow on the end and tried to pierce Garchomp. Before the spear could proceed, Nebulus's Garchomp intercepted the assault with his own Dual Chop, making the two attacks meet a standoff, with the machine against dragon. Eventually the two attacks gave out, making yet another green explosion and the two Dragon and Ground-Types recoiled in the air.

Nic proceeded and took flight. "**Dragon Pulse!**" Nic made an attempt to strike down the Dorma Anim, but it merely put it its shield again, blocking Dragon Pulse. Nic grunted and he saw the spear pointed at him. The Dorma Anim unleashed light purple arrows again, but that too fell futile as Nics increased Speed from Dragon Dance allowed him to easily sail through the air at unimaginable speeds. He evaded every single arrow and went for a Dragon Claw as he was flying towards the Dorma Anim. "You'll never hold this power for your own!"

The only he got was a sudden blur that was the entire dragon warrior jumping into air, and at a high altitude that they barely saw. Nic went wide-eyed at the speed that jump took. _'So fast!'_

"Seriously?! That thing can jump?!" Gajeel shouted.

"Everyone look out!" Nebulus shouted.

"**Kneel before me!**" Faust declared high in the air. "**Dragon Rider's Spreader Cannon!**" The mouth opened and fire blasts were unleashed downwards. The incoming attack spread all over and showered town on everyone. Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy felt the impacts and screamed as they couldn't fight back. Nic and his counterpart, and their two Garchomp, all tried to evade as much as they could. Nebulus sped in zigzags, but a fire blast exploded right beside him, making him yelp and tumble into the other direction.

"Nic!" Nic shouted. He then scowled at the incoming spreader missiles and he shot upwards like a rocket and used Dragon Claw and he slashed at several incoming attacks, all exploding upon contact, but he came out unscathed due to his Attack increase. "Curse you!" He arose a little above the Dorma Anim's level of elevation and spun around used a downwards Dragon Claw as the machine was still firing. Nic slashed right onto the head, forcing the mouth to shut and an explosion occurred.

The Dragon Slayers and Nebulus all slowly got back to their feet, seeing the explosion high in the sky. Natsu looked blankly at the sky. "Did he get him?"

The explosion in the sky cleared, revealing Nic in front of the Dorma Anim. The Dragon Claw merely made a slight dent, proving that the Attack boost was effective. The Dorma Anim waste no time and fired his spreader cannon straight in front of Nic. Nic immediately acted and started spiraling in all directions and zigzagging to dodge, but this didn't keep up forever as a fire bomb exploded rather closely and Nic was caught remaining still, in which a fire bomb was unleashed towards him.

Nic saw the incoming attack and was forced to intercept when it was five feet in front of him. "**Dragon Breath!**" Nic unleashed a blue beam at the attack and he was swallowed in a draconic explosion. Faust laughed as he saw Nic get hit and he started falling. Nic had a few scratches and scrapes on himself from that attack.

He was forced to descend as the Dorma Anim started falling while still firing. Nic managed to evade still, and the Dorma Anim ceased firing and landed back on the ground, shaking it.

"**Your speed and agility is impressive my boy.**" Faust admitted. "**Just not anyone could evade that full-scale attack. That dragon power you possess must be mine!**"

Just as he said that, the ground underneath the Dorma Anim shattered. And rock and debris flew about as both Garchomp burst out of the ground and struck the Dorma Anim's feet, causing it to fall backwards and land on its back with a horrendous thud. Both Garchomp roared in the air as they looked down at the Dorma Anim from the air they shot up in.

Nebulus grinned while Gajeel and the others were surprised. "When did they go under?" Natsu asked in suspicion.

Nebulus snickered. "Right as we were all getting blasted with that last attack." He explained.

Nic flapped his draconic wings and was in between the two Garchomp and looked down as the Dorma Anim was slowly getting back up.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Do you surrender?"

When the Dorma Anim finally stood up, there was a moment of silence before Faust emanated a low growl. Faust sounded unamused and his growl escalated into a scowl.

"**You fool! Do you honestly think that I am down yet?!**" He shouted. "**The Dorma Anim can continuously draw in Magic, and I will use the last bit of it to finish you!**" The spear rose into the air, and Faust spoke yet again. "**Mighty earth, relinquish all of your power to the Dorma Anim!**"

Just then, everyone saw more Magic power being drawn in. The dark energy surged around the spear and the Dorma Anim's power started escalating even more.

The King laughed as he then absorbed the last bit of energy. "**I will end you here!**" He pointed the glowing spear at the three in the air and then from that spear, unleashed a massive beam of light purple.

Nic went wide-eyed as he was seeing the attack come rather close. Luckily, Nic and the two Garchomp were able to evade with their unimaginable speed by shooting upwards and the large blast wave passed by. If that were to hit, it would've been bad news.

Even at this point, Nic was getting worn out. He couldn't keep this up forever and that meant he had to act fast. As the Dorma Anim jumped towards Nic with a glowing spear, Nic let loose a battlecry as he rushed in from an upwards angle with Dragon Claw. The two attacks made contact in the air, unleashing violent winds that palpitated the space all around and even shattered the ground from underneath them. The attacks fell into yet another explosion that echoed and thundered.

The Dorma Anim landed onto the ground, sending dust flying. Nic, on the other hand, descended and fell and crashed into the ground below with a rather huge thud and he grunted.

"Nic!" Nebulus shouted.

"Oh no! Guys, we gotta help!" Wendy shouted.

"You don't have to tell me twice kid!" Gajeel shouted. "Salamander, kid, we gotta roar!"

Natsu cracked his knuckles. "Count me in!" Just then, the Dragon Slayers began to inhale.

"**Fire Dragon's-**"

"**Sky Dragon's-**"

"**Iron Dragon's-**"

"**ROAR!**" The three streams of elements went barrowing at the Dorma Anim, and the beast looked and saw the three roars coming in. Suddenly, the three roars exploded, shaking everything just like the last couple of attacks. There was a major dust cloud and everyone awaited to see what the damage was done.

There was nothing there.

"Huh?!" Wendy shouted.

"You gotta be kidding me?!" Gajeel shouted.

"Where'd he go?!" Natsu looked up and everyone followed his gaze to see the Dorma Anim high in the air yet again.

The mechanical monstrosity unleashed the Dragon Rider's Spreader Cannon, and now everything, including Nic this time, was hit with the attack. The bombs exploded as they hit the earth and their targets, making everyone on the ground yelp. Nic and Nebulus both tumbled and rolled as they barely evaded bombs, both taking indirect damage from incoming bombs that they narrowly dodged. They both eventually fell to the ground and tumbled from the force of the bombs nearby, both sprawled on the ground just like Natsu and the others.

The Dorma Anim landed on the ground after the attack subsided quickly, with Faust laughing. "**You're wasting your precious Magic! I shall win this and…?**" He looked up and everyone saw a glint of something incoming from high in the air.

Turned out the two glints were both Garchomp soaring in at high speed and roaring as they had a double Dual Chop with maximum velocity so that they looked like green beam that zoomed in. Both made contact with the Dorma Anim, catching it off guard and made it fall backwards once more.

Both Garchomp landed side-by-side, seeing the Dorma Anim slowly yet up yet again, but the spot they both hit had left a small dent in the upper chest.

"**You two shall pay!**" Faust declared.

Nebulus's Garchomp used Dig, burrowing into the ground and made it shake while doing so. Pularis's Garchomp lunged at the Dorma Anim with a Slash ready, ready to tear the monstrosity to shreds even more.

"**I'm not falling for that one!**" The King shouted. "**Dragon Blast Eruption!**" The Dorma Anim swung the sword to the other side, and then suddenly the ground underneath shined purple and then erupted, debris flying everywhere.

Within that huge eruption, Nebulus's Garchomp was caught up in it and was seen yelling as he was sent flying.

"Garchomp!" Nebulus shouted.

Nic's Garchomp turned back towards the Dorma Anim only to get attacked with a big wave of energy from the spear. Garchomp was caught off guard and he was forced to cover up as he was swallowed in the massive energy. Garchomp grunted harshly as he felt the impact and was caught in a big explosion.

Everyone on the ground watched as the two Garchomp flew down from the ground, both practically falling. Both Garchomp landed on their feet and skid back harshly, dust trails being made and both skid backwards to a halt several feet in front of the worried group.

Both Garchomp winced as they had a few scratches over their bodies, but otherwise fine.

"This monster still got some fight left in him." Nebulus's Garchomp stated, remarking how painful that Dragon's Blast Eruption.

Nic's Garchomp scowled. "I know, for a tin can, it's got some muscle." He said.

Faust laughed maniacally, seeing both Garchomp damaged. "**You both are very stubborn! I admit, you can cause some damage, but you can't keep this up forever!**"

Nic arose from the ground with everyone else. "Oh yeah? **Dragon Pulse!**" He then fired his attack straight towards the Dorma Anim, but it simply blocked the attack with the shield. This made Nic grunt and Faust laughed again.

"**My, quite the meddlesome one aren't you?**" He scolded. "**Now, allow me to take your power and I might let you live!**"

Nic's eyes narrowed as he stayed completely still as Natsu stomped on the ground. "We ain't giving you nothing! Ya hear me?!" He shouted. "If I don't have power, I'll use some of tomorrow's pow-!" Suddenly, Natsu was cut off when the two Garchomp spread their arm fins out and heir claws, as if to back them up.

Both Garchomp stayed still as they glared coldly at the Dorma Anim, both wanting to rip it apart as it towered over them. One way or another, Garchomp and his counterpart were going to annihilate this thing.

Nic turned towards Nebulus. "Nic?" Nebulus turned towards him in question. "I do believe Garchomp want to take down the Dorma Anim by themselves."

Nebulus grinned. "Seems like it."

The Dragon Slayers looked baffled. They were just completely struck with shock when they heard that the Garchomp want to handle the matter alone.

"What?" Gajeel asked.

Natsu clenched his fists. "We ain't scared! We still got a little Magic left!"

His statement only got the answer of both Nic turning towards the Dragon Slayers, their stares making them silence upon eye contact. These two meant it. They were dead serious when they said their Garchomp would deal with the Dorma Anim alone.

"Natsu. Guys." Nic said. "Trust me, do not underestimate Garchomp."

Nebulus narrowed his eyes. "When Garchomp wants to destroy something, especially something like this, no one stands in his way."

"And remember, Garchomp took down Laxus alongside me, so you better believe that this fight is going to get rather ugly." Nic's statement had question marks over the Dragon Slayers' heads. Just what did he mean by that?

When both Nics glanced back towards their Garchomp, their Garchomp were both looking into their Trainers eyes. The two Trainers' mouths opened slightly when they looked to see that their two Garchomp were giving them a look of pure trust and fiery will to destroy.

"Garchomp." Nic quietly said.

The four slowly began to understand, and after a few moments, they all nodded and grinned. They then looked back at the Dorma Anim that was towering over them.

"**Did you agree on your surrender?**" Faust taunted.

Both Nic were quiet as they lost their smirks, and they looked beyond serious. Nic and their Garchomp nodded because they trusted each other. They realized that they could handle this. They've been through countless battles, training almost every day back in Kalos, and Garchomp always gave it everything he had, and it was because of the bonds they shared that they knew Faust and the Dorma Anim wouldn't stand a chance.

Nic took in a deep breath and finally spoke. "I can't believe he's push us and Garchomp to this point." He said.

Nebulus blankly turned towards his counterpart and spoke as well. "Yeah. Honestly, Garchomp and I haven't been pushed this far that many times either."

Suddenly, the two clicked as a spark ignited in their brains. They had one ace in the hole they didn't used yet.

Both Nic smirk, and the two Garchomp turned back and went wide-eyed as seeing _that _smirk. They only saw that smirk when they were pushed to a corner, which was very rare. Both Garchomp slowly turned towards the other, their eyes sharpening and snarling with anticipation.

"Thinking what I'm thinking?" Nebulus's Garchomp asked Nic's Garchomp.

"Yes…" The two turned back towards the Dorma Anim. "This is going to be fun. I'm gonna savor every moment of this." Both Garchomp then roared as their Trainers turned forwards.

"What are they up to?" Gajeel asked.

Natsu narrowed his eyes. "I don't know, but whatever it is, it might be big."

"Faust!" Nic declared. "This is your last chance to surrender!"

"Surrender, and we won't have to destroy you!" Nebulus added.

Faust laughed from within the Dorma Anim. "**Really?! You expect me to bow to you?! Don't be ridiculous! I am the King of Edoas! I don't bow to anyone!**"

His answer made the two Nics frown. Nic narrowed his eyes. "Very well then." Nic turned his wrist that had a wristband with a weird stone in it, and Nebulus followed suit as well. "Then you leave us no choice."

The two Nic then held their wrists high into the air, both showing their Mega Wristbands to everyone. They both then proclaimed in unison. "Garchomp! It's been a long time since we've done this! Let's go!"

Natsu blinked. "What are they doing?"

"Yeah, and what's with those wristbands?" Wendy asked.

Gajeel blinked, remembering that little stone from a long time ago. "Huh?" He looked even deeper and saw the stones were familiar. "Wait a minute…!" Gajeel then went wide-eyed, remembering at last that the stone was what caused Charizard to Mega Evolve during the battle when he was still in Phantom Lord.

Natsu and Wendy turned towards a shocked Gajeel. "Say man, what's with you?" Natsu asked.

Gajeel was still shaken in the eyes. "I know that stone." He explained. "His fire-breathing dragon reacted to it back a long time ago."

Wendy was really curious. "Really? How so?"

Nic turned back towards everyone. "You three, step back. This is going to get ugly."

Gajeel and everyone there stepped back and followed his warning, and Nic turned back towards the front. "Let's go!"

Both Garchomp roared louder, the anticipation getting them all riled up as they were ready to finally cut loose with their Trainers after so long. Both Nics tapped their respective Key Stones and the two Garchomp started glowing purple from their abdomen.

"Garchomp!" Both Nic shouted. "Mega Evolve!"

The Key Stones reacted and unleashed waves of light, as was Garchomp, whose waves were purple in correspondence to his Mega Stone. The waves of light waved about in the air, everyone watching in awe and curiosity, though Gajeel was more composed since he witnessed this before.

"**Hm? Just what are you up to?**" Faust asked as everyone saw the waves connect Nic to his Garchomp and their counterparts as well. Then they made contact, the entire connected wave shined a light that trailed towards the two Garchomp as they let loose roars to the sky and their bodies let loose a glow.

Natsu and everyone watched and stayed still as they saw the transformation before them. They all saw the two Garchomp begin morphing within their glow. They all saw that they grew in size and that some of their features became more angular, and that included the head and the shoulders. Ten spikes emerged from the sides of their abdomens, five on each side. Two spikes were at the bottom of their arms, and their hands had become two giant, sharp, red blades. An extra re spike also emerged from each of their knees.

The two Mega Evolved Garchomp raised their heads and let loose another roar upon completion, their roars sounding slightly lower than when they were before. Their roars echoed and vibrated harshly throughout the entire area. They unleashed a shockwave throughout the air upon Mega Evolution, the combined roar and shockwave making dust and dirt surge madly, and the ground shook violently, almost practically cracking under their feet.

Faust gawked at the sheer power emanating from the two Mega Evolved Garchomp, forcing the Dorma Anim to step back. "**What have you done?!**"

Natsu was shaken in the eyes as he could feel the power of this new form, and it made him panic slightly. His body was shaking slightly. "Whoa, just what the heck did Nic do to his dragon?" He asked in a startled tone.

Wendy stepped back even more, startled. "I-I don't know, but this level of power is terrifying."

Gajeel grunted and he too stepped back along with Wendy and Natsu. "Whoa."

Both Nics smirked as they narrowed their eyes. They knew the tide had shifted into their favor.

"Meet Mega Garchomp!" Nic proclaimed, both Garchomp roaring once more, making dust fly like crazy and the earth shook yet again.

Everyone looked to see both Mega Garchomp eyeing the monstrosity before them as they couldn't wait to start ripping it with their bare blades. Their gazes could scare even the wildest of animals.

"It's time we end this Faust." Nebulus proclaimed.

Faust remained silent before speaking. "**Really now. You really think a little transformation like that can hurt the Dorma Anim. It's indestructible!**" Faust shouted with a small laugh afterwards. "**How many times must I keep telling you this?!**"

Nic and his counterpart were confident with their Mega Garchomp and their destructive power. There was no way they could fail now. "I wouldn't underestimate Mega Garchomp if I were you." Nic proclaimed.

Both Mega Garchomp snarled in unison, their eyes narrowing and their fangs showed as they stepped forward, their advancement making the ground thud with their feet stomping on the ground as they stepped forward.

"Mega Garchomp, attack!" Both Nic yelled in unison. The two Mega Garchomp crouched and then jumped from the ground, sending dust flying, and this time shattering the ground from where they stood because of their awestriking power. The two Mega Garchomp viciously eyed the shield that the Dorma Anim was going to use to defend and both Mega Garchomp went for the shield.

Faust didn't even bother budging, believing in the Dorma Anim's armor. Huge mistake went you're up against two Mega Garchomp.

"**Slash!**" Both Mega Garchomp shouted as their blades glowed and they raised them above their heads, they then slashed diagonally, then slashed with their left blades into an upward angle, and then downwards diagonally again with their right blades. They then jerked away into the air and landed on the ground on their feet, making the earth thud.

A few moments passed, and they saw nothing happened. Faust laughed as the Dragon Slayers started to have doubts, but Nic and his counterpart still had their smirks. "**Oh please! Like that was gonna-!**"

Suddenly, the shield then glinted with a multitude of slash marks where the two Mega Garchomp struck simultaneously. When they glinted, the shield completely fell apart, shattering all over the place, causing Faust and everyone, exclude the two Trainers, to go wide-eyed.

Faust was shocked and outraged. "**But how?! They sliced straight through the shield like it was nothing!**"

"That's what happens when Mega Garchomp is your opponent." Nic stated. "When he's Mega Evolved, he can slice and demolish _anything_, including huge shields."

Both Mega Garchomp stomped on the ground and roared at the Dorma Anim once more, and without a word muttered, Nebulus's Mega Garchomp jumped and he dove straight into the earth, shaking it and sending debris flying as even more of the earth completely shattered, the ground booming like crazy as Mega Garchomp used Dig.

Nic's Mega Garchomp hunched forward and lunged at the Dorma Anim, now able to strike without worry of the shield. "**Dual Chop!**" His two blades glowed a light green and he went straight for the Dorma Anim with intense ferocity behind his attack.

Faust jerked from inside with horror at the intense power these two were giving off. If they could destroy the shield, then the rest would be scrap metal with just a single Slash. Even so, Faust refused to give up. "**I shall not be beaten!**" He proclaimed. The robot's spear lit up a light purple like from before and he jabbed forwards. Mega Garchomp's Dual Chop struck downwards, intercepting the glowing spear's attack. There was a massive air wave as the two forces collided and in a bright flash the Dual Chop completely chipped off the end of the spear, the Dual Chop shattering through it like a hammer against thick ice.

Faust jerked back with wide eyes and horror as he had to reel back the spear end that was shattered. "**Curse you!**" He shouted. Just as he yelled that, the entire area under the Dorma Anim cracked completely, and suddenly the ground burst with debris shattering and dust flying as though an atomic bomb went off as Nebulus's Mega Garchomp burst through the ground and roared as he struck the Dorma Anim's abdomen area, making the entire robot jerk from the force and it suddenly found itself soaring and Faust yelled as the Dorma Anim crashed immensely on its back, making the ground shake.

Both Mega Garchomp landed on the ground and snarled. The two were having a blast. They watched as the Dorma Anim slowly got back up and the two stepped forward, advancing towards the robot as their blades moved in conjunction with their walking.

Faust was stunned inside the Dorma Anim, but even more than that, he was terrified. "**Get back!**" he swiped the damaged spear blade in an arc, and initiated the Dragon Blast Eruption underneath the two Mega Garchomp. The ground under them exploded and dust flew like crazy. Faust grinned, thinking he held them off. "**There…!**" The dust subsided, and the two Mega Garchomp were still walking menacingly towards the Dorma Anim.

"Was that suppose to hurt?" Nebulus's Mega Garchomp mocked.

Natsu was all white in the eyes as he was awestruck with the destructive force Nic's Mega Garchomp wield. This was terrifying to him. "Man, that thing's on a whole other level." He squealed, nearly paling as he heard them snarl once more.

Wendy was shaking as well. "Ehhhh…"

Gajeel expected this because he witnessed Mega Evolution, but even so, he was spooked to a great degree. "Man, Luminous has some freaky monsters."

"No more talk, let's destroy!" Nic's Mega Garchomp proclaimed. He raised his blades into the air as he prepared to jump.

Faust saw this and used the Dorma Anim's jumping ability once more to get away. As the mechanical monstrosity jumped into the air, Fust noticed the two Mega Garchomp didn't jump yet, as if they were anticipating this. Even so, the Dorma Anim reached a critical point in the air and fired Dragon Rider's Spreader Cannon all around the area below, primarily around Mega Garchomp and his counterpart. Even so, the spreader cannon aimed at the whole ground, and Nic intercepted the incoming attacks along with the Dragon Slayers.

"**Twister!**"

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Sky Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Iron Dragon's Roar!**"

The four attacks scattered about through the air, the assaults all blasting at the incoming fire combs at them. The bombs exploded and the attacks all kept the bombs a safe distance within the air, protecting them.

Both Mega Garchomp crouched and then lunged into the air, making the earth shake as they went at high speed. They didn't bother passing the incoming spreader cannon, for it wasn't their style. They both used Slash, slicing through every single bomb coming down towards them. They sustained absolute zero damage as the sliced bombs exploded behind them as they advanced.

The two Mega Garchomp rushed in and attacked the Dorma Anim as it was slowly starting to fall back down to the ground. Nic's Mega Garchomp snarled monstrously as he used Slash and completely sliced off the rest of the spear part, now having both arms uncovered and fragile. Nebulus's Mega Garchomp then used Slash and sliced off the left arm of the Dorma Anim, the detached arm falling and exploding in the airspace below.

Faust screamed as the Dorma Anim fell on its back, crashing and sending a shockwave throughout the area. Faust gawked as the Dorma Anim lost the shield and spear, meaning the weaponry was very limited, and the worst part is that the two monsters were coming down from above and were raring to destroy him.

"**I won't be beaten! Not ever!**" As the Dorma Anim got back up and opened its mouth to unleash the Dragon Rider's Spreader Cannon, it fell short on time as both Mega Garchomp zoomed down, shaking the airspace and they used a double Dual Chop. The unimaginable force of the attack was so massive that the entire jaw line and the cannon itself was sliced off, revealing a dragon warrior with no jaw. "**NO!**" Faust shouted in horror as he had ran out of options.

Both Mega Garchomp landed on the ground with a booming echo as their feet touched the surface. Their roars unleashed shockwaves through the air, showing everyone just how strong they were. The Dragon Slayers all paled, seeing the two Mega Garchomp maim the Dorma Anim like scissors on paper. If they went up against Mega Garchomp, they were certain they wouldn't come out alive…or in one piece.

The Dorma Anim had no weapons, no left arm, and Faust was inside and in a state of panic. Both Mega Garchomp stepped forward, making the Dorma Anim step back. "**C-Curse you! I can't let it end like this!**" Faust declared. "**I AM THE KING OF EDOLAS! I CAN'T LOSE! IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!**"

Both Mega Garchomp roared once more as they lunged forward and the appendages on their heads glowed blue. "**Dragon Rush!**" Both roared in unison. Their bodies were then engulfed in draconic energy that was gruesome and then their soared into the Dorma Anim.

Nic then narrowed his eyes and then spread his wings. "Nic!"

Nebulus responded by jumping onto his counterpart's back. "Right, we'll finish this together!"

Nic, still having his previous Dragon Dance active, lunged with Nebulus on his back and joined in with their Mega Garchomp. "**Dragon Rush!**" Nic was cloaked in draconic energy and Nebulus held on as he was protected by the energy. The four let loose a battlecry and draconic roars as they all combined.

The three separate Dragon Rush attacks slowly fused into an enormous dragon-shaped energy. Massive 'dragon' had its wings spread out as it roared, shattering the ground completely as it rushed into the Dorma Anim. The earth and air itself vibrated with such intensity what even goosebumps would jump.

When Faust saw the 'dragon', he went wide-eyed as he saw the impending doom. "**NO! IT CAN'T BE! STAY AWAY!**" He yelled.

The 'dragon' let loose a massive roar as it finally smashed into the Dorma Anim. The intensity and power spread about was so extreme, that the entire upper body of the Dorma Anim was swallowed up. The Dragon Slayers watched in awe, and a hint of fear, as the entire Dorma Anim upper half completely shattered as the Dragon Rush went straight through it, and in the process, Nebulus seized the King that was inside, dragging him through the air as they went through and the Dorma Anim's upper half was no more.

The draconic energy dispersed as the Mega Garchomp and two Nic finally went through. Faust screamed as he was dragged by Nebulus through the air, latched onto his counterpart. Nebulus jumped off and spiraled, hurling the King to the ground with a thud.

The Mega Garchomp, Nic, and Nebulus all posed as they landed on the ground. The Dorma Anim behind them had the lower half quiver and get to the knees, of which then completely exploded, destroying the Dorma Anim entirely.

The Dragon Slayers were left speechless by this unholy power these three, or in this case four, wield. Natsu could've sworn he never saw anything more awesome than what just happened, but now he was scarred for life along with Wendy and Gajeel. Honestly, Erza is terrifying, Nic is worse, and now this? Just how lethal are Pokémon exactly?!

Don't answer that.

As the smoke and dust cleared, Faust sat up, shaking profusely as Edolas's strongest weapon was bashed, maimed, and demolished just by two Mega Garchomp, and a little bit from the two Nic. The four glanced over at the King, seeing him shake with fear.

Faust jerked back at the sheer sight of menacing eyes of Mega Garchomp, and the two Nic. In his eyes, he saw terrifying draconic creatures in a fiery background, the four growling almost made him lose any and all feeling in his spine. _'Th-this power…th-these creatures…I can't believe I was so desperate for something this terrifying!' _He arose to his knees unconsciously as he put his hands in front of him, as if to keep the terrifying monstrosities away.

Nic, Nebulus, and the two Mega Garchomp, all looked menacingly, their feral eyes all glaring down the King.

"S-Someone! P-Please help me!" Faust squealed in terror. Faust was left so terrified and powerless that he fell frozen. He was too in shock to the terrifying force that was Pokémon and he fell forward, unconscious and defeated.

"…we did it." Natsu muttered.

"Yeah…we won." Gajeel muttered.

"Wow, Nic and his Pokémon are amazing." Wendy muttered.

Nic and the two Mega Garchomp let loose a monstrous draconic roar in victory, with Nebulus letting loose a battlecry, all aimed into the sky. Their long, disastrous roars, and battlecry, echoed and boomed the ground, making small debris shake upon their combined might.

When it all subsided, the two Nic turned towards the other and paused before they smirked in congrats to the other. The Mega Garchomp did the same, and then they both turned towards their Trainers and smirked in glee that they defeated a powerful enemy.

"We won." Nic said.

Nebulus nodded in agreement. "We did fantastic, and you guys did too." He said to the Mega Garchomp.

Both Mega Garchomp smiled down at their Trainers and then they were encased in an array of colors and they reverted back into themselves. The two Garchomp then stepped forwards and leaned down to their Trainers and Nic and his counterpart hugged their Garchomp's head.

"You were both marvelous guys, thank you." Nic said, pulling away and petting Garchomp's head, same with Nebulus and his Grachomp.

"That was fun." Nic's Garchomp said.

"That put us through our paces." Nebulus's Garchomp admitted.

Nic and his counterpart couldn't agree more and both pulled out their poke balls. They then thanked their Garchomp and the two safely returned to their poke balls for some rest.

"Man, remind me not to fight those shark dragons, or whatever they are." Gajeel commented.

Then out of nowhere, the ground was rumbling and the little celebration was put to a halt when the islands in the sky started falling, shocking everyone.

"What's happening?!" Wendy shouted.

"Better not be a cataclysm!" Gajeel stated.

"I don't know." Nic said. He and his counterpart turned towards the other in worry as they weren't sure as to what was going on. They then looked up into the sky to see yellow energy emanating from the earth once the rumbling stopped.

"Now what? What the heck is it now?" Natsu asked.

"…wait is that…?" Wendy said.

"Yeah, my guess is that stuff is the Magic power of this world." Gajeel said. They all watched as the Magic was surging into the sky.

* * *

**With both Erzas**

The rumbling stopped and then Knightwalker and Erza, both still unable to move, watched the sudden streaming Magic leak from the earth and drift into the sky.

"Am I hallucinating?" Knightwalker asked.

"No I see it too." Erza said. They both took a moment before realizing what it was. Their eyes widened suddenly. "Wait is that…?"

"It's Edolas's Magic." Knightwalker said as they watched the Magic surge endlessly into the sky.

* * *

**Elsewhere…**

Within a certain chamber within the Royal City, there was a large contraption that was of several statues with their arms out, and in the middle was a yellow-green energy that endlessly sprouted.

Lily was left with some confusion as to what exactly Mystogan was initiating with the Reverse Anima. "Prince?"

Mystogan stared forward with extreme seriousness in his voice. "This is for the best, Lily." Mystogan said with a brief pause afterwards. "The people of Edolas always craved power. I tried to warn them, but they wouldn't listen. And so, I shall eradicate this world's Magic, and transfer it to Earthland. The last of our power shall go through the Anima, and be absorbed into nature."

Mystogan looked up as the clouds were swirling slightly and the Magic kept surging. "For the sake of the future, Edolas must be rebuild from the ground up."

* * *

**With Nic and Nebulus**

"Are you sure it was such a good idea to leave Natsu and the rest behind with the King?" Nebulus asked his counterpart. The two were currently flying through the air, with Nebulus on his counterpart's back.

"Yeah, they'll figure something out." Nic said, not having a problem with how he sees it. He flapped as he sailed the skies. Still in his Draco Plate. "Keep a lookout Nic, we should find both our Charizard around here somewhere."

The two looked left and right, and then they heard two roars coming from their left. Nic stopped in place and flapped in place and turned towards his left, seeing his old friend and his counterpart.

"Charizard!"

The two Fire and Flying-Types both flapped in the air as they saw their Trainers again. The two Charizard smiled. "Nic, I take it you defeated the Dorma Anim?" Charizard asked.

Nic raised a brow and grinned. "You have Garchomp's Mega Evolution to thank for that."

Charizard felt surprised, as was his counterpart. Nic's Charizard turned towards Nebulus's Charizard with shock on his face as well.

"Garchomp was pushed to that point?" Charizard asked. "I didn't see that coming."

"Nobody did." Nebulus then changed the subject. "Anyways, are you two alright?"

Nebulus's Charizard nodded. "We attacked every legion and shoulder we found. The Fairy Tail Guild even jumped in, though it wasn't necessary." He said. "Anyways, do you know what's going on?"

"The Magic in this world is being sucked into an Anima." Nebulus explained, making the two Charizard look surprised.

"We're not certain, but I think it's going to Earthland." Nic added. "Remember, this doesn't affect us."

Nic's Charizard nodded. "Agreed."

Both Nic's then pulled out their poke balls. "You both get some rest, you're a bit scratched up I see." Nic added, seeing a few scratches and scrapes on their Charizard, to which didn't even remotely bother them. The two returned to their poke balls and both Nic then looked up.

A question ran through Nebulus's mind as he looked into the sky. "Tell me." He said to his counterpart as the former was surprisingly light on his feet on Nic. "What do you think will happen?"

It took a few minutes as Nic looked up into the sky. "…I can't say. We both survived our whole lives without Magic. I was given this special power by Arceus, yet I don't need it to live."

"And yet if you didn't, the universe would collapse upon itself, right?" Nebulus asked, to which Nic reluctantly looked down. Nebulus smiled. "Don't worry…even without those powers, we're gifted with survival."

Nic had a small grin on his face appear. "You're right. Without my powers, I'd be just like you, sparring everyday with my team like it was before I left Kalos." Nic then turned his head and saw something in the distance. "Wait is that…?"

Nebulus turned to see two lone figures lying on the ground a distance away. His eyes widened, seeing and recognizing them. "Yeah."

Even from that distance, they'd recognize those two red-haired women anywhere. Nic then soared towards said direction towards the two Erzas.

* * *

**With Mystogan and co.**

Mystogan was currently in battle in the middle of the Royal City, with every townsfolk watching, battling against the 'Great Demon Lord Dragneel', which was a rouse Natsu did so that when he tried to 'claim the throne', Mystogan would defeat him and everyone would look up to him.

The two were currently in battle, and everything was going as planned. The public was siding with the Prince, cheering him on. When Natsu dealt a blow, the public got worried, but cheered when Mystogan delivered a blow in return.

As Natsu had already realized, as did Mystogan, they realized that Mystogan would not return to Fairy Tail after this. He belonged in Edolas. Natsu gripped Mystogan, and the two glared into the others' eye.

"This is it buddy." Natsu said. "I'm gonna give you a real Fairy Tail sendoff."

Mystogan gasped and went wide-eyed.

"Since you're leaving Fairy Tail, you gotta swear to follow these three rules." Natsu said as they continued their brawl. They backed away and lunged at each other.

"Number one, never ever reveal sensitive information about Fairy Tail as long as you live!" Natsu shouted as he repeatedly punched Mystogan, who blocked and tried dealing blows as well, but with the same results.

"Number two-!" Mystogan then dealt a punch to Natsu's face and he was momentarily dazed. "…uhh..."

"Number two!" Mystogan started from where Natsu finished, knowing the three rules himself. He then kicked Natsu, who blocked with his right arm. "You must never use former contacts from the guild for your own personal gain!" He spun and repeatedly kicked as he announced the second rule.

Natsu smirked as the kick missed. "That's right, and don't forget!" Natsu said, blocking a punch. "Don't forget number three!" He dealt a blow to Mystogan's abdomen. "Although our paths must stray…you gotta promise to live the rest of your life to the fullest!" Mystogan brought a double hammer fist down on Natsu's head, making him release his fist, but he clenched it once again. "…That means to treat every day would be your last day in this world…don't forget the friends you love..."

Mystogan smiled as the two jerked away, himself clenching his own fist. "…You must treasure them for as long as you live." He finished.

The two then struck the other's face at the same time with so much force that it sounded like a crash to each other. Everyone gaped at the scene, even Nadi and Panther Lily were in shock by the sudden blow. Everyone, that include Edolas Fairy Tail, the Dragon Slayers, Lucy, and Sophie, were all surprised.

There was a shadow over Natsu's eyes as he started falling down. "…did you get all of that?" He asked as he fell.

Mystogan grinned as he started falling backwards.

Natsu continued as he slowly fell backwards. "When a Guild works together, there's no such thing as impossible…" Mystogan kept his footing, but barely as Natsu fell to the ground with a smile on his face. "…nice knowing ya pal…later…"

The crowd cheered as Mystogan had defeated the 'Great Demon Lord Dragneel.'. Their Prince had claimed victory.

Mystogan lost his grin and frowned sadly as he was to bid farewell to his friends. "…thank you."

"Our Prince has won!" "Awesome!" "Freedom!" The citizens roared over Mystogan's victory. Panther Lily smiled at the scene.

As the Edolas Fairy Tail members looked on, Edolas Gajeel and Edolas Sophie both looked at their counterparts one last one with smiles and turned away.

Gajeel and Sophie both turned to see their counterparts leaving for the last time. They saw both Edolas Gajeel and Sophie wave their arms back at them.

Gajeel only paused as he smirked a farewell to his counterpart.

Sophie smiled softly at her counterpart. "Take care." She muttered. "Though you may not remember well, I won't forget you."

As Edolas Gajeel and Sophie walked away. Edolas Sophie smiled softly. "Goodbye…Sophie Lednick." Then Edolas Gajeel and Edolas Sophie were out of sight, their counterparts smiling all the while.

* * *

**Meanwhile, with both Erzas...**

The Magic continued to surge into the sky, and both Erzas were left silent for a bit before Knightwalker spoke.

"Unbelievable." Knightwalker said with a frown. "Will our world endure after this?"

Erza herself was left a little saddened. Edolas was being removed of its power, and that meant no more Magic. She felt sorry for Knightwalker. Both Erzas continued to look up to the sky and Erza looked off in the distance, seeing something incoming. She went wide-eyed when she recognized who it was.

"Nic." She said. Knightwalker turned her head and went wide-eyed as well. She saw Nebulus on his counterpart like a human on a dragon.

Both Nics went wide-eyed when they saw both Erzas on the ground. "Erza!" They shouted in unison. When Nic landed, Nebulus jumped off and the two Nics ran towards their respective Erza. Nebulus went over towards Knightwalker, while Pularis went to check on Scarlet.

"Erza!" Nic went over and knelt down to Erza, who was more than glad to see Nic in one piece. She was so caught up in fighting Knightwalker that she almost forgot Nic was caught in the Dorma Anim brawl. Nic noticed Erza smiling, glad to see him, so he returned the soft smile. "Are you okay?"

Though Erza couldn't move too well, she was able to move her head to nod. "Yes, we're both just fine."

Nebulus knelt down to Knightwalker's side and looked at her. He noticed that she was just as torn up as her counterpart, but he didn't think much of it. What mattered was that they were alive. Nebulus let a soft smile cross his face. "Looks like you could use a hand."

Knightwalker let a soft smile cross her face, seeing how Nebulus was trying to aid her. Knightwalker said nothing as Nebulus continued to ask questions.

"How bad was the fight?" He asked with a slight level of concern, hoping that it wasn't as lethal as his past fight was with his own counterpart.

To his relief, Knightwalker was intact and was only exhausted. Knightwalker turned her head left and right to look at herself, seeing her body and how badly in shape she was in. Even so, she kept smiling. "It wasn't too bad. We worked things out like you two did."

Knightwalker and Nebulus turned their heads to see Nic continue tending to Erza. Nic noticed the two scratched on their faces, and he frowned. He let a brief moment pass before he smiled again. "Don't worry, I can fix this."

There were two definitions of 'fix' that went through Nic's mind. The first was to fix Erza and her counterpart's injuries. He glowed and he shifted from his Mind Plate. He put his hands forward and then used Heal Pulse. Quickly, the injuries on Erza were starting to vanish. The scratch on the side of her face disappeared, and she looked like she didn't any scratches, but her clothes were still pretty much trashed. She didn't mind, she was only glad Nic was here.

Then came the second definition of 'fix'. As Nic was finishing up Heal Pulse, he looked at Erza with some signs to regret. "Erza…" Erza looked at Erza, her smile being turned to curiosity. "…I'm sorry."

Erza kept quiet as she wasn't sure what Nic meant by him being sorry. What was there to apologize for? Unless…

"I'm sorry I didn't stay around the guild like I always did." He looked down with even more regret as he continued. "I was very uneasy after the whole Nirvana incident and…" He paused briefly before he glanced over towards her. "I thought that you would need time for yourself after what happened."

Nic didn't want to lead Erza on. He didn't want to give the real reason as to why he was always out on jobs, to say he loved her and felt broken with Jellal being taken, so he had to try and make up something, hoping Erza wouldn't realize it.

Erza blinked and smiled softly. "…it's okay Nic, I understand." She answered.

Nic turned his head towards her with shock. "Really?"

Erza nodded as the smile never left her face. "It's okay that you thought I needed space, and I thought so at first as well. Losing Jellal…wasn't easy, but I'm okay now, because I have Fairy Tail." She spoke in a soft and serene voice. "You didn't have to keep yourself away for my sake. The truth is that I needed you in that time period. I was uneasy, and I wanted to know why."

Nic looked away with sadness. "I know, Sophie told me."

Erza continued as she finally sat up, making Nic turn towards her again. "But that doesn't change the fact that I still care about you. You were hurting because you only thought you were a burden around me. And I don't blame you." She then frowned. "I have Fairy Tail, and I have yo…my friends by my side, and that's all I'll ever need. Don't forget that Nic. Without you and the others, I wouldn't have the strength to be where I'm at in life."

Nic was speechless for many reasons. He was speechless because despite Erza's keen intellect, she wasn't able to see into his broken heart, to which he was relieved of slightly. He was speechless because she let the matter of Jellal pass in a very short period of time, and he treated it like it was a major ordeal. He was also speechless because Erza said she only needed Fairy Tail to be happy.

To these statements, Nic let a few moments pass before he softly smiled at her. "Thanks for relieving my worries Erza." He said, extending a hand and helping her up to her feet. Erza and Nic both got up and they smiled at the other for their comfort, and for being able to clear things up somewhat. Nic was still keep his love for her to himself, but until he can begin to reopen up to her again, he'll be happy like this.

Nebulus and Knightwalker saw the touching scene and the two turned towards the other. Nebulus grinned, as did Knightwalker.

"Erza, tell me." Nebulus said, to which shocked Knightwalker by calling her Erza. "What are you gonna do now? The Magic is leaving, but I wonder what will happen. Not to the world, but lives."

Knightwalker looked back up to the sky, seeing the Magic leave. "…I don't know." She then smiled slightly. "But I want to live."

Nebulus smiled softly towards her. "I'll help you, if you want." He said. Knightwalker gasped as Nebulus said he would be more than willing to help her find a way to survive. If there was a wind, her wavy, red hair would be flowing towards Nebulus's direction. Nebulus continued. "I may not know how you all live, but I learned from the best." He glanced back towards Nic and Erza and then back at Knightwalker. "Desperation isn't ahead of us, we survive by working together, I normally thrived in any terrain I came across, hardly ever visiting cities or towns. Do you want to live a life of courage and free will?" He extended his hand to her as he looked down towards her.

After the recent events, Knightwalker was left to look at Nebulus in awe. Nebulus was the first person to ever steer her into the right direction, and after her battle with her counterpart, she figured a life without Magic would be interesting. She wasn't sure what was to lie ahead of her in the future, but as long as she had the strength to fight for those dear to her, she could overcome anything.

And the one thing she had dear was right in front of her eyes. Knightwalker looked up to Nebulus, and will follow her 'light', away from the darkness she was in.

She slowly extended her hand out, still barely able to move. Before her arm could fall back to her side, Nebulus reached out to her and grabbed her hand, seeing as how she was saying yes.

If Knightwalker could cry right now, she would. Nebulus reached out to her yet again, helping her to the light that was the future. As long as she had Nebulus to help her, she would be happy with the future, Magic or not. "…thank you." She weakly said.

Nebulus slowly helped her up. He allowed himself to be a support as Knightwalker had an arm over his shoulder and kneeling onto him. Nic turned and started walking towards them. Nic had a soft smile as he saw just how supportive the other was to the other. He used Heal Pulse on Knightwalker and then her scratches and the mark on her nose disappeared, leaving her healthy and she got some movement coming back.

"You both are lucky to have the other through this time." Nic said.

Knightwalker and Nebulus both smiled at Nic. "You too…" Nebulus then looked and saw that Erza (Scarlet) was glowing from where she stood, and Knightwalker and Nic looked in shock as well.

"Erza!" Nic whipped around and stepped forward to see Erza starting to float off the ground. "Erza?"

Erza looked down as she, very slowly, went off the ground. "I guess we're going home."

Nic gasped as he realized that the Magic was going to Earthland, and that meant anything with Magic in it as well. That meant their time in Edolas was up. Nic was left frozen briefly as he then slowly turned away, looking back at his counterpart with the same shock on his face.

"Nic, I guess this is it?" Nebulus's voice sounded hollow, as though he wasn't ready to bid a final farewell to him.

Nic could understand. Honestly, after what he and his counterpart went through, they expected a little more time, but this was it. Nic looked somberly with a smile on his face. "It would appear this is farewell, for good this time."

Nebulus looked down with a soft smile on his face as well. It was time to bid farewell one last time. He turned back up towards his counterpart and nodded. "It was fun catching up with you Nic."

Nic nodded. "Same here."

Knightwalker looked on at her counterpart, slowly floating into the sky. "Is this it Scarlet?" She asked with the same hollow tone.

Erza remained quiet as she looked on at her counterpart. "I'm afraid so Knightwalker."

There was a brief pause before both Nic turned towards their respective Erza. "No." Nebulus said.

"You're both something more than just Scarlet and Knightwalker." Nic said. "You're both…"

"Erza." Nebulus and Nic said in unison.

Both Erzas smiled softly at the two Nics that proclaimed who they were. They were glad to have met the other, and then the two Erzas looked back at the other and smiled one last time, silently bidding farewell.

Knighwalker kept her footing and stood on her own as Nebulus let go and walked up to his counterpart. Nic and Nebulus stared at the other and then Nic broke the silence.

"What a magnificent soul you've become Nic." Nic said. "Your heart and conviction has become the purest of all. It has been an honor to meet and fight by your side and meet you once more."

Nebulus extended a hand out. "The honor is all mine. I wish you every ounce of luck with the universe and retrieving the Plates."

Nic shook his counterpart's hand. "Thank you…I'm gonna miss you buddy." Nebulus blinked as he felt the same way. "We've been through so much, haven't we? Through it all, we're not just the other, we're friends. Family. We're one."

"Even though we'll never see each other again, we'll be in each other's hearts forever." Nebulus and Nic both felt a little misty in the eyes. "…take care of yourself."

"Don't worry, I will." Nic then glowed and he shifted into the Sky Plate, starting to get off the ground and ascending right by Erza's side. She looked over to see his misty eyes.

A flood of memories started going through Nic and Nebulus's minds simultaneously.

"_STOP!" Nic ordered, making Nebulus freeze in his tracks, saving Charmeleon._

_Nebulus turned around and he looked to see where the voice came from. "Who the hell said tha-!" He went wide-eyed as he saw Nic Pularis emerge from the tree line into the clearing. "Impossible?! A-An imposter?!"_

Both Nic were left speechless as their eyes started to mist up some more.

"_Funny, I didn't recall myself being that blind." Nic said. "I am Nic Pularis."_

_Nebulus sneered. "Ask me if I care. I'm Nic Nebulus, and I'm surprised that you care so much about weaklings. If so, then you're just a coward."_

_Nic raised a brow. "Oh really, then how come I'm not running for the hills yet?"_

Both Nics swallowed as they nearly started choking back tears.

_Nic then had some strength before he looked towards his counterparts. "I got strong not just to protect my sister, but I got strong so I wouldn't have to rely on anyone else, so they wouldn't be hurt like I did. That's what it means to be strong."_

_Nebulus's lips quivered and he gritted in pain and guilt and a few tears fell. "Why…am I …crying?"_

_Nic grinned. "That's the first step to being human Nic." At the same time, both Nics blacked out, their injuries taking their immense toll, both now lying on the ground._

They both saw tears one the edge of each other's eyes.

_The hooded person smirked and turned his head up towards the group. "It's been how long again?"_

_Nic was left startled for a few moments, but then he too smirked. "Almost three years." He said. "I honestly didn't expect to see you again."_

"_The same on my end as well." The hooded figure said, pulling up his hood and revealing himself, shocking Sophie and Gajeel._

"_I see that these past few years have been treating you quite well." Nic's counterpart said._

"_Yeah, the same for you too, but then again, you are me after all." Nic said._

The tears were swelling up in their eyes, and finally, they started streaming down their faces.

_Nic and his counterpart turned towards the other and grinned. "You ready for one last team-up?" Nic asked._

"_Like you have to ask." Nebulus said._

Both Nic closed their eyes and blinked back tears as they couldn't stop remembering. As Nic was ascending slowly, flapping his wings, he spoke to his counterpart. "Nic!" Nebulus watched as Nic held up his right arm and gave the honorable Fairy Tail Salute.

"We may never see each other again. We may be worlds apart. But no matter where you are. I'll always be looking your way."

"Nic." Erza said.

There was a brief moment as Nic and Erza were high into the air, and to their joy, Nebulus smirked and copied Nic's Fairy Tail Salute. "Thank you. And I as well."

Nic nodded and then the tears for both Nics stopped. Nic and Erza were now barely able to see them.

'_Farewell, Nic.' _They thought in unison as Nebulus watched as Nic and Erza were now almost out of sight.

Erza turned towards Nic, seeing him ascending with the Sky Plate. She couldn't help but think with Magic being gone. "You think they'll be alright?"

Nic remained silent, for he knew the answer. From the last bit he saw of Nebulus and Knightwalker, he saw Knightwalker placing a soft hand on Nebulus's shoulder to comfort him. Through it all, they kept smiling. Nebulus turned towards Knightwalker and he gave a soft smile, and Knightwalker smiled ever so softly in return.

Both of their faces had a very light pink as they had each other to look after now. And to be honest, they wouldn't want it any other way.

Nic smiled."…yeah…they'll be fine." He turned towards Erza with confidence. "They are us after all."

Erza blinked and then she smiled. She knew that Nic was right, she just had to be sure.

Everyone from Earthland, and including Lily and the other Exceeds, then finally got swallowed up by the sky, their counterparts watching with soft and confident smiles.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in another dimension…**

Giratina watched through the spacial screen as he saw Nic and his friends venture through the Anima, and he was left with a cold look that hid something.

"Giratina, now that Nic has the Draco Plate, that means it shall only take a matter of before the eighteenth Plate is unlocked." Darkrai warned. "We must take action."

Giratina knew this as well. This could be their only chance at this point in time. Behind the devilish gaze Giratina had, he had a plan. He turned towards Hoopa. "Hoopa."

Hoopa turned towards Giratina with curiosity. "Yeah? What is it?"

Giratina then turned back to look down at the portal, seeing Nic and friends venture through the Anima. "Tell me. How much power have you accumulated?"

Hoopa blinked. "With us sealed away, and giving our powers to our agent, I have enough power for a solemn space shift, why?" Hoopa asked, getting a freaked out feeling.

Giratina then turned towards Hoopa, the Satan-like red eyes beaming down a demand. "We're gonna need it…"

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

As Nic and his fellow guild mates traveled through the Anima, Nic and Sophie and everyone saw the stuff from before when they went through the previous Anima.

"We're off to Earthland!" Natsu shouted through the Anima.

"Aye sir!" Happy shouted.

Nic sailed through the Anima, still in his Sky Plate Form, and he looked forward to the light that was ahead. Up ahead, they saw the limitless number of Exceed that were going to Earthland with them, and the Magic as well.

Suddenly, in between the Exceeds and the Earthlanders, a large spacial hoop appeared, and nobody realized what it meant for them. They didn't think nothing as they figured it was a part of the Anima and the rest of the light rings that they passed by, but they had no idea what came next.

When they crossed the ring, they suddenly found themselves falling from the sky. They all screamed as they fell from the sky above. Nic didn't have an issue as he safely descended and watched as Natsu and everyone fell to the ground, and Erza landed on top of the entire pile of Fairy Tail Mages, not surprising of course.

The Mages groaned as they slowly got up, feeling the hard ground. "Aw man, that one hurt." Natsu muttered.

"You okay down there?" Nic shouted. He then blinked and then saw that they weren't in Magnolia, but a land of red clay. An endless spread and rocks were everywhere.

"Wait, what the…?" Nic narrowed his eyes, trying to figure out something. "Now why does this look familiar?" He muttered in the air.

On the ground, Natsu arose with a shout. "HAHA! WE'RE BACK EVERYB-!" He stopped in midsentence when he looked around at the area around them. He blinked. "Hold on, I don't remember this place."

Wendy narrowed her eyes. "Maybe we got transported to another place in Earthland?" She said.

Erza looked around the area, examining it. It was currently nighttime and there was a blanket of stars in the sky, catered from Nic from several nights ago. "I don't recognize this place, and the strangest part is that I don't sense the same type of Magic at all." She said. "It's different, but I don't know how to explain it."

Sophie turned to Nic, who was in the air. "You see anything up there?"

Nic was still left in confusion. He was contemplating about the similarity of this land. "I feel as though I know this place, but why…?!" Nic turned his head west and gasped.

Nic eyes widened and sharply and were practically shaken. He was left speechless as a large domain with needles pointing inwards towards the top was west of him. He was left with no words.

"N…no way…it's impossible…how did we…?" Nic couldn't even begin to fathom as to how they got to where they were. How? This didn't make any sense to him nor anybody. While everyone on the ground was confused, Nic was left in shock.

He recognized the structure all too well.

Happy turned and pointed at a huge domain west. "Hey, what's that?"

Everyone turned to see it as well. They too were left a little in shock. Lucy was a little uneasy. "Uh, I don't like the looks of this place."

"Whatever this place is, it's creeping me out." Gajeel said with crossed arms.

Erza looked up and saw Nic slowly land on the ground and transform into himself. He looked blindly west at the structure and was still unable to comprehend what happened, but even so, he knew where they were.

"Nic, do you know what happened?" Erza asked. "Nic?"

When Nic turned around, he had a dead serious look on his face. There was a frantic silence that fell, and everyone was staring at Nic, who looked somewhat dazed.

"Nic?" Happy asked, somewhat worried.

Nic then turned towards the structure and let silence take over before he spoke. "I don't know how…and I don't know why…but this is all too familiar for me." He said.

"What are you saying Nic? That you know this place?" Gray asked.

Nic turned towards his comrades. "There's no easy way to say this…but I'm afraid we're not in Earthland." He said, narrowing his eyes. An ominous breeze flew through the air as Nic announced that they weren't in Earthland still. A moment passed before Nic spoke. "Guys…welcome to Kalos."

* * *

**Surprised? How did you like that twist. This is the Arc that I made, the Kalos Arc! I was waiting for this to come up, and I'm glad I thought of it. **

**Before you guys leave Reviews saying 'Make them catch Pokémon!', let me say that ain't gonna happen. Sorry, but I ain't doing that. Period! So don't you dare leave Reviews that say to make them catch Pokémon, I'll be annoyed if you do.**

**Some of you expected another Legendary Force in the fight against the Dorma Anim, but I decided to make Mega Garchomp appear instead. Hope the fight was to your liking! Review if you loved Mega Garchomp demolishing the Dorma Anim!**

**Is it wrong that I cried as I wrote the goodbye scene? Please, please leave a Review if you cried too, or if the scene got you in the feels.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are appealed to the quality of the fights and the feelings set into play and are hoping for yet another chapter.**

* * *

**Next Time: Origins**


	36. Origins

Chapter 36 – Origins

**Helloooooooo people! I really hope that you've enjoyed the Edolas Arc! And now comes the Kalos Arc! I can't say how long this one will be, but rough estimates around seven chapters, so this will be longer than the Oracion Seis Arc, but hopefully worth it.**

**Alpha Dragonis: Go ahead, try and outdo my Edolas Arc! Challenge accepted! Bwahahahaaa!**

**LunarFox16: Very sophisticated question. Let's put it like this; if Nic goes to Kalos, Nebulus does to, and if everyone else, Erza, Natsu, etc. goes, their counterparts do so as well. If Nic had spacial powers like Palka, then there wouldn't be an issue because he could pop here and there whenever he wants. Let's leave it at that.**

**Axiov: Let's not get ahead of ourselves because of titles. It's called 'Origins' because it's where Nic's from.**

**Guest valvrave: Technically, yes, the Pokémon wouldn't speak, but I can still pull some strings.**

**Alright people, time for many surprises this chapter. I got a few appearances of a few people, and a special someone you've all been dying to meet. So let's go! On with the Kalos Arc!**

**To Recap:**

As Nic and Nebulus and the Dragon Slayers and both Garchomp quarreled with the Dorma Anim, Nic and Nebulus resorted to using Mega Evolution and both Mega Garchomp annihilated the Dorma Anim, defeating Faust. The Magic in Edolas began going through an Anima that Mystogan made. Natsu gives Mystogan the Fairy Tail sendoff and then everyone began to go through the Anima. Both Erza and Nic bid farewell to their counterparts and go through the Anima, but due to Hoopa and the Dark Legendaries, the group had ended up in Nic's homeland, Kalos.

* * *

**Chapter 36 – Origins**

To say that everyone was in shock would be an extreme understatement. Out of all the places they had to end up in, they ended up not in Earthland, nor Edolas again, but in Nic's world. Kalos, to be more precise. Everyone had shock in their eyes at this development as Nic introduced them to Kalos, and the first to act was none other than Natsu and Happy.

"GAH?! WE'RE IN YOUR WORLD NIC?!" Natsu shrieked.

"IMPOSSIBLE?!" Happy shrieked.

Nic narrowed his eyes as he looked down. "I know just how you feel guys, but even I can't wrap my head around this." He turned around and looked back at the Kalos Power Plant far off in the distance. "All I know is that we're in Kalos, and the structure in the distance before you in known as the Kalos Power Plant."

Gajeel narrowed his eyes. "I don't get it Luminous, just who exactly was the wise guy who did this? Did Mystogan mess up those coordinates or something?"

Nic crossed his arms. "Doubtful." Nic turned and looked at the group. "Earthland and Edolas are correspondent, and my world has the same concept that is the Mirror World. My world and Earthland's correspondence can't connect on such a level that an Anima could have sent us here. Which means an interference arose."

"So you have an idea as to what it was?" Sophie asked. "Any lead on the intrusion could give us a hint as to how we could get back to Earthland."

"Yeah." Lucy said. "Our friends and Fairy Tail must be worried sick about us."

"What do we do?" Wendy panicked.

Suddenly, a voice was heard behind a large rock. "It's pretty obvious, we have to remain calm and deduce the problem at hand." It announced. A small figure appeared from behind the large rock. It was as small as Happy and Carla, and was black.

Everyone turned and saw the small figure looking at them, and what they saw was none other than Panther Lily, and he was, well…

"SO TINY!" Everyone exclaimed in comical shock.

Happy stepped forward with a sweatdrop. "Uh, you look cute that size though."

Lily ignored the comment and discussed the matter at hand. "It seems that my physique isn't well suited for Kalos's environment; furthermore, it would appear that I tailed too far behind the other Exceeds and got caught up here."

"And you're not bothered by it?" Carla sweatdropped.

Lily looked down. "I am, but there's more vital essence to be attended to other than my appearance, like how do we get to Earthland."

"That's a good question, but just as Nic said, this is all too vague to discern." Erza stated.

Lily narrowed his eyes and he looked to his right, have a rope. "Now, onto an unrelated note, I happened to have someone who followed us in the Anima." He tugged the rope.

"Yup, he's definitely my cat alright." Gajeel remarked.

"Come here." Lily announced, then everyone started looking at the tugged rope, witnessing someone being tied by the wrists.

"Hold on!" The female voice testified. "Just let me explain!" The female appeared from behind the ground and fell to her knees. "Ow."

Natsu gasped and looked with sheer astonishment, as did Happy, as did everyone. The person was someone they would have never expected to see.

Lisanna perked back up and looked at Lily with annoyance. "I'm not suspicious, I'm a member of Fairy Tail too!"

"I…It's Lisanna." Natsu muttered.

Lisanna continued berating Lily. "Don't be so rough cat!...wait, are you an Exceed?!"

"The name is Panther Lily." Lily corrected.

Gajeel scooted by Lily's side. "If you got a problem with my cat you'll have to take it up with me lady, well?!"

Lisanna ignored them and noticed everyone else, especially Natsu. Lisanna and Natsu starred momentarily at each other, but Natsu was still too distraught.

"Lisa-!"

Lisanna tackled Natsu with such joy. "NATSU!" She cheered as Natsu fell backwards and was still unable to process as to what was happening, and of course Lily was flung in the air and fell while holding onto the rope still. Everyone looked with surprise as Lisanna started tearing up and a few tears fell on Natsu's face. "Natsu…it's so good to see you…I can't believe it's really you." She said happily.

"Wait, she looks just like…" Gray trailed off.

"Lisanna." Erza finished.

"Is she from Edolas?" Lucy asked.

"I don't know." Sophie said. They all watched as Lisanna rushed towards Happy and nuzzled him with joy as Lily was dragged with the rope and groaned while on the ground.

"Oh Happy! You're here too! I'm so glad you're okay!" Lisanna cheered as Happy was being nuzzled. As she finished nuzzling him, Lisanna smiled as she looked at the rest of the guild members. "It's been so long since I've seen everyone. This makes me overjoyed." She then turned towards Lucy and Wendy. "And you two must be new. Your counterparts are from Edolas's Fairy Tail, so that must mean you guys should be in Fairy Tail too. The little one must be Wendy, and the blonde must be Lucy." She didn't say nor look at Gajeel, Sophie, nor Nic because she didn't recognize them.

"Wait…" Gray pointed a finger at her. "Are you…Earthland's Lisanna?"

There was a very long pause as Lisanna looked down at the red clay ground. Her eyes still had tears hanging from the corners of her eyes as she then gave a very slow nod, much to everyone's gasps.

"SHE CAME BACK ALIVE!" Natsu cheered.

"YAY!" Happy cheered.

As the duo raced to hug her, Erza yanked them back by the scarf and green bag they had. "Hold it right there!" Erza testified. She then looked at Lisanna. "You can't be our Lisanna! She died two years ago!"

Lisanna looked back down at the ground and she frowned. "The thing is…I didn't really die that day." Everyone looked on as Lisanna explained. "Two years ago…"

_After Elfman failed his Take Over and lost control, Lisanna had closed eyes on the ground as clouds above circled. Lisanna didn't move and Mira was having tears in her eyes as she held her sister's hand._

"_Lisanna! You have to wake up! Please!" Mira shouted at Lisanna. Her red guild mark was starting to glow and had begun vanishing off her left shoulder. After her mark vanished, Lisanna's body began glowing and started to float up into the air._

_Mira was streaming tears and recoiled in slight shock as she couldn't understand what was happening. "L-Lisanna, why're you glowing?! What's happening?!" As Lisanna was starting to arise, Mira grabbed her sister and held her tight. "NO! DON'T LEAVE!" Mira cried. Mira held her down, but that wasn't proving to be any benefit as Lisanna was converted into light and started disappearing from her arms._

"_YOU CAN'T DISAPPEAR ON ME! DON'T GO!" But it was too late as Mira felt nothing and Lisanna's body was gone, turned into sparkles that went off into the sky. "STAY HERE WITH ME!" She got to her knees and cried. "__**NO!**__" She cried as loud as she could, repeatedly shouting no as Lisanna was gone and drawn into the Anima above._

"I wasn't exactly certain, but I think I was pulled into an Anima that day." Lisanna explained. "I wasn't certain if they were common, but it was an even bigger shock when I awoke in Edolas."

_A conscious Lisanna stood in the Fairy Tail guild that was in Edolas, which was a plant-like structure, the individual members inside looked on as if they saw a ghost. After some extreme shock passed by, the people got up and made a mad dash towards Lisanna and cheered that she was alive._

"They were so overjoyed and welcomed me because they thought I was Edolas's Lisanna. I could assume that she died." Lisanna said dejectedly that her counterpart was dead. "It was as though I was resuscitated."

_Edolas Elfman had streams of tears running down his face as he saw Lisanna. "I can't believe it! Lisanna's returned!"_

_Edolas Mira blew her nose in a hankie and wailed. "That means she survived that terrible fall! I THOUGHT I WOULD NEVER SEE HER AGAIN!" She cried with comical tears._

_Lisanna was confused at the time, as she wondered why they were so happy. It soon dawned upon her that when Edolas Lisanna died, the Anima pulled her in to fill that hole left by her counterpart. _

_As her Edolas siblings ran up and held her tight, Lisanna had a nervous smile as she tried comforting her crying siblings. "Don't you ever leave us again!" Mira cried._

"_Lisanna, we love you so much! Don't leave us ever!" Elfman whined as he hugged his sister._

_Lisanna kept her nervous smile. "It'll be okay." Quickly, seeing her siblings all too happy, Lisanna felt her nervous smile turn into a loving smile. She couldn't bear to tell them the truth, so she decided that she would pretend to be Edolas's Lisanna, for everyone's sake._

"…_I'm home."_

As everyone, exclude Nic, looked on with surprise, Lisanna continued. "It was startling in the beginning. I would tell them that my memory was hazy. It got easier as I fit in and learned more about Edolas. Two years passed quickly, and then…" Lisanna clenched her forearm as she looked and frowned at Natsu and Happy. "Six days ago, Natsu and Happy arrived."

Natsu actually managed to speak. "But why Lisanna? Why didn't you say anything?"

Lisanna looked down dejectedly. "I couldn't."

_As Natsu and Happy conversed with the Edolas Fairy Tail about their situation, Lisanna, seeing Natsu and Happy again, slowly crept away from the group and backstepped silently away and out the doors. The doors closed and Lisanna had her back against the doors as her eyes were shaken and had a hand over her mouth._

'_It's Natsu…and Happy too.' She started to cry and streams of tears started flowing. 'I…I can't let them find out. I don't want my poor brother and sister going through that again! Not again!' Lisanna didn't want to break her siblings' hearts, she had to keep quiet, no matter what._

_Lisanna started choking as she was swallowing back gasps and looked up at the sky. 'I have to stay strong! I have to live my life in Edolas!'_

Lisanna then started streaming tears. "But then…"

_After the defeat of Faust, and Mystogan 'defeating' Natsu. She watched everyone glowing and ascend into the sky. She then saw that herself was glowing and looked with shock._

"_Whoa Lisanna!" Jet said._

"_Um…" Lisanna looked at the confused Edolas Fairy Tail Mages. "I-It's not what you think!" She then started ascended, much to everyone's shock. "I'm sorry!"_

_Suddenly, Edolas Mira gently grabbed her hands, stopping her ascent and making Lisanna gasp. Despite the realization, Elfman and Mira both pulled off sincere and happy smiles._

"_It's fine." Mira said. "We've known all along." Elfman lowered his head slightly and Lisanna was left with shock._

_Elfman then gently pulled Lisanna down and their heads touched. Elfman continued to smile. "We just wanted a little more time with our sister. Forgive us."_

_Lisanna started having tears as Mira joined in and all their heads touched. "You're sweet, just like our Lisanna." Lisanna frowned as everyone in Fairy Tail looked on with frowns, accepting this fate. Mira and Elfman both started tearing up. "…But you have to go." Elfman stepped back as Mira continued holding Lisanna's hands, for when she would let go, it's goodbye for good. _

"_Your real brother and sister are still waiting for you." Mira said. "They love you, so please don't make them suffer anymore."_

_Lisanna was streaming tears like crazy as she didn't want to go "But I…I LOVE YOU GUYS TOO!" Lisanna shouted._

_Mira and Elfman were holding back tears, but smiled. "You still have your siblings in Earthland. Go to them." Mira said. "Please give them our regards. We love you too." With that, Mira let go of Lisanna's hands and Lisanna began to ascend into the sky with tears rising with her._

_Lisanna watched from her rapid ascent as Mira broke down on the ground with Elfman comforting her. Lisanna cried and extended her arm out. "__**NO!**__" Lisanna was then pulled into the Anima as everyone looked on and bid her farewell._

Everyone was left in deep shock as Lisanna started breaking down in front of them. She had to break hearts and she didn't want to do that. Everyone looked on with sadness as Lisanna cried. Lisanna couldn't bring herself to stop, for she knew when goodbye meant goodbye. Everyone was still in shock, but Natsu stepped forward.

"Hey." He said, making Lisanna soften up on her tears. Lisanna opened her eyes as Natsu pulled her in for a comforting hug, making her almost stop crying. Everyone watched as Natsu gently hugged Lisanna. "It's okay."

Lisanna sniffled and stopped. She smiled as she was glad that she had her Fairy Tail friends again and smiled. "I'm glad you guys are here."

As everyone looked on and comforted Lisanna, the only one excluded from the whole touching moment was Nic. Nic was a fair distance from the group, leaning against a rock and frowning. Her story left him in a sour mood. As he looked away at a smiling Lisanna as everyone conversed with her, he couldn't help but have guilt rise.

He crossed his arms and clenched both his forearms in frustration. _'Three years. Three years and I haven't seen my sister. I'm back home, but…do I get to see her again? Can I face her again after three years of being gone?' _Nic wasn't sure how to process this. Of course he wanted to see his sister again, more than anything! But his priorities are so messed up now. His priorities included getting back to Earthland and saving the universe by getting the rest of the Plates, but now that he was in Kalos, can Vanessa be a priority?

"Hey, are you alright?" Lisanna asked, feeling much better and seeing Nic in contemplation. Everyone looked to see that Nic was clenching his own forearms, and rather tightly.

Nic turned towards the group as they all looked at him, and he honestly wasn't intending on bringing his family matters into the group. Something personal like that is one thing Nic dislikes sharing. Nic narrowed his eyes. "I don't wanna talk about it."

"Aw come on man, what's the harm?" Natsu asked, stepping forward.

"I said I don't wanna talk about it!" Nic barked, making Natsu recoil in fear. Everyone fell quiet after Nic's outburst and looked on with surprise. They all saw Nic turn away and make several leaps on a big rock and they all saw Nic jumped to the flat top of the fifteen foot rock and look out blankly.

Sophie stepped forward. "If he doesn't wanna talk about it, then it must be personal."

"Yeah, otherwise he wouldn't be like this." Gray said, still with no shirt, not surprising at this point.

Erza looked on with slight worry as Nic looked out at the Power Plant. The Kalos sky giving a unique vibe to the terrain, despite being the Lumiose Badlands. Erza had her fair share of secrets back in the Tower of Heaven because it was linked to her past. Her thoughts made her come to a realization as she remembered when Nic spoke to her when they hanged out a long time ago, about how he was an abused child and how his sister was spoiled with luxury. Erza looked on, saddened that the link was coming together.

'_Nic, this must be your version of the Tower of Heaven.' _She thought, looking at Nic.

Nic stared out and took in a deep breath and exhaled for a long time. He opened his eyes as he looked out at the Power Plant, a small smile forming on his face at the memories made there. "…It sure has been a long time, hasn't it?" He softly asked himself.

After collecting himself, Nic crouched and backflipped off the rock and right in front of the group, giving a half grin to the group. "Let's just say that I have issues Natsu." Nic said.

Natsu blinked and raised a brow. "Don't we all?"

"Yes, well, the matter is that I have two priorities and you guys have one." In Nic's mind, he silently pitied himself that he had to miss this chance to meet his sister, but for the sake of her safety, Nic would save the universe by getting all eighteen Plates, and then hopefully he could face his sister again. He crossed his arms and turned away. "Anyways, where we are now is specifically the Lumiose Badlands. It's a barren domain that stretches for miles, but the Kalos Power Plant resides here." He informed.

"So you've been here?" Happy asked.

"Yeah." Nic said, his grin returning. "In fact, this was where I first met Garchomp."

Everyone was a little silent, but Natsu and the other two Dragon Slayers slightly shivered from the remembrance of the vicious dragon. "W-Wait." Wendy stuttered. "Y-You mean tha-that monstrous dragon you have?"

Nic turned and snickered. Wanting to have Garchomp relish in memories as well, Nic pulled out his poke ball. "Garchomp, get out here!" Nic brought out Garchomp, who appeared on the ground and gave a low-toned roar that rippled about. Everyone jerked back slightly from the savage beast Nic possessed.

"Oh great, not that thing." Gajeel spoke.

Garchomp turned and noticed his surroundings, in which made him blink. "(Wait. This is…)"

Nic stepped forward and smiled. "That's correct Garchomp, remember this place? It's where we first met."

Garchomp looked down at Nic and seemed mellow as this was a time to relish in the memories. "(This takes us back.)"

Nic smiled. "It sure does."

Gray blinked. "Uh, isn't that thing suppose to be talking?" Nic turned around with slight surprise from Gray and everyone else.

"Yeah, what's he pulling at?" Gajeel said.

"Why is he just saying 'Gar Gar!'?" Natsu gave a Garchomp impression as he said the last part, to which made Garchomp snarl and bare his claws, which made Natsu flinch.

Nic blinked and looked down at the ground. "Could it be…?" He trailed off as he remembered that his team spoke in Earthland and Edolas, but…

"Wait a minute!" Nic announced. "Of course!" Nic turned towards the group with an epiphany. "Now it makes sense. Listen guys, in my world, Pokémon can't speak. That means they can only be understood in Edolas and Earthland."

Sophie put a hand to her hip. "So what you're saying is that in your world, we can't understand any of your guys?"

"But that doesn't necessarily explain how you can Nic." Carla said.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "I'm fairly certain about this theory. Since I have the power of the Plates, I can communicate thoroughly and understand Pokémon." He said. "That means I'll have to translate if necessary."

"Well that's something." Gray remarked. "By the way, how did you guys meet anyway?"

Wendy looked slightly energetic. "Yeah! I wanna know too!"

Nic turned and Garchomp nodded, and Nic nodded and the two grinned as Nic petted Garchomp's head. He then glanced back at the group. "Well, since you wanna know, let's try this." Nic then spread his feet and glowed, shifting into the Mind Plate with everyone surprised. "I do believe this will be interesting." Nic then inhaled and then exhaled, putting his hands close to the other and an energy sphere emerged. The pink sphere expanded so it was three feet in diameter. Everyone leaned in as Nic was conveying his memories.

_Nic was training with his Frogadier, doing a backflip and evading a Water Pulse that exploded. When Nic successfully landed, he skid back and came to a halt. "Not bad, keep going!" Nic exclaimed. _

_Frogadier then jumped and made two Water Pulse, one in each hand and he did a three-sixty, sending both spheres at Nic. Nic saw the two and leaned left and evaded one, and then ducked and spun to dodge the second. Nic adjusted himself and lunged at Froagdier, now dashing ahead and the two engaged in hand-to-hand combat._

_Frogadier flipped forward and swiped at Nic, but he ducked and spun counterclockwise and back-handed Frogadier. The Water-Type jumped and evaded the fist and planted both hands on as Nic followed through. Frogadier jumped off the fist and into the air, where he flipped and attempted an axe kick. Nic caught the axe kick and thrust his arm forward, shoving Frogadier in the air. Frogadier backflipped and landed onto his feet._

_Frogadier lunged at Nic, who crouched and spun about with hands on the ground as he brought his legs around a multitude of times, like dancing almost, and Frogadier blocked the incoming first kick, but that kick swept his arm away and he was hit on the side, making him skid towards his left. _

_When Froagdier finished, Nic stopped the continuous spin and got into a crouched position with one hand on the ground, staring at Frogadier. "Your reaction is off key Frogadier. Rather than block from that sweeping attack, spin out or jump!" _

_Frogadier nodded and the two then rushed at the other again, as they both emanated battlecries and dashed at the other with remarkable prowess, they saw something crack from in between. Their eyes caught the ground cracking and they stopped in place, before they were three feet from the other, that's when the ground between them broke and a small little draconic Pokémon emerged with a shark fin on his little body._

"_What the…? What is that?" Nic asked with uneasiness as the little dragon turned towards him. _

"_(I'm gonna smash you into oblivion!)" The small creature bellowed and jumped at Nic with surprise, clamping down on his head._

_Nic made a comically shocked expression with white eyes at the creature's actions and yelped as his head was being this guy's chew toy. "Get off!" Nic yelped, whirling an uppercut that struck the dragon and sent him landing onto his back. He land with a thud, and in that time period, Frogadier and Nic regrouped._

"_(The heck just happened?)" Frogadier wondered._

_Nic narrowed his eyes. "It's rambunctious, not to mention hostile." He deduced. He then got his Pokedex out and analyzed the creature._

_ "Gible, the Land Shark Pokémon. __It nests in horizontal holes warmed by geothermal heat. Foes who get too close can expect to be pounced on and bitten."_

_Gible wasted no time in readying himself with Slash. "(I'll tear you apart!)" Gible then jumped and rushed with Slash at Frogadier, who didn't recoil because he expected this. Thanks to the combat training he endures and lives with, he saw Gible use Slash diagonally and leaned left to dodge and spun, doing a three-sixty and tripping Gible. As Gible fell forward, Frogadier leaped and sprung off his side, knocking Gible land on his other side. Frogadier landed as Gible was on the ground._

"_(Whoa…)" Gible was left startled as he slowly got back to his feet. "(I didn't feel something like that in a while.)" He turned towards Gible and used Dragon Claw. "(But I'm just getting started!)"_

_Gible's energy claw went forward, in which Frogadier leaned left and dodged. As Gible brought the claw around to swat him, Frogadier jumped and did a handstand just like with Nic and leaped off of the Dragon Claw and into the air._

"_Now! __**Smack Down!**__" Nic's command reached Frogadier and a golden orb formed and Frogadier rolled in midair, throwing it in the process, striking Gible's head and making an explosion. Gible tumbled back and grunted as he was on the ground._

"_(That was…impressive.)" Gible admitted, marveled by Nic's battling style, which was close combat primarily. "(I will not give in to you frog!)" Gible declared, readying Slash._

"_(Come at me!)" Frogadier declared. Frogadier raced towards Gible and ducked, avoiding Slash and Gible did another Slash horizontally, but Frogadier leaped and flipped, evading once again. Frogadier landed and Gible rushed yet again, now having both arms for Slash. Frogadier shifted continuously and evaded more incoming Slash moves. When Gible used a horizontal Slash, Frogadier deflected it by thrusting his palm forward, making Gible pivot and land with a thud on the ground._

_Frogadier stared as Gible was hesitant to get up. Gible was trying and he was pretty exhausted. "(These two…just what are they…?)"_

_Before any answers could arise, Nic and Frogadier saw sparks at the nearby Power Plant, literally. They saw the entire structure fluctuating energy and the duo saw it. _

"_You see that Frogadier?" Nic asked, to which Frogadier nodded. "Let's go!"_

_Gible watched as Frogadier and Nic dashed off with surprising speed. He didn't say anything, but kept a narrowed expression. "(Just what is happening?)"_

"Hold up. So you mean that your Garchomp was originally that little thing?" Gray asked.

"Aw, he used to be cute." Sophie admired. Garchomp just stared at Sophie, making her regret saying that.

Nic continued as the memories played in his hands. "Anyways guys, it turned out that the Power Plant was commandeered by a group named Team Flare, a rather villainous group that wanted to make the world be eradicated of foul human nature."

Natsu crossed his arms. "So you're saying they're a Dark Guild of sorts?"

Nic blinked. "In a way, yeah. So I quarreled with them and I didn't realize Gible followed us, and he was shocked that we took them all out not with power, but by working together, and that led to the scientist." His memories then told the rest.

_Aliana, a member of Team Flare, looked with her Mightyena at Nic and Frogadier, who were both at their limit from the battling of the other grunts in the Power Plant. The two were exhausted, but they were holding up just fine._

_Nic extended his arm out. "Now! __**Water Pulse!**__" Frogadier conjured up a blue sphere and threw the attack at Mightyena, who jumped and dodged._

_Aliana extended her arm out. "Use Swagger and stop that thing!" _

"_(My prey is formidable, but I'm done playing around!)" Mightyena was coated in a red aura and then suddenly, Frogadier was starting to get a headache and his vision was getting red._

"_(What the…what's going on? I feel hazy…)" Frogadier was seeing red with shady figures that were Aliana and Mightyena. "(Is this a nightmare or what?!)"_

"_Frogadier, get a grip on yourself! Snap out of it!" Nic exclaimed, trying to get Frogadier to stop being confused. Frogadier was turning left and right, seeing red and hazy figures. He wasn't sure what to do._

"_Now, __**Assurance!**__" Aliana's command reached Mightyena and the Bite Pokémon went and attacked Frogadier as he had his back turned. Mightyena rammed Frogadier, making him tumble and land on his abdomen, facing Nic._

_Nic got worried as his Frogadier seemed to be exhausted and his health was pretty bad. As Mightyena, Nic got antsy and was tempted to step in._

"_Curse you-!"_

"_(HEY!)" Nic stopped and he and Mightyena and the Team Flare Scientist heard the sound. "(IT'S ON!)" Nic turned around and looked with shock at the incoming figure with a fury for the fight._

_It was Gible, and like it or not, he was gonna have a crack in this fight. "(I'M GONNA CRUSH YOU!)" Gible lunged right passed Frogadier towards a startled Mightyena, unleashing a Slash attack out of the blue. Mightyena howled as she jerked back from that rather painful attack. Gible then struck with another Slash as she was stumbling back, making Mightyena howl as she took even greater damage._

_Aliana was extremely baffled. "What is the meaning of this?!" She exclaimed. "Where did that Gible come from?!"_

_Nic blinked as he saw Gible rushing in to save them. "Gible…"_

_Gible turned back towards Nic. "(Let's have some fun destroying these pests. I want to fight.)" He said more calmly than before as Nic returned Frogadier. "(Your teamwork and style…it's weird, but I love it. I want to know more!)"_

"_Impudent intruder!" Aliana extended her arm out. "__**Assurance!**__" Mightyena then followed her orders and the Dark-Type went and pounced._

"_Alright then Gible, shift right and used Dragon Claw!" Nic commanded. Gible then leaped left and Mightyena landed, and Gible pivoted and struck Mightyena on the left side with a harsh Dragon Claw, making her yelp and skid onto her side. "__**Slash!**__" Gible then had his claws glow and extend and he rushed as Mightyena was hesitant to get up. _

_Aliana wasn't gonna take this. "Quick, dodge!" Mightyena reeled back just in time to avoid the incoming Slash. "Now, __**Swagger!**__" She commanded._

_Nic went wide-eyed and gasped slightly, remembering that it confused Frogadier. "Gible! Strike now!" Nic had no idea what Gible would do, but it would be better than getting confused._

"_(Choke on this!)" Gible pivoted just before Mightyena could flash a red aura, and he struck her with a Dragon Claw, surprising everyone at the startling and unrelenting attacks Gible used._

'_Gible attacks with never-ending blows. He loves to fight and gives no room to defend.' Nic thought as Mightyena zoomed back and tumbled, fainting. Nic grinned at the thought. 'Gible fits my combat style perfectly.'_

_Aliana was appalled, returning Mightyena and retreating with her grunts. Pretty soon, the police arrived out at the Power Plant, arresting and questioning the grunts that were unconscious thanks to Nic. Nic escaped the Power Plant and Gible followed, and the two went out undetected by everyone and were back in the badlands._

_As the sun was setting from that day, giving way to dusk, Nic looked forward at the direction of Lumiose City. _

"_(Nic was it?)" Gible asked, making Nic stop and he turned around. Gible said nothing as he looked at Nic with a mild expression._

_Nic blinked and smiled. "Thank you today. It was rough, but we managed to pull through." Nic inhaled and he turned around, but as he started walking, Gible raced in front of him._

"_(Wait!)" He called out. To his surprise, Nic crouched down and pet his head, leaving him speechless._

_Nic gave a very warm smile. "Gible, despite your demeanor, you're a very kind Pokémon. You know that?" Gible was shocked again, but had put up no fight as Nic's warm vibe made him happy. Nic picked up Gible and pet his head._

_Gible smiled. "(This human, no, Nic…he's so warm and strong. And his team must be as well. I want to be lucky just like them.)"_

_Nic kept his smile. "I know what you're thinking buddy, and I'm inviting you to be a part of my family."_

The memory bubble then faded and Nic shifted back into himself. "And that's where it all started." He said. He turned and pet Garchomp's head, who smiled with a mild and calm demeanor.

Wendy walked up and smiled. "You know." Nic and Garchomp turned towards her. "When you both aren't in battle, you're both actually very nice." Garchomp lowered his head, where he allowed for Wendy to pet his head, and despite his rough skin, he was seemingly warm.

"Yeah." Nic said. "Garchomp is the most gentle one when not in battle, he's very nice once you get passed that vile and monstrous exterior. He just loves to battle, and our styles blend perfectly." Nic said. Garchomp turned towards him and they both kept their grins. "It's good to remember these things."

"(I couldn't agree more.)" Garchomp said. Nic then returned Garchomp, and then he turned back towards the group.

Seeing the smile and memories Nic had, it made Erza smile as well. It was interesting to see how such beginnings turn into some glorious future.

Suddenly, there was some odd sound emanating about through the air, and everyone could hear it. This made Nic go wide-eyed as he was unaware as to what this sound was. The sound was like a distortion of sorts, but no static.

"What's that sound?" Gray asked, turning here and there. "Where's it coming from?"

"It's like it's not here, yet it is." Sophie said. "What do you think it is?"

"I don't know, but be alert." Nic said.

The sound began to clear up, and Nic and all of the Fairy Tail members could hear. _'Nic Pularis.' _The one voice said. _'At last we managed to contact you.'_

Nic went wide-eyed as he recognized the voice. "That voice. Then…"

A similar secondary voice was heard. _'Hello once again Nic Pularis and friends.'_

"Who is that?" Lisanna asked.

"Dialga! Palkia!" Nic shouted into the air. "What's going on?!"

There was a brief silence before Dialga spoke. _'Relax Nic, we are communicating through telepathy. We are speaking from your minds.'_

"This is just like Hibiki's Telepathy!" Happy exclaimed.

"I must say, I am quite curious as to what these two have in mind for us." Carla said.

Erza turned towards Nic. "Nic, just who are Dialga and Palkia?"

Nic turned towards her. "They're both Legendary Pokémon that can wield time and space. They're also the ones responsible for sending me to Earthland in the first place." Nic then looked up at the starry sky. "Dialga, Palkia, what's going on?! How did we get sent to Kalos?!"

'_We're not sure, but there was a disturbance in spatial properties from within the Anima, as if the Anima was hijacked.' _Palkia announced.

'_We're not sure how, but the energy was all too familiar for us.' _Dialga said. _'The only one who can bend space is Hoopa.'_

"Hoopa?" Natsu asked.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Tell me, who is Hoopa?"

'_Hoopa. A very mischievous Pokémon.' _Dialga explained. _ 'Arceus had sealed him, Mewtwo, and Darkrai into a voided dimension. Arceus also sent another Pokémon, one who is beyond comprehension. We believe that he is the mastermind. His name is Giratina, our brethren whom we were to never speak of.' _This made Nic go wide-eyed with shock that there was a third who was to be forgotten.

Palkia continued from that point. _'Giratina, the Renegade Pokémon. His deeds in the past, including violence and various treachery, has forced him to be banished and sealed away. As to where Dialga controls time and I control space, Giratina controls antimatter.'_

"So you're saying that this Giratina conspired this?" Erza asked.

'_We're sure of it. Giratina is as crafty as he is violent. He will stop at nothing to achieve revenge on Arceus. And supposedly, Hoopa, Mewtwo, and Darkrai have all conspired by his side.' _Dialga said.

'_We can only assume he had Hoopa use his powers and send you here.' _Palkia said.

Lucy stepped forward and looked at the sky, hearing the voices. "But why here? Why did they sent us to Kalos?"

'_Knowing those four, they're trying to cut Nic off from achieving anymore Plates that could be hidden on Earthland. With Nic in Kalos, he won't be able to find any Plates, meaning the only way that Nic can get the Plates is to get back to Earthland.' _Palkia explained.

Gajeel crossed his arms. "So Luminous can't use these new Plates because you've put them in Earthland? What crap."

Dialga's voice was then heard. _'We know, but it was a precaution for Nic. There is a great evil, one that could possibly rival Giratina and the others in pure evil.' _He warned. _'Nic's under threat and we sent him to Fiore for that reason, to buy time.'_

"Speaking of Fiore." Nic interrupted, knowing just whom they were talking about and not wanting the others to get involved for their safety. "Can you send us back?"

A brief silence fell as everyone looked at the starry sky that was so majestic. Palkia's voice was then heard. _'Nic, we cannot do that at this time.'_

Nic gasped, as well as everyone as Palkia stated that they can't send him and his pals to Fiore. "Why?!"

'_Apparently a tremendous negative discharge of antimatter is only allowing us to make portals in certain places for a short amount of time.' _Dialga said. _'Giratina must have incorporated some of his antimatter power in conjunction with Hoopa's portal, sending an antimatter discharge all throughout Kalos.'_

'_We're doing our very best to open portals, but the antimatter won't let up for quite some time. I fear that with us tending to Arceus and our constant powers to find spots to make portals, you may have but a week before we are exhausted of our share of power.' _Palkia explained.

Everyone jerked in shock. "Hold on! You mean we only have a week to find a portal that you guys made?!" Sophie exclaimed.

"And you're gonna have us travel through Kalos until we find one?!" Nic testified.

'_Unfortunately, that is all you can do.' _Dialga said. _'You're objective, young ones, is to find a portal that shall send you to Fiore. You must run. Run. Run until Nic senses one.' _Palkia said.

Dialga continued. _'Thanks to Nic's affiliations with the Plates, only he can sense where a portal is located. But be warned, Giratina's antimatter is so potent that it may have a negative effect, but we can't be sure who or what is involved.'_

Nic perceived this as a warning as the antimatter could be a problem. Hopefully, it wouldn't _matter (hah!)_.

'_Good luck everyone. We shall see you when you find and enter a portal.' _Palkia's voice then trailed off, and the sound in the air vanished into nothing. This left the group with some shock as they had an objective.

"So the only back is to find a portal, but we only have so much time before said individual portal closes. This means that we'll be going on a wild goose chase with Nic leading the charge." Erza summarized.

Nic looked down at the ground with narrowed eyes. "I guess there's no choice. It's up to me."

Sophie smiled. "Don't worry Nic! We'll find one in less than a week!" She announced.

Lucy smiled. "Yeah! You haven't let us down!"

Gray crossed his arms. "I gotta say, it'll be one heck of a chase, but we'll pull through."

Nic looked back at the group to see them smiling at Nic, the only one who can sense the portals. Seeing everyone relying on him, it felt like a huge weight on his shoulders, but he smiled through it, seeing as how they had his back.

"Thanks guys." Nic said. "We'll find one and get back to Fiore in less than a week."

Erza stepped forward with a smile. "Agreed. You have our faith Nic."

With Erza's words, Nic gave a soft smile and then he turned towards the group with a more serious attitude. "Alright guys, listen up! We have one week to find a portal and get through it. If not, we'll be stuck here for an even longer period. Now that we're in Kalos, my homeland, that means you're playing by my rules! And here's how it's gonna go down; under no circumstances will you ever use your Magic in public. The hysteria will bring about concern for general health of others and we'll be compromised. Understood?"

Everyone nodded, though Natsu just whistled like it wasn't his business, in which Nic gave him a stare and Natsu stiffened and obediently nodded, much to his dismay.

"Another term is that if we reach any town or city, you guys have to dress casual, that means regular clothing and/or attire. Anything standing out from the public will cause unwanted attention."

Erza then crossed her arms. "So you're saying my armor would stand out, correct?"

Nic nodded. "Yeah, but if there's no choice or if it's a last resort, then go ahead." He then turned towards south. "And another thing guys, I know this place, and I remember full well that we're much closer to Lumiose City than Coumarine City. You all will require an attire change."

Lucy stepped forward. "So, just what is Lumiose City?"

Nic glanced back at Lucy. "It's the biggest city in all of Kalos. It's very large, so it's best that we stay together." Nic said. "Though I don't spend much time in cities, I do know their geography, so I can be the tracker if anyone gets lost." He turned towards Happy, Carla, and Lily. "Happy. Carla. Lily. This is important. You must not be seen at any and all costs. People would accuse you as unknown Pokémon and might even try and catch you."

"And just what to do you mean by catch?" Carla asked.

Nic then held out a poke ball and showed it to everyone. "You see this thing? It's called a poke ball. It's a device used to encase a Pokémon."

Happy stepped forward. "But wait, we're not Pokémon!"

"But they don't know that." Nic said. "So whatever it is you have to do, either keep out of sight, or act like plush toys. Either way, we must get moving as quickly as we possibly can." He then turned towards south once more. "Another thing. You have to keep up. My speed and agility is unlike anyone has ever seen, and people find it hard to believe that I can be on par with a Pokémon in combatant terms. I'll restrain from using my powers in public as well…now it's time to go. If we move for a while and rest shortly after, Lumiose City should be in sight by dawn. Now let's move it!"

"W-Wait…!" Sophie wasn't fully prepared, neither was anybody for that matter, but all they saw was Nic running, and he was fast! I mean fast! Everyone started running after him and trying to keep up, despite that they were still rather exhausted from the Edolas battle. They had no time for breaks. Eventually, two hours passed by and the group finally caught to Nic, who was ahead of them by a long shot. When they regrouped, they all rest for the remaining time until the sun began to rise.

* * *

**Later…**

The group had finally entered Lumiose City, where it was hustle and bustle all about. Everyone, even Gajeel and Lily, were slightly impressed by the modern structure of the city and how there were endless lights and vehicles riding all about, and seeing an actual cab drove by made Natsu pale.

"Well guys, here we are." Nic announced. "This is the north side, so don't get too overwhelmed with what you see now."

Natsu and everyone continued marveling at Lumiose City. "Oh wow, it's gigantic!"

"Aye-er, I mean…" Happy remembered that either he had to keep quiet and act like a plush, or keep out of sight. He caught himself slipping on that and kept quiet and he jumped into Natsu's arms. If was gonna be a plush, then he's gotta be held like a plush. Apparently Carla and Lily followed Happy's example.

"I gotta say, this is impressive." Gray said.

"Yeah, you think Edolas could learn a thing or two from Nic's world!" Sophie stated enthusiastically.

Nic turned back towards the group, seeing how Erza was already playing by his rules and her attire was her blue skirt and white blouse. He grinned and he looked at everyone else. "Listen guys, we have to find the Pokémon Center, which is where we can take shelter and clean up." He announced. "Just follow my lead and we should be there soon."

True to Nic's words, the group went a couple blocks forwards and were very fortunate that it was morning and there were minimal people around, so they could get to the Pokémon Center with ease with little to no discomfort.

They all eventually made it, and they were in front of a red building embedded into a regular building (like in the game) and Nic looked up and pondered.

"It sure has been a long time since I've been to one of these things." Nic said, reminiscing with a smile.

Erza stepped to Nic's side. "You must have missed this world, haven't you?" She asked.

Nic turned towards her and he kept quiet for a short while before speaking with a soft smile. "Some parts, yes. Don't get me wrong, I love Fairy Tail, and I wouldn't trade you guys for anything, but Kalos holds a certain part dear to me as well."

Seeing the deep reminiscing that Nic was going through, Erza couldn't help but wonder something with a neutral expression. _'Nic, I wish I knew what that something dear was so I can help you find it. Seeing you distraught like this is uneasy to bare.' _With that, Erza made a mental note to help understand Nic and his past.

Natsu stepped forward with hands behind his head. "So what are we waiting for? Let's go inside!" With Happy immobile on his head, Natsu went inside, with everyone else following.

They got inside and found a surprisingly spacious domain that had several rooms, with the room they were in now being where Nurse Joy was. There was an elevator that led to the upstairs compartments, which were spare rooms for Trainers. To the right of the Center was the lounge, and when you enter the lounge, you take a left after that, there's the eating establishment.

"Welcome." Nurse Joy greeted, seeing all the individuals. "Can I help you?"

Nic had to think in a flash, and that's what he was intended for. "Yes." He then got out all six of his poke balls present for Nurse Joy to handle. "Can you make sure that my team is healthy please?"

Nurse Joy kept her smile. "Why certainly." He took Nic's poke balls and started for the back room, where she would heal the Pokémon and make sure they get some rest.

"Why did you just give her your Pokémon, Nic? What's the big deal?" Gray asked.

Nic turned towards Gray. "Don't worry. That's Nurse Joy. She's trained to heal any and all Pokémon, and there are plenty of Pokémon Centers established throughout Kalos, so every Nurse Joy established there would be obligated to heal all Trainer's Pokémon.

"What do you mean by 'every Nurse Joy'?" Lisanna asked.

"Well…" Nic gave a comical despondent look and sweatdropped. "How about I show ya." He walked over to the right of the counter and he faced the group and pointed up at a framed picture. Everyone looked and saw that there were so many Nurse Joys in the picture, all identical.

"WHAT?!" They all gave comically shocked expressions.

Nic raised a brow. "Surprised?"

"Yeah we are!" Lucy exclaimed.

"There's so many! How are there so many Nurse Joys?" Wendy asked.

Nic opened his mouth, about to answer with the truth, but Natsu and Gray just had to go and start making accusations.

"They all gotta be twins or something!" Natsu pointed out.

Gray crossed his arms. "Yeah right, she must have a special Duplication Magic or sorts." Gray testified at Natsu.

Almost immediately, their expressions turned bitter as they were glaring lasers at the other. Natsu bared his teeth at Gray. "As if popsicle! They're all related!"

"Yeah?! How do you know they're not clones ya pyro?!" Gray and Natsu then emanated their respective orange and blue auras and they butted heads.

"Ya care to prove it stripper?!"

"I care to beat your face in!"

Thankfully, Erza butted in and yanked them both away from the other by grabbing their heads. "Cut it out you two!" She then slammed their heads into the other, making Natsu and Gray both drop to the floor. Erza had hands to her hips and glowered down at the two. "This is no time to be fighting! We'll get answers soon enough!"

Nic crossed his arms and leaned back against the way. "Actually Gray…Natsu's right." Nic corrected, making everyone there jerk and whip towards Nic in astonishment. Everyone turned white and was in revelation as Nic continued. "All of these Nurse Joys are either sisters, twins, or cousins of each other. Remember, no one here can use Magic, so everything here is natural. Also, Gray, you still don't have a shirt on."

"Oh crap!" Gray realized this and everyone speculated that they needed to get into appropriate attire, and rather quickly.

Nic turned his head up towards the elevator. "Upstairs is a small shelter where donated clothes are kept. Find something and there's fitting rooms too." He informed. "Erza doesn't have too, and the Exceeds stay put."

Thankfully, since no one was around, the Exceeds were let go and they walked close to Nic and Erza as everyone went up the elevator.

"Alright, let's get dressed, find some food, and we are out of here!" Natsu shouted as he was full energy.

Nic caught the flaw with Natsu rather quickly and tried out to him. "Uh, wait! Natsu! An elevator is…!" But Nic's warning was too late as Natsu took his first steps onto the elevator and then his motion sickness took over. Natsu fell forward and his cheeks puffed as he was whisked away upward by the elevator.

"Aw geez." Lucy sighed.

"That's Natsu for you." Lisanna noted.

Gray then waited and started up the elevator. "Let's just hope he doesn't leave vomit up there." With that, Gray went up the elevator, surprised the stairs move and not his feet.

"Impressive, so your world has these inclines called elevators?" Lily asked since no one was around still.

"Correct." Nic said. "It's convenience. If you guys were to stick around long enough, you would find that Kalos has a bunch of necessities that Earthland and Edolas doesn't." Everyone then made it up to where Natsu was recovering from his motion sickness and they pressed on with their duties.

Erza turned towards Nic, seeing the calm expression he gave off. She wasn't exactly sure if this was the right time, but she had to know. Just what was bothering Nic. "Nic." She asked, getting Nic's attention.

"Hm?"

"Something's been bothering me." She paused and glanced down at the ground before resuming. "You've seemed uneasy ever since we came to Kalos. I know something is bothering you?" She glanced back at him. "And I knew because you seemed despondent after Lisanna told her story. What's going on?"

Nic gave a twisted yet dejected expression as he clenched his forearms again. He lowered his head and his eyes showed some hints of regret and sadness.

Carla had hands to her hips. "Erza, are you sure this is wise to ask?"

"It's okay Carla." Nic said. "She deserves to know." Nic then glanced towards Erza. "Erza, do you remember when I explained about my past?"

Erza blinked and took a moment before answering. "Roughly, about how you were abused and your sister was pampered?"

"So you do remember." Nic had some sign of satisfactory so as not to replay that story again. "Well I never really went in depth before, but the primary reason that I was uneasy about Lisanna's story is because I haven't seen _my _sister in three years. It hurts really." A shadow went over his eyes. "I can't help but feel conflicted. I want to meet my sister more than anything else right now, but I can't."

Erza was kept quiet as Nic was still explaining about how he felt all torn up. "Now that I'm back, I could have a chance to meet my sister, but the universe is depending on me. Arceus is depending on me. My priorities were conflicting with my feelings and…I don't want my sister to wind up being destroyed with the universe." Nic's voice broke in the last part of that sentence. "So regrettably, I have to keep moving on, for all of our sakes. I want the universe to keep in balance, so that my sister can be safe."

Nic's commitment to his responsibility was something he wasn't allowed to abandon, not when innocent lives are at risk. There was a silence as Nic looked dejected at the ground. Erza took a moment and processed what Nic was going through. Seeing him like this made her sad. If she were in his shoes, perhaps, she would feel the same. It would be a very tough choice, but she would have to go down the same road.

Erza did feel sorry for Nic, as did the Exceeds. The four looked as Nic wasn't doing much but glower and think that he'll have to wait to see his sister. Perhaps someday they'll meet, and they'll be reunited at long last. Three years, that's a long time. Nic left for a longer period than Lisanna. Lisanna was only gone for two years, as to where Nic left for three. The pain of not seeing a sibling that long is unimaginable, but even from such a distance, family is forever.

Erza then gently leaned over and hugged Nic, much to the latter's shock. It wasn't a bone-crushing hug, nor was it a light hug, but this was a genuine caring hug that resembled sympathy and care for the well-being of Nic's distraught mind. Erza kept her gentle and warm embrace as she smiled warmly over Nic's shoulder.

"I'm sure she would be very proud of how far you've come." She said. "I wish I could meet her too."

Nic's attitude started changing into a warm vibe again, and he couldn't help but return the embrace. The two were hugging their pains away, much to their delight. They can't deny that Nic pushed his problems away, but he started to feel much more comfortable around Erza again, and hopefully he will get an answer as to if Erza wanted him or Jellal, but for now, he'll be content from where he stood.

Happy contained his chuckles as he wanted to tease so badly. So badly. If he did, however, he would not live another second. Basic math is Nic plus Erza equals two demons that shall annihilate jokers. The sheer thought of those two teaming up and destroying Happy and sending him to the moon and beyond made in shiver and pale.

The two parted from the embrace and soon, Natsu came down from the elevator, forgetting that he gets motion sickness and had puffy cheeks as he ended up on the bottom, with fresh clothes. Everyone soon joined with simple attires. Their clothing were simple shirts and pants, nothing that would make them stand out. Exclude Gajeel, in which he had a shirt with no sleeves, and Natsu did as well.

Attires aside, which nobody reading this would care, the group made haste and snacked in the breakfast area after Nic got his team back from Nurse Joy. There, there were quite a few Trainers, so playing plush toy for the Exceeds was apparent. Natsu and the gang got plenty of food, and Natsu had a smorgasbord of pancakes and various sausages.

"Aw man, this is good." Natsu said as he ate the pancakes. He then swallowed and turned towards Nic. "What did you call these things again?"

"Pancakes." Nic bluntly stated. "We also got plenty of food that Earthland doesn't have. Maybe I'll find a cookbook and give it to Mira so you guys can make pizza or something."

"Sweet! Buffet, here I come!" Natsu cheered, but was silenced by Erza, reminding Natsu to be aware of Trainers and to not get attention. The Exceeds ate under the gathered tables, so as to avoid detection. Though there wasn't any fish, anything edible would suffice for Happy's appetite.

Shortly afterwards, the entire group exited the Pokémon Center and Nic's coat flapped in the winds that blew. Nic looked in the direction of Prism Tower, where his Gible evolved and won him the Voltage Badge.

Reminiscing in those memories would have to wait as Nic turned and started walking, with everyone following. "Stay close guys." Nic warned. "I say we make way to one of the main plazas; from there, we'll find a gate and we'll set out from there."

"Sure, lead the way Nic." Sophie said. Everyone followed Nic as he led the group, and the pretend-plush Exceeds, towards one of the main plazas. Nic led the group through a rather lengthy trek as he had arrived in Vernal Avenue, just in front of Prism Tower.

Everyone looked at just how massive the tower was. It was much bigger than the Guild Hall, but not as big as the Tower of Heaven, but even so, it was very impressive to behold. "Whoaaaaa." Natsu marveled at how huge Prism Tower really was. "Geez Nic, that thing is high tech!"

"Yeah, and I still can't believe that this thing is the center of Lumiose City itself." Gray remarked.

"It's pretty impressive." Wendy remarked, holding a quiet Carla.

"Yes, it sure is. Believe it or not, this tower is the Lumiose Gym itself." Nic commented.

Erza turned towards Nic. "And just what exactly are these gyms you say?"

"Do they have a lot of weights?" Natsu asked.

Nic gave a twisted face at Natsu. "I'll pretend you didn't say that." He then looked back at Erza. "To be more accurate Erza, a gym is a specific location where challengers are welcome to battle against the ones in charge, namely the Gym Leaders themselves." Nic explained. "The Gym Leader is a tough Trainer and challengers have to defeat them in order to win a badge. The objective is if you win all eight badges in all eight gyms spread through Kalos, you're welcome to challenge the Pokémon League."

Erza blinked and nodded in confirmation. "And I take it that this Pokémon League is strong, yes?"

Nic then got an even more serious expression on his face. "You have no idea. The Pokémon League is comprised of the Elite Four, the four most powerful Trainers in Kalos. Above them lies the one person no one has beaten. Her name is Diantha, the Champion of Kalos." Nic paused as everyone processed the information with shock. "Her Pokémon are the strongest of them all, and those who've tried to defeat her have failed. You really only get one shot at her and the Elite Four, and if you're defeated even once, you're done."

Sophie crossed her arms. "Sounds like an all or nothing gamble."

"It is to everyone." Nic then turned towards her. "But in my case, I just saw it as a hurdle to prove how far I've come."

"So you've fought Diantha in the past?!" Lisanna asked.

"Did you beat her?!" Wendy asked.

Nic looked down and snickered. "Technically…"

A pair of footsteps was heard and a certain someone was walking up Vernal Plaza. She looked rather content as there was a nice wind blowing today. This girl looked barely fifteen, just barely. She was average height for a fifteen-year-old, and a rather slender and nice figure that would leave any man speechless. She had long, flowing black hair. Her bangs primarily covering the top of her right eye, much like Erza, but the bangs covered only enough so you could see both of her warm, blue eyes. The most noticeable trait her head had was single bright blonde bang that went above her right eye. Her black hair reached down to her upper torso. She had black workout yoga pants that went and covered her slender legs, stopping halfway down the shins. She had on brown hiking sandals. Over her navy blue tank top was a grey shirt that was left open, as though a miniature jacket. The sleeves were very short and the shirt reached down just below her hips. She not only had a Mega Ring on her right wrist, but she also had a big, brown purse on her right side, with the strap going over her left shoulder.

Said fifteen-year-old scratched the back of her head as it was morning. "Oh boy." She yawned as she walked. "Why I oversleep is something I'll never figure out. I was very glad I won the Voltage Badge." She smiled and started contemplating. "That Route 14 was a little bit much for me, maybe I'll try again and hopefully I'll…" She stopped and froze in place when she saw a small group up ahead. She took note that one had pink hair, one had blue hair, one had red hair, and there were a few others, but she took primary notice in the one with the flowing, black, sleeveless coat with blue flames.

"Wait a minute…" She muttered. "Is that…?" She narrowed her eyes and saw the figures face turn to his friends, and then her eyes went wide with sheer shock, as if she's seen a ghost. She gasped incredibly loudly, making it sound as though she was suffocating. She was at loss for words. She knew him. "I…I…It can't be…" She began shaking uncontrollably. "I-Is it really Nic?"

She suddenly found herself running madly forward towards Nic, as though her life depended on it. She was moving as fast as a Dugtrio moving underground. Her eyes were getting misty as she was getting closer and closer.

With Nic's group, Nic was continuing speaking. "Technically, I really don't like to talk about it, but…"

"Nic!" A female voice called out. Almost immediately, Nic froze and went wide-eyed, stopping whatever the heck he was saying. He was as motionless as a Nosepass as he heard that voice echo through his head.

The female voice called out once again. "Nic! It's me!" She called out. Everyone from Fairy Tail turned to where the voice came from, seeing a young girl running towards them with blue eyes that were misty with tears.

"That voice…it can't be…" Nic was the last one to turn his head and look at who was coming his way, and when he turned around, Nic saw the girl and he went wide-eyed and gasped in deep shock, as if he too had seen a ghost.

The girl stopped twenty feet away from the group and huffed and puffed as she started to have tears fall. She couldn't care less if people were seeing this, because she wanted to meet Nic. The two stared at each other for a long time, with the girl tearing up while Nic was left frozen.

"Nic…it really is you!" She called out.

"Y-You…" Nic couldn't help it, but since his sunglasses weren't on, everyone started seeing his eyes stop shaking as they were getting very misty much like the girl's. "I can't believe it…after all this time…"

The girl was smiling ever so happily as she then broke into a dash towards Nic, her tears falling in the wind. "Nic!"

Nic suddenly broke away from the group and started running towards her, tears starting to fall down his face too. "It's you!" He smiled and exclaimed.

The two people were running towards each other with tears going down their faces.

"Nic!"

"Vanessa!"

The two people clashed into each other and hugged each other tightly, finally hugging after so long. Nic was holding onto Vanessa like his life depended on it, and Vanessa was crying so hard, her bawling and sobbing tears drenching Nic's shoulder. Vanessa continued sobbing, as was Nic. The two hugged each other while everyone from Fairy Tail watched.

Lucy was just as confused as anybody else, but she looked happy with a smile. "I don't know why, but I feel happy."

Sophie nodded. "Yeah, it's obvious those two know each other."

Natsu and everyone looked on with half grins, but Erza looked on with suspicion and joy at the same time. "Wait a minute. Those eyes, they're the same." She muttered, and then realization dawned upon her. She wanted to say something, but she looked on with a smile as she knew who Nic was hugging. Erza couldn't be anymore happier for Nic right now.

Vanessa smiled as she hugged Nic. "I missed you Nic."

Nic let tears fall as he also smiled. "Yeah, you have no idea how much I missed you." He said over her shoulder.

Erza and everyone else watched with curiosity and content as a couple more minutes scrolled by and the tears finally settled. The two were just hugging it out for that entire time period. The two were as happy as can be.

Finally, Nic had let go and held Vanessa by the shoulders. "Wow Vanessa, you've grown."

Vanessa nodded. "M-hm. I'm just following your footsteps. You became a Pokémon Trainer, and a few months ago, I finally set out."

Nic's smile never left his face. "Vanessa." Nic brought her in for another hug. "I'm so proud of you. I'm so sorry for these three years." His eyes started getting misty again. "I'm so…so sorry."

Vanessa gently Nic away and she smiled. "Nic, look at me." She said, in which Nic did. "It's alright. Look at me. I'm all grown up. I set out at last and decided to become as strong as you've become. Joanna and Michael took really great care of me. They raised a fine girl to look after herself. Here I am, proof that I'm healthy."

Nic wiped a few stranded tears away and the two were left in a content smile. "I'm glad I got to reunite with you Vanessa." Nic said.

Gray finally stepped forward. "Uh Nic?" He asked. "I'm happy for you two to catch up, but could you please tell us who exactly she is?"

Erza turned towards Gray with crossed arms. "Gray, be nice. Nic's obviously having his moment."

Nic turned back towards Vanessa and then back at the group. "I guess it's time for a full introduction. I never really told you guys much, didn't I?" Nic rhetorically asked. Everyone was curious just how Nic was linked to this certain individual, but they would soon find out.

Nic then looked back at Vanessa, who presented herself to the group. "Guys, I want you to meet Vanessa. My sister."

* * *

**I'm sure many of you saw this coming. Nic's sister is finally making an appearance. I actually had to make sketches to find an attire and appearance that would suit her. At any rate, I tried to make their reunion as emotional and touchy as it could get. As I was typing, I couldn't help but cry when I wrote Lisanna saying goodbye to Edolas Mira and Elfman, and I sobbed again a little as I made Nic reunite with Vanessa. I honestly can't understand why I'm extremely sensitive, but whatever. Review if you had the feels too.**

**I was on a roll with this chapter. I got close to 7K in one day, and I finished up the next day, meaning this took two days to write. Hoorah! **

**Don't fret over Pokémon appearances, they'll come. I got next chapter ready to be made, and PokeguardianZ has been waiting for this next chapter for a long time, so be ready for a one-chapter appearance of someone, and I don't mean Vanessa.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving this Arc and the various surprises I had installed that you are loving and can't wait for more.**

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**Next Time: Like Brother, Like Sister**


	37. Like Brother, Like Sister

Chapter 37 – Like Brother, Like Sister

**Hello, my wonderful readers and Reviewers! Insane Dominator is on a roll with these past few updates! I'm glad that the Kalos Arc has positive Reviews up to this point; thank you guys so much for allowing me to give you 37 chapters of insanity, and there is a whole lot more to come in the future.**

**Since I'm situated in college now, this means I'll have to start looking for a part-time job, but I'll still be working on FanFiction, so don't worry for I'll still find time every day to get some writing in. Now for Reviews.**

**Guest Valvrave: Let's just say I have a few surprises for Vanessa.**

**shadowmwape: In terms of their hairstyle, yes. But remember, Vanessa has black hair with a single blond bang.**

**Alpha Dragonis: Let's just say many things are to come in this chapter.**

**tylerxc626: Nope, I am absolutely NOT gonna include Ash and friends.**

**Alright then, let's get on with the show!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the OC that appears in this chapter, she belongs to PokeguardianZ.**

**To Recap:**

Realizing that they made it to Kalos, along with Panther Lily and Lisanna, Nic and the Fairy Tail members present get in contact with Dialga and Palkia, who explained that Giratina had Hoopa transport them to Kalos and they have but one week to find a portal. They made it to Lumiose City, where they regrouped and started planning where to set off, and that's when the group encounters Nic's little sister, Vanessa.

* * *

**Chapter 37 – Like Brother, Like Sister**

"WHAAAAA?! YOUR _SISTER_?!" A majority of everyone howled in comical shock, hearing Nic introduce Vanessa to everyone.

Nic raised a brow and realization had hit him like a Hammer Arm on the head. "Oh right! I hardly told you guys about her, didn't I?" He said.

Natsu stepped forward with a smile. "Yeah, this is a surprise!"

Sophie was baffled, and it was clearly shown on her face. "No kidding! You never told us you had a sister!"

Vanessa, ignoring their comments, turned happily towards her brother. "I take it that you never mentioned me much, huh?" She sounded slightly rhetorical, but also sad at the same time. As Nic was going to explain, Vanessa had a soft grin come across her face. "It's okay, I don't blame you. It's better so our past stays shrouded."

Nic smiled, seeing how he would feel the exact same way if he were in his sibling's shoes, er sandals, it's a figurative speech okay?! Anyways, Nic turned towards the group and he presented Vanessa to everybody. "Vanessa, these are my friends. I want you to meet Natsu, Gray, Erza, Lucy, Wendy, Gajeel, Lisanna, and Sophie." He announced.

Vanessa marveled at the numerous friends that Nic had. She honestly felt super happy; not just because she met new people, but because her brother finally has friends. Vanessa was at a loss for words.

"I…I don't know what to say Nic. You met so many people that I'm left shocked." She stated. "…It was just the two of us, and now look."

Lucy blinked. "Uh, wait. What do you mean by the two of you?"

The Pularis siblings then lost their grins, remembering their sullied past. Even now, that past follows them. The two looked at one another and stared, understanding that since Nic's friends are now involved.

Nic sighed and turned back towards the group. "I think you guys have the right to know. Erza already knows, so I apologize in advance."

Erza nodded. "It's alright Nic. Don't beat yourself up over this. It's best to let it off your chest."

"Okay." Nic then turned away and glanced back at the group. "Follow me." Everyone then trailed behind Nic as he made way towards Bleu Plaza, where minimal people were around and a blue column represented the circular plaza. When they arrived, Nic and Vanessa both stood right next to each other and nodded in understanding to the other.

Nic and Vanessa then began to share their story, about how Vanessa was like the princess and how Nic was like the junkyard dog that was kicked around for fun. Lucy, and Sophie, and pretty much all the females there had hands over their mouths when Nic and Vanessa went on about their parents being extreme alcoholics sometimes and would come home from losing so many gambles and letting Nic take their frustration, having their father's Magneton take orders to shock Nic and make him beg for mercy, in which only got him kicked in the face even more. They even went on about how one day Vanessa stood up for her brother and was hurt, in which made Nic snap and beat the crap out of his parents, but he nearly got killed in the end, ultimately seeking help the next day, and then the parents went berserk in front of the police and they nearly killed a few officers. The two siblings were then given custody to the kind neighbors, and the parents were sent to life in prison.

At the end, Vanessa had misty eyes as she then recounted about not even a couple of days later that Professor Sycamore had heard about this and he gave Nic the opportunity to see the world, in which they would meet in Aquacorde Town, where Nic would meet Greninja as a Froakie.

_Now out of shabby clothing, Nic had on his present attire that was given as part of the compensation for fifteen years of hell. When he got on his coat, it flapped in the wind and Nic turned his back towards the foster parents and Vanessa, who looked on with sadness._

_Nic had a sad expression over his face, knowing that he chose this way, and he didn't wanna look back._

"_Are you sure you have to go?" Joanna asked, who was a young woman with blue eyes and long brown hair that was wavy and went down to her back. She had on a pink dress and pink heled shoes._

"_Nic, we understand that you've suffered. We can give you what you've earned." Michael persuaded, the man having short brown hair and brown eyes. He had on a white dress shirt and classy work pants that were a dark grey and black shoes. "You can stay with us and we'll give you fresh clothes and a real home and-!"_

"_No." Nic said, stopping him in mid-sentence. Nic still had his back turned as he spoke. "You've done more than enough for me. Joanna. Michael. Your job is to be foster parents, and that is what you must do. Vanessa is still young, so look after her for both our sakes." He paused as Vanessa had shaken eyes and she was starting to stream tears. "This is the path I've chosen. I won't be weighed down anymore. It's time I start seeing the sun and new faces."_

_Joanna blinked as her eyes were shaken, but she smiled through it all. "We understand, but never forget that you're always welcome here."_

_Michael swallowed and nodded in agreement with his wife. "Don't you worry, we know you have to look after yourself now. Vanessa will be taken care of."_

"…_thanks you guys." Nic then turned around. "Vanessa, I-!" He suddenly found himself being tackled, making him step back in shock. His wonderful little sister squeezed his waist as she couldn't hold back the tears. Her big brother was going on a journey, and she wasn't gonna be there to watch him grow anymore._

_Vanessa was shaking as she was crying in Nic's shirt. "N-Nic…I wanna go with you!" She pleaded. "I don't wanna be without my brother! You've always taken the fall! IT'S NOT FAIR!" She cried. "Please let me go with you! PLEASE!"_

_Nic saw the frustration on his sister's face. She really didn't want Nic to go. Too be honest, Nic didn't like this anymore than she did. His blue eyes gazed down in shock as Vanessa was sobbing. Nic wanted to cry as well, but he chose not to. He had to be strong. Strong for his sister's sake. He had to grow and learn on his own so he could protect her in the future._

"_Vanessa…look at me." Nic said softly, and she looked up with puffy eyes and streaming tears. Nic put a hand on her head. "Vanessa, you gotta be strong. I want you to stay here and have Joanna and Michael take care of you. Unlike the ones before, these are real parents. They'll make sure you get educated, fed healthy food, and discipline you." _

_Nic then knelt to his sister's eye level and put a hand on her shoulder. "Vanessa, I want you to become a beautiful, dependable young woman for everyone to admire. All your life, I was the one depended on, now it's my turn to depend on you to promise me you'll grow up and do as I say. You have to be strong and learn to love those other than your brother. Those who care about, those who would take a bullet for you, those who would be by your side. Make friends that will have your back, and don't take their trust for granted. Promise me you'll be strong and stay here."_

_Vanessa sniffled at her brother's wish. She wanted to be with her brother and watch him to get pampered and to see him actually happy for once, but this is what Nic's chosen, and he chose to get stronger and meet various people and the future members of his team that would be his happiness._

_Vanessa choked as she slowly nodded. "I…I promise." She cried. "I promise!"_

"_That's my little sister." Nic smiled. Nic then pulled Vanessa in for a hug and held it for the longest time. As Vanessa vowed to be strong and stayed, her first step was to keep from crying, and she started holding back tears. _

_Vanessa then blinked when she felt tears stream off her shoulder, feeling Nic tear up and saying goodbye to his sister. Both siblings held each other for a little longer as Joanna and Michael both had misty eyes._

"_Vanessa." Joanna cued softly, seeing as how Nic had to go. Regrettably, the two siblings parted and Vanessa sniffled and turned back towards the foster parents. _

_Nic looked up and his sister turned back towards her brother. "Vanessa, I love you."_

"_I love you too Nic." Vanessa stated, choking back tears._

_Nic gave a soft smile as he started to ease on the small stream of tears. He finally flipped on his pair of sunglasses for the first time and he looked at Joanna and Michael. "Joanna. Michael…that's my sister you got there. My sister." The married couple nodded and had misty eyes as Nic finally turned and was out of sight soon, with a smile on both siblings' faces._

When the tail ended, everyone was baffled. Hearing as how Nic was abused and then chose to become strong to protect his love ones rather than stay with his sister. In their hearts, they knew it was the right thing to do, so no arguments were made, but some level of melancholy was expressed.

Vanessa turned towards Nic and smiled. "I pulled through, and a few months ago, Michael and Joanna hugged me tightly and bid me farewell. And Nic, they sent you their regards."

Nic gave a soft smile. "I can't be anymore grateful to them than I already have. They were great foster parents, weren't they?"

Vanessa nodded and perked up. "But enough reminiscing! I'll be happy to tell you that I just got by fifth Gym Badge yesterday!" She got a case out from her big, brown purse and presented the case, showing the top four slots filled and one slot filled on the bottom. Nic went slightly wide-eyed. "I got the Voltage Badge a few days ago. I gotta say, Clemont wasn't as easy as I thought it'd be."

Nic snickered. "No Gym Leader is easy. Speaking of badges, who did you use?" His question had caught questions mark all around the Fairy Tail Mages.

Vanessa smirked. "You really wanna find out?" She rhetorically asked. Getting into her purse yet again and reaching for six poke balls.

Natsu blinked and crossed his arms. "Hold up, you mean to tell me Nic isn't the only one with Pokémon?"

"Well duh flame brain. We are in Kalos, meaning people have these Pokémon things." Gray berated, which concluded to a glaring contest in which Erza bopped them on their heads. Everyone waiting in anticipation as to the Pokémon Vanessa was gonna show to her big brother.

"Come on out guys!" Vanessa threw her poke balls up into the air, in which they were preparing to open. That's when Vanessa realized something. _'Uh oh. There's one that Nic will…'_

The Pokémon all appeared on the ground, in which they announced their names. Some were average height, some were taller, and some were unique in certain ways.

The smallest one in the bottom left was a light purple blob-like creature. The bottom half was darker in purple and had green spots on the sides, and also had two small, black eyes.

Another, right behind the former, was a bipedal fox-like Pokémon. The fur was primarily yellow, but the legs were black and from the chest up to the bottom half of her face was white. There were orange tuffs of fur growing from the ears and also had a wand in the fluffy tail.

To the right of the fox creature was a reptilian Pokémon with a tan body and pink stomach with a plethora of black lines running across. The tail had rings of back that had triangles on the top. The eyes had a big, black membrane all around, and the two legs that kept the Pokémon up had a single black patch on each thigh.

In front of it was a short, bipedal Pokémon. It had what appeared to be a hakama made of yellow fur and had red eyes. The most noticeable feature was the large horns on the head that resembled jaws.

Behind the former and the one before that was a large plant-like Pokémon. Or in this case a hybrid of an animal and a plant. It had a primarily bulky physique and had big legs. It had red eyes and had four huge leaves that grew from all four sides from its back. There was also a rather large trunk and a massive pink flower with white spots, and this one took everyone by surprise most of all.

"Woah!" Natsu marveled. "They're completely different from the Pokémon Nic has!"

Gray gave a twisted face at Natsu. "It's called variety genius."

They then began to butt heads again, with their auras flaring. "I can dish out as much variety as I want buddy!"

"I care to dish a variety of punches to your-!" Gray and Natsu were stopped not by Erza, but Nic this time, who just about had it and he shoved them away from the other, cracking their necks in the process.

Erza was left surprised, as was Vanessa. Nobody saw how fast Nic was at stopping them. "Fight just one more time and I'll be more than obligated to dislocate your bones so you can't move." He mildly warned, in which Natsu and Gray trembled.

Gajeel sweatdropped. "Man, his demeanor makes Titania look like an angel."

Vanessa blinked and giggled. "Seems as though Nic grew even more backbone than I'd thought." She noted.

Nic turned around. "So anyways." He motioned, turning to Vanessa's Pokémon. "These are your Pokémon Vanessa?"

Vanessa then introduced her Pokémon. "Yeah. Nic, meet Goomy, Braixen, Krokorok Mawile, Venusaur…and…" Vanessa trailed off, seeing how Nic wasn't gonna like this next one.

Nic blinked. "Is there something wrong Vanessa?" He asked. "Is there something peculiar about your…" Nic glanced over towards Vanessa's sixth Pokémon, and when he glanced at it, let's say he got suspicious on the spot.

Nic was staring at a wide and circular Pokémon, which was similar to a disc or saucer. Said creature had three eyes, the main one in the center with large, red pupil. Both sides of the body had screws, an eye, and large magnets. The top of the head had what seemed to be a yellow antennae. Behind the body was a third magnet, which was like a tail.

"Wait a minute…" Nic was slowly getting an epiphany, and narrowed his eyes as it was starting to come back to him. "Do I…I know?"

Vanessa bit her lip, expecting for something bad to come. The Pokémon was motionless in the air as it stared blankly at Nic.

"(It has been a long time, Nic Pularis.)" Its electronic-like voice muttered with some shame.

Nic gasped and was struck with horror. His pupils shrunk at the resemblance. Now it was clear to you. "It can't be…"

It was Magneton, but he evolved into Magnezone. (For the sake of the story, despite Magnezone being an 'it', let's just say it's a 'he'. I know they're genderless, but let's just leave it at the case its voice sounds like a he.)

Everyone looked to see Nic clenching his fists and veins were erupting all about. "You…" He snarled, his teeth baring and everyone heard the feral snarling Nic was emanating. He was pissed bad. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" He bellowed. He had no control as he lunged at Magnezone with extreme fury.

Everyone looked with extreme shock as Nic went to attack Magnezone, but Vanessa slid in front and blocked Nic off from Magnezone. "Nic! Stop!" She pleaded.

Nic came to a screeching halt in front of Vanessa, his anger filtering out as he stared coldly passed his sister towards Magnezone, who floated blankly about. As Vanessa had both arms out to stop Nic, he reluctantly stepped back and restrained himself, but was very well annoyed.

Nic pointed at Magnezone. "Vanessa, what is the deal here?! Why is it here of all places?!" He demanded. "You know full well that it tortured me along with our parents!"

"I know Nic! You think I don't know that?!" Vanessa exclaimed. "You didn't stop to think Magnezone felt sorry?!" Her exclamation made Nic fall in a state of shock and everyone watched in surprise. "Don't you remember that last day? The day you left and was brought home? You remember full well that when mom and dad began attacking the officers, you saw it too! Magneton did nothing! After that night, it quit!"

Magnezone looked down in shame. "(It's true. I may not have looked it in the past, but I've watched you grow Nic. With every passing day, I watched how you took care of Vanessa when your mom and dad were out. Sadly I was obligated under fear and tyranny, but even so…I felt pity for myself harming a caring individual who looks after the innocent.)" Magnezone stated.

Nic blinked as he still had his fists clenched, but the veins started going away. "(I watched you two grow, and I felt shame that I kept hurting you, but I was following orders. When I watched you stand up and nearly die, I had it. The next day, I just watched and did nothing…)" Magnezone looked down. "(…I know I cannot be fully forgiven for the sins I've committed, but I had to make it up somehow.)"

"Nic." Vanessa said, getting his attention. "After that day, Magneton willingly allowed himself to be taken into custody. He spent his time atoning for the pain he's caused, and I couldn't sit by any longer and watched Magneton suffer. Yes he's committed sins! Yes he was our father's Pokémon! But you saw his poke ball shatter that day too! Magneton deserved a second chance! When I left home, I found out that Magneton was release from his sentence and trailed back home, so I asked him to come along. He wants to make amends by taking your place and look after me." Vanessa admitted with slightly misty eyes. "Please don't fight."

There was long pause and Nic was still left baffled. He looked down at the ground and then he narrowed his eyes as he looked at Magnezone. "Is this true Magnezone? Have you tried atoning for your sins?"

Magnezone looked down and slowly bobbed as a nod. "(Yes Nic. It's all true. I've done wrong because I was told to. I apologize for my past actions, and I do not expect forgiveness, but give me this one chance to prove my worth.)"

Nic looked down at the ground as everyone in the background remained silent. Vanessa looked on in worry as Nic stepped forward towards Magnezone. "Nic."

There was a brief stare between Nic and Magnezone, but Nic broke the silence. "…very well. Since you've been atoning for all this time, I won't see you as an enemy." He said, much to everyone's relief. "However, I won't forget the pain you've caused, and I won't be so easy to warm up to you. Know that if you dare to try anything to harm Vanessa, know you will suffer the ultimate punishment by my hands."

His warning was made loud and clear and Magnezone complied. "(I'll abide accordingly. Your sister has been in capable hands this whole time, and will be until the end of my days.)" Nic looked down and stepped back, seeing as how he allowed for Magnezone to be his sister's Pokémon. He honestly thought Magnezone deserved a chance after hearing how he's been battling by Vanessa's side this entire time. Seeing him atone, it makes Nic remind Magnezone of Jellal in a way, which was how Nic was even more forgiving.

With the matter settled, Nic backed off and grinned at the other Pokémon. "I take it that these are the others you caught along your journey, yes?"

Vanessa nodded. "Yup! Braixen evolved from Fennekin, and Venusaur was just a Bulbasaur. Both came from Professor Sycamore, the first being Fennekin of course."

Nic smiled. "I see, that's just like my Greninja and Charizard a long time ago, both were from Professor Sycamore. It's nice to see that my sister has Pokémon by her side. Nice to meet you all."

"(Hello!)" Goomy announced with her bubbly and slimy voice. "(I'm new too! I was caught yesterday! It's so good to see my Trainer's brother!)"

Braixen waved at Nic. "(It's so good to meet you at long last! Vanessa has been telling us a lot about you!)" She explained.

Krokorok looked at Nic. "(LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING NIC PULARIS! I AM KROKOROK!)" Her Krokorok yelled loudly.

Mawile sweatdropped. "(Oh Krokorok.)" She pitied. "(You'll have to excuse him. Krokorok is loud and thinks anything can be solved just by biting.)" She exaggerated.

Krokorok turned towards Mawile. "(That's not true! SOMETIMES YOU JUST HAVE TO BITE THINGS A LOT!)"

Mawile crossed her arms. "(Uh, last I checked, we both know Crunch, not Bite.)" She corrected with a raised brow. Krokorok snarled at her, and she just turned away.

Venusaur slowly stepped in between the two and broke the little tiff. "(Okay Krokorok Mawile, save the comments and anger for a battle please.)" He persuaded. Reluctantly, Krokorok backed off and Venusaur gave a relieving sigh.

Vanessa sweatdropped. "That Venusaur. Always the peacekeeper besides me." She sighed.

Nic smiled and looked at her Pokémon. All of them were unique, just like his. "All of them looked nice and healthy Vanessa. They all have plenty of room to develop their personalities, so I wouldn't worry too much with their disputes."

Vanessa smiled happily. "Thanks so much Nic!" Then something crossed her mind. "Wait, did your Pokémon ever get into tiffs?"

Raising a brow, Nic tried to think as to how to answer her question, since he has his Pokémon battle each other and him as well. "Well, it's hard to explain. For starters, we never once got into an argument, but that's because we're always together, I can't be sure how to put it anyway else."

"So they don't fight ever?"

"The fights you talk about? No. We always train. Maybe I'll show you sometimes just exactly what I mean." He explained. Vanessa then returned her team to their poke balls and she turned towards the group. Vanessa gave a cheerful grin and everyone looked with a smile.

Natsu had a fist pumped. "Aw yeah! Seeing these Pokémon are making me all fired up! Now I really wanna see what these things can do!"

Gajeel crossed his arms. "Are you forgetting something Salamander? Luminous 's shark dragon destroyed that robot dragon, remember? And that light bulb too before that big parade." He reminded.

"Just thinking about what that thing did is making me shiver!" Lucy said, clenching herself due to her shivering.

"Same. I'm shock that Laxus was S-Class and Garchomp wasn't even trying from what I've heard." Sophie remarked.

This little statement caught Vanessa's interest. "Huh?" She tilted her head. "What's this Laxus? And what's this talk about S-Class?" Immediately, Sophie and Lucy clamped their own mouths as they spiled the beans. "Nic?"

Nic was momentarily still as he wasn't sure how to put this. Should he tell or should he avoid it? He can never ever lie to his sister, and it was evident that she was bound to catch on. Nic sighed as he had no choice, seeing as how Lucy and Sophie started this.

"I guess since you're my sister, I'll make an exception." He said and turned towards her.

"You can't be serious man!" Gray protested. "Are you seriously gonna drag your sister into this mess? Have you considered the consequences?"

Nic turned towards Gray with a harsh glare. "I'm not dragging her into anything!" He retorted. "I have no intention on doing so, but she deserves to know the truth of what's happened. It's been three years after all." He then took in a deep breath. "…Vanessa. There's no easy way to explain what I'm about to tell you, but you have to swear that you will never tell a living soul."

Vanessa was all ears. "Nic, whatever it is, I'm gonna help you in whatever way I can! No matter how dangerous!" She insisted.

Knowing that his sister was slightly more resilient, protests weren't an option. "Okay then." Nic looked around, seeing as how the Bleu Plaza was empty this time and it was just the group and Vanessa. Once again, Nic took in a deep breath. "Vanessa…"

Nic took it nice and easy with the explanation. He went very slowly in explaining the situation at hand. He explained that the universe was in peril because Arcus was dying. He then explained as to how his mission was to collect all eighteen Plates in the land of Fiore. He went even slower as to the crazy battles he's been in, and the events that led him up to this point. All of that took about an hour. And that included revealing Happy, Carla, and Lily.

Vanessa was left baffled, but not to the point where she would stutter and faint, but where she was speechless. Vanessa couldn't even begin to fathom the pressure Nic has on his shoulders, but was lightened when she found it slightly awe-striking with Nic being able to use actual moves, though he didn't display any. She believed every word, and she didn't seemed too bothered with the Exceeds.

Nic turned around and crossed his arms. "Vanessa, I'm sorry you had to be told that, but it's what happened. It can't be helped. I-!" Nic suddenly felt arms wrap around him and was shocked that his sister was hugging him yet again with a smile.

Everybody there expected Vanessa to be breaking down and saying how unfair it was for Nic to be burdened with such a tall order, but she actually took it rather well.

Vanessa let go and walked in front and turned towards Nic. "Nic, it's true that I find this to be a responsibility no one including yourself to bare, but like you said, this was the path that you've chosen." She smiled. "And no matter what, I won't leave you to bear this alone. I'm gonna support and root for you, because you are my brother, and I believe you can do it! Because you're awesome and so strong now!"

Nic was speechless, but felt relieved at the same time. He smiled gently at his sister. "You've really grown Vanessa."

On one of the monitors in Bleu Plaza, the only monitor there, they heard crowds cheering and applauding. Erza looked up. "What's going on?"

Nic and everyone looked up at the huge television and saw a stage with many lights. Vanessa knew instantly what it was. "Hey, it's a Pokémon Performance!"

"Pokémon what?" Lisanna asked.

Vanessa turned towards Lisanna and everyone else. "Pokémon Performance. It's a special kind of showcase where Trainer and Pokémon both dress up and perform sort of speak." She explained and looked back up at the screen. "I don't participate in these things ever because that's not my style, but I know a few people, so that's how I know."

Sophie raised a brow. "So, what's the concept in this performance?"

"Well, from what I've heard, the trainer and Pokémon get into clothes and they dance and perform moves to wow the crowd. If they're fortunate, they move on to round two, where they have to style their Pokémon and walk down a runway. The people vote for the best one and the winner gets this Princess Key or something." She informed.

Lily, seeing how the coast was clear, was on the ground and crossed his arms. "So what you're saying is that it's like a more friendly version of these Gym Battles that you and Nic do?"

"Supposedly, sure." Vanessa said. She then looked at the monitor and went wide-eyed. "Hey look!" Everyone turned towards the screen. "She's one of the friends I talked about!"

The young woman on the big screen had long, wavy, white hair that was braided and went down to her ankles and had bangs sweeping to her left and strands that framed her face. She had large sea green eyes, naturally tanned skinned, and had on a short sea foam green kimono that faded into darker shades of green as it went down to the edges of the bottom of her sleeves, which were quite long and hid the girl's hands. She also had black leggings underneath, emerald flats, and an emerald rose pinning her hair back.

She was currently on stage with two Pokémon of her own. She had a Braixen of her own, and the other was a huge surprise, in which it was a Pokémon with ribbon-like feelers all around the body. It was known as a Slyveon, but the eyes were pink and the fir that was meant to be pink was actually blue.

"There's something you don't see every day." Nic marveled at the Sylveon with mild shock.

Natsu crossed his arms. "What's the big deal?"

Nic turned towards Natsu. "You that creature? The one with four feet?" Nic looked at the Sylveon and everyone followed his gaze. "That's no ordinary Sylveon. That's a shiny Sylveon."

"Then why isn't it sparkling?" Happy asked.

Vanessa explained. "It's hard to explain. The basic concept is that the Pokémon's color is different. Shinys are almost impossible to get. Count her lucky." She remarked with a grin.

Onscreen, they watched the girl and her Braixen and shiny Sylveon do a dance in unison. When the girl twirled, Sylveon and Braixen twirled around their Trainer and Braixen crouched and backflipped into the air.

"Now Lacey, **Fairy Wind!** Fireheart, **Fire Spin!**" She exclaimed. The Braixen named Fireheart then dove downwards while upside down and used Fire Spin, sending a vortex of fire downwards. The shiny Sylveon spread the feelers she had and unleashed a sparkling wind upwards, colliding with the Fire Spin. What that did was made pink winds with sparkling embers cycle about the whole stage as the two attacks spun and wowed the crowd.

The girl then posed as her shiny Sylveon and her Braixen landed on opposite sides and did a unison spin and bowed to the crowd, earning a big applause.

The small group looked with surprise at the flashy display and even Nic had to admit it was rather creative. Wendy clasped her hands together with a smile. Wendy marveled (hah! Get it? Her last name is Marvell) at the site. "Oh wow, that was a great performance!"

Erza nodded with a hand to her hip. "Those moves were in sync. I have to admit, that was an eye-opener."

Vanessa turned towards the group. "Hey, I know where the showcase is! It's a few plazas down, but we'll be able to see her when she comes out!" Vanessa then turned and started out of Bleu Plaza. "Hurry up!"

With a shrug, everyone decided to follow in pursuit and followed Vanessa towards the South Boulevard, which was a long trek and taxis weren't affordable because the group was rather large and Natsu would easily get motion sickness, so it was a fast forty-five minutes to the front of the showcase area, where everyone had arrived.

Vanessa and everyone grinned as people exited, meaning the showcase was over, but the big screen showed that the girl from before made it on towards the Styling Round with her Braixen and the two actually won.

Everyone eventually saw the same girl walk out soon after in her normal attire. Her attire was comprised of a grey tank top and simple black leggings. Unlike Nic and Vanessa, she had a Mega Necklace laced on her neck. Her wrists had bands to keep her poke balls on, three for each wrist. The bands were sea foam green. She also had simple black shoes with green designs on the sides. She also seemed to have sea foam colored headphones around her neck and had a simply grey shoulder bag.

"Zetta!" The girl heard her name being called and she had recognize the voice almost instantly, hearing the voice from numerous occasions.

"Huh?" She turned and her sea green eyes caught sight of Vanessa rushing up to her. "Vanessa! It's been a while!"

"I know!" Vanessa came to a stop when she was in front of Zetta. "I saw that performance, and it that was amazing!"

"Thanks! Because of Fireheart and Lacey, I got my third Princess Key!" She squealed.

Vanessa crossed her arms with a curious look. "You know, I still don't get why you nickname your Pokémon."

Lacey and Fireheart were both behind Zetta as she heard them question Zetta's nicknames, in which made a tickmark.

"(Watch it.)" Fireheart scowled with a British accent, protecting his Trainer's actions. "(She's free to choose whatever names she wants.)"

"(Oh please. Different people, different opinions. Some people reading this would like nicknames for once.)" Lacey commented, breaking the fourth wall.

Zetta took note of how Fireheart and Lacey felt and raised a brow. "Careful Vanessa, you might make them mad." She teased.

Vanessa narrowed her eyes and turned slightly. "Hey, it's not exactly my fault when I ask a simple question and your team gets defensive."

Zetta shrugged her arms. "Maybe if you ask nicely, maybe I'll lighten up and I could give you a few suggestions for nicknames myself."

Vanessa kept a calm expression, but a tick mark was seen on her head. "My Pokémon are fine Zetta. Mind your own please."

Zetta giggled. "Oh come on Vanessa, you know I'm just messin' with ya!" She teased and laughed as she gave a pat on Vanessa's back, in which made Vanessa grumble. "So anyways, since you're in Lumiose City, I assume you have your fifth Gym Badge?"

Vanessa then held up her badge to Zetta, who marveled at it. "It wasn't easy, but I got a lot of help from Krokorok."

"(That Krokorok, always yelling and being angry for absolutely no reason. Not even worth deceiving.)" Lacey sighed.

Braixen scowled in agreement, but kept himself at a cool state of mind. "(Now be nice. Vanessa's team is unique and we might as well respect that.)"

Zetta turned towards Fireheart with a raised brow. "Well it's nice to find that you're temper eased just like that."

Nic snickered and crossed his arms as he proceeded to Vanessa's side. "Sounds like he can be easily tempered, yet keep himself restrained." He commented.

Zetta sighed. "Yeah, he's always been like that and…wait, you can understand Pokémon too?!" She squealed with sparkling eyes.

Nic sweatdropped, trying to figure out a convincing lie, but luckily Vanessa was there and she turned towards Nic. "Uh, Nic? I'm not sure about this myself, but Zetta can understand Pokémon, or sense what they're saying sort of speak. At least that's what she says."

"It's so true!" Zetta testified.

Vanessa put her hands up in objection to her offence. "I'm not denying your claim, I'm just stating it."

Sophie raised a brow as she and everyone else looked on at the scene. "Oh my, seems those two have a little rivalry." She commented.

"Yeah, like Natsu and Gray, but on a much lighter scale." Lucy joked, in which the two mentioned groaned.

Nic then intervened the two. "Zetta, take it easy. You know my sister doesn't intend on hurting others feelings. If anything, we both sympathize with your ability." He explained, dying down the heat. "And if you are curious as to how I know is because I'm around Pokémon all the time." He stated, and he wasn't wrong, yet it wasn't true either. He could understand their speech fully, but he couldn't say.

"That's amazing!" Zetta exclaimed. She turned towards Vanessa. "You know him?"

Vanessa smiled happily. "Of course. This is Nic, my brother!" Zetta could've sworn that her jaw dropped to the pavement in shock. She was completely white and was staring in shock. Vanessa and Nic smiled at each other. "He's very smart, and is a Pokémon Trainer too!"

"S-S-Seriously?!" Zetta tried composing herself and tried calming down. "You never told me you had a brother. Is he strong?"

Vanessa's grin never left her face, but her expression grew to a serious one. "Yeah. He's very strong."

"I see." Zetta turned toward Nic with a serious grin. "I may only have five Gym Badges and three Princess Keys, but that doesn't mean I'm weak." She pointed at Nic. "I challenge you to a battle!"

Nic's lip parted with shock, and he wasn't sure what exactly to do. They were on a deadline, and they couldn't afford to waste any time. Though technically, there was a rule and Nic had to follow it, so he sighed.

"Very well." He stated calmly. "I accept your challenge."

Vanessa blinked in shock. "Zetta, are you sure you want to face my brother?"

"I don't see why not." She reasoned. "Come on!" She returned Lacey and Fireheart and they made way to the Pokémon Center in the South Boulevard, where there was a battlefield out back.

Natsu pumped his fists. "Sweet! We get to see an actual battle!"

"Aye." Happy whispered, remembering that they were suppose to be plush toys in their arms.

"Yeah well, that chick is in for a world of disappointment." Gray remarked. They eventually made it to the battlefield behind the Center, where there were two Trainer boxes. Nic went to one side while Zetta went to the other, both facing the other.

Zetta plucked a poke ball from one of her wrists and enlarged it. "We'll each use two Pokémon, got it?" She stated, to which Nic nodded.

While everyone was on the sidelines, Vanessa walked in the middle, just outside the battlefield lines. "The battle between Nic and Zetta will now begin! Each side will use two Pokémon, and the battle will be over when all of one side's Pokémon are unable to battle! Substitutions are allowed!" She announced.

Nic then flipped on his sunglasses and pulled out his poke ball. "Very well. Let's go!" Nic threw his poke ball and it opened, revealing it to be his Arbok, and he hissed quietly.

Zetta raised a brow. "An Arbok?" She said. "Don't be too disappointed when I wipe the floor with ya!" She declared, throwing a poke ball. "Come on out Miri!"

The poke ball opened, revealing Zetta's Gogoat that she named Miri. Miri looked out at the battlefield and saw her adversary.

Zetta grinned. _'I'm positive Arbok are Poison-Types, so if I use Bulldoze, I can score serious damage.' _She thought.

"Let the battle begin!" Vanessa shouted, chopping downwards.

"(Nic-sssssama, what isssss that you dessssire me to do?)" Arbok obediently asked.

Nic narrowed his eyes under his sunglasses and extended an arm out. "Use Ice Fang!"

"(Asssss you wish.)" Arbok's mouth opened and his fangs were covered in ice and grew.

Zetta extended her arm as well. "Intercept with Seed Bomb!" As Miri inhaled to use Seed Bomb, all anybody saw was a purple blur and a blink of an eye was all it took. Zetta was caught off guard when she saw the left side of Miri was covered in ice. Arbok hissed lowly and ceased Ice Fang as he was behind Miri. He didn't look back to see Miri fall to her side and faint.

"Whoa!" Natsu jerked up from the benches at seeing how fast that attack was. "I didn't even see that!"

"That was so quick! My mind couldn't even keep track of Arbok." Sophie commented.

Vanessa was also caught by extreme surprise. She had never seen anything move as fast as that before, but she shook off the shock in time to call it. "Miri is unable to battle, Arbok is the winner!" She announced.

Arbok scowled. "(That wasssss quick work with that walking rug, but I exxxxpected no better.)" He snobbishly commented, which didn't go unnoticed by Zetta being able to sense what Arbok was saying.

"Hmph! Bet you'd make a fine belt if you were flattened." Zetta witted back and returned Miri.

Arbok snarled and hissed at Zetta. "(You'd be wisssse to be shaking in thosssse shoessss grandma. You'd be damned if you think we'd ever losssse.)" Arbok commented right back in which made Zetta grow a tick mark.

"I see. So the objective is to defeat the opponent's Pokémon and be declared the winner in the end." Lily said quietly. Gajeel nodded in agreement.

"So you set the terms and you continue on until one side is defeat. In this case, Zetta can only use one more Pokémon before she loses the match." Erza deduced. "That's interesting."

Zetta brought out a second poke ball. "I underestimated your Arbok's Speed, but it won't happen again! Go Spark!" Zetta threw the poke ball, which was revealed to be Spark, her Emolga.

Spark appeared and glided through the air. "(Hey!)" She cheerfully called out. Arbok merely hissed, and that made Spark uneasy.

"I know Arbok is suited for the ground, so try and strike us when you can't reach us." Zetta stated.

Vanessa knew Zetta fairly well, she may be slightly childish and odd, and maybe sassy, but she is rather clever in battle, and she thought Zetta would have the advantage. Vanessa clenched her fist in defiance, believing that Nic could beat her.

"**Thunderbolt!**" Zetta commanded. Spark then became engulfed in electricity and fired a lightning bolt at Arbok, who saw it coming from a mile away.

"Dodge." Nic stated.

"(Assss you wish.)" Arbok then slithered left in a flash, evading Thunderbolt with little to no effort, but Zetta expected this and had Spark fire even more Thunderbolt attacks. The Thunderbolts trailed the ground, but Arbok's serpentine skills and evasive prowess that he has kept him from being touched.

"So fast." Zetta remarked.

"**Gunk Shot!**" Nic commanded, and Arbok made a silver light and it turned into a garbage bag with a purple outlining. Arbok then fired at Spark, and it zoomed faster than a rocket, and Spark had a 0% chance of dodging. There was a big explosion in the sky, and Zetta watched in shock as Spark sailed down and crashed, creating a crater within the ground.

Zetta was shaken by this and was baffled that Nic and Arbok didn't even blink and they swatted her Miri and Spark like they were nothing. "I…I…what?"

Vanessa called it. "Spark is unable to battle, Arbok is the winner; therefore, the victory goes to Nic!" She announced.

Gray blinked and raised a brow. "Geez, why am I not surprised?"

Erza turned towards Gray. "Gray, your shirt."

"Aw crap!" He realized he didn't have the shirt he had on and scrounged about to find it. Meanwhile, Vanessa hurried towards her brother as Zetta returned Spark.

"Nic, that was amazing!" Vanessa cheered.

Nic smiled and Arbok was pet on the head. He then returned Arbok. "Thanks Vanessa." He then thought internally. _'Better not say that we didn't even try.' _

Zetta walked up while gawking at Nic. "I…I'm speechless."

Vanessa nodded. "See? Nic is really strong, and now you've witnessed it first-hand."

Zetta raised a brow and she looked at Vanessa now. "I was very impressed. Miri had just evolved too. And Spark is my aerial combatant, hardly anyone can touch her, but that Gunk Shot had hit Spark like it was nothing!"

"Like Vanessa said, my Pokémon and I are pretty strong as you would put it." Nic said with absolute zero modesty, stating the fact that it's what they said.

"I know, but…" Zetta then pointed at Vanessa. "Vanessa!"

"Huh?"

"I have to wonder, when was the last time we battled?" She noted, in which was the implication as to a challenge. Vanessa's lips parted slightly and she was left in surprise.

Vanessa didn't know what to say. "R-Really? Even after your battle against my brother?"

Zetta then reasoned. "I don't see why not. I admit that your brother is far beyond my level, but you and I still need to even out that score. You got me by surprise the last time, but that won't happen again."

Nic snickered. "I wouldn't mind seeing that."

Vanessa whipped her head towards Nic. "R-Really?! You wanna see me battle?!"

Natsu crossed his arms. "For sure. I've been dying to see what Nic's little sister can do!"

Wendy looked excited. "Yeah, I wanna see another battle! These things seem actually fun!"

"If by fun, you mean painful, then I agree kid." Gajeel said.

"And besides." Lisanna stated. "Nic was on a completely unmatched level. I think it would be fair to have Vanessa and Zetta battle since they're on even grounds."

Erza crossed her arms and grinned. "I don't mind one more battle, but keep in mind that we have places to be and very little time to do so." She reminded the group.

Seeing as how there wasn't much of a choice, Vanessa complied. "Alright Zetta, you're on!" Vanessa smirked. "But don't think I'll be easy on ya for one second. Because my brother is here, and I have no intention on losing with him here!"

Zetta grinned. "Sure, give it everything you got Vanessa, and I'll do the same." In less than two minutes, both parties were set and they were in their respective Trainer boxes.

Nic was the referee this time and everyone watched as the battle began. "Okay. The battle between Vanessa and Zetta will now begin. Each side will use up to three Pokémon, and the battle will be over when one side's Pokémon are unable to battle. Substitutions are allowed."

"Are you ready Vanessa?" Zetta asked, to which Vanessa nodded. "Alright then, go Lacey!" Zetta then took another poke ball from her wrist and threw it, revealing it to be her shiny Sylveon from before.

Lacey elegantly flipped in the air and posed gently on the ground. "(What? I'm not in the mod for battle.)" She whined.

Zetta sighed and pulled out something that seemed to be a little cupcake of sorts. "Poke Puff?" She teased.

Immediately, Lacey whipped her head around. "(YES!)" She zoomed towards Zetta and devoured the Poke Puff happily and then felt satisfied. Lacey then walked back to place. "(Okay, I'm good.)"

Vanessa sighed. "So Sylveon huh?" Vanessa pondered. "Let's see…" She narrowed her eyes and then pulled out a poke ball. "Let's try this! Come on out Krokorok!"

Krokorok appeared onto the battlefield, and this displeased Lacey. "(Oh great, him again.)" She sighed.

"(LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING LACEY, THE SHINY SYLVEON! Krokorok is gonna wrap those ribbons around you, and then tear them open, AND WRAP THEM AGAIN!)" He yelled.

Lacey blinked. "(Just what the heck are you talking about?)"

Krokorok narrowed his eyes. "(I DON'T KNOW!)"

Nic raised a brow under his sunglasses. _'Hold up, Krokorok is part Ground and Dark-Type. Just what does Vanessa have planned for Sylveon?'_

Zetta put a hand to her hip. "Don't tell me you're using Krokorok just to annoy Lacey, are you?" She questioned.

Vanessa shook her head. "Nope. Krokorok may have lost before, but we're battling to overcome Type disadvantage. Right Krokorok?" She asked.

"(That's right!)" Krokorok stated.

Seeing both sides ready, Nic brought his arm down in a chop. "Let the battle begin!"

Immediately, Zetta moved her hand in an arc. "Now Lacey, **Swift!**" Lacey then followed her command and unleashed yellow stars in golden sparkles towards Krokorok.

"Intercept with Rock Tomb!" Vanessa commanded. Krokorok then had a white aura outline and then several gray boulders appeared over his head. He yelled and the attack went being thrown at the incoming Swift. All of the stars clashed with the boulders, making them crumble and burst, making a small burst of energy that left the area in between obscured. "**Dig!**" Vanessa commanded, and Krokorok dove into the earth, with the smoke and dust being used as cover.

Zetta narrowed her eyes. "I'm not a fool Vanessa! I knew you would try that, and that won't help when we do this!" She extended her arm out. "Use Swift and aim for the hole!"

Lacey jumped and she was momentarily over the cloud, where she saw the hole and she unleashed Swift at the hole, the stars flying into the hole, and everyone was fairly shocked that the Swift actually traveled through the hole.

Lacey smirked as she landed. "(Hm, too prdei-!)" Lacey was then struck from underneath by Dig, and she yelped when Krokorok resurfaced and bashed his claw into her abdomen. Zetta looked on with shock as Krokorok grabbed Lacey and threw her into the hole underneath, sending her right into the Swift intended for her, making a burst of energy from within the ground and Lacey shot out and landed on her side.

"Lucy looked on with shock. "Whoa, that was a good move!"

Erza nodded as she spectated. "She had her opponent's attack turned against them. Well played."

"Lacey, can you get up?" Zetta asked. Lacey slowly arose from the ground and shook her blue fur and she glared harshly at Krokorok.

"(That was a dirty trick! You tricked me!)" Lacey exclaimed in irony that she's suppose to be the deceiver, though Krokorok did not care.

"(Krokorok does not do trickery! Krokorok is about beating, and beating I will do!)" Krokorok testified.

"**Shadow Claw!** Now!" Vanessa shouted. Krokorok's right claw was then coated in a black aura with purple outlining and he then rushed after Lacey.

But Zetta had brains, and she wasn't gonna let this move hit. "Now, grab Krokorok!" Lacey's feelers then extended and went out towards Krokorok and grabbed both his arms, stopping his attack. Vanessa gasped as she had realized the feelers were an asset for Lacey. "Now whip him around and use Fairy Wind!"

"(Mind if I have this dance?)" Lacey asked, and then pivoted and her feelers began to whip about her body, dragging Krokorok through the air. Lacey kept going until she reached a critical point and let loose Fairy Wind over her head, making a cyclone that swallowed up Krokorok as he was still stuck in the feelers. He was whipped about in circles about Lacey's head while Fairy Wind whirled about.

Everyone, including Nic, looked with surprise that Zetta was surprisingly smart in immobilizing Krokorok and scoring damage. "That Lacey thing used its ribbons to restrain and keep that Krokorok fellow in place to do damage." Gray said. "That's smart."

Erza nodded. "I know, and it would appear that Krokorok is taking more damage than we would have originated." She didn't know much about Types, nor much about Pokémon, but it was evident that Krokorok was sustaining damage.

"Krokorok, hang in there!" Vanessa shouted.

"(LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING RIBBON-LIKE FEELERS THAT ARE RESTRAINING KROKOROK! KROKOROK DOES NOT LIKE BEING HURLED IN CIRCLES!)" Krokorok yelled as he was hurled about within Fairy Wind.

"Now reel it in for Draining Kiss!" Zetta commanded.

The Fairy Wind stopped and Lacey paled. "(…oh good lord. She wants me to kiss that _thing_?)" She quivered, but was retracted her feelers as to comply.

'_I gotta think and fast! Otherwise this Draining Kiss is gonna finish Krokorok!' _Vanessa thought. She tried to look for a weakness. _'I'll go for the feelers!' _Vanessa moved her arm in an arc. "Krokorok! Use Crunch!"

"(Now that's more like it!)" As he was being reeled in, Krokorok opened his mouth and his teeth glowed and extended. He then chomped down on the left feeler really hard, which made Lacey shriek as she felt pain in her feeler, sustaining even more damage. This surprised Zetta greatly, as it also forc Lacey to let go.

"You forgot that Krokorok could still open and close his mouth." Vanessa said. Seeing how Lacey retracted her feelers and sustained even more damage, this was her chance. "Now! **Shadow Claw!**"

"(ADIOS LACEY, THE SHINY SYLVEON!)" Krokorok used Shadow Claw and he rushed in at a whimpering Lacey.

"Watch out!" Zetta warned, but Lacey was too caught up in her pain and Krokorok slashed downwards, making Lacey wail and fly back, landing on the ground several feet away and was scattered in dust. "Lacey!" The dust cleared, but Lacey was knocked out.

Nic called it. "Sylveon is unable to battle, Krokorok is the winner!" Nic announced.

Vanessa grinned at Krokorok. "Great job Krokorok!" She raised. In which he stood like a champ.

Zetta returned Lacey and she sighed. "Impressive. I didn't see that coming. You overcame Type advantage after all." She commented. "I never expected such a comeback, but it looks like I'll have to kick it into high gear! Let's go Jaws!" Zetta threw another poke ball, revealing her Tyrunt that roared.

"(What are you looking at?!)" Jaws's anger issues could probably rival Krokorok's if possible.

"(Let me tell you something Jaws the Tyrunt! Krokorok is eat you up, and then spit you out, AND THEN EAT YOU AGAIN!)"

"**Crunch! **Let's go!" Vanessa shouted. Krokorok then went to use Crunch on Jaws, but Zetta made her counterattack.

"Jaws! Counter that with Dragon Claw!" Zetta commanded. Jaw then roared and then had light green energy around his claws and he rushed in and Crunch and Dragon Claw collided, making energy burst in between, sending fairly strong winds surging about. Both Krokorok and Jaws skid back, both sides taking a little damage.

"Now, use Crunch!" Zetta commanded. Jaws then had his fangs glow and extend and he lunged at Krokorok, who sustained damage from before and was on a knee. Vanessa wanted Krokorok to dodge, but she made an alternative.

"**Dig!**" Krokorok quickly went underground by Vanessa's commands and went underground quickly, evading Crunch just in time. Zetta gritted her teeth and Jaws looked around in anger.

"(Where are you?!)" Jaws demanded and started stomping about angrily. "(Where?!)"

"(Right here!)" Krokorok burst through the ground underneath, sending dust flying and Jaws sailing in the air, with Krokorok in the air from an uppercut he did for Dig as he resurfaced.

"Now use Shadow Claw!" Vanesa commanded, in which Krokorok used it in midair and slashed at Jaws, dealing even more damage and the Rock and Dragon-Type howled as he hit the ground, making dust fly.

Zetta was caught surprised, but Nic was even more surprised by that clever display. _'Wow, Vanessa's giving commands with ease. That's my sister, she's grown up into a great Trainer.' _He smiled as he continued to be the referee.

Jaws slowly got back up. "(C-Curse you!)" He scowled as he was shaking from anger and from being tired. "(I'M NOT THROUGH WITH YOU, YOU HEAR ME?!)"

Zetta narrowed her eyes. "I forgot that your Krokorok had that Moxie Ability." She stated. "I forgot that was what made the match close a couple of times."

"Moxie?" Natsu asked.

Vanessa turned towards Natsu and everyone else. "Moxie is an Ability that my Krokorok has. When he defeats a previous opponent, his Attack power gets boosted."

"So it's like a power that boosts your chances of pain? Nice." Sophie commented.

"We're not down yet! **Dragon Claw!**" Jaws complied and he went at Krokorok with Dragon Claw once more.

Zetta extended her arm out. "Use Shadow Claw!" Krokorok then went with his Shadow Claw and both Krokorok and Jaws raced towards the other, and everyone was wondering who would come out on top. Both angry Pokémon then trust their claws into the opposite attack making a full burst of energy that had sent dust flying about like crazy.

When the dust cleared, both Trainers gritted their teeth in anticipation as they saw their two Pokémon all wobbly. Both Pokémon were covered in scratches and their visions were getting hazy.

"(Curse…you…stupid…stupid…)" Jaws fell forward.

"(Let me…tell you…something…)" Krokorok then fell forward, both parties falling forward into unconsciousness.

"Jaws!" Zetta exclaimed.

"Krokorok!" Vanessa shouted in worry.

Nic announced it once more. "Krokorok and Tyrunt are both unable to battle!" He announced.

Everyone spectated as the unconscious Pokémon were put back into their poke balls. Everyone seemed to take delight in how this battle was going.

"Man, this battle sure is something." Natsu commented. "I never knew you could just tell these things to do something and they just do it."

Sophie raised a brow. "Though I do wonder why they take orders anyways?"

Gajeel just shrugged. "Guess they just need a guiding hand or something."

Zetta gave a grin, yet a concerned expression. "You battled well Jaws, thanks." She then put the poke ball away and reached for another one on her wrist and looked at Vanessa. "Vanessa, I haven't pushed this far back for quite some time. Normally it's the other way around. Nice comeback, but now I'm gonna go all out! You leave me no choice, now go Aura!"

The poke ball was thrown into the air, and what came out was a pretty hard Pokémon to get. Lucario, or as Zetta nicknamed him, Aura.

He stood affirm as he looked out at Vanessa. "(At your service, Master.)"

Vanessa was taken by surprise. "Geez Zetta! I didn't know your Riolu finally evolved. Well played." Vanessa took out a device, and she then analyzed Aura to understand what is was.

Gray raised a brow. "Hey, that's the same gizmo that Nic showed us that one time." He reminded Team Natsu. They then heard the hologram of Lucario speak.

_"Lucario, the Aura Pokémon. __By reading the auras of all things, it can tell how others are feeling from over__half a mile__away."_

Vanessa stowed her device away and she looked at Lucario. She began to mutter. "I'm for certain since it's the evolved form of Riolu. It's gotta be part Fighting-Type. So…" She then reached out and got another poke ball out. "Braixen, come on out!"

Vanessa's Braixen then appeared and looked pretty pleasant. "(Let's give it our all Vanessa!)" Braixen said, being ready to act with Vanessa by her side.

Zetta smirked. "Oh, a part Psychic-Type, well played Vanessa." Zetta admitted. "However…" Zetta slowly reached for her own neck and showed Vanessa the Mega Necklace. "You know I have Mega Evolution now, just like you."

Vanessa gasped and went wide-eyed. "Wait, but that would mean…" In her mind, she was panicking as Zetta had an ace.

Nic looked in shock as well, seeing as how Zetta had a Mega Necklace. "A Mega Necklace? That means her Lucario can Mega Evolve." He was getting worried for his sister, as she could very well be at a disadvantage.

Wendy saw the necklace as well. "Hey wait. That's the stone Nic used when his Garchomp became that Mega Garchomp." She stated.

Gajeel narrowed his eyes. "Seems as though Luminous isn't the only one who can do that Mega stuff." Gajeel remarked. "We'll just see just how this goes for his sibling."

Zetta grinned. "This isn't over, not yet at least! Aura, Mega Evolve!" Zetta tapped the stone on her necklace, which then began emanating light waves. Aura's body began to shine a glow, in which yellow light waves began to surge. Erza and everyone else watched in shock as the process of Mega Evolution was happening.

"This power." Erza said as the light waves made contacted. "It's staggering."

The light waves shined and trailed towards Aura and she began to shine a light. They all saw Aura's body change, and Braixen and Vanessa grunted as Zetta's Mega Evolution caught them off guard. They saw the appendages on the head separate, and the tail changed, and then the light faded, it showed that Aura's cream fur became longer and the thighs slimmed. The spikes on the back of the paws grew in numbers and turned crimson, and the feet were crimson too and also had spikes. The aura-sensors grew longer and two were tipped with crimson. The shoulders had spikes as well, and the body in general had black markings.

Mega Lucario, or Mega Aura, then roared as a shockwave rippled, making a wind palpitate upon his Mega Evolution. Everyone watching had their hair flow from the wind.

"Whoa! It really happened!" Wendy exclaimed, with Carls swallowing.

"Mega Evolution." Erza said quietly, marveling at this power level she was sensing.

"Yeah." Gajeel nodded then pause. "That's exactly what Luminous did, only his was far more immense than this one. What you sense now…is nothing compared to his Mega Evolution."

Lucy turned towards him. "So, he's done this before?" To which Gajeel nodded.

"Yeah." He responded. "Those energy levels I sensed frightened me, but this is nothing."

Zetta then narrowed her eyes. "Aura, use Power-Up Punch!" She commanded.

"(Yes Master.)" He then darted at an alarming speed with a red-range aura surrounding his right paw and he struck a very sizeable blow onto Braixen, sending her into a skidding thud she was caught up in and came to a harsh halt.

"Braixen!" Vanessa exclaimed.

That one Power-Up Punch increased Aura's Attack and Braixen slowly got back up. "(That one had some bite.)" She muttered and then faced Aura. "(But I'm not down yet!)"

"Alright then! **Flame Charge!**" Vanessa commanded. Braixen then cloaked herself in flames and she lunged at Aura's Mega Evolved form. All Aura did was simply put up her hands and she blocked the Flame Charge, but he did skid back several feet as a result from Flame Charge being super effective.

Braixen landed and was ordered to use Psyshock, to which she made thick masses of various shades of blue and purple orbs around her body and she unleashed them at Aura, but the latter dodged and evaded by jumping high into the air.

Zetta extended her arm out. "Use Force Palm!"

"(Yes Master!)" Aura then went downwards with his paw extended out, Braixen dodged by leaping backwards as the paw struck the ground and let lose a yellow energy that made the ground shatter, much to everyone's shock.

"Whoa! That's one scary move!" Lucy exclaimed, relieved that she wasn't fighting against it.

"Braixen, straighten out and use Fire Spin!" Vanessa commanded, to which Braixen then grabbed the stick in her fur and she unleashed a vortex of Fire from it towards Aura.

"**Bone Rush!**" Zetta commanded, in which Aura put his paws together and spread them apart and made a large bone out of light green energy. Aura then held the bone with only one hand and he twirled it at high speed, blocking the Fire Spin completely.

Braixen and Vanessa alike were left in shock. "What?!"

Zetta narrowed her eyes. "A Ground-Type move has an advantage over a Fire-Type move! Aura!" As the Fire Spin ended, Aura zoomed in with the Bone Rush active and leaped high into the air. Vanessa and Braixen both looked up, but realized it was too late as Aura let loose a battlecry and slammed the bone's end on Braixen, making her yelp as she was send into the earth with dust and wind flying.

"Braixen!" Vanessa called out. Everyone from the sidelines gasped at the attack displayed. Aura landed and posed on a knee and the bone disappeared. The dust cleared, but it showed that Braixen had fainted and was lying the crater.

Nic called it once more. "Braixen is unable to battle, Mega Lucario is the winner!" He announced.

"Braixen!" Vanessa ran out and she knelt down and held Braixen in her lap, seeing her damaged friend. "Braixen, you did your best. Thank you." Vanessa then returned Braixen and she got back to her feet and she looked forward with a straight face. "Zetta, you got me by surprise. Having Aura Mega Evolve just like that threw me off." She admitted.

Zetta nodded in understanding. "Having Mega Evolution to begin with was a surprise." She tilted her head as Vanessa made way back to her box, seeing her right wrist having a Key Stone. "And I see I'm not the only one who could very well have an ace."

Vanessa didn't turn around, even after Zetta realized she could use Mega Evolution. Venessa was at a stalemate with herself as she was lost in her thoughts. All she wanted right now was to prove to Nic how strong she's become. She needed to win this so she wouldn't be so useless like that day when she tried standing up for him.

Vanessa slowly turned around and stayed quiet, and Nic saw the deep yet concentrated look on her face. _'Vanessa.'_

Venessa clenched her fists. _'I could use Mega Evolution to Mega Evolve Venusaur or Mawile, but her Aura is too fast. What do I do? I can't lose, not in front of my brother…'_

"Vanessa." Nic said, snapping her out her thoughts and turning towards him. "Vanessa, do you remember when I left? What I told you?"

Vanessa was slightly wide-eyed as she was beginning to remember what Nic told her so long ago

_Nic then knelt to his sister's eye level and put a hand on her shoulder. "Vanessa, I want you to become a beautiful, dependable young woman for everyone to admire. All your life, I was the one depended on, now it's my turn to depend on you to promise me you'll grow up and do as I say. You have to be strong and learn to love those other than your brother. Those who care about, those who would take a bullet for you, those who would be by your side. Make friends that will have your back, and don't take their trust for granted. Promise me you'll be strong and stay here."_

Vanessa was in shock briefly. _'That's right…I promised I would have more than just Nic to win for. No, I have to win this for myself, and for the team that got me this far, and I know just who to use.' _Vanessa nodded to herself and she inhaled and took a deep, deep breath. She then got out her last poke ball.

"You ready Aura?" Zetta asked, to which Aura nodded.

Vanessa then threw her poke ball. "Okay, here we go!" Her poke ball opened, and it revealed to be none other than Magnezone, much to Nic's surprise.

"It's Magnezone!" Wendy stated. Erza narrowed her eyes and awaited for what was to come.

"This is it huh? The last round that'll decide the winner." Lucy muttered. Lisanna nodded.

"Are you ready Magnezone? Let's finish this battle together!" Vanessa declared.

Magnezone took a brief moment and bobbed his body in agreement. "(Agreed. We shall take them on together as you say.)" Magnezone then glanced over and saw that Nic was the referee. He was aware that Nic was keeping an eye on him, but he expected this. He'll do his best as always.

Zetta blinked. "A Steel-Type? I don't know where you're going with this, but we'll see! Use Force Palm!" She commanded. "Let's do this!"

"(Very well Master!)" Aura the rushed in to attack with his Force Palm, the palm being ready to strike.

Vanessa had a plan, and she began to execute it. "Intercept with Magnet Bomb!" She commanded. Magnezone complied and his body was surrounded in light blue sparks of energy and his magnets flashed, releasing light blue orbs at Aura. The Magnet Bomb attack and the Force Palm collided, and the tons of orbs exploded from the sheer force of Force Palm, making a large explosion.

The explosion obscured everyone's vision, but Aura could sense aura from others and he was sensing Magnezone. "(When I sense you, you can't-!)" He was cut off when he sensed Magnezone at last and he felt him right through the smoke cloud.

"Now! **Spark!**" Magnezone's body was covered in electricity and he bashed his body as hard as he could against Aura, successfully scoring damage and making Aura skid back to a halt.

"Aura, are you okay?" Zetta called out. Aura looked back at Zetta to nod, but when he turned back, he felt a sharp sting as he felt yellow sparks engulf his body, making him numb. "What's this? Paralysis?"

Natsu raised a brow. "Hold on, what's with this paralysis talk I'm hearing?"

Nic turned back briefly. "Paralysis is a condition that's pretty self-explanatory Natsu." He explained. "The opponent becomes paralyzed, thus they won't be able to attack sometimes and their Speed also decreases."

Gray, having a shirt on this time, blinked. "So you mean Vanessa may have the advantage?"

"We'll see…"

Vanessa then extended her arm out. "Magnezone, now use Mirror Shot!" Magnezone then was covered in a light blue aura and said aura became an orb of light blue energy and was fired at the numb Aura. Aura put his hands up to block, but he still sustained damage and the orb exploded, making a white burst of energy and he skid back and got to a knee.

"Aura, can you stand?" Zetta asked, in which Aura slowly got to his feet and huffed.

"(I shall not conceded so easily.)" Aura testified. Zetta then ordered for a Force Palm yet again, in which Aura, though rather slow, still manage to do and dash with such prowess and will into Magnezone. Aura then pressed his paw on Magnezone, startling the latter, and unleashed a light energy that engulfed Magnezone and made him yelp. Mgnezone screeched as he felt the powered-up super effective move deal a large amount of damage. Magnezone was sent flying and crashed, making the ground shake.

Everyone looked on with shock as the dust cleared and Magnezone slowly arose from the ground, badly wounded. Up against a Fighting-Type, he was at a disadvantage, but a Mega-Evolved Fighting-Type was a far tougher challenge than he'd expected. "(I won't…back down…I shall…for it's Vanessa's will…and mine.)" Magnezone stated.

Nic looked on with some hints of surprise in his eyes. "Magnezone."

Zetta grunted. "I forgot that the Magnemite family has Sturdy, guess you're no exception." She then smiled. "But that won't stop us! We're battling to the sheer end! Ready?"

"(On your command Master!)" Aura exclaimed.

"Magnezone! Let' show them we're not done yet!" Vanessa shouted.

He said his magnets. "(We'll pull through to the end.)"

"Use Power-Up Punch!" Zetta shouted. Aura then lunged as fast as he could, being not paralyzed and found this to be his only shot.

"Now! **Zap Cannon!**" Magnezone started gathering energy fast and his red pupil in the middle gathered a plethora of energy that made a yellow sphere with a red and green core. As Aura jumped to punch, Magnezone aimed and both attacks shot at the other.

Both Aura and Magnezone's attacks were in close range, and they were practically five feet away when they let loose their punch and cannon. There was a massive red-orange and yellow explosion in the center of the battlefield and winds flew like crazy. Everyone covered up because of the power exerted, hair flew in the powerful winds that surged and dusted scattered.

Nic looked from within, seeing as the dust didn't go through his sunglasses. When everything was clearing up, everyone looked on with sheer anticipation. Everyone leaned in and Vanessa and Zetta both remained silent as the dust cleared out finally.

They saw Aura reverted from Mega Evolution and was scratched up bad, and Magnezone was just the same. The two adversaries were unconscious, and Vanessa and Zetta gaped in shock.

Nic took in a quick breath and called the match. "Both Magnezone and Lucario are unable to battle; therefore, the match is a draw!"

Both Trainers rushed out to their Pokémon and knelt to their sides. Zetta knelt down and tended to Aura. Zetta smiled. "Aura, are you okay?" All she got was a groan, meaning Aura was still fine. "You did wonderful today. Get a nice rest." Zetta then returned Aura.

Vanessa knelt down to her Magnezone, seeing how he was out. "Magnezone, are you alright?" She asked, in which Magnezone gave a slight groan, but wasn't able to move. Vanessa sighed, but smiled in the end. She wasn't sure whether this would be considered a win or a loss, but she tried her best. It would've been upsetting if it had been a loss, but it wasn't a loss, yet it wasn't a win. She was just glad her team did their best. "Magnezone, thank you so much. I know Nic will warm up to you. He's got the purest heart, and he'll sympathize hopefully; for now, let's be glad he's back." She said softly and she returned Magnezone.

Nic heard it as he was walking towards his sister. True, he wasn't trusting Magnezone yet, but after that battle, he saw the effort Magnezone put into that battle, and Nic gave a faint grin.

His sister looked up at him and she frowned. She tried her best, but wasn't sure if Nic was okay with it. "Nic…I…" Vanessa couldn't say anymore for her brother pulled her in for a hug, surprising her.

Nic's eyes softened heavily with a smile. "Vanessa. You can win, or you can lose. It doesn't matter one bit." He softly said as he kept hugging her. "What really matters is that you try. You don't have to prove anything to me. I've seen it all in your battle. The bond you held with your team is truly remarkable. You have five badges, and you made the journey across Kalos like I did. I can say that I am beyond proud. You've grown so much, thanks for the display of the bonds you've made besides me Vanessa."

Vanessa's eyes were shaken, and she was still for a brief moment, but her frown turned into a grin and she hugged back, thankful that her brother would always and forever be proud of her.

After the display, all of the Pokémon were fully recovered in the South Boulevard Pokémon Center and the group was currently outside the Center, where Vanessa and Zetta were looking at the other.

Zetta grinned. "You caught me with that last choice of yours." She admitted. "I never expected a Magnezone to give Aura a run for his money."

"It was tough, but we still managed to pull it off. It's okay to call this a tie, but don't think next time will be as equivalent as this one." Vanessa said.

"Count on it." Zetta then turned and she pulled out a random book on knowledge of Pokémon and started walking. "Until we meet again Vanessa!" She called out.

Vanessa waved at Zetta. "See you soon!" Vanessa continued to wave until she had an epiphany and she was comically flabbergasted. "Er, wait a minute…!" She turned towards Nic. "If she has five badges, doesn't that mean we should tell her that lies between here and Laverre City?" She questioned.

Nic pondered about this and smirked. "Oh right, Route 14." He said nonchalantly. "That's where I first learned to live and travel by trees…I say let her find out for herself."

"Of course." Vanessa sighed. With the matter settled, she then frowned at Nic. "So what's gonna happen now? Are you gonna find a portal and go back to Fiore?" She asked worriedly.

Nic looked down in dejection. "I'm afraid so. We have six days to find one." He then looked back up at his sister. "We're planning to head up Route 16 and try our luck there. Maybe I'll start sensing something there."

"…I see." Vanessa said. Nic and everyone saw the sadness in Vanessa's eyes. Her brother was gonna go again, and she just reunited with him. She clenched her fist and was about to speak when she suddenly heard Nic's voice.

"Vanessa." He said. "Listen." He gave a neutral smile. "I know what you're thinking, and I know full well you don't want to go through with it again…but it's a hard debate because your safety is important…however I also see the fact that you have chosen to follow my path, in my footsteps, and dare not tread another path." He then turned away. "To be honest…I wouldn't walk away from my sibling either, not again."

Vanessa was wide-eyed as Nic turned towards Lisanna. "You see her? Her name is Lisanna. She has two siblings back on Earthland, and they've been waiting long enough for her to return home…and we'll get home." Lisanna looked down, sympathizing with Vanesa in terms of siblings. Lisanna was waiting all this time, and she knew Vanessa felt the same way. They needed their siblings.

"Y-You mean…" Vanessa was starting to see a glimmer of hope.

Nic turned back towards her. "Yes Vanessa. You can come along." Vanessa had a hand over her mouth and she couldn't control herself and she held onto Nic and had misty eyes. Nic just smiled down at his sister. "You're all grown up. I can still be your protector, yet you can handle problems yourself now, and that's what I wanted to see and know."

Vanessa continued to hug Nic and a small tear ran down her cheek, so glad Nic wasn't gonna leave again. "I'm so glad you're back Nic."

"Yeah, me too." He said. He then gave a sincere grin towards Lisanna. "And we'll promise to get Lisanna back to her siblings, not just for her sake, but for everybody and Edolas Mira and Elfman."

Lisanna looked down with a face that showed she wanted to cry, yet she didn't. She was very glad Nic would do everything to get her home, and since Nic was bringing his sister, things were bound to get more interesting.

As Vanessa softly sobbed that she was gonna follow Nic at long last, everyone looked on with a glad expression.

Erza looked on in sincerity at the siblings being happy. _'Nic, you have so many people who will follow you. Just know, I'll follow you anywhere too.'_

* * *

**I felt as though I was in the biggest haze ever. My mind was just a foggy haze that threw me off big time this chapter. There were so many debates running through my head. So many! It was really tough choosing her six, but I figured it wouldn't hurt. Their personalities have plenty of room to develop.**

**While I was reminiscing in Ben 10, I couldn't help but see how picture perfect Rath's personality was in the form of Krokorok. When I thought of it, it was a little funny, so that's where his personality came from. So a disclaimer her to; I do not own Krokorok's personality. **

**I know some of you would be thinking this could've been laid out differently, but sympathizing with Lisanna's situation was how I would allow Nic to bring Vanessa along on the journey. I wanted to make her character mature, yet still loving and caring about her brother. Please leave a Review is you thought this ended quite suitably. **

**I realized that as I was making this chapter, I was getting all moody and the haze kicked in as I was writing in the second half. PokeguardianZ is a huge supporter and she wanted her OC in here so badly. We agreed on the terms and I did the rest, but trying to get her character when it's not my OC was tricky. VERY tricky. Still, the second half was what PokeguardianZ wanted, and I figured I would have the Fairy Tail Mages get introduced to battling, so that's a nice conjunction there. **

**If you're gonna give me suggestions of one-time OCs, don't ever do that. This was a one-time deal and I feel all messed up now because there's PokeguardianZ's story, then there's my story, and I like to keep stories to themselves. **

**Okay, since I got that hazy ordeal out of the way, I'm gonna have to take some time off. I'll still be active, but I won't be writing is all. My head is hurting like crazy from writing back-to-back fanfics every single day, and I'm taking a toll on it. I need to take a few days off to recharge my batteries, so the next update will be backed up quite a bit, but I need my rest. I will say that I already have a general idea as to how next chapter will go, and I will say that it will be extreme, and I mean **_**extreme**_**! I mean something that might leave you scarred, so forewarning there.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys didn't mind the small crossover for once and are enjoying Vanessa's company and the development and plot twists and etc.**

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**Next Time: Bathed in Pain**


	38. Bathed in Pain

Chapter 38 – Bathed in Pain

**Hey guys! Insane Dominator is back and fully recharged. Thanks to my few days off, I'm feeling much better and now I got the entire Kalos Arc planned out. The small rest was important, and I'm glad to be writing after a few days.**

**Hell Dragonis: First of all, in Vanessa's case, it's much like Lucy, having to rely on her Pokémon like Lucy does with her Spirits. Secondly, I never said they couldn't do Magic. Erza could Requip when they made it to Lumiose City. Let's say that the natural energy Kalos has is a substitute for Magic.**

**GoldenCyclone4: I will keep that in mind when doing future 4****th**** Wall breaks. Thank you.**

**Guest Valvrave: No, I do not know that song. I just listen to metal.**

**Okay, I gave you guys a warning, so be prepared to be scarred. Here we go!**

**FOREWARNING: This chapter may contain graphic content. Reader discretion is advised. Also, insanely long chapter. Longest up to date. Taking breaks and start from where you left off is advised.**

**To Recap:**

Nic reunites with Vanessa and they detail their past and Nic details his mission to Vanessa, who supports him. She shows her team to him, and surprisingly there was their father's Magneton, who was now a Magnezone, but no harm was done. They meet up with Vanessa's friend, Zetta, and the two battle. Everyone watched as the battle progressed and became a tie. After Zetta left, Nic allowed for Vanessa to come along with them, not wanting to be separated from the other sibling again.

* * *

**Chapter 38 – Bathed in Pain**

The group was currently making way up Route 16, where the grass and terrain was rather autumn themed. The leaves on the trees were red and orange, and the tall grass was yellow-green. Everyone was currently following Nic, and Happy and Natsu were breathing in some fresh air.

"AH SWEET AIR!" Natsu shouted.

"AYE SIR!" Happy shouted, finally relieved to be in the wild and not act like a plush toy.

Lisanna turned towards Vanesssa as they walked. "So you have how many badges?"

Vanessa looked at Lisanna as they walked. "I got five."

Lisanna then frowned. "Aren't you suppose to have eight?"

Vanessa then frowned as well, a serious look plastered onto her face. "Lisanna was it? Look, I would give up my whole quest if it means being with my brother again." She then turned towards Nic as they walked. "He's more important than anything. If it wasn't for him, who knows what would've happened to me." She contemplated. Lisanna then grinned, seeing the commitment Vanessa gave to her brother.

"Hey Happy, is there any food?" Natsu asked.

Happy floated in the air and looked into his green bag. "We have fish." He said.

Gray raised a brow with hands behind his head. "Not the best time for food guys. We gotta keep moving." He reminded them harshly.

Natsu made a fist. "There's gotta be some food around here somewhere."

Nic looked back and saw Natsu scavenging about near the tall grass. "Natsu, get back here. I wouldn't go near there if I were you." He advised.

Hunger trumped Nic's cautious words, and Natsu was searching about in the tall grass. "There's gotta be something around here that we can…"

"Hey Natsu!" Happy got his attention as the blue Exceed pointed towards a poke ball-sized mushroom, of which also looked like a poke ball. "You think this is edible?" He asked, poking the soft poke ball-like mushroom head.

Carla crossed her arms. "Now what did Nic just tell you both? No messing around in the tall grass!"

Lily nodded. "Agreed. In Nic's world, you may never know what kinds of Pokémon lurk about."

Seeing as how Natsu and Happy were eyeing the small poke ball-like mushroom, Nic let a small gasp escape his mouth as he turned sharply towards the duo. "Both of you, get out of the way this instant!" He shouted.

Natsu and Happy turned towards him. "What? Why?" Natsu's answer was given when he and Happy glanced over towards the poke ball-like mushroom and the head tilted upwards, revealing the stem to have small eyes and a pink mouth.

Happy looked surprised. "Whoa! That mushroom is alive?!"

Erza turned towards them and started scolding. "That's not a mushroom! That's a Pokémon! Do as Nic said and get away!" She shouted.

"But it looks so tasty…" Happy was drooling at the sight of the Foongus, of whom had a tick mark and inhaled and exhaled a thick, purple liquid that got Happy right in the face, making the Exceed fall over.

"Happy!" Natsu shouted, seeing his little buddy lying in front of the Foongus with purple on his face and looked as though he was having a fever. Natsu turned angrily with a flaming fist towards the wild Foongus. "You little-**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Natsu delivered a fiery punch that made contact on the Foongus and sent it soaring, but not before some small spores were released. The Foongus was sent spiraling and became a glint in the sky.

Natsu gave a triumphant smirk. "How do you like that…" The spores then scattered all over Natsu, who then started feeling sleepy. "Uh…" Natsu then fell over, right besides Happy and started snoring loudly as he fell asleep.

Gray facepalmed. "That idiot."

"Oh geez. Natsu, Happy, you okay?" Sophie asked. "For crying out loud, you idiots just had to go and listen to your stomachs."

Nic groaned and shook his head as his sunglasses were on his face. "Everybody falls for the Foongus trick."

"Foongus?" Lucy asked.

Nic got out his Pokedex and resented it to Lucy. "Here." The device then made a hologram of Foongus.

_"Foongus, the Mushroom Pokémon. __It lures people in with its Poké Ball pattern, then releases poison spores. Why it resembles a Poké Ball is unknown."_

Nic put his device away and he walked over towards the sickly Exceed and the snoring Dragon Slayer. "These two were caught up by Foongus's trick, and in turn Happy was poisoned and Natsu fell asleep when he made contact."

Sophie blinked. "What do you mean by contact?"

Nic turned towards the group as he knelt down to Natsu and Happy. "Listen. Happy was hit with a move called Toxic, which poisoned him, and in Natsu's case, he was affected by Foongus's Ability called Effect Spore, in which possible contact could cause the offender to become poisoned, paralyzed, or fall asleep."

"Um, are they gonna be alright?" Wendy asked with worry.

Nic then glowed and shifted into his Meadow Plate, much to Vanessa's surprise. "Yeah, but for Happy's case, the poison will need to be treated as quickly as possible. I can handle this." Nic then inhaled and exhaled. "**Aromatherapy.**" Nic's body then released a sparkling green-yellow powder that engulfed Natsu and Happy both, enveloping them in light green and green waves moved up their bodies. Just like that, Natsu began to wake up, and Happy's purple face and fever were cured.

"Amazing. So there are moves that can heal poison too!" Wendy stated in shock.

Vanessa watched as her brother used a move, and she couldn't help but feel very much impressed. "I…I don't have the words." She muttered.

Nic turned towards her as Aromatherapy was finished. "Surprised Vanessa?" He asked with a grin.

Vanessa smiled. "Yeah! It's so cool! An actual human using Pokémon moves! Amazing! Just like my brother always is!" She cheerfully exclaimed. She heard about Nic's Plates from earlier today, but she didn't see it until now.

Erza walked up to her with a grin. "Your brother has many other forms as well. He's defeated many opponents, and he's nothing but full of surprises." She stated. "In your case, this may take some getting used to."

Vanessa grinned back and looked as Natsu stretched and Happy rubbed his head. Nic stood back up and shifted back into himself. The dup were throbbing. "Aw man, who woke me from my nap?" Natsu complained.

"Aye." Happy moaned.

The two then received harsh blows and bumps on their heads catered by Erza. The two moaned as their heads throbbed even more. "Now what did Nic tell you? No more straying from the group. We've gotta move, so no snacks. Got it?" She warned.

Everybody just laughed at the duo's misfortune as to where Nic looked out beyond the trees, staring intensely at the clouds in the distance.

Nic couldn't help but feel as though something ominous was in the distance. He narrowed his eyes. _'What's this feeling?'_

"Hey Nic?" Vanessa asked, getting him out of his trance. "Should we keep moving?"

Nic blinked under his sunglasses. "Yeah." He said as composed as he possibly could, given his situation. "Enough lollygagging, move it!"

"Agreed. If we move about, then Nic should be able to pinpoint and sense a portal." Lily stated.

The group then resumed their trek through Route 16, where Nic was feeling uneasy throughout that time period. He noticed that the clouds he saw earlier were moving in, and was currently making the sky all cloudy. As the sky grew cloudier, Nic's uneasiness blew about in the soft winds.

A couple hours rolled by and the group had decided to take a short break from the trek, where Lucy slumped down by a tree. "Aw man, this walking's killing me."

"I'm surprised Nic hasn't sensed anything yet." Gray commented with crossed arms as he leaned against another tree.

"You can't rush these things. You know the ones who sent Nic to Fiore are doing the best they can." Carla stated.

Vanessa raised a brow as she looked at Carla. "Even so, I'm amazed that you guys actually talked to Dialga and Palkia. I'm jealous." She teased.

"Don't be such a _kvetch_." Sophie intruded, calling her a whiner. "You'll get your chance hopefully poutypants." Vanessa just groaned and crossed her arms in response.

Nic narrowed his eyes even more. "I can't shake this feeling." He muttered quietly. "It's starting to creep up and ready to strike when…"

"Are you alright?" Lisanna asked. "You're looking stumped."

Nic blinked and he turned towards Lisanna. "Huh? O-Oh yeah. Apologies. I'm just zoning out." He muttered and he reached into his pocket and he pulled out his phone and earbuds. Nic walked over towards a tree and leaned against it, listening to his metal to drown out his worries momentarily.

Everyone regrouped and saw Nic trying to ease himself as they saw his earbuds and phone. Vanessa looked at the phone and earbuds and remembered them all too well.

Vanessa gave a sincere grin. "I see he still has them." She muttered. "To be honest, I would treasure them myself."

Gray looked over towards Vanessa with crossed arms, apparently without a shirt. "Hey, how come you haven't got one like Nic does?"

Vanessa then turned towards the half-naked Gray with a neutral grin. "It wasn't my fourteenth birthday now was it?" She rhetorically asked with a cold tone.

Gajeel gave a twisted face. "Huh, so that little thing in Nic's hand is from when he was fourteen? Wonder why he still has it?"

Vanessa glanced down towards the ground, the mood dying. "It's something we don't like to talk about…"

Everyone remained quiet, and Erza looked back at Nic and then Vanessa with sympathy in her eyes. She knew the story from when Nic told her before the Tower of Heaven incident. She then turned towards the group. "I think we've got enough rest."

"You hear that Nic?" Natsu asked in a loud voice, getting Nic's attention. "Time to keep moving!"

"Right." He responded, unplugging his earbuds and putting his phone and earbuds away. The clouds above were grey and rather thick, blocking out any potential sun. He then started walking towards the group. "We should escalate the stairs that's not too far away up the large cliff a few miles off from here. We should hurry, and don't get…"

Nic stopped when he took a step closer to the group and then a hollow wind blew in the air, and the ominous feeling Nic felt earlier intensified and he was feeling frozen in place. Everyone felt this hollow and ominous wind breeze about and they began to accumulate goosebumps.

"What the…?" Natsu turned about in the air, sniffing it.

Wendy turned towards Natsu. "What is it Natsu?"

Natsu narrowed his eyes. "Something's not right. This air, it's foul. So foul that I can't smell anything."

Gajeel narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, this feeling, this air, something is very wrong."

Nic could feel the goosebumps on his spine die and he felt extremely uneasy. _'This feeling…wait…I know this feeling…' _He thought as everyone and got antsy.

"What's this feeling guys?" Lucy wondered, feeling the air killing her goosebumps and making her stay frozen.

"This wind…it's so ghastly." Wendy shuddered immensely.

Gray looked and saw this ghostly wind was passing the trees and nearby grass and shrubs. "Yeah, it's as if a spirit of evil made this wind." He began to shudder. "Wait, how am I cold?"

"Everyone stay alert!" Erza ordered as she requipped a sword and held it, looking about in every direction. Everyone noticed the clouds overhead were converging, and they turned to a dark grey. This feeling of dread accelerated and the suffocating wind was making all but Nic and Erza's legs slightly shake.

Even she was starting to get goosebumps under her armor. _'This isn't right. Just as Gajeel said, something is very wrong.' _The Fairy Queen looked over towards Nic, who looked as if he was on the verge of having an epiphany. "Nic, what's wrong?"

"This foul air…so evil…" This remembrance of foul evil and inhumane suffocation then sparked a huge flare that went through Nic's mind, as he then let loose a disastrous gasp and his pupils shrank and his sunglasses jerked off his face, showing everyone the petrified look on his face.

Everyone looked in shock. "Nic?" Sophie asked in worries. They all saw it. Their eyes looking into the great Luminous of Fairy Tail. They saw that Nic was something they did not expect…afraid. This even left Erza uneasy as she never saw Nic this freaked out before. He was never afraid of Erza, so if this was making him freak out, they were all in serious trouble.

Nic's pupils were shaking as he was horror on his face. "Oh no…oh no…" He muttered.

"Snap out of it Nic! What is it?! What's happening?!" Gray demanded.

Suddenly, Nic jerked forwards. "Guys, you gotta get out of here now!" He shouted, much to everyone's shock.

"What? Why?" Natsu asked. The wind stopped, but the air was more death-like than ever.

"Don't you dare ask Natsu! You guys just get out of here right now!" Nic demanded with haste in his voice.

Sophie stepped forward in fear. "Nic! Tell us what's going on!" She exclaimed.

"You guys don't understand!" Nic shouted, the air beginning to choke his voice a little. "You need to go! NOW! RUN!"

Vanessa was quivering like crazy. "N-Nic? What's wrong?" She's been with her brother her whole life, and she saw him be many things, but she never saw him be afraid. "We're not leaving you!"

"Vanessa's right. We can handle this!" Lisanna said with no confidence with this air and vile nature choking her slightly. Everyone there was shaken up and the Exceeds were forced to their needs as they suffocated.

"DO AS I SAY AND-!" Nic then remained frozen as his eyes were stricken with fear and death as he and everyone heard a demonic monotone voice.

"Such pity…" It said.

"…too late." Nic muttered, and harshly turned right and saw a plague of shadows in the air slowly converging. They heard a maniacal chuckle as the shadows began to become hazy and converge to make a cocoon in midair, floating high. Everyone was shuddering, but keeping their guard up as the cocoon dissolved, revealing a hybrid of some sorts shrouded in a dark purple aura.

The assailant had returned, and he was more than happy at seeing the frightened faces on everyone, especially Nic.

The assailant smirked evilly, his vermilion feral eyes gazing down at Nic. "Well now, I do believe that time is up Nic Pularis."

Nic clenched his fists and grunted. "You." He growled.

Erza glanced towards Nic. "Nic, do you know him?"

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, unfortunately. He attacked me before we went to Edolas. Apparently he's got the same powers I do."

This made everyone look even more shocked. "He does?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Yeah, and the worst part is…he's the manifestation of Hell itself." Nic explained with scorn.

"Oh, what a nice compliment Luminous." The assailant exaggerated. "I see that I left you a nice awful feeling." He said. "Such fear. Such anxiety. It's glorious to see such human nature shrivel in their weakness."

Natsu ran forward and stopped in front of the huddled group, exclude Nic. "Alright! Who are you?!"

"Who am I?" He asked, descending, and the nearby plant life on the ground wilted and was reduced to nothing, startling Natsu and everyone. The assailant was a foot off the ground and he gave a cocky smirk. "Who am I? I am the eradicator that shall cleanse this plague known as humans. I am the one that shall slaughter Nic Pularis, making him lie in blood and watch as the universe crumbles, leaving only a void."

Lucy was terrified beyond words. "What is he?" She asked, a hand over her mouth as she was having trouble breathing.

Gray clenched his fists. "I don't know, but he's after Nic." He stated.

Erza stared at the evil before her. She's fought many things demonic in the past, but this would trump everything in her life. This demon or whatever he was is just as what Nic called him, the manifestation of Hell. She had a sword extended forward. "Just tell us who you are!"

The man said nothing as he gave a maniacal smirk, making Erza uneasy. _'Wait, is this what Dialga and Palkia said earlier, about some great evil?' _She thought. _'Is this what Nic was trying to keep from us? Was he trying to protect us?'_

The assailant noticed a shaking Vanessa right beside Sophie. "Oh? Nic Pularis, I seem to have realized that you had a sister this whole time." He said.

Immediately, Nic dashed ahead and was between the group and the assailant. "Don't you even lay a finger on her!" Nic lashed out, his tone snarling in defense.

The man paused as the thick purple aura kept surrounding him. "Hm. You're more than welcome to stop me. My priority is to watch you die, but some suffering beforehand would do just fine."

Nic's veins then popped out and he snarled ferally at the man. "You will not do such a thing." He warned.

"Perhaps." The man then gave a smirk and showed all his toothed canines. "But I can see into your nightmares Nic Pularis, and I think watching you suffer from the start would be quite an appetizer." He then slowly moved his arm in a vertical oval and a black aura framed what seemed to be a large mirror. "I do believe everyone deserves to know the pain you went through. A trip down memory lane."

Nic gritted his teeth as he and everybody else just watched as the mirror showed Nic's past. The man spoke. "I do believe _that _day is when you almost died, yes? Let's see for ourselves what your disastrous past held for all to be scarred with…"

Vanessa had horror in her eyes as she covered her mouth. "No…not again…I don't wanna go through that again…"

"_I said get outside, and you're suppose to do as I say!" The mother then slapped Nic harshly, making him fall to the ground onto his side, where the father proceed to stomp on his rib cage._

"_Just look at yourself! The biggest mistake and you keep leeching off our essentials! We kick you to the curb and yet you still refuse to whimper!" The father shouted in rage. "Now get back outside and shiver! Magneton!" The father shouted and Magneton rushed forward, ready to deliver an attack upon command._

"_(Sorry kid, but…orders are orders…)" He said distastefully._

_Suddenly, a pair of arms and a body intercepted the parents and Magneton, cutting them all off. Vanessa was frowning and she had misty eyes as she tried protecting Nic._

"_Vanessa…" Nic stated._

"_Sweetheart, what are you doing?" The father asked bluntly, seeing their 'new lease' in front of them. "Shouldn't you be eating?"_

"_NO!" Vanessa yelled, much to everyone's shock as the parents recoiled. "You leave my brother alone NOW!"_

_Nic was baffled as Vanessa was shaking and was trying her best to protect Nic. The mom looked displeased. "Sweetheart, I'm gonna say this one more time, please get back to eating." She leaded._

"_NO! I am not your little princess! And Nic is not trash!" She exclaimed. "And he is no mistake!"_

_The father blinked and narrowed his eyes. "Vanessa, please listen to your mother. This won't be fun with you getting in the way."_

"_I'm not moving! You think of me as a new lease on life, well I'm not! You just let your anger out on Nic because you thought he was a mistake! I'm tired of this! Nic isn't a punching bag! He's my brother!"_

"_Vanessa! You don't have a brother! That right there is trash! A pure example of an unforgiveable past that we never wanted, and now you're all we have!" The father exclaimed, pointing towards Nic as he called him a thing. He then reached for her. "You're our daughter, so-!"_

_Vanessa swatted the arm away harshly, making a loud sound that echoed, much to everyone's extreme shock. "I AM NOT YOUR DAUGHTER! I AM NOT A PRINCESS! LEAVE NIC ALONE!" She yelled._

"_Vanessa." Nic quietly said in shock._

_Now the parents' wrath was unleashed as their faces grew red with anger. "VANESSA PULARIS! GO UPSTAIRS NOW!" The mom shouted, but Vanessa didn't budge and the mom went to grab her wrist and Vanessa tried swatting her away. The father joined in and grabbed her other wrist and yanked her. Vanessa was fussing about and she kicked the father in the shins and then the mother, forcing them to grunt and let go._

"_WE'RE DONE WITH YOUR FAKE LIFE!" Vanessa shouted. Suddenly, the father had bloodshot eyes as he was really pissed. He growled as he then grabbed Vanessa by the head._

"_FINE! BE THAT WAY LITTLE MISSY! BE GROUNDED ALL YOUR LIFE!" He then threw her to another wall and she tumbled and her back struck the wall, making her squeal._

_Nic's eyes were stricken with horror as the parents were actually beating his sister up. Nic himself is one thing, but they just crossed the line. _

_The mother marched up as Vanessa had teary eyes and was smacked across the face. "Young lady! You are in SO MUCH TROUBLE!" The mom shouted and shoved Vanessa against the wall, making her feel cold and uneasy as the smack and the shove combined almost made the wall dent and Vanessa was barely conscious._

_Vanessa sniffled. "I…I regret nothing…" _

_Nic was stricken with horror as his beloved little sister was hurt, and then he finally snapped. Despite his condition, Nic growled as he was emanating a menacing presence. _

_The parents turned towards each other as they targeted Nic. "This is bullcrap. Where's that hound?!" The father turned towards Nic, who was growling. "You've made us angry now ya bas-!" The father didn't get anymore words in before Nic lunged at them with a vicious frenzy, letting loose a snarling scream as his eyes were bloodshot from the anger that swelled on him. He grabbed both their heads and drove them into the floor, making loud thud sounds._

_The air was extremely foul, as Vanessa was barely conscious and witnessed her brother's bottled-up anger let loose. This was the most terrifying moment of her life as she had tears and watched as Nic picked them up and dragged them over and slammed them down onto the table of lo mein._

"_YOU SWINES HURT VANESSA!" Nic shouted, hovering over their startled expressions and punching the father repeatedly, hearing the facial bones crack with every strike. _

_The mother let loose a battlecry as he got up and lunged at Nic with her nails, but Nic saw this and took his gaze off of the father and gave a hook to the mother's face with bloodshot eyes full of anger as well. She fell to the floor and the father used the distraction to yank Nic's arm and pull him in as he drove a punch to his face. Nic recoiled as the father got up, as well as the mother. All three were snarling and had a foul feeling emanating that made Magneton quiver in the air and was scarred and Vanessa was living a nightmare._

_The mother and father lunged with feral ferocity and Nic tackled them and grabbed their necks and shoved them back onto the floor, but the father gave a menacing kick to Nic's ribs and made him grunt, and the mother yelled as she shoved Nic to the ground, leaving the father with a monstrous looked as he lunged and started choking Nic brutally._

_Nic snarled as he was losing breath, but his feral side was just beginning as he then clutched the wrists harshly, making the father let go and scream and Nic headbutted him, sending him stumbling several feet back. Nic got to both feet in a snarled as the mother lunged and swatted at Nic's head, who took the blow and got bruised from it. Nic snarled and lashed a hook again, making the mothers face bruise as well. The father lunged and rammed into Nic, pushing him back like a football player._

_Nic snarled and delivered a punch to the forehead, but the father yelled and threw Nic to the side and the mother pounced as Nic hit the floor, smacking him with a demon-like vibe. "YOU LOUSY TRASH!" She exclaimed._

"_YOUS SICK LOSERS!" Nic kicked insanely hard into her abdomen and she slammed into the father, sending the two against a wall with a monstrous thud. Nic charged and the father shoved the mother into Nic, who swatted her away and Nic bashed into father and their bruised bodies clashed fist to face. They snarled ferally as both their faces were bruised to the point of being black and blue, but the mother snarled and her eyes caught glimpse of something to destroy Nic._

_She grabbed a nearby knife from a counter and she yelled as she charged for Nic as he was trading blows. "DIE YOU SCUMBAG!" She then drove the knife into Nic;s right shoulder, which made him scream in pain and recoil and back away as the mother dislodged the knife with Nic's blood on it. Nic's bloodshot eyes screamed for their demise, and he refused to quit and avenge his sister. He was sadly unable to react due to the knife attack earlier and the father punched him in the Adam's Apple, making Nic gag blood as he stumbled back. The mother swiped the knife, leaving a faint gash in Nic's chest and made blood seep down and taint his now ripped up shirt._

_The father then pit Nic against a wall by driving a knee into his gut and made Nic gag even more blood, the blood now running down his mouth as he looked like a berserk animal. The father grabbed the mother's knife and he drove it into Nic's gut, making Nic scream in wail in agony, as everyone on the street could hear the screams and harsh cries that Nic was giving off._

_Vanessa was silently crying her eyes out as she was seeing blood spilling from Nic, her savior. Tears streamed down her eyes as she laid on her side and looked at the hideous display that was far worse than any nightmare. "Someone…please help us…"_

_Nic's screams of pain continued to foul the air as the father let a sadistic and feral grin plaster his face and he tossed the knife aside and he elbowed Nic's face repeatedly. "WHY DON'T YOU JUST DIE ALREADY HUH?! THAT'D BE JUST GREAT! WE DON'T NEED NO TRASHY PET THAT WAS AN ACCIDENT!"_

_Nic was given air from the elbow attack, but the mother began to tear at him and drove her nails into his shoulder gash, making Nic scream even more._

"_MAGNETON! TEACH HIM A LESSON NOW!" The father shouted. _

_Magneton was all shaken up as he could barely copmrehend the horrors. "(These people…these two people…m-monsters…)"_

"_NOW! OR I'LL TOSS YOU LIKE A RAG DOLL LIKE THIS PUNK HERE!" The father shouted with a heinous and bruised face._

_Magneton hesitated to no end, but slowly complied, much to his disbelief. "(I'm…sorry it had to end like this.)" Magneton muttered and then acquiescently used Spark at its highest level. Nic's body was shaking violently and wailed as he felt his nerves jumble up and his blood red eyes were sought with pain. Nic continued to wail loudly as the power of Spark was amplified even more, and the father and mother both watched in satisfaction as Nic was shaking violently._

_After the Spark, Nic's bloodied body was sizzling and the father slammed Nic's head against the wall, making Nic slump down and emit a snarl in pain. "AGAIN!" The father shouted, and Magneton did Spark again, despite not wanting to anymore. Nic wailed as his body shook violently and his feral cry pierced all the ears close by._

"_FINISH HIM! NOW!" The father shouted, in which Magneton backed away and then unleashed his Magnet Bomb, bombarding Nic and making debris from the wall blow off. _

_Everyone saw Nic's body twitching as his feral expression was on his face, but his bloodied shoulder and torso was started to get red on the floor, and the severely bruised parents then did a unison kick and Nic's head had hit the damaged wall, rendering him barely conscious as he emanated a low growl._

"_Damn…you…" Nic muttered before the father grabbed Nic by the throat and deliberately threw him out of the nearest window, shattering the entire thing and Nic and the broken glass fell to the December ground outside._

The image faded, and the assailant looked on as the Fairy Tail Mages all had horror on their faces. Lucy couldn't look at half of it, Wendy was tearing up from sheer horror, Gajeel was shocked beyond comprehension, but Vanessa had the worst of it as she was nearly bawling and had to watch Nic's torment.

Erza was devastated. She saw Nic's past before her. She never imagined that Nic's anger would be trumped over. It was a pure shock as she saw how devastating his rage was, but his parents were pretty much demons that were just as angry as Nic, only they had the advantage due to knives and Magneton. She was horrified. Nic probably had it worse than her.

Nic was sharp-eyed and growled as he saw his past once again, staining his morale. "Damn you." He muttered with a shaking body from his barely contained fury.

"Hm." The assailant gave a smirk. "I see I've struck a nerve like last time. You see Nic Pularis, I can look into your nightmares. I know your fear. Your dread. Yours is that authority will leave you helpless to protect yourself and others. You lash out at authority so you are not rendered at anybody's disposal." He exposed, making Nic clench his fists tighter.

"You silence right now!" Nic demanded.

Erza pointed a sword at the demonic man. "The past will not be tolerated! Nic and everyone here will not be succumbed by your tricks!" She shouted.

Natsu was coated in flames that signified his determination. "Talk about cruel! You're playing with Nic's past! That's just unforgiveable! Vanessa and Nic are scarred twice now because of what you've done!"

Gray started making ice. "You're trying to get in our way! We'll mow you down! No matter who you are!"

Sophie clenched her fists. "You're gonna regret getting in our way!"

"This clown is going down." Gajeel muttered. "He's gonna pay for giving us a bad show."

Nic growled as he turned towards his pals. "No guys! Get back!"

The man chuckled. "Yes. Listen to your friend there. All I want is for Nic to die. Anyone who helps him will perish as well."

"Like hell that'll happen!" Natsu lunged first. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" He lunged head first and went to strike the man, but the man became thick shadows and disappeared, making Natsu stop in midair. "What?!"

The man reappeared on Natsu's side. "Boo." He then had his head get coated in a shining ball of light blue energy and he slammed his head into Natsu, via Zen Headbutt, making him scream as he crashed into a tree, shattering it completely and making the earth shake.

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted in worries. She and everyone there saw the ground under the man die and wither into sheer nothing, even the ground began to crack up to how heinous the energy was.

Gary then attacked. "You're gonna pay for that! **Ice Make: Saucer!**" A huge saucer was then made out of ice and it went through the air towards the assailant. The assailant turned back as he saw the attack. His evil eyes glowed light blue and the saucer stopped in place. The assailant the narrowed his eyes and the saucer began to spin far faster than when Gray shot it and was sent back to him and everyone.

"What?! He's sending my attack back?!" Gray exclaimed, not having seen Psychic before. As the far more powerful saucer was seen heading towards them, Erza acted fast.

"**Requip!**" Erza glowed as she changed from her Heart Kreuz Armor to her Heaven's Wheel Armor, and she then use her two swords in her hands to slice downwards and shatter the saucer, saving the group and the ice was now sparkles that flew all over the place. "Everyone stay on your guard!" She shouted. "Dance, my blades! **Circle Sword!**" Erza then unleashed her spinning twenty swords towards the assailant, who thought of this as child's play.

"Oh really, swords?" He asked as they were coming his way. "In that case…" He made a spacial hole when he extended his arm out, and the twenty swords dashed into the hole, much to Erza's shock.

"What's this?! He's intercepting mine as well?!" Erza exclaimed. Above Erza was a second spacial hole was made and she looked up and went wide-eyed when she saw her own swords raining down from the hole.

"Erza watch out!" Sophie exclaimed. Just then, a turquoise shield was made, of which protected Erza as the swords rained down. Erza looked in surprise as Nic was in front of her and was using Protect. The swords all scattered about, saving her and the shield disappeared.

Nic turned back towards Erza. "Are you alright?" He asked, in which Erza nodded. Nic then looked forward. "Like he said, he's after me."

"Honestly, is that the best you got?" The assailant asked, and noticed Natsu emerging from his left.

"Like hell you'll lay a finger on our friends! **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Natsu's fist then went for the man, but the man caught it and clutched his hand.

The man wasn't interested as he snickered. "Oh please." Just then, Natsu's fist was starting to feel as though it was decaying and the Dragon Slayer yelled as he felt as though his fist was wilting.

"Natsu! Hang on!" Lucy shouted, grabbing a key. "**Open: Gate of the Lion – Loke!**"

Loke then appeared on the battlefield and was frowning, feeling his horrendous power that was off the charts. "You call Lucy?" He asked as normal as he usually said it, but still felt uneasy by this power.

"Hurry! Save Natsu!" She commanded. Loke then rushed in to attack the assailant, but the man caught his eye and he hurled Natsu towards the incoming Celestial Spirit, slamming them both into the ground with dust flying.

The assailant ascended and conjured energy. "You're so annoying! **Dragon Breath!**" A round of loops was made and he fired a humungous blue beam that went towards the group.

"Oh no you don't!" Gajeel shouted. He then inhaled. "**Iron Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Sky Dragon's Roar!**" Wendy aided Gajeel by combining her roar with his and the two attacks went towards the Dragon Breath. The three attacks collided, and there was a rather large explosion in the middle, and Wendy and Gajeel covered up as winds blew in their direction and made them fly back from the power exhaled, as to where the assailant didn't budge a remote inch in the air.

"Well then, it looks like it's my turn to help!" Lisanna shouted and she glowed. "**Take Over: Animal Soul!**" Lisanna then showed that she looked much like a harpy, where she had talon feet and bird-like wings, but the rest of her human features remained. Lisanna flapped and she flew into the air above the assailant, despite how heavily repulsive the energy was.

"Take this!" Lisanna unleashed her talons down upon the assailant, but all he did was disappear into shadows and Lisanna's attack missed. "What?! He turned into shadows again?!" She exclaimed.

"**Feint Attack!**" The assailant then reappeared behind Lisanna and drove a knee into her back, making her gag as she smashed into the ground from the force of the attack, sending dust flying.

"Lisanna!" Sophie shouted in worry. "Curse you! **Memory-Make: Scorn of the Armored Winds!**" Just then, twisters of iron were made that swirled about around the assailant.

The assailant didn't even move as the winds started converging on him. Sophie was certain this should restrain him, but she was wrong.

"Don't make me laugh." He said. He slowly moved his arm around and he lashed it out in an arc. "**Ominous Wind!**" Just then, a huge surge of purple wind scowled and swamped everything. Everybody covered up and the Memory-Make was easily overpowered.

Vanessa went wide-eyed as the wind was coming towards her and everyone. "Quick! Mawile, **Protect!**"

Vanessa's Mawile appeared out of her poke ball and she landed on the ground. "(Coming right up!)" Mawile then made a turquoise shield in front of Vanessa and herself, sparing everyone there. Nic didn't cover up because he was in his usual form, which was technically Normal-Type. The wind surged right passed the shield and Nic, leaving a few trees behind them destroyed.

Everyone looked on and grunted. "Man, just what is this guy?" Natsu asked as he felt his fist feeling fine, but was numb.

"He's deflected every one of our attacks and didn't even flinch." Gray said.

"This level of power is terrifying too. It's as though it's of the charts!" Wendy exclaimed.

Vanessa gulped. "I think Nic was right. We need to get out of here."

The assailant snickered once more. "Personally, I would run if I were you." He advised. "This power that I wield, it tainted Arceus. A God. A _God_!" He emphasized, making everyone uneasy. "If you honestly believe that you can stop me, you're in for a miserable afterlife."

Nic grunted. "Leave everyone out of this. It's me you're after right?" He asked. He then glowed and started shifting into the Insect Plate, and his sunglasses that were on the ground from before reappeared on his face as the multi-cell lenses. "Then come at me!"

"Ah, a Bug-Type I see." The assailant sneered. "Nice choice. Bug-Type moves are highly effective against me…but let's see if that'll last."

"Damn you!" Nic shouted, his dragonfly-like wings vibrating and he ascended to the assailant's level, locking eye contact before Nic unleashed an attack. "**Struggle Bug!**" Little green comets streamed from Nic that went darting for the assailant. The assailant counterattacked with ease.

The assailant was surrounded in a white reflective color. "**Mirror Coat!**" The Struggle Bug bombarded him and he grunted as he was swallowed in a yellow-green burst of energy and smoke.

Nic was momentarily relieved, but his eyes shot wide when he saw that through the smoke, the little comets shot right back at him with double the force. Nic gasped as he then tried evading them, shifting repeatedly left and right as the comets exploded, forcing him backwards. Nic still wasn't safe as he was swallowed up by a comet and was engulfed in a yellow-green burst of energy in the sky.

"Nic!" Erza shouted.

"No! Nic!" Vanessa cried out, seeing her brother get hurt.

They saw Nic descend from the smoke cloud in the air and grunted as he had a few scratches here and there. He winced in pain but continued onwards. "Well played. That caught me by surprise, but I won't give up yet! **Silver Wind!**" Nic then unleashed a wind that surged through the air with silver sparkles towards the assailant. The assailant raised a brow and then narrowed his eyes as he then moved his arm in an arc and a vile wind surged and sliced straight through the silver wind, cancelling it out completely.

"Just one movement from his arm?" Loke stated in horror.

"This looks very bad guys. We need to help out fast!" Wendy exclaimed to support the group.

"**Requip!**" Erza then requipped into her Morning Star Armor and her two swords had energy surging. "We need to hurry! Wendy! Give us your support!"

"Oh, uh, right!" Wendy then spread her legs slightly. "O strengthen the arm to cleave the heavens! **Arms!**" Wendy chanted, and everyone then started feeling their power grow, exclude Vanessa and Nic.

"(My power, it feels like it's growing.)" Mawile said.

"Now!" Loke shouted. "**Regulus Impact!**" Loke then unleashed a blast of light in the shape of a lion.

"Gotcha covered! **Ice Make: Lance!**" Gray then fired several lances made of ice.

"**Memory-Make: Baryon Lightning Impact!**" Sophie then unleashed a green beam with lightning coating it.

"You ain't leaving me out of this fight! **Iron Dragon's Roar!**" Gajeel shouted, unleashing his metallic roar.

"**Photon Slicer!**" Erza unleashed an energy blast. All of the attacks went at the assailant, making the foul air vibrate with extreme force. There was a massive array of colors as they went towards the assailant.

The attacks all began to surge and for a brief moment they looked as though they were about to hit. The assailant looked at the incoming attacks. "**Nasty Plot.**" He muttered, and then he felt a big surge of power come from when he schemed in just a second's time, emanating him in a black aura in conjunction with his purple aura. The attacks were only a few feet in front of him when he unleashed his fury. "**Dark Pulse.**"

He unleashed a very dense stream of dark rings with purple outlining. The attack had large force behind it and the attack was able to stop all five incoming attacks at once, unleashing a catastrophic shockwave that made the ground shatter and everyone covered up again as there was a huge light in the air. Everyone was blinded by the huge light and the shockwave engulfed them, making them skid several feet back.

When the light faded, it showed that the man wasn't even touched. Even more concerning than that, the man was smiling.

"What?!" Gray exclaimed. "Even after that, our attacks didn't faze him!"

"This power." Lily started. "It's making my body quiver to the core. If anything, he might not be even at full power." Everyone turned towards him in shock.

Nic descended to the ground, still in his Insect Plate Form. "Yeah, far from it. He's toying with us."

Mawile had a twisted face. "(So that freak of nature wasn't trying?!)" She exclaimed. "(That's crazy!)" Mawile then disappeared from where she stood.

"Wait, Mawile!" Vanessa warned. "I didn't tell you to attack!"

Mawile reappeared behind the assailant. "(You think you can deceive me?! I'm more than capable of trickery pal! **Feint Attack!**)" Mawile swatted her huge jaws, but the man didn't even budge when he put up his right arm to block, startling Mawile. "(Huh?!)" Mawile was suffocating as she was too close just like Natsu and she could feel her jaws rotting.

"Futile." He then used the arm he used to block and pivoted in the air and unleashed a Shadow Ball and slammed it into Mawile, making a devastating explosion of darkness and Mawile screamed.

"Mawile! No!" Vanessa screamed as Mawile fell straight down towards the ground and landed on her back in defeat. "Mawile!"

"Just after one hit…" Happy said.

"Then, what'll happen to us?" Carla wondered.

"No!" Lily then stepped forward and he tried to shift into his Battle Form. Lily became the same bulky cat he once was, much to everyone's shock. "This menace must be stopped at once! I'm not sitting back anymore!"

Vanessa returned Mawile quickly before the assailant descended slightly, making the ground decay and die. Vanessa gave a relieving sigh as she managed to save Mawile quickly, but was still frightened as she still had goosebumps. "This guy…what is he…"

"Are you still resisting?" The assailant asked with a seriousness in his tone. "You fools! You do realize that with this power, I can kill you on the spot. Yet I choose not to; and you know why?"

Natsu clenched a fist. "Yeah! Because you're just bluffing!"

"No! Because you are not my concerns! Nic Pularis is my target! Don't you see?" He implored. "Humanity has suffered greatly. There has been a contamination in your nature. There's greed, selfish desires that I loathe. And it's that very aspect that makes your existence all the more despicable!"

"…wait, where have I heard that before?" Nic muttered under his breath so no one could hear.

"If this world were to be created for beauty alone, you leave it beautiful. But humanity's ignorance has caused that beauty to be stained. By creating a new universe, life would be able to be born from the darkness that gave me power. The void of nothing is where everything started, and that's how it much always be."

"Like hell we'll listen to you!" Gajeel unleashed an Iron Dragon's Club, in which went towards the assailant. Lily jumped and he used the column of iron as a springboard and leaped with a fast punch.

As Lily let a battlecry out, he went and punched the assailant, but the assailant took it, feeling nothing. "What's this? My physical prowess didn't faze him either?!" Lily exclaimed.

The glowering look the man gave made Lily shiver as his hand started to feel as though it was decaying as well and he recoiled and started falling downwards. The evil before them then snickered and unleashed a Shadow Ball at Lily. The attack made contact and exploded in the air with thunderous force.

"Lily!" Gajeel shouted as Lily was severely scratched up and fell downwards. Gajeel ran towards him and caught the panther-like Exceed and huffed. "Hey man, get up! This is no time for a catnap!"

Lily winced as Gajeel managed to keep him up by the arms. "He didn't even try…and yet…he took me out with one blow." Lily muttered before turning to his little Exceed self, still looking massively hurt as he was huffing.

"He…He's even stronger than from before." Nic stammered in shock.

"Damn you!" Gajeel shouted. He then turned towards Sophie. "Blondie! Back me up here!"

Sophie nodded. "You got it!" Sophie then made a chain of memories. "**Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**" Sophie then unleashed a huge amount of spinning fire saucers at the man. The man then disappeared by dispersing in shadows. "Where'd he go?!" Sophie exclaimed.

"How pathetic. This power you Earthlanders wield is nothing." The menace's voice echoed through the air. "You all have no idea to the power that I possess."

"Where's he go?" Lisanna asked, still looking like a harpy.

Erza shifted her eyes back and forth as she tried to pinpoint where the monstrosity was located, she then looked up, and saw the man high in the air. "He's above us!" She shouted.

Nic looked up and he then shifted into his Draco Plate Form, rushing in at a high velocity and at the high speed to match with that. "Begone you foul creature!" Nic shouted. "**Dragon Claw!**"

"Nic Pularis, when will you learn your place?" He stated. He then activated his own Dragon Claw and he went down and attacked. The two Dragon Claw collided, sending a violent shockwave echoing about. The assailant was shoving with his might, but Nic was still being stubborn and forcing the two attacks in a stalemate.

"Persistent, I'll say that." The assailant asked. "Very well then." The assailant then vanished yet again in shadows, throwing Nic off balance and he was jerked forward. He regained balance immediately and looked about and noticed that he wasn't around.

"Show yourself!" Nic demanded. Just then, Nic sensed a forceful energy from below. Nic looked down in shock as the ground started to crack up beneath everyone's feet. "Guys! Get out of the way!" Nic shouted from above.

"**Earth Power!**" The assailant reappeared on the ground below and pressed his foot against the ground in which the cracks unleashed golden energy that made way towards the group.

"Oh no you don't! **Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**" Natsu let loose a huge fireball towards the incoming energy from within the earth, making a flashy eruption of fire engulf the area in front of them, but that did not stop the Earth Power.

"You fool! Fire-Type moves don't have much effect on Ground-Type moves!" Nic shouted. "Everyone move!" Everyone below then scattered away from the cracks as the Erath Power burst entirely in the spot where they once stood, making debris fly. Everyone covered up and Vanessa looked at how her brother was on the ropes again.

'_Not this time.' _She thought, pulling out another poke ball. "This time, I will protect my big brother!" She threw her poke ball, and out appeared her Magnezone, taking the situation seriously.

Magnezone looked at the man before him. "(This being. This level of fear and dread is unimaginable.)" He noted. "(I have to do what I can to protect the Pularis siblings.)"

"Manezone! **Magnet Bomb!**" Vanessa shouted, and Magnezone lit up a light blue aura and the magnets shined and he unleashed his barrage of light blue orbs.

"Oh?" The assailant saw this and he didn't move. "**Barrier.**" Then a wall of sorts was in front of the man, and when the Magnet Bomb struck him, he didn't even have a scratch. He just grinned away as Magnezone and Vanessa gasped. "Puffshots like those are futile."

"Then take this! **Regulus Impact!**" Loke shouted, unleashing his attack again. As the lion-shaped light blast was unleashed, the assailant failed to be impressed.

The man looked on, not even attempting to dodge. Rather he just extended his arm out and twitched his fingers. When he did that, the shining light suddenly became dark and foul, and then dispersed just like that.

Loke was wide-eyed with horror and shaken up pretty bad by that display. "What did…what have you done?"

The man's purple aura waved off his body in glee and he smirked. "You don't understand. I can taint light. I can turn the purest of light into tainted darkness and destroy it entirely. Light becomes darkness, and that darkness becomes my strength. I was able to taint the lights of Arceus! Your light is nothing!" He then moved his arm in an arc harshly and unleashed Psycho Cut, which was a crescent-shaped blade of dark pink that sailed towards Loke and struck him with immense force, causing the ground under him to shatter and Lucy yelped as she was sent flying backwards.

Loke yelped as that solemn blow was too much. "I'm sorry…Lucy…I failed…" Loke then disappeared and went back to the Spirit World.

"Loke!" Lucy shouted.

Gray started swelling up Magic. "We've had enough of you swine! **Ice Make: Arrows!**" A Magic seal was made and several arrows that were made of ice were shot at the assassin. All he did was move his arm in an arc and he unleashed Psycho Cut again, cutting through every arrow like scissor through paper. Gray was caught being surprised as he never expected the attack to blast through like that.

Before the Psycho Cut could touch him, Nic shot down and had used Dragon Claw and did a vertical slash downwards, splitting the attack in two that went pass him and Gray. The two were saved, but a massive amount of trees from behind them were no more.

"Enough! **Dragon Pulse!**" Nic then unleashed a multicolored dragon-shaped beam.

Erza glowed. "**Requip – Black Wing Armor!**" She shouted and was in her Black Wing Armor. "**Moon Flash!**" She then launched her attack in a cross pattern. The sword slashes and the Dragon Pulse both blasted at the assailant, who narrowed his eyes.

He watched as the two attacks went for him. "**Aura Sphere!**" He unleashed two blue spheres from his two hands and he launched them and intercepted the two attacks. The result was a big explosion in the middle with dust flying.

"He stopped my Moon Flash?!" Erza exclaimed. "But my attacks get boosted when I'm in this armor!"

They then heard his voice through the dust. "That won't change anything." He testified, a single swipe of his arm dispelled the entire dust cloud. Such futile efforts will only get you so far. Let me remind you that I can kill you just like that?"

Erza tensed up. "If you want Nic, you'll have to kill me first!" She proclaimed in defense, startling Nic.

Gajeel grunted and stood right in front of Nic. "Yeah! You're gonna pay for hurting my cat!"

"Ain't no way you stopping us!" Sophie shouted.

Lucy pulled out another key. "Nic's important to all of us! **Open: Gate of the Archer – Sagittarius!**" Lucy summoned her Celestial Spirit.

Sagittarius saluted. "Talley-ho! I'm ready and at your service my lady!" Sagittarius stated.

Gray stepped up as well. "If you think you're getting away with this, then you're wrong! Nic ain't being killed on our watch, so you can just forget it!"

"We'll stop you!" Lisanna shouted in her normal self.

Wendy clenched her little fists. "Yeah! We're gonna make it back to our world and everything will be alright!"

Vanessa clenched her fists. "If you think, that for even a second, that I'm gonna sit by and watch you slaughter my brother…you're an even bigger fool than I thought!" She shouted in defiance.

Magnezone floated right by her side. "(No one shall lay waste to the Pularis siblings. Not while I'm still here.)" He state.

Nic was left slightly shocked. "You guys…"

"If you want Nic, just try and get passed us! You'll try and fail!" Natsu shouted with his whole body on fire.

The assailant sighed and he frowned. "Very well. Since you insist on meddling between me and my priority…" The grey clouds above began to spiral and the air thickened with an even fouler distaste. "I can see you want your demise to be evident. Then behold…"

There was an ominous silence for a still moment, as time seemed to have slowed down as everyone felt their goosebumps they had this entire time shrieking in agony as they then died by this evil feeling.

"This power…it's off the charts…" Erza silently said. "And it's…growing…"

Gray was starting to get weak in the knees as this feeling was getting him. Everyone was sensing this power change. It was terrifying before and barely sustainable, but this…

'_This is far more terrifying than Gildarts power!' _Gray mentally screamed as the power being released was still growing.

A hollow and ghastly wind blew, and their eyes all shrunk in terror at this power.

Lucy had hands over her mouth again. "Oh my…"

The calm and mild expression the assailant had was immediately replaced with a bloodlust feral expression. The teeth becoming blood red and become pure canines that could tear their necks open. The vermilion feral eyes thinned into slits and the white part of the eyes turned pitch black.

This made everyone, including Nic and Erza, to become terrified as the assailant's power spiked. Far worse than Master Makarov. Far worse than Jose. Far worse than Gildarts. Probably all three combined…and that was the tip of the iceberg.

The assailant unleashed a monstrous Ominous Wind in all directions, pulsating through the entire terrain and everyone fell on their backs and skid as the power of the Ominous Wind tossed everything around like a hurricane, shattering and destroying everything.

When everyone sat up, they all look in horror as the entire forest and the tall grass, possibly small Pokémon, and the trees, everything – obliterated. The ground was nothing but cracked earth, and anything not obliterated beyond that was dead trees and grass.

"This guy…he's Death." Gajeel muttered, seething the bloodlust on the man's face.

"He…he destroyed the area without moving a finger…" Lucy squealed as she was paralyzed by fear.

"I told you guys." Nic coldly stated. "You should've run." He clenched his fists as he slowly got up and glared coldly at the assailant, but was losing as the evil in the latter's eyes was too intense.

"Now, who will be the first to die?" The assailant asked as he looked about, seeing as a majority of them were petrified.

Erza stood up right by Nic's side and glared at the assailant, but lost as well. Yet she stood affirm. "You won't lay another finger on him!" She declared as she pointed a sword at him.

The assailant's blood red canines showed with a sadistic and feral smirk. "Suite yourself. **Dark Pulse!**" Then then unleashed a devastatingly powerful Dark Pulse attack that shattered the airspace as it sailed towards Erza.

"**Requip!**" Erza glowed and shifted into her Adamantine Armor, and she embraced the impact with her two shields being put together. Erza braced herself as the Dark Pulse raced for her and the shield that she used was shattered like glass when the attack struck, annihilating the shield completely and hitting her armor, making her scream in agonizing pain as she was continuously being hurt by Dark Pulse and she trailed pass the group and was last seen at the end of the massive and long trail made with her armor obliterated, but herself was badly scratched up.

Nic's eyes were filled with horror. "ERZA!" Nic shouted in worries that were immense. "NO!" Nic whipped around and was gonna fly to her, but a Dragon Breath was sailing towards him and he jerked into the air above, watching the ground below him become engulfed in a massive blue explosion and was left with a large and deep crater.

"Erza! Nic!" Gray shouted. "Hang on! **Ice Make: Ice Geyser!**" He put his hands down on the ground and then a column of ice shot up from under the assassin, but the latter scowled as he saw this and snapped his fingers, in which the earth under the ice shattered along with the ice.

The assailant's smirk never left his pale and feral face as Gray gritted his teeth. "Not even remotely close. **Psybeam!**" He extended his hand out and unleashed a streaky blue beam with pink circles towards Gray.

"**Ice Make: Shield!**" Gray made the shield in front, but the Psybeam attack easily broke through it like it was nothing, and Gray was left in fear as he was finally struck and engulfed in a light blue explosion and the ground shattered under him. He was then seen flying back and do a skidding thus.

"You're gonna pay." Natsu growled. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Dragon Breath!**" Nic shouted, unleashing his attack in conjunction with Natsu's. The blue and red beams trailed towards the assailant, who disappeared and reappeared in front of Natsu in the form of shadows.

"Boo." He said and unleashed a Shadow Ball right into Natsu's abdomen from close up, making a powerful explosion and sending the Dragon Slayer spiraling in the air and as he landed and did a spiraling skidding thud.

He then glanced over and saw Lucy pointing at him as she commanded for Sagittarius to shoot arrows. The Celestial Spirit did just that and unleashed a barrage of arrows towards the assassin. All he did was move his hand in another arc, and just as Gray's arrows suffered from, the Psycho Cut sliced through with destructive force, and the arrows were annihilated and Sagittarius was hit with incredible force and was engulfed in bright pink as he felt the Psycho Cut graze his entire body, forcing him back into the Spirit World. Lucy screamed as the force of Sagittarius taking the attack for her caused air and dust to crash into her, sending her tumbling to no end.

"You little…" Gajeel couldn't suppress the rage boiling up and he struck. "**Iron Dragon's Sword!**" His sword that was made from his arm then went at the man, but the man kept hid smirk and a purple hole under him swallowed him up, making Gajeel's attack miss. "What the? The hell did he go?" He wondered.

"Be careful!" Nic warned. "It's-!"

"**Phantom Force!**" A purple hole appeared above Gajeel and the Iron Dragon Slayer was struck with a massive blow, a light purple burst of energy when the assassin swooped from the hole above. Gajeel screamed as he felt agonizing pain as he could feel his body nearly rot from the impact, leaving him numb in a crater.

The assassin snickered and levitated back up into the air. "Anyone else care to stop me?"

Nic leaped ahead and he shifted from his Draco Plate to his Icicle Plate. Nic inhaled and then exhaled as he unleashed an Ice Beam at the assassin. He blinked and he then frowned. He extended his arm out, using his hand to block. He felt a sting run through his body as he felt the Ice Beam hit his hand, but other than that didn't show much of any weakness.

When Ice Beam ended, Nic noted that the man winced when he was hit. "Right. Ice-Type moves are super effective against Dragon-Types." He reminded himself. "**Ice Beam!**" Nic then unleashed a second Ice Beam at the assailant.

As the Ice Beam went towards him, the assailant looked annoyed. "I'm not dumb!" He then became shadows and vanished, making the Ice Beam miss. Nic grunted as he couldn't tell where he was now.

"I'm here!" Sophie stated. "**Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**" Sophie then created several mirrors of ice and unleashed green blasts of energy in the spot where she saw the shadows converging.

As the shadows converged, the assailant saw the attack and he narrowed his eyes. "Begone! **Psychic!**" He then stopped the green blasts and he then fired them off back at Sophie, Wendy, Lisanna, and the Exceeds with more force than when it was launched, causing extreme explosions of green to burst.

"Guys! No!" Vanessa shouted.

"(No!)" Magnezone shouted. Nic grunted and he saw when the smoke cleared, everyone there was on the ground, badly bruised and damaged to a great degree, the only ones still up were Nic, Vanessa, and Magnezone.

The three turned towards the assailant. "You're a sick and twisted man." Nic reprimanded.

"Oh?" The man snorted. "What I find twisted is that you still defy your fate."

"I choose my own fate, and nobody but me will change that." Nic stated before unleashing an Aurora Beam attack and the assailant countered with a Psybeam, the attack starting the push Nic's attack back and Nic was forced to jump out of the way as the Psybeam trailed the ground and exploded at the end far away, sending dust flying.

The assailant smirked and he then used Psychic once more, and held Nic in the air, making Nic unable to breathe. The man smirked as he clenched his hand tighter, making Nic gag a little blood as he was suffocating and the man then slammed the hand down, and Nic followed and was driven into the earth, making dust surge and a crash sound echoed.

"Nic!" Vanessa shouted. She looked back at everyone and saw how they were barely able to get up. She saw how Gajeel was numb, Gray was unable to stand, and Sophie and the Exceeds were barely conscious. She noticed how Erza was trying her best to stand.

"Leave…Nic…alone…" Erza muttered under her breath. Vanessa looked and saw the serious yet concerned look that Erza had. She really meant it when Nic should be left alone and out of harm's way. Vanessa shook those thoughts out when the dread escalated and she focused on the assailant.

"Hurry Magnezone! We need to help Nic!" Vanessa shouted, in which Magnezone complied.

As Nic was slowly getting up, he saw Vanessa trying to fight, mch to Nic's horror. "Stop! What are you two doing?!" Nic shouted.

"Protecting my brother!" Vanessa shouted. "Magnezone! **Zap Cannon!**"

"(You will pay dearly for harming the Pularis siblings!)" Magnezone swore and fired his extremely powerful attack that was an electric orb with a red and green center at the man.

The man saw the Zap Canon and he scowled. "What nonsense." He turned into shadows and he then evaded the Zap Cannon, much to Vanessa and Magnezone's horror. The assailant then reappeared in front of Magnezone and fired a close range Shadow Ball, in which Magnezone was unable to evade and was engulfed in a huge explosion.

"MAGNEZONE!" Vanessa shouted as she saw her Magnezone sail high into the air and took massive amounts of damage.

"You're next." The assailant said, and he then fired a Psybeam at Vanessa, who was left startled and terrified.

Nic saw this and went wide-eyed. "VANESSA!" Nic shouted.

There was a flash of light and Nic looked in horror alongside Vanessa as Magnezone zoomed in and took the hit and screaming.

"MAGNEZONE!" Vanessa shouted. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" She had shaken eyes as she saw Magnezone slowly turning back towards her as he took the Psybeam.

"(I'm doing…my obligation…I'm sorry…)" Magnezone couldn't take anymore and he screamed as the Psybeam overpowered him and he was slammed into Vanessa, sending both individuals flying back and screaming as they both tumbled and fell to the ground.

Nic looked as though time was standing still and he watched his sister get hurt, and that image replayed over and over; and the Magnezone from the past tried to save her. Nic couldn't believe that his sister did that, and Magnezone and her paid the price as they were barely conscious.

The assailant smirked. "Ah yes. Seeing your sister down like that? Brings back memories. Right Nic?" He reminded Nic. "Sheer torture. The sheer fear of seeing your sister on the ground like that. How it must feel for that to happen only three years later."

The assailant then turned sharply towards Nic and fired a Dark Pulse out of the blue, startling Nic and he couldn't process it fast enough due to shock and he was seen skidding back several feet and crashing with tremendous force. The force knocked the wind out of him, and something out of his pockets too. Nic was stricken with an intense burning feeling when he saw his phone and earbuds flying out his pockets and landing on the ground, the casing for the phone slightly damaged.

The assailant chuckled. "This torture is much more suited to a more…unbearable level. Perhaps if I slowly start leaving gashes over her, and see you cry for mer…"

The air became thicker with the foul feeling, and this could be sensed by everyone. As everyone was starting to come around. They groaned and they saw something foul emanating from a certain someone.

"Wait…" Lucy looked and saw that Vanessa was hurt and she was coming around, but at the same time she saw Nic's phone casing damaged slightly. Lucy's eyes widened with horror. "…oh no…this is bad…"

Gray looked with fear as he picked up what was happening as the dreadful fear in the air thickened slightly. "This can't be good."

Everyone there saw Nic transforming into his Dread Plate in conjunction with the incredibly foul aura given off. His aura was black and extremely hazy as he was emanating a low snarl. "You…"

The man snickered. "I see that I finally get to fight this side of you." He said neutrally. "Depression, anger, pain, and suffering, all these vibes given off from your rage. It's fantastic. It fuels me."

"You!" His snarl escalated and everyone tensed up like statues and saw the bloody look in Nic's eyes. "You…**ANIMAL!**" The dark aura around Nic skyrocketed and the ground shook violently as the bloodlust feeling from Nic escalated in conjunction. "**YOU HURT TWO PRECIOUS THINGS OF MINE!** **I'M GONNA BURY YOU!**"

Vanessa blinked and felt this similar feeling before and she looked with a horrific gasp upon seeing the dreadful lust for pain infliction Nic was giving off as his sunglasses dropped from his face onto the ground. "Nic…" She muttered as she shuddered. "Oh no, not again."

Erza and Natsu both saw the horror that Nic was giving off and they had no option but to shudder as they saw this before, but this was _two_ things Nic treasured, meaning that the assailant may not survive.

The power Nic emanated from his rage made the assailant raise a brow as his blood red canines protruded slightly. Unlike the terrified bunch, he was content with seeing this angry side. "Now this is what I've been waiting for. Come!"

In a blur, Nic went at the assailant's forehead with Crunch,, embedding his elongated fangs into the cranium, making the man wince as Nic was a feral animal and disregarded the rotting feeling as all he felt was rage and snarled as he bit to no end. Nic bit repeatedly as the man then shoved Nic off and Nic landed on all fours. He crouched up and lunged with extreme fury with Foul Play.

The assailant dove towards Nic and disappeared into shadows at the last second, reappearing as Nic lunged forward. He was about to use Shadow Claw, but Nic pivoted and used Crunch, with fang and energy claws colliding, with Crunch barely winning and the shadows dispersed. Nic unleashed a menacing snarl as he use Night Slash and the assailant covered up from the vicious blow, getting slashed at and skid back several feet in the air.

Everyone saw Nic roaring and his eyes were beyond feral, but wants retribution in terms of demise. They were all terrified.

"Interesting." The man said with his feral bloody vermilion eyes set on Nic as he lunged at high speed, much to everyone's shock. "**Aura Sphere!**" He unleashed his blue sphere at Nic, who snarled as the attack went his way. Nic wailed as he was struck when he charged like a feral beast. He was engulfed in a blue explosion and skid back several feet, disregarding the pain inflicted in the case of severe bruising. Nic snarled with his fangs showing and dashed at blinding speed with Sucker Punch, the black aura he was giving off making the corrosive air intensify behind him.

The assailant intercepted by extending his arm and clutched the punch, but wince to the massive force the attack held. As the man clenched the fist, Nic's feral instincts prompted him to unleash Night Slash with his right arm and raked downwards, landing a blow that made the assailant wince yet again.

"Impudent brat!" He scowled before he disappeared and reappeared with a Feint Attack from the left, landing a kick to the back of Nic's head and making him skid forwards.

Nic arose with a snarl as his face looked as though it was battered up by Gyarados, and the bloodshot eyes signified the feral craving Nic had. "YOU SICK SWINE!" Nic shouted back at the man when he shot up from the ground. "I'M NOT THROUGH WITH YOU!" Nic lunged ahead with Knock Off, his arm surrounded in black sparks.

The man shook his head. "Pathetic. If you think you're terrifying me, big disappointment Nic Pularis." He testified, grabbing Nic's arm and the force passed the man and sent dust and small debris flying. As Nic glared, the man resumed. "You're the worst humanity has to offer. Hate and vile, these feelings are consuming you out of revenge. Humans are driven by justice and revenge, but what true justice is there when evil shall eternally remain?" He then tossed Nic and watched him regain footing upon sailing backwards.

"DAMN YOU!" Nic roared as he unleashed a powerful Dark Pulse by bringing his arms together and releasing the forceful attack. In turn, the assailant used one hand and released his own Dark Pulse. Both attacks made contact, and made an immense explosion that shook the earth, unleashing endless debris and black and purple energy and strong winds. The result after all of that was leveled ground in between the two.

Nic snarled as his black aura remained unstable with his anger. "YOU HURT VANESSA AND MY PHONE! YOU'LL NEVER LIVE TO SPEAK ABOUT THIS!" He shouted and he charged head on with Crunch with everyone looking petrified by the dread given off as Nic roared as he ran towards the assailant.

"Nic Pularis, if only you knew." The man said as he coated his left arm in Dragon Claw and awaited for Nic. "I cannot be afraid, for I am fear, and your anger shrouds you from the reality of you not accepting the pain delivered to those precious to you."

Nic screeched as Crunch was several feet away and the assailant thrust his Dragon Claw forwards. "And that'll be your downfall!"

It was as if time had slowed down. Everyone heard something get struck and they had horror in their eyes as they were experiencing a living, breathing Hell before them. Erza and Vanessa took the worst of it, as their pupils shrunk and their eyes widened at the scene before them.

You could see the sadistic face the man gave, and you could see Nic face frozen in the feral expression given. You'd expected the Crunch and Dragon Claw to hit, but…that wasn't the case.

They didn't hit, rather a certain someone was a bit faster and his attack was a shock to all.

The Dragon Claw didn't stop Crunch and Nic, but also…it was aimed and impaled Nic's gut completely, the arm going straight through Nic's skin entirely and through his back.

Everyone could've passed out from that display of horror as time stopped and saw the assassin smirk as his arm was bloody and lodged in Nic's gut. The black aura Nic was giving off was disappearing and his eyes were all hazy and filled with horror as he gagged up blood, unable to move.

"**NIC!**" Vanessa screamed in horror was Nic's legs were shaking and his feral gaze was stuck in the hazy manner.

"Hm." The man showed his sadistic wide smirk and he yanked his arm out of Nic, watching him gurgle and drop to his knees as he was gazing at the assailant. The assailant saw his own left arm covered in pure red and gave a smirk. "Yes…this is what I wanted to see…I wanted to see the blood from your guts be bathed upon me. I wanna bask in more of your misery!" He then grabbed Nic's head and the glowed red and purple. "**Hex.**"

Nic screamed as he felt pain course through his open wound and through the rest of his body as he was covered in the same colors, his body shaking violently. Everyone watched in horror as Nic was being tortured, and they were too near-dead to do anything.

The man let go and Nic was still stuck gazing up on his knees as his mouth was drooling red and his body twitched. "C-urse…you…" Nic muttered. "Damn…this…" He was stopped in midsentence when the assailant grabbed Nic's head and used Hex again, making Nic scream in agonizing pain as he was losing blood and his nerves were pretty much destroyed.

Vanessa was crying as she saw her brother in a fatal situation. He was impaled and being tortured before her. "Stop this…I beg you…" She broke down as she saw her brother going through hell again. The assailant didn't listen and let go as Nic looked as though he wasn't even able to think nor even feel.

This satisfied him as he saw that Nic was dying right before him. "It hurts, doesn't it?" He said. "The pain you must feel. To see your loved ones suffer from your suffering. How the failure you must feel. Arceus made a pitiful mistake in choosing you. Someone who's taken pain all his life, and for what? You didn't get anywhere. This is the end Nic Pularis. How you would say, insult to injury!"

He drove his left arm back into Nic's hole in his body and used Hex, making Nic grit his teeth and he finally let loose an agonizing wail that shrieked through the entire area so loudly and his body shook violently.

Vanessa couldn't look anymore and she sobbed on the ground. "Somebody…anybody…help."

As the man let go and retracted his arm, he watched in satisfaction as Nic's body slowly fell to the ground on the side. He hit with a thud, gurgling as he was numb and his vision was hazy.

Suddenly, two energy levels spike immensely, and the man looked with a frown as he was witnessing Natsu engulfed in a column of fire that shot up towards the sky. Natsu screamed. "YOU'RE KILLING NIC RIGHT BEFORE OUR EYES! WE'RE GONNA DESTROY YOU! NOBODY HARMS FAIRY TAIL!"

The second energy was revealed to be Erza, who had that demonic look as she requipped into her Purgatory Armor. "YOU WILL DIE A PAINFUL DEMISE!" She shouted. "YOU'RE GONNA REGRET HURTING NIC TO BEGIN WITH!"

The assailant sighed. "Please give me a minute Nic Pularis, I have a mess to clean up. Just wallow in your blood until I get back." He said, and floated towards Natsu and Erza, unnerved by their rage just as he was with Nic. "Honestly, the rage Nic gives off is far more potent. You're just a nuisance."

"SILENCE AND PERISH!" Erza jumped with intense force as she swung her mace downwards with a battlery, with mace striking the bloody arm that blocked the attack like it was nothing, making wind fly violently.

"**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**" Natsu waved his arms and lashes of hot fire lashed at the assailant, who swatted Erza away like she was nothing and he took the attack, getting caught in a pyro explosion. Through the flames, Erza swung her mace, but the assailant turned into shadows and reappeared behind Natsu.

"Not very effective. You'll never learn." He said. "**Shadow Ball!**" He unleashed a black and purple sphere that struck Natsu as he turned, causing a violent eruption of darkness and Natsu slammed harshly into Erza, both skidding and landing on their backs.

Everyone was trying to get up, just they were too terrified. Natsu and Erza were doing this because they were angry and wanted to get Nic out of there.

Natsu unleashed a Fire Dragon's Roar at full power, a massive torrent of fire aiming for him. The man thought nothing of it and used Psychic, the massive torrent separating into fire streams that shot back at Natsu and made the latter scream as he was engulfed in his own fire.

"NATSU!" Lucy shouted.

Natsu was sitting and wiped his mouth as he was beyond angry. He lunged again by Erza's side with a flaming fist and a mace combo and the duo rammed their attacks in, but the assailant blocked both like they were nothing.

"G-uys…no…" Nic weakly muttered, unable to move as his bleeding self was rendered beyond usable. "Everything's…hazy…"

The man's feral eyes glared daggers into Natsu and Erza and they were left petrified and that left them open for when they were hit with a Psybeam, making them fly backwards and crash. They were left embedded into the ground as the man ascended upwards and looked down at them.

"Pitiful as always." He said in disgust. "You can't save your comrade, not after what I've done."

Natsu was in an inferno as he dislodged himself and flew up at high speed. "YOU JERK! YOU'RE GONNA PAY!" Natsu unleashed a Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow as he went towards him, but the man scowled and made a spacial hole in between him and Natsu and the Dragon Slayer went through it.

As Erza got up, the portal opened behind her and she was struck in the back by the attack instead, making her grunt and yelp and fly forwards. Natsu was now really annoyed and angry and he turned and saw the assailant was not there anymore. He turned and tried to smell him, but his senses were clogged by the foul air. "**Phantom Force!**" A purple hole appeared above Natsu and the Dragon Slayer screamed as he was embedded into the ground when the assailant crashed down on him, his foot on the Dragon Slayer's head, making him scream.

He let his foot off and the man didn't even need to turn around when he used Aura Sphere and threw it over his head towards an incoming Erza, who swatted at it with her mace. The attack was too overwhelming and her mace shattered, leaving her distraught. "NO! I HAVE TO SAVE NIC!" She shouted. "I WON'T LOSE HIM AGAIN!" She shouted.

The man ascended into the air and watched as Natsu got up and was covered in the same inferno. He screamed as he had enough of him. "YOU'RE FINISHED!" Natsu shouted, making a torrent of flames in his fists. "**Dragon Slayer Secret Art – Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade!**" Natsu unleashed a massive fire spiral towards the assailant in the air, who took the hit and was engulfed in a huge explosion.

Everyone watched in shock as Natsu's most powerful move had hit its mark. He grinned. "That did it." They were hearing a chuckle, and then one swipe of an arm made the flames go away, startling everyone.

"Impossible!" Natsu shouted.

"I admit, that one had a little bite to it. I felt that, but not enough!" The man shouted as his bloody eyes and fangs made everyone quiver. "I DIDN'T EVEN BUDGE! THAT DID NOTHING! YOU HONESTLY BELIEVE THAT WOULD STOP ME?!" The man then created a white force field and several odd energy comets and he targeted Natsu as he lunged forward.

"NATSU NO!" Lucy shouted.

"**Legendary Arts – Psystrike!**" The assailant then expanded the force field and the odd comets shot at Natsu as he was engulfed in an inferno. Natsu screamed as his attack was broken through with no effort and he was bombarded with endless comets and the force field expanded, engulfing everything close by, including Natsu again, in a destructive explosion that shattered the entire earth that was touched and the endless pelting of comets against Natsu and force field combined left everyone to be send flying away and screaming as all that was left under the assailant was a large crater with a steaming Natsu, his body tattered and white in the eyes.

"NATSU!" Lucy cried, and Gray and everyone else were petrified by this pure power of evil that they didn't even come close to having a chance.

Erza watched on in horror and she was left with no words as Natsu was defeated just like that. The next thing she knew was that she was one her knees and her armor was tattered and shattered from the force of the attack Natsu took, her eyes were shaking as she thought she couldn't save anyone. "No…it can't be…" She was then found screaming when struck by a Psybeam and she tumbled backwards and yelped as she couldn't move anymore.

"Hm. That took longer than expected." The man said, slowly walking towards a gaping Nic who watched helplessly as his friends fell before him.

"N-No…" He muttered as he was losing blood and his feral eyes were gone, leaving the blue all hazy and bloodshot from the pain. He couldn't smell nor even feel the ground beneath him and he could only see the man walk towards him as everyone was shaking and Vanessa was crying.

The man looked down and crouched down towards Nic as he frowned. "Listen." He said seriously and low. "You may have been gifted, but that strength does not made you God. Remember that in death, I can make those lives suffer. I am Hell's own nightmare, and now your pals can witness you sinking in it." He paused. "Having those closest to you, and wanting to protect them. That may be considered strength in some eyes, but in reality…it's the biggest weakness humans have."

The man readied a Dragon Claw and pointed it at Nic's chest. "I believe I kept your death waiting long enough. I could make you watch and see your sister and your friends perish, but I have my own priorities in creating a void." He raised his Dragon Claw. "And so, farewell."

"NIC! NO!" Erza and Vanessa shouted as Nic was almost lifeless and was about to be slaughtered.

As the Dragon Claw went down towards Nic, there was a massive energy expelled from out of the blue and the assailant flew back in shock as his last move failed to hit. The energy emerged in front of him, and everyone else looked to see a huge energy spike.

"What's this?" The man asked. "This power…I didn't see this coming…"

The energy before him faded, and there were six figures in front of Nic's body.

"(You…)" One said with his red eyes glaring coldly.

"(You've done the unthinkable.)" A female voice said, her red eyes looking crazy.

"(The pain you have dealt is no less than what you shall experience. We'll shred you, you foul cheese.)" A second female voice said, her beady eyes looking all zombie-like with retribution as her head tilted.

"(You've bloody sssadissstic sssswine-faccccced creature. Nic-ssssama shall be avenged.)" A slithery and snobbish voice proclaimed.

"(You've pushed us too far. We're not standing by any longer while Nic is at Death's Door!)" A draconic voice shouted.

"(Now we're gonna gut you alive, and savor in your blood.)" A second draconic voice with far more feral eyes proclaimed.

Nic's Pokémon let loose terrifying roars as the air rippled with their intense power given off. Everyone looked in shock as Nic's Pokémon had appeared out on their own. Nic looked on with whatever vision he had left. "You…guys…"

"Oh? What's this?" The assailant asked. "It seems I might be having a problem here. Nic's Greninja from before was a hassle, but all six now…this might be interesting." The assailant contemplated.

"(DIE)" Garchomp shouted, rushing at mach speed with full fury as he used Dual Chop at high speed. The man was in shock at the speed and used Dragon Claw to intercept the downward strike, making shockwaves ripple wildly. The man was caught surprised when Garchomp wasn't being shoved back.

'_This power.' _The man thought. _'Nic Pularis has trained them well, but how the hell are they actually holding up?!' _He was interrupted when he was struck from underneath by a Shadow Sneak by Kecleon, the shadow striking his abdomen and making him gag. Garchomp roared and used Dual Chop again, the attack striking the assailant twice horizontally in both directions, making him sail backwards.

The man grunted and turned into shadows just in time when Staraptor dove from an upwards angle with Steel Wing, missing and she grunted. The man reappeared behind her and prepared for a Feint Attack, but Staraptor turned around and swatted her Steel Wing to intercept, making violent winds surge and neither side pushed back. From above, the man could sense something and he glanced up and saw Greninja soaring downwards with Bounce. Using his spare arm while using the other one to intercept the Steel Wing, he shot a Dark Pulse upwards, and Greninja leaned back and stopped his bounced and rolled backwards in the air, straightening out as he used Water Shuriken and fired them at the assailant.

The assailant turned into shadows and the attack missed and Staraptor and Greninja saw the man reappear high in the sky. "Not bad-!" He had no room when Charizard emerged from behind just like that and he used Dragon Claw downwards. The man jerked forwards to evade it just in time. He turned towards Charizard to only receive an explosive Gunk Shot that was from Arbok below, making the man grunt in pain as he was swallowed up in a purple explosion that made the air and earth rattle.

"(These are all for Nic!)" Charizard shouted, unleashing Flamethrower within the explosion, intensifying the pain and they could hear more grunting from the man. The explosion cleared out and the man had a few scratches on him as he was heavily annoyed.

'_Drats. These guys aren't giving me room. They're tougher than Fairy Tail S-Class Mages!' _He mentally retorted before noticing Greninja unleashing Dark Pulse from a downward angle, forcing him to use his own Dark Pulse and the two attacks made a black and purple burst of energy in between, making dust scatter and the earth shatter under Greninja and the other's feet.

As they were holding off the assailant, everyone limped and crawled towards Nic with all their might. Vanessa and Erza especially. Natsu twitched as he was worming his way over and was in agonizing pain as he came to. He too went towards Nic and the Exceeds hurried too.

"Wendy! Hurry!" Erza exclaimed.

"Luminous is dying, so get to it! I wanna see the light of tomorrow!" Gajeel shouted.

Wendy was still having trouble breathing correctly, as was everyone else by the foul energy, but Wendy did as told. "R-Right!" She then proceeded to heal Nic as his gashes and the hole in his gut was covered in blood. "Hang on Nic!"

Garchomp rushed in with his forceful Dragon Rush, the airspace shattering as he went towards the assailant. "**Dark Pulse!**" The man unleashed Dark Pulse, but Garchomp was too fast and sailed passed it. The Dark Pulse continued onwards, and Kecleon shifted repeatedly to dodge while racing towards the assailant and Arbok serpentine pass the attack. Arbok used Ice Fang and the fangs elongated and turned to ice while Kecleon went for Thief.

"(You even made Skuntanks cry!)" Kecleon shouted in offense to the foul air. She rammed into the assailant at the same time Garchomp did, and made a massive burst of energy. As the man fell, Arbok lunged upwards and went to use his Ice Fang, but the man grunted and turned into shadows, evading the attack.

"You're all extremely reflexive and strong, I commend you." The assailant's voice said in the air. "But you're annoying me! **Shadow Claw!**" He reappeared behind Greninja and went to attack, but Greninja leaped and backflipped as the attack raced forwards and Staraptor swooped in with Aerial Ace from the front, hitting the man in the abdomen and making him skid back.

"How are you so damn strong?!" He demanded. He went wide-eyed and he then turned into shadows again when he sensed Garchomp and evaded Garchomp's Dig just in time, the cracked earth shattering and Garchomp emerged with a roar. The man reappeared as Garchomp turned around and went to used Zen Headbutt. Garchomp blocked with his arms and grunted when he was hit and skid backwards on the ground to a halt.

The man grinned and then saw Charizard from above, coming down with a Fly attack. He disappeared into a purple whole, making Charizard stop and the force from Fly caused air the smash the ground, despite Charizard still in the air. The man reappeared from the purple hoe from above and struck with Phantom Force, but Charizard immediately used Dragon Claw to intercept and reduce the damage, causing the Fire and Flying-Type to hit the ground on his feet.

"You may be possibly strong as a Legendary, but you're still no match for-!" The man suddenly found himself unable to move when Arbok was revealed to have use Glare, paralyzing him. "Damnit. I didn't react fast enough to use Magic Coat."

"(FOR NIC!)" Greninja shouted. "(**Dark Pulse!**)" Greninja unleashed his attack towards the man.

"(**Shadow Sneak!**)" Kecleon shouted, her shadow extending with fury.

"(**Aerial Ace!**)" Staraptor shouted.

"(**Heat Wave!**)" Charizard shouted.

"(**Gunk Shot!**)" Arbok shouted.

"(**Dragon Rush!**)" Garchomp shouted.

All said attacks rushed in towards the assailant, who cursed under his breath. "You insufferable annoyances!" He shouted and he grunted as he was unable to move. "Damn you all!" He was then hit with all six attacks at once, letting a yelp echo about as an enormous explosion was seen in the distance, air and violent winds surging and everyone fell to the ground and the ground shattered entirely. The area the assailant was levitating over and the area behind was engulfed in a tremendous burst of energy and all six Pokémon emerged from the explosion, roaring with fury as they had a few scratches, but were fine.

When it all cleared, everyone was in shock as Nic's team had such extraordinary power. "…whoa." Sophie muttered.

"That's insane." Gray muttered.

"Nic's team…what did he do to get them to wield that power?" Lisanna muttered.

The man appeared out of the dust that subsided, and he grunted as he had only minor scratches, but was paralyzed. He looked with annoyance at the six before him as they glared coldly at him in defiance. He groaned coldly as his blood red fangs bared and he glowed, and the six looked on in shock.

"(Is that…?)" Greninja started.

Charizard nodded. "(Yeah, it's Recover.)"

"(This is far too sour for my taste.)" Kecleon detested.

"(You and me both.)" Charizard noted.

The man stopped glowing and looked as though nothing happened, but he was still seeing how this would play out. The six tensed up and watched as the man backed away high into the air.

"I can see how pathetic Fairy Tail is, I can see how I can handle Nic and Greninja before…but it seems I pushed my luck." The man said with deep spite. "I won't deny that you six can definitely hold me off better than those humans, but even so, your fate is inevitable. However I see that I've underestimated how Nic Pularis has trained all of his Pokémon." He then started surging shadows around him.

Everyone watched as the shadows converged around the spiteful man and the atmosphere was dialing down slowly. "Nic Pularis. I spared you on purpose last time, but this time you got off lucky since I didn't account for your team to retaliate with such fury. Who knows? Maybe they're as strong as Legendaries…maybe." He was then encased in a cocoon and the clouds above started to brighten up again.

"I swear to you. This is not over Nic Pularis. You may have escaped by the skin of your teeth, but humanity and the universe's entity shall be eradicated! Next time…" The cocoon dispersed and he vanished in thin air. "…_will _be your downfall."

The eerie presence all about vanished, and everyone wasn't petrified by fear anymore. Their heart rates slowed down slightly and were contemplating.

The six turned towards each other. "(If he used Recover, why didn't he continued fighting?)" Staraptor wondered.

"(Perhaps he was overwhelmed by numbers and that paralysis. Even so, we may have died if he stayed.)" Greninja said the last part with bitterness.

"(Evil has left the building!)" Kecleon declare. "(And it's not welcomed again!)"

Suddenly, they heard Wendy sobbing and they turned back towards Nic and rushed towards his massacred self. They saw Wendy, and she was putting everything she had into healing Nic, but was in tears.

"Wendy! What's wrong?!" Vanessa shouted. "Nic! Nic! What's happening?!"

Wendy was scarred life the rest of them, and she was sobbing as her Magic was trying to close up the wound, but with little effect. "You guys…his injuries are far too deep. I can't heal him!" She shouted, much to everyone's shock.

"WHAT?!" Gray shouted.

"I'm sorry!" Wendy shouted in defeat. "This foul energy that's consuming Nic is eating at my power! I can't…he's…he…"

Everyone was silent as they saw that Nic was pale, and his eyes were still barely blinking as he only saw the ground and his hearing was going away. All Nic saw was everyone screaming at him and horror as his team rushed up and started choking on their breaths.

"NO! NIC! NIC!" Vanessa screamed, clutching her brother, disregarding his fatal wound. "I JUST REUNITED WITH YOU! I DON'T WANNA LOSE YOU! NIC PLEASE! **ANSWER ME!**" She shouted and bawled extremely hard as her brother was incurable.

Erza punched the ground and was sobbing beyond recognition. "NIC! DON'T YOU DARE DIE HERE! YOU HAVE TO USE RECOVER! ANSWER ME! WE NEED YOU! I ALMOST LOST YOU ON SEVERAL OCCASSIONS! I CAN'T HAVE THIS HAPPEN!" Erza shouted from the other side of Nic. "NIC! WE NEED YOU! I NEED YOU! FAIRY TAIL NEEDS YOU! DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE ME OR YOUR SISTER!"

Nic was starting to see black and his heart rate was just getting slower and slower. This foul, corrosive energy engulfing his being and the last thing he saw were three things: Erza, Vanessa, and his team.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in space…**

Dialga and Palkia were beyond appalled at the devastation they were witnessing. They saw the entire fight, and were not pleased.

"Damnit." Dialga said. "Giratina's human is far too strong!"

"This foul energy was enough to taint Arceus. Wendy's powers can't do anything. His injuries were different compared to Oracion Seis. This is beyond repairable."

As they thought this was a fatal issue, Arceus, seeing as how he had a bit of his color, looked through the screen and saw Nic's desecrated body and his friends and loved ones crying for him as his breathing slowed.

Arceus gave a neutral stare and sighed. "No." He said. "I can fix this."

Dialga and Palkia turned up in shock at Arceus as he was gonna do just that.

"Are you serious Arceus?!" Dialga objected. "Are you really gonna heal Nic?! You know the consequences!"

"The Plates correspond with you, and if you use the power Nic transferred to you to heal him, then you'll become even more sickly like last time!" Palkia shouted.

Arceus raised his head and Dialga and Palkia grew silent. There was a silence for a few moments before Arceus spoke.

"We have no choice. I shall use the power Nic gave me and give it back to him. That should restore him. We must have faith…" Arceus then began to shine a vast light and the two before him had still faces as they looked back at the screen.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

Lucy and the girls were breaking down as Nic's body was crippled and practically pierced. Erza and Vanessa, and especially Nic's team was taking it hard. Greninja and the other five were shaking and choking back tears as they saw their Trainer beyond repair.

Suddenly, Nic's body began to glow slowly, and Erza and everyone else caught a glimpse of Nic's body reacting. They backed away a foot and saw the spectacle.

"(What's happening?)" Charizard asked.

"(Nic-ssssama…he'ssss…)" Arbok began trailing off as Nic's body shined brighter than ever. Everyone covered up as they were momentarily blinded as Nic shined a multitude of colors.

Nic was barely hanging on, and he felt his conscience return, his heart rate returning to normal, and the blood that was all over his body disappeared, and the wound that went straight through him was completely gone.

When the light faded, it revealed Nic in his normal self rather than the Dread Plate Form he took while on his rampage. Erza, Vanessa, and everyone looked in shock as Nic was restored like that.

Nic groaned and started getting up. "How did…I…?" He trailed off as he was feeling hazy, but was immediately tackled down by his sobbing sister and Erza, who hugged him while his team of six looked on with glee.

"NIC!" Vanessa shouted with tears. "YOU'RE OKAY!"

"Gah!" Nic was startled by this as he was still trying to interpret what happened. "Hold on! Hold on!"

Erza was shaking as she was having a few tears. "Nic…you're okay." She was so relieved. Just as relieved as Vanessa.

"(Nic-ssssama issss alright.)" Arbok said with great satisfaction.

"(That dunderhead had me worried!)" Garchomp shouted.

"(Me too for once.)" Charizard admitted. "(I honestly didn't think it was possible…)" Then he frowned. "(But still…)"

Everyone smiled and gathered around Nic."Dang man, you had us worried!" "We thought you almost died!" "Your team are monsters man!" "I thought we were goners." They all said various things, but Nic was a little distraught.

"Hold on guys." Nic said. Erza and Vanessa let go reluctantly as they saw the confused look on Nic's face. Nic finally got up and rubbed his head. "What happened?"

Gajeel crossed his arms. "We don't know. That guy is beyond anything and we almost died, and you especially." He stated.

The memories came flooding back, and Nic was blinking repeatedly as he recalled his sister and phone were hurt and he was almost killed and his team stepped in. "Wait…everything after that was hazy, but this energy…" He narrowed his eyes as everyone looked curious. "It feels…!"

His eyes shot wide when he realized that the energy was similar, because it was the energy that he sent to Arceus. "The energy…it was for Arceus, but he…"

"Nic?" Lucy aske, with Natsu being supported.

The Pokémon quickly caught on to Nic's epiphany, considering they know each other all too well. They understood Nic's situation and Staraptor stepped forwards. "(Nic…it was the energy you sent to Arceus, wasn't it?)" She asked.

Nic was left in a state of remorse as he looked on with a sullied expression. "I know why I was restored." He said coldly. "This energy that I felt was the exact same one that I sent to Arceus. Rather than use it to heal himself…he…"

"(Used it to fix you up.)" Kecleon muttered coldly.

"Nic? What does this mean?" Happy asked, seeing how Nic was glowering.

Nic looked down at the ground. "It means that because of me, Arceus is closer to death than from before, and all because I couldn't protect anyone." He said, clenching his fists.

Sophie swallowed. "So…the one you work for is…"

"Using his life force to heal you." Wendy said.

Nic looked at how Vanessa was scratched up and remember that despite his rage, he was unable to protect anyone. It was because of him and his weakness that Arceus was accelerating in death. "No. What have I done…?"

"Nic, relax." Gray said, but they all saw Nic walk away like he was a zombie. His team saw their Trainer trail off, understanding fully.

"Nic, where are you going?" Vanessa asked.

"Nic." Erza was about to go after him, but his Charizard blocked her path. "What are you doing?!" All she got was a shaking head, and she was interpreting that as a way of saying no.

"But what about Nic?!" Vanessa shouted, wanting to dash after him, but Greninja crossed his arms and stood before her.

Charizard looked out as Nic went off into the far woods beyond the destroyed terrain. "(I think he needs to be alone for a while.)"

"Nic…" Erza muttered, seeing the last bit of Nic with a shadow over his eyes.

* * *

**Later…**

It was close to sunset and everyone sat around dejectedly, along with Nic's team. They all looked at the ground as they retreated a little of what's left of the woods and close to the cliffs. They all felt defeated, especially Natsu.

Natsu rammed a fist into the ground. "Damnit. That monster, he's too strong." He swore under his breath.

Gray gritted his teeth with crossed arms. "This sucks. We didn't even come close to that power."

"If anything, we never stood a chance. Not even in a million years." Carla said.

"And that past." Happy noted. "No wonder why Nic wasn't afraid of anything, the fear was choked out of him."

Lisanna sat down and looked depressed. "This power was so evil, the life near him suffocated without lifting a finger."

"What's more shocking was how Luminous's anger didn't faze him." Gajeel muttered.

"_Zeh dafuk_." Sophie muttered in her Hebrew. "Nic almost died, and his anger failed."

"I was surprised that he got angry to begin with." Lisanna said.

Kecleon looked over towards the team and looked upset. "(Guys, my fuzziness feels bitter.)"

"(Yeah, we feel the same.)" Garchomp said.

Arbok hissed. "(I hope Nic-ssssama issss okay.)"

Greninja felt uneasy. "(We all know Nic. If he feels as though he fails, it won't do good to perk him up.)"

"(Yeah.)" Charizard said. "(His pride is hurt bad, and I can guess what he's doing right now…)"

* * *

**On a cliff…**

As the sun was making a red-like hue in the sunset sky, Nic was seen despondent and clenching his fists as he looked upset. "Why…why…?" He moaned as he was misty in the eyes. "I was meant to save mankind, yet I couldn't protect Vanessa, or Erza, or anybody…why am I so weak?" He wondered.

Nic was on a large cliff, a few miles off and far enough as he was starting to break down. "I broke my promise! Why can't I ever keep them?! I promised I'd be stronger for my sister! She got hurt, and now I have nothing to show for it!" He shouted, pounding the ground beneath him. "First I break Erza's heart, then mine breaks, and now I failed to protect Vanessa! Why can't I make promises?!"

Behind him, in the treeline, there was one person who was heavily concerned as she saw Nic screaming to the sky and tearing up. Erza looked on with a sad expression as she clenched her arms as she saw Nic breaking down in failure.

'_It's all my fault.' _He thought as streams of tears went down his face. "It's all my fault. Arceus promised me this power and I have nothing to give! I broke too many things! Why am I burdened like this?!" He had no answers as he clenched his fists on the ground. He mentally thought he failed as Plate wielder, as a Fairy Tail Mage, and as a brother. Nic then started to cry and that crying began to slowly escalate into a sob that could be heard from all over the place.

Erza looked on in depression as she saw Nic crying out of failure. "Nic." She muttered. She then remembered something. She remembered that she was just like that not even a month ago when Jellal was taken away, only Nic was in her stead. She watched as Nic bawled and she couldn't help but feel guilty.

She never knew what it meant to have a real brother or sister, but her guild was just as close to family that she had, but in Nic's case, watching his sister get hurt and unable to protect her really shattered him, and all Erza could do was contemplate as she watched Nic cry out his frustration.

Unable to take anymore, Erza left the scene with an upset look, hoping to think of something to help Nic feel better in his failure.

* * *

**With Natsu and co.**

Vanessa was sniffling as she held her brother's phone, earbuds, and his sunglasses. She held onto them like her life depended on it.

Sophie looked over and saw Vanessa holding them. "They must be more important than we realize."

Vanessa glanced over, and everyone, now with Erza silently appearing, looked at Vanessa. Vanessa slowly nodded. "You have no idea."

There was a long pause before she continued. "This phone and these earbuds are the only thing Nic had in remembrance of our grandma and grandpa. Unlike mom and dad, they were the sweetest people ever." She then frowned heavily. "When they died, two precious people were gone just like that, two people that Nic loved. I was the only thing left. He protects me and his 14th birthday present with his very life. If anything were to happen…who knows what would happen."

"I'll tell ya what happens. That guy unleashes Hell." Gajeel said. "Getting him angry is the last thing anybody needs. Now it makes sense why he gets so angry and protective."

Vanessa turned her head to look towards her lower left. "You can't blame him. I was there my whole childhood. I watched Nic bottle up the pain. The torture. The evil downed on him. It only makes sense when his phone or I get hurt that he lets it all out…but I…" She paused. "I never wanted to see Nic get hurt like that again!"

"It's not your fault." Lucy said. "He's just being a brother."

Erza came and sat down next to Vanessa with the same level of dejection. Erza remained silent until Vanessa glanced over towards her.

"You went to check on him, didn't you?" She asked coldly. Erza was caught being surprised at first, but couldn't hide it. All she did was look downwards. For the first time since Nic was revealed to be okay, Vanessa grinned. "I can see it, you care deeply about my brother."

Erza let a slight gasp escape and she turned towards Vanessa. Her eyes were filled with shock. Then she sighed and looked back at the ground.

"Yes. Nic means a lot to me." Erza admitted. "He broke me out of my armor and open up. He saved my life, and he nearly died that day too." A slight pause while Vanessa nearly gasped. "I was grief stricken. He nearly died several times now, and it was always to protect me. If he were to die…I…I don't know what I would do."

Vanessa saw Erza shaking and she smiled sympathetically at the Requip Mage. "You're lucky." She said, making Erza turn her head in shock. "I saw how desperate you were when Nic fought. You couldn't bear to see him get hurt, just like me. We both want him safe." Her gaze softened even more. "I know my brother, and for what it's worth, he's got the purest heart. Erza…please…don't leave that heart alone." She paused. "Nic's been through enough pain. He needs someone he can care for. I love my brother dearly, and I've never seen him more happy when you're close to him. Don't break my brother's heart. Protect it."

Erza was all shaken up inside. Nic wasn't the only one observant. Hs sister saw how much Erza needed him when she saw him cry. The two needed Nic desperately, and they couldn't live to see him die, and it was evident.

In defeat, Erza nodded. She had to admit to herself that she messed up big time. Now it made sense. Nic stayed away because he failed to make her happy, and Erza was upset in turn. Now the roles were reversed, and this time, thanks to Vanessa, Erza wasn't gonna stay away.

Everyone jerked up when they heard rustling and turned to see Nic with hands in his pockets and looking upset. He stopped when he was in front of everybody and looked at Greninja, Charizard, Vanessa, Sophie, basically everybody.

Nic sighed slowly. "Hey guys, sorry to keep you wai-!" Nic suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around him tightly and was very surprised and went wide-eyed as his depression turned to shock.

Everyone there looked in shock, even Carla. Greninja and the rest of Nic's team looked on with shock, but also relief. Vanessa looked just the same.

Nic was frozen as Erza wrapped her arms around him and hugged him. Her body was shaking as she was in her white blouse and blue skirt. Erza had her eyes closed as she was shaking and held Nic.

"I'm sorry." She whispered. "Don't shut us out like you did before."

"Erza." Nic muttered.

"You're alive. That's all that matters. I know what it's like to fail and lose hope. I won't let you suffer that, not while I'm here." She paused as she leaned the side of her head closer to Nic's. "We all need to stick together."

Nic blinked, but a soft smile crept onto his face and he wrapped his arms around her waist and the two embraced and Nic's head felt Erza's soft and silky red hair and the two remained like that as everyone gave sympathetic smiles.

Charizard smiled. "(Thatta boy.)" He muttered.

Kecleon tilted her head. "(The fuzzies in me feel better now.)"

Greninja and everyone else on Nic's team smiled. "(He'll be just fine.)"

The two slowly broke from their embrace and Vanessa came forward and she gave her brother a hug, glad that he's alright. She slowly gave him his sunglasses, his earbuds, and his phone. Nic slowly accepted them and he looked at the phone in his hand.

A moment paused as his half-grin faded as he saw the cracks on his casing. He lightly clenched it and looked like he was restraining his disappointment. This was a solemn reminder to protect his loved ones even harder.

He slowly inhaled and then exhaled and put the earbuds into his ears and had the metal filter his anger and frustration out and he flipped on his sunglasses with the last bit of sunlight and he looked out and saw everybody and his team looking at him.

"Alright." Nic said quietly. "Let's just keep moving." Everyone nodded, but said nothing. Nic returned Greninja and the others that came out on their own and they slowly made way towards the trail up the cliffs.

* * *

**I am so sorry that the length was unbearable guys. Major apology there. I was trying my best to suppress the fight scene, but it didn't work. I was able to in chapter 30, but not this time unfortunately. I was keeping it steady through the Edolas Arc, and now the Kalos Arc is all over the place. But still, I really hope that despite the length, leave nice Reviews.**

**You like how I was reigniting the sparks with Erza and Nic? I wanted to do a bunch of things this chapter, but Review on what you liked or admired.**

**Thanks to DeoxysSpeed for Sophie's Hebrew!**

**This chapter should suffice until the next one, which won't be for a while now since I need to shift over towards **_**EDventures in Kalos **_**and reconfigure my plans in the meantime. Hopefully next chapter will be suppressed to 15K max.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys admire the battles, the twists, and the emotions, etc.**

* * *

**Next Time: Tainted**


	39. Tainted

Chapter 39 – Tainted

**Hello people! Insane Dominator is here, and bringing you another exciting chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**! I am so glad this story has a lot of Favs and Follows! Much appreciated!**

**I made my first poll, and I'm positive it's a unanimous decision, but I at least want to see the numbers rise just a couple more days. Please look at my poll guys! It's about a possible Fairy Tail OVA 2 remake with Nic and friends involved.**

**I haven't got a lot to say left, but please enjoy some fluffy moments and some more combat!**

**To Recap:**

After a brief confrontation with a wild Foongus, the assailant that attacked Nic from before emerges and attacks the group. Despite their efforts, the group was no match for the assailant, as was Nic, even when he was enraged and gone feral. Nic ended up impaled and was tortured and wailed in front of everyone. His Pokémon then fend off against the assailant, driving him away as Arceus uses his power to heal Nic. Later, as Nic was crying out of failure and promise-breaking, Vanessa explains Nic's rage and how he bottles it up, and she tells Erza to hold onto Nic. Nic returns, and Erza gives him a hug and they reluctantly press on.

* * *

**Chapter 39 – Tainted**

The air was unimaginably frigid, not to mention the light snow falling didn't help the situation. A whole day has passed since the mind-scarring scene, and everyone pressed onwards. The group was currently riding Mamoswine, which were large mammoth-like Pokémon with pig snouts and giant tusks.

Route 17 was also called 'Mamoswine Road', and everyone road on Mamoswine through the huge snow piles as they were making way through the frosty and frigid valley, with a couple of people per Mamoswine.

Surprisingly, Natsu didn't ascertain motion sickness this time and pumped a fist in the air. "All right! Let's go buddy!" He shouted gladly, and the Mamoswine that he, Lucy, and Wendy shared unleashed a call and picked up the pace slightly.

Lucy sweatdropped at the ridiculous notion that Natsu wasn't motion sick. "How the heck aren't you motion sick Natsu?" The blonde stammered. "Doesn't this count as a vehicle?!" Immediately, she shivered as the light jacket she wore wasn't helpful.

Natsu raised a brow and turned towards Lucy. "Huh? What are you talking about? This guy ain't no vehicle, he's helping us get to the other side of the valley. Duh."

"Oh sorry." Lucy sarcastically stated. "I walked right into that one."

Wendy was in the back as she was still feeling cold herself. "Uh, Nic? How long until we reach the end of this valley? I'm freezing." She shivered as she explained.

Nic, who was riding a Mamoswine, with his Icicle Plate active, turned towards Wendy. "A couple hours, okay." Nic was sharing a Mamoswine with none other than his sister and Erza, who were both behind him. "It'll be dusk when we get there. We'll get plenty of rest for tomorrow."

"W-Who i-i-invented snow anyway?! I-It's's's's n-not he-helpful at all!" Happy shivered as he rode on a Mamoswine tusk, with Carla on the other.

Lily was on the tusk of the Mamoswine that Gajeel and Natsu shared. Lily was looking unfazed, yet he too was showing signs of shivering. "This weather if truly formidable."

"Quit complaining ya crybabies. It's pathetic, not to mention embarrassing." Gajeel said, kicking back in his saddle as Gray steered the Mamoswine.

"Yeah, I don't see the big deal about this weather. If anything, it's my style." Gray said.

Sophie, with shared a Mamoswine with Lisanna, made comically startled expression. "That's saying something considering you're half naked again!"

"Huh?" Gray looked and realized he was without a shirt…again. "Gah!" Lisanna just sighed as did Sophie as the Mamoswine all pressed on.

Erza was behind Nic, who was unfazed by the cold due to the Icicle Plate active. Erza looked on blankly as she was looking dazed. She was having that fuzzy feeling again, like she would usually had when Nic's around. Her eyes glanced over to see Lucy holding on to dear life as Natsu happily shouted on his Mamoswine, and she saw how Lucy's arms were around him so she wouldn't fall off due to the sheer reckless behavior that was Natsu.

Erza looked back at Nic's back, and she only stared as her impulses her twisting her, telling her to hold onto Nic, at least until the ride stopped and they would have to get off. Erza was almost tempted to wrap her arms around Nic, unable to let this feeling to rest.

Before Erza could move her hands to attempt to hold onto Nic, the Mamoswine stopped unexpectedly. Nic noticed right away and narrowed his eyes.

"Nic? Tell me what's going on?" Lucy asked.

Nic remained quiet. "We got company."

From in front of all the Mamoswine, a very large shaggy Pokémon that was as white as snow. It had purple eyes and green hands and feet. It roared as it emerged from the snow and stopped the group.

Wendy jerked at the huge creature, being bigger than Elfman in size.

Lisanna looked with shock. "That must be another wild Pokémon!"

Vanessa peeked over to get a look at it. She went wide-eyed. "I've heard about those! That's an Abomasnow!" She exclaimed, making Erza turn back towards Vanessa.

Nic nodded. "Yeah, they're very rare to come across in these parts."

Vanessa slowly got out her Pokedex as she analyzed Abomasnow, for everyone to hear from the other Mamoswine.

_ "Abomasnow, the Frost Tree Pokémon. __It blankets wide areas in snow by whipping up blizzards. It is also known as "The Ice Monster.""_

As Vanessa put away her Pokedex, Happy shivered. "T-The Ice monster?!" The Abomasnow then roared, making Happy shriek and hide behind the Mamoswine tusk.

Natsu stood atop the Mamoswine and stared out at it. "So it's an ice kind of creature isn't it?" Natsu then smirked and cracked his knuckled. "Yeah, this is my specialty. I'm all fired up now."

Lucy panicked. "Uh, Natsu? Whatever you're thinking ain't gonna end well."

Natsu chuckled and he jumped off the Mamoswine and into the air into the snow in front, making him get stuck up to his knee caps, but that didn't bother him.

"Natsu! Get back on your ride ya dimwit!" Gray shouted.

The wild Abomasnow sought this as a challenge and unleashed Ice Shard, unleashing multiple light blue ice spheres at high speed towards Natsu, who smirked. Natsu took the hit, which caused a light blue burst of ice with every shot taken. His body jerked repeatedly, but after it was all over, he was still smirking.

"I've been aching for a fight since my loss, and this is the perfect cover up!" His body lit aflame, melting the nearby snow and startled the wild Abomasnow. Natsu leaped into the air above and sailed down with a flaming fist. "**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**"

When Natsu rained down onto Abomasnow, the Ice and Grass-Type had its right arm get coated in a green aura that took the shape of a stump, as though it was like a hammer. The wild Abomasnow unleashed its Wood Hammer with precision timing, striking Natsu's side and stopping the fist from making contact. Natsu sailed into the snow on his right, leaving him in a fresh trail.

Natsu emerged quickly and shok his head and clutched his side, wincing. "Man, this one's a heavy hitter." He then smirked. "But I am too!" He then inhaled as the Abomasnow was accumulating recoil damage. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

The attack sailed towards Abomasnow, landing a clean and explosive hit, melting some more snow in the process. The Abomasnow was swallowed up by the fire and was shot like a rocket upwards towards the nearby mountains, making a loud crash sound that echoed about throughout the area.

Natsu grinned triumphantly. "HAHA! Now that felt-!" He froze in midsentence when he heard rumbling from the mountain where Abomasnow had landed and the ground shook. Everyone then looked and saw something they wish they never did.

"AVALANCHE!" Sophie shouted, with Lucy shrieking to no end.

As the massive snow came down, Nic just remained still as his eyes were twitching. "Natsu…if we survive this, will are going to di-!" They were all then engulfed in a thick blanket of heavy snow, leaving them stiff underneath.

The gang was all under the snow, huddled by the Mamoswine, as they were following their protocol and came together in a huddle. It was as if they were in a small cave, and they had little space. Surprisingly, they had air.

"Wait, how are we not having snow touch us?" Lucy asked, and everyone turned and noticed that the edges were lined in turquoise, and they recognized this and whipped their heads towards Nic, who was in his usual form and was using Protect to give the group some room.

Nic was grunting as his Protect was wearing off, and he panted briefly as he had just gave the group a small cave-like area. "That should do it, for now." Nic stated, finally having his breath catch up to him.

Erza leaned closer to him. "Are you okay?"

Nic turned back towards her. "Don't worry. I managed to use Protect to keep us from drowning in snow, however I could only supply little space. We need to get out of here, and fast."

Vanessa looked down at her shivering hands and she was left to think. _'Think. What do I do to get us out of this cave…!' _Vanessa's eyes widened slightly. She then jerked upwards. "If getting out is what needs to be done, then let's do it!"

Vanessa then pulled out a poke ball. "Krokorok go!" The poke ball opened, revealing Krokorok yelling. Vanessa then pointed forwards. "Krokorok! Use Dig to make a tunnel!"

Krokorok turned forwards and stared at the space between him and the wall. "(LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING HUNDREDS OF POUNDS OF SNOW THAT TRAPPED KROKOROK AND TEAMMATES UNDERNEATH! KROKOROK WILL BURROW RIGHT THROUGH YOU!)" He let loose a yell as he dove forwards, using his claws to dig through the snow.

"Nice thinking Vanessa." Nic praised, in which Vanessa happily smiled and nodded.

Happy looked back towards Lucy. "Hey Lucy, why not summon that maiden of yours?"

"Oh yeah!" Lucy realized. "Virgo would be a great help!" She then pulled out Virgo's key. "**Open: Gate of the Maiden – Virgo!**"

A Magic seal was made, and Virgo appeared with a bow towards Lucy. "It's a pleasure to meet you again Princess. How may I be of service to you?"

"Help Krokorok and burrow us out of here!" Lucy ordered.

Virgo bowed. "Very well, Princess." Virgo then followed the hole Krokorok made and enlarged it as she followed suit.

"Nicely done Lucy. Now we can get out of here." Erza said, pointing towards the tunnel. The Mamoswine then followed single-filed behind Krokorok and Virgo, who were digging as fast as they could.

About half an hour rolled by and Krokorok burst through the last bit of thick snow, leaving only shallow snow left and he dove out of the hole and Virgo had followed behind, making the hole large enough for the Mamoswine to pass through.

Gray looked out. "Look, there's less snow up ahead! Guess that means we've reached the end of Route 17?"

"Virgo and Krokorok's digging must have made it so we could travel with less snow resistance." Nic surmised. "Brilliant work you two."

Virgo bowed. "Thank you." She turned towards Lucy. "Princess. I must depart. It's possible I may get frostbite in the fingers now." Just like that, Virgo vanished back to her world, leaving Krokorok out.

"Boy, just like that?" Lucy said. She then caught on to what Virgo said. "Wait…"

Vanessa caught on as well rather quickly. "If she left because of frostbite, then…" Vanessa turned towards Krokorok, who looked unfazed, ye his claws were blue. "GAHHH! KROKOROK! YOU'RE GONNA GET FROSTBITE IF YOU DON'T GET INTO YOUR POKE BALL RIGHT NOW!"

"(Heh?")" Krokorok moved his arms, and he noticed that his caws were becoming blue. "(The cold's got nothing on me! Krokorok will frostbite all day! Krokorok is colder than a frostbite! I WILL MAKE YOU SEE KROKOROK HAS A BETTER FIGHT THAN YOU FROSTBITE! YA HEAR ME?!)" He declared, and was tempted to bite his nearly frostbit arms.

Vanessa called out before that could happen. "Krokorok!" She scolded, making Krokorok cease his actions. Vanessa just shook her head. "No. Just, no." She implored.

"(What?)" Krokorok asked rudely, in which Vanessa gave a cold glare. "(…sorry.)" Vanessa just sighed as she returned him to his poke ball.

"Honestly." Vanessa muttered.

Nic turned towards Vanessa. "Don't worry. It's his personality." He said.

"I know." Vanessa sighed, and then the Mamoswine proceeded another fifteen minutes before they saw that there was no snow up ahead.

The Mamoswine all stopped and they remained still, which got everyone's attention.

"Huh?" Wendy looked down. "Why they stop?"

Nic then hopped off the Mamoswine he was riding. "This is where they stop." He said, padding the Mamoswine's side. "Thank you."

The Mamoswine simply nodded.

"Alright, it's back on foot guys! Move out!" Nic ordered, and everyone started getting off their Mamoswine and they raced ahead to where there was frosty grass.

Lucy finally stretched. "Finally, no snow."

Natsu pumped fist. "Nothing can stop us!" He declared. "We'll get back to Fiore in no time!"

There was an ominous silence that fell after Natsu said that. "Natsu…" A male voice muttered, in which Natsu turned with fear running up his spine as he saw Nic glaring coldly at him, having said in his normal self and cracking knuckles.

"Uh…"

"You got us buried alive. And on top of that, you nearly destroyed a mountain." Nic growled, this eerie feeling growing.

Erza joined in by Nic's side. "Natsu, you must be given punishment, for your actions almost suffocated us and we could've been frozen, and on top of that, Vanessa's Krokorok will need to go to a Pokémon Center."

Erza and Nic's auras fused into a sinister aura, making Natsu sweat profusely. "Uh…well I just…"

The two stepped towards Natsu. "Take your punishment with dignity." They said in unison.

Everyone watched and heard as many painful things happened in the next ten minutes.

* * *

**Later…**

The group had arrive in Anistar City as the last bit of sun was setting over the water. The city was pretty large, and unlike the farm-like town of Dedemille Town they visited before Route 17, this one had a more active atmosphere, much like Lumiose City, though not as large.

Lucy marveled as she clasped her hands together. "Anistar City! Just as Nic said!"

"Oh wow. It's so majestic." Wendy thought out loud as the sunset was giving the city a nice aspect.

"Yup. Anistar City is known to be beautiful at sunset, especially with its sundial." Nic explained. In the background, Natsu was bruised and sizzling from his punishment, and Happy sighed and shrugged. Nic then turned towards Happy, Carla, and Lily. "You three…"

"We know. Act like plushes or hide." Lily said, and he hopped into Gajeel's arms and looked blank, as did Carla with Wendy. Happy sat in Natsu's arms, the latter still moaning as his face almost looked unrecognizable.

"Sundial?" Lisanna asked.

Nic took a few steps forward and turned towards the group. "I suppose I could spare some time before we get to a hotel. Follow me." The group made haste in following Nic as he ran his usual quick and furious pace, passing a lot of people. The others followed behind as they followed him northwest, where there was a _humungous_ magenta crystal object lodged in the water that was at the end of a curved port.

"WHAAAAA?!" Everyone shouted, seeing the huge sundial in view.

"_That_ thing is the sundial?!" Natsu exclaimed, seeing as his bruising was gone.

"It's _gadol_!" Sophie exaggerated.

Nic smirked. "Pretty much. A fun fact to know is that some historians believed that it came from outer space."

Gray crossed his arms. "Come on, outer space? Really?"

Nic shrugged. "I just hear these things." He then glanced back at him. "Also Gray, clothes." Gray then shrieked as he tried to find his shirt.

Vanessa sweatdropped and leaned towards Nic. "Why does he always take his clothes off?" She asked in a whisper.

"We don't know." Nic whispered. Nic turned towards the sundial up ahead, and he looked out to see a small crowd gathered in front of the sundial. "Hm? That's odd."

"What is it?" Wendy asked, as Nic turned towards the sundial.

Nic put his hands into his coat pockets as his sunglasses reflected the sundial's shine off of them. "The sundial is known to be a great historic monument and all, but I don't it recall being a popular tourist attraction. I need to go check it out quick." Just like that, Nic ran ahead, with the group telling him to slow down, in which he didn't listen and he stopped behind the crowd.

When they all caught up, they saw the crowd taking pics and having pictures of a woman.

"It's her!" "I can't believe that the Champion is here!" "She's so hot!" "Mommy, I want to go home." "Try telling your father that." Many people were yammering on about this woman.

This got the small group peaked and they waited until the heat died down, and when a few dozen people departed, leaving a couple of people left and the woman, of whom had angel feathers. Recognizing her, Nic gasped briefly.

"Hold on, _she's _here?" Nic thought out loud.

Gajeel turned towards Nic. "You know that chick?"

Nic nodded. "Yeah, we've met a couple of times." He then proceeded a slow few steps and as the last person departed, having said get their autograph and picture, leaving the woman to look and notice Nic, with shock in her eyes.

"Nic?" She asked. "Is that you?"

Nic stopped several feet away and crossed his arms. "Yes, it's me. And I see you're as busy as ever, Diantha."

Vanessa almost jumped into the sky. "H-Hold up!" She exclaimed. Vanessa made her way through the group and by Nic's side. She gawked at a smiling Diantha. "Wait…" She pointed a shaking finger at her. "Y-You're the…the…"

Diantha chuckled. "Are you trying to say Champion?"

"Yes! You're Diantha! The Champion of Kalos!" Vnaessa squealed. "Oh my god! I am such a fan of your acting! You're such a talented star! _And _you know my brother!"

She was starting to fangirl like crazy, but Nic pressed his hand on her head to suppress her. "Okay Vanessa, lie down before you hurt yourself." He told her.

Vanessa realized that she was embarrassing herself and covered her mouth. "Oh! Sorry!"

"It's fine, really." Diantha assured. "In fact, I'm quite honored to have met the sister of Nic Pularis. He and I did meet quite a few times."

Nic nodded. "Yes, and that was one heck of a battle too."

Gray crossed his arms. "So that girl's the Champion. Nic said something about her earlier, what was it?" He wondered.

"I don't know. Couldn't be that important." Gajeel muttered.

Erza had suspicions. "Back in Lumiose City, Nic said that the Champion never lost. If she's the Champion, then did they battle?" She muttered.

Diantha looked over Nic's shoulder, seeing his friends. "And these are your friends, right? They look like a lively bunch." She smiled and looked back at Nic. "So how are you and your Pokémon?"

Nic kept his grin. "We're happy as can be."

Diantha nodded in understanding. "I see, so you've made more friends and your team grew together. That's true friendship and trust. Just what I expect from a true star."

Nic turned away, cross-armed and amused. "Don't be so modest now Diantha. Last I checked, you're the Champion."

"Oh?" Diantha put up a curious façade. "True, but let's not forget who the real winner was, right?"

Nic then went wide-eyed as he looked with shock as Diantha was spilling beans. Everyone in the Fairy Tail group raised a brow. "Nic?" Vanessa asked.

"Uh, look Diantha!" Nic tried to point out, embarrassed. "I'd love to catch up on how you've been and all, but we got places to go so we gotta leave early!" He said, exceedingly flustered.

Diantha smiled. "I see. Well I can't keep you waiting for those places and what not. It was nice meeting you again…real Champion." She smiled and turned away, walking towards Anistar City.

Nic remained still and perplexed as his friends closed in on him. Staring to ask question. "What'd she say?" "Did she say 'real Champion'?" "Nic, what's going on?" "Is there something you're not telling us?"

"I-It's complicated…" Nic was in a real bind, as he was unsure as to how he was to address the story. He then heard his sister speak.

"Nic?" Nic turned towards Vanessa and he saw her eyes, how they were so full of sweetness and innocence, yet maturity and understanding.

Nic gave in and sighed. He turned away. "I guess you guys have a right to know." He opened his eyes under his sunglasses. "Come on, let's go somewhere private…"

The group traveled into Anistar City, where they saw a massive crowd swarming Diantha and blinding her with flashes of pictures and Nic snickered as he thought of that as payback. He still pressed on and he stopped in front of a hotel, where the group gathered.

Nic then sighed deeply and proceeded in telling them that he and Diantha battled in the past, where Nic defeated the Elite Four and how the two squared off in a battle that NIc had won, declaring him the Champion.

"HEH?!" Everyone exclaimed after Nic's tale.

Wendy pointed a shaking finger. "Y-You mean…y-you're the Champion of Kalos?"

Nic looked down softly. "Technically, yes and no."

"Yes and no? Why?" Sophie asked.

"Hmm…how do I put this?" He pondered. "I officially defeated her, giving myself the title, but I turned it down."

"You what?!" Natsu exclaimed. "Why the hell did you deny the title?! It's the _Champion_!"

Nic sighed and he started towards an alley. "Follow me." The group followed Nic down the desolate alley, where they gathered once more and Nic shifted into his Mind Plate. He then projected an oval like he did to show how he met Garchomp, and he replayed the last bit when Greninja fought Gardevoir and won. They all watched in amazement as Nic denied the title, and how he though won the title, he wanted nothing of it, and allowed for Diantha to keep the title, but she stated he was the real Champion at heart.

The group watched in awe as the projection faded and Nic returned into his normal self, thankful that they were not seen.

"Wow. That's pretty freakin awesome man." Gray remarked, having no shirt again.

"Yeah, no kidding! No wonder why you're so strong!" Natsu said.

Vanessa was in deep awe. "My brother beat the Champion, and he chose not to be it." She muttered softly. "He truly did become strong."

Erza nodded in agreement. "The way he denied such a noble title, it's like turning down a Wizard Saint Title. Still, it was a very considerate choice he made." She smiled at the remembrance of the flashback. _'A responsibility he chose not to accept. He chose to be a wandering being in the end, wanting to be with his Pokémon.'_

"Okay." Nic said. "Now that that's settled, let's go find some rooms."

"I'll be happy to do it." Sophie said, and was given enough cash, catered by Vanessa, and rushed out of the alley and into the hotel sliding doors.

Everyone appeared out of the alley and saw the sliding doors, seeing them before in a lot of places. "Gee, your world is so advanced Nic." Lisanna said.

"You can say that." Nic said.

Five minutes later, Sophie poked her head out of the doors and gestured for the guys to make it inside, in which they followed. They traveled into the lobby, which was pretty spacious, with ferns placed in all four corners. There was a shiny navy blue tiled-floor, and there were couches and a flat screen TV off to their right.

"Check it out! This place is pretty cool!" Natsu said.

Erza nodded. "Now remember, we have to leave early. Hopefully at some point, Nic will be able to sense something." She then turned towards Sophie. "Sophie, where are our rooms?"

"Our rooms are on the top floor." She said. "Enough for the boys in one room, and girls in the other." She stated.

Erza saw Natsu and Gray glaring at the other, having said both dissatisfied. "Problem boys?" She said sternly.

"N-Nothing!" They both backed down, and Gajeel snickered.

The group then went towards the elevator, in which the door closed…and of course Natsu falls on the floor, motion sick. Lisanna sighed and Lucy face palmed.

"Oh, so Happy and Mamoswine are one thing? But me and elevators are another?" Lucy stammered, in which Natsu gurgled.

When they reached the fifth floor, Erza dragged Natsu out and everyone exited the elevator. The carpeting was a velvet red and blue and black pattern, in which made designs to no end on the carpet. They made way down the numerous doors available, in which Sophie led them. She led them to two doors, the left door being for the boys.

"Here you go guys." Sophie gave Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel room cards/keys that were labeled with the identical number. The three, plus Happy and Lily, made way inside. Sophie then gave Nic a room key with numbers.

Everyone was given a room card/key with numbers to match the room number, and the girls went into the other door. For some reason, Nic's room card didn't match the other guys', but he chose to go with it and he looked right to the girls' door and found the room number matching his card. He inserted the card and the door opened, and he followed inside.

To be honest, it actually looked nice. It was just as decorative as it was that one mission where he and Erza went to stop Tartaros and that bomb. There was a single bed, with velvet sheets, with a nightstand on both ends. Nic saw the nightstands had lamps, and he looked behind and there was a TV resting on the wall, with a long horizontal shelf. Ninety degrees from that, right next to the windows, was a fold-in couch. There was a bathroom connected to the room, and inside were velvet curtains.

"Hm, not bad." He admitted. He continued to inspect the room until he heard his door open, in which a certain someone enter.

"Erza?" Nic asked, surprise Erza had arrived in the same room he did.

"Nic?" Erza asked. "What are you doing here?"

Nic held up his room card. "The room matched my card, so I didn't protest."

Erza grew suspicious, as she held up her room card. "Funny, mine has the same numbers too."

Hearing this, Nic raised a brow and he was trying to process this. "Wait, Sophie did ask for _two _rooms, right…?"

* * *

**Girl's Room**

The girls were getting situated, and Lisanna and Wendy agreed to share a bed. Unlike Nic's room, there were two beds rather than one, but there was a fold-in couch installed. Sophie agreed to take the couch that folded out to make a bed. Lucy and Vanessa agreed to sleep in the other bed, leaving everyone situated.

"Hey, where's Erza?" Lucy asked, looking about the room and seeing as how here were five girls, with Erza being the sixth, yet nowhere in sight.

"Now that I think about it, there should be six of us, right?" Lisanna asked innocently.

Sophie said nothing as everyone turned towards her, putting pressure on her.

"Sophie." Vanessa started.

"Eh, you did give Erza the right room key, right?" Wendy asked.

"Please tell me you didn't give her one of the boys' keys." Lucy pleaded, thinking how awkward it would be with Erza in the same room with two Dragon Slayers and a Gray.

All Sophie did was smirk, as she remembered that she gave Nic the exact same card. She lowly giggled at her wonderful little trick.

* * *

**Nic and Erza's Room**

Realizing that Sophie got a third room just to get him and Erza alone from the boys and girls, Nic mentally sizzled. "Sophie." Nic growled. "That little trickster."

Nic knew full well Sophie vowed to help the two get their bond reestablished, but he didn't take into account _this_. Nic should not have allowed Sophie to check them in. He made a mental note to 'thank' her tomorrow.

"Well…" Erza was caught off guard by this certain phenomenon as well, as she was, once again, sharing a room with Nic – with a single bed again! Sophie was probably basking in her brilliance by now.

"Um…well…" Nic wasn't exactly certain as to how this situation should be addressed. "I…guess we should get ready for bed." He said slowly.

Erza remembered that day when they were on that Tartaros job request, and she recalled them both being in the same room after the mission and stayed an extra night. She knew that Nic would sleep on the floor again, so her senses were lightened somewhat.

She turned towards the bathroom. "I'll freshen up first." Erza closed the door behind her, leaving Nic be.

Alone, Nic was in deep thought. He plugged in his earbuds and he drowned out his concerns with some of his metal. The metal helped filter out his leftover frustrations from yesterday, and it kept him at bay. As Nic listened cross-legged on the floor, he couldn't help but be left in revelation.

Flashes of images of his past were coming back. Endless kicks to the face, Magneton shocking his nerves until they fried, and as of recent events. Nic subconsciously touched his gut, where he looked and saw it was as if it never happened, but the bloody and vile torture never left his psyche. The next thing he knew, Nic saw his hand was shaking, unable to keep it steady.

'_How could I have left this happen?' _He thought. _'I couldn't protect Vanessa, again. I promised myself I wouldn't let her get hurt, but I still failed in the end. Is it really okay to have her come with us?' _

His doubts were being drowned out when muffles in the background began to echo into his name being called out. Hearing his name, Nic blinked repeatedly, falling out of his daze as the voice belonged to Erza.

"Nic?" She asked once more. "You can get in the shower now."

Trying to get out of shock, Nic stood up. "Oh, right. Sorry." He noticed that Erza was nice and clean, and was in her Heart Kreuz pajamas. As he passed her, he stopped momentarily. "How long were you calling out to me?"

"…a short while." Erza said. "You looked dazed, is something bothering you?"

Nic remained silent, as he wasn't feeling comfortable. "…roughly." Before he could hear Erza ask why, he bolted through the bathroom door and closed it.

Erza remained quiet as she heard the shower water running, and her glance cascaded down to the bed sheets. It was evident that Nic was troubled, and she could understand after seeing him tortured and slaughtered right in front of her own eyes. The remembrance of Nic's blood seeping out, the violent shaking, the catastrophic face he made as he screamed throughout the entire area, it horrified her.

All Erza could do was keep her mind fixated on that sullied moment, and she couldn't think of anything else. She was unable to protect him, as Nic was unable to protect Vanessa. She was unconsciously clenching her fists in frustration.

'_Damnit. Why wasn't I strong enough?' _She thought in frustration. _'Why was that man's power beyond Gildarts? I couldn't save Nic. What am I?' _She remembered back when Phantom Lord attack, Nic told her to pick yourself up and put the past behind you, but the past came back in front of him, and more corrosive than ever. _'I have to protect him for now on. If lose him…'_

The door opened, and Nic came out of the bathroom, refreshed by the water. Erza was brought out of her thoughts and she looked back at Nic. The two were caught staring at the other, seeing as how the other was looking fixated.

Nic tried to avoid the situation and walked to the floor on the right side of the bed. "I think we need to rest." He said blankly.

Erza said nothing, but she nodded and the two were soon found to be staring up at the ceiling, with Erza on the bed, and Nic on the carpet floor. Erza watched the ceiling fan spin round and around to no end, just like her luck, always going around in circles and not solving anything.

Erza soon turned off the lights and the room was dark. The windows were seen open to allow a faint breeze through, but through that window, Erza noticed that the sky had no stars. Not a single star was seen, which made her think back to when Arceus gave his power to save Nic.

Out of all the battles, she never saw Nic so adulterated, ever. This was the worst thing that could've happened, and it was only gonna get worse if they didn't make it back to Fiore pronto. Due to her worries, she looked over from her bed and looked at Nic, who was sound asleep, his sleeveless coat used as a sheet, leaving her to see his full grey V-Neck. She watched as his chest rose up and down, yet she was unappeased when her glance took note at how his hands were shaking in his sleep, and his arms were following suit.

"Nic?" Erza whispered. No answer. Nic was still asleep, but his body looked uneasy. Erza could only discern the possibility of Nic having a nightmare, and she couldn't blame him.

As Nic was asleep, his gaze looked upsetting. The memories integrated into his dream.

_Nic's bloodshot eyes screamed for their demise, and he refused to quit and avenge his sister. He was sadly unable to react due to the knife attack earlier and the father punched him in the Adam's Apple, making Nic gag blood as he stumbled back. The mother swiped the knife, leaving a faint gash in Nic's chest and made blood seep down and taint his now ripped up shirt._

_The Dragon Claw didn't stop Crunch and Nic, but also…it was aimed and impaled Nic's gut completely, the arm going straight through Nic's skin entirely and through his back._

"_It hurts, doesn't it?" He said. "The pain you must feel. To see your loved ones suffer from your suffering. How the failure you must feel. Arceus made a pitiful mistake in choosing you. Someone who's taken pain all his life, and for what? You didn't get anywhere. This is the end Nic Pularis. How you would say, insult to injury!"_

_He drove his left arm back into Nic's hole in his body and used Hex, making Nic grit his teeth and he finally let loose an agonizing wail that shrieked through the entire area so loudly and his body shook violently._

The memories of his near-death experience with his parents integrated with the events from yesterday boiled within his dreams. His nightmare wouldn't go away, and in turn, Nic was sleeping uneasily and his body was slightly shaking, which frightened Erza.

"Nic?" Erza called out, but Nic was looking as though the nightmare was clutching onto him and he couldn't hear. Now Erza was definitely worried.

She was well aware that the most recent experience traumatized Nic, which was why he wasn't sleeping well. She in turn was upset, and she had to do something. She saw Nic tensing up in his sleep and looking uneasy, her eyes looking at his face. Erza thought desperately as to how she could ease Nic, but what could she do?

Erza remained still as she remembered what Vanessa said.

"_You're lucky." She said, making Erza turn her head in shock. "I saw how desperate you were when Nic fought. You couldn't bear to see him get hurt, just like me. We both want him safe." Her gaze softened even more. "I know my brother, and for what it's worth, he's got the purest heart. Erza…please…don't leave that heart alone." She paused. "Nic's been through enough pain. He needs someone he can care for. I love my brother dearly, and I've never seen him more happy when you're close to him. Don't break my brother's heart. Protect it."_

Erza grinned half-heartedly as she remembered that she hugged Nic not long after, and she remembered that unlike what Nic did, she stayed by his side, and that's what she was going to do now.

Erza slowly got up from the bed. "You're not alone Nic." She walked on over and looked down at Nic. "We've been through torture, and we pulled through and pressed on." She then slowly bent down towards Nic's side, her face turning a bright red. She honestly couldn't believe she was doing this, but she swore to protect him, and to keep him close. He was her light after all.

"Nic, I won't let you push me away." Erza was laying down right beside a sleeping Nic. "If you're going to sleep through the pain, you won't sleep through it alone." Erza was going to power through the night with sleeping on the floor, like Nic has his whole life. With every single instinct she had, Erza's face turned red as she wrapped one of her arms around Nic and pulled herself close to him.

She had no regrets. She would make sure Nic makes it through to the end. She still couldn't believe she was attempting to sleep with him, but this was her proof that she won't have Nic deal with the pain alone. She looked at Nic and saw that his twisted face was settling down, and that his body was not shaking anymore. She was content with how Nic's body was starting to feel warm, and she laid her head down gently and she began to drift off to sleep, holding onto Nic.

In Nic's dreams, the bloodshed and the menacing flashbacks and images were fading away. Now, there was only warmth, and he didn't know why. He saw many things in his dream, many being the warmth of his team, how they look at him like family. He saw his sister, but a primary image he caught…was Erza and her strawberry scent. Her warm, brown eyes and her smile directed at him. Her red hair, basically everything about her was warm, and Nic was content with everything.

In reality, Nic was grinning in his sleep as he turned to his side to the direction of where the warmth was and held it close, said warmth being Erza.

* * *

**Many hours later…**

The first bits of sunrise were engulfing the skies, and Erza stirred and groaned as her senses yelled for her to wake up. She opened her eyes, and she finally started taking in her surroundings.

The first thing she saw was none other than a peaceful Nic sleeping inches away from her face.

Her face exploded with red, which rivaled that of her hair. She was stiff as a Whirlipede that used Iron Defense, as she had to keep herself as composed as she possibly could.

The memories from last night began to resurface, and she remembered she shared Nic's pain. Her startled self grew less nervous and she stared at how peaceful Nic was compared to last night. After some moments passed by, Erza decided to get up from the floor. She had to admit it was hard. How does Nic put up with this? She used to sleep on stone back in her slavery days, but seeing as how Nic slept in unbearable places made her wonder what if he slept somewhere soft, like a bed.

Erza slowly took her arm off of Nic's waist and she squirmed her way out of Nic's gentle hold. She slowly arose and crawled back onto the bed so as to look like nothing happened.

A few minutes later, Nic groaned and he opened his eyes, feeling his arm as a pillow. He saw a glow from atop the bed, and he figured it was Erza. He saw Erza get up from be, laced in her white blouse and blue skirt. She was going to shift into her armor when they get out to the wilderness eventually.

"Morning." Erza called.

Nic blinked and inhaled. "Morning." He grumbled, and he slowly bent his knees and picked up his sleeveless coat and put it on. He yawned and he looked towards Erza, who looked at him. "What is it?"

Erza grew flustered suddenly and her cheeks became a light pink. "N-Nothing." She stammered. "It's just…how did you sleep?"

Nic looked down at the ground and looked transfixed. It was a whole minute before he answered. "I can't seem to phrase it well. It was first cold, then it became warm." He grinned when he mentioned the last part, making Erza nearly blush in the face entirely. "I haven't felt so warm in the longest time." He then frowned and paused. "…you know, after my recent failures, I haven't been so close to people." He then looked up at Erza. "But you stayed by my side, and I can't thank you enough."

Erza's blush went away and she smiled softly. "You're welcome. I'm sure you would do the same." With that, Nic and Erza got set to leave and they closed the door behind, leaving the hotel and meeting everyone in front of the hotel.

Vanessa saw right away that her brother actually looked happy for once after the incident. Vanessa smiled away while Natsu and Gray were glaring at the other.

"You snored too loud flame brain!" Gray shouted.

"Yeah, well you slept naked!" Natsu shouted. Much like the girls' room, the boys had two beds, and a fold-in couch that turned into a bed. Gajeel took the couch while Natsu and Gray too separate beds.

Gajeel groaned. "Am I the only one ain't complaining around here?"

Lucy smiled. "Good morning Erza and Nic!"

"Morning." They said consecutively.

Sophie smirked devilishly. "So guys, did everyone sleep well, hmmmmm?" She did a pitiful job in suppressing a giggle afterwards, as her question was more directed towards Erza and Nic rather than the group.

In return, Nic and Erza both glared at Sophie and Erza had to suppress a growl. Nic seemed to had remembered to 'thank' her.

"Sophie." Nic called. "We slept just fine. But…" He gave a colder stare than before, and Sophie sweatdropped. "You said you got _two _rooms instead of _three_."

He stepped forward as Sophie began to get nervous. "Hehe. Eh, Nic?"

Nic was looking at Sophie with an intense glare that made her stiff. "Lying and tricking me is the last thing you want to do! Prepare for-!" Before could do anything rash or hasty, he came to a screeching halt as Sophie almost shrieked.

Everyone looked as Nic, seeing through the sunglasses he had on see a transfixed look. He was as still as a paralyzed Nosepass.

Sophie didn't see Nic having any will to attack her, at least not of yet, and she waved her hand in front of him. "You who, Nic? Are you home?" She asked. Nic was looking like an animal as he was turning his head in many directions.

"Do we get some breakfast or wha-?!" Natsu was cut off when Nic darted between him and Gray, and everyone turned in shock as Nic looked out south of Anistar City. Nic was acting as though he was a zombie, a possessed being.

"Nic, you're scaring me." Lisanna said.

In Nic's center, the Plates inside were picking up an energy, a spacial energy. He slowly turned towards the group. They could all see through his sunglasses the sharp look he gave them.

"Nic…?" Happy murmured, aware to keep quiet.

"Wait, Luminous. What the heck is wrong with you?" Gajeel asked. He then narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Wait a minute…"

Nic turned sharply towards everyone present. "I sense one." Nic murmured.

"Sense what?" Wendy asked.

Nic turned south and looked restless. "A portal, I finally sensed one. It just activated!"

At the sound of this, everyone nearly went wide-eyed as Nic picked up a portal at last on his radar. They all saw that looked as though he was going to take off any second, and they saw a motor rental vicinity close by, and Erza quickly requipped a sword since no one was in sight and cut the chains.

"Quick! Everyone grab one and let's go!" Erza shouted. Immediately, Gray got a motorcycle, Gajeel got one, Sophie got one, Lisanna got one, and Erza got one. Lucy latched onto Gray's ride, Vanessa was on Sophie's, Wendy was on Gajeel's, and Natsu was left at a standstill.

"Uh…I think I'd prefer to fly when we get to-!"

"Come on Natsu! We can't dillydally!" Lisanna grabbed Natsu and she pulled him onto her 'borrowed' motorcycle. Petrified, he was unable to do anything but pale.

Nic was shaking as he was just about to take off, and the Fairy Tail Mages were on their vehicles. Much to Natsu's horror, the motors were kicking and they all kicked up the brakes.

Erza led the charge, with Nic up front. Erza then narrowed her eyes as Nic looked like an uncontrollable animal in place. "We're ready." Erza said to Nic, making him stiff.

A brief pause fell and everything fell silent. Erza then took in a deep breath.

"…go!"

Nic then bolted off, faster than ever. He was darting like a Dodrio with high Speed. Natsu's cheeks puffed when he felt the motorcycle move at high speed, and everyone followed Nic.

They all followed Nic, who was unbelievably fast. They followed Nic through the Anistar Gate, where they went on Route 18, where there was wilderness.

"Happy!" Erza shouted. "Get Natsu!"

"Aye!" Happy grabbed Natsu and he carried him off of Lisanna's boke, and Natsu's motion sickness disappeared, and was traveling at the same speed the bikes were, slowly catching up to Nic.

Nic dashed through the tall grass as he eagerly and seriously ran as fast as Natsu when he uses his Fire Dragon's Iron Fist Booster, and that was Nic's normal speed. He accelerate a little as the signal seemed to be in one spot, and everyone was eventually following Nic like a pack. (If you guys ever saw Jurassic World, where the raptors were hunting for the Indominous Rex, think of the scenario like that.)

Nic raced through the grass, not wasting a breath as he followed his senses and Plates, which told him the signal was up ahead. Erza looked over, as she was seeing Nic with his sunglasses on, yet note how focused he was. He then picked up the pace and jumped over a fallen log, in which everyone had to ride around, eventually coming across a large bridge that Nic raced over. Everyone continued to follow, and they made it over the bridge with no problems.

A mile pass the bridge, Nic still continued to race with his determined speed, but when he saw something up ahead, his speed began to die down.

"Hey! Luminous is slowing down!" Gajeel announced.

"Does that mean he's found it?!" Gray shouted. They all lowered their speed gradually in conjunction with Nic, and Nic began to jog and he eventually came to a slow stop in front of a large entrance into a mine.

Everyone stopped and they got off their vehicles. Natsu and Happy descended from above and they all converged on Nic, where they all looked up at the large entrance.

"What is this place?" Wendy asked.

"Is the signal in there Nic?" Gray asked.

Lucy crossed her fingers. "Please not in there, please not in there." She repeated.

Nic nodded when he finally caught his breath. "Yeah, the signal is no doubt inside." He stated, making Lucy whine and get caught in comical revelation. Nic stepped forward, looking into the darkness of the cave. "I've heard rumors about this place. Terminus Cave." He stated. "It was once a mine."

"Why they stop then?" Lisanna asked.

Suddenly, the air blew a silent wind as Nic gazed into the abandoned cave. The feeling that was spine-shattering returned, and everyone turned with surprise that Nic took off his sunglasses and had a shadow over his eyes.

"Because…" He paused. "There's a tale of a monster deep inside of Terminus Cave, and it's massive."

Erza gasped, as well as everyone else. Lucy and Wendy shivered extremely, and Gajeel clenched his fists.

Nic turned back towards Terminus Cave and looked inside. "Whether or not the story is true, we have to take our chances. I sense a portal inside, and inside we'll go."

Vanessa nodded. "Okay Nic, we'll stay right by you."

Nic nodded and he then slowly inhaled and exhaled. He then proceeded slowly. When he took his first step inside the cave, he heard a very faint roar, one that only he could hear. His lips parted as he momentarily stopped, and he narrowed his eyes.

Nic then suddenly felt a dread-like sensation echo in side of him. The faint roar pulsated such hollow evil that made his insides tremble. He could've sworn that he was beginning to quiver again.

'_Nic Pularis.' _A bold and low-toned voice announced inside of Nic's head. _'The earth will ache, and so shall your entity…'_

Nic jerked and looked left and right. "What the?! Show yourself!" He got no answer.

Everyone was confused. "Nic?" Natsu asked. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Huh?" Nic blinked and glanced back at the group. "…s-sorry. I'm just hearing things." He lied, and turned forwards. Though hesitant, made way inside the cave, taking another step inside, where he heard another faint roar, and the dread pulsated from before, but no voice. Nic then but his sunglasses on and used Flash, in which his sunglasses shined a light that laminated the darkness.

As he proceeded, this dark feeling crawled through his body, and he felt uneasy. The others proceeded, and Natsu and everyone felt uneasy with this ominous feeling.

"Eh, what's going on?" Wendy asked, looking about. "This scary feeling is creeping me out."

"Yeah, I know." Gajeel muttered. "This is almost like that other day with that assailant, only this is much weaker…I think."

Natsu sniffed the air. "Yeah, the air inside this cave, it's foul for some reason."

"Please tell me it's not the monster." Lucy hopped.

"Don't worry, Natsu and the others would be able to handle it no sweat." Lisanna said with confidence.

Everyone then went deep inside the cave. The deeper they went, the more malevolent it felt, and the more they felt uneasy. They trekked for another hour, crossing paths and the drops from the ceiling kept dropping, giving a hollow feeling once more.

'_Nic Pularis.' _The voice echoed in Nic's head as his spine crawled with uneasiness. _'You're almost there…the earth cries out for your blood…'_

Nic shook his head and pressed on with caution, following his radar, but Erza was still following behind in her armor. She still knew something was wrong, and she wasn't gonna have Nic harbor it.

Pretty soon, his radar was going off like crazy, and they climbed a stone staircase, where Nic led them. It was when they got up to said passageway that the malevolent feeling was at its peak, and Nic had goosebumps like everyone else.

"Guys." Nic said. "I sense it; the portal is up this passageway."

"Alright then, let's go." Natsu clenched his fists and everyone then started running, but Nic kept a slow pace to make sure to stand by the group.

'_I know you're here.' _The voice said again, and Nic narrowed his eyes. He turned off Flash, as there was enough light for them to see, and since they were in a cave, he took off his sunglasses and put them on his V-Neck..

"Look! Up ahead!" Vanessa shouted, pointing at something in the area ahead of them, in a very cavernous chamber. At the very back was a sparkling area, where there was a cut in space, and inside was blue and pink stardust.

"Is that it?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah! It has to be!" Wendy added.

Nic's radar was at its peak and Nic grinned. He stepped forward. "She's right, that's it." The ominous feeling then attacked his spine, and he grew stiff.

"THEN LET'S GO! FIORE, HERE WE COME!" Natsu shouted.

Nic narrowed his eyes as everyone was making way pass him, but he remained still as the ominous feeling gave him a vicious feeling.

'…_I can see you.' _The voice said. _'I can see all of you. I can see everything. Including your blood.'_

Then Nic felt uneasy as he inspected the incredibly spacious chamber they were in. "Wait…" His eyes narrowed. "This feeling, what…?"

Then he caught a small glimpse of some camouflaged scales moving.

He gasped loudly and his pupils shrunk. He turned towards the group. "Everyone stop!" He shouted.

"Huh?" Natsu asked. "Why?"

Nic's gaze looked ominous and dark and a silence fell. "…we're not alone…"

"(**NIC PULARIS! I WANT YOUR BLOOD!**)" A hideous and monstrous voice shrieked, making the chamber shake and everyone covered their ears. The telepathic voice roared then, making everyone's spines shake.

Natsu looked as the quaking subsided. "What the hell was that?!"

Gajeel clenched his fists. "I don't know Salamander. Luminous was right this whole time, we're not alone."

"Everyone stay sharp!" Erza shouted, requipping a sword.

Everyone gathered in a small circle and Natsu had flaming fists and Gray was ready to make ice. They narrowed their eyes as they felt an ominous presence inside the chamber. They all looked around, but saw nothing.

They knew something was there, and they knew it. Soon enough, the ominous feeling closed in, and they saw something moving. Everyone turned around towards the portal, where in front, a hazy image of hexagons altered the space in front, and the coloration differed.

Everyone looked horrified as the 'monster' of Terminus Cave showed himself. He used Camouflage, and deactivated it, revealing himself to be a giant serpentine that that pitch black coloring, and the green on his body was a murky green. The eyes were not welcoming, as they were blood red rather than some white as everyone would've expected them to be. It also had numerous appendages sticking out from behind the head.

The beast towered over the group, as it sensed them coming.

Vanessa looked like she saw a ghost. "Oh my…"

The monster roared, and everyone covered their ears as the roar echoed on an extreme level. The quaking of the chamber nearly made everyone lose balance. When the quaking stopped and the roar subsided, everyone opened their eyes and looked up at the beast that was giving off a vile aura.

The beast gave a cold stare, and Nic stared back at it. The two were in a deadlock in the eyes, and then Nic took a step forwards, slowly making way and looked ahead at the monster before him. "Tell me, who are you?" He demanded.

The monster raised his scaly head. "(**I am Zygarde, the Order Pokémon. And I must have your blood!**)" He declared, his murky green scales shining on his appendages and eyes were blood red.

"Zygarde…?" Nic tensed up as he tried to process this, thinking as to how this all fitted together. "…so you're the so-called 'monster' of Terminus Cave. I've only heard from elders as I walked through places, and they had pictures of you, but…" Nic noticed the coloring of this Zygarde was darker than what he remembered seeing. He just saw light green and black, with light green eyes with a few white scales. This was absolutely nothing like what he saw.

"Something's wrong." Natsu said.

"Yeah, this smell is similar to that guy who almost slaughtered Luminous." Gajeel remarked. "And it's coming from this thing. Whatever it is, it's gonna try and kill us."

Erza stepped forward by Nic's side as he glared up at the blood-thirsty menace. She wasn't going to stand by and let Nic fight this alone, not again. She swore she'd protect him, and protect him she shall.

"Everyone make way to the portal!" Erza shouted. "We'll create a distraction! Now go!"

As Zygarde roared, everyone except, Nic and Erza, tried running around Zygarde. Erza requipped into her Black Wing Armor and poised a sword at Zygarde. Erza jumped and she let loose a battlecry as she sliced downwards onto Zygarde. Her sword clanged onto Zygarde's scaly head, but there was no scratch.

Erza went wide-eyed. "What's this?! My sword didn't faze it?!"

Zygarde roared and whipped his head up, making Erza's assault bounce right off and send her flying and screaming. Zygarde sense everyone going towards the portal and he snarled as he turned his head. Everyone raced towards the portal in an enclosed group, and they were getting close.

Zygarde roared as he unleashed Dragon Pulse, the massive multicolored dragon-shaped blast shot at the area in front of Natsu and the group, creating a sundering explosion that sent debris flying along with the group, making them all land on the ground.

"Guys! Vanessa!" Nic shouted in worry. Zygarde turned towards him and snarled, his blood red eyes fixated on Nic.

"(**Nic Pularis, the day of your death has come!**)" Zygarde's lower jaw lit up and he went at Nic with Crunch, letting loose a violent roar as he lunged.

Nic jumped, dodging the attack that left a large crater where Zygarde's jaw struck. Above, Nic had a foot ready. "**Stomp!**" Nic crashed his foot down on Zygarde's head, which made a shockwave ripple, yet Zygarde looked unfazed. Nic grunted as he immediately jumped off and backflipped onto the ground.

"Nic!" Erza shouted, landing on the ground right by Nic. Both looked too see Zygarde fixated on them, yet the vile emanated was all around.

"His skin is impenetrable. Not even a scratch." Nic said.

Natsu and everyone rose to their feet, and they all turned back to where Zygarde was. Natsu grunted and he leaped into the air and inhaled. "**Fire dragon's-!**" He was stopped when Zygarde lashed his thin yet mighty, scaly tail at Natsu without having the need to turn around. Zygarde's tail slammed Natsu into a chamber wall, creating a large crater with Natsu embedded in the center.

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted.

Gray turned towards Zygarde. "Crap! That thing's stronger than we anticipated!"

Vanessa's gaze looked uneasy. "…now it makes sense." She muttered. Everyone turned towards her in confusion. "I've heard of Zygarde from legends, and they say that Zygarde…is a Legendary Pokémon."

At this news, everyone gawked and gasped in shock.

"You're kidding me?! You mean that thing before us has a lot power that we can't match?!" Gray exclaimed, in which Vanessa grunted and said nothing.

Gajeel clenched a fist. "Well I ain't staying on the sidelines! Titania and Luminous are gonna need backup!" Gajeel ran forwards towards Zygarde and turned his legs into columns and shot up into the air. He then morphed his arm into a spear. "**Iron Dragon's Spear!**" Gajeel's spear-like arm the struck Zygarde's back with precision, but Zygarde didn't look fazed, but annoyed as his attention was away from Nic, allowing for the Plate wielder to jump as Zygarde turned his head.

"**Boomburst!**" The inside of Nic's mouth shined a light blue and he unleashed a loud and powerful blast of sound waves that struck the side of Zygarde's head, making a burst of energy and wind. Zygarde roared as he felt that one.

Natsu freed himself from the wall and lunged towards Zygarde. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" Natsu was engulfed in flames and lunged into Zygarde's side. All that did was just catch Zygarde's attention.

"(**You annoyances!**)" Zygarde roared. His violent call shook the area and everyone was on edge as they nearly lost their footing once more. The group jerked in all directions, and Zygarde inhaled and conjured energy as he aimed for the ground and fire an explosive Dragon Pulse across and in an arc. The Dragon Pulse made a giant explosion within that arc that made everyone get sent flying and scream and they tumbled away.

Zygarde roared as he looked and saw how Happy grabbed Natsu quickly and got into the air. Zygarde's blood red eyes looked on as Natsu and Happy dove in, with Natsu using Fire Dragon's Iron Fist. Zygarde used Crunch, his lower jaw lighting up. He then slammed his jaw into Natsu's fist, overpowering with such force that made the duo spiral in the air.

"That's it! **Ice Make: Lance!**" Gray unleashed his attack as soon as his feet were under him and the rapid production of lances went showering towards Zygarde. Zygarde's serpentine body enabled him to slither right and evade, making Gray grunt.

Erza took flight and Nic dashed from behind to attack. Erza had her sword ready and Nic had a Mega Punch at the ready. Both warriors charged, but Zygarde didn't need to look back to swat his tail upwards and send them soaring.

Erza straightened out while Nic backflipped with the momentum and landed on his feet with a skid, grunting the entire way. "Damn. Do the appendages behind its head count as eyes?"

Erza rushed ahead from the angle she was in. "**Moon Flash!**" She slashed her attack, in which made smoke emerge from the powerful strike. Zygarde gave a snarl as he finally turned back towards Erza and Nic.

"(**You humans are beyond aggravating!**)" Zygarde shouted.

Nic narrowed his eyes. _'This bloodthirsty rage, this isn't normal. What happened?'_

"Hey scale-face! You forgot me!" Gajeel appeared from above and readied an attack. "**Iron Dragon's Roar!**" Gajeel's metallic roar was like a tornado that made Zygarde immobile as the pressure of the attack kept him still, allowing for Gray to unleash his attack.

"**Ice Make: Lance!**"

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Natsu added in to attack. Both lances and roar alike plowed into a still Zygarde, creating a powerful explosion. Everyone heard Zygarde roar in pain, and they all grinned.

Vanessa smiled. "Alright! Wait a go guys!"

Lisanna turned towards Vanessa. "Aren't you gonna join in?"

Vanessa frowned and shook her head. "It's not that I don't want to, it's just that I don't want to get into others' way." She looked back up at Zygarde. "That's a Legendary, and my team can't compare…at least not yet."

Lisanna smiled. "In that case, I'll stay right by you. Go get'em guys!" Lisanna cheered.

Wendy was flying thanks to Carla and she unleashed her attack. "**Sky Dragon's Roar!**"

Sophie made a chain of memories. "Let's put this creepy snake in its place! **Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**" Sophie made several mirrors of ice and unleashed dark green blasts from them.

The two attacks went towards Zygarde, and the Dragon and Ground-Type jerked towards the direction of said attacks. "(**Suffer for your interference!**)" Zygarde let loose his Dragon Pulse, which chomped down on the tornado and green beams, making an explosion in midair, sending winds here and there. This made Sophie skid a few feet back and Carla jerked several feet in the air.

Zygarde roared once more, and was struck from behind with a Swift from Nic, the stars bombarding his back, which only aggravated him. Nic narrowed his eyes as his gaze was on Zygarde's. "I'm who you want! You leave everyone else be!"

Zygarde snarled and began to slowly slither on towards Nic. Zygarde had no words to tell, rather he used Crunch and barrowed his jaws downwards onto Nic.

"Nic!" Vanessa shouted.

"Oh no he won't!" Lucy shouted. "**Open: Gate of the Golden Bull – Taurus!**"

A Magic seal was made and Taurus appeared at the ready. "Moooooooo!"

Lucy pointed towards Zygarde. "Stop that thing!"

Taurus grabbed his axe and crouched. "Miss Luuucy, I'll do this to get a smooooch from you later!" Taurus then jumped and had his axe at the ready as he was a glint from above and mooed as he went down and brought his axe in a downward motion. Zygarde sensed this and lifted his head and redirected his Crunch so the jaw made contact with the axe. Both attacks collided, making the ground shake. Zygarde didn't budge, and neither did Taurus. Taurus grunted as Zygarde wasn't even flinching.

"**Crush Claw!**" Nic jumped and his hands glowed blue. He then brought them both down onto Zygarde's face, making a ripple in the air and Zygarde looked uneasy as he recoiled a few inches, and Taurus jumped off and landed on the ground.

"We're not done yet!" Natsu shouted. "**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**" Natsu lashed fire from the side, hitting Zygarde's 'arms', which made him emit a low snarl as he swung his direction towards Natsu.

Gray then appeared behind Zygarde. "**Ice-Make: Sword!**" Gray then made a sword out of ice and he lunged and slashed at Zygarde's back, in which the sword shattered and Gray reeled back as that caught Zygarde's attention. _'This thing has though skin!'_

Wendy and Carla were above, as was Lily as he carried Gajeel.

"**Sky Dragon's-**"

"**Iron Dragon's**-"

"**ROAR!**" Both wind and iron went downwards towards Zygarde, and Sophie made a chain of memories.

Sophie smirked. "Let's add insult to injury! **Memory-Make: Scorn of the Armored Winds!**"

All three attacks bombarded Zygarde, making everyone hear a painful screech as Zygarde felt the attack on a high level of pain, iron, wind, and a mixture of all of them pressurizing and scraping him. When the attacks ceased, the Exceeds had Natsu, Wendy, and Gajeel alike in the air, while everyone, exclude Vanessa and Lisanna, surrounded Zygarde.

Zygarde noticed he was surrounded, and he accumulated a few scrapes. Nic pointed towards Zygarde. "It's best that you give up and let us pass towards the portal!" Nic proclaimed.

Erza requipped into her Flame Empress Armor and she spun around and flashed her sizzling sword that unleashed a wave of fire at Zygarde, and Nic added in with Spike Cannon, in which he lashed his arms and fired a barrage of spikes with every swipe. The two attacks exploded upon contact, and Zygarde screeched as he felt pain surge from the fire and Spike Cannon. When it cleared, Zygarde was snarling as he looked annoyed.

Erza narrowed her eyes. "It's not done yet I see." She lunged and leaped towards Zygarde with her sword and did a diagonal slash across the abdomen. She recoiled and saw that Zygarde was still unfazed; if anything, he was aggravated even more.

Taurus pitched in and jumped. "Let's see how you like my Rampage ya looooser!" He slammed his axe down into the ground. Sending an earthquake in a straight line towards Zygarde, but Zygarde wasn't one to be caught off when it was that obvious.

"(**You pester me humans! Your insolence in my objective shall be your end!**)" The monster yelled, making the ground palpitate abhorrently. Everyone tensed up yet again as the foul aura around Zygarde intensified, meaning his power was amplified somewhat, and they saw his tail being raised.

Immediately, Nic knew what was gonna happen. He went wide-eyed and glanced at everybody. "It's Earthquake! Everybody get away now!"

Zygarde brought his tail down to the ground, making a small glint under the earth and then there was a massive explosion of debris and earth flying haphazardly, stopping Taurus's Rampage cold. Everyone covered up and screamed as the rampaging rock and dust shattered about the entire chamber, not to mention the entire Terminus Cave. Even outside, the Earthquake reached Anistar City, where everyone felt a violent shake about the area.

Everyone was pounded and swallowed in flying dust and violent earth shakes, the ground gave in under everyone's feet and all anybody could see was dust and rock, in which the turbulence could've also buried them if possible. As for Taurus, he screamed as he was pummeled with rock like crazy and was forced back into the Celestial Spirit World.

After several minutes, groaning was heard all about and many bodies were sprawled on the cavernous ground. The ground itself was completely leveled thanks to Zygarde's Earthquake. The chamber walls were cracked and bits of the ceiling were chipped off. Rocks and ground deposits were everywhere, as Natsu and everyone else slowly arose.

Natsu threw off a rock that buried him and Gajeel and soon enough everyone followed. Vanessa and Lisanna were safe at the time, but they were surrounded by large boulders from that attack, the two coughed as dust still hanged about in the air.

Nic winced and he looked over at Vanessa and Lisanna. "Vanessa, are you okay?!"

Vanessa winced as the force of Earthquake made her and Lisanna hit the chamber wall close by, but other than a stinging sensation and being covered in dust, they were peachy. Vanessa nodded. "Yeah, we're fine!" She shouted before coughing.

Nic grunted and turned towards Zygarde, who didn't even look interested. The scaly beast looked about and saw everyone struggling to get up, as his Earthquake dealt catastrophic damage. "(**Stay down. My target is Nic Pularis.**)"

Despite being hurt, Erza pushed a flat rock off of her and glared at Zygarde. "You will never take Nic away from us!" She declared. She then requipped her shattered swords and armor back into her Black Wing Armor and zoomed in front of Nic. "You'll have to get pass me if you want to hurt him!"

Zygarde saw the determination and seriousness in her eyes, considering her proclamation as a challenge. "(**The earth beckons for all to fall, but I shall end you so the land shall consume you!**)"

Natsu could barely move, as could Gajeel, as that Earthquake somehow exhausted them greatly. They panted, and their Exceeds were covered in scrapes and bruises. Wendy only had minor damage, but could barely move. Everyone else was in the same boat sort of speak, by they did manage to get to their knees.

"Damnit, this thing's powerful." Natsu muttered harshly.

Gajeel glanced over towards Natsu. "No duh Salamander. Remember what Luminous's sister said. That thing's some sort of Legendary." Zygarde roared up to the air as Gajeel stated that, and slithered on over towards Erza and Nic.

Zygarde initiated Crunch and Erza requipped a second sword and she crossed both weapons, holding Zygarde's Crunch as she was barely holding him off.

"Erza! Hang on!" Nic shouted in worries for the redhead. He grunted. _'Damnit, Zygarde's power is strong, and if anybody interferes, they'll get hurt. I gotta slow him down.' _Nic thought on his feet and reached for a poke ball in his pocket.

Nic threw it. "Arbok! Come on out!"

The Cobra Pokémon emerged on the leveled ground in front of Nic and hissed. He stared blankly at the scene ahead. "(Nic-ssssama, what isssss it that you dessssire me to do?)" He asked obediently.

Nic extended an arm forwards. "Stop Zygarde with Ice Fang!"

Arbok hissed and obediently nodded. "(Assss you wish.)" Arbok then opened his mouth and his fangs became solid ice. He reeled his body back slowly and then shot forward faster than a Mach Punch.

Erza was struggling as her crossed swords were barely keeping Zygarde away, and she was close to giving in. She couldn't allow for Nic to get hurt, and she would give it everything she had to keep Zygarde away. She heard a loud hiss and glanced above as she saw Arbok lunging at Zygarde's head with Ice Fang and sank his fangs into the head, causing Zygarde to retract himself and give Erza room to recover. Arbok's fangs clung onto Zygarde as the Dragon and Ground-Type wailed and shook in all directions to get him off, but to no avail.

Arbok held on tight as the icy fangs were stuck on Zygarde, and that left Nic with the opportunity to attack. "Erza! Let's go!"

Erza nodded. "Let's do this!" She lunged ahead by Nic's side and slashed. "**Moon Flash!**"

Nic proceeded with his attack. "**Razor Wind!**"

When Erza's cross attack struck Zygarde's abdomen, Razor Wind followed, and multiple white crescents struck consecutively, making multiple white bursts of energy that made Zygarde wail even more.

Arbok finally let go and was sent flying in the air, but he thought nothing of it as he made a silver ball of light that expanded and made a black garbage bag with purple outlining. "(**Gunk Shot!**)" Arbok's Poison-Type move fired right in between Zygarde's eyes, creating a huge purple explosion of filth that shattered the ground under Zygarde. Zygarde wailed as he scooted back from that attack.

The three landed right beside the other, glaring at Zygarde, who looked even more annoyed.

"It's not staying down." Nic said with distaste. "But it seems we're doing damage for sure." Nic and Erza saw that Zygarde was bruised in many places, yet all the menacing beast did was snarl.

Arbok lowered his head. "(Nic-ssssama. What issss it that you desssire next?)"

Nic turned towards Arbok, staring at him and back at Zygarde. "…block his next attack. I'll deal heavy damage with this next one."

Arbok nodded. "(Asssss you wish.)" Arbok then slithered swiftly in front of Nic and Erza. Zygarde conjured up energy and fired a Dragon Pulse attack, in which Arbok hissed in retort and used Gunk Shot once more. The two attacks collided with such intensity that they cancelled each other out, and a huge explosion kicked out clouds of dust and smoke, which was just what Nic intended for.

Arbok slithered towards his left to allow Nic to fire without any interference. Arbok and Erza turned to see Nic opening his mouth and a massive amount of energy condensed in front of his mouth. This energy caused the space Nic was in to shatter and Erza and Arbok could sense a heavy flow of power in the ball.

"You two! Hurry! Get out of the way!" Nic managed to exclaim, and Erza and Arbok reeled back as Zygarde charged from the cloud of dust with a Crunch, roaring as he was ready to finish Nic.

Nic finally let loose the energy. "**Hyper Beam!**" Nic unleashed a massive dark purple beam with dark black energy that shattered the ground and sent rocks and debris sailing on the sides. The immense beam struck Zygarde's abdomen, making the Dragon and Ground-Type scream as the brutal power given off pushed him back with no contest. Zygarde's scream echoed as the ground under him trailed and cracked upon being pushed back from Hyper Beam, and Zygarde screamed once more and fell backwards in an explosive energy that made winds fly violently, causing everyone around to cover up.

Erza was left surprised as Nic unleashed a devastating move that could've rivaled the Jupiter Cannon if possible. The power given off was intense, and she looked as her hair waved along the winds as Nic was left motionless.

Nic grunted as that Hyper Beam took a lot out of him and forced him to a knee. "That should…do it…"

The dust settled at long last, and Zygarde was found nowhere. Everyone saw the dust finally gone, yet they couldn't spot Zygarde.

"What's this?! It's gone?!" Erza shouted.

Arbok was also left in shock. "(It vanished?!)"

Nic grunted as he narrowed his eyes and looked about. "…no. It's still here, but I don't know where…" There was a brief silence that took over before there was a massive energy in front of Nic, which made him gasp. "Oh crap! Guys! I forget it could use Camou-!"

Zygarde showed itself as his Crunch slammed down onto Nic, making him yelp as his back crashed against the earth.

"Nic-sssssama!" Arbok shouted.

"No! Nic!" Erza shouted. Zygarde retracted his body and saw that Crunch left Nic immobile on the ground and wincing, in which Erza let loose a battlecry and slashed her sword against Zygarde's side, which caught his attention.

"You're gonna pay for what you did!" Erza shouted, a scary look of vengeance in her eyes.

Sophie and everyone else were left speechless and damaged as they couldn't keep up. Zygarde was just packing too much of a fuss and it seemed that they'd only interfere. Sophie winced. _'Ze lo hiyeh tov. The portal is gonna close soon. We need to stop this thing, but…' _Sophie and everyone watched as Erza's slashing was to no avail as Zygarde used Dragon Pulse and the attack swallowed her up, making her scream as she landed on her back with a thud.

"Damn. We gotta get to that portal and wrap up this battle." Gajeel muttered.

Gray grunted as he slowly got up. "Yeah, but we can't just leave them here to fight that thing." Gray narrowed his eyes. "I don't care how this goes! I'm staying so they don't get left behind!"

Vanesa clenched her fists. "Yeah! I'm not leaving Nic!" She and Lisanna made their way around the boulders with haste and joined back with the group. They all made way around the fuss and regrouped with haste, with Vanessa and Sophie helping Nic and Erza up while Arbok fended off against Zygarde.

"(**Perish!**)" Zygarde unleashed his Dragon Pulse, but Arbok serpentine and evaded, avoiding the thunderous attack that shook the ground slightly. Arbok lunged ahead and used Ice Fang once more, embedding his jaws into Zygarde's side and making the monster wail and turn a few times. Zygarde looked down and swatted his tail at Arbok, making the Poison-Type screech as he let go and trailed backwards in a skidding thud. Arbok opened his eyes and straightened upwards and ceased his skid, hissing in retort.

"Nic, are you okay?" Vanessa asked, helping Nic up. Nic grunted as he felt as though he was struck by a dumpster truck.

"Y-yeah, but that Crunch did some damage." Nic said. "We gotta finish it. We have to. The portal may not even have a few minutes left. I can already feel the energy slipping away."

Natsu clenched his fists. "Then let's get back in there and fight!"

Just as he said that, Zygarde whipped his tail up and screeched. Everyone fell frozen as they recognized that motion. Everyone flinched as Zygarde unleashed Earthquake and they heard a rapid explosion and a massive shockwave of dirt and dust headed their way as the earth shook violently under them, making them incapable of keeping balance, which also caused Natsu to get sick and fall to his knees.

"We're gonna get buried again guys!" Happy shouted.

They all watched as the shockwave head towards them and braced for a brutal blow, but it never came. Nic's Arbok slithered in front of the group as the shockwave went towards him. All Arbok did was hiss and narrow his eyes.

"(**Earthquake!**)" Arbok shouted. He lashed his tail at an angle, hitting the ground with such force. The angled tail slam made a booming sound and a massive wave of rock and dust rushed forwards, yet made the ground underneath vibrate monstrously, making everyone fall to their knees and Natsu had puffy cheeks. The two shockwaves boomed about, making cracks increase along the walls of the chamber and cave, and Zygarde was left in shock when Arbok's Earthquake countered his.

As the massive rumbling and dust and rocks collided, Arbok turned back towards Nic and Erza. "(Nic-sssama! Erzzza-sssama! Make hassste!)" He yelled and turned back towards the turbulence. "(Thisss sssscaled-facccce reptile isss in for a lot of pain!)"

Erza and Nic turned towards the other and looked at each other briefly, seeing the focused and determined looks they shared. Erza turned back towards the front and poised a sword, as to where Nic shifted into his Icicle Plate Form.

"We're gonna get through this! No matter what!" Nic proclaimed.

Erza nodded. "No matter what!" As the dust subsided and rocks diminished, Erza flapped her wings and she let loose a battlecry and slashed repeatedly at rocks and dirt, making a clear path towards Zygarde. The tainted beast roared as he saw Erza incoming and turned and swatted his tail, deflecting Erza's slashing motion and making her retract into the air. As she gained altitude, Zygarde turned his large head up and used Dragon Pulse. The massive dragon-shaped attack had its mouth opened and Erza was left defenseless and was going to get hit.

Fortunately, an Ice Beam from a certain someone from below intercepted the attack, and shot through the Dragon Pulse and made it dispel before Erza could have been hit. Erza looked down with wide eyes as she saw Nic and Arbok dashing right beside the other as the rumbling was now at a low magnitude.

"You aren't gonna hurt my friends anymore!" Nic proclaimed. "I'm the one who'll protect them now!"

Erza gasped, hearing how Nic proclaimed that he would protect his friends, and protect her like he just did.

"(Retribution shall be before you! Go down!)" Arbok shouted. He slithered on ahead and lunged with Ice Fang, clamping his fangs onto Zygarde's tail and making the tainted beast scream as it felt pain. Arbok narrowed his eyes and he noticed a jagged and heavy rock right next to him. He skillfully coiled his tail around it as an anchor so Zygard wouldn't flail so wildly.

"(**Unhand me!**)" Zygarde demanded, jerking repeatedly, but Arbok remained anchored with his fangs clamped down. As Zygarde was distracted, Erza flew in with her large sword, which was the one she used against Jellal after the tower became a lacrima, and slashed with all her might. The attack hardly left a scratch and that only made Zygarde turn towards Erza with anger.

"(**Begone!**)" He lunged ahead with Crunch, and Erza used her sword to block, but Zygarde's assault made her jerk back several feet as Erza was barely holding on.

"**Frost Breath!**" A wind with ice sparkles blasted Zygarde's right side, and the scaly dragon felt the attack and yelled as he couldn't handle such an intense Ice-Type critical move and Nic looked on as Zygarde recoiled and was still restrained due to Arbok clamping on.

Nic narrowed his eyes and coated his right fist in light blue with sparkles. "**Ice Punch!**" Nic lunged with a punch and jumped in front of Zygarde and rushed his fist forwards, but Zygarde leaned away, making Nic follow through with no balance.

"Nic! Look out!" Vanessa warned from afar as Zygarde brought its head forwards and used Crunch. Nic saw that and Erza flew in and pulled him out of the way in time, reeling him into high the air as Zygarde retracted and growled.

"Nic! We're almost there!" Erza shouted.

"I know! Let's finish this!" Nic responded. Nic then pried himself from Erza and fell downwards. Zygarde looked up to see Nic falling and he readied a Dragon Pulse.

Arbok narrowed his eyes. "(Oh no you don't!)" Arbok released his grip on Zygarde, forcing the latter to get thrown off balance, in which he wobbled and the energy conjured in front of him fluxed and dispersed due to being unstable. Arbok let loose a loud, roaring hiss as he then uncoiled his tail from the rock and slammed it right next to Zygarde, unleashing a close-range Earthquake that made the ground under Zygarde gave in as dust and debris pounded at him. Zygarde screamed as he fell backwards slowly as the earth from underneath shook rapidly once more, sending debris like a tidal wave in all directions, which made Natsu nearly spew again and everyone covered up as dust and dirt swallowed them, but the proximity from Arbok was too great, and so they were spared from giant rock and were hit with rumbling and dust.

Nic took this opportunity from above as Zygarde was falling backwards and his icy coat let loose a freezing energy. "We're getting back to Fiore! And Fairy Tail! Where we belong!" Nic let loose a battlecry as his coat flashed and unleashed a freezing energy that rippled like a wave of cold energy that froze the ground and nearby rocks. Arbok quickly slithered a safe distance somewhat as Zygarde was feeling the ground underneath becoming coated in frost and fragments of ice.

Nic let loose a monstrous battlecry as he then made giant icicles that were humungous, as big as Zygarde, and all were pointed at him.

Nic brought his arms forward. "**Legendary Arts – Glaciate!**" Dozens of giant ice spikes shot downwards at Zygarde, and the Dragon and Ground-Type was left in horror as his tainted body was then seeing glints of icy blue before being shot with heavy ice spikes and screeching as the ice crashed endlessly on him, and whatever ice spikes didn't hit Zygarde, the surrounding area was pelted and embedded with sheer ice that made the entire chamber shake and rocks started falling from the ceiling, and some rock and ice from the ground shot up from the catastrophic force from that Glaciate.

Everyone watched with wide eyes as Nic's devastating Legendary Arts nearly shattered the entire chamber and Zygarde screeched as after the countless ice spikes, he was engulfed in a massive frosty burst of energy. Nic looked on from above and winced as that Legendary Arts, as did any, drained his Plate's power.

Zygarde was seen screeching as he fell back and was covered in shattered frost and ice, landing with a boom sound as rocks from above smashed downwards, breaking the ice (literally) and burying Zygarde in rock.

With little energy, with fell downwards with the rocks and crashed with a thud. Soon enough, he was left motionless and exhausted as small rocks began to pile around him and started burying him.

"Nic!" Vanessa called out in sheer worry as the rocks finally stooped, and all anybody saw was a large pile of rubble. "Nic!"

Inside, Nic winced. "…Vanessa…" He muttered. Nic was covered in a few scratches and he was under some light rock, providing space for him to attempt to move.

When Nic opened his eyes at last, he saw some rock being shoved away in front of him and saw a hand reach out to him.

Everyone outside watched with anticipation as Erza was giving it everything she had, with Arbok accompanying her, and saw her grunting as she was pulling Nic out.

"Nic!" Erza grunted as she gave it one last pull and Nic was yanked out, with Erza holding him by the shoulders as he was slumped downwards with lots of scratches, but otherwise fine.

Nic looked by at Erza, her brown eyes full of worry, yet heavy content. "Erza."

Erza smiled softly as she looked at Nic. "You're amazing Nic, thank you."

Arbok hissed softly as he looked at Nic. "(Nic-sssama, are you alright?)"

Nic grinned at his slithery pal. "Yeah, I'm alright." He got his feet under him and huffed as he shifted back into himself. Erza requipped into her Heart Kreuz and helped him down by putting an arm over her shoulder and they made it safely towards the group.

"Alright!" A majority of everyone cheered, save Gajeel and the guys who just grinned, as Nic smiled at them back at Erza. Vanessa went up and hugged her brother, and Nic stumbled back as he was caught off guard.

Vanessa had a happy smile. "I'm so glad you're safe." She muttered.

Nic smiled. "It's okay." Nic turned towards Arbok and smiled. "You did great Arbok, nice job with that Earthquake."

Arbok nodded. "(Thank you.)" He then looked back at the rubble, seeing as how the foul aura and energy given off by Zygarde was seeping out. Everyone looked and saw the energy seep out of the rubble and into the air above. With narrow eyes, everyone could feel their bare skin crawl from the energy that was full of hatred and bloodlust. The energy dispersed into nothing as it ascended, leaving the atmosphere with no anxiety left.

With that out of the way, Natsu looked and saw the portal on the other side of the chamber. It looked as though it was fluctuating and it was evident time was almost up.

"Guys, the portal!" Natsu warned. Everyone looked and gasped at the remembrance.

"Snap! We totally forgot about that! We gotta hurry!" Gray exclaimed with haste. Everyone made way with as much speed as they could muster up. Natsu was moving as fast as he could. Nic and Arbok were a tad slower than usual, but were still fast to keep ahead. Nic noticed that the fluctuating of the portal stopped and it was slowly contrasting when they were two hundred meters away. At this rate…

"Nic-ssssama." Arbok said.

Regrettably, Nic nodded. "Yeah…I know." Nic knew they were running out of time, and at their rate, they weren't gonna make it.

Natsu had veins on his face as he gave it a full burst of running. "I'M NOT GIVING UP!" He shouted, running full speed and leaving everyone in dust. Natsu dashed with all his might as the portal was closing. "YOU BETTER STAY OPEN!" He yelled as he ran and made a last-second leap. Natsu leaped and had hit hand extended outwards as he was so close to touching the portal, but the portal finally slid shut and turned into sparkles just mere inches from Natsu's reach and the Dragon Slayer slammed face-first into the chamber wall behind.

Everyone from afar stopped and looked on with blank expressions as their most recent chance to getting home slipped right through their fingers. There was a brief ten seconds before Gray finally stomped in frustration.

"Damnit! We were too late!" Gray shouted.

Sophie turned towards him. "It's nobody's fault Gray. We had to defeat Zygarde." She stated as Gray calmed down and gritted his teeth.

Natsu slowly fell to the ground and groaned as his face had hurt like crazy. He soon got to his feet and rubbed his head. "Aw man, that's a hard wall. Huh…?" Natsu then realized that he was too late and then he suddenly punched the wall. "We were too late!"

"We know Natsu." Nic said, but even he couldn't help but feel his grip shaking. He was mentally frustrated, but he sighed in defeat.

Everyone then heard some rumbling and they turned to see the large rubble of frost, ice, and rock that covered Zygarde began to crumble and fall. Everyone immediately tensed up and looked back as they saw the large serpentine emerge, but this time, it looked different.

Instead of the pitch black and murky green, it was a regular black with light green scales. The blood red eyes and blood red scaled were back to being light green and white. Now he looked normal again, which was odd to the group.

Zygarde looked around and noticed that his chamber was all cracked and desecrated. "(**What happened?**)" He muttered. "(**Why do I feel so much pain?**)" He winced and everyone took clear notice. "(**Did I battle?**)"

"That's weird. Maybe Luminous knocked a few of its screws loose." Gajeel muttered.

Sophie highly doubted Gajeel's claimed, as she saw the confusion Zygarde was in. "If I remember correctly, its coloring was darker, right?"

Vanessa noticed it was well. "Huh? Now that you mention it, it did give off a violent aura as well." She turned towards Sophie. "Do you think after Nic defeated it that those traits vanished?"

"You know, I just don't know anymore." Lucy said. "These things are all weird."

Nic narrowed his eyes and slowly made way towards Zygarde, with Arbok slithering by his side as support. Erza watched with anxiousness, as she was ready to strike the moment Zygarde would attempt to attack.

Zygarde took notice of the humans and turned towards them, and saw Nic and Arbok proceed. "(**Human, who are you? Do you know what happened to me?**)"

Nic stopped when he was thirty feet from Zygarde. "Zygarde, I am Nic Pularis. Tell me, what was the last thing you remember?"

Nic and Arbok both looked on with suspicion as Zygarde looked and saw the bruises on his body. "(**…the last thing I recall…I was watching everything from my chamber. Then suddenly, I felt a strong level of negativity escalate. The next thing I knew, I was swallowed up in pitch black and saw nothing but blood red. It was all a big blur after that.**)"

Arbok turned towards Nic. "Nic-sssssama, do you think it wassss posssssessssed?)"

Nic glanced back at Zygarde. "Most likely. Whatever that black aura was, it controlled him. It seems he doesn't remember being manipulated." Nic then turned towards Zygarde.

"(**Did you happen…to help me erase that darkness I was swallowed in?**)"

Nic nodded. "Zygarde, we mean you know harm. However I apologize for our methods. We had to defeat you in order to erase that darkness. You were tainted sort of speak."

Zygarde looked down at the ground. "(**I see. I'm sorry if I had laid harm to your comrades. It seems like that was the case.**)"

Nic gave a half-grin. "None of it was your fault. We're all fine. You can rest at ease now."

Zygarde remained silent for a while and looked around his chamber, examining the catastrophic damage. He then turned towards Nic. "(**Thank you.**)" With a nod, Nic turned and went back towards the group, with Arbok following behind. Zygarde watched on with a placid expression as he no longer felt cold and filled with bloodlust.

Nic stopped in front of the group and grinned. "It's okay guys, he was controlled this entire time. We should go."

"But wait, will he be alright?" Wendy asked.

Nic turned back towards Zygarde, who began to use Camouflage and vanished before their eyes. Nic made a half-grin again and turned back towards Wendy. "Don't worry. I doubt that darkness will mess with him again." He then glowed, shifting into his Mind Plate. Nic concentrated and he held his hands out. "Everyone stay still. I need a second…" Nic then began to fixate on a point outside of Terminus Cave, seeing as how the way they came in was destroyed from the battle. "…**Teleport!**"

With and the group then suddenly were gone in a quick flash of light, and they vacated Terminus Cave. In about two seconds, they found themselves on the grass and in front of the cave entrance. You could see the cracked insides of the cave, but was still intact, so Lairon and Graveler and everything else inside were still able to live in there.

With everyone settled, Nic walked on over and pet Arbok's chin, making the Poison-Type his in satisfaction. "You did a nice job Arbok. Taking on a Legendary was your golden moment. Return." Nic then returned a tired Arbok back to his poke ball.

Gray looked at Nic. "Now what?"

Nic turned back towards the group and stared at them. "…we just keep moving. There's really no other option." Nic then turned and saw the motorcycles parked several feet away and used Teleport on them and he sent the motorcycles back towards Anistar City.

Erza walked up to him and had hands to her hips. She had a smile as she looked at Nic. Nic stared back with a smile.

"I'm glad you're safe." The Fairy Queen admitted.

Nic maintained his happiness. "Me too."

Sophie looked on with a mental giggle. _'He'll be thanking me later. I know it.'_

Vanessa looked on with a deep smile as she was glad Erza cared deeply for Nic. Everyone looked on with a neutral expression as the little moment came to an end and Nic cleared his throat. "Enough lollygagging guys, let's move out!" Nic ordered, and then began to rush off south and everyone followed.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Everyone in Anistar City felt every Earthquake attack, as some places were shaken up, and there was some hysteria. The vehicle store's owner had arrived just recently and noticed that there were a few motorcycles gone and the chains were cut.

"Gah! What the heck?!" He shouted. "Somebody stole my motorcycles!" He turned around and panicked. "Who in their right mind is able to break those chains?! You need giant sawblades to…!" He turned around and wet wide-eyed as the motorcycles were surprisingly back in place. A bit of grass stains, but other than that, they were fine.

The man raised a brow as he gawked. "Earthquakes…and now I'm hallucinating?" A silence settled and he blinked repeatedly as he made way inside. "Ehhh…I think I'll just close up shop early and sleep…" He said awkwardly.

* * *

**In another dimension…**

Hoopa fumed as he bounced like crazy. "GAH! STUPID ZYGARDE COULDN'T KILL NIC! WHY DIDN'T THAT ANTIMATTER MAKE HIM TRANSFORM?! THIS IS BOGUS!"

Darkrai crossed his arms. "Zygarde has always been the reclusive one of the Life Trio. It seems even with Giratina's antimatter, he still kept his true powers at bay." He then looked up at the three. "Perhaps we've underestimated Zygarde's will, as he didn't even use half of his power. If I recall, it only activates when the ecosystem is at risk."

Hoopa raised a brow. "Oh, so the universe doesn't count?" He asked sarcastically.

Mewtwo growled as he looked at the image of Nic defeating Zygarde. "That power Zygarde had inside. The hatred we tainted him was not great enough. That one was a waste."

Giratina floated with his bloodlust expression, looking at the image with an immense hatred given off from Zygarde's defeat. "…no matter." He growled in a deep and low demon voice. "That power means nothing to us. Zygarde was a mere tool for us to use. My antimatter has tainted a few more puppets that we can play with…"

* * *

**It's over the amount of words I had intended, but it didn't seem that big of a deal. At least it's better than last chapter's length. I added a lot of fluffy moments in this chapter for Nic and Erza, since this is part Romance after all. And who doesn't love those Nic/Erza fluffy moments, right? Review if you loved those romance moments please.**

**The reason I didn't use Zygarde's Complete Form was because since I didn't see it in the anime, nor has anybody, I didn't want to make false conclusions on how that power is to be used or unlocked. I didn't feel comfortable wandering into that untouched territory until I saw it with my own eyes sort of speak.**

**I didn't make Diantha's debut a big deal because I didn't find it a big deal, plus it wasn't the main point of the chapter. The main point was to establish Erza wanting to protect Nic and for Zygarde to fight.**

**Anyways, RavenousEds and I made another chapter of **_**Fairy Ed**_**, so go check that out. He's also made a poll, so if you read **_**Fairy Ed**_**, please vote in his poll. Also, check out mine quickly as I asked earlier please. Thanks!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving the battles and the overwhelming romance and are waiting for more.**

* * *

**Next Time: Will of Fire**


	40. Will of Fire

Chapter 40 – Will of Fire

**Hello once again, loyal and faithful readers! Insane Dominator is bringing you yet another thrilling and exciting chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**!**

**Has anybody watched the recent Fairy Tail episodes 80 and 81? I personally thought that the manga should've gone like the anime. Laxus added in was a nice touch, and major applause for Gajeel's development throughout the series and kicking behind too!**

**I made the OVA 2 remake, so check that out if interested. It's called **_**Fairy Academy's Light**_**. It's a remake of OVA 2 with Nic and friends involved. Hope you all enjoy and Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review that story!**

**Get ready for a superheated chapter this time! Let's go!**

**To Recap:**

The group made way through Route 17 briefly, making way towards Anistar City, where Nic met Diantha, who spilled the beans that Nic beat her and he declined the title of Champion. That night, Sophie played a trick and Erza and Nic got their own room in a hotel. Reflecting on recent events, Erza promised to protect Nic and slept with him that night. The next morning, Nic finally senses a portal and takes off through Route 18 towards Terminus Cave. There, Nic and the group find the portal guarded by Zygarde. Everyone had a slim chance, but Nic pulled through thanks to Arbok and Erza backing him up and defeated Zygarde, but barely. Despite his victory, the portal closed and the group were still stuck in Kalos. The group then resumed their journey as Zygarde was cleansed of his tainted energy that was Giratina's antimatter.

* * *

**Chapter 40 – Will of Fire**

The group was currently taking a short break in a clearing in Route 19, just south of Couriway Town. They spent all day yesterday traveling through Route 18 south, and barely made it to Couriway Town. This time, Sophie didn't play her trick, which internally left Erza disappointed somewhat. The next morning, which was their current location, they left early to get on the road. They were having a quick breakfast as the sky was heavily cloudy, forecasting rain.

"Is anybody else feeling that there'll be a downpour?" Lisanna asked.

Nic swallowed as he leaned against a tree. "Most likely. This Route is more likely to have rain. Some Routes in Kalos are like that." The collected person with earbuds in his ears explained.

Wendy took a bite of a fruit and she turned towards Nic as she looked relaxed. "So you've traveled in all of the Routes in Kalos?"

Nic glanced towards Wendy. "Right. The normal Trainer would've made it to the Pokémon Center in a year, but I trained for two years before I took up the challenge." He paused as he looked up at the cloudy sky. "I'd spent a few weeks within each Route, adapting and training in the environment. I can't begin to tell you how we barely changed the landscape in a few places."

Lily turned towards Nic as he sat with Happy and Carla. "So you've spent the entire time to train and grow stronger physically?"

Nic nodded. "Right. Trainers have the responsibility to make sure that their Pokémon get quality training. The more battles they win, the more experienced they get. The same concept in their training."

Lily smirked. "Sounds interesting."

As everybody continued to converse, a lone Trainer yawned as he made way through the clearing some yards away. He had a simple light blue shirt and black pants, with gray shoes to accommodate the attire. He had a red backpack and brown hair, a common Trainer around these parts.

He took notice of the small group several yards away from him. "Huh?" He turned and saw several individuals and three cats, to which peeked him. "Hello?" He said curiously. He then made way towards the group.

"Heh? Looks like we got company." Gray said, looking over his shoulder. Gajeel, Natsu, and everyone looked with hidden shock as they saw the teen approach them. Immediately, Nic stood back up and he tried to keep his cool.

The kid approached them. "Whoa! There's a lot of people in one spot!" He stated, pointing out the obvious. He scanned them all, seeing as to how they varied. "This a first. Are you guys in a group?"

The group looked at each other and blinked in unison. This situation has gone from being catastrophic to pure awkward. They never expected to come across a Trainer this time around. They had to think of something fast. Fortunately for them, Nic had an idea up his sleeve.

"Yes. We're traveling as a group. We were just about finished and we were about to head out, right guys?" Nic said the last part slowly, as to lead the group on.

Lucy was startled, but she followed. "R-Right! Right!" She said. "We really don't have much time to lose and all."

Erza nodded. "We have somewhere to go. Sorry to have you at an inconvenience."

The kid waived them off. "N'aw don't worry. At least someone have a battle with me." He stated. Nic and Vanessa mentally scowled as they remembered the rule.

'_I forgot about that rule.' _Nic groaned.

'_This isn't good.' _Vanessa said.

Nic quickly stepped forward, and as he did, he glanced over at the gathered Exceeds and made a gesticulation to zip their mouths. Lily and the other two followed as Nic signaled and they remained still and quiet. Nic looked over at the kid and cleared his throat. "Very well, I'll follow the rule and battle you."

Sophie leaned over towards Vanessa. "Is there really such a rule?" She whispered.

Vanessa looked at Sophie and sulked. "I'm afraid there is. The rule is that when two Trainers make eye contact, they have to battle. No exceptions."

"That sucks. Looks like Nic managed to save our bacon." Gray muttered, adding into the whispering. Erza nodded in agreement and looked back at Nic.

The Trainer had a fist ready. "Alright! This will be a great warmup for the Snowbelle Gym!"

Nic folded his arms. "I see, so you have seven badges?"

The kid nodded. "Right! My eighth badge is just around the corner!" He then took notice of the Exceeds, how stood still as the kid took notice of their presence. "Whoa! Are those Pokémon?!"

Everyone there mentally gawked as this was very problematic now. They were in a very dangerous situation now that a Trainer saw the Exceeds.

"Uh…oh." Lucy muttered.

Wendy shivered. "Oh man, hope Nic can get us out of this one."

Gajeel crossed his arms and grunted. "Knowing Luminous, he's got some plan."

"He better, cause otherwise we're in trouble." Gray said.

Natsu narrowed his eyes as he looked at Gray. "Well we're in enough trouble already pal."

Gray's face twisted as he glanced over at Natsu. "I mean we'll be kept up longer. It's pretty obvious we're in enough trouble as we are already." He stated.

The two then turned towards the other and glared, ready to set off their respective auras. "You wanna lose a few teeth?!"

"You wanna lose some more of that burned brain of yours?!" Gray retorted. Before things could get out of hand, Erza bashed the two together, making them slump to the ground silently. Erza quietly glared at the fallen fire and ice duo, and then she glanced up back at the real dilemma at hand.

The Trainer went up at the stiff Exceeds as they mentally panicked. Happy failed to keep a straight face as she gaped and shuddered. Carla crossed her arms and kept her tongue shut, and Lily remained composed as the Trainer crouched and looked at the Exceeds at a closer distance.

"Mmmm…" Nic tried to think. "…yes, but they're not native from here."

The Trainer turned with curiosity. "Oh? Where are they from?"

If he wasn't so composed, he would've been gulping, but his time in Fiore made him a more serious individual who was able to handle situations without having the need to panic.

He quickly made up a scenario. "To be honest, we found them along the shores of Route 8. We don't know where they came from really." He lied. Everyone made a small sigh of relief as Nic made a cover-up.

"Oh." The Trainer said. "So they're not yours?"

Nic looked back at the worried Exceeds and quickly followed it up with another lie. "Oh, they're mine. They decided to follow me." He lied.

Lily gulped as he also tried to suppress any intention on harming anyone. Carla narrowed her eyes as she had to use every ounce of her willpower to suppress a growl at Nic's accusation. All Happy did to keep his mind calm was think of fish, in which it worked as he was beginning to drool.

Gajeel growled. "Luminous, that's my cat. When this is over…"

Erza looked at Gajeel. "Relax Gajeel. Nic's doing his best." She informed.

The Trainer got back up and turned towards Nic. "What are they?"

Nic tried to make it simple, and he pointed at the Exceeds individual. "Well, this one is Carla, that one is Happy, and the one right there is Panther Lily." He explained. "Since we don't know what they are, we just thought it'd be best to nickname them."

The Trainer nodded in understanding. "I see…" He then turned to look at the Exceeds once more, but much less suspicion. He then took a moment before glancing back at Nic. "About that battle…I wanna battle one of those three."

"EEHHH?!" The group exclaimed comically, Nic included. The Exceeds paled and turned white at the thought of fighting Pokémon. After their recent luck, Pokémon seemed a bit much for them. Although for Lily, this seemed like a challenge to him.

"You're joking, right?" Nic stammered.

The teen shook his head. "Nope. I wat to battle one of those things. Surely they're strong if you're here in Route 19." The Trainer persuaded. At this speculation, Nic saw that there wasn't much of a choice. He looked back at the Exceeds, seeing the worried looks on their faces, and he glanced back at the disturbed group behind him.

Nic turned back towards the Trainer and he maintained a frown. "Very well, I accept."

Everyone either gaped or looked with sheer astonishment that was accompanied by sweatdrops. They couldn't fathom the potential doom Nic was dragging the Exceeds into, but he really didn't have much of a choice, however the Trainer did say he wanted to battle _one _ of them, and Nic realized he had an opportunity to think of a way out of this situation.

As the Trainer walked away to gain space for the battle, Nic went over and crouched down at the Exceeds, who were petrified or fuming, much like Carla.

"Are you out of your mind?! I thought you were the only sane one in Fairy Tail?!" Carla whispered harshly. "Now I realize your all lunatics!"

Happy shuddered. "I don't want to die in a fight against those things!"

Nic raised a brow. "Everybody calm down." Nic whispered. "I understand your protests, but I have to follow the rules of being a Trainer." He paused as he looked at them individually as they slowly calmed down. "Listen, he stated that only one of you will battle, and it's clear that Lily should have a chance."

Lily didn't gulp, but felt nervous. "Nic, are you sure about this?"

Nic let a low hum escape his throat as he picked up Lily. Nic got back up to his feet and turned his head as Gajeel scooted in front of him.

"I hope you know the consequences if my cat gets hurt out there Luminous!" Gajeel exclaimed, shaking intensively. "If my Lily gets pummeled out there, you're eating knuckle sandwiches for an early lunch!"

Nic remained composed, despite Gajeel's warning. "I'm aware Gajeel, however you must know that I'm a highly experienced Trainer. I won't underestimate Lily's abilities, and neither should you." With that, Nic walked towards another section of the clearing while holding Lily.

"Nic, I hope you realize that I don't know any of these so-called 'moves' these creatures use." Lily informed him.

Nic looked down at the Exceed in his arm. "I know, just follow my lead. That's all you have to do." Nic stopped and turned around, facing the Trainer that was roughly forty feet away. He set Lily down in front of him. "Alright, we're set."

Vanessa ran out between them. "The battle between these two Trainers shall now begin! Both side will use one, uh…Pokémon, each! The battle will be over when one side's…Pokémon is unable to battle!" She announced, feeling awkward when considering Lily a Pokémon. She had to play along so a snot to blow their cover.

The Trainer pulled out a poke ball. "Alright! Here we go! Roserade!" The Trainer shouted. He threw a poke ball, revealing a Pokémon that has a white head-top and a green masquerade mask over her red eyes. She had a leafy cape and blue and red bouquets for hands.

The Grass and Poison-Type posed. "(Let's be graceful in this battle.)"

Vanessa pulled out her Pokedex as she has never encountered a Roserade before. Everyone from the group listened as the Pokedex opened up and revealed the image of Roserade.

_ "Roserade, the Bouquet Pokémon. __With the movements of a dancer, it strikes with whips that are densely lined with poison thorns."_

Gray crossed his arms. "Looks like Lily is gonna have to be careful with this one."

"Gray, clothes." Sophie warned, and Gray saw that he didn't have his shirt and freaked out.

Gajeel looked on with a death-like aura. "Luminous…Lily better not get hurt…"

Nic looked on at the adversary before him. _'Roserade are primarily long-range fighters. Of all the opponents that Lily could fight…' _Nic was kept out of his thoughts as he extended his arm out. "Very well. Go, Lily!" Nic and Lily couldn't begin to tell how awkward they felt, with Nic giving an Exceed an order, and on top of that, Lily wasn't Nic's to begin with.

Lily ran ahead a few feet and stood affirm in front of Nic, looking at his opponent from afar. He remained still as he saw the dainty yet serious look in his opponent's eyes. _'My adversary should be very adept to fighting others that are versatile. If I could, I would…'_

"Lily." Nic said, pulling Lily out of his thoughts. "I do believe we should show him when you enter battle."

His signal rose suspicion as the opposing Trainer had a question mark on his head. "Heh?"

"Lily, your 'Ability'? Right?" Nic followed. It was taking some time, but soon enough, Lily finally caught and his eyes widened slightly. Nic glanced back up at the Trainer. "I should warn you that Lily's Ability enables him to transform when he's in battle."

The Trainer's eyes blinked. "L-Like Aegislash almost?" He stammered.

Nic grinned. "Right." Nic extended and arm out forwards. "Alright Lily, let's go!" With that, Lily played along and tensed up again, slight hesitation overcoming him.

'_It seems rather bold to go into Battle Mode, but I guess these Pokémon have this special ability that Nic said.' _The hesitation subsided, and Lily let a loose gulped down his throat as he glowed. Everyone there watched as Lily grew in size and was revealed to be in his Battle Mode.

The Trainer blinked repeatedly and gawked. "I…w-what?! It's Ability lets it change into _that_?!" He exclaimed. He had a little trouble comprehending what Lily transformed into, and his Roserade sweatdropped.

Nic calmly put his hands back into his pockets as he nodded. "Yes, that's when he battles. You want to proceed?"

Though hesitant at the situation, the Trainer sought this to be a great opportunity to get stronger. "Heck yes! Now let's go!"

Roserade spread her feet apart and readied for battle. "(Care to dance?)"

"COME ON LILY! YOU CAN BEAT THAT OVERGROWN DAISY!" Gajeel shouted, clearly taking 'his cat's' side.

"Well then…" Vanessa then brought her hand down in a chop and scooted away. "In that case, let the battle begin!"

The Trainer immediately took action. "Let's rock their boat!" He extended an arm out. "Roserade, **Sleep Powder!**" His command followed through and Roserade put her bouquets in front of her.

"(Let's take a nice slow dance to dreamland.)" She suggested softly with a smirk, and then released light green spores that clouded towards Lily.

Lily balled his fists as he awaited Nic's command, which came rather fast. "Lily quick, leap back and dodge!" Nic's command was forceful, as was his previous battles with Zetta and Zygarde when he used Arbok. Lily followed the command and grunted as he used his lean legs and jumped back several feet, evading the cloud of light green spores that son dispersed from where Lily originally stood.

'_Given by the name, I would've been put into slumber if I were to have inhaled that.' _Lily thought, analyzing the move used and got his feet closer under him. He stood affirm as Nic then extended his arm out.

"Lily, get in close!" Nic commanded. Lily then started running ahead towards Roserade, shortening the distance between the two.

The Trainer moved his arm in an arc. "Oh no you don't! Roserade, **Venoshock!**" Roserade did as told and aimed carefully at Lily and she aimed her right bouquet and gushed out a green blob that went shooting through the air towards him. Lily expertly shifted left and evaded the incoming attack and pushed onwards towards Roserade.

"YEAH! THAT'S MY LILY FOR YA!" Gajeel shouted.

Lucy looked on, startled and feeling awkward with Gajeel cheering for his Exceed. "Eh, don't you think you're a little excited?"

Lily continued his dash and was now two feet in front of his opponent. "Use Slam!" Nic commanded. Lily used his quick military interpretation skills to quickly understand how Slam worked. By Slam, he thought Nic meant slam Roserade into the earth, in which he tried to do. Lily grabbed Roserade, raised her high, and with all his might, he threw her into the earth below, making dust fly and a crash sound erupted.

Nic grinned as Lily performed Slam perfectly. "Nice job Lily!"

Lily looked back and grinned. _'Looks like I performed it right after all'_

Everyone looked on with glee and some of the girls clasped their hands together as Lily dealt some damage to the opponent. They all didn't realize Lily was _that _forceful in his attacks, well, except Gajeel. He looked with a triumphant smirk as Lily had dealt the first blow. "That's my Lily! Slam it some more!"

Erza looked over at Gajeel with a cold stare. "Be quiet!" And that made Gajeel acquiescently comply.

The Trainer grunted as his Roserade got back to her feet. Despite the appearance of Panther Lily, he shouldn't have underestimated him. "That was good." He admitted. "Now try this!" He moved his arm in an arc. "**Venoshock! **Keep it from being still!"

Roserade smirked and she aimed her bouquets at Lily. "(Let's see how quick you are on your feet.)" She then fired consecutively at Lily's feet, forcing him to jerk and jump away in various direction so as not to take damage.

As Lily tried to shift in one direction, Venoshock continued to gush away and he had to go the opposite direction, and he would have no room to make a counterattack. He grunted. _'This long-range style is keeping me away. I won't last too long now in this form. I gotta get in close somehow.'_

Nic came to the rescue. "Lily! Tumble forwards and use Mega Punch!" Nic shouted. Lily ceased his movements and he ducked, evading the green glob that went over his head. He lunged forward and tumbled forwards towards Roserade. Before Roserade could douse Lily, the black Exceed got to his feet as he rolled forward and reeled a fist back and rushed it ahead of him. Lily's fist collided with Roserade's face, and there was a ripple that surged in the air as Lily thrust his fist once more, the force finally shooting Roserade back several yards, eventually coming to a skidding thud and flipped, landing on her abdomen with a loud thud.

The Trainer looked with shock. "Roserade!" He shouted. He then grunted. _'I didn't expect it to be so agile.'_

Roserade managed to get to her feet as she winced. She huffed as those two attacks were quite strong. "(You really are…light on…your feet.)" She said in between her steady breathing.

Lily grinned as he was actually finding battling amusing, despite having to take orders constantly. He was able to overlook this as long as he wins. Nic kept his calm and serious demeanor plastered on his face as he saw Roserade stand back up.

He extended his arm out. "Use Slam!" Nic shouted. Lily crouched and got into runner's position and he began a sprint towards Roserade as the latter's eyes shot open.

The Trainer smirked. "Oh no you don't! **Giga Drain!**" Roserade's bouquets glowed light green and streams of thorn vine-like energy emerged from underneath the bouquets and the various wine energy converged in front of Lily. Lily leaped right, dodging one stream that crashed into the earth, then leaped left and shifted even more left to avoid even more incoming threads.

"In front of you!" Nic warned. Lily looked ahead and fell short on luck when a thread darted and coiled around his abdomen, wrapping around him as he was caught off guard. Roserade smirked as she snared Lily and the Exceed struggled as the energy wrapped his abdomen and his arm were then wrapped individually by the other light green vine threads.

"Oh no!" Lisanna exclaimed.

"Is he okay?" Wendy asked.

Gajeel fumed as Lily had taken a hit and his death-like aura came back. "WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA?! YOU LET LILY TAKE A HIT LUMINOUS!" He shouted and gritted his teeth.

Vanessa looked on at the battle with slight worry on her face. "Giga Drain is a move that drains the target's energy and transfers it back to the user. Roserade is healing the damage she lost." She explained.

"Is that even fair?!" Natsu exclaimed, to which Vanessa nodded.

Nic grunted as Lily was temporarily immobile due to Giga Drain. He had to find a way out and fast. Lily, on the other hand, felt his energy being sapped and he was beginning to feel tired already. He didn't take into account that certain moves could drain his energy and restore the user. Lily mentally cursed as he let his guard down.

"**Petal Dance!**" The Trainer shouted. Roserade let go and receded her Giga Drain tendrils from Lily, making him feel the ground under him again and he grunted once more. Roserade jumped and let loose a battlecry as she spun like crazy and shining pink petals stormed and raged about in a wide area that struck Lily once again. The Exceed had to keep back a scream as he had to refrain from talking. All he could do was cover up as he was swallowed by the Petal Dance.

"Hurry! Get out of there!" Lucy shouted.

Gray crossed his arms. "That attack has Lily trapped again. He needs to hurry up before time runs out." He explained.

Gajeel's eyes twitched to no end. "Luminous…I will make you eat iron…"

"Are you doubting Nic Pularis?" Erza glared heavily behind Gajeel, making him freeze as to not invoke her wrath. Gajeel turned back towards Erza. "Nic can get Lily out of this. We just need to have faith in him."

Gajeel kept his mouth shut as he clenched his fists and watched as Lily was being shoved back inch-by-inch backwards and saw Nic narrowing his eyes.

'_Curses. Lily's at a disadvantage now.' _Nic thought, seeing Lily get pushed back by Petal Dance as Roserade kept up the attack. Nic remembered that Petal Dance had a limit, and he needed to wait just until the right moment. Once Petal Dance stops, he had to strike.

Lily endured it with like it was nothing, but he had to admit the attack was persistent and quite fierce. _'I remember Nic's counterpart's Charizard was far stronger in offense and defense. This should be no problem.' _Lily encouraged himself, which made him cease skidding back as he grunted and then slowly leap ahead as he had his arms covering him.

The Trainer was surprised that Lily was charging through the Petal Dance. "What?! But Petal Dance is a really strong Grass-Type move!" He shouted. Lily continued to dart with as much force as he could muster. He was beginning to feel as though he was overpowering the Petal Dance, and he was lucky as Roserade started slowing down, meaning Petal Dance was coming to an end.

Nic extended his arm out. "Lily! Charge right through and use Double Hit!" Lily narrowed his eyes as he processed the move. As in Double Hit, he meant hit it twice, so he would follow those guidelines.

Lily saw that Roserade's Petal Dance stopped at last and he uncovered himself as he saw Roserade in a dizzy and dazed state.

"Roserade! Look out!" The Trainer shouted, but it went unanswered as Roserade stumbled and Lily unleashed an elbow into Roserade's face, making Roserdae gag and Lily followed it up with a sideways chop, in which Roserade skid back several feet and bent a knee in pain.

The Trainer looked surprised. "Just how strong is that thing?" He muttered. He looked and saw that Roserade was slowly getting back up, but was very wobbly from her confusion.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "I have to make this quick." He said. "Now! Finish with Close Combat!" He shouted.

'_I guess I cut loose on all the punches here. Here I go!' _Lily charged and stopped in front of Roserade and then unleashed an endless sorts of punches and chops and a few knee strikes as he went lose on all of his fighting tactics, with Roserade being defenseless.

"Roserade!" The Trainer shouted and Lily gave it one big uppercut as he finished up his Close Combat. Lily's position remained still as he looked on with a glare as Roserade sailed in the air everyone watched in amazement as Lily expertly, not to mention boldly, handled that Petal Dance and finishing it off with 'Double Hit' and 'Close Combat'. Gajeel just smirked in glee as Lily took the situation like the bold and aggressive fighter he was.

Roserade landed with a thud on her back, making dust fly as a crash sound was heard. The Trainer looked with disbelief as one of his strongest Pokémon was dealt with damage in such a rapid succession. When the dust cleared, Lily eased himself when Roserade was spotted fainted on the ground.

Vanessa finally called it. "Roserade is unable to battle, Lily is the winner! The match goes to Nic!" She announced. After she called it, Lily turned into a puff of smoke and he was found reverted back to his little size and landed on his feet. Aside from one or two scratches on his body, he was fine.

The group ran up to Nic and Lily, congratulating him and giving him pats on the back. They were relieved that Nic managed to pull off a win.

"That was awesome!" "That's my cat alright!" "You improvised so well!" Various praises were given and Nic just remained collected as he was bombarded with comments that made him half-grin.

The Exceeds gathered, and conversed really quietly so the Trainer wouldn't hear them, though he was occupied with coping that a black cat defeated his Roserade. Happy was the first to act as he looked excited. "That was awesome Lily!"

Carla had hands to her hips. "I must say, you improvised really well."

"Thanks…although…" Lily sweatdropped. "I felt degrading."

Carla looked away, with absolute zero worry. "You were fine. Honestly, just be glad Nic was able to cover up this dilemma."

"Aye sir!" Happy said.

The Exceeds' conversation was kept low as the Trainer's Roserade was returned and the dilemma was solved. There really wasn't much that happened after that. The Trainer commented how strong Lily was, which made Gajeel put on a triumphant smirk, and some comments were shared and the Trainer was off, and Nic and his group went off in their own direction as well.

* * *

**Later…**

Gray had hands in his pockets and looked at Nic. "Anything?"

Nic's Plates didn't react to anything, as they weren't anywhere close to a portal. Nic looked down at the ground. "No. Nothing so far."

Gajeel grumbled. "Better find something soon. After seeing that battle, I'm itching to get some action."

Natsu pumped a fist as he walked. "Yeah! I'm fired up for a real battle!"

Nic turned back towards Natsu. "You are not going to get into a clumsy fight!" He shouted. "Remember the other day?"

"Ehhh…" Natsu remembered full well the avalanche he started and the painful things when they got out of the snowy valley.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Do that again, and Erza and I will make it so you won't move for a week." He warned distastefully, not fond as to how Natsu's behavior got the Dragon Slayer into messes that somebody else had to fix.

Lisanna sighed. "Oh dear, somebody never lear…" She stopped and her senses picked up something. "Hmm?" Lisanna looked over to her right to where she saw some large pink flowers, but beyond that were trees.

"Is there something wrong?" Erza asked. She and everyone else stopped and turned towards her, where she was still looking curiously towards her right.

"I'm not sure, but…" Her eyes could tell that she was uneasy. "I think there's something close by." She trailed off as everyone could see some slight rustling among the flowers.

For some odd reason, Nic felt an incinerating feeling deep inside of him. He looked distracted as he could feel this malevolent feeling. It was very faint, but if he could sense it, it must mean it's in this Route. _'This feeling, it's like from before…very weak but…'_

A wild groan was heard from within the tall flowers and the group tensed up and Erza requipped a sword as a precaution. Everyone saw the flowers spread apart as something big began to crawl towards them. Nic got into a fighting stance.

The creature slowly came out of the flowers, but it was unlike anything anyone could have ever guessed. The site horrified them.

There a giant scorpion with claws and pincers. The arms were connected to the head, and segments were either purple of dark purple. Aside from the coloration, it was something more disturbing than its actual presence. The entire body was charred, and parts of the armor were burned or were raw. It looked as though it had jumped into a volcano or was cooked alive.

Nic's eyes widened as a gasp escaped his mouth. The girls had hands over their mouths at the horrific site as they never saw anything so shocking…that wasn't Nic's bloody torture a few days back of course.

"Oh my god! What happened?!" Vanessa shrieked. She was trembling as she never saw a Pokémon so damaged that it could still be alive. Seeing the raw arts on the giant scorpion made her pale.

Lisanna looked frightened. "Oh dear…"

The wild creature saw the group and was heaving as he could barely go on. "(You…help me…please…)" He begged before falling forwards and twitching.

Nic and a few others rushed ahead while Natsu crossed his arms and pondered. "You know, I'm gonna go out on a limb here, but I don't think it's supposed to look like that." He said flat.

"Ya think?! You really are a dunce!" Gajeel exclaimed.

Happy looked at the twitching scorpion from a close distance as he was uneasy. "Is it gonna be alright?"

Nic looked and examined the body from tail to head. It looked terrible. "This is bad." He said. "This is beyond comprehension. There's no Fire-Type move that could incinerate a Pokémon like this. Whatever it was, it wasn't normal fire." He explained.

"What is it?" Lucy asked.

"_I don't know._" Sophie shook her head, seeing the scorpion twitching nonstop and barely breathing.

Vanessa gulped as she analyzed the giant scorpion. She looked on as the screen showed the scorpion's picture when it wasn't incinerated or charred.

_"Drapion the Ogre Scorpion Pokémon. It takes great pride in its strength. Even though it can tear foes apart, it finishes them off with powerful poison."_

Vanessa put her device away and she crouched down towards the aching Drapion, hanging on to dear life. "(My body. It's like…I'm melting…)" The charred Drapion wheezed.

Nic looked down at Drapion's face. "What happened?!" He exclaimed with concern.

Drapion's weak eyes looked at Nic, noticing the very cloudy sky above as well. "(Humans…save yourselves…the flying monster…will burn you from the inside…)" He warned.

Lisanna looked concerned, almost misty in the eyes as an animal was starting to die. "Is there any way we can save him?"

Nic clenched his fists and grunted as he looked frustrated. "…I don't know." He looked out towards the trees and the area to his right. "For all we know, we might end up like him given his warning."

"We can't leave him to die!" Lisanna shouted, making Drapion glance up towards Lisanna. "He's a living being! We can't just move on while he slowly burns!"

"Lisanna, calm down." Erza insisted. "We know how you feel. We won't leave him until we find a solution."

"(…young girl…)" Drapion slowly moved his raw pincer close to Lisanna, where she gasped as Drapion was reaching out to her. "(You really do care…I can see it in your eyes…thank you…)"

Lisanna was beginning to breakdown as she crumbled whenever an animal would die in front of her, and Wendy looked on, about to breakdown from the site too. "I have to find a way…I have to…!" Lisanna was then struck with an epiphany and she jerked up, getting everyone's attention.

"What?" Vanessa asked.

Lisanna turned towards the group with her misty eyes mixed with determination. "Guys, I could use my Take Over! That should save him!"

"Your Take Over? Will that really save him?" Lucy asked.

Natsu came to a realization. "Oh yeah! Lisanna's Take Over is Animal Soul! She can absorb that thing and save it!"

Nic and everyone stepped back as Lisanna got to her knees in front of Drapion. "Listen to me. I can save you. I can use my powers and keep you from dying!" She persuaded. "You can keep living, but your body is in my control. Are you okay with it?"

Drapion could barely speak, and a whole minute passed before he gave an answer with a small grin. "(Yes…bless you child.)" He agreed.

Lisanna gulped and grinned. "Okay then!" She put her hands in front and touched Drapion's charred head, which stung him greatly. "Just hang on! **Take Over!**"

Drapion looked on without any second thought. He saw that this child wanted to save him, though if a couple minutes passed, he would be dead. He could live on thanks to the child and he grinned as his body glowed. "(…thank you…)"

Everyone saw that within a matter of minutes, Drapion's body was consumed in sheer light and they all watched as his body disappear and Lisanna's hands glowed and returned to normal, and the white-haired Mage sighed in upmost relief.

"I did it. He's safe." She said, to which the group smiled.

"Is he gonna be okay?" Wendy asked, concerned.

Lisanna nodded. "Don't worry, he's fine. He just can't have his body is all. Though I do hope his powers aren't too frightening." She smiled nervously.

Nic looked with a half-grin. "Drapion are great with close range combat. You got a tough Take Over." He continued to half-grin as he looked over the area, but his expression faded into one of worry as the incinerating feeling lingered about and actually expanded a little. _'This foul feeling. I can't shake it. It's like Drapion said. We gotta move.'_

'_(__**…**__)' _Nic's eyes narrowed as he had a very uneasy feeling that something massive was gonna come their way, so he had to get the group moving as quick as possible.

Nic then turned towards the group. "Guys, we gotta move. I don't think it's wise to stay in this place for too long. I got a bad feeling."

Everyone turned towards him as he started for west. Natsu intervened. "Hold up. You're saying that that thing the scorpion warned us about is still out there?" Natsu asked.

Nic stopped and a small breeze flew by. "I'm not certain, but whatever the case may be, we have to stay sharp." On that note, the group pressed on as they were uneasy as they saw the clouds overhead darken and the areas that were beyond their sight was uneasy. As they traveled, Nic's burning feeling escalated. The energy slowly increased the more they got closer to the valley, where the massive swamp was below them.

Everyone looked down over the edge, where they saw the swamp water below. Before them was a big bridge that stretched for the longest time.

"Should we cross?" Happy asked.

Lily started walking. "It seems to be our only option at this time." Lily and everyone made haste as the group went across.

Nic continued to feel the heat burn. _'(__**…**__)' _This feeling as though he was being watched escalated even more, and he was actually starting to get hot. _'(__**…The fire shall burn your soul.**__)'_

Nic stopped in place and looked distraught. He tensed up as this level of foul energy continued to boil. Everyone was beginning to catch on as they felt the temperature increase a little, and this energy that Nic sensed is finally starting to come about.

Lucy was feeling uneasy. "Uh, guys? Anyone feeling hot?"

Erza looked around, the energy looming about as she still had her sword out. "I know, I feel rather hot as well."

"Yeah…hot for Nic." Sophie muttered and she and Vanessa turned towards the other and suppressed giggles.

Erza whipped her head back. "Did you say something about me?" She threatened.

"Nothing!" The two females squealed in unison.

Natsu's nose twitched and a foul energy stuffed his nose. Immediately, he balled his fists. "Guys, you feel that?"

Gajeel gritted his teeth. "Yeah, it's just as strong as before, and it's growing, meaning it's coming to us."

Gray looked up at sky. "I'm not liking where this is heading. Whatever's coming, this feeling given off by it is pretty hot."

Wendy looked about with concern. "Guys, the energy is getting stronger by the second!"

"Nic?" Vanessa looked to see her brother looking up into the sky as the temperature increased, and their skins crawled from the negative energy given off. She was having a bad feeling. Just as bad as the others, but Nic seemed to have the worst of it.

Nic remained still as he had to restrain from twitching. His insides felt hotter than ever. The foul energy given off was ringing like a bell. _'(__**The skies shall rain down and burn you from where you stand.**__)' _The same ominous voice ranged in Nic's head. _'(__**Glorious red shall be wallowed in flames of Hell.**__)'_

Nic narrowed his eyes as everyone could feel the energy at its peak, and then they saw something high within the cloudy sky. Everyone's heads turned upwards as they saw something purple clouded up in the atmosphere above.

"It's here." Natsu said. Everyone remained still as they felt the foul energy from the bridge they were on. From above, they then heard a loud cry that echoed about within the air, and the clouds from around burst out of the way, leaving a hole in the clouds and everyone saw the foul flaming creature.

Vanessa's eyes were shaken. "No way…is that even right?" She muttered as she saw the massive avian flapping in the air.

The large bird had blue feathers, and the fire on the wings and head was purple. The avian let loose another cry as it took sight of Nic and the others. From her position, she saw Nic down below, and her blood red pupils were fixated on him.

In a few moments, the large avian swooped down from the skies, the flapping causing heated currents to fly about, the heat waves actually making the ropes on the bridge sizzle, and nearby grass burn and incinerate like that. Everyone covered up as they felt their skin (and armor) become hot and they all watched as the tainted avian descend until it was fifty feet high above them.

The bird gave off purple embers that spread about and eventually made the ropes of the wooden bridge catch ablaze. Seeing as how the bridge was bound to catch fire everywhere else, Nic looked forward. "Everyone to the other side! Hurry!" He ordered.

"Right!" Everyone made haste with as much speed as possible as the flying avian watched Nic and the group run.

She narrowed her eyes. "(**No turning back for you humans!**)" The wings on her glowed light blue and then an Air Slash was unleashed. Massive light blue and heavily jagged sawblades showered down behind the group, bombarding and slicing right through the bridge behind them. The force making Wendy and Vanessa trip, but they got back to their feet quick and made way across, where the avian watched and saw Nic and the group make it across the bridge at last, just as the bridge finally burned and shattered when the flames snapped every bridge rope and the Air Slash destroyed the midsection, the entire bridge fell down below, into the messy swamp below.

Nic watched with awe as the beast only had to flap and use a mere Air Slash and she wasn't even trying. "The entire bridge…"

"…it's gone. Just like that." Lisanna finished.

Sophie looked on with sheer surprise. "If that thing didn't even try that time, then we're in for a hard fight guys." She warned.

The avian flapped in front of the group over the cliff, watching them from above and her purple flames sparkling and burning the air around her. "(**I am Moltres, the Flame Pokémon.**)" She said. "(**My flames shall burn through your hearts and souls!**)" She then screeched, piercing everyone's ears and made them grunt.

Nic uncovered as soon as the noise dialed down and he looked up at Moltres, whose dark flames were making the temperature boil. "So you're the one who's emanating this foul fire."

Moltres was unmoved. "(**Those who I see I scorch with my flames. All life that I see must be burnt and wither into nothing.**)"

"Hold on…" Nic couldn't help but feel the energy resemblance back to Zygarde, but the primary epiphany he realized was that Drapion barely managed to survive Moltres when they met. Which meant that those who were close in proximity to Drapion were…

Nic clenched his two fists. "Damn you. You're gonna pay!" Nic then shifted into his Splash Plate Form and everyone looked set to battle for the most part.

Ntsu had set a fist on fire. "Oh yeah! I'm all fired up now!" He declared.

Erza pointed a sword at Moltres. "You scoundrel! We won't stand for you hurting innocent lives!"

Moltres just flapped in the air. "(**Oh? Just try and stop me.**)" Moltres flapped a little more and escalate several feet higher than before.

Gray readied an attack. "Let's put this giant rubber chicken on ice! **Ice-Make: Lance!**" Gray unleashed his lances made of ice, which shot through the air towards Moltres. Gray was certain that his attack would hit as long as Moltres didn't move, which she did, but remained still, as if anticipating the attack.

Moltres kept flapping in the air as the temperature given off from the tainted flames surged through the air and the Ice-Make: Lance evaporated into thin air before it could reach the giant avian.

"You're kidding! That didn't even touch it!" Gray shouted in shock.

Sophie had a finger pointed to her head. "Then let's see how this one fares with its own element! **Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**" From a chain of memories, Sophie let loose multiple sawblades made of fire that went towards Moltres. The attack sliced through the air and made contact with Moltres, but little to nothing happened. The saucers were like puff shots to Moltres as she didn't even have a scratch.

Sophie grunted and Natsu stepped forwards. "Alright then, looks like it's my turn!" He then inhaled. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Natsu unleashed a torrent of fire that shot like a rocket towards Moltres. Moltres looked to see the vast fire storming and she made her wings flap harshly, slowing down the fire stream and making it go off in various directions around her.

"No way." "Even Salamander's flames couldn't do anything?!" "This guy ain't messing around!" The group was uneasy as Moltres hadn't even attacked them yet. They were wasting their Magic and Nic inhaled.

"I'll handle this!" He shouted. He then felt a massive amount of water surge from within him. "**Brine!**" Nic unleashed saltwater that went towards Moltres, whose eyes narrowed and she remained composed as the Brine was coming close. The Brine began evaporating, but Nic pulled through and kept it at a steady pressure. Ultimately, the weakened Brine landed a hit, making steam surge as a result of hitting Moltres's inferno-like body temperature.

Everyone grunted as the steam was beginning to fade and left Moltres without a scratch, but the attack did leave her agitated as she detested water. Moltres spread her wings and she then gave one big flap and winds of flames were unleashed, via her devastating Heat Wave.

Nic saw that the flames in the Heat Wave were much different, as they weren't orange like they should normally be, no, the flames exerted were purple, and the heat and range together was massive. Utilizing whatever was possible, Nic tried to counter with his Hydro Pump, a move that was sure to hold off the hot attack heading their way. As a precaution, everyone got back while Nic made a mirror of water and fired a raging torrent at the Heat Wave. He grunted as their power was surprisingly even, and steam erupted like crazy, blocking everyone's vision as a huge cloud was between them and Moltres.

As Nic's Hydro Pump stopped, the group all gasped as the Heat Wave proceeded through the attack, but looked severely weakened. Nic leaped back as he was the only one who was in range and he leaped back with as much force as he could, barely evading the attack as it engulfed the ground in front of him in a super-heated firestorm that raged about, startling the group.

"You're kidding. Even though the attack was weakened…" Gray started.

"…it still destroyed almost everything in front of us." Vanessa finished.

Natsu stepped forward calmly, getting by Nic's side. Nic's coat flapped about as the winds from the Heat Wave began to simmer down, and Nic didn't even have to look to notice Natsu beside him. "You think you can handle that fire?"

Natsu smirked. "No sweat. I'm a Fire Dragon Slayer, remember?" Natsu asked. "I can eat any kind of fire."

Nic was well aware that Natsu could do such a thing, but this fire was different. It wasn't the fire of the Underworld, but of the most tainted and purest hatred that could possibly burn anything.

Shaking any doubts, Nic grunted and opened his mouth. "**Water Pulse!**" Nic made a blue sphere and was shot straight through the purple flames that died down, clearing a path for Natsu. The Water Pulse didn't even get close to Moltres as it evaporated into thin air.

Natsu ignited his feet to get closer to Moltres. "**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" Natsu launched himself from the ground towards Moltres. Moltres did nothing as Natsu charged right for her and watched as he got closer. "Haha! That fire is going into my belly!"

"(**Try and consume my flames.**)" Moltres insisted. Natsu finally made contact, feeling the rotting and corrosive heat given from the sheer touch. Natsu flipped himself to get on Moltres's back and he looked at the head flame.

Instantly, he got a devilish grin, which Lucy saw. "Oh great, there he goes again with his recklessness."

"Salamander's gonna need some backup for this one!" Gajeel declared. He started dashing ahead and stood at the cliff edge and clenched his fists tighter. "Alright Salamander, keep nit steady!"

Natsu hardly paid attention as he thought the flames were going to be in his stomach. He opened wide and he sank his mouth into the flames on Moltres's head.

It was a bad idea.

Immediately, Nastu's insides were rotting and his stomach rejected the tainted and horrific fire. The fire not only tasted vile and worse than anything in his life, but the flames were filled with hatred and vile darkness, so much that Natsu screamed as he was forced to reel back and let go of Moltres, the Dragon Slayer falling downwards towards the swamp below.

"Oh no! Natsu!" Wendy shouted.

"Salamander!" Gajeel shouted downwards as Natsu plummeted. He angrily turned upwards. "Damn you!" Gajeel fired a column of iron at Moltres, but the air around Moltres intensified some more, making the column of iron become hot and Gajeel grunted and struggled until the column finally started to melt when it was ten feet away from Moltres.

"(**Begone human!**)" Motres fired another Air Slash attack at Gajeel and the Dragon Slayer went wide-eyed and morphed the iron column back into a hand, yet it felt like it was burned. Gajeel then tried to jump out of the way, but proved futile as the ground beneath him shattered and he was dealt indirect damage from Air Slash, his iron skin having multiple scratches and minor gashes, which surprised everyone, and Gajeel plummeted along with Natsu. Both Dragon Slayers falling down into the deep swamp below.

"Natsu! Gajeel!" Sophie shouted.

Vanessa rushed ahead and had a poke ball out of her big, brown purse. "Don't worry guys! I'm on it!" Vanessa then threw it. "Venusaur! **Grass Knot!**"

Venusaur appeared out of his poke ball and beside the cliff. He quickly took action as his eyes glowed light green. "(Don't worry, I'm on it!)" He shouted. Venusaur then stomped on the ground, where as far below, Natsu and Gajeel were still falling, and from the cliff side, light green glowing vines grew and twirled around the other and snared Natsu and Gajeel's feet, saving them from falling down further.

Sophie clasped her hands together. "_Oy_! Nice work!" She cheered.

Vanessa nodded and pointed below. "Now Venusaur, make haste! Nic and the others will stall!" Venusaur then nodded and he made many more Grass Knot attacks that began to stack along the cliff and go upwards. Soon enough, twirled vines were protruding like a ladder and the vine that had Gajeel and Natsu snared whipped them up by Venusaur's manipulation, where they screamed and their feet were repeatedly snared and their heads were spinning like crazy.

Vanessa sweatdropped. "They're gonna hate me for this. I just know it." She sighed.

Nic gulped and he looked back at Moltres. He glanced below, past Natsu and Gajeel being repeatedly flung and he narrowed his eyes as he looked and saw that from his perspective, the swamp water in the valley was all bubbly, but very lightly.

Nic looked up. _'This is bad. This dark fire is rapidly accelerating the temperature. If this keeps up, the entire Route will catch ablaze.' _He thought. He gritted his teeth and then inhaled and then exhaled. "**Scald!**" The stream of boiling water went shooting at Moltres. Surprisingly, the boiling water didn't evaporate since it was already steaming, which caught Moltres off guard and she shield herself with her wings. The attack made contact, making steam erupt and everyone looked to see that Moltres emerged from the cloud, but narrowed her eyes, showing that it had an effect.

"How did that not evaporate?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"_Ani lo yodea_! I hadn't memorized this before!" Sophie shouted.

Erza narrowed her eyes, ignoring the fact that Natsu and Gajeel made it back to the top with swirling eyes. "It seems that since Scald is already at such a high temperature, it isn't effected as fast as any other Water-Type attacks."

Natsu rubbed his head and Gajeel groaned as their conscience was beginning to straighten out. They rubbed their individual heads as Vanessa and Venusaur took a few steps back.

"Aw man, my head's never felt so lopsided." Natsu said. "Eh?" Natsu and Gajeel both turned towards Vanessa and looked in frustration. "Hey what gives?! That almost mad me sick!" Natsu shouted in her face.

"You've got some nerve little girl!" Gajeel shouted.

Vanessa nervously smiled. "I-I didn't see another alternative!" Vanessa then scooted back and she blinked in realization. "Wait…Natsu, why didn't you eat the fire?" She asked, changing the subject.

Natsu and Gajeel calmed down and Natsu looked own and clenched his stomach. He looked slightly distraught. "That fire…I couldn't eat it." He said. "That evil. It could've burned my insides."

Gajeel crossed his arms. "Luminous was right. That's fire from the same energy from those that came before this one."

Vanessa knew it was unsafe to have Venusaur around, so she looked at him and returned him. She glanced back up at the battle as Nic was trying. "Nic…I hope you'll be okay."

Erza looked to see Moltres bringing her wings back, which startled her greatly. "Everyone get back now!" She shouted. Everyone made haste to run as their chances were slim thanks to Natsu, who was actually hurt from the flames of Moltres, and was unable to consume them. The only one who wasn't running was Nic, who had to protect the group.

"Take this! **Scald!**" Nic unleashed a second Scald as Moltres unleashed Heat Wave, both attacks collided in the air, but the massive wind of dark fire was easily overpowering the Scald, making it weaken and evaporate at last. Nic tried to keep going, but the Heat Wave eventually got him, and he grunted as he was swallowed up in a raging firestorm that swallowed and melted the landscape around him.

"Nic!" Erza shouted, with Vanessa and every other girl gasping.

As the fire started to decrease, they saw a molten landscape with Nic in the center. The rock, grass, and flowers were all burning, and Nic huffed and puffed as he sizzled off a lot of heat. Much to everyone's surprise, he shifted into the Flame Plate in a flash before getting hit, so as to avoid being incinerated. Nic winced as his body felt as though it had been through a furnace. Nic uncovered himself and continued to huff. "That was superhot." He said as he composed himself. "I was right all along, these aren't the flames of the Underworld. Those are the flames of pure hate."

Erza and Vanessa both ran up to Nic's side in worries for him. "Nic!" Vanessa shouted.

Nic turned back towards them. "I'm fine! That attack was weakened a little, but I was still resistant to Fire!" He called out and turned back as Erza and Vanessa caught up to him. _'Even so, that Heat Wave was far stronger than normal. That tainted Moltres burns anything that gets close, and Natsu and I are left with a thin thread. I could cause heavy damage if I shifted into the Stone Plate, but that thing could possibly didge and melt the rocks, or even weaken or slice them up with Air Slash.'_

Natsu clenched his fists. "Damnit. How do we beat this thing if we'll just get incinerated?" Everyone around was getting worried that they might they burned alive, and Nic was left with little options. He could try Rain Dance by turning back into the Splash Plate, but the rain wouldn't help much. He looked down at his feet, still left to ponder.

He was considering shifting into his Stone Plate, but one of his poke balls emanated a burning energy, and Nic immediately picked up on who it came from. _'Hold on…' _As he looked at Moltres at that instant, something sparked in his head. _'If Natsu can't use his fire, then…'_

Nic tensed up and the two girls behind him saw him in a state of epiphany. He then had a shadow over his eyes. "It seems like our mot liable option."

"Huh?" Vanessa was in question and Erza and everyone else was confused as well.

Nic took a deep breath and reached for the poke ball, and he looked back up at Moltres. "Moltres, I understand the torment you must be feeling. However, I won't overlook this. Your flames of pure evil won't outmatched what I have in mind. You're not the only one classified as the Flame Pokémon." He then turned back towards his friends. "This fight isn't up to us anymore."

"What are you saying? That you have an ace?" Gray asked.

Nic turned towards the front again and nodded. "Without a doubt, we must fight fire with fire!" Nic then swiped his arm in an arc. "Come out! Charizard!"

Nic threw his poke ball, and out came his strong-hearted Charizard as he roared up into the skies, making small ripples in the air as he was called out in the air.

Charizard flapped his wings as Moltres's eyes widened slightly, seeing another Fire and Flying-Type in the skies. The Fire and Flying-Type adversaries looked at each other as they saw seriousness swell their gazes.

"(**I am the true Flame Pokémon. I shall see to that you burn by my fire!**)" Moltres shouted, unleashing her Heat Wave that stormed towards Charizard. Charizard flapped his wings and remained quiet and still as the Heat Wave ravaged the air between them and closing in. Charizard waited for Nic to give the signal, and he narrowed his eyes at last.

"Charizard! **Heat Wave!**" Nic shouted. Charizard then flapped forwards, releasing a fiery wind of his own, his being normal instead of Moltres's purple fire, and the Heat Wave Charizard gave off was compressed and blocked the Heat Wave of Moltres, redirecting the assault around Charizard as his Heat Wave was used as a shield. Moltres looked with mild surprise as the Heat Wave melted and burned nearby rock, and when both attacks end, sparkles of fire were all about Charizard and Moltres, orange and purple filing the air as Charizard was unfazed.

"(I'm not the kind of guy to go that recommended routine. You see…)" Charizard spread his wings, ridding the air around him of the small embers. "(I always go beyond that extra mile!)"

Moltres scowled. "(**Ha! You may think we're on equal grounds, but I am the Legendary Bird of Fire! I cannot be brought down by fire itself. Get close, and your body shall be consumed in burns.**)"

Nic grinned. "If there's one thing I know full-well, it's to never doubt Charizard's skills. He'll burn that darkness away, no matter what!" He declared. He then extended an arm out. "**Dragon Claw!**"

Charizard then steadied his wings and both of his arms were coated in light blue claw-shaped energy and he readied to strike. Moltres, however, was certain she could outdo the flying lizard. "(**You have a zero percent chance at victory. Let my fire burn you whole and-!**)" She was cut off when she was slashed across the face in a painful manner and she went wide-eyed and screeched as she sailed back in the air several yards. _'(__**So fast!**__)' _ She straightened out and flapped again, looking to see Charizard with a serious gaze.

"(There's something you don't know about me.)" He said in a menacing tone, pointing the tip of one of his Dragon Claws at Moltres. "(I am no pushover!)" Charizard then flapped and zoomed at a high speed that startled Moltres and she ascended quickly. Charizard change trajectory and he flew up at Moltres like a rocket, reappearing in front her face as they continued to sail through the air at a high speed. Surprised, Moltres was left open for Charizard to let loose his second Dragon Claw, slashing diagonally and making Moltres sail back and tumble through the air until she straightened out again. As she did, she let her blood red eyes get fixated on Charizard and she spread her wings out.

"(**Very well. If you insist on getting in my way of Nic Pularis, you shall be eliminated!**)" She shouted. Moltres then emanated multiple golden rings of energy that beamed upwards towards the sky. Charizard and everyone looked to see the clouds clearing up rapidly and there wasn't a single cloud in the sky as far as the eye could see, leaving a blue sky and a very bright sun.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "Sunny Day. I should've known." Nic muttered. Everyone turned towards him in question, even though they all started to sweat. "Sunny Day is a Fire-Type move that amplifies the power of Fire-Type moves. Moltres is powering up."

Charizard could feel the heat intensify all around him, to which didn't bother him one bit, but looked down and saw how Sunny Day was very harsh on the environment, as he noticed down in the swamp below, the murky water was starting to bubble, meaning it's at a boiling point.

Charizard looked at Moltres. _'(Her heat is devastating. This immense pressure given off by the dark fire is burning away at everything. It seems I'm the only one resistant.)'_

"(**Air Slash!**)" Moltres fired her Air Slash attack at Charizard. Nic's Fire and Flying-Type soared upwards and dodged the incoming attack with ease. The attack followed through and sliced through a nearby flower field and a few trees as if scissors on paper. Charizard remained focused as he went into a diagonal dive and moved incredibly fast, giving Moltres little room to counter.

"(**Dragon Claw!**)" Charizard then initiated Dragon Claw and dived down and slashed, yet it didn't make contact as Moltres shifted right to dodge, but she felt a strong wind from the force of Dragon Claw. She flapped and gained altitude to get over Charizard. Charizard swung his head in an upward direction and went after Moltres. Moltres continued in an upward direction and Charizard followed, catching up fast. "(**Flamethrower!**)" Charizard let loose a powerful stream of fire in the air with dead-on accuracy as he struck Moltres's backside, making an inferno erupt in midair and Moltres was caught off balance.

Moltres angled lower due to Flamethrower, but looked to see Charizard zooming in with a Dragon Claw, which was her chance to intercept. She used the momentum and went into a dive, to which Charizard came to a screeching halt in the air and chased after her again, his Dragon Claw still coming.

As they decended, they went down into the valley, where the combined heat given from Moltres and Charizard both made the rocks that they pass accelerate in temperature. Charizard was catching up, but Moltres with a sharp U-turn, but Charizard was no fool as he spread his claws out, his left one grazing Moltres as she passed him. She winced, but kept going upwards until she reached a fair height and she used Heat Wave, releasing a _monstrous _firestorm of purple fire at Charizard.

"(**Heat Wave!**)" Charizard tried to make a counteroffensive by colliding his powered-up firestorm that raged against the opposing Heat Wave. The two raging attacks surged throughout the gully they quarreled in, with everyone watching from the cliffs above. They felt the extraordinary heat given off as they saw actual rock melt from the sides and saw that even though the Heat Wave surged about violently, Moltres was unfazed, yet Charizard was pushed back towards the swamp water below, having a few sizzling scratches on his body, having said taking indirect damage while Moltres didn't.

"(Damn you!)" Charizard then spread his wings before he could hit the boiling water below, hovering over it and the water went crazy around him. "(I'm not through yet!)" He then bolted at a high speed flight over the water, making water shoot in opposite directions. Charizard made a 90 degree turn upwards and shot up at 90mph into the air, and Moltres jerked away so as not to get struck. Charizard continued his rapid ascent until he was almost a speck in the sky.

"Whoa! That was super fast!" Happy shouted.

"(**Fly!**)" Charizard then shot down like a meteor at a high speed, the sound barrier nearly shattering behind the speed and force of Charizard's descent. The Fire and Flying-Type roared as he was closing in on Moltres. Much to everyone's surprise, Moltres flapped het wings, jerking back and Charizard's Fly attack missed, continuing downwards and everyone gasped at how Moltres just dodged the Fly without much effort. _'(She's fast.)' _Charizard continued to plummet until he finally gave a massive flap of this wings, stopping his descent cold before he could hit the swamp water and the force of Fly's momentum made the swamp water violently surged like waves all about, the boiling water crashing against the burning cliffs.

Gajeel looked down at the force behind that Fly that made the boiling swamp water go crazy. "Boy, if only that were to hit."

Nic looked on with slight nervousness as Moltres fired an Air Slash down towards Charizard. "Make haste Charizard! Dodge that!" Charizard looked up and he saw the shower of sawblades coming down right for him. Charizard immediately turned and flew off, evading the showering Air Slash that pierced the ground under the swamp water and sliced any nearby rock. Charizard shifted left and right repeatedly in fast motions, evading the explosive sawblades. He picked up the pace and swerved a multitude of time, barely evading the sawblades and made another 90 degree turn upwards, fully evading the Air Slash.

Moltres watched Charizard barely avoid her destructive Air Slash. "(**Burn already pest!**)"

Charizard ascended at an upward angle and opened his mouth. "(Watch who you're calling a pest you overheated chicken! **Flamethrower!**)" Charizard reeled his head back and brought it forward, unleashing a stream of fire that shot downwards towards Moltres.

Moltres scowled and used her wings to block the Flamethrower, being budged no more than several feet backwards. She whipped her wings, knocking away the attack, much to Charizard's surprise. "(**Burn for your insolence!**)" Moltres then flapped her arms, unleashing her purple flames in her monstrous Heat Wave that went at Charizard. The Flame Pokémon saw no room and used his arms and wings to block. He was swallowed in the attack, everyone wide-eyed as they heard Charizard's painful roar through the Heat Wave.

Nic had small pupils as he saw Charizard get struck by a brutal blow. "Charizard! No!" He shouted. The firestorm settled, and Charizard was seen falling head first, multiple scratches on his body, and looked heavily damaged.

Upon his fall, Sunny Day came to a close. Even though the sunlight dimmed, the cloudless sky remained.

As Charizard fell, Moltres didn't let up as she let loose an Air Slash. It was a strong possibility that this could possibly finish Charizard, as his eyes were closed and struggled to open them.

"Oh no!" Wendy gasped as Air Slash was closing in on Charizard.

"_Atem lo beseder_! Move Charizrd!" Sophie shouted.

Nic gritted his teeth and his fists were shaking. "Charizard!" He called out. "Charizard!"

Charizard felt his body as though it had been hammered to no end. He had to admit that these flames were extremely hot and evil. He couldn't hear much of anything as his conscience was starting to go out, and he looked doomed for the Air Slash might finish him off.

'_(Drats. I can barely move.)' _He thought. _'(I can't believe I'm bested by another Flame Pokémon…am I not a formidable Fire and Flying-Type?...Did I…did I not go beyond that extra mile…?)'_

"Charizard!"

'_(Wait, is that…?)'_

"Charizard!" He heard his name called again, this time, much clearer.

'_(That voice! It's…)'_

Nic's shouting continued. "Charizard! I know you! You don't ever give up! Ever! You stood out from the Kanto Starters because you chose _me _and acknowledge me and Froakie that day! You remember! You wanted to choose our way of life, because you wanted to be with those who you thought as equals! Don't you dare turn your back on your family and what you stand for!"

Charizard's eyes slowly opened, seeing the Air Slash coming closer. That instant, he was images of Nic from a few years ago, and then images of them training, hand-to-claw combat, all those nights they slept out in various terrain with the other members, and leading up to the Champion battle and recent events in Fiore.

'_(I won't…)' _Charizard got feeling back in his wings and claws. _'(I won't turn back. I will not leave my family, and the will to go that extra mile! Because…)' _His wings twitched and shot his eyes open. "(I have the ever-burning will of eternal fire!)" His body reacted, and he straightened out faster than the eye could blink. He shot up into the air, avoiding the Air Slash that was so close to hitting him. He soared high, startling Moltres.

"(**What?!**)" She shouted.

Everyone smiled and looked relieved as Charizard was back in the air, and Nic grinned as Charizard slowed down and flapped as he came to a landing right in front of him. The Flame Pokémon smiled back towards his Trainer, both having fierce determination in their eyes.

"I never doubted you when you could pull that off." Nic said, holding out a fist.

Charizard snickered. "(Well someone's gotta be the inferno to backfire that tainted chicken.)" He said, extending his fist out and they did a unison fist bump.

Nic turned back towards Moltres, who wasn't gonna wait forever for Nic and Charizard to launch a counterattack. "Alright, let's have at her one more time!"

"Huh?" Gajeel came to a realization about something, something that could be proven to a vital asset. "Luminous, have your giant salamander do that transformation!" He shouted. Nic and Charizard both narrowed their eyes in unison.

Gray turned towards Gajeel. "Huh? The heck you saying now?"

Vanessa looked with shock. "Wait…" She then went wide-eyed. "You mean that Nic's Charizard can Mega Evolve?!"

Gajeel nodded. "Yeah. His other crazy dragon did it before, and it was ugly." Gajeel and the Dragon Slayers remembered Mega Garchomp's destructive force, and that almost made them pale, but they kept composed. "If Luminous could do that with this one, then we've got a…"

"No." Nic said flat, stopping Gajeel in mid-sentence. There was a brief pause as Charizard and Nic remained focused on Moltres.

"No Mega Evolution. We're winning without it. Charizard and I both know that wouldn't satisfy us. We want to make this a Fire and Flying-Type showdown. Nothing more." Nic looked at Charizard, who nodded in agreement in Nic's understanding. Nic then looked back at Moltres. "Charizard's pride as the Flame Pokémon is on the line, as well as his Types." He extended his arm out. "We won't fail!"

Charizard roared in agreement, and Moltres waited no longer and she waved her wings and golden circles went up towards the sky, via Sunny Day once more. As the sunlight was harsh and everyone could feel the intensity given off of Moltres's fire increase with Sunny Day.

"(**Perish!**)" Moltres fired her Air Slash attack once more, the sawblades heading towards Charizard. Charizard grunted and gave it every ounce of endurance he had and shielded himself with his wings. Charizard felt the Air Slash hammer him, shoving him back several feet in the charred ground. His wings felt as though they were being ripped apart, which made him feel unbearable pain. He powered through and stopped just a few feet in front of Nic, he uncovered himself and his wings were hurt, but Charizard paid no heed as he roared, making ripples in the air.

"We've made it so far, so why would we succumb to pain like that?" Nic reprimanded. "We've won without Mega Evolution before, so how is this any different?"

Charizard grunted and was caught uneasy, but he straightened up. "(For all I know, this is nothing!)" He declared. He stepped forwards. "(No matter what happens, I will always have faith in Nic! As he does me!)"

"(**Then have faith in burning Hell!**)" Moltres shouted, firing her molten firestorm that was Heat Wave. The incinerating storm raged towards Charizard, who remained still.

"We believe in the power we share together!" Nic and Charizard shouted in unison. Charizard then became engulfed in a fiery aura, and Charizard's tail flame expanded as he let loose a large roar as the melting attack went for him. Despite his feeble condition, he refused to quit and flapped his wings as hard as he possibly could, creating a powerful forceful wave of wind that actually slowed down the Heat Wave, as the heat given from Charizard increased dramatically. The Heat Wave ceased and Charizard was left untouched.

"(**What?!**)" Moltres shouted in shock. "(**My flames have been pushed back?! What's going on?!**)" She, along with everyone else, saw that Charizard was exerting a monstrous amount of heat. His tail flame increased, and was a bright orange. His fiery aura was far hotter than any of Natsu's Fire Dragon attacks, and he felt it.

"Whoa…this heat…" Natsu and everyone felt the intensity of Charizard's burning will and saw Charizard get back up into the air.

Vanessa blinked. "Wait…that's Blaze! Charizard's Ability!" She shouted. She paused. "When Blaze activates, Charizard's Fire-Type moves get a major power boost."

Sophie looked up at the sky as Charizard looked beyond serious. "Sunny Day plus Blaze…" She gulped. "This one _cham _showdown."

"(**Futile!**)" Moltres let loose her Heat Wave attack at Charizard, who was giving off incredible heat.

Nic moved his arm in an arc. "Let's do this! **Flamethrower!**" Charizard then inhaled and then exhaled, unleashing a beam of orange that was Flamethrower, which was the result of Sunny Day and Blaze, the attack making pyro ripples about.

Both Heat Wave and Flamethrower collided, and both monstrous attacks were at a standstill. The Heat Wave raged about, purple flames were kept at bay by a violent inferno beam.

"We can do this!" Nic shouted.

"(All the way!)" Charizard shouted as he pressed on with Flamethrower, eventually pulsating and driving the Heat Wave back at Moltres.

Much to her shock, she saw the brutal beam and went wide-eyed. "(**No!**)" She then screamed in searing agony as her Heat Wave was dispersed and was blasted right in the abdomen by a severely powerful Flamethrower. The beam kept pushing until Moltres smashed with earth-shaking force into the other side of the valley. They all saw the incredible burst of explosive fire she was engulfed in, and saw melted rock fall downwards into the boiling swamp water.

"…whoa." Lisanna muttered.

"That was sick. The fire almost made me feel burned from here." Gray said.

As dust descended like a waterfall, Moltres emerged and got back to the same elevation as Charizard. Moltres sure was a tough one, and Charizard was well-aware. Moltres angrily unleashed Air Slash at Charizard.

Nic made a claw-like motion. "**Dragon Claw!**" He commanded. Charizard unleashed a Dragon Claw with both arms. He let loose a harsh roar as he slashed in a fast and brutal motion, his Dragon Claw sliced the sawblades through, making them explode behind Charizard, startling Moltres.

"(**Flamethrower!**)" Charizard let loose another monstrous beam at Moltres, one that incinerated the particles on the air as it was like a massive cannon launched. Moltres screamed as she felt the extreme force once more, her body actually feeling as though it was being scorched. She was engulfed in a _huge _explosion and everyone covered up as they thought a volcano erupted, at least to what it looked like.

The tide had turned for Nic and Charizard as their bond and strength were overwhelming Moltres, and she fell downwards from the massive explosion of fire. She had multiple bruises and she felt really intense. Her eyes narrowed as she flapped and stopped falling went after Charizard.

"(**You fool! I am the burning inferno! How could you possibly overheat me?!**" She shouted.

Charizard didn't answer as he flapped and shot at 90mph upwards. He moved as fast as he could as Moltres stopped in place and looked with frustration as Charizard was above her at a monstrous altitude. "(Let's end this!)"

"**Fly!**" Nic shouted. "Let her have it!"

Charizard let an air-shaking roar escape and he zoomed downwards, looking like a meteor from before, but the air around him looked more orange than normal, as it was his fiery aura and his tail flame. He looked like a glowing orange glint in the sky, and everyone heard the sound barrier burning and shattering…possibly melting too.

"All the way Charizard!" Nic shouted. Charizard increased his speed and he shot like a massive meteor that could destroy anything upon contact. Moltres looked up with sheer shock as she was startled by the heat given off, which actually began to frighten her.

Charizard then went for that extra mile.

"(**Heat Wave!**)" He bellowed, his wings flapped, and he let loose an inferno that was from his wings that were integrated in the Fly. The Heat Wave looked like a plasma wind that engulfed the area around Charizard, and he screamed as he dived downwards as he was engulfed in his Heat Wave as power up.

"(**No! Heat Wave!**)" Moltres unleashed her Heat Wave of dark purple towards Charizard above, the massive wind colliding, but the dark purple flames. Charizard's destructive attack plowed downwards. He continued onwards as Moltres's Heat Wave was no match for the ultra-heated inferno that was the combination of Fly and Heat Wave. Moltres's purple Heat Wave was slowly beginning to undergo a reaction. "(**What?!**)"

Everyone went wide-eyed as the Heat Wave/Fly combo was absorbing the purple flames, which made Moltres freak out and everyone started to run far inland away from the cliff, but Nic stayed as he had the proudest smile ever. "GO CHARIZARD!"

The vermilion meteor that was Charizard shot downwards and Moltres screamed. Nic felt his skin peeling and burning as he was so close to this monstrous heat, as though he was in a volcano. Even in the Flame Plate Form, it was really tough. His Charizard smashed into Moltres, and the latter screamed in agonizing pain as the two continued downwards into the swamp valet below.

When they reached the bottom, everything went blank.

Nic suddenly found himself sparing several feet back and going on. Everyone screamed as they flew as well. Nic and everyone tumbled as explosions were heard, rock incinerated and shattered, and it kept expanding until it was as high as the cloudless sky, in which the sun finally dimmed.

Heat was all around when Nic groaned and opened his eyes. The temperature was like 110 Degrees Fahrenheit. He honestly thought he was sunburned.

'_The Flame Plate keeps me from burning.' _Nic reminded himself. He looked to see everyone groan and see that they were steaming. They weren't burned in any way, but their body temperatures were high, and they thought they were roasted alive.

"Aw man, what just happened?" Lucy groaned, getting up and feeling steam. She and everyone else got their feet, as steam and dust was all over the place.

"That level of power. It was beyond recognition." Lily said in shock.

Nic got to his feet and he narrowed his eyes as he made a step towards the cliff edge. Everyone followed suite and they peered downwards. What they saw startled them to no end.

The entire swamp water below, reaching an area close to three miles at least. All of that water evaporated, and the ground was searing heat and sizzling. The cliff sides were reshaped due to melting rock. Rocks and steam and even dust was around the area.

In the dead center, there were two figures. One was Charizard, and one was Moltres. Charizard's Blaze deactivated and his body got to a knee, seeing as how he was covered in endless bruises and scrapes that looked severe. He looked with slight content, seeing the unconscious figure twenty feet away.

Moltres's body was covered in bruises and burn marks that were beyond severe, and she was defeated by Charizard. Charizard had no roar, but he grinned as he had proclaimed the title of the true Flame Pokémon.

"Charizard!" Nic shouted from above. Charizard turned his neck upwards, seeing Nic smiling down on him. "You did amazing!"

"(No, _we_ did amazing.)" He said. He slowly looked back at Moltres, seeing the unconscious bird in a massive crater and dark, foul energy seeped from her body. Charizard looked up, and everyone there narrowed their eyes as this energy was just like with Zygarde. They felt uneasy as the energy dispersed, along with the hatred and vile.

Charizard looked down to see Moltres's color returning to normal. The blue coloring changed to yellow, and the purple fire became red again.

Charizard stared a little bit and he turned his neck back up towards Nic and flapped his wings and ascended. He slowly made way up towards Nic and friends, landing on his feet with a thud and Nic smiled proudly.

Both Trainer and Charizard said nothing, but they knew no words could be exchanged. Nic pet Charizard's head, and grinned joyfully. "You went beyond any mile imaginable." He said.

Charizard snickered. "(I gotta say, we sure showed her. Don't mess with us.)" He said.

They all looked down, seeing the remaining stuff subside, and Moltres began to open her eyes. "(**Nnngh. W-Where? What happened?**)" She grunted and winced as her body ached like crazy. "(**It's like I was only red and…**)" She noticed the humans and Charizard above her at the top of the melted cliffs. With what strength she could muster, she weakly flapped until she was at a point where she barely reached the cliff and landed. She huffed and puffed as she looked like she was gonna pass out.

"(You shouldn't be moving in your condition.)" Charizard said.

Moltres huffed as her temperature was back to normal. She was back to her high-temperature self rather than the burning magma temperature. She actually felt in less pain than before. She looked and saw that Charizard was injured as well.

"(**You. Are you accountable for my injuries?**)" She asked.

Nic shifted into his Splash Plate and went by Charizard's side. "If you want to face Charizard, you'll have to deal with me!"

Moltres shook her head. "(**No. I had enough.**)" She paused. "(**I don't know what happened…or why everything is burned…but I guess I should say…thank you.**)"

Nic and Charizard looked at each other and back at Moltres. "You don't remember either?"

Motres shook her head. "(**I saw darkness one moment, and saw blood red next. Everything after that is a big blur.**)"

Nic paused. _'She doesn't remember like Zygarde. This energy, what's it doing to them?'_

Moltres said nothing as she used whatever strength she could to get away. "(**Humans and Fire-Type, I thank you. I apologize for any harm.**)" Moltres turned and weakly flapped off, her bruises making her uneasy, but knew it was best to head north to find a hideout to rest.

As she was but a glint in the distance, Nic and Charizard turned towards the other and stared. Their bond really pulled through, and they couldn't be any more proud for the other. They both shared a fist bump and smiled.

Vanessa then intervened. "Ehhhh…Nic?"

Nic shifted back into himself, seeing as they weren't in combat anymore, and turned towards Vanessa. "Yeah?" Vanessa then turned with comical revelation at the damage to the valley, and everyone, Nic, Charizard, they all gawked and paled when they saw the steaming place they created. The battle actually reshaped the valley, and the bridge was destroyed completely.

"GAHHH!" Vanessa and Nic, even Charizard, gawked in unison.

Gajeel laughed and smirked. "Well now that's top-class Fairy Tail damage, I'll say that."

Sophie blinked with a nervous smile. "Even though I memorized that heated battle, this might bring up some concern."

Natsu turned ahead. "We can't stay here! C'mon!" Natsu happily led the charge away from scenery, and they were glad no one was around.

"That battle sure was something Nic. You really did train Charizard well." Erza admitted.

Nic smiled. "Thanks Erza." He then sweatdropped. "Though I don't think we should be coming through this Route again anytime soon."

"If anyone asks, Lucy did it." Happy said.

Lucy turned towards Happy. "WHAT?!" She echoed as they pressed on, laughing at the comical shenanigans after that heated confrontation.

* * *

**I was late with this update, but better late than never. You like the interesting first half with Lily against Roserade? I wanted something to catch your attention for sure, so leave a comment or Review if both battles were intense!**

**Shoutouts to epicvictory2025, RavenousEds, FrankZTank13, PokeguardianZ, kival737101, and DeoxysSpeed.**

**Funny thing; throughout this Arc, I was thinking of an opening, and I thought of opening music for it. The first thing that came to my mind was Mega Volt. Imaginations sure run wild…**

**At any rate, check out **_**Fairy Academy's Light**_**! Also, after this, there are 2 chapters left in the Kalos Arc, so prepare for a big finish to the Arc just like any other Fairy Tail Arc.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the epic battles, the ongoing plot, and the continuous chapters that make this story long.**

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**Next Time: Life &amp; Death – Part I**


	41. Life & Death - Part I

Chapter 41 – Life &amp; Death – Part I

**Before you start reading, just know that I got a chapter of **_**Fairy Academy's Light**_**, so please check it out and Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review please. Thank you!**

**We're near the end of the Kalos Arc, and just like any good Fairy Tail Arc, I want to make this Arc end with a bang. Since last chapter was such a scorching it (get it?), I'm hoping this one will keep you on the edge of your seat, we'll see.**

**To Recap:**

On Route 19, Nic and the group accidentally encountered a Trainer, where Nic was forced to improvise and use Lily against a Trainer's Roserade, which turned out successful. Later on, a surviving Drapion was near the brink of death, and Lisanna was force to save it with her Take Over, and they later find out that the cause of the near-death Drapion was because of a tainted Moltres, whose heat nearly burned anything around her. Despite everyone's efforts, only Nic's Charizard could stand a chance and defeat the tainted Moltres, returning her to normal.

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**Chapter 41 – Life &amp; Death – Part I**

Now in Route 21, clashing echoed about through the area. It sounded like two steel edges clanging and if you looked closely, you saw two figures trading blows. Sparks surged as the edge of their blades met. You would think it'd be two swordsmen, or possible two Honedge or Doublade, but no. In this case, one was a swordswoman and one had scythes.

How the heck Erza got into an encounter with a wild Scyther nobody wants to know nor find out. The point is that Erza and the wild Scyther were locked in combat while everyone watched.

In her Heart Kreuz Armor, the redhead slashed, only for it to scrape along Scyther's scythes and deflect her blow, leaving for Scyther to slash diagonally with its right scythe, making Erza jerk back to avoid the attack.

Erza huffed. "It's impressive." She said, poising her sword to strike. "I never knew there were these kinds of Pokémon. Perhaps maybe if we weren't in such a rush, we'd probably have more time to know more about them." She said with a grin, and then dashed right into the fray.

Nic and everyone watched from a distance as they saw both warriors trade blows with their sharp edges. They really didn't have any say in the matter, but Vanessa was turning towards Sophie.

"You surprised that Scyther are a match for her?" She asked the blonde as Erza slashed and Scyther blocked it with a Night Slash, making the ground below get sliced up instead.

"Yeah, no kidding." Sophie huffed. She turned and saw Erza flip behind and slash, but the Scyther flapped its wings and took flight and dodged the incoming sword.

Lily crossed his arms, looking intrigued as well. "Scyther are admirable indeed. If I had a sword, perhaps it would make for excellent training.

"Come on, you guys know Erza's got this in the bag." Natsu said. "Come on Erza! Take it down already!" He cheered on. He watched Erza skid back as she had just took an X-Scissor that she blocked with her swords, and grunted as she ducked and evaded a horizontal Night Slash.

When Erza jerked back for room, she glowed, requipping into her Flight Armor. With immense speed, Erza dashed at Scyther, slashing her two swords with accuracy and speed which made Scyther fall black and only block.

Erza continued her onslaught of slashing swords, and Scyther had no room to counter as it had only the option to block. Finally having enough, Scyther unleashed a swift X-Scissor attack and intercepted the two swords, giving it enough room to flap its wings and get back into the air. Erza narrowed her eyes and grunted as Scyther was several feet in the air once more and saw the wings glow light blue, and Scyther let loose its Air Slash. The multiple sawblades of air trailed towards Erza, but the S-Class Mage noticed that this Air Slash was nothing compared to the tainted Moltres from before, and slashed in a furious blur nonstop.

"**Sonic Claw!**" Erza slashed faster than the eye could blink, and all of the Air Slash attacks were sliced in half, not even grazing her. With a startled Scyther in the air, Erza went in zigzags upwards, slicing up the Air Slash as they rained down along the way.

Within a matter of seconds, Erza was at equal elevation with the wild Scyther and then slashed in rapid succession, damaging the Bug and Flying-Type, making it fall backwards downwards. Erza landed on her feet while Scyther landed on its back with a thud.

Erza poised her swords as she saw the Scyther get back to its feet slowly and then saw it ready a Double Hit, the blades glowing purple. The Scyther rushed forward and Erza did the same. Both let loose battlecries and then they slashed in the blink of an eye, both posing right behind the other.

Nic and everyone there stood still, but not much to anticipate as they knew the results.

Only a few moments passed before Erza stood upright and requipped into her Heart Kreuz Armor. A couple seconds later, the Scyther that was still in place fell over with a loud thud, fainted.

Erza grinned as she turned towards the group. "I apologize for taking so long. It was much more persistent than I had realized."

Vanessa cheered happily, as did the other girls. "Yay Erza!" "I knew you wouldn't have trouble!" "Wow, your sword skills are amazing."

Erza then made way towards the group and huffed. She then looked at Nic. "I must say, a friendly warning would've been nice."

Nic snickered with his sunglasses on. "What can I say? Figured you'd take the first-hand experience."

"True." Erza and Nic shared a small chuckle before Vanessa coughed to get their attention.

Vanessa grinned with amusement as she rolled her eyes. "And on that note, take a look." She turned towards the west, where they saw the sun was surprisingly low, and they had to get moving. "The last bits of sun is gonna be gone in two hours. We should move while we still can."

With that said, the group of individuals made way through the woods close to the path, where Nic had taken the opportunity to get to the trees and go on ahead to scout until night fell. As dusk approached, Nic was turning his head left and right in the trees on a sturdy branch.

He stood straight up with perfect balance, turning around to the group a hundred feet away. "It's fine. No sign of enemies or wild Ursaring so far!" He shouted, and turned and leaped through the trees ahead like a Grovyle.

"Wow." Vanessa said, marveling at her brother's ability. "Nic said he could climb trees, but I never imagined he'd be that limber."

"That's better than all of us put together." Sophie said, watching Nic hop from one tree, landing silently like a Noctowl. "He's like a ghost from above."

Natsu scoffed. "Big whoop. I can do that." He looked for the closest tree and he latched onto the tree trunk. "Come on, come on." He repeated as he inched up the tree, bit had veins on his face, showing struggle.

"There he goes, just showing off." Lucy said. "He's gonna hurt himself doing that."

"I give him thirty seconds tops." Happy said.

"Oh real supportive there, pal!" Natsu shouted from above. He grunted as he finally made it to the lowest branch there was, and he got his body up on it. Natsu arose to his feet, but couldn't help but feel heavily off balance.

Though unstable, Natsu stood tall on the tree branch. "HA! Ya see that?! I can climb these the-AAHHH!" Natsu slipped and he fell downwards towards the ground.

Vanessa flinched when Natsu landed with a thud, as to where everyone just stood as if it didn't faze them. "Ehhh…" She saw Natsu on the ground, and twitching. "You know, for some reason, I somehow saw that coming."

"Big surprise?" Sophie sarcastically asked. She then turned towards Happy. "Oh, and by the way, that was twenty-two seconds."

Nic looked from above with a groan, shaking his head. "Natsu. Lesson one: Balance." He said. "We should be safe to camp guys."

Not long after Nic said that, it was dark and camp was set up. The group sat around a big campfire, where they indulged themselves with food, Natsu primarily. Happy still dined on anything but fish since he heard Magikarp didn't count as food, and they could evolve into 'giant monsters', which left him bewildered and sulking.

Nic, away from the happy campers, was with his Pokémon, all looking up at the night sky. The seven looked up and saw only midnight in the sky. Just that one color. No stars. The seven were at the edge of the tree line, and stared coldly upwards.

Nic, out of all of them, didn't feel too comfortable looking up at the sky without thinking of earlier that week. He forced Arcus to heal him, and in turn, Arceus condition looked grim…well, grimmer.

"I know you're back there." Nic called out without turning, still gazing up at the sky.

In a few moments, rustling was heard, and Erza appeared in her armor. "Still as perceptive as ever." She stated. Nic's Pokémon didn't give threatening vibes, but accepting vibes. They allowed Erza to come up to Nic's side as the black sky didn't even reflect off of his sunglasses on his V-Neck.

She frowned, knowing how Nic felt, but tried to keep a light touch to the mood. "You know everyone's having a joyful time at the camp. Vanessa's Krokorok sure knows how to rile things up."

Without looking back, the two could hear Krokorok yelling, though only Nic and his team understood.

"(Let me tell you something Natsu Dragneel! Krokorok does not like cooked food! Krokorok likes his food animal style!)"

"I don't know what you said pal, but I'm ready when you are!"

"Hey, you guys, why now?!"

Constant faint shouting was heard, and Nic snickered at their rowdiness. He didn't mind, at least he knew they were still Fairy Tail. If it wasn't for them, he guessed he'd still be secluded with his Pokémon. He was glad to have been to Fiore…

"Still." He said. "We only have one day left." He said with dejection. "I could only get small bits upon to this point, and they shut down before I fully sense them." He balled his fists and sighed. "I can't believe it. What am I doing? If I don't get something tomorrow…"

Erza put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Nic, it's okay. We're here for you." She assured.

Looking down at the ground, Nic couldn't help but think to when they all got hurt by that man and those past Legendaries. "I know. It's just...it's difficult knowing how you guys are having a hard time here."

Erza looked down. "Yes. Legendaries are beyond formidable. We see that now." She then looked at Nic with a pause. "But as long as there's hope, we'll keep getting up and try again. It doesn't matter how long it'll take, just know we'll be by your side, thick and thin. Okay?"

Hearing her petite soliloquy, Nic was left with a touched expression, and his dismay about this adventure was lightened to an extent. Nic smiled and nodded. "Thanks Erza. I needed that. You're nice to have around."

Erza turned around as she made way back towards camp to the escalated fight, her face full of satisfaction upon having Nic happy with her. Keeping herself heading back, her tone was filled with energy. "Be sure to get back to camp soon."

"I will." Nic said. When Erza left, Nic looked up at the sky, now with a half-grin. "Well guys…?"

"(Not much to say really. We should rest up.)" Greninja said.

Kecleon tilted her head. "(The night beckons for our eyes to go blind.)"

"(…I would advisssse a little resssst.)" Arbok said.

Nic turned towards everyone and saw them grinning. He smiled again. "Alright, but you do realize what we'll be doing tomorrow morning, right?"

* * *

**At daybreak…**

The sun was rising and everyone stirred about, yawning and Natsu's snoring rattled nearby ears, which only led to aggravation. Eventually, Gajeel and Wendy awoke with their dragon hearing, annoyed with Natsu snoring.

"Salamander…" Gajeel growled, wanting to shove an iron column down the Fire Dragon Slayer's windpipe so bad.

Wendy sighed. "It's no use Gajeel. It's morning anyway." Wendy got up and yawned. She gently had awoken everyone she saw, and the last person she had awoken was Vanessa. "Vanessa? Vanessa?"

Vanessa stirred in her sleep. "Mmmmm. Not now Braixen, I like my sleep." She sleep talked.

Braixen, who was over by Vanessa's awakening Pokemon, giggled at how silly her Trainer's oversleeping ways were. "(Wait until she finds out.)"

"(H-huuuh?)" Goomy gurgled, still feeling drowsy.

Happy scooted over by Vanessa's ear. "HEY VANESSA! TIME TO GET UP!" The blue Exceed screamed into her ear, shooting her eyes wide open.

Immediately, Vanessa jerked upright, her black hair and single blonde bang all messed up. Her face looked as though she'd been in a disaster. "What happened?! What did Krokorok destroy this time?!" She shouted in panic.

As everyone laughed at Vanessa's reactions, Krokorok pouted. "(What? I didn't break anything?)" He said as his teammates looked at him. "(…at least not that I knew of.)" The team shared a laugh of hysterics how Krokorok was handling this, and basically everyone laughed.

Soon enough, the laughing stopped when Sophie noticed something off. She turned her head and noticed something missing. "Uh, guys?" She warned. "Where's Nic?"

Carla had hands to her hips. "I suppose the hooligan must have gotten up way before any of us did."

"I wonder where…" Lisanna was cut off when they saw a glint in the distance, and they all saw some figures up ahead. "Wait, are those…?"

"Yeah. Pokémon." Gray warned, with no shirt. "It's up in that clearing!"

The team ran ahead, into the woods and through shrubs, and when they reached the forest edge, they saw something that left them baffled.

Vanessa and her Pokémon looked on with frozen and shocked expressions. "Nic?"

Nic was apparently shirtless and coatless, leaving his toned upper body exposed, with his phone with the metal music on high in his pants pocket. He backflipped and evaded Garchomp's Slash, and pivoted upon landing to use his arm to block Greninja's hand. He brushed it and did a jab, but Greninja jerked right and tried to chop downwards, but Nic spun out with his arm and tried to sweep Greninja off his legs. Greninja jumped away and Nic saw Garchomp coming at him at high speed again, and the guy with sunglasses then blocked and deflected every possible claw and fin, and maintained his ground, barely keeping his footing. Garchomp's relentless assaults left him with no defense from behind when Charizard came at him with a knee.

Using his instincts, he ducked and lunged left for room, leaving Garchomp to block the knee from Charizard. Nic then saw Staraptor swooping in and using Aerial Ace, and he had his hands out and grabbed the wings, but the attack still pushed him back several feet. He then rolled onto his back and gave Staraptor a shove with his leg, almost doing a Circle Throw motion sort of speak. The avian quickly straightened out and went back with a Steel Wing, with Nic lunging and dodging.

Eventually, Arbok went lunging, and then Kecleon, and eventually everyone from the trees saw it was a one-on-six spar. They all witnessed in awe how the metal just kept on rocking away and Nic was moving so fast that it was almost impossible as he deflected and blocked, and also lunged and ran, and a whole bunch of agility that caught them by surprise. They were even startled when Charizard used Flamethrower and Greninja used Dark Pulse, and Nic still dodged them.

He was all over the place, and nobody dared to even move, for he might catch their attention and break his concentration. "Check it out." Gray said in deep awe, seeing Nic's Pokémon move insanely fast in close combat. "I've never seen Nic do something like this."

"He does _that_ kind of training? For three years?" Lisanna said with slight disbelief.

"Oh wow, Nic's more acrobatic than I thought." Sophie said. "And he's easy on the eyes."

"Silence!" Erza ordered, making Sophie zip her mouth as she struck a nerve, seeing how jealous Erza was, Sophie giggled, as she said that last bit on purpose to see how Erza would react.

Everyone could see Nic's violet-colored Fairy Tail emblem on his back, in between his shoulder blades. He was working so hard, that sweat poured down his face and body as he continuously blocked, deflected, and even started going on the offensive. Everyone there was impressed how Nic was holding his own, and after ten or so minutes, Nic huffed and his team did too. Unfortunately, that was all they had time for and Nic stopped the blood-pumping metal on his phone.

They turned and saw the Fairy Tail members, and Vanessa and her team, looking from the tree line. Nic and his team was momentarily shocked, but they all saw the shocked grins on their faces as they appeared from the trees.

"That was very impressive." Erza admired with her smile.

"(YOU GOTTA SHOW ME THAT STUFF!)" Krokorok declared.

"(I don't know whether to think that was awesome or insane.)" Mawile stated.

"I-I've never seen training like that. You do that every day?" Vanessa asked.

Nic huffed as he was still catching his breath and he nodded. "Yes, every single day. We meditate, we run, and we spar. Every. Single. Day. My reflexes and movements are all second-nature at this point."

"If that isn't crazy, I don't know what is." Lucy sighed with a smile.

Nic looked back at his team. "Well, you caught us on one of our more normal days. Some days we meditate all day, sometimes we just run fast to no end, and sometimes we fight with blindfolds or no hearing."

Happy nearly jumped. "Heh?! Seriously?!"

Nic grinned. "Believe me when I tell you, the very first day with Froakie was something…"

_Route 2, a seemingly easy and passive Route. Quite a bit of Pokémon here and there, some Fletchling and Zigzagoon, but nothing too major. Nic had just became a Trainer earlier, and he was walking alongside his new Froakie, which seemed curious of Nic._

"_(…I don't know who you think you are, but I hope things are interesting.)" Froakie warned, being the one who liked to have some interesting things happen._

_Nic and Froakie ventured into the Route, and before they could reach the tall grass, Nic stopped, as did Froakie._

_Froakie looked up at Nic. "(So, shall we venture and battle?...hello?)" Froakie looked with suspicion as Nic's sunglasses shielded his gaze._

_Nic narrowed his eyes as a lone wind passed by as he looked out. Already, he saw nearby Pidgey and quite a few Scatterbug, but someone stopped him from choosing that path._

"…" _Nic couldn't find the right words. "Froakie…ask yourself."_

"_(Hm?)" Froakie wondered._

"_Ask yourself…what benefits would I get? I wouldn't get physically strong or capable of protecting the ones I love just by sitting around and having you gain while I order." He shook his head. "To me, something about that feels wrong."_

"_(…I…I guess so.)" Froakie shrugged, but Nic did have a point that Froakie related to. He wanted a Trainer who would understand, and was this really happening?_

_Nic made a decision. He turned towards nearby woods. "Come." With that, the duo went off to a nearby forest, where they had some space, and Nic faced Froakie. Froakie tilted his head._

"_(So I take it I'll be having trees as my opponent then?)" Froakie asked. All he saw was Nic spreading his legs, and reaching into his pocket and turning on some metal. "(Huh, I like this.)" Froakie admitted, bobbing his head up and down a little. "(I feel energized.)"_

"_Froakie…your training…is fighting me." Nic said, which made Froakie get a shocked expression. "Listen. My sister was hurt, and I want nothing more than to be a better protector and an ally. To do that, I have to get inside your head, and understand how we can coincide with our fighting styles. I see it. We both want to be swifter. Faster. Stronger." He balled his fists. "To do that, we must both fight together!"_

_Froakie's world just got interesting. "(I see…)" He smiled. "(I think we're gonna get along just fine.)"_

"_Come at me!" Nic shouted, and he ran at Froakie. The two went at the other with Nic going for a straight jab that collided with Froakie's Pound. Frokaie landed on the ground and Nic went for a knee, which struck Froakie in the face, which send the Water-Type back several feet._

_Froakie rubbed the back of his head as he got up. "(Owww. Man, you think they call this abuse, but it's not.)" He clenched his fists and looked serious. "(This is training! And I'm following this path to greatness with you!)" Froakie jumped and twirled in the air, coming down with a Pound, but Nic leaned back and put his arms up and blocked. He lashed his arms and Fraokie landed back on the ground and jumped back towards Nic…_

Nic looked back at Greninja as he put on his shirt and coat. "Remember that day?"

Greninja nodded. "(The day that you set yourself apart from other Trainers. Yes. The day you decided to become a fighter, and not feel others gain from your commands. The day you swore to train and understand Pokémon and learn to have us and yourself master hand-to-hand combat.)" Greninja smiled.

"(It was a long and arduous road, but that's exactly what we wanted. You could understand battles better, and think what we think.)" Charizard added. "(For me. For all of us. I think it's what makes you who you are.)"

Nic smiled. "I couldn't ask for a better team to train with. Take a rest guys." Nic returned all of his Pokémon back to their poke balls, and then turned back towards Vanessa and the group.

"Nic, so that's the training style you've adopted. To be a better fighter and person." Vanessa said with a smile.

Nic grinned. "It's the path I've chosen, and I have no regrets."

Erza smiled, happy that Nic made that choice. Three years, and he's come this far, and he's beyond S-Class combat suited. Nic looked at the group and Vanessa's team and smiled still.

He then blinked, and his grin faded away. He was feeling kind of odd all of a sudden.

Nic was stiff and transfixed as something reacted from inside, something strong and familiar. And no, it wasn't his stomach.

"Luminous?" Gajeel asked. "Are you alright?"

Sophie looked at Nic with suspicion. "Wait. I remember that. Nic did that before." Sophie said. She and everyone saw Nic shooting body straight up and he let a slow and low growl lurk and turned his head sharply here and there.

"Wait, wasn't that when…" Lucy was cut off when Nic turned his back from the group, and looked west, which was where they were intended on going.

"Yeah, I think Nic's got something this time." Wendy said.

The Plates inside Nic were going wild, as the spacial energy sensed was near, and very strong, meaning it had just opened. Nic looked up slightly and twitched. "I sensed it. A portal just opened!"

Everyone gasped and Nic could hardly contain himself. He knew they had to make it. Today was the last day that Dialga and Palkia's powers would remain effective. If they missed this shot, they'd be stuck in Kalos. So, Nic started his mad and fast dash with no delay, just like that, and everyone knew food would have to wait.

"Everyone move now!" Erza shouted, requipping into her Flight Armor and catching up in a flash.

Natsu grinned. "Right behind ya!" The Dragon Slayers were hoisted up into the air by their respective Exceeds and were on the move. Vanessa got her team back into their poke balls and everyone else had to move as fast as their legs could carry them, and the race had begun.

* * *

**In another dimension…**

Hoopa looked too excited as the group was heading towards the portal. "Heheheheheeeeee." He giggled. "This is too perfect!"

"Hoopa, control yourself." Darkrai said. "I'm as anxious as you." He clenched his fist. "Soon they'll encounter terror on another level. Nic shall surely perish."

"I just can't help it! I live for mischief! This trap is too perfect!" Hoopa jittered. "I can't wait! I want to see some mayhem now!"

Mewtwo growled as he peered down the dimensional portal. "…may they feel the increased wrath of our revenge. We've held back long enough, and I _never_ like to hold back. The ones before were nothing. The ones now, those shall show we're serious."

Mewtwo then looked at Giratina. "Your antimatter effect _those two_?"

Giratina remained silent, as the darkness around thickened, and Giratina gave a monstrous bloodlust smirk.

* * *

**With Nic**

Nic moved with such haste and such speed with Erza right by his side, the two being followed by the flying Dragon Slayers and everyone else. Nic ran right by the path, which didn't stretch too long and he made way into a rather large gate.

"Nic, wait up!" Sophie shouted. Along with everyone present, Sophie was getting exhausted. Nic and Erza were moving too fast, with little room to catch up. They were given great relief when they saw the duo in the gate, looking north at a staircase.

Everyone there panted as they finally caught up. They all saw Nic staring upwards towards the staircase, where the stairs leading towards the light were. As everyone caught their breaths, Nic was left still, as he looked conflicted.

"Guys." Nic warned. "This isn't good."

"Heh?" Lucy wondered.

Nic's eyes narrowed under his sunglasses. "Up ahead is Victory Road, the toughest place to be in all of Kalos. There lies ahead, the most difficult labyrinth and the toughest of Pokémon in all of Kalos."

Natsu grinned. "Now you're talking! I'm ready for some serious smack down giving!" He cracked his knuckles in readiness and Gajeel followed suit.

"I can't wait to see what these suckers throw at us."

Nic turned his head back. "You guys, no matter what happens. Stay by me. You can't go rushing into this place. There is a portal, and I can feel it." He then turned back forwards. _'…but that's not the only reason why I stopped.'_

Already, Nic was having a very bad feeling, and when something _that _bad is what he felt, then it's beyond devastating. _'What lies ahead, this energy is starting to get nostalgic.' _He took a few steps forward, but couldn't help but feel the goosebumps beginning to come around. _'This foul energy, I can sense it from here. If what I sense is true…'_

"Is something holding you up Nic?" Wendy asked.

"…nothing." Nic shook his head and he began to trudge ahead. "Let's just hurry." He then began the long climb up the stairs that seemed to never end. It was extremely exhausting, but Nic ran up like it was nothing.

Erza wasn't buying it. Nic looked uneasy, and from the way he seemed hesitant, there was something not right. Even she felt goosebumps, and she knew Nic was making haste. Something was up ahead, something. Whatever it was, it was making everyone uneasy as they sensed this energy. If it was that powerful, then Arceus knows what is waiting.

The group made haste, getting through the Gate grove and getting through the first cave, thanks to Nic leading the way. Of course, when it came to the waterways, Gray had to step in with his Ice-Make: Floor, and allowed passage. With nearby rock and boulders, Gajeel and Natsu happily complied.

Of course when it came to the Pokémon, such as the wild Graveler and Gurdurr, it was clear that Nic's Pokémon took care of it. And Nic made that very clear when Gajeel and Natsu tried to attack, which resulted in them getting bumps on the head.

Time flew by quick, but they were certain that they were making progress. Nic's radar was getting stronger, yet the energy that was so negative kept pouring throughout the area. They needed to get to the portal quicker, so Nic started running again, but slow so the guys could keep up, much to his dismay.

When they made it to the first grove. The west side was a massive cliff that overlooked the entire misty forest below. They just ran over a bridge that went over a wide river that was connected to a wide waterfall just before the bridge.

"Wow." Wendy basked in the waterfall and the ever-spreading scenery to the west. "Kalos's scenery. This is amazing."

"Child! We must keep moving!" Carla shouted. Wendy and Carla then saw a shadow covering them, which then made them stop moving.

Immediately, Nic took note and Nic's sunglasses caught a glint of the shadow covering Wendy and Carla moving slightly around in circles. Nic's feet stopped and he pivoted and skid forwards. His eyes narrowed. "Looks like we got company."

"Huh?" Vanessa, Lucy, and the other girls and guys got their guard up as they were growing uneasy, and then saw something high in the sky.

Nic slowly looked up. "Hope it's a Fearow or Skar-!" His eyes widened when he saw something. Something very bad. "Oh no."

Everyone looked up to see the giant creature before them, and their pupils shrunk as they looked up as the dragon roars, making them cover their ears. The sunlight overhead made it look like a shadow, but Nic saw it being a three-headed dragon with six wings, red treads on the blue belly, and had fuchsia-colored collars.

"This is bad." Nic said. He immediately pivoted and ran and jumped in front of his team, having arms out to his side. "Everyone, get ready!"

The dragon roared again, the roar shaking the air and everyone's ears. Nic cringed at the piercing roar. He grunted. "I should've known this could've happened. Guys, this is one of the toughest Pokémon there is in Victory Road. Hydreigon.

"W-W-W-What?" Lucy shook. "That's a Pokémon?"

"Oh great merciful Kingdra. Just what in the world is going on?" Vanessa said, slightly distraught with all of the formidable creatures as of late. She reached for her Pokedex and analyzed Hydreigon for all to hear.

_"Hydreigon, the Brutal Pokémon. __It responds to movement by attacking. This scary, three-headed Pokémon devours everything in its path!"_

Natsu stepped forward and grunted. "Looks tough. Bet this one's gonna give us a run for our jewel."

Hydreigon roared, and everyone saw the three heads fixated on them. "I do _not _mess with those things!" Nic shouted as a warning. "Natsu! You have no-!" By the time he turned around, Natsu was already leaping towards the Dark and Dragon-Type, with Gajeel by his side.

"This guy's looking for a fight!" Ntsu shouted as he was getting closer.

"Then we'll give it to him!" Gajeel shouted. As Gajeel said the last part, Hydreigon emanated a red aura and then his Attack and Special Attack got boosted, via Work Up.

"Take…THIS!" Natsu punched with a Fire Dragon's Iron Fist and Gajeel swung with an Iron Dragon's Sword. The two Hyrdeigon heads on either side opened their mouths and caught Natsu's wrist and Gajeel's iron sword, startling both.

"Say what?!" They shouted in unison. Hydreigon's middle head roared in their faces, making them wince and feel distraught. Their hearings were shot slightly as all they heard was ringing. Hydreigon then slammed them both into the other and everyone from below saw them falling.

Hydreigon then dived down as Natsu and Gajeel were still in shock and smashed his abdomen into their bodies, continuing onwards like a meteor and smashing them into the ground in front of them, making a crater and dust scatter, via Body Slam.

"Okay, ouch." Sophie winced. When Hydreigon lifted his body and back into the air, Sophie looked to see them both distraught. "Something tells me they're gonna feel that in the morning."

Nic clenched his fists and huffed several times over. "What did I just tell them?" He shook his head in disappointment and Hydreigon looked and noticed Nic shaking his head, which caught his attention. In a matter of seconds, Hydreigon went after Nic, and Nic took notice.

"Nic! Look out!" Vanessa shouted.

Hydreigon flew at a low altitude and Nic narrowed his eyes in concentration. He ran ahead after Hydeigon. He lunged ahead and time slowed down as Nic seemed to have gotten in mere inches away from the Hydreigon. Everyone, especially Erza and Vanessa, watched with anticipation and worry as Nic was confronting the beast.

In a flash due to his reflexes, Nic delivered a downward blow to the middle head, making Hydreigon yelp as the abdomen struck the ground below, the force making the ground shake. Nic then drove a knee to the lower jaw of the same head, making the Dark and Dragon-Type soar backwards.

"Oi. What the-?" Natsu rubbed his head as he could still hear ringing, and his body felt as though it was smooshed by a Vulcan's foot.

Gajeel grumbled. "You're not the only one hurting. I haven't felt this low to the ground in-!"

Both Mages were cut off as they sat up, and then they were suddenly hit with a very heavy force that was Hydreigon, comically making them gawk as they were hit from behind and flew face-first into the dirt, with Hydreigon above them.

Nic sweatdropped. "Sorry!"

The wild Hydreigon got up immediately back into air, showing a smooshed Natsu and Gajeel, again. The Dark and Dragon-Type went after Nic, and Nic ran and engaged in combat once more. The heads tried to nip at Nic, but Nic used his arms to block and deflect, and with an opportunity, he grabbed the necks of both heads and he drove a knee to the middle one, making the dragon soar up and tumble in the air once.

Nic huffed. "Okay, it looks like some more nostalgia is required." He skidded back to gain distance as the Hydreigon shook its heads and glared down at Nic as he threw a poke ball. "Garchomp! Do your thing!"

Garchomp emerged from the poke ball and soared after Hydreigon. "(With pleasure!)" He shouted.

Nic made a slashing motion. "Use Slash!" Garchomp obeyed, and in a matter of seconds, he slashed with his glowing claws faster than the blinking eye, and Hydreigon roared as it took damage. It jerked backwards as Garchomp got the upper hand, and then it surrounded itself in draconic dragon-shaped energy and went after Garchomp.

Sophie gasped. "I remember that! That's Dragon Rush! Look out!"

"Wait for it…" Nic said. Garchomp patiently looked intimidatingly at the incoming Hydreigon, the air breaking upon it coming ahead. "Now! **Dual Chop!**" Garchomp then had the claws and fins glow green and zoomed at Hydreigon. With precision timing, Grachomp slashed horizontally at the middle head, stopping the Dragon Rush in place, and then with the left fin, slashed downwards, making a ripple in the air upon impact.

The wild Hydreigon yelped as it felt the full force. As it fell, Nic's Garchomp zoomed at blinding speed. "**Slash!**" Nic shouted, and Garchomp let loose one last Slash, making Hydreigon scream and everyone saw the force caused Hydreigon to soar over the cliff and down below in defeat.

Vanessa clasped her hands with a big smile. "Alright Nic!" Vanessa exclaimed. "That's showing it!"

Garchomp landed on the ground, making a subtle shake within the earth. Nic walked up to his pal and gently pet his head. Garchomp didn't fuss as he loved to be pet on the head. "Nice job there Garchomp."

"I'm surprised Garchomp didn't take that thing down in one blow like the rest." Gray said.

Nic turned back towards Gray, looking somewhat annoyed. "Gray, what did I just say before we entered Victory Road? I told you these guys are to never be taken lightly." He said in an obvious tone.

Garchomp raised his claws at a scared Gray in defense. "(Do you know nothing?!)" He shouted. He then took a brief pause and looked at his surroundings, and it brought back some memories. Garchomp smiled. "(Now I remember.)"

Nic grinned and crossed his arms. "Remember Victory Road? This is where we found your Garchompite. Wasn't that a surprise huh?" He then remained looking up at the increasing altitude of the caves and the groves that lied ahead. "To think we spent a whole three months here before deciding to take the Elite Four and Diantha on. Felt like yesterday."

Natsu and Gajeel then got up, cracking their joints and bones and groaning. Nic and Garchomp turned towards them. "Ah yes, those two."

Natsu was ready to fume. "Gah come on! That wasn't even fair!" He complained. "That guy had three heads for crying out loud!"

Gajeel clenched his fists. "Damnit. I guess Luminous was right."

Nic's eye twitched. "Ahem!" He coughed, getting their aggravated attention. When Natsu and Gajeel turned angrily, they suddenly cringed upon seeing the scary look on his face, despite the sunglasses that covered his eyes. He had a death-like aura.

"Natsu…Gajeel…" He growled aggressively. "You impulsive meatheads must be dealt with. I _told _you thoroughly to _not _mess with them! And now…" Nic's Garchomp crouched and Nic raised an arm. "You must be given your punishment!"

When Nic snapped his fingers, Garchomp roared and went after Natsu and Gajeel. Many, many painful screams and earth-shaking agony was dealt in the next three minutes.

* * *

**Later…**

Natsu and Gajeel were battered and looked as though they fought against two Laxus. They were almost unrecognizable, and they were fortunate Garchomp only left minor gashes and not tear their limbs apart. They were making it out of the next cave that escalated higher, and Nic was picking up the signal. It was strong. Very strong, but the fact that they've been traveling through Victory Road as fast as they could and given the time they had taken to reach it, Nic wasn't certain how much longer until the portal closed.

In haste, Nic picked up the pace to his fast speed, and burst out of the cavern with everyone following. They had made it to the highest grove there was, and it face north, where everyone was tons of damaged walls, broken boulders, and destroyed monuments.

Everyone there saw the massive landscape unfold before them, how it looked all green and there was a giant lake to the northeast, how there was massive ice to the north. They couldn't believe the massive view from above, and even Nic was feeling too nostalgic this day.

"Oh wow. I'll remember this view." Sophie said.

Everyone there seemed blissful and the fact that they've been traveling for a week in Kalos made them think of how fast that time went by. "I have to admit Nic, Kalos sure is an interesting place to be." Erza commented as she looked right beside him. "I wish we still had more time, but we can't."

Nic sighed. "No, I'm afraid not Erza." He then turned and the foul negativity flowing was fluctuating, and that was making him very much uneasy. _'Why was the energy dialing down earlier? Was it a false…no, something has to be close by.' _Nic then began to lead them to where he was picking up the portal's energy. It was very strong, and he knew they were going to make it.

In fifteen minutes, he slowly came to a stop as the sky was partly cloudy. Nic huffed while everyone behind him panted. They saw how he stopped and they were glad to have been given a break.

Nic was left silent as they were only a mere two-hundred feet from the stone table, as they all stood right outside the ruins of what seemed to be a large establishment or fortress.

"It appears that Nic has finally found yet another one." Lily confirmed, seeing the portal on the stone table. There, the partly cloudy sky expanded.

Nic was feeling very much uneasy, and it wasn't just because of the foul negativity nor the fluctuation of the portal energy, but something a little more concerning. He looked back at Vanessa, who looked ecstatic about the portal. This time, if they got lucky, they would all go to Kalos.

And that's what worried him the most.

"Something the matter?" Lisanna asked.

Nic blinked and shook his head. "Uh, just spacing out." He turned back towards the portal that lied ahead, such as the sky was covered in clouds. "We should make haste. Let's move." He said with little emotion. The group was starting to make way with energy, and Nic could hear them speak from behind.

"Finally, we get to go home." "Kalos was something, but now I know not to mess with those things." "Aye sir!" "I must say that this pit stop was exciting. This is something to share when we get back." "Vanessa, you ready for Fairy Tail?" "Yes!"

This bits of the discussion turned to muffles as Nic's uneasiness grew. "…" He remained silent as he ventured closer towards the portal. _'Vanessa, I don't know…should I really-?!' _Nic was brought out of his head when he suddenly felt a strong heartbeat and he gasped briefly and stopped in his tracks.

"Hm? Hey, what's with the sudden halt Luminous?" Gajeel asked. "You catching somethi…" Gajeel and everyone else then felt a certain energy rise. "Wait. This feeling."

Sophie nodded. "Yeah, my memory was right. This is the same energy that tainted that Zygarde and Moltres, only this time…"

"It's stronger. Much stronger." Erza finished. She and everyone else started feeling their spines shake massively as they could hardly keep still with the energy looming around like a fatal ghost.

"Hey guys, something tells me that something bigger than before is coming." Lucy warned.

Wendy was shaking out of fear. "We have to get to the portal!" She shouted, and everyone turned towards said direction and then everything then grew silent.

Nic's eyes sharpened. "Wendy, I fear that we're too late." He said. Nic caught something. This energy was different. Not only was it stronger, but something about it was all too familiar. It sparked something in his memory, as if he recognized this odd feeling somewhere. _'It's like…I don't know. I know it, yet it's different.' _

A dark and hollow wind blew about and silence continue to creep all around them, making them fear the deadly hollows of the wind. _'I can't even hear voices like before. This foul air, this energy, I can't hear any warning…'_

Nic blinked and then he picked up something from the dark, cloudy sky above. He went wide-eyed and saw a monstrous Dark Pulse making way down from above, quickly spreading clouds apart. "Everyone move! Now!" Nic shouted.

Everyone glanced briefly above and saw the large Dark Pulse making way. Everyone ran in various directions away from the impact and they all turned tail and the Dark Pulse struck the ground from where they once stood, making a sudden boom sound.

Everyone was sent flying and screaming as rock and earth shattered under the intense force. The nearby walls cracked to a severe level and everyone suddenly found themselves groaning as they were beginning to sit up.

"What was that?" Lucy shouted, having a few scratches here and there.

Lisanna got up to her knees and saw something in the skies above, and it looked pretty big. "What's that red thing in the sky?" She asked.

Nic practically shuddered. "Wait, red?!" Then everything clicked inside his head. "Now it makes sense. Why this energy is so similar." He then looked down at the large crater and back at the group. "You guys! It's-!"

He was cut off then there was a screech in the air that bellowed, shaking up the ground and everyone covered their ears at the ear-splitting screech and they glanced up to see a giant demonic avian descending below the clouds.

Nic and everyone there looked beyond terrified as their goosebumps skyrocketed. The avian had blood red coloring, and the black markings on the underside was pitch black, as was the rest of the black on the body. The eyes were blood red, and the feathery ruff around its neck was a sullied gray. The bird-like legs had giant talons and the tail and arms alike made it have the shape of a 'Y'. The pointed beak-like snout was as black as the rest of the black on the body, and the horns that extended forward was as such. The five claws on the end of the hands were massive, and everyone below could feel the dreadful aura from him from above making the ground wilt.

Gajeel's eyes shook. "N-No way."

"Is that a…" Wendy was unable to find the words as her arms gave out from shaking too much and she plopped to the ground.

Nic gulped. "I can't believe it." Nic muttered as the massive bird-like draconic thing descended so it was several feet in the air above Nic and friends. "It's Yveltal!"

Yveltal screeched and the air shook violently. Yveltal brought his wings and tail forward, and then in the center, a huge jumbled ball of black and purple arose. The Destruction Pokémon let loose a catastrophic Dark Pulse once more, making the air scream and the force making nearby debris fly out of the way.

Nic grunted as the catastrophic attack was aimed for him. He put his arms in front of himself and made a turquoise shield, effectively blocking the Dark Pulse. The attack continued to rampage, and Nic skid back as he kept up with Protect. The attack made the ground under Nic wilt and crack as the violent tempest made his sleeveless coat flap violently. Nic grunted as the attack came to an end at last and Protect had finally deactivated. Nic fell on his behind with a thump sound and huffed as the landscape around him was all cracked and ravaged.

"Nic! Look out!" Lucy shouted as Yveltal then unleashed yet another Dark Pulse attack that rippled through the air again.

Nic grunted and got his feet under himself as the attack made way towards him. "Guys, get back!" He shouted. He then saw the attack and then glowed, shifting into his Stone Plate. Nic quickly stomped on the ground, and then a rock column from below shot Nic upwards to a high altitude. From below, Nic saw the rock column get obliterated into dust from the Dark Pulse attack.

As he looked at Yveltal, his sunglasses reflected the blood-red beast's image. _'I can't believe that I'd be fighting Yveltal once more.'_

_Xerneas and Yveltal unleashed their Megahorn and Dark Pulse attacks. Verneas's multitude of horns glowed green and grew in size. Yveltal launched Dark Pulse. The Megahorn went after Greninja while Dark Pulse went after Gabite._

"_Dodge!" Nic shouted. Gabite lunged right and evaded the explosive attack that shook the lab chamber. Xerneas thrust the horns, but Greninja treated it like tree-hopping training with Nic, and effectively avoided the horns and hopped above them and above Xerneas, where Nic shouted for a Water Pulse, which scored a powerful blow on the head, where Xerneas screamed._

_Gabite dashed about towards Yveltal, his Speed going crazy as Yveltal unleashed Snarl, a black soundwave echoing about and struck Gabite due to the soundwave being such a wide range. Gabite flew back, but regained footing quickly and dashed ahead._

"_**Slash!**__" Nic shouted. "Greninja, __**Smokescreen!**__" Greninja provided cover by unleashing a thick cloud of smoke that obscured Xerneas and Yveltal, and Gabite used the sea of smoke to use Slash on Xerneas's legs, making the giant Fairy-Type wince. Gabite then shot like a missile and got Yveltal's legs, making the Dark and Flying-Type yelp._

_Yveltal gave one giant flap of the wings, blowing away the smoke and Nic and his two fighters skid back several feet. Nic went wide-eyed when Yvelyal ascended and wings grew violent, and blue electricity was emerging and a violet energy surged in Yveltal's center._

_Nic, Greninja, and Gabite all readied as Yveltal's violent Oblivion Wing was launched at them, shattering nearby cables that weren't broken from before._

Nic remembered all too well that the battle was extremely tough, and his Gabite evolved into Garchomp because of that battle. This was different. The stakes were much, much higher. Yveltal was stronger than last time.

"**Power Gem!**" Nic made many gems that glistened around him in hard, light purple energy. He thrusted his arms forward in midair, launching the Power Gem at Yveltal. The Dark and Flying-Type flapped his wings and ascended, dodging Power Gem.

Nic landed and saw Yveltal circling overhead. "That's not the same Yveltal I remember." Nic said to the group, keeping his gaze fixated on Yveltal above.

"Wait, you mean you fought against that thing?!" Gray exclaimed.

Nic swallowed. "Yeah. It was roughly two years ago. If you remember the incident with Nirvana, I mentioned them when they were used in operating 'The Ultimate Weapon'."

Vanessa blinked. "I heard about that. It was all over the news. _You _stopped it?!" She exclaimed in deep awe at her brother.

"Yeah, and it wasn't easy. Those two put together nearly destroyed everything around us. It was extremely tough, but we managed, barely. Now Yveltal's been tainted, and it's far stronger than it was before."

Natsu flamed up a fist. "Then let's roast that thing! We're gonna get back home if it's my last breath!" Natsu put emphasis on the last bit as he unleashed a Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame at the circling Yveltal.

Yveltal looked and noticed the fireball heading his way. He turned and remained positioned in place as the attack went after him. His eyes then turned light blue, glowing. The Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame was then outlined in light blue, and then it stopped moving when it was just mere feet away from making contact.

Vanessa gasped. "I-It knows Psychic?!"

Yveltal screeched as he sung his wings forward, making the fireball shoot back at Natsu with more force behind it. Natsu gasped as his attack was repelled and increased in force. Natsu made a quick counter attack with a Fire Dragon's Roar. The two attacks collided, making fire surged about around Natsu. Everyone nearby jerked away and covered up so as not to get swallowed up in fire. Unfortunately, Yveltal's Psychic won and Natsu was swallowed in his own fire, making him scream and fly backwards, skidding and leaving a trail on the ground.

"**Ice-Make: Saucer!**" Gray conjured up a giant saucer and then fired it at Yveltal. The humungous avian saw the incoming saucer and made no attempt at moving. Gray smirked, thinking the attack would hit. Yveltal unfolded his body and emanated more of his menacing aura from his body, shattering the ice.

"You've gotta be kidding!" Gray stammered.

"The ice didn't even touch it!" Wendy shouted.

Gajeel clenched his fists. "Alright birdy, let's see you fly after this! **Iron Dragon's Roar!**" Gajeel fired his powerful and energized roar at Yveltal, the attack shredding up the air.

Yveltal continued to keep silent and he let loose Dark Pulse at the attack. The Dark pulse went through the air like an unstoppable meteor and easily went straight through Gajeel's roar, splitting right down the middle. Gajeel was hit with the attack head-on, and screamed when he was engulfed in a terrific explosion of darkness.

"Gajeel!" Sophie shouted, seeing Gajeel shoot back as Natsu lunged forwards. Erza joined in and requipped herself into her Black Wing Armor. As Erza flew up to attack, Happy grabbed Natsu and flew upwards towards Yveltal.

Erza slashed, but Yveltal took notice of her and used his right talon to grab her sword without even flinching. "What?!" Erza was left stuck as Yveltal's aura around his body was corrosive, and she could feel herself weakening. She hasn't felt like this since the assailant several days ago. Yveltal moved his leg and let go of Erza, tossing her back to the ground.

"Erza!" Natsu shouted as he saw a weakened Erza fall.

"Erza!" Nic shouted. He stomped on the ground, making a column of rock shoot him towards Erza. Nic made it to her in time and grabbed her bridal style and got his feet under him as he fell, getting into a crouching skid and looked at Erza as she winced. Nic looked up at Natsu, who looked down at him. "She's alright!"

Natsu then turned back towards Yveltal. "Damn you! Happy!"

"Aye sir!" Happy soared closer towards the giant Yveltal. The duo was making way as fast as they could, but Yveltal screeched, the shockwave making the duo stop in midair. Natsu cringed as Happy struggled a bit.

With them stuck momentarily, Yveltal's eyes glowed light blue and outlined them both in his Psychic. Yveltal then lashed his giant wings and Natsu and Happy sailed back with massive force.

"Natsu! Happy!" Lucy shouted.

Wendy got up and ran towards the falling duo outlined in Psychic. "I can weaken the fall! **Sky Dragon's Roar!**" Wendy pivoted and shot her massive wind at the falling Natsu and Happy, making them slow down immensely.

Yveltal narrowed his eyes and shot them wide open, increasing the power of his Psychic, making Natsu and Happy shoot straight through Wendy's cushioning wind and slam right into her, making all three scream and tumble towards the ground.

"Wendy!" Carla shouted getting to Wendy's side. She looked and saw Wendy struggling to move, as was Natsu and Happy. They had many scratches and bruises from that attack.

Lucy pulled out a key. "I'll buy some time. **Open: Gate of the Scorpion – Scorpio!**"

From out of thin air, Scorpio emerged with sign hand signs. "Alright! Let's get wicked!" Scorpio then smirked and he aimed his tail at Yveltal. "I'll make that overgrown chicken get marinated in my sand. **Sand Buster!**" Scorpio fired his swirling vortex of sand at Yveltal, the swirling attack making way and made a direct hit, making Scorpio chuckle.

Yveltal simply flapped his arms casually, feeling absolutely nothing from the sand buster. The attack felt like a Ground-Type move, which didn't affect him one bit.

"What's this?" Scorpio sounded startled. Lucy gasped. "It appears my attack isn't doing anything!"

"Come on Scorpio! Try adding more juice!" Lucy shouted.

"You got it Lucy!" Scorpio shouted, and he added even more power to his Sand Buster, making more sand gush and strike Yveltal's abdomen, expanding slightly, but even so, absolute zero affect. Yveltal screeched and flapped his wings once, the force making the sand disperse like that. Scorpio and Lucy were too distraught to have made a counterattack. The monstrous bird then flapped yet again and the horns on his head glowed blue. He was then engulfed in draconic energy and then rushed at Lucy and Scorpio from above, via Dragon Rush.

"Lucy! Scorpio! Run!" Nic shouted. "**Ancient Power!**" Nic glowed and an afterimage of himself was made, and the afterimage swirled into a silver sphere with a green core. Nic's attack shot at the impending devastating attack that Yveltal was coated in. The Ancient Power shot at the incoming Dragon Rush. The Rock-Type move managed to make contact, yet it only vanished into nothing upon touching the dragon-shaped energy that shot towards Lucy and Scorpio.

Scorpio slammed his hands to the ground. "I'll stop him! **Sand Wall!**" Scorpio then made a giant wall of thick sand to stop Yveltal. The Dragon Rush continued and shot into the Sand Wall, shattering through it like it was nothing. Surprised, Lucy and Scorpio screamed as Yveltal's Dragon Rush smashed into the earth, making debris, rock, and wilted grass fly in all directions, including Lucy and Scorpio.

"No!" Nic shouted.

"I can catch them!" Lisanna shouted, with one eye open as Lucy and Scorpio were shot their way. Lisanna huffed as her body started to change. "**Take Over!**" Lisanna glowed and she became part Harpy, with wings and talons of one. As winds raged and the earth shook. Lisanna flapped her wings and reached out her talons and snagged both woman and Celestial Spirit. The force was still too much for Lisanna to handle as the shockwave swallowed her, but she managed to catch them. All three skid back and tumbled.

Upon landing, Lisanna groaned and reverted to herself, and Scorpio slammed a fist to the ground as he was outmatched in this fight and was forced back to the Celestial Spirit World.

Nic growled and then unleashed Power Gem once more at Yveltal from where he was at. Yveltal, on the ground, had his back turned and was hit in the ruff, making a small explosion that made him stop moving. He turned around, staring coldly at Nic, feeling nothing more than a puff shot.

Yveltal turned his body, still refusing to say anything. It was then that Erza, now back on her feet, slashed out of the blue, right in Yveltal's face, which made him narrow his eyes.

"**Memory-Make: Piercing Frigid Darkness!**" A voice shouted. Erza and Nic turned around just in time to see Sophie launch a spear made of darkness that had spiraling ice all around it. The zooming arrow zoomed at an alarming rate, which made Nic and Erza leap out of the way as Yveltal spread his wings. The arrow smashed into Yveltal's abdomen, making a flashy explosion of ice and darkness engulf the Legendary.

Yveltal screeched as he fell onto his back from the sheer power. The abdomen was covered in ice and Sophie smirked. She turned back towards Vanessa. "Think you can do better?"

Vanessa put her hands to her hips. "Haha, very funny." She said with dry sarcasm. "This isn't a competition." She then looked at Yveltal shaking off the ice and roaring to the sky, flapping once more, making strong winds surge that made Nic and Erza and everyone else standing skid several feet back.

Yveltal arose to the skies and everyone that was able managed to see Yveltal screeching from high above. Nic blinked and then gasped.

_The menacing violet beam soared at them, and the three managed to dodge the devastating ray, but then saw a line of explosions occur from the Oblivion Wing, and Nic and Greninja and Gabite flew in various directions, hitting the walls and landing with consecutive thuds._

_Xerneas emanated a powerful energy and then energy gathered in front and a pink sphere was made, and it was very large. Xerneas fired Moonblast at Greninja, who was still recovering from indirect damage from Oblivion Wing._

_Greninja gasped and quickly jumped. He used Bounce to get a safe distance and watch the Moonblast explode violently, making a pink explosion occur from below. Greninja looked down and saw Nic and Gabite back on their feet and Nic extended his arm out. "__**Dig!**__" Nic's Gabite then dove into the ground below, leaving a Gabite-sized hole._

_Greninja dove downwards and dived on Xerneas, who looked up. Below Xerneas, Gabite emerged, and struck the distracted Xerneas from below, dealing an uppercut that made him yelp. Greninja then came crashing down of the back, making Xerneas yelp as his body had hit the earth._

_Both Gabite and Greninja met back with Nic and they saw Xerneas get back up and Yveltal fired a Dark Pulse that the three dodged, which made a powerful explosion._

Nic saw Yveltal creating a transparent violet sphere with blue electric-like energy in it, and he then gasped. "It's Oblivion Wing! Everybody run!"

Yveltal screeched as he then shot a violet beam of energy that unleashed a brutal shockwave upon firing. The beam shot with such intensity that the entire earth shook and Nic and everyone looked with shocked eyes.

Everything went blank for a brief moment as loud boom sound engulfed everything. The only thing that was possible to see was white, and bits of debris if possible. The entire grove just lit and the earth rattled violently.

Nic suddenly found himself on the ground, wincing as he had a few scrapes and scratches here and there. He heard his ears ring and his vision from under his sunglasses returned. He panted as he saw the entire landscape around him was a disaster.

The grass all around was dead, the rocks walls, including the stone table, was reduced to bits of rock, and dirt and craters were set everywhere. The only thing untouched was the portal. Nic scouted around, seeing everyone trying to get up, and they all had scratches and scrapes as well.

"D-Damn. That thing. I can barely move." Gajeel murmured.

Lily winced. "It's like Yveltal is far stronger than the ones before. This aura it's giving off, I can feel my skin tingle with dread and it won't stop."

Erza winced as her Black Wing Armor was battered and damaged, cracks everywhere. "Curse this thing."

Vanessa winced as she had a few scratches. Nic took noticed and looked over at Vanessa. "Vanessa!"

Vanessa winced as Sophie finally got up. "Don't worry! I'm okay!" Vanessa exclaimed to her brother.

Nic turned towards Yveltal, who was looking down at the ravaged landscape he made out of the grove, screeching. He clenched his fists and shook. "Damn you…" Nic then let loose a battlecry and he then hurled a fist into the earth, making several rows of columns spring upwards in a row like a stretched staircase. "If it's me you want, then come at me!"

Yveltal screeched again, he looked down at Nic. Nic stomped and a column shot from under him, and he hopped from one column to the next, escalating until he was at a high enough point. When he was a hundred feet up and on the last column, Nic then glared at Yveltal's blood red eyes. "**Rock Slide!**" Nic put his hands over his head and ripples were in the sky, where gray rocks fell from above and Yveltal looked up and got a rock to the head, making him yelp and lose balance in the air. He was then bombarded with more on the wings and the back, making the colossal beast descend while taking damage.

Nic then had the front half of his sleeveless coat glow, and then unleashed a Rock Blast, making silver rocks in the shape of his coat emerge and blast Yveltal's face rapidly as he fell, making the Dark and Flying-Type screech yet again. The monster was plummeting head first all the way, and when it went just past Nic and descended even more, Nic made one more move.

"**Stone Edge!**" Nic hurled a fist into the column he stood on. The ground beneath Yveltal then erupted with large glowing stones, and Yveltal saw that he was about to hit it. As the Rock Slide continued falling, Yveltal spread his wings, and kept himself in position as his eyes glowed and Psychic activated, making the remaining rocks from above ceased movement. Yveltal regained altitude and then faced Nic at a higher elevation. Yveltal screeched as he then brought his wings and tail forwards, making the Psychic-influenced rocks head his way.

Nic leaped backwards back down the columns and when he jumped along the way, he pulled out a poke ball. "Greninja! **Water Shuriken!**"

Greninja emerged from his poke ball just then and unleashed his compressed stars of water at the incoming Rock Slide that smashed into the columns. Greninja's Water Shuriken easily sliced the rocks and debris from the columns and Rock Slide with ease, leaving them unscathed as Nic and his compadre were unharmed.

Yveltal flapped in the air, silent still, but even so, the eyes widened very little. "(**…**)"

Nic narrowed his eyes. As did Greninja. "What is it?" Nic asked.

"(I don't know, but…he looks like he's stopped.)" Greninja pointed out, seeing how Yveltal ceased movements and looked fixated.

"What is it…wait, you feel that?" Nic blinked and sensed something powerful, something that was tingly, and something that was equally corrosive. Yveltal's head looked up above Nic.

Everyone turned around and saw a massive pink sphere that destroyed the ground as it made way towards Nic. Everyone went wide-eyed as they had to keep down and Nic and Greninja used their individual reflexes to dodge and run, avoiding the immense sphere of pink that completely destroyed the area where the two stood, and then some.

Nic and Greninja skid on their sides from the force, but both flipped and skid on their feet. They stopped several feet afterwards to see the area they were standing was now a giant shallow crater. Nic and Greninja both slowly turned their heads to see where the attack came from, and when they saw that lied from a peak nearby, their chances dwindled even more.

Erza and everyone gasped, while Yveltal was indifferent. Vanessa swallowed. "Y-You've gotta be kidding me." She muttered.

Nic and Greninja, out of all of them, were horrified. They all saw a dark blue creature with blood red eyes with 'X'-shapes inside. It was quadruped and the front legs had plates that were a fainted yellow. The antlers were heavily majestic, yet they were pitch black and the spots on the antlers were blood red, making contrast to the dark, tainted coloration of the figure.

"No way." Nic said.

Xerneas.

The Life Pokémon let loose a screech that echoed, making nearby small rocks and debris shatter. Nic and Greninja's eyes were shaking out of intense fear, and both then went wide-eyed and turned in time to see Yveltal at the attack again.

Yveltal went to strike with the talons, and Nic and Greninja jumped and dodged, the earth shaking as Yveltal's talons crashed into the ground. Nic and Greninja landed several feet away, then they turned their heads and saw Xerneas at the far distance, reeling back slightly and then pounced into the air. The force made the ground where he stood shatter, and everywhere he landed as he made way down towards Nic, the rocks and ground shattered. One big pounce and Xerneas flew over Nic and Greninja's heads and landed right in front them, making earth fly upon landing and made Nic and Greninja jerk back.

"This is bad. This is very bad." Nic murmured. The bloodlust gazes looked solemnly at him. _'Those two are beyond reason. Zygarde and Moltres's power from before, they were a fraction of what these two are. Just Yveltal alone was bad enough.' _Nic remained calm as he narrowed his gaze and stood affirm. _'I'll have to take a different approach.'_

Nic then glowed, and from the light, he shifted into his Zap Plate. The two beasts glowered down at him, and Xerneas made the next move, reeling the head back and the antlers glowed green and expanded in size, via Megahorn. Xerneas then thrusted the head forward.

"**Wild Charge!**" Nic was coated in electricity and he then made a mad dash forwards, where he let loose a battlecry. Nic's attack collided with the horns, and there was an immense shockwave that smashed rocks and leveled the ground, shaking violently to no end.

Ultimately, Nic's attack was no match, and the Megahorn flung Nic into the air, making him spiral and tumble. "(Nic!)" Greninja shouted. He then gasped when he felt an ominous presence behind and turned his head back and saw Yveltal coated in Dragon Rush and the air shattered as Yveltal rushed for him. Greninja crouched and he leaped, but Yveltal's crash into the desolated grove sent a violent shockwave all across the area, and Greninja and Nic were swallowed up in it as they sailed in the air backwards.

Within that space, Nic and Greninja's minds went silent as they heard something other than booming and rocks shattering. _'(__**You…**__)' _One voice said.

'_(__**We remember…**__)' _Another voice echoed and Nic and Greninja's eyes shot open. They gasped and then they landed on the ground with their feet, skidding back and panting.

"You hear that?" Nic asked.

"(Yeah. All too well.)" Greninja said. "(It looks like they're trying to tell us something.)" they both retained focus, and Nic and Greninja were back-to-back and looked forwards, firing a Thunderbolt and a Dark Pulse attack, both assaults leaving trails and cracked ground as they trailed towards Xerneas and a now flying Yveltal. The Thunderbolt struck the tainted Xerneas and the Dark Pulse struck Yveltal, both grunting but shook their bodies to rid both attacks.

Vanessa was close by Erza and Sophie. She had to think. She had to help out somehow. She clenched her fists. _'Drats! I can't sit by anymore, but those Legandaries got Nic cornered. I have to at least lend support somehow!" _Vanessa protested mentally. _'Wait! I know what'll work.'_

The Pularis sibling then slowly reached for a poke ball, where she then called out her Goomy. Goomy gurgled as she saw the catastrophic battle that was before her, seeing Nic and Greninja charge for the two monsters. "(O-Oh no.)"

Vanessa looked and saw Goomy sweating like crazy, cowering in fear. "Goomy, it's alright." Vanessa assured, putting a hand on Goomy's shaking head, calming Goomy down. "I don't want you to get hurt. All you need to do is use Rain Dance and that's it? Think you can do that?"

Her voice sounded slightly stressed, but sincere, like a mother encouraging a child. Goomy's shaking settled and she looked back at Nic and Greninja. Though hesitant, Goomy narrowed her eyes and glared out. "(Y-Y…Yes! I can do that!)" Goomy assured.

Goomy then raised her slimy head, and the cloudy skies above thickened slightly even more. As Nic and Greninja tumbled back from a powerful blow they managed to evade, they regained footing and they felt a small drop on their heads, making them blink. Another drop fell, and then another.

"Rain?" Nic wondered. In the corner of his eye, he saw Vanessa returning her Goomy, and she looked back at Nic with a smile. Nic grinned in understanding. _'I see, thank you sis.'_

Nic then turned forwards. "Alright Greninja, let's have at them! You get Yveltal, and I'll take care of Xerneas! Hold Yveltal off until I deal with Xerneas!" He shouted raising his arm up into the air.

"(Got it!)" Greninja then dashed at blinding speeds, reappearing in front of Yveltal. The large avian was caught slightly off guard, and Greninja used this to his advantage. "(**Water Shuriken!**)" Greninja made more compressed stars of water that expanded slightly and threw them at lightning-fast speeds into Yveltal's face, making aquatic explosions erupt upon impact, making Yveltal screech as the sharp and powerful Water Shuriken collided into his face, making him jerk back several feet in the air.

Above Xerneas, thunderclouds boomed, and yellow lightning was seen. The rain kept pouring down and Nic focused on Xerneas, who hooved the ground, making it quake briefly. "Oh Zap Plate, may your shining lightning electrify all that stands in my way! May your power leave the enemy stunned and bring down justice upon them!" Nic then brought his arm downwards as Xerneas charged. "**Thunder!**"

The Thunder then came shooting downwards towards Xerneas, and the giant beam of lightning struck its mark making Xerneas screech loudly as he was engulfed in an explosion of electricity that rattled the ground entirely.

"**Thunder!**" Nic did the attack once again, and another bolt of beaming lightning shot downwards on a recovering Xerneas. Xerneas's bloody gaze looked up and raised his head. As the Thunder shot downwards, the top of Xerneas's antlers was where a pink sphere was being formed, and then the head tilted forwards and dust flew rapidly and the earth shook once again. Xerneas's Moonblast shot into the sky, colliding and plowing straight through the Thunder attack and shooting upwards, straight through the storm clouds and completely left a large, gaping hole in the sky, completely stopping Rain Dance and the clouds disappeared.

Vanessa went wide-eyed. "No way! Just by shooting Moonblast into the air?!"

Greninja looked up as he was in midair after launching his Water Shuriken. He too was startled as sun was peering downwards. He was then caught off guard as Yveltal screeched, the shockwave making Greninja fly backwards and hit some debris on the ground.

Nic grunted as the clouds quickly came back when Yveltal stretched his body when ascending, and watched him flap as the clouds were like they were from before Rain Dance. Greninja emerged from the debris and grunted as he had more than a few scrapes. He didn't care as he continued onwards and used Dark Pulse, the Dark-Type move attacking Yveltal, but Yveltal flapped once and completely stopped the Dark Pulse, much to Greninja's shock.

"Damnit, they're too strong." Nic grunted.

'_(__**We remember…**__)'_

'_(__**We ask for help…**__)"_

Nic and Greninja gasped slightly, hearing those same voices. "Greninja, you think…?"

Greninja nodded. "(Yeah.)" They both looked back up at the two tainted Legendaries. "(It's them.)"

Natsu punched the ground and stood up, along with everyone else. "That's it!" He shouted. "We're not lying down anymore! We're gonna get back home! No matter what! Everyone get ready!"

Nic looked back at Natsu and the group with absolute shock. "No guys! Stop-!"

"**Dragon Slayer Secret Art – Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade!**"

"**Ice-Make: Lance!**"

"**Memory-Make: Baryon Lightning Impact!**"

"**Requip!**" Erza glowed and turned into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. Several swords spun around her and she swung the sword in her hand forwards. "**Circle Sword!**"

"**Open: Gate of the Archer – Sagittarius!**" Lucy summoned Sagittarius, who immediately unleashed rows upon rows of arrows.

"**Iron Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Sky Dragon's Roar!**"

"Magnezone, use **Zap Cannon**!" Vanessa called out her Magnezone, who then unleashed his brutal Electric-Type move.

All of the attacks went sailing towards Yveltal and Xerneas alike. As the attacks went towards them, the Legendary duo weren't even fazed. All they did was watch as the attacks zoom their way. They were both struck with the attacks, of which caused a high-scaled magnitude and an explosion that everyone looked on to see. They all were beyond baffled as the energy they put into their attacks was tremendous.

When the majority of the dust settled, a big chunk of the grove was reduced to dust and there was still a fairly large crater. Natsu gave a serious gaze as his scarf flew about. He still smelled something very off as the dust cleared. "…no."

"Huh? Natsu, did you get them?" Lisanna asked.

Natsu sank his knees to the ground in sheer shock, as he then saw Yveltal's wings and Xerneas's tainted horns emerged from the dust cloud. Everyone went wide-eyed and loked with sheer torture as the duo screeched ever so harshly, making violent winds and shockwaves echo and ripple about, making dust disperse and everyone flew back and tumbled, screaming in agony. Sagittarius returned to his world as he crashed, and Magnezone landed with a thud, as did everyone else.

Erza looked up, barely hanging on. "Incredible. Not even a scratch. Is this true Legendary power?"

In the air above, Yveltal ascended and then converged transparent violet energy with blue electricity-like energy. Yveltal screeched as he then unleashed his Oblivion Wing with no warning. Everyone there went wide-eyed and filled with horror as they all were seeing white.

A massive boom like before, and the entire grove of Victory Road was swallowed in an explosion, the ground shifting and going as crazy as tidal waves, rocks being vaporized, and nobody could hear themselves scream as they weren't directly hit, but felt agonizing pain.

When everything settled, the grove, the _entire _grove, was but leveled dirt. No grass, no broken walls, no nothing. Just dirt. Everyone on the ground was barely conscious as they could hardly move, including Nic and Greninja. The duo could barely stand as everyone else had a few bloody scrapes. If they were directly hit by that Oblivion Wing, they'd be vaporized.

Nic panted as he and Greninja were the only ones that were able to stand. The duo was nothing but exhausted. They looked back and saw everyone lying down behind them, groaning and full of scrapes, including his sister.

"Vanessa…" Nic was caught off when he and Greninja heard some more thoughts.

'_(__**We remember you.**__)' _The one voice said.

'_(__**You saved us, and we are fighting once again.**__)' _The second voice said.

Nic and Greninja turned forwards and they found themselves in a faint field of nothing. They were left in shock briefly, but then saw the right side get shrouded in darkness, and the left side get covered in crystals and light.

"W-what is this?" Nic wondered.

"(I-I don't…I don't know.)" Greninja said.

They then went wide-eyed as they then saw faint images of Yveltal and Xerneas, with Yveltal's image on the dark side, and Xerneas's image on the light side, both normal colored.

"Xerneas? Yveltal? What's going on?" Nic demanded.

'_(__**Nic Pularis. We remember you. You and your Greninja, and that Garchomp.**__)' _Xerneas said.

'_(__**We are sorry, we cannot control our actions.**__)' _Yveltal said. _'(__**You must defeat us. It's the only way to stop our blood…lust…**__)'_

"Xerneas? Yveltal?" Nic shouted, but their images faded, and then everything went back to normal. Nic shook his head, and he looked and saw Greninja on his right side and both looked forwards, seeing the tainted duo standing before them.

Nic narrowed his eyes under his sunglasses. "Now I get it, they were trying to use whatever conscience they had to communicate." He said.

Greninja stood affirm. "(We have to stop them both, just like they asked.)" Greninja then crouched. "(Same as before! I'll stall Yveltal!)"

"Right!" Nic then coated himself in his electricity, where he then fired another Thunderbolt at Xerneas, as to where Greninja made a swift dash towards Yveltal. The Thunderbolt shot through the air, but Xerneas blocked with his horns, swatting it away like the attack was nothing.

Greninja went and shot Water Shuriken at Yveltal, but Yveltal flapped and ascended, avoiding Greninja's attack.

Vanessa returned Magnezone as he was injured. Though on a knee, Vanessa could still see the battle. "Nic! The portal won't have much time! We need to run!" She shouted.

However, this got Yveltal's attention as he saw Vanessa. He turned his head, glaring a bloodlust gaze at her. Immediately, Vanessa's heart pulsed in fear and Yveltal turned and fired his Dark Pulse at Vanessa.

Nic looked with extreme horror and fright as the Dark Pulse raced towards his sister. Nic lost all reason and he ran as fast as he could. "VANESSA!" He shouted. The Dark Pulse tore through the sky, heading at a fast pace.

Nic ran as fast as his legs could push him, and he zoomed like there was no tomorrow. "VANESSA!" He was getting closer as the electricity within him surged with such intensity it felt like turbines were moving, and his speed accelerated even faster.

Vanessa was paralyzed in fear as the Dark Pulse was so destructive that she'll perish for sure if this were to hit. She looked at her brother once more, seeing the desperate look through his sunglasses. _'Nic…'_

The Dark Pulse continued to get closer, and Nic gave a powerful sprint as electricity started going wild around him, flaring like crazy. "VANESSA!" He shouted once more, finally getting in front of her as his blood temperature felt like it dropped and sparks flared like crazy.

It was as if time slowed down, and Nic's mind was racing so fast and his body felt cold. _'Vanessa, I've been the best brother I could've been. I left you alone for three years, and I won't allow myself to lose you again. That's why…' _The Dark Pulse was several feet away from him and slowly coming closer. Nic felt the electricity surge even more, and his body started giving off a freezing chill, the ground freezing under him. _'My ideals as a good brother will keep you from harm! I WILL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES SO THAT YOU CAN LIVE!' _Nic was then coated in a frigid field of electricity that make the ground shake and Vanessa covered up as she sailed back from the energy her brother was giving off.

"NIC! NO!" Erza shouted as the Dark Pulse struck its mark, and there was a massive explosion of black and purple. Vanessa looked with horrific eyes as Nic took the attack and was on her hands and knees, looking to see nothing as dust and winds surged.

"N-no…not again…" Vanessa squealed, thinking that Dark Pulse finished him.

Greninja was also baffled, but blinked as he was sharp, and knew Nic better than that. Nic would never go down so easily, and that's when the dust cleared that Greninja's eyes narrowed.

Vanessa, Erza, and everyone there saw the dust clear, and the temperature around them dropped drastically all of a sudden.

"No way…this power…" Erza said.

"I remember this smell. It's terrifying, and so cold. It's like my nerves got paralyzed." Natsu murmured.

"What are you talking about?" Gray wondered. Everyone there then saw a faint light from within the dispersing dust cloud, and they all went wide-eye when they saw the ground in a ten-foot radius frozen solid with stalagmites. The air was full of sparks of blue electricity.

Yveltal, Greninja, and Xerneas all were surprised when electricity flared as a creature took Nic's place, and the ice continued to increase in output, making more stalagmites.

"Nic?" Sophie wondered.

Nic roared very loudly, making even more electricity flare and the ice shattered, showing tremendous power and shockwaves made everyone stay down on the ground. The earth shook massively from the roar and the energy given off, and Nic then glared coldly.

"**Legendary Force – Black Kyurem!**" Nic declared, roaring once more into the sky, making a tremor and a shockwave of electricity and ice occur.

Xerneas reared back and Yveltal grew startled; that is, until Yveltal was struck from the side with Dark Pulse, making him jerk back into the air and shift his attention towards Greninja.

"Nic! I got this! You stop Xerneas!" Greninja shouted, launching his Water Shuriken at Yveltal.

Nic growled and glared at Xerneas, who remained immobile. Nic roared, and he let loose a monstrous Ice Beam attack, which froze the air and made ripples of ice scatter about as the attack shot like a missile. Xerneas was struck right in the face, making him screech harshly as tons of ice shattered and crashed into him, making him skid back several trembling feet and then Xerneas wailed as he then fell on his side, making the desolate grove shake.

Xerneas got his legs under him and slowly got back up. His face was slightly blue from the Ice Beam, and Greninja grinned briefly as he was in midair, dodging Yveltal's talons. _'(Nic's Legendary Force. With that, he has the equal power of the Legendary he takes the form of.)' _He then frowned. _'(However, he only has so much time before all of his power is exhausted. He has to hit Xerneas and Yveltal with everything he's got!)' _He then landed and backflipped to dodge Yveltal's mighty tail.

Nic stepped forward, making ice cover the ground beneath him. He clenched his icy clawed hand. "Now we have a fair fight! Come at me!"

Xerneas screeched and Nic roared, both monsters ready for the real battle to begin.

* * *

**How's that? I know some would've preferred for Nic to use another Legendary Force, but at this point, only Black Kyurem and White Kyurem are available. I have something intended later on for Nic to be gifted with new Legendary Force Forms. **

**I noticed that most, if not all, Fairy Tail Arcs end with a big battle, so I made it so that this could be that enormous battle. Getting everyone involved was such a hassle, so I minimized it so it was just Nic and Greninja against the Legendary duo. **

**A lot happened this chapter, but there is one more chapter left in this Arc, and I'm ending it with a monstrous bang, or at least the most epic battle up to date, either way, I'm gonna make it so that this Arc/battle is the highlight of this story.**

**Lisanna's Drapion Take Over will debut in the Tenrou Island Arc, so hang tight until then. As for the Tenrou Island Arc, I got **_**huge **_**plans there, but I'm still working them out. For now, let me know what you think of the Kalos Arc and the battles so far.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are ecstatic about the final chapter of the Kalos Arc coming up, the insanity of the battles, and the epic suspense that makes you want to beg for more.**

* * *

**Next Time: Life &amp; Death – Part II**


	42. Life & Death - Part II

Chapter 42 – Life &amp; Death – Part II

**Sup peeps, this is the last chapter of the Kalos Arc, so I hope it satisfies you!**

**There's a story that Coral the Leviathan has been working on involving Vanessa. Her new story is a crossover of this story and RWBY, so check it out when the first chapter is posted.**

**Time for the big finish! Time for the Kalos Arc's last chapter!**

**To Recap:**

After Erza defeated a wild Scyther, they set up camp for the night, where in the morning, Nic is seen training. Later, Nic senses a portal and heads over towards Victory Road, where he briefly battled a Hydreigon and soon enough finds the portal. They were halted by a tainted Yveltal and Xerneas, who easily took down the Mages, and when Yveltal fired a Dark Pulse at Vanessa, Nic rushed in and saved her, unleashing his Legendary Force – Black Kyurem in the process.

* * *

**Chapter 42 – Life &amp; Death – Part II**

If you were several miles away, you could've heard thunder and booming, even feel the ground shift just a little, and if you were able to see Victory Road, you could've seen explosions and dark clouds spread out as far as the eye could see.

Nic was engulfed in electricity as his turbine tail was light blue, and he roared through the air as he lunged at the tainted Xerneas, the earth cracking behind him and the ice shattering. He zoomed in the blink of an eye, leaving Xerneas momentarily open.

"**Hyper Voice!**" Nic let loose a powerful and devastating, ear-splitting roar that emanated rippling shockwaves through the airspace. The ground where Xerneas stood started chipping off pieces of rock that flew backwards, and Xerneas tried to hold his ground, but was skidding back a few feet from the sheer force the Hyper Voice gave off.

With an opening, Nic opened his mouth as he formed a blue orb of electricity, the air freezing around him once more. "**Ice Beam!**" Nic unleashed several icy blue beams at Xerneas as the latter shook his head, trying to shake off the uneasiness of the Hyper Voice. Ice Beam made its mark and struck Xerneas's head, making the Fairy-Type screech as he skidded back several feet, barely holding his own ground, though the ground itself started to turn to solid ice from the remanence of the Ice Beam.

In a matter of moments, Xerneas whipped his head around, making the ice and the Ice Beam deflect in all directions, bits of ice in small shockwaves echoed about from the lash-out, and Nic covered up as bits of ice bombarded him and the earth and air around him.

Fortunately, everyone else was spared as they were a large proximity away. Erza requipped into her Heart Kreuz Armor and finally got to her feet. Her long, red hair wisped in the cold and ecstatic air as Nic dueled with Xerneas.

"This power is beyond human." She stated flat. She then turned around and looked at the group. "Everyone, we must get to higher ground and away from the battle at once!"

Though shocked, everyone knew it was the safest solution. Natsu was the one who put his foot down. "Are you serious Erza?! We can't leave Nic over there to fight alone!"

"We have no choice! This area is too dangerous and we can't engage or charge recklessly towards the portal because we'll catch Xerneas and Yveltal's attention!" Erza looked back to see Nic roaring, continuing his onslaught with a powerful and massive Dragon Pulse at the ground under Xerneas, making a powerful draconic, multicolored explosion that made Xerneas pounce to avoid flying rock and debris, the explosion covering a large area.

After Nic lunged with high velocity with his right claw glowing and extending with Slash, he struck Xerneas's horns, making white static discharge on an unforeseen level, though this clash was a brief two seconds before Nic and Xerneas backed off and both landed with powerful thuds on the ground.

Erza knew deep down, she wanted to stay and help Nic in whatever way possible, but this was her only course of action. The Legendary duo, and the ones before, were beyond what she could've imagined. She had no idea that Pokémon had such monstrous potential, perhaps even more than she could ever achieve.

Her resolve was clear, and she turned back towards the others. "Fall back, that is an order!" Reluctantly, everybody followed and ran off towards whatever was left of the mountains nearby. Vanessa turned back once more, seeing her big brother quarreling with the monsters with Greninja holding off one of them.

"Nic, please be alive when this is over." Vanessa prayed, and turned back and ran with Erza and the others.

Nic roared monstrously at Xerneas as he unleashed a fierce Ancient Power from his body, the silver sphere making streams of energy from behind as it traveled across the airspace. Xerneas's horns expanded as he unleashed his Megahorn and screeched up to the air. Xerneas then lowered his head and then took off towards Nic, colliding the Megahorn with the Ancient Power, making a very powerful shockwave rattle the ground once again. Xerneas held his ground as the silver sphere exploded and expanded, making smoke surge and dust ripple briefly.

Nic arced his wings and took flight once more. When he escalated to a high enough velocity, his Black Kyurem eyes glared at Xerneas's blood red ones, both wanting the other to fall. Nic narrowed his gaze and opened his mouth, letting loose a disastrous Blizzard that was like a frozen hurricane, a violent storm of snow and ice that expanded over the vast area and engulfing Xerneas in the sheer freezing attack.

Yveltal and Greninja were currently away from the Blizzard, feeling the cold ice and snow from where they were. Yveltal screeched violently as he coated himself in draconic energy and ascended with a swift burst of speed and spread his wings out and dived downwards with a Dragon Rush.

Greninja tensed up and used Smokescreen as cover, encasing the area around him in thick black smoke. Within the smoke, Greninja made haste and sped out of the way, so fast that he was a blur. Yveltal crashed into the ground, Dragon Rush missing again. More dust and smoke dispersed, in which Smokescreen dispersed just like that, and shockwaves palpitated to no end. Though not hit, the force behind Yveltal's impact to the ground make Greninja fly and tumble backwards.

Greninja skid backwards and landed on his back, his body covered from head to toe in scrapes and scratches from the force he's accumulated. Yveltal arose from the ground, screeching once more with wings spread out and dust ceased to fly, revealing the avian in a crater and still ready to keep thrashing away.

Greninja grunted. "(This guy's hardly taking damage at all.)" He noted, seeing Yveltal ascend. "(This dark power combined with his Dark Aura must be amplifying his power. I don't think it's wise to face him head-on. Nic, hurry.)" Greninja then let loose a battlecry as he had Water Shuriken ready as he charged at Yveltal.

Xerneas's horns glowed a dark purple, in which he then swung his horns and Nic ascended quickly, dodging the Night Slash and watching with surprise as the shockwave from the Night Slash swing shatter the ground once more.

"Night Slash?" Nic said quietly, turning back towards Xerneas, who looked up at him. "If he had Night Slash, then Yveltal's Dark Aura will make this situation all the more complicated. It seems I'll have to maintain a safe distance."

_Nic, Greninja, and Gabite were all panting heavily, as they had suffered a lot from the ever-going brawl. Nic struggled to keep balance as was Greninja and Gabite. The three were exhausted while Xerneas and Yveltal were still holding up well, despite their power being weakened from 'The Ultimate Weapon', but they were far from finished._

"_T-this world. T-these people." Nic stammered. "We have to save them!"_

"_(We won't fall.)" Greninja stated._

"_(If anyone's to fall, it'll be those monsters.)" Gabite said._

_Yveltal then flapped his wings, ascending and making winds surge like crazy. Yveltal reached a decent point and screeched once more, which echoed and unleashed a very strong Dark Pulse attack in which shot like a missile. Nc and his two teammates tensed up as the Dark Pulse went their way._

"_(Bring it on!)" Gabite shouted._

"_(We're not going down against you!)" Greninja shouted. The two then lunged ahead and let loose battlecries as Greninja used Water Pulse and Gabite had Slash ready._

"_Guys! Have at them!" Nic shouted. Just then, they were both swallowed up by the Dark Pulse, both coated in black and purple and a very drastic explosion. Nic went wide-eyed at that moment. "Guys!"_

_No answer through the explosion._

"_GUYS!" Nic shouted, but that only irritated Xerneas, who saw Nic and fired Moonblast at him. Nic turned in shock as he saw Moonblast heading his way. He had little room to think as he thought Greninja and Gabite were…_

_A shockwave pulsated from the black and purple explosion, and everything shined, and the Moonblast dispersed when it was hit by the powerful shockwave. Nic covered up as he skidded back a few feet. He looked over and his heart raced like crazy as his eyes widened and shook._

"_G-Greninja. Gabite." Nic murmured. From the center, he saw Greninja coated in a blue aura, feeling power fluctuate like that of a tide. In between his hands, he had a small dark and purple jumbled mess, in which looked like a Dark Pulse._

_As for Gabite, he was shining a bright light, engulfed in energy that made Yveltal and Xerneas cease attacking. Greninja didn't even look, as he knew what was going on. He simply smirked as he took a bit of Yveltal's Dark Pulse and made it his own, and Gabite was changing._

"_G-Gabite, you're…" Nic didn't have the words as Gabite began to grow and the tail grew, the fins expanded, and the neck elongated slightly. And when the light exploded, a shockwave echoed and Greninja jumped at that instant, gushing forth his new Dark Pulse attack, which struck Yveltal and made the avian screech and jerk back._

_Gabite's new Evolution roared, shaking the ground harshly, and Greninja landed, still smirking. "Gabite, you…"_

_Garchomp turned back and grinned. "(Let's admire later. Now we destroy.)" He said._

_Nic blinked and shook his head, his confidence back up. "You got it! We'll end this now! Greninja! Garchomp! Go!"_

_Though with Greninja having Torrent, he readied his new Dark Pulse and lunged right by Garchomp, who rushed in with Dual Chop towards the Legendaries._

Nic inhaled and unleashed a strong wind that was Icy Wind spread a vast blanket of cold throughout the area in front, Xerneas wincing as he skidded back a couple of feet. The tainted Fairy-Type wailed as he was feeling nothing but chills, which seemed to aggravate him.

From the nearby peaks, the group watched with concern and awe as Nic and Greninja held their own against the Legendary duo, but barely. Erza narrowed her eyes as she could feel the electricity surge and the air was pretty chilly.

Wendy shivered. "Is anyone else cold?"

Natsu was slightly shivering, but that was because he remembered the ferocious power Nic used against Jellal with the Legendary Force. The power Nic was using was very massive, and he wasn't sure how Nic was able to contain it all.

Natsu gulped and Lucy stepped by his side. "So, that's what Nic's Legendary Force is like. Other than that white one from destroying Nirvana." She said.

Natsu nodded. "Yeah. Though it's not Magic, this level is beyond any chart."

Gajeel snickered. "To think Luminous had such power. No wonder he's at the top of the food chain."

Erza and Vanessa both had narrowed eyes, but looked at Nic as he continued with Icy Wind. _'Nic.' _They thought in unison. _'You need to live.'_

Xerneas wailed at Nic. He then brought his horns around and swung then with Night Slash, the attack hitting Nic right on his right side, where his black-scaled arm was. He gawked as he was hit, and flew like a meteor diagonally into the earth, making a crater three yards in diameter.

As Nic grunted, feeling pain on his right side, he opened his left eye and saw Xerneas closing in and driving a front leg down towards him. He extended his black right arm and his icy left arm forwards and dug his claws into the incoming leg, stopping it in time. Nic struggled as he tried to shove the leg away, but Xerneas had him cornered, and he was still on his icy back and left with little room.

Nic glanced over, seeing the portal from afar. He saw how it looked unsettled and it seemed to be unstable. It probably didn't even have ten minutes left. Nic shot his glare back at Xerneas and growled heavily. Nic clutched the leg even tighter and he mustered up the strength he had and roared a battlecry as he slowly began to overpower the heavy leg.

With enough space set, he finally got to his feet and kept pushing the leg, making Xerneas struggle slightly. Nic then forced his arms downwards, bringing the large leg underneath and he jumped on it. He then landed and lunged with great force and let loose another roaring battlecry as he used Slash across Xerneas's face.

Xerneas reared away and Nic was airborne once more. "**Hyper Voice!**" Nic then unleashed a close-range, powerful, and devastating roar that transmitted through vast shockwaves that cracked and broke the ground even more. Xerneas wailed as he shook his head as the attack was causing him to lose focus and cause damage. He wailed as the Hyper Voice drowned him out, and then his footing was uneasy momentarily.

Xerneas forced through the attack and initiated Megahorn, thrusting his horns at Nic. Nic went wide-eyed and stopped his attack and quickly reacted by put his arms out in front and grabbed the horns, the force shaking up the area and he grunted as he was unbalanced in the air and Megahorn won out, flinging Nic diagonally upwards and he covered up until he stopped his rapid ascent.

Xerneas saw Nic momentarily dazed and used this opportunity to unleash Moonblast, the attack making a pink sphere in the center of his horns and Xerneas screeched as he then stomped and fired his Moonblast, the force making dust ripple underneath Xerneas's feet.

Nic huffed as he was feeling all worn out from using Legendary Force and so many moves at this point. His body was reaching a limit. He was slightly panting, but that left him vulnerable as Moonblast made way towards him. When he finally realized the attack was coming at him, his body was slightly numb. "Oh no-!"

Nic was engulfed by the Fairy-Type move, rapidly making a spherical pink explosion high in the sky that expanded to a high level of force and area, in which made a crater in the ground, a massive one, and winds surged as Xerneas made his mark.

"Nic!" Sophie shouted, with the girls having their mouths covered by their hands out of sheer shock. Erza and Vanessa's faces were struck with horror as they saw Nic fall like a shooting star from the dispersing pink explosion, landing with a massive boom and watching the ground shatter.

Lily grunted. "I don't get it! He should've dodged that!"

Natsu balled his fists. "Damnit. He's used that before, and he only used it for a few minutes, yet his body was beyond exhausted. Against that Zero guy, his white form went on much longer. I don't think he's used this much force yet."

Happy looked up at Natsu. "So you're saying Nic's probably at his limit?!"

Nic grunted as he was momentarily buried under rubble, barely able to move. _'Damnit. I'm hitting Xerneas with everything I have, and he's still formidable. My body hasn't been adapted for this long using Legendary Force.' _He mentally swore. He used his icy left arm and shoved a piece of rock off of himself, and struggled as he soon found himself on the rubble. He soon got to his feet, and wobbled slightly, and Xerneas looked coldly at him. _'I have to hurry. Now!'_

Nic then panted momentarily as he dashed after Xerneas through the air, discharging electricity that left the ground in frost and chunks of ice as he soared at a low altitude towards the tainted Fairy-Type. Xerneas saw him flying in and initiated Night Slash, the attack poised and ready to strike.

Nic's scaly black right arm reached out and the claws lengthened and glowed. "**Slash!**" Nic's attack made contact as Xerneas swung his head about, both attacks colliding and making purple and white static echo about. Nic grunted as he was feeling himself getting pushed back, but he powered through and held his balance in the air, letting loose a battlecry as he then opened up his claws and then reached and grabbed both sides of the front horns, surprising Xerneas.

Nic roared down at Xerneas. "I will not lose! Do you hear me?! I WILL NOT LOSE!" Nic's turbine tail pulsated more electricity as the energy given from his will made the air electrify and pulsate with a freezing feeling, now making Xerneas shiver slightly.

Nic opened his mouth and fired a large Blizzard right down on Xerneas's head, the severe Ice-Type move gushed and raged like a violent tempest that swallowed up everything. The ground was frozen solid almost immediately and Xerneas screeched and wailed as Nic let go and shot the more concentrated area of the Blizzard at Xerneas's head, where he aimed before. Xerneas flew back and skid on the icy ground, shattering it as he fell back and ice flew everywhere.

When the Blizzard dialed down, almost everything was covered in bits of frost and ice. Nic roared and then looked out at Greninja, who was still barely hanging on almost half a mile away.

Greninja was using his ninja-like and acrobatic agility to flip and raced along the frosty landscape that reached out to him and avoided the Dark Pulse that scattered all over, with Yveltal trailing the attack to no end, the ground breaking apart even more and Greninja saw some large rocks fly and he sought that as an opportunity and crouched.

"**Bounce!**" Greninja leaped from the ground and escalated up every rock possible with his light feet and gave a big leap, now jumping high into the air and above Yveltal. Greninja pivoted and then dived downwards. Yveltal turned around and brought his wings in front and blocked Greninja's feet. Greninja grunted as Yveltal sustained less than a mere budge and then bounced off of the wings and back into the air.

"Greninja!" Nic shouted, making Greninja turn his head in midair towards Nic. "**Water Shuriken!**"

Greninja nodded in midair. "(You got it!)" He then twisted in the air and shot his Water Shuriken attack towards Xerneas. The Water Shuriken were traveling alarmingly fast, and Nic smirked.

"Alright then." He zoomed in towards Xerneas as the Fairy-Type was getting back to his feet. "Let's see how you handle this! **Ancient Power!**" He zoomed towards his right upwards, now facing Xerneas's left side, the same direction where Water Shuriken was coming from. Nic made a silver sphere and aimed it low, shooting it towards Xerneas as Water Shuriken made contact with the Ancient Power.

Xerneas turned his head towards the two attacks to see the Water Shuriken splitting the Ancient Power into several little bits, now becoming silver shards that shot like missiles along with Water Shuriken in Xerneas's face. The glistening attack made Xerneas shriek in facial agony and he lost his footing and had his eyes shut from that sudden assault.

"Now choke on this!" Nic rushed in and opened his mouth. "**Ice Beam!**" He then fired a close-range Ice Beam and struck Xerneas yet again, making the Fairy-Type wail as the Ice Beam made him fall over to his side.

As Xerneas landed with a grand thud that made the ground quake, Nic zoomed away at a high speed, increasing velocity and acceleration. He then stopped at a certain point far away, and his sudden stop made a powerful wind from the ongoing force.

Nic then turned around as Xerneas was practically wincing and still highly vulnerable. He saw Xerneas stumbling and barely keeping his feet underneath. His Legendary Force dealt some nasty damage, but Nic didn't have any time left. He had to end this now.

The turbine on Nic's tail generated powerful electricity, and Nic started to make the air fry as he roared, letting his tail surge with light blue electricity. His body was then surrounded in a violet sphere of electricity. Nic then flew with massive force towards Xerneas, getting the momentum to keep himself from stopping.

As Xerneas shook his head, it was too late as Nic's attack rushed at blinding and electrifying speeds. Nic then let loose on last battlecry. "**Maxus Legendary Arts – Fusion Bolt!**" Nic roared one last time as Xerneas went wide-eyed and then a vast and powerful electric explosion swallowed everything in sight, almost obliterating the mere frost and dust that was in the air. The ground quaked to no end and Xerneas's scream could've been heard through the sheer static in the massive dome that was the electric explosion.

With Erza and the others, the saw the powerful attack and heard endless thunder rampaging all over, covering up as some sparks made it over to them. A lot of their hair stood on end, and they soon shook it off and saw the electrifying explosion dial down.

They all saw Xerneas in the center of a very massive crater that sparked with blue electricity all about. Nic was in front of Xerneas, keeping his balance and the electricity in the air started to dial down. Nic quietly panted as his body was covered in scratches, but was otherwise fine. He had narrow Black Kyurem eyes as he gave a low snarl as Xerneas twitched.

"You gotta be kidding." Nic panted slightly, seeing Xerneas slowly get up, despite being covered in sparks and wobbled heavily. Xerneas stood affirm, towering over a startled Nic. Xerneas took several moments and then screeched up to the sky one last time.

Nic then saw Xerneas's legs giving in, and then relief washed over him as Xerneas finally wailed weakly, his body succumbing and fell over one last time, the ground booming as Xerneas landed on his side, defeated.

Nic panted as he gave a victorious draconic roar to the skies above, making blue electricity boom once again that made ice appear on the ground. Nic then huffed and then looked forwards, seeing Xerneas lying unconscious in front of him. He saw the black evil haze starting to seep out and up into the air. Unlike Zygarde and Moltres, there was a massive amount seeping out and dispersed into thin air, the foul and intoxicating energy screeched violently about in the winds before being rid of for good and turning Xerneas back to his original colors.

_Greninja charged with Dark Pulse towards Xerneas, and the Fairy-Type screeched and then used Gravity, emanating black waves of energy from his body, of which made the whole area intensify in gravity. Greninja suddenly felt heavy and his movements were slowed down, but he kept trying. Despite being slowed down, he aimed and unleashed his Dark Pulse attack at Xerneas. The attack scored a hit, making Xerneas flinch and wince._

_Greninja smirked, and then he huffed with Smokescreen, obscuring their view. _

_Within the vast cloud, Yveltal was brought to the ground, which was an unfortunate side effect of Gravity. Yveltal screeched in annoyance, yet it left him open and Garchomp roared and unleashed Dual Chop, dealing damage on Yveltal's face. Garchomp then dove back into the cloud of smoke._

_Xerneas then used Moonblast through the Smokescreen, making a violent pink explosion erupt, sending shockwaves all around. Nic narrowed his eyes as he covered up and grunted. He saw the smoke disperse and it revealed the two not being present._

_Nic smirked and he knew what was going on. "Garchomp, let them get what they deserve! Greninja, __**Water Pulse!**__" Just then, the ground under Yveltal gave in, and Gravity kept Yveltal from escaping and the Dark and Flying-Type was struck from the abdomen by Garchomp, making the avian screech and fall back. While Garchomp was in midair, Greninja leaped out of the hole and the Water Pulse was massive, and threw it with everything he had at Xerneas, the Torrent-influenced attack striking Xerneas on the side with a booming explosion of water, making the Fairy-Type fall over._

_Greninja and Garchomp both landed quickly. Despite gravity being heavy, they were still fast at least, and that was the advantage they needed. "__**Slash! Dark Pulse!**__" Nic commanded consecutively. Garchomp's right claw then glowed and he rushed with powerful force. Greninja put his hands by his side and then stored black and purple energy, feeling it build up and he let loose a battlecry, letting loose Dark Pulse right by Garchomp. _

_The Dark Pulse fused with Garchomp's claw, and Garchomp had black and purple trailing with a glowing center. He roared monstrously as Xerneas got back up. The Legendary screeched, but Garchomp continued onwards, and he saw Xerneas ready a Moonblast._

"_(You think that'll stop me?!)" Garchomp shouted, heading towards the catastrophic pink sphere launched his way. Garchomp raced ahead and was mere inches away from the sphere. He then shifted left and zoomed with great speed past the Moonblast, which exploded upon hitting a nearby wall behind Nic and Greninja, though the two were unfazed._

"_(You're going down!)" Garchomp shouted, slashing away across Xerneas with extreme force, violent tempests raging as Xerneas screeched loudly, being hit with a brutal attack. The Fairy-Type skid back harshly, screaming all the way and finally crashing with an explosive burst of energy. Garchomp landed and roared in triumph._

Back then, Xerneas and Yveltal were much weaker because some of their power was sapped, but now Nic realized that the power from before was nothing, and he had defeated the real deal that was Xerneas.

Everyone at the peak cheered in joy as Nic defeated Xerneas, but barely. "That's showing them Nic!" "YAY!" "His power is unbelievable." "Yeah, it's inhumane. It's Legendary."

Lily huffed. "It seems Nic has managed to suffice this long." He then frowned. "However, take a look at him."

Everyone there then gazed down and their joy diminished when they saw Nic get to a knee, panting heavily. His body was quivering and his energy seemed depleted. Lily grim analysis was starting to make reality. "I'm afraid Nic used up too much power against Xerneas."

Erza gritted her teeth and clenched her arms. _'I was afraid of this. He's only used it twice before, and both times he's exhausted his power after using his final move. It's that final move that drains his power. This is bad.'_

Nic heaved as he looked over and saw Greninja tumbling away, landing on his side with a thud. He saw Greninja wince in pain and Yveltal looked over from the air and saw Xerneas was down. The avian was silent for a moment before screeching loudly, making a small quake.

Now it was at that point Nic realized he was in deep trouble. Nic punched the ground as he was trying to keep his balance. _'This isn't good…I used up a lot my power…against Xerneas.' _Nic panted as Yveltal was flapping and ascending into the air above. _'Using a normal Legendary Arts drains the Plate I am active in, and a Maxus Legendary Arts drains my power when in Legendary Force.' _

His eyes narrowed. _'This is looking grim. I don't think I can do another Maxus Legendary Arts. Damnit!'_

"Nic! Incoming!" Greninja shouted from afar. Nic was brought out of his thoughts when he saw Yveltal high in the air, and zooming in with Dragon Rush. Though heavily strained and exhausted, Nic pressed on and got to his feet. Nic crouched and he ascended quickly into the air. He narrowed his eyes as Yveltal changed trajectory and angle so the massive draconic shape would hit him in the air.

"**Icy Wind!**" He shouted, unleashing his Ice-Type move at Yveltal, letting loose the wind that engulfed the Dragon Rush and Yveltal, making the attack slow down and Yveltal wincing. The large avian was forced off course slightly, and Yveltal's Dragon Rush ceased as the avian screeched and jerked away.

"Huh?" Lucy wondered.

Lily stepped forwards. "It appears that Nic's Legendary Force's Ice related attacks are highly effective on Yveltal." Lily said.

"Hang in there Nic." Vanessa hoped.

Nic let loose a draconic roar and opened his mouth, gushing forth a multicolored dragon-shaped beam, via Dragon Pulse. The attack's head made contacted and chomped down on Yveltal, swallowing the tainted Legendary in a multicolored explosion.

Nic exhaled and inhaled as his body felt as though it's been circling the world twice with no rest. He's never been pushed this far in this Legendary Force. His body was starting to get off balance in the air and he grunted as he struggled. He shook himself of his fatigue and his conical turbine tail generated electricity and he let loose a shockwave as he jetted past the explosion behind.

He exhaled frost as Yveltal's wings were seen flapping within the dispersing smoke and Nic narrowed his eyes and roared as he used Ice Beam, the attack beaming through the air towards Yveltal.

The tainted Legendary turned and the blood red eyes glowed light blue, and then the Ice Beam was put to a halt. Nic gasped and jerked back as Yveltal used Psychic and manipulated Nic's attack right back at him, the severed ice-blue beams shooting at Nic.

"**Blizzard!**" Nic shouted, and unleashed a mighty and very forceful storm that was Blizzard from his mouth, whipping everything around him in a tempest of cold and frigid snow and frost. The raging Blizzard whipped about, and the force of the violent attack was just enough to obscure Yveltal's vison and focus, stopping Psychic, which made the Ice Beam zoom back with the added tailwind given from Blizzard.

Yveltal screeched in monstrous pain as he was swallowed in the frigid attack, frost and powerful snow bashed his body and all anyone heard was screaming.

Nic grunted, thinking that should have at least weakened him greatly. He waited anxiously and cautiously for when the attack settled. He then widened his gaze slightly upon seeing Yveltal flapping in place and having a veil around himself.

"(What?!)" Greninja exclaimed. "(He used Psychic to push the air around him, making a shield?!)"

Yveltal flapped until the Blizzard dialed down until there was no more snow and frost. Afterwards, Yveltal continued to remain in place, and Nic grunted in frustration. "Damnit!" He muttered. "That attack didn't do anything…" He then gaped slightly when he looked closer to see bits of frost here and there on Yveltal. "Wait a minute-!" He suddenly felt exhaustion, and he fell a few feet before regaining balance.

He panted as his gaze was slightly hazy. "My body…it's so worn out…but I managed to deal damage to Yveltal before he used Psychic. He must have taken the attack briefly before deflecting it with Psychic. If I hold out just a little longer, I should be able to have him on the run."

Nic then opened his mouth and fired Dragon Breath, the attack releasing a blue beam and Yveltal saw it and ascended with haste, the Dragon Breath missing. Nic looked up and grunted and Yveltal circled and flipped in the air, flapping his wings and seeing Nic in distress.

"(Nic!)" Greninja shouted.

"I know!" Nic exclaimed back. Nic tried mustering up more power and his vision started to get hazy for two seconds, but he was still able to get a blur of Yveltal's blood red, and his vison cleared and he fired Ice Beam, the attack rippling ice throughout the air, freezing it. Yveltal shifted left and circled about. Nic continued firing the Ice Beam throughout the air, trailing to no end as Yveltal ascended upwards and away, flying right past the Ice Beam and tilting his body, finally circling around it once more and looking back at Nic, not even grazing the Ice Beam.

Yveltal screeched and Nic panted in midair. He was starting to wear out fast, and continuing on in his condition was of no benefit. He growled as his vision was getting blurry yet again; this time, his head was getting light and his tail turbine wasn't moving as fast. _'I don't know if I can…' _His conscience was growing weary and uneasy as he didn't realize that he was slowly descending.

"Oh no!" Happy shouted.

Carla grew very worried. "Nic's losing lots of power. If I'm not mistaken, he just reached his limit."

Gajeel balled his fists. "Luminous. This isn't looking good."

Yveltal screeched as he saw Nic in a dilemma and then spread his wings and tail forwards and let loose Dark Pulse, the attack shredding the air and heading towards Nic with the possibility of ending him.

"Nic!" Erza shouted, seeing Nic descend slightly some more.

Nic growled as he looked and saw the raging Dark Pulse attack heading his way. He shook himself violently and retained his previous focus. He quickly ascended and dodged the Dark Pulse, the attack exploding upon hitting the ground below.

Nic heaved heavily and then he rushed at Yveltal, who in return flew towards Nic. Nic readied Slash as he was starting to get close. He then jerked upwards just as he was two feet away and zoomed past Yveltal, using Slash as he went over it and grazing the back, making Yveltal let another neutral screech emit. Nic pivoted and twisted, turning back to see Yveltal doing a U-turn and coming back around, back up towards Nic. The Legendary Force user opened up his mouth and fired Ice Beam yet again at the incoming monstrosity. The icy cold beams shot away, yet Yveltal screech and tilted his body here and there, dodging Nic's Ice-Type move and heading his way, talons stretched out.

"Nic! Hurry and get out of the way!" Sophie shouted.

Nic grunted and shifted right, but the force Yveltal had made him tumbled and get caught off balance in the air. Nic yelped as he was tumbling and spinning out, his whole world hazily spinning, and his body and mind were beginning to struggle to coincide.

Yveltal turned and looked back down at Nic and screeched down at him, the horns glowing and then getting cloaked in draconic dragon-shaped energy. Yveltal then rushed with Dragon Rush. The monstrous dragon-shaped Yveltal screeched once more as he made way towards Nic.

"Nic! Move!" Happy shouted.

"Nic! Look out!" Lisanna shouted.

"NIC!" Natsu and Gray shouted in unison.

Nic was unable to act. His mind could barely hold on, and he caught one glimpse of Yveltal before being struck and passed by Dragon Rush. A glint was seen as Yveltal's Dragon Rush zoomed on and faded and Nic's scream echoed violently throughout the air as a massive draconic explosion swallowed everything in sight.

"…no…no!" Vanessa murmured as she saw the image over and over again, Nic getting struck with Dragon Rush, the violent screaming, the very large explosion, she had hands to her mouth and started choking. "N-NIC! NIC!"

Nic only heard silence. No wind. No explosion. Nothing. He wasn't sure if he was even conscious. He did feel a slight breeze on his back though, which indicated he was falling.

Nic was falling head-first out of the sky, his eyes were shut and his body was covered by the streaming smoke. He suffered extreme damage, and everyone looked in fear as Nic fell and didn't look like he would be getting his balance back.

Yveltal turned around and took only a second to see Nic falling from the sky. When he was close to Yveltal's eye level, the tainted Legendary brought his limbs forward and launched a terrifying Dark Pulse. The attack rattled the airspace as it was zooming towards a barely conscious Nic.

"NIC!" Erza shouted, her eyes filled with shattered emotions as the Dark Pulse went after the fallen hero.

"**NIC!**" Vanessa screamed at the top of her lungs, her scream echoing as Nic was still falling head-first.

Out of the blue, in a brief blue blur, several Water Shuriken spun at high speed, scoring hits on Yveltal's left facial side, rather close to the eyes. Yveltal was thrown off with the disturbance and the Dark Pulse's trajectory was tilted a little upwards, missing Nic by a mere few inches.

From below, Greninja zoomed upwards with Bounce, jumping as high as he could while Yveltal was distracted and caught Nic. Despite how heavy Nic's become, Greninja didn't care. He landed on the ground with dust rippling, and quickly looked down at Nic's condition.

It was beyond devastating. Some of his black scales were chipped off, his body coated in scrapes and a few gashes. The ice on his entire left arm and wing were both cracked, making him unstable.

"(Nic! Nic! Answer me!)" Greninja pleaded down to his pal in his arms, but all Nic could do was wince and barely open his eyes, with showed haziness.

Yveltal screeched in the air, and Greninja looked up and grunted. "(Damn you!)" He shouted angrily. "(You're gonna pay!)" Greninaj eased Nic down to the ground turned towards Yveltal and then crouched and dashed with the grace of a ninja.

Nic groaned as he felt as though his body was splitting in two. He's never felt this kind of pain before. The Dragon Claw to the gut and the torture from several days ago was one thing, but going this long in Legendary Force was making Nic unstable.

"Nic! We're coming!" Natsu shouted, and everyone made a desperate break down the rough peak towards Nic. Though Yveltal was busy quarreling with Greninja, dodging his Water Shuriken, the large monster did notice the group heading downhill and then his eyes lit up, and the group that was descending was coated in light blue.

"H-hey! I can't move!" Lucy shrieked.

"Me either! I think Yveltal is-!" Wendy wasn't able to say another word before Yveltal screeched and widened the eyes a bit, and the group was shot backwards, flying and screaming as they crashed on their backs into the dirt at the spot where they watched.

The group groaned and rubbed their heads, feeling stinging sensations all over their bodies as they tried to get up, seeing Yveltal jerk back and evade Greninja's Dark Pulse.

"Guys…I think Yveltal wants no interference." Sophie said dejectedly.

Vanessa got up and she put a hand on her own back, and looked to see Nic still lying down. She hesitated for a moment, but then tried to make a break, but only got a few feet before Gajeel grabbed her and held her up. "Hey! Put me down! I have to go and save him!"

Gajeel groaned and shook his head. "No a chance. You heard the blondie, we get close and we'll be vaporized."

"B-But…" Vanessa started getting misty in the eyes as Nic still wasn't moving.

"Believe me shrimp, I feel as bad as you, but we'd only be getting the way. We're just going to have to bet Luminous finds his way out of this." The Iron Dragon Slayer set her down, and Sophie put a hand on Vanessa's shoulder as the Pularis sibling started to tear up, unable to tolerate Nic suffering.

Erza was using every ounce of her will to keep herself from rushing ahead and getting Nic back to his feet. She was just as desperate as Vanessa, but found that the results would still end in a stalemate. She regrettably bit her lower lip in great frustration and balled her fists so hard that they were shaking.

Nic was slowly opening his eyes, getting fading images of his surroundings as he was feeling his body give up. _'I can't move.' _He thought. He turned his head barely to see some chipped scales and gashes, not to mention his cracked left arm. _'I can't believe this was as far as I've gotten. How could I have been so dumb? How could I have pushed myself to the point of near-death? Why didn't I stop after using Fusion Bolt?' _

Too many questions rolled through Nic's mind and he was starting to see darkness fill in the empty spaces of his mind. His head felt extremely light, and he wasn't certain if he was going to make it through the fight.

Greninja continued his quarrel, barely holding up, and he backflipped and dodged a Dark Pulse, but was unable to find room to attack. He looked over and saw Nic stirring. _'(Nic. Come on. We've been through worse, thick and thin. You've been through Hell and back too many times. Fight!)' _He mentally screamed.

'_G-Greninja?' _Nic wondered. _'Somehow, I can hear his plea. H-How is that…oh right. How foolish could I have been? We're one and the same.' _Nic tried desperately with every ounce of will he had and he twitched his right hand, sending a pain through his arm. Nic winced even more and tried getting up, which nearly made him gag in agony. _'This hurts. But, I've held my own, and I've been through worse.' _

Nic's conscience was starting to lose any and all fuzz, and he balled both fists. He gritted his teeth as his body was feeling like giving up, but Nic refused to lose. _'I can't! I won't! Back down!' _He was starting to sit up and his body shook as he placed a hand on the ground, not feeling anything. _'I don't care what my body feels like right now! I refuse to die! I refuse to leave everyone!'_

Nic growled as he finally stood up, not even feeling any breeze. His eyes were still hazy, but he refused to care. "I…am…Nic…Pularis!" Nic declared. He had his aching body tense up, putting intense pressure on himself and started the turbine on his tail again, generating power.

Lily looked with shock. "I don't believe this! He's pushing himself beyond the limit!"

"Nic already unstable! What's gonna happen?!" Wendy exclaimed.

Yveltal had talons stretched out and poised at Greninja, who could barely move. The large avian was getting closer and was about to end Greninja, who was still going on until the bitter end. Greninja then caught an Ice Beam from the corner of his eye, and he saw the attack hit Yveltal's body, making the avian screech and crash into the ground, ice covering the abdomen.

Greninja jerked over. "(Nic?!)" He saw Nic rushing with intensity, running over towards Greninja. Greninja saw Nic almost lose footing several times and saw his hazy, bloodshot, Black Kyurem eyes. Nic trudged and stopped right in front of Greninja, grunting as he almost fell over.

Greninja smirked. "(You do realize that you're gonna fall apart, yet you're gonna keep going anyways, right?)"

"What else…do you expect?" Nic panted. Nic turned back towards Yveltal, who screeched and flew back in the air, flapping and made strong winds. Nic grunted as he could feel his body going numb again, but he didn't quit as he then opened his mouth and fired Dragon Pulse, the attack making Nic's insides hurt like no tomorrow.

The Dragon Pulse surged through the air, yet Yveltal circled around it, dodging and watching the attack explode behind him. Yveltal then screeched as he then winced slightly, the frost and scrapes on himself from earlier were starting to sting. He saw Nic now on a knee, and sought this as the chance to kill him.

Nic hesitated for a moment, but didn't back down as he then turned towards Greninja, only seeing a dark blue blur in his eyes. "Greninja. Get out of here. I'm gonna end this."

Though he didn't want to, Greninja had no say. He trusted Nic, and vice versa, so Greninja zoomed away in a blur, heading off and Nic then let loose a painful battlecry as he had the ice spikes in his back stretch out, reaching his tail. The chords then began to change to a blue color, the electricity and ice beginning to surge, which made Nic feel as though nails were churning in his body, and his head too hazy, but he kept going.

"I'm not gonna lose here! I've fought you before! And I shall-NO! I _will _defeat you again!" Nic declared, his vision getting slightly less blurry. He roared as he generated even more power, and he couldn't help but scream as it felt like more nails grinding and churning through his tattered body.

Yveltal then began charging a transparent violet energy. He was gonna finish Nic with Oblivion Wing. Both were charging, and Nic charged and discharged a lot of electricity and ice about the area. He put his claws together and he began surging energy, a light blue-white ball surrounded in endless electricity was being made, and Nic felt his left arm cracking slightly from the exerted force.

Nic grunted and winced from the agonizing ruin, and Yveltal screeched loudly as he unleashed his massive Oblivion Wing attack at Nic, the attack making the air shatter again. Everyone watching gasped as the attack went rushing at Nic, and Nic made last-ditch move and tried to put his claws in front, the small sphere of immense power up front and the Oblivion Wing struck the attack, the violet and light blue attack colliding in Nic's hands as he struggled to keep it concentrated.

The force unleashed from the Oblivion Wing made a violent boom echo and Nic closed his eyes and grunted as he felt himself get pushed back while blocking with the sphere in his hands. Dust rampaged and the ground shook like a massive Earthquake attack, everything jumped around and the ground began to crack with large bits of ice from the electricity Nic was unleashing.

"IT-FEELS LIKE-MY BODY-IS BEING-RIPPPED APART!" Nic shrieked, screaming as he struggled to keep himself barely on his feet as the sphere in his hands was still holding off the Oblivion Wing's beam from devouring him.

Nic was close to seeing fuzzies again, and his power was beginning to make more scales shatter, but Nic went wide-eyed when he heard a voice.

"(You can do this Nic!)" Greninja shouted from afar, screaming out towards Nic. Nic paused as his energy was kept stable and Greninja shouted out to Nic. "(We've been through worse! We promised to achieve greatness and we have! We're still not done! We'll never succumb to such evil! No amount of evil will keep us down! All the way!)"

"Get your butt in gear Nic!" Gray shouted.

"Go Nic!" Lucy shouted.

"Do it for everyone!" Natsu shouted.

"We believe in you! You can do this!" Erza shouted.

"FIGHT NIC!" Vanessa shouted.

'_G-Guys…' _Nic looked left and right, picturing images of all his friends and his team right by his side, smiling and giving off their determined expressions, much like when they stopped Extalia from being destroyed in Edolas. The images and pictures he saw glanced over towards him, all grinning. His team, his sister, and Erza.

Realizing he made it this far with all of them, Nic gave a determined gaze, his eyes no longer hazy and he started pushing beyond the pain. "I WON'T BACK DOWN! I HAVE A SISTER! I HAVE A TEAM! THEY ARE MY FAMILY!" Nic tensed up and grunted with battlecries integrated as he was giving off immense pressure, the sphere beginning to increase in size and the amount of electricity discharge like crazy all around, freezing the ground entirely once more and making the earth shake. Dust flew far more violently than Oblivion Wing from a few seconds ago, and Nic continued to emit large pressure and power, despite his arms were ready to implode.

"THERE'S ONE MORE THING! I…AM…A FAIRY TAIL MAGE!" He shouted, the Oblivion Wing's force and energy starting to draw back upwards towards Yveltal. "AND WE DON'T KNOW THE MEANING OF GIVING UP!"

Nic screamed as the sphere was now his size, and the ground boomed and thundered with large electricity and ice. Yveltal screeched as he saw Oblivion Wing losing and saw the immense power Nic unleashed.

"**Maxus Legendary Arts – Freeze Shock!**" Nic shouted, and the faint images of his friends around him pushed and Nic threw the sphere, launching it with massive ice-like shockwaves through the air, freezing it and making the temperature drop drastically yet electrified it. Nic roared at the top of his lungs as the Freeze Shock shot straight through Oblivion Wing, and the ground upon being launched broke into pieces of ice, the entire Victory Road quaking and cracking as ice and electricity surged as far as the eye could see. The entire landscape of Victory Road was fractured, cracked, and Nic roared as ice froze everything entirely in the grove, and Yveltal screamed at the top of his lungs as he was swallowed in a freezing ball of electricity, engulfing the sky in a flashing light-like fireworks going off, and nonstop booming echoed.

Thousands of shockwaves and ice rushed to every place imaginable, and everyone covered up as they all flew back and their backs struck the icy ground that was also fractured. They all screamed and violent tempests ravage everything, and a shockwave echoed through the air once, stretching for miles.

It took a couple of minutes for the rumbling to stop and everyone looked with startled gazes as Nic stood there, his scales still barely intact, and his wings and everything barely held together. From the skies above, Yveltal fell and let weak scream echo. Yveltal crashed into the ground with a monstrous thud, the appendages frozen and static froze the body. Yveltal unable to move, the body unable to act, defeated.

_Greninja pushed Water Pulse at Yveltal, which scored a powerful hit right in the abdomen. Yveltal was engulfed in an explosion of water and sailed back several feet and landed on his back. Yveltal slowly arose and fired Dark Pulse as he was still on the ground. Greninja dodged and there was another explosion underneath. In the air, Greninja let loose his Dark Pulse, the attack surging like crazy. It struck Yveltal's abdomen again, and then out of the blue, Garchomp struck from underneath with Dig, striking Yveltal's back and made the avian screech in pain._

_Yveltal landed on his abdomen with a thunderous thud, and then felt his body lighten up, and realized Gravity was over. Yveltal finally ascended, but suffered many scrapes and bruises. In the air, he started conjuring energy, and the violet energy that was Oblivion Wing started to form._

"_GRENINJA! __**WATER PULSE!**__" Nic screamed. _

_Greninja jumped up and then made a Water Pulse that was his size. He let a flash of images of Nic and his team surface and he felt the Water Pulse grow stronger, and screamed as he let loose the violent Water-Type move._

_The Water Pulse zoomed and struck the Oblivion Wing as it was still forming in Yveltal's center. The Oblivion Wing was unstable, and Yveltal felt the force of Water Pulse, screaming at the top of his lungs and was engulfed in an explosion of violet and water, making the walls of the lab shatter and Nic, Greninja, and Garchomp all fell back from the force. They all saw Yveltal fall from the smoke cloud above with a screech and crashed, hitting the ground with a thud, defeated right in front of an unconscious Xerneas._

Everyone watching gaped their mouths in sheer shock. They have _never ever _seen an attack as destructive as that in their entire lives. They all felt chills rise as they never saw Nic release that much power before. Erza and Natsu were there when Nic used the same move against Jellal before, but this Freeze Shock had far more power behind it.

"…whoa." Gajeel muttered.

"Yeah…whoa." Natsu muttered.

Nic roared up to the skies in triumph, and then panted, exhaling frost. The electricity in the air dwindled, and then Nic was coated in a flashy rainbow light, reverting back to himself. Nic's entire body was coated in bruises and gashes. Some parts of his hands and arms were purple from extreme exhaustion, and his eyes were bloodshot and hazy. He fell forwards with a thud in unconsciousness.

"Nic!" Erza shouted. With the fight finally won, Erza and the group raced down to where Nic was. Greninja got there first, turning Nic over and checked his heart beat. It was very low, but at least he was still alive.

Erza and the others eventually caught up, and Vanessa and Erza both jerked towards Nic and got their knees, his head resting on Erza's lap. With no delay, Wendy proceeded to healing Nic as quick as she could. Unlike the fight with the assailant, his injured were less drastic, but still difficult nonetheless.

The girls and everyone present was beyond relieved as Nic was slowly looking better, but was still unconscious. Vanessa smiled at her brother. "Nic, you did it. You've become so strong."

Greninja smiled. "(Nic's gone pretty far this time. Well done buddy, well done.)"

Everyone smiled and Erza was very ecstatic, just as glad as Vanessa. "I knew you could do it." She muttered as she looked down at him.

Happy chuckled. "You loooove hi-!" Happy was then delivered a punch from Erza, making him whine with a bump on his head.

There were some sounds being heard, and the Dragon Slaters all turned their heads. They saw some rocks moving and that the evil emanating from Yveltal slowly turned into thin air. They all heard wails and everyone turned to look and saw the colors on Yveltal return to normal, and that the darkness emanated from him dispersed, the foul negativity vanishing.

Soon, they all saw Yveltal slowly get up, shaking off the painful and icy static, and they saw the ice from afar shift, and Xerneas slowly appeared out of the ice. Immediately, everyone was on edge, and Erza gently sat Nic down and turned towards the two Legendary monsters that Nic had defeated.

"They want more?!" Natsu shouted, jerking in front with a flaming fist ready.

Xerneas and Yveltal both stood still as they examined the area around themselves, taking note of the shattered and destroyed terrain. They looked and saw ice everywhere, and both saw the clouds above dispersing, showing the sun.

Xerneas and Yveltal both looked down to see the group on the defensive, and recognized Greninja and Nic, despite them both battered and torn up.

Xerneas turned towards Greninja. "(**You there.**)"

Greninja narrowed his eyes and stepped forwards with caution. He stood before the two that he fought in the past. "(Yes?)"

"(**Did you, and your Trainer, defeat us, again?**)" Xerneas asked.

Greninja paused and looked back at a healing Nic. Wendy was using as much Magic as she could, and the results were making the purple and damage Nic sustain disappear. Greninja turned back towards the ones before him.

"(Yes, Nic defeated you while you were under the influence of evil. We were lucky to have survived.)"

"(**I see.)**" Yveltal flapped in place, noting the familiar, determined face from long ago. He then turned towards Xerneas. "(**Xerneas.**)"

"(**Yveltal, you're normally against me helping. Guess the human and Greninja made you get caught up in a good mood. Very well.**)" Xerneas then spread his feet apart and then began glowing light green.

As everyone was nervous and was tempted to attack, Greninja spread his arms out. "(Wait!)" He shouted, making everyone stop. "(Xerneas is gonna use Geomancy.)"

Though they didn't understand, everyone knew Greninja told them to hold back. They watched with caution as Xerneas then screeched and then emit green waves that glistened as they spread out, like rainbows.

Everyone saw the ice under them dwindle into nothing, and the entire area, as far as the eye could see, become coated in Geomancy. They all watched as the majestic attack made the ice disappear, and the wet dirt began sprouting grass. Lisanna and everyone watched with shock and amazement as Geomancy spread all over Victory Road, melting the ice and restoring desecrated life, filling the cracks with grass and moss, and the dirt all over the grove and a s far as the eye could've seen get covered in green, rich grass.

When finished and everyone discussed on Geomancy, Xerneas heaved and looked at Greninja, who was not moved by Geomancy. "(**Twice now. Twice, you have saved us.**)"

Yveltal flapped in the air. "(**I can't believe I'm saying this, but thank you, and we are in your debt.**)"

Greninja nodded in understanding. "(I'll tell Nic when he comes around.)"

With that, Xerneas went off, pouncing off towards the peaks, rejuvenated. As for Yveltal, he flew off into the high skies above, not wanting anymore confliction as he still felt agonizing pain. Greninja and everyone watched on as the two freely went off, with no will for bloodlust anymore.

Nic stirred and he was coming around, his eyes back to their usual blue. "Nic!" Vanessa shouted, hugging her brother tightly, making him gag.

"V-Vanessa?" Nic said, exhausted. He slowly sat up, his body aching in every nerve and cell possible. He hasn't felt so much pain in a long while, not since turning into Black Kyurem and fusing with Etherion a long time ago, only this felt twice as painful, and he was still faintly dizzy.

"That was totally awesome man!" "Remind me never to fight you." "You kicked their butts!" "That was too baffling for words." "I've never seen such power in my life Nic, amazing." "That's gotta be as strong as Gildarts if not stronger!" Nic was constantly getting praised, and he couldn't help but smile.

"Thank you guys…!" He then frowned and jerked upwards, but Erza and Greninja supported him as he was still unable to stand upright. He looked back, seeing that the portal was still untouched, and was fluctuating like crazy.

"Everyone, time to go home." Nic smiled.

"YEAH!" Everyone shouted, and then they made a break for the portal. The portal was fluctuating still, and they were all ten feet away, save Nic and those helping him as he lagged behind.

"HAHA! It was fun being in Kalos! Let's do this again sometime!" Natsu shouted before turning and jumping through, with Happy following.

"I gotta say Nic, this place sure was interesting." Gray remarked before jumping in.

"Come on Lily, time to join Fairy Tail at last!" Gajeel shouted and hopped into the portal, with Lily following suit.

"We're going home! It's been so long, and I can't wait! Come on Carla!" Wendy shouted, and jumped into the hole with Carla, followed by Lisanna, Lucy, and then Sophie, all eager for home.

Finally, Nic was in front, with Greninja and Erza by his sides. Though he was happy, he was also slightly concerned. He stopped in place, and Greninja and Erza turned towards him.

Erza noticed Nic's discomfort. "Are you alright? Is it because you're still exhausted?"

Nic was still a little dizzy, but he focused. "…no." He then turned his shoulder and looked behind himself, seeing Vanessa look with concern.

Vanessa's blue eyes were the same as Nic, and yet Nic couldn't help but feel guilty. "Vanessa, tell me. Are you sure this is what you really want?"

Vanessa's eyes widened slightly at the question. "W-wait, what?"

Nic looked down. "Throughout this adventure, and my time back in Kalos, I've been left to ponder. Too be honest, I don't know if you'll be safe."

Vanessa gasped, but Erza and Greninja looked down, realizing the truth that Nic doesn't want to see Vanessa get hurt.

"N-Nic, just hold on." Vanessa pleaded. "I understand, but here me out to." She then paused as a wind blew. Then she inhaled and exhaled, and then repeated once more before walking up to her brother.

Nic blinked. "Vanessa, this is your only chance to turn back. You could continue with your journey and then return home, or you could start a new one in Fairy Tail. The decision is yours." He stated.

All Vanessa did was smile. "Nic Pularis. My brother. I understand you are trying to look out for me, but give yourself this choice: would you be happy knowing you'd be apart from your sister, with the possibility of never seeing her again?"

Nic didn't realize this. He was so caught up in his worries for Vanessa that he'd completely forgotten something he said back in Lumiose City.

"_Vanessa." He said. "Listen." He gave a neutral smile. "I know what you're thinking, and I know full well you don't want to go through with it again…but it's a hard debate because your safety is important…however I also see the fact that you have chosen to follow my path, in my footsteps, and dare not tread another path." He then turned away. "To be honest…I wouldn't walk away from my sibling either, not again."_

_Vanessa was wide-eyed as Nic turned towards Lisanna. "You see her? Her name is Lisanna. She has two siblings back on Earthland, and they've been waiting long enough for her to return home…and we'll get home." Lisanna looked down, sympathizing with Vanesa in terms of siblings. Lisanna was waiting all this time, and she knew Vanessa felt the same way. They needed their siblings._

"_Y-You mean…" Vanessa was starting to see a glimmer of hope._

_Nic turned back towards her. "Yes Vanessa. You can come along." Vanessa had a hand over her mouth and she couldn't control herself and she held onto Nic and had misty eyes. Nic just smiled down at his sister. "You're all grown up. I can still be your protector, yet you can handle problems yourself now, and that's what I wanted to see and know."_

Nic realize he was just contradicting what he said back then, and he gave a smirk. "How foolish can I be?" He sighed.

Erza smiled. "Nic, she'd make for a great addition to Fairy Tail."

Greninja smiled. "(There's really no say in this. She's coming, whether you say no or not.)"

Nic looked down and back at Vanessa. She did have a point. He might never see her again, and they'd been there for each other their whole lives. Nic huffed and he smiled. "Alright Vanessa…let's go home."

All Vanessa did was smile wide, her expression too proud. For a second, she thought Nic said no, but realizing he reflected on his time back in Kalos, and realized she's grown up. She would be able to look out for others and be able to have more than just her team to rely on. This was truly a benefit for both of them.

With that, Nic, Greninja, Erza, and Vanessa all took in one last look in Kalos and the scenery before them, the mountains, the nearby lake, and the ice mountain afar.

Erza turned towards Nic. "Nic, thank you for letting us experience your world. It's truly something. I hope we come back here someday."

Nic smiled. "Someday." The two then looked forwards and crouched. They then leaped into the portal, with Greninja right by them, and finally Vanessa jumped in. It was two seconds after Vanessa jumped in that the portal gave out and disappeared, leaving behind sparkles and Victory Road, and Kalos.

In the closed portal, the entire group was floating in a spacial field of black-like space. They saw pink and blue stardust all around, and everyone looked in amazement. Nic grinned weakly as he saw everyone looking ahead.

"Whooooaaa…" Natsu, Gray, and several others looked to see that Dialga and Palkia were already in front of them, looking down at them.

"Greetings humans." Palkia said. "I trust your time in Nic's world was an experience worth taking.

"HOLY COW! WHO ARE THEY?!" Happy shrieked.

Nic grinned. "Happy, guys, meet Dialga and Palkia. The ones who sent me to Fiore."

Dialga then looked down at Nic. "Nic, I hope you are aware of Arceus's condition."

Nic frowned. "I'm aware. And I take full responsibility of what transpired."

"It's not anyone's fault." A voice echoed, and Nic realized the third voice. Above, he and everyone saw a golden light, and it slowly descended until it was right above Dialga and Palkia. Everyone watched with shocked eyes as the light shaped and turned into Arceus, pale and sickly.

"Arceus…" Nic said.

"Do not trouble yourself Nic Pularis." Arceus announced. "You have done well in stopping Giratina's antimatter that seeped through the portal Hoopa has made." He then found himself sitting down on a bed of stardust due to his condition.

Vanessa looked in awe. "Nic…is that…?"

"Everyone, that's Arceus." Nic announced.

"That's awesome! I've never seen a God before! Man everyone's gonna be so jealous!" Natsu teased.

Lucy sighed. "Chill out Natsu."

"Oh come on, he's just excited is all." Lisanna said, and giggled. She and everyone looked back up towards the three giants before them.

"Dialga. Palkia. It is time." Arceus announced.

"As you wish." Dialga said. Everyone then saw Dialga and Palkia both clearing their throats,

"Nic Pularis, you and your friends and sister shall venture back to Fiore, to Fairy Tail." Palkia stated. "But first, let us debrief your sister on Fiore."

"Oh really? What's that?" Vanessa asked.

Nic then drooped his head, sulking. "Oh no. Not this again."

Greninja shook his head in agreement. "(Likewise.)"

Dialga then progressed. "In a land…" Nic and Greninja sulked as everyone was paying full attention to what was being said. Natsu, having the curiosity of a child, was in awe. Vanessa blinked as they were processing the details of the intro. ",,,Its name…is Fairy Tail." After Dialga finished, a lot of people clapped for the intro.

"Way to go! That's some useful stuff!" Gray said.

"I didn't even realize our population was seventeen million." Sophie stated.

"Interesting, very interesting indeed." Lily said.

Dialga and Palkia then began emanating auras, and then a ring appeared under the entire group, and then the ring opened, revealing grass and trees. The group then suddenly found itself screaming as they fell through the hole.

"Good luck, young ones." Arceus said before the portal closed.

Everyone fell to the ground with a thud, landing on their backs or abdomens. Nic had the worst of it since his body was still exceedingly sore.

"D'ow!" Nic panted as he was slowly getting up, but fatigue washed over him again and Greninja came to his aid, supporting him with a shoulder. "Thank you." He then looked up at the cloudy sky, seeing as how it was raining down on them. "…well, at least they did better than last time. Thirty feet rather than thirty thousand feet."

Everyone quickly regrouped, seeing that the forest was familiar, and that Natsu recognized the smell of the place. "Wait…HAHA! THIS TIME WE'RE RIGHT! WE'RE BACK EVERYBODY! WE'RE IN FIORE BABE!"

Vanessa looked over towards her smiling brother and saw him slowly get dizzy. She couldn't blame him. He's had a long, agonizing fight. She was glad to be in Fiore with her brother.

"Nic." Greninja said, actually speaking again, which made a few people look in shock.

"Whoa! Greninja started talking again!" Lucy exclaimed.

Vanessa was caught with sheer surprise. "O-Okay…? This might take some getting used to."

"I was so used to him taking by his name that I forgot what he sounded like." Gray said.

Nic and Greninja paused. "Anyways." Greninja said. "I think it's time we get back to the guild."

Gajeel smirked. "About time! Now Lily can become a member!"

Vanessa raised here hand. "And I guess me too."

Nic smiled. "I agree, but first…" He then glanced over towards Lisanna, who stood there confused. "There's something that needs to be done."

Lisanna gasped when she realized what Nic meant, and then gave a sincere smile.

"Lisanna." Nic said. "We've kept your siblings waiting long enough."

* * *

**In another dimension…**

"Damnit!" Darkrai growled, his vile aura killing off any good will, not that there was any. "The plan failed!"

Mewtwo scowled with a shaking fist. "Their unholy power should've crushed Nic and gut him alive, but we failed to account his Legendary Force. The more he uses it, the more capable he is at controlling it."

Hoopa fumed. "This is outrageous! Xerneas and Yveltal were strong! They should have killed him!"

Darkrai looked down at the vison of Nic and everyone making way towards Magnolia. "It took little effort to manipulate Yveltal due to his violent nature, but it was a hassle with Xerneas. It took up the rest of the antimatter to have him tainted and bloodthirsty."

"Nic Pularis is growing stronger." Mewtwo stated. "It sickens me."

They all emanated a vile and death-like aura through the void they were in, and the most vile of them all, Giratina's bloodthirsty, devil-like eyes beamed through the vison and he emanated an extremely monstrous aura that could shrivel up life. The four auras emanating slowed their hatred and disgust at Nic, and Giratina was actually shaking from extreme anger.

Giratuna let loose a violent screech that rattled and echoed, irritated that the plan failed. The echoing never ending. He exhaled a bloody mist and huffed and turned towards everyone, who was just as frustrated and they too had that Satan looks in their eyes.

"…we've underestimated Nic Pularis. He's won our animosity for sure." Giratina said. "Let it be known that he got very lucky this time."

* * *

**Kardia Cathedral **

It was still raining, the gray sky never ending. Elfman and Mira were in the cemetery. Mira was frowning as her eyes looked downwards towards Lisanna's stone. Thunder boomed and Elfman stood tall with a frown, holding a red umbrella.

LISANNA

beloved sister

and a friend

to animal souls

X768 – X782

They stood in dark blue cloaks, and Mira's head was pretty soaked as she wasn't under the umbrella, but she didn't care.

"Come on sis, let's get out of the rain." Elfman quietly asked.

"Give me a minute." She asked, continuing to stare down at Lisanna's stone. She quietly cascaded a gloomy glance at the stone, not noticing a splashing puddle nearby.

Close behind them, running through the cemetery, a white-haired girl panted as she raced towards her brother and sister, and looked at them eagerly.

"Mira!" Lisanna called out, making Mira jerk her head upright. Lisanna waved in the air as she ran closer towards her siblings. "Mira it's me! Hey big brother Elf!"

It was then that Elfman gasped in shock of hearing that voice. Lisanna had misty eyes as she was getting closer to her siblings, being reunited with them. Mira turned her head and looked behind her, seeing Lisanna running towards them. Mira went wide-eyed and gasped very loudly, her hair wisped slightly from her sudden jump back to her feet.

Elfman turned around at that moment, and he gasped and his eyes widened in shock, as though he was looking at the past before him.

Lisanna stopped several feet away, looking at her brother and sister from afar. Her cheeks were rosy and her eyes were swollen with tears. She exhaled and inhaled heavily through her nose. Mira and Elfman still frozen and were unable to respond. The sight just left them with no words. Elfman was so frozen that the umbrella fell out of his hand and onto the ground.

Everyone else looked on with big smiles from afar. Greninja still supported a barely awake Nic as he looked with a happy smile right by his sister. To think that they went through the same thing a week ago.

Lisanna then had a big smile showing as she ran towards her siblings. Mira had hands close to her mouth as she started to tear up. "I-Is this real?"

Lisanna laughed happily as she started having tears fall through the rain. Elfman and Mira started streaming tears. Elfman was gasping as he was on the verge of crying out loud.

"Lisanna!" Mira shouted. Lisanna finally embraced her sister and Mira held Lisanna closely, crying. Both siblings started crying and tears fell over the other's shoulder. They continued to cry and embrace as Elfman stood there and teared up, still in shock.

"I'm back sis." Lisanna whispered happily. Mira and Elfman then hugged Lisanna, both unable to contain their joy and both sobbed with their biggest smiles.

Nic and everyone looked on proudly as the Strauss siblings were reunited at long last. Nic then looked over with misty eyes as did Vanessa. Vanessa then turned and hugged Nic, with the latter still feeling extremely sore, but gave no care as he was feeling all emotional again and wrapped his right arm around his sister to return the hug.

Erza and Greninja looked with happiness as Nic was hugging his sister, and they couldn't feel anymore happy for the Strauss and Pularis siblings.

"Vanessa…" Nic said.

"Lisanna…" Mira said.

"…welcome home." They both said in unison, both little sisters smiling tearfully with big grins.

* * *

**And that is the end of the Kalos Arc! Did you guys like it? Leave a Review or comment on how you thought the Kalos Arc went.**

**Though this Arc took a long time, I'm glad I got it done. The key of the Kalos Arc was to get more Pokémon involved, as well as introduce Vanessa, and the Drapion Take Over was just a bonus. Hope it was enjoyable!**

**Next chapter is gonna be the little bridge that connects to the Tenrou Island Arc, and I got a unique idea for next chapter.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoyed the Kalos Arc, the epic battles, flashbacks, and the ever-going emotions and plot.**

* * *

**Next Time: Fighting for Freedom**


	43. Fighting for Freedom

Chapter 43 – Fighting for Freedom

**Hi guys, I'm back with the next chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**! I did three chapters in **_**EDventures in Kalos**_**, so I'm jumping back over here. This chapter will be the bridge to the Tenrou Island Arc, and this chapter will be very important, and you'll soon see why.**

**Well, since the Kalos Arc is done and over with, let's get on with the plot…sort of!**

**To Recap:**

Using his Legendary Force – Black Kyurem, Nic quarreled with Xerneas while Greninja fended off against Yveltal. Eventually, Nic managed to defeat Xerneas, but he lost too much power, which left him weak and vulnerable against Yveltal, suffering heavy damage. Despite being unstable, Nic went all the way, and defeated Yveltal as well, barely keeping his body intact. The two Legendary creatures were freed from being tainted and went off, and Nic, the Fairy Tail members, and Vanessa all went back to Fiore, back to Magnolia, where Lisanna reunited with her siblings.

* * *

**Chapter 43 – Fighting for Freedom**

It was the night sky that always made Nic uneasy, as he couldn't help but feel remorse whenever looking up. The skies through the dark forest branches were still pretty black, and all he could do was watch and see nothing appear.

"Nic…Nic…" A mutter in the background snapped him out of his thoughts. "It's not time to see stars."

As always, Kecleon had a strange way with words, but she always got her point across, with Nic and his Pokémon at least. In this case, now wasn't the time for Nic to be caught in a daze.

Knowing this, he smiled. "You're right, sorry Kecleon." Nic and his oddball pal then continued roaming through the trees, silent as Noctowl, yet quick as Grovyle. The two had just went out on a job, and they completed it many hours ago. They figured they could use a good nighttime jumping exercise since they haven't had one in a while.

As they went from branch to branch, Kecleon turned towards Nic. "Nic?" She asked in her weird monotone voice. Nic turned his attention towards her. "How you feeling?"

Nic knew what she meant. It had been almost a month since he's been back in Fiore, and it's been a couple days since the announcements of the S-Class trials. Nic, not surprisingly, slept in a small coma for the first week, and Erza checked up on him constantly, though his Pokémon were by his side the entire time as well.

Of course, when they first got back, everyone's jaws dropped. Lisanna had come home, but an even bigger surprise beyond that was knowing that Nic had a sister.

_After Lisanna finished her tears after being welcomed back, Alzack took notice of the black-haired girl with a single blonde bang barely over her right eye. "Say Nic, who is she?" He asked. "Another new member?"_

_Nic smirked. "I guess it's time you guys know…" He then broke it to everyone present that the new member was Vanessa, his sister. This very news made everyone pale._

"_WHAT?! YOU HAVE A SISTER?!" They all shouted. Many fainted, many had panic attacks, many just jumped out of the windows for cover. They had no idea Nic had a sister. Who knows what she can do to them, knowing she was the sister of the great Luminous of Fairy Tail._

_Eventually, things settled down, and Nic looked at everyone. "Guys, this is my sister, so be nice." He then casted a shadow over his eyes. "Because if one of you makes her sad or cries, I will hunt you down, and then destroy you!" He threatened menacingly, to which everyone complied with no questions. So hitting on her was out of the question, as they realized they'd lose their lives._

_Lily and Vanessa got their Guild emblems, Lily on his back, and Vanessa got hers on her left arm, like Erza. Her emblem was teal, as to where Lily's was white. As the evening pressed on, Natsu went on and on about how they were in Edolas, and Nic toldthe group to be discreet about Kalos, so they made safety measures when speaking about Kalos, not talking about the assailant was one of them. Of course, everyone heard their counterparts from the group themselves, and looks of shock were plastered, and then the usual fighting, in which Vanessa's Krokorok took apart in._

"_LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING FAIRY TAIL MEMBERS THAT ARE COMICALLY BASHING THE OTHER IN RELENTLESS FASHION, WITH NO REGARDS TO FURNITURE DAMAGE! KROKOROK WANTS IN TOO!"_

_All Vanessa could do was just sigh and sit on the sidelines until things dialed down._

_Sophie went up to her. "So Vanessa, what are you gonna do now, since you're gonna live here?" She asked._

_Vanessa was slightly left surprised. She didn't necessarily put any thought into it. "I…I guess I should find a place, and possibly train." She stated, looking back at her Krokorok throwing bodies. "Like Nic said and did, I can't rely on them always, but they do got it where it counts."_

_Sophie smiled in understanding. "I know what you mean. Pokémon sure are interesting creatures…oh!" Sophie just sprouted, to which Vanessa turned towards her in curiosity. "I got it! Why not stay at my place?"_

_Vanessa was left startled. "W-Whoa! You mean you want me to stay at your place until I can get a place of my own?"_

_Sophie served her sight here and there. "Mmmm, kind of. I have an extra room in my place. It'll be like having a roommate!" _

_Upon this idea, Vanessa squealed and the two hugged. "YAY! ROOMMATES!" They squealed in unison. Sophie was also glad that Vanessa didn't choose Fairy Hills, mainly due to the rent, at least Vanessa gets a free place._

"_Thank you so much Sophie!"_

_Sophie pulled away and looked back at Nic, who was still sitting on a table in the corner in a small coma from being exceedingly tired, and naturally, Erza was there. "That's what friends are for. I'm sure Nic would appreciate it greatly."_

"_Yeah…on that note…" Sophie turned towards Vanessa, who spoke with some hesitation. "If I'm going to be a member, I guess I need to learn Magic, right?"_

_Sophie blinked. "Huh…I guess you have a point."_

_Mira went up and smiled as usual. "Don't worry, there's plenty of Magic in the library you can look up on." She cheerfully said. "Magic isn't easy…" She turned towards the rowdy guild ahead of her. "But if you put your heart and mind into it, your Magic will blossom into something beautiful. It takes time, so now rush."_

_Vanessa smiled happily from Mira's attitude. "Right, thanks Mira!"_

Nic wasn't sure what Magic his sister was learning, considering she always practiced with her own Pokémon, with Sophie helping out when she can. Nic could possibly guess since Vanessa pops in and out of the library, she's looking and using all sorts of different books. He once saw his sister carrying a few books on Water and Lightning Magic.

Nic then thought back to three days ago, a few days after he got healed.

_Everyone gathered. All Fairy Tail members grouped in front of the stage, watching the green curtain rise. In front was Master Makarov, adorned in his ceremonial cloak. On his left were Mira and Gildarts, and on his right were Nic and Erza, all four standing and giving serious vibes._

"_Tell us!" "No more waiting!" "It's finally time!" Many Fairy Tail Mages were getting antsy. When Master cleared his throat, everyone became silent._

"_In accordance with Fairy Tail's time of year and annual tradition, I will now announce the participants of the S-Class trials exam!" He announced, with everyone cheering briefly._

_Natsu enflamed himself. "I'm all fired up now! That S-Class titlel is as good as mine!"_

"_Please be quiet everyone!" Erza announced._

"_The Master has yet to inform you guys, so keep silent until the end." Nic announced right after, in which everyone did._

_Master took a pause. "The trials for this year shall be held at Tenrou Island, our Guild's sacred grounds." He explained, and he raised a fist. "The strength you have kept dormant shall be tested, as well as your hearts, and your hard work! And so, I have chosen nine candidates this year."_

_Master then began to announce the names. "Natsu Dragneel." Natsu kept a serious face as he was chosen._

"_Gray Fullbuster." Gray smiled when he heard his name._

"_Juvia Lockster." Juvia heard her name and she blushed, thinking she would be participating with Gray._

"_Elfman Strauss." Elfman had arms crossed and had manliness in his smirk._

"_Cana Alberona." Though Cana heard her name, she didn't seem that enthusiastic._

"_Freed Justine." Freed nodded humbly up on being accepted._

"_Sophie Lednick." Sophie jerked upon being accepted, but seemed highly enthusiastic nonetheless._

"_Levy McGarden." Levy looked really excited, and Jet and Droy cheered behind her._

"_And finally, Mest Gryder." Upon hearing his name, a man with black hair looked on. The hair was short, a crisscross scar on the left side of his face, sideburns, turquoise eyes, and a red pinstriped jacket with red and orange stripes. He also had a high collar, and brown arm warmers, black ants, and white shoes._

_After some brief commotions were exchange, with Nic looking on with his sunglasses on his V-neck, Master spoke once more. "Though nine Mages were selected, only one shall emerge victorious. The trial shall be in one week, so you better prepare!_

"_Hey! How come I wasn't picked?!" Gajeel shouted._

_Lily looked over at Gajeel. "My guess is that they don't trust you that much."_

_Gajeel snapped back at Lily. "So not true! They can all trust me just fine!" He then thought as to how he was an undercover spy in Raven Tail under Makarov's request. "…I, uh, just don't have my business with them."_

_Lily snickered. "Take it up with Nic and Erza."_

_Erza had crossed arms with a glint on her face. "Sorry, but you're not ready yet."_

"_You heard her." Nic said, agreeing with her._

"_You all suck!" Gajeel shouted._

_After the commotion dialed down once more, Master cleared his throat once more. "Since there are quite a few newcomers this year, I can have an exception to the matter pressing ahead."_

_Mira then spoke. "The nine participants will each choose a partner. This person will also be allowed to train with them until the trials."_

_Sophie blinked. "Partners? Huh, didn't see that coming?"_

"_Take note of these two rules when choosing your partner." Erza announced. "Number one: They must be a member of Fairy Tail; and Number Two: Your choice can't be an S-Class Mage."_

"_Further details will be explained at the trials next week, but know this." Nic announced, remembering what the S-Class Mages discussed before getting onstage. "Getting past Erza and I will be a part of the trials." Upon this, everyone paled, thinking how sorry they'd feel if they went up against the two, aiming Mira and Gildarts as well._

"_The nine candidates and their partners will meet at the port of Hargeon a week from today. You are dismissed." After being dismissed by Master, everyone started getting back to their usual business._

_Pretty soon, the partners were set, and it wasn't that big of a surprise when Nic heard that Sophie chose Vanessa to be her partner. Though this thought wasn't too comforting. If he had to fight her, he'd have to be very easy on her, let alone not hurt her at all._

Though the S-Class Mages were meant to prepare as well, Nic took today to go on a job and tonight to clear his head. He wasn't supposed to meet with Mira, Erza, and Gildarts until the day after tomorrow, where they would go over the rules and guidelines when at Tenrou Island.

Thinking about it, Nic was left in question, stopping and crouching on a branch. "…I'll be fine Kecleon." He answered. Kecleon stopped by his side and tilted her head again. "This whole S-Class trial sounds great to them, and I couldn't be happier for Cana and Sophie being chosen, but Vanessa participating when she hardly knows Magic is a little nerve-wracking.

"You know what I say?" Kecleon asked, making Nic turn with curiosity. "You best eat the cake even without the glazing."

Nic blinked, smirking at the same time. "Right, take my chances." He interpreted without hesitation. He then looked ahead, calmly looking into the darkness ahead. "I guess I should put my faith in Vanessa, she does have her own team and friends."

Nic then slowly stood back up on the branch and straightened up. After a long moment, he looked back at Kecleon's tilted head. "I think we've traveled long and far enough. Let's head-!"

A faint scream was heard in the distance, slight echoes traveling through the air. Nic and Kecleon jerked in sheer surprise and their heads turned back up front.

"What was that?" Nic asked.

Kecleon tilted her head. "A scream of help." She said. She then tilted her head back up. "We must pursuit!"

Nic crouched. "You read my mind." The two then picked up speed once more, heading ways into the dark forest. Nic and Kecleon made haste, keeping as quiet as ninjas as they jumped from tree to tree, from branch to branch, light on their feet.

* * *

**Shortly after…**

Close to a waterfall's base, on the shores, there was a girl, possibly no older than Wendy. She had black hair that was curled up on both sides of her head, like two swirled curls, in which the bangs framed her face. She had a purple dress with light purple edging, with a circle of various purple shading that was bright on her chest area. She had purple arm warmers, and her green eyes were weeping.

She felt very helpless, as she hugged her knees, unable to do anything but quiver.

"_You're staying here." She heard her father's voice echo through her mind, replaying what happened a few hours back._

_The young girl was on the trail, tears in her eyes, shuddering as her father stood before her, disappointed. Her father was tall, elderly, muscular man, with giant, red beads around his neck. He had a rather large, pointed nose, white eyes that didn't show pupils, and light facial hair, which was a beard, moustache, and the rest of hair tied behind his head. The eyes were outlined in white, and he had a Guild Mark that was purple that resembled a tiger's head on his forehead. His head also had a hat that was dome-like, with spiked edging, and black and purple all about. His muscular body was draped by a one-arm top-piece, was red with white edging, covering only his left arm, with the right arm having a purple wrapped-up armband. He also had dark yellow pants with black zigzags running down, with simple brown shoes._

_The father looked with pity at his daughter. "Abandon your weaknesses and embrace only strength and fear nothing." He said. "No tears are aloud, ever." The daughter was continuing to shudder, and she couldn't even move out of fear._

"_This forest is full of monsters that'll devour the weak., and only death is suitable to those who dare cry." He then turned his back and walked off, fading in the darkness of the forest. "You shall not return until you've grown stronger, and shed no tears."_

"Please…please forgive me." She muttered, still shaking. "Forgive me…please…please…" She heard some water move, and some snarling from behind, the girl slowly turned her head in fear and witnessed fairly large alligator-like monsters about to pounce on her.

She couldn't move as they went to sink their teeth into her…

"**Sludge Wave!**" Suddenly, before anything could happen, a large stream of sludge swamped the incoming monsters. The beasts all wailed and fell on their sides with powerful thuds as the girl was left in shock.

Nic appeared out of the blue, landing in front of the girl, shielding her from harm. Nic turned to look back at the girl. "Are you okay?" He asked, seeing her respond by shuddering a little.

The beasts all got back to their feet, the three or four all having bad tastes in their mouths. They turned back towards Nic and the girl, snarling. They went to attack, but before they could advance, a fast glint that was a red stripe dashed in front, a Slash gashing at them all, leaving the wailing some more, their bodies all falling back head and backs first into the flowing stream of water, away from them.

Kecleon reappeared in front, alongside Nic. "Nice job, Kelceon." Nic commented.

"We brought the pain." She replied in her creepy, innocent, monotone voice. The little girl was left in awe at how Nic and Kecleon just saved her. She was left shocked as she was shown mercy. Kecleon looked back at her. "Hello."

Nic shifted back into himself, his brief glow surprising the girl once more. "Are you okay?" He asked, to which the girl gulped. Nic took a pause and saw the scared look in her eyes, filled with pain and merciless grief.

Nic, recognizing this glance from past experience, took a calmer approach. He crouched down to eye level her, looking at her with a gentle gaze. "Hey, it's okay. The monsters are gone." He said, gently. "There's nothing to be scared of. You're safe now."

Hearing those words brought the girl to tears again. Finally, she was shown mercy, after what her father had done. But then, she gasped, remembering her father.

"_Crush all weak worms that stand under you. Defeat everyone and anyone. Only defeat and death awaits those who seek mercy."_

She then choked a little, and she suddenly began to blur, much to Nic and Kecleon's shock. Nic suddenly found himself in the exact spot where she was, and she was in his.

Nic gasped. "Wait, what just-!" He then saw her attack with a kick, but Nic's second-nature reflexes made him block with his left arm. He then swatted her away, making her skid back. She was left a little shocked Nic blocked her attack without much effort.

"Did she just use some Magic to switch our positions?" Nic muttered to Kecleon.

Kecleon looked back at Minerva, keeping an eye on her. "Yes. She did the switcheroo." Kecleon then turned and stepped ahead at Minerva, who saw her advance. The young girl jerked back, and Kecleon stopped, so as to see her frightened expression. "She is scared, heavily."

Nic took a moment, considering what to do. He quickly made a plan. He didn't move, but got into a less defensive stance. "It's okay. I'm not here to hurt you." He said calmly and gently, making the girl ease. "I won't harm you, I just want to know if you're alright."

The girl choke as Nic was being someone to help her for once, and she hesitated before she finally dropped her guard, easing.

Nic grinned slightly, seeing the progress being made. "That's it. I mean it, I won't harm you, and neither will Kecleon."

"My claws are to myself."

The girl slowly inched closer and closer, and soon enough, she finally stood in front of Nic. She finally broke down, sobbing to her knees, tears falling at last. "Please…I'm so sorry…forgive me…" She spat out.

Nic looked back at Kecleon, who was just as struck as he was. "I think it's something bad other than her putting the hurt on you." Kecleon said.

Nic looked down at the girl, her head close to the ground. "…yeah, I agree." As she continued to sob, Nic crouched down and put a gentle hand on her head. "It's okay, just let it all out. You're safe." The girl then suddenly sprung up and cried as she squeezed Nic in comfort, and Nic was initially shocked, but got over it after a few moments. Though he felt her tears on his left side, he just provided himself as a comfort and gently hugged her back.

After a couple of minutes, the girl finally calmed down and pulled away. She sniffled and looked back up at Nic, her attitude seemingly placid. "Thank you for saving my life." She replied.

Nic stood back up, with Kecleon by his side. "You're welcome. We were fortunate to have heard you while we were still out here."

"The call of anguish beckoned us to stop it." Kecleon said.

The girl was confused. "What?"

"She said we heard your cry of help and we came to stop it." He interpreted. "On that note, what are you doing out here all by yourself?"

The girl then meekly looked back down to the grass as the waterfall was heard in the background. "I was told to stay here until I got stronger."

Nic and Kecleon both looked at the other and back at the girl. Nic looked down at her. "Do you have a name?"

The girl looked up at her hero and sniffled. "Minerva."

"Okay, Minerva. I'm Nic, and this is my trusted buddy, Kecleon." Kecleon simply tilted her head. Nic continued. "Listen, can you tell me who told you to stay out here?"

"…*sniffle*…m-my father."

Nic's mouth slightly opened in shock. He was stuck processing what she said. Her actual father told her to stay out in the woods, full of savage monsters, and continue to do so until she got stronger. Even with this information, he couldn't make quick accusations.

"…Your father, you say?" Nic asked. "Why?" Minerva hesitated, small tears forming again, her body beginning to shudder. Remembering why her father did such a thing left her uneasy. Nic tried to ask again. "Was there a reason why he made you stay out here?"

Minerva blinked as the tears fell and she slowly relaxed, knowing that Nic was here to help. "My father. He's a horrible man. He believes that I'm not strong enough…" Minerva went into detail, about how her father pushed her to the mental breaking point, and was thoroughly abused for apologizing constantly.

_Minerva was on her knees, small tears in her eyes. "Please forgive me." She asked._

_Her father towered above her, glowering down at her. "You beg for mercy?" He exclaimed. "No daughter of mine will beg for mercy!" He then slapped her across the face, making her fall over._

_Minerva continued to beg. "I'm sorry! Forgive me!"_

"_Don't you get that I won't tolerate being asked for forgiveness?" He exclaimed, his voice booming with animosity. "What a weakling, unacceptable! I eliminate the weak, even if it's my own flesh and blood."_

Nic was left paralyzed, shock in the eyes. His pupils nearly shook, startled that Minerva had been abused just like he was.

Minerva continued with some slight hesitation and sobbing. "…H-he…"

_Minerva wiped her eyes of the tears as she battled against Fingers, a member of her Guild. He had a bandaged face, with thick gloves and a muscular body. He was picked to battle against Minerva._

_Minerva's father stood on a cliff, spectating. "If you can breathe, you can move!" He barked. "Attacking is everything! Even the inferior must strive for strength!"_

_Fingers then put his arms out and made blue fire, and Minerva put her arms out, put showed great hesitation. Minerva was hit with the attack, and she was sent flying back, dust scattering. Minerva struggled to get up, and she huffed. _

"_Stand up!" Her father shouted. "Or you shall never stand again! Fingers!"_

_Fingers obeyed and put both fists out, and attacked with blue flames again. Luckily, Minerva was able to jump and dodge, seeing rock shatter underneath her._

"_Your open!" Fingers shouted, appearing right behind her in mid-air. Minerva panicked, and with quick wits, she surged great energy, and switched their positions in mid-air. Fingers was left shocked and suddenly found himself on the receiving end of a kick that sent him crashing to the ground._

_Her father spectated. "…Territory Magic?"_

_When Minerva landed, she saw Fingers unleash a massive blue fire vortex, which shook the ground slightly. Minerva saw the attack incoming, and switched positions again. Fingers was then seen confused, but was swallowed by his own attack, making an explosion as Minerva huffed in relief as she was safe._

_Dust and rock flew about and she continued to huff, when everything settled, she looked back and saw Fingers lying on the ground. She then looked concerned. "Hey, are you alright?" She shouted in concern, but Fingers was seen groaning._

"_Do not waste your time!" Her father barked. "Now, are you going to finish him or not?!"_

"_B-But…"_

"_The weak is defeated, and the weak must be crushed!" _

_Minerva was left still, shuddering heavily. "B-But Fingers is a part of our guild…" She trailed off as she was left in disbelief."_

_Her father was unmoved. "That means nothing to me. No weakling shall be a part of my guild! You are my daughter! Sympathy is for the weak!" He then turned towards the fallen Fingers. "If you won't dispose of the weakling, then I'll show you how…"_

_He then extended an arm out at Fingers. "Begone worm!" _

_Fingers was then swallowed in a purple dome light, and Minerva looked with horror. "NO!" A powerful explosion centered around Fingers, barely anything flying. After the light vanished, there was a crater and Fingers gloves and shoes._

_Seeing Fingers get blown up right before her eyes, Minerva dropped to her knees and sobbed. "H-How could you?" She then sobbed in mourning._

_Her fathered snickered. "Tears are for the weak Minerva, and the weak must perish."_

"_Please…I'm so sorry…forgive me…forgive me…"_

As Minerva cried at last, finally telling what happened as of recently, Nic and Kecleon alike were both drenched in shattered horror. No words came to them, as Minerva was abused, and purposely pit in a death match against a now deceased guild mate.

Hearing all of this, Nic's past resurfaced, and his fingers twitched as the painful memories of the punching, the Spark Magneton constantly used, and the confrontation, where he was stabbed and shocked until he couldn't feel the ground beneath him. He was seeping extreme anger, and it was starting to show with his teeth showing as he gritted them, shuddering.

He didn't even realize his hands were balled so tight they became white in the knuckles. His vision came back and he snapped out of his thoughts a moment later, and saw Minerva weeping in front of him. Nic was left to just stare. All he could think about was his past and how he suffered for it, and now Minerva was going through the same thing.

A shadow was over Nic's eye. "…no, not again." He said, making Minerva sniffle and look up at him. "I can't have this happen again." He crouched down towards Minerva, his eyes being that neutral, warm blue again. He was frowning mournfully, as was Kecleon, picking up his mood.

Minerva calmed down once more, and Kecleon lowered her head. "We're sorry for your guild mates curtain closing too soon." She said sorrowfully.

"We're truly sorry for what happened to Fingers." Nic said. "Like Kecleon said, he didn't deserve such a fate in the hands of a tyrant."

Minerva let more tears fall. "*sniffle* Why did this have to happen? Why me?"

Nic looked mournfully at Minerva, and he took in a deep breath and looked at his trusted Kecleon. Kecleon looked back at Nic with the same mournful vibe. "I think you should share your popcorn, Nic."

"…with butter?"

Kecleon nodded. "For her, yes."

Nic understood and he put a gentle hand on Minerva's shoulder. "Minerva, I'm truly sorry, and no child should ever go through what we went through."

Minerva stopped crying and looked confused. "We?"

Nic nodded. "Minerva…you and I are much alike, and that's why I'm telling you it's okay to be weak. There's nothing wrong with being weak as long as you're protecting what's precious to you." Nic looked away. "I suffered the same fate you did. I too was abused…"

Nic then told the young girl how he was physically abused, glass dropped on him, shocked until he could no longer feel anything, basically going in depth how he was a pulp at the end of every day in the hands of his parents. As the story progressed, Minerva was left deeper and deeper in shock.

"And it was all to keep my sister safe." Nic finished. "I may have suffered, and I may have been weak, but I endured it, and I stayed strong so that my sister wouldn't be a victim." He then stood up, and looked down at her. "I may have suffered from a cruel hand, but that doesn't mean you should."

Minerva looked shocked. "Nic…"

"I'll free you from your shackles, and I'll make sure your father never hurts you again. I won't take any abuse; not now, not ever, even if it's someone else. You deserve to be happy Minerva, and I'll stop your father yet."

Minerva shot back up. "R-Really?! But you can't! He's so strong!" She shouted. "He'll blow you up, and you'll die!" She then went wide-eyed and gasped, seeing a smile on Nic's face.

Nic kept his confidence high, for Minerva's sake. "Nothing's killed me so far. Trust me Minerva, your father is gonna regret ever crossing with me."

"Minerva, can you take us to your leader?" Kecleon asked.

Minerva really didn't want to go back, and she clenched her fist, but Nic sore to put an end to her father's abusive behavior, and have Minerva be free.

"I-I don't…if I go back…"

"Minerva." Nic said, turning towards her and kneeling down to her height. "Like I said, it's okay. You can be weak, admitting that you're weak is the first step to becoming strong. You'll be fine Minerva, just let me guide you down that path."

"…" Minerva paused, and then she slowly began walking, with herself leading the way. She was scared, but with Nic and his Kecleon, she could finally have a chance at feeling relief in her life, and be forgiven.

When Minerva took them to her town, where her guild was. As they progressed, Nic felt a very odd feeling, starting from the spot where Minerva was dropped off by her father. As they moved forward beyond that point, as small signal began booming about inside Nic, making him narrow his eyes and façade a blank expression, despite feeling this power.

Kecleon looked at Nic knowingly. "Ping?"

Nic slowly nodded back. "Ping."

* * *

**Later…**

Nic and Kecleon both stood in front of a Guild Hall, which was much like a castle. There was a lot of purple banners with a tiger's head on it. "Is this it?" Nic asked.

"Looks roomy." Kecleon stated, tilting her head.

Minerva swallowed. "Yeah, this is the Sabertooth Guild, my father's guild." She said weakly. "My father's inside, and the town is uneasy."

"I can understand why." Nic stated. His eyes narrowed as the signal was incredibly strong, and the Plates inside could sense a Plate, of which was inside the Sabertooth Guild Hall. "This might complicate things." He muttered. He looked back down at Minerva, seeing a little plea in her eyes.

Nic, relating to her, straightened up, and he narrowed his eyes even more. "I'll handle both situations then."

"All aboard." Kecleon said. "Let's give him a ticket to the pain train!" Nic couldn't agree more with his odd pal, and the three made way inside.

They soon found themselves walking on a red carpet, which many of the guild mates giving confused and uneasy stares at Nic and his Kecleon as they passed by. They never seen him, nor did they know who he was, just this determined vibe he gave off was startling them, so they followed him from behind until they reached the largest chamber in the Guild Hall, where Nic's signal was going off like crazy.

'_So the Plate is inside here.' _Nic thought. _'It seems this is her father's quarters. I'll have no choice but to take him down and then get it.'_

Nic slowly opened the doors, and Kecleon shielded a scared Minerva as they proceeded. As expected, the chamber could've fit the entire guild's members. The red carpet lead to a throne atop of some stairs, with drapes hanging from the corners.

"Hm?" A groan from the throne got attention. "Who dares walk into my Guild Hall?" He demanded. He looked as Nic, Kecleon, and his daughter proceeded inside. The guild members all looked on with high suspicions and guards if Nic tried to pull any funny tricks, as they were highly antsy.

"Who are you?" He demanded. "You dare to enter Jiemma of Sabertooth's domain? Without any regards? Heh?" Jiemma noticed that his daughter was behind Nic's Kecleon, and he saw her shaking. Recognizing her, Jiemma stood up. "Minerva? What are you doing here? I left you out there earlier and I told you to never show your face until I don't see anymore of those-!"

Nic crossed his arms and glared coldly. "Jiemma of Sabertooth." Nic announced, making him stop talking. "I don't appreciate you or how you handle your own daughter, leaving her out in the wilderness."

"You're the animal!" Kecleon scolded Jiemma. "Monsters are nothing compared to your beastliness!"

Jiemma eyes twitched. "I don't know what you want, but for all I care, you're nothing more than intruders. I should just have my guild rid of you right now, including that thing other there." When referring to Minerva, she gritted her teeth and shuddered.

All Nic did was stay solid and kept a cold glare on Jiemma. "Minerva is a human being, not a slave you troll." He pointed an accusing finger at him. "You aren't fit to even be on that damn throne if you can't even show compassion and love to family!"

"What did you just say?" Jiemma asked coldly, his anger spiking.

Kecleon stood in front, by Nic's side. "You may be the leader, but you are no parent! Go crawl back under your bridge!"

Jiemma growled, his Magic beginning to spike. Everyone else entered the chamber, clustered against the wall so as to watch.

"Jiemma, I came across your daughter in the forest. She needs to be around those who she can trust, and not fear death every day of her life." Nic then turned his back looked at the guild members gathered. "Sabertooth, hear me out. Do you honestly think what Jiemma is thinking is fair? Fearing death or possible excommunication? If you sympathize, then please, lend me your eyes and ears." Nic and Kecleon looked back at Jiemma. "Though he may be a Guild Master, that position means nothing if conviction is solemnly for power."

Kecleon tilted her head, and then tilted it back. "The pursuit of happiness is a powerful drive, and the course of power will only make you crash. Don't go down that course, stay on the path of happiness."

Hearing this, some Sabertooth members were raising brows and began questioning a little, to which Minerva looked back with some surprise.

Of course, Jiemma wasn't pleased. "You puny insect, preaching to Sabertooth. You don't belong here. Insects that worship comradery and happiness only get exterminated."

Nic turned back towards Jiemma. "You're wrong, and by the time Kecleon and I finish you, your guild and your daughter will see how wrong your beliefs are."

"Nic." Minerva muttered.

Jiemma stepped forward, his footstep booming. His power was shown to have escalated even more, and he clenched his fists. "What my daughter is to me is none of your business. You better leave better I decide to blow you away, insects."

"Your daughter _is _my business!" Nic shouted. "The second I heard you abused her for strength, that's when it got personal! Minerva should be free to have friends and comrades, not a tyrant of a father."

Jiemma then spiked in power even more. "You fool! This is Sabertooth! We will rise to the top! And family is of no essence. Perhaps I need to show you what happens when you face me. Look up there!" Jiemma pointed up over the throne, and looked turned his gaze up a little and his eyes slowly went wide.

There it was, a brick-red Plate, engraved in a golden frame. It hung up on the wall behind Jiemma, and Jiemma's veins popped out as he was engulfed in his aura.

"That Plate symbolizes Sabertooth's will; and with it, our strength shall escalate until we crush all beneath us!" He announced.

Nic and Kecleon both got nervous, seeing as how the Fist Plate was in the Sabertooth guild. "They must have found it one day." Nic theorized. "And from the way it looks, it seems to rile up the fighting spirits close to it."

Kecleon remained quiet. "What about the little lady?"

Nic turned to look back at a worried Minerva, as she was shuddering a little. It was clear that she was worried, and Nic had to make sure that he gives Minerva the freedom she deserves. Nic turned back ahead. "Don't worry, we'll get the message through."

"My guess is that it's a personal message." Kecleon then readied herself. "Let's unshackle those chains!"

Jiemma pointed at Nic and Kecleon. "Challenging me shall be the last thing you will ever do insects! This'll be over in but a moment." Jiemma, fumed with power, began to quake the ground underneath slightly.

"Is that guy a fool?!" "Is he really gonna take on our Master?! That's suicide!" "Whoever he is, he's out of his mind!" "Is this because of the Master's daughter?" Many people were giving comments left and right, and Jiemma was colliding opinions head-on with Nic.

"Fear me before you die!" Jiemma extended an arm out, and the area around Nic was engulfed in light purple, and a powerful force of energy escalated around Nic, but he kept a strong face.

Recognizing Jiemma's Blast Magic, Minerva grew fearful. "Nic!" She shouted, and then witnessed Jiemma's hand opening up, and a burst on the red carpet happened, making a purple explosion that left a smoldering crater.

Minerva, seeing her only chance at freedom get blown up just like Fingers, quivered and sank to her knees, tears starting to rise.

Jiemma looked at the spot and snickered. "Hmph. As I said, insects." He then looked ahead at his guild, seeing them with surprised expressions. "This is what happens when those defy our power. We make the heavens roar…to make the land shake…to silence the seas, that is Sabertooth." He then looked at his near-sobbing daughter, and was appalled by her.

"As for you, you insect, no daughter of mine is gonna cry. I'll see to it that you stay out there where you belong until you're dry of tear-!" Jiemma was suddenly silence when he was given a knee to the top of his head, catered by Nic, making the muscular Guild Master smash into the ground below.

Everyone's mouths gaped wide in shock as Nic had actually survived, and he looked different, being in his Dread Plate Form. Minerva went wide-eyed and gasped as Nic was seen alive.

Nic backflipped off of Jiemma and landed behind him. The tyrannical Guild Master got back to his two feet and clenched his fists tightly. "Why you-!" As Jiemma turned back, he was struck in the abdomen by a shadow going upwards, and he stumbled back towards his guild and got to a knee. Jiemma grunted as he saw Kecleon close by Nic, having said used Shadow Sneak.

"Nice shot Kecleon." Nic commented.

Jiemma stood back up in anger, growling as his purple aura returned. He clenched his abdomen, ignoring his head pain.

"How did you dodge?!" Jiemma scowled angrily.

Nic changed his stance into a relaxed yet defensive one. "Simple, I shifted to another Plate and used Feint Attack, vanishing in time. Your Blast Magic, however, was only able to target me, and Kecleon worked her way around and struck you."

Kecelon tilted her head. "Score one for the good guys!"

"You may be fast, but speed alone will never beat power." Jiemma's purple aura then expanded slightly. "I'll make you see that!" Jiemma then extended an arm out, letting a battlecry emanate as the ground underneath Nic shook.

Nic anticipated it and jerked to his left, evading the blast wave that engulfed the area where he stood. He grunted in distress. _'I gotta get that Plate. I have to at least get close enough so that I can absorb it. But then he'll blast me, so that means there has to be a diversion.' _Jiemma continued to move his arm out and his purple aura spiked, small domes of his Blast Magic trailing towards Nic as he constantly moved left, dashing and flipping.

Nic leaped, dodging a blast wave and landed his feet on the wall, jumping off and heading towards Jiemma. "**Crunch!**" Nic opened his mouth and his canines elongated and glowed. Jiemma snickered and didn't even move an inch as he used his right arm to block, having his forearm get bit into. Even when Nic's feet landed on the ground, Jiemma didn't even budge an inch.

"So tell me, is that the best you can do?" Jiemma swatted his arm, prying Nic off and sending him skidding backwards.

As he skidded back, Nic turned his head towards Kecleon. "I got this, get the Plate!"

"Got it!" Kecleon then turned invisible, but just left her red stripe visible. When Jiemma turned towards Kecleon, he only saw her red striping, and he used his Blast Magic, but the Color Swap Pokémon jumped and evaded the first dome explosion, rattling the ground and leaving her airborne. Kecleon then turned towards Jiemma in mid-air. "**Screech!**" Kecleon then emanated red shockwaves, while still invisible, and Jiemma was swallowed in them, grunting as he covered his ears.

Jiemma had trouble hearing as Screech echoed like crazy, and he was left distracted long enough so as Nic could get in close. Nic jumped into the air on Jiemma's right side, and he swung his leg. "**Assurance!**" Nic's leg hit Jiemma's face, right in the nose. Jiemma sailed back several feet, but kept his feet on the ground. When he finished skidding, Nic let loose another attack. "**Dark Pulse!**" The endless stream of black and purple went after Jiemma, making some dust fly as it sailed close to the ground. Jiemma extended his arm out, and the Dark Pulse plowed right into his palm, making a small ripple in the air, as the intensity of the attack only made Jiemma skid back a couple feet.

Still launching Dark Pulse from his palms, Nic narrowed his eyes. Jiemma chuckled. "Not bad. You do have potential, but even so, I won't lose to an insect like you-!" Jiemma's gaze took note of the Plate engraved in then golden frame being absent. Even though he was fending with one hand against Dark Pulse, he was left distracted so Kecleon could pillage it.

"The symbol of Sabertooth!" "That little chameleon thing stole it!" Many Sabertooth members were left shocked that Kecleon stole it, and Minerva was left surprised.

Nic grunted as he was continuing Dark Pulse. "I was never yours to begin with!" He exclaimed, much to Jiemma's annoyance. "That Plate is a part of something very important for all to live, and I won't tolerate your selfish wishes to use it for your own gain!" Kecleon appeared behind Nic, holding the Fist Plate in front.

Jiemma and Minerva, as well as all of Sabertooth, looked in shock as Nic stopped Dark Pulse, and his body shined, and the Plate Kecleon held up as well. The Plate levitated its way out of Kecleon's claws and Nic turned back as he saw the Fist Plate get drawn towards him. Nic openly accepted the Plate, and Sabertooth watched as a bright light blinded them. They all were unable to see Nic merge with the Fist Plate, as to where Nic felt a great rushed of hundreds, of thousands of years of combat styles, focus, and prowess seep and course through every cell in his body, working towards his center.

When the light faded, even Jiemma was left gazing with some hint of surprise. Even Minerva, as well as Sabertooth itself, awed as Nic's attire changed. Nic had his sunglasses hanging on the red-orange sash on his waist, which acted as the belt for his baggy orange pants. He had on no shirt, which showed his naturally toned upper body. His shoes were gone, giving way to bare feet, and his sleeveless coat was orange, with red bricks that escalated from the bottom of the coat to the thighs.

"Jiemma, what you've witnessed is the least of your worries." Nic announced, paying no heed to his new Fist Plate Form. He clenched a fist. "Your biggest concern…" He started running ahead, and he subconsciously swelled energy in his right fist, engulfing it in red-orange aura. "Is the well-being of your daughter!" Jiemma was still left in shock from seeing Nic fuse with something he found, and he was hit in the face head-on with Power-Up Punch. Jiemma skid back, making a trail in the ground until he crashed into a nearby wall.

Nic's fist was left sizzling, and he huffed as his complete focus was enhanced by the Fist Plate, and he whipped his fist back, relieving it of the steam. He kept a calm and serious gaze when Jiemma arose from the wall, and growled. Once again, Nic and Kecleon felt a major energy spike, and they knew Jiemma was beyond furious.

The ground beneath Jiemma shattered as he let loose a powerful tremor, one that rattled the whole guild, and everyone but Nic and Kecleon lost their balance. Jiemma was releasing a lot of pressure, and the crater under him expanded a few more feet.

"You took Sabertooth's symbol!" He growled menacingly. "For that, I will gut you right before you die!"

"You had no claims to something that wasn't yours to begin with." Nic explained. He crouched as he cracked his knuckles, Kecleon also readied herself. "What I absorbed may have strengthened your fighting will, but it means nothing if you have nothing to fight for!"

Nic dashed ahead, small winds picked up upon his mad and powerful dash, with Kecleon right beside. Nic's feet glowed as he dashed after Jiemma. And Kecleon's claws glowed and elongated. "It's monsters like you that we loathe!" Kecleon announced, her weird and creepy, monotone voice sounding serious. "Bad guys like you make me sick, despite that I'm already green!"

"**Double Kick!**"

"**Slash!**"

Both attacks struck Jiemma in the abdomen, and all Jiemma did was budge a bit and suffer a tear in his robe. Jiemma tensed up, grunting heavily, and let loose a close-range shockwave that echoed about, making the Sabertooth members stay down as some rock flew. Nic and Kecleon sailed back and maintained their footing as they skid back to a screeching halt. Jiemma scowled angrily and clenched his fists harder, and his aura shined around his body, and shockwaves and winds palpitated around the chamber, making nearby guild members flew back, and Nic and Kecleon had to cover up, as the pressure he was giving off was intense.

Nic grunted, losing ground. Jiemma's power just kept pumping out, and he and Kecleon both eventually ended up pressed against the wall, the winds from the shockwaves keeping them from moving ahead. Unfortunately for them, that left Jiemma two targets.

"I have you know, you punks!" As the tremors echoed and rampaged in the guild, Jiemma let loose a blast wave in Nic and Kecleon's positions. Minerva was pretty much scared as Nic was about to be swallowed up in Jiemma's attack. Nic and Kecleon, however, weren't smart for any reason.

"Kecleon!" Nic shouted as the light and intensity was enhancing.

Kecleon turned her head towards him, mouth open as winds pressed her mouth against the wall. "Got it! **Shadow Sneak!**" She muffled, and under Jiemma, the shadow thickened and stretched out from underneath, striking with past and powerful precision under Jiemma's chin, making him gag as his head reeled back from that Shadow Sneak uppercut, hitting his head against the wall, momentarily making him feel hazy and pain. His Blast Magic and shockwaves ceased, and he was seen falling forwards.

Unstuck from the wall, Nic and Kecleon both pried themselves and straightened out, getting any residue off of them. "We almost went out with a bang." Kecleon said.

"True, and I hardly doubt janitors would clean up that mess." Nic stated, getting slight humor before ascertaining his focus.

Kecleon then turned her head, seeing Jiemma on a knee. "But there's one big mess that's still needs to be cleaned up." Good thing Kecleon always got her point across, in any way Nic could translate and interpret.

Nic grinned. "Right, so let's go!"

Both Nic and Kecleon then went in to attack Jiemma, who quickly recovered from the sudden blow. He saw the two lunging and he lashed an arm ahead, making the area ahead of them explode in a vast blast wave that made them stop in their tracks and jerk back to gain a safe distance.

Jiemma growled and looked aggressively at Nic and his Kecleon. "You two are beyond aggravating. Coming here and bringing back a weak insect, now assaulting while taking something that was mine and mine alone." His tone was very dark, and he was very angry, as shown by his veins popping out. "You and that lizard are ruining Sabertooth's chance to dominate everyone."

Nic remained pause as he stared coldly at Jiemma. "…Sabertooth, or you?"

This sparked some curiosity among everyone, as they recovered and watched the battle, hearing Nic and Jiemma briefly talk.

"I know people much like you. Couldn't care less what Minerva is. You just want to make her strong and nothing more; otherwise she'd be trash that you want to kick to the curb, right?" Minerva listened carefully to what Nic said. "Minerva doesn't deserve a father like you. She can be strong however she seems fit!"

Jiemma wasn't moved. "Minerva is none of your concern boy. She's my daughter, and I can use her however I see fit, whether it'd be for power or for something to crush!" The aura around Jiemma returned again. "Family is a sign of weakness, something Sabertooth shall never have."

Nic clenched his fists. "That's not true! Family is something that makes everybody strong! Even if it's just one person, if that one person is worth protecting, then you have to put everything on the line!" Nic then lunged after Jiemma again. "Protecting those closest to you will bring out your true power!" Nic's Power-Up Punch collided with Jiemma's own fist, making powerful winds break out between the two, and both were left at a standstill as the winds dialed down.

Fists still collided, Nic bared his angry expression. "You will never find strength alone! You have to have people close to you, let them encourage you and help you! Together, everyone benefits!"

"Nic." Minerva said, staying on the ground from the pressure of the battle.

Jiemma and Nic seemed even, given that Nic's Attack was higher due to Power-Up Punch. Eventually both jerked back and landed on their feet. Jiemma then released a shockwave, in which shot Nic back, making him grunt as he tumbled and quickly stop when he straightened out, on a knee.

"Family is weakness boy. Everything is a weakness. Love. Tears. Guilt. Fear. Only true champions rise by dominating their weaknesses, and abandoning anything other than resolve to be at the top." Jiemma said. He extended an arm out, attempting to use his Blast Magic, but Nic and Kecleon's reflexes enabled them both to speed to their right and dash about, avoiding explosion dome after explosion dome. "Caring for the feeble-minded will only soften the heart. Abandoning family and any outside forces will make Sabertooth the best. If my daughter is a weakling, who needs her?"

As Nic continued dodging, Minerva's fists clenched, and she choked on her tears a little. Nic growled as he and Kecleon changed course and they sped into Jiemma, dashing zigzags and making Jiemma unable to strike in time when Kecleon slammed herself into him with Thief, and Nic's knee cap glowed as he unleashed High Jump Kick, both attacks making a powerful air ripple and Jiemma gawked in abdominal pain and the force of both powerful attacks made him zoom in the blink of an eye back into the wall, smashing him into it, leaving it severely cracked and making a booming crash echo.

Nic and Kecleon jumped back and gained distance. Nic continued. "The members of Sabertooth, they have family as well. Whether they support them or not is up to them, but in the end, if they love their family, they should do everything to protect them!"

Individually, the members thought as to how some didn't have parents, yet some did, but even so, they met up in Sabertooth; and for whatever it was worth, they guessed Nic was right.

"Victory is a delicious pizza!" Kecleon shouted. "You can't savor the flavor if you don't have the best ingredients! And the best topping on it, is friendship and trust!"

"Trust…" Some members looked about, a little confused. They were aware Sabertooth wasn't the best guild, but that was probably because trust and bonding wasn't very common.

"I came here solemnly to give you a piece of my mind! No more abusing for Minerva! She doesn't deserve this-!" Though Nic's words were heard through the vast dust cloud Jiemma was in at the time, he stopped mid-sentence when he felt the ground beneath him quake, and a large purple blast wave was seen being formed about him and his green pal.

Nic acted fast, and he and Kecleon banded together, and Nic put up a barrier quickly. "**Quick Guard!**" Making a red shield, Nic managed to protect him and Kecleon until the rumbling stopped and the blindness dispersed. When it settled, the shield disappeared, leaving them unharmed, but a few scratches here and there because it was last-second notice. Suddenly, Jiemma appeared in front of Nic and Kecleon, grabbing the two and pressing them against the cratered floor, choking and pinning them in separate hands.

"You fools don't get it, do you." Jiemma's face had a very dark shadow, despite his body being battered. "Minerva isn't my daughter, she's just a vessel for strength that I need to make happen. Sabertooth shall triumph yet. Those who are weak-minded and care about others than themselves aren't welcome here! If all of Sabertooth is soft, I shall destroy them all!" He shouted, much to the sheer dismay of everyone else. "I WILL BE THE STRONGEST THEN! I SHALL REIGN SUPREME AND CRUSH ALL UNDER ME! THE STRONGEST EXIST FOR ONE, AND THAT'S ME AND ME ALONE!"

Nic grunted as he was losing oxygen. Still, he had Kecleon. And she was still clever enough to understand what to do in this situation, giving her battles in the past. Though it was a small struggle, she used Shadow Sneak from under Jiemma, getting him once again in the abdomen, much harsher then last time. Jiemma jerked back, and his grip was undone on both.

Nic and Kecleon both took in deep breaths and regained oxygen while getting back their feet. Soon back up, Nic saw Jiemma leaning forward, his abdomen hurting, and his fist collided with his face, making the Guild Master fall back from the plain old punch.

Nic and Kecleon both looked down, and Kecleon narrowed her eyes. "You have terrible taste in pizza."

Jiemma soon arose to his feet, huffing. His entire body fumed with veins as he unleashed a massive amount of purple energy, and the entire building shook. Nic and Kecleon took defensive action as Jiemma screamed at the top of his lungs and the ground shattered completely, making Nic and Kecleon fly and fall back down on their backs.

The rumbling continued, and Jiemma extended an arm out at them. "BEGONE INSECTS!"

As Jiemma was about to use his Blast Magic on them, Minerva was still shaken, but she couldn't stand by anymore. "…N-Nic…Sabertooth…" Suddenly, she snapped and she focused. "I don't need your forgiveness!" She shouted at Jiemma.

Jiemma was on the verge of triumph as he then engulfed the area in front with Blast Magic, then he became shocked when he saw the scene change. Suddenly, he was found hit by his own attack, and he screamed as he was swallowed in Blast Magic.

Nic and Kecleon grunted as they both jerked back up and found Jiemma swallowed in his own attack. He blinked and looked over at Minerva, who looked like she had just used her Territory Magic to switch places at the last second. Nic and Kecleon smiled, and glanced back at Jiemma, who was steaming and covered in scratches.

"You see Jiemma? Working together makes everyone strong!" Nic announced.

Angered, Jiemma turned towards Minerva. "Minerva?! How dare you! Die!" He extended an arm out, and Minerva waited. She then used her Territory, where history repeated itself. Jiemma was caught, once again, in his own attack. The guild members were never so awe struck before. They never thought they see the day Jiemma's own daughter would turn against him.

Minerva stood where Jiemma stood from before, and she looked at Nic and nodded. Nic was left shocked, but he nodded with a smile. He then turned back at Jiemma, who coughed as his body was exhausted.

"Minerva's chosen her own path Jiemma!" Nic went ahead after Jiemma, with Kecleon following. Jiemma was unable to respond from getting hit by his own Blast Magic, which required tremendous force. "Scum like you don't deserve power, and Minerva is free to make friends!" Nic then had a fist charging as he gave every ounce of focus he had.

"Your ingredients are what made the pizza taste terrible! And so…" Kecleon readied Slash. "We'll make it just right! **Slash**"

Jiemma groaned as he was on a knee in a crater, and he looked up and saw that it was too late. Kecleon's Slash went first and she let loose a battlecry as she slashed with all her might, making Jiemma scream as there was a vast gash across his chest. Then, Nic's fist had a massive amount of energy within, and he punched Jiemma right in the abdomen, making Jiemma scream as a shockwave swallowed up the area, and Nic drove his punch down.

"**Focus Punch!**" Nic's punch made tons of rock fly and winds fly. All of the members took cover, and a loud boom echoed. After the dust and rock settled down, Nic was seen huffing, his fist slowly being retracted from Jiemma's body, then shifted back into himself.

Jiemma had a massive bruise from where Nic punched, which was his center, and a gash was across the chest, which was Kecleon's doing. Together, with Minerva as well, they all looked down at the defeated Guild Master's body.

Nic huffed and he looked ahead, seeing the guild members in shock. "Whoa, they took down Jiemma!" "All hail the hero!" "No way am I abandoning my family for power!" "Victory!" Many of the guild members looked in shock, and many were inspired. Nic and Kecleon made them see how wrong Jiemma was, and with Minerva, they stood up to him.

Nic looked down at Minerva, slowly breaking into a smile. "You see? You don't need to be strong. Look at what we did." Minerva followed Nic's glance down to her father's defeated body. "Like I said Minerva, it's okay to be weak. As long as you band with friends and family, you can overcome men like him."

Minerva was very happy, and she looked back up at Nic. She suddenly wrapped around his waist and was grateful. Nic, again taken by Minerva's actions, broke out of his initial shock and he slowly embraced her too. Soon enough, Kecleon joined in, because who doesn't love hugging the little weirdo?

Soon enough, the guild members were all fairly inspired by Nic and realization. Some made plans on the spot. A few chose to leave, find a guild whose Master sought for glory without treating the weak like dirt. Many others, decided to stick around, but mainly for Minerva's sake.

Minerva looked at the many faces, how they all looked at her, seeing as how she helped Nic. Minerva was confused, but Nic comforted her worries.

"You see Minerva? Look at everyone." Nic gestured to everyone. "Now I don't know what will happen to you guys now, but I know Jiemma isn't going to appreciate this, but no matter what, protect each other like your lives depend on it." He preached.

Minerva looked down at the ground. "I don't think father's going to take this lightly…"

Nic then crouched down and met her at eye level. "Minerva. Even when your father comes to, remember that he's not your family. Whatever you do, be with those you care for. Train away from him, train with others who want to rely on you. Can you do that?"

Minerva nodded, satisfied to know that even though they had no place to go, and some had no choice but to stay in Sabertooth, they'll take their chances, and they would have Jiemma to deal with, especially with Minerva and her Territory to have Jiemma on the receiving end. This could be a start of some two-sided guild sort of speak.

Nic wasn't sure what will happen to Sabertooth, but he and Kecleon both smiled away. Soon enough, it was time to go. As Nic and Kecleon went away, Minerva called out to them.

"Wait!" She shouted, making Nic and Kecleon stop and turn around, seeing Minerva standing there. "Nic…Kecleon…I can't thank you both enough."

Nic smiled. "It's okay. Just look around you, you got real guild mates at least. Let this be a reminder that the right incentive and bonds can trump tyrants like Jiemma. Just train and take some jobs away from him. Be a special kind of group or guild and look after the other. Okay?"

Everyone cheered in the background, and Minerva was teary in the eyes. She sniffled. "Will I…will I be able to see you again?"

Nic blinked and half-grinned. A silence blew about and Nic crouched back down to eye level. "Minerva, I'm sure. I'm sure that we'll meet each other again someday, but for now…" He stood back up. "Be an example. Don't wind up being stabbed and abused like I did. You got a good future, just know to stay away, and be friendly to your guild. You have a home somewhere, just know that you aren't alone."

Minerva then went and hugged Nic one last time around the waist, small tears dripping down her face. This experience made her truly strong, and in the best way. "Thank you." She then slowly let go and turned towards Kecleon with a smile. "Thank you too."

Kecleon tilted her head. "Make the best pizza ever, with the ingredients of friendship."

Minerva giggled and hugged her as well, and soon enough, Nic and Kecleon turned and left, waving back at Sabertooth, mainly Minerva.

Minerva waved goodbye to Nic, with a smile on her face. _'Nic. Kecleon. You two used teamwork and friendship to win, and that's what made you strong…thank you…for showing me true strength.'_

As Nic and Kecleon left town, jumping through the trees. The two were left pretty satisfied with how their little adventure went.

Kecleon turned towards Nic as they jumped branches. "Nic?"

"Hm?" Nic looked over at his pal. "Yeah, what is it?"

Kecleon tilted her head. "I'm hungry." All of that pizza talk and other stuff she said back in the guild really made her hungry.

Nic smiled, feeling the same thing as they continued onwards home. "Me too Kecleon, me too."

Little did they know, meeting Minerva again someday…would be a _very_ long time.

* * *

**Well, I didn't make this chapter around 10.5K like I hoped I would, but 11K is still good. There's always next chapter to try and dial it down in the 10K area, right? Also, I realized Kecleon didn't get a lot of screen time, so this chapter was all for her. All hail Kecleon's weirdness!**

**Surprised? This chapter was very important. First of all, I accounted every Plate in the story, and where it would be, but I forgot the Fist Plate, so this chapter was to fit that Plate in; secondly, there's another realization. Put this into logic: Minerva looked around the same age as Erza and Kagura in the GMG Arc, at least she looked like it, but rewind her 7 years prior and you get a teen Minerva still being abused by her father, so I sought to make a nice chance. There was also another reason why I did this chapter; I personally believe that Minerva deserves a chance at being good, so having Nic as an influence will make her personality different later on. This will definitely affect the GMG Arc, but not drastically. Minerva will be nicer, nonetheless.**

**Anyways, next chapter will be the crazy Tenrou Island Arc. With all the battles taking place, I might need to cut some out, and write in only the ones I made alterations in, just to save time.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the plot, screen time for Kecleon, the battles, etc.**

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**Next Time: Tropical Hysteria**


	44. Tropical Hysteria

Chapter 44 – Tropical Hysteria

**Hey guys, it's Insane Dominator, and I'm here to give you guys the first chapter of the Tenrou Island Arc. I'm really hoping that you guys find this Arc to be just as god as the Kalos Arc, but time will tell. **

**GoldenCyclone4: For the record, the Fighting-Type being the best is your opinion. My favorite is Poison.**

**On with the show, er, story! Whatever!**

**To Recap:**

A few weeks passed since they came back to Fiore, and the S-Class trials had nine candidates. During preparations, Nic took a night off to train and go on a job, and as he returned, he encountered a little girl named Minerva. Hearing about her abusive father, Nic marched over to Sabertooth, and with Kecleon, laid the hurt on Jiemma, acquiring the Fist Plate in the process.

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**Chapter 44 – Tropical Hysteria**

A nice, peaceful, bird-chirping morning in Magnolia. The sun began to rise, and in an apartment, in a certain room, a girl was sound asleep. She was all nice and cozy under her blanket as the sweet, soft cotton kept her warm and…

"VANESA WAKE UP! KROKOROK IS BREAKING MY FURNITURE!" Sophie screamed right next to Vanessa. Vanessa shot her eyes open and screamed in a frantic panic from the sudden awakening, flying out of her bed and falling down on the floor with a thud.

Everything was just a daze to Vanessa as she shook her head to rid herself of dizziness. She then turned sharply upwards towards a smiling Sophie, who was in her attire and ready for the day, though a certain someone was still not necessarily the morning person.

"Sophie! You know I hate that!" Vanessa barked at her friend.

Sophie only kept her grin on her face as she crossed her arms. "Well good morning to you too." She said.

Vanessa rubbed her head and groaned, her black hair slightly messy, but her blonde bang barely covered her right eye as always. "Aw man, and I was having such a good dream too." She then twitched her eyes as Sophie giggled in amusement. "You really are a killjoy when it comes to quality sleep, you know that?"

"Mmmm, perhaps." Sophie then slowly pivoted and started back for the door. "Better get ready, today's the big day!"

Vanessa blinked once, then twice, and then her eyes became circles when she realized what the day it was. She scrambled to her feet and went to change out of her pajamas, which was a teal T-shirt and green shorts. She got dressed into her usual attire, fixing up her hair and made way downstairs towards the kitchen. There, she saw her six Pokémon patiently, more or less, waiting for her.

Sophie turned towards Vanessa as she flipped a pancake in a pan. "_Boker tov_ sleeping beauty."

"Shut up." Vanessa groaned. She yawned and she made way towards the fridge, where she pulled out a couple of eggs and a lemon. She got out her own pan and proceeded to cooking her eggs. As she cooked, she glanced over towards Sophie, her mood still pretty good. "So…ready for today?"

Sophie moved the pancake over to her plate with the spatula and carried it over towards the table. "That's debatable." She said, placing her pancake right next to her fruit. She then looked back at Vanessa, hands to her hips. "Honestly, I still can't get over the fact that you eat actual lemons for breakfast."

Vanessa concentrate on her cooking, applying sea salt to her scrambled eggs as they cooked. "Yeah, well, I have my tastes."

As Sophie opened her mouth, Vanessa pointed the spatula accusingly at her. "And no, I am not a sour mouth!"

Sophie just laughed that Vanessa read her like a book. The two girls sat at their seats, eating away at their respective breakfasts. As both ate, Goomy looked up at Venusaur.

The Dragon-Type looked happy. "Hey Venusaur, are you ready for today?" She asked in her gurgled voice.

Venusaur smiled. "As long as Vanessa is ready, then it's fair to say that we may as well be ready." He said.

Magnezone floated in the air and nodded. "I must agree with you there. No matter what, we must assist Vanessa in any way we can."

Krokorok took in a heaping amount of sausage, much to Mawile's annoyance. Mawile turned towards Krokorok. "Hey, you're gonna choke one of these days if you don't learn to swallow you pig." She complained.

Krokorok turned towards Mawile, pointing a claw at her. "Let me tell you something Mawile! Krokorok eats however he wants! He can eat a piece that's as big as his stomach can chew up!"

Mawile made a tick mark. "You're not making sense there. If your stomach could chew, you wouldn't have a stomach anymore." She growled.

"BRAAHHH!" Krokorok picked up another sausage and threw it into his mouth, chewing it and munching it just to show Mawile that he ain't below Mawile's smarty-pants manner.

Braixen sighed. "Come on you two. Today's an important day."

"She's right." Venusaur came in between the two, doing his peacekeeper duties. "Now both of you, it's best to have this subsided for now. Eating habits or not, we gotta remember what we worked for."

Braixen stood up. "Yeah. We're doing our best for Vanessa to help her friend make S-Class. Hey Vanessa." She called to her Trainer, who looked back at her. "Do you remember what time we gotta be at the port?"

Vanessa swallowed, but sweatdropped. "Uhh, what was it, eight or something?" She was a little confused, as her mind was still trying to process this morning.

Sophie turned towards Vanessa, slabbing melted butter all over her pancake, watching it slather all over the golden brown surface. The glistening image nearly made Sophie drool before she lost focus. "Yeah, I remember. Eight." She then stuffed a small slice of her pancake into her mouth, savoring the flavor. "Which means we have about an hour. We should be ready to leave in half an hour so we can get there by carriage." She said with her mouth full.

Vanessa took a slice of her cut lemon and put the soft inside past her lips, slowly prying the inside from the skin and ate it, swallowing and placed the skin aside on a small plate. She looked thoroughly contemplative, to which Sophie picked up.

"Hm?" Sophie then swallowed. "Something wrong chum?"

"Huh?" Vanessa shook her head. "O-Oh, it's nothing…it's just that I was wondering if I'm ready."

Sophie frowned. "Oh?"

"I mean, I just started learning Magic, and I barely know the basics of Water Magic and Lightning. I mean, I just started reading some Earth Magic, but all I did was start reading a book." She then looked a little saddened. "Though I've been training for a couple weeks, there's so much I don't know yet."

Sophie raised her brow and gave a half-grin. "That attitude isn't going to be helpful you know?" She commented in a more vivid tone. "Come on, you're a great training partner, and your Pokémon over there are just as helpful as you."

_Noon, and fairly sunny. Venusaur was just all peachy, and he raised his front legs and then brought them down. "__**Razor Leaf!**__" A barrage of spinning, green leaves sliced through the air at Vanessa, who was still working on getting down her Water Magic that she's been working on for a few days._

_Vanessa huffed. 'Okay…think of ocean waves…the currents coursing through the water…through your blood…the energy you see all around.' She then put her hands out, but nothing happened. Vanessa then got into a brief panic as Razor Leaf went her way._

"_Vanessa! Focus!" Sophie's voice rang as she used her Pyro Saucer from the side, effectively incinerating Razor Leaf, keeping Vanessa from harm._

_Venusaur looked at Vanessa with concern as she looked hesitant. "Are you alright Vanessa?" He called out._

_The Pularis sibling nodded. "Y-Yeah." She clenched her fists and breathed out. She then put her hand sin front, trying to think again. 'Come on Vanessa. This is your fifth try, you've gotta have it down by now! Just breathe in, have the energy flow…'_

_Not even a Magic seal appeared before her, keeping her spirits low. She sighed in grief, her efforts at every Magic so far have been for nothing. _

_Sophie, seeing her friend upset, came over. "Vanessa." Sophie said. "It's okay. Magic isn't something so easily learned." _

_Vanessa looked at her friends, but still didn't seem high in spirits._

"_Look, my Memory-Make didn't come just naturally. It all depends on your drive, behavior, incentives, habits, everything…look, the point I'm making is that this is just going to take some time."_

"_Which we don't necessarily have." Vanessa pointed out. "The S-Class trials are in five days, and I don't think that's a lot of time."_

_Sophie smiled. "You'll be fine." She then got serious. "Now come on pouty-pants! Stop shirking and get to attacking!"_

_Vanessa nodded. "Okay!" She then clenched a fist and she did her best for a jab, but Sophie jerked away. _

"_C'mon Vanessa! You gotta try harder than that! Nic practically the best hand-to-hand combatant. You and Venusaur have to put everything you have into attacking me!" Sophie exclaimed._

_Though hesitant, Vanessa nodded. She then turned towards Venusaur, yet pointed at Sophie. "Venusaur, __**Razor Leaf**__!" _

"_Understood!" Venusaur then fired the same attack at Sophie this time, and Sophie smirked as a chain of memories began to form._

"_This is going to be a workout." She commented, the Razor Leaf getting closer, and she fired Pyro Saucer and every leaf was set ablaze._

Vanessa was still left a little downhearted. "I couldn't perform a single spell. Sure, I'm glad Goomy learned Muddy Water, and everyone else gaining some experience, but it's like I never benefitted in the first place."

Sophie sighed before taking in the last bit of her pancake. After a minute, she swallowed and plopped her fork onto her plate. "Now that's just quiter's talk missy." She scolded."So what if those kinds of Magic ain't your forte? You still got them, right?"

Vanessa looked over to see all of her Pokémon smiling at her, and she slowly broke into a grin. "I guess so." She put an elbow on the table. "You're not wrong Sophie, I strive to work just as hard as my brother, and achieve the bonds he has with his team. I'll find my Magic someday."

Sophie grinned. "Thatta girl! Now up on your feet!" She ordered. "We gotta get going soon."

A brief moment passed as Vanessa got out of her seat, Sophie looking at her friend. "And Vanessa, who knows? Maybe your Magic will be unique? It's all on what you do and desire."

Vanessa had a half-grin as she looked at her plate, bits of scrambled eggs and lemon skin all about. She looked on with her grin getting bigger, keeping her hopes up. She then looked at Sophie.

"Alright Ms. Encyclopediac, let's make you S-Class!" She enthusiastically announced.

* * *

**Tenrou Island**

The S-Class Mages all were on their own ship, and they all were supposed to be at the island early. The ship had a Fairy Tail symbol, and they came close to what appeared to be a freaky island with a very large tree, almost seemingly having an island on top.

Nic, having his sunglasses on and in his Splash Plate Form, leaned against the deck railing, the tropical winds brewing about. He looked suspiciously at Tenrou Island, never to have seen something so…peculiar, yet the Magic sensed from their distance was enormous, which made Nic that much more uneasy.

Erza, in her armor, walked up to Nic and saw him looking at the island. "Tenrou Island. Fairy Tail's sacred grounds. I have to admit, even I was left surprised by the Magic swelled around here. It wasn't easy to undergo, S-Class is a tough responsibility, but your wits, strength, and great resolves, as well as your past experiences back in Kalos made you qualified." Erza glanced over towards Nic with a grin. "I wouldn't think otherwise."

Nic grinned, keeping his superstitions out of the way and just enjoying the nice atmosphere. True, it was freakishly hot, but it didn't bother Nic. Route 9 and the beach along Route 8 had that kind of hot weather, but that didn't keep Nic down. And on that note, ever since coming back from Kalos, Nic and Erza started to reconnect, feeling satisfied around her again.

Pleasantries aside for both parties, Gildarts and Mira both looked on. Gildarts turned towards Mira. "So what's the story with those two?" He asked.

Mira, knowing how the other felt, just smiled. She knew from the Phantom Lord War, the Tower of Heaven, and after the Fantasia Parade that the two had a very deep connection. Mirajane feigned curiosity. "Well, let's say that both had a long road that they're walking down on." She simply stated.

"Oh?" Gildarts had a small hint, but got the idea fairly quickly, given his past experience. A small grin came across his face.

Nic then turned around and faced the other S-Class members. "Alright guys, listen up. The Master gave us specific locations to quarrel when the candidates come ashore, so once we reach land, we'll set the base camp up and then take our positions."

"Well look at you, all tall and mighty." Gildarts said, impressed at how his orders were a lot like Erza, and exaggerated the tall part since Nic and Erza were the same height. "You got experience leading the charge."

Nic snickered. "Guess you could say that." Nic then turned around, facing Tenrou Island as it came closer within grasps. The oceanic breeze made his coat wave slightly as his sunglasses reflected Tenrou's tree. _'This is going to be something very interesting…'_

A moment later, his eyes widened slightly, seeing a forceful pulse out of the blue. His radar began to go off from deep within his own core. Recognizing this sensation almost immediately, Nic mentally gritting his own teeth, his gaze looking serious from under his glasses.

'_This isn't good.' _He thought. _'A Plate? At a time and place like this? This is only gonna complicate things, with the other members coming in a couple hours.' _He looked and slowly clenched his fists. _'I have to test the contenders, but…of all the times!'_

He snapped out of his thoughts when the boat stopped, and they were soon on shore. Nic set his Plate radar on hold and he got on shore with the other S-Class Mages. They quickly set up base camp in their designated location, and then Erza took the lead.

"I'll secure my post, which shall be route 4." She said.

"Then I get route 1." Gildarts announced.

Mira gave a serious smile. "Then I guess that I get route 8."

Nic blinked and he made a mental resolve. _'I have to get the Plate out of my head for now. Dealing with the S-Class trials will have to be my priority for now. When they're finished, I'll go in search.'_

With his resolve set, Nic then stepped forwards. "Then I get route 9." He said.

Mira smirked. "Oh, getting cozy close to my route, huh?" She deliberately teased. "Careful not to get too close, or I may get rough." She then broke into a small laugh. Erza knew Mirajane was teasing, but the startled and slightly flustered expression Nic had made her fume a fiery aura and a tick mark. It took all of Erza's willpower to suppress her growling.

Gildarts smirked at the amusement. "Any rate, let's get moving. They'll be here soon." As he started walking, Gildarts looked back at Nic. "Hey, you got the smoke up?"

Thanks to Gildarts's question, Nic was brought out of his embarrassment and looked back at the middle-aged S-Class Mage. "Yeah, I got it set." Nic then proceeded without hesitation, trying to keep himself occupied by plugging in his earbuds to drown out distractions. The metal got Nic focusing as he proceeded into cave. Mira's route was one of the few that were with no cavern, which didn't bother her. Erza and Gildarts both went into their caves, with the former beginning to focus as the S-Class Mages were soon to arrive.

* * *

**An hour later…**

The S-Class contenders all sulked around on the boat, the heat getting to them. Practically everyone had on tropical attires, and Evergreen, Cana, and Lucy were all in bikinis. Elfman was in his 'manly' swimwear, which was a long cloth, and Gray…you get the idea.

"Geez, has anyone invented air conditioning out here? I'm being roasted alive." Lucy exaggerated.

"There isn't much wind, so we're frickin boiling." Cana said, fanning herself with a fan with the Fairy Tail emblem that had the same color as Nic's.

Happy was literally sizzling. "I think I'm gonna become a fish and dive right into the water. Who invented heat anyway?"

Sophie, laying her head against a table, looked exhausted. "You're only making us worse Happy." She groaned, Vanessa's forehead against the table and groaning right after.

Gajeel rested his head on his hand. "We get it! It's hot, right that on your foreheads while you're at it!" He barked, his tolerance low.

Lisanna had an iced glass pressed against her face. "Juvia, aren't you hot wearing that?"

Juvia's hair and attire was back to what it was, the only change being her vest held by a Fairy Tail button. "I'm fine, thanks. However…" She then clasped her hands together and had hearts in her eyes as she saw Gray, naked and groaning on a chair. "Gray's so hot without his clothes!"

"I'm dying." Gray groaned.

Natsu was all dazed as the heat didn't bother him, but being on a ship was. "Why? Whyyyyyyy?!" He squealed before releasing the contents of his stomach overboard.

Vanessa tilted her head, noting how her black hair was taking in a ton of heat, frying her neck. "Curse you, demon sun." Vanessa then went wide-eyed. "I need to get Goomy's Rain Dance out here, asap." The Pularis sibling then reached into her bag, where she got out Goomy's Poke Ball and half-grinned.

"Hey guys, look." Loke announced. Before Vanessa could open Goomy's Poke Ball, she looked up and saw that her efforts were for naught as they reached Tenrou Island, the same island Nic and the S-Class Mages arrived at earlier. "We've arrived."

Gray, still naked, looked over the boat, seeing the island ahead. "It's kind of freaky looking."

Happy sensed a great power, and he looked as well. "Can you fell that? There's so much Magic power that it's freaking me out. You feel it too Natsu?" Naturally, as Natsu did was twitch on the deck, his face pale.

"True, and it looks manly to me." Elfman said.

"An island on top of another island? This is very odd." Levy said.

"Impressive." Mest said.

As their awe came to a close, Makarov was aboard the ship, staring down at the contenders. "A legend of Tenrou Island follows." He announced, making everyone turn back towards him. "It was once home to fairies, but to this day no one knows. All that is certain…is that it is the resting place of Fairy Tail's First Master, Mavis Vermilion."

Vanessa and Sophie were both left in surprise. "No joke?! I don't remember you saying that!" Sophie exclaimed.

Gray pointed an accusing finger at Makarov. "And you're going there in that?!" Gray shouted, seeing Makarov's T-shirt was a vacationing shirt.

Makarov looked back at Gray. "Coming from you? The guy who's nude?"

"Speaking of which, can you finally get some clothes on?" Sophie asked.

Makarov then looked slightly impatient. "Now then, I would like to announce the first round of your trial."

Wendy was rather surprised. "There's more than one trial?"

Mest looked down at Wendy, a mild look on his face. "If the Mest had just one trial planned, it wouldn't be much of a challenge."

Makarov then pointed at the island. "Your attention should be towards the island. You'll notice that there's smoke coming from one point." Everyone then turned and looked over to see the smoke that Nic had earlier. "Your first task is to head to it; then, you shall choose one of the nine routes present. Once you pick one there will be no turning back, so pick wisely."

A Magic board appeared right next to Master Makarov, labeling the routes in numbers and everyone looked at the board. They all saw the routes with the S-Class Mages being classified as "Intense Combat", one route labeled "Serenity", and four paths, that converged into two, labeled as "Combat, leading up to a big circle at the top labeled "First Round Passed".

"Teams that are able to advance passed these routes shall be victorious, and shall move on to the second round." Makarov explained.

"Whoa." Natsu said, awing as the boat didn't move and saw the board.

Gray saw it as well. "Intense Combat routes. Those won't be easy, especially with Erza and Nic."

Loke grinned. "Yeah, those two got smarts and reflexes. I wouldn't wanna fight them."

Vanessa looked piqued. "What's the Serenity Route?" She asked.

Makarov then spoke again. "Combat routes are straight-forward. Two teams clash, but only one will advance. Intense Combat is much more difficult, as you will be facing Fairy Tail's S-Class Mages. The Serenity route is where you get by without fighting, but you will still be tested nonetheless."

Lucy turned towards Cana. "Let's hope luck is on our side!"

Cana raised a brow when she looked at Lucy. "Though I am a gambler, I wouldn't place all my eggs in one basket. The odds being one out of nine, be ready to fight."

Elfman clenched his fists. "Grrr…this sucks! Those Intense Combat routes are very manly, too manly!"

Evergreen sighed. "You big ox, what a wimp."

"I really don't wanna fight my friends." Levy groaned, having Gajeel rest an arm on her head due to her height.

Gajeel smirked, clenching his left fist as his right was resting on Levy's head. "Sounds fun to me. I've been aching to find a reason to punch these fools."

Makarov then stood affirm. "Ready?! The first round starts now!"

Vanessa immediately panicked. "Wait! You mean we start _now_?! It's the middle of the ocean!"

Gray smirked. "Guess we're swimming then!"

Natsu was grabbed by Happy. "ALRIGHT! LET'S GO!" When they were leaving, Natsu and Happy both splat their faces against the air, as though it was an invisible wall.

Everyone there was left surprised. Cana recognized it. "An Enchantment?" She then looked around and noticed that the ship was surrounded by Freed's Enchantment.

Everyone then saw Freed using Dark Ecriture: Wings and sailed off through the air towards their destination. He looked back at them all. "It won't last long. 5 Minutes is what I set it to."

Bickslow was flying on his 'babies'. He flew right by Freed's side. "Then again, know never know these days."

Gray looked out in distress. "Hey, get back here! Gramps, that's gotta be against the rules or something!"

Master didn't look interested. "Nope Gray, it's fair."

"You gotta be kidding me! He's gonna cover the whole island in Enchantments by the time we're there!" Gray was not pleased at all

Happy then realized something. "Hey wait a sec guys, can't Levy get us out?"

Levy nodded and got out a pen, and started to rewrite the Enchantment. "I'll have this done in a sec."

"ALRIGHT!" Natsu and Happy then flew ahead, but slammed once again into an invisible wall.

Levy winked. "Sorry, I wrote it for me and Gajeel! Later!" Levy and Gajeel then dive right onto the water, with Lucy and Cana looking displeased.

"What-?! Levy!" Lucy shouted. She then sulked. "Great. Just great."

Meanwhile, Evergreen was writing the Enchantment for her and Elfman. She used her own pen and scribbled the enchantment around. "You glad you teamed up with someone who knows Freed so well?" She asked Elfman.

Elfman looked surprised. "I didn't know you could do that!"

"Rewriting Enchantments such as these is easy for someone like me." She then finished and then dived right into the water, with Elfman diving in like a real man, now making three teams heading way towards the island.

Natsu pounded in frustration against the Enchantment, four minutes remaining. As everyone looked frustrated, Vanessa groaned and Sophie shook in place. "_Zeh dafuk!_"

* * *

**Four minutes later…**

The Enchantment flashed a pink light and shattered, signaling the others to head off as quickly as they could. Natsu and Happy wasted no time in soaring through the air, making way towards the smoke. Gray used Ice make: Floor, and he and Loke both skid off towards the island. Juvia traveled through the water with her Magic, and Lisanna turned into a fish.

"Come on! We're gonna be dead last!" Lucy shouted in distress.

"Don't worry, Mest and Wendy haven't even left the-!" She looked up and noticed that they weren't on the ship. "What the heck?!"

"Come on!" Lucy and Cana then dove into the water, leaving Sophie and Vanessa the only ones left.

Sophie immediately panicked. "_Oy_! We gotta get moving Vanessa! Hurry!" Sophie then jumped overboard and into the water.

Vanessa followed suit, and the two raced side-by-side with Lucy and Cana towards shore, in which they made it in less time than they had expected. Upon getting towards the smoke, Vanessa and Sophie tried drying themselves while Cana and Lucy did so by the sun.

They finally reached the location, where the smoke finally stopped signaling. Out of the nine passages present, varying in staircases and tunnels with rocky or jagged entrance points, seven were sealed off with an 'X' over it, meaning two were currently open.

Cana's optimism wasn't all that high. "Looks like we're the last ones to pick." She said, rather upset.

Lucy still kept her optimism high. "Hey, we still got our looks and luck on our side, right? Besides, they always save the best for last."

Cana sighed. "It's good to know that someone can keep their spirits high." And with that, they made way down towards one of the two routes available, and 'X' appearing over their tunnel.

Just as they went in, Sophie and Vanessa finally showed up, all nice and dry. Sadly, they were last, and the only spot left open was the only route to the far right, which was a rocky entrance with a tunnel entrance.

Vanessa looked annoyed. "Oh great! Just our luck!" She exclaimed. She then gave a defeated sigh. "Well, I guess it can't be helped. If the last route is a combat route, I guess we could have an advantage with your Memory-Make, right?"

Sophie, unlike Vanessa, didn't seem disappointed. She was actually seen chuckling in slight amusement.

"Sophie?" Vanessa asked, narrowing her eyes.

Sophie gave a proud glint in her eyes. "Don't you worry Vanessa, we got this! Because we got the best route out of all of them!"

Immediately, Vanessa looked piqued. "Please tell me it's the Serenity route." She practically begged.

Sophie shook her head. "Sorry, that ain't it." Though this news made Vanessa sweatdrop, Sophie kept her optimism high. "I fully memorized the map Makarov showed us on the ship, so I know just what we'll be dealing with."

Vanessa didn't have much of a say, she just had to put faith in Sophie's judgement. Though it still made her nervous as to how confident Sophie was. Sophie then led Vanessa, the less adventurous of the two, through the route, where an 'X' emerged as they entered.

The inside of the open cave had many holes in the top, light peering through the stalagmites peering from the corners. It had a more tropical feeling, as there were some opening where they were right next to the ocean, hearing the waves crash up towards the rocky side.

Vanessa felt more placid as she liked the ocean waves crashing and splashing. She really wasn't sure why, she just found it comforting. Though this didn't necessarily settle her discomfort with Sophie's choice. "Sophie, I hope you're right about this."

Sophie turned towards Vanessa as they traveled soundly down the route. "Don't worry Vanessa. I memorized it, just like I said, so I know who we're dealing with."

Not even a couple minutes later, there was a rather vast opening, and there was a large dome-like area of rock, light peering through cracks and holes all about. Below was water with stalagmites, and they walked the flat yet rocky trail that lead to a battlefield-sized flat rock, where a certain someone was expecting them.

"And I was right." Sophie smirked.

"Huh…?" Vanessa trailed off as she saw the opponent before her. She nearly gawked at whom she was about to face.

They both looked to see the sunglasses on his face glint and reflect the sun, and his earbuds were being put away. The person was none other than Nic, Vanessa's brother.

"Are you frickin serious Sophie?!" Vanessa screeched, panicking like crazy. "This has to be the worst luck we could possibly have!"

Nic crossed his arms and looked at Sophie and Vanessa. "So, it would appear that you two have to face me. Be warned, just because I'm S-Class, doesn't mean that I won't make this easy."

Sophie chuckled and then gave a serious grin. "Well Nic, this wasn't the best option I admit, but since you're our opponent, this shouldn't take long."

Nic then raised a brow under his sunglasses. "Oh really? I didn't take you to be cocky and overconfident Sophie. Where'd this come from?"

Sophie then stood affirm with a smile. "Because I memorized how you fight, and with my Memory-Make, and Vanessa's team, this won't be easy for you; after all, knowing is half the battle."

Nic raised a brow. "Most impressive knowledge, but less you forget that I'm still gifted in hand-to hand combat, which is your weak point. Trying to surpass me this round won't be an easy task for you or my sister. As your examiner, I must test to see if you have what it takes to make S-Class."

Vanessa crossed her arms and snickered. "Since when did you learn to be a Gym Leader?"

Nic felt the amusement and reference. "Can't say, but enough lollygagging. I won't hold back so easily." A blue aura encased his body as he was still in his Splash Plate Form. Everyone could feel the swishing of the water down below, reacting to Nic's Splash Plate

Sophie tensed up. As did Vanessa. "Get ready!" Sophie shouted. "I'll create a diversion!" Sophie then pointed a finger at her head as a focus point. A chain of memories then started flowing about. "Okay Nic, let's see how you fare against this!"

Nic looked up, seeing as how Sophie initiated her attack from above. "**Memory-Make: Stone Lightning!**" The lightning the shot straight down on Nic, zigzagging until it was very close. Nic didn't move his feet, as he just flicked his left arm in an arc, which made water from below the rock they battled on shoot upwards and arc over Nic's head, the sizeable arc acting as a shield to conduct the lightning.

Sophie went wide-eyed as Nic then moved his right arm in front and into a palm strike motion, which made the arced shield curve and turn into a rushing electrifying gush. Sophie and Vanessa both jumped out of the way as the gushing water splashed in their place, which turned into a stone puddle that was still swaying, having curved edging and some soft slash edges as well.

"Whoa! He just used your attack against us!" Vanessa shouted.

Sophie was still too shocked to whip her head back, which was a mistake as Nic then zoomed in and swung and sharp jab onto Sophie, making her scream as she sailed back hit the stone puddle, which she was safe as she hit the middle with no curved edging.

"Sophie!" Vanessa shouted. She turned sharply towards her brother and grunted. She didn't hesitate as she pulled out a Poke Ball. "Braixen, go!"

From the Poke Ball, Vanessa's Braixen appeared, ready for battle with both her legs spread out. "I'll do my best, don't worry!" The Fire-Type declared.

Nic isn't the one to mock, yet he was uncertain as to why Vanessa would bring out a Fire-Type…unless if she did it to lend a support move or two. Realization dawned upon him as he recalled full well that there were a few status moves that a Braixen could use that could prove to be troublesome, so he kept himself calm and his stance changed to a defensive one.

"Alright Braixen! **Fire Spin!**" Vanessa's order was followed and Braixen pulled out her stick, where from the tip, Fire Spin spun after Nic. Nic was certainly surprised that she didn't call for a status move, but perhaps she had a reason. Maybe she wanted to catch Nic off guard until Sophie got back to her feet.

Nic swirled his hands slowly and a small swirl of water was forming, eventually growing larger and he held it over his head. "**Whirlpool!**" Nic then threw the attack, easily overpowering Fire Spin as the Water-Type move made way. Realizing this, Vanessa and Braixen jumped out of the way, avoiding Whirlpool as it dispersed upon continuing onwards.

Sophie was back to her feet and she stood in place. "**Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**" She used her singer as a focus point and then the ground suddenly rumbled. Nic looked on to see the ground in front of Sophie protrude jabbed plates of rock with yellow tips for electrifying explosions upon contact. A massive, jagged trail went after Nic, and Braixen added to it with her Psyshock, purple beams shot forth and raced with Charge Blades.

As both attacks went his way, Nic didn't even flinch as he reached into his pockets. He grabbed something as both attacks were a few feet away.

A large explosion of yellow and purple made a dome-like space where Nic stood. The ground vibrated heavily as Sophie and Vanessa looked on, Braixen slightly uneasy from the expectations being made from this fight. When the explosion dispersed in a matter of seconds, it showed that Nic wasn't even there.

"Hold on! Where'd he go?!" Vanessa exclaimed.

"Did we overdo it?" Braixen asked.

They didn't know what else was expected since Nic was seemingly nowhere, but they were brought out of their curiosity when a Water Pulse was shot from above, hitting the team at its feet, a blue, aquatic explosion swallowing them. They all screamed as they flew and fell on their backs, slightly soaked. Sophie and Vanessa were on their backs as Braixen could barely move, sustaining the worst of it.

Sophie and Vanessa sat up, both heavily startled. "Stay sharp!" They heard Nic's voice from above, and they turned their heads slightly upwards to find Nic sitting atop of a certain someone's back, flapping as her red eyes beamed down onto her opponents.

It was Staraptor, and she looked very serious. She flapped in place as Nic was lightly on her back. This left Vanessa and Sophie surprised. "He dodged by getting airborne with his Staraptor." Sophie said. "And here I thought we had him."

"You're making this fairly simple guys. You're using forward approaches and not finding a right sync with your combined attacks." Nic then clenched his right fist as his other hand was a support to hold onto Staraptor. "Staraptor go!"

Staraptor then dived down at an angle, incoming at a dangerously fast velocity. "Let's do this!" Staraptor shouted. "**Aerial Ace!**" She then became a vast blur that was too fast for even Vanessa and Sophie to keep track of. She rammed right into Sophie making her scream and zoom back as her abdomen felt it was hit by a missile. She fell back on the ground, shaken up pretty bad.

Staraptor circled around and Nic jumped off her back onto the ground, where he stood several feet from Braixen. She was still shaken up from Water Pulse, but she could still battle. "I'm fine! I can still go on!" She then coated herself as she clenched her paws. She then took a step back and lunged at Nic. "**Flame Charge!**" As Braixen charged for him, Nic held a hand out and blocked the attack, not even budging an inch. "What?!"

"He stopped Flame Charge with one hand!" Vanessa shouted.

Nic still had a hand out, keeping Braixen still as her Flame Charge deactivated. "You're being reckless in your attacks, not to mention your Fire-Type prowess isn't that effective against me." He explained. He then grabbed her head and he pivoted, throwing Braixen into the air.

Seeing her in the air, Staraptor saw an opening and took it. "**Steel Wing!**" Her wings glowed a metal-gray color and she zoomed at a high speed, attacking as Braixen still tumbling in the air. Braixen was eft defenseless as she was left screaming and spiraling, and Staraptor slammed her right wing into her abdomen at perfect timing, making a small ripple of air upon contact. She lashed her wing downwards and Braixen smashed into the ground close by, dust and rock flying in all directions.

Vanessa looked in worry. "Braixen!" She looked with shock as the dust subsided and Braixen was seen in a small crater, fainted. Seeing as how she was left in a bind, Vanessa returned her Braixen.

Nic put his hands into his pockets as Sophie slowly got up. "We were instructed to hold back, and that is what we are doing; however, you two clearly lack coordination. To read the other's mind and come to a quick decision."

Sophie and Vanessa had to get their act together, otherwise this won't end well for them.

* * *

**With Lisanna and Juvia**

The two Mages were left unfortunate as their route was like a corridor with statues here and there, yet the ground beneath them was shattered and they were on broken rock pieces, some atop of the other. The ground was also covered in water, probably thanks to Juvia's Magic and Erza's armor.

Juvia and Lisanna alike were covered in a few scratches from being testes from Erza. Some dust was settling from a recent assault.

"She's so strong." Juvia remarked. "Has she always been this formidable?"

"Pretty much." Lisanna answered.

The dust cleared, revealing Erza in her Sea Empress Armor. The green breastplate resembled seaweed, and a thin chain kept them both together over Erza's exposed belly. The breastplate was connected to the green pauldrons with blue fin-like ornaments. The green gauntlets she had on resembled seashells, and had green elbow guards. She had a dark bikini and a long cloth that circles her waist and the sides, the edging much like fins, connected to the shorts with green sea star-like ornaments. The greaves had fin-like ornaments, as well as the shoulders. The greaves went up to her knees, her thighs covered by jagged cloth. The headgear had a metal plate over her forehead, having a whirl-shaped sign on it, and ad large fin-like protrusions that were like ears.

"You're going to have to do better if you wish to become S-Class Juvia." Erza warned, holding her crystal sword.

"Watch it Juvia. Your attacks won't have an effect on her with that armor on." Lisanna warned.

Juvia was shaking as she was getting all riled up. Erza was just too powerful for her to take on. She needed to step up her game. She took a moment to relax and she got back to her feet. "I won't give up! I will defeat you yet!" She turned into water and made a serpentine motion through the air after Erza. Erza easily slashed straight through the incoming water, forcing Juvia to form back into herself and meeting Erza in mid-air.

Juvia then whipped about in the air. "**Water Slicer!**" Her blades of water went after Erza, but the S-Class Mage used her sword to deflect the blades, all of which bounced right off to different targets, slicing up rock everywhere else. Juvia landed on a nearby intact rock and looked startled. "She blocked my attack like it was nothing!"

"Here I come Erza!" Lisanna shouted, her Harpy Take Over for the wings active and heading in to attack Erza from behind at an angle. What startled Lisanna was that Erza drove her sword into the ground, using it as a leverage and she swung herself backwards into a backflip towards Lisanna, bringing an axe kick down and slamming her into some rock.

Erza then landed as Lisanna got right back up. "I'm just getting warmed up! **Take Over!**" She lunged at Erza, shifting into a verge large purple bunny with a red and white collar. Erza, however, jumped and put her arm on the bunny's head and used that as a springboard and leaped overhead as Lisanna rammed into the wall, making some dust fly.

"Impressive." She said as she was still jumping. She flipped and landed on her feet on a rock. "However, you can use some work on timing, and the Take Over you use."

Lisanna turned around towards her and sweatdropped. "But I like the bunny."

Juvia realized something as she watched Erza dodge Lisanna when she tried to ram her. _'Of course, Erza's vulnerable when Lisanna attacks. If I time it just right, I can stop her.' _She then saw Lisanna change into a Harpy, having her head as the only thing present, as well as her shirt, When Erza dodged, that's when Juvia made her move. "**Water Cane!**" She whipped her arm, where a long whip of water lashed out after Erza.

Yet Erza was still on top of her game as she sliced through the Water Cane. Juvia and Lisanna were no match when they were then struck by individual kicks from Erza, sending them both to the ground in a skid. As they tried getting up, Erza remained still, waiting for them to get back up.

"I must say, you're a bit of a disappointment Juvia." Erza said, her Magic power emanating in a red aura, meaning she increased her strength. "You've gotta improvise more thoroughly. The tactic of striking while I dodge an ally's attack is the most obvious there is, not to mention the easiest to thwart. I expected better."

A Juvia hesitated to get up, Erza continued. "When we were in the Tower of Heaven, I sensed a great deal of power, but where is it? Tell me!" Erza then slashed her sword, a blue wave slashing through the air towards Juvia, making her scream.

Outside the route, you could hear screams from Lisanna and Juvia alike.

* * *

**With Sophie and Vanessa**

Vanessa's Mawile was slammed on her side. The next thing anybody knew, Nic swung his arm, sending Sophie several feet away into a harsh skid. Staraptor flapped overhead as Mawile shook, trying to stand after taking a Steel Wing. She hesitated as Staraptor looked down with predator-like eyes.

"You've gotta be more alert Mawile. You need to find a more appropriate tactic. Brute force isn't going to benefit you." The Predator Pokémon explained. Mawile was back to her feet and she grunted. Mawile then saw Staraptor dive right at her once more, and she used Protect to keep herself from harm. Mawile's smirk diminished when Staraptor came to a sudden halt in front of the shield, not doing anything, rather she waited expectingly. This scared Mawile as she saw her Protect fade and the split second it did, Staraptor grabbed her stem that connected the horns to her head and carried her upwards.

Vanessa looked startled. "No way! Staraptor didn't use a single move! She just anticipated when Protect would fade and she clutched Mawile!" Vanessa looked hesitant, but she didn't back down. "**Feint Attack!** Get around her!"

Mawile opened her eyes and then Staraptor blinked, realizing she vanished, though not completely. The Normal and Flying-Type felt a strong weight from behind and she turned around, swatting with her left wing to brush away Mawile's incoming jaw.

Mawile went wide-eyed as she never expected Staraptor to see that a mile away. "Bu-but how?!" Staraptor swung across with her right wing, her Steel Wing active once more, getting Mawile across and made her scream, unable to counter as her aerial dynamics were no match for Staraptor. She fell to the rocky ground with a thud, fainted.

Staraptor descended and saw Vanessa return Mawile, seeing the struggling look on her face. Staraptor saw this and she kept her fierce gaze.

"Vanessa. Is that what you have achieved at this point?" Staraptor asked. "When Nic had the same number of badges you did, I could practically run on land and do close-range combat with no trouble. As far as I'm concern, you're a warm up."

Vanessa swallowed hard as Nic had cornered her. She looked over and saw Sophie quarreling with Nic, seeing her teammate fire her Charge Blades once more, but it proved futile as Nic jumped and backflipped. While doing so, he brought his palms together and made Water Pulse. He then spiraled a 360 and threw it at the blades below, colliding with one and making a hydroelectric explosion in between Sophie and himself.

When it cleared, Nic was seen unfazed. "C'mon Sophie. You've fell for my trap. I have you cornered against me, and Vanessa is left alone to fend against Staraptor. It's one of the basic tactics of divide and conquer."

Sophie remembered this during the Nirvana incident, where they all split up and had to face Racer with Gray and Lyon, only they had the advantage with teamwork and numbers; in this case, Nic had the advantage.

She was caught in a daze as Nic put his palms together and attacked with another Water Pulse, the attack making way as Sophie snapped out of her thoughts and tried to counter. "Memorize…then…" She tried to memorize the Water Pulse attack, yet for some reason, memorizing it was impossible. "Wait, I can't memorize it!" She was then hit by the explosive attack, making her scream as she was engulfed in an aquatic explosion and flew backwards, hitting a nearby rock and groaned.

Nic stepped ahead. "There's a flaw in your Memory-Make Sophie." He said. "You once told me that you used that very same method to stop Bickslow from finishing you off during the Battle of Fairy Tail. But that left me to wonder as to what if moves were implied in place of Magic; and then the results were as I thought. Your Memory-Make can only make you memorize and forget Magic, not moves themselves."

Sophie grunted as she winced. "Darn it, my strategy didn't work."

"And even if it did work, there's an abundance of moves and forms I can take up."

Vanessa struggled as she had to make a quick decision. Nic wasn't making this test easy for them. He was testing Sophie's capabilities of becoming S-Class, and Vanessa's strength as a Pokémon Trainer. He had cornered them both, and Vanessa didn't have much of an alternative.

'_Okay, this isn't going well…'_

* * *

**With Juvia and Lisanna**

Juvia was struggling to get up after taking so many hits. Erza had her sword poised to strike Juvia as she hesitated to get up. "I still didn't get an answer from you. Where does that power lie? What do I have to do to make it break out of you Juvia?" She barked seriously. Juvia couldn't respond, and in turn Erza stood affirm, her Magic continuing to encase her in red energy, signaling her level of power.

Erza then saw Juvia slowly get up, still hesitant. "I will defeat you! I won't stay down so easily!" Juvia then used her Water Body and became a spiraling gush of water that went after her. The redhead slashed vertically, once again nullifying Juvia's assault, but the Water Mage didn't stop there. "**Water Slicer!**" In close range, she lashed her arms, sending tons of compressed water at Erza, but the same exact result implied when Erza used her sword to deflect Water Slicer all around. The individual compressed water attacks shattered even more rock and left Erza unharmed.

Juvia was left startled, unable to comprehend her situation. Erza swung her sword back, ready to strike. "You haven't learned Juvia."

Erza then swung, but something kept her from bringing her sword forward to attack. She nudged and budged, but there was a tight grip. She turned around and her eyes widened a bit.

There was Lisanna and a certain Take Over. She had pincer claws that kept her sword in place, and her long arms were segmented and slightly stretchable. The rest of her upper body, including shirt, was left alone, as her lower body was of four clawed feet and a segmented body, and a segmented pincer tail.

Lisanna looked like she was having trouble, but her strength was holding up pretty well. "Surprised Erza?"

Erza kept her serious expression, but was inwardly surprised. "Impressive Lisanna. I never would've imagined that you would use that Take Over."

Lisanna then used her claw strength and yanked Erza back, which succeeded and made her turn towards her. "This Drapion body is very freaky, but it's great, because I can do this!" Lisanna then put her claws in an 'X' shape and a purple X was made. She then slashed her arms, sending the purple X at Erza. "**Cross Poison!**"

Erza jumped, dodging the rather explosive purple attack that hit the rock behind her. While in mid-air, Erza didn't forget about Juvia, and turned around and saw her shooting a Water Cane at her yet again. She expertly sliced through it once more, nullifying it.

A claw then grabbed Erza's leg, yanking her down and making her yelp as she hit the shallow water. Lisanna then used both claws and she grabbed Erza's legs, using her strength and lashing her into the air.

"Now Juvia!" She called out.

"Right! **Water Jigsaw!**" Her lower body was then becoming a swirl of water with blades of Water Slicer and she went after Erza, who was vulnerable. "I got you know Erza!"

Erza eyes flashed open and then all anyone saw was a blur of blue slashes. Erza was seen slashing with her sword through Juvia's attack, forcing Juvia back together and her mouth was gaped, the Water Mage gawking as she was struck instantaneously. She fell downwards onto a rock with a thud, dazed.

"Juvia!" Lisanna shouted. She then saw Erza turn and glare back at her. She didn't back down, rather she did another trick up her sleeve. "**Night Slash!**" She had her pincers glow purple and she then extended her arms out, the claws reaching Erza, but she used her sword and slashed them away.

Erza noticed how the claws weren't at all damaged, and that left her to take note to avoid them next time. She saw an opening and slashed her sword, a blue wave heading towards Lisanna, making her squeal as she skidded back to a halt.

Erza was surprised that Lisanna didn't seem that hurt. "That armor Drapion has is sure impressive. It reduced the blow by a margin." She stated.

Lisanna nodded and snipped her claws. "It took me a little while, but I got it down…" Though as she said that, her Magic felt rather low, and she seemed rather exhausted.

Erza took notice. "It seems doing Take Over after Take Over was exhausted you Lisanna." She said. She then crouched and swung her sword once more, another blue wave after Lisanna. Lisanna didn't have much choice but to cover up as she was hit, making a blue burst of energy erupt and made Lisanna hit a rock, leaving a small crater in it.

Though it didn't last long, the Take Over ran out, and Lisanna was left with many scratches. She looked a little dizzy, but she got to her feet and stood up. Erza sighed and she threw Lisanna overhead, comically spinning a lot until she landed right next to Juvia, both unable to move.

Erza walked on over and she looked away, requipping into her Heart Kreuz Armor and having a sword at her side. She half-grinned. "So, you want round 2?"

"No thanks, we surrender." The two Mages said in unison, both having swirls in their eyes.

* * *

**With Sophie and Vanessa**

"**Memory-Make: Baryon Lightning Impact!**" Sophie made a chain of memories and shot a large green beam at Nic, lightning infused with it. The very attack made the rock rattle as it traveled towards Nic.

The Multitype Mage waited for the attack until it was close, and then he pivoted and spiraled towards his right, the attack barely missing him. He then coated himself in water and lunged ahead at Sophie, via Aqua Jet.

Sophie did her best to block as quickly as she could, and another chain of memories was made. "**Memory-Make: Jagged Barrier!**" Sophie then pressed her hands down on the ground, making a stone wall with ice spikes lined up rise and keep herself apart from Nic. Nic saw this and was surprised.

"Admirable. However…" Nic made a quick 90 degree angle upwards, just a foot away from the ice spikes. He shot straight up, just over the large stone wall. "You still have quite a ways Sophie! **Bubblebeam!**" He then stopped Aqua Jet and shot blue bubbles like a cannon at Sophie. Sophie quickly scooted backwards and avoided it as the wall came down.

As the wall was no more, Nic landed on his two feet, and glanced over towards Vanessa and her Venusaur.

The two looked all psyched yet composed. Venusaur looked back at Vanessa and nodded. "I know our opponent may seem impossible, but we can do this." Venusaur assured her.

Vanessa nodded. "I got it Venusaur." She then frowned and looked serious, moving her arm forward. "**Venoshock!**"

Venusaur followed commands and from his yellow center in his flower, a gush of purple went shooting at Staraptor. Staraptor's only reply was a Double Team, in which she made multiple copies of herself. Venoshock gushed away at its course, but only got an illusion. Staraptor, along with her illusions, grinned at Vanessa and Venusaur, seeing their spirit.

"**Razor Leaf!**" Venusaur followed commands and fired multiple green leaves at the air. The green leaves sliced through many of the copies, as to where a vast majority easily swiftly maneuvered about through and dodged, gaining higher altitude. When that happened, the Double Team faded and Staraptor went or Aerial Ace, becoming a vast blur.

This was Vanessa's chance.

"Now, **Toxic!**" Vanessa shouted, and Venusaur then lowered his front legs and gushed out a purple liquid, one denser than Venoshock. Staraptor went head on with the attack, getting swallowed in a small purple burst of dust.

Venusaur smiled. "Nice going Vanessa, calling for Toxic should keep her down."

Vanessa smiled, thinking that did the trick.

That smile soon fade when the smoke cleared, Staraptor was seen unharmed, with Steel Wing. The Steel Wing fade, and Staraptor continued flapping in the air.

"What?!" Venusaur exclaimed.

Vanessa went wide-eyed. "We thought Toxic…!" She then came to a realization, clenching her fists. "Of course. Poison-Type moves don't work on Steel-Types. In this case, Steel Wing was a shield. I should've known, this is one of Nic's Pokémon after all."

"We can't give up! We gotta keep moving on!" Venusaur shouted.

Vanessa nodded. "Yeah, let's go all the way!" She then pointed at Staraptor, who remained still. "Now…" She then noticed a small grin plastered on Staraptor's face, making her a little confused.

Vanessa and Venusaur were both surprised by Staraptor grinning, and then saw her turn her head down towards Nic.

"Nic." Staraptor got her trainer's attention, Nic looking up at his avian's grin. There was a long silence before Staraptor and Nic did a unison grin and nod. Sophie and Vanessa were left surprised. Staraptor descended and landed on the ground, still remaining cautious. "…I do believe Vanessa is okay."

Nic grinned. "I agree. Vanessa, do you know why I had Staraptor test you?"

Venusaur looked at Vanessa, both fairly confused. She looked at her brother. "N-No, why?"

Nic crossed his arms. "Because as I tested Sophie, Staraptor was to test your capabilities as a Trainer. I wanted to see for myself just how you've come so far, and this couldn't have been a better opportunity." Nic then smiled at Staraptor and back at Vanessa. "And from the looks of it, you're at where you're supposed to be."

Vanessa blinked once, then twice, and then broke into a smile. She knew Nic said she did a fantastic job against Zetta in Kalos, but hearing from him after they fought, brother to sister and vice versa, it was comforting to know where she stood.

She then gave a relieving sigh. _'Well, there goes showing our full power.'_

Nic then turned towards Staraptor. "Thanks for helping, return." The red laser then sucked up Staraptor. After shrinking her Poke Ball, Nic looked back at Sophie. "As for you Sophie, you got a long way to go, but the memories you've made only make you stronger."

Sophie raised a brow, but was soon catching on. Upon realization in a matter of seconds, she smiled in defeat. "So I guess this means that I didn't pass?"

Nic half-smirked, but unfolded his arms. "I didn't necessarily say that, but as your examiner, there's many flaws that I saw. However, you still have to win."

Sophie smirked. "Oh I get it. We win, you overlook your judgement. In that case…" She then put a finger to her head, a chain of memories being made. "I'll make sure to win! **Memory-Make: Piercing Frigid Darkness!**"

Sophie launched an energy arrow of darkness, which was coated in spiraling ice, flying at a fast pace towards Nic. Venusaur used Venoshock, and both attacks went after Nic, still adorned in his Splash Plate.

Nic simply kept a serious face and waited. "Not bad you guys." He remarked as both attacks went after him. "But…" He flicked his left wrist ahead and as the Piercing Frigid Darkness went at him, a swift arc of water rushed up from the side, stopping the spear and making an unstable, icy, dark burst of energy erupt in place, expanding and quickly ridding the incoming Venoshock as well.

Sophie and her teammate, and Venusaur, all skid back a few feet from the force, as to where Nic was seen backflipping and skidding to a halt since the blast was closer to him, but he came out with just a scratch or two. "**Surf!**" Over Nic, he raised his arms and the earth shook. Sophie and Vanessa were losing balance and they both had circles for eyes as they saw the water from below rise, a giant wave being made. Nic was caught up in the wave, riding atop of it.

Vanessa and Sophie both gawked as they saw the giant wave overhead, and they both hugged the other and squealed like little girls as their eyes were deprived of pupils, their lives flashing before their eyes. "WHY DO WE ALWAYS END UP WET?!" They both shrieked.

Venusaur sweatdropped as he was gonna get hit. "…oh great."

The next that happened, everything was covered in water and a loud crash was heard. Water swayed everywhere, and everything was spinning like a Cryogonal using Rapid Spin. It eventually subsided though, and Nic was seen standing in front of a twitching Sophie and Vanessa, both on the ground. Venusaur was wincing as the force of Surf left quite an impact.

Sophie's arm twitched as she slowly raised it. "We…we give." She moaned before her arm dropped.

Nic snickered and reverted back into himself, inspecting the damage dealt. "Don't worry you two, you and Venusaur should be fine. True, you have a ways to go…" He then smiled. "But next time, I'm certain you'll make it."

The two slowly got up and Vanessa huffed. Though defeated, at least she tried. She looked over and grinned at Venusaur. "Thanks for your efforts." She said, with Venusaur grinning back, despite wincing and was returned.

Sophie drooped her head down as she sulked, but didn't seem too bad. She realized a lot of things this battle, and she clearly had a ways to go before she deserve S-Class. She looked up to see Nic, his sunglasses still on his face.

"Hey Nic." Sophie asked.

"Yes?"

She smiled graciously. "The next time I'm chosen for S-Class…" She then looked at her teammate, Vanessa, and then back at Nic. "We're gonna do better as a team, and Vanesa's gonna be my partner again."

There wasn't much of a response, but Vanessa sure was surprised, but in a god way. She was glad to have learned from this as well. This was a tough exam, and S-Class Mages were meant to find ways out of the situations they were put in. They didn't do so well, but they were sure to do so next time.

Nic eventually smiled as he turned back. "Good. I'll look forward to you two getting pick next year." He then walked away towards the exit. "As for me, this was my first time examining, so I'll try and have better judgement as time goes on."

True. Nic was inexperienced, and he may have gone a _little _overboard, but he had to show what being S-Class meant the hard way.

Vanessa and Sophie both got up and they followed Nic towards the exit, off towards the base camp, where they would relax with grins knowing they tried.

* * *

**This chapter honestly was barely half-decent. I didn't want to add the other fights because I wouldn't change them anyway, so they would be fillers that weren't necessary. I know the fights weren't that good, but at least leave a Review if it was decent.**

**In terms of how freakishly long the Arc is, I might have to format it like I did with the Edolas Arc, meaning cutting out the cannon stuff that I wouldn't change and just have the original stuff I put in, just to save time and chapter space.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are amused with the story, the battles, and the crossover, etc.**

* * *

**Next Time: Infiltration**


	45. Infiltration

Chapter 45 – Infiltration

**I got the rest of the Tenrou Island Arc planned out, so I'm ready to tackle the next several chapters!**

**To Recap:**

Nic and the rest of the S-Class Mages prepare to set up the trials, but Nic senses a Plate, but he puts that matter aside temporarily and focuses on examining Vanessa and Sophie. Despite their efforts, Nic didn't make it easy for them, and Sophie ends up failing.

* * *

**Chapter 45 – Infiltration**

The rest of the candidates who passed talked with Makarov, and the ones who failed had the option to head off back to Magnolia or join up at base camp, which was where Nic and everyone else was at.

Erza was in her black bikini, wearing an apron as she stirred some food. Everyone talked about how their trials went, where Erza tested Juvia and Lisanna, and Nic against Sophie and Vanessa.

When Mira explained how Elfman and Evergreen defeated her, Erza looked stunned.

"No way! They said that they're getting married?!" The redhead asked in shock.

Sophie blinked and looked slightly off guard. "I most certainly didn't see that coming."

Mira rubbed her cheek, where a patch was. She looked a little embarrassed. "Yeah, it was a shocker. I apparently gave them an opening to attack."

Erza pointed the ladle at Mira. "Why didn't you tell me? They've obviously been dating for a while to marry, but you never mentioned it!"

Nic was leaning against a tent pole, his attire consisted of the plain black swim trunks he had on back at Akane Resort before the Tower of Heaven incident. "Knowing Elfman, Erza, I'm sure it was just to catch her off guard."

"I can't argue with you there." Mira said to him.

"What if it wasn't a strategy?" Erza reasoned.

Mira turned back and smiled at her. "Remember what your meant-to-be boyfriend said, I doubt it's true." A curious expression dawned upon her, not paying attention to the deep shades of red upon Nic and Erza's faces. "Still, I couldn't imagine them getting married and having babies."

Mira then pictured it out, where there was a baby head that resembled Elfman's face, with Evergreen's glasses. _"I'm a real baby!" _

Somehow, this imagination didn't make her feel satisfied and she wept in her hands as Nic and Erza were both in a brief daze.

"W-wait." Nic stammered. "D-did she…?"

Erza was beginning to blush even harder. First Mira teasing about Nic and Erza's meant-to-be status, and then the talk of marriage and babies set something off like a ticking time bomb. Her faced bloomed with steam. "M-Married…b-b-babies?" Slowly, her gaze went towards Nic, who had his sunglasses to keep himself from having his dazed gaze from being shown, but she knew he was looking at her.

The two then whipped their heads away from the other in embarrassment. "Uh…" Both didn't know what to say since they were in their own little world, somehow embarrassed from thinking of marriage and little versions of themselves causing mayhem.

While they were trapped in their steaming fantasies, Lisanna pictured Elfman and Evergreen side-by-side. "You know…now that I think about it, they'd make an awesome couple.

Juvia, much like Nic and Erza, was steaming and red in the face. "T-they're gonna have…babies."

Sophie chuckled at everyone. "Look at them, all romantic-like." She said to Vanessa, who was currently eating lemons. "C'mon, ever wanted to be an aunt?"

Vanessa honestly didn't put any thought about it, but this did make her swallow her lemon hard and she nearly choked. All she really wanted was to be happy, knowing her brother would be happy. Now that she knew that he had feelings for Erza, she didn't think much after that.

"I…uh…" Vanessa tried to avoid the question. "So, what happened to Freed and Bickslow?" She asked aloud.

Thanks to her question, everyone snapped out of their romantic trances, except Juvia, and got back on topic. Nic and Erza's faces flushed to a light pink and they continued to look away in embarrassment.

"Freed and Bickslow went back home, and Gildarts as well." Erza said, barely composed, but was back on track by the time her sentence finished.

"And here I thought they wanted to see who wanted to become S-Class." Sophie asked. She then jerked open her eyes and remembered something. "Hey it just hit me, Wendy and Mest haven't shown up yet."

Nic realized it as well, looking about and noticing their absence. "Now that you mention it, they didn't arrive here."

Lisanna looked down. "Probably they forgot we were supposed to juncture here."

"…babies…" Juvia said, still distraught and steaming.

Vanessa turned in her seat, looking at Erza and Nic with crossed. "So what is it with Mest?"

Lisanna was piqued as well. "Now that you mention that, I never ran into his counterpart in Edolas. Did we join during the two years that I was gone?"

"You know, I'm not sure." Mira said.

Erza looked confused as well. "I figured he's always been a member."

However, Nic looked with a very puzzled expression. He wasn't sure, because of his frequent stays around the Guild Hall, but he knew when something wasn't right. His arms were crossed and his eyes narrowed under his sunglasses.

"Strange, I never saw Mest before the trials." He said, having everyone turn towards him. "Now that I think back, I've never met him in my life."

Erza and Mira were a little shocked, and Juvia was also brought out of her imagination.

"I thought I always saw him around here and there." Mira said.

"Mira." Nic's tone was dead serious, and everyone could sense it. "I know a face when I see one, and I can recognize them with given hints, but I am certain that I've never saw Mest in my life."

"Really? I thought he was around sometimes?" Sophie asked.

Nic turned back towards Sophie. "Sophie, you have the best memory in all of Fairy Tail. If you really thought about, have you even heard of him?"

Sophie thought long and hard about this, and the more she thought, the more worried she got. Her Memory-Make gave her the power to remember full-well, but Nic did bring up a valid point.

"You know…yeah, you're right." Sophie agreed. "Now that I really thought of it, Mest really wasn't mentioned once. Frankly, this bothers me."

Juvia then got up from her seat. "I volunteer to go look for them. All of this is really making me nervous as well."

"Very well." Erza then undid her apron and cast it aside. "Nic, Vanessa, Sophie, and I shall accompany Juvia while Lisanna and Mira guard the tent. This point Nic brought up is starting to make me catch on as well."

Juvia then turned around and sulked. _'I wanted to go see my beloved Gray become S-Class!' _She mentally whined.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Evergreen and Elfman were both running for their lives away from some giant pig-like creature that inhabited the island. They had six hours to find Mavis Vermilion's grave, and apparently they had a struggle with the wild inhabitance.

"GAAAAAH!" They both screamed. The pig0like creature was running after them, its teeth showing.

"A REAL MAN SHOULD NEVER RUN FOM HIS ENEMIES!" Elfman shouted, ironically running for his life.

Evergreen was hitting the panic button mentally. "Cut the real man crap! It's not helpful!" She shouted.

The pig then aimed a giant hoof at Evergreen, and Elfman saw it attacking. "Look out!" Elfman then jumped and grabbed Evergreen, tossing himself and his teammate into a downward tumble through a rocky tunnel, which the pug couldn't fit through. The two screamed and tumbled until they got through the tunnel, hitting some grass.

The two groaned as they actually felt some pain flare here and there. "Man, that wasn't manly at all." Elfman muttered, not noticing he was still holding Evergreen close to him.

Realizing where she was, Evergreen shoved Elfman off of her in embarrassment. "Get off!" When Elfman was pried off, a tick mark then bloomed on her head. "I don't have any interest in you, meathead! I only said those things to Mira just to throw her off! As if I really wanna hook up with someone like you!"

As Evergreen shook, Elfman look a little confused. "Where's this coming from?" He muttered. "I gotta hand it to ya, that was clever. Hard to believe a nice girl like you pulled off a dirty trick like that."

Some rustling was then heard, and Evergreen and Elfman both turned their heads towards some bushes, where they saw someone approach them. The person left them fairly surprised.

His hair was as black as the night sky, as were his eyes. He had on boots and a black attire with a white drape around him. He looked ever so confused as a shadow cast over his head.

"Why?" He asked. "Why have you come to such a desolate place?" Elfman and Evergreen alike were on guard as they slowly took a step ahead. "I had the impression this island was uninhabited."

Elfman didn't take it lightly. "Well you're wrong pal!"

"Only members of our guild can be on this island!" Evergreen barked.

"…So I'm trespassing? My apologies, I had no idea." He said somberly.

Elfman took another step. "Well you know now!"

"No, stay back!" He yelled, making Elfman and Evergreen jerk in response. A brief moment passed as he looked at them. "If you want to live, then you must keep your distance."

Elfman clenched his fists. "Sounds like a challenge pal"

The man showed no ill will in his somber mood. "It's not, I show no interest in quarreling. I'll leave the island with no delay."

Evergreen and Elfman alike both seemed rather suspicious as they gaze sourly at the black-haired individual, yet their guards were still kept up; and it was a good thing too because as the man began taking steps away he cringed and a pulse vibrated violently through him, making his eyes beam fear and anxiety.

The man started to shake violently in place and clutched his own head. "No, it's happening…h-here it comes…" At first Elfman and Evergreen figured he was having a panic attack or a breakdown, but as strange winds blew, they knew something was wrong.

A veil of black began to surround the trespasser, crumbling the falling leaves into nothing. A strong palpitation flowed and the veil was expelled around the surrounding area, leaves disintegrating and Elfman and Evergreen were caught unable to move.

"Get down!" A familiar voice called out, and their bodies were thrown to the ground to avoid the shockwave of death, but the grass died nonetheless. The trees all around were dead, yet the three were spared.

Natsu looked up at the person with a steady and stern gaze, looking at the black-haired man's shaking and distraught eyes. Natsu looked with startled eyes as he looked at the man before him. The man's eyes began to water as his lips quivered.

"…Natsu…" He muttered.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

The group walked along the rocky field that looked over the seas, with green birds flying over their heads. Erza walked alongside Nic, the two leading the charge.

"I forgot how big Tenrou Island was." Erza stated. "Finding them may take longer than we thought."

Nic looked over at Erza. "True. I could use the Sky Plate for an aerial surveillance, but if I do that, I could possibly be an interference with the trials."

"True, but we'll look all day if we must, and your Sky Plate could be for if we have no lead." She reasoned to him. She put up a small smile. "But even so, it's appreciative how careful you consider such situations."

Vanessa and Sophie walked behind them, hearing everything and grinning as they even saw small shades of pink on their faces. Sophie couldn't help but giggle loud enough for Vanessa to hear. "This suspense is killing me." She muttered to Vanessa. "They better tie the knot soon before I start having fits."

Vanessa sweatdropped. "I don't think that's necessary." She said. "You know relationships take time. You can't rush these things."

"True." Sophie groaned. A mischievous smirk then broadened her face as she leaned over Nic and Erza's shoulders. "So, how long are you two gonna talk about admiring the other?"

Nic and Erza froze in place and jerked in shock, realizing they were lost in the other again. They began to get flustered on the spot and turned to face their little blonde matchmaker.

"W-we were doing no such thing!" Erza persuaded.

"Yeah, w-we were just talking about ways to find Mest and Wendy." Nic added.

Sophie rolled her eyes. "Oookaaay, but if you want us to cover ground, we can head in another direction to give you two some alone time~." She cooed.

Nic have an annoyed yet twisted expression as he crossed his arms. "Okay, I think you're spending a little too much time with Juvia."

Vanessa turned around and looked back. "Speaking of which, I think Juvia's lost in her fantasies again." She didn't give much of an impression on Juvia's spacing-out at first, but once she learned the reason, she was a little worrisome.

"Juvia, no dawdling. The last thing we need is to be separated." Erza said, continuing her pacing. The group continued on for another couple of minutes, idling by the scenery and what not, and then Erza decided to get something off her chest. She stopped and looked back at Juvia.

"Juvia, you're not afraid of me, right? I apologize from before."

"What are you talking about?" The Water Mage asked before it sparked in her head. _'Oh, she must mean when we fought from before.'_

Erza wasn't satisfied with herself. "I'll admit I was less cautious in our battle than intended, but I needed to get my point across about how brutal S-Class is to burden." She looked up and remembered herself and how she finally achieved S-Class status when she was Vanessa's age. "It was long and arduous path, and my skills were put to the ultimate test." She then looked away with a clenched fist. "And then when you do achieve such a rank, suddenly everyone wants to fight you and public eyes dawdle upon you…"

Her voice began to become mumbling to Juvia as she just thought about Gray. Juvia just groaned as Erza was left to talk into space.

Sophie looked towards Nic and leaned in towards her. "Is she always this passionate about stuff?"

Nic blinked and half-grinned. "Yeah, but it's the little things that matter to her, and she wouldn't feel right if they went unchecked."

"Hm, sounds like you." Sophie reasoned, in which the comparison made Nic sigh.

The three watched Erza apologize, in which her own spirits shot back up, Nic just smiled as Erza enthusiastically dragged Juvia along, with Sophie and Vanessa following as well. Even through the walk, something about Mest and the situation led Nic to frown once more.

As time passed, they found themselves in a rocky swamp-like forest, with wolves watching in the background.

"I was wondering. Do you know exactly what kind of Magic does Mest use?" Juvia asked.

Erza got a confusing expression on her face. "Yes, but he's still somewhat new to the guild…now that I think about it, I honestly don't know."

Nic was left to think as he looked away, still walking. _'Strange, Erza and everyone else know him, yet I don't. Also, what exactly is Mest's Magic? Does it have something to do why I can't remember him like the others do?'_

Nic then turned towards Sophie. "Hey Sophie, your Memory-Make, can it possibly be affected or altered?"

"Hm?" Sophie looked questioned. "What are you implying? You mean my Memory-Make has a weakness."

"I just have a theory. How can you guys somehow know about him, yet I'm not affected; and with what Juvia's question about his Magic rising, I got a really bad feeling."

Everyone then unconsciously began to pick up their pacing when Nic mentioned his theory. Questions and concerns thickened heavily.

"You mean that Mest guy may have some sort of Magic that can alter our memories?" Vanessa asked.

Nic nodded as he ran slowly. "It's possible. If he could do such a thing, then it'd be no wonder why you guys know yet you don't. I could also speculate that the reason why I'm unaffected is because of the Mind Plate."

Sophie realized it then. "Of course! The Mind Plate gives you undeterred psychological immunity. If so, then-!"

Erza and everyone then stopped as the truth dawned upon them. "That's it! Now it all makes sense!" She turned back towards the group. "If what Nic says is true, then our minds were altered to think we know Mest! He's not a real member of Fairy Tail!" Everyone went wide-eyed and gasped.

Nic clenched his fists. _'Looks like finding that Plate is gonna have to wait longer.' _He then gestured for everyone to move ahead. "Hurry! We gotta find Wendy!"

The group then started to run again, and they had no reason to stop; that is, until Nic saw something up ahead. Nic went wide-eyed when he saw a small body. He went up and recognized it. "Levy!" Nic saw Levy hurt, with her yellow headband gone and her dress torn up a bit. "Levy? Levy?" Nic nudged her, but no response.

Nic turned her over and Erza and the others looked from behind. "Levy?" Her eyes slowly opened, and her vision started to get less hazy. "Levy?"

Everything for Levy cleared, and she saw Nic. "Nic." She had tears in her eyes.

"How did you get such injuries?" Juvia asked.

Vanessa crouched and looked at Levy. "Levy, are you okay?"

Levy tried to get up, and Nic and Erza both were used as support for her to stand. Levy soon got to her feet and huffed a bit before the tears began to scroll down her face. "You guys…we're in major trouble, and Gajeel needs help."

"Gajeel?" Juvia looked around and noticed that Gajeel wasn't around.

Erza looked to Nic. "This situation is getting dire. We need to find Gajeel and fast."

Nic nodded and looked back at Levy. "Levy, can you take us to Gajeel?" His answer came with a nod and Levy slowly supported herself. She began to feel wobbly, but retained balance. She turned and began to lead way towards Gajeel.

"Come on! This way!" Levy raced with the group, but Nic chose a tree and then climbed it. He used the extra height to gain some surveillance. Nic didn't shift into his Sky Plate as he chose tree-jumping as a more precautious alternative. Using the Sky Plate could give away their position to the enemy if there was one.

As Levy traveled through the forest, Nic sprung from branch to branch, keeping up and seeing some clashes not too far. Through it all, his traveling through the forest didn't help sense a Plate any better than he already did. The Magic present on the island made it feel more surrounded and hard to sense.

Soon, Nic saw a giant iron sword up ahead. "Guys, we're close!" Nic saw the massive iron sword being swung down in the distance, and as they proceeded, they felt the ground shake violently as a lot of Magic was used at that very moment.

A few moments passed by before Nic stopped by a tree branch on a tree that looked out at a clearing, with everyone following suit.

"Gajeel!" Levy shouted, seeing the Iron Dragon Slayer. Gajeel was seen lying on the ground some meters away. Close by was some shattered rock, and right in front was a long trail where his giant iron sword struck from before. The others slowly gathered around to see the damage done, which surprised them. There was a rooster that was out cold nearby, and some brown goat-like creature in a samurai attire.

Levy fell to Gajeel's side. "Gajeel! Please tell me you're alright!" She begged.

Gajeel winced on the ground, slowly opening his eyes and smirking. "Told you I could handle these losers." He lowly said.

Levy smiled in relief. Glad that Gajeel was in one piece. "Yeah, you did…" She trailed off as she was too joyful to say much of anything. But, all good things come to an end. The goat samurai, known as Yomazu, chuckled on the ground, though still defeated, which scared Levy a bit.

Everyone turned towards Yomazu as he smirked and finished laughing. "You brats are hopeless. Our guild's coming your way, whose power exceeds my own. They are…the 7 Kin of Purgatory!" He chuckled lowly again.

Erza swallowed, Vanessa and Sophie tensed up, Nic gritted his teeth, and Juvia looked surprised, as was Levy.

"The 7 Kin are attacking?" Juvia asked.

Nic's eyes were seen with discomfort through his sunglasses as he made way towards Erza's side. "This is bad, we need to signal everyone."

"Agreed." Erza requipped a cylindrical black and yellow stripped signal flare. "He must put the trial on hold, and prepare for battle!" Erza shot the flare up and a very large pink-red firework went off in the sky, engulfing the sky all over Tenrou Island with the warning of an enemy attack.

Erza then requipped into her Heart Kreuz Armor and turned towards the others. "Our first priority is to find Wendy, and still be alert of Mest."

Nic nodded and turned towards his sister. "Vanessa, you stay close by, and Sophie, you cover for Levy and Gajeel as they'll head back to base camp." He ordered, transforming back into his own attire.

Sophie and Vanessa both nodded. Sophie then turned and saw Levy carrying the heavy Gajeel. Gajeel noticed that he was being carried by Levy. "Don't be pushing yourself, small fry." He groaned.

"Well, I don't see you getting halfway there without falling back down, you big lug." Levy said.

"Yeah, yeah. Just quit flapping your gums." Gajeel muttered and fell silent as Sophie ushered them through the woods.

Juvia saw the whole thing and her cheeks blushed. _'Oh, I'm sure my beloved Gray needs my help.'_

Nic and Erza both then walked in front of the defeated Yomazu, who sat up but didn't seem to be putting up much of a fuss. Nic commenced the interrogation.

"Alright, talk. Why have you come here?" He demanded.

Yomazu turned his head in a cocky manner. "Pffft. Like I tell you bozos."

Erza growled and a tick mark flushed her head. She then dealt a bash to Yomazu's head for not answering, which resulted in him getting a large bump.

Feeling pain, and not wanting to go through it again, Yomazu answered. "We seek…him. The Legendary Black Wizard, Zeref." Immediately, Erza and Nic both had shrunk pupils in sheer disbelief and horror, as well as Juvia and Vanessa, though Vanessa didn't know anything about him.

"That's nonsense!" Erza shouted.

Nic knew full-well of this Zeref guy, and he sounded like bad news. "That's absurd! He can't possibly be alive! We've seen Dark Guilds and many others try and resurrect him, meaning there's no way he can be resuscitated!" Nic lashed out, given his past experience with the lowest rankings in Tartaros and Jellal.

Yomazu smirked evilly. "You're wrong. Lord Zeref never did die, he's been living for over four-hundred years!"

"Four-hundred years?!" Vanessa exclaimed.

"Yes. Apparently he's been dormant this entire time, a slumber that lasted for centuries." Yomazu explained mischievously. "Once we awaken him, all within this world shall be consumed in darkness!"

Erza immediately denied the accusation. "That's unforgivable! Don't you know this is Fairy Tail's sacred ground?! There's no way we'll let it be swallowed by such evil, nor the world!"

"Hehe. Believe what you want, but no matter which way it's seen, Master Hades and the 7 Kin of Purgatory is on its way, and I say you shouldn't underestimate them." He then began to list them. "The Time Mage, Ultear."

"Ultear?!" Nic exclaimed. Remembering his past with her, and how he saved her just once…among other things that left him shook to the core.

Yomazu continued. "Rustyrose. My superior, Caprico. Kain Hikaru. Zancrow. Meredy. And finally, the one who's already here, Azuma."

Erza gasped. "You mean that last one's here now?"

Nic turned away and back out at the area behind him, feeling a strong force coming, and his sensory is very sharp. "This is very bad. If what he said is true, and he was on par with Gajeel, yet the 7 Kin of Purgatory is far stronger, then we're gonna have a major battle on our hands." Nic then turned towards Yomazu. "Tell us, how long until your forces arrive!"

Yomazu chuckled. "Minutes you fool! That's all you're ever getting out of me." He then went back to smirking evilly and his cockiness was awarded with a knock-out blow from Erza, giving him a second large bump on his head, making him fall to his side in unconsciousness.

"These actions are intolerable! We have to meet up with Wendy and the others at once!" Erza shouted.

Nic nodded and looked at Juvia and Vanessa. "Juvia, Vanessa, be on your guard. Like he said, we only have a matter of minutes before we're invaded."

Juvia then looked around and back at Nic. "Right, we'll stay close by."

Vanessa gulped and huffed, showing some signs of nervousness overflowing. "I'll do my best. My Pokémon and I will fight to stop them."

The four then ran back into the forest, trying to find their allies. Nic still didn't want to shift because he could once again give their position to the enemy; plus, the island would be too big to scout for. He just jumped back into the trees and zoomed onwards, his acrobatic skills in the trees keeping him going with the others.

* * *

**With Sophie and co.**

Sophie walked in front, keeping alert at all times. Her head swayed left and right as she was feeling Magic all around. She looked back to see Levy slowly progressing as she kept up Gajeel.

"Don't quit yet." She told him. "We have to find the others. We're at a disadvantage."

Sophie's eyes stayed focused. "Levy, we may be alone, but we still won't go down that easily." She then looked ahead. "We're Fairy Tail after all…"

Their little encouragement was cut short when they saw some sort of weird sea-goat like man flying with a jetpack over their heads. He had on some black attire, and sunglasses as well.

"What is that? An enemy?" Levy asked.

Sophie clenched her fists as she prepared herself for the worst as the sea goat was high above them. "We'll soon find out." She and Levy then saw the sea goat release many orange orbs that started to rain down onto them, and Sophie narrowed her eyes as the orbs expanded as they descended, and she saw that from inside, soldiers with purple capes and masks. "They're coming from above! Quick! Levy, get Gajeel to safety!"

The orbs soon popped when met at a low altitude, releasing the soldiers. The soldiers had many weapons that ranged from swords, to hammers, to Magic Staves.

"But what about you?" Levy shouted in concern.

Sophie kept her focus on the soldiers. "Don't worry Levy, your priority is to escape. I'll provide cover."

Levy didn't really have much of a say. She was weakened, and Gajeel couldn't fight in his condition. Much to her own dismay, she had no choice but to find immediate cover. She heaved Gajeel and herself behind some rock and bushes as the soldiers finally touched the ground, landing one-by-one, surrounding Sophie.

Sophie took in the whole surrounding, and saw the casual swords and weaponry and Magic Staves present. To her, this seemed too easy. Though she couldn't underestimate them. The last time she underestimated a certain someone, she was eliminated from the S-Class trials. This time she'll be more careful.

She got into a battle stance. "So I take it you're with the 7 Kin of Purgatory. Then this mean you're here to weaken us then." Sophie then put a finger to the side of her head. _'I'll have to limit the number of Spells I use in case if I ever come across one of the 7 Kin.'_

"Get her!" Soldiers shouted. Simultaneously, they converge down onto her, heading way with swords and other weaponry.

Sophie made a chain of memories. "**Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**" Sophie then made a multitude of mirrors made of ice that covered every direction around her, and let loose dark green energy waves from every single one. The multi-directional spell blasted away just about a majority of the soldiers that went in to attack. They all sailed away and screamed from being struck down with ease. A few had themselves anchored down to keep their ground as many others flew past them, but it wouldn't prove to be of much help.

Sophie noticed how she got a good number of them, but the stragglers were soon joined up by even more soldiers in the distance.

'_This is gonna take longer than I had thought. I hope I'm giving Levy and Gajeel enough time to escape.' _The blonde Mage hoped. She then pointed a finger at her head and a chain of memories was made. "**Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**" Sophie made the ground shake beneath her, throwing many soldiers off balance. The ground beneath then gave way to shattering and jutting out incandescent stone with yellow tips of electricity, exploding in yellow bursts in every single direction around her, engulfing every soldier with electricity and pain.

Meanwhile, Levy looked back, hearing the screams of the soldiers and the bright flash of yellow from Sophie's recent spell. She still had heavy concerns for her guild mate, but like Sophie said, her priority was to find base camp and the others as quickly as possible.

Levy then left the scene completely, heading into the thick forest as she saw Sophie flash yet another chain of memories.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

Nic leaped about from branch to branch, crouching every time he landed and when he was about to jump. His leg muscles had no signs of cramping, considering how he's performed such skills in Kalos for the past couple of years. His senses were at their peak, and he was certain that enemy forces were bound to face them soon.

The small group of four found themselves in the marshland, where the water went up to their ankles, and the roots of the trees were shown. It seemed to have gone on for quite some time before Nic questioned something.

As he took another leap, his voice was directed downwards. "Juvia. Erza." He called out, getting their attention as they went through the area. "Tell me, just who are the 7 Kin of Purgatory?"

Juvia obliged to answer as she ran at a pace close by Erza and Vanessa. "The 7 Kin are the aces of the Dark Guild known as Grimoire Heart. I'm certain you are aware of whom they're relate to."

Under Nic's sunglasses, his eyes widened slightly at the remembrance. But that didn't slow down his pacing. "Yes, unfortunately. They're one of the three that makes up the Balam Alliance, as I recall thoroughly. We've already confronted Tartaros and Oracion Seis, and now Grimoire Heart."

Vanessa looked over as she ran, ignoring her wet ankles and feet. "Erza, just what exactly is this Balam Alliance?"

Erza looked at Vanessa, who was on her right. "That's right, you're new to this world. The Balam Alliance is the most powerful and most recognized allegiance in the history of all Dark Guilds. It's comprised of the three that Nic mentioned, which are Tartaros, Oracion Seis, and the Dark Guild that's invading our sacred grounds, which is Grimoire Heart. Those three rule the Dark Guild Underworld, and are by far the most lethal adversaries against all Magic wielders."

Though startled that she found herself at a disadvantage, she mustn't back down now. She had powerful Mages and her Pokémon to help her in any way possible. If there was ever a time for Vanessa to find her Magic, now would be the time.

Nic was still being aware, but his mind froze mentally when Oracion Seis spilled out of his mouth, because it was that very incident that left him uneasy, and it revolved around one bothersome thing: Jellal. The very mention or thought of that man somehow left a small, odd sting in his sub-conscience. He can't help but have the memories flood, about the Tower of Heaven, about his revival, about helping protect them against Zero, and the most painful of them all; when he looked back with a smile at Erza and she cried until the sun came up.

Nic wasn't sure what was coming over him now that the azure-haired Mage infiltrated his mind. He could most likely feel jealousy, which was saddening him some. Nic loved Erza, but he still wasn't fully convinced that Erza has moved on from Jellal, her first love. _'Why am I still bothered by that? Erza needs me, right?' _He pondered. _'Why am I not fully convinced she really needs me like she says?'_

"Something up ahead!" Erza shouted. Her voice, her sheer voice, yanked Nic back into reality, stopping on a tree branch as the others from below stopped in place.

Retaining focus, Nic looked around and saw capes of purple with masks running through the marsh in all directions. "They're coming in all directions!" He shouted. Vanessa tensed up and was back-to-back with Erza and Juvia. Erza requipped a sword as soon as the first few Grimoire Heart grunts were sighted.

First a couple, then dozens, and soon enough the group found themselves surrounded by a large number. From above, Nic to see the vast number still escalated; at least seventy-five or so.

"How'd they overwhelm us so easily?" Erza asked, pointing her sword ahead.

"I don't know, but seems there's more coming." Juvia stated calmly, seeing the soldiers with swords and other melee weaponry.

Vanessa pulled out two Poke Balls from her big, brown purse. "I may not be able to do Magic yet, but I still have some aces up my sleeves!" She then threw her Poke Balls into the air. "Come on out!"

The two Poke Balls opened, and Vanessa's Goomy appeared out in the water in front of her, as well as her Krokorok. Both looked out ahead of them, seeing the copious of enemies.

Seeing the enemy's numbers, Goomy shook. "T-this will b-be tough." She then swallowed and tried to keep lack of confidence from having her not battle. "I won't back down! Not with these bullies messing with Fairy Tail!"

Krokorok clenched his claws and pointed ahead at random member. "Let me tell you something, grunts of Grimoire Heart! Krokorok, is gonna send you flying, then pull you back down, so he can send you flying back up again!"

The members all converged onto them, and the group did their best to assault back. Erza clashed her sword with a few others, but easily knocked them away. She then sliced rapidly through many that were in front.

"**Water Slicer!**" Juvia lashed her arms out, dealing a number of water crescents at the soldiers, who all screamed and sailed back and avoided the sharp-edged attack that sliced their weaponry. Juvia then moved her arm in an arc and a powerful wave swamped the enemy.

Vanessa extend both her arms out. "Goomy, **Dragon Breath**!Krokorok, **Shadow Claw**!"

Goomy narrowed her now concentrated gaze and a round of loops engulfed her body, making water ripple around her. She then let loose a blue beam that shot a straight path and struck several Grimoire Heart members, engulfing them in a blue explosion.

Krokorok's claws were engulfed in a black aura with purple outlining, and he then slashed vertically. Grunts all sailed back and fell over as Krokorok kept up with his attack, slashing away more incoming blades and members.

"GRRAH! You want a piece of Krokorok? YOU WANNA PIECE! HAVE A LARGE ONE!" Krokorok then slashed diagonally, cutting down a vast number at once with the force of the critical hit.

Vanessa was so focused on offense that she didn't realize two members jumped from behind and tried to attack with swords. Vanessa saw shadows and she turned around, cringing with a shocked expression when she saw them coming in close.

A barrage of yellow stars with golden sparkles was shot from above, and the members were hit and flew back and crashed into other fellow incoming members as the attack continued to glide through the air and hit many more.

Vanessa looked up to see where the attack came from, turning out to be Nic covering her with Swift. "Stay sharp Vanessa!" Nic shouted, swiping his arm in another direction from above the tree branch, hitting several members close by with Swift again. "You gotta be more alert of your surroundings!"

"R-right!" Vanessa then turned her back as Nic dropped down from above, splashing as his two feet landed behind Vanessa, brother and sister back-to-back.

Nic examined the area as Erza and Juvia slashed and launched waves to wear down the numbers, and Goomy fired her Dragon Breath once more, as to where Krokorok used Shadow Claw and slashed at several members, all of the attacks sending them flying.

"The numbers don't seem to diminish." Nic said, his back still against his sister's. He then pulled out a Poke Ball of his own. "If that is the case, then we'll need to cover a wider range." Nic threw his Poke Ball, out appearing his Charizard.

Charizard flapped in the air and roared, the sudden appearance making members scared. "Whoa, is that a dragon?!" "How'd he summon one out of the blue?!" "This is bad!" "We gotta keep fighting guys, otherwise the 7 Kin will have our heads!"

Nic extended an arm out, and that was Charizard's que to go to work. The members all panicked as Charizard then opened his mouth and fired Flamethrower, the powerful stream of fire scorching away, and a part of the area that Flamethrower struck was engulfed in an incinerating explosion.

The members all panicked, but still pressured on. Charizard planted his feet into the water, but paid no heed. He looked back at Nic. "And I don't suppose that this is a mere warm up, right?" The Flame Pokémon asked his trainer.

Nic brought his arm across and swiped it, bringing a long, white needle out, via Cut. He readied himself. "Yeah, but be sharp!" Nic then rushed at members before him, coincidentally slashing at the same time Erza did, both cutting the members before them down together.

Charizard turned back around. "As I'll ever be." He stated quietly. Charizard ignored the Dragon Breath explosion in the distance and readied Dragon Claw with both hands, the energy released making strong winds stop the members from advancing before him. He then flapped his wings and then spiraled and slashed as the battle raged on effortlessly.

* * *

**With Makarov**

Makarov was a massive giant that was far larger than Grimoire Heart's airship. The airship itself had a very complex design with the colors of black and red, with extremely large seals, two on the engines and one underneath to keep it in the air.

Makarov, in his giant form and showing his red Fairy Tail emblem on his chest, was standing in the water and had one palm up and one upside down, a massively powerful sphere of pure light in between.

"I'm going to give you until the count of three to leave and never return." Makarov's deep-toned voice hollered.

Master Hades looked through his protective glass that gave a clear view of above and Makarov right in front. Master Hades was a tall and elderly man with long, slicked, silver hair. He had an eyepatch over his right eye, and the beard went down to his waist. He had a dark red shirt with shoulder pads and shiny gauntlets. His black cape had the Grimoire Heart emblem on the back and had a high-collar mantle with jagged edging with gray. His light pants had red flames on the bottom, similar to Nic's coat, and was supported by a dark yellow belt. He also sported a Greek helmet with devil horns.

Hades didn't seem all that surprised when Makarov was using the ultimate spell. Rather, he smirked. "Ah, Fairy Law. One of the Three Grand Fairy Spells. The spell that vanquishes all that the caster deems as an enemy." He stated flat.

"One." Makarov counted.

"Let's see just how effective your Fairy Law is." Hades retorted mildly.

"Two."

Hades had the bulletproof windows from before slid to the sides. He had the whole sky to freely look over as he stepped out as Makarov had finished counting.

"Three. Time's up." Makarov then pushed his palms together and the light shined in all directions. "**Fairy Law!**"

As the spell activated, Hades himself wasn't moved, as he pointed one of his palms downwards as one was kept up. In between, instead of light, pure darkness swirled. "Hasty as always." He scolded, much to Makarov's confusion.

Makarov was left shaken in the eyes as the spell Hades was using seemed familiar. Hades smirked as his cape went wild. "**Grimoire Law!**" The very spell itself had left Makarov in sheer shock and horror as the light in between his palms was reduced to nothing, and Grimoire Law was dispelled, sparing Makarov as he finally realized just how similar the spell was to his.

"No…" He muttered. "No, it just can't be. It's impossible!" His voice escalated.

Hades smirked. "Long time no see, boy."

Makarov was full of horror and revelation, his eyes so wide it almost looked like he's seen a ghost.

"It is you…Master Precht."

_Back when Makarov was still rather young, roughly in his late thirties or forties, Makarov was left with bitterness as he was still rather wily and temperamental. _

_Makarov fidgeted about with a large tick mark on his head. "How damned could those Council jerks possibly be?! I can't stand them breathing down our necks like this!"_

_Of course, he still hated the Magic Council as much as he does now._

_In his fit, he started grabbing nearby members and wanted to pound his frustration about wildly, but it wouldn't do him much good, and persuasion from the victims only did so much. Yup, still very high strung._

"_That would be enough boy." A voice rang, and Makarov turned his head and looked at the person who owned the voice, which the current Master of Fairy Tail._

"_Oh, uh, Master Precht. I didn't realize you were back!" Makarov panicked weakly. In that point in time, Precht's hair didn't seemed to have changed at all, but he had a fur coat and a staff with the end having the shape of Fairy Tail's emblem, and he didn't have a moustache like he did in the present._

"_Must you always be so rash when going on jobs?" Precht asked. He then turned away. "Makarov, come with me."_

"…_yes Master." Makarov said, defeated._

_Sunset approached and the two were seen on a cliff, overlooking the sunset over the seas._

"_Okay…so I may or may not have roughed up some bandits that bad-mouthed our guild." Makarov confessed. "I don't see the problem is, really."_

_Precht didn't seem annoyed. "There isn't anything wrong with defending something when it's that precious to you, but when resorting to violence, you only complicate the problem. Do you know that violence is like a wildfire? It's best to never be that small ember that becomes that uncontrollable hostility."_

"_What do expect me to do? Just let it slip by?" Makarov grumbled._

_Precht kept quiet for a moment before speaking again. "Harmony is what life and all essence centers around. Forgiveness is a powerful thing, but can never be so easily learned, as you must learn your own actions and learn to forgive yourself. Violence is something that isn't forgiven if something is hurt."_

_Makarov turned away, disinterested. "Do you ever stop to know you say the same thing over and over?"_

_Precht smiled amusingly. "I'll keep saying it until you finally understand boy." He then turned towards the sunset. "Makarov. Someday I won't be the Master anymore, and as Mavis had bestowed this heavy mantle onto me, I must bestow on someone soon. That person must and perhaps will understand that being stressful will only falter and collapse. It's a massive pillar that one must keep up. You'll understand soon enough."_

_Makarov turned his head back up to Precht. "The heck you saying old man?"_

"_In due time boy, in due time."_

Hades smirked at Makarov as he looked off guard. Makarov stood in place, still frozen and unable to comprehend as to how in the world Hades could have possibly turned his back against his own kin.

"But, Master…why? Is this some sort of joke?" Makarov said. The only reply he got was of Hades holding both his arms up and purple Magic seals emerged, which released energy chains with grabbling hooks on the ends at Makarov, embedding them into his shoulder blades. Makarov yelped as the chains made him jerk back and hit the island cliffs.

Hades used his raw strength and literally yanked his chains about, dragging Makarov about and lashing him around like a whip against the island, soon jerking his chains enough that enough force was applied to have Makarov get sent skidding back and away far inland.

Makarov reverted to his normal size as the chains released him at last, and Hades twirled elegantly until he set foot on Tenrou Island, right as Makrov had hit the ground. Makarov's landing was that of a brief handstand that made him backflip until he was in a crouched position, requipping into his Fairy Tail ceremonial robe.

Makarov looked at Hades with disappointment and anger. "I see you've abandoned Fairy Tail for the dark side." He stated coldly and with disgust.

Hades crossed his arms as he inspected Makarov. "Even after 48 years, you still envision black and white." He responded in an obvious tone, as if expecting this. "It seems you haven't changed a bit."

"Well just look at all the damns I give!" Makarov retorted. "I may have a narrow vision, but I know an enemy when I see them with my own eyes."

"Really?" Hades curiously replied. "Funny, Fairy Law didn't think so. You clearly know how to talk the talk now, boy."

Makarov balled his fists. "I always hated that nickname; in fact, I wanted to pound you every time I heard that name…but I do not want to fight. I warn you to leave at once."

His warning was all for naught as Hades remained where he stood. "Unfortunately, _boy_, I cannot. I have some objectives of my own, and Fairy Tail stands in my way." His Magic began to coat his body.

Makarov then coated his body in his own Magical aura, light versus darkness in a way, with Makarov being the heads and Hades being the tails.

"If that is how you wish to proceed, then we shall have it your way." Makarov responded coldly.

The two glared frigidly as their Magic fumed about, the intensity within the atmosphere accelerating drastically. They both stopped showing off at the same time, and they commenced their assaults with aiming two fingers from each hands and beaming them in all directions, like a spell. Lightning bolts shot from their pointed fingertips, clashing simultaneously.

After that draw, Makarov extended an arm out and made a yellow Magic seal. "**Rain of Light!**" From the seal, a barrage of light beams shot at Hades.

Hades extended an arm up and a shield of darkness protected him, and the light was absorbed by the shield, being turned into darkness that was shot back at Makarov, who barely escaped with a jumped. He didn't imply the explosion and ground shaking when the attack missed and he readied his next move, but fell short when he saw Hades next move.

Hades moved his hands about, and three dark Magic circles circled and lines up like a funnel, which startles Makarov as he set back on the ground.

"What's this?! An Amaterasu –Formula 28?! And he cast it like it was nothing!"

"Do you know realize the differences between us, boy?" Hades then converged the three circles into a single one, and then everything in front of Hades was swallowed in a giant pillar of dark energy that expanded over a certain area and shook the ground.

From the bitter center, a small glint was seen, as it soon expanded and Hades grunted when Makarov expelled a lot of Light Magic that dispelled the Amaterasu – Formula 28. The energy emanated by him even made a crater at his feet and some small rock levitate.

Hades made a Magic seal and fire his Chain Magic once more, snaring Makarov in the shoulders before he could move. Hades yanked harshly and dragged Makarov threw the air, smashing him against several trees, yelling haphazardly until Hades dispelled the chains, letting Makarov fall on his back with a thud. "I live and breathe the darkness, and no light can possibly keep all darkness lit."

Makarov struggled to his feet, but soon stood in place. What he didn't realize was that he was caught off guard yet again. His eyes shot wide when he found himself trapped between three Magic circles on both sides and one giant one below and one atop.

"Wha…what is this?!" Makarov demanded.

Hades merely smirked in victory.

Not wanting to lose, Makarov pulled out an ace. "**Maximum Defense Seal – Three Pillar Gods!**" Makarov crossed both arms, and three massive, ethereal pillars with dark seals emerged, two on his sides and one behind him.

Hades then flashed his left eye open, activating the large amount of Magic seals. "**Amaterasu – Formula 100!**"

A small glint was seen, but violently expanded all around, letting lose a menacing shockwave that swallowed up a portion of Tenrou Island. The explosion could've been heard from all around the island.

* * *

**With Nic and co.**

As Nic used Cut and slashed at three members before him, he stopped and heard the explosion from where he was. Everyone there stopped momentarily and looked in the direction as to where that attack came from.

The echo and the dome from far away was seen, which greatly grew some worry. "What was that?" Erza asked.

"It looked like a very powerful spell." Juvia answered, looking up and seeing the dome diminish from afar. "I don't think one of our members has that kind of power."

Goomy shook. "Oh dear, I hope everyone isn't hurt."

Krokorok stomped in the water that got up to his legs. "This is Fairy Tail, we always survive dome-like explosions! Even those kind that are big and large!" He shouted before jumping and using Shadow Claw once more.

Goomy blinked. "Uh, I don't think it works that way…" She then noticed a fellow member on her right and jumped in time, avoiding the hammer that pounded at the water. The member looked up to see Goomy's blob-like body come down. "**Dragon Breath!**" Goomy's mouth then opened and fired a mid-air assault that blew the member away upon being hit, making him tumble into others helplessly as Goomy landed back into the water.

She looked back up with a strong gaze of resolve. "No time to gawk! We gotta protect Vanessa!" She turned and saw more members come at her, and she opened her mouth and initiated yet another Dragon Breath ahead, catching many in a blue explosion.

Erza slashed yet again, intercepting swords and slashing them away. Even she was worried as to what happened, but her matters were left to stop any and all incoming members as quickly as possible without being worn down. She pressed on, concern still in the back of her mind.

"**Boomburst!**" Nic's mouth glowed a light blue and he then took in a really deep breath before expelling all the air out of his lungs, unleashing a powerful blue shockwave that expanded in a shockwave in front of him. All of the guys before him were engulfed in a blue explosion that rattled the area and they all flew back an unknown length. He soon found himself back-to-back with Erza, which didn't bother him at all. Though he wanted to smile and turn to assure they were gonna be fine, he was absolutely certain that it wasn't necessary, and just had her back. "These numbers aren't letting up. If this keeps up, your Magic will be depleted."

Erza kept her glares on the enemy members. "Yes, we need to finish them quicker." She then looked back at Nic. "Can you keep going?"

Nic snickered. "Come on, as long as I have you guys and Charizard, there's no way we'll be worn down by such low-lives!" He shouted the last bit as he dashed ahead and used Mega Punch right in a member's chest, knocking the wind out of them and fell back. The members from behind pressed on to attack, but they heard some projectile coming in from somewhere, but didn't bother to look up, with resulted in them all getting hit by a powerful shockwave by Charizard's immense Fly that made the ground shake and waves crashed against members, and the force in general shot them away, giving the group space.

Charizard turned his back and face more that were in the vast distance and closing on, but he shot a glance back at Nic. "And that's saying something." Charizard stated, having heard what Nic said moments before he used Fly from before.

Nic and Charizard both smirked in confidence of the other, and they both continued to fight on.

* * *

**With Cana and co.**

If Cana wasn't pissed then, she was now. Becoming S-Class was one of her dreams and priority. She tried her best in the first round with Lucy and it was all for naught when Grimoire Heart decided to crash the party, which set her off big time.

The fire in her eyes coursed the determination through her veins and into her cards as she lashed them at some members before her as she fought with Lucy, Loke, and Gray in some ruins. "**Wind Edge!**"

Her attack made an ascending wind that struck some members mercilessly, with caught Loke's eyes as he had a fist of golden light. "Holy crap, she is pissed." He commented.

Gray. Shirtless as always, had his stance ready and was conjuring up some ice and aimed at some members nearby. "It's their fault to begin with! They should've to never set foot on our sacred grounds." He then shot his attack that was ice at the Grimoire Heart members as they didn't stand much of a chance. "You hear that?1 We're talking about you losers!"

Members gained up on Cana as she had her back turn; luckily, Lucy was there and had her trusted Fleuve d'etoiles to keep the members at a distance. She lashed her weapon, with sent a water-like whip that made the members all go flying back.

"Cana, stay alert!"

Cana was a little in shock, but bot over it. "Yeah, sorry Lucy." Soon the four found themselves back-to-back. They were surrounded in every direction and they really didn't have much room. "There's just no end to these clowns!"

Lucy held out a Zodiac Key. "I can use Taurus or Sagittarius to even things out." She reasoned.

Loke turned towards her. "That's too drastic. If they have reinforcements, they'll just be exhausting your Magic."

"Even so, once we exhaust our Magic, they can just pick us off with ease." Cana counter-argued. "If we had Nic's hand-to hand combat like you guys told me, then we could even things out, but we don't!"

Gray got into another stance. "Now I'm mad!" He growled, blasting away many more with his ice. "We'll keep this up all day if we have to!"

"I hope this doesn't keep up." Lucy muttered, whipping her whip with flowing water.

* * *

**With Makarov and Hades**

The smoke and dust began to clear out, the area around Makarov was ravaged in a crater. Through the dust, Hades saw that Makarov was shaken up and sustained minimal injuries from the massively powerful attack. Though his Three Pillar Gods were destroyed, the spell did keep Makarov alive and in his condition.

Hades had to hand it to Makarov. "I have to admit Makarov, that spell impressed me somewhat. Didn't expect any less from my successor." He stated.

Makarov's health really wasn't the best, as his eyes widened and his heart started to give in somewhat. He clenched it and gasped, getting to a knee and panting heavily.

"Hmm? It would appear that your years are finally catching up with you, boy." Hades mocked. "Nearly half a century has passed since we've last seen the other. I guess fate decided to bring full circle about."

Makarov kept his footing and shot daggers at Hades. "I don't understand." Makarov said, feeling somewhat better. "You were a phenomenal Guild Master Precht. Why'd you turn your back? Was all the talk of harmony and peace…a lie?"

Hades' look darkened slowly and he extended an arm out and down, using his Magic and crashing Makarov into the ground, embedding him into a deeper crater his side. Hades heard Makarov struggle.

"Makarov, understand that Magic was born from the depths of darkness, and those who use it were sought as powerful and fearful individuals." He said, turning his back, beginning to walk away. "Eventually, Magic was integrated into culture, and eventually everyday life as we know it; however, as I dug deeper, I found that al Magic revolved around Zeref. Once I find him, I shall see into the eyes of the true personification of Magic."

Makarov was face-down and immobile.

"Sleep boy. Fairy Tail shall be buried with Mavis."

Makarov's fingers twitched, and he shot his eyes open as he slowly arose, much to Hades' shock. Makarov let loose a battlecry and charged right for him.

Hades didn't show any shock as Makarov went after him; in fact, he was rather peeved. He pointed two fingers and he shot a projectile at high speed, catered to a special Magic known as Bullet Magic he had as well.

Makarov screamed in agonizing pain as the projectile went straight through his abdomen, making him feel as though he was having the entire world rush through him. Hades had a straight, unemotional face as he saw his successor in mid-air as glints of the Bullet Magic disappear, leaving Makarov wounded and slowly falling back. Hades then turned back once more as Makarov's vision blurred as he was slowly falling back towards the earth.

'_It's not over…not yet.' _Makarov thought as his back finally had hit the ground, echoing dramatically as his eyes closed and he was close to losing consciousness. _'…My successor…I hope you will lead Fairy Tail to greatness…'_

* * *

**Elsewhere**

In a desert-like terrain, filled with aged rocks and a lot of heat, the blue sky above went on endlessly. A cloaked figure with a knapsack over his shoulder walked on to the unknown.

The figure walked about until he suddenly sensed something and came to a halt. He remained still as he had a very odd feeling that something was bearing down on him.

He slowly turned his head back, looking with surprise behind him into the sky. "…it feels…it feels like, someone's walking over my grave…"

* * *

**As to where I followed the anime a good fraction of the chapter, I added a few bits of my own originality into the mix. I added slight fluffy moments in the beginning; but other than that, it was just straight-forward. **

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys like the fight scenes portrayed, the escalating plot, etc.**

* * *

**Next Time: Cornered**


	46. Cornered

Chapter 46 – Cornered

**Hi guys! I haven't got much to say, so let's get this chapter under way!**

**To Recap:**

At base camp, Nic ponders about Mest, about not knowing him. He gets a search party out and soon finds Levy, who takes them to Gajeel. They soon learn that Zeref is on their island, and Grimoire Heart had come to exterminate them. Nic and his group fend off against many soldiers, as to where Makarov quarreled with Hades, who was revealed to be Master Precht, Fairy Tail's Second Master. Makarov is easily defeated, but the fight was far from over.

* * *

**Chapter 46 – Cornered**

An explosion of fire rattled the damp landscape, soldiers flying away and out of sight. Many had already scurried off and a majority had been lying around in pitiful defeat. Many had gashes, some damp, some had scratches and scrapes, and the barrage kept on going.

"Charizard, **Heat Wave!**" Nic commanded.

Charizard brought his wings back slowly. "This'll show'em we're not messin' around!" Charizard brought his wings forward, letting loose a very powerful, hot wind with searing flames swallowing the landscape ahead. The ground quaked as the area ahead, trees and all, exploded in a brief, flashy wildfire.

As soon as it cleared out, enemies were seen lying the water, and the tree trunks were charred, quite a few reduced to nothing. The one on the sides, the ones that weren't swallowed in Charizard's Heat Wave, were converging.

Nic jumped back and he looked around, seeing how a few were still remaining. He and Erza and everybody else were found surrounded once more. The numbers were very small, but that didn't stop Nic in the very least.

"Vanessa, does Goomy know Muddy Water?" Nic asked, almost sounding demanding.

Vanessa nodded in confirmation.

Nic then looked ahead. "Then use it. We're gonna swamp the rest out." Nic glowed and flashed, revealing to have shifted into the Splash Plate. Nic managed to get the girls behind him, and Goomy was on the other end, both staring out ahead. Charizard flapped his wings and ascended so as not to get hit.

Nic spread his arms out, a large ring of brown, muddy water enclosing him and Goomy. The water kept gushing in place, building up, and Nic looked back at Goomy.

"You ready Goomy?" Nic asked.

Goomy tensed up. "Y-Yeah! Let's flush them out!"

Nic looked ahead and saw the enemy getting nervous. "Hit them with everything out have! We have to finish them now!" The two then paused as they both readied their combined attack.

"**Muddy Water!**"

The ring of brown water then expanded and created an omnidirectional tidal wave that surprised the enemy from all angles. Every member shook and quivered, many ran for their lives, but Muddy Water caught up and they were whisked and washed away Many screams and gurgles were heard as they were all hit by a wall of water, and none stood a chance.

Muddy Water settled down, and Nic looked around and saw that the enemy soldiers were no more. The combined Muddy Water assault was enough to drive and wash them away.

"Was that the last of them?" Juvia asked, feeling optimistic.

Erza looked all around. "For now. We need to hurry and move!"

Krokorok looked rather angry…not that he always was. "Come on! I was just getting started!"

Vanessa turned towards her two Pokémon, directing her attention to her Krokorok. "What the heck are you talking about Krokorok? You're covered in scratches."

Krokorok looked down at his body and saw signs of exhaustion. His arms were covered in a few scratches, and his tail and abdomen sustained some as well. Apparently getting physical has its downsides.

"I can handle more, just watch!" Krokorok shouted.

"Everybody quiet!" Charizard shouted from above, getting everyone's attention. "It's clear we have to vacate, so let's do so." He turned away. "I wouldn't stick too long in one place if I was you."

"Charizard's right." Nic said in his normal form, looking at an open direction. "Everyone get moving, now!"

There wasn't any time to argue or make a strategy. Their objective was to get back to the others and regroup as quickly as they possibly could. As Nic and the girls ran in the shallow swamp water below, Charizard carried Goomy and Krokorok on his back, seeing as how they weren't as fast as he was. They made way west for a short while, and no sign of enemies from Charizard's low altitude.

Vanessa looked worried. "I still can't get why Grimoire Heart is after some guy that's possibly not on this island." She stated.

Juvia looked back at her. "I understand, but that's not what matters now. Grimoire Heart is here, and we have to find Wendy and the others." She then looked ahead. "Hopefully Sophie is doing her best to fend the intruders off as well.

Upon that moment, Vanessa looked down and frowned heavily. _'Hope she's okay as well.'_

Nic and Erza both led the charge, as always. They kept the group at a fast pace until Nic and the redhead picked up a quick yet mighty disturbance. Upon sensing Magic from behind, they all turned around.

"Who goes there?" Erza called out.

Everyone was on guard as they encountered a girl, perhaps no older than Vanessa herself. She had pink eyes (Just to fit her appearance in the GMG Arc) and short, pink hair that went down to her shoulders. She had golden wing-like accessories on both sides of her ears. She had a red cloak with the Grimoire Heart emblem on the left side. The cloak covered her pink and black battle suit. She had on long, black stockings and boots, and she also had black gloves.

Charizard descended to the waters, looking with discomfort and defense as the pink-haired girl looked intensely at them.

"The enemy has been engaged." She announced. "I shall dispose of them at once."

Juvia was left a little surprised. "A child?"

Erza tightened her grip on her sword. "Don't let your guard down. There's a strange feeling about this girl."

Nic looked intensely at the enemy. "Yeah, I can feel Magic through the air. She has a lot of it."

Krokorok jumped off of Charizard's back and landed in front. "Let me tell you something! Pink-haired girl who acts like a robot designed to destroy us! The only thing that will be in the air, is your flying body!"

The pink-haired girl gave no immediate response. "I am Meredy, and my objective is to defeat the enemy at once."

"Defeat this!" Krokorok was outlined in white, and many gray rocks formed above him in the shape of a ring. He roared aloud, sending his Rock Tomb attack flying at Meredy.

Meredy brought her right arm around, creating teal blades in the air. "**Maguilty Sodom!**" Her teal blades then went after Krokorok's Rock Tomb attack. Much to everyone's surprise, the teal blades all pierced every rock, shattering them in the air. The remaining blades bypassed the shattered fragments and attacked Krokorok, making him shout as he sailed backwards into the water.

Vanessa looked with shock. "Krokorok, no!"

Goomy looked with surprise and gurgled an awe in her freight as well. Nic, Juvia, and Erza all looked hesitant as Meredy's blades pierced Krokorok's attack like it was nothing.

"So scissor beats rock huh, never thought I'd see it with my own eyes." Charizard figured.

Krokorok got back up, despite being a little hazy in vision. "Krokorok doesn't remember how that game goes, but who cares?!"

Goomy swallowed hard. "S-She's strong."

Nic put his two hands together and swiped his left one out, making a long, white needle for Cut. "Everyone be careful. She's very serious."

* * *

**With Lisanna and Mira**

The two seemed to have stopped the goons as best they could, and they were sure they had it easy, but they were wrong when they felt a powerful Magic from afar.

"You feel that?" Mira asked Lisanna.

"Yeah." Lisanna turned her head to look at a thick tree close by.

The tree had no response, but a protrusion began to prod out slowly, resembling a human face. "Humiliating." A deep male voice announced. "First cats and children, and now girls."

A figure made of tree bark slowly separated from the tree and began to take shape. The bark shaped and transformed into a tall, muscular man with tan skin and a black marking over his brown eyes. His hair was like brown confetti that jutted out in all directions. The sideburns connected is small beard to the hair. He had silver earrings that resembles Deep Sea Scales. He had green shoulder armor with Grimoire Heart's yellow emblem on the left shoulder. His upper body was covered in light green armor that defined his pectorals and abs, with the V-shaped collar looking black. The shoulder pads also ran down his sides and continued onward as a waist guard that was bind by a brown belt with white zigzags and brown X. The long sleeves and pants were both orange, and below the knees, they were strapped by green bands. He also had white boots.

Mira got very defensive. "Get behind me Lisanna. This guy's serious trouble."

Lisanna thought otherwise. "Come on sis, we can beat him together."

The man narrowed his eyes. "Might as well make introductions while we can. I am Azuma. I am a member of the 7 Kin of Purgatory." He announced. He paused a short moment. "It seems that I always have to step in thin twigs rather than logs to get across."

"What does that mean?" Mira said.

Azuma sighed. "Well I don't mean to offend you, but after fighting colored cats and children, I would expect much tougher adversaries than young ladies." He said.

Mira did some quick puzzling before she came to a conclusion. "If he played with colored cats and children, does that mean he…"

"He must have fought Happy and Wendy's team." Lisanna finished.

Azuma then intervened when he stuck out a hand. "I don't see who I fight concerns you. Your real worry is yourselves."

Lisanna and Mira both crouched and saw golden glints sparkle in front of them. The glints could only mean bad news, as they both jumped away as the area in front was engulfed in a vast explosion, shaking the land underneath them.

Dust blew in all directions, and when it settled, Mira and Lisanna were seen on some shattered ground, but didn't sustain any injuries.

Mira turned towards her sister. "Lisanna, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm okay." She responded. "But his Magic is so strong." She muttered.

"This Mage is powerful."

Lisanna counter-argued. "Yeah, no kidding. But I know we can defeat him!"

Azuma scowled lightly in mockery of Lisanna. Lisanna jumped and used her Take Over, transforming her arms into Harpy wings and her feet became giant magenta talons. She flew right in to attack with her talons, but Azuma grabbed the claws with one hand, not even budging an inch.

"Take Over Magic. Wasn't expecting that." Azuma admitted.

"Then try this!" Then she glowed, which made Azuma's eyes widen slightly. "**Penguin!**" She then became a giant penguin with pink cheeks, and Azuma jumped and dodged her incoming orange foot that pressed on the ground.

Mira looked on with surprise. _'Lisanna's switched to a different Take Over. When did she learn to do that?'_

Lisanna glowed and shifted her Take Over into another animal, which was the big, purple bunny. "Don't take me lightly. I'm young, but I'm just as tough as the other's in Fairy Tail."

Azuma extende his two palms out. "**Bleve!**" The area in front of Azuma exploded. The earth shook a little, and yet from the smoke, Lisanna as a giant bird with a long neck twirled out, fairly unscathed. Azuma was a little impressed, but didn't see her much of a challenge just because she dodged that attack.

In mid-air, Lisanna shifted into her cat form, which was a black and gray-striped bikini with a long tail, bra, and her hands and feet resembles a wild cat. She descended down and slashed. Azuma easily dodged her attack, and continued dodging Lisanna's slashing. He found room to use Bleve and make the area between them explode, which Lisanna flew back and landed on the ground with a thud.

"Lisanna!" Mira shouted.

Lisanna got up and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "I told you, I got this!" Lisanna then glowed once more, her form being one that made Azuma blink with surprise. The next thing he knew, he was grabbed by both sides.

"What's this? A different Take Over?" He saw Lisanna in her Drapion Take Over, and he felt the crushing grip. Lisanna used her tail and had the pincers glow purple. She leaned in and her tail went over her head, her Night Slash jabbing Azuma's armor chest, which made him skid back.

Lisanna then crossed her arms in the shape of an X. "There's more where that came from!" Her X shape emanated a purple cross comprised of poison. "**Cross Poison!**" Shen crossed her arms, shooting the poisonous X at Azuma. Azuma used his Bleve again and made an explosion ahead of him, shielding him as he nullified Lisanna's Cross Poison.

"**Pin Missile!**" Azuma heard her battlecry as he saw white orbs streamed in green shoot after him through the dispersing dust. He dodged and shifted left and right, evading the ever-shooting assault. He saw a missile head right for him, and he covered up as he took it. The attack exploded, but it only was minor compared to what he could do. He was even shoved back a foot.

Azuma uncovered to see that Lisanna was standing on her four feet in preparations for her next move. Azuma narrowed his eyes and extended his rams out again. "**Bleve!**" He let loose another barrage of explosions in front of Lisanna, in which she covered up and was swallowed in.

"Lisanna!" Mira cried out once more. Her worries were increasing, but they were brought to a stop when she saw the explosion clear out, showing Lisanna shaking and sustaining a few scratches.

Lisanna kept her balance as she continued battling. "Don't worry, I'm still okay-!" She stopped when Azuma appeared in front of her through the dispersing dust, giving Lisanna only enough room to gasp before he drove a fist into her armored abdomen, making her skid back several feet and grunt.

Azuma opened and closed his clutched hand. "Most formidable. I never would've guessed you would use an armored Take Over." He then glowed a green aura, signaling his Magic power emanation. "However…" He extended both palms out. "I cannot lose. **Burst Claw!**"

Lisanna felt the ground shake and she looked down, and she was held victim to blade-like beams shooting up at her simultaneously. Lisanna screamed as her weak point was hit and she was seen flying in the air, twirling and twirling until she landed on her side with a thud, tumbling away to a stop.

Mira rushed over towards her injured sister. "Lisanna! Lisanna!" She shouted, with the young Strauss sibling budging slightly as she glowed and reverted to herself. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah…I can manage." Lisanna reasoned, slowly standing back up. "He got me in my blind spot, and I didn't see it."

Azuma crossed his arms and huffed. "Battles can't be won over sentiment alone, for it takes honed skills. Mine clearly outweigh yours."

Mira clenched her fists and looked seriously at Azuma. "You wouldn't understand. Our guild holds nothing back, and we've come this far because we put our very emotions into play."

Azuma paid no heed. "Your ideals are something I couldn't care less about."

Mira then began to hum in escalation of the fight and she let a purple aura engulf herself. "You hurt our family, and you'll live to regret it."

Azuma, surprised by this power increase, was caught blinking. _'This is a first. Before, I didn't sense any Magic power from here; now, I sense a tremendous spike.' _Azuma snickered. "Two against one? Then this means I don't have to hold back." He immediately extended an arm out. "**Bleve!**"

The area in front of Mira and Lisanna exploded once again, as massive as always. They jerked back as they tried to avoid the explosion, which rattled the earth and threw them off balance. Azuma's Bleve then sparked some more, making more explosion which made them both scream as they landed on their backs with thuds, rock flying right past them.

Azuma snickered once again. "If you say your one big family, then it's fitting you all fall together."

Lisanna struggled to get up, turning towards her sister. "Mira…you gotta use Satan Soul."

Mira paused as she hesitated to speak, but came clean. "I'm still recovering. I can't seem to do it right now."

Hearing about Mira's Satan Soul, and her name in general, Azuma began to piece the information together. "Wait...I know you. You're both sisters; Fairy Tail's Strauss family. In that case, then you must be the one nicknamed The Demon."

Mira frowned. "…That's who I once was."

"You too weak to fulfill my wish to fight with the strength you once possessed?" Azuma asked, punching his own palm.

Lisanna clenched a fist. "I'll take you on again!"

"No Lisanna." Mira said, getting her sister to stop and turn towards her. "You need to go, now."

Lisanna was shocked. "What? No, I can't leave you to fight him!"

"You don't have a choice." Her tone sounded dim and meek as she looked at Azuma. "…you can't beat him."

A sudden wind blew as tensions rose against all three were at a standstill. Lisanna was unsure what had to be done. She didn't want to leave her sister to fight, but not much of an option was given, but she was stubborn. It was a tough choice.

Azuma saw the dilemma and took matters into his own hands. "I preferable dislike doing this, but you've left me no choice." He extended an arm out, making the ground under Lisanna burst with green vines, entangling her and keeping her confined. Lisanna yelped as she was constricted. On the outside of the vines, a clock with the number 180 showed, counting down every second.

Mira panicked and Lisanna struggled. Mira rushed on over as the countdown went on and the roots didn't budge. Despite struggling, Lisanna was trapped and Mira couldn't get her out.

"In three minutes." Azuma started. "Those roots will detonate. Pulling the roots won't work, for your only hope of stopping the countdown is to defeat me!"

Mira stopped pulling, seeing as how Azuma was right. "She turned towards him anxiously. "Coward!"

Azuma's eyes narrowed. "You accuse me, and yet I'm the one who isn't trembling."

Seeing there was no other way, Mira spread her legs apart and pressed her hand on the ground. A dark Magic seal appeared over her as she transformed into Satan Soul with her devious smirk of retribution.

'_I don't have much Magic left. I have to hit him hard and fast.' _She thought. She crouched and sprung ahead at an incredible speed. Azuma aged as Mira stretched out her right leg and nailed him in the chest.

Azuma had a twisted expression as he sailed back. "At last, a worthy foe." He skidded back to a stop, and smirked as he used Bleve in front of Mira. Her eyes widened as she had no room and was swallowed up by the attack, the land rumbling as she flew backwards from the vast smoke cloud.

She glanced back at Lisanna, worries taking over, and that left her open when Azuma extended an arm over his head. Green vines shot up from the ground and coiled around Mira's ankles and legs high above the ground. "**Chain Burst!**" Azuma snapped his fingers, detonating the roots from the ground up, making a line of explosions that reached Mira and swallowed the area above in a vast explosion.

Above, Mira escaped by spreading her wings and getting away at the last second, gaining brief altitude before diving in through the smoke cloud towards Azuma. She punched forwards when she flew in front, but Azuma blocked with his own fist.

They soon began close-range combat, Azuma parrying al of Mira's vast and swift punches and kicks; all while having a smirk on his face. Mira kicked and punched in rapid succession, but Azuma leaned in all directions and blocked with his arms.

'_Her strength. Her ferocity. It's just what I was looking for!' _He thought in glee as the clock had surprisingly reached the one-minute mark. Mira was so engulfed in combat, she failed to take into account how much time has passed.

When Mira looked away to see the time, Azuma scoffed. He moved his arm in an arc and roots shot up and struck Mira's abdomen, sending her soaring into the air. "Never take your eyes off of your opponent! **Burst Claw!** A barrage of blades then went about in the air and converged onto Mira, making full contact and exploding.

"Mira!" Lisanna shouted, seeing her sister fall from the sky. "No!"

Mira steadied herself with as much willpower she possibly had, making a sphere of darkness in front of her palms. "**Evil Explosion!**" She then thrust the dark sphere at Azuma, unleashing a beam at him, causing a catastrophic explosion.

Mira settled herself on the ground, huffing as she exhausted a lot of her own Magic. She was sure to have seriously wound him…

The smoke cleared, showing Azuma barely scratches as his tree shield was destroyed, taking the hit for him.

Mira gasped in shock as her last attack didn't do anything. Lisanna also gasped, and she looked down with horror to see thirty seconds left. Mira looked back and shook heavily.

Azuma dispelled his tree shield. "Impressive. I'm enjoying this all too much, let's keep going." He said, sadistically wanting more fight.

As Azuma smirked, Mira was left at a stalemate. _This isn't what I hoped. He's way too strong.' _Mira looked back at her sister once more, seeing the desperate plea in her eyes as the clocked reached fifteen seconds. Mira's own heart beat faster as she snapped and turned and flew turned her own sister.

"Are you running away from me?!" Azuma shouted in disappointment.

"Mira-!" Lisanna was stopped when she felt arms wrap around her neck, holding her tight. Lisanna's eyes slowly widened in shock.

Azuma looked displeased. "Stand and fight. It's the only way you'll save your sister." He reminded.

Despite his warning, Mira kept her back to him. She glowed and reverted back to herself, still hugging her sister. "…I'm sorry." She whispered. "I just…don't have enough power left." Despite her mood, she kept smiling. "The way I am now…we're too weak."

Lisanna's eyes shook. "You're giving up?" She squealed, as the clock struck ten seconds.

Mira hugged her tighter. "No matter what…I won't give up hope. I know someone in our guild will stop them…I know."

The clock slowly ticked and Lisana was beginning to tear up, seeing as how Mira and herself were gonna go down as together. Azuma looked on patiently as the clock was about to hit zero.

"I'm sorry, forgive me…"

Before the clock could strike zero, a miracle happened…

"Memorize!" A voice called out. "And…forget!"

Suddenly, the clock stopped, and Mira and Lisanna were completely still as the roots glowed and sparkles into nothing, dispelling almost immediately.

"What's this!" Azuma exclaimed. "My spell was nullified?!" He looked around himself and saw he was surrounded by a chain of memories. He turned left and right to see himself covered in all directions, and the ground beneath crumbled and shot up jagged stones with yellow energy that exploded in an electrifying manner.

Mira and Lisanna were still in shock, but even they heard Azuma's screams of pain, and dust blew here and there. Mira and Lisanna both looked ahead, seeing the smoke and electricity clear, revealing Azuma scratched up quite a bit.

"Who did that?!" He demanded. From the remaining smoke, a lone figure stood in between the Strauss siblings and Azuma.

"Sophie!" Lisanna exclaimed.

Sophie looked with a serious gaze at Azuma. "It was a good thing I got here just in time. I heard explosions and rushed over here." She turned to look at them both. "Are you both alright?"

Azuma gave a glowering expression. "So, it seems this one can dispel my Magic, and attack at the same time. Let's see what you can possibly do since The Demon called it quits."

Sophie clenched her fists. "Mira. Lisanna. You two find Levy and Gajeel. They should be around here somewhere." She explained, giving a cold glare at Azuma, almost threatening-like.

Lisanna and Mira weakly stood up, surprised and concerned at the same time. "But what about you?" Lisanna asked.

Mira looked at Lisanna. "Lisanna…we can't stay here. We're low on Magic power." She looked ahead, slight fear in her eyes as well. "I'm afraid Sophie has to cover for us."

"What are you standing there for? Go!" Sophie yelled back, and the Strauss siblings slowly stepped back and soon broke into a run, away from the fight, much to their own dismay.

"You're not getting away from me, cowards!" Azuma shouted, extending an arm out and making explosions.

As they glint in front, Sophie made a chain of memories. "Not so fast! **Memory-Make: Jagged Barrier!**" A large rock wall with ice spikes shot up from the ground behind her, blocking Azuma's visual of the Strauss siblings as they escaped, keeping the explosion from detonating fully as they were little bursts in front of the barrier, which only made small bits of it chunk off.

"Your opponent is me now." Sophie warned.

"Hmph. Never should've expected Fairy Tail to be cowardly. I expected more from her, so you better suffice while you're being obliterated."

Sophie spread her legs as she readied herself. "Fairy Tail isn't cowardly. We just know when to be smart, unlike you sadistic swine."

Azuma scoffed at her remark and punched his own palm once more. "Hope you prove to be interesting." brief silence blew and they paused a short while. "…Let's begin."

Azuma extended his arm out, initiating Bleve. Sophie quickly pressed her right hand on the ground and another, less wide, Jagged Barrier arose in front of her, taking the blow and keeping her safe, only to feel the ground shake from the explosion.

Azuma pressed his arm on the ground. "**Linear Explosions!**" A straight line of small explosions that made way towards the barrier, soon reaching it and ultimately generating enough force to shatter it completely. Sophie was seen a safe distance away when the barrier was destroyed, using it as cover to gain some distance so she would be safe when it shattered.

As the smoke cleared out, Sophie pointed her finger at her head as a focus point and a chain of memories emerged. "**Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**" She released tons of saucers engulfed in rapid-spinning flames that went after Azuma through the smoke. Azuma slammed his hand onto the ground, making a shield made of roots. Sophie narrowed her vision. "Don't think that'll stop me!"

The razor-sharp fire saucers all sliced through the roots like bullets through targets, striking Azuma as he used his arms to lessen the cindering blows. He grunted as he was pelted for a few moments, skidding back to a stop as the attack stopped. He looked ahead to see his shield was reduced to cut and charred pieces.

"**Memory-Make: Stone Lightning!**" She made another chain of memories, and from above, Azuma saw an incoming lightning bolt and jumped back to dodge, seeing the spot in front and nearby rots get turned to stone upon getting shocked. He reset himself and jerked left to avoid another downwards bolt, and then back right once again to avoid one last one.

Once he stopped, he showed discontent. "Impudent brat!" He extended an arm forwards, unleashing a barrage of roots at her. Sophie saw the massive flow of roots heading after her, and she used her Pyro Saucer once more, extending her arm out ahead and cutting the individual roots once more, sparring her.

Azuma and Sophie found themselves at a standstill, but that didn't hold up for that long, as Azuma narrowed his eyes and clasped his hands together. Sophie shook a little as the ground rumbled with such vast intensity. She almost lost her balance and stumbled a small bit.

Azuma then inhaled. "**Burst Claw!**" The ground underneath Sophie then burst with blade-like beams that shot straight under her, making a powerful explosion under her feet.

Sophie screamed as the ground below crumbled and she was found spiraling in mid-air from the explosion underneath. Sophie grunted and straightened out in the air, looking down at Azuma. "I got that one memorized now." She muttered.

Azuma scoffed and extended his right arm upwards, making tree roots emerge from the ground and entangle Sophie's wrists and ankles. "**Chain Burst!**" Azuma snapped his fingers once more, and the line of explosions went after Sophie.

As they traveled towards her, she looked calm. "Memorize…Then…" Her eyes widened. "…Forget!"

In that instant, the explosions ceased just before they could get within her range. The roots themselves that kept her in the air began to glow and be reduced to green sparkles that quickly dispersed, letting her land on the ground below.

She looked back up at a surprised Azuma, her serious glare staring down his shock.

She got back up and extended her arms ahead. "Azuma, wasn't it? I take it you're with the 7 Kin of Purgatory."

Azuma was over his shock and settled down. "Yes, and if I remember correctly, you're one of Fairy Tail's most recent recruits. Sophie, right?"

She spread her legs apart once more and pointed at her own head. "Yeah, looks like we're acquainted."

"Indeed. Your Magic seems to cancel out my spells, but let's see if you can keep up." He paused. "**Bleve!**" He had a hand out and an explosion beamed after Sophie, to which she readied herself for.

A chain of memories was made and she made several ice mirrors assemble in front of her. "**Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**" From all of the mirrors, dark green energy beams traveled through the air at the incoming explosion wave. When both attacks collided, a small glint was seen in between the two Mages, which escalated into a full-scale explosion that beamed upwards into the sky.

* * *

**With Mira and Lisanna**

"Can you keep going Mira?" Lisanna asked.

Mira nodded. "Yeah. We have to find everyone else."

The injured sisters supported the other as they were both wounded from their battle with Azuma. They had no Magic power left, so running into an enemy would be a big problem for them; but more importantly, they were too weak to continue fighting, and they had to leave Sophie alone to fend against Azuma.

Both sisters frowned, knowing they didn't have a choice. All they could do was have faith.

They saw a huge beam-like explosion rise from afar, looking like an intense attack. They both gasped and turned around, seeing just where the direction came from.

"What was that?" Mira shouted, seeing the explosion dwindle.

"That must have been Sophie's battle!" Lisanna shouted. Both sisters wanted to stay, but…they knew it'd be a bad idea. Lisanna looked back ahead. "Come on Mira, we have to find everyone else."

Mira could only nod and follow through with what Sophie told them, feeling slight remorse that they had to go through with leaving her like that.

* * *

**With Sophie**

The smoke and dust blew away, revealing a shattered terrain in between Azuma and Sophie. They waited patiently for the other to move, for the next move could either be their opening, or their demise.

In a few brief moments that followed, Sophie pointed her finger at her forehead. A slow chain of memories flowed all around her. She and Azuma stared at the other coldly as the blonde tried to think of something.

'_This guy's Magic reservoir is large. I managed to erase a few of his attacks, but I can't take my chances. I have to strike hard and fast and keep him moving, and then corner him so that I can strike.' _Her resolve was set, and her eyes narrowed. "**Memory-Make: Stone Lightning!**"

The same attack from earlier shot down, the lightning bolt crackling as it struck where Azuma was standing. He dodged once again, evading the stone-morphing attack again, jumping left and right.

'_This attack again? Doesn't she know it won't work?'_ Azuma wondered. When the attack finally stopped, he looked ahead and saw Sophie pointing her finger at her head again.

"**Memory-Make: Baryon Lightning Impact!**" Sophie extended her arms out and let loose a light green beam that was coated in lightning. The attack zoomed at Azuma, who extended an arm out.

Azuma kept his arm out, but when he tried to make a shield of roots, he noticed that they weren't showing up. "What's this-?!" He looked at the ground ahead of him, and he saw that the whole ground was coated in thick stone. _'Did she use that attack to slow down my defenses? Most impressive.' _He was left hit directly, enveloped in an explosion of green with thousands of yellow sparks surging. The energy expanded as Sophie hair flew about, but she remained still as she saw the attack envelop her enemy.

When the explosion subsided, there was a large smoke cloud in front of her, yet her guard wasn't dropped. "…I think that should have weakened him." She quietly figured. "I managed to hold him off that one point, but-!"

Her eyes widened when she felt a large Magic spike. The energy she felt was very large, much larger than from a few minutes ago. She grunted and remained calm as best she could, but her focus was of when a barrage of projectiles went barrowing through the dispersing smoke, resembling seeds. Sophie covered up as she was hit by the sharp barrage, flying back and skidding backwards to a stop on her two feet.

She huffed and looked ahead, seeing a figure walk through the clearing smoke. "You truly are formidable, and your attacks are highly valued." Sophie could hear Azuma's voice ring about as he stepped out of the smoke, covered in scratches, but giving a cool glare of a fierce warrior.

Sophie had hit him with a lot of Magic within that time span, and yet his Magic was overwhelming, though she saw this in the very beginning. Her eyes narrowed as she gritted her teeth.

"**Folium Sica!**" He moved his arm in a swiping motion, and a massive funnel of leaves went after Sophie.

Sophie saw the leaves head towards her, and she easily used her Pyro Saucer to stop the attack. Her attack launched a vast barrage and the Folium Sica kept on coming. She kept it up until it finally settled, and her Pyro Saucer stopped.

When the last bit of the two attacks ceased, Sophie looked to see that Azuma was no longer there. Sophie looked around, turning her head. "Where'd he go?"

She narrowed her eyes as she could still feel his Magic, so he must still be around. If she remembered correctly, Azuma's Magic was that to the earth in a way. "He shields with roots, makes explosions…it just doesn't add up-!"

She caught a glimpse of something behind, but it was bad news. She pivoted and jerked away from a sudden Linear Explosion Spell, which caught her off balance. When she landed, she caught glimpses from behind her back. She turned her head and gasped.

Azuma's Bleve exploded behind her back and she yelled as she flew ahead into a tumbling thud, soon rolling onto her side and her vision got all dizzy.

"If you are wondering, my Great Tree Arc is a unique Magic." Sophie could hear Azuma's voice echo through the clearing, but no precise point was given. Sophie huffed a little and slowly stood up. When she got to her two feet, she turned to look at where the strongest point of Magic came from.

"Futile." Sophie heard Azuma's voice ring again, and she turned to where it came from, only to receive Bleve, which exploded on her right. She flew into the air and yelled again, landing on her abdomen.

Azuma's face was embedded into a nearby tree. "The key to defeating an opponent is knowing their weaknesses, and you clearly lack the knowledge of my weaknesses, as to where yours is that you can't keep up to erase my attacks." His entire body then slowly emerged from the tree, walking towards Sophie, who was at a disadvantage.

Sophie slowly got to her knees, struggling as she gawked at the ground beneath. She heaved a bit as Azuma walked towards her again, stopping about twenty feet from her as she slowly got to her feet again and turned towards him.

Sophie was exhausted. "You think…you can defeat us?" She huffed with a serious tone. "_Slichah_, but you're far from ever defeating Fairy Tail."

Azuma scoffed again, extending his arm forward towards her. Vines from the ground emerged and darted after her, lashing her ribs and cracking them and making her shoot back with a thud on her back, making her gag.

Sophie was having trouble breathing. She gagged as she got back up to face him.

"I won't…have Grimoire Heart…ruin our family…never to the likes of you." She growled before coughing.

Azuma just stared at her. A brief pause before responding. "This family business is what is your weakness to all of you. Your care and concern is what makes one coward away, just as The Demon had done."

Sophie huffed as she clenched her ribs. "…Or maybe…it's our greatest strength…what we hold dear…is something that makes us…stronger than the forces of darkness." Azuma had no response to Sophie as her face was covered in scratches, her ribs cracked, and she used up too much Magic power.

"…You knew you didn't stand a chance, yet you fought me anyway." Azuma concluded.

Despite her pain, and her condition, Sophie gave a smirk. "Yeah…you're right…but I did it to buy time…" She huffed a moment before returning to speaking. "If you think that I'm…throwing myself away…you're dead wrong."

Azuma's eyes widened slightly.

"I knew full well that your Magic was superior, and yet…" She wobbled a bit while looking at him with dead seriousness. "…I chose this way, for no one should bear the burden of throwing themselves for another sibling. What Lisanna and Mira have…is something Nic and Vanessa have; a family bond, one that knows no bounds."

She huffed some more as her ribs were cracked, and Azuma's eyes remained blank. He slowly walked ahead and he gave a powerful kick to Sophie's abdomen, sending her sailing into some large, broken roots. She gagged some more as Azuma took a few steps ahead before stopping.

Sophie tried to support herself with the root, and were knees shook as she was exhausted, but she still kept trying.

"The memories I make…I told dear…the anguish…the burdens…the risks we all take. It's all for one, and one for all…" She got her focus back and narrowed her eyes. "Meeting with Nic and everyone else…we may be a crazy bunch…but we got it where it counts, and in the end, we won't fall…ever."

Azuma slowly extended his arm out. "…we'll see. **Bleve!**"

Sophie quickly used whatever will she had and turned to leap over the root, her feet planted and she turned around as the Bleve exploded, the area in front of her exploding, and everything went flying, including her.

Sophie flew back grunting heavily and coughing. The dust blew right past her as she skidded on her feet and came to a stop. She was shaking heavily, but she kept her balance.

Her vison imagined Fairy Tail and everyone in it. Nic, Erza, Vanessa, everyone. Seeing them made her resolve that stronger. narrowed. "If Fairy Tail is at risk, then it's one's obligation to put his or herself on the line for their family."

Azuma was still on the other side of the smoke that was clearing. He heard Sophie's voice, and he blinked. He then saw a brief flash of something from the other side, and then he stiffened slightly. _'I feel a lot of Magic power. Just what is she using?' _

The smoke cleared out, and Azuma's lips parted slightly as he saw Sophie with a serious gaze as she had a pressurized arrow made of dark energy, and spiraling ice around it. The Magic she was using was pretty massive, which could mean the attack may very well be her last.

Azuma clenched his fists. "So I see you chose to take the risk huh. I'll praise you for fending me off this long, but…it's over now." He extended both arms out, and he emanated a grand swell of power.

Sophie, smirking in defeat once more, narrowed her eyes. "I'll never go down without a fight. You may be strong, but I'll remember this, and you should too…I never underestimated you…for I learn from my mistakes…I will continue fighting until I can stand no more."

Azuma actually started grinning. "Then come!"

Sophie then felt Azuma's Magic channel beneath her, and she then unleashed her assault.

"**Memory-Make: Piercing Frigid Darkness!**" The lock on Sophie had flashed, and she move her arms in opposite arcs, releasing the spear at high speed.

Azuma made his chance as well. "**Tower Burst!**"

Sophie's arrow shot through the air at the speed of sound, time slowing down as the spear made brief contact in Azuma's abdomen, just as he engulfed himself in flames; at that instant, Azuma gagged as the arrow exploded in an icy-green flash that shook the ground even more. The explosion Azuma made then became heavily unstable, and he screamed as he was engulfed in a cool, dark explosion as his shot outwards.

The flaming explosion was reaching Sophie, and she only looked and smirked, as she gave him a parting shot.

Everything grew silent and white.

'…_I hope I gave the others enough time to find each other. Nic, Vanessa, Erza…don't worry guys, this fight is far from over…and also…Ani lo ohevet tevah…'_

Everything in that instant was swallowed in a disastrous explosion of flames, dark green, and light blue, which shot up in a monstrous tower up into the sky, echoing all through Tenrou Island.

* * *

**With Levy and Gajeel**

Levy continued to haul Gajeel over her shoulders as she dragged herself through the bushes and through the area. Sophie gave them some cover from before, and now they were on the run from any goons, but they were still in no condition to put up any sort of fight.

"Just hang in there Gajeel, we'll find the others and get help." Levy assured

The bushes close by shrugged, meaning there was something nearby. Levy swallowed hard as she didn't have any strength, but to her relief, it was Lisanna and Mira, both battered.

"Mira! Lisanna!" Levy exclaimed, glad to see the two okay.

The Strauss siblings ran up to Levy and saw her injuries, and they saw that Gajeel had it worse than her. "Levy, what happened to you two?" Lisanna asked in concern.

"It was Grimoire Heart. They attacked us." She faintly said, shaking a little. "Gajeel could barely handle them…and I…couldn't do much of anything."

Mira knelt down to her. "Hey, it's okay." She soothingly said. "We'll get through this. Come on." Mira helped support another side of Gajeel, giving some relief to Levy. The three were gonna go find the others, but the ground shook and they turned their gazes upward to see a tower of flames, black, and ice blue shooting up in the sky. The Magic power they sensed was tremendous.

As it settled and the rumbling stopped, Lisanna and Mira both looked with distraught gazes at the direction where it came from, their worries beyond recognition.

"What was that just now?" Levy asked. "Was that an enemy?"

Lisanna could've sworn she hiccupped once and looked as though she was gonna break down, and Mira wasn't faring any better.

Mira's face had grief written all over it. "…Sophie…no…"

* * *

**With Sophie**

Azuma stood in the middle of a leveled terrain. The ground cindered and everything was reduced to ashes or shattered into pieces beyond recognition. He had his arms out and panted heavily, his eyes open wide.

In front was Sophie, her hair all messy, her shirt torn in a few spots, her entire body full of scratches and scrapes, and she laid on her back, unconscious and lips parted.

Azuma panted some more and soon stood affirm, but his victory was short-lived when a pain went through his abdomen and he gripped it. He winced as he tried to let the pain settle. He looked down to find that his entire abdomen armor was no more, and his actual abdomen had a faint wound on his abs, leaving it nearly blue with bruises.

If he hadn't used Tower Burst, the damage could've been much worse.

He composed himself and slowly turned away, disbelieved that Sophie's parting blow was that drastic. He silently walked away since no one else was present, yet he mentally grinned, knowing that Sophie truly was a commendable adversary.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Ultear, adorned in a skin-tight battle suit, walked through the forest, deep into the unknown, her goal being absolute.

She stopped for a short while, looking down with a smile. "I'm so near to him." She muttered, her cheeks blushing a light shade of pink. "This path I've walked, full of turmoil, pain, and exhaustion, and now I'm near the end."

She looked at her hands, palms facing her. "And once I find Zeref, my soul can be at peace…"

A pair of footsteps was heard from afar, appearing out of the shadows from behind her.

Ultear immediately turned in defense. "Whoa are you-?!"

She stopped in mid-sentence and gawked, her eyes shaking ever so heavily as she thought reality was confusing her. In front was the one person she longed to find. Zeref. The very man Natsu encountered earlier.

"You must be one of the many that have come here." He said, Ultear unable to comprehend what she was seeing. He walked a few paced towards her. "You must be a part of those who sow the seeds that sprout conflict."

Ultear could only smile in joy.

"It's tragic…for you have made me quite angry." His black, innocent eyes from before showed red. Red of bloody anger and retribution.

As he had stated his claim, the sun in the sky was starting to set a little, and the sky was a light orange hue.

As Zeref glared at her, Ultear couldn't help but get all misty in the eyes. Her eyes were all shaken up, and a solemn tear dropped to the ground.

Zeref continued his cold glare at her. "You have come to indulge in meaningless conflict. Conflict and fighting that only harms more lives."

Ultear dropped to a knee. "It was your presence that we sought for, Lord Zeref."

A long silence weighed down on the two, Ultear and Zeref remaining quiet. Zeref was the one to break it.

"I will not allow myself to indulge in mankind's affairs. Not for this era." He stated. "I have no desire to see war break out. This planet and its inhabitance always indulges in violence that can provoke a cataclysmic stasis that none can ever hope to redeem for. I order you to stop your attack and leave this island at once!"

Ultear's eyes widened in slight disbelief. Everything she knew about this guy…wasn't right.

'_This can't be right.' _She thought. _'War and death disinterests him?...he seems conscious, but maybe he's unaware.' _Many questions rang through her. _'Is this state of rest? This can't be him.'_

"Your presence, it infuriates me!" Zeref announced, glowering down at her, his red eyes beaming disgust. Ultear gasped as she felt a strong sense of gear take over in every cell of her body. She cringed in place as fear was taking over.

Ultear slowly looked up to see Zeref materializing a black sphere of energy. "W-What is that?" Zeref threw the sphere at her, forcing her to react by dodging in haste. The sphere kept on moving ahead, boring straight through a rock. The sphere went through, leaving an open circle.

Ultear looked back at the opening of the rock and stood thinking. _'If that'd touched me, there'd be nothing left of me.' _She looked back ahead and saw Zeref materializing another black sphere. _'Lord Zeref's capture is at stake. I have to take the risk.'_

Zeref threw the black sphere once more at her, but Ultear countered. She used her Arc of Time Magic and made the rock behind her shatter into tiny fragments. By using her Telekinesis, she sent the pieces at the incoming sphere, but the sphere continued through the rocks like they were nothing. Ultear kept sending rock ahead, and the black sphere expanded, making Ultear skid back, thankful she wasn't hit as it exploded before it could touch her.

She got to her knees and huffed. Zeref readied another sphere of death energy. Ultear extended an arm out while still low to the ground. "I will make you come with us!"

Using her Magic once more, a small root grew from underneath Zeref. The root soon grew immensely and he found himself enclosed in a rooted tree trunk, which made him stop his attack.

"Now I got you!"

Zeref's eyes shook heavily. "N-No…here it comes…" Ultear was taken by surprise by Zeref looking distraught again. "**Death Predation!**" Zeref then expelled a vast veil of darkness. Zeref screamed as he felt a lot of pain as he emitted a lot of darkness. The tree that restrained him withered into absolute nothing. Nearby plant life and trees were dead and reduced to nothing.

As the attack made way towards Ultear, she had to act fast before she got swallowed up and died. She reached for an orb she had and held it out. Using it, she had it swallow up the attack, but she still was very much hesitant and struggled endlessly. She was shoved back several feet, but the orb kept absorbing the ominous attack. Soon enough, the wave of death stopped, and the orb she had had absorbed the heinous components. She huffed a lot as the orb in front of her crack and fall apart before her.

Ultear panted as she looked at Zeref, seeing how he was sitting back and panting as well. He no longer had those red eyes, but they were the innocent black again. Ultear had to act fast.

"Please tell me! Who are you?" Zeref called out. His only response was Ultear using her Arc of Time to fix her orb, returning it to its original form and color.

Ultear threw the orb over Zeref's head. "**Luminous Minutes!**" The one orb glowed and divided into several more glowing orbs. They all then shot down, striking Zeref as he was defenseless. Zeref screamed as he was pelted endlessly.

Ultear panted as Zeref fell forward and shook, unable to move. Ultear got to her feet. "This pitiful state you're in, it's no match for me. Do not underestimate the leader of the 7 Kin!" As Zeref was unable to move, Ultear smirked. "But Lord Zeref." She said softly. "With you, we can finally awaken you."

Zeref opened his eyes and looked at Ultear. "Please…stop." He then finally blacked out, leaving Ultear satisfied.

"At long last…" She walked on over and she slowly stared at him, giggling a little. She then slowly picked him up and supported him, a smile of glee and a blush over her face. "You are mine. Mine alone."

* * *

**Near the shores…**

Near the shores, perhaps a couple miles off, a fleet of ships were on standby. The ships however…weren't as shabby as one would've imagined.

The ships were all tarnished from Azuma when he arrived on the island earlier. Sails were torn, ship repairs weren't available, and some needed serious medical attention.

Men were rushing here and there; orders being given to act as they tried to keep calm with their ships out of commission. "Stay alert, everyone!" A certain voice of a man that was familiar.

"Get the wounded to the tents along the reef on the double! Ship repairs can happen once we secure the island!"

The man was from not too long ago, and if his name were heard from afar, Nic would surely go into an immediate tantrum. Lahar, the very same man responsible for arresting the Oracion Seis, Richard, and Jellal. He was now in charge of the Battle Fleet, and giving orders swift and stiff.

"We're gonna attack on the island at once!" Lahar ordered. "Anyone who can hold a weapon…" He trailed off when he sensed someone, a familiar face that he knew. Lahar turned around to see the person. His eyes met Mest, or in this case…

"Doranbolt?" Lahar was surprised to say the least. He saw the many injuries that he sustained when he briefly encountered Azuma. "What happened to you?"

"Don't worry about me." He responded, slight discomfort in his voice. "How is everyone? Are they okay?"

Lahar hesitated a little. "We're all fine. Some were injured, but no significant casualties."

"And the Communication Lacrima?"

"Still intact. Now, can you debrief me on what happened?" Lahar asked.

Doranbolt then explained. "I was doing fine; the next thing I knew, a full-scale, three-way war between Fairy Tail, Grimoire Heart, and Zeref boomed like an explosion." As Doranbolt looked back at the island, Lahar looked with surprise written on his face. "The ships being assaulted was Grimoire Heart."

Doranbolt failed to notice Lahar shaking in place.

"Where's the Communication Lacrima?" Doranbolt asked. "The Council needs to know what's going on…"

"This can't be coincidental." Lahar's expression was all shaken with anxiety and anger. "The Magic Council's biggest threats are all gathered in one spot? If I were a gambler, I'd say we were all played for fools!"

Lahar looked at the flooring and was unable to comprehend anything going on. "This won't suffice. The Chairman won't be pleased. You know how he hates Fairy Tail. With an opening like this at hand…he might decide an Etherion blast."

"Are you serious?!" Doranbolt exclaimed.

A short pause took hold before Lahar looked back up at Doranbolt, or Mest, whatever the heck his name was. "If the Chairman makes the order, we must and will obey."

"THAT'S BULLCRAP!" Doranbolt shouted to his face. "I know the Council hates Fairy Tail, but they don't deserve such a fate as the other two! Not ever!"

Lahar looked down with remorse and determination. "…If I am ordered to kill them, I shall."

Doranbolt gasped in horror. His memory of the S-Class trials he took part in, Wendy especially, hoe she helped, and her being hurt in the fight against Azuma, all of that innocence she had, he couldn't allow such a thing to happen; not ever.

All he could do was stand still as he didn't know what to do.

* * *

**With Nic and Co.**

"Juvia Lockser; former member of Phantom Lord's Element Four. Erza Scarlet, also known as Titania. Nic Pularis, known also as Luminous, the one responsible for Phantom Lord's Guild Master Jose's defeat. His accomplice is giant dragon that breathes fire. The other accomplice is a young girl with a walking crocodile and an amoeba." Meredy recited.

"Well you've done your research." Juvia said. _'I know I have to focus, but…I can't help but want to help my beloved Gray.'_ Juvia began to fantasize about Gray leaning against a tree, Loke unable to help and he handed him to Juvia, the two gazing lovingly at the other.

"You need to snap out of it!" Erza demanded.

Juvia snapped back to reality. "R-Right, sorry!"

Vanessa extended an arm out. "Watch out for her swords guys! She can materialize them! Krokorok, Crunch! Goomy, Dragon Breath!"

Krokorok's jaws then glowed and elongated, and he rushed ahead. Goomy made a round of loops and she fired a blue beam ahead.

Nic spread his feet out. "I'll keep her on her toes! Everyone look for an opening!" He shouted. "**Hyper Voice!**" He inhaled and exhaled rippling shockwaves that went after Meredy. Meredy jumped as the blast wave engulfed the small island she was on, making some small waves rage and the island shattered.

Meredy saw Dragon Breath and she narrowed her eyes. She once again used her Maguilty Magic to make Magilty Sodom. She thrust them all ahead. The attack went shooting like spears at Dragon Breath. Some were cindered, but a majority cut straight through. Goomy screamed as she got the indirect impact and flew backwards.

"Goomy!" Vanessa shouted.

Meredy landed, and that's when Krokorok went in for Crunch. "KROKOROK IS GONNA-!"

Meredy waved her arm, and use Maguilty Sodom once more. Her teal blades went shooting after Krokorok, which he got hit with and his Crunch was unable to do anything. He yelled as he flew backwards and splashed.

Krokorok got up and shook off the water. "THAT'S…nothing…ugh…" Krokorok was huffing as he was all scratched up. He was at his limit due to exhausting himself too much fighting the goons, yet he rushed in. "GRAAHH! **SHADOW CLAW!**"

Meredy extended her arm and teal blades attacked Krokorok once more. Krokorok swiped vertically and hashly, deflecting and stopping Meredy's attack. Meredy paused when Krokorok retracted Shadow Claw and panted, soon getting to knees.

"Krokorok, hang on!" Vanesa shouted. "I gotta help, and fast." She extended an arm out. "Goomy, **Dragon Breath!**"

"**Swift!**"

Nic and Goomy both fired their two attacks. The stars and the blue beam went racing side-by-side, soon becoming a blew beam with a star spiral. Water split apart as the attacked trailed at high speed at Meredy.

"**Maguilty Rays!**" She swung her arms ahead, and yellow blades that were longer than her teal ones materialized. She sent the blades at the incoming attack, directing at one point. At contact, there was an explosion that shook the ground, everything flashing as waves were violently streaming.

Everyone covered up as the explosion made them all skid back, but Krokorok was still too close, and he was unable to keep his footing. He screamed as he felt violent torrents and waves strike his face. He flew back and he barely retained footing upon skidding back.

As the smoke cleared, everyone saw teal blades bore right through the smoke. Meredy gave no room for a counter. Vanessa gasped as they were aimed at Krokorok, who was unable to move.

"Krokorok!" Goomy shouted.

A clashing sound came and went. Krokorok was sure he was finished as he didn't have the strength, but he opened his eyes to see his savoir. Nic's Charizard had used Dragon Claw to deflect them in one fell swoop, saving him.

"Charizard!" Vanessa exclaimed in surprise.

Charizard looked back at Krokorok, who was thankful, but unable to respond. Seeing his condition, he looked back at Vanessa. "Get Krokorok into his Poke Ball! He can't go on like this!" Just as he said that, he looked down and grunted as Krokorok caved in and fell blacked out, dropping into the water.

Vanessa was worried sick. She pulled out Krokorok's Poke Ball and returned Krokorok. She bit her lip in frustration as she looked forward, with Goomy loking up at her Trainer with worry.

"I'm not liking this." Goomy muttered.

"Everyone look alive!" Charizard warned. Everyone readied themselves as they got into fighting stances.

Meredy used Maguilty Sodom once more. Erza, Nic, and Charizard all easily dodged with sift movements, and Vanessa, Goomy, and Juvia barely dodged.

Juvia thought she was in the clear. "My body is made solemnly of water. You can't-!" She was stopped suddenly when she felt pain in her right arm as a sword grazed it. She screamed.

"Juvia!" Erza shouted.

Vanessa and Goomy were both grazed as well, Vanessa's left shoulder getting a small cut as she tried maneuvering, but a squeal escaped.

"Vanessa!" Nic shouted.

Goomy was hit as well, but she didn't get cut since she was slime. She screamed as she sailed backwards. Everyone stood affirm as Vanessa clutched her left shoulder and Juvia clutched her right arm, and Goomy looked tired.

"I'm okay." Vanessa assured.

"I don't understand. She was able to hit me?" Juvia was completely confused.

Meredy gave a cold glare. "My blades don't do as much physical damage as they do emotionally and spiritually; blades of sensory as you would put it."

"Damn you." Nic scowled. He glowed and shifted into the Dread Plate and he extended his arms out and spread them apart, making a purple blade, via Night Slash. "7 Kin or not, hurting family will be the reason to your end!"

Charizard stepped right by Nic's side, readying himself. Erza and everyone else readied themselves as Meredy emanated a purple aura, which signified her Magic.

The fight was only beginning.

* * *

**Fairy Tail Base Camp**

Under a tent, two bodies laid unconsciously and wrapped in bandages; the two being Gajeel and Sophie. Gajeel was covered all over in bandages as to where Sophie didn't have much of anything but patches on her cheeks and her abdomen and ribs covered in bandages.

Mira looked down to see them both breathing soundly, but the odds of them getting back up again anytime soon was fairly slim. "They'll be okay, but they just need some rest is all." Her tone was hollow, and not at all joyful.

Levy and Lisanna looked down at their sleeping forms. Their looks had sadness and grief.

"They'll pull through, but…I can't believe Gajeel and Sophie went down so easily." Levy faintly muttered.

Lisanna looked down at her own knees. "They both did do a good job though." She clenched her fists tightly. "If it wasn't for Sophie…"

Mira looked like she could quiver at any moment. "I feel…like it's our fault."

A pair of footsteps was heard from behind. They sounded deep. "No, it's not anybody's fault." A manly voice said.

Recognizing it, the Strauss siblings and Levy all turned around to see an upset Elfman, holding an unconscious and defeated Evergreen's body. He looked up at the sky, almost choking in regret of having his valuable partner defeated.

"I hate to say it, and it's not manly…but we don't stand a chance!" He hollered, tears in his voice.

Lisanna and Mira looked to see Elfman crying, and they both had small tears in their eyes as well.

"I'm a sad excuse of a man!" Elfman cried. "I let my sisters and my partner get hurt by those monsters!"

As the Strauss siblings shed tears, Levy looked with sadness at the ground, but she wasn't as sad, but more resolute.

"…it's time we all come together." She said.

"Levy…" Lisanna didn't have much to say.

Mira sniffled and wiped her eyes. "No, she's right." Mira slowly stood up and her focus was on Sophie. Seeing her in such a state, she couldn't help but be responsible. She was shaking hard. "We have to come together, just like she said. We can't have Sophie's sacrifice be in vain."

Tears swelled Mira's eyes. "She risked herself, knowing the fate she'd face. And now look at her." She paused as Lisanna's lips quivered and Sophie was still unconscious. "We have to come together. It's now or never."

Levy took over. "We all wanted to become S-Class." She sounded more composed than Mira. "We wanted to be S-Class so badly that we all diverse, keeping us from being together."

As Elfman looked on at Levy, Evergreen's eyes slowly opened and she remained quiet as Levy continued.

"We can't do this, not anymore." Levy looked up, tears flowing. "Our enemy may be monsters…but we're…we're Fairy Tail!"

Mira tried to compose herself as best as she could. "Everyone, we…we need to fight as one! We have to pour our hearts and minds together for the ones we love and cherish!"

"For the ones who fought for us! We can't have their pain be for naught!" Levy shouted to the skies, referring to Gajeel, Sophie, and Evergreen. "I'm begging you all!"

Mira and Levy shouted in unison. "Fight as one, Fairy Tail!"

* * *

**I gave Sophie a lot of credit this chapter. I tried portraying as much emotion as I possibly could, though I hope the feels were strong enough. The next chapter will be out soon, and it'll be as intense as any Fairy Tail fight.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys like the changes I make, the conveying I pull off, and the fights in general.**

* * *

**Next Time: Raging Storm**


	47. Raging Storm

Chapter 47 – Raging Storm

**Nothing to say, except enjoy Chapter 47!**

**To Recap:**

While Nic and his group fought against Meredy of the 7 Kin, Lisanna and Mira were overwhelmed by Azuma. Before anything drastic happened, Sophie saved them and bought them time to find Levy and Gajeel. Though she put up a god fight, Sophie was defeated, but Azuma was left wounded. Mest, also known as Doranbolt, replayed what he'd went through and Lahar warns the Chairman might destroy the island. At base camp, as Gajeel and Sophie were treated, everyone there called for Fairy Tail to unite.

* * *

**Chapter 47 – Raging Storm**

Hades was sitting calmly in front of a table, stained glass windows behind him as he relished in the tide in his guild's favor. He chuckled amusingly.

A shadowy figure walked up to him. "It's comforting to know how pleased you are, sir." He said.

Hades took off his Greek helmet and placed it in front of him. His chuckles were less amusing as they were ominous. "Bluenote, of the 7 Kin, three have been defeated. It seems that Makarov has raised his children all too well."

"Do you want me to enter the fray?"

"Not yet." Hades answered. "I'm afraid this isn't your battle, so stand down."

The shadowy figure growled lowly as the ship vibrated with small intensity. "Master, forgive me, but I can't just have those beneath me have all the fun." The ship then began to shake immensely in conjunction to Bluenote's rage. "I can't risk my body going soft."

Outside, the ship was quaking to an upmost degree, the sand flying from the shores, and waves were being made. The ship even began to sink a little.

Hades wasn't at all surprised. "That's enough Bluenote." He stated calmly.

Bluenote then stopped using his Magic, and he seemed slightly irritated. "What's the matter? If we submerge the ship, they won't find us."

Hades understood Bluenote's logic, but it didn't suite him. "Makarov's children shall come aboard eventually, but little do they know, they'll be walking straight into the Underworld. The Devil's Heart will swallow them whole until there's nothing left."

Bluenote's shadow turned. "Ugh. That's what separates us; you like to have them take the bait, but I like the thrill of the hunt." Bluenote remained where he was, on the ship. Before he could leave to his domain, he turned back towards Hades.

"But know this, sir: If one more shall fall, I will enter the fray." He then vanished back into the shadows.

Hades only kept a straight face as Bluenote was being as thrilled as ever.

* * *

The skies above them had clouds gathering around, ominous to say the least. Rumbling was heard, which foreshadowed lightning and thunder; a storm brewing.

Meredy sent more teal blades ahead, with Nic using Night Slash diagonally to deflect the ones heading towards him. The ones that went right past him went after Vanessa, who covered up and tried to dodge, only to get a few more cuts as a result.

Goomy did her best to stay strong, not cowering. She took the teal blades and winced in agony, but she remained strong and she coated herself in a red aura, signaling her storing up energy.

Erza used her swords to block and deflect as many as possible, while evading and shifting all about. Juvia fared no better as she could only dodge in a couple directions since her Water Body wouldn't work.

Charizard did a vertical swipe of his Dragon Claw, which deflected the blades that went his way. When the blades passed by him, he opened his mouth. "**Flamethrower!**"

"**Bide!**" Goomy shouted, releasing all of her stored energy.

Goomy released a white beam that trailed through the water, and Charizard released his blast of fire that shot through the water, making it steam a little. Both attacks rushed with intensity at Meredy. The pink-haired Mage swiped her arms forward, using Maguilty Rays, sending yellow energy blades. The blades, however, were no match for Flamethrower, and Bide was barely strong enough to bore right through.

Meredy had to jump to dodge, the area beneath her exploding in white and fire. As she floated briefly, she looked ahead and Nic was in front with a Feint Attack, appearing just a few feet away and drove a punch across, which made her grunt as she felt her cheek nearly shatter. She flew back and skid in the water, coming to a halt.

Vanessa, who was behind Juvia and Erza, was slightly disheartened. Not by Nic's assault, but of herself.

She clenched her fists. _'Darn it. I feel so useless.' _Though she had worry and resentment in her eyes, even the simplest of minds could tell that Vanessa was feeling some pity. Her brother was saving her skin, as to where she was to sit back…just like she always has.

Vanessa tried to concentrate as best as she could, but focus wasn't her thing. Juvia and Erza could use Magic so easily, and Nic was in sync with his Charizard and the Plates he was wielding, so where did that leave her?

Meredy swiped her left arm and extended her right, sending forth more yellow blades ahead. "**Maguilty Rays!**" Her attack went ahead, but Nic was ready for it.

"**Night Daze!**" Nic's arms and body were coated in a crimson aura. When he raised his arms, the aura thickened. He slammed them, sending a pink and crimson force field all around, expanding and completely obliterating the teal blades, making waves rock back and forth briefly.

Though Vanessa wanted to help, the best she could do was just order Goomy, but she would suffice with what she had for now.

_Vanessa was reading the basics of Magic, reciting what she was reading._

"_Okay…Magic is the physical embodiment of the spirit. When the physical spirit and spiritual flow of nature connect…" She trailed off as she read silently, the words all jumbled up inside of her._

_Vanessa put the book down as she sat cross-legged on Sophie's couch, Braixen sitting right by her side. _

_Her index finger tapped her cheek. "I don't get it. I don't even know what spiritual energy I have, or what is really is."_

"_I wouldn't imagine it being easy to grasp." Braixen said, sympathizing with her frustration. "But you know, you have been reading ragged lately, and you keep re-reading the concepts."_

"_I know." Vanessa sighed and rest her forehead on the back of her hands, elbows on knees. "It's just…I can't be idle while you guys and Nic do all the work while I just sit by anymore."_

_A little silence in between the two was made, and Braixen could see the uneasy resolve Vanessa had. "Vanessa-"_

"_I don't want to be dependent on my brother anymore; I mean, I want to, but I have to save my own life. If I can just…" She gave upon reasoning as she stuttered, unable to think._

_Braixen's expression saddened some as she looked at Vanessa and then the books in front of her. She looked back at the long, black-haired girl with the single blonde bang and tried to find a good simile._

"_Well, it's not like you can get it so easily, but in a way, it's just like learning a new move." Braixen said, with Vanessa glancing over at her. She pulled out her stick wand from her tail fur. "I mean, watch this…" She lit the tip on fire, and she then willfully made the fire go out. "I don't know myself. It's an instinct and an experience. I don't know how exactly. It's something like an impulse or a reaction that I can feel and manipulate." _

_She then looked at Vanessa. "Perhaps soon an impulse will make you react to something soon as well. You just need to find an incentive."_

Vanessa kept herself aware as Meredy sent teal blades again, dodging completely. Goomy did the same, as did everyone else.

Juvia lost her footing and she fell forward into water due to slight exhaustion.

"Juvia!" Erza shouted. She looked back ahead at Meredy, trying to think of an upside to the situation. "We may not have much Magic power left after the trials, we have the advantage in numbers."

Juvia was too exhausted to move.

"Number 14." Meredy said.

Erza glowed. "We'll handle her." Her armor switched into her Heaven's Wheel Armor.

Nic spread his arms apart and sheathed Night Slash as Charizard was right by his side. "Vanessa, Goomy, you two sit back. We'll take care of her."

Vanessa didn't respond as Nic, Charizard, and Erza all went after Meredy.

"Erza Scarlet, Number 5." Meredy recited.

"And what's with the ranking?" Nic demanded as he sped in with Night Slash.

Meredy swiped her arms. "It is your priority." She sent the swords at him and the others. "It's the order in which you need to be destroyed!" Her Maguilty Sodom went after the three. Erza and the other two stopped advancing and Erza slashed, as did Nic, and Charizard used his right wing to swat them away like they were nothing.

"That's nonsense!" Erza testified.

Charizard felt an odd forbearance and turned his neck around and saw teal blades coming in at above angles, raining down on Vanessa, Goomy, and Juvia. The three all gaped as they were about to be hit. Charizard dashed in with his surprsing speed and he managed to use Dragon Claw, swiping away the blades.

"Charizard!" Vanessa shouted in surprise.

Charizard turned towards Meredy. "Why are you attacking them?!" He demanded.

Meredy swiped her left arm. "Number 14 is trash, and must be rid of!" She continued her onslaught of teal blades, and Charizard continuously used Dragon Claw in rapid succession, defending Vanessa and the others while Nic and Erza slashed away with their swords and purple blades, fending and parrying every assault.

"Number 5 is Erza Scarlet!" She sent blades at her, but Erza dodged with angelic swiftness. "Number 4 is Nic Pularis!"

Upon hearing this, Vanessa jerked at Meredy with surprise, her being coming to a sudden halt. Her mouth gaped a bit. Charizard grunted and he turned and fired Flamethrower at Meredy. Meredy used her Maguilty Rays and spread her arms out, moving them to converge and make a barrier. The spoked barrier blocked Flamethrower, but that didn't stop nearby water from boiling. Meredy used that time to jump and evade as her barrier broke apart.

"Damn you!" Erza shouted, hearing Nic getting targeted, but all she could do was slash and deflect teal blades with little room to assault of her own.

Goomy was shaking as she was very nervous. All of these targets mentioned made her uneasy. She looked up and saw storm clouds coming in. She was shivering as she was very scared, flashes of Skorupi and Haunter scaring her back in Route 14.

Goomy soon enough, having an image of Vanessa, a person worth fighting for, and the very same one who took her in, snapped and had a still expression like Vanessa.

"Number 3 is Gildarts, but he's no longer on the island. Number 2 is Makarov, but Master Hades already took care of him." Meredy mentioned.

"What's this?! Are you saying there's a higher priority than Master Makarov?!" Erza exclaimed.

Meredy's gaze turned dark and resentful. "Number 1 is _him_…Gray Fullbuster!"

Nic and Erza, including Charizard stopped in place as they were surprised. "But why?" Nic asked in disbelief. "Why him?"

Juvia twitched as Vanessa still fairly in shock, as was Goomy.

"Why Gray?" Erza demanded.

Meredy's Magic was fluctuating as she clenched her fists in sheer anger and revenge. "Because…he has blood on his hands!" She looked with pain and monstrosity at them. "Ultear's mother died because of him!" She swiped her arms mercilessly and ton of blades surrounded her and went after Nic, Erza, and Charizard. "THE PAIN HE CAUSED WILL NEVER BE FORGIVEN! I'LL TEAR HIM APART! AND EVERYONE ELSE AS WELL!"

Nic grunted at Meredy's resolve. "You've lost it!"

Vanessa's eyes were shaking heavily and her pupils were shrunk. Her brother was threatened right before her; last time she couldn't do anything because of _him_, but now that she had an opportunity, she had to do something.

_Vanessa sighed and fell into her seat, looking at the ribs in front of her. The barbeque sauce slathered on made her mouth water, but Sophie's words made her face twist. Another day of not realizing her Magic has come and gone._

"_I'm a little annoyed." Vanessa responded. "This stuff takes time Sophie, I know that, but the anticipation is making me nervous as heck.."_

"…_I guess." Sophie admitted, but she couldn't help but sigh. "I guess it can come at some point; mine wasn't by impulse or reaction, so I can't be sure around that area, but just know Vanessa." Sophie's gaze grew very serious. "It's important to use and wield it not to defend yourself, but the ones you hold dear."_

_Vanessa looked down at her tender ribs and sat there, staring. "…to protect what I hold dear huh…"_

Vanessa's warm blue eyes turned feral red, a loud heartbeat echoed…

Nobody saw the next part coming. Giant waves washed and spiraled all around Nic, Erza, and Charizard, startling not just them, but Meredy as well. The spiraling water crashed and destroyed the blades surrounding them.

Meredy looked past the sudden spiral and saw a black sphere heading towards her. She panicked and shifted left, seeing the sphere go right by her and crash into the tree behind her, making a vburst of energy that made her jump away.

Everyone was confused and on edge as they had no idea what was going on. The mood around them suddenly went from hostile to something more…eerier and ominous.

The sky above darkened as thunder was heard. A drop, then another, until rain began to pour away, down onto them. The entire area was making everyone uneasy, and it all originated from behind Nic.

Two shadowy figures and a blob gave off a vile vibe, the shorter one giving off a tremendous vibe that could made dogs pout and scurry away. The blob having used Rain Dance as an instinct.

"You…" One of them said.

The other one growled as she had a dark shadow over her face. "You dare threaten to kill my brother. The same one that saved me…"

Nic and everyone turned around, only for them to feel all eerie and startled. They saw the three and the shorter one growled, her vibe not affecting the taller one as they both had red, demonic gazes.

"If you dare to kill my beloved…"

"If you slaughter my brother…"

Both stepped in unison ahead, one had a death-like aura, as to where one had a very thick, almost violent and savage aura. Meredy was left startled.

"I swear…"

The figures were Juvia and Vanessa. Juvia tilted her body and her gaze was wide-eyed and possessed, as though she was a zombie. As for Vanessa…

"You will never live to think of doing it again." Vanessa's gaze was monstrous and snarling, hearing her brother being threatened made her snap, and the vibe she gave off was terrifying, her aura extremely thick.

Goomy was unaffected as she felt the resolve of Vanessa, but she knew this wouldn't end well.

Meredy scoffed. "What's wrong with those two? Their ranking is low."

Erza was very unnerved by Juvia and Vanessa. "Wait…calm down you two." She said, nervous.

Nic, especially, was unnerved. "Vanessa…? You're creeping me out."

"Oh god." Charizard said, his gaze struck with unnerve. "This isn't gonna go well."

Juvia's head bobbed a bit as she walked ahead like a zombie, her vibe nerve-wrecking, but not as vicious as Vanessa. "How can I do that?" She asked in a monotone. "She plans to kill my beloved, and you think I should stay calm?"

"Well, no…b-but I, uhh…" Erza trailed off as she didn't like where this was heading.

A vicious snarl was heard from Vanessa as, unlike Juvia, stomped slowly and violently. "This situation needs no calm. She plans to kill us all, especially the only family I got." Unlike Juvia, her thick vibe began to give goosebumps to everyone, even Nic for crying out loud!

"I've never seen her this angry before." Nic muttered.

Juvia and Vanessa, and Goomy, though the last one was still a ways back, stood in front of everyone, facing a shaking Meredy.

"I'm afraid calming down is not an option, not now!" Juvia spread her arms out, her hands coated in water. "YOU'RE GONNA PAY FOR THINKING OF HURTING HIM!"

"GO DOWN YOU WITCH!" Vanessa's death-like, savage aura began to spiral and converge into her palms, and she threw it with ferocity. A violent blast of water and Vanessa's sphere made from her aura crashed into Meredy, sending her crashing into the tree behind her.

Juvia still looked possessed as to where Vanessa snarled. Juvia sprung after her with intensity, and Vanessa's thick aura concentrated into her limbs, coating her fists and legs in her aura. She sprung ahead, ferocity filling everything around her.

Erza, Nic, and Charizard all gasped in shock. They looked completely overtaken by resolve. Their eyes showed it.

Meredy was still too scared to move as Vanessa used an aura-coated uppercut and sent her flying. In mid-air, she was helpless as Juvia shot a massive water spiral straight up at her. "**Water Nebula!**" Meredy was struck by the violent torrent, and Meredy was helpless when Goomy inhaled from nearby, exhaling her best Dragon Breath. The blue beam blasted through the air, engulfing Meredy in a blue explosion in the air as the rain poured down.

Eza was left in shock. _'Amazing.'_ She remembered during the trials, with Juvia and Lisanna facing against her. The power she used was nothing like now. _'Juvia's a completely different person.'_

As for Nic, he was just as surprised as Erza was, but took it more personal. _'Vanessa…is she…shaping her aura?' _He was still left in surprise. His little sister had unlocked her Magic to protect him. _'I never would've imagined her power being this formidable so early.'_

Charizard looked just as uneasy. "Looks like the Pularis rage is hereditary after all."

They all saw Meredy take a powerful beating from lashed from Juvia's water, sending her back, and Vanessa's aura-covered fist punched right into her back, making Meredy gag. Goomy then took aim and she made a powerful vortex around herself, and she let loose a Rain Dance-influence Muddy Water, a massive torrent of brown water swamping Meredy.

Nic and the remaining two swallowed as the uneasiness didn't settle, but they calmed down.

'_Their power came from their emotions.' _Erza thought.

"Vanessa." Nic thought. "She shapes aura to attack…incredible."

Juvia, no longer having the zombie-like look but a dead serious expression, looked back at Erza and Nic. "You guys, go on. We can handle her."

Vanessa, still looking a little foul in the eyes, turned back towards her brother, her aura coating her body. "Nic, Charizard, Erza, it's best you leave her to us." She persuaded, turning back towards Meredy, whom was on a brief knee. "Find the others as quickly as you can."

"Especially my beloved." Juvia added.

Erza requipped into her black bikini, as to where Nic shifted into his Splash Plate to accommodate to rain that kept pouring down.

"Very well." Erza said. "We will!"

Nic looked at his sister once more before turning away. "Be careful."

Just like that, Charizrd, Erza, and Nic took off, running in another direction. How Charizard is able to run? Simple: Nic trained him.

Meredy, seeing them escape, had teal blades ready. "Number 5 and 4! Get back here!"

Before she could send them ahead, Goomy used Muddy Water and Juvia used her Magic to make the water separate and then converged from both side of Meredy, bashing her from two waves colliding on both ends.

Meredy shot up like a geyser and she straightened out. She looked down and sent her Maguilty Rays spell at Vanessa. Vanessa's now teal aura became a swirling spiral around her. She pushed out, and the teal vortex expanded, erasing the Maguilty Rays. She pushed her arms out, and the aura vortex spun and converged to a point, becoming a vortex with a pointed, spinning front. Meredy covered up as she was hit by the attack.

While running, Erza looked over at Nic. "Is your sister going to be okay?"

Nic didn't bother to look back as he looked at Erza, his sunglasses off of his eyes. "I know my sister. She won't hesitate anymore, because…"

Vanessa rushed ahead, her aura coating her arms. Meredy was left helpless as her attack was so sudden. Vanessa's punch made contact, the force making small waves and Meredy skid back, huffing.

Vanessa's death-like, red gaze was gone for the most part, and her teal aura was her actual aura, as to where her black one from before was from her intense rage. Her mood was still defensive, taking up Nic's dead serious gaze.

"…she has the heart to defend anything she holds dear." Nic, Erza, and Charizard all went on ahead, leaving Vanessa, Juvia, and Goomy to settle the fight.

Meredy's breathing was a little heavy as she felt pain flare. She noticed from before that Vanessa's black and devilish aura looked more at ease, as if responding to her emotions. Aura that's strength varied on emotion.

Vanessa looked unsteady as she almost lost balance. Juvia looked over. "Are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah." Vanessa huffed. "It's my first time. You have no idea how exhausted I am." She panted a little, her rage and teal aura both beginning to dwindle.

Juvia turned to look at Meredy, but her glance was on Vanessa. "You just used Magic, and using such a copious amount like that can drain you drastically. Please, allow me to do most of the work."

Reluctantly, Vanessa panted, her aura coating her body gone. "Okay, but…she won't hurt Nic nor anyone else." Juvia glared back at Meredy as an agreement.

Meredy regained breathing and looked at Juvia. "It's very odd. We both think of the same man, yet one of us despises him and one loves him."

"It's only natural we feel different. That's what being human is all about." Juvia said.

Meredy looked away. "I have been sent here to kill Gray Fullbuster and my list downwards, and that is what I intend to do." Juvia's eyes showed heavy hostility and Vanessa growled. Goomy, yeah, she just sat in the water, trying to ready another attack if it called for it.

"And yet I encountered someone who loves him." Meredy added, glaring at Juvia. "It's those feelings alone…that'll bring you both from Heaven to Hell."

Juvia didn't quite understand. "What do you mean?"

Meredy pointed at her. "Picture him, your beloved. Feel how he makes your heart race."

Though considering it a trap, it didn't stop Juvia from doing so. Her heart under her tattered attire beat and her cheeks blushed a little, picture the one and only Fairy Tail nudist: Gray.

Seeing Juvia's blushed cheeks, Vanessa looked uneasy. "Juvia, stop. You're playing right into her-!"

"Too late!" Meredy shouted. "I got you! **Sensory Link!**" She pointed two fingers out, flashing pink. Juvia was coated in a pink light, which was very stinging. She screamed in sharp pain as she was inflicted with the spell.

"Juvia!" Vanessa shouted.

Goomy looked worried as well. "Oh no!"

As the pink light enveloped Juvia, a beam shot up from her and went off through the sky to who-knows-where.

* * *

Gray was hiding out behind a tree, patiently following Ultear, who had Zeref over her shoulder. _'Why does she look like Ur?' _He wondered.

Before he could do anything, his left arm started stinging as a pink light enveloped it. He felt a sharp sting surging through his wrist and he had to use whatever will to keep his mouth quiet. He looked back at his hurting arm to find a glowing pink heart was on it.

"What the-?" Gray said. "What the heck is going on?"

* * *

"Sensory Link, complete." Meredy announced.

Juvia tried to relax. "What did you do?"

"I linked your sensation to Gray." She answered. "It can only be done when the two have strong feelings."

Juvia's face blushed a bright red and she steamed like crazy. She gasped in shock. "Y-You mean...my darling Gray and I are married?! We're living as one?!"

Vanessa failed to see the humor. "Juvia, I don't think that's what she meant."

Goomy turned back towards Meredy. "You jerk! What does this mean?"

Meredy only smirked. "Doesn't it feel nice? Your senses are as one."

Juvia was wiggling and stuck in her own world once more. "I-I can hardly contain myself! We're gonna have so many babies! 33 babies, here we come!"

All Vanessa did was face palm herself.

Meredy's face then grew mischievous. "Good, because now he can feel this!" She swiped her arm, sending a yellow blade at Juvia, slashing her left shoulder just like that. Juvia screamed in pain.

* * *

Gray felt a harsh, searing pain in his right shoulder, which made him yelp.

Ultear looked around to find where it came from, and Gray stayed behind the tree, clutching his left shoulder.

* * *

Vanessa looked mad. Her eyes showed just pow POed she was. "You witch!" Using her Aura Magic upon impulse, her body emanated teal aura, and it gathered in her palms. She threw her sphere of teal aura at Meredy, which scored a direct hit. Though after the hit, Meredy was still standing while Vanessa was struggling.

"I forgot about her." Meredy muttered. "Fine! Then how about we make you and your brother share the same fate! **Sensory Link!**"

In yet another pink flash, Vanessa was enveloped in pink and she yelped as her whole body stung.

Goomy looked with worry. "No! Vanessa!"

* * *

"Wendy?" Erza called out. No response.

"Natsu! Lucy!" Nic called out, but no answer.

"Hey guys, answer us!" Charizard shouted. Despite the rain, he remained calm, as he had trained in the rain a lot. He turned towards his friends. "It's no good, not at this point."

"You're right, we need to search else-!" Nic's eyes widened as he suddenly felt a pain course through his right arm. It wasn't like a needle, but a big poke sort of speak, given his heavy endurance.

Erza and Charizard saw Nic's discomfort. "What's wrong?" Erza asked, concern written all over her.

Nic's arm had a pink light that originated from the little pink heart on his wrist. Everyone looked with worry and curiosity as Nic's arm had the same Sensory Link.

"What's this?" Nic said, shocked to find a pink heart on his wrist. He looked around, seeing no enemy, and then he got a bad feeling. "…Vanessa."

* * *

Vanessa's arm continued to sting as she felt the Sensory Link with her brother. Meredy looked with a sadistic annoyance on her face. "I think it's only fitting brother and sister alike should share the same fate."

Vanessa growled as her fists clenched. Her annoyance and aggravation spiked. "You're gonna regret doing that!" Her teal aura beginning to surge once more around her brightly, making water escape her proximity. She charged after Meredy, her teal aura converging into her right hand in the shape of a gauntlet sword.

Juvia fared no better as she was just as angry, her zombie expression returning briefly. "You hurt my beloved through me?" Her power spiked and water palpitated close to her. In a flash, she zoomed after Meredy, her body boiling. "**Sierra!**"

Juvia dashed right past her, and Vanessa's gauntlet sword slashed, both now posing as Meredy was hit with aura and boiling water at the same time.

'_Impossible! Their Magic power increased just by their emotions!'_ Meredy exclaimed internally. She grew very angry. _'They turned feelings into power. Fine, I'll just have to show them my power as well!' _

Meredy swiped her arm. "**Five Spread Sensory Link!**" A pink stream from her wrist went and connected to Juvia and Vanessa as the Water Mage zoomed through the water like a jet ski and Vanessa remained behind to ease. Juvia conjured a lot of power as she let loose a battlecry. Driving her fist into Meredy's gut. Meredy screamed as she soared back and slammed into a tree – hard.

As Juvia and Vanessa saw Meredy fall down, they suddenly felt an extremely dense pain course through their gut. Their bodies shook violently before they too were sent into the air, screaming.

"Juvia! Vanessa!" Goomy squealed.

Juvia was stunned in the air. "Why did my body hurt like that?" She fell into the water on her knees as she huffed.

Vanessa fell on her side into the water, her insides feeling as they got hammered and pounded into oblivion.

Meredy huffed as well, exhausted. Vanessa, now up but completely depleted, was on a knee and panted. She never felt so strained from using so much focus in her life.

"For Ultear's sake." Meredy started. "I would give my life. Juvia, you and I are the link to Gray now; and Vanessa, I am linked to Nic. We're all connected now. Gray, Nic, Juvia, Vanessa, and myself."

Juvia and Vanessa looked up at Meredy, seeing the intensity as she looked at the pink glow on her wrist.

"With the spell I cast on us, we shall all perish…" She turned towards Vanessa. "But not before the Pularis siblings suffer first!" Meredy used Maguilty Sodom and sent the attack at Vanessa. Vanessa gasped as she was attacked so suddenly. "If Number Gray is to fall, so shall Nic and his sister beforehand!"

Vanessa screamed as she was hit by Meredy's attack, sailing back-first into the water and feeling cuts all over her body. Juvia gasped and she too screamed as she felt cuts all over her body. Meredy grunted as she inflicted pain, but remained stable and quivered a little as she knew the tide was already in her favor.

* * *

Nic felt as though knives were shot right past him; his arms and legs felt as if they were grazed and he grunted in pain, stumbling a bit backwards, his insides feeling pain as well.

"Nic!" Erza exclaimed, seeing Nic feel pain. She saw the pink bracelet around his wrist remain glowing and flashed when he grunted some more, his arms and legs and back stinging a little.

Charizard grunted as he saw the situation and found everyone in a tight spot. "This is bad. If what Nic says is true, then Vanessa is in more trouble than we'd thought."

Erza turned back towards him. "You're right. We need to head back and…"

Nic huffed a little and looked back. "No." Erza and Charizard looked back at Nic with surprise. "We gotta keep going. This is nothing."

"Nic…" Erza was cut off.

"Whatever's happening must involve Vanessa by any chance. I have to put my faith in her. Though she learned to use Magic, she can still take care of herself. I have to put faith in my little sister." He panted as he rested again a tree, the pain feeling slightly more tense than a few seconds ago.

* * *

Goomy rushed to Vanessa's side. "Vanessa! Are you okay?!"

Vanessa grunted and she slowly got up to her feet, exhausted from using her Aura Magic. She still had no idea how she shaped her aura into those couple of things, but it happened. The downside was that she was depleted completely.

Meredy looked coldly ahead at Juvia. Juvia was completely devastated at Meredy's decision. Her move was very risky.

Juvia feelings went from anger to despondent just like that. "You can't be serious."

It took a few moments for Vanessa to realize what was happening, and her anger died, fully depleted and into sorrow. "Wait…oh no."

"We all lose. No one will live; it'll be the end for us." Juvia reasoned.

Meredy looked unfazed. "And that's how far I'll go." Vanessa, Juvia, and Goomy all looked on with worry and despondent looks as Meredy was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice.

* * *

Gray was feeling a lot of things, and it was all pain. _'The heck is going on? I feel like I've been nipped and snared everywhere, and why do my feet feel cold and wet?' _Gray looked back down at his wrist, seeing the glowing pink heart. _'Is it because of this thing?'_

As Ultear started to get away, Gray leaned over his shoulder and saw her walk off. _'Damnit. I can't lose her.'_

* * *

Juvia felt some pressure on her back, as though she was leaning against something. _'What's this pressure on my back? Is this what Gray and Nic are feeling right now?'_

"I can feel their sensation as well." Meredy stated. "There's no need to fight you, for in the end we'll die." Meredy spread her arms out and two teal blades crossed each other like a pair of scissors under her chin, as though like a guillotine.

Juvia and Vanessa gasped in horror as Meredy was gonna cut her own head to finish it. They saw the resolution in her eyes, but they had to stop her.

"No, stop!" Juvia shouted.

Vanessa was shaking to the core. She couldn't be anymore uneasy. "We have to stop her." She muttered, clenching her fists. "But…" She looked over at Juvia. "If I try and attack…"

Juvia looked over at Vanessa. "Vanessa, we have to stop her! If it means a little pain, then do it!"

"But…"

"Please Vanessa!" Juvia pleaded. "She's gonna die, and then Gray, Nic, you, and I…" She trailed off, thinking of the unpredictable. Seeing no other way, Vanessa tensed up and shook.

Regrettably, Vanessa looked away as she commanded Goomy. "Forgive me, Juvia! Nic! Goomy, **Dragon Breath!**"

Goomy cringed at the resort Vanessa had chosen, but there was no other way. Though she was gonna hate herself doing so, Goomy opened her mouth and a round of loops enveloped her. "I'm sorry! Juvia! Vanessa!"

Goomy fired a weak Dragon Breath at a low angle. She made sure her Dragon-Type move wasn't powerful, but enough to throw Meredy off balance. Dragon Breath hit her left leg, making her yelp as the blue beam made a very small burst upon impact. Meredy knelt and stumbled back, avoiding the blades that just crossed. Her concentration off, the blades went away.

Through Sensory Link, Juvia and Vanessa felt a sharp sting and yelped as they too stumbled back, feeling their left legs hurt. Goomy looked tensed and shriveled slightly as she didn't like what she did, but she had to; to defend the lives of her guild and friends.

Meredy was on a knee and she looked out at Vanesa and Goomy. "You dare hurt me, knowing that your friends would suffer as well." She stood back up and her eyes narrowed. "You're a risky girl and blob; which why you have to die as well, and all of us with you!" Meredy fired her Maguilty Rays at Vanessa, and as the blades traveled, the Pularis sibling was left helpless.

'_Oh no! I don't have any Magic left!' _Vanessa mentally cursed herself as she was unable to move due to exhaustion, and she was open. She covered up as she waited for the yellow blades to hit her.

Instead of her, something else was hit. Vanessa felt a few seconds pass by and she slowly opened her eyes. Her eyes went wide in shock.

"Goomy!" Vanessa shouted, seeing the blades attack Goomy, her slimy form making the blades slick and deflect, not piercing her, but leaving her all damaged. Goomy was full of pain as she took the hit, but she remained able-bodied, but barely.

Goomy shook as she was very well exhausted. "I'm…I'm okay." Goomy assured, though not really. "I'll take a hit, no matter what it takes."

Vanessa was sad. "Goomy…"

Goomy looked back at Vanessa, seeing no cowardice in her beady black eyes. "I'll fight until I shrivel up, for the ones that I love and treat as family." She looked ahead. "I may not have been on your team for that long, but what we've seen and been through is something no ordinary Pokémon should go through, but I did it. Despite that I was scared!"

Vanessa was unable to find the words. Her little Goomy that she found scared at first back in Route 14, turned into something that's very courageous.

"This is what I want, and I want to fight with my Trainer!" Goomy shouted to the raining skies above, echoing her sentence.

Something then began to change in the atmosphere just then. Meredy, Juvia, and Vanesa all felt a strong flow in the air, all originating from Goomy. They all witnessed Goomy shining a bright, blue light, and an energy field enveloped her. Meredy and Juvia looked with surprise, and Vanessa looked with sheer astonishment.

"No way. Goomy?" Vanessa realized what was happening, as it happened to all of her Pokémon, exclude Mawile. Goomy's small, blob-like body began to sprout a long neck, stubby arms, and some sort of shell-like membrane on her back.

When the light exploded, sending a small shockwave around that made the girls cover up, they saw a snail-like creature with a dark purple underside with a lighter purple on top. She bad green eyes and larger horns. She also looked much like a snail, as she had a gooey shell-like membrane on her back.

"And this is how I intend to fight." The newly-evolve Dragon-Type stated, her gurgly voice slightly different in tone due to the change.

To say Vanessa was shocked would be an understatement. "Goomy, you evolved!" She exclaimed in shock. Vanessa got out her Pokedex that she still had on-hand and she analyzed her newly-evolved Dragon-Type.

_"Sliggoo, the Soft Tissue Pokémon. __Its four horns are a high-performance radar system. It uses them to sense sounds and smells, rather than using ears or a nose."_

"Sliggoo…amazing." Vanessa faintly muttered.

Meredy scoffed. "Hmph. Did you think that some transformation will save you?" Meredy swiped her arms and lashed forth a multitude of teal blades. All aimed at Sliggoo, but Sliggoo remained still.

"Try me! Laying a blade on Vanessa will be the last thing you do!" Sliggoo made a vast and highly pressurized cyclone around herself, a ring of brown water engulfed the area around her. She used her Muddy Water and expanded the ring, making a cyclone that swamped the incoming blades, keeping herself and Vanessa out of harm's way.

Meredy grunted. "Fine, but my priority will be to end our lives!" She made a teal blade from above, pointed straight down at herself.

Vanessa narrowed her eyes. "Alright Sliggoo, use Dragon Breath and stop it!"

Sliggoo made around of loops and her mouth shot a blue beam, the attack actually larger than when she was Goomy. The intense beam bore right through the air and towards the downward teal blade, hitting its mark and shattering the blade.

Juvia stepped ahead. "Please, Meredy, enough!"

"No! This is the only way the ease Ultear's heart!" She retorted. "You don't understand." Her voice sounded less drastic and settled, but no less ominous. "Death is a door that is always open until you enter it. It's unavoidable. Fate always ends with death."

Juvia immediately testified. "No, that's not true and you know it! If you leave Gray alone then we'll all live."

Meredy stayed still, but still looked goal-oriented.

"I was a lot like you once. I was, that is, until I joined Fairy Tail." She said with passion. "I learned that even my enemies deserve to live!"

"Juvia." Vanessa muttered.

"It doesn't matter!" Meredy denied loudly, making another sword above her head. "I'll kill Gray if it'll mean saving the one I love!"

Juvia stumbled forwards. "If it means breaking my beloved's bones to stop your insanity, then so be it!" Juvia stumbled as quickly as she could forwards as the teal blade went down on Meredy.

"Sliggoo, **Dragon Breath!**" Vanessa shouted. "Stop her!"

Sliggoo followed commands and she made a round of loops and fired a powerful blue beam ahead. Vanessa mustered up as much strength that she had and she stumbled ahead like Juvia. The two Mages and the Dragon Breath went after a screaming Meredy, whom was awaiting the end.

_The entire town, residence and all, was reduced to ashes and burned away. Buildings were tarnished and it was crackling and smoke in the air. Through it all, a lone girl, still very young with earmuffs and pink hair, was crying nonstop and weeping._

_She lost everything, and all she could do was cry to no end. She dialed down as she opened her eyes to see an unknown woman slowly walking up to her. _

_The woman was Ultear, and her expression was far from sadistic, but more mournful and apathetic._

_The little girl cried some more, and Ultear knelt down and she laid a comforting and gentle hand on top of Meredy's lead as she continued to sob._

"_There's no need to cry anymore." She soothed with a smile. "No one's gonna hurt you." Though it didn't seem to help much, all the girl could do in response was sniffle. The girl looked up to se Ultear smiling at her._

_A new face appeared right by Ultear's side, jumping in from out of the blue. He had long, blonde hair, the size and shape of Gajeel's. He had his guild mark on his right pectoral and went over his shoulder. He had canines and twisted, maniacal, red eyes. He adorned a yellow and blue skirt-like armor with a red waist ribbon._

_He looked annoyed. "What's this? Who's the little brat?" Zancrow asked, irritated to say the least._

"_She's a survivor." Ultear gently said._

_On Ultear's left appeared a huge, overweight yet muscular man that was as white as a snowman. Belt-like collars crossed under his yellow cape, and he had superhero-like garments. He also had black boots. _

_Kain had a several-stacked ice cream cone with him. "Dinner is ready. Just kill her and let's eat."_

_The little girl blinked and she began to cry some more, not wanting to die. She wanted to live. Ultear frowned at the little girl, seeing her so sad and vulnerable. Seeing her like so, it made her think of herself. Someone who was helpless, yet had potential. _

_Ultear came to a decision. "…I'm going to have her come with us."_

_Zancrow showed some objection. "You can't be serious!" He chided. "Master Hades ordered us to find Zeref's key and wipe out the city; that means her included."_

_The girl sniffled and cried to no end, standing helplessly in front of Ultear. Ultear put on an accepting face, one that was as tender-loving as a mother._

"…_she reminds me of when I was young." She said aloud, to which Zancrow and Kain looked at each other in confusion. Kain was also too stumped to see that his ice cream was melting as well._

_Ultear held the little girl close to her, and in turn, she hugged Ultear as to cleanse onto something warm and gentle. Ultear held Meredy to her heart and smiled._

"_I'll take full responsibility; besides, I think she deserves a chance."_

"_Uh, sure…" Zancrow trailed off in an uneasy silence._

_Kain was the one to break it. "So…dinner?"_

_A couple years passed, and Meredy and Ultear were on the airship. Both were on the deck, seeing the glistening ocean water below, and saw the clouds roll by._

_Ultera had a frown, which made Meredy worry. "Ur?" She asked. "Why do you always look so sad?"_

_Ultear looked down at Meredy, restraining her anger. She sighed and smiled ever so gently, the best one she could. "Please don't call me that." She asked gently. "Ur is my deceased mother, and the name Ultear died along with it."_

"_She's…dead? Meredy's innocent question hindered some sadness._

_Ultear and Meredy then shared a silence among themselves as the winds shifted through their hair, making them flow like gentle streams in the air._

_Ultear looked out ahead at the water and sky. "When you're older, I'll tell you."_

_Meredy leaned closer and she gently wrapped her arms around Ultear's left arm, making her look down at the comforting Meredy._

"_You are my mother, now and forever." Meredy quietly said._

_Ultear blinked and was actually very surprised, but inside, she couldn't be anymore happy. All she could do was smile. "Oh come now, you know I'm far too young to have such a caring child."_

_Meredy looked up and blushed, smiling at Ultear's joke._

Meredy heard a shattering sound from above, the Dragon Breath stopping her from killing her. She then felt two pairs of arms wrap tightly around her. Her eyes shot wide with sheer shock as Juvia and Vanessa were hugging her.

Meredy was left in shock. _'I don't understand…why are they crying?'_

Juvia and Vanessa retracted, with Vanessa taking her own arms away and having Juvia clench Meredy's two shoulders. They had the Sensory Link with, but for some reason, they started starting to look misty in the eyes.

"You love someone, I can see it." Juvia pictured Meredy's face as she smiled at Ultear. "And they mean the world to you." She then pictured a smiling Ultear from what Meredy remembered.

Meredy's eyes were seen shaking as she looked into Juvia's crying eyes. _'How did she know? Did I share my memories with them through the link?'_

Vanessa's misty eyes remained as they were. "Meredy, she took you in! You love her with everything you ever had!" She sniffled.

Sliggoo looked on silently as her Trainer and Juvia were being the kind souls they were always meant to be.

"You love someone. You love family. Just like I do!" Vanessa then pictured her big brother with his sunglasses on, how he was there for her through her childhood, how they made a teary reunion back in Lumiose City, and how they both went back to Kalos together, in which Meredy could actually picture, which surprised her and she blinked. "I can't bear to lose family again; it'd be the end of me! You have to live for the ones you hold dear!"

Juvia sniffled as she cried., staring into Meredy's eyes. "Please." She begged. "Please live. Live for the one you love. Like the person I love!" Meredy was too baffled and dazed to respond. "There's no choice. If you love someone, you must live."

"Love?" Meredy was stargazed as she was caught off-guard by that term.

Vanessa softly added in. "I love my family. I live for them. I live for my brother. He's my family, and I live for both of our sakes! Live for Ultear!"

Meredy's Sensory Link made her feel Juvia and Vanessa's crying plea. And her cheeks began to turn pink, her lips quivered, and most important, her eyes began to tear up. She began to have crying eyes like Vanessa and Juvia.

Meredy completely broke down, and love finally processed. She shed far more tears than she has in her life, and Vanessa and Juvia joined in to hug and comfort Meredy as the three collapsed. The three began to cry all together, all living for the ones that they held dear.

Sliggoo smiled and she too began to have tears at the corners of her eyes. She'll live because she loves Vanessa like family, and her team as well. Dysfunctional or not, she'll love them forever because they took her in.

Meredy's Sensory Link was lifted in the crying, and the three no longer felt the same pain, though they did cry on. With their legs all hurt and out of Magic, they all fell backwards.

"I'll live…for the one I love." Meredy muttered as she fell backwards in exhaustion.

Juvia smiled as she fell backwards. "My beloved…I'll live for him." She splashed backwards.

Vanessa followed, a smile graze onto her face. "Nic, we did it." Her Sliggoo went to her side and smiled comfortingly towards her.

* * *

Nic, feeling his hurt leg, was panting, and he was feeling tears down his face. Charizard and Erza were right by his side. They were very worried as the pink heart was inflicting pain.

"Nic, can you get up?" Erza asked, seeing him lean against a tree. Her lips parted when the pink heart on his wrist suddenly lifted itself and was no more.

"What the…?" Charizard was taken by surprise as well. "Did it just stop just like that?"

Nic's panting stopped and his breathing became normal. "Hm?" He felt his leg, and it felt as though nothing had happened. "What's this? The pain suddenly lifted itself as well?" Charizard and Erza stepped back as Nic got up on his own, albeit slowly, and he turned about and felt no pain. "The pain is gone. I guess that means…" He looked out past Erza, towards the forest behind him, staring deeply. A small smile crept on his face. "I think Vanessa pulled it off."

Charizard raised a brow. "Gee Nic, didn't think you'd be that emotional over your sister winning." He said in a teasing way.

"Huh?" Nic felt his face, feeling the remaining tears fall. He calmly wiped himself with his forearm and huffed. He then looked at Charizard. "I guess I am."

Charizard turned his head. "Yeah, yeah." The two shared a small pause, in which that timespan proved to be unsettling as something from afar was sensed. Charizard's serious expression arose and he turned his head towards the direction to where the Magic power came from. "You feel that?"

Nic grew uneasy quick. "Yes, it's very massive."

"Do you think it's the enemy?" Erza asked, as if she knew it.

Nic pause. "I would imagine." He then turned his sights at Erza. "In this scenario, we're left at a predicament. This Magic that I sense is very strong, and dense. We need to be aware that it's an enemy, but at the same time we're still trying to locate Wendy and the rest…what's more…"

Erza blinked as she waited for Nic to add on. "What?"

Nic remained quiet for a couple moments and looked at her. "What's more is…I've been sensing a Plate."

The redhead's eyes widened. "What's this?! You mean that a Plate is on Tenrou Island?!" Erza exclaimed in shock.

Nic looked away. "No doubt, but the Magic and nature flow here is so thick, it's cloaking the Plate, making it hard for me to pick up its location." Nic then looked at Charizard. "Charizard, I'm counting on you to deal with that Magic energy incoming."

Charizard spread his wings. "Like you have to ask." He then flapped and ascended greatly. Even without say, Charizard knew Nic would've wanted him to go check out the enemy. When he got past the canopy, he was left a little surprised at how there was a small gravitational beam that traveled a line with concentrated rain.

Even from where Charizard was at, he felt the great flow of power, but he was always one to go that extra mile, whether it'd be in Heaven or Hell; the rain was no exception. "This should be a blast." He figured, and flew off towards the strong energy.

Back with Nic and Erza, Erza looked at Nic with some distraught concern. "Are you sure it was wise to send Charizard?"

Nic looked up at the sky, rain pouring down his face as he saw his fire-breathing friend and family take off towards an unknown foe. "…No, but Charizard has the strongest will and strength of anyone I've ever come across." Nic informed. "Even in the rain, Charizard will fight, but don't get me wrong, he's part of my team, so he's very smart." His glance went back towards her. "He can take care of himself, I never doubt him."

Knowing Nic and how he doesn't doubt his Pokémon, Erza had to respect that. If she were in Nic's position, knowing how he'd had at least three years with Charizard, she wouldn't lose faith nor doubt. She remembered Charizard fighting the tainted Moltres back in Kalos, and Nic had put all of his faith in him.

The two then focused on their own goals; finding Wendy, and get that Plate. "Wendy!" Erza called out.

"Where are you?" Nic called out, but no response. "Can you hear us?" The two continued forward several paces, their heads swerving left and right, but nothing responded to them. "Where are they…" Nic began to trail off and stop in his tracks. He stayed completely still as he had a very strong feeling.

Erza noticed that Nic stopped several feet behind her and she turned around. "You sense them?"

Nic's eyes furrowed as he clenched his fists, turning away a little. "No, but…I feel something else. Something as worse as that energy Charizard went after."

"Very perceptive, Luminous." A deep voice echoed, catching Erza by surprise. "Your sensory is sharp. It proves just how aware you are."

"Show yourself!" Erza demanded.

From above, from a thick tree branch, Azuma slowly emerged, his upper body upside-down while his lower half was in the tree still. Nic and Erza both shot glares at him.

"Finally, warriors worthy of recognition." Azuma praised. "This Wendy you speak of is gone, I sought to that with my own hands."

Erza shook with fury. "We'll kill you." She threatened cold.

Nic took notice of the wound on Azuma's abdomen, which was from earlier. Nic remained silent as he tried to keep focus, but Azuma saw his glare and took a guess at what he was considering. "Luminous, it seems you've taken notice then. That girl, Sophie, she didn't go down as easily as I thought, giving me a little parting shot before I finished her off."

Nic was mentally horrified at what Azuma had done. Nic was clenching his fists so hard the bones could be heard cracking under the pressure. Nic gritted his teeth and his glare grew venomous. "You defeated Sophie? Then you'll suffer unimaginably."

"Hm." Azuma remained silent for a brief moment as the two-on-one stare down was under way, yet a small yet rumbling sound came from the distance, the direction where Charizard flew off to.

Nic and Erza looked back at said direction. "What was that?" Erza wondered.

"It would seem Master Hades has sent Bluenote in." Azuma warned. "Now that he's enter the fray, no one shall live."

"Bluenote?" Nic asked. He then thought to that incredible power he sensed. _'That must be what we sensed. It's that one person emanating such intensity.' _He eased his clenched fists and grunted. _'Charizard, be careful.'_

* * *

Bluenote had a very long ponytail, the entire thing in a green band. He had a white coat with the letters spelling out blue on his back. He had black hair that went into the long ponytail. He had sharp, triangular sideburns that pointed up to his mouth. His eyes were fixated and silver colored. He had a light purple sleeveless cloth that went down to his knees; the back being larger than the front. The cloth had a dark-colored sun adorned on it, and below the chest was a pair of dark wings, the feathers pointing in opposite, sideways directions. Below the cloth, Bluenote had a dark shirt with a high, round collar that had on a metal plate resembling a pyramid, and the sleeves reached down below his elbows. His legs had black, baggy pants with one white stripe on each leg, tall tucked into bright boots.

He looked at Natsu and friends, all suppressed by his Gravity Magic. "You impudent brats!" A dark Magic seal emerged in front of him and a powerful force of gravity shattered the ground as it sent Natsu, Lucy, Happy, Carla, and Wendy soaring, all screaming.

With Bluenote momentarily distracted, Cana was ready. "Nice job Natsu!" She shouted.

"Now Cana!" Natsu shouted as he was falling.

Cana stood back up as Bluenote turned to face her. "This amateur's gonna finish you off!" Cana held up her right arm, the forearm covered in a red tattoo with a strange Fairy Tail emblem with feather like extensions around it, making a V. "Now! Gather, O' river of light guided by fairies!"

The tattoo glowed a bright golden light, and Bluenote covered up as golden energy enveloped Cana and shot upwards into the skies above, straight through the storm clouds.

Bluenote looked up. "She's activating Fairy Glitter, but how?!" He exclaimed.

The clouds around cleared, and everyone around saw that there was moonlight, sun, and space seeing seen, but no stars, and it was vaguely due to Arceus's health. Cana still continued on.

"Shine! In order to perish the fangs of evil!" A large, golden ring enclosed above, and Cana aimed her arm at Bluenote. The mystical ring began to descend downwards and enclose on Bluenote. "**Fairy Glitter!**"

Cana let loose a battlecry as Bluenote was trapped in the ring and let a scream of pain emit. Everyone looked with sheer shock as a ton of light was gathered and enveloped Bluenote, making him emit pain as Fairy Glitter engulfed him.

Despite the attack, Bluenote was still able-bodied. He slowly clenched his fists and he pressed onto the ground. "**Fall!**" He then made the light heavier, and gravity pressurized around him, the light being unable to keep itself contained. Cana gasped and looked horrified as Fairy Glitter was being overpowered.

The light exploded, and a shockwave had sent everyone soaring, including Cana. She fell backwards with a thud, much to her disbelief.

Bluenote's face darkened as the residue light faded. "So, that's the skill to use Fairy Glitter." He guessed. "…pathetic." The skies above vanished and turned back into storm clouds, the rain pouring down once again. "It would seem ultimate power can be useless when in the hands of brats like you!"

Cana shook in horror. _'I failed, again.'_

Bluenote face emitted a shadow of heinousness as he walked up towards Cana. "I'll take Fairy Glitter now."

Cana looked as though she was about to cry. _'My last chance, and I failed.'_

"Cana!" "Run away!" No!" Natsu, Lucy, and Wendy all pleaded as a petrified Cana was shaking out of pity and failure, unable to act.

"The good news is that I don't need you alive." Bluenote slowly reached for Cana, who looked dejected and waited for her fitting end.

A sudden figure appeared in front, extending his right arm out. Bluenote was send soaring back from an immense force that shook the ground when the arm was extended and close to reaching him. Everything around everyone slowed down, and Cana was seen quivering.

A tattered-coated figure stood in front as Bluenote was in mid-air and his shocked gaze was unable to take in a high-speed projectile from straight above. The shadowy projectile crashed at a speed of 90 mph into Bluenote's abdomen, sending straight into the earth, making a crater and rock fly in all directions, the land thundering.

Everyone there looked in surprise at what just happened, with Bluenote getting attacked twice with no room to counter. The shadowy figure with a flaming tail sprung up and back, landing in a skid backwards to a halt right next to the tattered-cloaked figure, with his claws pointed at Bluenote as he slowly got up and growled.

A shadow was over Bluenote's face. "What?"

Cana began to shed tears as the figure before her was revealed to be the one person that's always on the run – Gildarts.

Right by him, by coincidence, Nic's Charizard had an offensive stance as he showed determination against Bluenote, giving little regards to Gildarts.

Natsu gaped. "I don't believe it!"

Happy jumped around. "Hooray! Gildarts is here!"

"And Charizard too." Lucy added in slight awe in her voice.

Cana had some tears drop. _'D-Dad.'_

There was a two-on-one stare down, Gildarts' intense stare, and Charizard's burning stare, against Bluenote's anxious and voracious stare.

Bluenote broke the silence. "So, this is the legendary Gildarts. And what do we have here?"

Charizard only narrowed his glare slightly, feeling the ominous and heavy pressure emanating from Bluenote, but that didn't mean nothing as he kept the burning inferno in his will and strength.

Natsu smiled. "Alright! The old man came back!"

"Get out of here." Gildarts muttered, in which Natsu looked annoyed.

"What?!"

Gildarts emanated his aura, his white energy coating him and escalating into the air. Bluenote emanating the exact same level, only his was dark. As for Charizard, the flame on his tail began to burn with such intensity that a fiery aura was around him, showing his strength. Altogether, an exceedingly dense and hot pressure surround the massive crater they were all in, making Lucy shudder with sweat from the heat.

Without looking, Gildarts referred to Charizard. "As for you, stay out of this as well."

This bit of reluctance did absolutely nothing for him as Charizard remained planted and undeterred from his emanating strength and burning flame on his tail. Still looking at Bluenote's anxiousness, Charizard responded. "Old timer, you'd best learn to not keep me down, especially when I fight in the rain." He warned in a very cold tone.

"I said go!" Gildarts then rushed in without looking at Charizard, who ignored Gildarts. As Gildarts went after Bluenote, the latter saw Gildarts advancing and extended an arm out, using his Gravity Magic to make the area under Gildarts get lifted into the air and turned upside-down with him on it, his head now facing the ground.

Bluenote was left open as he looked ahead, seeing Charizard use Flamethrower, but when it came out of his mouth, the usual volume of fire was minimized slightly due to the rain. The Flamethrower attack, however, did hit its mark, and Bluenote was engulfed in a burning burst.

The Gravity Magic was stopped, and Gildarts was seen falling while still attached. He pressed his hand on the ground and used his Crash Magic and shattered the rock he was on into nothing, not even dust remained. He landed on the ground and he rushed after Bluenote.

Bluenote, recovered from that Flamethrower that diminished, saw Gildarts incoming. He clenched his fist and threw a punch, colliding into Gildarts' own punch and an immense shockwave and violent winds blew rapidly.

Lucy and the others on the sidelines all flew back and fell onto their sides, unable to take the sudden shockwave.

Even through the shockwave, Bluenote kept his concentration on Gildarts, not realizing that Charizard was on his right. Bluenote caught Charizard in the corner of his eye, but the Fire and Flying-Type was ultimately way faster than him, and pivoted and slammed his tail into Bluenote's gut, a bone-cracking sound being heard as Bluenote gagged and Charizard followed through with his tail swing, sending Bluenote back and crashing several feet away.

Charizard and Gildarts alike were staring down at Bluenote as the dust cleared, seeing him with both hands on his knees. He looked at them both with surprise. "They both overpowered me?!"

Charizard's physical combat skills was a trait he always worked with; not just his moves that he worked with, but his knee strikes, punches, uppercuts, and tail swings, all of which he had ascertained in three years. His physical prowess was going to be tested in this fight.

"Hey you." Gildarts said coldly to Charizard, still gazing at Bluenote. "You head straight through that shockwave and dealt a nasty blow…not bad."

Charizard snickered. "Not too shabby yourself."

Reluctantly, the ones on the sidelines saw that this was way too dangerous, and Lucy turned towards Cana. "Hey Cana…"

Cana had a shadow over her gaze. "…yeah, let's go. Gildarts and Charizard can handle this."

Lucy frowned and nodded, and Natsu was forced to go with them while carrying Master Makarov. Though he wanted to stay, he was dragged away to safety, with Wendy and Happy and Carla following, leaving the three to duke it out.

'_Please, be careful Dad.' _Cana hoped, and then walked away with the others.

Gildarts and Charizard stared down Bluenote, and Gildarts spoke. "You bastard. These kids were pushing themselves to the breaking point, just to make the future a batter place, and then you came and crush it completely!" Veins popped out of his face, which signified his anger.

Charizard only growled low as his face twisted with no words. Charizard was more than ready to challenge himself to use any training that pushed him to the breaking point and take on Bluenote. His blue eyes showed ferocity as Bluenote sneered and cracked his knuckles.

"I was waiting for worthy adversaries, now come!" The Grimoire Heart Mage shouted, a vicious smirk on his face.

Gildarts and Charizard both got into fighting stances, Gildarts with his fists up, and Charizard with his claws out with spread legs, both ready to destroy Bluenote with everything they had.

* * *

**So far, I've been doing a good job in keeping the chapters under 12K and closer to 10K-11K. As I was making the chapter, Microsoft Word stopped responding, and then I had to work with the Auto-Saved document, but I managed to make it from that point on.**

**I hope you guys liked Vanessa's Magic. Luckily I got the inspiration a week ago and it was really the only decent option I coped with, and I wanted Goomy to evolve as well, so I hope you all liked this chapter. Leave a Review if it sufficed.**

**As you noticed as I did the scene changes, I cut out the "With etc…" in the beginning, just to make a little change-up. I wanted to experiment with how you guys would react to it; to see if you didn't mind or if you approve of it. If you guys don't like the change I made, comment and I'll re-edit them back in.**

**I apologize if this Arc isn't as what you intended. I've decided, just like I did with the Edolas Arc, that I'm gonna cut out the canon stuff that I left alone, just to save time and chapter space.**

**At least you know what two fights will be next chapter: Erza and Nic VS Azuma, and Gildarts and Charizard VS Bluenote. Be prepared for what I have in store for you!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoyed the scenes that I made, the combat, and the escalating intensity.**

* * *

**Next Time: The Two Infernos**


	48. The Two Infernos

Chapter 48 – The Two Infernos

**Last chapter got quite some praise in regards to Vanessa learning Aura Magic; the details will come later on. I am certain that this chapter will be just as thrill-inducing as the last, and these two fights going down are only the tip of the iceberg compared to what'll come later on.**

**Pokenerd: It's a long story short actually. I just read some manga and was left to shape it in my image. Mega Evolution for Venusaur and Mawile is a possibility later on, but the others evolving won't happen until after the story is over.**

**Hope you're gripping to your seats, because the action in this might make you jump!**

**To Recap:**

As the battle escalates, Vanessa finally snaps when Nic is threatened and she unlocks her Aura Magic. Vanessa, Juvia, and Goomy all fend off against Meredy while Nic, Erza, and Charizard escape. Through Sensory Link, Meredy was able to hurt Gray and Nic through Juvia and Vanessa, all taking damage. Goomy soon intervened and evolved into Sliggoo, helping the two save Meredy and they all live on for the ones they love, but they all fall backwards in defeat, lifting the Sensory Link. Nic is unable to thoroughly locate the Plate as an immense Magic surges and sends Charizard to fight, despite it raining. Charizard and Gildarts began their quarrel with Bluenote, as to where Nic and Erza both confront Azuma.

* * *

**Chapter 48 – The Two Infernos**

The massive Tenrou Tree above shielded them from the rain. Though the air was still damp, you could feel the pressure from within. Azuma glowered down at Nic and Erza as they clenched their fists in readiness for the formidable Mage.

Azuma had his footing atop of large, overgrown roots as they were all at the base of the Tenrou Tree. He smirked as he saw hints of frustration and determination from both Titania and Luminous. "Are you going to try and avenge your fallen comrades? At least prove to me you can do so." He challenged.

Erza glowed a bright light, requipping out of her black bikini into her Flame Empress Armor.

Nic glowed a shining light of his own, shifting from his Splash Plate into his Toxic Plate.

Azuma clenched his fists. "Looks like it's my lucky day. Two trophies from this glorious hunt: Titania and Luminous!"

Nic and Erza both jumped after Azuma, and the menace lunged after them both. With no delays or need for words, Azuma swiped his arm in midair, making roots shoot up from an angle on their right. Erza turned and slashed, cutting them with ease, but that distraction was enough for Azuma to dive down at her.

Just a split second before any contact, Nic used Poison Jab and thrust his right fingertips into Azuma's chest, driving the air out of him and shot him back into the tree root he jumped off of. Nic and Erza both landed back on the ground and Erza jumped again at Azuma while Nic found some nearby low-ground roots to climb.

Azuma was embedded into the root when he saw Erza lung and had her dark-red sword ready. Quickly prying his right arm, he reached out to her. "**Bleve!**" The space in front of Erza exploded, and she was sent flying back with a shout.

Azuma pried himself completely and flipped back onto the top of the root. He turned to his right and saw Nic leaping and climbing the connected roots like he was naturally born to do so. When he was close enough, Azuma unleashed another Bleve, which exploded close in front of Nic, forcing him to jump back and grip onto the top of a root to keep himself safe from Bleve's range.

When he stopped skidding and maintained a grip on the root, Nic opened his mouth. "**Sludge Bomb!**" He fired a purple and filthy ball of sludge at Azuma. It was easily intercepted by another Bleve, to which an explosion of flame and purple erupted in between the two.

Distracted, Azuma was hit by a slash from Erza on his left, causing him to lose balance and forced to jumped off. In midair, he turned down towards her and saw a wave of fire shoot from her sword, as well as Nic firing a purple gush that was his Venoshock. He put his arms out in front and a huge wall of roots shot out from out of the blue. The root shield took the flames and the Venoshock, giving him room to land on another root.

He grinned. "Not bad. They're coming at me at the same time…" He then heard some sizzling and saw steam from the other side of the root shield. "Hm?" He saw the middle of the roots dissolve, soon leading to one half toppling over.

Nic was seen on the other side, his mouth dripping with Acid. Erza sped in immediately when the shield dissolved apart and requipped into her Flight Armor. In mere seconds, she was in front of Azuma and dealt a horizontal slash with her sword across the chest, making him jerk back as it bled.

"**Cross Poison!**" Nic vertically flipped overhead and after Azuma, keeping him distracted for a short time for Erza to horizontally swipe her sword and made him grunt, jerking back again. He recovered fast enough to use his arms to block Nic's poisonous purple X as he crossed his arms coming down.

Azuma held his ground as he took the Cross Poison in the forearms. Nic ceased and he brought his legs up and used Azuma's forearms as a springboard and backflipped. As he backflipped, he glowed and shifted into his Icicle Plate. He skidded upon landing and was right next to Erza on a knee.

Nic got to both legs. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine, but his durability is commendable. He can still fight with that wound on his abdomen." She noted.

She rushed at him at blinding speed. "Let's keep the pressure on!"

"Right!"

Erza went right past Azuma, cutting him in his left shoulder. Nic then rushed in and dealt a physical knee strike to his abdomen, making Azuma's eyes widen as he gagged. Nic then drove a right uppercut and sent the man soaring a few feet in the air.

Azuma recovered quickly in midair and landed on both feet. His eyes widened a little and used his Magic to send roots from behind Nic after him, almost like a massive swarm.

Feeling a strong force behind, Nic turned around and saw the roots attacking. "**Blizzard!**" He shot a vicious counterattack from his mouth, which swallowed up the roots in a maelstrom of snow and cold winds, almost chipping and freezing upon impact and covering a large amount of area behind him.

Azuma, surprised, was hit in the back by Erza's left knee. In a flash, Erza slashed at him three times, all different angles. She posed behind as Azuma grunted while holding up his arms that he used to cover up with.

"It seems that this is going to be a challenge for me." He smirked. "And I like challenges this way."

* * *

Gildarts started off with a destructive punch that Bluenote blocked while smirking, but violent winds surged and the ground boomed at the force. Charizard came from above and stomped on Bluenote's head, making the Mage fall forward on the ground and made it shake.

He kept his foot pressed on the side of Bluenote's head, but Charizard's force applied didn't seem to faze him. With wide eyes, all Bluenote did was turn his glance up towards Charizard and unleashed a gravitational field that expanded outwards, making Gildarts skid back harshly as to where Charizard was seen soaring back into the air. The dragon-like Pokémon straightened out in the air and spread his wings for balance.

Charizard looked down and opened his mouth. "**Flamethrower!**" He expelled a stream of fire down at Bluenote, though still weakened by the rain. Bluenote jumped back and dodged the scorching attack and saw Gildarts run right past it and let loose a battlecry as he drove his right fist forward, to which Bluenote grabbed with his left palm.

With his right elbow, he swung and struck Gildarts left arm that he used to block. Charizard spiraled down with a tail slam, his long tail slamming downwards. Bluenote took note and with his hands tied up at the moment, he used his Gravity Magic and let loose another field of gravitational force all round, making more rubble and Gildarts skid back once again, as well as Charizard repeating from before.

"Grrr. This isn't getting us anywhere." Charizard scowled, flapping in the air.

Gildarts wiped his mouth with his hand. "I know." The two glared at the wide-glaring Bluenote. "He's one sick bastard."

Bluenote gazed at his two opponents; one in the air and one below. He took notice at how Charizard was able to fly, which intrigued him.

"I see that you can fly." Bluenote said to Charizard casually. Slowly, he extended his left arm out. "…then fall."

A force of gravity was directed over Charizard, and the Fire and Flying-Type felt a sudden increase in gravity. He yelled as he shot down from the sky and landed on his two feet with great force, making the ground under him crack.

Charizard felt Bluenote's Fall Spell make his body feel weighed down, but that didn't keep him from slowly turning towards the opponent with a grudge on his face.

Gildarts rushed after Bluenote, but Bluenote used his spare arm and reached out, making a Magic seal above Gildarts, increasing gravity for him. Gildarts felt the weight of the world slowing him down.

"Tch!" Charizard aimed at the ground and opened his mouth. At the same time, Gildarts began to emanate a white aura, signaling his Magic. "**Flamethrower!**" Charizard gushed out his attack at the ground, as to where Gildart's Magic made the ground all within the caved-in area crack. Charizard's Flamethrower ran through the cracks, including under Bluenote.

"What in the-?!" Bluenote felt the earth shatter underneath, and fire burst from it as well. The entire area had rocks flying and the ground engulfed in bursting flames. He lost his concentration as he covered up.

As flying rocks and fire spewed from below, the Magic seals over the two were lifted, and with Bluenote distracted, Gildarts pressed a foot on the ground and sprung ahead. Bluenote looked just in time to be dealt with a punch across the face, one that could've crushed a normal man's skull.

"GAH!" Bluenote gagged as he felt flaring pain as he fell backwards.

In a quick blur, Charizard roared as he lunged in, using his speed and momentum to zoom past Gildarts's right and drove his left knee into Bluenote's abdomen, the immense force knocked the air out of Bluenote as he shot back and crashed loudly into the leveled ground several feet back.

Gildarts and Charizard both glared viciously as dust was clearing out from Bluenote's crash into the earth. The Mage's figure was seen rising as the dust began to settle.

Bluenote glowered at Charizard and Gildarts, his dark Magic encasing his body. He didn't seem at all discouraged; in fact, his face showed the exact opposite. His eyes were wide and he had on a very devious smirk.

"You two..." He started, still maintaining his smirk. He then made a mad dash ahead, cracking the ground from where he stood before his lunge. "I have been waiting for a long time for worthy adversaries such as you!"

Charizard bared his claws and growled. Gildarts began his charge towards Bluenote, their foreheads colliding with the force that made the ground shatter beneath them.

Gildarts maintained his ground as veins popped out of his face, his eyes shooting into Bluenote's as their foreheads smashed and tried to suppress the other. "You…bastard…" Gildarts growled.

As Bluenote's face was completely dark, his smirk widened. He suddenly felt a great force hit his gut and he gagged, stuttering back a few paces. His eyes caught Charizard's tail being the culprit, and was rendered helpless as Charizard pressed his left arm on the ground and spun, swirling his tail once again and smacking Bluenote's right ribs, sending the evil Mage soaring to his left and skidding to a halt.

He took damage, but showed no visible signs of fatigue as he glowered darkly as Charizard's running speed went up to him. Charizard sped ahead like a missile, both claws flashed light green with Dragon Claw. Bluenote shot his left arm out and made a Magic seal, which shot a gravitational shockwave at him, shaking the ground.

The massive gravity wave struck Charizard, but the lizard was a glutton for punishment. He had his feet dug into the earth as he had Dragon Claw out, keeping him from getting directly hit. The Dragon Claw cut straight through the middle, but he couldn't advance.

Despite the rain, Charizard didn't back down. "**Heat Wave!**" Charizard brought his wings back and then forward, unleashing a very hot wind that was like a blazing tempest that countered the gravity force Bluenote used. The Heat Wave and gravity blast Bluenote was using was at a complete stalemate, both attacks on par despite the rain weakening Charizard.

Bluenote looked shocked. "But how?!"

"ALL THE WAY!" Charizard roared. He released even hotter flaming winds and expanded slightly. His fiery will kept him gushing out the flames until the gravity blast and Heat Wave finally gave in, releasing a hot shockwave that made Bluenote and Charizard jump away as the area before them was swallowed in the burning shockwave.

Charizard grunted while Bluenote huffed as the area before them was reduced to leveled, sizzling rubble from the heat.

Bluenote looked startled. "Such fire power." He muttered in surprised. "Nobody's ever stopped my Gravity Magic with intense flames."

Charizard's tail burned even hotter as he got into a fighting stance with his claws out, Gildarts joining him. "The rain is against me, but I never stop exhausting my fire!" He shouted. "There's more flames to come!" He and Gildarts then lunged at Bluenote once again, the two men punching while Charizard used Dragon Claw, the two-on-one attack making the sizzling ground shatter as the three gave anxious and powerful vibes.

* * *

"**Folium Sica!**" Azuma swiped his arm in a long and fast arc, sending a funnel of leaves at Nic and Erza. While Erza, now adorned in her Heaven's Wheel Armor, slashed in rapid and consecutive fashion, Nic exhaled Icy Wind, making the funnel of leaves heading their way slow and disperse with ease.

Nic ran ahead at his high speed, glowing as he ran along the root, shifting into his Insect Plate Form. He took a big leap and became airborne. Looking down at Azuma, Nic called out his attack.

"**Silver Wind!**" Nic flapped his dragonfly-like wings and released a silver-powdered wind that swallowed up Azuma. Azuma covered up as he took the attack, but remained unmoved.

As he took Silver Wind, he moved his left arm in a swipe, which manipulated the tree roots and they shot at Nic from below, grabbing his leg and stopping his attack. The roots lashed Nic and sent him spinning away, quickly regaining balance. He maneuvered and dodged several more roots that went shooting for him in all directions.

Running out of room to maneuver due to the roots, Erza slashed her two swords in hand, cutting right through the roots taking up space. The two were airborne and right next to the other, glaring at Azuma.

"Not bad." Azuma admitted. "**Tree Fist!**" Azuma made a punching motion. The wood from the tree root he stood on then protruded a massive fist that stretched up to attack them both.

Erza readied a counteroffensive by summoning several swords around her.

"**Blumenblatt!**" Erza slashed her two swords in hand, sending the many other swords at the incoming fist. The swords pierced the incoming attack, but it was so thick that it didn't stop; the swords didn't even slow it down.

Erza gasped as the attack was coming at them both.

Nic abruptly shoved her out of the way and took the full blunt. He felt not just the crushing force of the wood and roots, but the pommel of every sword wedged in it. Nic had to suppress a gag as he felt a pommel drive into his abdomen. He shot back and crashed back-first into a root high above, yelping upon impact.

Erza turned in shock. "Nic!"

Azuma scoffed. "Hmph."

Erza looked back and shot daggers at Azuma. She shook angrily. "Damn you!" She swiped her swords and glowed, revealing her to have requipped into her Purgatory Armor.

Azuma narrowed his eyes with a scoff. He slammed his hand down on the ground. "**Linear Explosions!**"

A line of explosions traveled across the root towards Erza. With one mighty swing of her mace, she pounded the root under her, sending a shattering shockwave all around, which not only stopped Azuma's attack, but caused the root to completely shatter into fragments. Erza and Azuma jumped off as the root was destroyed and landed on the one right next to them, directly below a still-embedded Nic.

Nic's eyes opened as he glanced down below, seeing Erza lung and swing horizontally, though Azuma jumped and dodged. _'I gotta do something.' _Nic thought, slowly prying himself from the root. He dislodged completely and flapped his wings rapidly and looked down at the fight some more, seeing Erza jump back from Azuma's Bleve that she tried to evade.

'_Knowing guys like him, he's probably testing us. He's not going to hold back at this rate, especially with that wound, meaning he'll be putting in extra effort.'_

Nic was well aware of what kind of guy Azuma was; a warrior of sheer will and honor; giving his all in battle and not praising those who don't give effort. He had to think of some way to incapacitate Azuma.

Soon enough, he got an idea.

Erza let loose a battlecry as she brought down her mace, to which Azuma blocked by using his Magic to make thick roots zoom in from his right. But that didn't stop Erza as she used her mace and sliced through in diagonal fashion.

Seeing how she continued to advance, Azuma reached outwards. "**Bleve!**"

Erza jumped to attack, but she saw a great wall of explosions arise before her. She consequentially lunged at it, only to be blown away and skid back harshly on her back. She found herself several feet back from Azuma when the smoke cleared.

Seeing Erza sitting back up, Azuma found this to be the best opportunity. "Now…"

Azuma was stopped in midsentence as a red powder was released from above. He and Erza both looked up to find that the red powder was coming from Nic, whom was engulfing Azuma in his Rage Powder made from his wings flapping.

Azuma suddenly felt his nerves assert aggression and his eyes became bloodshot. As he took in Rage Powder, his teeth grit and he glared angrily at Nic above. Nic's calm expression made Azuma angry, but he didn't know why. Everything about Nic mad him angry and veins popped out of his head.

Azuma extended an arm up, shooting roots after Nic. Nic maneuvered and dodged with ease. Nic looked back down at Azuma and he let loose a pepper-like powder from his wings that engulfed Azuma.

"That should just about do it." Nic muttered quietly. He turned towards Erza. "Erza. Attack him while you still can! Rage Powder won't last long, so hit him while you still can!"

Though Erza hadn't the foggiest idea as to what Nic did, she understood that this was her chance while Rage Powder was in effect. She crouched while Azuma continued to look up at Nic and lunged ahead with excessive force. With a battlecry, she swung her mace across, driving the heavy weapon into the man's abdominal region.

Azuma's red eyes shot wide as the attack embedded into his abdomen, where the bruise was already inflicting heavy pain. He gagged a little blood as Erza's swing shot him like a rocket and crashed into a huge root, shaking it a little.

Nic descended right next to Erza, the two looking at the other for a few moments before glancing back at the clearing dust. They saw Azuma groan as he slowly stood up on the root, looking scratched up in a few places. The pepper-like substance was still peppered all over his body.

He glared at the two, his red eyes no more. "I see you both have teamwork on your side. I can't seem to recall such efforts overpowering me so easily. I don't see how this is fair at the level of strength I'm using." Azuma said with deep authority.

Erza and Nic both just stared as Azuma then clasped his palms together and spread them out. Almost immediately, the area began to shake. The two felt a sudden Magic spike that came from Azuma; not only was his power gonna increase, but this next attack could cause a lot of damage.

Nic didn't smirk, but knew that Azuma fell for the trap.

Azuma stood affirm as Nic and Erza didn't move. "**Tower Burst**-!" The second he began to engulf himself in the explosion that was supposed to follow, the pepper-like substance all over his body sparked, and he was swallowed in a fireworks-like explosion that swallowed up a small area. The dense explosion boomed, not only echoing Azuma's screams of pain, but the root he was on was destroyed.

Erza and Nic watched as the explosion subsided and Azuma was seen falling on his back down below on another root, looking even more scratched up as his armor on his upper body was no more.

Erza turned towards Nic. "What happened?" She asked in surprise.

Nic turned towards her, but kept his mental focus on Azuma down below. "I used Powder to absorb the explosion he was about to set off. I used Rage Powder to get his attention and to give you a chance to attack."

As he explained, Azuma winced as he slowly arose.

"While he was focused on me, I recalled him using explosions, so I used Powder so he would take the full blunt."

Erza couldn't help but he impressed by Nic's crafty maneuver. Not only did he remember that Azuma could control nature in a way, but he also could explode the air around them. He turned Azuma's own attack against him.

"Now! Let's make this next shot count!" Nic lunged down at Azuma, with Erza following with her mace. The two went sailing after Azuma as he looked up and saw them incoming. He grunted as they were seen coming from an upward angle at a high speed.

He extended his arm out. "**Burst Claw!**" Green blades went gliding from Azuma and headed right for them.

Nic extended his arms out ahead, making little green orbs that turned into Combee-shaped creatures that shot multicolored energy beams from their eyes, via Attack Order. The multitude if energy blasts intercepted the incoming blades, making explosions in between the three.

"Go, Erza!" Nic shouted.

Erza dove through the explosion, creating a hole in it. She let loose a battlecry as she dove at Azuma and swung down. The Grimoire Heart Mage jumped at the last second, evading the swing that smashed the root that he was on, sending strong winds all about.

While Azuma was in midair, he felt a strong force from above. He looked up and saw that the explosion cleared out, revealing Nic dive-bombing on him in a rapid spiral.

As he spun, Nic's hands were put together as a spinning light blue cross with magenta outlining was made. "**X-Scissor!**"

Nic let loose a screech as he drove his spinning self into an airborne Azuma, driving his attack into his abdomen. Azuma screamed as the attack was like a drill that got his entire abdominal region. There was a small light blue flash in between him and Nic before the force of the spinning X-Scissor shot him back several yards into a tree connected to the Tenrou Tree.

Azuma crashed, a loud sound echoed as Nic landed on the ground. He looked at Erza to find her giving a soft smile, to which actually made him feel warm.

Her smile always brought him to feel a warm and comfy feeling; even in not so good times, looking at her smile and eyes made him feel better. Fighting by her side was really enjoyable and nerve-racking at the same time.

"That was well played Nic." Erza complimented.

"Thanks Erza." He then looked forward, seeing Azuma affirm with clenched fists. He frowned. "But we're not done yet."

Azuma stared at the two before him. He watched as Nic glowed, switching from his Insect Plate into himself again. His demeanor was left unchanged as he felt the power emanating from both, yet they were so different, primarily Nic's.

"Well now." Azuma started. "It seems that I've clearly underestimated my chances." Through it all, his frown lightened slightly.

"What's this realization all about?" Erza asked.

"You were outmatched from the very beginning." Nic informed. "Two-on-one is the most basic form of disadvantage, especially when said two are equal on offense and defense."

"It's not so much of a realization as it is a fact." Azuma said. "I see two warriors of the same valor is rather unfair. I don't see honor in such a feature." He paused but for a brief moment. "I've heard many tales of your individual battles, far and wide. Titania, her warrior's prowess ever so might; and Luminous, the same man who took down Jellal and Jose, not to mention quite a few demons."

Nic growled for a few seconds, his core telling him something bad is arising.

"We three share the concept that facing strong warriors makes us stronger, for fighting is what drives us."

Nic looked down and shook his head. Erza lowered her head a little, showing her disapproval as well.

"You got it all wrong." Erza stated. "All Nic and I ever wanted was to find the strength to protect our love ones and family."

Nic added to that. "For as long as we both stand, we'll put everything on the line if it means keeping the other alive."

Though Nic's original intention was a meaning to everyone, it was more of himself and Erza. The two fought side-by-side before, and with all the experience they've accumulated, seeing the other suffer an agonizing pain would be heart-stomping.

Erza softly smiled at Nic, his words touching her heart as they were true.

Azuma scoffed at his foolishness. "You're both interesting, I'll vouch for that much. But this fight isn't exactly how a real warrior sees it."

"And just are you proposing?" Nic asked. Just as he finished asking, his and Erza's eyes widened a little as the land began to shake. It wasn't feeling like an earthquake, they weren't close to an epicenter. It must have been…

Azuma stayed still as he glowered at the two. "I wasn't pushed this far so easily. Looks like a new stage has been entered." The roots from around the area had begun to slowly move in different directions. The earth shook nonstop as Nic and Erza tried to keep balance. The ground far below began to crack as roots were running through like water beneath the surface.

Erza and Nic looked around, maximum caution at hand. "What's happening?" Erza asked hastily.

"Great Tree Arc is my Magic. I can not only control the land, but…" He reached both arms out. From both sides, Nic and Erza saw the bog roots and little roots all shine glints before getting destroyed in explosions. "I can channel the explosions of the earth, and manipulate it however I see fit."

Nic's mouth opened as he saw Azuma's very feet become one with the tree root they were standing on. More explosions were erupting and roots were scattering below. They both continued to look forward as Azuma's entire body began to not only channel extraordinary Magic, but his veins pulsated all over his body, the energy swelling within.

"I can channel and use the energy of this very island to however I see fit! This is why I was to arrive first!"

"What's going on! Tell us!" Nic demanded as more eruptions and tree roots corrupted. The two were starting to lose their balance as they felt lopsided. Nic and Erza maintained their hold as Azuma began to disappear into the root, merging completely.

* * *

Natsu and his group screamed as they saw the humungous tree explode at its roots, and they saw the entire tree tilting as rain poured down on them.

"AHHHH! WHAT THE HECK IS HAPPENING?!" Natsu shouted.

Wendy looked back. "The Tenrou Tree! It's beginning to fall!"

Carla looked back. "Don't look back child! Keep running!"

"We gotta keep back to base camp now-!" Natsu suddenly felt his entire body give in. He came to a sudden halt and drop to his knees as he had an unconscious Master Makarov on his back.

"W-What the…" He choked out.

Lucy fell down as her energy was depleted just like that. "Guys, I don't have the strength."

Happy fell to the ground, his power drained. "What's going on?"

* * *

The three looked in the same direction to see the giant tree in the distance falling down, shocking them all. Gildarts suddenly felt himself getting fatigued. His breathing became fast as he became exhausted.

He panted as he was about to get to a knee. "Damnit. What the heck?" He panted some more. "It's like…my energy just up and went."

Charizard turned towards him. "Say what? You gotta be kidding me, old-timer!" He exclaimed in shock. "You're really out of power?" He looked back up at the falling tree, where Bluenote looked.

The ground still shook a little. "My god, what is Azuma doing? Master Hades, just what did you ask him to do?"

* * *

On his ship, Hades looked through his windows, feeling the small quake in the land as the glorious view of the Tenrou Tree fell before him. The entire tree falling put a smirk of triumph on his face.

"I was surprised at first that Bluenote was suppressed by someone other than Makarov. What's startling even more was that Gildarts was accompanied by one of Nic Pularis's pets. I never imagine Bluenote having trouble so easily."

He still kept his smirk on his face as he saw the tree fall further down. "But the Magic Power of Fairy Tail is now ours." His eyes narrowed. "And so, Fairy Tail's survival finally falls to zero."

* * *

They felt everything tilting, and Nic was only thrown off balance, making him fall to a knee. "Damnit! What in the world…?"

He noticed how Erza was using her mace as support, but that didn't do much of anything as her knees were shaking. It was as if all of her strength was being sucked away. Erza was shaking as she struggled to keep support.

"What's this…my Magic energy, it's…" Erza was cut off when she glowed and was seen in her white blouse and blue skirt, falling to her knees.

Nic rushed over to her side. "Erza!" He crouched down once beside her, overlooking the exhausted Mage. "Are you alright? Speak to me!"

Erza struggled as she had little strength. Nic balled his fists tighter than ever. He growled as he sprung back up to his feet, daring for Azuma to show his face.

"Master Hades has a vast amount of knowledge of Tenrou Island and its properties." Azuma's voice echoed from Nic's left. He turned his head and widened his eyes a little when he saw the man's face merged with a nearby tree.

Azuma's face glowered down at Nic as he was still confused as to what was happening as everything was still shaking.

"Tenrou Tree itself is centered on the island. The tree has the power to protect those wearing the guild's emblem from harm and casualty. In addition, it amplifies their Magic power."

Nic looked down in pondering. "That would explain why Master Makarov had the trials here." A thought then hit him and his eyes shot wide with realization. "Wait! You just deracinated the Tenrou Tree!"

"Very wise of you, Nic. Not only has every spell the Fairy Tail Mages been nullified…" He looked away, slight smug plastered. "Your Magic Power will rapidly drain from your bodies, leaving you defenseless."

He looked away from Azuma and down towards a distressed Erza, who was unable to act. Her helpless figure made Nic even angrier as Azuma was doing this to her. His eyes shrunk and his pupils sharpened, showing his rage as he whipped his head back at the enemy in the tree.

"You…" Nic snarled. "You sick filth. You infuriated me!"

The tree's foliage atop fell into the ocean. Nic and Erza were on that tree at its base; apparently they fell over with the tree, now seeing the island some ways away.

Azuma's face and neck began to protruded. "While this tree shall die, all of Fairy Tail shall suffer the same fate…" His upper body began to protrude. "However…"

His body detached and he set his feet on a root high above. "For some reason, you're still standing. All of the Magic is supposed to be drained, yet yours is still intact."

Nic gasped, realizing that he's not affected because he doesn't have Magic, but the Plates.

"It would seem fate had decided to give me a different path, though it'll lead to the same location." Azuma crossed his arms. "I originally wanted to have Titania's Magic reserved, but seeing as how you're unaffected, I shall have you to fight."

Nic's eyes kept their daring gaze with anger infused. He kept still as Azuma stared down as there was a huge jungle of roots around them.

"Azuma of the 7 Kin, am I correct? I take it you're under orders from Master Hades?"

"Yes, Nic Pularis, this is my mission." He responded. "Felling the tree would be the easiest way to send you all to Hell…but I'm sure you know that you're now the only one who can stop me."

Nic kept a cool head, but his discomfort radiated. "I'm aware. And seeing as how you said earlier about a fair fight, it seems that I have no choice in the matter."

"So, I finally get my fair fight? One fierce warrior against another? No interference?"

Nic and Azuma both paused and looked at each other, their faces giving the answer the other sought.

Nic glanced down at Erza, seeing the struggle, but one soft, brown eye looking up at him. That eye was like a window to her heart, telling him to be careful.

He turned towards Azuma. "If a fair fight is what you desire, then I would expect all of my friends saved." Nic bargained.

Azuma made no hesitation. "You have my word, but if you fall before I do, Titania shall be next."

A cold sting ran through Nic as Erza was next in line. There was no way he was going to let that happen, but he couldn't resent; only comply.

"…very well, but know this…" Nic's eyes narrowed as the atmosphere became dense. "…I won't fall."

* * *

Gildarts was lying on his stomach, fists clenched as he couldn't find the strength to move. He mentally cursed himself as he was completely out of power.

Charizard grunted as he looked back at Gildarts. His claws clenched. _'Damnit. He's down.' _He turned and looked in the distance. _'Is the tree involved? Did that suck up powerhouse's strength?'_

Bluenote looked away from the fallen tree and back at Gildarts, a smirk crossing his face. "So, it seems the Tenrou Tree was uprooted." He heard Gildarts grunt. "Good…" He dashed off right into Gildarts, a sadistic smirk wide and uninviting. "The invincible Gildarts reduced to nothing! This'll be too easy!"

"Damnit." Gildarts used his forearms to lift himself and saw Bluenote come ever so closer.

A knee strike into Bluenote's gut made him stop advancing, making him gag at the sudden attack from out of the blue.

As time seemed to have slowed down, his eyes slowly looked over to see that Charizard dealt the blow. His eyes widened at the recollection. _'I forgot about him!'_

Charizard was still in midair when he then spun clockwise, swinging his tail into Bluenote and making him yelp as he smashed into some piled rubble close by, making dust fly.

Charizard kept a calm yet serious face as he stared at the rubble that Bluenote was buried under. "You don't attack a man when he's down. This isn't amateur hour." He scolded.

He didn't get a verbal response. The rubble crumbled as it blasted in all directions, leaving Bluenote standing. The rain continued to fall, yet the pressure emanating was intense.

Bluenote's cold stare didn't faze Charizard as he stood in front of Gildarts, prepped for battle.

"I see. It would appear that you're not affected by the Tenrou Tree." Bluenote remarked. "I was planning to finish off Gildarts there and then…" He smirked. "But you've held up this long. Let me see what else you can do against me."

Charizard looked back and saw a struggling Gildarts, a small pause before he turned back towards Bluenote, his neck lowered slightly. "It looks like I'm flying solo." He remarked faintly.

Bluenote clenched his fists, anxious eyes darting at Charizard. "You cannot defeat me, puny lizard!" He rushed ahead, a heavy lung leaving the ground from where he stood cracked. "Fairy Tail is done for, so you might as well join your little friend while you still can!"

Charizard's eyes narrowed and he opened his mouth to let out a roar. Despite his leg size, his land speed was remarkable, catered by Nic. He rushed after Bluenote, right claw and right fist colliding, sending a shockwave that rumbled the earth beneath.

Charizard grunted as Bluenote's pure strength was impressive, but he had more usage of his combat skills. With their fists still connected, Charizard opened his and grabbed Bluenote's fist and reeled him in. He let go and used the same arm for a punch straight across Bluenote's face, having Bluenote jerk back a few feet.

"Impudent fool!" Bluenote extended his arms out and a Magic seal appeared. His Gravity Magic directed a strong shockwave towards Charizard, making the ground shatter as it flew towards him.

Charizard spread his wings and took flight, lunging into the altitude as the shockwave flew right under him. Stopping at a certain point and looking at Bluenote, the Fire and Flying-Type darted in at an angle. "**Fly!**" He flew in at a sharp angle towards Bluenote at high speed.

Bluenote barely had time to register the incoming adversary. He reached both arms out as Charizard slammed into him completely, a small shockwave rippling and the ground shook abruptly. Bluenote grunted as Charizard was much tougher than he had originated, given he was more focused on Gildarts.

Charizard landed on the ground in front and darted his right elbow ahead into Bluenote, but he shifted right and turned his body to throw a left hook. Charizard swung his neck back to evade the hook and spun in the same spot, hitting Bluenote with the back of his left wing and making him lose balance and fall forward. Using this to his advantage, Charizard quickly crouched and drove a left uppercut into Bluenote's gut and not even a split later he threw a right jab, sending Bluenote back stumbling to a halt.

Bluenote wiped his mouth and looked ahead, but was given no time to counter when Charizard drove his left knee right into his face, the cracking sound echoing through the area and making nearby birds fly away.

"Gaaah!" Bluenote fell on his back with a thud as Charizard backed away for some distance. Bluenote grunted as he sat back up and slowly got to his feet. His expression looked anything up amused.

"You…how could you read my attacks so easily?!" He demanded.

Charizard's tail shifted from his right to his left, still burning to no end. "It's too predictable. Your combat style is just like powerhouse back there; you both are straight forward with punches and headbutts, as to where I'm more nimble."

Bluenote looked with heavy dismay to see that hand-to-hand combat won't work considering Charizard was much faster and had even strength. Still, Bluenote still had his Magic, which lightened his mood.

"Fine, then try this!" He reached out at Charizard. "**Fall!**"

Charizard saw a huge Magic seal above him, and when he looked up, he was hit with an intense gravitational force that rendered him immobile. People like Natsu and others would've fallen completely, but Charizard remained on his two feet and grunted as he felt like he was being hit by a heavy waterfall.

Gildarts looked on as Charizard was doing all the fighting, seeing the tide beginning to turn. "D-Damnit." He cursed. "He should've gone away like the rest."

Though struggling, Charizard remained affirm. "**Flamethrower!**" He let loose his melting attack that blasted through the damp air, striking Bluenote and swallowing him in a fiery burst that shook the ground. This act caused Fall to be lifted, and Charizard felt far less pressure.

The fire and smoke was swiped away by Bluenote, his white coat was tattered and charred in a few places. He looked angry, as seen by the veins on his face.

He flung off his coat. "Even with heavy pressure, you can still deal damage with fire." He scoffed. "You really are a glutton for punishment."

* * *

Azuma looked down as Nic's fists tightened. Nic saw him extend an arm out and shoot a root at him from the one he stood on. Nic jumped as the root pierced the spot he was on. He landed on the root and darted right up, much like a bridge.

"**Chain Burst!**" Azuma snapped his fingers and the root began to create explosions, starting from the base. Before they could reach and touch Nic, he jumped above and put his two hands together, spreading them apart to reveal a white needle, via Cut.

Nic drove the needle into the root Azuma was on to keep himself from falling as he didn't make it on. With Cut's needle on the side, he put both hands on it and flipped twice; the first to gain momentum and the second to get into the air, doing another flip and planting his feet on the root, finally face-to-face with Azuma.

"**Swords Dance!**" Nic spread his legs apart and closed his eyes. Blue illusionary swords circled around him for a few moments and then crossed above his head. When they vanished, Nic felt a great surge of strength. "**Slash!**" His fingers glowed white and became claws, elongating and he went after Azuma.

Azuma brought his right arm across and swiped. "**Ramus Sica!**" A flurry of sharp branch blades went darting ahead after Nic. To Azuma's surprise, Nic slashed excessively and still advanced, sustaining little damage as he darted through the sliced blades. Nic closed the gap between in a matter of moments and swiped his right arm diagonally upwards, slashing Azuma's chest and a loud grunt escaped.

Azuma landed a few feet back and slammed his right hand against the ground. Nic felt a quick rumble and looked down. His eyes caught a tree-like fist shooting up in an uppercut. He backflipped to dodge and skid back a few feet. Once regaining footing, he dashed towards Azuma. Azuma, in return, let loose a battlecry as he punched forward. Nic shifted right and drove a left hook into his face. Azuma stepped back but kept his ground.

He growled as he looked back at Nic, only to receive a right uppercut to the chin, which left him open for Nic to put his fists together and drive his left elbow into Azuma's wounded abdomen, making Azuma gag out some blood as he fell on his back and skid to a stop.

Nic stood still as Azuma slowly got back up. When he stood, he couldn't help but be impressed. "Not bad, Luminous. Your close-range combat is formidable. You're just the kind of warrior I was hoping to fight."

Nic paid no heed, but persisted. The two engaged in more hand-to-hand combat, trading blows, every punch and arm blocked and intercepted by the other. This held up for a good thirty seconds; after that, Nic started to get a few good shots of his own in as Azuma started to wear down. Nic soon drove a right hook and got Azuma across the face.

Azuma, seeing as how his wounds were catching up to him, jumped away.

"**Bleve!**" Azuma made the area in between the two explode, forcing Nic to jump away.

As the explosion cleared, Nic saw Ramus Sica being launched. He countered by using Cut as an offense. He slashed and clashed against as many as possible until the attack stopped. His hands glowed blue, via Crush Claw, and darted in to strike down Azuma.

The Grimoire Heart Mage saw Nic advancing and extended his arm out, using Bleve to cause a great explosion; this time, instead of just in front, it was all around Nic, startling him.

The glints then became explosions, bursting in every direction possible.

"Nic!" Erza shouted as she was still down.

Azuma looked on as the explosions settled. To his surprise, Nic was still standing, clad in his Flame Plate Form.

He breathed rather heavily as he was still covered in a few scratches. _'That was too close. Luckily I shifted into the Flame Plate to absorb the explosion so I didn't get cindered.' _

"Most intriguing." Azuma stated. "No one is for sure if you do a Requip of sorts, but your skills and experience are just what I've been looking to test. I heard many tales of your valor, and I've been waiting for this for quite some time."

Nic didn't show any interest. "Your ambitions are foolhardy."

"Your combat skills are swift and very excessive, but there's something that troubles me still."

"Oh really, and what's that?" Nic asked.

Azuma gave a stern stare. "I've heard once that your anger is above any suppressor. Your being swells with such distaste that your prowess is amplified. I want to see it."

Nic swallowed a bit as he felt very uncomfortable. If he went crazy, he could seriously hurt himself…and besides, he doesn't want to take his chances. Last time didn't turn out pretty for him.

"I want to see your full power. Show me just what strength you used to stop the Oracion Seis and Nirvana!" Azuma extended his left arm out and his Folium Sica began to funnel after Nic.

Nic was looking at the funnel ahead, but when Azuma mentioned Nirvana, the first thing came to him was Jellal. The thoughts came flooding back, and he couldn't help but shake when he remembered how he hopelessly let Jellal be arrested, which provoked a surge.

The failure that he just thought of in a few seconds made him uneasy and hostile, and he opened his mouth as he gushed out a torrent of spinning fire that swallowed up the entire funnel. Fire Spin easily won out due to his emotions.

When the Fire Spin stopped, Nic inhaled.

'_Interesting.' _Azuma thought. _'A reaction to his past.'_

"**Inferno!**" Nic screamed out a torrent of blue flames that were so hot that the space between them cindered, including the root in between.

"**Tower Burst!**" Azuma spread his arms out and a huge rumble shook the earth as a massive tower of explosions expanded outwards, colliding with the Inferno. Everything felt not just hot, but everything and everyone went blind for a few moments.

Erza screamed as she felt the strong force from afar, and she fell down onto a root below, still unable to move.

At the same altitude, everything cleared out. Roots were reduced to charred, shriveled pieces, and Nic and Azuma stood atop of two roots right next to the other, both ten feet away from the other.

"It would seem we're even." Azuma stated.

"I wouldn't be too sure." Nic jumped after Azuma and missed when he jerked out of the way. Using the momentum, he got to a handstand and pivoted. His feet lit ablaze and he used a spinning handstand Blaze Kick and struck Azuma's face, making him feel his cheek sizzling.

Despite the Blaze Kick, Azuma was still standing where he was. Nic flipped back upright and brought his right arm back, coating it in Fire Punch. He drove it forward in a fast motion, but Azuma was able to catch it by grabbing Nic's wrist just before contact.

"What's this?!" Nic found himself open as Azuma had his wrist clutched. He saw Azuma smirking as the land began to rumble some more.

"**Tower Burst!**" Nic had no chance to retreat as Azuma began Tower Burst, swallowing him up.

Erza's eyes widened in horror. "No! Nic!"

Nic grunted heavily as he found himself swallowed up, but fortunately he wasn't being incinerated or burst into flames. He felt himself spinning as he felt some sort of pressure, meaning he was falling. He saw the roots below and fell onto his side with scratches all over the body, apparently sizzling at the same time too.

Azuma stood twenty feet away from a groaning Nic. He watched him wince as he slowly got up. "Tell me, are you even trying?" He mocked.

Nic found his feet under himself and he got back up, feeling a little dizzy from that blow. If this keeps up, the outcome could very well go either way.

* * *

Bluenote extended his arm out. "Let me see you fly!"

Charizard felt an uprising gravitational force that shot him up like a rocket, unable to act against it. Though he felt like hammers were pounding under him, his brain got to work, figuring he could use the gravity to his advantage.

He managed to spread his wings and flap, ascending greater than ever, with the gravity being a tailwind.

Seeing this, Bluenote shot his hand down to bring him back down. Charizard reached a certain point before feeling no gravity, and then felt gravity shooting him down. As he fell, he caught site of Bluenote below.

"**Fly!**" Using the gravity to his advantage again, he shot at astonishing speeds downwards right onto Bluenote.

"What's this?! He's using my Magic to his advantage?!" Bluenote was baffled as Charizard shot like a meteor and crashed his entire body down onto his face, feet pressed against the entire upper body as he came down with the force that shattered the ground, making large stones and ground jump.

After the dust and stones dropped back down, Charizard was seen growling with his mouth closed as he stood over Bluenote, a foot pressed against his chest. Bluenote felt such pressure on his chest and from Fly and he coughed, grunting soon after as he found himself immobile.

Charizard pointed his right claw at him. "Do you concede? I expected someone of powerhouse's level to have more stamina." He stated.

Offended, Bluenote's eyes widened and Charizard felt the entire land all around shake. His nerves began to feel immense pressure building up and his teeth showed. He looked back down and saw the crazed look in Bluenote's eyes.

Bluenote's eyes closed and reopened, glowing red. That instant, an omnidirectional gravity wave exploded all around. The shockwave shattered the ground completely, rocks and all. Charizard was seen flying and yelping as he was hit head on.

Gildarts wasn't directly hit, but the shockwave was strong enough to make him fly back and hit his back on a rock behind him.

Bluenote, standing up, saw Charizard crash into the ground, rocks falling all around him. With a smirk, he watched Charizard groan as he opened his eyes, scratches all over his body.

"Uuugh. I'm gonna feel that in the morning." Charizard groaned. He slowly got up and felt a few bones crack. "Correction; I'm gonna feel that all day tomorrow."

Bluenote chuckled lowly first, but the chuckle blossomed into full-blown laughter, to which sounded maniacal. After twenty seconds, he shot a frightening glance at Charizard.

His eyes weren't red, but the pressure emanating was still massive. "What nonsense! Your pathetic guild will be reduced to dust before the sun comes up! You don't have a prayer!" He extended his arm out, and a Magic seal appeared on either side.

Charizard turned his head both left and right to find the Magic seals present and was hit with gravity from both ends, both equal force. He felt his sides being crushed as the strong force kept him from moving.

Charizard roared in pain as the gravity blasts gave tremendous pressure onto him.

Bluenote's smirk enlarged. "And now…"

He dashed after an immobilized Charizard, running right up to him. Charizard was too immobilized to act as Bluenote appeared in front of him. With a dark expression, he thrust his right arm forward almost point blank range. A Magic seal appeared in between his hand and Charizard.

Charizard's eyes widened. "Oh god!"

Bluenote let loose a cataclysmic gravity shockwave that rattled the entire caved-in area. Nothing but sheer dust and rock flew in all directions. Gildarts didn't have the strength to cover up as he helplessly watched rock and wind fly right past him. He felt violent winds flood all around and the dust and rock settled.

Bluenote frowned, but still remained anticipated. In front of him was a shattered and reduced landscape, completely loose ground. Fifty feet away, embedded into the wall, in a crater, he saw Charizard. Charizard was completely covered in dirt and chunks of loose gravel. His entire body was embedded and he was seen with closed eyes as he didn't seem like he was gonna move.

At first, Bluenote didn't act. Soon, he smirked and broke into a chuckle that exploded into a psychotic laughter. He laughed up into the air as Charizard remained still. He soon stopped and glanced back at him.

"I must admit, you gave me one heck of a challenge." He admitted, a slight huff in his voice. "You did quite a number on me, but the end was still inevitable." He looked away, turning and walked over towards Gildarts.

Gildarts couldn't struggle as Bluenote approached. At this rate, he'll be crushed completely by Bluenote, just like Charizard was.

"That lizard was a nice warm up, but now the real prize is right before me." Bluenote was thirty feet from Gildarts and closed the gap between slowly.

* * *

Nic jerked left and right, dodging Azuma's roots that were springing up in all directions. He began to jump from root to root, jumping like he would in the trees. His light feet landed and pounced with swift reactions as he began to close the distance on Azuma.

Azuma let loose a battlecry and sent a Bleve straight at him. Nic fired a Flame Burst, the two attacks bursting into sheer flames when they reached in the middle. Nic dove through the exploding flames with a sudden Flame Charge, leaving a hole in the explosion. Azuma was wide-eyed as Nic dove right through and dealt a powerful blow, driving Azuma several feet back and on a knee.

As Nic regained footing and prepped to advance, he found himself pinned by the ankles. He budged but his legs didn't listen. He looked down to find roots wrapped around his ankles.

"What the-?!"

"**Chain Burst!**" Azuma snapped his fingers and the roots exploded entirely, the root they stood on shaking a little.

Erza watched from afar as the two were clashing. She wanted to help, but found her Magic was sapped entirely, meaning it was all up to Nic to do the job. "Nic, please make it out alive."

Azuma's smirk disappeared when the smoke cleared. "What's this?!" He found the very spot Nic to be in gone. He turned his head slightly both left and right. "I sense him, but where?"

He stiffened when he felt a sudden energy from behind. He was struck by Nic's knee and he fell forward. Nic landed, his form changed to the Mind Plate, having used Teleport to escape at the last second.

Azuma had to admit that Nic was clever, but this wasn't the time to praise. He shot back up and turned around. He extended his arms out, sending Ramus Sica after him. Nic extended his arms out.

"**Psychic!**" Using his Mind Plate's powers, he reached out and stopped the incoming branches in mid-air, much to Azuma's surprise. Nic grunted, sending the entire attack right back. Before it could connect, however, Azuma swiped his arm, making a shield made of roots to take the blow.

Nic rushed ahead. "I won't ever let you harm my comrades! I'm gonna finish you so Erza doesn't suffer!" He swiped his right arm across in an arc, unleashing Psycho Cut. The pink crescent slice straight through the root shield, making the top half fall over.

To Nic's surprise, Azuma wasn't there. "What?!" Nic stammered back a few feet and calmed himself. He felt his presence, but he couldn't seem to find out where.

"So I take it that Titania is your conviction." Nic heard Azuma's voice ring all around. Suddenly, Azuma appeared right under Nic, merging from the tree root and delivering an uppercut to his gut, sending him flying back and skidding to one knee.

Azuma stood before Nic, his defiant expression unmoving. "So, you're giving it your best so that Titania doesn't have to suffer the same fate you will, right?"

Despite the truth to his words, Nic remained silent.

"I see, but tell me, do you know of her history?"

Nic managed to stand. "Yeah, she was a slave in the Tower of Heaven, among her friends."

Azuma paused, his stern glare remaining plastered. "I would assume you know Jellal as well?"

Hearing the name, Nic didn't want to hear anymore. Without a verbal response, he shot purple beams at Azuma, his Psyshock beaming towards him. Without moving a finger, Azuma summoned a funnel of leaves, his Folium Sica colliding with the beams until both attacks gave in at the same time.

Nic showed some signs of wearing down, as did Azuma. The wound on his abdomen seemed to have made him feel discomforted briefly before talking again.

"I take it that your act of arson is a yes. There's no need to be alarmed, for I am making but a brief statement."

Nic still took offense. "What are you talking about?"

"Jellal was in the Tower of Heaven, and I would think Titania knows him as well."

Nic looked away, discomfort written all over. "I'm afraid so. They were childhood friends." An image of Jellal taking a hit for him in Nirvana arose, and then him being taken, and then seeing Erza crying on the cliff at daybreak. His fists clenched as his ferocity reappeared before him.

Azuma remained composed, despite his breathing. "My condolences for that news. It wasn't Jellal's fault. It was Ultear's doing."

"Ultear…?" Nic remembered that uncomfortable excuse of a woman, the same one who helped defile the Magic Council. His eyes shot open. "Wait! You mean because of her, Jellal became obsessed with Zeref, and tortured Erza?!" Azuma could hear the anger in his voice, even seeing him shaking. "Erza suffered all of those years, because Jellal was possessed not by Zeref, but Ultear?!"

"Master Hades wanted a low profile for us, so we had Ultear make a diversion."

"A diversion?! An innocent man with a sense of justice was mortally scarred, and now he's suffering in prison _because of you sick low-lives!_" The extreme cold tone he gave at that instant made Azuma stammered back as he felt Nic's anger.

Though far away, Erza was able to hear every word. She was in shock that Grimoire Heart, specifically Ultear, took over Jellal. She was saddened to say the least, but what concerned her even more was Nic's vile confliction. She hasn't seen him this aggravated about the concept of Jellal, mainly since nobody ever talked about it.

Nic shook violently as he glared at Azuma. "Jellal is in prison because of what you started!" He lunged at Azuma. "Erza's childhood friend is gone, and I'd sooner have my own bones ripped from my insides than see her cry over him again"

Erza's eyes widened and gasped in utter surprise. "Nic…"

Azuma huffed and had Nic come closer. When he was close enough, he used Bleve from underneath, exploding right under Nic. Nic felt his legs sting as he was shot skyward, mentally cursing at the same time for being overtaken by his ambitions.

Azuma extended his arm up, shooting roots up after him. The roots grabbed Nic's legs and drove him onto the root again, making a crashing sound. He got on all fours, but his legs weren't so easy as to listen.

'_Damnit, my legs!' _Nic felt his legs sting heavily from that Bleve. He struggled to his feet, but managed; not without sliding a little of course. As he stood, he felt like his legs were going to cave in.

Azuma saw the advantage before him and reached out, shooting roots at Nic from all directions. They all closed in on him and he wasn't able to move as quickly. He resorted to using Psychic to stall and deflect all of the incoming roots at Azuma.

"Nice try." Azuma swiped his arm and shot Folium Sica at the roots. He successfully managed to slice through all of the roots and come out unscathed. He looked out and saw Nic standing still, the serious look still on his face.

Nic saw what Azuma was trying to do. _'So that guy wanted to get me angry to catch me off guard. He deliberately told me of what happened, and I fell for it.' _He would've chide himself for falling for a classic emotion-sweeper, but his legs trembled as his balance was off and he lost footing for a moment.

Azuma's eyes widened. "This is it for you! Raaagh!" Extending both arms out, he made the area of root in front of him dart out a multitude of small fists after Nic.

Erza's eyes widened. "Nic, watch out!"

'_I don't want Erza to suffer from Jellal anymore. I freed her from his reign, and I watched him be reborn.'_ Nic remained still as the attack continued its way towards him. _'I'll get the answers I want after I defeat him, for now…' _A shining glow appeared from him, one that shined brighter than ever.

Azuma and Erza saw with huge expressions of shock as the fists completely stopped just mere inches from Nic's face. Azuma and Erza both gaped their mouths as Nic had transformed once more into his Meadow Plate Form.

'_I'll stop him from harming Erza and Fairy Tail!' _Nic mentally declared.

"But how?!" Azuma shouted. Nic thrust his left arm out to his side, the roots being directed elsewhere, hitting another large root from afar. Azuma was too in shock when he saw Nic extend his arms out and light greens rays shot out and snared Azuma, coiling him.

"Grr. What is this?!" Azuma shouted.

"**Giga Drain!**"

Nic made the light green energy attached shine bright, sapping away energy from Azuma as the latter was unable to pry himself from his energy sapping away. Azuma was soon freed and the Giga Drain retracted back into Nic.

The Great Tree Arc Mage was on a knee when Nic rushed in and drove his left knee into his face, his legs having been healed from Giga Drain. Azuma sailed back and landed on his back but quickly got back to his feet.

"**Folium Sica!**" Azuma sent a funnel of leaves after Nic. To his surprise, Nic swiped his own arm, countering with Razor Leaf. The entire space between was a turbulence if sharp leaves slicing and parrying against the other. Through the carnage, Nic received a few cuts on his cheeks while Azuma got a few on his forehead and shoulders.

The two attacks ended, leaving both fierce contenders to draw their next moves.

"**Ramus Sica!**"

"**Seed Bomb!**"

Both attacks went at the opposite foe, meeting in the middle. Branches met with exploding seeds. The attacks didn't let until a green explosion erupted in between, causing them both to jump back.

Azuma swiped his right arm, sending roots after Nic. He easily deflected them into another direction using his Meadow Plate powers and jumped. In midair, he vertically flipped and crossed his arms in an X shape as the forearms glowed and extended with sharp edges.

"**Leaf Blade!**" Nic shouted, coming down on Azuma.

Seeing the attack, Azuma quickly merged with the root, giving Nic no defined target. Nic crossed his arms, the Leaf Blade attack slicing straight through, missing Azuma completely. As he fell, Nic shot his arm up, sending a Vine Whip at a nearby branch. He bungeed a little before reeling himself up and setting his feet onto the branch.

Without looking, he could feel Azuma's presence through the natural energy. "I know you're there." He warned. "I can sense your movements through the roots."

"Very perceptive of you." Azuma protruded out of the branch across from Nic's left. He turned and saw Azuma very eager. "That form must give you the same powers I do."

"You can run, but you can no longer hide." Nic said. He held his right forearm up and made a Leaf Blade.

Azuma growled. "Come at me!"

Nic lunged at high speed, forearm across. He went after Azuma as the latter shot more Ramus Sica. Nic's Leaf Blade blocked it as he still went in to strike. When he landed in front of Azuma on his branch, he sprung forward once more.

Azuma showed resentment as Nic began to close the distance. If this shot were to hit, it'd be bad news.

Azuma's eyes widened as he swelled up power, making the area shake some more. This caused Nic to temporarily stop his advancing and shake a little.

"The energy, I sense a great swell of it!" He exclaimed aloud.

"**Tower Burst!**"

Azuma let loose a towering explosion that thundered upwards, the attack causing Nic to fly back from the sheer force and smash into the tree he jumped off of, his legs sprawled ahead on the branch.

Azuma was seen panting as his attack finished, but his smirk never left. He was truly enjoying this. Nic was worthy to be such an opponent. His caliber was grand, his speed was beyond his, and his combat experience is unparalleled. Defeating Nic would be a milestone.

Nic made it back to his feet as he was panting. Both Mages seemed exhausted.

"Nic Pularis. Luminous." Azuma said proudly. "Your power sure has given me a run, but it's time to face off against all of Tenrou's power."

"What?" Nic wasn't sure until the ground beneath them was beginning to quake at an extreme level, flames beginning to bide from below. Nic's eyes sharpened as worry swelled his gaze. "This energy…oh no, he's serious."

From afar, Erza was struggling, but she too saw the ground beneath surge, bit it was more over to where Nic and Azuma were above and beyond. "What the…this is bad…"

'_This isn't good. The range is far too great! He's gonna release it all at once!' _Nic saw Azuma clasped his hands and palms together as he concentrated.

Azuma's fierce glare shot right into Nic. His power was beginning to quake even more, the land below beginning to swell. "This is it for you! Now! **Terra Clamare!**"

The entire area shook violently as all of Azuma's Magic was released within the earth, making a disastrous explosion erupt that swallowed up all of the roots in the given area. Nic's eyes widened as the explosion expanded and swallowed up everything too quickly. Nic hollered as the attack closed in.

Nic screamed violently as he was swallowed up as he was caught in shock, feeling his entire body feel an immense pressure and cinder. His scream echoed all around as he was hopelessly taking the full blow.

"NIC!" Erza screamed helplessly. The shockwaves reached her and she screamed as she was blown off from the energy Terra Clamare was giving. She screamed as she began to crash on root after root, tumbling down with no hope of climbing back up until she hit the bottom.

Erza groaned and quaked as she struggled. "N-Nic…" She muttered. Something then caught her eye. A faint glow was seen not too far off from her right, seemingly under some scattered rots. The energy this glow had somehow reached out, and her eyes blinked.

She crawled over with whatever strength she had and used whatever power she could to brush the roots off. To her eyes and her disbelief, there was some sort of mud brown plate, but even she knew what it was.

Her face shot back towards the area above, her eyes catching the entire root forest smoldering and sizzling. Branches and roots' ends were reduced to ashes and sizzled. To her horror, she saw Nic falling.

"…NO!" She screamed as Nic crashed on some unbroken roots, his back slamming against the roots.

Azuma looked down with hints of triumph in his smirk. "You fought valiantly Luminous, but even the greatest has their limitations."

Erza began to shake and quiver, seeing Nic's eyes closed and his skin all scratched and damage to a great degree. She couldn't feel anymore helpless.

"You…" She growled weakly, tears beginning to scroll down as her fierce glare shot at Azuma. "You…took Nic away from me!"

* * *

Inside of a rectangular cell, Jellal only had his pants on as guards glowered down at him. He hasn't eaten much, so he's lost quite a bit of weight. He didn't complain. He accepted his fate. If it was to make amends, so be it.

His face frowned as he felt something off. His expression was meekly as he could somehow feel something wrong miles away.

A pain went through him as he recalled two people. "…Erza…" Jellal muttered under his breath. "…Nic…you have to keep going…for her…"

"Hey, keep it down in there!" A frog guard shouted from afar, somehow his sensitive ears catching Jellal's muttering.

Jellal paid no heed. "Nic…you have to keep fighting…for the ones you love…for Erza…make her keep her smile and…happy."

* * *

Nic was seeing black, and a sound echoed through his head. _'…Nic…you have to keep going…for her…'_

'_That voice.' _He thought weakly. _'Is that…?'_

'_Nic…you have to keep fighting…for the ones you love…for Erza…make her keep her smile and…happy.'_

'…_Jellal?' _Nic was confused. Why was he hearing Jellal's voice at a time like this? Sure, they're both on good terms, but there was no way he could be using Telepathy when he's in prison. Was it some sixth sense? Whatever the case, it wasn't the voice as it was the words that provoked him.

Nic had to do whatever it took to keep Erza alive. He almost died on several occasions, and it was clear that if he fell right here. Erza would not only never forgive herself, but her and his sister alike would very well be crying for the rest of their days; and leaving hearts broken is something Nic would never tolerate.

His eyes shot open, surprising Azuma and a gasping Erza down below. Nic got to a knee and planted a fist into the ground, panting as he was catching his breath. He was so exhausted that he was honestly dizzy. Every cell on his body was aching, but the thought of letting Erza and everyone else down was an even bigger pain that made him stand back up, his foot stomping as he had fists clenched, a shadow over his eyes.

'_I won't fall, no matter what. Charizard, everyone, if you're out there, remember what you're fighting for.'_

* * *

Charizard was in a similar situation. All he saw was black, and he heard and saw somethings that came before him. _'This feeling…it's like…Nic's almost down.' _To his own shock, he couldn't believe that he was feeling his trainer's pain. _'Wait…I know Nic. He won't take this lying down. Why the hell am I doubting him, and myself?'_

He mentally blinked as began to sense something.

'_I won't fall, no matter what. Charizard, everyone, if you're out there, remember what you're fighting for.'_

'_That's…Nic's voice!' _Charizard mentally exclaimed. _'…Tch. That guy sure knows how to push me. We've been through Hell and back, gym battles left and right. Hand-to-hand combat. We all shared this trait.'_

Charizard began to see consecutive images of himself as Charmander, seeing the small struggle with combat against Froakie when they were out of Lumiose City. He saw himself evolving into Charmeleon not long after, and the moves learned, and the battles fought, everything piled on…but the ones he treasured the most were of Nic and the other Pokémon.

Nic. Greninja. Kecleon. Staraptor. Arbok. Garchomp. All of them, a valuable and upmost importance to Charizard's development and life. If it weren't for his family and team, he wouldn't be sure just where his strength would come from. All of them played an important role, with Nic teaching them all combat, including himself. Greninja with his attitude just like Nic's. Kecelon's weirdness. Staraptor's no-fear, upfront determination. Arbok's snobbish yet extreme loyalty. Garchomp and his ferocity and terror. All of them; if he were done here, the team would never be the same.

He's made it this far, and he'd sooner lose the power to breathe fire than see one of them die.

His eyes flashed open, and he could feel his limbs again.

Bluenote, close by, began to raise a foot onto Gildarts's head. His face was so dark that it was terrifying to look at. "I'm going to enjoy squashing you along with your guild."

"D-Damnit." Gildarts muttered.

Before Bluenote could finally stomp down, he felt two things: A searing heat, and rocks crumbling. Feeling a strong energy strong behind, he slowly retracted his foot and cautiously turned around, his eyes widening as he saw Charizard dislodging from the wall.

The Fire and Flying-Type felt the rain continue, but that didn't stop him. Small rocks crumbled and fell as he pried himself from the wall, setting his feet down. Charizard was literally steaming as he was giving of an extreme amount of heat, the rain evaporating as it touched his scaly skin.

Bluenote's gaze turned astonished as he felt the intense heat from where he stood, as did Gildarts. The pressure Charizard was giving off was tremendous, and the steam and heat signified that. His tail flame burned brighter and hotter than ever; and this wasn't Blaze, but this was his pure resolve.

Charizard tensed up before letting loose a very loud and hot draconic roar, making the ground shake and winds surge, causing Bluenote to cover up.

"Impossible! He's not even worn out!" The Grimoire Heart Mage exclaimed. "I was sure that attack would've finished him!"

Charizard stepped forward, the ground shaking and sizzling from his body heat. He growled as the heat given off expanded, in which spread about like crazy.

Bluenote felt the rain all around evaporating. He looked down at his arm. "What's this? This heat given off is so potent that it actually evaporated the rain in the area?"

Gildarts was beyond surprised. "Just what kind of creature is he? He's on a whole other level compared to Natsu. To be able to take that much gravity and still stand after such attacks." He muttered.

Bluenote shook in anger as he reached his arm out. "**Fall!**"

A Magic seal appeared over Charizard, exerting great pressure onto him. However, Charizard didn't even budge. He tensed up even more and let loose another roar, the same shockwaves and winds flowing, making Bluenote skid back a few feet.

Angered, Bluenote rushed after Charizard. "GRAAAHHH!" Bluenote went to punch with his immense strength, but Charizard's superior reflexes beat him to it, driving a backhand into Bluenote's face, sending the Mage to Charizard's right, crashing into the earth several feet away and making rock fly.

Bluenote slowly sat back up, the heat still highly formidable. "This power…what kind of thing is he? He even hit me with Fall active?"

The Magic seal above Charizard diminished and the lizard turned towards Bluenote, a serious look plastered onto his face. "I'm not even close to done." Charizard warned. "I was just warming up."

* * *

"Impossible! He still stands…" Azuma trailed off as he gagged blood, his wounds catching up to him. He got to a knee and panted.

Nic looked up at Azuma, his warrior's glare looking dead at Azuma.

Azuma stared into them, seeing the look he wanted to see after a long time. _'Those eyes.' _He thought as he panted with a smirk. _'The eyes of a pure warrior.'_

"Do you really want to know why I feel uncomfortable talking about Jellal?" Nic asked, no shame bared.

Slightly intrigued, Azuma stopped panting as his breath caught up to him. "How so?"

Nic remained composed as he went through, despite his body trembling from the pain. "After Nirvana, Jellal was taken prisoner. It wasn't fair; not to him, not Erza, not to anyone. I tried desperately to hold back, but I couldn't. I tried and fought back, and I completely ignored Erza's shout to stop, because I saw that she needed him, perhaps more than she needed any of us."

Nic was completely disregarding Erza, whom was down below and hearing every word. Nic wasn't even aware she could hear, and her eyes were wide with realization. Nic continued.

"Despite my efforts, he was taken, and I watched Erza cry. That pain still haunts me to this day, and it'll be there forever. She needed her childhood friend and lover, and I felt too ashamed to even face her for a failure I was."

"…Nic…" Erza couldn't find the words.

"I was beyond heartbroken, because I thought she needed Jellal more than me, but you know what…" He crouched the sunglasses on his shirt glowing light green while the rest of his body glowed white and gathered some energy with Synthesis.

Azuma listened heartily to Nic and he saw the pure-hearted resolve in his eyes. When he saw Synthesis end, he saw a few scratches and scraped were no more.

"…I don't care. Erza and I have been through a lot, and the one thing we'll never bear is the other gone. Too many have already left, and seeing her cry over the ones she loves brings agony to me. If she loves Jellal, then so be it! I'll still fight for the sake of her being! Even if it means getting maimed in the process!"

Nic shot an Energy Ball he stored up on, the attack charging at Azuma. He shot his arm out and made a large root shoot up to take the hit. The root absorbed the attack, but shook violently. Azuma had a few moments to recover the root was horizontally sliced by an incoming Leaf Blade. Nic deactivated it and drove a punch as he fell forward, hitting Azuma across the face and making him fall down onto another root.

Nic was above where Azuma was, looking down. "I want to keep Erza safe; and though I don't make promises anymore, I will do anything to keep a smile on her face. Seeing her vulnerable from before made me feel angry, because she's a pure-hearted person who doesn't deserve to be in that state. I will use every bit of my power to end you here."

Erza had no idea what she was feeling. Something in her heart screamed for joy, but a pain went through her as well. Her eyes shook as they looked soft and disheartened. She had no idea Nic felt that strongly. Looking down at the Plate in her grasp, she remembered when Nic apologized in Edolas. Back then, he gave a false reasoning. He lied so no one but him would feel the sheer guilt.

"Nic…" Erza didn't know what to say or do. Nic was heartbroken beyond recognition when he thought she needed Jellal. A part of her thought the same thing, but that was only a very minor side. She and Nic were both wrong, and Nic's proclamation made her realize just how much she needed him more than Jellal.

"Nic…if only I told you sooner." She had this feeling start maybe after Lullaby. At that point, it was respect, which came to actually liking him around the Tartaros Magic Bomb incident. When the Tower of Heaven incident rolled around, Erza realized she more than just liked him.

She thought everything was fine, but it turned out Nic was hiding his broken heart from her. She could've hit him if she had the will or if he was Natsu, but she would hit the pinkette anyway; honestly, this little realization made her see a small resolve in her brown eyes.

* * *

Bluenote grunted as he was baffled, but he didn't stand around like a statue. He shot a shockwave from a Magic seal that went after Charizard.

Charizard leaned forward and gushed forth a raging Flamethrower; so hot that the very rocks that went flying at him melted and the shockwave was being easily blocked off compared to the struggle earlier.

"What's this? It's like his flames became hotter." Bluenote noted. "Does it have something to do with the rain?"

After the shockwave and Flamethrower ended, Charizard roared, making the land shake. He flapped his wings and went soaring after Bluenote. Bluenote shook violently as Charizard zoomed in closer and made a counter.

"**Fall!**"

Bluenote made gravity enhance above Charizard making the Flame Pokémon stop soaring, but his running speed wasn't slowing down. He pressed on and let lose a burning roar, driving his right leg into Bluenote's left ribs. The cracks echoed as Bluenote was sent crashing into the caved-in walls behind, leaving him in a crater.

Charizard stomped forward once more, shaking the ground as the heat he gave off kept even Gildarts dry. "So tell me, are you pushing yourself?" He asked.

Bluenote pried himself free and his scowl turned into a sinister smirk, his red eyes reappearing. "This is what I've wanted all along! Pure strength; our highest potentials reached! Let me see what else you can do!"

* * *

Azuma looked up at Nic. "So, you really do want to save Titania. She's that important to you."

The resolve was clear within Nic. "That's why I won't let you beat me!" Having that said, Nic jumped down at Azuma, his right arm glowing green and sharp, long green needles extended. "**Needle Arm!**" He brought his arm down like an axe, but Azuma jerked right to dodge, gaining some distance in between.

He extended his arm out once again, firing Ramus Sica at Nic. Using his Needle Arm, Nic intercepted the incoming branch blades, but the attacks prowess still made him skid back a few feet. Nic soon swung his arm, riding the rest of the incoming blades.

"Impossible!" Azuma shouted, but winced as blood began dripping down his mouth and winced in pain. He clutched his abdomen and began to feel uneasy.

Nic rushed ahead as Azuma. "There are others than Erza that are fighting right now!" A brief image of Vanessa smiling, and then Charizard holding out a fist bump, appeared in front. With those two images, his speed went up even more, and he drove a vicious uppercut in Azuma's chin, making the Mage fly skyward a few feet.

"I have a sister who's out there, fighting. And I have another family member who's always going that extra mile, pushing his strength beyond reason!"

* * *

Bluenote extended both arms out and released a Magic seal that made a powerful gravity shockwave. Charizrd stood his ground and grunted as he was swallowed up in it, but he never faltered. With his sheer strength, he stomped forward through the attack, debris flying right past him.

Bluenote added more power, which was enough to finally make Charizard stop advancing. Bluenote was giving it as much force as possible, using the same level of power he used from before. To his surprise, Charizard maintained his ground, a fire in his eyes as his feet were clawed into the ground.

"**Heat Wave!**" Using his mighty wings, he flapped forward, a violent maelstrom of heated winds surging all around like a veil. Much to Bluenote's shock, the attack surged in the same spot and kept Charizard in place as the immense shockwave pressed on.

The shockwave soon stopped, and the Heat Wave was leaving a huge area around Charizard in sizzling and burning rock, steam erupting from all over the place.

"He…he withstood my Gravity Magic at its greatest? With just super-heated fire to shield?!" Bluenote shouted. Charizard suddenly appeared in front and drove an uppercut into Bluenote's chin, hearing the bones break as the ground shook from the force. Bluenote was sent soaring into the air and smashed back down into the earth several feet away.

Charizard glared coldly as Bluenote got his feet.

"I have others that I won't let down." Charizard stated. "My trainer and the other Pokémon, we've been through many things, and this is no different." He started to slowly advance ahead. "I fought against a Legendary who had hot flames that could burn rocks with ease, and you know what, my flames trumped theirs, because the experience and intensity I swell up will always burn away any darkness around me."

* * *

Azuma extended his arm out one more time, shooting roots after Nic. The Multitype Mage maneuvered and jumped on every incoming root, heading after Azuma without getting hit. He dashed right in and he kicked Azuma across the chest, but Azuma remained still.

Azuma grunted and backed a foot away and proceeded with hand-to-hand combat, their blows cancelling the other out. Nic managed to get a few good shots in as they progressed and shot his right fist into Azuma's abdomen, making his eyes shot wide and gag.

"I won't lose!" Nic shouted, bringing his right arm around and activating Needle Arm, swinging it across and hitting Azuma's right side, making the man scream as he was shot off the branch.

He crashed on his side, several yards away on another root. He struggled to his feet as Nic stomped his foot onto the root he was on, making smaller roots shoot from below him and acted like a springboard. He shot at Azuma, who used his Magic to shoot roots after Nic.

"That won't work!" Nic swiped his arms across, deflecting the roots that went after him, leaving an opening between him and Azuma. I won't let Fairy Tail or my family fall to scum lime you! That's why…"

* * *

"That's why…" Charizard shifted right to avoid a punch from Bluenote and spun in place, swatting him with his right wing. Bluenote was seen flying backwards and doubled over, landing on his back.

* * *

"WE WILL NEVER BACK DOWN!" Nic and Charizard yelled in unison, their voices conveniently in sync.

He drove his knee into the Great Tree Arc user's chest and sent him falling backwards. Nic then stomped again, making roots shoot at Azuma from the one he stood on as the Mage feel backwards. Azuma had the air knocked out of him as the roots stretched so far that he crashed into yet another root fifty feet away.

Azuma coughed some more as he slowly struggled. He went wide-eyed as Nic stomped once more, having roots under him and shoot him towards Azuma like a mobile bridge.

Azuma was feeling something he hasn't felt in a long time: Fear. As Nic let out a battlecry and was seen advancing, Azuma tried to make several walls of roots. Still advancing, Nic's Leaf Blade was active in both arms, slicing straight through all of the walls and closing in.

"Nic Pularis!" Azuma shouted. "You will perish here and now!" He had no choice. This was his last shot. He began to make energy surge, the land rumbling once more.

Nic eyes narrowed as he felt the same surge of power from before; this time, he was prepared.

"Begone! **Terra Clamare!**" Azuma exerted a huge explosion wave all around, the monstrous attack expanding violently as Nic rushed in, but showed no visible fear as he dove on.

Down below, Erza's eyes widened as she saw Nic get swallowed up in the attack. She could've yelled, but she no longer had the strength to do anything as she laid there with a shining Plate in her arms as Nic was swallowed up in the attack.

Azuma thought he had achieved victory as the explosion began to reach its end, everything still engulfed in the attack. "I win! And you lose, Luminous!"

There was no response, but Azuma saw some sort of projectile darting right through the explosion. It looked green almost.

"W-What in the-?!"

"Hyyaaaaahh!" Nic let loose a battlecry as he charged right through Terra Clamare, his Spiky Shield in front and acting as his defense as he dove through.

Azuma and Erza's eyes widened as Nic dove through the destructive attack, unharmed and giving it his all.

* * *

At the same time Azuma was using his attack, Bluenote Stinger wanted to end the fight. He smirked as he started to gather a lot of energy from all around.

Charizard felt a strong energy surge around Bluenote as the man closed his palms. A dark orb appeared in front of Bluenote. The gravitational force the attack had was so strong that Charizard actually felt himself sliding forward bit by bit.

Bluenote smirk grew darker. "This is the ultimate form of my Gravity Magic! No one can escape it! **Black Hole!**" The orb expanded a little as small rocks and winds were drawn inside. The heat from all around began to get drawn in, and Charizard grunted as he felt himself getting pulled in.

From afar, Gildarts looked with a shocked gaze as he saw Black Hole activate. He felt himself getting pulled a little, but since he was far away, it only made his cape fly ahead but no detach. "What kind of Magic…is that?" He muttered faintly.

Bluenote laughed. "This is your fate, lizard!"

Charizard growled at Bluenote, defying him. "Oh yeah? Let's see about that!" He opened his mouth, gushing out his super-hot Flamethrower attack. The stream of fire went into the Black Hole, getting sucked in entirely. Charizard continued to pump more of his melting flames as he gave it even more power.

Bluenote laughed. "I see you don't have the skills to stop gravity, lizard! You may have been a thorn, but you are formidable!" He commended.

"You wanna know something?" Charizard muffled as he continued to gush Flamethrower at its high temperature. He brought his wings back. "I've fought tougher!" He roared loudly, his Flamethrower gushing out even more crazy power and his wings were brought forward, firing his extremely hot, almost skin-burning, Heat Wave. The maelstrom of fire altogether converged onto Bluenote's Black Hole, the melting force being sucked in.

Bluenote kept his smirk as Charizard continued his Flamethrower and Heat Wave attack. The two super-heated assaults gushed on, the Black Hole taking it all in.

"What is that supposed to do, fool…" Bluenote trailed off as his smirk began to fade. He saw the Black Hole fluctuating as all of the fire and excess heat get sucked in. The matter inside was starting to heat up, and the Black Hole actually started to emanate heat. "What's going on?!"

"Grraaaaagggghhhh!" Charizard gave it all the power he could, the ground-shaking firestorm getting sucked in some more, and the more he used it, the hotter the Black Hole got. The dark orb began to change color, going from dark to lava-like color as the articles getting sucked inside expanded and the Black Hole looked more like a small sun.

"What?! That's impossible!" Bluenote shouted. "The Black Hole absorbed so much heat that it became so hot that it became a ball of gas?! How?!" His eyes widened. _'Wait! The particles getting sucked inside are rapidly expanding from the heat, making the Black Hole's space almost lava-like! That lizard heated it up so high that the lava-like space began to create ever-burning gas that swallowed up the Black Hole itself, making the matter expand from corrupted into gas!'_

Charizard let out as much force and the gravitational pull was no more. The lava-like orb finally gave in and expanded into a small supernova, expanding into a fiery explosion that Bluenote had to jump away from.

When he landed and looked back, his eyes were wide as the ground between him and Charizard was completely melted. An extreme amount of heat was excessed and the ground sizzled, making Bluenote feel unbearably warm, as to where Charizard across was snarling. He looked a little out of breath, but he was fighting through the pain with everything he had in him.

Bluenote was to I shock, and he was almost out of Magic. "No…this can't be!"

Charizard roared, sending ripples of heated air into the sky above and at Bluenote. With a battlecry, he brought his wings forward. "**Heat Wave!**"

The firestorm went raging after Bluenote, swallowing everything in between them in a vicious and melting wind of fire.

Bluenote let out a battlecry as he extended his arm forward, a Magic seal appearing and he gave it everything he had left. A gravity shockwave went ahead, picking up pieces of the super-heated earth. The two attacks were like a violent swirl, an insanity of gravity and rock and heat colliding at once.

When it cleared out, the ground was shattered thanks to Bluenote's Magic, but as the Heat Wave dispersed, Bluenote went wide-eyed when Charizard was seen flying in at high speed with light blue claws coating his own, and the attack was coated in the hot winds that he ploughed right through.

His Dragon Claw engulfed in Heat Wave went flying after Bluenote. "If you think you can weigh me down, you're wrong!" He dove after him, his speed making the heated air all around trail on both sides.

* * *

Azuma was wide-eyed as Nic close in, Terra Clamare finally dispersed. Nic spread his arms apart, deactivating Spiky Shield.

Azuma saw Nic glowing brighter as he began to bide up purified energy. He couldn't help but acknowledge what was to come.

'_I hit him with all of Tenrou, but he still fights on! His power, it's beyond terrifying!' _He thought. He saw Nic several feet away as the pure light intensified. _'Is this the strength of Fairy Tail? Is the strength of his resolve to keep Titania safe…?'_

Nic's eyes pierced through Azuma as he shined even brighter, time slowing down.

'_It looks like Nic Pularis truly is a part of some great guild. We were fools to believe they could be stopped.' _He grinned. _'Well done, Nic.'_

"**Legendary Arts: Seed Flare!**" Nic unleashed a light green explosion of pure energy.

Azuma was engulfed by the attack, his mouth gaped as the light radiated from afar.

* * *

Charizard let loose a roar as his Dragon Claw with Heat Wave trailing behind then. Bluenote was left too horrified and out of power. Charizard's will and pure strength alone was too much and he screamed as he saw the Dragon Claw slash.

"GRRRAAAH!" Charizard slashed in a swift motion, light blue and fire trailing in an arc as he pivoted and posed in a slashing motion, with his Dragon Claw deactivating while still crossed on his left side. He looked away.

At first, nothing happened, but a few seconds later, Bluenote's abdomen had a diagonal gashes of light blue and fire that exploded in a ground-shaking eruption that sent dust flying, but Charizard still remained as he was.

At the same exact time Bluenote was swallowed in the attack, Nic's Seed Flare was seen from afar.

Gildarts's eyes were wide with extreme shock as Charizard had unleashed an extreme amount of power out of resolve. He saw the explosion happen behind Charizard's back and was left dumbfounded. "But how?" He muttered.

Charizard didn't look back as the explosion settled, as did the dust. It showed Bluenote in a ten-foot wide crater, not too deep. His eyes were deprived of pupils as his upper clothing was seared and charred, and he had a large, diagonal slash mark across his entire upper body, sizzling.

Bluenote laid there, defeated.

Charizard slowly stood back up as the heat given off began to subside., the rain starting the pour back down as the sizzling all around was dampened once again. He turned his head back and looked at the defeated Bluenote, his burned slash mark sizzling from the rain.

Charizard stared for a minute before turning back, He roared up to the skies, shaking the ground a little from his triumph.

Gildarts was still unable to move, but he was too awestruck to have seen such a fight. He never saw something so intense before. "…Just what is he?" He muttered.

Charizard stood there, but got down to a knee as his body was seen with scratches all over. He began panting, but still remained able-bodied. Through his panting, he smirked. _'We did it. We both went beyond any mile that could be reached.'_

* * *

Nic smirked, having feeling what Charizard was saying. He was on a knee as he too was flat-out exhausted. _'As Charizard would say, I went beyond any mile attainable.'_

Nic was on a knee on a low root as the ones above were destroyed from Seed Flare. His exhaustion began to catch up and he started to slowly fall off the root and landed with a thud on his abdomen, fifty feet away from Azuma, whom was lying face-up on the ground.

"Nic!" Erza finally called out. While still holding onto the Plate, she screamed mentally as she used her will power to squirm towards him, albeit very slowly.

Nic soon got his feet under him, struggling a little as he soon got his footing. His panting slowed, meaning he was recovering a little.

Azuma remained on the ground, and his back and arms began to sprout some green, as to where some of his parts were sprouting little sprouts.

"Congratulations Nic Pularis, it seems you've won." Azuma declared.

Nic narrowed his eyes in confusion. "What's going on? It's like nature is swallowing you." He saw the sides of his face turned green like the grass as well.

The sprouts began to grow even more and his whole right side was green. "You see, Lost Magic has a high price."

Nic only remained baffled as Azuma was sprouting roots from his legs.

"As to the fair fight we had, I shall honor my word; all of your friends Magic and power shall return to them."

Nic looked down. "Thank you."

"I apologize for my behavior. It seemed too brash of me to explain of Jellal's reasons that was of Ultear's handiwork." Azuma said as the roots ascended. "It's hard to find someone so willingly to give their life for another warrior. Perhaps if I fought Titania, maybe things would've been the same."

Nic glowered down, unmoved as it was all too true.

Azuma looked at him as he was sprouting even more. "Tell me, what is more important to you: You and Erza, or Erza's happiness?"

His question did bring some curiosity as Erza began to slowly crawl forward, twenty feet away from Nic. She stopped for a little as she too was contemplative.

Nic wasn't sure, but he knew what his heart said. "…the latter." He said sullenly.

"I see, so if she picked Jellal over you, you would live with that?"

Nic didn't respond, but the mood he gave off was clear.

"…very well. Perhaps you two are destined for the other, but if you let Titania choose who she wants, then no one will stop either of you."

Nic looked back up. "Thank you, again."

Erza had a soft smile on her face, despite barely able to move.

"Tell me, why did Ultear do that to Jellal?" Nic asked, changing the subject.

Azuma's entire body was engulfed in growing roots and green, continuing to grow. He answered. "It was all elaborated by Master Hades to keep the Magic Council diverted while we schemed. Her skills are very terrifying and troublesome; perhaps that is why Master Hades keeps her close."

Nic still sought just a few more things. "Azuma, why does your guild wish to find Zeref?"

His whole right side of his face was sprouting a trunk. "So as to get closer to the Primordial Magic; the very Magic that has been around since the beginning." He choked a little as his whole body was sprouting even more tree trunks.

"Primordial Magic…from the beginning…"

"Nic…Jellal had dreams…of paradise." Azuma muttered as trees sprouted taller, but through it all, he kept his grin.

Nic looked down, remembering Jellal being taken and Erza crying. "…I know."

Azuma snickered. That was the last sound that came from him before he became silent. He looked on with a straight face, seeing Azuma completely transformed into a tree.

Nic just stayed still, looking on silently as the Tenrou Tree glowed a golden light to his side. He looked up and saw the tree shining briefly before fading.

Erza as struggling as she crawled, but then she suddenly felt her power come back, all of her strength returning just like that. "My Magic Power…it's back." She muttered. She suddenly had the strength to stand, and she arose and felt like nothing had happened.

She got up and advanced slowly. Feeling a very strong energy, Nic curiously turned around to find Erza. "Erza!" He said in surprise. He went wide-eyed when he saw that she was holding onto a shining Plate. "Wait, is that…?"

"I found it as you two were fighting. Apparently it was uprooted along with the tree." Her serious face, grew soft as she presented it to him. "Here."

When she held out the Plate, the shine from it got brighter, and Nic's abdomen shined a light of its own. The Plate levitated its way over towards Nic and Nic accepted it, keeping still as the shining Plate entered his body and there was a grunt.

There was a brief flash of light, to which Erza covered up. After a few seconds, the light faded away. She looked back and found that Nic was still in the same Meadow Plate Form, but the content look on his face showed that the Earth Plate was fully integrate into him.

Erza and Nic smiled at one another, though Nic was completely unaware that Erza heard everything as he was too focused on his fight. Personally, Erza wasn't at all angry, but content.

She finally saw the truth in Nic. He loved her, but was too ashamed after the Nirvana incident to admit it, especially after what happened to Jellal. Despite this, she was happy to know that Nic would be fine, no matter what she chose, heartbroken or not.

"Nic..." Erza started. "Your battle, it was amazing."

Nic looked down. "I couldn't have done it without you guys and my family." Nic thought of Erza, Vanessa, and Charizard, and figured how proud they would be, as he would be of them. "It seems your Magic Power has returned at last."

Erza nodded. "Yes, and I don't sense Bluenote's Magic either."

Nic smiled. "I knew Charizard would never fail. I never doubted him, ever."

The two then looked back at the tree Azuma turned into, staring at it as the rain began to become a light drizzle, settling down a little.

Erza then looked back at Nic, a soft smile on her face. She was very proud of him; not just for fighting by himself, but for saying the truth, despite not knowing she heard it from afar.

She now realized that Nic would give up everything for her, and in turn, she would as well. It was decided at that instant. After the fighting is finally over, she was gonna tell him.

She wanted to for some time, but things kept getting in the way, but she was sure that after Hades is done for, she would tell him her choice. But to her, her choice was all too clear, and her smile glistened even more.

* * *

**I know the chapter was ridiculously long, but glad I got this posted! I would imagine some of you would be angry for not having Erza continue the fight, but at least consider my defense. Having Nic and Erza both fight would be a bit much, since they are clearly powerful enough on their own, and beating Azuma in his state would seem op; and considering Nic doesn't have Magic, the scenario played out as it did. **

**I tried extra hard on this chapter to get the fight scenes just right. I wasn't trying to speed my way through or cram the brawls in, because the key to making a good fight scene is being able to picture it clearly. Please leave a Review on your opinion on the fights this chapter! Feedback would really help me consider writing the next couple of fights coming up.**

**Many would have guessed it would've been the Pixie Plate, but I have different plans for said Plate. The Earth Plate, being under the Tenrou Tree, felt more appropriate. As for the Black Hole part with Charizard heating it up, that's debatable. Many would've wanted another way, but I figured that if Gildarts's Crash Magic could stop it, I figured Charizard's heat could do the job as well.**

**Guest: Sorry, but I don't think I'm planning on doing a holiday chapter for this story. However, in **_**EDventures in Kalos**_**, I might be able to squeeze one in. If you read that story, then be prepped for a holiday chapter then.**

**The next chapter will be the big battle against Hades; and as for afterwards, you will be extremely shocked to say the least.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys absolutely loved the fights and the ongoing story's battles.**

* * *

**Next Time: A Flash of Redemption**


	49. A Flash of Redemption

Chapter 49 – A Flash of Redemption

**Hi guys! Glad I'm back to this exciting story! So on Christmas I got a new laptop, so I had to transfer all of my FanFiction files onto my new laptop, so nothing is lost. **

**Some are having thoughts on the Pixie Plate, and I'll only say that I have special plans for that one.**

**Here's the 49****th**** chapter! Hope you guys like it!**

**To Recap:**

Nic and Erza commence their battle against Azuma, as to where Charizard and Gildarts quarreled with Bluenote Stinger. As the two-on-one duels escalated, Azuma used his powers to cut down the Tenrou Tree, draining all Magic from Fairy Tail. The only ones not affected were Nic and Charizard, whom fought on their own. Though it was very tough, Nic and Charizard defeated Azuma and Bluenote simultaneously, restoring Magic to the Fairy Tail Mages. Later, Erza was revealed to have found the Earth Plate, giving it to Nic with a warm smile despite his arduous battle.

* * *

**Chapter 49 – A Flash of Redemption**

Ultear had a grand conflict with Gray just as Nic and Erza were finding their way back towards shore. She and Gray fell into the ocean, where Ultear somehow had her mother's memories. Ur, the Master of Gray and Lyon, and Ultear's mother, was seen in a memory as Ultear was shot up and frozen in ice.

Ultear was too in shock to comprehend as to what she's been through, and it was all because Ur loved her and wanted to protect her. Gray resurfaced and floated atop of the water, knowing that he saw the same thing.

A few moments went on by as Gray kept a scowl on his face as the water soaked him and his new wound on his lower abdomen, a cross shape taking form.

"Ur told us about you." Gray started. "But the memories were too painful."

_Several years back, it was snowing and a cabin was holding residence to Ur. A dark-haired woman with black irises. Despite her curves, she had on dark pants and a tan jacket._

_She had her back turned as she faced a wall, a young Gray and Lyon looking at her._

"_When my daughter was born." She started. "It felt as though there was a brilliant light shining through my heart. I honestly never felt so happy." She looked back at the two. "Just one look, and that was I needed. I knew from that look that she had a bright future." _

_Lyon and Gray had blank yet curious gazes as Ur frowned._

"_I knew, that inside of her little bundled-up body, she had what it takes. My eyes overflowed with tears and they never stopped."_

The ice began to crack and eventually shattered, leaving Ultear to fall down into the water below. Time felt as though it was slowing down.

"_My daughter, she's proof of my life having a meaning." Ur said, holding her crying baby. "She's my tears. Ur…tear…"_

Ultear felt herself having nothing to give except wishes. _'All I ever wanted…all I ever want…was to go back to a time, before I hated my mother.'_

Tears went falling upwards as she was silently crying.

'_All I wanted was to see my mother again. So I can tell her…how much I loved her, just one last time." _

Ultear then splashed into the water below, with Gray keeping a straight face as the rain kept coming down.

* * *

Gray found his purple shirt and fastened it around his face in order to sustain the wound on his abdomen. He and Ultear made it to shore, both having no grudges bared against the other.

Ultear leaned against a rock. "It would seem our battle is over." She said.

Gray said otherwise. "I hate to break it to ya, but mine is just getting started."

Seeing the resolve, she showed no reluctance. "Be careful, you can't beat Master Hades on your own."

"Don't worry." Gray said. "I'm not alone."

* * *

As if possessed, but mainly due to Gray asking her to, Juvia crawled like a zombie towards a runaway Meredy, with an unconscious Zeref on her back. Apparently Vanessa joined in on the chase, but she was only as fast as Juvia due to fatigue.

"Stop. Now. You. Give. Me. Zeref." Juvia moaned like a zombie.

"Just do as she says." Vanessa implored, limping.

"Is that lady possessed?!" Meredy exclaimed.

"Give me him." Juvia said, less zombie-like than before.

Meredy looked back. "So was that talk of love and life all for saving your own skin?" She sounded betrayed and upset.

"Meredy, we don't wanna fight anyone!" Vanessa testified. "We don't wanna hurt you anymore."

Though Meredy wanted to keep going, when she turned back ahead, something dropped from above. To her surprise, it was Zancrow, with his crazed expression. He stood twenty feet away.

His smirk widened heinously. "Well look what we have here."

"Zancrow!" Meredy exclaimed. Juvia and Vanessa both stopped where they were.

"You do realize the ship is the other way, right?" He scowled.

"No, I didn't." Meredy defended.

"Like I'd believe that crap!" Zancrow shouted. "Everyone knows you follow Ultear like a pet!"

"Never!"

Zancrow's frown darkened. "You're no longer apart of Grimoire Heart!" He shot black and white flames from his mouth, just like Natsu, engulfing Meredy and making her scream. Juvia, Vanessa, and an unconscious Zeref all skid away from the attack.

Zancrow's crazy smirk returned. "That's what happens when you take something that isn't yours!" He laughed. He then grabbed Zeref and picked him up under his arm.

Meredy struggled, looking up with a deep plea in her eyes. "You can't." She said quietly. "If you take him, you take Ultear's future." Her eyes mist with tears. "And mine too."

Zancrow, despite Meredy's plea, kept his heinous smirk. "You never learn. You know Ultear is using you."

Meredy had an image of Ultear, her resolve unfazed. "No, you're wrong. We made a promise, a promise to reach the Grand Magic World and return my home back to normal."

Zancrow laughed. "That crappy place? Why do such a thing after Kain and I redecorated it?" With questioning going around in silence, Zancrow decided to let her on. "We weren't the only ones who took part you know."

"What?"

"Ultear led the attack. She slaughtered more lives than the two of us put together!"

Meredy's eyes widened as the whole world just went silent. Vanessa and Juvia were lying down and filled with discontent.

All that could be heard was a heartbeat as Meredy's shocked eyes still gave away tears. Her gaze slowly reached the ground. "…n-no. That's not…true…"

Zancrow laughed maniacally while handling Zeref by the toga wrapped around him. Meredy was on the verge of a breakdown, and Vanessa and Juvia couldn't move well.

A sudden mutter stopped the heartbeat in the air. It was Zeref coming around.

"Acno…logia." He muttered.

"Heh?" Zancrow stopped laughing and looked down at Zeref, confused as to what he said. He stared down while Zeref slowly opened his red eyes.

In a sudden, screeching energy burst, everything around went black and white. Meredy, Juvia, and Vanessa all thudded back as Zancrow was met with a demonic gaze as Zeref stood.

The violent scenery returned to normal. Zeref stood up as Zancrow slowly fell backwards. Upon hitting the ground, his blonde hair was old and pale, and his skin was all tattered and withered. His pupils were white. A slight groan escaped before his last breath escaped, leaving him dead.

Zeref's red eyes returned to black, and he realized what had been done. Mournfully, he frowned and crouched down. "Forgive me." He pleaded, closing Zancrow's eyelids. "I now burden more darkness upon myself."

He turned around and saw the three girls lying down several feet away, supposedly passed out. This left a more lighthearted feeling for Zeref. "At least I can take solace in having those three unharmed."

He turned around and started to walk away. "I shall continue to remain isolated. It's for the best. No indulgence in mankind's conflict, for the bloodshed is for what I do not wish to bear. However…" He blinked, his eyes returning to red. "If this era comes to an end, all shall be destroyed."

* * *

Nic and Erza both made their way back towards base camp, with Nic having used Recover earlier so that Erza didn't have to support him as much. They paced themselves as they dragged their two bodies through the forest.

"How are you feeling?" Erza asked, slightly concerned of Nic's injuries from fighting Azuma.

Hearing the worry in her voice, he grinned. "I'm okay. That was much harder than we both anticipated." Erza nodded in agreement and the two pressed on until a sudden pair of footsteps was heard from behind.

The two pivoted and turned back in defense as to what might be before them. To their relief, it was just Nic's Charizard emerging. He had many scratches all over his body, but otherwise looked raring to brawl until he finally falls.

The Fire and Flying-Type smirked. "So, I take it you had it as rough?" He rhetorically asked.

Nic smirked back, knowing just how Charizard felt. "Very." Nic slowly approached Charizard, the two both continuing their smirking full of pride as they both fist bumped. The rain kept pouring down, but they didn't feel the fire within themselves dwindling at all.

"So what happened?" Erza asked.

The two stopped their fist bump and looked back at Erza. Her question was more or less directed to Charizard. "That Bluenote from back there was gaining the upper hand when the tree fell. Fortunately, I was able to stop him before he could lay some serious hurt onto powerhouse."

"Powerhouse?" Erza asked.

"I'm sure he means Gildarts, right?" Nic asked. Charizard nodded in confirmation.

"Yeah. He'll catch up eventually. For now, we have to worry about ourselves."

Nic's eyes narrowed, knowing what he meant. "I see, then we should hurry back to camp and regroup for a strategy." They then proceeded and headed back to camp, but Nic slowed down when starting to walk and turned around, having an odd feeling. "Huh?"

Charizard noticed Nic stopping. "Nic?"

Though still uneasy about the odd feeling, Nic keep a serious and suspicious face as he slowly turned back ahead.

"It's nothing." He answered. They pressed on, but the feeling never went away. _'It's like…I know, yet it's different. This feeling…'_

The three traveled on until they came to a half mile ahead, where they emerged from the trees and saw the others at base camp.

Natsu was the first to react. "Huh? Hey guys, they're here too!"

"That's great! We're so glad you guys are alright." Lucy happily greeted.

"I must say, you three left us worried sick." Carla commented sternly. "Do you have any idea on how long we've been waiting?"

Freed and Bickslow both turned towards them. Bickslow's attire changed when he returned earlier; apparently sporting the same dark cloth, but now plain, though had two white lines running down his chest, making the whole thing look like a mantle. His hood had a furry purple crest, and his visor was replaced by one resembling a knight's. His rams had three metal bangles that circled his biceps, and his waistguard was replaced by a skirt-like cloth held up by a silver belt with a golden center with the Fairy Tail insignia on it.

Freed spoke. "You're just in time. Not only has Gray returned, but we were also going to address a strategy."

"So, where're the others?" Levy asked in concern.

"I'm sure they'll catch up. They know how to survive the mayhem, they're like cockroaches you keep trampling on but keep on infesting." Charizard referenced.

Freed nodded and turned away. "That said, we should address the strategy."

Natsu stood with a tightened fists held up. "I say we pay ol' Hades a visit."

Charizard snickered. "After what he did, let's blow down his doors." He turned towards Nic. "Anything else you wanna add, Nic?"

Nic stepped forward. "Natsu and Charizard are right, neither Hades nor us for that matter have the element of surprise. Our only option is to head in and strike while the iron is still hot."

"In that case, I'll join you." Erza added.

Gray stood up. "Don't count me out just yet. I still gotta bone to pick with him for hurting our Master."

Nic looked down, seeing the unconscious bodies of Makarov, Gajeel, and Sophie. All three looked battered, and seeing Sophie hurt made him clench his fists. He was still upset at how one of his friends was defeated by Azuma, but he took solace knowing he personally dealt the finishing blow to him.

Mira intervened. "We'll stay and continue to give support. We'll be sure to catch up when our strength is back to normal."

Lisanna nodded in agreement.

"I'll write an enchantment to keep us from harm. Levy will give me a hand as well, so she'll stay."

Bickslow stuck out his tongue as he smiled. "Hey, guess we got ourselves a plan!"

Thunder above suddenly flashed, and Lily covered his ears. "M-mmmm." He was shaking violently and his eyes were all hazy. "I-I'll come to! I owe them a beating! For Gajeel's sake!"

Lucy clenched her fists in determination. "Now that my power's back, I'm ready!"

"We'll show him why you don't mess with Fairy Tail. I'll join in." Wendy said.

Nic looked around, seeing everyone ready. "I guess we're all set, but before we go anywhere…" Nic spread his arms and glowed. When the glow vanished, everyone looked to see him in his Mind Plate Form.

His eyes opened. "It's best that we all heal up. Please get together, this'll only take a few moments." Everyone present did as told. Charizard, Erza, Wendy, basically everyone gathered around the unconscious and wounded. Nic reached out and breathed deeply.

"**Heal Pulse.**" A light pink ball formed in between his hands and the orb broke apart, sending multiple light pink waves of energy at the group. Upon the waves passing, everyone suddenly felt as though they'd awoke from a glorious nap.

Gray looked down at his hands, seeing the scrapes and scratches disappear. "What the…he's healing us just like that?"

"It would appear Luminous has healing powers of his own." Freed, silently giving gratitude for Nic helping out in healing them.

Happy jumped. "Oh wow! I feel so alive!"

Nic stepped back and he shifted back into himself. He looked around, seeing as how they all looked healthy and rejuvenated. "That should speed up everyone's healing. Sophie, Gajeel, and Master should be up on their feet quickly."

Natsu cracked his knuckles. "Alright. I'm fired up to kick Hades' butt! Let's go!" He took off, leaving a small dust trail behind.

Lucy sighed. "There he goes again."

"That idiot." Gray remarked.

Erza began to proceed. "Well there's no sense in keeping ourselves from the fight any longer. Let's be careful."

"Right." Everyone said.

Nic turned towards Charizard. "You ready to go another mile?"

"As I'll ever be." Charizard grinned back. "Let's leave him incinerated."

* * *

Master Hades' cape flailed as he crossed his arms looking down at the shores. The rain and lightning kept pushing, but it didn't even faze him. "Well now, having the 7 Kin off Purgatory and Bluenote Stinger bested by Fairy Tail; I never expected such a dramatic turn." He admitted. "Makarov is an even better Guild Master than I had thought. I shall deal with them myself. I'll take stride in exterminating them with my own hands."

The group finally approached Hades' ship, seeing him high above. Natsu's nose was able to detect Hades from afar, giving them no trouble in finding him.

Seeing them below, Hades had a straight face. "So you wish to suffer your Master's fate?" All they did was glare up at Hades in response. "Come inside and face your destruction if you choose to do so."

Hades turned away, heading back inside to wait for Fairy Tail.

"Hey! You forgot to give us a way up there!" Natsu shouted.

Wendy turned towards them. "So if we defeat him in time, the Council won't fire Etherion?"

"Yeah, that's the plan." Lucy answered.

"Happy?" Natsu asked. "I got a job for ya."

Happy and the remaining two Exceeds turned around, hearing out what Natsu had to say.

"I need you to find whatever's powering this thing and shut it down." Natsu said.

"I get it. If this thing started flying, it'd be trouble for you." Happy replied, in which Natsu gave a discomforting face.

"We'll assist him." Carla said.

"Me too. Can we go in now?" Lily asked hurriedly, not wanting to hear anymore thunder or lightning.

"That seems like a plan, but I'll pitch in as well." Nic reached into his pockets and enlarged a Poke Ball. Without much warning, he tossed it. The Poke Ball opened in the air, and out came Kecleon, in front and tilting her head.

"Reporting for duty." The Color Swap Pokémon said, straightening her head.

"Kecleon, I need you to assist the Exceeds in finding and terminating the power source. If this is a stealth mission, then there's no one better than you." Nic encouraged in a commanding way.

"Count on me." She responded with a bobbing nod.

Gray put his hands together, making ice ready. "Time for the big showdown! Let's go!" Gray made a giant staircase of ice that reached for the entrance. Natsu lead the charge and everyone else followed behind. Nic hopped onto Charizard's back and took off for the entrance.

"Remember that Hades' power surpasses our Master's. When inside, hit him hard and fast." Erza voiced.

"Let's go, Charizard!" Nic shouted. Letting out a roar, Charizard flapped, making himself speed faster than Natsu and the rest. They quickly reached the top, where they met Hades inside the spacious domain with wooden flooring.

Hades snickered as Nic and Charizard made it to elevation and surprisingly zipped on in. Hades' eyes opened wide. "Such speed."

"**Fake Out!**" Nic lunged off of Charizard and headed on in towards Hades, ending up in front and clapped, making a shockwave in front, making Hades step back.

"**Dragon Claw!**" Charizard appeared in front next and slashed diagonally with light blue claw-shaped energy around his own claws, hitting Hades and making him skid back with a grunt.

"Not bad." Hades remarked at the end of his skid.

Natsu jumped from behind, everyone following behind. "Time for some payback! No mercy! **Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Natsu then gushed forth a stream of fire that sped right past Nic and Charizard, engulfing Hades, but he had an arm out to lessen the blow as he was swallowed up in it.

Hades wasn't impressed. "Try again."

To his surprise, Erza and Gray emerged from in front. Natsu used the roar as cover while Erza requipped from her Heart Kreuz into her Black Wing Armor.

"**Moon Flash!**"

"**Ice-Make: Cold Excalibur!**"

The two slashing attacks made impact, with the two passing Hades, behind them wakes of ice and moon-like energy exploded.

Lucy pitched in. "Now! **Open: Gate of the Golden Bull – Taurus!**" A Magic Seal emerged, and Taurus came out, mooing. He let out a battlecry as he jumped and slammed his mighty axe down, making a golden rumble before Hades' feet and Taurus went away.

Wind began to surge around Wendy. "Fast winds that run the heaven…**Vernier!**" Everyone then glowed their respective aura, with Gray's cold blue, Erza's scarlet aura, Nic's violet, and Charizard's fiery aura, including Natsu.

Nic zoomed in after Hades and threw a right hook, but Hades shifted left to dodge, but he was far from safe when Nic pivoted and started delivering his specialty combat. He kicked and punched with precision as Hades struggled to keep up, eventually getting a blow to the face after five seconds. Nic then drove a knee into his gut, then did an uppercut that sent him sailing upwards.

In the air, Hades looked down. "Annoying punks!" He shot one of his glowing chains with hooks on the end and aimed for Nic's neck.

Nic brought his left forearm up and had the chain grab it instead of his neck. As Hades yanked, Nic glowed a brief, white aura. "**Strength!**" His muscles showed no enhancement, but his prowess was so massive that he yanked his forearm and Hades went shooting down at Nic, surprising the Grimoire Heart Guild Master. Nic drove an uppercut at him when he was close, ceasing the Chain Magic and having Hades soar straight up.

In an instant, Charizard swung his tail horizontally, sending Hades right towards Natsu.

"**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**" Lashes of fire sprung from his arms, lashing Hades and sending him down to the ground. Hades landed on his feet without a scratch and sent chains at Natsu. As the chains closed in, they were cut apart by Charizard's Dragon Claw.

Hades was pretty pissed, but that didn't keep him from getting attacked from Erza slashing behind. She slashed upwards, making Hades fall forward. He was then met with a sudden Ice-Make: Geyser from Gray, shooting him upwards again.

"Grrr. HAH!" Hades recovered almost immediately in midair and shot chains at Gray, sticking one on his shoulder and hurling him into Natsu, both hitting the nearest wall.

Lucy had out another key. "**Open: Gate of the Scorpion – Scorpio!**" Scorpio emerged from thin air. He smirked as he was on all ours as his tail let loose Sand Buster.

"**Sky Dragon's Roar!**" Wendy let out a roar of winds at Hades. Her Sky Dragon's Roar shot right next to Sand Buster. The two attacks met up with each other, making a powerful tornado of wind and sand fly at Hades.

Hades was shocked. "A Unison Raid?!" He was hit head on by the attacks, making him gag and the sand and wind surged as he lost his footing. He shot back, but that didn't stop Nic and Charizard from attacking.

"**Hyper Voice!**"

"**Flamethrower!**"

Nic screamed and let loose several soundwaves that rippled through the air towards Hades. Charzard's immensely hot Flamethrower shot right through, the heat expanding through the soundwaves, making a large-scale Flamethrower surrounded by soundwaves and struck Hades in his chest, making him scream at the intensity of the heat. He shot back and smashed into a large golden globe with many rings around it. Dust surged and the place shook.

Natsu and everyone regrouped and gathered as Scorpio went home. Nic and Charizard were both in front as the dust began to clear out.

"That should do it." Natsu growled.

Nic's eyes narrowed. "…it's not even close."

Everyone turned in shock, except Charizard. "Say what?! We blasted him with everything we had!" Gray testified.

"The boy is right." The sudden voice made everyone who was shocked turn and see that the dust settled, revealing Hades present and standing with crossed arms in front of the globe he was smashed into, leaving a great chunk of it destroyed.

Everyone, except Nic and Charizard again, had shock written in their eyes, even Erza. "But how?"

Natsu was too shocked for words. "His Magic Power…it's terrifying."

"Hm. You should be trembling." Hades recommended. He eyed Nic and Charizard, seeing as how those two weren't near shocked. "Oh? Seems you were expecting this?"

"Guilty is charged." Charizard said, a serious glare emanated.

"We've fought so many opponents in the past." Nic added. Even now, he could feel Hades' Magic increasing, which was terrifying to many, but Nic had fought against many like him, and given his tainted fights in Kalos, this power didn't make him tremble like the others did.

Hades had a smirk. "Experience in the face of fear? My, my." He remarked. "I suppose it's time to get serious…"

The air around began to distort, and the Magic in the air was beginning to flow and increase, leaving the Fairy Tail Mages with slight fear as their skins crawled. Nic and Charizard felt their own skins crawl, but they didn't seem to present any level of fear.

Nic turned towards Charizard. "This power…"

"Yeah." Charizard agreed, looking back at Hades. "It's like the tainted Legendaries back in Kalos…" His gaze narrowed. "But on a lesser scale."

Hades began to look at Wendy, paralyzing her in great fear. Hades began to surge a lot of power and veins popped out of his eyes. "GRRAAAHHH!" He shouted as he focused his Magic on terminating a paralyzed Wendy. "**Katsu-**"

A sudden elbow to the top of his head prevented the spell from being cast. Hades was driven into the flooring, making him gawk as he felt the sudden pain start from his head.

Time seemed to have slowed down as Erza and the rest were too baffled to find that Hades was hit just out of the blue. Charizard was the only one mildly surprised, as to where everyone's lips were parted.

Nic stood atop of Hades, having used Feint Attack in his Dread Plate Form. Hades shook while on the ground. Nic had the gaze of someone who saw Death all his life, making Hades look like nothing.

"Do you honestly believe that Charizard and I would be frightened by you and your Magic Power?" Nic challenged. "It's true you have immense Magic at your disposal, but that's far from being a reason as to how you'll overcome Fairy Tail."

Hades growled and whipped his head up at Nic, seeing him behind himself. Hades sprung up and shot an uppercut, but Nic whipped his head back to dodge and grabbed the gauntlet-covered arm. The two then used their free arms to deliver forearm blows, but they intercepted the other at the middle, blocking the other.

In front of the other's face, they glared with calm ferocity. Their gazes unwavering.

"So, you're Nic Pularis." Hades remarked, still holding up the stalemate. "I've heard of how you stopped so many, and your countless victories has had me piqued all this time. Makarov has raised his children well, better than me."

Hades began to overpower Nic, making him lean back. Nic had some curiosity mixed with his glare. "What are you saying?" He demanded, forcing himself back up, bringing the stalemate back to where it was before.

"I'm surprised Makarov hasn't told you." He said with spite in his tone. "If Makarov is grandfather, then that must make me great grandfather then."

Nic was left confused until he began to piece it together. "Great grandfather…" It suddenly came to him as he was slowly being overpowered again. "Wait! You mean…"

"That's something else that's admirable, you catch on quickly." Hades remarked. "That is correct…" He shoved Nic back, making the latter plant his feet several feet away. "I am Fairy Tail's Second Master."

Natsu and everyone had shock overcome them once again; this time, Nic and Charizard had shock included in their expressions.

Natsu had veins on his face. "That's a filthy lie!"

Hades continued. "Back then, I was known as Master Precht, and it was I who appointed Makarov as Fairy Tail's Third Master."

"Shut up! Someone like you would never be a part of Fairy Tail!" Natsu retorted. In fury, he ran after Hades.

"No wait, Natsu!" Lucy shouted.

"You shouldn't be so hasty, boy." Hades pointed his fingers at Natsu, and Magic circles sprung up front. "**Amaterasu – Formula 28!**" He launched the heinous dark force at Natsu, a great beam swallowing him. Natsu screamed as he flew passed everyone.

"No, Natsu!" Nic shouted.

Hades turned back towards him. "Don't think I forgot about you as well!" He shot his arm forward, unleashing his glowing chain at Nic. With his second nature reflexes, Nic used his arms to block, but was still captured by the hook at the end. Hades dragged Nic through the air and flung him away, making him yelp as he shot back.

"Hang on!" Charizard saw Nic heading his way, so he spread his wings apart and caught Nic by using them as nets.

Nic bounced off and landed on his two feet. "Thanks, Charizard."

Hades hummed as he looked at the Fairy Tail Mages. He smirked and then extended his fingers and shot beams as though they were like bullets. He fired at all of them in rapid succession. Wendy and the others covered up as they were easily overwhelmed, but Nic and Charizard were all over the place as their reflexes kept them moving.

Erza screamed as she was bombarded with the Bullet Magic, and everyone else did as well. They all skid back and landed on their sides. This would've pleased Hades if Nic and Charizard were to be hit as well.

"Hold still!" Hades demanded, increasing the potential of his Bullet Magic. He fired all over the place, but Nic dashed and shifted in all direction; unfortunately, that meant no room to counter.

Seeing as how their reflexes were better than he'd anticipated, Hades switched his approach. "Seems your wings need to be clipped. Grah!" He shot his fingers forward, unleashing a vast projectile at Nic.

Seeing the streaming projectile launched from Hades' fingertips as rapid speed, Nic flung himself backwards, making a bridge. The projectile passed right above him and shot out of the entrance they came in.

Nic backflipped from doing his bridge and clenched a fist. Charizard lowered his head right beside him and growled lowly.

"You two are resilient. Begone! **Amaterasu – Formula 56!**" Hades began to shift his fingers, but was met with a surprise.

"**Sucker Punch!**" Nic flashed in front of Hades and let out a battlecry as he drove his fist forward, slugging Hades' face. Hades slowly stumbled back, but saw an opportunity when Nic was close. He continued with the spell and Nic was surrounded by three rings that crossed, like the ones behind Hades on the object.

Everything flashed and a massive rumble went about. Nic was engulfed in Amaterasu – Formula 56, swallowing him in a bright purple explosion. Everyone who was lying down was sent flying in a random direction, hitting the ground hard.

The Amaterasu fizzled out, leaving Nic on a knee in a crater, huffing.

"Hmph." Hades dealt a swift kick, dealing a blow to Nic's chest, sending him skidding back.

Erza struggled. "Nic!"

Hades turned and saw Erza stand out of frustration and will. He saw her injured body glow and requip into her laming pants and bra made of bandages. She held up one sword. She got into a stance and lunged forward.

"Don't be hasty!" Hades had a dark-covered fist, potent with his Magic. He let out a battlecry as he let loose his fist, exploding upon contact with Erza's sword. The force shook the ground greatly and Erza screamed as she sailed back, thudding onto her abdomen.

Hades looked back at Nic and Co. He slowly approached. "Now-" He shot his eyes wide when he sensed something behind. He turned around swiftly and used his forearm and blocked a sudden Dragon Claw from Charizard, shattering the gauntlet completely. Wasting no time, Charizard drove a knee while in midair into Hades' abdomen, making him jump back.

"You'll pay for that!" Hades extended his right arm out, emanating a shockwave of darkness that Charizard had to cover up from by using his wings. The force still made him skid back. "Die!" Hades shot his chain at Charizard, but the Fire and Flying-Type swatted his wing and deflected it away.

"**Flamethrower!**" Charizard let loose his hot stream of fire at Hades, of whom countered with a release of Magic Power. Hades let out a battlecry as he extended both arms out and let loose pitch black shockwaves that rattled the ground. The Flamethrower was at a stalemate with the shockwaves until there was a heated explosion.

As the sizzling steam was still surging, Charizard zoomed through, surprising Hades. He let out a battlecry as he spread his claws and used Dragon Claw. He slashed downwards and Hades jumped back, leaving the wooden floor destroyed from where he struck. Charizard swung with his left arm and grazed Hades' long beard, cutting a few strands off.

Hades regained his footing. "I have to admit, you're as resilient as Nic."

Charizard tensed up. "Speaking of."

"Hm?"

Hades was then met by a sudden knee to the side of his head, making his mouth gape and he fell to his side. Nic landed and huffed slightly, still exhausted.

Hades recovered quickly and turned back towards Nic. "You're a resilient duo! So perish together then!" He shouted. An Amaterasu – Formula 28 went beaming after Nic. The latter was still too drained from the previous Amaterasu, and was rendered immobile.

'_Damnit! It's coming in fast!' _He shouted in his head, but his limbs weren't as nimble.

"Get out of there!" Erza pleaded.

"Nic! Move!" Natsu shouted.

His limbs weren't working as they should, and Nic saw an orange blur. Charizard zoomed in front, wings ready to block.

"Charizard!" Nic shouted. The beam made full contact, and the two were seen engulfed in a horrific explosion. Natsu, Gray, and everyone else screamed as they all tumbled and skidded backwards, unable to that the shockwaves and violent winds surging.

Dust scattered and spiraled like a hurricane and Hades stood as his hair flew all about. He looked with a sneer in his voice, seeing Charizard and Nic alike covered in scratches and scrapes, both lying on their abdomens right beside the other.

Erza's eyes showed horror as Nic took not one, but two Amaterasu attacks. One was bad enough. She struggled to her knees, but Hades' prowess was just increasing even further. She wanted to help Nic. Desperately. Seeing him fight all of those fights in the past and seeing him take poundings left and right is painful enough to even remember.

Nic punched the ground beneath, seen up on a knee. The same motions were that of Charizard. Both heaved as they were exhausted, taking too much damage in too little attacks.

Hades crossed his arms. "Well now, see that you're still kicking." He said. "Taking Amaterasu 56 and 28; endurance like that is quite admirable."

"Damn you." Nic huffed.

Charizard heaved as well. "You're driving our patience."

Hades' eyes narrowed. "Likewise." He extended his fingers out and shot his Bullet Magic projectile, surging Magic with high intensity. Both Nic and Charizard were on their feet, but that was all the time they got no room to counter.

They were both battered and unable to react. They were gonna have to work themselves out of this one, and fast.

"NIC!" Erza shouted.

A shuddering and booming lightning bolt shot from the outside, electrifying the entire ship. The bolt surged through the top, breaking into the ship's electrical systems. The lightning flashed above Hades, shooting downwards and intercepted the incoming attack.

Everyone covered up as electricity and quaking took up the whole room. Erza and everyone else heard static clashing and light flashed in between Nic, Charizard, and Hades. When it began settling, they all gasped that a new presence had taken up the room.

As the lightning began to ease, Nic and Charizard's eyes widened as a figure stood before them, a cloaked one. The figure made the air electrify as the attack from Hades was stopped just that one time, sparring Nic and Charizard alike.

The most noticeable features of the figure was not just the cloak, but had blonde hair and Magic Headphones.

"So this is the geezer who took down Gramps." He said. To everyone's surprise, it was someone they'd never expect.

Laxus had come back.

"Interesting." He finished, glaring at Hades.

"Laxus." Nic said.

Natsu smiled while still sprawled on the floor. "Laxus."

"Hm?" Hades looked in suspicion as Laxus glared coldly at him. When Laxus brought his head back, static still engulfing his body, Hades could've sworn that he saw a younger version of Makarov. It then dawned upon him. "The boy?!"

He was then met with an electrifying headbutt from Laxus, making him stutter and stumble back. Hades grunted and stared back at Laxus as the two had clenched fists, a stare down happening.

A long silence of pure intensity passed before anything was spoken. "So Nic, this guy giving you a run for your money?"

Nic looked away, smirking at Laxus's humor. "You can say that."

"And those other bunch back there, they're all tattered like rugs."

"Oh shut up." Natsu remarked with his trademark grin.

Charizard was still somewhat suspicious. "And just what brought you along, light bulb?"

Laxus continued shooting daggers at Hades. "I came to pay respects to the First Master. I was a member once too you know." He lightly implied, to which Nic and the rest knew his motives.

Getting back on track, Laxus glared at Hades. "So, this is quite a turn of events. Didn't expect to find the Second Guild Master present." His glare began to sharpen, and his anger spiked. "I've an idea. Since you're already here…" Lightning engulfed his whole body. "…Let's dig a grave for you."

"So that's…the Master's grandson?" Wendy questioned.

"I never would've imagine Makarov had such an ostentatious grandson." His Magic surrounded him, showing his own power. The entire area between the two began to rumble, and small debris defied gravity as the pressure between the two Magic was very strong.

After their flashy display, they glared darkly and Laxus' eyes shot wide open. He lunged ahead, coating himself in his lightning. He moved at blinding speeds past Hades. Hades turned around to see Laxus incoming from behind.

"Grah!" Laxus dealt a gruesome blow with a right hook, in which Hades began to fall back. Laxus immediately swung across with his left, sending Hades backwards.

Natsu smiled, as did Lucy at Laxus's assaults. Erza herself was impressed. Nic and Charizard were pretty sure Laxus still had a lot more than that coming.

Laxus used his Lightning Body and bolted after Hades. Hades' eyes shot open when Laxus reappeared in front. He jerked back as Laxus drove a lightning-coated fist into the ground, making a thundering sound. He shot a left punch and it crashed into the ground as well as Hades jumped away to dodge.

"Oh, I'm impressed." Hades admitted. "I never imagined Gildarts was the only ace Makarov had."

Laxus snickered in a sneer. "You know, just so we're straight here, I'm not the only one that's a monster in this little shindig."

"Oh really?"

Laxus smirked. "That Nic fella's got enough monster within him to put even me down. Ain't that right, Nic?"

Nic wasn't one to brag. He was above being modest or overconfident, but he must know when things are stated as facts. He grinned lightly. "Yes, and we still got more power left."

Hades was piqued. "Is that right? Well then, I should test just how the great Luminous is after I'm finished with you."

"You're more than welcome to try." Laxus challenged, cracking his knuckles. "But in the end, you'll be kissing flooring."

* * *

Elsewhere inside the ship, the Exceeds and Kecleon all were gathered around, but Lily was as stiff as a board, still shaking from the lightning outside.

Kecleon led the charge. "We must cover ground to pull the plug." She said with an untilted head.

"Y-You mean search alone?" Lily asked, hiding his discomfort by turning around.

Carla huffed, knowing Lily's nervousness.

"Are you scared?" Happy teased.

Lily turned around, angrily showing his face that towered over Happy with sweatdrops all over his face. "Absolutely not! Let's cover more ground!"

"Alright, I'm sorry!" Happy defended.

Pretty soon, the group was divided, with everyone heading off in some random direction. With the place so vast, they all had a lot of doors to look through. For Happy, he opened up a door.

When he saw that it was a bathroom, he just remained silent. "Uhhh…"

Carla opened a door. "Let's see what's in here." When she opened the door, to her disbelief, there was…a layer of bricks. "For crying out loud! What is this freaky ship?!"

Lily walked om with covered ears, still on edge with the lightning still in the skies outside the ship. "I am brave. I am brave." He repeated to himself until he came across a nearby door. "This one seems suspicious."

As he reached and grabbed the handle, lightning flashed outside, the thunder crackling all over the place. Lily screamed as the lightning spooked him. "AAAHHHHH!" He looked down in embarrassment to find his sudden creation pried off the handle.

With Kecleon, she was silently approaching the corridor that was long. She was invisible, so only her red zigzag was present. She was so silent that it was almost creepy; but she was creepy to begin with. She opened a door, which was revealed to be entrance to another bathroom.

"Hm, when you gotta go, you gotta go." She said in her creepy monotone voice. She silently closed the door, but not before heading inside and seeing the toilet paper roll and taking it.

She resumed onwards into the dark hall before her. When her zigzag was out of sight, a fellow Grimoire Heart masked member waltzed on into the bathroom.

She continued on, remaining invisible. _'I've went pretty far. Perhaps I should whisk away back to…'_ She trailed off from her thoughts when she saw a large spacious door ahead. Suspicion peaked, she peered inside of the double windows set on them without getting to close. She jumped up once, only to find Grimoire Heart Mages inside, and beyond them, a hundred feet back, was another door, one that was decorated by red all around; it left her remembering how she saw all of the doors being plain.

"I have found the island. I must find the buried treasure." She said quietly. Looking down, she saw that she still had the toilet paper roll in her hand. If anyone were present, they'd only see a red zigzag and a floating toilet paper roll.

She then made a strategy, and stepped forward, activating the sliding doors. As Grimoire Heart Mages stopped lounging to look, they only saw a toilet paper roll rolling out to them. They all watched the roll head onwards, their gazes following it as Kecleon went around right past them, easily evading them.

"Hey, is that a toilet paper roll?" "What the heck is that doing here?" "Maybe it's a sign?" "What? To go to the bathroom?" "Is it two-ply?" "Who cares!"

Kecleon slowly opened the doors while everyone was focused on the toilet paper roll finally reaching its end. She slipped on in and turned around. Her gaze widened slightly as she saw something that was considered…unholy.

She blinked. _'I found the buried treasure.'_

She saw a huge machine, and inside the glass was a huge heart, the size of a normal human being. It beat just like on as well.

Knowing just what she'd found, she had to decide to either take it out, or head back to the others. _'Hmmm…I must get the crew.' _Her decision made, she slipped through the door, closing it behind. When she came out, she still saw the Mages messing around with the toilet paper roll. She slipped passed them as they picked up the roll, then she used her speed to become a zooming, red zigzag and bolted out of the room.

As she made her way back, Kecleon walked right past the bathroom. She heard someone inside, and he didn't sound too happy.

"H-Hey! Where's the toilet paper?!" He shouted. "I need it! BAD! This isn't funny!"

Kecleon turned forward, only tilting her head before resuming her trek.

* * *

The whole room rumbled as Laxus and Hades went toe-to-toe. Hades launched bullets at Laxus, but the Lightning Dragon Slayer turned into lightning and was no longer tangible. He zapped right past the incoming bullets, reappearing in front of a startled Hades.

"You're gonna regret hurting Gramps, ya fossil!" He angrily roared as he drove a lightning coated fist into Hades' abdomen, making him jerk back several feet and grunt from the damage. Laxus followed it up with a Lightning Dragon's Roar, the attack firing from his open mouth. Hades dodged right and reached out, shooting a chain at Laxus.

Laxus leaned right, the chain zooming right past him, the hook embedded into the globe with the three rings. Using the miss to his advantage, Hades reeled it with his pure strength, the entire globe began to get dragged along the floor, making the ground shake greatly. He dragged it in towards Laxus, whom dodged and the globe went rolling in an unsteady line towards Nic and Charizard.

Seeing the globe, Nic and Charizard both let out battlecries as they did a Strength and Dragon Claw combo. The two attacks punched and stabbed right into it, shattering it into small fragments before them.

Laxus went in to deliver a lightning coated punch. Hades foresaw the attack and paid no heed as he extended his arm out, making a shockwave burst before Laxus, sending him flying back with a grunt.

When Laxus found his footing, he felt pressure from all around. He gagged at the sudden pressure and quickly composed when he looked and saw himself in an Amaterasu circle in all direction. "What?! Is that…and Amaterasu formula?!"

"**Amaterasu – Formula 56!**"

"THE HELL?!" Laxus shouted as everything around him flashed. He was swallowed up in a black explosion that quaked wildly, just like when Nic took one earlier. Everyone nearby skid back from the violent winds surging, though was sent flying over Lucy's head.

Dust raged as Hades still had his guard up. "Those swallowed up by Amaterasu lose strength in their limbs, like Nic. Blocking it takes up so much Magic that it can be fatal."

A great flash of lightning zapped upwards and over Hades' head. The lightning bolt surged over and behind, reforming into Laxus. Hades didn't even have a chance to look back before a knee was driven into his back, making him scream in pain. Laxus landed several feet away as Hades fell forward.

'_Whoa, that was crazy.' _Gray remarked.

'_I had no idea Laxus was this powerful. He must be as strong as Nic.' _Erza thought in awe.

Nic and Charizard both smirked, approving of Laxus' durability. "He's ain't no pushover, that's for sure." Charizard commented.

"No joke." Nic said. "He's improved."

"To think, that was only one leg." Laxus said in a threatening tone. "And you know what else? I still got one other leg, two arms, and the rest of me."

Hades slowly got up and his attire was missing a shoulder pad, a gauntlet, and was covered in a few scratches. He turned angrily towards Laxus.

"And if I combined all of my parts into one blow, it'd be a hell of a lot tougher than that one kick."

"You're on my last nerves." Hades warned. "You may be more than just hot air, but your boast is not living up to your skills!" The two then leaped at the other, Hades' fist coated in darkness while Laxus' was coated in sheer lightning. "You can't win!"

"Just watch me!"

Both of their fists made contact, sending darkness and lightning all around with so much force surging that the whole place rumbled again with sounds of thunder booming wildly.

* * *

As the rain poured down, everyone was still worked up about the situation. Despite knowing Nic and Co, went to quarrel with Hades, they were still uneasy with the mayhem transpiring.

Bickslow say cross-legged. "Man, can this get any crazier?"

"Crazy. Crazy." His 'babies' voiced.

Freed turned towards him. "Did you send Rustyrose somewhere?"

"You bet, tied him to a raft and sent him off through a river. We couldn't afford to have our location being blown."

Mira continued to look down, her gaze still uneasy from seeing the three injured. She was grateful for Nic's Heal Pulse, but she still felt very uneasy.

Seeing her sister's discomfort, Lisanna tried to lighten up the mood. "Hey, it's alright. They'll be okay, we made sure of that." She said softly.

"I know." Mira sat on her knees and continued to look on with her hands clenched. "It's just…why does this have to happen to us? They're all hurt, and all we can do is watch as everyone else fights." She remembered full-well of her experience in Phantom Lord, how she was unable to do much of anything but disguise herself as Lucy. This time should be different, for she could use Satan Soul once more. She didn't wanna be idle anymore, she needed to fight.

"We know just how you feel, Mirajane." Freed turned towards her, empathizing with her feelings. "To be honest, we want to settle the score as well."

"But we gotta stay here and make sure the others find us." Bickslow added. "We'll join the fray as soon as everyone meets up here and comes around."

Mira's mood lightened, her smile returning.

Shrubs shook behind them, and Freed immediately reached for his lance. Bickslow and his 'babies' stood back up and on their guard.

"Come out at once!" Freed demanded.

To their surprise, two figures emerged. One was Juvia, and the other was Vanessa, both crawling ahead and exhausted.

"It's just us, please don't attack." Juvia insisted.

"Please give mercy. We just wanna sleep." Vanessa groaned in exhaustion. "And I _really_ like to sleep."

"Juvia?" Freed asked, surprised.

"And Nic's sister?" Bickslow asked. "What the heck happened to you two? You look like you got ran over by a train."

Lisanna rushed on over. Kneeling before Juvia and Vanessa, supporting as they were struggling to stand. "So what happened to you two?" She asked.

"We tried to catch Zeref, but he escaped." Juvia answered sorely.

This news startled almost everyone, getting the conscious' attention.

"What? Zeref?!" Levy exclaimed, standing up.

Vanessa was supported with an arm over Lisanna's shoulder. "Yeah, but we lost consciousness. When we came to, Meredy was gone, and one of those 7 Kin guys was dead." The memory almost made her queasy. Trying to keep her mind on topic, she looked around. Her eyes caught Sophie, bandaged and exhausted.

"Sophie!" Vanessa yelped. She was thinking of running to her, but her injuries kept her supported by Lisanna, leaving her wincing.

"Vanessa, relax." Lisanna insisted. "Let's get you inside."

"I've made an Enchantment thanks to Levy's help. You should be safe when you step inside." Freed said. Sure enough, Vanessa was helped down to rest by everybody's side. She sat back against the large cover over the ground and looked up at the tent ceiling.

As she was left to stare, she caught a few images of herself in remembrance to her brawl against Meredy; how her Magic was revealed. It felt empowering yet tiresome at the same time. _'I've never felt that kind of power before.' _She thought.

She turned her head to the side, looking over her shoulder to see Sophie still recovering. It should be a matter of time before they all wake up.

Elfman was resting, napping as bandages covered him. Lisanna and Mira looked around, seeing the recovery process going well.

A sudden pair of footsteps was heard once more. "Hey, did I miss anything?"

Everyone that was able-bodied turned towards the sound and saw yet another familiar face. "Cana! Thank goodness you're okay as well." Levy happily said.

Cana was still a little banged up, but she was still fortunate to be on her feet. She made way towards the camp, albeit slowly due to injuries.

Freed watched Cana step inside the defense Enchantment. "Our numbers are increasing. Good. I believe all we're missing now is Gildarts."

"I think Charizard gave him a hand in his fight. That guy should be here soon." Bickslow informed. He then turned away. "Man, I never would've thought Nic's crazy party of animals would rough up someone of Gildarts' level."

Cana sat around, slight dejection plastered on her face. _'…Dad.'_

* * *

"So did you find anything?" Carla asked, looking around at the other Exceeds.

Happy shook his head. "No, I couldn't find anything useful."

Carla huffed. "Well, it was worth a shot."

Lily cleared his throat, hiding away the broken handle that was behind him. "Well, on the bright side, at least we know where to not look."

Carla crossed her arms. "True. Let's hope Kecleon had better luck than we did." Sure enough, as if on que, a red zigzag flashed in front of them. Reappearing before them was none other than Kecleon. Happy screamed in astonishment as to where Carla and Lily jerked back in surprise.

"Geez! What was that entrance for?!" Carla shouted.

"Because, I am Kecleon." Kecleon answered, her creepy monotone voice giving everyone sweatdrops. She turned towards the other Exceeds. "I have found the treasure! Let us get the shovels and go dig for glory that is for Fairy Tail!"

"Say what?" Happy asked, not understanding what she meant. If Nic was here, he could translate for her easily.

"Follow me, and steady as she goes." Kecleon tilted her head and lead the hasty trail, with the Exceeds following behind.

* * *

The ground quaked as Laxus' knee hit the ground, exhaustion taking over from that collision from earlier. He huffed as his head drooped down, his clothing tattered.

"Is that the best that you got? I thought you had more in you." Hades said, unimpressed with Laxus' stamina.

"Laxus!" Natsu yelled.

"Hang in there." Nic muttered.

"Please, get up." Erza muttered.

Lucy covered her mouth, remembering the Amaterasu that Laxus had took earlier. _'He was hit by that Amaterasu after all.'_

Laxus panted as exhaustion was taking over. "I've traveled…almost everywhere…" He panted, still on a knee. Hades' Magic began to surround his body, increasing even more. "…I've been over this crazy world at least once…but this is the first time…I've danced with a monster…"

Seeing the struggle and relating, Nic and Charizard glanced back at the other. To Laxus, this guy was a real monster, but truth be known, Nic had already danced with someone _far _more corrosive than Hades. If Laxus met _him_, it would make Hades look like an amateur.

"Get up! Come on!" Natsu shouted.

Still engulfed in his power, Hades gave credit where credit was due. "My, I'm sure glad to realized your faults. Laxus, yes?" He extended his right arm out, where his Amaterasu was forming in his hands. "This is it for you. Prepare to die!"

Hades then fired the chaotic and dark Amaterasu beam at Laxus, who only smirked as time seemed to have slowed down, the beam slowly making way as he remembered Makarov, his grandfather. He remembered how he helped him become inspired to join Fairy Tail, the smiles they shared, the enjoyment of the Fantasia Parade.

"Laxus!" Gray shouted.

"Move! Get out of the way!" Erza pleaded.

Laxus remained still as his fists clenched. He remembered the fight he had with Makarov when his father was excommunicated, how he stormed out of his office. His veins popped out of his fists when he recalled his own excommunication. He remembered the Fantasia Parade, and how everyone gave the Fairy Tail index finger, the thing that he started that became the symbol of Fairy Tail itself.

"This bastard took out my grandpa." Laxus said, the beam closing in. "So I'm allowed to take revenge, right?"

Nic and Charizard's eyes opened wide in surprise.

"YEAH! OF COURSE!" Natsu screamed out, which made Laxus smirk.

Laxus snickered as he glanced back at Nic. The look he gave him and Charizard made them both see the realization and the reason behind Laxus. _'Better be grateful that I gave you this time to recover.' _Laxus then looked back down and began to static all about. _'As for Natsu…' _He charged up even more as the beam sailed towards him at greater speeds. Everything then flashed.

Lightning flashed all about, traveling towards Natsu. The electricity surged as Natsu remained still as he was in shock. _'Lightning?'_

The entire ship shook upon the explosion, quaking rapidly. The Exceeds all fell onto Happy while Kecleon jumped off the wall her feet planted on as the ship tilted just that bare moment.

Nic and everyone else screamed as they all flew in a random direction as everything quaked violently before them. Opening their eyes, they all saw Laxus falling down below to the next floor, the attack leaving a huge hole in the ground that Laxus fell through. As he fell back, everyone's eyes opened wide with horror. His cloak was destroyed, and his clothing was torn, showing his chest. His Magic Headphones were destroyed as well.

Erza gasped. "Laxus!"

"This one's…on the house…Natsu." Laxus muttered as fell downwards, landing with a shaking thud on his back just ten feet below the group.

As Nic and Charizard looked on with wide eyes, their heads turned slowly when they saw Natsu coated in static. The Dragon Slayer slowly arose to his feet as he felt Laxus' lightning power him.

"What's happening to him?" Lucy wondered.

Though shaking to a great degree, Natsu was on his feet and panting as he sparked nonstop. "Hey…thanks for the meal." He said.

"I gave you…the rest of my power to you." Laxus explained below, still unable to move.

"He what?" Gray asked.

"He transferred his power to Natsu." Erza said in surprise.

"Wait…" Gray's eyes widened a little. "Then that means Laxus didn't have any Magic left when he was hit!"

"So the light bulb shared his juice." Charizard muttered, a grin appearing. "Not bad."

"Why?" Natsu asked. "Why did you give your power to me? You know I'm weaker."

If Laxus could clench his fists, he would. "It doesn't matter…he wounded Fairy Tail's Master, a great man." He explained, his voice breaking as fatigue washed over him. "It's only fair that someone with the guild's emblem finishes him. Anyone who hurts Fairy Tail will have Hell to pay."

Laxus smirked at Natsu. "Make sure Nic doesn't show you up. Kick that fossil back to where he belongs." Laxus then closed his eyes, slowly losing his consciousness.

Angry and wanting to avenge Laxus, Natsu clenched his fists tighter. He turned towards Hades. "Okay, it's on."

The ground began to shake as Natsu ignited himself, engulfing his body in flames and lightning that made the ground shake. The air became electrified and heated up, much like Charizard.

"You feel that?" Charizard muttered.

"Yeah, he's combined the flames and lightning." Nic answered, observing Natsu flashing open his eyes as the flames burned and the electricity engulfed his flames. "A Lightning Flame Dragon."

Natsu eyes Hades with sheer intensity. "You're gonna regret ever messing with us!"

* * *

**Well, here's the potentially last chapter of the year. There's a good chance that I can get an update in either on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day. As you've noticed, I made some switches about. I know Juvia wasn't seen until Hades was defeated, but I want everyone present for something very shocking next chapter. I also didn't add the battle against Kain or the other two Grimoire Heart Mages because I didn't find them too appealing. If anything else, I didn't switch up much from the cannon this time. Prepare yourselves for some crazy stuff I have planned next chapter!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoy the battles and anything else amusing and enjoyable!**

* * *

**Next Time: Death's Challenge**


	50. Death's Challenge

Chapter 50 – Death's Challenge

**Happy New Year's Eve guys! It's almost been a year since I joined FanFiction (January 3****rd****), and I already established the 50****th**** chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**, and established 39 chapters in **_**EDventures in Kalos**_**, as well as the OVA 2 remake called **_**Fairy Academy's Light**_**. **

**Guest: Actually, OVA 2 is the only one separate. I'm not doing OVA 1, 3, or 6. However, I do intend on adding OVA 4 and 5 in. For Sophie, I really haven't thought of pairing her.**

**I've also finally got over 100 Favs and Follows, thank you guys for those! Thanks for sticking with me this entire year, and so here's the 50****th**** chapter!**

**To Recap:**

Nic and everyone met up a t base camp, where Team Natsu, along with Nic and Charizard, charge into battle with Hades while Kecleon lead the Exceeds to the power source on Hades' ship. Though they dished out some harsh blows, Hades easily gained the upper hand; that is, until an unexpected visit from Laxus temporarily turned the tide. Before Laxus was beaten, he transferred his powers to Natsu, turning him in a Lightning Flame Dragon.

* * *

**Chapter 50 – Death's Challenge**

The entire ship was feeling pressure given off as Natsu growled much like a dragon. His glare made everyone's hair stand on end as the lightning and fire both coursed all over his body. Hades was on guard as Natsu emanated an extraordinary amount of power.

"What's is this crazy power? I've seen nothng like it." Gray remarked in surprise.

"A…a Lightning Flame Dragon?" Wendy repeated.

Nic's eyes narrowed as he felt this surge coming from Natsu. _'This force, it's much like when Jellal gave Natsu the Flame of Rebuke.' _ Nic recalled how Jellal was lying down, and he smiled as he gave Natsu the golden flame. He remembered the power given off, and the strength enhancement behind his power-up.

Natsu let out a battlecry as the ground beneath shook. Hades' eye shot wide open when Natsu suddenly appeared in front of him, dealing a Lightning Flame Dragon's Fist into his face, shooting him back into a wall.

Natsu gave no time for Hades to recover as he jumped and turned upside-down and spun with a Lightning Flame Dragon's Claw, swinging his kick down onto Hades face. Hades blocked at the second with a forearm and forced Natsu back, but was struck by a bolt of lightning from above. Hades screamed in agony as he felt pain course through his body.

"Natsu can use Laxus' attacks too?!" Gray exclaimed.

Lucy smiled again. "Alright!"

Hades remained standing after the lightning went away and he let out a battlecry, unleashing a glowing chain at Natsu. The Lightning Flame Dragon Slayer jumped straight up and dodged, evading the chains. In midair, he twisted his body and was upside down once more. Hades lunged after him, a dark coated fist ready.

As Natsu's axe kick coated in lightning flame went down, it collided with Hades' fist, making darkness and lightning flames palpitate wildly, shaking the ground.

Everyone watched in awe as the two were at a complete match. At least to what they knew.

Natsu planted his feet onto the ground, Hades landing right in front. Natsu brought back a lightning flame coated fist. "This is what happens to anyone who messes with Fairy Tail!" He punched Hades with great force, smashing him into the flooring.

Hades grunted as pain flared everywhere. He only had time to look back up before Natsu dealt a left hook with lightning flame coated. Hades felt the massive force and skid back harshly, leaving a trail of shattered flooring.

Natsu then jumped above as flames coated his right hand, while lightning coated his left. "You've hurt a lot of people! You'll never be forgiven!" Over his head, he brought them together. "**Lightning Flame Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**" He brought the humungous fireball downwards, lightning crackling within it. An explosion rumbled about as the place quaked yet again.

As a giant dust cloud erupted, Hades jumped up out of it, swinging his arm that had a chain on it. The chain coursed through the air, shackling both of Natsu's hands together.

Natsu showed no visible shock when their feet landed on the ground.

"HAHA! Try attacking with your hands tied!" Hades challenged.

Natsu's hands steamed as he used his pure strength to shatter the shackles, shocking Hades to the extreme. Natsu then began to suck in a huge breath, fire streaming like crazy into his mouth.

Charizard's eyes narrowed. "You feel that too, don't ya?"

Nic nodded. "Yes." He turned towards everybody else. "Everyone cover up!"

"**Lightning Flame Dragon's…ROAR!**" The entire ship rumbled and violent winds raged like a mad tempest as Natsu unleash a massive volume of lightning flames, so big that it could destroy half of Hades ship if fire so.

Hades screamed as he was swallowed in in the attack, his demise flaring before him.

Everyone was sent flying away from the devastating attack, but Erza, Nic, and Charizard all barely held their ground as Natsu's roar raged with that of a dragon's roar itself. The massive oar shattered the entire wall, breaking through and angling into the sky above, barely above Tenrou Island.

* * *

Above everyone was a huge lightning flame that stormed the skies above. Levy covered up as the entire island shook from the supreme force of Natsu's attack.

"Whoa! Look at that!" Lisannna shouted.

"Oh man, that's crazy." Bickslow said.

Vanessa gawked at the huge lightning flame that was extremely large as it passed right over Tenrou Island. "I think I know who did that."

"Natsu, don't die on us." Freed said.

Mira and everyone watched as the fire raged above.

Nearby, walking through the forest, Gildarts looked up and saw the incredible lightning flame storm the skies above, a smile plastering as he realized who did it.

* * *

Surprisingly, just after the roar diminished, the rain in the sky finally stopped, no longer waterlogging everything.

Natsu heaved as his mouth steamed, looking at the broken wall. Gray, Lucy, and Wendy gaped their mouths in sheer shock, Erza smiled, and Nic and Charizard grinned.

"Not too shabby." Charizard admitted.

Lucy slowly broke into a smile, seeing Hades lying on the ground. He was all tattered and with a gaped mouth, not moving.

Natsu smirked, though lost balance. "I warned ya…" He slowly fell backwards into the pit Laxus fell in.

"Natsu!" Lucy picked her feet up and rushed over towards him. She hurried over and grabbed Natsu's wrist, catching him and letting him dangle.

"Thanks." He muttered weakly, his eyes barely opening. "That was close…I don't suppose…there's food in that outfit, right?"

All Lucy did was smile down at him.

'_If I used that much Magic Power in one blast, I'd be exhausted too.' _Erza thought.

Gray grinned. "Finally, it's over."

"We did it!" Wendy cheered.

Nic and his flaming pal both grinned at the other, yet something still didn't feel right for both of them. Nic still somehow sensed Magic Power emanating from Hades. It was faint, but he still felt it.

If observed, there was a pit in the center, where broken trails of flooring converged and lead to the destroyed wall. Several ornaments were destroyed, and Hades was in a trail.

"You feel that?" Nic asked.

Charizard growled, silently stepping forward. "This guy's a major glutton for punishment."

Hades' eye shot pen as his face was covered by a dark shadow, giving him an ominous feeling.

"You certainly are full of surprises to say the least." Hades admitted. His broke shattered the cheer going around as Natsu and gang's eyes darted as Hades with shock.

Hades slowly arisen to his feet. "Well done Makarov. You've raised some incredible children."

Wendy was shaking and stepped back. "…n-no way…"

Hades finally stood up. He flashed a requip of his own, adorning a high-collar cape with dark colors. "I can't remember the last time I had a good beating. That was rather rejuvenating if I do say so myself."

"This can't be happening!" Gray stammered, stepping back.

Hades' glare darted into everyone's eyes, darkly eying them. "I thank you for the fun, but now I must exterminate you."

Erza's eyes were written with sheer shock. "What kind of monster can survive an attack like that?"

Nic's eyes remained demeaning and serious. "One that is unbound by anyone below him." Nic answered. He was well aware of such experience, as his many battles in the past made him be sure to take in everything, and what he picked up was Hades' Magic Power gone.

"Nic 'Luminous' Pularis." Hades said aloud. "I have to say, you seem to show some bravado in your courage, such as Laxus, but it's time you're shown true fear…" Hades slowly reached for his eye patch, with Nic and Charizard tensing up as they began to feel a great swell of power already."

He removed his eyepatch, slowly opening his eye, which was a bright red. "**Demon's Eye.**"

Lucy started to panic in place while supporting an exhausted Natsu. She was very scared as Hades was surging with circling purple and dark force. The Magic swelling was beyond measurement; even Nic had to admit Hades' increasing power was extraordinary.

"You shall witness something you've never seen before." Hades warned, a shadow over his body, the dark Magic swirling around him slowly. The level of power made everyone's hearts race. "Prepare yourselves, for the Abyss of Sorcery. An area of which surpasses your imagination."

"Can you feel that?" Gray's voice sounded broken, as if almost trembling.

Wendy began to tear up. "Please tell me this isn't real!"

Erza's eyes were shaken. "This power is unimaginable." If she said she never felt so much power before, she'd be lying to herself. The level of power of another individual surpassed Hades by a grand margin, and the remembrance of it made her almost tremble.

"No way…" Lucy trailed off as Natsu was on his knees, grunting as he wsn't able to act.

Hades continued to give off a demonic vibe. "I am the heart of your destruction."

Natsu finally gave in and he had his forearms on the ground, panting and shaking. "Damnit! I don't have any Magic Power!" He punched the ground under him. "That last attack used up every bit I had."

Nic looked at Natsu and then back at Hades, his body actually feeling its own heart beat faster. The pressure given off was tremendous. Hades had more strength than what he and Charizard had realized.

'_Kecleon, better be careful. It's about to get uneasy.'_

* * *

Kecleon and the Exceeds looked up at the windows in the sliding doors, being careful not to open them. The Exceeds used their Aera Magic to gain flight so they can peek in and see the numerous Mages inside.

"I never expected so many in one place." Lily said.

"Aye." Happy responded.

"If are that many goons here, then that must mean the power source must be nearby." Carla assumed, narrowing her eyes. "And from the looks of it, behind that door at the far end is the power, just like Kecleon said."

The Exceeds descended and met Kecleon's altitude. Her odd gaze left them awkward, but she wasn't wrong when the power was close at hand.

"Why don't we find another entrance?" Happy suggested.

Lily crossed his arms. "I find it unlikely. Even if we make it around, damaging the power might get their attention regardless. Our only bet is to charge in and storm the room and take down the power source."

"We must raid the island, banish the bandits, and take the glory!" Kecleon announced, small question marks rising over the Exceeds' heads.

Lily cleared his throat. "Anyways, let's take them out!"

They approached, the sliding doors opened. Almost immediately, the Mages inside turned with weapons in hand. Swords, Magic Staves, hammers, a lot of other weaponry, but that didn't stop them from walking inside.

Lily glared up at them, pulling out the broken handle he accidentally pried off earlier.

"Where'd that come from?" Happy wondered.

"How in the world did cats and lizards get inside?" A Mage asked.

"Who cares! Just stop them!" Another masked Mage barked.

"Stop this!" Lily spun and threw the handle, using it like a projectile as it circles around, hitting several Mages before returning into his right paw, much like a boomerang.

A few glints here and there, and suddenly Kecleon slashed through a vast number with her Slash, sending Mages all over the place.

"Stop them!" One Mage yelled. The masked men charged after them, with one swinging a sword down on Lily, but he blocked with the door handle. The Mage backed away. "You're in for it now!"

To everyone's sudden surprise, Lily transformed on the spot, growing to human size. Lily's teeth bared as he let loose a battlecry, once punch sending a couple Mages flying.

"How'd he get so big?!" "Stop them, come on!"

Happy and Carla both used their Aera Magic to keep away from the fight as swords were thrown at them, making them unable to be of much help.

A fellow Mage charged after Lily with a long sword. The swords had a curved blade with light edging and dark red all over the rest. There was a light symbol near the hilt, resembling a music note. The handguard extended over the blade, with a curved-claw decoration near the cutting edge. The 'claw' had a wing-like decoration on its end, having three metal feathers. The part connecting the hilt to the blade curves were that of rectangles in an unsteady line. The hilt was long with leather, having a pommel at the end that almost look like the head of the Fairy Tail emblem.

The mage swung it, but Lily caught it with ease. Using his pure strength, he grabbed the blade from the Mage. "My, how generous!" He sarcastically sneered.

"B-But that's my sword!" The Mage whined.

Lily horizontally slashed the sword, leaving a green trail as Mages flew back. Lily readied another swing, but he noticed something peculiar about the sword as it was swirling green energy. To his surprise, the sword grew exponentially.

"Well this is quite a surprise. I'd never thought I'd find a size-changing sword outside of Edolas." He admitted.

Kecleon stopped her attacking and looked back, tilting her head. "One size fits all." And then she turned back around and jumped back into the fray, her hand-to-claw combat easily besting everyone.

Lily smirked. "I think I'll keep it. I could use a replacement for my Bustrmarm."

The Mage who wield it was against a wall, reaching out. "Oh come on man! I spent four months paying for that!"

"Bring it on!" Lily slashed horizontally, the force sending several other Mages back.

Kecleon saw swords coming at her. "**Thief!**" In a vast blur, she passed the two holding swords, not only knocking them down, but grabbing their swords. She held them up. "Behold! The ultimate butter knives that'll slather you with pain!" She slashed them like she's been using them all her life, given she uses Slash all the time.

Mages were sent flying left and right as Kecleon was seen jumping and throwing the two swords, knocking more Mages down. Upon landing, her Shadow Sneak sprung up, sending many skyrocketing.

Happy and Carla were against the wall, spectating as the two went to work.

"Let's be glad we're not in there, otherwise we'd be a nuisance." Carla said. "We'll wait until they clear out."

"Uhh…" Happy sweatdropped, seeing the endless slashing from Lily, and the Thief and Shadow Sneak attacks Kecleon used, not to mention were spinning and kicking. "This might take some time."

* * *

Makarov's eyes began to twitch as he was beginning to awaken. His groaning attracted the attention of everyone, including the now-present Gildarts.

"Master! You're awake!" Mira happily cheered.

Makarov sat up with the support of Freed, and Gajeel, Sophie, and Evergreen alike all began to arouse from their rest.

"Ugh." Gajeel groaned, putting a hand on his head. "What just hit me?"

Levy was right by his side, tears almost visible in her eyes. "Thank goodness. I was scared there."

"Sophie!" Vanessa cheered as her friend slowly arose.

Sophie slouched a little, yet her body still stung all over. She winced. "Ow. Well, at least pain knows that I'm still alive." She groaned.

Vanessa gave a relieving sigh. "Thank god we're all in one piece."

Sophie looked around. "Wait." She noticed the familiar faces. "Vanessa? Freed? Bickslow? Mira? What happened?"

Cana stood up. "We'll fill you in on the way. Right now, we gotta go help the others."

"Cana is right." Freed agreed. "Now that we're all able-bodied, it's best to get back to our feet and assist in the fight. Everyone, support the wounded and make haste."

* * *

A dark mist enveloped Hades' feet as his glowing red eye intimidated everyone present.

"The Abyss of Sorcery?" Gray repeated.

"Yes, and its power is overwhelming." Erza added.

Wendy was paralyzed in fear, having tears in the corners of her eyes. She'd been frightened before, but this brought back painful memories of Kalos, where Nic was almost ripped into pieces by someone who was beyond Hades.

Lucy nudged Natsu's back. "Natsu, get up!"

"I can't! I don't have any Magic Power!" He cursed aloud.

Nic's fists clenched tighter as he grunted as Hades. Charizard gave a low growl.

Hades' eyes were wide. "In order to follow the path of Sorcery, one must fall into the dark depths that it arose from." He said. "Within, is the Primordial Magic." His dark coated fist clenched. "Primordial Magic, the purest of Magic Power. It feels so close that it's almost in reach, yet so far."

"Primordial Magic?" Nic muttered. "That's what Azuma said earlier."

_His whole right side of his face was sprouting a trunk. "So as to get closer to the Primordial Magic; the very Magic that has been around since the beginning."_

"Within it is a place known as the Grand Magic World, and the key to reaching it is Zeref. Once we have him, history shall forever be altered and the Primordial Magic shall be mine!" Hades' Magic surged like a corrosive veil. "You shall be reduced into nothing before that happened."

Gray's eyes were still wide with great anticipation of dread. "This is bad, very bad."

Hades slowly rose both of his arms, his Magic almost creeping about around him. "From the Book of Zeref itself. **Black Arts – Nemesis!**"

The ground began to shake as darkness enveloped the area, the hue around everything reduced to an ominous purple. As the ground quaked, the debris from the ship began to manifest. Slowly, they manifested into demons made of pure darkness, all having various shapes and size, but all had red lines on them. They all had sharp fangs as well. They all roared, sending chills down everyone's spines.

"What has he done?!" Gray shouted, with Wendy cowering.

Hades' hair was no longer running down his back, but was standing up, his red eye glowing even brighter. "With the power of the abyss, I can create monsters from even the tiniest speck of dust."

Erza's eyes were wide and terror was written on her face. _'Each of those demons is overwhelmingly deadly. How can he control this much power?' _She looked down and saw her hand shaking. _'I haven't felt like this in a long time. This terror, it's unholy.'_

Lucy was holding Natsu tight out of fear, Wendy was near-crying in her hands, Gray was on his hands and knees, but there were two were standing completely still.

Nic and Charizard both just stared ahead, the ominous feeling making their eyes shake and their hearts race at high speeds. This feeling they were feeling, it was great, but…

Nic wasn't at all trembling, and Charizard wasn't cowering like the rest. Both showed no fear. Looking at the demons before him, it only made Nic think to an experience that made him toughen up.

His fear, was being overpowered by authority. Fear itself was something Nic wasn't scared of. The assailant from before, he embodied Hell and every bloody thought that could be imagined, magnified into screams of trembling dread that could shatter the sound barrier, and make it rot until it was reduced to pitch black. The assailant that went at Nic twice, he was so fearful that everyone behind him cowered like they were at that moment. Looking ahead at the demons still, a blank expression plastered him.

He wasn't afraid. The fear he was supposed to be experiencing would be nothing compared to what he felt before Edolas and in Kalos. The man, or whatever he was, was more intimidating. No contest.

Charizard and Nic looked at the other, seeing right through the other's eye. They had the same undeterred glare that showed no fear. Charizard saved Nic, along with the others. Even he was frightened by the fire the tainted Moltres possessed, but yet his resolve was too important, as was this one. They shared the same level of experience, facing Death in its face, regardless of what form it took, and Hades' wrath compared to before was amateur.

They both looked ahead, unwavering as their gazes eyes the demons before them.

"Tremble before you perish!" Hades shouted. "Now die-"

A sudden Heat Wave violently surged, a firestorm swirled as it made way towards Hades, shaking up the ship and swallowing up the demons. They all screamed violently as they were being incinerated just like that, their bodies being charred. Hades covered up and screamed as he also felt the Heat Wave, the scorching blow making him unable to act.

When the attacked stopped, Hades' whole front was sizzling. "Wh-what the-." He was then hit across the face with a sudden Mach Punch, a bone-cracking sound echoing as he slowly fell back.

Time slowed down as everyone there looked with sheer surprise in their eyes. They were so petrified by fear that it made them lose focus entirely. Their mouths gaped and their pupils were filled with surprise as Charizard and Nic landed right beside the other, the latter clad in his Fist Plate attire.

Nic's sleeveless coat flapped as Hades quickly got his feet under him, keeping him from falling backwards. He looked back at the two before him, shock swallowing his gaze. The demons before him began to crumble and reduce to nothing.

As they crumbled and broke apart, he began to stumble back. "No, this can't be. My Black Arts had no effect?!" He exclaimed in shock. He saw the sheer gaze the two gave off, completely opposite of what the others were showing. "You should be trembling with fear! Begging for mercy!"

A small wind blew as the flapping of Nic's coat ceased. "You're right, we should be terrified…but we're not." Nic retorted.

The two began to proceed a couple steps ahead.

"Fear can either force one back or move forward." Charizard noted, stopping his feet with Nic, standing several feet away from Hades. "This fear only makes us burn with intensity that you can't overcome."

Hades grunted, unable to understand. "I don't understand. I am the almighty Hades!" Angry, he lunged forward recklessly. "You should bow before me!"

Seeing Hades advance, Nic brought his left fist back, and Charizard brought his right claw back. Nic enveloped his left forearm in red-orange aura, using Power-Up Punch while Charizard readied Dragon Claw. Both thrust their attacks forward, colliding with Hades' own fist. The ground shook briefly as there was a pressure from the two-on-one collision, but broke apart when Hades was overpowered and skid back several feet.

Nic showed no visible reluctance as his power grew, a shadow over his eyes. "I stared Death in his own face. Twice."

Everyone behind stared with intense surprise and remembrance.

"That very remembrance, it makes my spine crawl, my goosebumps died, and the very touch of his gory claws left me mentally scarred with an ominous, bone-shaking dread that'll remain as long as he's still after me." Nic paused as his tone set a serious mood. "I don't care how much power you have, because I know that'll it'll never compare to the fear and death that that one man could cause."

Charizard's tail hit the ground, making a small thud echo as he brought it back up. "I stared at his face, I was swelled with fear. I could've trembled, but the resolve of saving family drove me to burn away all fear and fight with extreme force." He said. "You'll never measure up to what we've been through."

To say Hades was shock would be an understatement. "But that's…" He suddenly grew angrier, and his Magic began to swell around him. The ground shook as his hair and moustache remained standing up, his red eye undeterred.

"I shall make you regret saying those words you fools!" Hades made a Magic circle and fired a beam that was Amaterasu at Nic and Charizard.

"**Detect!**" Nic's eyes glowed light green as the beam traveled at him. Charizard spread his wings and sailed upwards, dodging the beam. Nic suddenly jerked towards his right, dodging the beam with ease. Even if he did take it, no damage would've been applied. The beam continued down its path, passing the others as they fell out of the way. The beam made the ground shake as it left a hole in the opposite wall.

Nic darted in, with Charizard using Fly above, shooting at an angle downwards as fast as lightning. Nic coated his fist in another Power-Up Punch and the two family members collided with a dark-covered fist from Hades, sending violent winds in Nic and Charizard's direction, and dark winds into Hades'.

All three backed away to gain ground. Hades shot his hand out and a chain went at Nic. Nc used his right forearm to take it, but remained still. "**Karate Chop!**" His left hand glowed and he chopped straight down onto the chain, shattering it and freeing his forearm.

"It can't be!" Hades shouted.

Looking forward, Nic frontflipped after Hades while Charizard went aerial and spiraled downwards towards him. Hades jumped up and away just in time as Charizard's spiral almost made contact. Nic and Charizard continued the same course until Nic flipped onto a spinning Charizard. The Fire and Flying-Type continued his spiral and changed course into an arc, stopping his spin as he was upside down right above a midair Hades, with Nic still on his back.

Nic jumped straight down, shooting like a rocket and driving a Hi Jump Kick into Hades' abdomen, making the old person gag with a gaping mouth as a shockwave spread upon impact. The force left Hades to smash into the flooring below, sending violent winds that made the others cover up.

Upon landing, Nic made no attempt to give Hades room. When Hades had risen from the dust with a grunt, Nic let a harsh grunt escape as he coated his left fist in light blue. "**Sky Uppercut!**" He left a trail as his attack struck Hades' chin, sending him straight up.

In the air, Charizard shot a stream of fire. "**Flamethrower!**" He let loose a very hot stream of fire that even made the watchers below feel exceedingly roasted.

As the attack traveled towards Hades while still in midair, he recovered easily, making a midair counter. "**Amaterasu – Formula 28!**"

The two attacks collided in an epic flash of searing hot winds, shaking the ground massively and an explosion quaked. Everyone covered up as the whole section was engulfed in a melting explosion that completely destroyed the walls and remains of the roof, leaving a flattened terrain.

As the sizzling heat settled, and the dust blew off somewhere, Nic and Charizard were standing twenty feet from Hades, all three giving defiant glares.

"You…" Hades growled, his Demon's Eye not making Nic cower in fear.

Erza was too baffled for words. _'Amazing. He surpassed his fears and is toe-to-toe with him.'_

"Oh man! Nic isn't afraid!" Gray exclaimed.

Wendy gaped her mouth, still shaking greatly. "It's…unreal. This mixture of heat and fear…"

Hades refused to believe that Nic and Charizard alike were beginning to be on par. The intense heat Charizard gave of made the air around wave like water. The heat signified his experience and intensity, and Nic had clenched fists as he stared Hades right into his Demon's Eye.

Hades growled, but a sudden voice stopped every bit of momentum.

"That's enough, Precht."

Hades' eyes glanced towards his right, and on the shores of the island that connected to the flattened battlefield that was the ship, he and everyone else saw all of Team Tenrou present, even Juvia, Vanessa, and Gildarts surprisingly.

"You won't win now that Nic is in control of the battle." Master Makarov warned.

Natsu's gazed went up with a smirk. "Alright. Nice timing, Gramps." He weakly said.

Erza smiled. "Master."

Gray smirked, as did Wendy, despite their terrified states.

"You impudent fool!" Hades shouted at him, swiping his arm. "Makarov, you should've stayed down!"

"Our Master is more resilient than you think." Freed said.

Lisanna clenched her fists. "Give up, Hades!"

Hades growled. "You don't seem to understand!" His body was coated in thick darkness as his Magic continued to grow even more, the pressure actually spreading about. The Fairy Tail Mages' tough talk died when their heart rates escalated and began to become immobile, save Nic and Charizard. "THE DEVIL WITHIN ME SHALL NEVER SLEEP! NOT UNTIL I STAND BEFORE YOU ALL!"

Bickslow shook. "This Magic…it's making my bones quiver."

Evergreen and Elfman's eyes shook as Hades' Demon's Eye was making them feel a great swell of power and pressure.

Gildarts was in shock as he felt this Magic. "This geezer…he's even more monstrous than Bluenote. Just what the heck is he?"

Not wanting to stand around, Gildarts began to get into action but Master cut him off with an arm extended out. "No, not yet." He said.

"What? But Master-."

Makarov up at Gildarts. "I need to see for yourself what the boy and his Pokémon can do. Believe me, there's an incredible power that even I can feel."

So Gildarts reluctantly watched on, seeing the ground shake between Nic, Charizard, and Hades.

"I'll deal with Makarov when I'm through with you, Luminous." Hades warned.

Nic glowed and began to shift into another Plate. When the glow ceased, Erza blinked as she saw that Nic adorned the new Earth Plate Form. His shirt was a clay-like brown, and was short-sleeves, but tattered on the collar and edges. His pants were a red clay color and seemed a lot like a miner's pants. His shoes had become boots that were a light mud color, with darker shades of laces. While his sunglasses were left alone, his sleeveless coat was a tan-like brown with tattered edges. The flames were turned to dark brown waves of mud that went up from the bottom to the back of his thighs.

"You'll try, but you won't succeed." Nic warned.

Hades extended his arms out. "**Amaterasu – Formula 56!**" He let loose a combined three-circled attack that traveled at Nic.

"Try this!" Charizard gushed out a grand Flamethrower, the heat spreading and making dust fly as it raced towards the incoming Amaterasu. The attacks met at the center, making a small flash of light before a rapid explosion spread about, shaking everything and sending hot, powerful winds in all directions.

Hades remained still, but many Fairy Tail Mages skid back from the force. From the dust, Nic and Charizard shot backwards into a skid, both accumulating more scratches.

"**Drill Run!**" Nic clasped his two hands together high above his head and jumped, spinning massively fast like a drill into Hades. Charizard proceeded with flying at the same speed. Hades, still swelling with rage and power, let out a battlecry as he let loose a purple shockwave up front. Nic and Charizard dashed right in, their combined force behind their momentum racing through and meeting Hades' fist with Dragon Claw and Drill Run, making the shockwave unstable. A harsh burst erupted in between the three, making Hades skid back on his back while Nic and Charizard sailed back on their sides, quickly getting their feet underneath to finish in a skid.

Hades quickly shot back up, his Magic enveloping him to no end. He let loose chains and shot them at Nic and Charizard. The two shifted to opposite sides and dodged, rushing ahead towards Hades. Hades lashed his chains in hopes of throwing them off, but Nic and Charizard both jumped above and dodged.

In midair, Nic put his hands together and then spread them, making a light green bone. He then threw it down at Hades. "**Bonemerang!**" The bone spun greatly into Hades. Hades ducked as the bone spun over his head.

He shot back up, making an Amaterasu – Formula 28 circle. "Don't make me laugh! GRAH!" He fired the beam at Nic and Charizard, the ground shaking as it sailed towards them.

They made no attempt at dodging, which piqued curiosity. Then everyone saw the Bonemerang loop around back towards Hades, striking him in the back of the head. He gagged as his body slowly fell forward, his Amaterasu being thrown off course, flying two feet right past Nic's right, missing entirely.

Hades stopped himself from falling forward, his Magic aura surrounding him momentarily gone. He was too in shock from the blow from the Bonemerang that returned to Nic's hand that he was unable to act when Charizard drove his knee into his chin, following it up with a midair tail swing into his gut. Hades gagged as he shot back and fell with a thud onto the ground.

Charizard landed and watched Hades get back up. He sneered. "Tch. He's got some sturdy bones." He muttered under his breath. He then lunged in and attacked once more.

Seeing Charizard approach, Hades shot a fist ahead. "No! I WILL NEVER FALL TO YOU!" His fist collided with Charizard's own left forearm, their strengths unable to break through the other. Hades swung a kick, but Charizard ducked and went for an uppercut. He struck Hades, but he only stumbled back one step and kicked fiercely ahead, meeting Charizard's knee, cancelling the other out. Their hands/claws tried to deliver punches, but Hades' vicious blows that went back-to-back were parried by Charizard's claws, blocking, deflecting, and repulsing.

Infuriated, Hades had enough and jerked back. His Magic enveloped him and a great surge of power erupted. "**Amaterasu – Formula 56!**" He yelled.

"**Flamethrower!**"

Hades' point-blank attack and Charizard's flames met instantaneously. Both let out a yell as their attacks were swallowed up by the other.

The ground quaked heavily as the two were caught in yet another violent explosion that spread great amounts of heat and violent winds in all directions. Everybody skid back and covered up as the explosion even made Gildarts' cape flap rapidly.

The explosion was reduced to dust, with Hades grunting in place while Charizard backflipped and landed on his feet as he was forced backwards into a skid, his right claw leaving a shattered trail in the ground to anchor him. He came to a stop fifteen feet in front of Nic, grunting as he accumulated even more dust and damage.

Hades saw Charizard struggle and his Demon's Eye glowed with such intensity. "Your courage is commendable, but I won't be defeated!" He brought his fists up and his Magic Power made the ground shake greatly.

Natsu, Erza, and the rest still felt themselves unable to move due to no power. They were just gaping at the awe the three were transpiring before them.

'_Nic and Charizard are truly fighting terror. Are they really filled with no fear?' _Erza thought. Her gaze went down to the ground. _'I can't believe this. Nic's still fighting and here I am still trembling. His fear made me useless.' _If Erza could punch the ground out of frustration, she would to an endless manner. What she really hates is being of no help, and Nic always has to put his life on the line to save her and the others. She has to experience this nightmare over and over, being no help and have Nic play the hero. It really made her sad, yet at the same time appeased, because it showed just how dependable and selfless Nic really was.

Charizard winced and grunted as he was exhausted, but no sense in making him stop. He was getting very close to his limit. "This guy's really pushing my buttons." He noted. "I didn't think I'd be so close to my limit after a long time."

The last time he was pushed to his limits was when he fought the tainted Moltres, where his Blaze activated. If he did so here after another indirect hit, the tides should turn into their favor, along with the entire area becoming a living furnace.

Nic's serious gaze turned rather worrisome. _'Hades certainly is harder to take down than we'd anticipated. Kecleon must be having a hard time dealing with the power source, but we can't falter.' _His gaze narrowed.

He had no choice with this next move.

Nic stayed silent as his fists clenched. Charizard glanced back, his breathing heavy as he saw his own reflection within Nic's eyes, as Nic in Charizard's. Simultaneously, their glances widened slightly, as they realized that they both thought of the exact same thing.

Charizard slowly turned back towards Hades, a confident glare emanating. Hades' Magic Power didn't seem to dwindle in the slightest.

"Oh, are you forfeiting so soon?" He mocked.

Nic's Mega Wristband glinted, and he held up high the air, keeping the same pose as a heated wind made his Earth Plate coat flap.

Makarov hummed in suspicion. "Hm? What could the boy be doing now?"

Gajeel, now standing, had a straight face. "Oh man."

Levy turned towards him. "What is it, Gajeel?"

"We all might wanna stand back. Things are about to get really heated." He advised.

Though still wincing, Natsu took a moment and recalled the Mega Wristband back in Edolas. "H-hey. That's that stone that…"

Lucy looked down at him. "Huh? Natsu, what's happening?"

Erza felt a breeze pass by her, one filled with sheer anticipation, heat, and a great force that would potentially arise. _'What is this intensity? It's hotter than Natsu's flames. Just what are Nic and Charizard doing?'_

"Hm?" Hades questioned, feeling this sudden force.

"Charizard, let's go!" Nic shouted, the Key Stone embedded shined.

"All the way!" Charizard shouted, spreading his wings and making heated winds surge.

"Charizard…" Nic brought the Mega Wristband down and tapped the Key Stone. Almost immediately, a great power was flowing as he brought it up. "…Mega Evolve!"

The Mega Wristband unleashed light waves through the air. The light waves waved around, and Charizard began to growl as his body emanated blue light waves.

Everyone watched with sheer surprise as they watched Mega Evolution.

"What is this power?" Hades announced. "What's happening?!"

Everybody watched the light waves connect. Once they did, the lights traveled down towards Charizard until they finally reached his center. He then shined a powerful light as he underwent Mega Evolution. The ground beneath shook and small debris defied gravity upon Charizard transforming.

Gildarts' eyes widened with intensity. "That dragon from before…he's releasing a massive amount of power. Just what is happening?"

Gray and everyone gaped their mouths with wide eyes as the air around them pressurized with increased temperatures. Charizard grunted as his wings began to shape into pointed edges. They saw his physique become slightly more defined and bulky in the arms and legs. His neck grew spikes and his horns sharpened. They all saw the sides of his mouth unleash waves of blue fire, fire that was beyond any level of temperature they felt.

Then the light finally exploded, Charizard fully Mega Evolved into Mega Charizard. He shot his red eyes open and his wings spread out and he let loose a heated roar that made the ground shake once more, the floating debris almost reduced to ashes, and he released a powerful shockwave that made many lose their footing. Mega Charizard released blue flames, intensifying the air around with his roar. The flooring within a five-foot radius was black with char.

Mega Charizard looked at Hades, the blue flames on his tail and sides of his mouth burning to the extreme.

Hades stepped back. "Wh-What is this power?!"

Gajeel's eyes shook. _'You gotta be kidding me. Each time this guy does that Mega thing their transformations get more powerful.'_

Bickslow awed, as did the rest of the Thunder God Tribe. "Whoa, what kind of freaky power is that?!"

"Whatever it is, Nic's Charizard had grown in power immensely." Freed answered.

Vanessa was wide-eyed. "Oh god, so this is Nic's Mega Evolution." She muttered, still shaking greatly from fear of Hades' power and Mega Charizard's.

"I don't remember such intensity, even when Charizard's Ability activated in Kalos. This heat and power he has, it's very large." Sophie said.

Gray was just as surprised as everybody else. "Oh man, just what happened to him?!"

Erza's eyes shook. _'This is just like back in Kalos.' _ Erza remembered in Lumiose City, how that girl named Zetta wield Mega Evolution, and how her Lucario Mega Evolved; but this time, Nic's Charizard underwent it. _'So, Nic's finally using Mega Evolution.'_

* * *

Lily swung the Musica Sword once more, sending several Mages flying. He huffed as he brought the sword back. To his surprise, his Battle Form timed out, and he puffed into his little form, landing on the ground with the sword minimized to his size.

He looked at himself. "Oh no! I'm completely tapped out!" He looked back and saw several Grimoire Heart Mages running after him, holding up their weapons. "There's still too many of them!"

Slash trails were seen all around, and the Mages fell to the ground, weapons flying out of their hands. Lily and the Exceeds looked in surprise to find Kecleon still fighting.

"Whoa! What stamina!" Happy shouted.

She frontflipped and axe kicked a Mage downwards into unconsciousness. Landing on her feet, she looked ahead. "I fight with Nic all day, every day."

Lily crossed his arms. "So she can keep this up all day if she wants. Interesting."

Carla turned towards the others. "This is no time to gawk! We gotta destroy that power source!"

"Right!" Lily and the other Exceeds began their dash through the fallen army while Kecleon slashed and combated through the dwindling numbers, her reflexes undying as she sent guys screaming and hitting the wall.

"Man, just how many are there?!" Lily shouted, seeing the numbers. Seemingly fifty remained, but Kecleon kept on attacking. When a hammer went down, she became invisible, becoming a red zigzagged blur that made everyone unable to detect. She struck down so many in one fell Slash.

The remaining Mages all fell on their backs groaning. Lily and the Exceeds made it to the other side and looked back, seeing how they completely wiped out the numbers thanks to Kecleon.

"Whoa! This is unreal! I never thought Kecleon would be so deadly!" Happy shouted.

"This is Nic's Kecleon we're talking about; of course she would be that fast and dangerous." Carla protested.

Lily turned towards them. "That matter aside, it seems we don't have any interference between us and the power source."

Kecleon reappeared before them, startling Happy. She only had minor scratches here and there, but seemed fine. She tilted her head. "We're close. We just open the door and say goodbye to the power source inside." She said in her creepy, monotone voice.

Lily looked up at the door. "I see, so it's unguarded inside. This'll make things easier for us then."

* * *

"Grah!" Hades extended his arms out before him. "So what if you gained power?" His Magic encased him in a thicker, more demonic aura. "I am the all-powerful Hades!" He let loose Amaterasu – Formula 56. The attack raged ahead, the Magic circles racing after Nic and Mega Charizard as the ground quaked.

Nic moved his arm in an arc as the attack sailed towards the two of them. "Alright Mega Charizard, **Flamethrower!**"

Mega Charizard brought his head back as blue fire began to surge from within. He then brought it forward and opened his mouth. The ground shook violently as he unleashed a grand volume of blue fire at the incoming Amaterasu. The huge volume was as big as Natsu's Lightning Flame Dragon's Roar, which startled everybody. The attack rushed towards the Amaterasu, obliterating it with ease and traveling across the flooring. Hades screamed violently as he was swallowed up in the attack, the blue flames feeling like a scorching incinerator.

The Flamethrower continued its path behind Hades, across the sea and into one direction. Everyone's mouths gaped at the raw power Mega Charizard had, even Gildarts was baffled. A blue explosion could be seen in the distance.

Steam sizzled as Hades' cape was burned to a crisp, and his clothing was torn badly. His mouth gaped as he felt so much pain. His face suddenly felt a heavy, bone-crushing force that was Mega Charizard's knee, a rippling shockwave making a crater as Hades felt his facial bones break. Mega Charizard was still in midair as he twisted and slammed his tail down, striking Hades' back and smashing him into the flooring, making the ground thunder with extreme pressure.

Natsu and everyone gaped. That was all they could do. This level of power was immense, and the heat given off was extreme. How does Mega Charizard wield so much literal fire-power?

Hades arose from the ground, his Magic flaring. He screamed as he punched forward. Mega Charizard easily blocked with his forearms and claws, parrying every blow that went his way, without so much as stepped back.

Hades soon punched, but Mega Charizard leaned right. He then ducked and spun, hurling his right wing into Hades, making him sail back several feet with a crash sound. Mega Charizard watched as Hades lunged ahead once more, his Demon's Eye flaring red.

"You will tremble before me!" A dark coated fist was shot forward, but Mega Charizard caught it with one claw, skidding back a couple of feet as the ground shook once again. Hades' punch remained in Mega Charizard's left claw, his strength keeping him from moving it. Mega Charizard brought his right claw back and enabled Dragon Claw, strong winds surging as he brought it back, making Team Natsu behind, including Nic, barely keep their ground.

"Let's see you use stop this!" Mega Charizard thrust his Dragon Claw forward, the attack slashing at Hades. With his left forearm, Hades tried blocking, but Dragon Claw's power was so massive that the raking of it left a trail of light blue. Hades was caught in a light blue, rattling explosion and shot back, smashing and tumbling backwards to a stop on a knee.

He looked up, shocked. "How can this be? He forced me back just by slashing?"

Nic's eyes were fixated on Hades. "Mega Charizard's Ability becomes Tough Claws when Mega Evolved, meaning physically, you're at a disadvantage."

Hades growled and shot his arms forward. "I WON'T BE BEATEN!" He shot Amaterasu – Formula 28 at Mega Charizard. The beam went traveling at him, and when it got close, he diagonally slashed his Dragon Claw upwards, posing as he slashed through it, nullifying it completely.

Hades' eyes shot open wide. "This can't be!"

"**Fly!**" Nic commanded. Mega Charizard spread his pointed wings and sailed up into the sky, making violent winds spread about as he shot up with incredible speeds. Everyone below either fell back or barely held their ground.

Hades looked down at Nic, still seeing no fear. "I will make you experience true terror before your demise!" He shot another Amaterasu – Formula 28, but Nic jumped out of the way, watching the area he was standing recently get obliterated and the ground shook briefly.

Hades grunted and then heard something like a jet above. He and everyone looked up, seeing Mega Charizard fly straight down, smashing his foot onto Hades. The force of the impact made a ten-foot crater and the ground quaked greatly, not to mention more strong winds that made everyone skid back.

Hades felt a lot of his own bones broken. Mega Charizard backflipped off of Hades and back in front of Nic. Hades got up and growled, but looked as though he was about to keel over.

"I'll give this guy an A for durability, that's for sure." Mega Charizard said. "But I'll burn his stamina away in one go."

Hades swelled with Magic Power, making the rubble near him float. "GRRAAHHH!"

"Whoa! You feeling that?" Bickslow exclaimed.

Mira's eyes narrowed. "He's releasing a great amount of Magic Power. I've never sensed so much in one place."

"**Amaterasu – Formula 100!**"

"**Heat Wave!**" Nic yelled.

Simultaneously, Hades unleashed an all-scale Amaterasu, a huge dark explosion beginning to swallow up everything around him. Mega Charizard roared loudly as he brought his wings back and then forward. Everyone's jaws nearly dropped when they saw Mega Charizard released an ocean of blue flames. The two attacks collided, keeping the two at a stalemate. Everything in between Hades and Mega Charizard was swallowed in an incinerating firestorm. A wall of darkness was swirling with a blue whirlwind that reduced everything around to ash.

Everyone screamed as they were all blown away by the immense force. Nic sailed back into a skid on a knee while everyone else flew back. Heat and darkness was like a hurricane that shook the entire island.

The Heat Wave and Amaterasu both were dispersing, and in between was a smoldering air. Steam and a charred crater was in between the two. Hades was startled and horrified as Mega Charizard growled from the other side.

"But…but how?" He looked into Mega Charizard's eyes. "Just what kind of power is this?"

* * *

Inside the opened door, Kecleon showed everyone the Devil's Heart, the huge beating structure inside protective glass.

Lily put a paw under his chin. "So that's gotta be it. The heart of the ship itself."

Kecleon tilted her head. "I thought bad guys were heartless." Surprisingly, her implication actually got across this, and the Exceeds smirked. "Shall we break their hearts?"

"Yeah!" Happy shouted.

"**Shadow Sneak!**" Kecleon's shadow extended outwards, reaching out and striking right through the glass. The glass shattered, and the liquid inside began to flush out, pouring away as the heart was left to fall like a lump onto the ground, still beating, but very much damaged.

* * *

Hades shook incredibly. "Curse you…" His eyes shot wide all of a sudden, his Demon's Eye deactivating, leaving him with a normal eye. He held his hand over his eye. "What…what is happening?" He gasped, feeling his Magic drain. "No…the Devil's Heart…"

He was brought out of shock when Mega Charizard roared, making the ground shake a little. Hades looked back and saw Nic and Mega Charizard ready to strike.

"This is the power of Mega Evolution!" Nic shouted. "Your fear is nothing! MEGA CHARIZARD! GO!"

Mega Charizard's eyes shot open and he let loose another roar; this time, a flaming burst was underneath him, shattering the ground and making a crater, showing his pure power. He used Dragon Claw, the light blue claws making strong winds like before.

"NICE KNOWING YA!" Mega Charizard screamed as he lunged ahead, the flooring still shaking from his lung. He roared as he brought his claws together, making the Dragon Claw one as he began to rotate, spiraling like a powerful drill. "**Flamethrower!" **Mega Charizard opened his mouth and let loose a spinning Flamethrower, the blue flames encasing his entire being as he was a flaming spiral with a light blue point. He left a ground-shaking trail of blue flames, all shooting out like waves and everyone ducked for cover as the blue flames raged in all directions.

Hades put his hands together. "**Grimoire Law!**" A pure orb of darkness appeared before him, but as Mega Charizard continued on, the orb began to feel super-heated from Mega Charizard's proximity. Hades' power was dwindling, and he was unable to keep the orb intact as it fell apart. His eyes widened when it dispersed before him. _'No, my power was burned away!'_

Mega Charizard drove himself into Hades, a flash of a light blue explosion echoing. Hades screamed violently as he was stabbed by a blue-flamed, spinning Dragon Claw.

Everything quaked as the light blue explosion increased, sending scorching winds in all directions. The ones on the shore covered up again as they felt a burning wind leave them sizzling in the forearms. Gildarts himself was too awestruck to realize how much power Nic and Mega Charizard had.

When all cleared out, Nic was seen grinning as Mega Charizard posed in a slashing pose, the blue flames from the spin dispersing as Hades was seen in midair behind, landed on his back with a thud. His entire attire was charred, and a majority of his abdomen was wounded from Mega Charizard's assault.

As Hades laid on the ground, defeated, the sun began to rise over the horizon. Everyone on shore looked in awe as the sun rose from Mega Charizard's side, giving him a more savoir-like appeal.

Mega Charizard looked back down at Hades, seeing him defeated. He then turned forward and let loose a triumphant roar that echoed, with Nic smiling.

Mega Charizard looked back at Nic, smirking. "Hey Nic…"

"Yeah, Mega Charizard?" He asked, sharing the same smirk.

Mega Charizard glowed a rainbow color, reverting to his scratched-up self, but keeping the smirk. "I think we went too many extra miles to count." He turned his body towards him, his head still slightly turned away. "Then again, I wasn't counting to begin with."

The ones ashore cheered loudly in victory, their joyful smiles returning all around.

"We did it! We finally won!" "That's how a real man finishes things!" "That was awesome!" "Awesome. Awesome." "That display certainly was unmatched, I doubt even we'd stand a chance."

Gray and the others continued to heave, and then the ground began to shake. "Hey…what's going on?"

Everyone turned around, seeing something in the far distance, where the shaking originated. Their eyes widened when they all saw the Tenrou Tree from afar, slowly tilting back up back to its base.

"What the…" Sophie trailed off.

"The Tenrou Tree. It's…returning to normal?" Vanessa questioned.

* * *

At the base, dust blew as Ultear was using her Arc of Time to restore the tree to what it was before Azuma fell it. She huffed in exhaustion.

"Thanks to you all…I have a new lease…on life." She huffed as her Magic was exhausted completely when the tree was restored.

Behind, Meredy glowered with a glare at Ultear.

* * *

Everyone's Fairy Tail emblems began to shine, with Makarov's red, as well as Natsu. Erza's blue emblem shined, and so on. Even Nic's under his coat illuminated through.

"Wait, you feel that?" Vanessa asked.

Juvia felt her Magic return. "Our Magic Power, it's coming back."

Freed looked back at the Tenrou Tree. "Could it be that the tree restored our power?"

Natsu punched the ground, feeling somewhat refreshed. He slowly arose. "Whatever the case, I got my power back."

Gray smiled. "It's finally over."

Erza nodded. "Yeah." She glowed, requipping back into her Heart Kreuz Armor.

Nic and Charizard both regrouped, with Nic reverting into himself. They were so caught up in their victory and exhaustion that they didn't pay attention to the clouds above, still thick.

To everyone's surprise, a hole broke open in the flooring behind. They turned and saw a shadow reach up, and from the hole, Happy, Carla, Lily, and Kecleon popped out.

"Haha!" Happy cheered. "Mission complete!"

Natsu smiled. "Happy!"

Wendy gave a cheerful smile. "And Carla!"

"It was difficult, but with the help of Kecleon we've managed to destroy the power source."

Lily approached by her side. "And from the looks of it, you completed your objective as well."

"Double home run! That's the ball game!" Kecleon exclaimed.

Gray crossed his arms. "I'll never understand her."

Nic turned towards him. "She says that it's all over now."

"Oh."

Everyone converged and cheered, with Gajeel squeezing Lily, Cana and Lucy hugging it out, Juvia fawning over Gray, and much more to go around. Vanessa ran up to her brother and squeezed him, glad he was in one piece. Nic accepted the embrace, and Erza closed in and gave a warm smile towards Nic.

Kecleon looked up at Charizard. "We vanquished the unforgiven."

Charizard snickered. "Yeah, we showed them."

"That was amazing Nic! You and Charizard showed them!" Vanessa cheered.

Nic nodded. "Yeah." He looked at Hades, and the dark clouds above caught his attention. It's as if the feeling from before the fight with Hades slowly sneaked back into his being. _'…' _This odd sensation, like he was being watched, it never went away, and it left him uneasy. _'I still wonder…who was that man?'_

Makarov, adorned in his robe, walked right up to a cross-legged Laxus. Makarov stared at Laxus as the grandson had a scowl and turned away. A light wind blew in between the two as the clouds above thickened a little bit more.

"Laxus…" Makarov's voice was gentle…and then he commenced with the scolding.

"HOW DARE YOU COME BACK TO FAIRY TAIL AFTER I KICKED YOU OUT! WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU?! YOU'RE STILL EXPELLED YOU KNOW!" He yelled with a huge tick mark.

"Geez, you're gonna have another heart attack old man." Laxus warned, his ear being shot by Makarov's yelling.

The Thunder God Tribe all looked with shaking eyes and bodies as their leader was right in front.

"It-It's Laxus…" Freed muttered. The Thunder God Tribe quaked until they suddenly lunged at Laxus into a crushing group hug. Freed being the happiest.

"You came back to us!" Bickslow shouted. Waterfalls of tears streaming.

"We thought we'd never see you again!" Evergreen happily cried.

Freed only cried and nuzzled Laxus. All three were making it hard for him to breathe.

Natsu raised a fist. "NOW! LET'S GET BACK TO THE TRAILS!" He shouted, startling everybody present.

"Whaaaaaa? Are you serious?!" Happy shouted.

Natsu punched the air a couple of times. "The second round was interrupted, so it doesn't count! I say we have a battle with last one standing!"

Gajeel butted heads with Natsu almost immediately. "You must have had your brains fried if you think you stand a chance against me when you're tired like that."

"Uh, guys? Don't." Levy asked.

"Try me sucker! I'm a Lightning Flame-" Natsu suddenly twisted his face, groaning and twitching in place.

"Hey, uhhh, you alright?" Gajeel wondered. Natsu then fell backwards into exhaustion. "Hey! Don't go down on me!"

Gildarts sighed. "That's Natsu for ya. Always going overboard."

Nic continued to look up, the clouds getting darker and darker. He couldn't help but feel uneasy, yet façade a smile so as not to draw worry. Everything around still felt ominous, foreboding something that made him uneasy.

"Nic?"

Nic turned towards Vanessa. "Oh, don't worry Vanessa, I'm just seeing the forecast." Nic looked at Charizard and Kecleon next, showing them their Poke Balls. "You guys did great. Your efforts helped Grimoire Heart face their downfall. Return, and thanks."

Charizard and Kecleon both returned to their Poke Balls with smiles.

"It looks like it's gonna rain." Gray said.

"We should head back to camp so we can recover." Wendy suggested. Everyone then slowly proceeded and conversed.

As Makarov turned away to walk back with the group, he heard Hades groan and stopped.

"Makarov." Hades said weakly. "Why didn't you end me? You know I'll come back."

Makarov continued to look away. "I've learned many things from you over the years." He responded. "As thanks, I'll overlook what you did this one time. You may have defeated me in battle, but you are no match for the children I raised."

Hades looked up at the sky, seeing the darkness that cascaded, almost blocking the sunrise. "My Devil's Heart was destroyed, but Nic and his dragon weren't powered by the Tenrou Tree. How can this be?"

Makarov still looked away. "He has such potential that no one can measure." A long pause passed before he talked again. "Why did you fall to the dark side?"

"I told you. Magic was born from darkness; such miracles brought that Magic into the light. After I retired from Fairy Tail, I began to look into Sorcery, traveling down such path, learning that the overflowing Magic we have, is alive." He paused. "The Grand Magic World; a world that Lord Zeref described was the true Magic. I was so close…so close…"

Makarov huffed. "Even if you accomplished such a thing, nothing would change."

Hades gasped. Laxus turned back towards his grandfather, overhearing.

"If Magic is darkness, I can live with that. If light, I can accept that too. Magic is alive, therefore it grows with the Mages who use it." He slowly proceeded away. "There's no real definition of Magic because it forever changes. It's as limitless as the universe…Fairy Tail is free to use it however we choose. This is what I've learned from you…Master Precht."

Hades was wide-eyed, but slowly closed his eyes as Makarov walked away.

As they walked, Gildarts looked down at Nic. "Say, you and that dragon really kicked butt." He praised. "You know, that guy saved my bacon."

Nic grinned. "I know. Pokémon are quite amazing in their own way…" Nic lost his wording as the feeling didn't stop. He flashed images of the assailant, how he almost slaughtered Nic twice.

"Nic?" Erza asked, making his head turn towards her. "Are you alright?"

"…" Nic looked ahead. "…I still don't know, why that monster strikes fear regardless. His power…" His fists clenched. "Just thinking about it, it makes my spine crawl."

Erza understood. She was terrified as well. Hades was terrifying, but thinking back, the assailant was the real monster. All she did was continue on ahead.

Nic was in a daze. This ominous feeling still crept under his skin as he was left to ponder. _'I still can't stop thinking about him. There's something familiar about him.' _Questions arose in his head. _'His hair seemed familiar, but that disastrous face, and his speech pattern…' _He thought back to when the man spoke.

"_No! Because you are not my concerns! Nic Pularis is my target! Don't you see?" He implored. "Humanity has suffered greatly. There has been a contamination in your nature. There's greed, selfish desires that I loathe. And it's that very aspect that makes your existence all the more despicable!"_

"_If this world were to be created for beauty alone, you leave it beautiful. But humanity's ignorance has caused that beauty to be stained. By creating a new universe, life would be able to be born from the darkness that gave me power. The void of nothing is where everything started, and that's how it must always be."_

Nic continued walking, his pacing slowing down. _'I definitely heard that somewhere before, but I don't know where.' _

The rising sun was blocked off by the spreading dark clouds above, almost as black as storm clouds. At that very instant, Nic's footing came to a sheer halt, his heart pulsing as he felt an intensifying force looming about.

A hollow and desolate wind blew about, the waves down below Hades' ship swishing about.

Everyone stopped and felt this wind. They all felt something very off. Something terrifying that even made Gildarts stop and become wide-eyed.

"Wh-what the-?" Gildarts began to stare fixated and his skin began to grow goosebumps that made him start shaking a little.

Cana was shaking as she was feeling goosebumps of her own die. "What is this feeling?"

Natsu breathed in the hollow air and he regained consciousness. He gasped and jerked back up. "This air…I remember it."

Freed, Juvia, and everyone else began to feel their spines crawl. The waves and nearby forest no longer rustled, as if they moved, they'd die.

The wind became ghastly and went about everyone, and Nic had the worst of it. Everyone turned their wide gazes to find Nic stopped in place.

"Nic…" Vanessa muttered.

Everyone, including Makarov and Hades, began to feel as though they were suffocating. Their heartbeats intensified, and a few members actually began panting.

"What is this?!" Bickslow said, feeling his whole world shake. His breathing was heavy, as the foul, corrosive air was making it hard for him to do anything.

Elfman touched his own throat and looked with shaking eyes. "This air…no, this feeling…it's like I died."

All that could be heard was the sound of a heartbeat, a slow, agonizing one as the air blew, feeling corrosive to the touch.

Gray was shivering. "This dread…I'm so cold, why?"

Makarov turned around, his eyes wide as he was shaking for no reason. "This power…this unholy, bloodthirsty lust…it's pressure is making us feel…scarring dread."

Hades' eyes shot open as his damaged body was shaking. _'Wh-wh-what is this power? It's making my bones quiver. I'm the devil…I-I should be fear itself, but this…'_

Erza's eyes looked back, and Nic had a ghastly expressing. It said it all. Everybody felt their spines shiver violently as the heartbeat in the background pulsed faster. Gray, Elfman, Makarov, and everybody saw Nic's eyes, seeing something some haven't seen in a long while – fear. Erza and Vanessa were seeing Nic mentally freaking out as he turned his head here and there.

"Oh my god…why now…why now?" Nic's voice sounded rushed and unexplainable. He sounded very antsy and terrified.

"Nic?" Gildarts asked.

"Nic?" Sophie asked.

"Nic, what's happening?" Cana asked.

Nic sharply turned around, the wind becoming silent and stiffening. "…_He's _here."

The heart beat pulsed loudly one last time.

Everybody slowly turned back towards the ship, feeling the corrosive, evil energy surge about, making even more shake and quiver, even making Levy and Wendy tear up a little due to fright.

Hades felt this tainted, foul, and gut-tearing evil. Unable to move, he and everyone stayed still.

"Hades you say? The personification of evil?" The demonic monotone voice said, every syllable making some twitch and cringe. "…how degrading."

A haze of pure shadows began to manifest on the flattened battlefield that was the ship. The shadows began to converge into a swirling, thick cocoon. As the silent, ghostly wind died down into thin, suffocating oxygen again, the cocoon slowly dissolved. Evergreen and the other girls covered their mouths in sheer horror.

They saw a pale smirk, and his vermilion slits pierced into their hearts, making Makarov step back in front of everyone.

The assailant's return made everyone hollow, especially Nic. He felt as though his insides turned pitch black, and the slightest blink from the assailant would be nerve-wracking. "…it's been a while, Nic Pularis."

The dark purple aura that coated his body like a veil, just like the previous two times, was present. Hades and Makarov were both feeling goosebumps.

"Oh no." Lucy mumbled. "It's him."

Freed was feeling petrified, as was Laxus. Laxus could barely breathe. "The hell is going on? Who is this monster?"

"Just his presence alone is suffocating." Mira said. "This demon, this pure evil…it's so evil that it makes Hades look like nothing."

The assailant gave a bone-shaking chuckle. "Those faces. Those terrified faces, they're such a welcoming site to behold."

Nic clenched his shaking fists and growled at the assailant.

"Nic, who is he? And why did he say your name?" Levy asked in concern.

Nic hesitated before speaking. "He's the man who's been after me this whole time. He almost killed me twice. He's got the same powers that I have, but on a darker scale." He spited. Everyone looked with shock. "You could say that he's living Hell."

The assailant smirked. "You always have a way to compliment me, don't you?" He turned his head towards Hades, who still couldn't move. "As for you…" He put his arm out, the dark purple aura still coating his body as he floated in midair. Hades was shaking as he saw shadows converging onto him.

"Wh-what is this?!" He shouted, the cold, skin-rotting shadows crawling over his body and forcing him up. He looked at the assailant as the shadows held him up, and he couldn't shake off this dread.

"What are you?" His trembling voice demanded. "I've felt demonic powers before…but, yours is…"

The assailant raised his forearm up a little, and Hades was pulled up into midair, his body encased in a cocoon much like he appeared in.

"You think that your power can be considered terrifying?" The assailant asked. "You were Fairy Tail's Second Master, Master of a guild of light. Did you not think that you should've remained in the light? Switching to darkness, just for power. Hmph. I was once the exact same." He held his hand up. "…I can't believe that you followed down my path…pathetic!"

Hades was terrified as his painful screams echoed as the Fairy Tail Mages watched in sheer horror as Hades was slowly having his head and his arms get sucked into the shadowy cocoon. His screams became muffles as his face and his arms soon followed. Once his entire being was inside, only silence fell.

The assailant gave a pause and his smirk arose, showing his toothed canines. With one grip of his hand, the shadow cocoon imploded, darkness and shrilled screams bellowing as Hades' was killed on the spot, not even his blood remaining as the thick shadows spread.

Everyone's eyes shot wide with horror as the assailant didn't even try. He just killed Hades, and the girls of Fairy Tail, especially Vanessa, had hands covering their mouths, and Levy and Lisanna fell to their knees, gasping in terror,

Makarov and Gildarts were both wide-eyed with horror as they saw Hades being reduced to nothing. Makarov was speechless and frozen.

The assailant watched the shadows disappear and turned back towards Nic, who had a gaped expression, as did Erza and everyone else. "Well, that takes care of the besmirch of darkness. It is my path that I was given. That man chose it, and in turn left you all."

Makarov gave an authoritative tone, despite what happened. "That's enough! Who are you?!"

The assailant gave a scowl as the dark clouds gave his dark purple aura a more demonic feeling. "Who am I? That is for someone to figure out before I slaughter him, and claim this place known as the universe."

Erza and Vanessa turned towards Nic, who remained still with a straight face. They were still scarred with what happened last time. They looked ahead, still shaking in the eyes.

"I'll ask again, who are you?" Makarov demanded, slower.

The assailant paid no heed. "I don't answer that question, for I am nothing as far as you're concerned. I am but a void that is to expand and take life, giving it a new lease. Humanity has been tainted, and I seek to expunge it to start over."

He pointed towards Nic. "I am here because I shall, and this for certain, kill Nic Pularis. He is what is keeping Arceus alive after I tainted him. There is no reborn universe if this one is stuck rotten like it is now."

Erza requipped a sword and pointed it at the man. "No! Your foul, corrupted behavior won't even lay a finger on him!"

Elfman clenched his fists. "If you wanna be a real man, you gotta take on all of us!"

"That's right, and together we'll keep you away from Nic." Mira announced.

Increasing his elevation, the assailant raised a brow. "My, how touching. It's sick. Perhaps I need to show you just what I did to your light the last time we came face-to-face." He moved one of his arms in a vertical oval, making a black aura frame. "Please, enjoy this little clip. I had such a good time reliving it myself."

Team Tenrou all watched as the mirror expanded, and they saw a flashback of what transpired in Kalos. To their horror, the assailant was seen trashing them left and right, and many got weak in the knees when they saw him kill off life in a large area. Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe was gaping their mouths when they saw Nic go crazy, his corrosive vibe so unreal that everyone present felt as though they were there, feeling their spines shiver even more.

Levy and Wendy cried and turned away when the part with Nic's gut getting pierced through happened. Makarov's gaze intensified when that part happened, and many felt their wills gets drain away when they saw Nic get tortured and screamed in violent pain, followed by Natsu and Erza easily defeated.

The image and frame faded away, and the assailant smirked. "This fear I'm giving you, it's just what I wanted to see. The turmoil, the anguish, the blood." He clenched a fist and held it up. "The more you give, the more I grow stronger."

Makarov began to growl, which made everyone on edge as they felt his Magic increase exponentially. "You…you vile creature."

Erza looked at Makarov. "Master, wait!"

Nic stepped forward towards him. "Master, you have no idea who you're dealing with!"

"Stop it Gramps! That guy's too strong!" Natsu shouted.

"As a parent, I must forsake my safety for my children'." His glow stopped, and he put his arms forward. "You not only hurt my children, but you killed before our eyes, you scarred us, you nearly killed one my own children. Those actions shall leave you to face oblivion."

The assailant failed to show shock as he saw Makarov make an orb of light, one of pure light. The Magic Power given off was grand.

Laxus felt the pressure. "Gramps, you're…"

"Now…" Makarov warned. "I'll give you 'til the count of three to surrender."

Seeing the proceedings to Fairy Law, the assailant gave no effort as to run; instead, he smiled, showing his demonic canines once again.

"One-"

The assailant snapped his fingers, and all of a sudden Fairy Law's pure light became pitch black; foul and scornful. The spell burst, making Makarov fall back with a thud.

"Master!" Erza shouted, running up to his side. Mira and Sophie proceeded to go check on him.

Gildarts turned towards the assailant, his glare and pressure rising. "You bastard." He growled. The ground began to shake, and a geyser of white sprouted upwards. Everyone around turned with wide eyes as Gildarts was emanating all of his Magic Power.

"Oh no, not Gildarts as well." Nic warned under his breath.

"The Ace of Fairy Tail, am I right?" The assailant asked. "I can feel the power you're giving off. Wouldn't it be a shame if you lost it? Wouldn't you want to have it forever, so as to do good until your last breath?"

Nic narrowed his eyes. "There's that kind of speech again. Where have I remembered it?" He muttered, looking at the man wearily.

"This power you Fairy Tail Mages have, you use it to help, but alas you cause destruction. There are Dark Guilds that derived from regular guilds, using power to take what isn't theirs."

"I've had enough of you!" Gildarts crouched and lunged at the assailant, making shockwaves and the ground crack as he lunged ahead. His face was full of veins as he went to attack. "You're gonna pay for messing with our Master!"

"No don't!" Cana pleaded, but she and everyone watched as Gildarts let loose a battlecry as his prosthetic left arm shot forward. The assailant used only one arm and grabbed Gildarts' wrist. The shockwave went past the assailant, and he kept a straight face as Gildarts was stuck in place, the proximity making his heart beat even faster.

"What…no way…" He muttered.

"Hmph. I'm not impressed." Gildarts' hand and wrist began to feel a rotting sensation, and the Ace of Fairy Tail began to grunt as yelp as he felt his prosthetic arm go numb. The assailant threw Gidarts to the side, making him crash onto the flat battlefield.

Cana gasped. "No!"

The dust cleared, and Gildarts was seen on his feet. He clenched his fists, though his left one still felt terribly numb. The ship began to shake as his Magic flowed again. He let a low growl escape as he then lunged again.

"GRAAHHHH!" Gildarts let out a battlecry as he closed the gap, but he was suddenly struck from below, and he gagged as he felt Shadow Sneak hit his abdomen, sending him skywards. The assailant dispersed into shadows, reappearing in front of a midair Gildarts, still having his cloak of purple evil forever waving about.

"How pathetic." He said. "You are not my priority." He made and afterimage and it curled into a silver ball that he raised over his head. "**Ancient Power!**" He brought it down on Gildarts' head, a sudden blur engulfing the area before a silver explosion engulfed the skies, sending violent winds around.

Everyone below yelled as they all skidded back a couple of feet. When the explosion cleared out, everyone saw Gildarts lying on the ground, slowly trying to get up.

Makarov winced as he slowly began to rise back up. He grumbled and his eyes opened.

"Master, are you okay?" Sophie asked.

"What did…how did my Fairy Law get vanquished just like that?" Makarov couldn't believe it himself. One of the Three Fairy Spells was vanquished just like that. He never felt anything so inhumane.

Gildarts was on all fours before a purple portal appeared atop of him, where the assailant emerged and dealt a blow onto Gildarts' back, via Phantom Force. The Ace of Fairy Tail screamed as the impact made the ground quake and his spine vibrated in fright of the corrosive beast smashing his back, leaving him in a crater.

"Gildarts!" Cana shouted, worry overshadowing her.

Laxus' eyes saw horror. "I was wrong…"

"Laxus?" Freed wondered, seeing his eyes shake greatly.

"That fossil from before…he wasn't even half the monster this guy is." He looked down, his hand unsteady. "This guy's terrorizing us without even moving much. Damnit."

The assailant turned into shadows again, disappearing and leaving Gildarts to struggle to his knees.

Nic tried to call out to Gildarts. "Don't be a fool Gildarts! It's me he's after! He'll kill you if you get in the way! Get out of there!"

Gildarts turned towards Nic. "NO!" His Magic quaked the ground again, palpitating. "I may have ran away before, but that was because no one but me was at stake!" He turned forwards, his Magic making a pressurized white aura. "This time, I ain't going anywhere."

"Don't be a fool!" Erza shouted.

"Do as Luminous says and get out ya geezer!" Gajeel shouted.

"You should listen to your comrades." The assailant's monotone demon voice echoed about in the air, making Vanessa quiver. Gldarts turned and saw the shadows forming several feet away. The assailant didn't seem at all exhausted. "Gildarts, the only one who possibly has even the slightest of chance is Nic. You have no hope, and will sunder with humanity."

"You hurt Fairy Tail! I won't-" In a sudden flash, the assailant appeared in front of Gildarts, his sudden appearance making him flinch.

The assailant made rings of black and purple in between his hands. "Begone!" He thrust his arms forward, and Gildarts was swallowed up in a ground-shaking explosion of darkness. Everyone felt the force and they all flew back. Gildarts was seen yelling as he was hit in the abdomen by a shooting Dark Pulse, leaving a long trail as he shot back, the Dark-Type move trailing him until he crashed several feet behind everybody else, heinous winds violently surging and nearby rock shattering.

When the raging dust finally settled, everyone uncovered and they gasped in surprise. Makarov's gaze shook as a huge trail split the group apart, and said trail went on for fifty feet, leading towards the end, where Gildarts laid groaning with barely any consciousness.

"Gildarts! No!" Cana yelled. She and Lucy ran after Gildarts to check his conditions, and Makarov and the rest turned back towards the assailant.

The Master's eyes shook in horror. "That's…impossible."

The assailant chuckle, making everyone uneasy. "Now you see? I can slaughter you all, and all you can do is stall the inevitable." A sudden wind blew, one of hollow and remorse as a monstrous power spike began to shake the earth a little. Nic and everyone got to a knee as they were losing balance. Their faces grew with fear as the man's canines turned blood red, and his vermilion eyes turned feral, and his aura thickened even more.

"I CAN TAINT THE PUREST OF LIGHT!" He swiped his right arm, making a giant wave of water rise. "I CAN MAKE YOUR FEARS TEAR YOU APART!" He lashed his other arm, making another giant wave rise in the other direction. "I CAN FEED OFF OF YOUR DREAD, AND MAKE YOU SUFFOCATE UNTIL YOU END UP SCREAMING FOR BLOODY MURDER!"

Juvia's eyes shook with terror as she thought she was gonna suffocate.

"I WILL EXPUNGE _ALL _SICK HUMANITY! AND START OVER WITH THE VOID!" He pushed both arms out to his sides, humungous waves that were as big as the island itself, both pushed the right and left.

Gildarts, still barely conscious, felt this extreme force. "This…this guys…it can't be." Gildarts was feeling true terror as his whole body began to shake, making it hard for him to get up, even with Cana and Lucy's support. "His evil…it's even worse than…than…"

"Hey, snap out of it!" Lucy shouted.

"Guys, we don't have a chance!" Gildarts finally admitted.

The assailant's calm expression slowly returned, his power spike gone and returned to its still horrifying level. He slowly descended to the ground, where his feet planted softly.

Nic's eyes narrowed. "Why did you stop?"

The assailant's vermilion eyes were still striking goosebumps all over Nic, killing them as well, but his demeanor seemed more of a compromise. "I have been trying to be reasonable this whole time." His demonic monotone was still the same, but calmer. "Nic Pularis, I have been given this power, and in turn, I must take the lives of all. But don't you see? Humanity was been sullied. Those who turned good have been cursed with the burden of so many sins to be committed."

"What are you saying?"

"To put this in simple terms, I'm saying that no matter what good you may have done, it is my mission and obligation to take those sins, and send you and those who you love to Hell, where you'll rot for eternity."

Nic grunted and his eyes narrowed. "Giratina and the others are terrible creatures. They're the ones who deserve to be in Hell."

"None of that matters." A sudden voice from the assailant's left broke the conversation, and everyone from Team Tenrou turned towards their right.

What they made their mouths gape. The very reason Grimoire Heart came to Tenrou Island - Zeref.

"I-It can't be." Makarov.

Erza was shocked beyond recognition. "Zeref and the assassin in one place?"

"This is so unmanly!" Elfman shouted.

"So that's who Zeref is." Vanessa said.

Zeref began taking steps forward, advancing towards the assailant. "So you wish to take a life, so as to end all and start anew." He confirmed.

The assailant turned towards Zeref. "Yes. I must seek Nic's blood, and soak in his screaming torture. That is my destiny, and what must be done."

Zeref's eyes were glowing red, yet the weak winds still gave goosebumps all around. His gaze had no effect on the assailant. "So you wish to extinguish any trace of life. The sins completely eradicated from existence. This power I feel, it's completely pure hatred, rotting to the flesh."

The assailant gave a half smirk. "You must be Lord Zeref. I've heard a few things about you."

"And yet everything I have made is completely trumped by this moral hatred that I feel." Zeref looked at the Fairy Tail Mages and back. "And your corrosive nature is petrifying and killing all life at will. You now burden the sin of murder for Hades."

The assailant gave a smirk, his pointed canines showing. "I love sins; they make me feel so alive."

Zeref's eyes opened wide. "400 years exactly…" Winds picked up and he was surrounded by black winds. The assailant raised a brow. "…I watched countless human conflicts, and saw them slaughter before me, but one day, I learned the true glory of life…"

The Fairy Tail Mages all paid attention with gaped mouths.

Zeref continued. "However the more I treasured it, the more this body of mine would steal around me." He paused before speaking again. "This world shall be forever changed, but this evil and vile, it's almost infinite. I can't sense the limit to its vile extent. I hate to admit it, but this foul power you have, it may trump-"

"Let me cut you of there." The assailant insisted, his dark purple aura still thick and rotting. "You don't seem to understand. This isn't about the _world_, it's about the _universe_." He paused as Zeref looked surprised. "Zeref, you think too small. I was given this power to taint a god. That would've been the finish, and yet the lone person known as Nic Pularis has been inherited with the protection of all that exists." The assailant turned towards Nic, staring demonically at him, and then proceeded slowly towards Zeref.

"I was given this power, and in return, I must take the life of everything. If you haven't realized it, humans are diverse into two groups: The ones who give, and the ones who take."

Nic's eyes narrowed. "Wait…I know I heard that somewhere, definitely."

Zeref's veil continued to swirl. "And where are you going with this?"

"I was once a man who would give, trying to give those a chance to look at the joys of humanity. I was sickened by those who took for their own gain, believing what wasn't given to them is theirs."

Nic just stared, contemplating and looking into his memories, trying to figure out where he heard that.

"The same concept is that of giving and taking life. I was given this power, this glorious power, and use it to take what keeps all that is right together. The give and take ratio is unimpeded. Given this power, there was no return, as I shall forever seek the void that shall swallow all that shines, and make it start from zero in the darkness."

The assailant turned into shadows, suddenly appearing inside the veil of darkness. Zeref could not believe what he was seeing. Someone was actually surviving his Black Arts. His red eyes were wide. "You…"

"You and I are much alike, Zeref." The assailant said. His thick aura began to suck in the winds, all corrupted death that he smiled as he took it all in. When it was all sucked in, the assailant smiled devilishly while Zeref stood in shock as the man before him took and swallowed the death, smirking.

The assailant continued. "We both despise humanity. We both seek a new era. We both use darkness to eradicate sins. And to sum it all up, we're both basically misanthropes."

Nic's eyes squinted. "I definitely know someone who's like that, but…" Nic looked down at the ground, a foul and ominous vibe looming over him. "Hating humanity…destroying everything to start fresh…those who give and…take…"

"An era's worth of filth was wiped clean, a long time ago…and now…I shall do the same."

It finally happened. The answer came to Nic. A massive pulse went through him as his eyes shot wide with an epiphany of sheer terror. His head whipped back up and at the assailant, seeing his face, that hair, and the tail.

Nic felt a gloomy and deadly wind pass by him. He was almost shaking, which got Vanessa's attention. "Nic?"

His eyes were shaking in sheer shock. "…No way. After all this time…that's who he is…" His voice was all broken and hollow. "It can't be, yet…it is. How is this possible…"

The assailant glared at Zeref. "When the population outweighs the number of things it wants, that thing can't be shared. People would fight for it, leading to conflicts that turn many against the other, leading to self-destruction. That's why to destroy all conflict, the number must drop to zero."

Zeref's red eyes never left the assailant's. They both stood five feet away, and yet their corrosive powers were at a standstill. Zeref emanated more of his Black Arts, and the assailant widened his eyes as he unleashed Ominous Wind. The two assaults brewed ghastly about, violent screeching being heard as the two death-like attacks collided. The ground beneath cracked a little from the force the two gave off, and soon both exerted enough and died down.

The assailant and Zeref were both untouched, yet their death-like powers were at even grounds.

"Tell me. If you can kill a god, then why not kill me?" Zeref asked.

"It's obvious." The assailant turned his head towards Nic, whose face was now blank. "My ultimate priority is Nic Pularis. He is why I was created, and why I exist. After I spill all his blood, and rip his heart out, I can swallow up everything in shadows, and have you all suffer the same fate as Hades."

There was a long pause, the shrill and foreboding torture still looming about. A corrosive air made everyone feel yet another wave of goosebumps. Finally, Zeref turned away.

He started walking. "If you wish to destroy all starting with one, a chain reaction will be committed, and yet you'll take glory in the sights. What separates us is that you now live for blood."

Another swift wind changed and a dust cloud loomed, in which Zeref suddenly disappeared into. When it passed, Zeref was gone.

Elfman swallowed. "That was scary intense."

Lisanna was still stiff as a paralyzed Gigalith. "Zeref…he was here?"

Makarov's eyes were shown to have an array of horror, revelation, fear, everything unimaginable. "The Great Black Wizard Zeref, being on par with a man of pure evil."

Gildarts was at a loss for words himself. "This man, he's more than a demon. If he can sully a god, then we have no chance."

Natsu clenched his fists. "Damnit. This isn't right. This shouldn't be happening! Fairy Tail is supposed to be unstoppable!"

The assailant turned towards Nic and the rest, hearing their commotions. He arose back into the air, several feet off the ground. His glare continued to stare and make their heartbeats quicken.

"Now, anyone else care to perish before I slaughter Nic?" He challenged.

Everyone hesitated as they were all paralyzed by this overwhelming fear that even made Makarov and Gildarts unable to act. The assailant was just too powerful, for he could taint any light, no matter how pure. Fairy Law and Fairy Glitter would be useless, and Gildarts would fare no better.

A sudden pair of footsteps was heard. Everyone's gazed zoomed towards the sound, revealing Nic with a straight face of sheer seriousness. "No. No one is going before me." He responded.

"Nic." Makarov said. Erza's eyes showed fear behind her stern gaze.

"You get what you want, it'll be me against you – alone."

The assailant smirked.

Makarov and Gildarts both got to his sides, their instincts temporarily overshadowing their fear. "Nic, you will do no such thing!" Makarov ordered.

"That guy's a bloodthirsty monster." Gildarts reasoned. "You saw what he did to me. It's best we all combine and-"

Nic turned towards Gildarts and cut him off. "You heard what he said. The only one who has even a remote chance of stopping him, is me." He turned ahead. "Besides…I know who I'm dealing with now."

"As Master, I absolutely forbid you!" Makarov demanded.

"You don't have a choice!" Nic shouted back, shocking everyone there. "You saw what he did to Fairy Law, and you saw how Gildarts stood no chance. If you guys get in my way, you'll suffer an eternal Hell like Hades did."

"But-"

"That's enough." Nic had it, and his glare down towards Makarov showed just how dead serious he was. A silence fell as the two coldly stared at the other. "It's just me. It has to be."

Makarov couldn't allow his children to get killed, let alone hurt. He couldn't live knowing a Fairy Tail Mage died in front of his eyes, but Nic brought up a point, that Gildarts and Makarov together never stood a chance. Back in Kalos, Team Natsu and a few others hardly did anything against him.

Makarov looked away. "…I may be a parent, but I know when my children need to do things on their own. Go."

Gildarts was ashamed of himself. He was defeated so easily; it was more humiliating than the Century Quest he returned from earlier. He had no choice but to have Nic fight this fight alone.

Nic looked forward at his opponent. "We may have fought in the past, twice, but this time is different. I know his motives, and I realize who he is. I may have a small chance, but I'll take it."

"Nic!" Nic felt a pair of arms wrap around his waist as he felt someone hug him from behind. He was still as he took in the hug of his sister. "Nic! You better be careful! I don't want my brother to die again!"

The plea in her voice made his heart sank, and he knew that fighting would only make Vanessa suffer even more…but fighting was the only solution to end it. He felt her tears on his coat, and her squeeze tightened a little.

He looked down. "I won't keep promises Vanessa. I might not come out of this in one piece, but I'll live, no matter what." He looked over his shoulder back at her, a serious glare plastered. "I'll make it through, but to do that, I need you and the others to stay out of this."

Vanessa really didn't want to. She had Magic now, and she wanted to fight, but even she had absolute zero hopes against the assailant. If what he said was true, then Nic really is everyone's only hope. She trusted her brother to the end; if she didn't now, how could she live with herself knowing that she didn't put faith into him? This was all she could do, for now at least.

"…okay." Vanessa reluctantly pulled away and stepped back. Nic turned around and looked at her eyes.

"I'll be careful." He turned towards Sophie. "Sophie, Erza, if anything goes wrong, just make sure you all keep yourselves alive, especially my sister. Got it?"

Everyone gave slow nods, grimly acknowledging Nic's request.

Nic turned towards Erza, seeing her eyes. He looked right into them, seeing exactly what she was feeling. She wanted to hold him down right there and now, begging him to not go, for if he did, he might die. She would be devastated if he did.

Nic reached up to his V-Neck, grabbing his sunglasses and holding them out to her. Erza looked down with sheer surprise. "Erza, I know what you're thinking. You gotta trust me. I trust you with my sunglasses, can you do the same?"

Looking down at the sunglasses. Erza saw that she didn't necessarily have any choice. She looked back up at Nic and gave a slow nod.

"Good." He placed his sunglasses gently into her armored hands, slowly grabbing her fingers and curling them over the handles. "Hang onto them, this will get very rough." Nic then began turning his back and started his way towards the assailant.

Erza's grip on Nic's sunglasses tightened. She knew Nic would take his phone and earbuds to his own grave, but the sunglasses were more than enough for her. The object that shield's Nic's eyes.

"Good luck." Sophie said.

"Better leave a good mark for Fairy Tail's sake." Laxus said.

"Show him what a real man you are." Elfman said.

Makarov stepped forward, Nic stopping as he heard Makarov's footsteps. "Nic, no matter what, Fairy Tail has your back. You are never alone."

There was a silence as the foul air and dark sky gave little twitches in Nic's fingers, so he balled them up in anticipation. "Unfortunately Master…" He looked back at Makarov. "…I have to be." He turned ahead and then proceeded towards the battlefield.

Everyone present watched on as Nic stopped at the edge of the island, on step away from getting back onto the flattened scrap of a ship. He stood at least twenty feet away from the assailant with vermilion eyes.

"So, it's come down to the chosen ones; the last light against the eternal darkness." The assailant said. "The light which shall be ripped in pieces, his death marking the start of the void."

Nic ignored his passive speech and spoke. "I've lasted long enough, and I've finally put the pieces together. The deaths, the humanity, everything. I know who you are."

The assailant looked amused, yet kept a straight face. "Is that so?"

Nic nodded. "It took a while, but it all made sense when I realized I heard those phrases in a different time. Only one person talked so bitterly yet nobly of humanity." The assailant remained silent as a long pause took over, the anticipation making everyone's heart beat like crazy. "It's been a long time…Lysandre."

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**Here's the last chapter of 2015, hope you all enjoyed the sheer cliffhanger I gave ya! I bet you all are shocked beyond recognition, but answers will come in the next chapter. I hope the fights this chapter were appeasing, the next one should be out in a week, more or less.**

**I hope you guys are okay with the changes I've made compared to the anime, and leave a Review or comment with the assailant reappearing made your skins crawl, because that's the feeling I was trying to display.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love and admire the creativity I convey.**

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**Next Time: Sea of Nostalgia**


	51. Sea of Nostalgia

Chapter 51 – Sea of Nostalgia

**Well guys, this chapter is one to be remembered, because not only is it a mind-scarring one, but it marks the 1-Year anniversary of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**. It's been one year since I've made this story, and I've already established 51 chapters. Happy anniversary to this story!**

**FOREWARNING: This chapter will contain graphical scenarios that involve blood, so reader discretion is advised.**

**To Recap:**

As the battle with Hades escalated, Natsu dealt powerful blows with his Lightning Flame Dragon Mode, but used up all of his Magic Power. Once Hades used Demon's Eye, everyone but Nic and Charizard were scared, and the two fought by themselves against Hades. Meanwhile, Lily acquired a special size-changing sword known as the Musica Sword, and he and Kecleon took out the rest of the goons and stopped the Devil's Heart, which is the source of Hades' Magic. Team Tenrou made it in time to witness Nic having Charizard Mega Evolve into Mega Charizard, ultimately defeating Hades. As everyone rejoiced, the Tenrou Tree grew back thanks to Ultear. As everyone walked away from the ship, Nic felt an ominous feeling, and the assailant arrived, killing Hades. The assailant easily defeated Makarov's Fairy Law and Gildarts without trying, and his sudden conversation with Zeref sparked an epiphany within Nic. Seeing no choice, Nic takes on the assailant, who he found out was Lysandre.

* * *

**Chapter 51 – Sea of Nostalgia**

Everyone around were given astonished expressions, if not scared. Many blinked with shrunken pupils at the fact Nic realized just who the assailant was.

The demonic figure floating above gave a straight face, glaring down at Nic, whom returned the expression. The silence in between them was long, suspenseful, and filled with questions that never arose.

Finally, the assailant smirked. "Well, you're as sharp as ever. I gotta give credit where credit is due." He answered.

Nic's eyes narrowed. "Lysandre, what happened to you? How did you mutate into something so vile and inhumane?"

"Wait, Nic knew him _before _he was that thing?" Gray asked.

Vanessa looked confused. "Lysandre? I think I've heard of him. He made the Holo Caster back in Kalos a few years back, but the announcement and action of trying to destroy the world was thwarted. Apparently anyone who wasn't Team Flare would've been eliminated if not for an unknown person who fled in the aftermath. That was you?!"

Nic looked over his shoulder towards his sister. "Yeah, it was me." He looked back at Lysandre. "The whole place came down so I had to get out. I wondered what happened you him. Looks like this is the result."

"They never found his body; they presumed Lysandre dead." Vanessa informed.

Lysandre scoffed faintly. "…more or less."

Everyone turned towards him in surprise.

He pointed towards Nic. "Do you really want to know how I became this?" He asked. "You know what happened? How about I debrief you from the beginning!" His monotone and demonic voice escalated a little at the last two lines. He swiftly moved his right arm in a vertical oval and another dark aura frame emerged.

Slowly, an image became clear, and all of Team Tenrou saw the aftermath of Nic's final battle with Lysandre.

"It began after your Mega Charizard defeated my Mega Gyarados…"

_The entire room was a disaster; flames were all around from the heated battling, any and all equipment round was tarnished and dismembered, the walls were severely cracked, craters embedded the ground in between Nic and Lysandre._

_Lysandre's flying equipment lost power and fell to the ground, and he threw his orange gasses in an angered fit. He looked down at the ground with clenched fists, his defeat before him. "I…lost."_

_Nic panted as Charizard was covered in scratches and scrapes, his quarrel with Mega Gyarados leaving him drained and exhausted. Through it all, the two gave hardened glares at the defeated Team Flare Boss. On any normal victory, they'd both smile back and fist bump, but they were still on guard._

_Lysandre screamed. "WRAGH!" This caused Nic and Charizard to stay defensive. He looked at the ground once more. "This world has no hope. The useless will overpopulate, and we shall all squabble over the remains of hope."_

_Nic walked right up to his Charizard's side, looking up at him and back at Lysandre. "You still don't get it."_

_Lysandre looked back up towards Nic._

"_No matter what you try to achieve, you can't take it in all by yourself. The only reason Mega Evolution was possible for you was because Gyarados shared his power with you."_

"_(As to where I share my power, Nic shares his with me. This world would be fine as long as we unite to give way to a healthy lifestyle through cooperation.)" Charizard reasoned._

_The contraptions on his back got airborne once more, and Lysandre still had bitterness on his face. "If so, then wars would've ended long ago. There's only one future left for us all!"_

"_Lysandre…"_

"Little did the two of us realize, at the time, Giratina felt the negative flow, and watched over us the entire time." Lysandre commented. "The negativity generated was what compelled Giratina and the others to take quite an interest…"

_Lysandre raised a fist. "The weapon before us, you tarnished it! The two Legendary Pokémon took most of their power back, but I shall at least show the world of what can and what should've happened! LAUNCH THE ULTIMATE WEAPON!"_

_Nic grunted. "Damnit! We gotta get out of here! Now!" He hopped onto Charizard's back as the entire placed shook violently. Lysandre screamed as the quaking escalated._

_The enormous crystal flower in the center of Geosenge Town had majestic petals like any flower, and the red center began to glow with great power, one that may very well rival an Etherion blast._

_The clouds in the sky swirled and darkened to a great extent. The whole sky was swirling darkness as the petals rose up, converging onto the red tip. Once charged, the petals dropped down, making a powerful earthquake and a demonic-red beam was unleashed, highly potent in energy. As the beam was fired, a heinous shockwave._

_An image of the world was seen, and the dark shockwave spread over a small area. The beam shot into space, reaching a certain point before sending a few sparks of red around before the kinetic energy was at its peak. It then descended straight down, shooting through the atmosphere like a meteor._

_The beam shot right down onto the crystal flower in the middle of Geosenge Town. There was not only a shockwave of extreme dust that spread about all over Geosenge Town, but there was almost another shockwave of rainbow colors and dark red, spreading about rapidly._

Lysandre twisted his face evilly. "That shockwave was the result of the positive and negative energies colliding, in which the shockwave was so potent of negative energy discharging, that there was a small break in the seal placed on the four. It was but for a few seconds, and the window was extremely small…"

_The land shook violently above, and the Ultimate Weapon began to sunder downwards, rocks and debris falling down where Lysandre was. Nic and Charizard escaped out from where they came, flying through the halls and having little time before the whole lab would be destroyed._

_Lysandre was still in the room and he looked up with horror at the demise that was falling rock and the Ultimate Weapon crashing down onto him. He screamed one last time before the rocks and the weapon all fell, and there was an explosion that rattled the entire ground and all of Coastal Kalos._

_Everything was black for Lysandre, and he felt nothing as his body was under the debris, barely swallowed up by the explosion before a small, dark portal emerged, suddenly pulling him in. The portal closed, and the entire area was engulfed in an explosion. The last thing seen of the image was Nic and Charizard bursting out of the HQ entry way, screaming for their lives as the explosion widened, barely escaping._

"That small window was all Giratina needed. He saw the darkness through my actions, and had Hoopa pull me into the void they were in."

They all saw an image of pitch black, hollow and deprived of life. They all then caught sight of Darkrai, Mewtwo, Hoopa, and the image of Giratina rattled their spines so much they almost lose balance. Though it was just an image, they felt the rotting bloodlust the four possessed.

_Giratina's serpentine form looked down at what Hoopa dragged in. Lysandre's entire body was unrecognizable, and his clothing that tattered, blood everywhere, his body almost reduced to a lifeless corpse._

_Darkrai turned towards Giratina. "Giratina, this human is dead."_

_Mewtwo looked savagely at Lysandre's corpse, seeing the blood and making his nerves twitch. "The savage force he created…the blood that would've been vaporized…"_

_Hoopa steamed. "GAH! If only that window of life-death energy was longer-"_

"_No." Giratina's cold, malevolent voice silenced Hoopa almost immediately. The three looked up towards Giratina, his Hell-like eyes seeking ambition as he stared down at the corpse. "This is the only opportunity we needed."_

_Hoopa tilted his head. "Heh?"_

"_Debrief me, if you would." Darkrai requested._

_Giratina's face drew closer to Lysandre's body, looking down at him. Any human would've died if they looked into Giratina's eyes, full of turmoil and ferocity. A cold stare was given._

"…_Yes…yes." Giratina muttered, slowly retracting his head after examination. "This human, he loathed humanity, as we all loathe it to the bitter core. I see it, the twisted darkness that his heart bears."_

_Mewtwo clenched his fists, shaking. "This potent force he activated. We felt it, and he generated that."_

"_If he could use such a weapon to destroy Kalos, and the world…" Darkrai trailed off, an ominous vibe given off._

"_AHA! Then that means he can make any power into a weapon!" Hoopa concluded._

"_Including ours."_

_The three turned once again towards Giratina, epiphanies emerging._

_The Legendary of Antimatter continued. "We may not be able to exact revenge on Arceus directly anymore, but this human is our ticket to indirectly kill that god. Once we embed our power into him, his soul will be corrupted into the most horrid being that even gods will never have a chance."_

"_Yes, I see it." Darkrai clenched a fist. "With him as the vessel of our powers, not only shall he be given new life as an incarnated Armageddon, but with Arceus dead, the void shall spread, and we shall create our universe from the wretched darkness it came from."_

"_We were so close last time. Our power almost bringing Arceus down." Hoopa reminded them. "But with all of our powers in this man known as Lysandre, not only will they intensify with the unstable combination, but it'll rot and change his soul into something glorious."_

_Mewtwo looked on with savage eyes. "Yes, a purely savage heart, whose soul is but of blood and darkness; a void that must be filled with satisfaction of death and retribution."_

"_Then it's decided. We'll engrave Lysandre with the gift of darkness." Giratina announced. "This shall be a win for all. We get a new universe, and he exterminates humanity. Only the strong shall survive, and violence and squabbling is the key, as it has been since the dawn of humanity…"_

_Giratina and the three others closed their eyes, and their individual corrosive energies coated them all in a dark aura, one that could've sucked the life of anything close. The four energy clouds narrowed and seeped into Lysandre's corpse. His entire being swallowed in a cloud of enclosed, pure evil._

_Their gazes were sheer destruction to the soul, fixated and filled with ambition. Their dark aura turned darker, and they saw blood red seeping from the cloud Lysandre was in. They soon stopped once they've used all of their power they've accumulated, and looked exhausted as the cloud diminished._

_They got the image they wanted, and this gave Hoopa a smirk._

_Lysandre's entire body was back to being in one piece, but was completely pale, and his appearance and all was just as it was in present time._

"_Can you feel that? This potent and rotting energy…" Mewtwo's quieted voice sounded anxious. "…it's even more deadly than we thought."_

"_Hell itself woul be given an eternal nightmare. This is the coming of a new dawn." Darkrai said. "Given our powers, he can easily escape this seal and finish off Arceus."_

"_Oh boy! I can't wait!" Hoopa cheered._

"_SILENCE!" Giratina shouted, his dark, demon-like voice silencing the darkness around. He glared down at Lysandre's new form and power. "Yes, all of the mentioned is true. With Hoopa's powers, and not under Arceus' seal, he shall indeed slowly finish him in an agonizing pain. His heart…I feel the monstrosity that he really is. We just keep him here so he'll be potent and ready for the right time…"_

The image faded, and Lysandre looked down at the shocked individuals. Nic was personally gazing with a horrified expression that had remorse written all over it.

Gildarts was staggering, almost tripping from the feel of those four individual energies from the image. "That power…even Acnologia wouldn't stand a chance." He muttered under his breath.

Lysandre gave a scowl towards Nic. "So now you see why I am, what I've become?" He asked demonically. "You see, humanity disgusts me. You have no idea how alive I felt, to be given a chance at redeeming what I lost my chance at." He looked at his own hand, clenching it. "I sought to change the world, to make it beautiful. I may have been noble, such chivalry got me nowhere. If you remember, I was the chosen one that was to change the future…and you desecrated that idea. You took the chosen one ideal into your own hands, keeping the world as a wretched place. I was humiliated. It was me against humanity, and you swept the rug and left me to fall on the floor that is wretched defeat."

Nic swallowed at Lysandre's claim, his eyes still narrow with nervous suspicion. "So, are you actually dead?"

Lysandre kept a straight face. "Yes and no. My soul was still trapped in my corpse at the time, and the Legendaries merely gave me a new being. You can say I'm un-dead, or reincarnated."

"More like a corrupted soul in a corpse." Nic said bluntly.

"Corrupted? Oh no, this is who I really am. I embody what humanity has left hindered. I am humanity's darkness that shall be its end."

Erza looked uneasy the entire time. "So, that's how he became so vile."

"Those four. Their energy was the darkest I've ever felt." Wendy shivered and tears scrolled down her face.

"How appalling are they?" Evergreen wondered. "This vile hatred is not even hatred, it's pure evil and beyond demon."

Lucy looked astonished. "How can something like them be so cruel?"

"And so." Lysandre said, getting their attention. "Now you see. With this power, not only will I erase humanity, but everything else. My Masters and I shall have what we all desire; a beautiful void in which darkness shall shape eternity."

Nic looked down at the ground, his fists clenching. He was silent as he thought back to when he and Charizard escaped, leaving Lysandre to 'die', only to find out that his soul was morphed and barely saved by the Dark Legendaries.

"Damnit." He said faintly. "This is all my fault. If I had gotten Lysandre, this wouldn't have happened."

"Master Hoopa would've pulled me out in the first place." Lysandre argued. "What you believe is far from the truth. My Masters made me the chosen one once more, and we would have our way, no matter what."

Nic looked up, discouraged. In a way, Lysandre was right. No point in arguing. What's done is done, and now it was all up to Nic to fix this.

Nic huffed to relax and compose, though it was barely possible with the horrid air all about, sending shivers down everyone's petrified spines. The past wasn't the issue, so he had to stay focus on the present.

Seeing that there was nothing more to say, Nic twitched his fingers and furrowed his brow. The dark clouds above had set the darkened mood as the two were anticipating the other. Everyone looked with worried and nervous expressions as the pressure intensified.

Erza held onto Nic's sunglasses like her life depended on it. "Nic…" She muttered.

"It appears we're at a difference of opinion once more." Nic announced. "You say that I'm a chosen one, but you are as well."

"Yes, and only one can shape the entity of all life." Lysandre concluded. "…Now, you ready to experience a more suitable demise than last time?"

"You'll try." Nic glowed, shifting into his Stone Plate Form. His hardened glare went head-to-head with Lysandre's Satan-like gaze. "But you'll fail."

Lysandre's expression grew amused. "Did you forget? You lost twice, and there is no luck in this third try, because I already killed every luck possible."

"Your soul became pure evil. You're a hollow and deadly void. And so…" Nic reeled back a fist, tightening it. "I'll have to deal with that void, like I did with you two years ago!"

Nic's fist reached the edge of the shore grounds, the punch indicating the fight's begun.

"**Stone Edge!**" Giant rock pillars jutted out of the ship flooring, heading towards Lysandre. The entire ship shook with every pillar shooting out.

Lysandre narrowed his eyes. "**Barrier.**" A wall was made in front of him as he reached out, which increased his Defense. The Stone Edge made impact with the Barrier, making a ripple upon impact, but the Barrier remained unmoved. "I know you're just warming up."

"The opposing ideal is mutual." Nic stood back up and put a foot onto the pillar in front. He jumped up on top and began frontflipping from hands to feet on the pillars, leading up to Lysandre. When he jumped with his hands when close enough, he was at elevation with Lysandre. "**Smack Down!**" Above his head, his hands generated a golden orb in an orange aura in between. He threw it while still in midair. Smack Down traveled through the air, but Lysandre changed into dark shadows, having the Smack Down pass by.

Lysandre reemerged several feet away, putting his hands together and making a black and purple sphere in between his hands. "You're pathetically sloppy, Nic! **Shadow Ball!**" He threw the sphere towards Nic, the overwhelming dread increasing.

Nic made a brief landing on a stone pillar only to jump off and had the Shadow Ball bore and smash through all of the Stone Edge pillars, making a violent rumble and fragmented stones flew in all directions. Everyone covered up as dust and small rocks blew in their direction.

Nic landed on the wrecked ground and swiped his arm. "**Rock Slide!**" Ripples appeared above Lysandre and large, gray rocks began to fall out from the ripples down onto him.

Lysandre didn't even seem fazed. He glanced up and saw the incoming attack. With one swift motion of his arm, he let loose an Ominous Wind. The Ghost-Type move hollered and shrieked as it went through the area, sounding like an attack that came from the dead. The incoming rocks all shattered into dust, and as the Ominous Wind spread, Nic stomped, making a thick rock jut out from in front. The purple wind hollered and went through like a tidal wave, shattering the rock and sent Nic flying back. Nic grunted loudly as the remaining Ominous Wind went past him, making everyone sail back several feet and any grass or insect life in the proximity withered and reduced to nothing.

Nic got his hands underneath and backflipped back to his feet. Seeing as how he needed a different approach, he glowed and shifted into the Sky Plate. Lysandre let loose a Psybeam attack, which streaked its way after Nic. Nic flapped his wings and ascended quickly, avoiding the blue explosion below.

At equal elevation, Nic kept a nervous yet determined glare. He knew all too well Lysandre was toying with him. It'd be only a matter of time before he would use his full power.

"**Aerial Ace!**" Nic darted for Lysandre with blinding speeds.

"**Quick Attack!**" Lysandre was outlined in blue, and in a sudden blink of an eye, his dark purple aura-covered self beamed towards Nic, a fist meeting his chest and he faltered downwards. Lysandre smirked evilly. "Don't tell me that you're done already! Rot!" He made an array of black and purple in his hands. He shot Dark Pulse downwards, tailing Nic as he fell.

Nic's eyes opened and twisted his body so as to fall on his belly. He flapped just mere feet from the ground and soared at a low altitude as Dark Pulse shot and trailed from above, rumbling the entire area and having a black and purple explosion tail Nic.

"What heinous power!" Makarov commented as he covered up from the shockwaves of the Dark Pulse.

Nic made a 90 degree turn straight up to avoid the Dark Pulse and twisted his body once more so as to face Lysandre. "Lysandre, you were once a noble man, now look at yourself! You're a great shame to anyone! **Air Slash!"**

His wings glowed and he flapped them, releasing light blue sawblades of compressed air. They went after Lysandre, but Nic flapped and darted right for him while the Air Slash went slicing through the air.

"**Drill Peck!**" A glowing peak-like protrusion took place of Nic's mouth as he rotated like a drill at the Air Slash's speed. The nearby sawblades began to circle Nic as he spun, making him a drill with sharp blades around him.

Lysandre whisked himself to the side as Nic ploughed through, but missed. Though Lysandre wasn't safe as the circling Air Slash assaults continued to rotate around, grazing Lysandre as Nic passed by. Lysandre kept a straight face as he hardly felt much of anything.

Nic stopped spinning and turned around, only to find Lysandre morphing into corrosive shadows. He suddenly appeared in front of Nic, looking into his eyes. The air around was cold for Nic and Lysandre was too fast and grabbed his throat with one arm. Nic gagged as Lysandre's dark purple and life-destroying proximity as making him suffocate, making the foul air around him pant. Lysandre smirked evilly and plummeted down below, pushing Nic down in front of him. Nic gagged loudly when he smashed into the ground, making boarding fly in all directions.

Wendy and Lucy gasped, while Gildarts and many more clenched their fists as they shook and their hearts raced.

From the flying dust, Lysandre ascended quickly and looked down. He swiped his arm, the small motion making any and all dust below reduce to nothing. Nic was seen grunting as his throat was more than a little bruised and he coughed a little as he sat back up, quickly getting to a knee. "The fun hasn't even begun to start." Lysandre grinned, showing his canines and swiped an arm, foul black aura with purple outlining, via Shadow Claw.

'_Damnit. I gotta stop fooling around and get serious.' _Nic thought. _'Defensive tactics and aerial tactics were futile, so I have no option but to go for Type advantage!' _He glowed once more, shifting into his Draco Plate.

Lysandre shot downwards with a heinous smile. "Try and stop me! You know I'll catch up in any way possible!"

Nic grunted and crouched. He spread his arms out and used Dragon Claw, the attack on both arms. "Try and stop this! **Dragon Pulse!**" Nic gathered multicolored energy and he pivoted as he spun with Dragon Claw in a full circle. The multicolored draconic energy spiraled, and with Dragon Claw's momentum added into the spin, a spiraling multicolored slash twisted into the air above Nic, shaking the earth beneath.

The attack ravaged through the foul space above, striking Lysandre and refraining him from advancing downwards. He grunted as he felt the great force of both attacks working like before. "Another combination attack!"

Nic balled his fists and looked up as the attack began to dial down. He struck hard and fast. "**Dragon Rush!**" He surrounded himself in draconic energy and shot straight up through the spiral, hitting an immobile Lysandre and making him yelp as an explosion and smoke erupted upwards.

"Alright!" Lucy shouted. Everyone cheered for Nic with that successful attempt.

"That's the way!" Natsu shouted.

Lysandre escaped the smoke cloud by turning into his corrosive shadow, whisking himself a far distance towards the left. He reemerged and looked slightly irritated. "You'll have to do better than that! **Swift!**" Lysandre swiped his arm, and yellow stars in golden sparkles materialized in front, shooting at the smoke cloud.

Nic emerged from the bottom of the rising smoke and shot straight downwards. When close to reaching the ground, he broke into another 90 degree turn and flew at an alarming rate after Lysandre as Swift rained down after him. Nic let out as draconic roar as he initiated Dragon Claw as he flapped and gained greater speed. He shifted about and slash once and twice as he dove in through the Swift, maintaining a course for Lysandre. After slashing the last star, having sustained minimal scratches, Nic gave one last flap and shot up in a slant and slashed.

Lysandre morphed into shadows, evading the Dragon Claw. Nic fell forward and lost balance briefly from no target. Lysandre reappeared in front of Nic, his dark energy making Nic's spine and bones quiver.

"**Feint Attack!**" Lysandre pivoted at blinding speeds, swinging his tail and the tip with spikes on the side struck Nic's face, making a loud crash sound and he soared backwards in the putrid air. He grunted as his breathing was getting heavy as he sailed back, unbalanced.

Lysandre extended both arms out. "**Ancient Power!**" An afterimage of himself was made in front and curled into a silver sphere. He shot the attack that rippled through the air towards Nic.

Everyone gasped as Ancient Power head after Nic as he slowly soared backwards. "Watch out!" Sophie shouted.

Nic saw the incoming Ancient Power and wasn't able to straighten out, but he was able to launch an interception. "**Dragon Pulse!**" He gushed out the draconic beam, the head chomping into the sphere making a silver and multicolored explosion. The force quaked the area greatly, and Lysandre remained unmoved as to where Nic shot back, barely maintaining footing when reaching the ground.

He skidded back from the attack and changed his form yet again. He glowed while skidding and turned into his Icicle Plate Form.

'_He's weak against Ice too.' _Nic got a foot back and managed to stop his skid. He used the little momentum left and pivoted around and opened his mouth. "**Icicle Crash!**" He fired a cold air at Lysandre, which gave way to forming several thick icicles that went shooting at him.

Lysandre didn't budge a remote inch as his vermilion eyes glowed light blue, employing Psychic. The Icicle Crash stopped cold (pun intended) in front and turned around. Lysandre shot his arm forward, shooting the icicles back at Nic.

Nic had little time, but his reflexes kicked in just mere feet from being impaled. His legs gave him a great boost and he jumped. The middle icicle went shooting for him, but he put his hands on the top and did an aerial cartwheel and landed behind the ongoing Icicle Crash that struck the ground with shrilling force, sending a chill that even made Nic feel cold.

Realizing he had to act fast, his goosebumps screamed for him to turn around and face the Hell-like man before him. "**Blizzard!**" He swiped his arms and his coat flapped, releasing a cold and finger-numbing Blizzard after Lysandre.

"**Ominous Wind!**" Lysandre released a purple and foul wind; the two winds met at the middle, where the entire area was swamped in a chilling fear.

Happy began to shiver. "T-This f-feeling…it's so cold that I can't move!" His teeth chattered.

Lily quivered as well. "Their powers can even reach out here. Fear and cold clashing, unconditionally making our bones freeze with dread."

"The old man wasn't kidding." Gildarts muttered, shaking from the mixture of both attacks. "Those two are monsters."

The violent maelstrom of snow and purple began to calm, leaving the two unfazed. The malevolent energy around Lysandre never faltered as he narrowed his eyes.

Nic's shadow darkened and he leaned back, but Shadow Sneak struck his abdomen at an angle, making him gag a little blood before shooting back into a skid, only to fall on his back with a loud thud on the end.

Erza gritted her teeth in frustration as Nic was getting pounded left and right. As the battle progressed, she got nervous, and her grip tightened unconsciously. She had faith in Nic, but from the last time he fought Lysandre, she was shattered beyond recognition. If Nic lost here…

'_C'mon Nic. You have to stay strong. Please.' _She mentally pleaded.

"Nic! Don't go down again!" Vanessa shouted. "Please, you have to keep fighting!"

"Vanessa, stop!" Sophie insisted harshly, to which Vanessa's sudden outburst was halted. "We can't interfere, or we'll get killed."

Vanessa just clenched her fists in bitter frustration as Nic proceeded back to his feet.

Seeing he needed to recover, Nic glowed, shifting into his normal self. Once up, he kept a defensive stance. "**Recover!**" His body began to glow, and his injuries began to fade away, giving way to Nic's body looking healthier after Recover faded.

Lysandre paid no heed. "Even if you use Recover, it won't change anything. I'll rip right through you like last time, and see you fall to your knees until I decide to slice your lungs and heart. **Dragon Breath!**" A round of loops surrounded his body and he opened his mouth, gushing out a monstrous blue beam.

Nic had little to act. He saw the beam make haste and with rejuvenated strength, he jumped out of the way, but the blue explosion followed by Dragon Breath made a shockwave that beamed up, making Nic yelp as the shockwave shot him back several feet.

Within the dust cloud that followed, Lysandre could feel the electrical energy about. His face turned into an amused yet serious expression as the dust cleared, revealing Nic to show a hostile expression in his Zap Plate Form.

The entire area around Nic sparked as static crackled within a five-foot radius around him. The area began to shake once more as Nic raised his left arm, lightning surging and enveloping him. "**Thunder!**"

He shot his arm down, and Lysandre looked above to find the dark clouds crackling and surging lightning bolts. A thunderous sound crackled, which startled Lily and he covered his ears as a massive bolt of heavy lightning shot downwards onto Lysandre.

"Nice try! But no chance!" Lysandre shot his right arm up, making a spacial hole above. The thunderous Thunder bolted right through the hole, leaving Lysandre unhindered.

Nic mentally cursed as he forgot the little trick from before. It left him with a bitter taste as a strong feeling crawled up his back and a spacial hole appeared over his head. His eyes widened and he immediately jerked back from Thunder. The massive bolt hit the ground and made the ship quake.

"You should realize your place, yet you fight it, like you fight authority. How utterly pitiful." Lysandre responded, closing both holes once Thunder stopped. "You can't fight this power forever! **Shadow Ball!**" He made his attack and shot it, making a dark ripple upon being launched.

"I'll fight until my last breath!" Nic spread his legs and made a yellow sphere of great electricity. The red core had a great amount of electrical energy that discharged in between Nic's hands. "**Zap Cannon!**" He threw it with great force, the Zap Cannon and Shadow Ball both collided into the other, and there was but another stalemate, but barely on Nic's part.

A discharge of darkness and electricity flooded the area in between, creating a very massive explosion of yellow, black, and purple; all of which swirled and released in an expansive explosion. Erza and everyone else covered up as the shockwave passed by them, making them all skid and barely hold their ground, though Happy flew back and yelped.

The smoke blew to both Nic and Lysandre, both getting flooded by smoke, yet they knew that the other was waiting. The middle was clear and the remaining smoke blew away. Lysandre and Nic burst through what was left through both smoke clouds, heading at the other with harsh battlecries.

Lysandre's forehead had a shining ball of light blue energy, his feet nearly touched the ground as he raced in a blur with Zen Headbutt towards Nic.

Nic raced ahead, engulfed in shining yellow energy. His Wild Charge ran across the ravaged terrain and they met at the middle once again.

There was a grand ripple in between the two that spread, and that was when Makarov foresaw something. "Everyone get down!"

A violent explosion rattled, quaking not just the ship, but the island as well. Yellow and light blue was light a violent tempest as it spread and flattened everything. Everyone covered up as they got to the ground and yelled as the explosion passed over them, followed by a variety of debris.

Through the explosion, Nic stepped back and sparked red electricity, catching his breath from the recoil damage. He panted as the battle damage was catching up. To his shock, he saw a blue sphere blast through the dispersing explosion, dispelling it entirely and leading way for Lysandre's Aura Sphere to hit him right in his abdomen, making him feel a great force smash into him before a blue burst of energy erupted, making more smoke erupt.

Nic screamed as he shot back from the force of Aura Sphere, so much that he didn't skid, but he sailed through the air and over the ship's edge. Nic sailed off the ship and began falling into the water below. A harsh splash sound vibrated intensely as Nic's body plunged below.

Erza's eyes widened. "NIC!"

Mira covered her mouth and gasped, as did Lisanna.

"NIC!" Vanessa screamed. Her attention then drew towards Lysandre, who looked on as the little smoke disappeared.

He seemed rather content, the heinous smirk across his face expanding. His foul energy continued to give off a suffocating feeling, and he stared into the direction where Nic had hit the water.

"I pity you, Nic." He mocked. "To be given such a fate. An unfair past, followed by a fate you chose, and now a burden that'll be your end. To be given a short life must mean you were meant to die youn-" A sudden column of water shot up like a geyser below Lysandre, drowning his sentence and shooting him upwards.

Everyone looked in disbelief as the column of water arose from the ship flooring, gushing up and hitting Lysandre. Through the water, they all saw a faint image swim through the current. Erza and Vanessa both felt the most relieved, knowing what was traveling through.

Lysandre was at the top of the geyser when something erupted below, sending a powerful uppercut that sent him skyward. "**Waterfall!**" Time slowed down as Nic was shown in his Splash Plate Form, dealing a powerful blow to Lysandre's chin and he started falling backwards slowly.

Lysandre was caught off guard from the sudden blow, but as he tried to regain composure and balance, Nic's right forearm was coated in spiraling water in the shape of a crab claw.

"**Crabhammer!**"

Nic brought his forearm down and struck Lysandre in the middle, the force sending small shockwaves through the air around them. Lysandre shot down from above and smashed into the flooring, dust and debris flying all around. Nic fell down and landed in a crouched position, looking at the pile of dust and rubble Lysandre ended up being buried under.

"The good may die young, but I have no desire to die, not until I finish you and save the entity of all life." Nic proclaimed, standing firmly back up. "You may think life needs to start from ground zero, but it's best to leave it as it is."

The debris covering Lysandre began seeping the dark energy, streaming slowly out from underneath. Nic tensed up and mentally readied himself as the debris actually began to disintegrate and reduce to nothing from Lysandre's energy. When it was gone, Lysandre hovered over the ground, only accumulating a couple scratches compared to Nic.

"You're wrong." Lysandre warned menacingly. "You still don't get it. There is no good if everything is left the way it is. Mankind and wars will continue to ravage, and I must spill all of that blood so that no one else will devour sins." His aura began to escalate a little. "You may have stopped me in the past from realizing what must be done, but now you must try and stop what _has_ to be done. All life must return to the darkness, and remain there and be kept in its beautiful void."

Nic's eyes narrowed. "I said it already, I won't allow it to happen, not while you're still in that purgatory state."

"Hmph. Then I guess you left me to finally get serious…" The dark clouds above began to slowly spiral over Lysandre as another, more heavily corrosive, wind blew. This made Nic pale, as he realized that Lysandre was going to unleash his might.

The ominous and eerie dread escalated so much that everyone else on shore shook in terror. Their hearts raced so fast that they could've jumped out of their chests and rot. Wendy, Levy, and Lisanna could've been seen streaming tears in fear, and they all sank to their knees, fright overcoming them.

"This…this power it's…" Makarov couldn't find the words. No Wizard Saint has ever sensed this much power. This was the power of something that wasn't even power, but pure fear.

Nic swallowed hard as he got paler. Lysandre smirked, showing his canines. The canines became sharper, and more blood red, as if he tore into someone's throat. His eyes were the most destructive feature. The sclera became pitch black, so black that it was like looking into pure darkness. The vermilion eyes became slits, like that of a wild animal.

His dark purple aura intensified, becoming so dense that the flooring made a crater, slowly cracking. Nic took a step back as Lysandre's calm expression was no more, and the bloodthirsty beast from before has been unleashed.

"Nic…he's done for." Gildarts muttered. "We're all gonna-" Lysandre's eyes widened as he unleashed an Ominous Wind, one that was like a hurricane that pulsated in that solemn area. As it passed, the ship flooring was completely leveled, Nic sailed back into a tumble, and everyone else was sent flying and screaming as they were feeling the destructive wind pass by them.

They all fell on their backs, only to sit up a minute later. They all groaned as they felt as though they fought Hades all over again. What they saw made them pale and gasp in terror.

The area was of complete desolation; nearby grass and trees, small animals in the trees – all obliterated. The ground was all cracked and dried up, and everyone shook in fear as the power spike was so dense that they felt the air they breathe make it feel as though they were gonna pass out any minute.

"Oh god…this guy's no monster, but something far worse." Gajeel muttered.

"I've never felt so much pressure before." Laxus said, his breathing getting as heavy as everyone else. "His power is so dense that I can't move."

Erza looked down, unable to even look at Lysandre. "No…Nic, you have to be careful."

Sophie shook like crazy. "This power spike, I remember it from Kalos. It's terrifying." She muttered, her glance looking back to see dead and dried up trees beyond them.

Nic clutched his fists as he brought himself up to his knees, panting as the air was exhausting enough to be in. It was like poison, yet it wasn't killing him. The foul air was like an infestation to the insides that made it hard for anyone to move or breathe. Willpower alone would have to apply from here on out.

"You…" Nic hesitated at first, but his knees cooperated and he sprung back to his feet. "You're not getting away with this."

Lysandre's feral expression never left his face. "…I already have…" His body emanated a glow, and the realization made Nic widen his eyes in horror.

His eyes shook like crazy. "No…"

Vanessa gulped, unable to comprehend what was happening. "H-He's…"

"…using Recover." Nic muttered.

The glow faded, revealing Lysandre deprived of the very few scratches he gained through the fight. His bloody teeth showed as he sensed the grim in everyone, fueling him with even greater power. "I'll see you squirm after this…" A purple hole appeared underneath him and he went into it, closing soon after.

Nic grunted. _'Phantom Force. I gotta move…now!' _He covered himself in water and he shot like a rocket straight ahead, via Aqua Jet. His eyes widened once more as he felt the malevolent feeling above. He curved towards his left, barely missing Lysandre as he jumped out of the hole and down onto the flooring, sending vile purple bursting shockwaves all around. Nic was caught in the shockwaves and his Aqua Jet was stopped, making him tumble.

"So, using Aqua Jet as an escape. Clever, but not productive." Lysandre mocked.

Nic got up and grunted. Lysandre changed into shadows once again, disappearing and reappearing in front of Nic with his toothed smirk.

"**Slash!**"

As Lysandre went to strike with glowing claws, Nic straightened his fingers. "**Razor Shell!**" His forearms onwards morphed into two blue, glowing blades that elongated. He crossed them in the shape of an X and used them to intercept Slash. A great ripple erupted upon collision, and everything shook a little. To Nic's surprise, Slash overpowered Razor Shell with no effort, and he yelled as he skidded back. His arms returned to normal as he panted.

"**Psycho Cut!**" Lysandre swiped his arm in an arc, unleashing a pink crescent-shaped energy towards Nic.

"**Aqua Jet!**" Nic escaped the attack by shooting upwards, the Psycho Cut continuing below him. It exploded, continuously expanding and flying over everyone's heads. The shockwave made them all shake in the eyes as the attack continued onwards, making a harsh quake as a multitude of trees in the dead forest were all reduced to nothing, leaving only bear stumps as far as the eye could see.

Gildarts looked back with sheer horror. "He…he wiped out that many trees, with just one blow.

"The forest…everything…gone." Wendy teared up.

High above, Nic was at full kinetic energy and he emerged from Aqua Jet, making his next move almost immediately. "**Hydro Pump!**" He formed a mirror of water and he let loose a grand volume of water down towards Lysandre below.

Lysandre remained still as the attack headed towards him. "Heh. **Mirror Coat.**" He was then swamped by the huge volume of water, taking the entire attack that sent water everywhere with great force.

"YEAH!" Natsu shouted. "That jerk had it coming!"

"Wait, hold on." Mira warned. Suspicion arose as Nic fell out of the sky in prep for landing, but to their horror, an even greater volume of water shot at Nic.

Nic eyes shot wide as the Mirror Coat activated and sent the attack back at Nic, with twice the force that was applied. "OH NO!" He felt as though he was smashed into a titanium wall, as Hydro Pump swallowed him, leaving a harsh burst of water erupting in the air above. Nic shot down to the ground some ways away, smashing into it with a blood-hurling grunt.

Sophie gasped in horror, unable to comprehend how Nic was at a disadvantage yet again. "He's nullifying Nic's attacks like they were nothing!"

From the dust, Nic weaved and struggled to his feet, but did manage in the end. He looked exhausted as to where Lysandre looked amused and feral at the same time. "Having trouble? I'll rip the misery right out of you!" His lower body morphed into shadows and he whisked himself at an alarming speed. Both of his arms were coated in his Shadow Claw. His mouth opened as he charged after Nic.

Nic quickly made a counter. "**Razor Shell!**" He coated his forearms onwards in his blue blades and he saw Lysandre slash as he whisked past him. Nic parried the shot, but the Razor Shell cracked and shattered as it took the hit, making Nic wince in pain.

He had no time to recover as Lysandre came back around with Shadow Claw. Nic pivoted and used Crabhammer to intercept, making a spiraling water in the shape of a crab's claw. Nic thrust forward, but Lysandre turned into shadows at the last second.

"What?!" Nic was panicking. He felt a strong force from above. Lysandre's ominous and deadly vibe was unwavering.

"Too bad! **Ominous Wind!**" With a single swipe of his arm, Lysandre let loose a devastating whirlwind of purple, escalating all around. People flew off and screamed as they landed harshly. The Ominous Wind from afar would be like a small hurricane that covered a quarter of all of Tenrou Island.

Nic could be seen at the end of a trail embedded into the flooring, unable to act efficiently. He was on his abdomen, facing away from Lysandre as he panted.

"Nic! Get up! Please!" Cana shouted.

"You gotta defeat this monster!" Gildarts shouted. "Come on!"

Nic heard them, but they only made him annoyed. This was his fight, and the distractions were aggravating. He tried to stand regardless, and had mild yet slow success.

Lysandre turned into shadows and reemerged down on the flooring. He scoffed and then morphed his lower body into shadows once again, rushing after Nic.

"Nic, he's coming from behind!" Juvia shouted.

Lysandre's left forearm was coated in Shadow Claw, closing the distance in between him and his prey.

"You gotta move! Get up!" Gray shouted.

"Nic! Dodge! Now!" Erza pleaded loudly.

His body felt like jelly from this overwhelming dread. He was so tired and he was so drained. He heard everyone though and felt Lysandre coming from behind with a battlecry.

"You won't make it very far! Not after I strike you down!" Lysandre shouted and continued his demonic, and partly draconic, battlecry.

Nic grunted and mustered up what strength to shift left, as Lysandre let loose a violent screech as he slashed…

Nic was too late.

Everything around them was moving in slow motion. Their eyes widened in pure, undefined terror as they paled. They all saw Lysandre slashing, his Shadow Claw getting Nic's right side. At that moment, everything shook and Nic's mouth was wide open and he looked like he was silently screaming as Lysandre followed through with a vicious predatory expression.

Everyone saw a wave of blood spill as Shadow Claw follow through, and it felt as though their hopes had been ripped away, just like the right side of Nic's torso,

Erza and Vanessa, including Sophie and Cana, were the most affected. They all saw time return to normal and Lysandre posed with his left arm out, covered in fresh blood. A splattered trail of blood was between him and Nic, the latter left unmoved as he was unable to process the unimaginable pain. His gaze was left forward, and his whole right side was covered in dark red, especially on the lower abdomen where Lysandre struck.

"LUMINOUS!" Gajeel shouted.

"NIC! OH NO!" Levy cried.

"This can't be happening…" Freed was unable to comprehend what was going on.

Everyone saw Nic closing his mouth and opening it, coughing up more blood that sprinkled in front. His entire world was hazy as he dropped to a knee. His head hung down as his breathing was heavy, and his right hand pressed against the fatal wound.

Lysandre smirked maliciously at the blood on his arm. "Yes…yes…this is what I wanted to see. Ever since our final battle at my HQ, I wanted your blood spilled. I want more…"

Nic could barely swallow. His head felt light as his eyes showed instinctive frustration. "Damn…you…"

Lysandre looked back, finding Nic all wobbly, but slowly rising his both feet. "Oh? You want more blood spilled?"

Nic's right hand was drenched in dark red from trying to cover up the wound. The sides of his mouth were dripping with blood. Even so, he refused to back down and remain down like from before.

"You…" Clenching his left fist, Nic coated it in Crabhammer, intriguing Lysandre. "I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU!" Nic let out a battlecry as he ran ahead, still having his hand pressed against his wound. The right side of his coat had purple flames on a small fraction due to the blue fames and the blood mixing.

"Hmph. HOW PATHETIC!" Lysandre rushed in with his lower body in shadows and initiated Dragon Claw. The two attacks collided, quaking the ground greatly. They were even for only three seconds before Nic was shoved back and thudded on his back.

Erza looked like she was gonna burst into a mixture of emotions. "NIC!"

His eyes shot wide open and he got to a knee, but gagged some blood in the process. He looked with wincing eyes as Lysandre morphed into shadows, moving about at undefined speeds. He moved all about and Nic felt his breathing getting super heavy. He could barely stand.

Lysandre reemerged behind several feet away. He had his hands together and let loose a catastrophic Dark Pulse, one that was so dense that the flooring left a shattered trail and shook like an earthquake. The attack's range was like that of a dragon's roar.

Nic dropped to his back and rolled out of the way. He barely escaped as he was on his left side, yelping as the wound still pressed on. The Dark Pulse continued its course, exploding out beyond the dark horizon.

Lysandre morphed into shadows and appeared twenty feet in front of Nic. The latter grunted and panted so much as he was all wobbly. He got to his feet and his glare was fixated onto Lysandre.

Lysandre saw into his glare, Nic's blue eyes giving way to a mixture of everything. Lysandre clearly didn't like what he saw, and his left arm was held up. "You know, those eyes of yours always irritated me. The warmth and potential sought through them made me want to rip them out." He admitted coldly.

"They say the eyes are windows to the soul…" Nic panted. "*huff**huff* But all I see is a hollow death before me *huff**huff*."

Lysandre scoffed once more. "Then I'll be the last thing you'll see!" He lunged ahead with his left arm coated in Dragon Claw. "NOW FALL!"

"NEVER!" Nic's left arm turned into Razor Shell, and he let loose a scream as he and Lysandre both slashed.

It was only the time span of a blink of an eye. Both posed on opposite sides, facing away. Everyone's pale faces grew paler if possible. Their hearts were beating like crazy. Nic had a shadow over his right eye from everyone's point of view, and Lysandre's Dragon Claw faded, giving way to a bloody arm.

They all saw Lysandre then stood affirm, his left hand clenched as he smirked, tightening it and some red spilled out.

He squished something he caught in the process.

"W-w-w-what…" Evergreen was unable to find anything to say.

"Nic…oh no." Lisanna muttered.

Lysandre turned and smirked some more, his blood red teeth showing as Nic coughed up blood and hunched forward. Everyone saw Nic's face dripping with blood, as it was a terrible sign.

Vanessa was streaming tears as she not only saw her big brother thrashed left and right, but she saw his lower right abdomen get torn and now…

Nic growled angrily as he turned back towards Lysandre, the site making the girls look away and silently tear up. The left side of his face was covered in blood, and his left eyelids were shut, looking devoid.

Gray felt as though he was gonna throw up. "His left eye…"

"Lysandre clawed it right out of his socket." Makarov muttered, horrified beyond recognition.

Erza had tears on the sides of her eyes. Her body was breaking down as she witnessed Nic losing his left eye. She couldn't swallow.

Levy and Lucy both covered their faces, unable to witness the terror before them. Gajeel and Lily both looked like they were trembling. Everyone looked like they were gonna pass out.

"That's better." Lysandre said. "That's a better look for you."

He only panted as no words could ever hope to describe the pain he was feeling. All of Freed's painful Enchantments combined didn't compare to the pain Nic was feeling. He gritted his teeth and tensed up, still having his hand over his wound, and now his left hand over his left eye. "D-Damnit…"

"I had fun, but I'm through tormenting you. It's time we put you out of your misery!" Lysandre began to emit a strong force, his power actually shaking the ground and ship violently. The ocean water below began to shift like crazy from the excessive force Lysandre was giving.

"This level…NO!" Makarov shouted.

Lysandre ascended several feet into the sky, emanating strength still. His feral, bloody teeth showed as the flooring underneath Nic and all across the entire ravaged battlefield cracked. "**Earth Power!**" He spread his arms out, and the cracks glinted golden before the entire battlefield erupted, sending everything flying. The _entire_ ship that belonged to Grimoire Heart blew up, shaking up all of Tenrou Island and Team Tenrou as the latter screamed as they all flew and thudded on their backs, far away as the entire area shook and explosions rattled the shores.

Through it all, Erza uncovered herself and her eyes shot wide with horror as Nic was seen high above, airborne and bruised over every single area on his body. A closer look saw his body scraped and looked like he was heaving out his last breaths.

Her world came crashing down as it was too much. Erza's eyes began to show tears as she cried up to him. "**NIC! NO!**"

Everyone else unveiled from the smoke and dust as they all saw Nic airborne high above from Earth Power. Vanessa was still streaming tears as Nic looked as though he really was gonna…

Every ounce of hope shattered into complete nothingness when Lysandre's voice was heard. "Say goodnight…FOREVER!"

The air behind Nic began to crack, as if space was shattering before them. The cracks enlarged until they finally shattered, revealing a large hole of distorted darkness. Lysandre emerged, engulfed in a heinous shadow in conjunction with his aura. His jacket collar also glowed light blue.

"Begone! **Legendary Arts – Shadow Force!**"

He drove his entire being into Nic's back, sending a devastating shockwave all around. It was just shockwaves high in the sky, but then exploded into a sea and earth-shattering explosion of darkness that continued to expand, filling the skies with pitch black and dark purple.

Erza felt hollow, as if she was a log. Everyone saw the entire sky get swallowed in pure evil, and through it, Nic was seen shooting down below.

Vanessa herself couldn't find the strength. Her eyes reflected Nic's figure as he shot from the sky some ways away.

"…"

No words, but the tears and horror stricken on her face said it all. All of Team Tenrou witnessed Nic crashing into the sea, splashing before completely submerging. His body sunk head first as blood seeped from his face and wound.

Makarov was on his hands and knees. "How could I let this happen?"

Everyone couldn't find the words. They all knew encouragement helps, but against Lysandre, it was all based on skill and power, because luck and friendship rots in front of him.

Sophie was crying silently, looking down. Her tears touched the cracked and barely stable ground. "No…no…no, this-this can't…"

Natsu was on his knees, looking ahead with a frozen gaze. Everyone was unable to stand, and he himself was unable to comprehend what just happened. "Nic…"

Gildarts pounded the ground once, small tears in his eyes. "This guy's a bloodthirsty monster. We're too weak…" He hated himself for saying such things, but it was the truth. Only Nic had the power, and he was sinking into the depths below. They all might be next.

The smoke cleared, revealing Lysandre floating high above the cliff shore. Nothing of the ship was left. "Well, that left me satisfied. If he doesn't come back up, then I guess that I did my part thoroughly."

"YOU MONSTER!" Vanessa cried out, tears sparkling and falling all around.

Lysandre looked down at the sullen faces of Fairy Tail, the site making him smirk. "Glad you got to witness this? Your hopes of survival dropped to zero."

Erza was shaking as she held onto Nic's sunglasses. The only thing that was left of him, now in her clutches. Her gaze turned angry and hateful as she glared at Lysandre. "You…"

* * *

Nic felt the cool water pass him as his one eye was barely open. Everything around him was dark blue, the sound of bubbles rising up, as well as bits of red. _'He's too strong. I can't…I can't beat him like this.'_

His right eye was getting hazy and it began to close. _'I suffered too much. His hatred was too overwhelming. Damnit. Why am I so weak?' _Everything around him was starting to go black, and his conscience began to slip away. _'Fairy Tail. Vanessa. Erza. I'm sorry. I need to fight on, but…'_

Everything faded to black, succumbing to silence.

A single drop of water was heard. Then another. Nic's eye opened slowly, and he took in a deep breath through his nose as though breathing fresh air after a long while. His eye saw a sun beaming through the dark skies, making him cover up.

"What is this?" He groaned softly. He sat up as he heard the sound of waves crashing against a shore. "Where am I?" He noticed that aside from his left eye and his lower abdominal wound, he was in his normal state, and no pain flared.

"What happened?" He looked down at his hands. "Where'd the pain go? And why isn't my power flowing?" He slowly looked back up, seeing his surroundings.

Using the only eye he had, he took in the dark, cloudy sky with an open center, where the sun beamed through. He noticed that the dark sky stretched as far as the eye could see. He saw that there was a sea before him, the waves swaying in all directions, rather calmly in contrast to the dark skies. He put his hands on the ground, where it felt like rock. He looked down to find that he was sitting atop of some black rock, and some cracks from various spots gave way to some red glow, feeling rather hot. He looked over his shoulder, seeing a large opening some ways away. Steam arose from it as the inside was of molten lava.

Despite the soft winds and the shores being washed by the seawater, everything felt desolate. He stood back up and turned towards his left and stepped back some feet. Taking in the island, the sea, and the sky above.

"This feeling." He muttered. "I know it, but it was from so long ago." He couldn't quite figure it out, but this energy not only felt familiar, yet different. "What happened to begin with?"

"You were brought into your sub-conscience." A voice announced, yet no form was visible. Nic gasped upon hearing the sudden voice and the island he was on began shaking and the red cracks glowed like the color of lava. He looked to his left and saw a giant creature slowly rising up from the lava in the crater. "You seek power to burn away the evil that torments you."

Nic swallowed and remained uneasy as ground-shaking footsteps were heard. He saw what seemed to be a giant lizard-like figure walking up the crater and out of the steam. He was revealed to be a red dinosaur-like lizard. The red plates were all segmented and separated by various black lines. The giant hands were clawed, and the underside up to the lower jaw was gray. Large white spikes protruded down the sides of his head, back, and his large curved tail. His pupils were yellow and the sclera was black.

The large beast opened his mouth and let loose a low growl.

Nic swallowed once more. "Who are you?" He asked as calmly as possible.

"I am Groudon. I raise the land." He announced. Groudon then looked out to sea, where Nic followed and turned, seeing the calm waves become slightly more violent.

"And I am the one who raises the sea." The waves washed about, and a great force was swelling. A figure was seen rising up, and once it surfaced, water gushed out, the waves almost touching Nic's feet.

Surfacing before him was a massive whale-like creature. He had a deep blue color, with eyes like Groudon. The eyes and white chin were outlined in red, and more red was around the pectoral fins and torso. The fins in the back of the tipped tail were long and wavy, two on each side. The large fins on the sides looked like giant blue hands, the back having a red pattern.

Nic kept a calm expression as he was astonished to say the least.

The beast opened his mouth. "I am Kyogre. I raise the seas, keeping all from droughts."

Groudon stepped forward. "Well I am the one to dry out floods."

Kyogre snarled, making waves comber on both sides. "I'm the one to keep the light and heat from dehydrating the world. We both even out."

Groudon let a low growl escape. "Not for long…" Him and Kyogre growled at each other while Nic was in between, confused to say the least.

"Both of you, why are you here?" He questioned.

A sudden draconic roar from the skies got everyone's attention. "Silence!" A deep voice shouted from above. "You know what must be done." From the opening in the dark skies, where the sun beamed down, they all saw a large, serpentine dragon descend, slithering downwards. He had a green body, with red-outlined rudder-like wings; two on his back, and four more on another segment lower downwards, and followed by another, and another closer to the tail. In between those segments was the rest of the serpentine body with open yellow ovals connecting them. The head had four fins jutting out from the corners. The head's top had an open yellow oval. The eyes were black sclera and yellow pupils. The arms were connected to the middle, the same segment where the two wings were. Black lines segmented that part, and the joints to the arms and claws were all segmented.

The dragon descended so he was thirty feet above Nic. As of now, the green dragon was atop, Groudon was on his left, and Kyogre was on his right.

"I am Rayquaza." The dragon answered. "We dragged you into your sub-conscience so as to grant you what you desire."

"What I desire?" Nic parroted.

"Yes." Groudon got his attention. "Nic Pularis, we understand that you need the power to destroy your nemesis. As you need to destroy yours, we can relate."

Kyogre snarled, making more waves comber. "You fool! You being the best is not possible! We keep a balance, and disrupting it will lead to a cataclysm!"

Groudon looked back down at Nic. "The concept I'm bringing up is that you must know what drives you to fight this particular man."

Nic looked away as he was left to think.

"What does he have that you don't? What can he do that drives you mad? Why must you defeat him?"

Nic narrowed his one eye. "…I don't…"

Kyogre bobbed a little, getting Nic's glance. "Perhaps, Nic Pularis, that what you are experiencing for the first time is someone whom you acknowledge as your mortal enemy."

"Now that you have finally found your enemy, tell us what traits that makes you aggravated." Rayquaza called out.

Nic looked down at the black, rocky ground and crossed his arms. _'A mortal enemy, huh?...I don't like it. Is this what it feels like to have a rivalry? Like Natsu and Gray?' _Realizing he was digressing, he blinked his one eye and got back on track. "What his qualities are that I dislike…"

Kyogre made his high-pitched sound. "Your answer must and shall be the importance of this judgement."

"Like the ones from before, we shall only help if your answer is most suiting." Groudon warned.

"Now!" Rayquaza sudden shouted. "Tell us, what is it that you seek in order to vanquish this demon that is your worst enemy?"

Nic was left unable to think properly. He was at a loss for words as he recalled that he had to go through the same thing with Reshiram, Zekrom, and Kyurem in the Tower of Heaven.

He looked down as the Legendary Trio looked at him from the three angles. "To be honest…I just don't know. It's true that Lysandre and I have a history, but…I never had this feeling until of recently." Waves continued to wash while the crater bubbled. "Ever since he and I quarreled in Fiore…a lot has changed, and I don't find it comforting. He brings harm to everything around him, and I must risk everything I have to bring him down."

Rayquaza, Groudon, and Kyogre all looked down at Nic as he continued.

"I never felt this way about anyone, and personally, I want it gone, but it can't be…only when Lysandre is defeated once and for all can this burning feeling be lifted from my chest. He has the power to destroy what I treasure, and I must use my power and will to drive him back into the darkness he came."

They all stared down at Nic, seeing the serious face he was giving off. Despite the loss of his left eye, his one eye was all they needed to see; the burning ambition, one that could rival a supernova. He truly wanted to fight Lysandre so as to rid of him once and for all.

A long pause passed before Rayquaza let loose a draconic roar, sending ripples of air all about. Groudon and Kyogre joined in, and all of the sub-conscience shook greatly. When the roaring stopped, they all looked down at him.

"…so." Rayquaza said. "To calm the storm inside you, you must fend against it to preserve what you hold important. To defeat him means to bring out your greatest weaknesses and lay them bare, so you have nothing to hide when facing your enemy." Another brief pause passed as the large dragon looked down at Nic, briefly nodding. "Alright."

"Hm?"

"You shall be granted this power to defeat Lysandre. Use it wisely." Rayquaza then roared as his body glowed green.

Groudon's body gave a lava glow as he roared. "For the sake of defeating the true enemy, we shall give you the power to do so!"

Kyogre glowed an ocean blue as he roared again. "With this power, you shall achieve greater power, but know this: Further extension on our powers will not be easy."

Nic's eye widened as the lights expanded, brightening everything until everything turned white.

* * *

Nic's eye shot wide open as he sunk deeper and deeper. His eye flashed a deep blue and he began to glow. His entire body was coated in an oceanic deep sea blue, which shined through the dark depths of the water.

* * *

"Erza! Get a grip!" Gray implored, trying to hold Erza back as she tried desperately to lung at Lysandre for seemingly killing Nic. The other person stopping her was Lucy.

"Erza, don't! He'll rip you apart!" Lucy shouted, trying to hold her back.

Erza kicked and thrashed, though still had Nic's sunglasses in her clutches. All she saw was red as Lysandre's smirk drove her mad. "No! I have to kill him! He took Nic away! He has to die!"

"You don't stand a chance!" Gray argued.

"You wouldn't last a minute! Please, stop!" Lucy shouted.

Seeing the struggle and anger, Lysandre looked with a raised brow. "Oh? A little upset now, are we? Bet Nic must have been important to you."

"SHUT UP! YOU'RE GONNA PAY!" Erza shouted, tears flying all around.

Sophie was the only one restraining Vanessa as the younger Pularis sibling was going crazy. "Vanessa! Stop!"

"NIC! NIC!" She wanted to dive in, to help her brother. She tried to desperately break free, but Sophie didn't let go, leaving her to thrash and struggle much like Erza.

Lysandre's eyes narrowed as he reached an arm out. "Then you both can join him. You'll rejoice in eternal agony that is the afterlife."

Everyone was paralyzed in fear as Lysandre was about to attack, his demonic vibe still going on strong.

A single drop of water hit Erza's nose, making her blink and stop her thrashing. "What?"

Another drop plopped on Vanessa's head, making her stop. "Huh?"

Lysandre's smirk faded into a serious frown as he saw many more raindrops falling from the sky, a light drizzle washing over everything. He retracted his arm and kept a straight face.

Laxus looked up. "Rain?"

"Why's it raining?" Lisanna asked.

Makarov grumbled softly before his eyes widened. "Guh!" His posture was firm as he felt something. "Gildarts…"

Gildarts could feel this great swell as well. "Yeah, this power I'm feeling. It's very primordial."

The drizzle broke into a slightly heavier rainfall. Everyone looked on in confusion. The waves along the sea began to bounce up and down, like those of a storm. They swayed greatly as a reaction to the unknown force.

Lysandre slowly turned his head towards his right, looking out to where Nic had hit the water. The energy being unleash resonated beneath the surface. The waves continued to go crazy all around, but in the vicinity was a slowly escalating whirlpool that was beginning to pick up speed. The whirlpool spun faster and faster, violently splashing everywhere as the rain poured down.

Lysandre looked piqued. "So, Nic Pularis has finally decided to get serious." He smirked. "Good."

Geysers sprung up as the whirlpool became unstable, and blue glints where in the swirling center. The glints shined brightly and a giant geyser of water arose, breaking apart the whirlpool back into savage waves that crashed maliciously against the shore cliffs.

The geyser continued to rise until at a high enough point, where the water began to fall back down. Something emerged from within, and the figure left the entire Team Tenrou gasping.

In midair was a figure with the face being a deep blue. The deep blue ran all over the upper facial region, separated by a thin red line at the nose that traveled down around the mouth, where on both ends they trailed down, down the area inside the red lines was white, said color starting from the chest up the neckline and up to the lower jaw. The open mouth showed pointed teeth. The one eye that was open was outlined in red, with the sclera being black and the pupil yellow. Two white ovals were located on the forehead above each eye. The forehead above had a headpiece that was like a deep sea crown that went over the top of the head, where the hair was still black. Said headpiece covered the whole front, and the top had two pectoral fins that were outlined in red.

The arms had red lined separating the top and bottom of the arms. The underarms were white, while the top side was deep blue. The white underside continued on to the hands, the palm being white, and the other side being deep blue that had a red pattern that resembled Kyogre's that segmented red lines into the fingers. The abdomen was bare, being a deep blue color with a red line horizontally under the chest, a small pointed section of it rising in between, meeting the red line that had white inside. The very toned physique had two white lines over the abs. The wound from before was not present, as the coat was different. The coat was edged in red, and the rest was deep blue. The coat had two large, deep blue pectoral fins that were outlined in red. The bottom of the coat was four large streamers, two on each end, as though they were back fins.

The pants were a deep blue with red lines cutting down the middle, meeting at the knee caps, where an open red circle with deep blue filling was located. The red lines continued downwards to where the bare feet were. The deep blue feet with white underneath had the red line continuing to where another open red circle was, diverging more red lines to the toes.

The creature snarled while still in midair, slow motion descent back into the water. Everyone looked with startled gazes as they felt so much unbelievable power resonating from the creature.

"Is that…?" Bickslow started but couldn't finish.

"I think it is." Juvia said.

"This insane power, it's so manly." Elfman shuddered.

The creature landed back into the violent water, large waves being casted upon contact with the water. The creature's head, starting from the nose, protruded out of the sea. The fins on the back of the coat protruded out of the water as well. It kept raining on as the beast glared down Lysandre.

"That's…Nic?" Levy muttered.

Sophie gasped. "I remember this feeling. It was like those other two forms from before, only this one is new."

Everyone looked on, and Erza and Vanessa both had surprise all over their faces when they felt this swell of power. Nic let loose a rippling, high-pitched screech that spread out, making mall waves fly on the sides.

"**Legendary Force – Kyogre!**" Nic announced.

Despite sudden surprise, Lysandre didn't treat it as such. "So, you managed to initiate Legendary Force. It was about time." He sounded so casual it was almost rude. "My Masters informed me that you can only undergo that state when under an influence of sorts. Guess not wanting to die in front of your sibling did the trick."

Nic stayed quiet as the waves all around swayed.

Lysandre's bloody fangs showed. "Then show me what you can do! **Shadow Ball!**" He reached out and let loose a maniacal Shadow Ball that went rippling through the air towards Nic. Nic opened his mouth, letting a rumbling growl escape as he formed a blue sphere. He let loose a high-pitched roar as he unleashed a rippling Water Pulse. Both attacks met in the middle, making a vast ripple before exploding and letting loose a brutal shockwave that made Team Tenrou cover up as the pressure emanated forced them to their knees.

Lysandre wasn't safe when Nic was seen jumping out of the water ferociously. He let loose a primal roar into the dark skies and his lower body let loose a huge cyclone of water. "**Aqua Tail!**" He roared once more as he vertically flipped his body and the giant water cyclone followed, coming down like a hammer onto Lysandre.

The attack struck, and Lysandre grunted as he was slowly being sundered downwards into the raging sea. _'So much power!' _Before he could recover, the Aqua Tail stopped momentarily, revealing Nic letting out another primal roar high in midair as he gushed forth Water Pulse. The blue sphere shattered the sound barrier as it traveled, colliding with Lysandre and making a violent blue explosion.

Lysandre emerged in the form of shadows from the explosion, grunting. Nic fell back into the water and sent small waves flying. He resurfaced and to everyone's surprise, he sped through the water, his head and coat pectoral fins jutting out.

"You won't stop me that easily! **Psychic!**" Lysandre's eyes glowed light blue, and he swung both of his arms up. Two massive geysers arose, and he molded the water in each geyser into an array of many large pressurized arrows. He swatted his arms forward, shooting the arrows diagonally downwards after Nic.

Nic nimbly zipped through the water like a jet. He leaped out and back into, evading several arrows. He steered right and left, all directions possible as none of the arrows made contact, Nic's course still closing in on Lysandre.

"Damn you!" Lysandre shouted in frustration. "I have the power of four almighty Pokémon! You can't possibly surpass me!"

"Then you forgot…" Nic lunged out of the water, now at equal elevation with Lysandre. "The sea is my territory!" He out another high-pitched roar as his mouth opened. The shockwaves emanated made the waves all around rage. "**Ice Beam!**" While still in midair, he made a light blue orb in front and fired several mind-chilling beams that shot at Lysandre. Lysandre screamed as he was shot down into the water. The massive splash actually freezing, along with a vast amount of the water in the area.

Happy looked extremely startled. "Whoa! That's crazy!"

"I know. He's actually on even grounds with Lysandre. Given that the sea is where Nic has the advantage at in his current form, he may have a chance at driving Lysandre away." Carla noted.

Lucy noticed something as the rain down poured some more. "Is it me, or is the sea level rising slightly?

Natsu looked over the cliffs, seeing the water far below actually much greater than it was last time. "Now that you mention it, it did grow."

"That must be the power of Nic's Legendary Force." Freed interjected. "To raise the seas, such power is unimaginable. Nothing like that has ever been accomplished."

Nic dropped back down into the water, shattering the nearby ice he fell through. He reemerged and remained still as Lysandre was still underwater.

The area some ways away cracked, and the ice cracked all about. A massive force beamed up from under the ice field, shattering the residual ice from the Ice Beam. The beam dispersed, revealing Lysandre back in the air. "You infuriating nuisance." He sounded extremely irritated by Nic. "Your interference has reached its end!"

He let loose a Psycho Cut that went vertically atop of the water, sending waves on both sides. The Psycho Cut went after Nic, who growled lowly.

Nic generated a light blue energy field around him. Waves and the rain escalated heavily as he was using more force. The energy field expanded rapidly as Nic screeched. The energy expanded outwards like a massive dome.

Gray felt a cold feeling from the incoming energy field. "This chill…"

Makarov turned towards everyone else. "Hurry! Everyone find cover, fast!" Everyone rushed as fast as they could to any nearby rocks and hid behind them as they all felt the force of Nic's attack expanding.

* * *

It was raining like crazy as the skies were dark. Lahar and his crew were moving as fast as they possibly could, but the rocky waves kept them off their course for land.

"Everyone, hold on!" Lahar shouted. The giant waves rocked their boat off the water, bouncing them up and down. Nobody was safe as they thought the sea level actually sprouted just like that.

Doranbolt looked and his eyes dilated in shock. "What the-?!" In the far distance, there was a humungous blue light. The rain poured heavily as there was a cold air wave that passed by them. _'What the heck is going on?'_

* * *

Master Makarov and everyone arose and uncovered as the air was unexplainably cold. They all looked out before them, facing the island. Their eyes shook with horror as the entire front of everything on the island was covered in thick ice.

"What…what is going on?" Natsu muttered.

"The whole island…it's…" Lucy's voice broke due to shock.

Vanessa slowly turned. _'Did Nic cause all of this?' _She and everyone else turned back towards the battle, where she gasped and all of Team Tenrou had gaping mouths.

As far as the eye could see, enormous waves of ice were rippled and scattered about. A massive ocean of ice was all around, and the center was a limited expansion of water.

"My word." Makarov muttered. "Our boy Nic did this?"

Nic was seen calmly watching with his head and pectoral coat fins sticking out of the cold water. Fifty feet away was Lysandre, coated in ice. Nic's one eye narrowed and he emanated a low growl as the ice coating Lysandre in midair cracked, and the man freed himself. Despite what happened, he had a few scratches. The rain kept pouring on and making the ice slippery.

"Using Sheer Cold, are we? Well played." Lysandre admitted. He glowed as his body reacted to the light, the scratches and scrapes he took recovering. Nic growled once more as Lysandre used Recover. Once the light faded, Lysandre looked more than a little ticked off, his feral expression unwavering. "Try and handle this!"

Lysandre let loose a sudden Shadow Sneak from under Nic, shooting him up and out of the water. "GAH!" Nic felt his abdomen get struck and waves rippled as he was sent skyward.

"**Aura Sphere!**" Lysandre made a blue sphere and threw it with great force, striking Nic while he was still in midair, creating a powerful explosion. From the smoke, Nic was seen falling on his back into the water below, massive waves splashing upon impact.

Lysandre gave a confident grin. Though the rain kept falling, it didn't faze him once bit. "Come out wherever you are…" He said. He looked at the large pool below, examining any trace of power.

Below the surface, Nic looked up as he was fifty feet below. His eye narrowed.

Lysandre saw some flashing beneath the water, curiosity piqued. He figured that Nic was using a status move to gain the upper hand. "Nice try!" He swiped his arm, and he deployed Psychic. The pool of water began swirling below, and gained speed. "You can't hide from me!"

The whirlpool swirled, and Lysandre had Nic at its center. Nic was left momentarily open and Lysandre fired Dark Pulse downwards through the whirlpool towards Nic. Nic let loose a loud growl as he opened his mouth, letting loose a very violent and large Hydro Pump. The humungous pressurized torrent went blasting through the rain and towards the Dark Pulse. They both met in the middle, where there was a great explosion that sent violent shockwaves in all directions.

A large geyser erupted from within the whirlpool, and the whole Psychic was dispelled. The water had violently swayed all about, quickly filling the hole.

Lysandre grunted as he was caught surprised. _'Did he use Calm Mind-" _He felt a strong energy beneath. A sudden vortex sprung up beneath, heading towards him. "An Aqua Tail from below?!" He quickly morphed into shadows and evaded the attack. The cyclone lasted a few more seconds before it stopped.

Nic resurfaced slowly, his whole head sticking out. "I'm not one to go down without a fight. Even if it means having only one eye." He growled.

Lysandre appeared several feet away, a frown on his face with crossed arms. "You had me surprised there. This rain is sure troublesome. Your Water-Type moves sure are devastating in this condition. Didn't think you'd be a match this way."

"I'm full of surprises." Nic opened his mouth, where a sphere of super pressurized water formed. "**Water Pulse!**" He let loose his attack, making a shockwave upon being unleashed.

Lysandre smirked. "How predictable!" He reached an arm out and made a spacial portal. The Water Pulse went into the hole. Another hole appeared above Nic, where he felt the energy without looking up. His reflexes kicking in, he dived back underwater as the Water Pulse hit the water, making blue explosion that expanded and made the waves violently shake.

Lysandre grunted when Nic resurfaced, making a loud splash sound and waves sprouted. Nic leaped out of the water and fired a vicious Ancient Power in midair. Lysandre intercepted the attack by unleashing a Psybeam. The two met in the middle, where a mind-blowing explosion erupted, sending silver and blue all about.

Through the smoke, Lysandre smirked as his lower half turned into shadows. His right arm made Dragon Claw and he whisked himself through the smoke and forward. "DIE!" He thrust his arm forward as he emerged from the smoke at high speed, but when he reached the other side, he was met with a vicious Hydro Pump. "WHAT?!" He screamed as he was caught off guard and hit by the vicious blast of water. He shouted as Hydro Pump continued its course and trailed water from the raging waves. The attack smashed Lysandre through the ice fields created from Sheer Cold, crashing him through thick ice.

He grunted when it finally came to a stop. He was at the end of a very long, shattered trail of slippery ice. The attack left lots of large chunks of ice scattered, and Lysandre felt a harsh pain. "Damnit. I have to use Recover and-"

"**Ice Beam!**" Nic cut him off as waves bounced and froze upon him unleashing his destructive Ice Beam. The attack trailed across the sea. Making a trail of ice underneath as it raced towards Lysandre.

Seeing as using Recover will have to wait, he had to think. "**Dark Pulse!**" He arose and floated in the air. He unleashed his attack, of which cracked and broke the thick ice. Ice Beam and Dark Pulse met head on. The two attacks made a shockwave that shattered the large amounts of ice all around.

Team Tenou covered up as the shockwaves and little bits of ice scattered, but they were left more or less alright.

The attacks flashed and left ice destroyed in a small area, but waves of water violently took up space beneath. Lysandre snickered.

"Not bad. Your Legendary Force is most definitely formidable." He then got no answer. "Nic Pularis! Answer me!"

His answer came in the form of the ice under him shattering. He was hit by a sudden Ice Beam from below, making him gawk at the super effective attack. He was sent soaring into the air with a frozen abdomen.

Down below, where the small area where Ice Beam broke through, Nic's head popped out, snarling above.

Lysandre smirked. "I see your actions speak louder than words." Despite his calm yet demonic tone, he was hurt by those attacks, and Nic wasn't giving him room to use Recover again. The ice on his abdomen broke, and he was left floating in the air, his dark purple aura still present. "You're quite resilient. The only way to match my powers is with the use of those Plates. Your experience has gotten you far, but I got some guts that'll be ripped right out of you!" He shot down with his bottom half being shadows, and both arms being Shadow Claw.

Nic remained silent as Lysandre was coming straight down towards him. He remained still as power swelled once more. The waves violently bounced all around, their blue waters turning all muddy, and Makarov and everyone saw the huge area it took up.

The ice began to crack all across the fields, and the force was making Lysandre feel anticipated. Feeling something coming, he stopped his attack and turned into shadows.

"No hiding from me when the sea is here!" Nic yelled. "**Muddy Water!**"

It felt as though the entire earth violently shook as the Sheer Cold's ice fields shattered and brown water sprouted upwards, like an enormous splash. Team Tenrou all gawked at the giant power surge before them. Erza's eyes were filled with shock at this power. _'This power, it's unbelievable. I can't imagine the concentration Nic has to put into that one attack.'_

Through the Muddy Water, Lysandre reappeared and grunted, his shadow form unable to escape. "Damnit!" He felt the Muddy Water smash him from below, forcing him upwards. The attack began to reach a peak, and Lysandre was seen at the top as the water began to fall down, returning to blue.

He opened his vermilion eyes and saw Nic high in the air, apparently jumping when he used Muddy Water. His yellow eyes stared into Lysandre's. Nic let out a primal, high-pitched screech, sending vast ripples that made the rain and water momentarily get blow away.

"Lysandre!" Nic shouted. "You underestimated the will I carry on! You have faults, and I know it's that you don't surprises!" His yellow eyes widened. "Well here's one more!"

Gildarts and everyone felt a grand power surge as Nic made blue orbs all around himself. Each one had catastrophic energy.

Lysandre had to act. "No! The void shall spread!"

Nic brought his body and arms back. "**Maxus Legendary Arts…**"

"No!" Lysandre angrily began to make energy of his own. "**Legendary-**"

"**Origin Pulse!**" Nic finished. He screamed loudly as he let loose all of the energy within the blue orbs before him. Each individual orb fired a blue beam at Lysandre as he was storing energy. Lysandre was struck by theOrigin Pulse, being swallowed in a blue light.

Lysandre screamed violently as Origin Pulse continued on, his screams echoing as the beams shot onwards as far as they could see. A few moments later, theer was a brief glint in the distance before a violent explosion beamed upwards (like in Mega Evolution Special III), reaching the skies and the explosion shockwaves echoed.

Everyone was wide-eyed when the attack made such a huge explosion in the distance. It was enough to blow up all of Tenrou Island itself. The earth-shaking shockwave traveled across the water, despite the long distance. Nic submerged as the shockwaves passed by. Everyone screamed as the shockwaves were so powerful that the ice covering Tenrou Island began to crack, in which they ultimately shattered.

Everyone was unable to hold their ground as they all fell to the solid ground that was dirt again. They all composed quickly and looked out, seeing the explosion fade away into nothing.

"Did…did that just…?" Gray trailed off.

"That power…it would've obliterated us." Sophie warned.

Nic resurfaced, lowly growling as the rain kept coming down. The rain didn't stop as the waves slowly began to calm. Nic stared off into the area far away, where Lysandre was. All of their eyes caught a thick purple shadow wisp through the air, making Nic remain on guard, yet for some reason, the power emanating wasn't as strong.

The thick shadow slowly turned into Lysandre, but only his top half. He was severely injured, and clenching his left arm as he was very badly wounded.

He and Nic shared a stare. A long stare. The suspense in between the two was so thick you could slice through it. Everyone swallowed and gazed with nervous gazes to await for what will happen.

To their surprise, Lysandre began to surge shadows around him. "Curse you." He spited. "Curse you, Nic Pularis. I don't understand, just how you were able to stop me all on your own this one time! Your powers weakened me! THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!"

He relented as the shadows slowly began to encase him. "It would appear…I am in no condition. I must withdraw to recover…hm, you always have such dumb luck." The dark clouds above began to slowly turn back to gray, and the rain began to stop. The sea has also calmed. "You didn't rid of me for good, but I do commemorate you for doing this battle on your own." The shadows fully encased him in his cocoon and the shadows making up the cocoon dispersed into thin air.

"One day, our final confrontation shall happen…and only one of us will survive…but who knows…with your power…this has gotten pretty challenging…" His words spread through the air as the gray skies vanished, giving way to the sun again.

The sunrise back on the horizon beamed on everyone's faces, making them cover up. The eerie presence was no more, and Nic remained in the water, slowly turning towards his friends above.

There was a long silence before Erza broke it.

"Nic…"

Nic looked up at her and everyone else. His body turned and he mustered up the power and leaped from the sea, making waves crash onto the shore, making water sparkle in slow motion.

As he descended and fell back down onto the cliffs, his body glowed a rainbow color. When he landed, his form was gone, and he landed on a knee in his usual self. His body was still destroyed, and his right hand was still pressed over his bleeding wound. His one eye slowly opened.

He examined the shocked faces, and he very slowly took his right arm off of his wound, very weakly holding it up and giving the Fairy Tail Salute with a smirk of victory.

For once, after so many tries, he managed to drive away Lysandre on his own.

Everyone broke out into cheers at the awe-inspiring, and deadly, battle. They all screamed in joy and tears flowed at the will Nic gave.

"You did it man!" Natsu shouted.

"That was totally freakin awesome!" Gray shouted.

"You had us worried there." Wendy said with a smile.

Nic continued to smirk as everyone was so happy. "Thanks, you guys…I did it." With those words, Nic finally fell over, everything going black for him.

"Nic!" Vanessa yelled. She rushed over as fast as she could as her brother had hit the ground on his right side, his bloodied side making the dirt ground turn red. Vanessa got to her knees when close and tried turning Nic onto his back. "Nic! Nic!"

Though she didn't get a response, she was still fortunate to know that her brother was still with them. And that was enough to put a smile on her face and make tears fall.

Right next to her, Erza approached, apparently on her knees as well. Despite Nic's condition, she was proud, and her eyes were misty and she smiled warmly.

She examined him; his wound was bad, and the most uncomfortable thing was the fact that he lost his left eye, but she could relate, as she lost her right eye years ago. A great future must involve sacrifices.

"You fool." She muttered, though was very glad he was still alive, though one piece wouldn't define him. She hurriedly got the unconscious hero up and Vanessa helped. The two had Nic's arms over their shoulders as the others raced towards him to get him treatment as soon as possible.

Makarov looked on as Fairy Tail rushed to Nic's side and everyone helped in getting Nic to where the remains of their base camp was.

"Old man." Gildarts said.

"Mmm." Makarov lowered his head. "I know. He went above and beyond. He sacrificed a lot for this victory."

Gildarts sighed. "Yeah, I know." He stared out some more. "That guy's got enough power to make the sea level rise, and now look. It's back to normal. Even I can't do that."

Makarov looked back, seeing the worried expressions on Erza's face as Nic was rushed away.

* * *

**Sorry if the last 2K was rushed, but I **_**really**_** wanted to update this before the 7****th**** passed over. Sorry if Lysandre's story wasn't good enough, but nothing else came to mind. I got this updated like 2 or 3 minutes before midnight. Feedback is very important. Please let me know if this was too much or just about right. If you thought it was good, reviews are appreciated.**

**There's one more huge battle that'll take place next chapter, and you will completely flip some more.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoy the battles and if you can picture it well.**

* * *

**Next Time: Pinnacle of Mayhem**


	52. Pinnacle of Mayhem

Chapter 52 – Pinnacle of Mayhem

**Well, from the looks of it, you guys enjoyed last chapter! Still concerned about low reviews, but I'll keep on going. Time for the other huge battle that'll leave you baffled!**

**To Recap:**

After Lysandre reveals how he became who he was now, he and Nic began their battle. Nic was barely keeping up, but was still no match for Lysandre. To everyone's horror, not only did Nic's lower right abdomen get ripped into, but he lost his left eye. When he plunged into the sea, he was visited by Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza in his sub-conscience, where they bestowed him their power. Nic unlocks Legendary Force – Kyogre, evening the odds against Lysandre. After the struggle, Nic was finally able to suppress Lysandre and drive him away for once.

* * *

**Chapter 52 – Pinnacle of Mayhem**

"Geez, you think one fight was enough. If this wasn't a trial in itself, I don't know what is." Gray sighed, sitting on a stump.

Juvia scooted over with hearts in her eyes. "I'm sure you passed those trials with flying colors, my beloved!"

Ignoring Juvia's comment, he turned towards the others, who were all lounging and regaining their strength. "Speaking of trials, what about the S-Class Trials?"

"Yeah! We gotta be real men and finish it!" Elfman shouted, but winced and ached all about.

Evergreen gave a scowl. "Alright, don't overdo it you overgrown ox."

Sophie blinked as she was still applied bandages all over her body, just like every single person on Team Tenrou. As Mira finished wrapping the last bit around her right arm, she turned towards Master Makarov.

"Now that I remember, weren't you guys on your second part when the S-Class Trials were intervened?"

"Yeah, what happens now?" Vanessa asked, her body covered in bandages like everybody else.

Makarov looked down and closed his eyes, grumbling with his mouth shut. "Hmmm." A short period of silence took over and everyone's gazes looked at him. "…that's a good question. I've been giving it deep consideration up to this point."

A sudden tent opening caught everyone's eyes, and out walked Wendy and Carla, but looking a little morose compared to everyone else.

"So, Wendy." Makarov looked at her with a straight and serious face, but his tone was absolute and worrisome. "…how is _he_?"

They all knew who he was talking about. Juvia immediately stopped fawning over Gray, Laxus and Gildarts turned towards their direction, and Vanessa swallowed, clasping her two hands together and hoping for the best.

Wendy's face looked slightly gloomier, but you couldn't blame her. Her clothing had a little stained blood from trying to wash it off of a certain someone.

Wendy looked back inside the tent, where everyone peeked in. Inside was actually an open area. No tent walls were established except for the one Wendy used to shield from everyone. Tent legs were pinned in all four corners, a blanket underneath. Medical equipment was all around, and off to the side was a folded up gray V-Neck and sleeveless coat.

It was who was inside that everyone paid attention to.

Erza was seen with a concerning frown as she sat on her knees in a blue dress with black edging. She looked down at an unconscious Nic. Nic had the most severe injuries compared to everyone else. His head had bandages that covered his left side. His whole body otherwise was like he was a mummy. Despite his bandaged up self, they all shook a little as Nic's lower right abdomen still showed some red within the bandages.

Wendy looked down in shame. Finally, she spoke.

"Well…the damage Nic took left him in a severe state. He was unstable, and it took me almost all of my Healing Magic to keep his body intact…but…" She was starting to shake, meaning bad news. "But…his right-sided wound and left eye…"

She said no more as the mood became that of a desolate land; lifeless and unhappy. Vanessa looked down, a shadow over her sullen eyes as Sophie put a hand on her shoulder to ease her.

Makarov closed his eyes once more and turned around, not bothering to take note of Mira with a clipboard. "…I see." His voice sounded low and remorseful. "We'll see what Porlyusica can do when we get back to the guild."

"I feel bad we couldn't do anything." Levy muttered.

Lucy turned to look at her. "It's not anybody's fault Levy, you know that." She then turned to look at a cross-legged Gildarts. "No matter who we are, Lysandre was like a benevolent god. It was exactly like he said…only Nic could drive him away…and he paid quite a price."

Sophie inhaled and exhaled deeply, a huge breath taking place as a small wave of calm came from doing so. "Well, talking about the past isn't going to make any of us feel better. The only thing we can hope for is Nic to come around soon."

She looked back at Vanessa, who still had remorse in her eyes. "I'm sure Nic would rather have you looking proud than sulking."

Vanessa looked on, but her expression had turned neutral. You couldn't tell if she was sad or cheered up. They all knew it was a rather poor display of a façade given the mood, but they didn't say anything about it.

Sophie looked down at the ground, trying to think of a way to somewhat ease the startled Vanessa. It soon came. "Hey, how about you show us your new Magic? Right?"

"Get real! You mean Vanessa finally learned how to use Magic?!" Natsu instantly perked up hearing the news.

"Seems about right, though I do have to question the right time and place." Carla stated.

Gajeel had his bandaged arms crossed as he looked at Vanessa. "So, Luminous' sister learned to kick ass, huh?"

Vanessa, seeing as how she suddenly became the center of attention, turned around and looked nervously at everyone. "Ummm…"

"Come on! I wanna see it in action!" Natsu held up a fist. "I'm ready to tu-"

A sudden hammer fist to the head smashed him into the ground, making everyone react shockingly, as it was Gildarts who made Natsu's injured head steam. "Give it a rest, kid. We all need it."

"Well, he's out now." Laxus said with a mild expression.

The Thunder God Tribe rejoiced as they all circled Laxus. Freed especially was overjoyed. Though they all wanted to spring in the air, they also needed to recover, so they just kept grins on their faces while being close to him.

As to where everyone else was starting to get comfortable, Cana was seen clenching her left arm, looking away from Gildarts, keeping her distance.

On the other side of the tent, Erza heard everyone settle down, but she didn't bother joining. She was where she wanted to be. Looking back down at Nic, a wave of relief began to wash over her. There were no words to describe just how happy she had felt, knowing that Nic stared Lysandre in his own face and drove him away; something Gildarts and Makarov were unable to accomplish.

But the more she looked at Nic, the more sadness and regret she began to feel. Her bangs cascaded a shadow over her eyes, replaying the brawl and Nic's right side getting torn, and his left eye getting ripped out in a flash.

'_This isn't right. I watched him fall twice, and fatally wounded both times…yet, he got back to his feet. If I were by his side, then…' _She knew thinking that way would only consider herself hindering where she didn't belong. She'd never stand a chance, leaving Nic to always save her skin, by sacrificing his.

Her eyes began to mist just thinking back to the recent battles in the last 24 hours. Erza always had to have herself saved; from Azuma, from Hades, and now Lysandre. Nic was always the fall guy, and it honestly broke her heart.

'_If only I was stronger, then you wouldn't have been burdened to fight alone, for us all, for me.'_

Makarov coughed a little, getting everyone's attention. Mira stood behind with her clipboard and a feathered pen.

As everyone paid attention, Makarov saw the confusion and anticipation. "Listen well, all of you. I have an important announcement to make…"

* * *

In space, Dialga and Palkia looked through a portal, seeing the unconscious Nic rest. They acquiescently endured watching the battle, and they were rather relieved knowing that Nic not only was empowered by the new Earth Plate, but the cost of taking down Lysandre that one time didn't mean they were in the clear for too long.

"This is bad. Very bad." Palkia informed.

Diagla could only look on as Nic was comforted by Erza. "Nic Pularis may only need three more Plates, however…"

They both looked into another portal, where the real concern laid upon them. They both took note of something that wasn't as powerful as Lysandre, but was still lethal. They saw the skies of Fiore, where they saw a humungous creature was making way towards Tenrou Island.

"This poses a great threat." Dialga narrowed his eyes, and a long pause took place. "With Nic out of commission, there's a strong chance that him and his friends will suffer a grand fate."

Palkia turned towards Dialga. "So…what do you propose we do?"

"Technically, we can't help Nic in his search for the Plates." He then looked back at the screen, seeing the huge beast make way towards Tenrou Island. "But in this case however, I do believe we're obligated to help since he's currently resting."

The two then looked up at Arceus, seeing that his condition was terrible. The upside was that he was slowly accumulating power from the Plates, but he still looked very terrible. Arceus looked down from the cloud of stardust he laid down on.

Dialga and Palkia both then looked around, seeing as how everyone else besides the pink and blue stardust around them was pitch black, as if they were in a hollow void.

Palkia then turned towards Dialga. "There's no other choice." A long paused passed. "Rally the troops."

Dialga then made a portal and he roared. He flew in and Palkia followed, with the portal closing from behind.

* * *

"WHAAAAT?!" Elfman, Gajeel, Gray, and Natsu screamed in unison in the Master's face.

"You heard me right. After everything that's happened, I have no other choice than to cancel the S-Class Trials this year." Makarov informed.

"How the heck is this fair?! We've been through worse!" Gray argued.

"Yeah! C'mon! What gives?!" Natsu barked.

"I ain't leavin' this island till I'm S-Class!" Gajeel shouted.

Elfman turned towards Gajeel. "That chicken must have scrambled your brain! Did you forget you weren't participating?" He reminded Gajeel. In response, the Iron Dragon Slayer grunted and looked away.

Makarov put a hand on his head. "I'm just as disappointed as you, but try looking in my perspective."

Mira took note. "First a Council member manipulated our memories and infiltrated, then Grimoire Heart attacked, and…Nic's critical condition." The last part was hard to say, but she kept herself as composed as she could.

Levy looked down. "With all of that, we really don't have much say."

"Grraaahh! I was so close to being S-Class!" Gray hollered, clenching his own head in utter frustration.

Juvia had a dreamy gaze as she stood by Gray's side. "Don't worry my beloved! Next time you'll win for sure, I'll make it happen myself if I have to!"

Elfman gave a defeated sigh. "I guess a real man knows when to call it quits."

Unlike everyone else, who accepted the Master's say, Natsu was still hyperactive. "Oh come on Gramps! If those babies are gonna throw in the towel, I might as well win by default! Right? Right?!" He started ranting on, and it was beginning to annoy everyone close.

Makarov, seeing as how Natsu wasn't as accepting, sighed greatly. "Alright then, if the boy won't listen to reason…" He looked up at the impulsive Dragon Slayer. "Alright Natsu, I'll make an exception and have you take the final test." He motioned neutrally towards himself. "If you can defeat me here and now, you'll be promoted on the spot."

Natsu was super eager. "Then what are we waiting for?! Prepare yourselves Gramps!" Natsu clenched both fists. "S-Class, here I come!"

Makarov grumbled.

Natsu raced after Makarov and jumped. "I'm all fired u-" A sudden giant arm smashed into Natsu, making him collide with a tree, making a dent in it as well. Everyone spectating all gaped at the sudden spectacle.

Makarov opened his eyes and grumbled once more as he shrunk his arm.

Natsu slowly drifted to the ground, wheezing. "I…was so close."

* * *

A huge figure with wings flew through the cloudy skies, the sky blue in contrast with his dark scales. His tail lashed as he caught Tenrou Island in the distance.

* * *

While everyone began to settle, Lucy and Cana both took a medicinal herb treatment bath for their injuries. Both Mages winced as the stinging didn't help, but it did prove that they were working.

"Cana."

"Yeah Lucy?"

"How's your arm?"

Cana showed her right arm, where it all clean. Unlike before, her arm no longer had the Fairy Glitter insignia. "The spell wore off, though I do have to admit that my arm did look cool with Fairy Glitter."

Lucy just kept a small smile, which was a complete contrast to Cana's frown. A long period of silence came and went, and Cana was the one to break it.

"Hey Lucy? I wanted to apologize." She sounded very regretful and sorrowful.

Lucy tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"You know…for ditching you earlier. I was being selfish, and I'm sorry."

Lucy smiled once again. "You don't have to worry, Cana. It doesn't bother me."

"But it bothers me greatly, and it'll do so forever, and it was all because of my selfish ambitions. I betrayed one of my closest friends."

Lucy could feel the self-hatred in Cana's voice, and she really didn't like it. She had to do what she could to ease Cana's sheer discomfort. She continued to keep her smile. "Well, to be honest, I just thought you were doing what had to be done. You were just doing what you could in order to win."

Cana looked up at Lucy, her innocent words reaching her ears.

Lucy continued. "I'm your partner, and I know S-Class is very important. So please don't worry about it."

Cana accepted her words, her discomfort fading away. She looked back down at the medicinal, green water.

"…Thanks Lucy." She then sighed. "Well…even if I failed a 5th time, I still have to do what has to be done, and tell Gildarts the truth."

* * *

Two lures were in a river, bobbing up and down along with the silent river currents. Natsu, Happy, and Gildarts all made way and decided to go fishing, though Happy was spectating the number of fish in the basket, practically saturating some in his drool.

Natsu was staring off with a disinteresting face, still bumbed out about not being S-Class.

"Geez Natsu, lighten up over there." Gildarts commented. "You keep that face any longer and the fish might get bored."

"Well I'm bored already." Natsu retorted weakly.

Gildarts looked a little serious. "You need a little spiritual journey. Fishing helps you discover that path to travel on."

"Oh I bet, a pat that travels into my belly!" Happy intervened, reaching for a fish.

"Eating the fish isn't the vitality of the journey." He started to look a little passionate and free-willed. "Don't you see, it's the thrill of the hunt, the unveiling of your instincts, the unison with Mother Nature! This is the playground where strong men duke it out with survival of the fittest!"

Natsu's line suddenly tugged, catching his attention.

"Oh! A bite!" He began tugging.

Gildarts turned with enthusiasm. "Nice job! Now, gently…"

"Hi guys!" The sudden call came from behind, revealing the identity to be none other than Lucy, followed by Cana. Both were adorned in new clothes. Lucy was waving at them as an extra greeting.

Gildarts held up a hand. "Hold on a minute! Natsu's about to discover the true meaning of fishing, so no interruptions!"

"I'm sorry Gildarts, but Cana needs to talk to you. It's rather important." Lucy informed. As Gildarts looked with slight question, Lucy grabbed Natsu and Happy as though they were popcorn and dragged them along, leaving behind a dust trail. "You guys are coming with me!" She shouted happily.

"But my journey!" Natsu shouted.

"My dinner!" Happy shouted as he was whisked away.

Gildarts and Cana were then left in the same spot, alone. Now was the time for Cana to face the music. Gildarts eyed Cana seriously while she looked hesitant. A very long silence was between the two, lasting for ten seconds.

"So what's going on?" Gildarts questioned at long last.

Cana swallowed and looked down. "Well…did you know that…I joined the guild so that I could…find my father?" She phrased nervously.

Gildarts had mild surprise established. "Actually, this is the first time I've heard of it." His eyes widened a little. "Hold on, you mean your old man was a member of Fairy Tail?"

Cana looked away, tightening the grip on her arm. "Um…kind of."

Lucy looked from afar in the shrubs, observing expectantly while a confused Natsu and Happy stared with circled eyes.

Cana closed her eyes. "His name was Gildarts."

Gildarts blinked once. Natsu and Happy gaped their mouths at the realization and Lucy just waited for Gildarts to finally react. The Crash Mage processed it, blinking twice, and it was finally realized.

"AAHHHH!" Gildarts screamed, realizing the epiphany.

Cana looked away in shame. "I wanted to tell you sooner, but things kept getting in the way."

"So, what you're saying is, y-you're my…my…" His shouted trailed off as it came clear.

Cana was his daughter.

"Yeah, it's the truth." Cana muttered, a shadow over her eyes.

"WAIT! Which one is your mother?! Sarah?! Naomi?! Clara?! Phina?! Mary?! Liza?!" He sank to his knees. "No! Hair colors all wrong! W-Wait! Who else?! Emma?! Lyla?! Jenny?! Sydney?! Kte?! The Yugo Sisters?!"

"SISTERS?!" Cana shouted angrily with a scowling face, bearing her teeth. "Just how many women have you been with?!"

Gildarts looked up at her face, still confused. "No wait! It's gotta be Sylvia! She always made that angry face!"

"Are you freakin kidding me right now?!" Cana shouted out to the skies above. "I finally confess, only to realize my old man is a player who can't stop the party that's rampaging in his pants!"

She shot a glare at him as he was having a breakdown. "Whatever! I was just letting you know! Later!" She angrily turned to leave.

As though a wave of nostalgia came about, Gildarts gasped. "Wait, is that…?"

Cana turned around to face him once more. "Don't worry, I won't be moving in anytime soo-" A sudden pair of arms wrapped around her, bringing her closer to the one responsible.

Cana found herself shocked as Gildarts was holding her close.

"Cornelia. That was your mother. No doubt about it." He said softly.

Cana was finally satisfied to know Gildarts knew her mom, but still felt guilt. "Please, just let go." She insisted, but Gildarts maintained a warm embrace.

"Why?" He asked. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Like I said, things kept getting in the way. Maybe I was too afraid if you'd reject me."

"Your mother Cornelia was the only woman I had ever truly fell in love with." He confessed softly. "Marrying her was the happiest time of my life."

Cana's eyes softened.

"She left me 18 years ago because I just worked around the clock. I was heartbroken…and when she passed away, I was like knives were driven into my heart. I still think of her, no matter what."

Cana grinned as her father was expressing his true love for her mother.

"I'm so sorry, Cana. I should've realized all this time."

Cana pulled away, forgiveness all over her face. Her smile being sincere. "It's alright. If anyone's to blame, it's me." She turned away, her hands over her ample chest. "It's just so relieving to know that I finally lifted something off my chest."

A shadow was over Gildarts' eyes. "I had a daughter, this whole time." He was shaking, and looked as though he was going to break down once more.

Cana turned towards him. "It's okay…but if you let me, can I just say this?" Her gaze brightened up and her cheeks blushed with joy from her soft smile. "I'm glad I met you, Dad."

Gildarts looked back at Cana with sheer shock. He stared at her as the realization. His daughter was right before his eyes, this whole time. Looking back, tears were at the corner of his eyes. He saw Cana from the little child she was, sometimes enthusiastic and smiling long ago at the guild when he was around. His tears boiled into small streams as he looked back and saw how much she's changed into a young woman.

He finally snapped.

"CANA!" He wrapped his arms around her once more, tears scrolling down his face as Cana was left unresponsive from the sudden embrace. Gildarts silently wept as Cana began to process and her smile returned, tears in the corners of her eyes as well.

The two shared the longest embrace ever, and Lucy looked with a soft smile from afar, with Natsu and Happy weeping comically.

Gildarts opened his eyes. "I promise you, that I'll always be there for you from now on. I'll never make you sad again, I swear." He sounded like he was pleading.

Tears slowly streamed down their faces, dripping and meeting in the same spot.

"I'll be there by your side; whether it's work or the bars."

Cana tightened her hold on her father. "You can try."

"All I ask…" He shook as he maintained his embrace. "All I ask, is that you give me the right to love you and be the loving father you deserve."

Their silence continued as the skies bloomed with sunlight, and they never let the other go until the longest time had passed.

* * *

A massive shadow was over the clouds, and through the clouds, it spotted Tenrou Island, now closer in view. Its enormous wings flapped as the destruction it had wanted was drawing ever so near.

* * *

Erza remained right by Nic's side. To her left was a bowl of water for any wet cloth that may needed to be applied. To her right were Nic's sunglasses, and she always looked back at them every ten seconds.

They were like a treasure that Nic had given her. She couldn't even afford a speck of dust. She kept her word and held onto them this entire time, for her and Nic's sake.

The tent door opened, and her gaze drifted up to see Sophie entering. "Am I interrupting something?"

Erza shook her head. "No, you're fine."

"Do you mind if I accompany you?"

Erza showed no reluctance as her gaze drifted down to Nic's closed eye. A short while passed before she replied. "Sure."

Sophie quietly made way around Nic and made herself comfortable on the other side of Nic's sunglasses. Now that she thought about it, Sophie never interacted with Erza as much as she did with Nic. Nobody was ever sure why, and how would they know unless they tried? A small silence followed once more.

Erza turned towards Sophie. "So where's Vanessa? I was sure that she would want to tend to her brother."

Her inquiry made Sophie ease the discomfort in the air. "She's trying to keep herself occupied by tending to her Pokémon. Apparently they took a beating throughout this whole tumultuous event."

"I see."

"I also heard that her Goomy evolved." Sophie added. "She's now Sliggoo."

"Oh really?" Erza was showing mild surprise. "Perhaps I should see Sliggoo soon." A long silence followed in between the two once more. "I heard how you sacrificed yourself to save Lisanna and Mira from Azuma. That was truly brave of you."

Sophie took the painful memory in stride. "Well, I was just doing what any Fairy Tail member would've done. What about you? I heard Nic saved you from Azuma."

Erza's gaze followed back down at her unconscious hero. "…yeah, he did. He actually saved us all."

Sophie crossed her arms. "Hard to tell how many times he saved our skins. He's done so too many times for my good memory to keep track of." The mood suddenly shifted when Sophie saw Erza clenching her own fists that laid on her thighs. She was shaking and had a shadow over her eyes. "Erza?"

"…It's just not fair." She muttered.

"Beg your pardon?"

"Why is Nic cursed like this? He fights so hard, and almost all the time, he gets hurt like this. It's just unacceptable." Her entire body was shaking. "He always wants to protect us, so he handles his fights alone. I try my absolute best to keep up, but…"

Sophie's frowning didn't help, but a serious look took place rather than a saddened one. "Listen to yourself." Her voice made Erza turn to her. "It's just like what I told Vanessa, Nic wouldn't want you moping around like this. What's done is done. You know I get worried too; you and Nic are my friends, and it doesn't sit well with me knowing that there's nothing but discomfort all around."

She turned her whole body towards a shocked Erza. "I stopped by just to check on how you two were doing. It's evident that when one of you is hurt, the other is affected, and not in a good way."

Erza remained silent for a few passive moments before she finally said something. "He loves me."

The sudden remark caught Sophie blinking. "What?"

"He loves me. He truly does love me." A small smile crept on her face as she gazed down at Nic. "When he fought against Azuma, he announced how he was hurt when Jellal was taken. He thought I needed him more than Nic, but…"

"I know." Sophie said softly, looking down at the ground. "I know it all."

"What? You do?"

Sophie's green eyes looked at Erza's brown ones. "He told me everything, just before the Edolas incident. He was too ashamed to tell you, so he endured two weeks of isolation. Cana and I were the only ones who interacted with him during that time period, but even in that case, he was still too uncomfortable to be around the guild."

Erza began to sulk silently with small guilt. "I should've known. I was a fool, to think Nic was hurt this entire time, and I didn't realize it until the fight with Azuma."

Sophie grinned and looked up at the tent ceiling. "You know, love is a concept that I myself can't seem to understand, considering that I never felt it. Sure I've seen some relationships come and gone, including my parents." She tilted her head towards Erza. "But what I see in your eyes is the purest of care, and love."

Erza fell silent thanks to Sophie figuring her out.

"You don't have to say it, I can tell. But it's best that you tell him before it's way too late." She advised with a smile.

The Requip Mage looked back down at him. She watched his chest rise up and down, and she found just how weak she really was compared to Nic. And yet, Sophie tried making her see things differently. Erza was far from weak; she was one of the strongest woman alive, and had one of the strongest of hearts. It's times like these that she had to be strong, for the ones she cared for…for the ones she loved. She had to be strong. Relying on Nic like this wouldn't do good. She'd have to constantly watch him take the fall, and no benefits would come out of it.

"I told myself." She muttered. "After this is over, I'd tell him." Sophie blinked as she was catching on rather quickly. "…I'll tell him, when he's finally recovered."

Sophie smiled and stood up. "Datta girl! But don't keep him waiting too long now." She began to exit the tent with a small skip before she remembered something. "Oh yeah, that reminds me; the ship's about to depart in a short while, so better be ready." With that, Sophie exited the tent, having Erza feel better.

Sophie stood outside the tent, a large grin on her face. _'Well, I vowed to get those two together, and it's working like a charm…huh, I just might be better at this stuff than Mirajane.'_

Erza was left to tend to Nic some more, but she now had on a soft smile. _'Nic.'_

A sudden low roar that sounded like a jet in the sky made her, as well as everybody else, catching them off guard. It wasn't a good sign to say the least.

"Can somebody feed Lucy already?" Gajeel said.

Lisanna gawked at Gajeel. "Gah! The Lucy in Edolas had a hardy appetite, but this is ridiculous!"

Levy grew a tick mark. "Don't listen to Gajeel. He's just being all-time jerk self."

Gajeel looked away with a prideful sneer.

Mira put a hand on her own cheek. "Oh my, better hope we have enough to hold her over until we reach shore."

Gajeel turned towards her. "Geez! Haven't you ever heard of a joke?"

Vanessa walked on over with a bandaged up Braixen by her side. "Did you guys hear that?"

"Whatever it was, it was manly-OW!" Elfman was halted when he got a sudden fan to the back of the head by a certain someone.

Evergreen had a tick mark as she was fed up with Elfman's manly talk. The former slowly looked over his shoulder with a scowl on his face.

"Please tell me you did that on accident." He growled.

"Nope, that was on purpose!" She began swatting him repeatedly on the back of the head. "Not stop saying 'real man' for the next five minutes or you'll be stone!"

"Why do you care?"

"I don't! It's just annoying!"

Braixen looked down at a cup and saw the water shake a little.

"You're driving me crazy!"

"A real man doesn't take such beatings from a woman!"

Evergreen smacked him even more. "A _real man_ never talks to a lady like that!"

Mira giggled. "You two shouldn't fight when it's close to your wedding day."

"THAT WAS A LIE!" The two bickerers shouted.

The water in the cup settled, which made Braixen's nerves and hair stand on end.

"**GRRAAHHHHHHHHHH!**" A humungous roar made the reader's goosebumps arise, and the Fairy Tail Mages present covered their ears at the sudden roar that shook the ground.

"What is that sound?!" Evergreen shouted.

"It sounds so manly!" Elfman shouted.

The roar and quaking settled, and Wendy was able to uncover her ears. "That was a Dragon's roar!"

"For real?!" Gray asked.

"A Dragon? You sure that's not thunder?" Lily insisted, covering his ears.

"**GGRRAAAHHHHHH!**" The massive roar quaked the ground again, having Vanessa and Sophie and a few others cover their ears. It last for another few moments.

Natsu, Gray, Lucy, Cana, Gildarts, and a flying Happy met up with everyone.

"Hey, are you guys alright?!" Lucy shouted.

"Lucy!" Levy shouted in surprise.

Erza rushed out of the tent and saw everyone gathering. "What's going on?"

Gildarts skid to a halt, looking up at the sky. "This roar, there's no doubt about it."

"Dad?" Cana questioned.

"That Dragon…he's coming."

Lily pointed into the sky. "Everyone! Look!" Everyone followed upwards and almost immediately, fright overcame them, just like earlier that morning with Lysandre. Only this wasn't from the power, but the humungous appearance.

Everyone's pupils dilated in shock as they all saw a giant Dragon's shadow emerging from the sky.

"HOLY CRAP!" Gray screamed.

The black claws descended, looking razor sharp. Attached were black arms, and the face bared lifeless eyes. The mouth opened, revealing pointed teeth and another blood-curdling roar shook about. His upper body was black, with spiraling blue markings. His chins, inner tail, chest, stomach, and arms, were a smooth gray. The round head had four huge plates extending back, and the chon was that of an arrowhead. The very long tail ended in a stinger-esque shape. The wings were like an avian's, but not at all friendly.

"Oh god…" Juvia muttered.

The Dragon became making his way down towards them, breaking the sound barrier.

"IT IS A DRAGON!" Bickslow screamed.

Vanessa's eyes were wide. "This is bad." Winds picked up greatly and everyone covered up as the Dragon's wings flapped, making bits of leaves and grass fly in the winds.

The Dragon Slayers' eyes were all shrunk and in sheer disbelief.

"You've gotta be kidding me." Gajeel muttered.

"What's happening?" Wendy shouted.

"They do exist. I knew it." Natsu muttered under his breath.

The winds stopped, and Gildarts turned around to find Master Makarov present. "There's no question. That's none other than Acnologia; The Black Dragon of the Apocalypse."

Gildarts looked ahead. "Yeah." His eyes narrowed. "Thank god we've seen worse this morning. Next to Lysandre and those four that gave them his power, Acnologia is the vilest of his kind."

"Hey, Dragon!" Natsu shouted. "You know where Igneel is?! Tell me! Grandeeney and Metalicana, where are they as well?!"

Gildarts clutched Nastu's shoulders. "Stop Natsu!" He warned. "You mustn't provoke him! Remember? How I almost lost my life?! I was lucky just to lose an arm and leg!"

Natsu looked down angrily, frustrated as no answers would come out of this predicament.

Acnologia's roar caught their attention as he descended down onto the island, more winds brewing.

Sophie and Vanessa's long hair blew as Acnologia descended. "What do we do?! Do we just standby?!" Sophie shouted at Makarov.

"You don't understand." Gildarts' eyes narrowed. "This isn't about sitting around. We gotta get away with our lives, just like with Lysandre."

Acnolgia planted his left arm on the ground as he lowered his head, hot breathing emanating.

"You mean we're not safe?!" Braixen shouted.

Acnologia screeched into the skies above, prompting for Gildarts to swipe his arm. "EVERYONE RUN! NOW!"

They all were on their guard and nerves as they saw Acnologia reel his head back. He opened his mouth and let loose an ear-splitting roar, an enormous shockwave rattling all of Tenrou Island. Whatever trees were left unharmed by Lysandre were tarnished and blown away, along with bits of the earth.

Many tried holding their ground, but a majority fell back from roar's shockwave. A massive dust storm bellowed about as the roar was swallowing up the tet.

Erza looked at the tent and her eyes shot wide in terror. "NIC!" She dove into the tent, grabbing Nic and his sunglasses as she ducked into a barrel role and escaped mere seconds before the shockwave had sent the tent flying off. Erza held Nic tightly and his sunglasses as the dust swallowed them up.

The shockwave stopped, and everyone began to get back to their feet, confusion to the spectacle before them. Natsu's eyes opened and were filled with shock. "No way…the entire forest…"

"Everything that Lysandre didn't destroy – gone." Vanessa shuddered.

Braixen shook along with her Trainer. "That was just from one roar."

Cana was supported by Gildarts. "Just how strong is he?"

Gildarts and everyone saw Acnologia looking down from the air he arose him, a hot breath exhaling steam.

"Not just strong, evil; plain as that." Her father answered. "And I'm afraid…that just now, was but a mere warm-up." He heard gasped from behind and turned around. "Listen up! You can't be freaking out now! If you want to live! Run!"

Erza picked up Nic and had him supported with an arm over her shoulder as she had her left arm around his waist. Acnologia's sudden roar and shadow covering the sun almost made her loosen her grip. She also had to use her forehead to house Nic's sunglasses.

"RUN NOW!" Gildarts screamed.

Everyone began to make a break for the remaining trees left untouched, yet cut down from Lysandre's Psycho Cut from earlier. They made haste, with Erza supporting Nic the best she could and everyone running for their lives as Acnologia followed from behind.

Gildarts and Natsu looked behind to see Acnologia tailing them without even trying.

"Wendy, can you communicate with that Dragon?" Carla asked as she ran.

"Anyone can talk to a Dragon! But this one didn't come to talk!" Wendy was then silenced as Acnologia's shadow sailed overhead and he roared.

Freed and Bickslow were ambushed when Acnologia landed in front. They both gawked up and saw the Dragon's beady eyes showering darkness from his growling. He lunged after Freed and Bickslow, both screaming as they ran.

"No! He's attacking!" Lily shouted.

"Freed! Bickslow!" Evergreen shouted.

"No! He cut off our escape route!" Gray yelled with an injured Juvia on his back.

Wendy shook with fear. "Why…why us! Answer me!"

Acnologia turned his head and growled at her, not so much as one word. His view upon them were nothing more than insects. Insects that were to be squashed. His right hand went crashing down, and everyone jumped out of the way. He snarled as he then raised his left arm and brought it down, making everyone else jump and dodge while screaming, the island shaking with every time Acnologia struck the ground.

Acnologia's tail swung at the ground, making a shockwave that sent Elfman flying. "W-Whoaaaaaah!"

"Elfman!" Evergreen spread her wings and made haste to grab Elfman, to which she was successful, but Acnologia lashed his claws down, making the two scream as they went sailing down to the ground.

Levy was starting to mist in the eyes. "No. It's just like what happened to Nic. Nothing but destruction."

Having enough, Natsu let out a battlecry as he raced ahead, but Acnologia brought his arm down in front, the attack making shockwaves that made Natsu skid back and did a bouncing skidding thud. When he stopped, he sat up and faced the Dragon. "I'M NOT DONE…"

He stopped when Master Makarov had a shadow over his eyes and took off his shirt, casting it aside.

"Gramps?!"

Makaroc glowed a golden aura and began to grow in size, becoming a giant. "**To the ship! Now!**" His size grew to a massive giant that rivaled Acnologia. Makarov reached and grabbed Acnologia's head, bringing him to a still heading. The Dragon roared as he was halted temporarily.

Master was still having a hard time. Acnologia budged ahead, his strength actually beginning to overpower Master's. But even so, Master Makarov kept his hold.

"That's crazy!" Gray and everyone watched as Makarov held of the creature. "He can't fight alone!"

"Master!" Vanessa shouted.

The land continued to quake as Master remained put, fending against Acnologia. "**Get out of here!**"

Laxus stood and his eyes showed he was a mixture of perplexed and shocked by his grandfather playing the hero.

"I'll fight by Master's side!" Freed insisted.

"No overgrown lizard isn't gonna stop us now!" Bickslow shouted.

Everyone followed in insisting, though Erza looked down at Nic and stared at his still unconscious state. If she stayed to fight, there would be a chance he might…

The alternatives of the situation were making her very uneasy. She needed to be strong, so as to protect Nic when he can't fight. She wanted to stay just as much as anyone, but if it meant losing Nic's life in the process, then the confliction would be overbearing.

"**WILL YOU BRATS JUST HONOR YOUR MASTER'S FINAL WISH AND LEAVE! GET OUT, NOW!**" Master shouted.

Mira gasped and her hand covered her mouth. "Final wish?"

Laxus was shaking as he saw the look in his eyes. A very long pause conflicted him, leaving the Lightning Dragon Slayer unable to do anything but turn and wince in his wish.

"I AM A DRAGON SLAYER, GRAMPS! THIS IS WHAT I WAS BORN TO-" Natsu's tantrum was halted when he was being dragged by the scarf.

"Not today, kid!" Laxus ordered, looking away.

Natsu looked back. "Laxus…"

Natsu's eyes widened as small glints were seen, showing that tears were being shed in the winds from Laxus as he dragged Natsu.

As Laxus turned, he was followed by a reluctant Erza, who ran as fast as she could with Nic still being supported.

"…best of luck! Move!" She ordered.

Everyone began to grow reluctant and started to shed tears of sadness. Having Master risk his life was starting to make Vanessa have tears glisten as she ran for her life, which a worrisome Braixen following suit.

As everyone evacuated. Master was left to his final thoughts.

'…_What good brats. It's very hard, I know it is, but it's what must be done. It's these times that prepare you for the future, knowing that the shedding of tears is wasteful to trouble over. Is death caused by sadness, or is it the other way around? That answer is for you to decide, within your hearts…my blessed children, GROW AND LIVE!'_

Master was in a sheer power struggle as Acnologia was beginning to move haphazardly in his hold, his tail violently swinging about, destroying any trees it slammed on.

"**You foul creature!**" Makarov yelled, maintaining his hold and moving Acnologia back a little. "**I don't know why you're here, but there's something that is certain!**"

Acnologia continued to growl as his head was right up to Master's abdomen.

"**My children are back there, and you won't lay another claw on them!**"

Acnologia shot his mouth open, his round head plunging into Master's abdomen and making him gag blood. Acnologia began to drive Makarov back as he screamed. The Dragon growled loudly as he used his legs and pushed, making Makarov screamed louder as he fell on his back. The Dragon drove his left claw onto Makarov's chest and squeezed, rushing it.

Makarov let loose even more agonizing screams as Acnologia was towering over him, his chest bleeding from being crushed. Acnologia's claws were embedded into his skin and not releasing as his mouth had all teeth bared.

Slowly, Master stopped screaming, which somewhat confused Acnologia. The Black Dragon reared away, still left claws on chest, but what surprised him was Makarov smiling. Pretty soon, his smile broke into a laughter, or a light chuckle.

'_This is what a father does for his children.' _He thought as his gaze was hazy and Acnologia opened his mouth once more. _'I have nothing to forget. I can die as a happy man…'_

A sudden pair of running footsteps made him shoot his eyes wide, which also caught Acnologia's attention.

A certain pink-haired boy ran past the Master and after Acnologia. The Dragon lashed his tail. But Natsu tumbled right and dodged.

"**Natsu!**"

Natsu jumped onto the tail, and then onto the left arm. Acnologia peered down and Natsu was up close, tears in his eyes.

"We're getting ramps back! No matter what!"

Acnologia lashed his arm, still embedded into Master's chest. He swatted left, dragging him and crashing him into the side of a cliff. Dust blew all about, and the Master began to shrink ad return to normal size, coughing some more and clutching where Acnologia embedded his claws into him.

He opened his eyes, seeing Erza in her Heart Kreuz Armor. "Erza?"

Beside her was Nic, but he was still out, lying against a rock.

Erza looked back at Nic, staring. _'Now it's our turn to protect you.'_

"You know." Laxus was in front of Makarov, looking at Acnologia. "I was down with the evacuation, but you know what?" Laxus turned around, smiling. "Your guild doesn't allow geezers to die on their watch."

Erza pointed a sword at Acnologia. "Attack!"

Everyone came back and let loose a battlecry as they all began bombarding Acnologia with spells and attacks, giving it their all.

Makarov began to tear up. "…you…you stupid brats."

Laxus began to grow extremely muscular as the ground quaked. His eyes and mouth were shown to have lightning surging, as well as the rest of his body. "GRRAAAHHHHH! ALRIGHT GUYS! HIT HIS OVERGROWN LIZARD WTH EVERYTHING YOU HAVE!"

Natsu, still clinging to Acnologia's arm, looked down at Laxus. "Laxus?"

"You better get away, Natsu!"

"Hang on, I'm not ready-"

"Attack! Now!" Erza commanded.

"I HAVEN'T MOVED YET!"

Laxus then brought his arms forward, unleashing a grand lightning bolt. "**Raging Bolt!**"

"**Requip!**" Erza glowed and shifted into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. "**Blumenblatt!**"

"**Ice-Make: Super Freezing Arrow!**"

"**Water Nebula!**"

"**Memory-Make: Piercing Frigid Darkness!**"

"BRAIXEN! NOW!" As Vanessa let out a battlecry and let loose a beam of aura, Braixen brought out her stick and let loose Psyshock, purple beams combining with the beam of teal aura.

"**Solid Script: Fire!**"

"Now! Sagittarius!" Lucy summoned Sagittarius, who let loose a barrage of arrows.

"**Evil Explosion!**"

"UNLEASH THE THUNDER GOD TRIBE'S FULL POWER!" Freed swiped his lance, sending beams at Acnologia.

"**Baryon Formation! **LET'S ROCK BABIES!"

"**Fairy Machine Gun: Leprechaun!**"

All of the attacks combined, making a gigantic wave that rattled the entire island as it traveled towards Acnologia. A glint was seen, revealing Happy carrying Natsu.

Acnologia was then swallowed up by the catastrophic wave of Magic.

* * *

From afar, a young woman with pink-feathered protrusions were in her long, wavy, yellow blonde hair that reached down to her feet. One strand protruded from the top. Her green eyes had no irises, and had peachy skin and a child-like build. She wore a frilly pink robe with a red bow at the neck. Starting from the chest were three diamond patterns outlined in hot pink. She's also bear-footed.

She watched on as Acnologia was still caught up in the attack.

* * *

Laxus grunted as Acnologia was seemingly unharmed as the attack raged on. "Are you kidding me? All of that and he's still not even scratched! Alright then, you guys! Take him out!"

Above, the Exceeds carried their partners through the air as they got at a high elevation. The Dragon Slayers all went up and readied.

Natsu grew a tick mark. "I still owe Laxus a butt-whoopin'." He muttered.

"Not now." Happy responded.

As they drew closer, they unleashed their attacks.

"**Iron Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Sky Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

All three roars combined the Dragon Slayers' combined assault releasing a huge torrent of fire, iron, and wind that hit Acnologia head on. The Black Dragon skid back some, and then lost his footing and shot back against a cliff. A massive burst of rock flew all about, and a massive geyser shot up in place of Acnologia.

In front of everyone was destroyed island, not left but whatever.

Erza looked back at Nic, seeing how he was unharmed, and then back ahead. "Did it work?"

"Of course not." Gildarts responded.

"What?!" Natsu shouted.

"That Dragon isn't using half of the power he used to fight me. He's toying with us."

With that comment, the ground beneath shook, and it soon cracked. Everyone jerked back as the ground shattered, and Acnologia burst from the water, rising up with a roar; his shadow blocking out the sun from above.

"He's back in the air!" Vanessa shouted.

"All of those attacks, and not a single scratch." Sophie said in disbelief.

Wendy dropped to her knees. "No, we gave it everything we had." She looked down as hope was being drained away. "Our entire guild and three Dragon Slayers was still not enough!"

Natsu dropped to his knees and pounded the ground. "No! This can't be happening! I'm a Dragon Slayer! Why didn't he go down?! Why-"

He was cut off by a sift sobbing from close by. His ears didn't lie. He slowly looked over and saw Lucy. Lucy was silently sobbing into her hands.

"So is this really it?" She said into her hands. "What's gonna happen? _Why_ is this happening to us?"

Natsu just stared at her, and then looked back up at Acnologia.

Erza, Vanessa, and Braixen all grew stiff as they were all in front of Nic, shielding him from any possible disaster that Acnologia was gonna attempt.

Acnologia's mouth opened as he started taking in a huge amount of energy.

"He's gonna use a Dragon's Roar!" Gajeel roared.

Cana looked up with nerves at their peak. "Is it gonna wipe us out in one blow?!"

"Oh god." Evergreen muttered.

Sophie swiped her arms. "We gotta use as much defense Magic as possible!"

Freed looked down at his hands. "But I don't have time to write an Enchantment!"

"Script Magic can supply a copious of defensive abilities!" Levy pointed out.

"Yes, that's true!"

Bickslow intervened. "Think of one, fast!"

Erza grunted and looked to everyone. "Everyone, concentrate your Magic Power towards Sophie, Freed, and Levy!"

"Everyone hold hands!" Mira advised.

Natsu reached down to Lucy, who stopped crying as she saw Natsu's hands. She looked at his serious look.

"We're not gonna go out crying." He said. "Come on, Lucy."

He grabbed her hand and she blinked. Lucy swallowed and she started to show confidence once more. "Fairy Tail never throws away the towel.

More hands began to join, and Team Tenrou was holding hands. Natsu's other hand connected to Erza, who supported Nic as best as she could. On the other side on Nic was his sister. Vanessa held onto Braixen's paw with her left arm, and Braixen held hands with Sophie, who was connected to Cana, then Gildarts, until everyone was joined in the circle.

When Laxus reached to his small grandfather, Makarov started crying and accepted Laxus' hand. "Okay kids…let's go back to Fairy Tail."

With (most of) everyone holding hands, they all looked up at the impending doom that was Acnologia as he was all charged up.

"We're all going home to Fairy Tail!" They all shouted in unison.

Acnologia's mouth light blue and he let loose a huge Dragon's Roar that shook everything as it began to swallow up everything, the light of the roar beginning to descend.

It was then that Nic's eyes winced and slightly open.

A sudden spatial portal, a super large one, opened up above Tenrou Island, taking in the entire Dragon's Roar.

All of Team Tenrou looked up in sheer shock as a sudden portal was taking in the entire roar. The land still shook from the pressure, but everything stayed as it is. The Dragon's Roar went into space, sparing all of the island.

"What…what just…" Gildarts was unable to comprehend as to what had just happened just now.

"What that a spell to absorb the roar?" Freed wondered.

"No way." Gray muttered. "That looked just like one of those space holes that Lysandre used, but this is different!"

The Dragon's Roar came to an end, and every bit of it went into the portal. Acnologia reared back some in slight shock and confusion what just happened.

"Mmmm." A slight moan came from Erza's left, and to her shock Nic began to come around. "What happened?" He moaned.

Erza gasped in Nic's sudden awakening. "Nic!" Her little relief was then broken when Nic winced and yelped, forcing him to a knee.

"What?"

"He's awake!"

"Nic! You're okay!"

Everyone began to gather around as Nic was panting, having since he hasn't fully recovered. His body felt off as he looked up, everyone looking down at him. Vanessa was right by his side, as was Erza. The two stayed close as he remembered what happened.

Everything went flooding back, and Nic remembered how his right side was ripped, hence the stinging sensation. He then remembered the part about his left eye. If he could sigh lowly, he would. It was a shock, but he'll cope with it. Being a hero means paying heavy prices.

"You're finally awake. What a relief." Braixen said.

"Hang on." Nic muttered. "What's going on?" He slowly looked up, and his right eye shot wide with shock at the sight of Acnologia. The Black Dragon stared down, still surprised from earlier. "What-what is that?"

Erza looked up and narrowed her eyes. "That's Acnologia. He's been attacking us while you were blacked out. He's too strong." She really didn't like the last part, but it was the truth. Even at full power, Acnologa wasn't even scratched.

Laxus looked. "That aside, what was that just now?"

Everyone looked up and saw that there were two smaller portals forming on either side. Acnologia snarled and from the portal on his lower right shot a large, pink crescent blade. From the lower left portal, out came a super immense indigo beam.

The two attacks both struck Acnologia, which made contact. At first, there was a light ripple, which exploded into a full-blown shockwave, swallowing the skies above in pink ad indigo. Team Tenrou below covered up as the shockwaves from both attacks made the ground underneath crack, making small rocks fly.

Erza and Nic both covered up and they, along with everyone else, heard nothing but constant rumbling from above. The clouds in the nearby area all parted from the sheer force applied. Acnologia roared violently as the two attacks actually felt painful. The Black Dragon's roar bellowed as the skies all around were lit up in sheer light from afar.

It soon came to an end, and everyone looked up once more. They saw the smoke, indigo, and pink all slowly fade, along with the rest of the clouds from the attacks.

"Whoa…" Natsu was too shocked to even say one word after that. The force behind both attacks would've been enough to obliterate Tenrou Island twice if possible.

Acnologia roared as everything cleared, the air shaking from his roars. You could tell by the sudden few scratches on his smooth gray abdomen that the two attacks did left him feeling that.

"Hold on." Elfman said as the quaking from the roar stopped. "Those two attacks did more damage than we ever did. Just what shot those?"

Nic's eye widened a little from the remembrance of the energy flowing about. "No way…did they…"

Acnologia looked down and saw that he suffered actual damage. Surprisingly both attacks were super effective, and he still felt some slight stinging sensations all about. He roared once more, much angrier than before.

From his right side, pink stardust flowed out of the portal as Palkia had arrived. On Acnologia's left was blue stardust lowing out as Dialga emerged. Both Pokémon roared upon arriving in Fiore.

"You've gotta be joking!" Gajeel exclaimed.

Levy covered her mouth as she gasped. "What are they?!"

As Happy and Carla were left gaping their mouths, Lily stepped forward, seeing both draconic beings floating high in the air and facing Acnologia. "Now hold on. Don't you recognize them?"

"Huh?!" The Exceeds exclaimed.

Nic was supported by Erza and Vanessa, all three looking up with shock. Nic especially. "Dialga. Palkia."

Gildarts and Makarov turned towards Nic, hearing their names being repeated by him. "Nic, are you saying you know those two?" Gildarts questioned.

Nic weakly nodded. "Yeah, they sent me to Fiore. They're the rulers of time and space; Dialga, and Palkia."

"Rulers of time and space?" Freed repeated.

"Man, just when things couldn't get any weirder." Bickslow commented. "Glad those guys are on our side."

Wendy looked up with slight awe. "Not only that, but they also managed to put a mark on Acnologia!"

Natsu stared into the sky with his eyes dilating, but not just in awe, but frustration that they laid some hurt and Fairy Tail did nothing. "Just how powerful are those guys?"

Dialga and Palkia both stared up at Acnologia, who growled at the two, looking ever so angrily. Acnologia roared once again, shockwave rippling through the air and making everyone below cover up if possible. The Black Dragon went to attack Palkia by lunging his right claw at him. Palkia, however, made no attempt at moving.

The pink pearls on Palkia's shoulders lit up, and the area in front of him became distorted. Acnologia's attack was then deflected, and his arm jerked back as he roared at Palkia.

Dialga opened his mouth and roared, in which he formed a blue sphere, which was none other than Aura Sphere. Dialga fired the attack, landing an explosive blow in Acnologia's face, making a light blue explosion as the Dragon let out another roar of anger through it, turning attention towards Dialga.

Acnologia was superior in size, so he swung his huge tail to knock Dialga down, but to everyone's astonishment, Dialga's diamond on his chest lit up, and emanated light blue ripples took up the area ahead of him, in which Acnologia was actually slowing down gradually.

"I don't believe it!" Gray shouted.

"He's actually slowing down time." Juvia muttered.

With his powers, Dialga was able to slow down Acnologia enough to easily evade the tail swing and open his mouth, firing a light blue and white beam of energy and struck Acnologia once again, making another explosion that swallowed up the Dragon.

Acnologia roared once again through the explosion, and with one flap of his wings, the explosion was lifted, and the air shook with his raging fury. He eyed the two before him, feeling their Spatial and Temporal powers, and he sought to destroy them.

The three had a long standoff, and below, Nic called up to them. "Dialga! Palkia! What are you doing here?!"

Acnologia let out another excessive roar, which was a sudden break before either one could answer.

After the roar, Dialga replied without looking back down at Nic. "We have come because this is of dire time."

"We have been watching you, and you are of no condition to quarrel." Palkia picked up. "While we can't help you on your search for the Plates, we are obligated to keep you alive."

Nic only remained silent as he stared up at the two.

Acnologia, Palkia, and Dialga all let out loud roars that send shockwaves through the airspace, making the sea below them swish back and forth gradually.

The Black Dragon attempted another Dragon's Roar. He opened his mouth and energy began to surge to an extreme level. The roar was finally let loose, and it went beaming after Dialga and Palkia.

Dialga's diamond on his chest glowed once more and he emanated blue ripples, which actually slowed down the Dragon's Roar. Palkia proceeded next by having the pearls on his shoulders lit up, and space in front of them began to distort gradually. The roar then proceeded, but the distorted space in front made the attack angle upwards into atmosphere, missing the two entirely and it beamed into the stratosphere above.

Everyone below was in deep awe as the two were actually fending Acnologia off, something they failed to accomplish. Gildarts, Makarov, and the Dragon Slayers especially were in deep shock. They all went after him, yet those two floating in the sky were fending him off by using time and space to their potential.

"Those are Pokémon?" Makarov asked as he continued gazing above.

"Yeah." Nic answered before wincing, in which Vanessa and Erza both had to support him.

"Nic, please overdo it." Vanessa warned.

The roar in the sky stopped, and Dialga and Palkia were both left unhindered. The two looked at the other with concerns on the rise.

"Dialga, if we keep this up, we'll only be stalling." Palkia reminded him.

Dialga looked ahead at Acnologia. "Yeah, you're right. We can only combine and block; furthermore, we can't stay here for too long since Arceus is vulnerable without us…Palkia, summon them."

Acnologia let out another agitated and blood-curdling roar at the two before him.

Palkia nodded and continued to look at Acnologia. "Nic Pularis. We have come with the purpose of enlisting help for this battle."

Nic was taken back and looked surprised. "What?"

"Help?" Happy asked.

Lily crossed his arms. "Yu mean rather than fight this themselves, they've come to provide help with the use of other Pokémon." He confirmed.

Makarov gasped. "What's this?! You mean there's more than just those two?!"

"Trust me, you have no idea." Braixen said. She turned her head back up at the scene in the sky. "Something tells me we're going to have to step back."

Palkia's pearls began to glow and he let out a rippling screech all about. Acnologia let a low growl utter and Dialga let out his own growl in defense.

Palkia spread his arms out, in which a space in the sky, and two spaces in the sea, began to crack, as if it was an illusion of sorts. The cracked spaces shattered like glass, and each one represented a different kind of area. The one in the sky had a picture of the ozone layer, one in the sea resembled the core of the earth, and the last one resembled the ocean depths; the dark trenches.

Acnologia and everyone watched as the two spatial cracks in the sea poured out ocean water, and the other being lava.

The lava portal began to pour out onto the sea, making a cloud of steam, which cooled down the lava. More lava poured on as something stepped through the torrent of lava. The lava soon dialed down, revealing something drenched in lava. The creature showed his scaly body and growled as the lava cooled into hard rock.

Everyone's eyes shot wide from the creature as he roared up to the sky, the lava beginning to drip off of his body.

Nic was caught with a dilated eye filled with shock. "No way…Groudon."

The other portal continued to gush ocean trench water, and through it, something swam through into the oceans of Fiore. The sea spill stopped, and something arose with a large wave as the second creature arose.

"Kyogre. If those two are here, then…"

A draconic oar was heard through the last portal through the sky, and Acnologia and everyone looked as the air shook, with the arrival of the final participant swerving upwards out of the portal and into the skies above.

"Rayquaza."

Rayquaza swerved himself downwards, with Dialga and Palkia joining. Rayquaza roared as he made way and passed over Team Tenrou, all of them unable to comprehend what was happening as Rayquaza's shadow cascaded over them.

"What are those things?!" Cana shouted.

Rayquaza roared once more as he swerved and remained stable over Groudon and Kyogre as all three of their portals closed. Dialga and Palkia were at a little higher elevation as the Weather Trio were before them, facing the threat in the skies.

The three before everyone gave off tremendous pressure as they growled forebodingly at Acnologia, who in turn growled back. His cold glare was focused solemnly on the Weather Trio, and everyone looked in awe and fear as Groudon roared as he stood on the cooled lava, steam rising. Kyogre eyed Acnologia with sheer intensity, and Rayquaza was no different.

Nic was pleasantly surprised knowing that Rayquaza and the other two were enlisted to help, yet from what he's seen, it was hard to tell if those three would be enough for this fight. "I can't believe it. They've actually come."

Makarov turned sharply towards him. "Nic, you mean you know those three?"

Nic nodded and looked back at the scene before them. "Yeah. They're the ones I met in my sub-conscience during y fight with Lysandre. If it wasn't for them bestowing their powers onto me, I'm not sure that I would've survived." He took a pause before continuing. "They're known as Groudon, the personification of Land. Kyogre, personification of the Sea. And Rayquaza, the personification of the Atmosphere."

Makarov looked back ahead with curiosity hidden behind his cold front. "So these three are here to protect us from Acnologia, huh?"

Natsu clenched his fists and grunted, slightly anticipating the huge battle that was to come, but also angry that he couldn't stop Acnologia.

Rayquaza roared. "We are assigned to protect the wielder of the Plates!"

"Protect Nic Pularis!" Kyogre shouted.

Groudon let out his own roar, shockwaves emanating. "For the sake of all that has entity, we shall stop Acnologia and save the Plate wielder from harm!" Groudon's gaze then followed back at Nic, his yellow eyes looking into his one and only eye. "I'm still rather peeved of how you assessed the problem from before with Kyogre's power."

Vanessa, using her spare arm, reached into her big, brown purse she had on at the time, and took out a Pokedex. He held it up and a hologram of Groudon appeared.

_"Groudon, the Continent Pokémon.__ Said to have expanded the lands by evaporating water with raging heat. It battled titanically with Kyogre."_

"To expand the lands?" Makarov repeated with utter shock.

Vanessa continued to examine with her Pokedex.

_"Kyogre, the Sea Basin Pokémon. A mythical Pokémon said to have swelled the seas with rain and tidal waves. It battled with Groudon."_

Lucy gasped at the realization. "Say, that's exactly what Nic did when he battled Lysandre before!"

_"Rayquaza, the Sky High Pokémon. Rayquaza is said to have lived for hundreds of millions of years. Legends remain of how it put to rest the clash between Kyogre and Groudon."_

Bickslow turned towards the Pokedex with shock. "For hundreds of millions of years?!"

"Which means they're far greater in age than the Dragons from 400 years ago." Freed analyzed.

Kyogre glanced over to Groudon, who turned towards him. "This has nothing to do with the past now. We can worry about that problem some other time."

Groudon made the land underneath rise and expand, fresh hot land shooting up and expanding in a small area, which made Kyogre take action and move towards his right.

With more battleground for Groudon to use, he looked back at a peeved Kyogre, eyeing him with slight animosity. The Legendary Ground-Type opened his mouth, steam flowing out. "You care to try?"

"SILENCE!"

Rayquaza roared, sending loud and vast ripples in all directions, getting Groudon and Kyogre's attention. "We are here to do as told! Work as one and defeat Acnologia!"

Acnologia, in return, roared once more and flapped. Not wasting anymore time in disbelief, the Dragon made way after the three, making giant waves fly as he sailed after them.

Rayquaza let out another draconic roar as Acnologia advanced. The Dragon and Flying-Type lunged after Acnologia, zipping through the air while glowing light green, streaming light green behind him, in which made fast and powerful waves as he traveled at blinding speeds into Acnologia. Rayquaza screeched as Extreme Speed met its mark at the base of Acnologia's head, making a giant ripple upon impact. Below, water swayed violently from the shockwave produced.

Acnologia's advance stopped as he remained in place and still in shock. Rayquaza swerved up into the sky with great speed and looked down, letting out another roar as his open mouth fired a multicolored dragon-shaped beam at Acnologia. Rayquaza's Dragon Pulse beamed through the sky downwards, exploding upon impact with Acnologia's roundhead.

Through the smoke cloud that covered his head, the Black Dragon roared, shaking the air, revealing that he didn't have a scratch unlike Palkia's Spatial Rend and Dialga's Roar of Time earlier.

Rayquaza roared back from above in response.

"Our turn!" Kyogre announced. He opened his mouth, where a light blue ball was generated. "**Ice Beam!**" A massive multitude of icy blue beams went racing after Acnologia, freezing the water in a trial as it sailed after the Black Dragon.

"**Solar Beam!**" Groudon glowed a faint green-yellow, and numerous light green balls formed around him as a larger one formed in his mouth. The ball then fired a powerful green beam after Acnologia.

Both Ice Beam and Solar Beam went racing along after Acnologia. The Black Dragon looked and saw the attacks heading his way and flapped his wings and ascended high into the sky. The Ice Beam and Solar Baem both continued their course, reaching out to the sea afar. In the distance, there was a slight pause, and then a field of light blue and green exploded.

Everyone still standing on Tenrou Island watched the catastrophic duel between the Legendaries and Acnologia, unable to comprehend what was happening.

Acnologia looked down at Rayquaza and the other two, a snarl escaping his mouth. He let loose a powerful roar that made everyone stand stiff. The Dragon opened his mouth and began to take in more energy for another roar.

Rayquaza descended as quickly as possible, swerving all about through the air and hovering above Groudon and Kyogre. "Fire!"

As Acnologia opened his mouth to let loose his Dragon's Roar, releasing a light blue beam of destructive force, The Weather Trio made their move as well.

Rayquaza opened his mouth and everyone could feel a great swell of pressurized energy that made the sea quake. The energy formed into a black and dark purple. He then released it in one go. "**Hyper Beam!**" A massive beam of black and dark purple went shooting with such destructive force.

Kyogre roared as the waves bounced. He formed light blue orbs in front, just like Nic did earlier. "**Origin Pulse!**" Each individual orb shot a powerful beam ahead.

"**Eruption!**" Groudon fired several fiery rocks from his mouth that burned with the intensity equal to that of magma.

All three attacks went rushing at the Dragon's Roar. When they met, a very massive and cataclysmic explosion eruption. At first it was a light and massive ripple, but a super heavy shockwave went all about, and followed by an expanding explosion.

Everyone covered up from the shockwave that almost made them lose footing. Palkia's pearls on his shoulders lit up once more and screeched. The entire are surrounding the island began to distort, and the explosion continued expanding around them.

"What?"

"That dragon. He's shielding us with his space powers!"

"Oh wow!"

"That's so manly!"

Even through the distortion, Tenrou Island still shook violently, as though an earthquake were happening. The explosion soon began to settle, and Acnologia was seen in the skies, growling down at the Weather Trio as they managed to intercept.

Rayquaza let loose another catastrophic roar that sent shockwaves all about. The Dragon and Flying-Type then zoomed with a green streak behind as he raced up at Acnologia in the blink of an eye. "**Extreme Speed!**" He darted right into Acnologia, passing him, and making a small burst of green that rattled the airspace around Acnologia's abdomen. The Black Dragon roared as he felt a small sting and turned around, looking to find Rayquaza in the air high above.

With Acnologia roaring high up at Rayquaza, Groudon got the distraction he needed. "**Eruption!**"

His attack went out of his mouth and up towards Acnologia. The fiery rocks went shooting through the air with intense fury and exploded upon contact with the Dragon's back. Acnologia let a small roar escaped and he turned to look down at Groudon and Kyogre.

Angry, the Dragon roared down at the two.

"Is that all you have?" Kyogre asked. "We'd expect more of a fight from what Dialga and Palkia had told us."

The Black Dragon raced down towards them, his fury immeasurable. He raced at high speeds and descended after Groudon and Kyogre.

"**Hydro Pump!**"

"**Solar Beam!**"

Releasing a massive volume of pressurized water, Kyogre's attack went shooting alongside Groudon's Solar Beam. The two attacks met up as they went shooting after the incoming Dragon and fused into a green beam with blue, spiraling, icy streaks that caught Acnologia off guard. The Dragon came to a halt before being swallowed up in the attack, which exploded into a huge sphere of a mixture of green and light blue.

Nic looked from below, along with everyone else, shock and curiosity, and a tint of fear as they saw the raging battle before them. Erza turned her head towards Nic, seeing how he had a serious fixation despite his bandaged self.

'_He actually has this kind of power within. To go head-to-head with Acnologia; Pokémon, just how much power can they possess?'_

The explosion in the sky settled into thin air, and Acnologia spread his wings and roared violently, taking the whole attack and maintaining hardly even a single scratch; all they really did was agitate him.

Rayquaza opened his mouth and fired another Dragon Pulse. The Dragon-Type attack traveled in a blitz down towards Acnologia, whom read the attack when he turned around and ascended so as to evade. The attack was missed, and it shot into the water below, sprinkles of seawater in the air.

Rayquaza saw Acnologia in the air and remained silent before he bellowed. In a sudden fury, Acnologia opened his mouth once more and fired a Dragon's Roar, turning his head in all directions, sending the single roar's beam in a random direction; through the seas, through the sky, and almost hitting the Tenrou group.

Everyone covered up and screamed as shockwaves from all around sent violent winds that pounded against them, forcing them to step back deeper into the island. Groudon covered up and turned away as the roar almost struck him, obliterating apart of the land he'd just created. The shockwaves made forced the molten land to crack, and Groudon began to plunge through, falling into the seas beneath.

Kyogre leaped from the water and dodged the beam that almost struck him. He dove back into the water, deep underneath to keep from harm.

Rayquaza swerved about through the air as the immense blast went ballistic and traveled all about with Acnologia's fury. Unfortunately, the beam traveled too close, and Rayquaza was grazed when trying to swerve, his right side in one of the lower segments being hit by the side of the roar, which made him screech as his side was smoking as he fell out of the sky.

Acnologia snarled as Rayquaza was finally hit and he swung his massive tail, sending it like a wrecking ball into Rayquaza. Upon impact, a loud shockwave quaked, as it the ground itself was hit. Rayquaza screeched as he shot down from the skies, diving into the water with a loud splash.

Acnologia descended downwards and waves from either side emerged when he began to hover over the seas. He let a low growl loose as he examined the water and found no trace of them surfacing. The Fairy Tail Mages all got nervous looks as they thought they all must have suffered major damage.

Acnologia stared down into the sea, and a sudden incandescent sharp stone coated in lava emerged from the water, stabbing Acnologia in his abdomen. The Dragon felt the harsh attack tipped in lava and roared as he was engulfed in a heated, lava-like explosion.

Natsu's eyes shot wide as Acnologia was hit with an abrupt attack, which left him with a small scorch mark as he jerked back up into the air. A sudden Dragon Pulse and Hydro Pump shot from out of the water that Acnologia had to dodge. After dodging, Acnologia let out a violent roar, and that was their que.

Team Tenrou witnessed boiling from where Groudon fell through, and something orange was down beneath them. The orange expanded and surfaced, and out came bursting Groudon, roaring upon his rising.

Following him, two figures came bursting out of the water, making giant geysers. Kyogre bellowed went reaching the pinnacle and fell back into the water, and Rayquaza shot straight up and roared, swerving into many arcs and coming to a stop above Groudon and Kyogre.

The Weather Trio roared Acnologia in unison, making the Dragon in turn roar with as much fury.

Rayquaza ascended and Acnologia, opened his mouth. The Dragon began gathering energy and he fired one more Dragon's Roar, which went beaming after the Weather Trio.

"**Hyper Beam!**" Rayquaza let loose yet another of his incredible black and dark purple beams.

"**Solar Beam!**" Groudon lit up yellow-green again and little light green balls appeared as a larger one in his mouth let loose a massive green beam.

"**Ice Beam!**" Kyogre made a light blue sphere and he fired several beams of light blue at the Dragon's Roar.

One again, the attacks met in the middle, where a humungous explosion erupted once again, ever expanding with great force that was like a supernova to Team Tenrou.

Palkia screeched as he made a spatial distortion once again, the entire island enveloped in distorted space, keeping all of Tenrou Island from getting swallowed up in the cataclysmic explosion. The island still shook from the explosion and everyone was driven to their knees from the pressure given off.

"Man, just what kind of battle is this?!" Lily shouted from the ground.

"I don't know!" Happy shouted.

Everyone uncovered and the distorted barrier returned t normal, revealing Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza all without further harm, aside from a few scratches on their bodies. Acnologia roared down at them once again, having no scratches from the explosion as he was unharmed from the interception.

Rayquaza screeched up into the air, shockwaves emanating. He glared back at Acnologia. "Now this is more like it."

"Things are strting to heat up, so we better try and get some more hits in to keep the distance." Groudon warned.

"We'll be sure to leave him a serious mark when we're done." Kyogre assured.

Dialga turned towards Palkia. "Palkia, the battle is escalating far more rapidly than we'd indicated."

Kyogre fired an Ice Beam, which beamed through the skies and struck Acnologia's right arm that he used to block. The Dragon swiped his arm and the ice shattered, and he proceeded with another roar.

"Yes, Dialga." Palkia responded. "If this keeps up, Tenrou Island and Nic Pularis will be caught up in the assault more times than we can save them."

As Groudon used Eruption, the fiery rocks missed as Acnologia ascended. The Black Dragon looked and saw Rayquaza shooting a Dragon Pulse, and he moved left to dodge.

"What's more, is that we can't remain here for much longer. Arceus is far too vulnerable with both of us not present."

Dialga remained silent as they all saw a fiery explosion that came from Groudon's Solar Beam getting its mark, yet Acnologia roared and was seen still in the air. As they looked on, with the Weather Trio still in battle, Dialga's eyes narrowed.

"It would appear…there's no other choice."

Palkia turned towards Dialga. "Dialga?" They both looked at each other, and Palkia could see the look in Dialga's eye. Whatever was coming next, it was going to be a one-way trip.

Palkia looked back at the area ahead. "Very well. I'll leave behind enough power for them to escape."

Nic was confused. "Wait. Dialga, Palkia-"

Both Pokémon screeched and made shockwaves from their screeches. Dialga was enveloped in his blue aura, and the diamond on his chest glowed. The light blue on his body began to shine.

"This is what has to be done…Nic Pularis!" Dialga let loose a roar as the entire Tenrou Island began to sparkle blue. Everyone looked around and saw that the entire island and everyone in it was enveloped in a field of indigo.

"What's happening?" Happy shouted.

"Dialga's must be using his powers somehow!" Carla figured.

"For the sake of the Plates and Arceus, Nic Pularis, we must travel far from this danger!" Dialga's diamond chest flashed and the entire island began to flash a bright light.

All of a sudden, much Acnologia's surprise, the entire island behind the Weather Trio had flashed and disappeared completely, leaving only a few blue sparkles in its place.

The Weather Trio looked back and saw that they were clear, as nothing but open sea was present. They then looked back at Acnologia, and their expressions grew ecstatic.

"It would seem Dialga and Palkia have safely took Nic Pularis and the Plates to safety." Kyogre said.

Rayquaza growled as Acnologia roared at the Weather Trio.

The Sky High Pokémon's yellow eyes looked like they were filled with pressure that was ready to be unleashed. Even Acnologia could feel the Weather Trio's power somehow developing, which made him feel all the more anxious to rip them apart. Their gazes were all onto Acnologia, and Rayquaza let a snarl escape as he swerved in place.

"Good…now we can finally cut loose."

* * *

**I'm sure that a variety of you are either gaping at the screen, or are in a mental breakdown from the exceeding awe that I have written, but the second half is to be finished next chapter, so try and keep yourselves from that mental breakdown of sheer awe after said chapter.**

**I added an extreme twist with the fight against Acnologia, and it's not done yet! Also, instead of Fairy Sphere, I rather had an alternative with Dialga, so expect any possible questions to be answered next chapter.**

**If you guys want the breakdown of this chapter; the parts before Erza and Sophie talked was over 3.7K, the Acnologia scene was around 4.6K, and the island saved by Dialga and Palkia onwards was at least 5K.**

**Also, leave a Review if you guys liked those NicxErza moments, and anything else before Acnologia's appearance!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving this Pokémon and Fairy Tail crossover!**

* * *

**Next Time: Primordial Prowess**


	53. Primordial Prowess

Chapter 53 – Primordial Prowess

**Well guys, consider this the end of the Tenrou Island Arc, as well as the bridge to the X791 Arc. In terms of said upcoming Arc, I have plans to give it more impact. As usual, like I have been doing, some canon will have to be omitted so the story doesn't get too boring.**

**DeoxysSpeedtst: I honestly don't know how to answer that. Dialga and Palkia can do some painful damage with their signature moves, but Acnologia is to never be underestimated; though I guess you can say they weren't using their full power either.**

**I have been waiting to write this battle for **_**months**_**, and I can't believe that I've finally made it! Finally, on to the grand fight to finish the Tenrou Island Arc!**

**To Recap:**

With the mayhem dialing down, Makarov had decided to cancel the trials. Everyone lounged about as preparations for leaving the island were under way, and Cana confessed to Gildarts that she's his daughter, to which he accepted with open arms. After Erza and Sophie chatted a bit, Acnologia, the Black Dragon of the Apocalypse, attacked out of the blue, and Fairy Tail was of no match for him. As he was about to finish them off, Dialga and Palkia suddenly appeared and brought forth Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza to fight Acnologia. After some time, the fight severely escalated, and Dialga was forced to make an escape with Tenrou Island, leaving the Weather Trio to unleash their full power against Acnologia.

* * *

**Chapter 53 – Primordial Prowess**

Everyone felt as though they were going through some sort of vortex, and they all held on tightly to something, primarily anything touching the ground. Dialga and Palkia remained still as the former was making Team Tenrou travel through an array of indigo.

"What's happening?!" Gray exclaimed as they just kept on advancing. The entire island was moving forward, and no one knew how, but it was only possible that Dialga was doing it.

Natsu found himself with puffed cheeks as he fell face first, apparently motion sickness taking its toll.

"Seriously?! You get sick from this?!" Lucy almost stammered.

Nic couldn't find any way of speaking. He was still too weak, yet surprised at the same time. If what he remembered was true, then just like Palkia's spatial powers, Dialga was using his temporal powers.

The group saw a bright light at the end of the indigo tunnel and they all covered up as they approached the light.

* * *

The year X791. 7 years after the Acnologia incident.

The seas were calm as puffy clouds filled the skies upon the horizon, the blue sky and the sun's rays being friendly today, just like it was before the Black Dragon had arrived a long time ago.

On a lone ship, far out from shore, there were several people on board. The green-haired girl in a cowgirl attire looked out through her binoculars to only find open air. She looked back with slight annoyance.

"I still don't see anything guys." Bisca announced. "Are you sure this is the right place?"

Alzack, his hair shorter and standing up now, turned his head. "It does seem odd. Not a single thing popped up."

Warren leaned against the ship's edge. "I know what you mean, but Blue Pegasus said that the Ethernano levels were starting to rise as of lately, and it all originates around here."

Bisca turned towards Alzack. "You know, hun, I feel kind of bad leaving Romeo behind."

"I know. Me too." Alzack agreed morosely. "Maybe we should have brought him along."

"Naw, it's for the best." Max pointed out. "There's no guarantee we'll find them."

"Sad as it is, we better not get our hopes up." Warren sighed.

Unlike all of them, Jet, no longer sporting a hat, and Droy, who became…obese, looked chipper than all of them. "We're gonna see Levy!" They cheered, breaking into a dance, kicking their feet up.

Bisca sighed and turned away. "Well. So much for not getting our hopes up."

"Well you can't blame them." Alzack stated.

Warren turned sharply towards them. "SHUT UP!" He yelled, making Jet and Droy stop their dance abruptly. "It's been 7 years, guys. I'm just as excited, but we have to consider the worst case."

Jet and Droy looked down, sullen by this realization.

"Sorry man." Jet muttered.

The breeze suddenly stopped. The seagulls all around began to fly away.

"Huh?"

"What is it, Bisca?"

"It's like…the wind stopped."

Alzack looked about, his nerves growing. "Yeah, now that you mention it…"

The still waters grew concern and anticipation, and Jet caught something on port bow. "Huh?" He pointed ahead. "Guys, look!"

Everyone looked ahead, only to see little blue sparkles in the distance. There were only a couple, but then they began to escalate in numbers and intensity.

"What are those?" Warren asked.

"I think it's some sort of particle distortion or something!" Max guessed.

The waves suddenly began to pick up as the sparkles escalated in a greater area, and they began to shine even greater in intensity. The waves escalated so much that the ship was bouncing like crazy and everyone had to hang onto something.

The greatest shock was that the sparkles all shined at once. And an enormous Magic flow was before them. The shining dome of light before them began to take shape. Their eyes widened and they all gawked at the shape.

"No way…" Max trailed off.

"Is that…?" Jet was speechless as the light and the waves settled, and before them was the one thing they were looking for, for 7 long years: Tenrou Island.

"It's…Tenrou Island."

Nobody had the words. They all watched as the remaining sparkle dispersed and went away. They looked ahead, seeing the marvel before them.

"It really is Tenrou Island." Alzack said.

"Huh?" Bisca looked ahead, seeing a multitude of figures and two beast floating in the air. "Wait, hold on…"

* * *

Everyone's eyes opened, and Vanessa gasped upon seeing that the skies were still blue. She and Braixen looked about in confusion. The Aura Mage looked about, seeing her guild mates slowly uncovering and getting back to their feet. "Guys, are you alright?"

"Come on! Speak to us!" Braixen insisted.

Gajeel rubbed his head. "Man, what just hit us?"

"It appears Acnologia is no longer in sight. Nor those three that were defending us." Carla informed.

Makarov looked around in confusion. "My word, the energy from before has disappeared." He looked back up at Dialga and Palkia, their radiant blue and pink auras making look almost like deities. "What have they done?"

Everyone, including a now recovering Natsu, stood up. Although in Nic's case, he was supported by Erza. They all looked up at Dialga and Palkia, confusion written on their faces. What they experienced was not Magic by any means.

"What the heck happened?" Happy asked. "It's like we went through one of those portals or something."

Levy looked up at the two before her, and she was just as startled. "Was that some kind of spell?"

"I never sensed Magic, so it had to be an alternative." Freed said.

Dialga's sudden roar made everyone silence. The air crackled with Dialga's roar and they all kept their solemn focus on their savior.

"There is but little worry now. Acnologia is not here." Dialga confirmed. "We have successfully been able to transport you through time."

"Time?" Makarov repeated in disbelief.

"That is right, human. I am the Temporal Pokémon. I control time as to how I see it fit. In this case, by traveling through time, we were able to get you to safety."

Nic wasn't exactly certain as to what Dialga meant by that, but from the sound of it, they all went through time as a means of escape. Though more questions were to arise, the docking of a nearby ship caught their attention.

What startled them was that the ship had the Fairy Tail emblem on it.

"Hold on, who's that on the ship?" Lucy wondered. And as if on que, Bisca and everyone else came from the loading dock and they all stood with gawking expressions and misty eyes, followed by quite a few gasps.

Their appearances were what startled everyone. Bisca and Alzack's appearances changed, and Max and Warren both were shocking everyone, yet the most startling was Droy, evidence of the time passed.

Levy gasped, hands over her mouth. "No way."

Natsu stood in front with all of the current Fairy Tail members getting misty eyes. It was a major shock to say the least. As they stood before him, trembling, the Fire Dragon Slayer gave a startled expression.

"Hold on! The heck are you guys doing-"

"NATSU!" They all dogpiled onto him, and he quickly forgot how to breathe with them on. Soon enough, though with tears still surging, they all allowed for Natsu to get some space so he could finish.

"Wait, hold on! What in the world is going on? And why do you guys look so much older?!" He stammered. He then looked at Droy. "Whoa! What the heck happened to you?! You got…fat!"

"You haven't changed a bit!" Max cried, wiping his tears.

"We're so glad you're okay!" Droy shouted.

Everyone else were happy given looks and the remaining members all broke into greater tears of joy as they all began to do a little celebration, despite the confusion Team Tenrou had at the time.

As they all felt relief and joy, Nic looked up at Dialga and Palkia, both staring down at him. _'Bisca. Alzack. Jet. Droy. If they really look this different, then just how far in time did we travel?'_

Palkia's subtle roar caught the group's attention, and the ones who arrived didn't realize them until now.

"AAAAHHHH!" Jet screamed.

"WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?!" Droy screamed. He got in front of Levy. "Hang on Levy, I'll save you!"

"As if, butter ball! I'm saving her!" Jet retorted.

They both butt heads and glared at the other.

"Nu-uh! I am!"

"She doesn't need some giant pudding bag to shield her!"

"Well she doesn't need something so fragile like you!"

"Uh, guys?" Levy tried to intervene.

Nic looked at all of them. "Stand down guys, they're with us…or to be more precise, me."

"Nic?" Bisca asked. "It is you! But…what happened to you?" She saw the red bandages on his torso.

Nic looked down at the ground, the mod darkening a little. "It's a long story. Just know that I lost my left eye, and ripped my right abdomen."

The situation settling down, Cana crossed her arms. "So just how far exactly did we travel?"

"I don't know, but it's clear that it wasn't a few months." Gildarts said.

Jet and the others looked surprised. "Wait, hold on. You mean you guys weren't killed?"

"It was close, but Dialga and Palkia came to our rescue." Vanessa stated. "We were able to escape the wrath of Acnologia because of them."

They all looked up with shock at the two. "But…we got news that Tenrou Island disappeared long ago!" Max stammered. "Wait, you're saying you weren't obliterated, but traveled through time?!"

It was hard to believe. Time traveling was a hard concept to grasp. If you were gone for so long, time travel wouldn't be your first guess. Sure, sometimes people go missing, or they get annihilated, but to turn up 7 years later because you literally did a time skip was gonna take some time to get used to.

Bisca looked at Alzack. "Hey, do you remember that day?"

Alzack looked at her. "Yeah, you mean the day the Council's Etherion satellite was destroyed and Acnologia went back to hiding, right?"

"What?" Makarov asked, startled by this news. "You mean that the Magic Council's Etherion satellite was dismembered?"

Serious faces grew on everyone.

"Yeah." Max informed. "7 years ago, with the Acnologia incident, Council navy ships were far away, yet they saw a huge calamity far away, so the Council figured Etherion was to stop Acnologia and those three monsters.

"The footage was sent to our guild. We honestly thought you guys were destroyed when you were taken by the two above us." Warren said.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "…7 years."

Erza looked at him. "If I recall correctly, then if 7 years were skipped, then we should be in the year X791."

Nic looked back at her with his one eye. "I see." A small silence breezed on by before a sudden gasp came from Nic. He looked back up at Dialga and Palkia. "Wait! If 7 years went by, what happened to Arceus?!"

Small gasps came about, and everyone looked as though they were having a sullen epiphany. Lily looked with crossed arms.

"Now that you mention it, if that's the case, then Arceus should've…"

Braixen turned her head upwards. "But wait. If so, then how come everything isn't dead, let alone retaining a form?"

Dialga continued to tower over everyone as he and Palkia both floated in the skies. "About that, Nic Pularis, that's a more complicated matter."

"What are you saying?" Nic asked.

"Remember full well that Arceus is aligned with the Plates, whether it'd be in another body or how far the distance really is." Dialga mentioned.

Palkia then added on. "And with that connection, Arceus is tied to it in many ways, of which includes the concept of time." He then paused, allowing for Nic to get the picture. "We wouldn't say Arceus went into a hibernated sleep, but rather he skipped forward into the further such as you did."

"Even if the date were a million years ago, Arceus would travel back in time to that date." Dialga informed. "At this point, Arceus should've time traveled to accommodate the time span, so as if nothing had happened."

"So you're saying that Arceus is still in the same condition as he was beforehand, am I right?" Nic clarified.

Dialga nodded. "Yes."

Laxus rolled his eyes. "I don't mean to change the subject by any means, but does this have anything to do with the Council or Acnologia?"

"You bring up a good point. If the Council watched the battle from afar long ago, and their actions failed, then those three Legendaries must have something to do with it." Freed announced.

Dialga and Palkia both looked at each other and back at Team Tenrou and the newcomers.

"Perhaps, we should show you just what happened between Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza." Palkia said. The pearls on his sides lit up and his arms reached out in both directions. His pink aura expanded, and a huge vision was seen before everybody. The field of pink in the air began to materialize into a huge screen that everyone saw.

Palkia's eyes flashed orange, and the vision became clear. "This is what happened, 7 years ago."

* * *

**X784**

After Dialga had proceeded and enabled the time skip. The Weather Trio all looked at Acnologia, the four undertaking a heavy stare down.

The suspense all about was so thick that one could say that not even an axe could slice through the grand power and pressure given off by the four. Three Legendary Pokémon were quarreling with one of Earthland's most evil creatures – Acnologia.

Wizard Saints are extremely powerful, demons from the Book of Zeref had their own place in power, but of them all, no one had the audacity to challenge Acnologia, whom is capable of annihilating an entire nation without damaging himself.

However, Legendary Pokémon's power was never one to underestimate either.

Creatures who have been on the earth for hundreds of millions of years; Rayquaza had the undefined mastery of quelling the being of land and sea. Creatures who could raise the land, and those who could raise the sea level. God knows how this'll all play out.

Rayquaza and the two below him roared at Acnologia, who roared back in reply. Their roars made the waves shift about as some of them splashed onto the boiling land Groudon stood upon, making steam rise.

The area all around was an intense warzone, in which the Council navy ships stayed far away from. They originally evacuated because of Acnologia's assault, but when they saw the Weather Trio they got a lacrima and recorded it for the Magic Council to witness, hence the Etherion being established rapidly.

"Now, the time has finally come." Rayquaza informed. "No more holding back, now that the wielder of the Plates has been evacuated."

Kyogre continued to bob in the waves beneath. "Time to destroy him."

"I couldn't agree more!" Groudon bellowed, ripples of air waves expanding. "For once, we agree on something!"

Acnologia's eyes were still beady and lifeless as he snarled with a steaming hot breath. He then looked up and saw the clouds all around beginning to expand and darken. The entire swirling sky above gave a foreboding feeling in which the Black Dragon had no trouble challenging. He looked back at the Weather Trio and let a violent roar escape.

Groudon and Kyogre glared at Acnologia one more time before the entire area was beginning to quake, the waves actually breaking apart as the two began to glow red and blue respectfully. They drew in a vast amount of energy; so much, that there was a field of red and blue around themselves.

Groudon curled up a bit as the energy around him was condensing, the same with Kyogre. The red and blue energy began to materialize while still shining brightly. The outside was still a deep blue glass as the inside was a trench water-like energy swirling inside; in Groudon's case, the color was red and lava was seen swirling inside.

Their individual attributes began to condense to an even greater level, and the outside and the inside layers of both Pokémon veils merged and compressed into floating gems. One was a deep red, so red that it was almost like a blend of purple. With Kyogre, it was a dark blue, almost like black.

Acnologia could feel an immense power biding within, and it was _extremely massive_. He still showed absolute zero fear as the energy continued to escalate.

A glowing blue symbol appeared in front of Kyogre's veil. It was a light blue circle with two arcs on the top and bottom of the far right side of the circle. In Groudon's case, a glowing orange, upside down 'U' with arrows on the end shined.

It was then that Rayquaza roared and he swerved up above. He reached a fairly high point and looked down to see the energy cores cracking, and a huge energy shockwave completely leveled the area.

Groudon emerged, his shockwaves actually expanding the land he was on. He erupted in fire and massive steam quickly dispersed. He let out a massive roar as his appearance has also transformed. He was larger in size, his skin changed to a light crimson, and his teeth, underside and spikes all over his body became a charred black. The upside down 'U' were shown on the arms. The tail blades were much more separated; the openings and inside of the mouth glowed like that of lava. His pupils were also red.

For Kyogre, his shockwaves were on par, sending grand, cool waves of water as he roared. He was actually twice the size he was before. His skin was now a darker shade of deep blue. The four trailing segments behind were longer, flat, and had half-translucent webbing down the middle. His forehead had the circle symbol, which was connected to two oval spots and the tail. The white on Kyogre's body became half-translucent, and the inside of his body glowed gold.

"I am – Primal Groudon!" The energy around him erupted drastically.

"I am – Primal Kyogre!" The energy around him sent shockwaves that erupted with as much intensity.

Acnologia remained still as he glared with fierce intensity that could rival this unholy energy he was feeling all around. It was something that he had never felt before. It was far more ancient than he had realized, yet his reputation meant that no matter what, they shall fall.

Rayquaza let out his own roar, and Acnologia, Primal Groudon, and Primal Kyogre felt a very primitive flow of power. The Black Dragon felt a very strong energy surging from Rayquaza as the Sky High Pokémon was starting to react.

The yellow segments atop of his head, including the yellow circle, glowed a bright light, and the Dragon and Flying-Type had let loose an array of light waves that burned with great force. The light began to encase Rayquaza and the Weather Trio Master began to undergo his own change as the light waves began to expand and become a shining veil around his body.

Acnologia and the two others looked up at the bright sphere in the sky, seeing a faint image of Rayquaza's body undergoing a change. Tendrils were growing, the body was elongating to a great degree, the two jet-like protrusions close to the jaw jutted forwards, and more tendrils emerged.

The light soon exploded, and with it, a flashing shockwave that made Acnologia and the Primordial duo below cover up. Bits of land from Primal Groudon's Primal Reversion cracked from the energy shockwave.

Rayquaza, rather than Primal Reversion, underwent Mega Evolution. Mega Rayquaza's body not only grew, but the head had a triangle symbol on the forehead. The eyes became yellow pupils, red irises, and black markings behind the eyes. His mouth and teeth became gold, and the gold lines connected to the lower horns, which became broad, triangular shapes; the horns had long, golden, and glowing tendrils that ended at a green, fin-like structure; these tendrils had ring patterns that resembled the yellow markings along Rayquaza's actual form. The upper horns became longer with a gold line with a 'V' shape, and the horns had another glowing tendril that ended in a circular shape. Along his body were golden, glowing orbs were where the rings once were. The chin, neck, and parts of the body altered to black. The fins had gold lines, yet the fins on his tail became entirely yellow and substantially longer.

Mega Rayquaza let out a mind-blowing roar as ripples and shockwaves spread about violently, making the land beneath Primal Groudon crack even more. Mega Rayquaza's body tangled loosely in the air as he glowered at Acnologia.

The three transformed creatures looked at Acnologia, who in turn looked back at them.

"**A transformation that I've never felt before. You surprised me there, I admit.**" The Black Dragon spoke. Mega Rayquaza wasn't so moved by Acnologia speaking.

"And what of it?"

"**I speak to you now for I see you as my enemy, whom earns my acknowledgment. I am Acnologia, the Dragon King; and it shall be I who shall end you here.**"

Primal Groudon was challenged by Acnologia's claim. He let out another rippling roar. "If you want to win! You must crush us all first!"

"**Gladly.**" Acnologia's wings spread. "**Now, who shall be my first victim?**"

Mega Rayquaza let loose a violent roar and then zoomed at such an alarming speed, far faster than before. Using Extreme Speed again, not only was he moving faster than what Acnologia could see, but waves on the sides shattered. Mega Rayquaza made full impact, making a rippling explosion that Acnologia was caught up in.

The Black Dragon roared and flapped, so as to make Mega Rayquaza ascertain distance. The Mega Evolved Dragon and Flying-Type swerved away up into the darkened skies.

Upon that assault, Primal Groudon let out a massive roar and opened his mouth. "**Solar Beam!**" His body emanated a green-yellow, along with said colored orbs, and the one in his mouth let loose Solar Beam.

Acnologia ascended and dodged the attack, the Solar Beam following through and exploded in the skies, emanating a light green light from afar.

Primal Kyogre followed it up by unleashing a very forceful Hydro Pump. The humungous water stream jetted and struck Acnologia's abdomen, though the Dragon thought that he could handle it like before. He was wrong.

Acnologia found himself soaring up from the Hydro Pump, unable to maintain his stability in the air. He reached a critical point and started to fall downwards. Mega Rayquaza screeched into the skies as he conjured multicolored energy and fired it. "**Dragon Pulse!**" The massive dragon-shaped energy went through and struck a now stable Acnologia, which was unfortunate for the Dragon King as he was caught in another rippling and earth-shaking explosion.

The explosion quickly went away, and Acnologia was seen with quite a few scratches on his front. He showed his rage by firing a Dragon's Roar at Mega Rayquaza. The Weather Trio Master descended greatly and he flew away at a super-fast speed that even Jet's High Speed Magic could never reach. The roar trailed along the water after Mega Rayquaza and he broke into a powerful climb upwards. Mega Rayquaza looked down as he was ascending up and away, seeing Acnologia's roar follow upwards in accordance to the Dragon's mouth angle. Mega Rayquaza maneuvered about and swerved through the skies as the roar raged, successfully dodging it with hardly anywhere close to a scratch.

The roar died off, and Mega Rayquaza swerved and looked back down at Acnologia, growling. The Dragon King, in return, snarled back. He flapped and raced after the evolved Weather Trio.

"**Dragon Pulse!**"

"**Solar Beam!**"

"**Ice Beam!**"

They all let loose their attacks; the three powerful beams jetted through the air and met the Dragon's Roar in the middle. At that moment, it was like an atomic bomb took place. Everything in the vicinity was obliterated in an instant, the water in the sea making rippling waves and reaching out and away as the three attacks began to pulsate greater, in which Acnologia grew very shocked that his roar was being overpowered. The Dragon's Roar was losing momentum and the three attacks began to push harder.

Acnologia let loose even more power, the roar expanding just a little, but it was only enough to keep the combined attacks from advancing. After another ten seconds, all four attacks collapsed on the other, and the middle was nothing but a dome-like explosion, echoing loudly in the distance beyond them.

Acnologia roared angrily as he was closer to the shockwave than the Weather Trio, and he began to fly back and lose altitude a little. He looked back with shock once the explosion settled.

"**Impossible. I am the Dragon King. I cannot be overpowered so easily.**" Acnologia stated with slight irritation.

"Then you'll have a long and hard time against us." Mega Rayquaza announced. "**Hyper Beam!**" He let loose a dark purple and black beam of energy, one that was very heavy in density. The beam traveled through and about, but Acnologia ascended and dodged, making an explosion that beam upwards far out to sea.

The Dragon King sailed after the Weather Trio once more. "**Foolish creatures! No matter where you come from, you shall not beat me!**" He roared violently, the fight beginning to escalate more as his white, beady eyes became a bright red.

* * *

High above, a massive golden seal was spinning slowly, charging up. Below it was a golden square-like frame that had four different colored Magic seals, and the lower sector of it all was another golden seal that was a third of the size the larger seal was.

* * *

"**Eruption!**" Primal Groudon roared into the air and opened his mouth, letting loose a fiery rock barrage. Eruption made way through the air and Acnologia used his right forearm to intercept, the molten rocks exploding upon impact.

Through the short explosion, Acnologia swiped his arm, the same one he used to block. He looked fine, except for the scorch marks from where the attack hit. He resumed his advance and shot a claw out at Primal Groudon. The Ground and Fire-Type grabbed the huge hand as he skidded back, more land actually rising behind him as he skidded away a hundred feet.

Still exerting pressure, Acnologia planted his feet onto the fresh rock, though he had to admit it was very hot, but nothing he couldn't handle. Primal Groudon was really half the size Acnologia, yet he was actually keeping his right claw in place.

"You'll have to try again!" He muttered as he tried to hold his ground against Acnologia's heavy claw.

The Dragon King roared and snarled down at Primal Groudon. "**I have had it up to here with you creatures. I cannot lose, for I am invincible, as I live for the aim of destruction of all Dragons, even the one in the sky.**"

"Then try and stop all three of us!"

The sudden voice caught Acnologia by surprise. A sudden splash aroused from behind and Primal Kyogre made orbs of light blue energy.

"**Origin Pulse!**" Primal Kyogre let loose a huge amount of beams and the attack went zooming as Acnologia began to turn around. The Dragon King was only halfway when his left side was blasted by Origin Pulse. Acnologia found himself falling down onto Primal Groudon.

Primal Groudon's body glowed a lava aura. "**Precipice Blades!**" Using his signature move, a sharp, incandescent stone covered in lava jutted upwards as Acnologia was falling down on him. The lava-covered assault stabbed Acnologia on the right side of his face, making a lava-like explosion of sheer-heated pressure. The Dragon King fell backwards and off the molten rock, falling and crashing into the sea, making huge amounts of water shoot up and about, immediately evaporating when getting close to the fresh land and Primal Groudon.

Primal Kyogre growled. "I still sense him. He's a stubborn one."

Mega Rayquaza. "Focus! This is a force to be reckoned with! We're giving him our full power, yet he's still unwavering in this fight!"

A sudden geyser shot upwards, and through it, Acnologia roared. He was back in the air, looking at the three with his glowing eyes filled with rage.

The difference this time was that Precipice Blades actually left a devastation that gave Acnologia even more rage to fume off.

The right side of his perfect scaled face was burned from that attack, and that left a noticeable fresh, scorched scar behind his right eye.

The Weather Trio felt any and all wind suddenly stop, and Acnologia's vicious growling was like a growing pressure, which made them all feel something they haven't felt in a very long time…unnerving.

"Can you feel that?" Mega Rayquaza asked.

"Yes, this pressure, it's intensifying with his rage." Primal Groudon said.

"He's exerting a greater amount of force than before." Primal Kyogre warned, looking up as Acnologia was emitting a light blue aura around his body.

"**You…**" The Dragon King growled. "**You three…you dare challenge the Dragon King, and caused this. Your audacity shall cost you your lives!**"

Mega Rayquaza roared at Acnologia, defying his ominous tone. "You have no idea who you're facing! We are those who can control the weather! Raise the land and seas! We are here to show you no mercy-!"

"**SILENCE!**" Acnologia let out a long, air-rippling shockwave upon his angered roar. His roar echoed to extraordinary levels that stretched so far that the Council Navy ships far away felt their spines twitch. The Weather Trio stopped moving upon the Dragon King's shout to the raging winds.

"**I fall to no one! I destroy everything! I level all mountains! I shall destroy what you can do! Destruction!**" He bellowed haphazardly. He then flapped ahead after them, with extreme force.

Mega Rayquaza opened his mouth and gushed out a Dragon Pulse that struck the incoming Acnologia, swallowing him in an explosion in the air; however, to everyone's sheer surprise, Acnologia flew through the smoke, having accumulated more scratches and scrapes than before.

A startled Mega Rayquaza screeched as Acnologia's head rammed him, sending him flying back. "**Destruction!**" Acnologia was seeing red as Mega Rayquaza used the momentum and serpentine backwards and looked back at Acnologia.

An Ice Beam shot from below, originating from Primal Kyogre. Acnologia saw the attack and he used his tail to take the attack. The cold Ice Beam actually made him jerk back up in the air. The Dragon King roared in anger as he felt the attack sting just as much as Dragon Pulse, but he persisted and lashed out, slamming his icy tail onto Primal Kyogre's head, shattering the ice completely. A huge shockwave swallowed up a large radius and Primal Kyogre sunk deep into the water.

Primal Kyogre opened his mouth and charged up with green-yellow orbs. "**Solar Beam!**" He fired his attack, which headed after Acnologia. The Dragon King roared and turned towards the incoming attack. He sped in, dodging the Solar Beam once more. His evil eyes got a good look of Primal Groudon before he drove his left claw at him. Primal Groudon held on like he did previously, meeting a stalemate once more.

"You cannot win!" Primal Groudon persisted. "You are of no match for our primal powers!"

Acnologia's huge mouth let a harshly wind bellow outwards. "**I said silence!**"

As Primal Groudon fended against Acnologia, his body glowed a lava color. "**Precipice Blades!**"

Acnologia flapped his wings and he took flight, drawing himself away from the stalemate as lava-covered stones shot up from below. He snarled angrily and heard a vast screech. When he looked back ahead, he was suddenly met with an Extreme Speed in the face, making a powerful ripple upon impact.

Acnologia roared as he shot backwards, unable to regain his balance until he was of a far distance. His hot breath heaved as he eyed the resurfacing of Primal Kyogre, having seen no visible injuries, as were the other two.

The Weather Trio snarled at Acnologia as the injured Dragon King was doing the same thing.

* * *

Viewing the fight from a long-range video lacrima from one of the Council Navy ships, the Magic Council saw everything; the entrance of Dialga and Palkia, the island disappearing, the transformations, the fight, everything.

Gran Doma, the chairman and sporting a cliché wizard hat, looked distressingly into the screen. "To think, something from beyond Fiore could be on par with the force of Acnologia."

"Not only that, but it appears that the three are actually fending off Acnologia. He appears to be on the defensive." A fellow councilmen stated.

Another one nodded. "Whoever they are, some connection is made with that Nic Pularis fellow. Whatever it may be, we can't worry about it. For now, let's work on the Etherion."

Org grumbled. "It's not in my place to say, but what I will say is that the Etherion is just about ready."

Gran Doma's eyes stayed fixated on the screen. "Excellent. Time to eliminate all of them at once!"

* * *

Mega Rayquaza looked up, feeling a charging force in the skies above. Beyond the dark clouds, he could feel something that was pretty massive, and it annoyed him. He roared up into the sky and looked down at Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre.

"You two…"

Both of them roared back up at Mega Rayquaza in response, and with that, Mega Rayquaza looked back up to the sky and swerved upwards, high into the atmosphere.

Acnologia began to chase after him. "**You can't run from me!**"

A sudden Solar Beam and Hydro Pump intercepted him, making the Dragon King jerk back and look down at Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre.

"You forgot about us." Primal Groudon warned.

Primal Kyogre snarled upwards as his retort to the black-scaled dragon.

Acnologia roared once more, bellowing violently at them. "**Perish!**" The Dragon King closed his mouth and opened it, firing a Dragon's Roar at the two. His attack went beaming ahead, and Primal Kyogre jumped out of the water.

Around him, orbs were made. He then let out another vile screech. "**Origin Pulse!**" He let loose a multitude of light blue beams at the incoming roar, making a catastrophic explosion that swallowed up everything within a vast field, and the shockwaves also got caught in the explosion, making it expand even more.

Through it, all three roared at each other, unwavering their determination to brawl until either side fell.

* * *

Mega Rayquaza serpentine into the stratosphere's outer layer, nothing but blue and darkness ahead. His speed was just incredible, as if he were a meteor. He came to a slight stop when he finally got close to a projectile high in the ozone layer.

What he saw was the satellite for the Etherion. It was just as large as Acnologia, if not larger. The energy given off was also violent, to which he had no intention on seeing.

"So this is where it's coming from." Mega Rayquaza said aloud. "How annoying!"

* * *

Gran Doma smirked and narrowed his eyes as he saw the image of Mega Rayquaza observing the Etherion cannon. To him, it made no difference. The satellite was extremely powerful, and it would take a meteor to obliterate it, let alone another Etherion blast.

"Hmhm. Those evil creatures. They have no rights in this world." He announced. He then held up his staff. "Let this be the day that Acnologia and his adversaries are removed from the Magic world!"

* * *

Mega Rayquaza saw the Etherion satellite storing even more power, and he screeched once more before he decided to take action. He was outlined in light green, which spread all over his body.

"How aggravating! BEGONE!"

Mega Rayquaza suddenly lunged at the satellite with unmatched speed, leaving a shockwave upon speeding ahead. In a green streaming flash, Mega Rayquaza was seen high above the satellite, the energy around him disappearing. He remained still as his tendrils still waves about; a brief period of silence took over.

The satellite glinted once, long and in the same spots Mega Rayquaza sped right through. The glints shined even more before the entire structure flashed. The Etherion satellite then let out a vast ripple as the light of its demise shined high in the atmosphere above.

* * *

All of the Magic Council, workers and all, didn't have the words. What they saw was something they could not believe. Mega Rayquaza's ultimate attack destroyed the Etherion satellite as if it was nothing.

"I…It can't be! That's impossible!" A councilmember testified.

"That dragon destroyed the Etherion satellite cannon!" Another one shouted.

Org watched with his one eye open in amazement. "What extraordinary power. To destroy one of our most valuable weaponry…"

Gran Doma's eyes shook with sheer fury and horror. "I…Is this some kind of trick?! How can this be?! Our Etherion has been neutralized!" A very long silence blew about, and no one was taking this situation too well. A foreign creature, whose potential is still unknown at this point in time, had just annihilated an apocalyptic weapon. Gran Doma clenched his staff even tighter.

"…what is going on here?"

* * *

Acnologia screeched as he was trying to crush Primal Groudon, his claws continuously thrusting down onto him, but the Primal Legendary's heated body was like touching lava, and Acnologia's claws were tipped with scorch marks.

Primal Kyogre jumped out of the water, facing Acnologia's back turned as Primal Groudon was defending with his rough body, still not ascertaining any scratches. Primal Kyogre sought this opportunity and his tail spiraled a huge aquatic cyclone.

"**Aqua Tail!**"

Primal Kyogre twisted his body in the air, the spiraling cyclone went down like a crushing hammer onto Acnologia's back. The sudden attack made the Dragon King screech and falter in his offense, giving Primal Groudon the momentum he was looking for.

"You're so annoying! **Solar Beam!**" He let loose a green beam that struck Acnologia's chest. The forceful beam made the Dragon screech even more as he was shot back into the air.

Acnologia growled at Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre as both were apparently dealing even more damage to him. The Dragon King roared once more at them, charging up for his own roar once again.

"**You infuriate me-!**"

A downwards beam suddenly rushed from the dark skies above, swallowing Acnologia in a violent assault which he was unable to fend against. Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre watched as Acnologia roared violently as the air shook greatly.

The Hyper Beam engulfed Acnologia in a large, dome-like explosion of dark purple and black, sending shockwaves in which the other two Legendary creatures braced for. The explosive field flashed before dispersing, and Acnologia found himself in the sea once more.

He shot back up, a brief yet massive geyser erupting. He was back in the air and roaring with sheer anger. His eyes looked up, seeing a figure dive down from the spiraling dark cloud center.

Mega Rayquaza's roar bellowed as he dove through and serpentine about to a halt, screeching to the skies once more upon his descent back into the fray.

"**So, dragon, you have returned to be killed by my hand. How expecting.**" Acnologia said.

"Try and fail, Acnologia." Mega Rayquaza challenged.

Primal Kyogre took a major leap and was in midair, time seemingly slowing down as his mouth made a shining, light blue orb. "**Ice Beam!**" He let loose an icy ray that went beaming towards Acnologia. The scraped and damaged Dragon felt how effective it was before, so he dodged by ascending.

The Ice Beam hit the water, and there was a sudden, icy flash. Acnologia looked down to find that the entire area between him and the Weather Trio was ice. He was caught surprised as his eyes looked and saw that a grand area of the ice took over, at least five-hundred feet in radius, though not a single bit of it got near Primal Groudon as he was like lava, as was the land. As for Primal Kyogre, he was nowhere to be seen.

Mega Rayquaza saw Acnologia's shock and he growled. "It's time to decide this; once and for all!" The Mega Evolved dragon went slithering and swerving after Acnologia. The Dragon King took notice and he opened his mouth, firing off a devastative Dragon's Roar.

As the beam traveled, Mega Rayquaza began to spiral around Acnologia's roar, coiling around and continuing his course without being grazed by the attack, not even a little. He spiraled around until he was right in front of Acnologia. He opened his mouth and a massive swell of draconic energy formed.

"**Dragon Pulse!**"

Mega Rayquaza fired the attack in front of Acnologia, almost point blank. The Dragon King let out a severe roar as his entire upper body was swallowed in the explosion.

Through his tiresome roar, the Dragon King lashed his stinger-like tail through the dispersing smoke. Mega Rayquaza was struck in the face and he flew back, screeching from the jolt of pain. He sailed back and fell onto the ice. He bounced just once and then skidded back head first, and the ice shattered as he continued to skid back.

Acnologia brought his head back and he stored energy quickly. He reeled his head forward and let loose a Dragon's Roar once more. The entire roar blasted off at Mega Rayquaza, but he caught a glimpse of his incoming attack and he picked himself up from the continuing skid and swerved upwards, slithering away from the roar as the attack swallowed up the area it would've taken up. Another explosive field rumbled, sending shockwaves and shattered ice everywhere. All of the ice went flying and ultimately broke apart, reducing to nothing.

Mega Rayquaza turned back around towards Acnologia and opened his mouth. "**Dragon Pulse!**" The Dragon and Flying-Type let out a massive multicolored beam and the dragon-shaped move went zooming ahead after the foe, but to Acnologia's surprise, the attack zoomed and struck the water underneath, making a massive wall of water shoot up.

"**You missed. Fool.**" Acnologia announced.

Much to his dismay, he could've sworn Mega Rayquaza smirked.

As the wall of water began to subside, appearing in front was none other than Primal Kyogre in midair. Acnologia was caught off guard by the sudden appearance of Primal Kyogre. It soon came to him as time seemingly slowed down, with Primal Kyogre making blue spheres all around.

Primal Kyogre disappeared underwater after using Ice Beam, and when Acnologia's roar subsided, and allowed Mega Rayquaza to 'misfire', that's when Primal Kyogre used the opportunity to strike.

"It's time we finish this!" An image of Primal Kyogre and Acnologia shifted in between the other a couple of times, and the former let loose.

"**Origin Pulse!**"

Almost point-blank, Primal Kyogre let loose an endless barrage of blue beams that bombarded Acnologia in rapid succession, each shot feeing like a bullet. The entire area around shook from the impact of Origin Pulse. Waves around shattered as Acnologia screamed from the attack.

Acnologia continued to scream as Origin Pulse relentlessly bombarded him, finally making the Dragon shoot backwards in a helpless manner.

Primal Groudon was covered in a lava-like aura. "Time to leave him something to remember us by! **Precipice Blades!**" He shot his arms forward, and a series of sharp, incandescent stones shot at Acnologia as he continued being shot back, even after Origin Pulse finally stopped.

The Precipice Blades went in a straight line, jutting up and closing the distance from Acnologia. Finally, when reaching underneath, four blades tipped with lava shot up, striking Acnologia's lower back and upper body, making him shoot up just a few feet and keeping him suspended as a larger stone tipped in lava shot in the middle of the four, piercing Acnologia's back and jerking him up several feet.

The Dragon King violently screamed in searing pain from his back getting pierced severely, and he screamed even more as he was engulfed in a shattering lava-like explosion that send a violent ripple. Acnologia's screaming and roaring was drowned out by the searing explosion.

Mega Rayquaza was then seen straightening out and zooming at such a speed that was so fast that he was but a mere blur. He sped away and made a long curve, emanating green in the process. He was flying above the water, and so close to it as well.

"Acnologia!" Mega Rayquaza yelled. "Don't ever mess with the wielder of the Plates again!" He turned and shot at Acnologia, roaring loudly as he zoomed even faster. On either side, giant waves three times as huge as Acnologia surged, showing just how severe this blow was gonna be. "**Dragon Ascent!**"

He screeched, zooming with sheer ferocity. Acnologia, in a small stupor state, saw Mega Rayquaza closing the distance. "**No! I cannot lose! No! NOOOOO!**"

Mega Rayquaza violently struck Acnologia's chest, zooming on pass him and streaming forward with green behind him. Acnologia was in suspension for a couple seconds before swallowed in a humungous explosion once more; a violent field of explosive energy erupted all around, and the explosion beamed upwards and exploded even more, erupting all around.

Mega Rayquaza swerved about back into the skies with a screech upon his monstrous attack, and through the explosion, Acnologia roared as he was engulfed completely.

A sudden flash and the explosion was gone, leaving a geyser of water that Acnologia fell through. The Weather Trio looked at the space Acnologia fell through and remained silently staring until breaking out into a unison roar, ripples of air surging upon their gruesome combo.

They all growled silently as they anticipated Acnologia's rising once again. The three did not show any signs of early victory as the water shook a little, but very weakly. Acnologia slowly rose; rather than a geyser, he just arose from the water moderately. His roar was weak, and many visible wounds were seen.

The right side of his face had that scar, and his abdomen had ascertained numerous bruises. On his back was a large, burning, cindering mark, where the huge Precipice Blade struck earlier. The most noticeable wound, larger than the huge mark on his back, was his chest and left wing. While his left wing had lost a few of its large scales from that passing Dragon Ascent, his chest had a massive gash, almost diagonally up to his left.

The Dragon King, unable to see this predicament through, looked up at the three before him. He stared long and hard at the taunting power the Weather Trio. The three let out a snarl as Acnologia had ascertained too many lethal injuries.

After a long, grueling stare down, the Dragon King began to turn away.

"**I'll remember this.**" He warned. Whipping his head back, he roared at them and he turned away and flapped his wings, yet his left one was damaged still, so he faltered quite a few times. His hands stung greatly from the previous assaults from Primal Groudon, unable to grip his severe gash as he made way into the wild yonder in the sky.

The Weather Trio let out a roar in unison upon their victory. Once Acnologia was out of sight, they all shined a bright rainbow color and reverted back to themselves. The skies above showed breakthroughs of sunlight, and continued to expand until the sky was once again the way it was before they all underwent Primal Reversion and Mega Evolution.

"Well, that gave it everything we had." Groudon muttered, shaken up a little.

"Agreed. This was truly a tough adversary." Kyogre agreed. "It took all three of us to force him to retreat."

Rayquaza let a weak screech echo through the air. Having completed the task, Rayquaza looked away, still just as shaken up from that battle like the other two.

"Palkia had left behind enough to transport ourselves home. Our work is done here."

Groudon and Kyogre let a small screech emit and Kyogre began to turn and he plunged back into the sea. Groudon turned around towards the land that was present and still molten hot, a small fracture in the space in front beginning to crack until it completely shattered. On the other side was the magma chamber, where he was originally. He walked back inside, a low roar emitting once more. "…next time, Kyogre, I won't be so acquiescent to work with you." He then stepped inside the magma, where the portal behind him closed.

Kyogre, silently thinking the same thing, swam deeper and deeper as a crack in the space below gave way, shattering and revealing a deep trench that he swam to. The portal closed behind him.

Rayquaza swerved into the skies, screeching once more as the altitude escalated and a spatial crack shattered as well, showing the ozone layer of his world and he swerved through, all disappearing back into their world and the portals no more.

All that remained of them in Fiore was the little bit of molten land Groudon had made.

* * *

**X791**

The image faded away, and Palkia's pearls stopped shinning. All around were faces of sheer shock. No words could possibly describe their reactions. They saw the Magic Council getting extremely pissed, Primal Reversion and Mega Evolution, but the biggest shock of all, was Acnologia losing.

Gildarts didn't have the words. All that came out was unfinished gawking. "No-I-t-this can't…"

Makarov's eyes were shaking. "My word. To think Acnologia, now known as the Dragon King, lost."

"Not only that, but those three left some serious scars." Sophie added.

"And that Etherion was stopped by Mega Rayquaza." Vanessa added.

"To think that there is an even greater force than Acnologia, only originating from Nic's home world." Freed stated.

"I've never seen such a battle before." Levy remarked. "Those three, even though it was a flashback, I could still feel that power."

Gajeel crossed his arms. "Yeah. We've fought quite a few back in Luminous' place, but what we saw pretty much surpasses what we fought there."

Finally composed, Gildarts looked up at Dialga and Palkia. "I lost an arm and leg to that vile creature, and to be watching that Dragon retreat by any other hand than my own…how degrading."

A sudden thud got everyone's attention. They all looked to find Natsu on his knees and fists clenched harder as they laid on the ground. His frustration was rising.

"Damnit! Why? Why?!" He yelled. "I am a Dragon Slayer! I should've been the one to stop Acnologia! How did those guys send him packing, yet we couldn't do squat?!"

His frustration was getting the better of him, his Dragon Slayer pride hurting from watching his enemy fall. He was hurting as much as Gildarts, but the Crash Mage was taking it better than Natsu.

"Natsu." Happy muttered.

Natsu growled and got back to his feet, angrily pointing at Dialga and Palkia. "Hey! Answer me!"

Dialga and Palkia stared down at Natsu.

"There's no way that anything's stronger than a Dragon! How did they stop him while I couldn't?!"

Dialga raised his head. "Human, do not take this matter so personally."

"Dialga is right." Palkia said. "There are some matters that are best lead to others; if one can't do it alone, they must get help."

Natsu looked down at the ground, his fists balling. "This is so unfair…"

"Remember that it took the three of them at full power to mortally wound the threat. If it were another Legendary, the outcome would've been decided earlier." Palkia said. "There are so many mysteries that Pokémon wield, and from our world, it would be hard for you to understand what powers we have."

Natsu angrily looked back up at them. "There's no way-!"

"That's enough Natsu!"

Natsu looked back at Master Makarov. "But Gramps…"

With crossed arms, his glare kept Natsu quiet. "No buts, Natsu. Now listen, if not for Dialga and Palkia, we would indeed be obliterated by Acnologia; furthermore, if we did stay, we would've been destroyed by that cataclysmic battle. Show some gratitude."

Natsu was shaking as he looked back down at the ground. It was painful to know that he couldn't stop Acnologia, but it was even more unbearable to know that he couldn't save his family, and had to leave it to…stronger individuals.

A sudden epiphany momentarily erased all of that frustration and his eyes shot wide. "Hey, you there!"

Referring to Dialga, the Steel and Dragon-Type looked down at Natsu.

"You can control time, right?" He stepped forward with a clenched fist. "Tell me! Can you send us back in time to when Igneel, Grandeeney, and Metalicana left!"

The sudden request was of major shock, especially to Wendy and Gajeel.

"Just what do you think you're doing?" Lucy asked harshly.

Natsu turned towards her, a fire in his eyes. "Trust me, this might be the only chance I get of seeing Igneel again. I have to know." He looked back up at the duo. "Well? Can you?!"

Dialga's roar down at Natsu forced him to cover up, and he fell backwards onto his behind.

"Natsu!" Lucy and Happy rushed over as the Dragon Slayer sat up.

"Do not demand such a foolhardy request!" Dialga scolded. "Sending you back in time to do such a thing is as risky enough as it is sending you through time at all!"

"You clearly do not understand the consequences." Palkia stated. "Though Dialga can control time, by altering the past, the future can possibly change; besides, it wouldn't be possible anyway."

Natsu looked confused. "Huh?"

"Time and space are already warped to such grand levels. It's not like it's possible to do such a thing anymore; besides, I only did this just so as a means of escape and to protect Nic Pularis and the Plates." Dialga stated in irritation. "Your personal ambitions do not apply here."

In defeat, but not taking it very well, Natsu got to a knee and punched the ground beneath. "Damnit!"

Gray, Elfman, and few others looked on with slight pity and disappointment for Natsu. They all knew that in some cases, it's better to consider the whole rather than one's self. For Natsu, his desires and opportunities just never seemed to mix. He would have to continue waiting until that day came.

Nic, though still wincing a bit, looked up at the three. "Hold on, I seem to have picked up something."

"What is it?" Alzack asked.

"It's what Dialga and Palkia said a few moments ago. They said that they couldn't do it anymore, because time and space are warped."

Erza looked up at them. "If so, then how could Dialga send us into the future?"

A few seconds flew by before Dialga answered. "The matter is more complicated than you can imagine. With Palkia's Spatial powers, we could've sent you to Kalos, but after the incident beforehand, we couldn't risk such a thing to happen again."

He looked at all of Fairy Tail before him. "Look around you. 7 years we have skipped, but this part wasn't my doing."

"What?" Braixen said in shock.

"This was by chance. The scenario was just like my spatial portals back in Kalos; this was the closest chance we had before the window closed." Palkia informed.

"Time is a very hard concept to grasp. With everything collapsing, and with Arceus traveling through time as well, everything in the universe was left in a suspended state. Everything is warped, and only one opportunity could come that had no return."

Palkia lowered his head. "To put it in simple terms…this was a one-way trip."

The news was of great shock, and everyone's eyes showed slight surprise and gasps were heard.

Jet crossed his arms. "Hold up, so you're saying that even if you could send them back, it wouldn't work because time windows are continuously closing?"

"Correct." Palkia informed. "It would appear that this is your stop." He and Dialga then turned towards Nic. "Young Nic, there is no need to thank us for what we have done."

"Though we must sincerely apologize for what was done to begin with." Dialga added. "We had no intentions on sending you through time until the fight arose to a critical point."

Nic wasn't so annoyed with the 7 year thing, now that he knew Arceus was alive and still hanging in there; what really concerned him was the Plates. He would have to consider that they too were in suspense.

Regardless, he looked up at them and nodded, his only eye looking at them.

Two portals opened, and Dialga and Palkia both turned to face them individually.

"We shall continue watching over you, Nic Pularis." Palkia informed, and with that, he and Dialga both went into the portals.

There was a long silence, and it took a while for the scenario to fully process.

With a sigh, Makarov turned towards Fairy Tail. "Well kids, nothing more we can do here…" A smile crept onto his face. "Let's all go home!"

With everyone yelling a unison cheer, behind Tenrou Island, there was a rather small island, where there was sheer rock, but a lot of moss, the same place it has been for 7 years. On it, a young female person looked on with a smile.

* * *

In a small tavern on the edge of town, on a small hill, the remaining members of Fairy Tail, which were not even 10% of the guild it was before the time skip, lounged bout.

Macao, the Guild Master for now since Makarov was 'gone', turned towards his 13-year-old son, Romeo.

"Hey Romeo, you okay?"

Romeo sat in a chair and read a book, a frown on his face plastered since everyone's disappearance. "…yeah, I'm okay."

Macao knew his son. He hasn't smiled in 7 years, all due to sadness that his idols were gone. It was saddening to know they were gone, but as Guild Master, Macao had to keep brightening matters up.

"Hey, could you at least try and have a little faith?" He asked. His son didn't respond, and that's when the doors slid open, revealing shady punks that weren't so pleasant.

"Dang." The leader said, having a huge mace and cocky smirk. "This place is even more sad then before."

Immediately, Macao got defensive. "Thibault? Again?"

Wakaba, no longer having his poofy hair, clenched a fist. "Macao said he'd pay you guys next month! So lay off!"

"Don't worry, I'm perfectly fine with that." Thibault still had his cocky smile. "But when I told our Master, the deal just didn't make the cut. What are Master says goes, otherwise there's gonna be problems."

"You're not getting anything today!" Romeo exclaimed, slamming his book shut.

"Watch it, Romeo." Macao warned.

Romeo persisted. "Everyone else may be afraid of you, but I'm not." He held up a fist, where a purple flame emerged. "I won't have Fairy Tail be disgraced anymore!"

"Damn kid!" Macao raced for Romeo to hold him back. Thibault inhaled and he blew towards the flame, putting it out much to everyone's shock.

Thibault grabbed for his mace. "Hate to tell you this kid, I really do, but the name's already disgraced! You can try and try again, but there's no way that Fairy Tail will be better than Twilight Ogre!"

"No! Leave my boy alone!" Macao reached out, but knew he wouldn't make it in time.

Thibault was suddenly kicked in the back, and time slowed down as everyone turned in shock to see the attacker hitting the wall and hitting the ground. The sudden confusion made everyone look back ahead, their bodies shuddering upon the images of a sword slashing, an iron club, ice, and a Water Shuriken making the remaining members of Thibault's group sail into wll, falling unconscious like the one before them.

"N-No…it can't be." Romeo muttered.

Natsu's signature grin took place, and his head tilt as he, Team Tenrou, and the group that found them, all were present. "Hey guys! What's up!"

"Sorry for the wait!" Happy cheerfully said.

Macao and everyone else stood in sheer shock as 7 years went by and they were reunited just like that.

"Y-you guys!" Macao shouted in surprise.

"There's no way…" Wakaba muttered. His smoking pipe dropping.

Greninja stood in front, with Nic being supported by Vanessa. The two looked on as the ones left behind were driven to pools of tears.

"It's you guys! You haven't aged at all!" Laki exclaimed.

"You haven't aged a single day!" Nab exclaimed.

"What happened?!" Vijeeter added in with tears.

"Uh, well…" Lucy wasn't sure how to explain. "It's kind of a long story…"

Makarov decided that he would tell the details while on a table, while detailing the circumstances and finishing, everyone was baffled to say the least.

Romeo stood in shock as Natsu was before him, and the Dragon Slayer turned to look down at him. All of these years, and they were finally back, but he couldn't find the right way to express it.

"Man, you've grown Romeo." Natsu commented with his smile.

With everyone smiling around him, Romeo finally smiled as tears streamed down his face. "Everyone…you're home."

Greninja's blank eyes looked about and back at Nic, smiling underneath his tongue. Vanessa and Braixen both smiled, and pretty soon the four were in a smiling fest. Erza looked back at Nic, and though he had the one eye, he looked at her and smiled softly. Observing his one eye and still red right side, she still pulled off her best smile, glad to know he was still alive.

* * *

**Well, that's it for this Arc. Next chapter will be the X791 Arc, and it'll be all original. Please tell me what your opinion was of the fight. I didn't wanna make it too lengthy since it extended from last chapter, so I had to keep it as brief as I could. The whole X784 was 6K exactly (I checked, and it was precisely 6,000 words), and I figured that would be enough. Please let me know if the fight was too much, or if you guys went into breakdowns out of sheer awe. POKÉMON RULE!**

**The next chapter may take some time, because I have to thoroughly think and plan out the remaining plot of the Arc, and with the new Arc comes new attires. So expect some different character designs for Sophie, Vanessa, and Nic.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving the story.**

* * *

**Next Time: The Violent Quell**


	54. The Violent Quell

Chapter 54 – The Violent Quell

**Everyone loved Pokémon VS Acnologia last chapter! You can never have too much Pokémon! Hard to believe that we're 54 chapters in! Time for the X791 Arc! **

**To Recap:**

As Dialga and Palkia transported Nic and everyone else, 7 years passed by, and everyone back at Fairy Tail had gotten older. Nic and all of Team Tenrou went into the future, where Dialga and Palkia showed them the events that transpired between the Weather Trio and Acnologia. Groudon and Kyogre underwent Primal Reversion and became Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre while Rayquaza Mega Evolved into Mega Rayquaza. Throughout the catastrophic battle, Mega Rayquaza destroyed the Magic Council's Etherion cannon. The Weather Trio then used their signature moves and defeated Acnologia, leaving him mortally wounded and fly off into the skies. The Weather Trio then went back home, and Nic and all of Fairy Tail did as well, catching up with everyone.

* * *

**Chapter 54 – The Violent Quell**

"Okay, you should be able to take them off now." Porlyusica told him.

Nic slowly reached behind his head and began to undo the bandages. He untied them and they coiled in an unkempt manner when touching the floor. Soon enough, they were all off, and Nic's left eyelid was seen shut.

"Have a look." Porlyusica handed Nic a hand-sized mirror which he accepted. He looked into it and began to slowly open his left eye, and much to his mild surprise, there was an eye there. An artificial one to be more accurate.

Nic didn't show any signs of awe or tears. After the bloody hell that caused him to lose it in the first place, you couldn't expect him to show any sign of enthusiasm. Though this scenario did require gratitude, and Nic was pleased with how the components of his artificial eye were exactly like his old one.

He moved his eye from left to right and back, and then all direction, seeing everything crystal clearly. _'It's been a week, and I can finally see out of both eyes again.' _He thought with a light grin.

Porlyusica kept her stern expression towards him. "Don't bother thanking me. I'm just doing my job, though I'd advise that you wear your sunglasses so as to keep the light from damaging it. Any Magic that works with the eyes you should be okay to handle, but don't get too reckless child."

Nic stood up slowly, the stool creaking. He slowly started taking the bandages off of his abdomen. "Yeah…got it." He muttered.

Taking his abdominal bandages off, he looked into a full-scale mirror and began to spectate himself. Nic was far from the definition of vanity; he never minded a few good scars here and there if he ever got any, but he could only huff out a sigh of pity as he looked at the giant hand-sized scar that was on his lower right, the same place Lysandre struck him and he bled out from before.

There really wasn't anything that could be said nor done. He got the wound, and now his scar was the size of his hand, grander than Gray's new one he got earlier as well. He didn't complain, but thinking about it made the scar sting.

Looking at the rest of himself, he looked down at his new navy blue baggy pants; similar to Natsu, though not as baggy, and a different color. The pants stopped at his ankles, and he also adorned new shoes with scarlet patterns outlining the thin, black material fit for all types of conditions.

Nic looked back at his doctor and gave a nod. "I know you said no thanks are necessary, but I'm grateful for you fixing my eye."

Porlyusica turned away with endless grumbling. Nic knew Porlyusica was never the one who liked being around humans, so he respected her self-desire for isolation and continued on with his own business.

He put on his new gray T-shirt; this one being the same gray shade and a V-neck much like his old one. After putting it over his very toned physique, he went to the nearby coatrack and put on his new coat. Since his old attire was pretty much gone, he got a custom made attire that he was currently wearing, including the new coat.

The coat he put on was a solid black with purple edging. The coat went from the shins upwards. This time, the coat had sleeves that overlapped the gray sleeves of his shirt underneath. The short sleeves also had purple edging. Around the waist was a light purple belt with a Poke Ball sign in the center, separating the top from the bottom, the top being extremely loose and showing his gray V-neck. On the back of the coat was a purple Fairy Tail emblem that would've been where his actual one would've been. The purple emblem was surrounded by a thin purple ring, the black of the coat filling up the space in between.

Putting it on, Nic got accustomed to it since it gave him more of a Fairy Tail appeal. With one last look behind, seeing Porlyusica scrutinizing her medicine, he kept a half grin and flipped on his sunglasses and turned to leave.

One week had passed since Team Tenrou had come back, and everyone got new attires as well. Though a few like Levy and Freed stayed in their old attires. Many events also transpired during that time period. Lamia Scale had come to visit, Lucy, Sophie, and every girl that lived at Fairy Hills were in debt due to rent issues, but a heavy impact for Lucy was the passing of her father. Even so, they all must press on.

Nic found himself standing in front of the tavern that was the Guild Hall, to which he had no trouble with. He's only been there once before staying at Porlyusica's for a week, but the small space was something he was always accustomed to.

He kept a smile as he had his sunglasses on still, as the doctor prescribed. He slowly stepped in, and almost immediately, everyone present turned towards him and stood in awe.

"Nic?" Lucy asked.

Natsu smirked with crossed arms. "About time, lazy!"

"Man, we were starting to think you'd never get better." Gray figured.

"That's a real man for ya." Elfman stated.

"Hey guys, sorry to keep you worried this long." Nic apologized.

Makarov nodded as he sat on the bar top. "It's quite alright. So, how are your injuries."

Nic momentarily picked his sunglasses off and smiled, showing his new artificial eye that looked exactly like his old one. Smiles and cheers were present as they saw that Nic was better. He put his sunglasses back on and looked towards his right, seeing his sister approaching.

Vanessa also sported a new attire. She sported a short, light blue tank-top that showed quite a bit of her ample figure as well as her belly. Over it was a blue vest with a folded collar, with the left side of the vest having a Poke Ball insignia. The vest reached down the edges of her belly, stopping at the waist, where a light blue belt held up her purple skirt that went down to her thighs. She also adorned a sari-like pink skirt that covered her left leg. The sari skirt reached down to the shins, where they overlapped her black stockings that reached below the knee caps. She had on light blue shoes, but also had on blue forearm bands with silver edging, the right armband having the Key Stone embedded into it.

Vanessa smiled wide. "Glad you're okay." She walked on over and shared a hug with her brother. Nic kept a warm smile as he was relieved to be back up and running.

Sophie relaxed in a chair with her elbow supporting her chin, watching the siblings hug.

Sophie's attire was also a complete overhaul. She now adorned a far more professional appearance. She had on a dark blue dress with no shoulder straps, light brown edging defining where the dress stopped, which was above the cleavage and under the bare shoulders. She had dark blue sleeves that were rather long and opened up a little upon reaching out, showing her light blue fingernail polish. Light brown lines went down the sides of her dress and stopped at her light brown belt. The bottom half was a dark blue shirt that reached her ankles, which revealed her left leg, which was opposite of Vanessa. In front of the skirt was a red Memory-Make Magic symbol. Underneath you could see Sophie also had skin-tight black shorts. She had light blue boots with silver shin guards to finish up the whole ensemble.

Sophie seemed please as her light pink lipstick glistened. "I knew Nic would take a long time, but I never recalled him being that critical."

Natsu stood atop of a table. "Well, let's party!"

Everyone cheered in honor of Nic's return, and within that celebration, Erza was seen with crossed arms and in her new Heart Kreuz Armor. Everyone's shouts and cheers became muffles as her gaze was fixated on Nic as he seemed content being back with the guild and family.

'_Nic.' _She thought sincerely.

Nic worked his way towards the bar, where Cana was seen right next to him. She held up a smile and a mug of booze. "Hey champ. It's been quite awhile."

"Indeed it has." He replied, looking back at the guild as they began to celebrate. It was going smoothly until a sudden flying mug hit Gray's head, causing him to immediately turn towards Natsu in accusation. As fortune smiled down upon them, another brawl began to rise, which made Nic sigh.

He stood up and turned away. "Shall we?"

Cana followed suit. "Let's." She carried a few mugs of booze with her as she walked behind the bar, where Nic had begun sitting down and reached for his earbuds.

"VIP guests coming through!" Sophie and Vanessa both ducked behind the counter, where they dodged a booze mug just in the nick of time. With a quick huff, they relaxed and huddled behind the counter.

"You'd think they'd learn to lighten up on the physical activity after everything that's happened." Vanessa figured.

Cana gave a cheeky smile. "Well that's Fairy Tail for ya."

Vanessa snickered. "Yeah, I guess so."

Nic looked up at the ceiling, smiling as furniture was tossed about, but it didn't bother him since he had his metal in. "Just like old times, right?"

Cana smirked. "Yeah, you can say that again." She then began gulping down booze.

"After 7 years, the whole sanity corner is still here." Sophie stated.

It wasn't so fortunate anymore when Vanessa hummed in confusion when one of her Poke Balls began to rattle madly, and sure enough Krokorok appeared out on top of the counter.

"GRAH! LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING FAIRY TAIL MAGES IN COMPLETE DISARRAY! KROKOROK STARTS THE PARTY! BECAUSE KROKOROK _IS _THE PARTY! AND NO PARTY IS WITHOUT KROKOROK!" He yelled haphazardly as he dove into the fray.

Vanessa faceplamed. "Oh no, not again." She huffed in disappointment. "Every time, every single time. Honestly…"

Sophie raised a brow. "Lighten up. For him it builds character."

Mira and Kinana both looked down at the group of four and smiled with light giggles as Natsu flew over their heads.

* * *

The rumbling and bashing all about went on for as long as the day was. It felt like forever, but in reality it was only an hour. As surprising as it was, Erza didn't bother to stop them. She figured they could let out a little steam after stressing about Nic for an entire week. Personally, Vanessa and herself were just as stressed, but they knew checking up on Nic four times a day would do no good; besides, they knew he was in good hands.

The brawling started settling down, having only Elfman, Gajeel, Gray, and Natsu remain standing and bashing about. All Erza did was spectate and let them have at it.

"You think it's time to settle them down?" Mira asked.

Erza sat on her stool with her back turned. "This isn't anything new, but I suppose." She stood up and put her hands to her hips. Turning towards the four guys punching the other's face, she gave an authoritative stance. "Alright, break it up."

It wasn't heard and a mug had hit the railing of a shelf, causing an album to fall to the floor, spilling the contents all over right beside Erza.

Irritably twitching her brow and clenched her fists and readied to Requip a sword. "I said…" As she shifted her body, her eyes caught a glimpse of the various sketches that fell. Reedus' sketchbook had fallen over and Erza was unable to look away as her glanced at the several sketches that were of seven years ago.

Among them were of Team Natsu, Makarov, and Team Shadow Gear. Her senses were nowhere near the fight that was happening as she was solemnly fixated on the sketches. She continued looking through them and saw more sketches of the Exceeds, Gildarts, Laxus, and the Thunder God Tribe. She came across a sketch of Sophie, and one of Cana drinking, and then her eyes widened a little when glancing longingly at the next few images.

She looked at a picture of Nic and his sister, the Pularis siblings smiling happily. She looked at the sketch ever so closely, kneeling down to where she saw the details were exactly like Nic's warm smile. Her brown eyes looked at another picture, these next two having Nic and Vanessa with their respective Pokémon before Tenrou Island. But the biggest shock and touch of all was seeing the last one.

The image made Erza mist in the eyes, for it was the one that Reedus painted when Nic came back from the Tower of Heaven incident. The picture was the moment where Nic was sitting up and Erza was crying tears of joy with a happy smile as she and Nic embrace with all of their hearts. The blissful memory was like yesterday, and she could recall just how happy she was. Seeing Nic smile in the sketch, she almost had a tear emerge, but blinked before it could swell.

She delicately picked up the sketches and put them back into the album, placing it back on the shelf. She completely ignored the fight going on and had a soft smile on her face as she turned towards the bar.

Witnessing the whole thing, Mira giggled. "Aw, someone's thinking about him."

Ignoring her, she turned to go behind the bar, yet to her surprise just Sophie and Cana were present. Although her approach did get their undivided attention.

"Oh hey, Erza." Sophie greeted.

"Hello Sophie." She replied. "Have you seen Nic?"

"Well they left a little while earlier, wanting to get some fresh air. I'm pretty sure Vanessa said she was training to control her Aura Magic against her Pokémon." The blonde informed.

Cana hiccupped. "If you're looking for loverboy, check outside." She drunkenly teased.

Heeding her words, Erza turned and left for outside, leaving the boys to settle the quell for themselves. She turned about but had no signs of Nic or his Pokémon. _'That's weird, I thought he'd be out training.' _She thought. The mystery was solved when she went around the Guild Hall, and the sight she saw made her stop stiff.

Nic was seen sitting against a tree, sunglasses on his face. His right leg was stretched out as the left supported the small sketchbook Reedus lend him. Around him were his Pokémon, all seemingly napping as Nic's head was tilted, giving the idea of him napping as well.

She never took him for a lazy kind of guy; she knew full-well Nic was nowhere near lazy, but given Vanessa loves to sleep, and the few cases that Nic's always asleep sometime or another, she could only assume that the Pularis siblings don't like missing out on sleeping when it's absolutely necessary.

Ignoring the circumstances, she slowly made way towards Nic, and his Pokémon didn't seem to be stirring at all, as if they subconsciously knew a threat wasn't at hand. Erza quietly approached and looked down at Nic, seeing him sleep peacefully.

He was cute when he was asleep. The calm and placid expression on his face was priceless, and seeing him sleep was what made her smile grow.

She leaned over and noticed that he was in the middle of drawing something before he dozed off. She saw a pencil drawing, a very defined pencil drawing, of all of his Pokémon; Greninja, Charizard, Kecleon, Garchomp, and Arbok all sleeping on the grassy field.

She admired the work before she decided that it was best to try and wake him. She gently put an armored hand on his shoulder and gentle nudged him. "Nic?"

Nic moaned softly as he started to stir. His head casually tilting back and turned to see Erza standing in front of him, much to his surprise. "Erza?" He asked.

"Are you still recovering?" She asked.

Nic looked down at his sketch and noticed the pencil fell out of his hand, but he didn't seem too concerned about it. "No, I'm just taking it easy. It's my first day back at the guild, and I figured some meditation or light running would help me get back into the swing of things." An askew smirk crossed his face. "But as you can see, I wanted to do a little art beforehand."

She lightly chuckled. "Still, it's a very good drawing."

"Thank you."

Erza walked and turned to have her back against the same tree and slid down and sat right beside him, which took Nic by surprise.

Seeing the surprised look, she stayed casual. "Is there a problem with me right beside you?"

Nic didn't think much of it and he grinned softly and rest his head back against the tree. "No, you're fine." Nic wasn't surprised by Erza's boldness in their proximity, but it was mainly the fact that, aside from Greninja and the rest, this was the first time in a long while that they've been alone together. They weren't alone like this since their little date before the Oracion Seis incident, but the feeling of being alone with Erza again was actually comforting rather than foreign.

"Hey, Nic?" The redhead asked after a long period of comfortable silence.

"Yeah?"

"Tell me. Are you still…upset?"

"Of what?" He asked.

Erza looked away, holding back the lurch that was coming on. "Of what happened with…Jellal?"

The air wasn't stale, but Nic's nerves crept. He stayed silent as he was left to ponder. Bringing up the topic was uncomfortable to say the least, but dodging the inevitable was unnecessary. Something was wrong if Erza was worried about him not getting over the Nirvana incident, but looking back at said scene and his proclamation during his fight against Azuma, he had the strength to put all of that behind him.

He looked up at the sky. "…Don't worry, I'm okay now." He assured. "I'm sure it wouldn't be fair to anyone if I wallowed in the past."

Though he had sunglasses on, Erza could still sense the resolute in Nic's words. The tone was what made it all the more believable. She didn't see the dilemma anymore necessary as her worries were cleared once Nic had stated it.

"Okay." She sat back against the tree, remaining idle and silent as she and Nic looked at the napping Pokémon, their peaceful slumber resembling Nic's quite a bit, but it wasn't in her place to say or think of any uncanny resemblance. She was just glad she finally got be more or less alone with him.

Nic's turn to be worried arose. "And what about you? Are you…" He trailed off as he chose not to finish the sentence.

Erza caught on quickly and she sullied her own gaze, but quickly dismissed it and turned towards Nic.

"It's alright, I'm as well as you." She assured. "I have you…and everyone else too."

The last part made Nic turn away with a small blush in his cheeks. Still, it was very tendering for her to say something like that. It was over and done with; besides, Erza had already made a choice.

She slowly crept closer to Nic's side, her arm touching his, yet their hands didn't touch. The proximity was closing and Nic didn't fight, but just let it happen. It wasn't until Erza laid her head on Nic's shoulder that he started to get very nervous.

"Erza?" Nic asked in surprise.

All Erza did was softly moan as she closed her eyes, relaxing as Nic was in question. Mentally, Nic wasn't sure what to do, but looking back at what happened, the trials and adulations endured, everything that had happened, all coming together now.

Nic's nervousness faded away and his smile returned. He slowly and softly settled back into the same position he was in and Erza's head adjusted a little so she was much more comfortable. A nice, warm air breezed past them as they sat in the same place for what seemed forever.

Nic's hand slowly crept on over to Erza's and he placed his hand softly on hers, making them both brighten in their faces.

Only a few minutes passed before Erza slowly opened her eyes again.

"Nic, I…"

Greninja and the other's eyes opened back up when footsteps were heard. Nic jerked right back up, standing up with a high sensory. Erza also noticed the large horde of footsteps and was unable to finish her sentence. They all stood as figures approached from the distance.

"Is that…?" Erza saw the figures approach the Guild Hall.

Nic's eyes narrowed underneath his sunglasses. "I'm afraid so."

Rune Nights led by none other than Lahar walked in an authoritative manner and stood before the Guild Hall. Everyone inside began to step out. Gildarts, Makarov, and everyone else made way in front to find themselves pointed at by staves.

"Nobody move. This is an order by the Magic Council." Lahar announced. "You are to remain where you are. Any attempts of reluctance shall be classified as a felony."

"What's the meaning of this?!" Makarov demanded.

"By the order and authority of the Magic Council, you are to come with me. They want a strict word with you bunch, especially you." Pointing at Nic, many staves were pointed at him and his Pokémon, all of which were extremely defensive. "The Magic Council's primary concern was with you. You are under arrest."

"What?!" Natsu barked out. "What a load of crap!"

"Yeah come on! What the heck did he do?!" Gray shouted.

Vanessa, having arrived from sensing the large amount of aura, clenched her fists. "You…if you want my brother, you have to-"

"Don't Vanessa." Nic said, making everyone turn towards him.

Vanessa and everyone else looked appalled. "But Nic…"

"Believe me, I want to break them as badly as you…" His eyes narrowed further. "Even more than all of us put together, but I'm afraid we have no option." Nic and Erza both slowly walked ahead, though Nic turned around towards his Pokémon, giving them the same looks they were giving him; one of anticipation. If anything were to go awry, have no hesitation in coming out. That's what went through them.

Without even nodding, they were returned with high pressure and Nic and Erza advanced so that the Rune Knights could restrain them.

* * *

In Era, the entire Fairy Tail Guild was restrained in handcuffs, all walking into a courtroom with glazed tiling. A few grumbles were heard here and there and Natsu's cuffs were double secured given his volatile nature. Nic had to suppress his temptation to break out of his cuffs and storm up to the Magic Council.

"Fairy Tail, you are here because we have some concerns that revolve around the incident of Acnologia and Tenrou Island seven years ago." Org addressed lightly.

"We've given you more than enough time to adjust to the current time, and now we are at our wit's end." Another Councilmen stated in a more aggressive tone.

Gran Doma slammed his staff on the ground, getting the court started. "Fairy Tail, you have been at a low profile these past seven years, but beforehand you have been loose cannons. We want answers, and more specifically from Nic Pularis."

Nic stayed silent and remained composed enough to not do anything hasty.

"On the day you all disappeared, there was a very disturbing scene that was widespread. Sea levels arose that day, and astronomical levels were beyond recognition." Another Councilmen stated.

"On that note, our surveillance that day had caught site of the most intense calamities up to date. The sheer power emanated and incriminating footage sought by the Naval Platoon that day had the whole world turned on its head." A Councilmen stated.

Org grumbled. "We were originally infiltrating for recon of any secrets you had regarding your guild."

Makarov shook with a growl. "How dare you."

"We had every right to." Gran Doma stated. "You have been a major thorn in our backside, but when we found out the attack of Grimoire Heart and the location of Zeref, we wanted nothing more than to secure the island and your guild for treason."

"However, everyone felt a far more malevolent energy." Org added. "And afterwards, the call of Acnologia was heard." His eye closed. "But then _it _happened."

A large lacrima screen above them showed the one incident where Acnologia was seen in the sky, and his Dragon's Roar was intercepted by a spatial portal. It showed Dialga and Palkia appearing and attacking, distorting space and time in the process.

Macao's eyes shook out of surprise. "Whoa."

"So that's what went down." Laki said in slight awe, seeing Dialga and Palkia fend against Acnologia.

"Then this came up…" Gran Doma switched the video to later at the precise moment the Weather Trio emerged. "We've been recording the Magic levels that day, and all of that power resonated from so many beasts, yet the only Magic levels emanate were of Acnologia."

"History has long known Dragons as the rulers of this world, but these creatures that had arisen had completely rivaled that ideal. No creatures as powerful as Dragons have ruled since 400 years ago."

"That being said." Another Councilmen stated. "We have evidence to show how the creatures are related to you…"

The screen flashed to when the Weather Trio had started their confrontation with Acnologia.

_Rayquaza roared. "We are assigned to protect the wielder of the Plates!"_

"_Protect Nic Pularis!" Kyogre shouted._

_Groudon let out his own roar, shockwaves emanating. "For the sake of all that has entity, we shall stop Acnologia and save the Plate wielder from harm!" _

"That said, we witnessed you all disappear and watched the entire fight. During the escalation, we attempted to use Etherion." Org stated.

Natsu's eyes narrowed as he growled. "So? We know all this stuff!"

Gran Doma's eyes narrowed and pressed on. "Now then…" The lacrima screen switched to the moment where Mega Rayquaza used Dragon Ascent and completely annihilated the Etherion satellite. The scene caused the ones who weren't Team Tenrou to widen their own eyes in sheer disbelief. "The Etherion satellite, the sacred light of the Magic Council, destroyed at the claws of these monsters that invaded, or as they said 'protect' you." His voice had exquisite spite. "It took us three years to repair it."

"Following the defeat of Acnologia, we were unable to pull up any lead other than what we have witnessed." Org said.

Nic kept himself as still as possible. "And what do you believe this has to do with me?" He feigned curiosity.

"Don't play coy with us!" Gran Doma demanded. "As the Magic Council, we are to get any answers we want. It's been seven years, and the case has never been closed…as an added bonus, astrologists and everyone else noticed a greater disturbance."

Another Councilmen took lead. "The biggest dilemma is that the stars during the night have been missing – for 7 years."

Erza's eyes widened, as did Nic's. The redhead looked very much surprised. "7 years with no stars?"

Nic looked down, silently getting agitated. "Damnit." He muttered under his breath.

"Enough beating around the bush. Who are you? And what is the connection to those invaders? And what of these so-called 'Plates'?" Gran Doma demanded.

The room was as silent as it could get. Nic's sunglasses were on his face, shielding his glare that would've stopped a full-grown animal from charging. He looked around, seeing the stressing looks of Erza and Vanessa and all of everyone else.

Given the evidence, and the experience he had with the Council, there was no point in hiding it. With a confident gaze, he kept a frown. "Very well."

"Nic, please don't." Lisanna insisted.

Juvia turned towards her. "I'm afraid it's inevitable."

Erza gulped as she braced for what Nic had to say.

"I am Nic Pularis…I do not come from here. I come from another world that crosses the boundaries of time and space, from a land with creatures known as Pokémon." He started.

His proclamation surprised and shocked the Council to an extreme level. Lahar and other Rune Knights present also had widened eyes and horrified expressions.

"That also explains why you were unable to sense Magic to begin with, for Pokémon do not use Magic. I was sent here to ascertain 18 Plates to save the collapsing universe."

Almost immediately, Gran Doma stood up, as well as everyone else. "This is absurd! We demanded for answers, and you expect us to believe that you and those creatures disembarked from anywhere else than Earthland?!"

"This is insane! Absolutely nothing is greater than those of Earthland's power!" Another Councilmen barked.

More and more complaints were hollered at Nic, but the Multitype user was beginning to get agitated and was seen shaking. The shouting and accusation boomed until Nic hollered back. "SILENCE! NOW!" Upon everyone's surprise, even Fairy Tail's, Nic's Strength move showed him toning his arms and tore the cuffs off of him with no problem.

Gran Doma and the Magic Council was as silent as could get, their eyes baffled with Magic Cuffsbeing ripped apart. "How is this possible? Magic isn't supposed to work with those on." He muttered.

"Grand Doma, I think we should consider-" Org was then cut off.

"Silence Org!" He turned sharply towards Nic, his stern glare having no effect on the latter. "How can this be? If what you say is real, then how did you get your powers?!"

A silence fell once more. "…from a sickly god, Arceus." His response narrowed Gran Doma's eyes. "I was entrusted Plates by him that can cure poisons, withstand all elements, and I am to collect all 18 and save Arceus' life, for without him, all life would become a void."

Gran Doma's grip on his staff tightened. "Those creatures that spent space and time, that's unfathomable! Unworldly!"

"This is all the more reason to keep you locked up, or perhaps executed." A Councilman stated.

"The hell you say?!" Natsu shouted, making Rune Knights point staves at him.

"Power like that is to never be in the hands of such an individual. No one or nothing is able to possess powers such as those; and even if it were possible, it does not belong to you." Gran Doma's tone was like a ship hitting an iceberg, cold and very worrisome. There was an immense pressure between Nic and the Council.

Nic was beginning to give off a cold vibe again, the temperature all around dropping some few degrees. Fairy Tail and everyone else felt this and swallowed.

"Aw man, Luminous is gonna get crazy again. I can feel it." Gajeel warned.

Gildarts' expression and gritting teeth have an annoying worry. "This is bad."

"You are not the boss of me." Nic snarled. He put his hands together and made a long, white needle that was Cut, and pointed it menacingly at the Council members. "When everything is in danger, I have to be the one to stop it, and no one, not even you, will stand in my way!"

Gran Doma's eyes showed anger and violent hostility. "Threats are unacceptable! And you shouldn't even be using Magic since the whole building restrains Magic as well!"

"Like I said, I use no Magic." Nic answered, continuing his menacing tone. "Everything that I say is true, and only accepting and leaving me alone will stop this argument."

His tone was even more gruesome than Gran Doma's, which was what unnerved the Council entirely. This even made Gran Doma himself unnerved to a degree, then Nic pressed on.

"If I find out that you are holding a Plate, forgiveness will never come." He started advancing towards the stand, and many guards began to converge in front of him, but his glare under his sunglasses still shook their cores. "I cannot even forgive you for your past judgments. Not for Lullaby, not for Phantom Lord, not for anything. I can never forgive for even taking Jellal."

This made Erza lurch as it was like a bomb. Seems as though Nic left something out. He was okay with Jellal in general, but the fact he was still taken was something that saddened her a little.

"Hmph. Seriously?" Another Councilmen stated. "Jellal, that rapscallion? The darkest of them all?"

Another Councilmen sneered. "So you really do consider that convict an ally."

Nic raised a brow. "Convict?"

"Yes, you'll be the first to now that he had escaped prison, roughly six years ago." This news made Nic gasped, as well as Erza and Team Natsu. "That guy's been missing and we can't find him. To think you still consider him one of your own."

"We should've disbanded Fairy Tail from the start." Gran Doma announced. "We were fools to allow your guild to stay together. Housing an invader from another world, possessing the call upon creatures to destroy Etherion, and befriending a criminal." His grip was so tight blood stopped circulating. "Fairy Tail is nothing but destruction, and the situation of these Plates you say only makes it all the more suiting to leave it to us."

"What did you say?" Nic challenged.

"WHY YOU-GRAAHH!" Natsu thrashed, but Rune Knights were keeping him contained by pinning him to the floor.

"Natsu! Stop this at once!" Makarov shouted.

Nic aimed Cut at Gran Doma. "You will _never_ stop us! This is my mission, and no one shall interfere!"

"You you…" Gran Doma was cut off when the entire room was beginning to sparkle, and to everyone's shock, stardust was beginning to seep out of nowhere.

"What's going on?" Mira questioned.

"I don't know…wait." Wendy's Dragon Slayer nose twitched, and she felt that the scent was familiar. "Wait, this smell…"

Gray looked around, noticing the pink and blue stardust. "Wait, I recognize this stuff!"

"Is it really them?" Vanessa questioned. Suddenly the entire room sparkled greatly, to the point where everything was a flash. The flash dimmed, revealing a black space with pink and blue stardust. Planets were seen in the far distance, both already crashed and a massive field of asteroids were floating around.

The Magic Council and Lahar's men panicked as they found that they were floating in what seemed to be space.

"What's going on?!" Lahar shouted.

"What just happened?!" Levy exclaimed.

Org looked around confused. "Space?" Looking around, there was only black, and no stars were present.

"What is the meaning of this?! Is this Illusion Magic?!" Gran Doma shouted.

Suddenly the pink and blue stardust began to converge above everyone, and the two stardust clouds began to take shape, flashing to reveal familiar faces.

"Dialga? Palkia?" Nic asked, shocked to a great degree.

Both creatures roared at the Magic Council, their grand presence making them all gasp in horror. "What the-those are the monsters from the footage earlier!"

Dialga and Palkia said nothing.

Lahar extended his arm out. "Hurry! Attack!"

"YAAAH!" The Rune Knights began charging after Dialga and Palkia, but when they advanced, they were all trapped within rippling pink spheres, keeping them from moving.

"What?" Lahar noticed that he was also confined and pounded the shield, but nothing happened. His eyes winced in frustration. "This can't be happening."

Macao was in awe. "They're…distorting space?"

"Whoa, didn't see this coming in my life." Wakaba commented.

Dialga and Palkia roared at the Magic Council again, making them wince. Finally, they spoke.

"Listen well, all of you." Dialga announced, his blue aura radiating with intensity.

Palkia took over, his pink aura emanating with just as much intensity. "Nic Pularis, the successor of this mission, shall never be stopped, and we shall be at his call for if he sees you to never interfere again."

Gran Doma was still terrified, but he composed enough to bark back at them. "Who are you?!"

"I am Palkia, and beside me is Dialga. We resonate from another world, where Nic lived before we sent him on his mission. He shall ascertain all 18 Plates, and he shall not fail."

"For as you see…" Dialga looked around, and everyone else did as well. "Everything is falling apart, planets are hitting the other, stars are gone, and black holes are expanding. The void is among us, and Nic must bring back life."

Org was in shattered awe. "So Nic Pularis was telling the truth. Everything will die."

"Grah! But that does not mean that you cannot best the Council's judgement!" Gran Doma snapped.

"SILENCE!" Palkia roared, causing Gran Doma to stop and flinch. "We have every right to do so. We can control time and space itself. Your authority compares to no one, and your power and Acnologia had nothing compared to Pokémon."

Gran Doma growled lowly as the footage from before said it all. Mega Rayquaza and the Weather Trio bested Acnologia, and if they could truly possess time and space and send Team Tenrou into the future, there was nothing to say.

"Dialga. Palkia." Nic muttered.

Dialga roared upwards once again, causing a few Rune Knights to get dizzy from being so scared. "Know that if you do interfere, death shall be your next action."

"You have been warned. Remember our power well. Pokémon are to never be underestimated." With that said, Dialga and Palkia both turned back into stardust, and the room became visible against. Everyone around found themselves either sitting or standing in confusion.

"What just…" One of the Councilmen finally composed. "This power we sensed, it was greater than anything that was measurable."

Org swallowed. "I told you, Nic Pularis was telling the truth."

Snapping out of shock, though still having Cut activate, Nic pointed at them again. "You saw right there. The universe, not just the Magic World, the universe is in peril." He jumped past the Rune Knights and got into Gran Doma's face, his Cut at his bearded neck.

Everyone was as stiff as boards as this dark action even unnerved Erza. Gran Doma was seen with a paralyzed expression of startled disbelief. Nic's cold vibe was back, and when Gran Doma looked into his eyes, he saw a red, which made him shake in fear.

"Know this." Nic threatened. "I shall never side with you. Ever. You are my enemy. The Magic Council shall never see the light of day if Fairy Tail or any who are our allies be harmed by the likes of you." He slowly retracted Cut from Gran Doma and stood, undoing Cut and jumping back down to the ground.

As he slowly walked back towards Fairy Tail present, he looked at the awe and fear in many of the Rune Knights faces, even Lahar's. What they saw and witnessed was real, and the universe was collapsing gradually. All they could do was quiver and stand still while Nic looked at the individual expressions of Fairy Tail.

Many such as Natsu's and Gray were of small pride, some with concern including Makarov and Gildarts, some were still in shock, and many including Vanessa and Erza included expression of remorse, seeing the ideals behind Nic's actions.

Nic slowly walked past everyone, and turned back towards the Magic Council, seeing the petrified fear they had because of the evidence. Org was seen having shaken eyes while Gran Doma was seen with a shaking body, hidden rage as there was no room for him to win this.

With those few expressions, Nic pried open the sealed doors of the courtroom and took off. No one dared to stop them, for they knew it'd be impossible to do so. He was seen walking down the hallway out of the building with balled up fists and a shadow over his eyes, concealing the rage that he has against the Council.

* * *

Following Nic's sudden actions, all of Fairy Tail returned home. The Magic Council's main target was Nic Pularis, and with him having them completely humiliated, and the fact that disbanding Fairy Tail would do no good for them, they ended the case and sent Fairy Tail home.

"Man, did you see their faces when Dialga and Palkia showed up!" Natsu laughed while slapping the table top.

Gray snickered. "Took real guts for the guy, and it was worth seeing their distraught faces after all of that."

Vanessa had an elbow supporting her cheek as she looked over. "So, that's how arrogant the Magic Council is."

Sophie nodded, her arms supporting her chin. "Yeah. Their ruling is absolute, but Nic is always that rebellion they don't stand a chance against. He loathes them to no end."

"I know." Vanessa rested her head down on her arms. "Must remind him of our parents."

Makarov grumbled as he was contemplative of the predicament. "Hmmm. Not sure if that was a wise move. Because of him, Fairy Tail's on a pedestal for the Magic Council to watch over." He then drank up some booze.

Macao turned towards him. "True. His actions were rather severe."

Max crossed his arms and looked at the ground. "Still, even with the possibility of the Magic Council condemning us again, I'm sure they'd think twice now."

Lucy looked worried. "I don't even know if we should be worried or thanking him for getting the Council to back off."

Looking around, Natsu noticed something was missing. "Huh? Say, where is he anyway?"

Cana sighed after finishing her mug of booze and set it down. "Knowing that monster, he's probably blowing off steam somewhere in the woods."

Vanessa turned towards her. "Shouldn't we, you know, check on him?"

"I wouldn't, at least not now." Macao stated. "We all know Nic, and from what you told us Vanessa, he hates authority, so stressing about it in his case isn't healthy."

"Just leave the guy be." Wakaba said. "He'll be fine. He's been through worse."

Some frowned and looked down, Gildarts and Team Tenrou present took Wakaba's words all too personal, because what he said was too true. Remembering Lysandre gouging Nic's left eye, and leaving Nic with a giant scar on his right side.

"Don't remind us." Gildarts implored as he drank up.

Erza sat looking out the window, her hand resting her chin. She looked out at the forest, seeing quite a few bursts here and there. She could only assume Nic was training his frustration off, and it's also safe to bet that his Pokémon were training as well, helping Nic vigorously work off the steam.

She was so close, and the Magic Council took her chance to admit Nic what he meant to her. She knew that Nic wanted to be with only his Pokémon right now, so she backed off much to her own dismay. Even after Nic's outburst, it was perfectly understandable given that Nic only listens to those closest to him, and she knew he never wants to be suppressed, otherwise he'd breakdown in humiliation like what happened in Kalos.

Though this wasn't the best chance, she was still content. She always had another opportunity, hopefully when Nic calmed down.

"Hey Erza."

"Hm?" Natsu's voice got her attention and she turned away from the window, snapping herself out of her trance. She looked to find Team Natsu in front of her.

Gray smirked. "Come on, thinking about Nic right now isn't gonna do any good. Just leave him be."

"Yeah!" Happy cheerfully shouted. "Come on, lighten up on loverboy!"

"Careful Happy, she bites." Natsu laughed.

Erza glared harshly at her team. "What was that?" She sternly ordered.

"N-Nothing!" They exclaimed in unison.

"Good." She looked away. "Though I suppose you're right. He should be fine." She grinned. "After all, he has his Pokémon with him."

Lucy looked cheerful. "There ya go! Now come on! Natsu already picked out a job for us to go on."

"Everyone else including the Thunder God Tribe went out on jobs to forget about the Council, so we better join that bandwagon." Gray noted.

"I suppose. A job should prove nice." She then walked with her team out the doorway, but before they could fully leave, Erza turned towards Wendy and Carla. "Do you two wish to join us?"

"Yeah, it's a big job! You should come along!" Lucy implored.

Wendy smiled. "Sure! We'd love to!"

Carla smiled. "Yes, might as well. Relishing in the past can be quite uncomfortable." As she started proceeding, Carla momentarily stopped walking and her mind began to see something. Her premonition prowess kicked in, and it showed the following in order: A bar getting destroyed by some crazed figure, a huge machinery that seemed to be charging, a pale man with bones jutting out, a weird fellow with a peacock-like cape letting out a cry, Nic and a few others covering up in an underground location, Nic and Erza fighting outside the Guild Hall, Nic, Cana, and Sophie on a ship; the three mentioned, Greninja, and three other guys crying loudly on the edge of that ship, and Nic angrily fending against a shadowy figure with chained creatures in the background. _'What was that just now? A premonition?'_

"You coming Carla?" Wendy asked.

Snapping out of her trance as fast as possible so Wendy didn't catch on, Carla proceeded in following, keeping a façade while she worried slightly over what she saw.

As they departed outside, walking towards them with a case, a dark blonde girl that looked a little older than Lucy approached.

"Uh, hello?" Lucy asked.

The girl smiled back. "Hello…"

* * *

A few more hours came and went, and as Team Natsu and the dark blonde were gone, things calmed down. Vanessa was seen outside the Guild Hall, practicing her Aura Magic in close range with Mawile, Nab was still staring at the board, and everything was the way it usually was.

Gildarts began making way out the door. "Oh Cana, sweetie~!" He chimed.

Cana irritable turned towards him. "What?"

"Daddy's going out on a job. He'll be right back!" He turned and left with a cheeky, child-like expression.

As soon as he was out of sight, Cana sighed in relief. She had to get away asap, and there was no better way than a job of her own.

"Someone having daddy issues?" Sophie walked on over, seeing the unusual look that Cana gives when annoyed by her father.

The drinker turned away. "Something like that…" She got up from the bar. "But I think I might as well stretch my legs and get some fresh air."

"I see what you mean." Sophie smiled neutrally. "I was actually gonna go out on a job myself. I was gonna ask Nic to tag along since it's a tall-order job, but you can accompany if you want."

Cana didn't show enthusiasm, but she was interested. "Sounds like we're gonna need all the help we can get. Sure, now let's go get Mr. Crankypants."

The two girls went walking through the woods not long after, where they found a clearing up ahead. They were fortunate to know where Nic was given they followed a small trail of ravaged branches and tattered bark lines.

Sure enough, they found him…upside down in a shirtless handstand, balancing a large, flat stone with all of his Pokémon on top and staying perfectly still, all meditating and remaining silent. Nic was sweating as his defined, lean physique shining from the sweat, and they could all see his giant scar.

They all saw his intensity underneath his sunglasses, and they blinked before they figured it was time to stop their unnecessary eye-candy. "Nic!" Sophie called out, breaking his concentration.

Nic grunted as his half-hour training had to end, and his leg strength, he kicked the massive stone up, and the Pokémon jumped off and landed with no problem and the stone crashed to the ground, shaking the earth.

Nic stood straight up and stretched his arms over his head. "Yeah?"

Cana and Sophie walked towards him, holding up the job request. "Sorry to make you stop your training, but we figured you could help us on a job request." Sophie explained.

Nic was handed the request. "Oh yeah? Let's see…" He then read the flyer.

Underground Dark Guild known as Ghoul's Coffin taking over. Sources say they have immense weaponry in their base in the city of Dahlias.

Reward: 15 Million Jewel

Cana's eyes widened a little and hiccupped. "You never told me the reward was that much! I could buy booze to no end!"

Sophie snickered. "Perhaps, but since it's only the three of us, it'd be divided up 5 Million each. You in?" Looking at Nic, he didn't make any motions but give the flyer back.

With another stretch, he began reaching for his shirt and coat. "Sure, a nice job is just what the doctor ordered." He turned back and returned his Pokémon and put his shirt over his scarred body, putting his new coat on as well. "So where is Dahlias?"

"Well I checked a map, and it's located northwest, a two day trip to say the least; one day if we get on a train to Lupinus and walk the rest of the way since Dahlias' train station has shut down due to renovations."

Cana's eyes narrowed. "Best not jump to that conclusion." She sounded serious. "News may say that, but what if it was just a decoy to hide any information regarding Ghoul's Coffin. I went out on a job two days ago and I've only heard about this Dark Guild once, apparently their power is enough to keep the mayor at bay."

"Then it seems we'll have to conduct a strategy when we enter the city." Nic stated. He started walking. "For now, let's start our pursuit."

"Right."

* * *

Sundown came and went and Nic was seen in the trees, spectating the scenery as the dark sky showed no stars again, making him grunt. _'Seven years and everything has been in suspense.' _This got on Nic's nerves, but he was more or less trying to keep himself occupied with the mission at hand.

Cana and Sophie were sitting down at a campfire, sitting across from the other. Cana stared at the ire while feeling its warmth.

Sophie huffed and narrowed her gaze as the flames reflected off her eyes. "This weapon that the job request states worries me."

"Yeah, me too. If what I believe is correct, then we should keep a low profile when entering the city. They might have spies all around." Cana stated.

Sophie nodded and looked up. "But let's not forget that Nic is Fairy Tail's ultimate ace in the hole."

Cana smirked as she looked up as well. "True, even more power than my dad." But the sudden remembrance of Gildarts being all daddy-happy made her shudder some more. "Honestly, he can be such a clingy person."

"Don't be so hard on him. He's just trying to catch up on 18 years of not being a father…" Sophie's expression turned into a frown. "However I think parental talk should be omitted."

"Why's that?" Cana asked. When Sophie pointed up to see Nic's arms crossed and resting in the trees, earbuds in, Cana caught on. "…oh."

"Let's just worry about Dahlias. We'll need all of our strength tomorrow." Sophie then lied down with her arm as a pillow.

Cana mimicked the motion and also began to get drowsy. "Guess so."

In the trees, Nic's eyes slowly closed, sleep taking him.

It was a peaceful night as the flames flickered, warming them up for tomorrow.

* * *

Morning had come and the three emerged from the woods, with Nic on a branch on the treeline, getting a huge view of Dahlias. Suffice to say that it was an eye-opener.

The hill the trail fell down overlooked a huge city with what seemed to be twice the size of Magnolia, though nowhere as big as Lumiose City in Kalos. The population was also grand compared to Magnolia, and on all sides; north, south, east, and west, there were three sparkling lacrima towers, all of which were pink.

Cana smirked. "I gotta say, this city's got class."

"It's supposed to be beautiful during the summertime." Sophie said. "Rumor has it that the Dahlias flower is where the city's name is derived from. They have quite a few festivals every summer and everything is decorated in Dahlias flowers."

Cana put a hand to her hip. "Better hope their booze is as grand."

Nic jumped down from the branches and landed right beside Cana, getting to his feet. "Worry about the booze after the mission." His eyes narrowed. "And besides…something feels off."

Cana stretched and put her arms over her head. "Well we might feel it after we step inside the city. A nice morning stroll through the woods was just what the doctor ordered for me."

"Well since we got a feel of Mother Nature this morning, let's head on in." Sophie said.

Nic started following them, walking beside them. "True. We should head to the Mayor's Office, but discretion is vital. Stay in the allies and away from the public so as not to get any unwanted attention. It'll no doubt attract Ghoul's Coffin's attention."

"Good plan." Cana agreed.

The three began to head downwards towards the city, but as they were heading there, they past a fellow Mage, but something was off. As time slowed down, Nic's eyes caught the fatigue and circles under the man's eyes, as if he'd been hit by several trains at once.

The man continued walking along like a zombie and Nic grunted low so that neither Sophie nor Cana could hear. _'That was definitely something wrong.' _Nic figured. _'There's an odd feeling, but I can't seem to know where it comes from…'_

Trying to keep the matter to the side, the three traveled through town, though they pressed through more alleyways than streets themselves. The three were still keeping an eye out, and so far nothing was amidst, everyone was lively as the town itself, though the concern of the guy they passed by earlier still made Nic uneasy.

They soon made it to the northern part of Dahlias, where they stood in front of the Mayor's huge office. It was as big as Kardia Cathedral, though they paid no heed to the structure of it all.

"So this is it?" Sophie wondered.

"Looks like it. If we hurry, we can meet with Mayor before any meetings get under way." Nic pushed open the doors, and inside the lobby, approaching the desk, they saw a woman with wavy black hair coming down from a ponytail. Her endowed figure could be fair enough to rival her to Erza or Mira if applied.

She noticed the three and looked up, her expression looking a little grim. "May I help you?"

"Yes." Nic replied. "We are Mages of Fairy Tail. We've come in regards to the request that was established." Nic held up the flier, and the woman's eyes blinked and kept a calm demeanor.

She examined them up and down and narrowed her eyes. With an askew smirk, she pressed a button on her desk. "Excuse me sir, but you have guests."

"Send them in." The male voice responded.

"Yes, right away." She let go of the button and pointed at the doorsteps that led upwards towards a white door. "The Mayor's room is the large door to my right."

"Thank you." Nic said, hiding hidden annoyance from her unwelcoming attitude.

As they went the way she told them, Cana turned towards Nic. "Man, talk about stress. She certainly could use a kick in the pants."

"Perhaps." Sophie agreed. "But you never know if it's because of the Ghoul's Coffin incident. Maybe the resident employees are on edge for their safety…"

As they disappeared, the woman frowned and turned away, holding a finger up to her earpiece.

"They're here."

Inside the office, there was a man with short, black hair and moustache. His brown eyes looked out through the landscape through his large windows behind his desk. His dark red suit reflecting the morning sun from the east. The rest of his office had a couch on the right, right next to a hanging fern. On the left were two chairs separated by a frame with the picture of a tulip.

"You know, spring is a nice time, but Dahlias is known to be exquisite during the summer. Those pink lacrima all around help amplify the light that comes all around, perhaps making our city all the more radiant." His voice hinted remorse as it was also rhetorical.

He turned around towards Nic's group. "My apologies for my secretary. She can be a bit…insensitive."

"It's no trouble." Nic stated. "Greetings Mayor Florian. I am Nic Pularis, and my accomplices; Sophie Lednick, and Cana Alberona. We've come in regards to the job of eradicating Ghoul's Coffin."

Mayor Florian sat back in his desk and folded his hands, a small grumble as he looked down. "Hmmm. Well I see that you three have answered the request, but…" His frown forewarned something that got on their nerves. "I apologize for the inconvenience, especially for you, Luminous; but we no longer are in need of your assistance."

Shock arose on Cana and Sophie's faces, but Nic's eyes never left the Mayor's, reading him like a book. Behind his expression was something of a plea, and a mixture of fear.

He took out a check and began to write all over it, and Nic's eyes traced the numbers in disarray. "I'll be obliged to pay for the trouble." After writing, Nic was handed the paper and turned back towards the two with a calm expression.

However, Cana showed clear dismay. "You're kidding me, right? We've spent yesterday trying to get here and…" She trailed off when Nic's eyes shot at hers, a sign he was giving her. Immediately, Cana silence and followed his lead. "My apologies."

"We're sorry for disturbing you." Sophie stated.

"Thank you for your time." Nic turned and lead Cana and Sophie out, with the Mayor waving politely out towards them. Nic closed the large doors behind, and once on the other side, Cana turned towards Nic with arms over her head.

"Well that felt like crap. Why'd you go along with it?" She asked him. "Even I knew he was lying."

Nic's expression still remained calm and resolute. "I'm aware. We all knew. If he sent out the request, there'd be no point in turning back; besides, this ominous feeling I've had since we've entered Dahlias has been unnerving."

Sophie turned towards the window. "You think it may have something to do with those lacrima he talked about."

"That's our only lead." He looked down at the check, and the numbers were all over the place. The numbers in order were 4, a sideways 3, 6, sideways 1, and 4 again.

Looking at it, he turned towards Sophie. "Hey Sophie, you still have a map?"

Sophie nodded. "Yes?"

"Good." Nic began walking out the door, noticing that as he turned, his eyes looked back to find the secretary desk empty, having a sign that said she was out for the day. His eyes narrowed greatly under his now-on sunglasses and left with the group.

Outside, a few blocks down, they sat on a bench where Sophie held up a map. Nic pulled out the check again and looked at the numbers.

Cana leaned over and looked confused. "So did he never learn how to write a proper check or what?"

"It's not a check." Nic stated. "It's directions."

"Oh really? How're you so sure?"

Nic pointed at the first number. "Take a look at this." Cana and Sophie both leaned in. "You notice how the 4, 6, and 4 are at the bottom of the check? And notice how the 3 and 1 are sideways, yet facing the other. If put it together, you get down 4, right 3, down 6, left 1, and down 4." He looked back at Sophie's map, tracing his finger. "If you could understand a city such as this, as I could in Lumiose City, specific locations are measure by blocks."

Sophie's eyes widened. "So that's what you mean. So he really was giving us code."

Nic turned towards her. "Yes. He may have an informant of some kind at that location, but we can't be sure."

"He's right." Cana agreed. "You never know if he's really a member of that Dark Guild in disguise."

"Precisely, which is why while we three take the bait, we'll have an aerial surveillance if anything were to go awry." Nic stood up and turned towards the two girls. "So Sophie, where's the location?"

Tracing her finger in conjunction with the numbers, Sophie followed the directions and finally pinpointed the location. "Here." She pointed at a location with a red dot on it. "It's called 'The Nectar's Well'."

"Then that's where we'll head." Nic enlarged a Poke Ball as he pulled it out of his pocket. "Those lacrima positioned are what also disturb me. We can't get an omnidirectional view from where we are, so…" He threw it up, and in the air, the Poke Ball opened. Out came Nic's Staraptor. The Predator Pokémon had her talons to the ground as she looked at the three. "Staraptor, you'll be watching from the air. See if those lacrima are guarded, and if the first sign of Ghoul's Coffin, engage."

"You don't have to tell me Nic. I was born to fight enemies on site." Spreading her wings, Staraptor ascended into the skies, with Cana and Sophie watching.

With her in the skies, Nic turned back towards his comrades. "We should be moving as fast as we can."

The small group headed way, following down to where the location was. As they pressed on from the bench, a small protrusion from underneath the bench appeared. The protrusion had an eye and it retreated back into the earth.

* * *

In an undisclosed domain with poor lighting, several figures were present. They all looked up at the huge piece of equipment with a multitude of satellites to receive signals from the lacrima. The whole machine resembled a retracted cannon tip that was covered in pure black. It stood on supported legs with three pink lacrima on each leg, shining.

A dark smirked overtook a man's expression. "Not much longer now."

Another man with a madman gaze stuck his tongue out as little ghosts floated around his space. "GYAHAHAHA! Oh man! I can't wait to begin! Why can't we fire it now?!"

Another shadowy figure with shoulder pads and shin guards kept a grin. "Don't be so hasty, Boig. It's taken us three months to collect the necessary energy. We only need just a little bit more, and then everything within Dahlias shall be nothing but ash. Such glorious spectacles require a degree of patience."

"Oh don't be silly!" Another voice announced, sounding more flamboyant than the rest. His silhouette showed a feathered cape and two shoulder figures resembling peacocks. "True art is within the effort put into matters, such silly talk will do no good."

"Hmmmm." The sitting figure remained subtle as he waited for news. At that instant, his green eyes looked to where a protrusion began to emerge from the ground. They all turned to find the other member rising above and standing on pointed and curled black shoes.

"Salut." He said, his silhouette maintaining a cape with curvy points that were a high collar. "I have returned with news!"

"So, she was right? That fool snuck out a request after all?"

"Ah yes, she was. They're heading to the location as we speak!"

The man smirked mildly, keeping his calm yet sinister appeal, the only other thing being revealed being the bone-white guild mark on his forehead, which was a coffin with a devil's horned head in the center.

"Good. Tell Seiryo that he'll be having some company."

* * *

The small group made way towards The Nectar's Well, where their next clue was to be. But to Cana and Sophie's surprise, Nic made a sharp turn deeper into the alleyway.

"Nic, what's with the little route change?" Cana asked quietly.

"Ssshh! Quiet, we're being watched." Nic informed.

Cana perked up as she heard some sudden footsteps from where they came, advancing with discreet. She turned back towards Nic. "What do we do? Take them on?"

"No. We'll cause too much of a disturbance. We'll have to somehow get right pass them or knock them out without drawing loud attention." Nic glowed, much to Cana and Sophie getting a little blind. Looking back at him, they recognize his Meadow Plate Form.

Though just like his new X791 appearance, the Plates' Forms also altered slightly, though very minor. Everything about the Meadow Plate was the same as before, only there was a jungle green belt rather than light purple and there wasn't any grass insignias, but the coat with sleeves had a green Fairy Tail insignia and ring on the back, and the whole thing was a light green with green edging.

Nic slowly peeked around the corner, seeing 4 or so guys creep up. With a quick pivot, he was caught on sight by the 4 men and he exhaled a green powder. The powder swallowed up the guys and their noses twitched. They soon looked drowsy and slumped to the ground and started snoring.

With that, Nic's Sleep Powder worked and he glowed, reverting to himself again.

He turned back towards Cana and Sophie. "We gotta move now." Slightly off guard by Nic's tactic, the two stepped around the sleeping guys and resumed their trek, now keeping even more weary senses. Thanks to Nic's reflexes and sensory, he could tell if something was up, but fortunately nothing else arose afterwards.

As they made way, Sophie fell curious. "Hey Nic, how did you know we were followed?"

Nic kept his face forward as they turned to the next street. "I noticed that secretary with the attitude had suspicious smirks; and when she wasn't present when we left, that's when I figured out we were ratted out."

Cana looked surprised. "So you're saying that we were found out at the beginning?!"

"Afraid so. It's paramount to remain on high alert." Nic stopped when they stood in front of a crimson-signed building with golden words spelling out 'The Nectar's Well' in cursive. Looking back at his accomplices, and up to the sky, seeing Staraptor looking down from high above, Nic then made way inside.

The inside was classy, very classy; almost like casino-classy. The windows in the front of the building were in an arc as the inside showed men sheering mildly and drinking from glasses, some from actual bottles. Nic, Cana, and Sophie all made way inside, ignoring the few whistles from drunken guys and girls.

They made way to the bar, with Nic sitting in between the two. There was a classy bartender and he handed another guy a fresh booze bottle and then took notice of the three. Shifting his eyes to see Cana's Fairy Tail symbol on her lower left, the bartender suspiciously moved his eyes to find everyone busy, leaving him to tend to the three.

"Hey there." He said, his bald head and moustache giving him a mature figure. He leaned in, looking around once more before going into a whisper. "You uh…wouldn't happen to be who the Mayor sent, do you?"

Sophie eyes narrowed. "So, you're the informant?" She asked quietly.

The bartender looked down. "Yeah, glad someone finally got the message."

"Thanks, but we're not here to drink." Nic said.

"Especially since you can't." Cana muttered under her breath.

"Hm?" He turned towards Cana, to which she acted as though nothing had happened. He ignored the comment and turned back towards the bartender, still keeping their voices at the lowest volume possible.

"Tell us, do you know anything of Ghoul's Coffin?"

"Yeah, word gets around, and being a bartender, I get some juicy info. Apparently they arrived here but six months ago, a few months after this place opened up. They were laying low until they confronted the Mayor four months ago, where some…negotiations were made."

"Negotiations?" Cana repeated.

"Yeah, apparently in exchange for sparing everyone's life, the leader of the Dark Guild would lay low as long as a fraction of the city's finances are headed towards his guild, though not so much that it's noticeable by bills or records."

Sophie was very suspicious. "And what exactly do you believe is going on now?"

The bartender looked around and back at them. "You know those huge pink lacrima on all four ends of the city?"

Nic and his group nodded.

"Rumor has it that Ghoul's Coffin forced the Mayor into constructing them. They seem pretty like a rose, but their thorns are where it gets deadly; and by thorns, I mean the price."

"Price?" Nic asked.

"Yes, if you've noticed, Mages who leave here are exhausted because those lacrima gradually suck away your Magic Power, the more you use it."

The news made the group's eyes open in surprise.

"Further details are foggy for me, but I do think those lacrima are connected to something."

"You mean as a battery for something?" Sophie asked.

Nic's eyes narrowed. "You mean to power up something potentially deadly, like a weapon." No surprise there, given that Nic had a similar experience with that one mission with Erza, and also the power charges with Nirvana.

"Exactly." The bartender heard a slam on the other end and he turned towards that direction. "Coming!" He turned towards the three. "Hold on."

As he tended to others demanding booze, Nic, Cana, and Sophie all turned towards the other.

"So if we use Magic, it'll be gradually drained from us into the lacrima?" Cana asked.

"Seems like it." Nic said. "I remember seeing a guy looking fatigued when we were heading into the city. That must be a result from using too much Magic."

"That means whatever they're using, it must require a huge amount of Magic Power." Sophie deduced. "And if it's built up to this point, then it's fair to say that we don't have much time."

"Meaning we have to find and deal with those lacrima…" Nic was interrupted when a sudden thud happened behind him. The three turned around, finding a guy falling unconscious with a bruised face.

"Haha! Oh man, that was wild. I haven't felt that good this week."

The one who took down the guy had black hair in a light purple bun at the top. He had a muscular body and an orange sash that held up his brown pants with white motif-like flames. He had on purple plated armor on his shoulders and arms, but nowhere else.

"AW MAN! WILD!" He roared.

Nic showed annoyance. "What does he think he's doing?"

The bartender looked up with surprise. "What? Bacchus! Not you again!"

"Bacchus?" Cana repeated.

"Unfortunately. He's a real hassle to deal with, especially when drunk. Try and tell him to settle down and you'll wind up like that poor fellow there." He referred to the passed out man on the floor. "That guy can't keep away from this city's liquor."

Bacchus approached the bar, and arm on the top. "Say, how's it been? Loving the decorum."

The bartender's eyes narrowed. "Let me guess? _That_?" His inquiry was mixed with spite.

Bacchus smirked. "You know it! HAHA!" He laughed aloud. He raised a brow. "Say now. Remember I gave you quite the hefty tip last time."

The bartender sighed and turned around to look and pluck out a bottle, the one he plucked out being a dark crimson with green and gold on the tag. He placed it on the top, where Bacchus slammed 50,000 Jewels in dollars and hauled the bottle for himself.

Recognizing the bottle, Cana's eye almost widened. "Hold on! I've seen that bottle before!"

Bacchus raised a brow, turning towards her as he sat down. "Oh? Bet you haven't had this stuff yet. This new brand of sweet liquor is like honey running down your throat. HAHA! Man, one sip and you'd be swinging like a mad chimp!"

"Really?" She raised a brow. "Bet I can stomach that."

Bacchus gave a mischievous smirk, leaning in. "You know, you got a smoking hot face little lady. How's about a cup with me to pass the time? A few sipping contest, and by winning…" He looked at her blue bras and licked his lips. "I get a special trophy."

Immediately appalled, Cana backed off. "You pig!"

Bacchus leaned in some more, hiccupping while still being drunk from before. "Come on, playing hard to get only makes me more wild than ever."

Still disgusted, Cana looked away. "As if. That booze can wait another day, without a perv like you taking my dignity."

Bacchus' elbow was sliding across the counter, nudging her arm. "You're making my spirit sing~."

"Hey!"

Bacchus found himself leaning back as Nic was glowering down on him, appearing faster than the speed of lightning. The sudden action made Bacchus hiccup some more, as well as getting a bit of attention.

"*Hic* Hello?"

"She said to back off, so you better step down before I decide to make you." Nic warned, his sunglasses on his V-neck.

At a corner table, a man surrounded by beautiful and busty babes smirked at the scene before him. His cool demeanor being ever so suave as it amplified his attractiveness. He had unkempt yet wild black hair that slicked in several directions. Two short black bangs framing his intrigued face. He had on brown, fingerless gloves and an open red vest, revealing his muscular abs and chest. He on blue baggy pants that tightened and ended at the shins. He also had on brown boots. A disturbing feature that anyone would've seen if they knew was the orange coffin 'tattoo' on the left side of his neck.

Raising a brow at the scene before him, his smirk widened. "Well what do you know. Seems that the boss knew what was coming after all." He looked around at the ladies before him before picking up and sipping a half-empty shot glass. With a sigh, he sat back some more.

Bacchus hiccupped again and smirked at Nic. "Defending your little hottie of a friend? Takes real guts kid, I'll say that."

Nic growled as Sophie stood up in readying any defense if the case were to come up.

Nic balled his fists. "You obviously don't know how to approach a woman. She clearly has no interest in you, so lay off."

Cana sneered in victory. "You heard him. Take your little party and beat it."

Bacchus raised a brow. "Really?...alright." He said nonchalantly. "If that's what you want, I'll go." He turned and left…or so they thought.

Bacchus hiccupped and suddenly reached backwards, doing a backhand slam. The sudden assault being halted by Nic blocking with his forearm. A loud echo boomed from that sudden block, making the entire bar silence.

Everyone turned to see Bacchus' assault single-handedly halted by Nic. They knew Bacchus was trouble, but Nic's sudden forearm block caught Bacchus by surprise.

Bacchus retracted his limb and swung around, facing Nic. "Gotta say pal, that was some trick." His expression grew crazier. "Gets my soul shaken and stirred. Guess I should introduce myself, right? I'm Bacchus of Quatro Cerberus, their S-Class Mage."

Cana and Sophie's eyes widen.

"Seriously?!" Cana exclaimed.

"S-Class? That means he might be on-level with Erza." Sophie said.

"*hic* You bet toots. That redhead and I go way back." Bacchus answered. Hearing this made Nic want to grit his teeth so bad, but he kept as composed as possible. "That chick and I fought quite a few times, but the score was never really settled. Wonder how someone like you can do?"

His challenge was unnerving everyone. Cana and Sophie both kept their distance, as they knew how defensive Nic can be against guys like Bacchus, who smelled like trouble…and liquor.

The pressure in the air intensified to where not even wine glasses moved. The intensity all about was coming to a climax, but a clear and consulting clap broke it all together.

"Gentlemen, gentlemen. Please, no fighting in front of the ladies, it'd be rude." The guy from the corner stood up and walked on over, getting Nic, his group, and Bacchus' attention. Almost immediately, Nic knew something about him was wrong, but didn't imply it up front.

"Come on, we're all friends here." He wrapped an arm around them both, giving a compassionate vibe. "I think you guys just got off the wrong foot. Er, Bacchus was it? Think this guy's got a point about giving those who aren't interested their space."

Bacchus' was reluctant as he scoffed. "Brah! Hey man, being a mediator?"

Nic's eyes narrowed, but went along with the act. "But he does have a point Bacchus. Leave Cana be and we can forget what happened."

The man turned upbeat again. "There, see? He knows when the slate should be clean. Now how's about we all just take a look at the other. Come on." He snapped his fingers, and then that's when two mirrors appeared in front of Bacchus and Nic, surprising the latter.

'_Mirror Magic?' _Nic thought.

Cana and Sophie both gave discerning glares at the suave individual.

The individual put a mirror up to his own face, admiring and combing back his hair with his fingers. "See, you see yourselves now. Would you really wanna hurt yourselves?"

Bacchus gave a twisted grunt, as to where Nic kept his cool and calm seriousness. He only looked at himself for a few moments before he heard a small snicker from the guy. Nic's eyes narrowed when suspicion rose to a pinnacle.

It was then that Nic, Cana, and Sophie's eyes caught sight of the man smirking as he dove a fist into the mirror in front of him, going into the mirror. Nic and Bacchus suddenly saw his hand reach out of both mirrors, surprising them and forcing Nic and Bacchus to jump away, avoiding the fists.

Cana swiped a few tarot cards that glowed. "You sick liar!" Cana threw the glowing cards at him, but he turned to see the cards flying at him.

"Oh please!" He extended his arm out, shifting one of the mirrors to block the cards. Much to Cana's shock, the tarot cards bounced off the mirror and shot back at her. After a sudden gasp, Cana and Sophie screamed as they jumped out of the way as the cards exploded, destroying part of the bar counter.

Immediately, drunks and spectators alike began to make a hasty panic and ran for the exit, making The Nectar's Well filled with just the startled bartender, Nic's group, Bacchus, and the man.

"Well now, seems the fun's over. Too bad, I was enjoying the comfort of those bimbos before you showed up, Fairy Tail." He said in amusement.

Nic eyes the guild mark on his neck, and he confirmed his suspicions. "I knew it all along. You're a member of Ghoul's Coffin, aren't you?" He accused.

The suave yet sinister man chuckled wildly and faceplamed himself. "Well duh! I knew you knew! But please, call me Seiryo." He casually implied.

Sophie and Cana were both back up and glaring at Seiryo with vile intensity. "So you were planning a sneak attack?" Sophie asked. "That's something Dark Guild scum would pull off."

Seiryo turned towards her. "Obviously hotstuff. And I know you guys think that you can take me on, but don't get your hopes up."

Nic, Cana, and Sophie all glared at Seiryo before Sophie pointed her own head, making a Memory-Make seal. "**Memory-Make: Stone Lightning!**" Above Seiryo, a thunderbolt jutted down from nowhere. He smirked as he jumped back and dodged the bolt, turning the place where he was to stone.

Cana showed two more cards and lashed them at Seiryo. "**Icicle!**" She swiped her cards, which unleashed large icicles at Seiryo. "Try dodging that!"

"Hmph. Gladly." He snapped his fingers, where a mirror appeared before him and the icicles touched the mirror and rushed right back at Cana.

"Cana!" Sophie rushed in front of her, making another Memory-Make seal. "**Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**" She fired saucers of fire from the seal, shooting at the icicles and shattering them into nothing but bite-sized fragments, and the attack rushed on towards Seiryo, whom wasn't there.

"Wait, where-" Sophie was cut off when she was delivered a sidekick from her left, sending her crashing into a table.

"Sophie!" Cana shouted. Cana turned to strike Seiryo, but she was grabbed by the arm and thrown to the opposite side of the bar, screaming as she landed on her back.

"Oh come on! You know it's not cool when I have to fight chicks!" Seiryo pestered.

A sudden flaming punch from behind made him raise a brow, and with a quick snap of the fingers made a mirror behind himself. Nic's Fire Punch struck the mirror, but the impact caused Nic to jerk back, deflecting his own attack.

His Flame Plate Form was only different from the coat. An orange belt, complimented by the charred baggy pants and red coat with yellow edging without the flames. He grunted as his Fire Punch was deflected just like that. "He's deflected and seen all of our attacks?"

Seiryo kept an arrogant vine while whisking his left bang. "Struck stiff? Well that tends to happen when you fight someone like me." His expression grew dark with a vile smirk as he glared at Nic. "When you have Telepathy and Mirror Magic, you're pretty much screwed."

Nic's eyes opened in surprise. "Telepathy and Mirror Magic? That explains why you foresaw our attacks! You read our minds!"

"Literally." Seiryo chimed. "Be glad it's just me you're facing. The other five aren't as friendly to the ladies as I am."

"I'm a boy." Nic testified.

Seiryo smirked, creating a mirror by his side. "I know." He punched into the mirror, and Nic felt a weird feeling from behind and jumped, dodging what was a mirror behind him with his fist going through it.

'_Damnit! If he can read our minds and see our attacks as we speak, and use Mirror Magic to bounce it all back, we'll have little opportunities to get a hit in.' _Nic thought.

Seiryo smirked and took a more laid back stance. "Let's really throw a party, shall we?" Snapping his fingers from both hands, the bar windows broke completely, shattering as shady members with bandanas of a coffin with a horned-devil appearing with swords and other weaponry.

Sophie grunted as she saw that they were all surrounded. "No good. He's got us cornered."

Cana grunted as she was surrounded completely. "And we can't use that many spells. Every spell casted would sap even more Magic from us."

Sophie silently cursed herself. "Then we have no option but to use minimal spells to drive them away."

"You'll try." Seiryo extended his arm out. "Attack!"

"HRAH!" The men all screamed as they charged after Nic, Cana, and Sophie. Nic readied a counter by opening his mouth in prep of a Fire Spin…

"HIYAH!" A sudden force of wind from a swiping palm struck a lot of the guys' feet, causing them to fly through the air. The origin of the attack resonated from none other than Bacchus.

"Bacchus?" Nic asked, surprised.

Bacchus smirked. "Heh. Now this is a party." He turned around as three more men went to attack, but Bacchus quickly pivoted and backhanded them, sending them all flying and crashing into more men. He looked back at Nic. "So Luminous, I might as well let you off this one time. Things are about to get…wild."

Bacchus let out another battlecry as he turned and dashed with incredible speed that could perhaps rival Nic at best. He stuck his palm out and struck a few more men down just like that.

Nic turned away, still not exactly seeing eye-to-eye with Bacchus as he fought Seiryo. Quickly glancing around, Cana was shooting off cards comprised of lightning at one huge batch, and Sophie using another Memory-Make Spell that sent green beams from mirrors that struck down at least twenty more men.

"Tch, such an annoyance." Seiryo stated. "Try saving yourself with this!" He extended his arms out, making six mirrors all around him. He made a mirror on his left and Seiryo reached through vigorously, and Nic found himself being choked behind the neck, restrained by all four limbs, and another clenching his forehead.

Nic grunted as his entire body was restrained, and Seiryo squeezed harder, making Nic grunt as his neck muscles were pressed harder.

Seiryo smirked and chuckled. "Having fun yet? Hm…" His amusement stopped when Nic's eyes flashed open.

"Now I will…" Nic grunted some more as he set his whole body ablaze, the sudden ideal prompting Seiryo to let go as he felt his hand burn.

"YEOW!" He retracted his hand through the mirror and clenched it, seeing it burned and getting to a knee, leaving him open for Nic to strike him down.

"**Flame Charge!**" Nic remained cloaked in flames as he lunged into Seiryo, and the Ghoul's Coffin's Mage only looked to receive a hit, crashing into a table and shattering it. Nic got into a landing pose and removed the flames.

"It doesn't matter if you can see attacks if you can't properly block them."

He glowed again as Seiryo slowly grunted as he sat up, witnessing Nic transform yet again while the fighting all around went on. Nic was seen in his Earth Plate Form, where everything of the attire was the same except now adorning a light-mud colored coat with dark brown, tattered edging with an equally dark brown belt.

He lunged after Seiryo as he still wasn't up yet. "**Drill Run!**" Clasping his hands together, Nic spun like a drill towards Seiryo.

Seiryo looked surprised and he made a mirror at the last second, which Nic drilled into and made him make sparks in between him and the mirror for a few moments and he shot back into a backflip.

Seiryo huffed as he flipped his styling hair back. "See? Unlike Wave Magic, my Mirror Magic can bounce back anything, whether it'd be rocks or any matter, even paparazzi and fangirls."

Nic narrowed his eyes. _'Sounds similar the Reflector Magic like Midnight used, at least from what I've heard.' _He contemplated. _'But from what I've seen, he can either reflect attacks or reach through mirrors, but he can't do them both at once, which is his weakness.'_

Bacchus eyed the multitude of individuals around him, all in greater numbers than before. "Well, guess it's about time we get this party going by my books."

He took a bottle of booze from the table right next to him and took it up to his mouth, sipping from it. With a few gulps, he let out a sigh and dropped the bottle to the floor and it rolled away.

The many members of Ghoul's Coffin took note of how Bacchus' face turned a bit red and hiccupped. His stance adjusted, and in a sudden flash, he struck down at least ten more men in the blink of an eye.

Sophie looked over, seeing the sudden speed enhancement of Bacchus. "You're kidding! His speed enhanced from drinking?"

Bacchus hiccupped as he looked back at Sophie. "Oh come on sweetheart, don't tell me you've never heard of Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm before." He sarcastically asked before pivoting and hitting more guys with a fast palm strike.

Sophie narrowed her eyes. "Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm…so he uses Palm Magic." She turned around when she sensed some more guys advancing, prompting her to attack. "**Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**"

Sudden stones covered in lightning protruded from the ground beneath the Mages in front of her. The blades of stones flashed before exploding in yellow lightning, shaking and electrifying everything around her. Many Mages fell from that one attack.

Cana looked back, seeing how Sophie wiped out so many at once. "Nice one!" She looked back ahead and threw glowing cards at more incoming Mages, exploding and sending them flying into many others. She huffed and looked back at Sophie, seeing how she was beginning to pant a little.

"Oh man, Sophie don't exert there. You used too much there." Cana warned.

"*huff* I know, but at least *huff* we managed to take out the rest."

* * *

"That makes at least 20 at each station." Staraptor's eyes overlooked where the four lacrima towers were, using her vision and hawk-like yes to deduce the numbers of each station.

"If I get closer and see any signs of threat, I should…" She was halted when she started hearing screaming from another street closer to north. She turned and saw a bit of dust rise from one of the bars.

"That has to be Nic and the others!" She said aloud, and flapped on ahead to where the scene was unfolding.

* * *

"**Emanation Beam!**" Vanessa shot a beam of teal aura at Braixen.

"**Psyshock!**" Braixen countered by shooting purple beams from her stick she had in hand, both Magic and move colliding in the middle. A small explosion made strong winds surge, forcing Vanessa and Braixen to cover up.

When the dust settled from the small clearing, Vanessa got to a knee and huffed, having been tired from practicing all morning. After a couple of minutes of panting, she slowly stood up, followed by Braixen.

"I think that should do it for now." Vanessa signaled. He looked down at her hand with a confident smile. "At least I got better in controlling my Aura Magic."

"No doubt." Braixen huffed. "You've been training for the past week, and it's evident that your aura has enhanced as well."

"Right. Let's head back inside." Vanessa pulled out Braixen's Poke Ball and returned her. She then turned and headed towards the Guild Hall.

A few minutes later, she arrived inside. "Hey guys!"

Lisanna turned towards her. "Oh hey, Vanessa!"

"So how was your morning workout?" Macao asked.

Vanessa smiled some more. "It went swell. I'm progressing better and better." She looked around, seeing Team Natsu, Nic, Cana, and Sophie not present. "Where is everyone?"

"Well Natsu and the others went out on a job yesterday and won't be back until later on today." Macao answered. "And if I'm not mistaken, I think Cana and Sophie dragged Nic along on their mission."

"Wasn't it that one enormous job of eradicating Ghoul's Coffin from Dahlias?" Max asked.

"Dahlias?" Wakaba asked. "I've heard of that city. Apparently it's well known for its summertime flowers."

Macao smiled. "Yeah, and apparently it's known for its bars and pubs as well. They say that they put actual flower nectar in the alcohol to give it more vivid potency." He turned towards Kinana and Mira, his smile fading. "Although, something troubles me."

Makarov and everyone turned towards him.

"That place has a specific bar that has a booze so powerful that even a sip is enough to knock you for a loop. But it's who I'm worried about that'll drink it."

Makarov looked confused. "Cana can stomach that stuff. I'm not so sure about Sophie since she's still too young, and…" His eyes opened up again. "…oh." He blinked as realization was beginning to dawn upon him. "Wait…"

Vanessa and everyone looked around in curiosity, but then they got a little anxious when Makarov's eyes shook and face darkened in horror.

"Wait, Nic is in that city!" His eyes shook violently as if he were traumatized. "Oh no…oooh no..."

"Makarov, what's the matter?" Vanessa asked.

Makarov clenched his fists and looked down in shame, his entire body shaking. "Something terrible happens, when Nic drinks even the smallest of alcohol. And…and…"

Vanessa felt a little nervous from looking around, seeing the faces of everyone, except Lisanna, all beginning to pale.

Makarov looked at her, a dark and horrific expression on his face. "Things can get _really _uncontrollable."

"Uncontrollable?"

* * *

"**Dig!**" Nic jumped and bean to tunnel underneath the bar flooring.

"Hey!" The bartender whined. "That flooring wasn't cheap!"

Bacchus rushed in after Seiryo from his right, but Seiryo put up a large mirror as Bacchus advanced, barely managing to stop Bacchus and bouncing the blows off the large, circular mirror. Bacchus skidded back and fell over into some rubble, surprised that he actually hurt himself.

He sat up and frowned. "Oh man, that was wild. *hic* Too bad this stuff's wearing off so soon."

Seiryo snickered, but was short-lived when the ground behind him cracked. He turned around all too soon and Nic emerged from the cracked ground, driving a fist into Seiryo, knocking him back and tumbling into a skid and stopping on a knee.

"You bastard." He growled. He looked around to find himself pit against the four again, all of his forces defeated by Cana and Sophie. The two girls surrounded Seiryo with Bacchus and Nic. Seiryo slowly backed away and found himself losing ground near the entrance to the bar.

"Alright, lay it on him!" Bacchus hollered.

Sophie pointed a finger at her head. "Ready Cana?"

Cana showed a few cards. "Ready! Let's hurry before he has a chance!"

A Magic Seal appeared before Sophie. "**Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**"

"Mind if I back ya up on that?" She flashed three cards and made a Magic Seal. "**Thunderbolt's Fate!**"

Ice mirrors appeared all around Seiryo as he panicked. Green beams then shot from the ice mirrors from all directions, and the lightning shot from Cana's cards went beaming ahead.

Seiryo saw the attacks coming and he extended his arms on either side. "No you don't! I saw that from the beginning! **Angular Defense!**" A dome of pure mirror with sharp edging like a polygon dome encased him, deflecting the green beams and lightning in all directions, hitting some walls and bits on the ceiling.

"You're kidding me!" Cana exclaimed.

Sophie clenched her fists. "He can use the mirrors from all directions as well." Her eyes narrowed. "Hopefully I remembered it."

Underneath the dome, Seiryo smirked. "Hm. Now…**Reflective Alcove!**"

The mirror dome that was still deflecting the attacks began to collapse on one side, angling the deflected beams at Nic.

Sophie and Cana both went wide-eyed. "Nic, watch out!" Sophie shouted.

Nic saw the lightning and green beams head his way and he inhaled a deep breath and then opened his mouth again. "**Mud Bomb!**" He shot the brown ball of mud with rapid intensity. When the attacks met at the middle, an explosion of green and brown erupted, the shockwave from the attacks, making everyone fly off in random directions. Bacchus barely held his ground, yet Cana and Sophie fell on their butts with a thud.

Nic skidded back and covered up from the attack, until he stepped back towards the destroyed bar top, where he grunted as the explosion cleared out. In front of him was a mirror, where Seiryo's hand gave Nic a harsh shove. Nic covered up to block the shove, but he fell backwards and grunted as he crashed into the shelves of booze behind the counter. The bartender moved out of the way and to the side.

Among them, a crimson bottle with gold and green on it, of which wasn't broken, flung into the air.

* * *

Makarov swallowed. "This phenomenon happened on the night, the night Nic was proclaimed S-Class." His voiced was shaken. "We were all so happy, and Cana forced Nic to take a big gulp of booze."

* * *

Nic was seen sitting up and grunting as Seiryo smirked. Booze was all over the place and he looked ahead at Seiryo. _'Damnit, I got sloppy!'_

"Hmph." Seiryo's smirk widened.

Nic was about to get up again, but noticed the distraught faces Cana and Sophie were giving, something that was vaguely unnerving him. He noticed that their eyes gazed at the twirling crimson booze bottle in the air, the strongest booze, of which was one Bacchus purchased earlier. He looked up slowly, seeing the bottle twirl down onto him.

* * *

Makarov looked even more scared. "Just one gulp was all it took; nothing more, nothing less."

* * *

The cork on the bottle became undone while spinning in the air. The bottle pointed down at Nic as he looked up in shock.

* * *

His eyes were still wide. "That's when everything went awry."

* * *

The bottle began to descend as time was very slow, about to be aligned with Nic.

* * *

Vanessa looked really piqued. "What do you mean?"

Makarov looked up to the ceiling. "First we noticed that his face got a little heated…" He trailed off to when he remembered Natsu challenging him, and Nic turned around and…

Makarov shuddered. "A few moments later, the entire Guild Hall was in complete chaos! As if…as if all hell had rained down upon us!"

* * *

Sophie and Cana's fixated eyes widened as they were flashing back to that one night, the night that…

Sophie's eyes shook. "Oh no…"

Cana swallowed. "Please miss, please miss…"

* * *

"Please, just tell me what happened!" Vanessa pleaded.

But Makarov was still shuddering from the experience. "It was horrible! Horrible! Nic was like…a wild beast from the deepest forests in Earthland. An untamable hurricane." His eyes looked at Vanessa, filled with traumatizing experience. "It was wild hysteria. The likes of which, no one has ever seen."

Vanessa's eyes shook as she was beginning to get the picture. She looked down with a hand to her chin. "So you're saying that Nic is a complete lightweight?"

Macao shuddered. "And that was just after one gulp of regular booze." He looked back at Vanessa with the same level of horror that Makarov displayed. "If he had anything stronger, or an entire bottle…"

Vanessa was seeing the idea, and it wasn't pretty. "Then…he'd might be an unstoppable bringer of doom."

* * *

The booze bottle's tip fell upon Nic's lips, making him gag briefly as the contents within the bottle began pouring into him.

Cana and Sophie alike turned completely white, unable to process what in the world had just happened. Their mouths hung open as they were as stiff as statues, their arms limp from shock.

The booze contents continued down Nic's throat, gulp after sudden gulp.

The two shook and twitched. "C-C-Cana?"

"S-Sophie?" Cana squealed back.

"I…I think we need to find cover."

Cana shook her head. "No one is safe now." Though she did try and attempt to hide along with Sophie, the two lunging behind some broken tables close to the wall.

Seiryo and Bacchus looked at the two women ducking for cover with askew gazes.

"Heh? Why the sudden duck and run?" Bacchus asked.

Seiryo hummed lightly. "It's for the best. I didn't wanna harm those ladies anyway. I'd leave them to the others. Now…" Seiryo turned back ahead towards Nic, but something wasn't right. Bacchus also took note as the empty booze bottle fell down right beside Nic.

Seiryo could barely hold back a laugh as he facepalmed, seeing Nic's face turning red. "GAHAHA! Oh man! This is just too priceless!"

Bacchus raised a brow. "Heh?"

Cana and Sophie shuddered while paling as they looked through the open spaces of the tables, seeing Nic's face turn from light red to a darker shade, his mouth twitching, and they could see his expression turn sourly aggressive.

Sophie chimed one last sentence timidly and quietly. "And so, the madness begins."

* * *

**The only reason I brought Bacchus into this mess is because I decided to bring back someone very dear that we all missed…yup, it's Drunk Nic! How was this chapter for a change? Wanted to humiliate the Magic Council, and also give Sophie and Cana a little more spotlight since they are Nic's closest friends.**

**Speaking of Cana, I got up a small poll, so check it out.**

**Aside from the long Reviews you might leave for this chapter, there's something else I wanted to ask. The last time I asked this question was Ch 22, so I'll ask it again: What was your most favorite fight up to date, with or without Nic? Add that in with your usual Review please!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the originality of the X791 Arc, NicxErza moments, and anything else!**

* * *

**Next Time: Dancing with the Enemy **


	55. Dancing with the Enemy

Chapter 55 – Dancing with the Enemy

**Sorry for the wait, college and my other story had to be attended to. As you saw in my poll, I was getting your guys' opinion for an OCxCana fanfic. At the rate its going, it seems a lot agree that they most likely want to see one, but we'll see how other opinions affect this standing later on.**

**Guest: Glad you reviewed, and I'm glad you like NicxErza, but them being official still won't be for quite a bit.**

**Axiov: That's a good question, even I don't know.**

**Guest: Nope no RWBY fanfic, sorry.**

**Alright, time for the return of the loveable – and deadly – Drunk Nic!**

**To Recap:**

After settling into X791, things were going by smoothly, especially with Erza getting much closer to Nic. The Magic Council arrested them and interrogated them, resulting in them getting utterly humiliated by Dialga and Palkia, as well as Nic. Later on, as Team Natsu went out on a mission, Nic was dragged along by Cana and Sophie for their own mission in Dahlias, where they learned the four lacrima in the city drain Magic to fuel a weapon. They encounter the Dark Guild called Ghoul's Coffin, and one of their elites, Seiryo, in a bar. Surprisingly running into an S-Class Mage named Bacchus, things were about even until Nic accidentally hits the shelves and a booze bottle's contents goes down his throat, and the contents were the strongest kind of alcohol in the city.

* * *

**Chapter 55 – Dancing with the Enemy**

Bacchus and Seiryo were the only two confused as they looked to find Nic stuttering upwards with a tint of red on his face; not only that, but also had gritting teeth and a feral gaze. A low growl came from the accidentally drunk tyrant.

Seiryo stepped forward with shrugging arms. "Heh, oh well. Guess you can't call them all, right?"

"Who told you to make a call in the first place?!" Nic bellowed. In a sudden flash, he landed a fist across Seiryo's face, making the Dark Guild Mage fly back into the wall.

Bacchus smirked as he saw the sudden attack. "Say, that wasn't too shabby-" He was suddenly met at that instant, when turning to look at Nic, with a fist to his face, driving him into crashing the wall on the opposite side of the bar.

Nic snarled as he glowed. Sophie and Cana alike both remained as silent as possible while crippling in fear as Nic transformed into his Fist Plate. His pants and attire were still the same, yet his coat was tied by the sash that held the pants up, and the bricks on the coat were gone.

He looked around and saw a booze bottle. "Who spilled you! Tell me!" He stomped on it, breaking it completely. He then looked at a broken table. "I never said you could break!" He broke it into even more pieces when he used Karate Chop on it. He then looked at the broken bar. "I didn't say you could be still! DIE FOOL!" He lunged at the remaining bar counter and stuck out his palm, and upon touching it, his Force Palm made the counter shatter into fragments and fly into an array of places.

Seiryo looked startled as Nic was destroying furniture while blabbing out a bunch of insignificant reasons, which still led to shattering debris in all directions.

"Okay, did I miss something?" He wondered. "I-" He was silenced when Nic appeared in front and swung a kick across, making him gawk as his unintentional Low Sweep sent him crashing into the flooring several feet towards the drunken person's left.

Bacchus gave a twisted expression. "Hey now, guess someone can't hold their own liquor down."

Nic sourly turned towards Bacchus, his uncanny drunk expression making him fairly uncomfortable. "Bacchus, stop messing with Cana!"

"You need glasses? I wasn't-"

"SILENCE!" Nic lunged ahead with his fist coated in light blue, via Mach Punch. His blinding speed surprised Bacchus and the latter was helpless when his abdomen was struck, sending him crashing to the ground again.

"Who said you could lie down?! And did I say you could look at me?!" Nic roared as he attacked Bacchus viciously, prompting the S-Class Mage to quickly get up and attack.

Bacchus couldn't help but laugh as he charged. "HAHA! Man, you sure are wild!" He thrusted his palm fast, but Nic caught it and snarled. Without so much as even blinking, the drunken hero yanked Bacchus by the arm and twisted it.

"YAAHHH!" Bacchus yelled before he was met with a Jump Kick by Nic's right knee, sending the poor fool diagonally upwards towards the ceiling. Bacchus yelled as he fell down on his face and groaned as he laid on the floor.

"I didn't say you could lay on the floor!" Nic bellowed.

Bacchus angrily stood up and back at Nic, his left arm clenching his dislocated right one. "Man, you didn't say anything."

"I SAID SILENCE!" Nic rushed in and Bacchus was forced to defend. He pivoted and swiped at Nic with his left palm in a fast motion, so fast that it was almost invisible, but Nic swatted it away like it was nothing. "I never said you could attack me!"

Bacchus tried countering relentlessly, but no matter what, Nic snarled as he advanced while parrying and deflecting every shot thrown, outmatching Bacchus. "Oh man, this guy's reflexes and wildness! It's-"

"Don't talk back to me!" Nic bellowed harshly and suddenly became an ultrasonic flash as he initiated Close Combat just like that. Bacchus's Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm defense didn't have a prayer as a numerous barrage of punches, headbutts, and kicks bombarded him repeatedly. The Quatro Cerberus Mage was practically helpless as Nic pounded him to the shattered ground.

Cana and Sophie alike swallowed.

"Poor guy." Sophie muttered.

"He had it coming, but this is just sad." Cana said in a whisper. She and Sophie ducked back behind some furniture as shattered boarding flew over them and hit the wall.

As Bacchus flailed upon his style getting overpowered by a tyrannical drunk, Seiryo couldn't help but shiver at his core. He never saw such unnecessary rampaging by a drunk. He watched as Nic grabbed Bacchus's right arm and watched in horror as Nic drove Bacchus overhead and smashed into the flooring behind.

'_T-The hell is this guy?!' _He asked, watching Nic deliver pain onto Bacchus. _'I can't even read his movements or mind! It's life everything is on a whim!'_

He got up slowly and cautiously and started to back away. A sudden creak sound came from a board he stepped on, which made him swallow hard before a feral Nic turned sharply around. He stared at him maliciously before turning his whole body. "Stop making noises!" He threw at helplessly battered Bacchus towards Seiryo, which caught everyone in horrific surprise.

Seiryo winced before making a mirror in front of himself, deflecting Bacchus's entire body and sending the poor mage crashing upside-down into the shelves right next to a cowering bartender.

"The poor fool." The bartender muttered weakly as he saw Bacchus's broken and battered arms and seeing his utter unconsciousness.

Nic rushed after Seiryo angrily. "I never said you could stop my attack!" He reeled back a glowing fist, which in this case was Brick Break.

"Oh no you don't!" Seiryo expanded the mirror in front of himself so as to make an enlarged shield. Nic brought Brick Break forward and drove it into the mirror, which led to it being shattered. Seiryo watched in horror as his defenses were literally shattered. _'What?! That attack broke through my Mirror Magic?! What the hell is going on with this guy?!'_

Nic advanced and let out a snarl. "STOP BEING PETRIFIED BY FEAR!"

"NO! NOT THE FACE! ANYTHING BUT THE FACE…"

The entire bar's entrance burst into dust and debris as Nic's gruesome Brick Break battered the poor fool in one blow, destroying the entrance and windows of The Nectar's Well.

Fortunately for a certain someone, she managed to make it in time to find The Nectar's Well being sundered by the attack, and she remained flapping in place as she watched in slow motion as Seiryo was devoid of pupils with a gaping mouth, unconscious and covered in bruises.

Through the carnage, Staraptor could see Nic's figure. "That's Nic's doing, but…" She looked as Nic made out, still giving a vile look wherever he stared at. Immediately it clicked with the bar and Nic's distraught expression. "Oh god, it happened again."

Nic looked at a few unconscious mages and twisted his face, pointing an accusing finger. "Don't lie down! No slacking! HRAH!" He conjured up a yellow orb of focused energy and launched Focus Blast, making the ground quake upon impact and sending many helpless souls in random directions.

Staraptor shook her head as she looked at the mayhem down below. "This is bad. Not to mention borderline tranny." All she could do at this point was watch as Nic bellowed and pointed at random objects.

"Window, stop being open!" He pointed at an open window in one of the buildings. "Answer me!" He attacked it and shattered it but a fist. He turned around and pointed at another building some ways away. "Why do you have bright colors?!" No answer. "SPEAK!" He lunged and destroyed a large fraction of the small building with a solemn Hi Jump Kick, sending more dust all around.

Cana and Sophie both emerged from the bar sheepishly as Nic's rampage started to head west, and they looked with nervous sweatdrops as buildings, windows, plants, anything in general get either obliterated or broken into pieces by Nic.

As Nic was starting to get out of sight, Sophie managed to calm down. "I was hoping that one memory would stay locked away, but…"

"Didn't expect it to come back and haunt us. Right?" Cana said.

"Yes." Sophie looked back at the remains of the bar. Everything inside looked as though a tsunami had hit it. Nothing was left in one piece; furniture, ceiling, all tarnished. "This is even worse than before. I feel sorry for Bacchus."

"That pig had it coming, but he didn't deserve that kind of fate." Cana sighed and put hands to her hips as she watched Nic rampage onwards. "Well this is an awkward turn of events."

Staraptor descended right next to Sophie, her appearance shocking the two. "Yeah, and because Nic took out one of the elites, this'll no doubt bring unwanted attention."

Sophie looked at the avian. "Staraptor?"

Staraptor looked at Nic for a long time and turned towards Sophie and Cana. "We'll have to settle this situation the best way possible. Did you get your intel?"

Cana nodded. "Yeah, you can say that. That bartender inside said that four lacrima around the city were designed to drain more of a mages power to possibly charge a weapon…though, I don't think he'll be talking again anytime soon."

"I can imagine. It seems we'll have no other option but to engage the enemy if and when we make our next move." Staraptor was actually a little thrilled to be entering the fray. "Also, there's something else. There are several troops stationed at each tower, meaning no matter how you look at it, you're gonna exhaust yourselves."

Cana grunted and looked in another direction. "Well we don't have much of any option now. Get ready! I'll take the north one."

"I'll take the east." Staraptor said.

Sophie turned towards west, where a certain someone was leaving everything in ruin. "And…well, as you can see, Nic's drunken rampage is leading him west, so that leaves me with south."

Staraptor nodded and spread her wings. "Begin the pursuit!" She flew off as the girls went in their own directions, heading towards their respective targets.

* * *

In the same dark domain, the elites of Ghoul's Coffin felt Seiryo's defeat. This was a little impact on them, and the leader's silhouette stood up as the massive weapon behind him was still charging.

The silhouette faded and revealed a man with a bone-white Ghoul's Coffin sign on his forehead. His green eyes were in contrast to the dark red outlines of his eyes. He had shoulder length white hair. He had on a long-sleeved shirt that had tattered edging on the bottom below with dark red sash keeping it in place. The shirt itself was gray and left his left pectoral showing, though the sleeve was still connected to the rest of the shirt, almost as though it was unzipped. His lower half consisted of black pants and brown boot-like sandals.

He kept a quiet disposition. "It would seem Seiryo has fallen."

A faint image of another man showed. He had a mature facial figure with blue eyes. He had a very short goatee and pale-brown hair in a short, low ponytail, as well as a long bang framing the left side of his face. His bright red shoulder pads had silver edging. He had on a short-sleeved loose white shirt with bright red edging on the sleeves, which overlapped loose gray long sleeves underneath. The bright red collar had a line connecting the bright red Ghoul's Coffin insignia to the collar. A silver belt separated his shirt from the magenta pants that had bright red boots and red shin guards with silver edging.

"Well Kaulas, now that Seiryo was defeated, shall we take action?"

Kaulas kept the same expression on his face, unemotional. "Yes, eradicate them. The Zeus Cannon must not falter with the supply of Magic."

Another silhouette faded, revealing the flamboyant, tall figure from before. His black hair was in a bowl cut, and each side had a blue peacock feather. His black eyes were outlined in spring green. He had a distinct and huge grin. He had a peacock tail-like cape and frills for cuffs on the sleeves. His shoulders had blue peacock heads with one wing each. His blue dress shirt had two spring green peacocks facing the other. Over that was a purple suit and tight pants, with the elbows having blue feathers. To finish he had spring green dance shoes.

"So, it would seem we'll be making some new friends. Oh the joyous occasion!" He enthusiastically shouted with a pose with arms over his head.

"Ah, oui. New friends in your case, but not for us~." The French voice came from a man that was very slim. He had tall, spiky green hair that was rather messy. Dark red outlined his monocle. He had on a black suit with a dark red vest and brighter red tie, His shoes were pointed and curved, and he adorned a long cape that was black on the outside and red inside, also sporting curved, spiked edging for a high collar.

"GAHAHAHA! I've been waiting a long time for this!" Little ghouls surrounded the man as he laughed while flicking his tongue wildly. He had messy black hair with a psycho expression on his face. His coat was purple and was buttoned. It had yellow edging, buttons, and the inside was yellow. The long sleeves were edged in yellow. His blue pants had a tear on the knee cap and on the thighs, respectively on the left and right thigh. He also had black shoes.

Kaulas grinned weakly. "Very well. Engage and eliminate. The Zeus Cannon cannot be tarnished."

The individual members then dispatched, leaving Kaulas to turn around at the weapon. He spectated it longingly as it continued to charge with the pink lacrima all around it.

"Everyone knows that there is a weapon formidable known as the Jupiter Cannon, which focuses Magic into a charged point. But what many do not know was that there is a weapon of equal potency, and requires more Magic. Unlike Jupiter, with the right amount of power, it'll have enough power to rival an immense Abyss Break – The Zeus Cannon. The Cannon that brings a God's Judgement."

* * *

"Get back here!" Natsu chased a fellow bandit through the city of Cedar. He rushed with Happy by his side as the two were starting to pick up the pace. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" He lunged head first into bandit's back, making the crook hit the pavement.

"**Ice-Make: Lance!**" Gray shot lances made of ice and struck down numerous guys in one blow.

Erza slashed at two guys in one fell swoop. She then turned around and saw Natsu getting his bandit and tying him up. She looked at Gray and saw his share frozen stiff, literally.

"**Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!**" Wendy sent many guys sailing into the air screaming and they all fell the ground with a thud, dizzy beyond recognition. "How's that?"

Carla nodded. "Good, but look closely child." She pointed towards Lucy. "Lucy and Michelle are in trouble."

Michelle stayed behind Lucy as five bandits surrounded them. She looked rather nervous. "Big sister?"

Lucy grabbed one of her Zodiac Keys. "Don't worry Michelle, I can handle this." She held out the key. "**Open: Gate of the Scorpion – Scorpio!**"

Lucy and Michelle waited as the key was gonna open, but for some reason, it didn't work.

"Uh…" Lucy sweatdropped. "Scorpio? Scorpio? Oh don't tell me you're on a date with Aquarius!"

"Lucy! Come on!" Natsu shouted, punching another guy with a flaming fist.

"Get in here! We could use some help here!" Gray shouted, shooting more of his Ice-Make.

"I'm trying! **Open: Gate of the Sea Goat – Capricorn!**"

Yet again, nothing happened. The bandits started closing in with mischievous smirks.

"What?!" Lucy was in a frantic panic. "Loke?! Aries?! Anybody?! Pretty please!"

The bandits were about to touch her and Michelle, but a sudden twister sent the men soaring overhead.

"Lucy, are you alright?" Wendy asked. The bandits struck the side of a building, where they fell to the floor and Happy and Carla proceeded in tying them up.

"Well, that should be the last of'em." Gray remarked, rubbing the back of his head.

"Man that felt good!" Natsu remarked proudly, but then turned towards Lucy. "Say Lucy, what's the problem? You got gas or something?"

"Cork it! No such thing!" She fumed. She then looked down at her keys. "I don't know. For some reason, my Spirits wouldn't show."

Erza stepped in with the converging group, intrigued by how Lucy's Celestial Spirits wouldn't open their gates. "It's strange. Aren't they supposed to arrive when you summon them?"

"Yeah." Lucy's frown got heavier. "I wonder what's going on?"

Natsu crossed his arms. "Somehow I got a bad feeling about this."

Lucy stared at her keys in worry. "Me too. Hopefully it's only temporary."

* * *

Sophie ran as fast as she could towards the south end. She ran through the open avenue as the lacrima was in sight. She was getting closer to the objective but suddenly felt a surge of Magic power that forced her to put on foot ahead of herself and skid to a stop.

A hostile look was on her face as her eyes scrutinized the area around. "Someone's here. I can feel it."

Sophie began to feel the Magic converge, but there wasn't a direct point. She looked underneath and sensed nothing below, but that's when she saw a faint shadow and her instincts told her to look up.

Looking up, she saw a pale ghost figure hovering above her. The sudden shock caused her to gasp and nearly fall on her butt. She caught herself and jumped back to gain distance as the ghost descended and had a hollow smiley face.

Sophie narrowed her eyes as her nerves crawled all over. "What kind of sick joke is this?"

"GYAHAHAHAHA! Sick joke is right! That face you made was almost priceless!"

That wicked voice got under her skin and the ghost swerved through the air and backed away as a figure appeared from one of the building walls ahead. His crazed psychotic expression with a hanging tongue made Sophie shiver up and down her spine and backed up a step.

"GAHAHAAAH! This is too priceless! Finally, I get to put my scare on!" He shouted with such enthusiasm it was almost sickening. The ghost circled around over his head as he flicked his tongue and laughed nonstop.

Sophie sweatdropped. "Oh great. Out of all the guys I get to fight, I get the crazy one."

"GAHA! You know it's rude not to introduce yourself! Call me Boig, and let me introduce you to my little friends!" He maniacally smiled as he extended out his arms, and a couple more ghosts arose from out of his sleeves.

Four ghosts had hollow expressions that were either wailing or smiling-like.

"Alright little lady! Let's rock!"

Sophie spread her legs to ready for the fight.

* * *

Heading north was Cana. She ran as fast as she could, all while hearing explosions from the west. She looked back at saw some dust arise.

"That guy's demeanor's gonna come out of the reward money." She sighed. Letting the matter settle itself out, she ran on ahead, but as she stepped on the ground, a figure started rising up from behind.

Cana went on until she suddenly felt a surge of Magic. The sudden impulse forced her to a stop and she looked around, trying to see where the power's source was.

"Where…"

She turned around to see rocks and bits of the pavement fly like rapid bullets. She barely dodged and landed to see smoldering debris wedged in the spot where she stood previously.

"That was close." She looked back in the direction where the attack came from. "Alright, who did that?"

"Non, non, non! That won't work for you, mademoiselle!" The other elite of Ghoul's Coffin was the one who spied on them as they left the north end earlier. His green hair was what intrigued her.

He adjusted his monocle. "Oh, what is this? You are startled, yes?"

Cana grunted and pointed at him. "Dream on! I'm not gonna let some skinny punk stop us! Innocent lives are what's at stake here!"

Hearing the anger in her voice, he tilted his body a little. "Oh, yes. That we are aware of." His expression turned dark when he adjusted himself. "But as you know…" His eyes narrowed. "Innocence will only get you so far until you collapse into war."

"War…?" Cana was more than a little confused until she started to piece things together. The slim body, the green hair, the Earth Magic; soon enough the answer hit her like a ton of bricks. She gasped in shock. "Wait! You've gotta be kidding me!"

"Ah, so your memory isn't as weak as it may seem. Seven years and this is what happens. As you recall, it is I, Monsieur Sol of the Element Four!"

Cana's eyes narrowed. "You were with Phantom Lord."

"That is correct. As you recall, our guild was utterly defeated." Spite arose among his sentence as he flashed back to the collapse of his guild in the war. "Phantom's reputation was sullied, and all because Fairy Tail had strong mages. But now I have new power, and shall take back the ruin that Phantom was placed in."

Cana gritted her teeth as she flashed her cards.

Sol's eyes narrowed and his expression darkened again. "Prepare yourself, for after this, Nic Pularis and that avian shall pay for last time!"

* * *

Beyond the carnage, Nic wobbled before coming to a stop, though he felt dizzy in all the wrong ways. His head throbbed as he rubbed it with his right hand. "My head feels as though I was stomped on by Rhyhorn, and how did I end up here?" He looked to find himself in his Fist Plate, when he remembered being in his Earth Plate. "Just what happened?" He turned around, his surprises never ending.

Behind him was nothing but sheer disaster. It was as though a hurricane that tarnished all that was behind Nic. Shattered buildings and debris took up the streets as far as the eye could see. Dust and smoke arose from a few spots. It was more like a Gyarados rampaged through the city. "Did I do that?" He asked in shock.

Pain suddenly sprouted and Nic grabbed his aching head some more and turned forward. "What happened?" He remained as still as possible and his breathing remained in check; soon enough a memory arose. "Oh right, that booze bottle fell on me."

He slowly turned back around at the disaster area that seemed to go on forever. _'I hope Staraptor, Cana, and Sophie are okay.'_

"Oh, don't think that you'll be off the hook~!"

The voice caused Nic to immediately turn back ahead and found a figure standing before him. To his surprise it was Sophie, yet for some odd reason, he was a little uneasy as she approached him.

"Nic!" She shouted. She caught up to him and huffed a little. "So glad…you made it…out okay."

Nic kept a stern gaze as he flipped on his sunglasses. He remained cautious though it was Sophie after all. "Yes, me too." He looked away. "Hopefully Cana and Staraptor are alright. By any chance have you encountered them?"

Sophie shook her head. "Sorry, not a clue."

"…I see." Nic turned around to look back at the wreckage. "Well judging by the sun, I guess I'm heading west. That being said from I remember, the lacrima tower should be-"

As his suspicions pointed out, his reflexes kicked in and immediately shifted. "**Rolling Kick!**" He delivered a swift roundhouse that was met by Sophie's own leg. Both were at a standstill as Nic kept grunting while Sophie smirked.

Seeing as how the fake out tactic failed, Sophie jerked back for room. "Well that led nowhere. It seems that Sol was right. You are troublesome up close." Sophie puffed quickly into a small dust cloud and revealed who she really was all along. It was the man that had the peacock attire.

"Ah, very clever." He pointed out, though not smirking. "But that won't save you from my art!" He struck a pose and spun around in place, spinning with his huge open grin.

Nic remained calm no matter what. _'I see, so he used Transformation Magic. If he transformed into Sophie, that meant he got a good description or look at her.' _Nic's eyes narrowed and grunted.

* * *

"**Memory-Make: Stone Lightning!**" Sophie made a chain of memories that turned into lightning that blasted down from above. The ghosts were all hit randomly, making them turn to stone. Sophie kept her guard up as the ghosts fell to the ground and shattered, but what disturbed her was that they all emerged from the shattered stone and levitated like nothing happened.

"GAHAHAHA! Try your luck again! I dare ya!" Boig hollered. He extended his arm out. "You're only wasting your Magic! Those lacrima are just gonna sap more and more out of ya! Get her!"

The ghosts all swooped in to attack Sophie. They all rushed past her. Surprisingly, they all felt more solid than what she imagined. She skidded back some feet and grunted.

"GAHAHAHA! You like my Legend of City Magic? I can use specters at my disposal, meaning you're outnumbered in any case girly!" Boig's crazed expression went even more psychotic as he raised his arms, releasing more ghosts from his sleeves. "Have at her! **Wailing Rush!**"

The numerous ghosts rushed like a small torrent and attacked Sophie. As they converged, Sophie quickly made a counter by pointing her index finger at her forehead. "**Memory-Make: Jagged Barrier!**"

A huge wall suddenly arose from the ground with ice protruding, in which the ghosts all rushed in and crashed into. The ground shook as pieces of the wall chipped off.

Sophie's eyes narrowed as she saw the phenomenon. _'Wait, can't ghosts faze through walls?' _She was cut off when the remaining ghosts all gave hollow smiles and fazed through the wall and her, though to her shock, nothing happened. She had expected some damage, but that felt like a ghastly breeze passing her. She looked back at Boig when the wall returned to the earth and saw the spirits circling around him as his tongue flicked in and out.

'_Whatever he's doing, he's changing the properties of those specters. Maybe I can find a weak point through that.'_

* * *

Nic's opponent gave a large frown as he glared at him. "You! I cannot have these plans tarnished by the likes of you!"

Nic snickered as he glowed, shifting back into himself with his sunglasses still on. "The feeling is mutual. I am Nic Pularis, a member of Fairy Tail."

His opponent struck a pose with his fingers tucked in and pointed ahead. "Oh? Well I'll have you know mister that I happen to be a mage myself! Although I use my powers for a sinister organization." His grin returned. "My colleagues call me Bravado, but you can call me Pavo, Luminous."

"Very well then." Nic got into a fighting stance. "Let's see how you fare when I fight to stop the lacrima towers. Lives are at stake, and I won't falter when something like that is considered!"

Pavo's eyes narrowed and he struck a new pose. "Very well, let us see how_ you _fare against my elegance! Behold!"

Pavo dashed ahead with noble elegance. He kicked, but Nic jumped overhead and landed behind. Both turned around to face the other and jabbed with precision. Their fists met each other, and a loud echo boomed as their knuckles collided. Nic easily overpowered and thrust his fist ahead, and Pavo quickly used the shot-back to his advantage and pivoted to look away from Nic. He then broke into a skip and backflipped high into the air, the sun over his head as he looked down at Nic.

"**Descending Peck Memoir!**" He hollered out, with his shoe tips pointed at Nic.

"**Crush Claw!**" Nic thrust his blue glowing hand upwards, intercepting Pavo's assault.

Both attacks met and were surprisingly at even grounds. Pavo rebound from the interception by backflipping while still in midair and did a one-hand handstand and pivoted, doing a swirling kick that Nic easily defended with his right arm. Nic then used the opportunity and raised his foot.

"**Stomp!**"

Nic stomped his foot on Pavo's back as he was still doing a handstand and smashed him into the ground, sending dust all about.

Pavo was seen with Nic's foot pressed on his back and he bent his lower body in a high arch, making his shoes aimed to strike Nic's knee.

'_What flexibility!' _Nic had no option than to back away as he was forced to dodge the arched kick. Pavo got back up and back on his feet. He quickly advanced and attacked with a pointed jab. Nic quickly deflected it with a swat and jabbed ahead with his now active Mega Punch, but Pavo's dance moves allowed him to dodged with an elegant spin.

Nic grunted as he took notice of Pavo's style. _'He's using dance moves as an offense and defense; and from the felt of that first blow, it's fair to bet that he adds his Magic into his limbs, similar to Bacchus.'_

Pavo raised a brow. "You are wasting your time. All my life I have been practicing the fine art of Kenpo in all respective forms! No matter what way, my brilliant artistry shall never be overlooked by you!"

He gave a pose with arms and hands over his head, and surprising as it was, the peacocks on his shoulders opened their mouths. "Now, prepare for a magnificent recital!"

Nic's eyes under his sunglasses widened a little as two images of peacocks became clear behind Pavo. The images faded and Pavo glowed a pink aura to signify his Magic Power.

"**Peacock Capoeira!**" Pavo lunged with his incredibly long legs and then began his arduous assault of leg strikes. As surprising as it was, his kicks were in rhythm when he lashed them repeatedly. Nic ducked and evaded as fast and as nimble as he could while avoiding the cartwheels and the kicks that happened with the cartwheels.

As Nic jerked back from a cartwheel kick, Pavo used the momentum and twisted his body back to standing up and did a reverse roundhouse kick. "Take this!"

"**Dizzy Punch!**"

Nic's Normal-Type move met with Pavo's face while Pavo's leg got Nic's abdomen. There was a severe tension in the air and Nic grunted and Pavo did as well. Both were still before five seconds past; that's when a shockwave sent the two back.

Nic grunted as he went into a skid on his feet into a building behind him, while Pavo cried while as he broke into his own skid, on his face, into the building behind him. Dust blew all about respectively and the two were seen against cracked walls.

Nic was seen pressed against the wall but still on his feet. "Damnit. That booze's after effects are still affecting my reflexes. I didn't act fast enough on that one."

Pavo coughed as he got back up. "My Peacock Capoeira...easily thwarted by that Fairy Tail mage." He stood back up with a growl. "Okay that's it, from now on I'm going all out. You understand the words coming out of my mouth?"

Nic didn't give an immediate response, but still answered. "I'd be insulted if you didn't." Even with him fighting Pavo, something felt off.

'_This person. I don't understand just yet, but for some reason, even when I look through him, I don't see any ill-will. Why?'_

* * *

Cana swiped with her cards as she used them to slice rocks in half. The rocks fell apart behind her and she weakly panted from exhaustion.

Sol tilted his body. "Oh, what is this? Perhaps the earlier ambush of Seiryo exhausted your Magic after all."

"Damn you." Cana panted as she held up more cards. She was trying to be weary around Sol, but his nimble and thin body made it hard for her to direct a very accurate projectile. The odds of him being hit were low given the 7 year gap and the fact his Magic Power enhanced, as to where she was still weakened from earlier.

Sol scooped his arms high. "**Roche Concerto!**" The ground beneath Cana cracked and shattered, giving way to a barrage of rocks that bombarded her. She covered up as she skidded back with her left arm as support.

Suddenly, a hole emerged from behind her, where Sol emerged. Cana whipped her head back only to get a barrage of rocks as he swiped his arm at her. Cana screamed as she fell on her back onto the ground.

Sol stood over Cana as she was having a hard time standing back up. "Oh, n'est pas finit? Suppose I could rapture in your anguish some more, oui?"

Cana got back to her feet and panted. Her body was covered in more than a few scratches and scrapes, but it wasn't enough to keep her down.

"So you went so low as to joining a Dark Guild, all to get revenge on us? You're even more sick than I imagined." She stated. "But what left me sickened even more, was that you took pleasure in Mira being abducted."

Sol adjusted his monocle. "Ah, that day was the day Phantom should've triumphed, yet Nic Pularis and his creatures of vast powers ruined everything!"

"He just finished what you guys started." Cana flashed some more cards. "And now I intend to do the same! **Summoned Lightning!**" Cana grabbed three cards and a green Magic seal appeared in front. Out then shot multiple light green bolts that went at Sol.

"Non, non, non!" Without lifting a finger, Sol's eyes instead widened and rocks arose from the earth all around, surrounding him in a veil of pavement and rock that took the lightning bolts. The pavement exploded into dust, but Sol was seen unscathed.

Cana's eyes showed frustration. "You're kidding me!" She then felt a sharp pain blossom within and she dropped to a knee panting. "Damn…those lacrima are really…driving me nuts."

Sol's eyes narrowed and smirked. "Then perhaps I should put you out of your misery! **Sable Dance!**" Sol swiped his arms and created a swirling tempest of sand that engulfed the Card Mage, leaving her with no room and left to be buffeted by the onslaught.

"Tell me! What are you guys doing?" She shouted through the swirling sand.

"You want to know?" Sol inquired. "Perhaps it wouldn't hurt. Not like you can do a thing about it."

"Just tell me!"

Sol's smirked grew. "Those four lacrima all over the city are specifically designed with Magic Absorption and directly linked to what its purpose is. The Zeus Cannon!"

"Zeus…Cannon?" Cana asked confusedly before getting brushed harshly on her left by Sable Dance.

"That is correct. I have heard of the incident not long after of this Thunder Palace that one of your guild mates used, n'est pas? The Zeus Cannon is exactly like the Jupiter Cannon, which it charges with lacrima, but there is a catch."

Cana's eyes narrowed.

"It's true that the Zeus Cannon needs much more Magic and time than the Jupiter Cannon, but its effects are ever so more expansive. Everything within the lacrima perimeter shall be swallowed up when the Zeus Cannon is fired; perhaps it would be best to think of it as a mix of this Thunder Palace and Abyss Break, non?"

Cana's eye widened in horror at where this was leading. Now she knew, and the fact that the entire city was gonna be wiped out did not sit well. Frustration swelled inside of her as sand buffeted her repeatedly, scraping her all over.

"And now we are so close to the full charge! Once that happens, we shall fire the Zeus Cannon upwards and it'll come raining down, reducing everything to ash!" Sol tilted his body slightly as he let out a laughter that would make anybody sick.

He adjusted his monocle and extended his arms out. "And there shall be nothing of which that you can do! **Sand Explosion!**" A Magic seal emerged from in front of him and suddenly the entire avenue erupted in an explosion of sand. The area was large, as buildings and domains alike were topped with sand. The ground especially was nothing but a desert.

Sol laughed as he thought he was triumphant. "Ah, pleasure doing business with you! I bid you adieu!" He turned around and started walking away. He was beginning to take a few steps when he felt a sudden humidity arise. "Hm?"

Turning around, he saw damp sand expanding from one spot. It continued to expand and caught Sol's curiosity. Suddenly water sprouted from the center and gushed wildly all around.

"What is this?!" He was most shocked when he saw past the water to find Cana at its base, holding onto her Prayer's Fountain Card.

Cana was a little banged up to say the least, but she didn't show any signs of wear from the Sand Magic other than the few specks of grain all over, which irritated her. The water sprinkles from the volatile water washed off the grains and left her skin in droplets of water that reflected her fury and resolution.

"You honestly think that something as little as dropping a sandbox is gonna stop me? I don't think so!" She yelled angrily. "If anyone's gonna be put out of their misery, it's you for stooping so low!"

"C'est impossible!" Sol exclaimed.

"HRAH!" Cana extended her arm out and the volatile water went surging at Sol. The fountain's violent currents rushed and swallowed up Sol. The corrupted mage found himself spiraling through the air as water hammered him from below.

"No~n! Curse you!" As the water settled down, Sol was left to straighten out in the air and make a Magic seal. "**Platre Sonata!**" A large clenched fist made of plaster shot from the seal after Cana down below.

Cana flashed two cards. _'I only get one shot at this. If I can deflect it and strike him, that should do it.' _ She then waved her two cards furiously. "Alright! Let's try it! **Wind Edge!**"

She waved her cards in an arc that went past her right side. Her ideal solution was using the current to make the Platre Sonata change course and give her an opportunity to dodge. The wind arch's current went at such a high velocity, and Sol's attack darted right into it. There was a brief moment of reluctance and dismay as the Platre Sonata wanted to continue its course, but the current swept it to the side. The enormous fist plunged into the sand beside Cana, resulting in a quick explosion that she ducked away from and provided the sand as a cushion.

Sol's eyes widened in sheer shock as he fell from the air above. "My Platre Sonata, deflected like that bird did long ago!"

Cana used her arms as support and arched up. She reached for some cards and flashed them. "This is what happens to jerks like you when you don't take after Gajeel and Juvia! **Thunderbolt's Fate!**"

Cana jumped back up on her feet and swiped her cards, sending endless bolts of lightning that surged at a midair Sol. Sol screamed as he twitched upon getting struck. He wailed haphazardly as he took the attack without defending himself properly and fell to the sandy ground. His unconscious body was covered in static as he twitched.

Cana kept a frown as she panted some more. She almost collapsed if not for herself maintaining her footing, but she was well enough to press onwards through the sandy avenue. With her opponent lying in the dust, literally, she panted as she kept her gaze focused on the lacrima far ahead. "Man, I could _really _go for some booze after this is all over."

* * *

Nic skidded on his heels left as he dodged a kick from Pavo, quickly maneuvering into a jump to dodge a second kick. In midair, Nic looked down to find Pavo smiling, which still seemed odd to him. He was giving his all, and yet nothing about this guy seemed…right.

Regardless, in midair still, he glowed and shifted into his Dread Plate. The shoes and pants were still nevertheless the same color and shade as the Type, yet the coat was a midnight blue with black edging, where it was held in place by a gray belt with a Dusk Ball symbol. Everything else more or less was the same.

"**Feint Attack!**" Nic vanished in midair as he attempted a kick, which confused Pavo.

"Hm?" Pavo's eyes gazed about until a chill ran up his spin. He was too late when a sudden kick to the back of the head sent him face first into a building's intact wall, sending dust all about. Nic landed on the ground and kept a still gaze as he anticipated for Pavo to emerge. Soon enough his suspicions were dead on and a sudden somersault kick swung down from the dust cloud, yet he scooted back and dodged.

Pavo appeared from the settling dust and wiped his face and defined chin. "Persistent, Nic. Very persistent."

"I fail to see how you take amusement in the fact that you're doing this for your own gain." Nic countered harshly, despite his cool and calm tone. "Is there really a point as to why you're attempting to possibly destroy Dahlias? Is there a true cause? Whatever the case, I can't appreciate how a fellow artist's own work is nothing but garbage."

"Wh-wuh-g-GARBAGE?!" Pavo bellowed in deep offense. "I'll have you know mister that my dancing is but a brilliant work of art in its own right!" He clasped his hands overhead and stuck a leg out from behind. "I have perfected Kenpo in all manner of ways! How is that garbage?!"

Nic kept his disappointed scowl hidden behind his sunglasses. "Have you ever considered art other than dancing and tyranny?"

"Hm?" Pavo looked confused.

"Not that you would know, but I'm partly an artist myself. Although my combative front is art in its own right, I technically mean that I draw and craft art to please others, not to sway them from helping others."

Pavo raised a brow. "Oh? And just what exactly are you going on about, mister?"

Nic wasn't swayed by Pavo's misunderstanding, so he cut to the chase. "The point I'm making is that your definition of beautiful is nothing more than garbage, and helping a Dark Guild harm innocent bystanders is poor taste."

Pavo nearly fell over in overdramatic fashion. He scooted back with chattered teeth in revelation. "My art…not beautiful!"

"That's right!" Nic rushed in a flash as Pavo was still distraught, striking him across the face with a fist. Pavo stuttered back from the sudden assault. "Art is also the beauty within one's ideals!"

Pavo grunted as he struck a new pose. "So, you think your 'art' is better?"

"I don't have time for anymore references, nor the patience to deal with it. It's time we finish this."

"Try me, bub!" Pavo got up to one leg and on his tiptoes. "**Glory's Integrity!**" Pavo did a 360 roundhouse that Nic ducked, but as Pavo followed through, his peacock tail-like cape remained folded and followed through, grazing Nic harshly as the latter tumbled out of his reach. Nic felt a quick pain in the shoulder where the cape struck, but ascertained focus when an axe kick shot down from above. He blocked it in time with his forearm and grunted at the impact.

'_This guy's kicks are formidable. Not to mention his varied fighting dance moves.' _ Nic swatted the foot away and jumped back, upon gaining ground he opened his mouth and fired Dark Pulse, which went shooting at Pavo. Seeing the attack, Pavo did a standstill spin with arms over his head, his leg and cape reaching out and Dark Pulse struck the twirling cape, surprisingly being deflected and struck another building's wall.

Nic's eyes widened in shock as Pavo stopped twirling and pointed at him. "HA! See that?" He struck another pose. "As you can see, my peacock-like elegance cannot be tampered, thus any material and projectiles will just bounce right off. HA!"

'_Damnit, so it's like a Mirror Coat of sorts.' _Nic thought. _'So that cape is one of his defenses. If I can stop its direction deflection, I should be able to strike him with long range.' _Nic spread his legs apart and clasped his hands together. A white energy was emerging. "**Embargo!**" He reached out with the energy that became similar to chains. The chains shot rapidly and entangled themselves all around Pavo before vanishing. As surprising as it was, Pavo only felt confined for a few seconds before he felt free as a songbird.

Still, he was curious. "Just what was that supposed to accomplish?"

"You'll see." Nic kept his legs spread. "It's true your cape allows you to deflect all forms of matter like Reflector Magic, but it's useless if not applied like so." Nic opened his mouth and shot another Dark Pulse. "**Dark Pulse!**"

The attack went shooting at Pavo, but he readied himself.

"HA! History shall repeat itself!" He twirled in place again and his leg and folded cape protruded out. "I cannot be brought down that easily-!" Through it all, Dark Pulse struck him and engulfed him in an explosion. Pavo screamed as he went upside down and back first into a building wall, leaving him to get buried under the rubble.

"You should try and consider the fact that the same move won't ever work twice." Nic implied. "That is, unless you got a fail-safe."

The rocks shifted and Pavo shot back up, outraged. Despite his slight huffing and multitude of scrapes, he was still standing. A few more of those and he might not last for the most part.

"You! How did you smudge my elegance?!" He demanded.

Nic kept a calm disposition. "Embargo's target won't allow him or her to use any items' effects. You can say that it's a type of confinement for your cape."

Pavo clenched his fists as his enormous teeth and mouth gritted. "Clever fox!" He growled.

Nic continued scrutinizing Pavo, as though something still wasn't right. _'Still, something about him seems vaguely off. I had this feeling somewhere before, but it was a long time ago…'_

"Take a look!" Pavo's voice got Nic's attention and he saw Pavo reaching for the two peacock with wings perched on his shoulder. He grabbed them and put them at the base of his shoe tips. "This is the prime art of my Kenpo fighting style. **Peacock's Awakening!**"

While the peacock on his shoes were still, his cape unfolded and showed the full length of a peacock's tail. The sudden change in Magic somewhat startled Nic.

Pavo laughed a bit before his enormous grin returned. "You surprised? Well you should be. The pinnacle of my Kenpo. I don't need my cape, it's just for a flashy display, whereas my true art lies in this!" He lunged at Nic with great speed, surprisingly faster with the peacock wing on each side of the shoe now. "Take this!"

He kicked ahead with his right leg, where the peacock let loose a fury of pecks that startled Nic and made him jump out of the way. As he dodged, the wall behind him shattered into little bits, leaving Nic's surprises mounted.

'_What? His kicking prowess drastically increased! Those peacock ornaments enhanced his destructive prowess!' _He was new to this dance ordeal of a fighting style, but he never expected for this guy to be of endless surprises.

Pavo retracted the peacock head and his leg alike, slowly turning his head towards Nic with his huge grin. "Smart thinking, as the beaks are where the Magic is compressed and let loose upon the smallest touch." He raised his foot high. "Think of my kicks as getting shot by a bullet, only this time, the bullet's caliber explodes upon touch." His grin looked slightly wicked. "Prepare to be perpetrated!"

Pavo kicked again and the peacock head lengthened outwards. Nic dodged to his right and watched it retract, only to see Pavo kick with his other leg, where the second peacock head went to strike. Nic jumped up and the peacock head punctured the ground, erupting the ground in a three-foot radius to cave in.

Nic landed and grunted. "I must admit, that got me by surprise."

Pavo kept his grin. "See? I'm not one full of tricks ya know! My eyes can see clearly that your blue ones are still anticipating surprises to come!"

What Pavo said threw Nic off. "Blue?"

"Yes blue! Have you looked in a mirror, or did you not know your eyes were blue?!"

Nic blinked and he pulled off his sunglasses. "I thought my eyes changed…"

Pavo pulled out a mirror. "Here! Take a time out!" He threw the mirror at Nic, who otherwise accepted it. He was still on guard, but he was still curious. He pulled the hand-sized mirror close and saw that his eyes were indeed the exact same, and not midnight blue.

"That's odd. I thought my eyes changed when I shifted." He put his spare hand to his chin. "Was this just an early adaptation?"

Nic was never the vanity type of guy; in fact, he didn't even know why he was caring about his appearance at all. The only explanation was that he was still trying to overcome his sober. His sober was a real hinder this battle; his movements were sluggish, and he could barely dodge those kicks and strikes. And now he was worried about how his eyes never changed properties. He would have to ask his friends later on, because he had no idea if it was an early adaptation that stopped after a short while or if it was recently when he got a new eye.

Nic shook his head to try and relieve himself, yet he was still feeling some slight sober. He clenched the handle tighter and shifted into his Mind Plate. Nic briefly looked down at the mirror and saw that his eyes were still normal.

"Time's up big shot!" Pavo shouted. To that, Nic narrowed his eyes and threw back the mirror.

"Much obliged." Nic said as Pavo caught his own mirror.

Pavo put away his mirror and looked with a scowl. "Gyah! Vanity can't be overlooked! That's why I gave you this time out, but no more understand! Now feel Peacock's Awakening! YAHOO!" Pavo leaped into the air super high with a pose, his winged elbows and shoes giving more bounce than previously, and the unfolded peacock cape only made it that much easier for him to gain some height.

Nic got to a knee and closed his eyes. _'Damn this situation. I'm still sober. My movements aren't as fast, and I'm digressing. I gotta clear them out.' _He furrowed his brows and let out a small breath as Pavo let out a flamboyant laugh above.

"**Calm Mind.**" Nic's body flashed a bright light that emanated light ripples that converged into him. The sudden tactic somewhat surprised Pavo as Nic was going defensive. Nic remained in his one-knee stance as the light ripples began to fade.

As Pavo reached a critical point, Nic stood back up and reached for his sunglasses and put them back on. With his mind back to being focused, he glanced up at a now descending Pavo.

"Say goodbye!" Pavo descended downwards, and his peacock cape was still unfolded, yet it was used as a glider as he swooped down to attack. "HIYAH!" He kicked as Nic remained still.

Suddenly before he could even touch him, Pavo suddenly found his entire body immobile and fixated in midair. He gasped in surprise as he couldn't even move the peacocks on his legs.

Nic kept a calm composure as his eyes were narrowed. "There, now that's more like it." With a single arm thrust, he sent Pavo soaring in a spiral into the debris from where he came from, making various objects and material fly.

Nic got back to a normal stance as he waited from the dust to settle. With a steady head back, he anticipated for Pavo to arise. Sure enough, his opponent arose from the rubble with more bruises than one could count.

"I didn't expect you to have some sort of push and pull form. What a predicament this has become." Pavo stated sourly. He became stiff when he saw how fast Nic lunged at him, leaving him open for a fist to the face, driving him into a vertical spin into the debris again.

"You…" Pavo got back to his feet and showed his expressive anger.

Nic's gaze narrowed some more. With his Mind Plate, he was able to see clearly, yet it was some sort of haze. He was seeing and feeling a lot of things that was somehow nerve-wracking. He felt determination, guilt, justice…yet the most peculiar thing he sensed was that somewhere in Pavo's mind, there was something that Nic wished he didn't see: Blood.

Nic immediately backed out of Pavo's mind and took a step back from shock. A small huff came from him and grunted. _'What was that just now?' _He contemplated as Pavo advanced. _'It's like he knows what he's doing is wrong, and something far darker that led him here! Something that felt so…vile.'_

"Go down!" Pavo tried unleashing a fury of his dancing fighting style, starting with a quick kick, but Nic was much faster than before now that his mind was not so sober anymore. Pavo roundhouse, swiftly struck with the palms, and used the peacocks, but Nic's reflexes were at full capacity, and not a single blow landed as Nic shifted, leaned, backflipped, and dodged.

"Your speed and reflexes increased?!" Pavo exclaimed.

Nic got to a knee stance after dodging a kick. Through his sunglasses, his eyes darted through Pavo's which were scared.

"Yes, now that I'm no longer sober, take this!" Nic thrust his palm out. "**Heart Stamp!**"

At that exact moment, Pavo lifted his leg and kicked. The peacock met with Nic's abdomen as the palm struck Pavo's own abdomen. As a pink heart expanded upon contact, it exploded and Pavo gagged as he shot backwards into a tumble while Nic grunted loudly as the shockwave from the kick to the abdomen sent him skidding backwards into rubble from a broken wall.

Both opponents got up and grunted; clenched fists got tighter and a wind past them, and then their eyes widened.

Simultaneously, they both lunged at each other with battlecries. Pavo kicked ahead with the peacock extended out. As the ornament closed in, time slowed down as Nic swatted it towards his left and closed the gap between them. Pavo's eyes widened as Nic's forehead showed a shining blue ball.

"**Zen Headbutt!**" Nic cried out, ramming his forehead into Pavo's abdomen. A bright flash shined as Pavo's mouth was wide and screaming up to the heavens. The force of Zen Headbutt shot Pavo back, crashing helplessly into the upper part of a building. He was seen in a cloud of dust at the same elevation and the dust cloud dispersed and Pavo fell to the ground on his abdomen with a harsh thud.

Nic stood triumphantly and quietly as his defeated opponent laid on the ground. He didn't look at Pavo, rather than the building he crashed into, spacing out.

'_The heck was going through that guy's mind?'_ Nic thought with slight irritation. _'I still can't seem to understand clearly. His past was all too horrific, but as far as I'm concerned, he's not at all a threat. Still, what is this odd feeling that he's giving off?'_

Pavo panted weakly as he was sprawled over the ground. "I surrender."

Nic looked down at him and examined his weakened body. He was clearly unable to move given his injuries. Nic chose to remain silent as Pavo panted some more before continuing.

His eyes remained open and kept a smile of pride. "There's no point in fighting this any longer. I congratulate you." His eyes closed. "Now, finish me."

Nic didn't move.

"You might as well. You won fair and square; and besides, Ghoul's Coffin would do it anyway."

Nic kept a frown as he still did nothing.

"Don't just stand there, get it over with!" His eyes opened as he tilted his head towards Nic. "Come on, finish me-!"

What Pavo saw was a hand reaching down to him, with Nic giving a warm smile. The appeal and gesture made Pavo's eyes shot wide with sheer shock and revelation.

"That was well-fought battle, Pavo." Nic commemorated. "And as far as that goes, there's really nothing more to say. Am I right?" He kept a smile of respect for his opponent as Pavo was left so moved by Nic's sight. He no longer saw Pavo as some form of enemy; sure an opponent, but after what he saw and sensed, it's not likely to consider Pavo an enemy.

Pavo shakily reached up as shock was still overtaking him. He accepted and grabbed Nic's hand and sat up.

Pavo was internally weeping with joy as this was something he'd last expect. _'This guy. He shows the dearest respect to those who deserve it. This one solemn individual deserves genuine praise.'_

Nic's eyes closed. "However…"

"Huh-GHOH!"

Pavo was met with an axe kick to the back of the head, sending him driving to the ground with a gaping mouth.

"You still have to pay for the trouble you caused." Nic finished. As Pavo laid there, barely conscious, Nic's grin returned. "Though this doesn't change the respect you've earned for your fair fight." He turned away and shifted back into himself.

"Now since I'm at this point, it's fair to bet the lacrima tower is close by." Nic turned and started walking, leaving Pavo to groan.

'_Well, he did finish me.' _He mentally said as he started blacking out. With his gaping mouth, he grinned weakly as he watched the last bit of Nic walk off. _'It's as they said. He is the light to shine away darkness. Nic Pularis, perhaps you are the one…who can save us all.'_

* * *

**If you guys were paying attention throughout the story, I stopped making eye changes after the Meadow Plate, so assume that after the Phantom Lord Arc, his eyes were the same. Pavo will also be a vital key later on as well.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love this fanfic.**

* * *

**Next Time: Value of Friendship**


	56. Value of Friendship

Chapter 56 – Value of Friendship

**Well, since there were very little reviews, and none to respond to, let's get on with the extended X791 Arc!**

**To Recap:**

A drunken Nic showed no mercy as he demolished Bacchus and Seiryo, the former's Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm being of no match for Nic's speed. With Nic rampaging off towards west, Cana, Sophie, and Staraptor all split up towards a different target. Sophie encounters and began her fight with Boig, Cana met and defeated Sol from the Element Four a long time ago, and Nic, being sober, encountered Pavo. With Pavo's dance moves, and him being sober, Nic was sluggish and barely dodged, but soon overcame his troubles and won, and saw Pavo as someone to respect from what he's been through.

* * *

**Chapter 56 – Value of Friendship**

An overview of the whole city of Dahlias was seen through the eyes of a particular bird. She soared with a fierce vibe that could make a grown man with a weak will pee himself. Her sharp vision pointed out at the lacrima tower far ahead at where she was meant to go.

Staraptor kept on going as she soared like a fighter jet that kept on zooming on. _'I gottta hurry! Sophie and Cana may lose the remains of their Magic if they have already encountered enemies!' _She flapped with vigorous efforts, becoming a blur far overhead. _'Nic should be recovered by now. He's probably there alrea-!'_

She was cut off when a sudden beam from below was launched. Her reflexes kicked in within a matter of seconds and she barrel rolled in midair to avoid the beam.

Without even questioning, she looked down at where the beam originated. Her red predatory eyes took notice of a hand extended out before retracting back in front of a man. The man showed a collective smirk as he was the one with the shoulder pads and shin guards.

"My, this is certainly a turn of events. Ghoul's Coffin was almost close to a full charge and then this happens." His gaze remained the same, yet his face darkened. "Guess it'd be best to step in since half of the elites are down already."

Seeing as how this was gonna become a battle, Staraptor dove in with wings tucked in. She sped towards the ground like a dive bomber and touched the ground with talons hitting the ground first, sending dust in a ripple as her wings were spread out and she gave a glare at her opponent.

The mage kept his straight face. "So, my opponent is an avian. I must admit, your intimidating vibe is rather unnerving." He admitted. "However, I'll pluck ever one of your feathers and see you turn to dust."

Staraptor's strong legs spread out. "Such a hefty boast. Let's see you back it up."

His arm extended forward. "I'll be glad to oblige." Energy charged in his palms. "I never would've imagined fighting an avian with my Beam Magic, but beggars can't be choosers." His hand shot a beam of light that shot at Staraptor. The Predator Pokémon kept her wings spread and activated Steel Wing, folding them over and shielding herself.

The beam of light touched her wings, but the light was deflected off of her Steel Wing, separating into smaller beams that went off into other directions, hitting buildings and the sidewalks, sending debris flying in a small area.

Staraptor uncovered herself and glared at her opponent. "Nice try." She put one talon behind and dug it into the ground. "But not worth being called an attack!"

Within a blur, a ripple was seen where she was before dust zoomed on either side. The mage suddenly gawked as Staraptor sped into his clothed abdomen. "**Aerial Ace!**" The impact's effect shot the mage several feet back while off the ground, soon crashing into the pavement.

Staraptor flapped in midair and descended back to standing on her talons as the dust cleared, revealing the man to have a few scratches, although he maintained a smirk.

"Most impressive. That was so fast that it was like a vast blur." He commented.

"No kidding." Staraptor took a fighting stance with wings poised to strike. "Care to try your luck again?"

"No need." He dusted himself off and had arms on both sides having palms face up. "Perhaps I should introduce myself as Raey. My Beam Magic can take a numerous amount of components and shoot it with instantaneous effects." He crouched.

"For example…" He shot both arms forward, sending a beam of darkness at Staraptor. "**Grim Ray!**"

Raey's attack shot at Staraptor as she only stood in place. The attack closed in and everything in front of Raey was caught in an explosion of darkness. A boom echoed through the ground, yet the only thing left after the attack faded was a crater.

"Well now, who's eating their own words?" Raey boasted as he grinned half-heartily at the crater.

"Not me, that's for sure."

Raey turned his head to look up, finding Staraptor flapping high above the ground. As she maintained stability, she wasn't at all tired. She didn't have a single scratch on her feathery body.

'_That's so fast! I didn't even see it dodge!' _Raey thought with hidden amazement. Staraptor swopped down with talons spread out as she went to attack from above. Raey grunted and shot his left arm forward, sending another beam of darkness that Staraptor effortlessly evaded while still descending. She flawlessly stretched out her talon and kicked Raey into the pavement on his back, making cracks along the pavement that implied the force used.

Staraptor spread her wings and took flight above, her figure making the sunlight overhead make her gleam like that of a shadow. "Where you're proficient at long-range, that's where your close-range defenses are at their weakest.

Raey grunted as he got up.

"If you weren't so focused on long-range, perhaps you wouldn't have that cocky smirk again." Staraptor remained steady as she continued to flap. Raey slowly balled his fists while he scoffed with a grin.

"Okay, I admit that I underestimated you." He confessed. "Perhaps I should do more than just show the light and darkness of my Beam Magic." His body was encased in a magenta aura, signaling a Magic Power increase. "You have earned the right to witness the vast variety of my spells! Behold!"

Raey brought his arms around like windmills and shot them forward, sending a massive beam of bright red at Staraptor. The attack closed in, but Staraptor flapped once and ascended, evading the bright red beam that continued its course and collided with the pavement, making it melt.

'_Plasma?' _Staraptor was caught surprised and looked back to find Raey bringing his right arm across with bright green. He swiped it in a long arc and a bright green crescent beam expanded outwards.

"**Scissor Splice!**"

The green crescent beam continued outwards, going so far as to slicing clean through the building walls. Staraptor took quick notice and ducked from the horizontal attack as it dispersed outwards, leaving several buildings' lower levels with little support.

Staraptor looked back up to find Raey in front with two fists coated in light. He plunged his fists at Staraptor, but she fiercely swatted them away with her strong wings with little effort. She then raised a talon and kicked Raey again in the abdomen, leaving him to gag and gave herself the opportunity to twirl and strike him with the back of her left wing, sending him in a skid.

Dust blew like a tempest as he skid on his back and Staraptor ascended. She looked at the dust cloud with uncertainty. "Is that all you can accomplish?"

"Not quite." Raey's voice was crystal clear through the dust cloud. With a single swipe of his hand, the dust around him blew away, showing his other hand coated in bright blue. "How about we try a game of cat and mouse. **Tendril Chase!**"

He shot his arm forward, and out blasted a straight line of light blue, yet as it traveled it began to separate into two, then three, eventually until a total of ten beams went after Staraptor.

"I'll play." She flashed a brief light. "**Double Team!**" At that instant, a multitude of copies spread like wildfire, the number rivaling that of Tendril Chase.

"What's this? It can maneuver with copies of her own?" Raey retorted in shock. "No matter!" He shot the various beams at all of the Staraptor copies. The copies including the original diverged in random directions and the beams followed them all.

For illusionary copies, they were just as fast as the real deal. The tendrils of the beam could hardly keep up as each individual copy twirled and dodged with precise movements; not a single shift or flap mislead. The attack held up until the ten Staraptors converged and all saw the beams coming from every single direction. As the beams made way, one Staraptor dive-bombed at the last second, leaving all of the beams to collide into the other and let loose a rippling bright blue shockwave high into the air.

As the explosion swallowed up the sky, Staraptor's copies were all struck and the real one was seen doing the dive bomb. She did a sharp 90 degree turn when two feet from the ground and went in to attack.

"Impudent pest! **Plasma Wave!**" Raey extended his left arm out, letting loose a bright red beam of sheer plasma that Staraptor nimbly dodged by gliding right past it.

"HRAH! **Steel Wing!**" With her wings glowing a metal-gray color, she slammed her left wing down on Raey's head, sending him crashing and making a crater.

Staraptor kept her distance as she flapped her wings and gained some altitude. Her opponent was seemingly incapacitated, but the movement from his forearms supporting him meant he still had some fight in him.

Raey slowly hesitated to get up, but when he looked back up, his face had a dark shadow as his calm demeanor became much less relaxed and more cruel-fitting. Staraptor was on her best guard as she paid attention to how his Magic was continuously shifting. His magenta aura came back and Staraptor felt a strong Magic Power pulse. "Your maneuvering's really cumbersome."

Staraptor foresaw his attack and dodged as Raey swiped his arm in another arc into the sky, sending Scissor Splice trailing and dispersing through the sky. Staraptor flew overhead and looked down as Raey's hands were coated in bright brown.

"Now! **Heaven's Burden!**" He pivoted his foot and shot the attack in a long arc upwards towards an overhead avian. Staraptor's angle adjusted and she used her wings as a shield. The bright brown beam struck her, engulfing her in bright brown that quickly went away.

The beam dispersed, yet Staraptor didn't feel any levels of pain. She uncovered herself and grunted as she saw the smirk on Raey's face widening.

'_Just what type of beam did he hit me with…?' _She was sure it wasn't a hot plasma beam, nor was it a freezing cold beam; she would've felt the temperature differences even before the attack hit her. Her wings suddenly became heavy, and her entire body had become heavier all of a sudden, as if she had eaten a lead weight. "What the hell-?!" She lost all stability and fell straight downwards, striking the ground beneath with a crash. She grunted in the sharp pain that she fiercely ignored and opened her eyes to look at Raey walking towards her.

Raey's calm smirk returned. "I see that fierce look never fading. What you were hit with was a gravity beam that amplifies the gravity of anything it hits, making it heavy enough so that it can slow down. Or in your case, enough that you can't fly."

Staraptor's eyes narrowed, but showed no irritation.

"Keep the tough act up all you want, but it's clear that a bird is useless on land." He advanced with a dark-coated fist. "I was hoping for a better fight, but I guess when one's wings are clipped, they become rather useless."

Staraptor's aggressive glare intensified.

The next second happened so fast. The first thing seen was a talon, the next second was Raey coughing up some blood as he shot into a damaged building, crashing through the support and the remaining fragments of the building fell apart.

Staraptor watched as the building collapsed at its base, and the debris let a copious of dust that clouded all around. Staraptor remained composed as she stood still as dust blew past her.

"You'd be wise to silence your tongue before it's clawed out." Staraptor warned at the debris piled up. "You seem to have forgotten that I have talons and a beak to strike you with."

The rubble began to shift, and an explosion of darkness erupted, making Staraptor block with her wings as small fragments pelted her. The rubble soon simmered down to where Raey was standing back up, but his body looked all the more exhausted.

He looked very much angry, though his calm façade overwrote it. "But how?! It's impossible! No mere bird can be as agile on land than in the air! It's unfathomable!"

Staraptor spread her wings and flapped them once, sending a strong wind that made small pebbles flying off and making Raey cover up. She spread her wings on her sides and kept her intimidating vibe as she spoke. "For you maybe, but I was trained to battle in air and the ground. I'm as versatile as anyone."

_A long time ago, Staraptor was still a Staravia and was still new to the team. She had just woken up and yawned. Looking around as the morning sun began to creep behind the shrubs through the trees, she spread her wings and saw that Nic and his Pokémon were up already. _

"_(Well, guess we're all early birds.)" Staravia thought as she turned towards Frogadier._

_The Water-Type nodded. "(Hm, it's true. We all enjoy getting up early for some training. It really helps us later on.)"_

"_(You're just lucky this one time. It's not often that we wake after the sun rises.)" Charmeleon informed._

_Kecleon tilted her head. "(We rise while the sun still sleeps.)"_

_Nic cracked his knuckles and stretched his arms over his head. After he did so, he reached for the sunglasses on his V-neck. "Morning guys." He began stretching his legs by spreading them and crouching. "Alright, let's start off with a morning run."_

_Staravia tilted her head in confusion, but to her surprise, no one was groaning, nor complaining; they seemed rather happy with the run. Staravia began to spread her wings to ready herself or flight and took off in the air as everyone turned towards a similar direction._

_As everyone began to move, Nic looked over at Staravia and he stopped. "Hold on." At that instant, his Pokémon all stopped advancing towards the forest and looked back at Nic. His solemn gaze was on Staravia. "No flying Staravia, this is a run."_

"_(H-Huh?!)" Staravia gawked as she nearly dropped to the ground in astonishment. She quickly collected herself and shook her head to ascertain focus. "(B-But how am I supposed to get around?! By running on my talons?!)" She held up her talons towards Nic._

_Nic got a clear understanding and crossed his arms. "I know how you must feel, but it's important to understand. You decided to follow us because we were special, right? This is one of the ways. Besides, what if you come to a scenario where you can't fly?"_

_His reasoning did bring up a valid point. Staravia did have a loyalty to Nic due to an incident yesterday, and seeing how him and his Pokémon work inspired her. Though she was hoping for some flying, she was adamant about being versatile. It wouldn't hurt to try; besides, if she really did come across an emergency, she wouldn't be so useless on land._

"_(Okay.)" With a smile and nod, Staravia descended and placed her feet on the ground. She looked around at the expectant yet warm faces of everyone and looked back down at the ground. Looking and feeling with her talons, she then looked ahead, and began to falter forward when trying to run._

"_(We gotcha!)" Kecleon helped in getting Staravia to her feet before she could fall to the ground fully. She was helped up and Charmeleon was on the other side to support her as she took a few breaths before beginning to try and run again._

_She had to take it really slow at first, keeping the talons from making her fall over. It had to be one talon in front of the other, but she gradually began to adapt. She was given help all throughout that morning as the sun shined on her face at the dawn of her versatile experience._

"Not once have I regretted running and ground combat." She took a stance with talons spread and wings poised to strike. "If you think I'm worthless on land, you're an even more arrogant freak show than I had imagined."

His cool diminishing due to frustration, Raey gritted his teeth and shot a beam of plasma at his grounded opponent, hoping to get a good attack in and finish her in one blow.

Staraptor's vision adjusted and she took off like a Dodrio. Her powerful legs threw her with every step. Her muscles in the legs were out of this world. And that's saying something. She ran with wings folded in and shifted left to evade the beam of plasma.

Reay adjusted his beam to follow Staraptor, but the avian jumped over the beam with a twirl and landed on the opposite side. She pressed on towards her target with great speed. Raey was open and Staraptor slammed her right wing in a swipe, striking Raey's gut and making him gag. She followed it up with a fast talon straight up to the chin, and twirled and kicked Raey while in midair.

The onslaught sent Raey crashing on his back through a skid, but he quickly composed and flipped onto his feet and continued his skid to a stop. He let out a battlecry as his hands were brought together. "**Tendril Chase!**"

His attack went shooting at Staraptor, separating into several more beams and converged onto the Predator Pokémon. Staraptor didn't falter as she barrel rolled to the side and leaped in the same direction, watching two beams fade away after missing. Her instincts picked up two more coming from the direction she was skidding into and came to a halt. She pushed backwards and saw one beam hit the ground yet one followed her as she went backwards.

A beam went shooting down from above and Staraptor did something that no one could ever believe. She somersaulted backwards and used the tips of her wings for a 'handstand'. She twisted her body and flipped out of the way, watching the two beams collide in the same place.

"How in the world is that even remotely physically possible?!" Raey retorted in sheer astonishment.

It'd be pretty hard to picture a bird Pokémon like a Pidgeot or Swanna doing the same motions; in fact, it would've been physically impossible. Staraptor was actually pulling off the impossible and her on-the-ground acrobatic skills were unbelievably astounding. You'd imagine Charizard moving with such high speed with his body, but seeing Staraptor on the ground as well was something that would make you drop anything in your hands. But considering she knows Close Combat, it would make a little sense.

The avian stomped on the ground and did a sideways flip. She landed in front of Raey and struck him with the back of her Steel Wing. As the man fell over, she twirled counterclockwise and slammed her Steel Wing into his back, making him gag and lurch forward into getting himself kicked by a single talon, with the other on the ground.

Raey shot back and crashed once more into a building that was barely intact. He was left in a crater ten feet off the ground and winced at how his Heaven's Burden completely backfired.

'_Damn that bird. That was supposed to increase her weight three fold, and yet she looks like she's staying on the ground on purpose. Is she toying with me?!' _His patience was at an all-time low as he dislodged himself from the crater and fell on his feet to the ground. He panted and caught his breath. He kept his panting up and looked back at Staraptor, her Intimidate startling him some. Though he retained his composure, albeit barely. "It seems that I'm no match either way I see it."

Staraptor took up a stance. "So now you see?"

Raey snickered. "It'd be a crying shame to get defeated by a bird, so I'll finish this with my next move…" The ground began to shake a little and Staraptor looked around to find small rocks quaking and shifting. She looked back ahead and saw Raey manifesting a rainbow-colored energy in between both palms.

'_He's condensing a lot of power into this next shot. He's gonna finish this in one go.' _Staraptor wasn't at all underestimating her adversary, but seeing him keep to his word was quite the shocker since it hardly ever happened.

"Behold! **Glory's Ashes!**" He let out a battlecry once more and let loose a beam of an assorted array of colors. As the beam traveled, the rocks and debris that was in its way was reduced to nothing, literally nothing. "HA! You'll be reduced to nothing but disintegrated matter! It's the end of the line for you!"

As the beam shot at her, Staraptor was running low on time and the beam's range was too grand to dodge fully. She looked around hastily and saw little area to cover. If she was gonna do something, it had to be now.

Glory's Ashes maintained a constant course and beamed onwards, striking Staraptor and kept on going as it penetrated through several buildings at once, reducing everything caught in line into ash. This left a straight line of perfect circles in buildings that stretched as far as the eye could see.

Raey smirked as he felt relieved. "Well that was tougher than what had been anticipated." He spectated the area ahead and saw how fragments of everything was sizzling from the disintegration ray. He turned away and looked rather weak and nearly fell over.

"That bird's close-range combat was most formidable. But alas no one has gotten out unscathed by that-!"

A sudden drop from above caused him to stop and he looked up only to get a talon to the face, pushing him to the ground. When he felt the pressure being lifted, he shot back up and looked in shock to find his opponent flapping in front of him.

Raey angrily clenched his fists as his anger spiked. "How could you have possibly survived such a devastating beam?!"

Staraptor flapped in the air as she thought back to when it happened. "You didn't look at your surroundings."

_The beam traveled towards Staraptor, but what she took note of was how the beam's volume was surprisingly massive, and that Ray himself couldn't see anything but Glory's Ashes. _

_With this in mind, Staraptor turned around and saw that right behind her was a broken wall that lead inside. Seeing no alternative, she flashed and left a Double Team copy of herself to take it, leaving the real version of herself to turn and dart with great speed on talons towards the broken wall. Her legs swiftly carried her through the wall as the Double Team copy took the fall. _

_As the beam raced onwards, Staraptor sped towards the other wall and used her Steel Wing once more, breaking the wall with one fell swing. As the wall shattered, she hurriedly dove through and jumped to the other side when the beam was making way through the room. _

_Staraptor pivoted and zoomed to her left a few seconds before the beam finally breached the wall she broke through, continuing its course and leaving Staraptor spared._

Raey angrily gritted his teeth. "Damn you…" His voice was of great scowl and frustration. "And it seems that my Heaven's Burden had worn off."

"I'm through toying with you! Now let's end this!" Staraptor folded her body and dove after Raey.

"Curse you! HRAH!" Raey made a last ditch attempt with the little Magic he had left over from Glory's Ashes. He shot beams of light at Staraptor as the latter descended greatly.

Staraptor thought little of the beams and her wings glowed with Steel Wing. As she descended, the attack shielded her from Raey's light beam. The beam of light deflected off of Steel Wing and shot into random directions that left her unscathed.

Raey covered up as the deflected light beams nearly touched him and shook the area all around, sending dust soaring all about. When he opened his eyes. The battle was already won.

"**Close Combat!**"

Staraptor appeared in front and on the ground. She raised a talon and kicked Raey's gut, followed by a multi-twirling back wing strike, and then followed by an endless display of beak jabs, talon kicks to the face, and wing swatting, and downwards wing strikes, all of which were like a hammer with every blow.

Bones were broken with every strike, and with one last kick, Staraptor sent Raey screaming and crashing into the same crater ten feet off of the ground, making it more dense and deep until it finally caved in and Raey fell through the wall, skidding across the empty second floor and crashing into the next wall, breaking it and falling downwards onto the next street over a pile of debris, leaving him battered and unconscious.

Staraptor flapped in the air and looked through the holes, seeing the other side broken. With her opponent finally stopped, she turned towards the lacrima tower close at hand.

"That took longer than what I had thought. I need to pick up the pace." With that remark, her wings spread out and she flapped off and onwards towards the lacrima tower in a blur that went over rooftops.

* * *

Sophie panted as her opponent was laughing like a maniac. She was not having a good time with this psycho. Her adversary was completely toying with her with his specters. The numerous ghost wailed all around him as his tongue flickered repeatedly.

"GAHAHAHAHA! You got guys girly! Too bad I gotta turn them into food! Get her!" Boig extended his arm out. "**Wailing Rush!**"

Several ghosts went zooming after Sophie as the blonde was forced to take the hit. The numerous specters went flying right past her, their physical properties bombarding Sophie.

'_Tch. There it is again…' _Her hair flailed as the torrent of ghosts finally caused her to lose footing and skid backwards.

The attack soon stopped and Sophie uncovered herself to find that a dome made of mini-ghosts encased her.

"**Catacomb Torment!**" Boig's crazed expression never left his face as he shot his arms out. The small ghosts encasing Sophie flashed purple in the eyes and shot small beams at her. The attack closed in, but Sophie still had her own tricks up her sleeves.

"Memorize, and…forget!" Sophie hastily 'memorized' the attack and stopped it completely, dispersing the beams before they could even touch her. The ghosts all collapsed and flew about in the air. They looked unaffected by Sophie, but their attack did cease nonetheless.

"Not bad." Boig commented.

'_I'm not certain, but I'll have to be sure.' _Sophie thought. _'If I can hit them both at the same time, then I'll be absolutely right.' _She positioned herself and pointed a finger at her forehead. A chain of memories sprouted around her. "**Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**"

The ground shook with great magnitude and Boig's crazed look faded into a frown. "What the-?!"

Several stones coated in yellow lightning jutted out from the ground and struck the ghosts that were on the ground, causing an explosion of lightning. As the stones went and attacked Boig, he grunted before sticking his tongue out. He was then hit, yet the most shocking feature was that the attack went straight through him, as though he was a ghost.

Sophie's eyes narrowed. "I'm memorizing everything."

"You…GRAH!" Boig's sleeves almost exploded as a flood of ghosts appeared out of them, all taking up the scenery above them. Numerous ghosts popped out, though they were all miniature ghosts. "GAHAHA! Try and handle this many at once!"

Sophie spread her legs and readied herself.

Boig snapped his unkempt fingers, and two human-sized ghosts arose from behind and their ghastly arms gripped her own, causing her to remain immobile. Sophie gasped as she found herself immobile.

"GAHAHA! Now let's see you squirm your way out of this!" A dark purple aura coated his body as his arms hot forward with a dark Magic seal. "**Doomsday Tsunami!**"

The little ghosts in the sky all arched downwards and wailed haphazardly. They all shot down at an incapacitated Sophie. The attack was at least three times as grand as Wailing Rush.

Still, Sophie had to be sure and she had to take risks. "You can try all you want, but no matter what, there's always a loophole with every Magic!" She concentrated as best as she could without touching her forehead, and it was barely successful. "**Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**"

A multitude of small saucers of fire went spiraling through the air and shot at the numerous ghosts. The ghosts that were hit were sliced and cindered by Pyro Saucer, yet as the attack traveled through the tsunami of ghosts, the ghosts began to faze through the remaining saucers.

And at that same time, the ghosts containing Sophie fazed through, leaving Sophie to move freely. She jumped back away from the ghosts and saw how they were all continuing on as Pyro Saucer began dialing down, yet they all fazed through Sophie as she covered up from the attack. As peculiar as it was, the ghosts went right through her, as if the attack was for naught.

As the attack stopped, the ghosts were all gone and Sophie kept a serious gaze on a maniacal Boig as three little ghosts surrounded him.

"I think I have it down for the most part." Sophie informed. "Your Magic has a flaw."

"The heck are you talking about?! My Legend of City ain't so vulnerable!" Boig protested.

Sophie remained as calm as possible as her Magic was very much at its depleted state. "This: You can change the properties of your specters, but it's clear that they have to be intangible if they're to pass through attacks, leaving the opponent free. If they were tangible the entire way through, then damage would've been dealt."

Boig's face became twisted. "Say what?! How the hell did you figure that out?!"

Sophie's only response was her finger pointing at her forehead, where she made a small chain of memories and shot a small Pyro Saucer attack at Boig and his small ghosts at the exact same time. The small array of saucers struck the ghosts, slicing them and leaving them to be cindered. Boig's tongue stuck out as he was intangible, allowing the attack to go through him.

"GAHAHA! Is that the best you got?" Boig's eyes narrowed as Pyro Saucer stopped and Sophie was seen smirking.

"Now I get it." Sophie remained composed as she was shaking in the knees from low Magic Power. "When your ghosts are tangible, you're intangible; and vice versa. That means while your ghosts were fazing through my defenses, your body was forced to revert back to being a solid."

Boig snarled angrily as his crazed eyes dilated. "Grrr!" He growled in frustration. "Blondie! You're not gonna live after this! HRAH!"

He hollered violently as his heavy coat flapped as his Magic surged. Sophie felt the heavy Magic level and pointed at her forehead.

"You've gone and pissed me off! After this, your soul will be at my disposal! Just like the rest of them!" A Magic seal appeared in front of him, this one being rather large compared to himself. "**Reaper!**"

A sour green spirit with a hollow back smile went wailing after Sophie. Sophie could feel the corrupted force the attack had from afar, but she now had the material to fend against it.

Magic surged as she widened her eyes. "Now! Let's go! **Memory-Make:…**"

She held her arms out, where a Magic seal appeared, and materializing before it was a multitude of translucent black swords with purple wavy blades. The several swords in front pointed at the opponent ahead and began to spin clockwise. Each translucent sword glowed a bright purple and began to increase in speed.

"**\- Spectral Saber Flash!**"

Sophie let loose the array of swords at the incoming ghost. The swords all went at the exact same time, and the green ghost wailed as the translucent attack was a few feet away.

"GAHAHA! Fine no matter, I'll make it intangible!" Boig followed through with what he said and the ghost began to become intangible. The ghost then fazed through the swords, and time slowed down as the ghost zoomed off.

The glowing, spinning swords were moving slowly, as was the ghost. The ghost and the swords were only five feet opposite of the other before slash marks flashed on the ghost and it split into several pieces.

Boig's jaw nearly dropped as his ghost was sliced up. "WH-WHAT?!"

Sophie smirked. "I knew it'd work." The swords continued to spin and the green ghost vanished into thin air. "I've memorized the properties of your Legend of City Magic, and by combining that with Erza's Sword Magic, I just created a spell that makes ghost swords than can penetrate tangible and intangible matter!"

Boig's tongue hung out as he stumbled back at the swords raced towards him. "GAHAHAAAAAH! NOOO!"

"HRAH!" Sophie extended her arm out and the ghastly glowing blades continued on spinning. Their tips met while spinning and the hilts stayed apart. In a way, the move somehow resembled Giga Impact, yet was light purple and black.

Boig looked hysterical as his tongue flickered and his eyes bulged out as Sophie's newest Memory-Make spell went after him. The attack swallowed up everything in front of him, and he made one last attempt at becoming intangible, yet it proved to be of no help whatsoever.

"HRAAAHHHHH!" Boig screamed violently as he was struck by Spectral Saber Flash, getting caught up in a flash of bright purple that only lasted but for a brief moment. After the flash, the swords were behind him and no longer glowing, soon vanishing upon diverging and Boig's attire was all torn up and had gashes and cuts accumulated from that one blow. He fell backwards with a thud, eyes deprived of pupils.

Sophie panted and nearly fell over. She caught herself just in the nick of time and stared out ahead. She was very much exhausted and her Magic was just about depleted. She only had enough for a single spell, but the lacrima all around the city sucked up a lot with every spell she cast.

'_That was close, too close.' _Sophie panted as she contemplated. _'I need to get to that lacrima.'_

With what little strength she had, she adjusted herself and walked off towards her destination, leaving her defeated enemy lying on the ground.

* * *

Nic stood in front of the large lacrima tower, with several bodies of unconscious and pummeled Ghoul's Coffin members all around. His hand-to-hand combat expertise was more than enough to handle the situation and he was glad he made it as quick as possible.

"Alright, it's time."

* * *

Cana stood among the several guards that were revealed to be more members of Ghoul's Coffin, cards flashing in her hand as she smirked.

"This'll be a hoot. Now, let's get to work!"

* * *

Staraptor spiraled through so many members at once, sending them flying and thudding on their backs. The avian straightened out and saw a member coming down from above.

With her combat experience, she lifted herself with a single wing on the ground and used her talons in the air to grab a downwards sword poised to strike her. She twisted her body and slammed the guy behind her, knocking him out with that one blow.

With the last adversary down, she took flight again and looked at the lacrima tower. "Time to settle this."

* * *

Sophie panted as she walked and ended up in front of a giant lacrima at the top of a tower 50 feet above. She huffed as she was actually feeling dizzy, and the ten to fifteen Ghoul's Coffin members didn't help her one bit.

"Okay…my patience is wearing thin." She huffed as the enemy advanced. She pointed a finger to her head and narrowed her eyes. "These guys are just irritating me, and I'm fed up. Time to finish with these lacrima for good."

A chain of memories surrounded her and she widened her eyes. "**Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**"

The numerous stones coated in yellow jutted out of the ground, easily electrocuting and damaging the enemy mages and struck the base of the tower, each pointed stone jutted into the legs of the tower. Sophie panted as she took several steps backwards as the tower lost support and the whole structure had begun to collapse downwards.

She jumped back as much as possible as the 50-foot tall structure came down on her, and she made one huge jump backwards with a squeal, covering up as the lacrima fell to the ground, shattering into several large fragments. Sophie fell back in a skid and laid on the ground as she looked up at the bright blue sky.

Her sight narrowed as a smile crept on her face. "That was overbearing."

* * *

"**Icicle!**" Swiping her card, Cana unleashed several large icicles at the fellow enemy mages. They all gawked at the huge size of the icicles and several got hit, freezing at the same time. The attack pressed on past the victims and struck the base of the lacrima tower.

Cana looked up to see the huge structure beginning to gradually lose support. The whole thing had begun to creak and bend to one side. The entire domain then started to fall forward, forcing Cana with no alternative but to turn and run.

The Card Mage ran as fast as she could as the tower collapsed. The giant lacrima went crashing down on the ground, where it shattered into large fragments.

The brunette lost her footing from the sudden shockwave of the tower breaking down and tumbled away, she eventually tumbled onwards until she was safe enough away and small fragments of the lacrima ended up a few inches from her.

This put a victorious smirk on her face as she felt drained.

* * *

"**Aerial Ace!**" Staraptor zoomed in a blur and darted right into the lacrima. In a flash, she was seen flapping on the other side of the lacrima, and looking away as she knew of the results.

It didn't seem like anything happened, but then a glint flashed on the lacrima, showing several deep cracks. The next second, it all fell apart, completely shattering into fragments and falling to the ground below.

The Predator Pokémon turned back to see her target destroyed and kept her ferocious glare.

* * *

Nic stood with clenched fists as he glowed a bright light. When the light faded it showed him in his Draco Plate Form.

Pretty much everything of the Draco Plate stayed the same, only the coat seemed to have altered. It was now a solid royal blue with coral red edging and coral red belt. The short sleeves were of royal blue with coral red edging.

Nic spread his draconic wings and took flight, soaring to a rather high elevation. He shot straight up to a point where he was eye level with the large lacrima. He didn't waste a single breath as he opened his mouth and draconic energy accumulated rapidly.

"**Dragon Pulse!**" He lurched his head forward, sending a multicolored dragon-shaped beam with wings at the lacrima. The attack's mouth chomped down onto the lacrima, generating a multicolored explosion that swallowed up the lacrima, shattering it into various small fragments.

Nic watched as the explosion simmered down and saw sparkles of the lacrima remains twinkle. This sense of justice bringing a small grin onto his face.

* * *

The Zeus Cannon in the darkness of the huge domain began to flicker until the bright pink lacrima on it dimmed to a low light, signaling a weak charge.

Kaulas turned to look over his shoulder and stared at the lacrima becoming dim. Not even a grunt escaped his throat. He slowly turned forward and closed his eyes, finally letting out a sigh.

"It would seem that we have been given a challenge indeed. Seiryo, Raey, Boig, Sol, and Pavo have been bested by these Fairy Tail mages." He paused long before starting up again. "We were too careless, and as a result the lacrima needed to charge the Zeus Cannon are gone."

His eyes opened, showing hidden cruelty behind his calm and quiet composure. "No matter. Ghoul's Coffin's elites may have fallen…" He gently pushed the chair from behind and silently turned towards the doorway. "But their Master shall not fall to such a disgrace."

He quietly made way towards the exit, soon being enshrouded in darkness from the shadows as the only thing heard was his boots clicking when hitting the floor.

"I'll make it an obligation that the Zeus Cannon fires. Even if it means extermination."

* * *

Now in his normal self. Nic darted over the city rooftops to find that all around the four lacrima towers were no more. He ran along the rooftops until he saw a projectile heading his way; said being his Staraptor.

"Staraptor!"

"Nic!"

Both Trainer and Pokémon came to a stop in front of the other on a flat rooftop and took notice of how two were absent.

"Have you seen Cana or Sophie?" Nic asked.

Staraptor looked south. "Yeah, they were both pretty banged up when I flew far overhead for an overview." She turned back towards Nic. "But fortunately for all of us that they were back on their feet. I think it's best that we direct them to the town square and regroup there."

Nic nodded. "Agreed…" He glowed and shifted into his Sky Plate. In his Sky Plate Form, the puffy clouds on his coat were gone. Again, a majority of everything was the same, except the coat was a solid sky blue with white edging, same went for the sleeves. He crouched as his wings spread. "I'll direct Sophie while you direct Cana. Let's go."

The two were then seen in the air, heading in different directions. Nic was seen soaring high into the sky with his sunglasses reflecting the sun's rays. He ascended to a great altitude before he stopped at an overview point.

Looking down, he saw Sophie far below. She looked battered, but was still walking weakly from loss of Magic.

"There she is!" He tucked in his wings and went into a long dive towards her. He zoomed down like a meteor and spread his wings so as to slow down when he got to a close point. He flapped a few good times before stopping forty feet above Sophie.

Feeling a strong wind from above, Sophie looked up to find Nic present, much to her relief. "Nic!"

Nic ascended to the ground and walked up to Sophie. He processed her injuries as minor and looked at her face. "Are you able to hold up okay?"

Sophie winced, but shook it off. "Yeah. Let's just find Cana and Staraptor so we can make an exit strategy."

Nodding in understanding, Nic spread his wings and took flight once more. He remained close by so as to direct Sophie towards the center of Dahlias. Sophie picked up her pace and hurriedly followed with Nic as her guide.

At the same time, Staraptor was leading Cana towards Dahlias's center. Cana ran to the best of her capabilities, though her minor injuries and loss of Magic was a huge hindrance. Still, she was led by Staraptor overhead and soon came to the center of town, where all was evacuated due to the sudden guild attack from The Nectar's Well from before.

Soon enough, they all found each other and stopped in the center. Staraptor and Nic went to the ground and Nic shifted back into himself. He took a brief analysis of everyone and saw a few scratches all about. "The lacrima towers are destroyed, but is anyone else still uneasy?"

"All too well. If those lacrima were meant to suck up Magic, the reason must be to charge something like you foretold earlier." Staraptor noted.

"And apparently I know what _it _is." Cana interrupted. Everyone turned towards her with slight surprised. Her expression was dead serious.

"I learned this information from that Sol guy. Apparently those four lacrima drains a Mage's Magic Power in order to charge a weapon called the Zeus Cannon. Saying it's supposed to rival that Jupiter Cannon, yet just as effective as that Abyss Break Phantom attempted a long time ago." She looked down at the ground. "And from how we see it, by facing them, Sophie and I only added fuel to the flame."

The remaining three looked very much disturbed by this news. They knew something big like this happen, but so soon was like taking an Extreme Speed that you never prepared for.

"So how do we stop it? Taking out the lacrima only stopped its charge." Sophie pointed out.

Nic crossed his arms. "We don't have a lead as to where it is to begin, or how it's designed. The first thing to do is to find it."

"Nic is right. Navigating our way to its source first is our top priority. Only then can we learn to disarm it." Staraptor pointed out.

"Okay~. But how the heck are we supposed to find…" Cana's eyes opened up and she blinked as her eyes cascaded downwards. The very ground she looked at had an envelope; something she failed to see when she looked down from before. "What?"

Everyone's eyes cascaded downwards towards the envelope in the center. They all saw that it was rather small, about half the size of their hands. It had a small green lacrima in the center.

Sophie picked it up and scrutinized it. "A message?"

"How'd it end up here?" Cana asked.

Nic's eyes narrowed underneath his sunglasses. "We'll find out."

Sophie pressed the green lacrima in the center, where she and everyone else saw that the lacrima gave a message in the form of a small hologram, something familiar that Makarov saw before the Lullaby incident; only this time they saw a familiar face, to Nic anyway.

"Why hello~! And how are we this fine day?" The person struck a dance pose, and revealed himself to be none other than Pavo. He laughed repeatedly, much to everyone's sweatdropping.

"Uh, okay?" Cana looked wearily at her friends. "Do any of you know this guy?"

Nic sighed. "Yes. Here, let me…" Nic took the envelope and looked at Pavo's instant message. "Just what do you want, Pavo?"

"Oh, Luminous! I'd recognize that commanding yet warm front anywhere!" Pavo cheerfully shouted while spinning. His image stopped spinning and he straightened upwards. "I see that you four have been successful so far!"

"Enough. Can you please tell us what you want?" Sophie asked irritable.

"Oh it's not what I want, rather what you need." Pavo kept his enormous smile. "I seem to recall your job stopping Ghoul's Coffin and their objective to stop the Zeus Cannon, hm? Well, I have some pretty juicy info that might pique your interest." He chimed.

"Are you joking, or are you desperate to get your face beaten in by Nic again?!" Cana shouted at Pavo.

"Hey, relax. I mean, we're not enemies, yet we're not friends. Call me a reliable acquaintance!" Pavo implied. "Now, do you want the intel or not?"

Nic kept a stern gaze. "Yes."

"What? Are you sure?" Sophie asked.

"We don't have a choice. We need all of the info we can get; besides, I doubt he'll pull off any sort of game after what went down."

"Nic is right!" Pavo shouted. "Now listen, meet me four blocks east of the Mayor's office. Hurry!" The image then faded, leaving Nic and his little team to make way towards their destination.

As they went through the alleys, Cana turned towards Nic. "Can your opponents be normal for once?"

Nic turn another corner. "I fail to see how anything is normal, rather than Types and all."

In no time, they soon found themselves in a bright alley, the sun's rays reflecting off the buildings, illuminating Pavo's figure.

Pavo laughed again as he sees the four faces. "Ah, welcome, welcome! I see that you are all looking pretty chipper!" His statement was way wrong as Cana and Sophie were than a little exhausted that they wanna fall over.

Cana crossed her arms. "Alright, spill it. Just what exactly do you have that's so important?"

"Why of course! Always ready to help an ally!" The four remained silent as Pavo frowned. "Now listen good. All of you. The Zeus Cannon is almost at full capacity! Everything that was inside the area of the four lacrima will be reduced to nothing but history!"

Nic kept a still figure as he had to refrain from pinning Pavo to the wall. "This is true?"

"Listen! I can't lie all too well! Those four lacrima are gone, but the weapon itself is so close to full power. It may very well be a matter of time."

"What are you saying exactly?" Nic asked.

"You fools! I'm saying that the Zeus Cannon has a fail-safe! Lacrima re attached to the structure itself! It draws Ethernano from all around, though of course it's very small amounts compared to the energy it gets from the lacrima."

Pavo saw the startled faces of everyone as their attempts at stopping the Zeus Cannon only managed to slow it down.

"Ah yes. Unfortunate it is. But!" He gained enthusiasm. "There is a way."

"Tell us." Staraptor asked in an intimidating tone.

"In an underground chamber, starting from a small tavern on the other side of the avenue, that's where your target is! See?! I am helpful! HA!" He struck a victorious pose and smiled greatly.

Nic and everyone present was just baffled, though Nic and Staraptor were the only ones with straight faces.

Just when they were thinking things couldn't get any more bizarre, they felt a great Magic spike. This was a really huge one that caused Nic and Staraptor to instantly get on guard. They all felt the power, yet nothing came up.

"Do you feel that?" Sophie asked, turning her head about. "Where is this Magic coming from?"

Cana clenched her fists. "Wherever it's coming from, it's clear that there's a whole lot of it."

Nic turned back out towards the streets. "That must be…Ghoul's Coffin's Guild Master."

Pavo showed extreme nervousness. "GAH! OH NO~!" He started spinning nonstop in a frantic manner as his face sweated.

Everyone turned to see the nervousness on his face, and if he was nervous due to this Magic, then it's evident that whoever the Guild Master is, it's not someone to joke around.

"Uh…Pavo?" Sophie asked.

Pavo straightened out and his eyes nearly bulged. "Quick! Abort the mission! Kaulas is coming! We got to get out of here!" He spun incredibly fast as his nervousness arose. "This is bad! This is very, very bad~!"

Cana wasn't amused in the slightest. "What's this 'we' talk? Why exactly are you siding with us?"

Pavo immediately turned towards them. "My reasons are my own! Now listen, Kaulas is someone you don't want to mess with! You four are going to get killed by him if you don't get out now!"

Nic looked back out at the streets and saw how the buildings far away were caught in some wave of Magic energy, and for some odd reason, the Magic being emitted was dense, as in like bone-dense.

"Staying here is suicide! Kaulas is gonna maim ya" Pavo continued his ranting, and that's when Nic turned back towards him.

"No, we're not stepping foot out of the city." He stated.

"And exactly why not?!" Pavo exclaimed.

Sophie and Cana mimicked the same serious gaze Nic and Staraptor were giving Pavo. All of their determined expressions silenced Pavo as they radiated the same level of determined and confident aura.

"Because we have a job to do." Cana said.

"And not just that." Sophie added.

"We're Fairy Tail." Nic said.

"And Fairy Tail never goes down without a fight." The three said in unison.

"And like it or not, if any of our own were stuck in this mess, we'll fight as one." Nic added lastly.

Pavo's expression turned to a gigantic revelation as his mouth hung open and dilated eyes of sheer shock. He never heard of something so ridiculous yet serious; a commitment unlike any he's heard in the longest time. This was a true shocker as a shadow cast over his eyes and he turned away.

Looking back at the alley's darkness afar, he spoke. "So…for the sake of one's duty…and to never turn your back on those who need to be saved." Pavo put up a brave smile with small tears of joy running down his cheeks, much to everyone's surprise.

"Listen, Nic and friends." He started, turning around towards them. "There's something that must be done…

* * *

Kaulas walked patiently onwards to where he sensed the intruders of his plans were. "If I remember thoroughly, my opponents also involve Nic Pularis, the alias called Luminous." He pondered. "Such a silly alias. No light can match the obliteration that I have in store."

He came to a sudden halt when he felt a strong flow of power. He crouched as he readied himself as his enemy was somewhere around. _'They're here.'_

He looked through the whole area, analyzing the enemy's Magic. He wasn't sure if their Magic was combined or separate, but this level was considerate nonetheless.

Finally getting a pinpoint, he turned towards the rooftops towards his left and saw Nic perched up on the top.

Nic had on a scowl as he examined Kaulas with disgust. "Hey, are you the Guild Master that's been terrorizing Dahlias?"

Kaulas stared up with a blank expression. "And what of it?"

"I am Nic Pularis. If you have a reason as you should remain in this city, speak up." His eyes narrowed. "Otherwise I won't hesitate to strike you down on the spot."

Kaulas's eyes narrowed as a low growl escaped. "If you insist."

Nic looked back at the area behind him and kept a gaze of neutral intention so as not to divert Kaulas. _'I have to hurry and buy them as much time as possible. If I can get everyone there in time by stalling him, the plan should work.' _Turning back towards Kaulas, he readied himself.

Yet when he thought he was ready, he was wrong.

Kaulas loosely let his wrists hang while he crossed his arms. Very slowly and gradually, two protrusions began to jut out of his palms. Nic tried to keep a straight face, yet what he saw was completely unorthodox, for jutting out were two long sabers out of the palms.

Getting into a stance, Kaulas glared at Nic. "I can sense the hesitation. You've never witnessed Bone Magic." He adjusted his stance so his legs were farther apart. "With it, I can alter my entire body into a weapon that is nothing more than solid bone."

Nic's hesitation and startled front became frozen for a few moments before a sudden smirk crossed his face. This smirk caught Kaulas off guard.

"Actually…I already know." Nic stated.

"Is that so?" Kaulas had a very heavy suspicion on his shoulders. It wasn't one of those '50-50' suspicions. It was more like one of those 'I-know-something-is-wrong' suspicions. _'How peculiar. Only a selected few including my guild knows of my Magic. Perhaps…'_

Nic smirked largely enough that it made Kaulas mentally explode with an epiphany. His suspicions were confirmed when Nic turned into a puff of smoke, in which revealed it to be none other than Pavo.

"SURPRISE~!" He yelled down towards Kaulas. "Did you miss me?"

Kaulas kept a quiet front while his teeth gritted with little frustration. Now it made sense to him. No wonder Nic didn't seem at all as he had heard all of those years. He always did hear that Nic was a very serious and calm person, never displaying modesty or cockiness, similar to Titania.

"Pavo." Kaulas growled.

Pavo laughed hardily at Kaulas and crossed his arms. "You must feel pretty stupid feeling stalled by that simple transformation!" He continued to laugh at Kaulas, who didn't at all retract his bones protruding from his palms.

"I should've known that you'd use that 'master-of-disguise' act you talked on about." He adjusted and stood up, turning away yet keeping a glare on his victim. "I never pegged you as a traitor, though I must say that I never liked your style to begin with."

* * *

The three were running towards their destination, where they saw the tavern up ahead. Staraptor was above them and led the way.

"That guy's alright in my books." In her hand she had a blue lacrima, as did Sophie.

"For sure. For our acquaintance, he has our approval." She looked down at the lacrima in her hand. "We sure owe him forgiving us these Magic-conserving lacrima. With these little Magic packets, we should have enough to charge for a full-scale destruction on the Zeus Cannon."

Staraptor flew ahead, flapping in front of the tavern door. With a single talon kick, she busted down the door and everyone made way inside.

Nic remained silent as he looked a little troubled. He was grateful for Pavo giving them directions and becoming an ally, yet a small sense of worry arose when he considered Pavo freaking out. _'If this Kaulas individual is as strong as Pavo feared, then is he gonna…?'_

* * *

Pavo landed on the ground with a twirl and struck a pose. His face had a grave shadow over it as he looked down at his palm.

"I never liked you either." Pavo said low. "You planned to kill many innocence. You go against humanity. You want nothing but war. You are but a fraction of what I put up with. And so…"

Kaulas got into a fighting stance as Pavo's expression was by far very dark with a grim vibe.

"Bring it on!"

* * *

"Is this it?"

"Yeah, I think so."

Sophie and Cana both toppled a shelf and its loud thud made pottery and ceramics break apart. They all stepped over the glass and shattered ceramics to find that behind the shelves was a dark tunnel.

Cana and Sophie went inside, with Staraptor walking in next, followed lastly by Nic. They all still had uneasy vibes.

* * *

Explosions were seen as spears made of bone were in the building walls. Dust blew all about as Kaulas skid to one side with his leg sticking out. He looked up and saw Pavo kicking him. In slow motion, his head drew back from the blow, yet his eyes remained open and he straightened out.

His palm bones slashed and collided with Pavo's next kick, sending a shockwave all around that made windows break.

The next thing that happened was Kaulas's shoulders and elbows jutting out sharp bone-like extensions. He rushed in at blinding speed as Pavo clenched his fists and turned his body as Kaulas went to attack.

Pavo let out a primal cry as he went to attack Kaulas, both heading at the other with sheer intensity.

A few minutes later, the dust blew on the street as everything fell silent.

* * *

Nic, Cana, and Sophie all felt something and stopped moving through the dark tunnel. They all remained silent as this odd feeling didn't escape. Staraptor also remained silent and didn't say anything, as they knew that their decoy was found out. It'd be only a matter of time before Kaulas would come after them.

Nic clenched his fists and kept a hard gulp from going down his throat. "Come on, let's go."

Cana turned back towards him. "Sure, but it's hard to maneuver around with no light."

Nic reached into his pockets. "Here, this'll help." He pulled out his phone that was in his pocket, much to the girls' confusion. Nic pressed a few touch functions before the camera's flashlight function came on. Using it, he pointed it ahead to see the darkness that lied ahead.

Cana put hands to her hips. "Not bad."

"We should get moving." Staraptor urged, to which Sophie nodded in agreement. The four continued their pursuit with Nic taking the front command and holding his phone as the flashlight function remained active. The darkness kept on going until a few minutes came and went, where they saw a pink light up ahead.

Immediately, their pace picked up and Nic and Staraptor darted ahead. Both made way out of the dark passageway and stopped cold at the end as their eyes shot wide at the enormous weapon before them.

"Is that what I think it is?" Nic asked.

Staraptor nodded, her face still showing deep awe. "Yeah, it is." Before them was a mighty contraption that was a black cannon with small pink lacrima on the sides. "The Zeus Cannon."

Cana and Sophie both caught up at that moment, and just like Nic and Staraptor, they were filled with eyes of sheer awe and surprise.

"No way. That's crazy." Cana remarked with horror in her eyes. She took a step back. "That thing's gotta be as big as the Jupiter Cannon."

"Well now that we're here, the best thing to do is to find a way to disarm it, right?" Sophie asked. She turned towards Nic. "It'd make sense. Since the Zeus Cannon is here, there's no point in waiting around. We'll have to delicately disable whatever mechanism causes it to charge."

Staraptor nodded. "Yeah. If we find the source within the cannon, the energy should discharge with minor effects."

"If that's the case, then we should get to work." Nic remarked,

They all took a step forward, advancing to stop the weapon, but that was when the Magic level spiked yet again. They all became stiff as this similar feeling was from earlier.

"That was a clever move, using my own men against me." Everyone turned around with very high guards as they saw a figure approach from the dark exit. Exiting the shadows, Kaulas walked slowly and stopped before everyone.

"Well now, seems that I get to face against the real Luminous."

Nic, Staraptor, Cana, and Sophie all took defensive stances as they felt an odd vibe coming from Kaulas. His Magic was fluctuating so much it was hard to tell if he was gonna play with them or kill them on the spot.

As a growl escaped from everyone, Kaulas maintained a calm facial expression. "Those faces and sounds you make will be the only thing I'll remember of you when this is over."

* * *

**Okay, got another chapter in as fast as I could. My pacing per day has drastically decreased since I'm trying to compress as much detail into so little wording, but I'm still doing my best. The next chapter will be the big boss fight of the X791 Arc. And if you guys paid attention, did you get the One Piece reference I used this chapter and with Pavo?**

**If I haven't told you guys, there's a new image cover for the story. I designed and made it myself, though the quality isn't as good as you'd think it'd be. I don't have Photoshop, so my Paint application on my laptop was all I could work with. Regardless, opinions on how it looks are appreciated.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoyed Staraptor fighting, the battles, the story in general, etc.**

* * *

**Next Time: A Bone to Pick**


	57. A Bone to Pick

Chapter 57 – A Bone to Pick

**Time for the 57****th**** chapter! Hard to believe there's still so much left planned. I did some calculations and my estimates are that this story may be roughly 80 chapters. No joke. Please bear with me guys.**

**Guest: I know. Hey guys, FanFiction is in trouble because of this trans-pacific thing they're making. There's a petition site that you can stop by and add your signature so as to stop it. The link is in a review on my **_**EDventures in Kalos **_**story a fellow guest provided.**

**Guest Valvrave: No, I don't have a Deviantart account.**

**Time to finish the extended X791 Arc and begin the Key to the Starry Sky Arc!**

**To Recap:**

Staraptor encounters Raey of Ghoul's Coffin and shows off her aerial and ground combat, easily dispatching him. Sophie soon learns the weakness of Boig's Magic and makes a new spell to finish him. The four then destroy the lacrima towers and meet up in the center of town, where they get a message from Pavo and he tells them of the location of the Zeus Cannon. Pavo betrays Kaulas and uses himself as a decoy while everyone else makes it to the weapon. They all soon reach it, but before they could stop it, Kaulas arrives.

* * *

**Chapter 57 – A Bone to Pick**

A cold chill ran through the huge chamber as Kaulas stared at Nic and his accomplices. The Bone Mage was keeping a calm and very subtle expression, yet anyone could tell that deep within they could feel a killing intent.

"Your Luminous, and I take it that the bird is one of these creatures I've gotten word of." He stated in his quiet and structural voice. "What a surprise, couldn't imagine running into you of all people."

Nic and Staraptor alike kept contemptuous glares. With his sunglasses on his gray V-neck, Nic's eyes showed little to no dimming will. "And are you Ghoul's Coffin's Guild Master, Kaulas, if I'm not mistaken?"

"Guilty is charged. I take it that you are attempting to disable the Zeus Cannon." He didn't sound at all spiteful, but more or less confirming. "It took us a few months to accumulate the Magic necessary; there isn't a possibility as someone like you can stop the cannon."

"What do you hope to gain from this cannon?" Staraptor asked. "What is your objective?"

Kaulas didn't give an immediate response. He stared at his opponents with blank green eyes. In a matter of seconds, he finally spoke. "It's more simple than what you'd imagine."

"What?" Cana asked confused.

"My aim isn't to extinguish life for my own gain. It's all for the cause of the Zeus Cannon." He and everyone else then remembered of the Jupiter Cannon. "You tell me, how did the Jupiter Cannon come around?"

While Nic was keeping his eyes on the enemy, he was mentally debating. He remembered using Mirror Move to counteract the Jupiter Cannon that one time, but that was a long time ago. He also had to recall that everything had its origin; and with that in mind, it was starting to make sense.

"Allow me to debrief you." Kaulas started. "I was an architect, as I was fascinated by Fiore's history. One thing I came across while I was in Dahlias a long time ago was but a single document that was preserved from two centuries ago. There was a civil revolution and many hoped to win this unsettling confrontation. That's when the Zeus Cannon was born."

"A civil war?" Sophie pondered.

"So you've gone and dug back into history just to get a glimpse of this thing's power?" Cana asked.

"Of sorts. Everything derives from its origin. Human spawning is an example. The Zeus Cannon was the first highly destructive weapon achieved, and though it was lost in time, its predecessors such as the Jupiter and Etherion took its place; however, the document did hold some vital intel…"

Nic and everyone's eyes narrowed.

"…there was one Zeus Cannon left, right behind you."

Nic and everyone else's eyes widened and turned around. Shock overcame them as they had just had an epiphany.

"You mean…" Sophie started.

"This is the original and last Zeus Cannon?" Staraptor finished.

"Yes." Kaulas confirmed. "Though it may be the last of its kind. 200 years doesn't falter so easily for a weapon such as this. The lacrima adjusted on its base are still active, meaning it has been gradually gaining energy."

Nic was more or less uneasy with this whole rouse. The idea of an ancient weapon revived brought back some uneasy memories. Memories of the ultimate weapon began to resurface in his mind. This situation was very much familiar, as he remembered witnessing the ultimate weapon's revival. This case was exactly the same. _'This is just like before.'_

"I don't wish to abruptly finish the history debriefing, but I'm afraid that I can't have any more stalling. The Zeus Cannon shall fire, and history will finally remember the power that the past had." Kaulas took up a stance, with arms in an 'X' shape and the wrists were loose.

Everyone saw his palms slowly protruding long, pointed bones. The sight was making Cana and Sophie gulp as they never saw such a Magic. They heard of this Magic from Pavo, but seeing it like so was very…unappetizing.

"Oh man." Cana stepped back after the bone sabers were at least three feet long.

"So this is Bone Magic. How very…distinctive." Sophie swallowed one more lump.

Nic spread his legs and Staraptor got into a stance. Both Trainer and Pokémon maintained composures and began with the fight. Nic got a foot behind him and shifted into his Insect Plate Form. In said Plate, the spider web-like coat with sleeves was confined in the middle by a grasshopper green belt with a Net Ball rather than a Poke Ball sign. Everything else was more or less the way it was.

"Enough stalling, that much I agree." Nic crossed his arms, becoming light blue and an 'X' with magenta outlining emerged. "Let's go! Everyone!"

"Right!" Cana and Sophie remained positioned while Nic and Staraptor went dashing after Kaulas. Almost instantly, Nic went for the first strike. "**X-Scissor!**" His attack met an interception by Kaulas's left palm bone, and Staraptor's Steel Wing was met by the right. All three gave serious vibes as they were in a stalemate, not backing off. Though it soon came to an end when Kaulas swatted his arms back and jumped back, and Nic and Staraptor did the same.

Both Trainer and Pokémon flapped their wings and they ascended into the air above. Nic's flapping gave way to red soundwaves being generated. The soundwaves went shooting down at Kaulas. "**Bug Buzz!**" The attack easily scored its mark, bombarding Kaulas with a high-pitched soundwave of red. The Bone Mage covered his ears as he was left defenseless.

Staraptor then made her move as fast as lightning. "**Aerial Ace!**" She swopped down from beside Nic and became a blinding blur. She went in a slant downwards and dove right through, hitting Kaulas and making him skid back as Bug Buzz dialed down.

Kaulas grunted, still keeping a calm expression. He saw once again as Staraptor spun in and twirled, bringing her talon around for a kick, but as the kick went ahead, Kaulas's eyes narrowed and pointed arched bones protruded from his rib cages. Staraptor immediately felt surprised and flapped her wings and immediately backed off before her talons could touch them.

She ascended back up in the air, where Kaulas remained composed as his palm bones retracted. Instead, his fingertips jutted out circular bones with flat tips. Swiping both arms, he shot numerous small bones at Staraptor. The avian easily evaded them by twisting her body and pivoting in the air, yet as the bones went on, they penetrated through the hollow pipes above; and this was but the size of bullets.

Cana flashed her cards. "So this guy's entire body is a weapon." She stated,

"Looks like it." Sophie stated, "You saw how he stopped Staraptor. He can jut out bones in any way, shape, and form."

Nic landed in front of them both while Staraptor maintained her elevation. "Yeah, seems the case. Judging by how he fights. He seems to take defensive approaches, and close-range combatants such as myself don't much of a chance." He saw the bones on his abdomen as they were very sharp. "You saw how he handles our physical attacks." He looked up. "Staraptor, maintain a distance until he's caught off."

The Predator Pokémon nodded.

"In the meantime, long-range will have to suffice." Nic's wings spread and vibrated greatly. "Get ready!"

Kaulas thought little as he scoffed. "If you're foolish enough to think that my bones can be overpowered, then it'll be harder than what you'd imagine." He had his wrists loose as he crossed his arms and more bone jutted from his. "**Phalanx Bullet!**" He swiped both arms in arcs, sending the flat-sided cylindrical bones once more.

"Oh no you don't!" Cana's cards glowed as she shot them at the incoming rapid bullet-like bones. The green cards exploded upon contact, making the area between them erupt in energy and gave Sophie the chance to attack.

"**Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold retribution!**" In front of Sophie, icy mirrors materialized and immediately shot green beams at Kaulas. The beams made way towards the Bone Mage, yet he made no attempt at dodging and instead adjusted his stance and his long palm bones jutted out again, albeit with crackling sounds that unnerved everyone.

He crossed his arms and grunted as he slashed in a similar fashion of X-Scissor. Every single green beam of darkness was sliced into, slicing them and deflecting the small beams around and behind.

He looked unimpressed as he looked back up at a shocked Sophie. "Is that all?"

Cana swiped her cards again. "Not one bit! **Summoned Lightning!**" She swiped her cars again and sent three green lightning bolts at Kaulas.

The Bone Mage extended his arm out with the bone saber at the palm and had it take the lightning. The green beams were conducted into the bone's tip. Cana gasped when her spell was absorbed just like that.

Kaulas didn't seem at all moved as his gaze was still fixated on them. "Perhaps it's best that you take a better look."

Everyone looked and saw that the bone actually grew a little and glistened slightly. This was a large dilemma as they picked up on what was going on.

"Crystals?" Sophie inquired.

"To be more accurate, calcium phosphate." Kaulas explained. "I can absorb electricity and transfer it into energy to grow and thicken my bones. Now…" With his rib cage bones still jutting out, he shot several sharp-tipped bones at Cana. The Card Mage barely escaped with a narrow dodge as she fell to the ground on her side.

She looked back up with annoyance. "Damnit. Those lacrima only helped so much." Her eyes narrowed. "And it feels like I'm still losing power."

Sophie grunted. "Remember what Pavo told us? Those lacrima on the Zeus Cannon draws in Ethernano. It's the same as sapping Magic. We can't do much with the few spells we can cast."

Cana got up. "Well this went downhill."

"**Silver Wind!**" Nic's wings flashed and unleashed a gust of wind with hard, silver sparkles. The Bug-Type move went shooting off and dealt a forceful blow that caused Kaulas to skid back several feet. This left him to resort to using his palm bones as anchor weights as he drove them into ground, denting them enough to keep a firm hold.

With this as an advantage, Staraptor swooped in to attack. "**Steel Wing!**" Her wings glowed and she dove in with her gifted speed. With great valiance, she swatted her wind downwards as Silver Wind dialed down. Her attack landed a clean hit on the head, making Kaulas grunt. He quickly ignored it and still kept his collective gaze.

"Can't say that I wasn't expecting that." He admitted. "And likewise in your case." His eyes widened, and his rib bones retracted with crackling sounds while his shoulders jutted spiked bones with quick crackling sounds. Staraptor immediately backed away a few feet in the air and swatted downwards with Steel Wing still in play. Kaulas countered by an interception with one of his palm bone he yanked out of the ground. Both attacks collided with a clang sound. Their eyes meet with fierce expressions and then backed off once again.

With this in mind, Kaulas was so distracted that he didn't see Nic glowing and shifting into his Toxic Plate. With the Toxic Plate, his coat had a solid dark purple with light purple edging. The belt was left as it was, as well as everything else.

Nic fired a Sludge Bomb from his mouth as Kaulas was backing away. The attack made its mark in the abdomen, causing a murky explosion that sent Kaulas skidding backwards and stopping cold.

"Persistent bunch." He said bluntly. "Do you not want history to unfold? Surely you understand what time has to offer. Perhaps persuasion is in order." He crossed his arms again with the wrists loose. "**Joint Sable.**"

His palm bones remained as they were, as did the shoulder bones, but then crackling was heard as the elbows began to protrude bone. Now his arms and shoulders alike were aligned with bone.

"Is it me, or can this guy get any uglier?" Cana asked.

"Save that for later!" Sophie insisted. "Those bones are sharp, but let's see him try this!" She pointed a finger at her forehead. "**Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**" She launched a multitude of saucers comprised of fire, and Kaulas rushed on ahead. With the distance closing in, he spun around and his bones all over his upper body spun with him, slashing through the saucers. He spun several more times and posed with his head down as the saucers were of embers.

Sophie and everyone else saw just what technique it was and was all too impressive. He looked up at the surprised faces. "Is that all you got?"

Nic grunted and pressed his legs and feet alike to the ground. He inhaled and lurched forward. "**Acid!**" He released a gushing purple liquid at Kaulas. He scrutinized the contents as they sailed at him. He immediately jerked right and dodged the attack that left the ground sizzling. He then rushed in towards Nic.

"**Acid Armor!**" Nic's entire body was coated in clear liquid but for a brief moment, which sharply increased his Defense. Kaulas zoomed in and the two were met with close-range offense. Nic used his fists as he rapidly parried and deflects blows of the bones on Kaulas's body. He parried every swipe possible and slash with his forearms, ascertaining only minor scratches in the process. Of course it wasn't long before Staraptor entered the fray from above. Kaulas still spun about as his bones followed him in a spinning slash, but Nic and Staraptor maneuvered around and engaged in the close-range offense. Quick as lightning their attack rushed left and right, their reflexes outmatching the bone slashes.

Soon they backed off, and Kaulas took a defensive stance with an arm covering him. _'Their combat skills are most formidable. That speed doesn't help me in any way. Seems that I'll have to be weary when engaging those two.' _He adjusted his stance as he retracted his bones, giving way back to his skin. _'Perhaps I'll have to be more assertive in my approaches.'_

Cana flashed her cards. "He's retracting! That means we got ourselves an opening!"

Before she could swipe her cards again, Sophie grabbed her hand, stopping her. "Hold on. Something isn't right."

Kaulas stood quietly as he readied for his next move. "You're versatile, am I right? Then let's see you keep up." His arm then began to show a disturbing wave of something running right underneath the skin, literally. On each forearms, two foot-long bones jutted outwards and the opposite hand grabbed one.

Before everyone, they saw two bone clubs. They had thick, bulbous end and the other ends were as sharp as needles.

Seeing this, Nic changed his strategy and shifted into his Earth Plate. He eyed Kaulas wearily and had his arms out. He spread them out and made a light green bone that could very well represent Bone Rush.

"I see. An eye for an eye." Kaulas then rushed on ahead. "**Cartilage Duel!**" He and Nic both let out battlecries as Bone Rush and the two boney clubs made impact. The two-on-one assault resulted in a shockwave that sent winds soaring. Cana and Sophie immediately covered up while Staraptor maintained her position in the air.

Nic's light green bone clashed with Kaulas's bone clubs. Each clash sounding like two Rhyhorn charging into the other. With a spin, Nic swung the object in his hand around and struck the left club. He adjusted quickly so as to stop a downwards club with the left end. It was at that point both were at another standstill with their boney attacks unfazed by the other. Though Nic grunted, Kaulas had no emotion.

"It seems that my bones are stronger." He stated.

Nic grunted in reluctance and widened his eyes. Crackling was heard from the abdomen again and he immediately jumped back to evade the bones that jutted from the ribs. He deactivated Bone Rush and narrowed his eyes as he was formulating yet another ideal strategy.

Staraptor swooped in. "**Double Team!**" She flashed and made several copies of herself. Her copies all flapped in the air and around a surprised Kaulas as the number astonished him some. He readied his clubs as they all swooped down to attack. One by one, they all vanished when being hit by the sharp end. Kaulas slashed repeatedly in swift motions, but little success as all that was accomplished was the numbers dwindling.

Kaulas swiped endlessly and was getting nowhere fast, and that left him open. The real Staraptor zoomed from behind and struck a talon to Kaulas's back. The shockwave traveled through his whole body and caused his hands to loosen the grip on his double boney clubs, letting them drop to the ground.

"**Sand Tomb!**" Nic slammed his hands against the ground and sand began materializing around Kaulas while he was still in shock. The sand swirling sand encased Kaulas by the legs and rose to the point where it was a ten-foot mound of sand.

Everyone maintained a cautious guard as they had their enemy trapped under sand. Staraptor hovered high over her trainer as she eyed the sand mound.

"Did we get him?" Sophie wondered.

There was a long silence as they all stared at the mound. The feeling of uneasy dread never ceased as this called for a turn of events. Sure enough it happened.

Magic levels arose and a little sand spurt out. From that point, they saw a hand breach through the Sand Tomb. Nic and Staraptor didn't seem at all surprised as they expected this given the high levels of Magic, yet they were caught slightly surprised as the rest of Kaulas's body pried its way out of the Sand Tomb.

The sheer sight of him was greatly disturbing as parts of his skin was gone, and what was underneath was not blood nor muscles, yet a membrane of pure, solid bone. When he looked up at Nic and everyone, ignoring the patches of bone showing, the side of his cheek had no skin and showed his teeth.

"Well, so much for a good night's sleep after today." Sophie muttered bitterly. "What is this guy?"

"That sure was a surplus of pressure I endured." Kaulas commented, his teeth showing in his cheek moving. "If I hadn't grown a membrane of bone, I would've been incapacitated for an extensive time period."

Nic changed tactics once again. _'I'll have to use a full-scale blow if we're to win and stop the cannon from firing.' _As Sand Tomb eroded away into small dust in the brief wind breezing through the ducts, Nic glowed and shifted from his Earth Plate to Splash Plate. In the Splash Plate Form now, he adorned the same water shoes and swim trunks, and remained shirtless, but his coat was a solid dark blue with light blue edging and belt. The belt also had a Dive Ball symbol on it.

Nic's normal blue eyes eyed Kaulas as he grunted.

"How the heck can this guy still be standing?!" Cana exclaimed.

Kaulas ignored her. "I've underestimated you and your reputation, but that's the last time I'll be caught surprised."

Nic spread his legs apart and crouched. He gave a scowl as he clasped his palms together with a loud clap sound. The earth shook beneath as water sprouted in front. Kaulas completely contradicted himself as his eyes widened and he felt a grand pressure. Even Cana and Sophie were surprised. "**Surf!**" Nic growled. The water level gradually escalated into a massive wave, almost like a tsunami. The earth raged as the wave's tide eroded over Kaulas. Though Kaulas was able to jump back as fast as he possibly could, his skills were no match as Surf slammed down on him. A huge volume of water swamped him and began flooding through the chamber.

While Staraptor flapped in the air above, Cana and Sophie climbed some ladders on the sides of the walls that overlooked the entire chamber and the cannon. They saw Kaulas down below trying to breach and maintain ground, but more water gushed forth and swamped him some more. The entire area was engulfed in five feet of water all around, the waves crashing against the chamber walls.

Sophie's eyes were wide. _'Whoa. Nic is changing the terrain all by himself.'_

"Now…" With Nic swaying in the water, he swiped his arms in opposite arcs, clearing out the water at his feet and was around a field of water. "HRAH!" He thrust his arms out and the entire aquatic area pushed out by Nic's control. The waves of water expanded out and a unison crash echoed as every drop crashed into the walls all around.

Nic remained silent as he eyed the dwindling water that began to fade away by the Splash Plate's powers. "Is he still wanting to fight?" His voice hinted disbelief with a mixture of annoyance.

"What?" Cana said in disbelief. "You mean that guy's still wanting to fight?"

Staraptor's sharp eyes caught a strange figure against a chamber wall. She knew something was wrong as the figure had a completely different shape. _'Whatever's happening, it's going to be very bad for us.'_

Sure enough what they saw was just as Staraptor thought. As the water was gone, Nic grunted with some shock as he eyed something that was completely unorthodox. "What the…"

Cana, Sophie, and Staraptor's eyes all widened some as they saw the water drip from a very demonic figure. The skin was darker, and the shoulders and entire back protruded long bone spines. He had a long, boney tail. The eyes were black sclera and bone-white irises. The rib cage was covered in yet another rib cage like boney armor. His hair was also gray. His arms, legs, and neck were all lined with some sort of skeleton that was joined up by the shoulders, hips, and spines.

"What…what in the world…?" Sophie slid down with Cana and the two had no words to describe what they were seeing.

"That guy just…transformed." Cana remarked in disbelief.

Kaulas's eyes narrowed. "I never thought that I'd be using this in battle after such a long time." He was hunched over with the bone spines on his back and wagged his tail. "**Ultimate Defense – Reaper's Carcass.**"

Everyone eyed him wearily as their nerves itched with anticipation from the sheer Magic Power flowing through the air, all coming from the skeleton and bones on his body. This man's Magic pulsed wildly that the bones encasing him seemingly defined his raw power.

"More bones. Whatever this Magic is, it's getting sick by the minute." Cana remarked. "And having Magic sapped with each spell won't have us do any good."

"If there was any word to describe that guy, it's that he's a _mifletzat_ (monster)." Sophie commented. "If we couldn't handle him before, we're better off handling the weapon."

Staraptor heard her and looked out. "If so, then Nic and I can handle him while you try and disarm the weapon."

Cana and Sophie both nodded and turn towards the weapon. They saw the pink lacrima on the huge black cannon shining ever so brilliantly, and not in a good way.

Kaulas growled as he eyed his enemies all gathering a plan. Nic and Staraptor began closing the distance very quickly, and Kaulas rushed in as well, his boney body and form making him slower. As he charged onwards, Nic skid to a stop halfway and pressed his hands against the ground.

"**Water Pledge!**" His attack led to columns of water rising in a series towards Kaulas. Much to their shock, Staraptor and Nic saw how the boney creature darted through all of the water columns without letting up for even a seconds. This led to Nic getting smacked by the skeletal tail and sail back into a skid on his feet.

Kaulas kept his charge as he darted on forward. Staraptor was next in line as she fiercely flew down at an angle with Aerial Ace. Her blurry form rushed in and crashed right into Kaulas's abdomen, making a crackling sound as his skin was as hard as bone. He skidded backwards on all fours and rebounded by lashing forth his tail. Staraptor swatted the tail away with one wing and maintained her course as she went back in to attack.

"**Steel Wing!**" Staraptor's wings glowed the same metal-gray coating once more and she swatted both at once. Kaulas covered up with his forearms that were lined with arm bones for armor. The Steel-Type move made contact and a loud wind lashed out in all directions. Kaulas grunted but a little before he swatted his arms in arcs, making Staraptor ascended backwards back into the air.

"**Crabhammer!**" Nic held out his right arms, which then began to materialize spiraling water in the shape of a crab claw. He darted ahead and let out a battlecry as the distance closed drastically.

Kaulas growled back as he then brought his forearms forward, the boney armor on them morphing with crackling sounds. Nic didn't let up on his advance despite seeing how the bones became thick gauntlets.

Both bone gauntlets and Crabhammer made contact, and the impact's sound rivaled that of a dynamite blast. The power palpitating aggressively through the air was enough for Staraptor to forcibly descend and grip her talons to the ground. The shockwave raged on for a few more seconds and the ground cracked beneath Nic and Kaulas. It cracked so much that the ground beneath gave in and created a five-foot crater to cover their distance. Both backed off and skidded back some feet.

"Your prowess is uncanny." Kaulas stated. "I never imagined my altered bone structure being parried by water as dense as that."

"I can say the same uncanny prowess behind your Bone Magic. How is it that you could change your form like that? Is it some cell mutation when increasing your Magic Power?" Nic countered while keeping sharp eyes all around.

"To be more accurate, this Magic is particularly a lost kind of Magic. Bone Magic was always so rare because there are many who become unstable." He said irritably. His eyes narrowed. "However you're not far from the truth. It is indeed a cell structure-type of transformation, as well as Magic."

"I see."

Kaulas then dilated his eyes as he showed impatience. "I'm tired of stalling. Nic Pularis, you are indeed impressive, so how's about we up the ammo?"

Nic raised a brow, as did Staraptor. They were both rather confused by what he meant, but they knew that it would mean more bone.

Cana and Sophie were both looking around the humungous weapon but had no luck. "Found anything?" Cana called out.

Sophie shook her head. "No, I can't seem to find a switch, and these lacrima don't seem to budge." With things looking grim, Sophie looked back at what Kaulas was doing. "Wait, what is he…"

Both Cana and Sophie looked back at the very disturbing scene ahead. Nic and Staraptor both had lumps stuck in their throats as Kaulas reached for his back, where a small protrusion was lurking underneath. Crackling went about as a rod of bone jutted out, long enough for Kaulas to grasp his hand around. With a gradual yank, he pulled it out of himself. Everyone saw the ridges of the rod wave through the skin as it was pulled out, making them shudder with a sick vibe. The entire four-foot rod was pulled out and held like a sword.

Staraptor showed no cowardice, but even she felt appalled. "His spine."

Nic clenched his fists. "So he can copy other bone structures and use them as weapons." He saw how the spine rod was still fresh and crackled some more. "How corrosive."

Sophie's mouth hung open before she lurched to her side, trying to keep herself from gagging. "I think I'm going to be sick."

"Well there goes my appetite for today." Cana remarked.

Kaulas looked unfazed as he slowly looked at Nic again. "**Spine Mace.**" The ridges on his spine rod then crackled and elongated to a very gradual level, reaching two feet on each side. The spine itself thickened to support the long, sharp bone spokes. "Now, prepare to die." His words definitely had a level of spite hidden within and he stood hunched over and rushed on in to attack, using but one hand to drag the long mace along the ground, making a trail as it traveled towards Nic and Staraptor.

Nic grunted once again and charged on ahead. His right arm let out another Crabhammer and he let out another cry as his attack and the mace met up. The dense bone collided with the dense water in the shape of a crab claw. The attacks parried the other repeatedly, each individual strike as heavy as a wrecking ball. The force with each collision made the walls crack, and the floor was beginning to become like the moon's surface. They both grunted as their assaults led to the mace being swung downwards like an axe with Nic intercepting with his Crabhammer. Soon they were back to parrying more blows, which soon led to both getting hit at the exact same time.

The mace's spiny spokes struck Nic's left shoulder while Crabhammer struck Kaulas's face. The two assaults were strong enough to send both contenders sailing back, though a heavy grunt came from Nic as he skidded back with his shoulder bleeding.

"Nic!" Staraptor immediately went in to attack while Kaulas was skidding back. "GRAH! **Close Combat!**" Staraptor viciously descended at the speed of sound and crashed into Kaulas talon first. She let out a battlecry as she relentlessly assaulted him with no mercy as her wing strikes and talons relentlessly assaulted him. In the midst of the Close Combat, Kaulas used the mace as a defense, and Staraptor's assaults were pounding away as the mace didn't move.

With one harsh cry, she swatted her wing horizontally, breaking apart the spokes on one side of the mace.

This definitely shocked Kaulas as his eyes were wide. _'She…she penetrated through the bone. Her muscles are so strong!'_

Staraptor thrusted her talons ahead and struck the center of the spine. The entire thing echoed as her unison kick cracked the center. The whole thing fell unbalanced as Staraptor brought her wing back and jabbed it forward in the same spot as before, this time jabbing it so hard that it broke the mace at its center, splitting the upper half off.

Time slowed down gradually as Kaulas was filled his shock. "She shattered the mace…how?"

"HRAH!" Staraptor swatted Kaulas with his mind still off guard. Her wing strike was like taking a train, and the Bone Mage skidded backwards on the bones on his back, crashing into the wall with a thunderous echo.

She then looked back at Nic. Though knowing he would be okay, she still worried as that spiky blow did seem deep.

Nic grunted as he was on a knee and slowing getting up, albeit slowly due to the shoulder injury. He clenched his shoulder as pain went right through all its nerves. "Damn you…" He muttered, ignoring the little bit of blood.

Staraptor positioned herself with her wings spread out in front of Nic. "I'll provide cover! Try and leave this to me while you recover!" She then flapped and ascended a few feet and went back into the fray like a speeding fighter jet.

"Thanks Staraptor." Nic said. He grunted and began to shift back into himself. In his normal self, he looked back to see Staraptor using Steel Wing to block a boney fist. A few more shots were exchanged and blocked, but otherwise Staraptor was deflecting every tail slam and bone possible.

Nic closed his eyes to think as he glowed and used Recover, his shoulder wound beginning to regenerate and not showed. _'This isn't getting us anywhere. Ni matter what we do, he can but duplicate and alter his bone structure at will. Even with Staraptor's Close Combat, there's still little options at the moment.'_

The glow faded and Nic no longer had the shoulder injury, but he was still weary from that attack. If anything he was a little dizzy, but he had to do his best to ascertain focus. Taking two of Ghoul's Coffin's elites and then a Guild Master with Bone Magic can lead to a tired state if pressed too hard on a normal Mage, but it didn't seem to slow him down in the slightest. His training he did all the time has maxed his durability and endurance, so this was nothing.

Standing back up, he stood with legs spread out. _'If we drag out this battle long enough, perhaps he'll run out of Magic Power, but the downside is that he may very well power the Zeus Cannon. We have to make this next attack count!' _He adjusted and hunched forward. "**Extreme Speed!**" A shockwave rippled at that moment, and Staraptor immediately turned to get away as the next thing that happened was that Kaulas remained still one moment and the next thing that happened was that Nic appeared in front with a shattered trail from the blinding speed. And that didn't even take a second. He struck his entire body and hit the chest region. A shockwave sent winds shredding about and Kaulas gagged before the attack's force caught up to him and he crashed into the wall again, this time in a crater.

"He just won't stay down." Staraptor stated.

"He's very durable, that's certain enough." Nic noted, seeing Kaulas dislodge himself. "What sort of Magic can have a human being become such a thing?"

Cana looked around as she was getting frustrated. Nothing was working. The Ethernano was still charging the cannon, and if she used Magic, it'd be like adding fuel to the fire.

"Damnit! Can't this thing stop in any way?!" She exclaimed.

Sophie jumped to her right and looked just as frustrated, despite her calm expression. "I know how you feel. This is very troubling." She looked back as Nic and Staraptor engaged in battle some more. "We're too exhausted from our previous fights, and our Magic doesn't seem to be replete with his cannon."

Cana turned towards her. "Just what are we supposed to do?"

Sophie looked back at her. "I don't know, okay! Listen, everything has a weakness, we just need to remember and stay calm and take in every factor possible! Geography. Weather. Material. Structure. Anything that'll help out!"

Cana's eyes widened. "Wait! You said something about weather and temperature, right?"

Sophie raised a brow in confusion. "Yeah?" She said slowly. "I actually said Geography and Weather, but…"

"Tell me." Cana's voice sounded rushed somewhat. "Have you noticed that when he came in here compared to outside, that it's slightly hotter?"

"Uh…" Sophie took notice just now and looked around. "Now that you mention it, the temperature outside was pretty pleasant, compared to here, it's rather…stuffy." Sophie's eyes then widened. "…Oh."

Cana nodded. "Yeah. You think the temperature may be involved with sensitivity?"

Sophie looked back at the Zeus Cannon. "Only one way to find out."

Back with Nic and Staraptor, Nic barrel rolled and dodged Phalanx Bullet and the attack plowed through more empty pipes of fresh air. He rolled back up to his feet and darted ahead. "**Dizzy Punch!**" His fist became a multitude of colors and he drove his fist into Kaulas, making him step back.

The Bone Mage growled at Nic and clasped his palms in front of the other. "I've have it up to here with you. You and your little friends can forget about the ground from where you stand." A large Magic pressure let a small magnitude erode through the earth. Nic and Staraptor alike were both antsy as they maintained their ground.

Kaulas then pressed his hands on the ground. "**Boneyard!**"

The ground began jutting out so many bones that was similar to Precipice Blades. The attack jutted out of the ground with bones with pointed ends. They jutted out madly, and when they reached Nic and Staraptor, the Predator Pokémon grabbed her trainer's arm with one talon and ascended with great speed, evading the small forest of bone sprouting up.

Cana and Sophie alike saw the attack heading their way and immediately took action. They snapped out of their shock and jumped for the nearest ladders. Latching on they watched the bones jut out from the ground, engulfing everything underneath in a ten-foot tall forest of pure bone.

Nic was surprised to say the least. "He made bone from the very earth?"

Staraptor looked at the scene under her as well. "Yeah, and it looks ugly."

"You'd be surprised." Nic and Staraptor's eyes shot wide and they immediately ascended as fast as a Quick Attack. They barely evaded a long bone shot at them with a pointed tip, embedding into the chamber wall. Turning around, they saw Kaulas merged with a bone spike. His upper body stuck out as he eyed Nic and Saraptor.

"Your accomplices are of no match for me, so they're of no threat. You and your bird, however, are starting to wear me down. I hate to say it, but it seems that my Magic Power is running a tad low."

Nic's eyes narrowed.

"But…the Zeus Cannon has accumulated the Magic Power from Boneyard, and from those constant release of Magic pressure. Game over." Sure enough Kaulas wasn't far off as the lacrima around the Zeus Cannon were beginning to get brighter and brighter. "It was at 75% capacity when I first discovered it. The lacrima in the city gathered up an extra 20% fast, leaving the 5% for the Magic exerted throughout your time here."

Nic and Staraptor grunted as they looked back down at the Zeus Cannon as they could hear and feel the Magic generating inside the black cannon at a drastic caliber. Of course this shocking turn of events left them open for Kaulas. His tail sprouted from the bone spike he was merged with and it swatted away at Nic.

Nic looked back only to receive the tail slam on his right side. The attack's boney ridges dug their way through Nic and his mouth gawked as the ridged tail hit his giant scar that was over his right abdomen. The giant claw-like scar under his attire stung in all the wrong ways, and Nic went numb from the insult to injury. The impact swatted him out of Staraptor's hold and he sailed and slammed into a bone spike's side, hitting it with a thud on his back.

"Nic!" Staraptor, Cana, and Sophie shouted in shock. They all gaped their mouths as they saw Nic going numb as he slid down to the ground. He thudded and coughed as his giant scar was like getting slashed at all over again, but on a lesser scale.

Kaulas turned towards Nic to attack, but his eyes caught the blur that was Staraptor. The Predator Pokémon swooped in with Aerial Ace and crashed into Kaulas, but Kaulas didn't so much as budge as his boney armor sustained the impact.

"Impudent pest!" He drove a fist back that was covered in a boney gauntlet and drove it into Staraptor. The Normal and Flying-Type used her left wing to block but the impact was still strong enough to send her back against another bone spike.

Sophie grunted. "Hurry, Cana!"

"Yeah! I'm on it!" Cana flashed her cards. "Now, let's test his theory out! **Icicle!**" She sent her attack full of giant icicles at the Zeus Cannon's base, where the shining lacrima were. The icicles all crashed into the cannon's base, covering it in cold ice, but not a single scratch was dealt.

Kaulas looked back to find the Zeus Cannon under attack. "Stay away." He growled. His left arm began to crackle greatly. "The power generated from the cannon at its full state may end up destroying half of Fiore. The thought of a Magic level for an Abyss Break is too weak." His arm began to protrude and grow bones and began to mold over his entire arm and forearm. The entire thin was similar to a spiral drill.

"**Skeleton Thruster.**" He announced. "This bone is by far my strongest. Not only is it comprised by the bone material in one's teeth, but it's enough to bore right through any defense."

His lower body had begun to reached out as his entire body was balanced over the spike. "Now, who will be the first?"

Just when things were looking bad for Cana and Sophie, they heard a cough from a familiar individual. Turning their heads, everyone took notice of Nic stumbling back up to his feet, his left arm gripping his right side.

He looked frustrated at Kaulas. "Don't you dare." His eyes sharpened. "I'm still standing."

Kaulas scoffed with a frown. "Luminous, how durable are you?" He turned his body and jumped off the ten-foot bone spike and landed on the little ground available.

He eyed Nic with his bone-white irises. "Very well, but know that no defense can stop this."

He then charged at Nic, the Skeleton Thruster went first. The entire attack was like a drill going through soft dirt. The bones in the way were shattered and chipped by the impending force of the attack. Bone flew everywhere as the attack and Kaulas traveled towards Nic.

Still uneasy, Nic winced before thinking. _'I'm still battered from that scar, and that attack left me a little numb. I can't move too well. I'll have to make this next move count.' _He glowed and he began to shift into another Plate, the next one being the Icicle Plate. Everything about his attire was the same, but now the coat he had on was a solid crystal blue with ice-colored edging and belt.

He saw the distance close quickly and inhaled as much air as he possible could and exhaled. "**Blizzard!**"

The attack violently made way and swallowed up everything in front in a maelstrom of rapid-speeding snow and frost. The onslaught of chilling air zoomed on as Kaulas made way, his eyes widened with sheer shock as he didn't account for Nic to use something related to cold.

The distance was getting smaller and Kaulas ran slowly through the Blizzard, but for some reason, all of the bones on his body were beginning to quiver violently, as if feeling cold themselves.

'_Oh no!' _His running slowed into a walk as his entire body was beginning to quiver from the Blizzard. He was helpless as his entire boney attack shook unsteadily-like and collapsed on itself. The attack directed its course into the ground in front, creating a large crater and Kaulas was left to quiver violently. _'It's so cold! I was too careless!'_

Nic closed his mouth and stopped Blizzard. His eyes took notice of Kaulas quivering as the air around was still freezing cold.

"Now I see." He stated. "I should've known from the start. Bones are sensitive to cold. You said that your Magic works similar to cells, right?" He began to advance slowly. "Cells spread out and cluster together depending on the temperature, and with you constantly applying bone all around your body you have to continuously expand the cells to make more bone, but adding too much can lead to vulnerability to cold temperatures."

Kaulas grunted as the frost on his bones made him quiver even more. "…more or less. Now you understand why many who have used Bone Magic in the past went unstable. It's all true; cold temperatures keeps the bone structure vulnerable, hence why human teeth chatter when it's cold."

At that instant, they heard a crackling sound. Nic and a quivering Kaulas looked over and the latter's eyes widened as they looked past the bones and saw the lacrima covered in ice from Cana's attack begin cracking.

Cana smirked victoriously. "Hook, line, and sinker. I was right."

Kaulas shook even more with a gaping mouth. "You…"

Sophie smirked as well. "We had a feeling why it was stuffy down here. The lacrima down here are as sensitive to cold as are bones. No wonder it's been underground in this chamber; the trapped heat keeps from getting the machine cooled."

Cana added on. "And what happens when you add cold to the mixture? You get quivering bones and a weapon with no power source."

Staraptor ascended over Nic and glared at Kaulas. "Now we got you where we want you."

"You'll try, but I'll go ahead and start firing now!" He shot his hand to his side, and at the weapon's base, a panel opened up in response to him. The panel was blue and had fingerprints on it, presuming his. He darted right at the panel and away from Nic. They all looked surprised as the enemy was making way.

"Oh no you don't!" Sophie put a finger to her forehead. "**Memory-Make: Piercing Frigid Darkness!**"

From in front, a frigid cold spear of darkness with swirling ice around it was materialized and shot with the speed of lightning. The attack zoomed on as Kaulas was about to reach for the panel. The attack struck the panel the second Kaulas touched it with the tip of his fingers. A bright light flashed before an explosion of darkness and cold engulfed everything at the base of the cannon. Cana, Staraptor, and Nic all covered up as a gust of frigid cold bypassed them.

The flash and explosion began to subside, and it revealed Kaulas still in his carcass armor, but barely even able to maneuver as he quivered in place and the panel was destroyed, just as it turned red.

Through it all, Kaulas smirked. "Now, it's begun…"

The weapon's lacrima went from a bright pink to a dark red as the weapon sounded like an engine charging up to maximum power. Nic and everyone's eyes widened as the red brightness flashed through the cold ice, and the cannon's top began to shine a dark red.

Kaulas's smirk increased. "Now to rid all who has forgotten of history."

Everyone felt a foreboding Magic swell, but as things were beginning to escalate, cracks began to swell the lacrima, unnerving Kaulas as he sharply turned to find them all covered in ice. The temperature in the room was cold, and he could only stay still as his boney form quivered uncontrollably.

"No! The cannon will-!"

He was cut off when one of the several lacrima shattered into fragments in the slot. Immediately, the engine sound of the Zeus Cannon began to dwindle down. The bright red began to diminish as the charge was decreased.

"Now! While we still can!" Nic shouted.

Kaulas turned around to see a blur. He received a harsh kick by Staraptor, making him grunt as he shakily stumbled backwards. He retaliated with his tail, but the swing was very weak compared to before. Staraptor easily swatted it away and her wings glowed again. "**Steel Wing!**" Her attack struck the rib armor of Kaulas's abdomen, cracking profusely after that one blow.

"N-No!" He shouted.

"Alright we got him!" Cana shouted.

"Nic, bring it home!" Sophie shouted. Personally she wished to help in the final blow, but that last spell drained the rest of her and Cana's Magic.

Nic spread his legs out and opened his mouth. He let out a cry as he gathered as much power he could possibly ascertain. The inside of his mouth glowed light blue as his mouth began to draw in light blue, spiraling energy currents segmented by frost and snow.

Finally, Nic let loose the power. "**Sheer Cold!**" Nic let loose a light blue, icy beam of energy with snowflake-like sparkles all around it. As the beam traveled the clear way towards Kaulas, the ground shot up ice pillars. The beam and the pillars headed way and Kaulas screamed violently as all he saw was a flash of icy blue.

At that instant, everything in the chamber erupted in numbing ice. Cana, Sophie, and Staraptor all felt a catastrophic chill hit them and they all lost footing and altitude and fell to the ground as everything was but a blinding cold.

When their eyes opened after the flash, they felt the room temperature being exceedingly cold and Cana shivered the most given all she had on her upper body was her blue bra. Staraptor and Sophie shook their heads to get any ice residue off and they looked back at the scene before tem.

One side of the Zeus Cannon was covered in thick frost, and as the frost went to the base, there was ice that got thicker, showing shattered lacrima pieces inside. At the base itself was Kaulas, stuck to the cannon's base with his entire body frozen and pale. The bone armor on him was completely chipped and shattered from the absolute zero blast, leaving him to revert to himself. His eyes were deprived of pupils as he was unconscious and probably unable to move his limbs.

Nic kept a straight face while Cana and Sophie smirked victoriously, and Staraptor shared the same musings as her trainer. All four looked around at the other, grinning in victory over the fight and the Zeus Cannon's destruction.

* * *

So many things happened later on that day. The entire city was overran by Rune Knights who went to apprehend Ghoul's Coffin and it's unconscious elites. The whole guild was taken into custody, and Kaulas and the Zeus Cannon was uncovered.

Nic and his accomplices of course had to answer questions as to what they knew, given what they were told. Though Nic despised doing these things, he'd rather not put up with anymore Magic Council bullcrap. The Zeus Cannon was apprehended and a frozen Kaulas was captured. After the whole skirmish was settled and the Rune Knights got what they came for, that just left Nic and friends to get their reward money.

The mayor was obliged to compensate for the completed job. Nobody had any idea that the Zeus Cannon would destroy half of Fiore at full power. This would've been S-Class if this were the case, but for compensation, the mayor doubled the reward money. Although, a fraction of said sum was taken out to repair the city, a large area destroyed by a certain someone who was on a drunken rampage. But this didn't deter the group in the slightest. Just because 8 million Jewels was cut out doesn't mean that they couldn't enjoy the rest.

After the events, the group began to make way home. The sun was setting and the sky was dark orange. They made way into the forest again, facing away from the sunset in the west.

Cana nonchalantly had hands on the back of her head. "Well that was something."

"No kidding. That had to be one of the most riveting missions I've had so far." Sophie didn't at all exaggerate given her memory. "I never knew the Zeus Cannon was the first ever cannon to be used. To think that the weapon was vulnerable to cold temperatures."

Nic walked in front as they made it in front, with his Staraptor safely in her Poke Ball after some long, hard battles. He remained silent with amusement as Cana and Sophie chatted behind him.

"So what are you gonna do with the money?"

Cana looked away in a casual manner. "Well my share's gonna be for my rent for Fairy Hills."

Sophie almost screeched to a halt in shock. It took her almost several seconds to compose before she darted right back to Cana's side. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. What?! Last I checked, you'd be using that cash to put booze down your throat!"

Cana twisted her expression into a more quizzical one. "Well that's what the leftover Jewel is for. Though I have to say I'm just as shocked as you." She eyed Nic wearily. "But that thinking stopped after seeing those bones and…well, you know."

Sophie raised a brow and looked back at Nic, whose sunglasses reflected the dimming sun rays on the sides. "…oh, right. I really wished that didn't happen."

Nic glanced back at them. "What?"

"Oh~, nothing." Sophie chimed. "Still, are you sure you just want _2 _million of the share?"

"Yeah. You make us look like the bad guys. I know the reward was doubled to 30 million, but are you sure about this?" Cana added.

Nic reached into his pockets. "Yeah, I'm sure." He pulled out his phone and earbuds. "I was told that I was accountable for that…incident, so I'd best take responsibility." That was Nic or sure. He was never one for extravagance, nor could he care less about money in general. Sure a lot would be nice, but Nic survives in the mountains and forests with his Pokémon. If he cared about money, he'd be caring about his social status, to which he never cared for.

Cana and Sophie alike didn't feel like pressing the matter since they understood Nic and shrugged it off. Each had 10 million of their own, that left roughly 6 million or so on their rents, leaving 4 million each; for Cana's case, it'd be for downing booze to get over the disgusting bones she saw and the drunken rampage that was Nic.

"So we'll be back by tomorrow, right?" Sophie asked.

Nic nodded. "Yeah. We should get some sleep while we still can. After today we'll need as much strength we can get."

The three made way inside the deep forest trail, where Nic put his earbuds into his ears and soon found a tree and climbed so as to crawl and jump all the way until the three decided to rest until the morning sun arose.

* * *

**24 hours later**

The members of Fairy Tail were trying to recuperate after the Legion Platoon had launched an attack. Kinana was swabbing Macao's forehead with Romeo supervising. The rest of Fairy Tail was trying to process what just happened.

"Both Lucy and Michelle took off." Levy told. "Natsu and Happy went in pursuit awhile back."

Elfman crossed his arms. "This is sad. We're pathetic."

Vanessa looked down. "Even with my Aura Magic wasn't enough."

"You weren't that experienced; besides, that woman with the conducting stick took control of all of us." Lisanna mentioned. "Still…"

Mira narrowed her serious gaze. "This won't be the last time, that's for sure.

* * *

"Can you sniff her out?" Happy asked. He was currently carrying Natsu through the air.

Natsu scrunched his face. "Naw, there's a funky smell that keeps getting in the way." His eyes widened. "Wait, hold on. That's gotta be that old object!"

A sudden torrent of green slime shot up from underneath, in which the two dodged and watched it descend. Now having their attention, Happy and Natsu looked down at the ground.

"Natsu, look!"

"Sugarboy."

Unlike the Edolas Sugarboy, Earthland Sugarboy had a mic and a white cowboy outfit. He had what appeared to be green slime all around him.

"Hmmm~, hmm~. Gotcha now, Spice-Boy." He hummed into his mic.

"Bring it!" Natsu shouted. Happy descended so as to get close to the ground. "Hope you're ready for earlier, you big jerk!"

"Hm, no need Spice-Boy. I don't converse with sweet food nor sweet people!" Sugarboy hummed.

"Talk about being ironic?" Happy noted.

Out of the blue, the ground shook violently as something humungous landed not too far from everyone. What they all saw was a giant octopus-like creature with spikes on the side of its huge head. The several tentacles on its sides were finished with Corphish-like pincers. On top was a shady man.

"Sugerboy, do not waste your time." He stated. "Remember the task at hand."

Natsu raised a brow as his face was stricken with shock. "Whoa, where'd that thing come from?" He asked nervously.

* * *

Lucy and Michelle huffed as they tried catching their breath. As they were, Lucy was handling the huge stick in cloth with care. "Just…what is…going on?" Lucy huffed. "We get back from a job…only to be attacked…by these guys."

Michelle looked towards her. "Can you still summon your Spirits?"

Lucy looked down. "No, and I can't seem to understand why. Even my Fleuve d'etoiles wont-"

"There you are." The voice got their attention as they both looked up a small cliff to find Mary Hughes with her goblin-like control stick in hand, a devious smirk on her face. "Just as Samuel calculated."

"Hughes!" Lucy said surprised.

She pointed her stick at Lucy and Michelle. "Now the fun keeps going on."

* * *

**So what was your opinion on the extended X791 Arc? I also decided to start fairly deep into the Key to the Starry Sky Arc.**

**I forgot to answer this from before. The reason I am doing the OCxCana story **_**after **_**either story is finished is because that would slow the progress down in general, plus I still need to gather ideas. I still plan on doing it given the poll. Thank you guys by the way! Cana deserves some love!**

**You'll find the reason why Lucy can't summon her Spirits later on.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if this is entertaining!**

* * *

**Next Time: Holy and Unholy**


	58. Holy and Unholy

Chapter 58 – Holy and Unholy

**I'm back and I have done recalculating! According to the ideas I had laid out, and the pre-ideal plans I wrote, the actual length of this story came out to be 85 chapters. Bet you weren't expecting that, huh?**

**On with the Key to the Starry Sky Arc!**

**To Recap:**

Kaulas and Nic's group engage in a heated battle, where Kaulas's Bone Magic had more than a few surprises, including an unstable altered form. Soon enough, the Zeus Cannon was fully charged and ready to wipe out half of Fiore, but Sophie and Cana learned that the weapon and Kaulas were weak to cold temperatures. Using the Icicle Plate, Nic was able to defeat Kaulas and save Dahlias. The following evening, Fairy Tail is attacked by the Legion Corps.

* * *

**Chapter 58 – Holy and Unholy**

Byro Cracy, the Earthland counterpart of Byro from Edolas, stood atop of a giant octopus as he glared down at Sugarboy. "Have they found Lucy Heartfilia?"

"I'm sure the little sugar in our coffee will be ours momentarily. Don't you worry, Lord Byro." Sugarboy hummed.

"Byro?!" Natsu exclaimed, recalling the same man from Edolas. "You mean that old crazy guy back in Edolas?! How'd the heck his Earthland version's an octopus here?!"

"Don't be low a melody, Spice boy! Lord Byro is on top of Kanaloa!" Sugarboy pointed atop of Kanaloa, revealing the Earthland Byro, whom was tall, very muscular, and had plated armor over a purple shirt. He also had a large, thick staff.

Natsu and Happy were the perfect definition of dumbfounded. "WHAT?! He's nothing like Byro!" They exclaimed in unison revelation.

Byro ignored their comments as he has business to attend to. He looked at Sugarboy.

"We're here for the Heartfilia girl, not to play with this boy and his flying cat. Dispose of them and return to your mission at once." He ordered sternly.

Sugarboy bowed. "On it, boss man." He turned back towards Natsu and Happy. "Don't mean anything personal, but we gotta, get on with the show." He snapped his fingers and the mic in his hand emitted soundwaves that made the surrounding slime react and elongate upwards.

Natsu immediately readied a counter. "Want spicy? Try blazing! **Fire Dragon's Roar!**" He fired a torrent of fire at the slime.

Byro sat on Kanaloa's head and reached out. His expression remained unchanged as a purple Magic seal emerged and then Natsu's flames immediately went out.

"Natsu's flames! They…they went out!" Happy exclaimed in sheer surprise and disbelief.

Sugarboy perched his lips and wagged his finger at Natsu. "Sorry, Spice Boy, but your fire ain't got nothing on Lord Byro."

Though the attack diffusing left him surprised, that didn't deter Natsu from letting loose more of his destructive force. He jumped into the air with flames streaming from both hands.

"Like heck that'll stop me! **Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**" He lashed the fire streams out at Sugarboy, but the green slime all around swallowed up the waves of fire and diffused inside.

"What?!" Natsu exclaimed. He was left baffled and open for Sugarboy to morph the slime into a giant arm and fist.

"Yuuh-huh! Get on, little doggies! **Slime Arm!**" The entire slimy fist towered high and swatted Natsu, sending him into a flat hillside, the force leaving him in a crater.

Happy stood in revelation, unable to move due to disbelief. He slowly looked from Natsu to Sugarboy. "S-Sugarboy's Magic feeds off of Natsu's powers."

"Yuuh-huh! Your fire's but a spicy meal for my Dog Whistle Magic." Sugarboy turned back towards Byro. "Lord Byro, I got this covered."

Byro nodded. "Let's go, Kanaloa."

The giant octopus turned around and began his new course away from the confrontation.

"Hey, where ya going?! I'm not done yet, Octo-Geezer!" Natsu exasperated as he dislodged himself.

Sugarboy turned towards Natsu. "Lord Byro hasn't the time to deal with you now."

* * *

Byro and Kanaloa were seen making way through the woods, and the two were left silent as they pressed on, with the octopus springing from point A to point B.

After several minutes, Byro felt something. "What is it Kanaloa?" He only needed a little time to understand. "I see, you sensed it too."

The giant octopus landed in a clearing, where they saw a man on the edge of the tree line.

Byro stood up on Kanaloa's head. "So, you're the one I sensed. This overwhelming Magic Power is quite evident." He was talking to none other than Gildarts Clive.

Gildarts had crossed arms and grinned. "Yeah? Ya don't say."

"I know who you are. You're one of Fairy Tail's top elite S-Class Mages. Gildarts Clive." Byro answered.

Gildarts frowned. "So you know me, do ya? Seems my reputation precedes me. Though top elite is right." He didn't press the matter further because considering him the strongest in Fairy Tail may be a little far from the truth, for obvious reasons.

"You got some kind of death wish, messing with my guild?" The Crash Mage changed the subject.

Byro leered Gildarts with an intensity that rivaled an animal. "I don't have business related to your little guild. I came to take what is rightfully ours."

"Ya don't say?" Gildart's voice was more defensive than nonchalant.

The bushes behind Gildarts rustled and out sprung some swift figure. It seemed super energetic and enthusiastic.

"COOL!" It was non-other than Sorcerer Weekly's reporter, Jason. And apparently he's been tailing Gildarts.

Gildarts sighed. "Will ya quite following me?"

"This has gotta be the most coolest story ever!" Jason shouted, sounded like he had an intense 24-7 sugar rush. He snapped photos from his distance. "This is my big chance! The cover story for Sorcerer Weekly!"

Gildarts ignored Jason and returned to the center of attention. "I don't know who to take down first; you, or the octopus."

Byro kept a stone cold expression. "Gildarts, if you continue to threaten me, you shall face a great judgement."

The Crash Mage's eyes narrowed and he remained paused for only a few more seconds. After those few seconds, he suddenly and swiftly jumped up and stretched out his hand, deploying his Crash Magic in the form of a net. Byro extended his arm out and swiped it, dispelling the net. A few seconds later, the tree behind Byro was reduced to rectangular blocks.

Gildarts landed atop of Kanaloa's surprisingly flat head and looked at Byro with hidden question in his gaze. "You said that I'd face a grand judgement, but it looked like you ran away."

"No, I did no such thing." Byro testified. "I simply nullified your Magic, or to be more accurate, I dispersed and redirected it around me."

Gildarts kept a hostile expression. "Is that so?"

Jason wrote some stuff in his little notepad and sprung in ever so glee. "COOL! Gildarts attack was redirected and made the tree into hundreds of tiny blocks!"

"What exactly do you have to gain?" Gildarts questioned, wanting answers,

Byro held up a hand, slowly clenching it. "My unit's goals are not to be shared. If you insist on attacking me, it'll give me a reason to destroy you."

* * *

Coco ran about on the sides of the cliffs with such athletic capabilities. Wendy, Carla, and Lily all looked hesitant as they saw how fast she moved.

"She's so agile, almost like Nic." Wendy stated.

"What do we do?" Carla asked.

Lily looked down and clenched his fists. Looking at Earthland Coco reminded him of Edolas Coco, making him all the more hesitant. He clenched his fists tighter and he glowed, shifting into his Battle Form, which caught Wendy and Carla by surprise.

"We have to defeat her." He stated sternly. "Even though she's the spitting image of Coco…she's not the same girl we knew in Edolas."

"Lily." Carla muttered.

"Then you won't do it alone." The foreign voice caught the Exceeds and the girls' attention. Turning to the side, they all caught the sight of some fortunate allies in the form of Cana and Sophie.

"Looks like you could use a hand." The brunette said, flashing her cards.

"We'll be sure to back you up." Sophie stated.

Wendy looked shocked. "You're here?!"

"You're saying you just got back from your job?" Carla asked.

Cana and Sophie started walking a few paces towards the Exceeds and the Dragon Slayer. Sophie gave a serious vibe. "Yeah. When the others at the Guild Hall informed us of what was going on, we came rushing over as fast as we could."

"Nic should be locating Lucy and Michelle as we speak." Cana said. "He'll pull through. For now…" Her cards glowed. "Let's show this little girl who she's messing with!"

* * *

"Lucy, please! Save yourself!" Michelle was unable to control herself as Mary Hughes was using her Magic to force Michelle off the cliff, of course Lucy tried to keep her from doing so, but was beginning to look as though it were for naught.

"No! I won't let that happen!" Lucy shouted. She lost a little footing. "I'll stick with you-!"

Both girls finally lost ground and their mouths gaped open. They screamed as they fell from the huge cliff and began to plummet below. Lucy clutched onto the clothed object in her hand as she descended rapidly.

"AAHH! Please work! Please work!" She shouted as she held a Zodiac Key to the ground. "**Open: Gate of the Ram – Aries!**"

Nothing happened as not even a Magic seal emerged.

"WHAT?! STILL?! OH COME ON!" Lucy screamed as her attempt failed. She and Michelle both screamed as they were gonna reach their demise through means of crashing into the ground.

A glint in the sky emerged and a blurry figure rushed in at a sharp angle. It was moving so fast that it was almost unreal. The blur snagged Lucy and Michelle and with its mighty wings was able to carry them.

Lucy and Michelle opened their eye to find that they weren't pancakes. They both looked up to find that their savior was carrying them by his strong arms.

Lucy smiled. "Nic! Boy are we glad to see you!"

Michelle looked shocked. "This is Nic?"

Nic looked down at them as he descended lightly. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, thanks a lot!" Lucy kept her satisfied grin. "You're a lifesaver." She and Michelle both were gently put on the ground and looked up at Nic, who turned his attention up to where Mary was.

Mary put a hand to her hip. "Seriously, like, do you not know when to give up?"

"Careful! She can control people!" Lucy warned Nic. "That's how she controlled Michelle and everyone else!"

Nic's eyes narrowed as his sunglasses were on his V-Neck. "So she can use that wand as a means of manipulation." He glowed, shifting into his Mind Plate. His feet were planted on the ground as he clenched both fists. "Then let's go!"

Mary smirked viciously and jumped off the side of the cliff. She descended rapidly with her smile still wicked. She aimed the stick at Nic as she descended. "You think you can stop me?! Try doing so when you can't move!"

The tip glowed and Nic felt himself unable to move. He was caught surprised, but completely omitted it and remained calm. As Mary descended further, Nic seemed ready.

"I don't need to move to beat you." He stated. His eyes glowed and Mary found herself outlined in the same color as Nic's glowing eyes, startling her as she suddenly found herself unable to move, levitating in the air.

Her eyes widened. "What?! What's happening?!" Her shock caused her to stop her Command Magic, and Nic was free to move, though he didn't make any movements other than extending his left arm out.

"Manipulation of others is below human. See how you like it. **Confusion!**" He exclaimed. He forced Mary into the side of the cliff, making her end up in a crater. She fell down to the ground with a great thud.

Lucy's eyes widened. "Whoa. She just got a taste of her own medicine." She muttered in disbelief.

Mary stumbled up from the ground and groaned. She ascertained more than a few bruises from that painful attack, but she didn't deter as she had a job to accomplish.

"You. How dare you manipulate me! ME!" She exasperated harshly. She pointed her stick at them. "Let's see how you like these apples!" Her smirk returned as the end glowed.

Lucy suddenly became stiff and Michelle and Nic turned to find her shuddering. The blonde was unable to act as she stiffly turned towards Nic.

"Come on blondie, give him some attention!" Mary moved her stick and Lucy followed, feeling herself get dragged and squealed as she went in after Nic.

"WAAAHHHHHHH!" Lucy squealed as she found herself unable to free herself as her body went towards Nic. Fortunately for her, Nic was able to nimbly dodge and pivoted to see Lucy being thrown back at him.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" She shouted the same thing as she past Nic, unable to hit him. Continuously missing and ending up being manipulated to jerk backwards repeatedly due to Mary.

Mary grunted. "Gah! Will you hold still?!"

Lucy was then controlled to swinging her arms, using the clock piece as a bat, and resorted to kicking, all of which Nic was able to successfully dodge, without so much as getting even a small scratch.

Finally fed up, Mary pointed her stick at Lucy. "This is getting me nowhere. I'll just take the clock part and go!"

Lucy found herself being dragged by her heels towards Mary, stopping her unintentional assault on Nic. She walked robotically towards her while holding out the clock piece.

Michelle got worried. "No! Lucy, they can't have it!"

Nic extended his arm out. "Hang on!" His eyes glowed again. "**Psychic!**" Using his powers, he outlined Lucy in the same color as his eyes. The Heartfilia girl stopped in place, her whole body shuddering as she was caught in the middle of a deep struggle.

Mary grunted as she couldn't seem to pull Lucy closer. "Come on!"

Nic grunted as he pulled Lucy back and the blonde was seen a few inches closer to Nic. Mary doubled her efforts and Lucy found herself in the same spot, with both sides pulling with all the force they could muster.

Through it all, Lucy was feeling unequal levels of pain as it felt as though her body was being split into two. "G-Guys! Stop! It hurts!"

Nic grunted. _'Hang on, Lucy. I'm thinking.' _He contemplated heavily as he couldn't let up or Mary would have possession of Lucy and the clock piece. All he could do was keep a stalemate.

"Just give up!" Mary exclaimed. "Either we keep this going and she gets torn in half, or you could let her be and I can have the clock hand. Which is it?"

"Gh-Gnnnnnngh! GYAAAHHH!" Lucy yelped at the pain her body was going through; her whole body, especially the arms and legs, was feeling extreme strain. "N-Nic! She can't have it! No matter what!"

Nic didn't know the details about the object in Lucy's hold, but if it were that important to her, then Mary couldn't have it, no matter what. "Then I'm left with no other choice." Using his right hand, surprising Mary, Lucy, and Michelle alike, he put his thumb and index finger to his lips and let out a very loud whistle.

At that instant, a glint was seen in the sky, zooming downwards at such a speed that far outsped Nic from before. It sounded like a jet, and Mary and everyone looked up to see a speeding projectile.

The menacing creature roared downwards as his fins glowed green and brought them overhead. "Taste dirt, witch! GRAH!"

The creature was none other than Nic's Garchomp. His deep-toned and aggressive voice rattled everyone's spines and his vile roar made Mary quiver, and then Dual Chop was brought down onto her. A green explosion rattled the landscape and Nic was the only one able to maintain footing as he covered up from Garchomp's cloud-bursting assault. Lucy and Michelle sailed back from the sheer force, screaming and landing on their bottoms with a thud as violent winds of earth and dust blew like a raging tempest for several seconds.

The dust began to settle, and Nic was seen unfazed while Lucy and Michelle quivered weakly as Garchomp arose from a knee from a large crater with an unconscious Mary in its center.

"Nice timing as ever, good work." Nic praised. Garchomp turned towards him and emitted a low growl of satisfaction. Nic then turned around and reached for Lucy and Michelle, helping them up. Once they got to their feet, Nic looked into their eyes. "Are you both alright?"

Lucy nodded. "Yeah, that was a close call. We were lucky you and Garchomp showed up when you did."

Michelle caught whim of something. "How did you find us to begin with?"

"Cana, Sophie, and I just got back from our job. The guild told us everything from the beginning and we came speeding as fast as we could." He looked out above the cliff. "I sent out Kecleon earlier to find anyone she comes across and dispatch the enemy." He looked back at Lucy and Michelle. "You both need to head back to the Guild Hall as fast as possible. Garchomp and I will take care of any other enemies."

Lucy and Michelle didn't have time to question Nic as he jumped onto Garchomp's back, and the dragon ascended at Mach speed. "Be careful!" Was all they could hear before he and Garchomp went zooming upwards and out of sight.

Lucy stood in place, looking down at the clock hand her father gave her. She paused longingly and clenched it tighter. She then gave a focused look as she stared ahead.

She turned towards Michelle. "Come on Michelle!"

"Uh, right!" Michelle then followed Lucy was the two traveled back towards the Guild Hall, leaving Mary deprived of pupils as she laid in the crater.

* * *

Gildarts fist collided with Byro's staff, and the Crash Magic embedded dispersed again like the past several times, this one breaking the area surrounding Kanaloa. Both mages skidded back a few feet and eyed the other wearily.

"Heh, you're stronger than I'd expected." Gildarts remarked.

"Likewise." Byro responded.

Gildarts extended his arm out, sending his Crash Magic at Byro. Byro easily swiped his arm, neutralizing it and redirected it to destroy another tree from behind.

"He neutralized your attack again!" Jason shouted. "This is totally awesome! SO COOL!"

"You know, you're getting on my last nerves buddy." Gildarts remarked. He tilted his head. "I still didn't get an answer. What are you destroying my guild?"

Byro wasn't moved in the slightest. "Destroying your guild? No, that's not the objective." He confirmed. "We have no interest in your petty little guild."

Gildarts extended his arm out and deployed even more of his Crash Magic, which was nullified and redirected into a giant tree's trunk, causing the humungous structure to topple over.

"COOL! YOUR REPORTER HAS GOT SWEET INFO!" Jason shouted.

"Eh?" Gildarts questioned.

Byro's eyes narrowed.

"His name is Byro Cracy, the leader of the Legion Corps!" Jason exclaimed with enthusiasm.

"The Legion Corps?"

"Zentopia has followers all over the world, not just in Fiore! Little is known of the Legion Corps, except that they're an extensive combat unit related to the church's dark past!" Jason explained. "What I've heard is that their members underwent some crazy training!"

Hearing enough, Gildarts turned around towards Byro. "So, what does this Legion Corps want?"

Byro kept a straight face. "That's strictly none of your business."

Gildarts retaliation came in the form of rushing at Byro. His strong and moderately fast punches were dodged. "When somebody attacks my guild, it's automatically my business!" He punched again, but was blocked by Byro's staff. Gildarts then jumped and sprung his arm forward, deploying Crash Magic, but Byro swiped again, nullifying it. Gildarts punched while Byro dodged right, turning around to see Gildarts on the opposite side.

"However." The Crash Mage stated. "I'm not too concerned since Fairy Tail doesn't go down without a fight." He blocked Byro's staff with his metallic left arm, standing his ground. "But I'm not taking chances…because one of their members happens to be my daughter!"

Byro didn't let up as they were in a stalemate. "Don't be alarmed. We're not interested in your daughter. We came for Lucy Heartfilia."

Gildarts's eye narrowed. Byro instantly read them and his eyes also narrowed. Both mages jerked backwards for some distance.

"Suddenly there's a serious look in your eyes. For us, this is serious as well. This task was handed to us by Zentopia's Archbishop, therefore we cannot be allowed to fail. What is happening now, is Holy War. And this war will forever change everything." He grinned at long last. "This is inevitable."

He held up his staff, which shined a bright purple light. A great surge of power flowed that Gildarts felt and he covered up and turned around towards Jason.

"Run kid!" He shouted.

"H-Huh?!" Jason was left confused.

"I suggest that if you value your life you run! GO, NOW!" Gildarts's shout was clear and demanding, and in a flash Jason vacated the premises like a Pokémon with Run Away. When he scurried off out of sight, Gildarts turned to glare back at Byro as the light from his staff faded.

The two remained still for only a few moments of sheer pressure before their fists went at the other, making a loud crash sound echo from miles away.

* * *

Coco ran down the side of a cliff. "Would you spill it?! My patience is out!"

Lily grunted as he tried to punch her, but fighting someone familiar to the past was easier said than done. He was completely off as he punched the cliff and Coco backflipped on to the ground.

"Just tell me where I can find her!" She shouted as she ran about with high speed.

Cana turned around and her cards flashed. "Try running past this! **Thunderbolt's Fate!**" She made a green Magic seal and the card let loose a lot of bolts of lightning.

Coco ran with great speed and used her extreme acrobatic Magic and frontflipped and outran the various bolts of lightning, with every single one missing.

"No way!" Cana exclaimed.

"Let me try!" Sophie pointed a finger at her own head. "**Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**" She then conjured up several cracks within the cliffs, where Coco was running about on the sides. She looked ahead and saw that a multitude of jagged stones with yellow on their tips jut out. She huffed and ran to the top of the cliff, where the blades followed. She dashed upwards and sprung into a backwards dive, twisting her body as she landed on the slope and sped back down, evading the whole field of Charge Blades that went back into the earth.

Sophie was more or less shocked to say the least. "She was nimble enough to dodge that?!" She then grunted as she felt exhaustion catch up to her.

Wendy and everyone looked at her. "Sophie, are you alright?" Wendy asked.

Sophie winced. "Y-yeah. I still haven't recovered much from yesterday."

Cana grunted, wincing a little as well. "Yeah, no kidding. That must have been my only spell."

Coco was seen dashing at them, her incoming speed surprising them. "Enough! Where is she-!"

She was stopped before she could attack. A swift blur completely kicked her in the face, making her squeal as she skidded backwards and winced in great pain. The sudden assault made everyone's eyes widen at the appearance of another character entering the fray.

Coco held her face as she looked ahead. "Who did that?!"

A tall figure arose with a pose, his silhouette fading and revealing his huge grin. "Why hello! Welcome!"

Cana and Sophie's eyes widened with sheer revelation. They wouldn't have believed it if they didn't see it for themselves.

"You've gotta be kidding me." Cana muttered in disbelief.

The figure turned around and posed elegantly with his peacock-like cape extended and unfolded, startling Wendy and the Exceeds. The person with his huge grin was none other than an ally from before - Pavo.

"It's good to see you alive and well! Old friends!" He happily cheered.

Sophie smiled. "Oh wow, it's really you! I remembered you from Dahlias yesterday! Thanks so much for that by the way!"

Cana still kept shock on her face. "You mean you still survived and weren't caught by the Rune Knights?"

Pavo posed elegantly once more and spun on the tip of his shoes. "Oh don't be silly! A peacock cannot fall from grace! I shall do whatever it takes to help out my friends!"

Wendy sweatdropped. "Uh…do you know him?"

Cana grinned as she turned towards Wendy. "Yeah, apparently he was once an enemy, now our friend. He helped us greatly." She turned towards him while grinning. "Glad he came out in one piece."

Carla raised a brow. "Well, he's very…unique."

Coco didn't care and she got back to her feet. "Hey! What's your deal buddy?!" Her shout caught Pavo's attention and he turned around to face her, an askew expression on his face.

Without hesitation, she ran into Pavo. "Do you mind?! Tell me where Lucy Heartfilia is!"

Pavo grunted and posed a leg out. "Back off!" He unleashed a lightning-speed flurry of kicks at Coco, making her scream as she was hit and landed with a thud on her back.

"Oh wow!" Wendy remarked.

"He's fast enough to do damage to the girl." Carla remarked.

Pavo took a pose. "You stay away from my friends!" He shouted, making Cana and Sophie remain silent. "Any friend of Nic Pularis is a friend of mine! And as such, I'll spill nothing to keep this Lucy Heartfilia from the likes of you! If you want her so bad, get her yourself!"

Cana smirked and held up a fist. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"

Coco rushed after him with even more impatience. "Tell me!" She went for a twisting, midair kick, but Pavo's dance moves made him backflip with his wrist blocking the attack. He then spiraled and used his palm to strike Coco, sending her skidding back several feet.

The two were engaged in a swift battle of parrying blows, much to Coco's sheer shock and disbelief. Her acrobatic kicks were stopped every single time by Pavo when he raised a knee, pivoted, and kicked.

"Just hold still!" Coco frontflipped and kicked, but Pavo jumped and twirled with an elegant pose.

"**Descending Peck Memoir!**" Pavo came crashing down with the tips of his toes out. His feet hit Coco's abdomen and she screamed and spiraled a cartwheel until she hit the cliff slope, where she was lying on her back with spirals in her eyes.

Wendy clasped her hands in joy. "You got her!"

Pavo posed as he spun around towards his comrades. "And that's all she wrote!"

Cana smiled. "Nice work there. She was quite the hassle."

Lily just stared out at the dizzy Coco, fixated on how helpless he was. He completely lacked the resolve to fight against her, and seeing Pavo lay waste to her made his core shiver. But he had to remind himself she was not the same and was the enemy. He turned back to his little form and continued staring.

Carla turned towards him. "Lily."

"…it's fine. Let's go." It was clear in his voice that he was reluctant, but pressed on. Everyone else nodded and they made way off towards the Guild Hall to regroup.

* * *

Natsu's fight was…eventful. He fought slime, got pounded by slime, dove into slime, and for some reason of which no one shall ever understand, Natsu and Sugarboy were having a stare down with a hand from each person stuck in a hot slimy ball.

Natsu used his free hand to try to hit Sugarboy, but every shot missed when he leaned in various directions. "Gah! Hold still!" He punched again, but Sugarboy dodged. Sugarboy finally yanked, prompting Natsu to momentarily stop.

"Now that's enough. This was fun but you need to get your hand out." He warned. "I don't wanna sound mean but this is weird. I don't wanna be holding hands all night."

"I ain't holding your hand cuz I wanna, jerk!" Natsu barked.

"If you're gonna be a hot-headed woman, then I'll have to beat the ever-loving snot out of ya."

"Wait, what-?!"

Natsu was met by a fist by Sugarboy, followed by a vast flurry of jabs all over his face. "Yuuh-huh. You like that? Yeah." Sugarboy's endless punching barrage didn't let up and Natsu's face was bombarded with bruises and swelled up cheeks. Finally, the punching stopped and Natsu slumped back.

Sugarboy hummed. "Yuuh-huh. Y'all dawdle on outta here."

His shadow blackened and he was unable to read it before the shadow stretched out from beneath, striking him in the abdomen. Sugarboy gawked as the air was knocked out of him in that solemn blow. He let out some more air and dropped to his knees.

Natsu blinked at the sudden confusion, and then cringed when a sudden blast of ice struck the Hot Slime, causing it to instantly freeze and shatter, freeing Natsu as he fell backwards.

Looking to his left, he saw two figures he never thought he'd see. "What the…that chameleon thing, and Gray?" Upon seeing Gray, Natsu fumed. "Hey! You almost froze my hand off!"

Gray's hand mist with remnants of his Ice-Make. "I just saved you, didn't I? You should be thanking me."

Kecleon tilted her head. "We all look so thrilled." She stated in her creepy monotone voice.

Sugarboy clenched his abdomen while standing on a knee. The sight of him brought Gray back the memories of Edolas, as to how he fended against Edolas Sugarboy. Despite the shock on Gray's face, Sugarboy leered at Kecleon and Gray alike.

"I'll call you Ice Boy, and you'll be called Reptilian Girl!" He stated while still on a knee.

"I don't care about the stupid nicknames! Why the heck are you here?!" Gray exclaimed.

"It's not what you think Gray!" Happy interjected. "This is Earth Land Sugarboy!"

"What?"

Sugarboy regained enough breath to stand up and had his mic in hand. "You'll learn to not mess with me on my bad side, now. Get on!" His mic emitted soundwaves and green slime began to emerge from his body yet again.

Natsu started to like shocked. "Uh oh, not that stuff again!"

The green slime began to wiggle its way towards Gray and Natsu, and Kecleon stepped forward in front of Gray. She straightened up her head and opened her mouth. "**Screech!**" She let loose red shockwaves from her mouth that pierced the air. The shockwaves reached the green slime and Sugarboy and the slime began to bubble madly and go out of control, ending up engulfing Sugarboy instead.

"Wh-what is this mad melody?!" He shouted as his Magic was reacting funny to Kecleon's Screech. The mucus-like Magic began to drown Sugarboy as he was incapable of defending.

"**Thief!**"

In a fast blur, Kecleon ended up behind Sugarboy, looking forward as the latter gawked at the sudden pain as there was an opening in the slime and he slumped downwards onto his back, passing out with the slime slumping all around him.

Gray looked surprised. "Guess I should've known Kecleon would've done something like that."

"Hey! How come no one told me that sound effects that slime?! Huh?!" Natsu exclaimed.

Gray crossed his arms. "Probably because Kecleon used her brain. She remembered that he used that mic, meaning sound effects that slime." He turned towards her. "Right?"

Kecleon looked at the microphone staff in her claws that she obtained through her Thief. She looked back at Gray. "He sung terribly, so I made a better tune." She tilted her head. "I like this mic." She put it close to her. "I'll be here all week!"

* * *

Gildarts's kick was blocked by Byro's staff. He jerked away and jumped up, ending up falling onto Byro with his Crash Magic, but failed when Byro's staff glowed. With the distance, Byro kicked, but Gildarts jumped backwards and evaded the sweep.

The two were in an intense stare down on a knee atop of Kanaloa's head, both having a serious and aggressive look in their eyes.

A sudden spear shot down from above, driving itself in between Gildarts and Byro. Kanaloa felt the spear poking him on his head and he wailed in pain, shaking back and forth in agony.

Gildarts jumped off of him and landed on the ground on a knee. Right beside him, a certain redhead emerged in her Giant's Armor.

"Erza." He said surprised.

Kanaloa fumed and cooled down as Byro pried the spear from his head, calming down the octopus.

"It's very rare to see you in a struggle, Gildarts." Erza said, not taking her eyes off of the two opponents before her.

Gildarts smirked. "Yeah, well, it's not every day you face off against a giant octopus."

"If this man and his pet were involved in the attack on our guild, then retribution must be afoot."

"You said it." Gildarts and Erza both glared at Byro and Kanaloa alike.

Byro stood tall over Kanaloa as he glared down at Erza and Gildarts, not even a grumble escaped, indicating he was ready to fight.

Everyone at that instant heard what appeared to be a fighter jet from above. Everyone looked up with curiosity, only to find the jet-like projectile looking like a dragon-shaped energy and rushing straight down at Kanaloa and Byro.

"**Dragon Rush!**" Garchomp's dark voice echoed all around and the entire dragon-like figure came crashing down onto Kanaloa, creating a draconic energy explosion, one that caused Gildarts and Erza to maintain their ground, albeit barely.

Through the explosion, Kanaloa and Byro were seen falling backwards onto the ground with an earth-shaking thud. The giant octopus groaned as he was covered in bruises, and Byro had taken quite a toll from that attack.

Byro stood up and looked out at what struck him earlier. His eyes widened a little as Nic and Garchomp landed at least thirty feet away.

"Nic!" Erza said surprised.

"Nice timing." Gildarts remarked. "That octopus was pretty annoying."

Nic didn't turn around as he took a defensive yet relaxed stance. "Stay sharp. This guy is clearly a much larger threat than the remaining members so far."

Garchomp's head lowered and snarled.

"Such pitiful fools. You keep interfering." Byro remarked in disgust. "I'll just have to eliminate you as well. Attack me and I'll show you my wrath."

As Garchomp growled, Nic's arm reached out, making a whiff sound. "Keep your defenses up! Garchomp, **Slash!**"

Garchomp roared again and his claws glowed and elongated. His eyes sharpened. "Octopus or man, I will destroy all those who stand in my way! Grraaahhh!" He viciously lunged ahead at Byro, who didn't bother to move.

Byro extended his staff out and it glowed as Garchomp advanced, but the most startling thing was that he took the Slash and gawked at the overwhelming force, sending him crashing into a straight row of trees, each on reducing to splinters.

Garchomp positioned himself on the ground. "Maybe you should be more careful and not rely on some petty stick!"

Gildarts's eyes widened with sheer shock. He was baffled by the revelation that behold him. "No way."

Through the dark shadows, Byro's weakened form emerged. He clenched his abdomen where Garchomp struck and grunted. His face was completely twisted from sheer disbelief and shock.

"How can this be? My Nullification Magic neutralizes all forms of Magic! You should've been hitting dirt, yet you didn't." His voice was all shaken and distraught.

"I just follow my own rues of dishing out pain." Garchomp told aggressively.

Nic swiped his arm. "Now use **Dig!**"

Garchomp arched his unique body and drove himself into the earth, making it shake. When the dirt and dust settled, it showed a sizeable hole. Byro looked down at the ground, searching for where he might pop up, but he didn't sense any form of Magic.

The ground cracked without so much as a vibration. Byro's eyes widened and he was blasted with dirt, but the most painful experience was the near 300-pound Dragon that drove a knee into his abdomen.

In slow motion, he was wide-eyed and slowly reeling back in midair. _'Archbishop, I beg your forgiveness. I swear, we won't come back until we have that clock piece.'_

"Have this!" In midair still, Garchomp swatted his tail with vicious ferocity, slamming it into Byro's face, causing a shockwave that sent winds everywhere, making leaves on trees rattle violently. Garchomp followed through and Byro slammed into the ground in front of the octopus, which finally got back up.

Gildarts and Erza both were left speechless by how easily Byro went down at the claws of Garchomp. They saw Byro in a crater, but he was wincing rather than unconscious. They were more than surprised to say the least. They knew Garchomp was Nic's strongest Pokémon, but they didn't expect him to be even more lethal than what they've already seen. They heard how he completely demolished Laxus, how he Mega Evolved and trashed a robotic dragon, and of course partook in that…incident back in Kalos.

Garchomp landed on the ground and growled. "Is that the best that you can do?"

Byro's eyes opened as he was unable to move. "Mark my words, this is far from over." Kanaloa picked him up and put him on his giant head. As Byro laid on the head, he stared up at the star-less sky. "You may have the clock hand now, but this Holy War will not rest until we've won."

"Holy War?" Nic asked.

"You've made a grave mistake defying the Archbishop of Zentopia. Know this; I was caught off guard, but I won't rest until the clock hand is ours."

With that sentence, Kanaloa sprung up into the air, away from them all. He sprung repeatedly s though he were flying, becoming a distant figure.

Garchomp turned back towards Nic, who had a puzzled look on his face. Erza and Gildarts got over their shock and looked at Nic, who finally spoke.

"Holy War…something's going on here." His eyes narrowed. "And it looks like we're caught in the crossfire."

* * *

Night was still thick in the sky. Everyone regrouped and were present at the Guild Hall, Kecleon and Garchomp were returned to their Poke Balls, and of course Nic was glad to meet up with Pavo again. Those matters aside, everyone lounged while being on edge.

"So the Legion Corps were after Lucy's key, eh?" Wakaba confirmed.

Gildarts nodded. "Yeah, without a doubt."

Nic sat not too far away at the same table with his sister. An annoyed expression plastered on his face. "This is very much out of hand. There's so little information that we can't grasped their motives." He said calmly. "However, the man Gildarts fought foretold of a Holy War."

Pavo stood not too far away, staying focused on the task at hand. "And what exactly does this Holy War stand for?"

Vanessa looked up at him. "We don't know. We're in the same boat as you."

"But why target Lucy's key? Does it play a vital role in his Holy War? Or is this a coincidence?" Sophie wondered.

Lucy clenched the huge key in her hand, keeping a firm grip on it so as not to lose it. She remained as quiet as possible. She was ever so glad Nic showed up when he did, otherwise her father's memento would've been taken.

Makarov sat on the bar stool and grumbled. "A series of church attacks before the Zentopia founding festival, a mysterious clock hand with a peculiar phrase, which is sought by the Legion Corps, and now Holy War."

Natsu crossed his arms as he stood in front of Lucy's table. "Well all I can say is that those guys made a big mistake when they chose to mess with Fairy Tail."

Gray lounged – without a shirt. "Has anybody tracked them?"

Erza had hands to her hips. "According to Warren, the search parties lost sight." She looked at Natsu. "But I agree with Natsu, this is only getting started."

Nic closed his eyes. "Let's try and piece together what we can. From what we know, Lucy has in possession a clock hand that originated from her father. Said clock hand is targeted by the Legion Corps for reasons revolving around a Holy War. What exactly does this war mean? How is the clock hand involved?"

Pavo hummed as he was left stumped with crossed arms. "Perhaps this Legion Corps is in need of this clock hand to bring this war into their favor." He said in his usual flamboyant tone.

"So do you think the chaos this clock hand describes and this war are the same?" Cana asked in a serious tone.

"Yeah…uh…" Before Natsu could answer further, his brain was starting to lose focus and he ended up looking stumped, much to Cana's disbelief.

"Uh, I think you need to lie down. It's too much for you to take in." Happy advised.

Natsu turned away with a pout. "Shut up, Happy."

"Chaos also mean no more rules." Gray simplified.

Natsu immediately clicked and pointed at Gray. "Now we're talking!"

Makarov looked at his mug some more as he listened. "Rules were created to restrict harm and ensure safety. Without such, there'd be violence and mistrust, and no one would ever be guaranteed safety by any means."

"So you think that if they win the war the rules will change in their favor?" Macao wondered.

"Well I for one don't want those dirt bags making the rules." Wakaba testified.

"Well one thing's for sure is that they have messed up ideals, and trying to steal from Lucy isn't exactly holy by any means." Gildarts said.

Michelle looked down at the ground. "I just thought of something. If they wanted the clock hand, then maybe they're looking for other parts as well."

"If we learn their goal, then hopefully we'll learn what Lucy's clock hand's significance is." Vanessa figured.

Cana pulled out some cards. "I'll see what my fortune telling says."

Gildarts pulled off an affectionate fatherly smile. "That's right, just leave it to my big baby girl!"

"You're embarrassing me!" Cana interjected. Though she put the matter aside and started her fortune telling.

Lucy continued looking down, which got Natsu's attention.

"Huh? Hey Lucy, you okay?" The Dragon Slayer asked.

"Don't worry, we still have the clock hand!" Happy sated.

"No, it's not that." Lucy mumbled, of which made the duo frown. She remembered the past few days; how all of her Celestial Spirits didn't appear before her. "It's just…ever since we came back from Tenrou Island, my Celestial Keys didn't work once."

"What?" Nic said shocked.

Pavo's eyes widened and his frown deepened.

Vanessa blinked with surprise. "Not even once? That is odd."

Macao looked down. "I was afraid of this."

Everyone turned towards him in question.

"What are you saying?" Michelle kindly asked. "You mean you know something of Lucy's Spirits?"

"Unfortunately." The Fourth Master stated somberly. "But it ain't good in any way." He turned towards Lucy. "There have been reports all over the world that Celestial Spirit keys were inactive for the past three years."

Everyone gasped in shock.

Natsu stepped forward. "Hold up! You mean this wasn't just Lucy, but every single person all over Earth Land?!"

Macao nodded slowly. "Yeah. No one knows why, and Mages have been in major trouble because of this. This case has been very problematic, and the Council themselves can't seem to put it together. It's all just a big mystery, and there aren't any answers."

Natsu started to show veins as he held up a fist. "So why didn't you tell us sooner, huh?!"

Macao and the group that stayed behind for 7 years looked down despondently. Macao of course sighed. "You wouldn't know." He said lowly. "These past 7 years have been pure paranoia; you can never be sure of anything anymore." He then turned towards everyone else. "Listen up! Wherever Lucy goes, a Mage must be with her at all times, understand?"

"Right." They all responded.

Through it all, Lucy still frowned.

* * *

Later on, after Cana got some insight regarding Lucy's old family mansion, Macao and Wakaba met Gildarts outside. They all only got a few hours of sleep, and the sun was set to rise in a couple of hours, so now was better than later.

"Are you up for this?" Macao asked the Crash Mage.

Gildarts nodded. "Yeah, why wouldn't I?" He asked seriously.

"You're the only one aside from Nic who can pull this off, and we need him in case you're not around." Wakaba noted.

Not too far, Cana observed her father "There he goes, sneaking off under the cover of night." She then saw Gildarts turn towards her.

Makarov sweatdropped. "Go easy on him."

Gildarts began walking over with a big smile. "Cana sweetie, were you hearing us~?" He chimed.

Cana crossed her arms. "A little bit."

He clasped his hands together. "Do you wanna tag along with your Daddy? We never had a family job before."

Cana turned away. "Sorry Dad, but I just back from a job and I'm completely out of Magic Power. I think I'll rest up a bit."

Though stricken with shock from turning him down, her reasoning more than backed her up. He wouldn't want anything happening to his daughter if she were left powerless. _**Anything!**_So he thought best, despite his sulking manner, as to let his daughter regain her Magic Power since she had to use the last recharged bit for her Fortune Telling Magic.

"Okay, you be safe then." He said as he walked off. "Get your rest, eat your vegetables-"

"Will you just get moving?!" Cana shouted, prompting Gildarts to scurry along. Once he was gone, Makarov turned towards Cana.

"So, that's going easy, huh?" He accused.

Cana turned away, shaking her head. "I wasn't lying."

* * *

After the sun arose, everything was arranged. With the clock hand still targeted by the Legion Corps, Nic had come up with a strategy. Figuring the Legion Corps would want the clock hand, they'd think it'd be with Lucy. So what Nic strategized was that the key would stay at Sophie's place for a little while. Cana and Sophie decided to stay behind and recharge their batteries while Nic, Vanessa, Pavo, and Team Natsu forged on ahead towards Lucy's old home.

Once there, Natsu looked at the abandoned site. "Huh, this place looks familiar."

"It's where Lucy grew up." Erza reminded him.

Nic, having on his sunglasses, looked ahead at the mansion. "I must say, this has to rival the Parfum Palace in Kalos."

"Yeah, you can say that again." Vanessa nervously smiled. "I still can't believe you had to pay to get inside."

Nic glanced down at her. "So you learned the hard way to, huh?"

Michelle smiled. "Such good times. I remember having so much fun here!"

Lucy turned towards Michele in surprise. "Uh…wait! You've been here before?!"

Michelle then got to the fountain and sunk to her knees and expelled so much tears while gasping and crying. "Gwaahaha! *gasp*WE…WE USED TO PLAY ALL THE TIME!" She cried out.

"Uh, r-right! Yeah! I remember now!" Lucy said nervously. Though she didn't remember it at all, she only said it to cheer her up.

"Wait a go, Lucy. You made her cry again." Natsu said.

"Yeah, what'd she ever do to you?" Pavo said, posing. "Friends don't make others cry!"

"Oh shut up!" Lucy made them silent.

Michelle sniffled. "Do you remember all the pretty clothes we made?"

"You made clothes?" Wendy asked.

Erza smiled. "I bet you two were adorable." Of course Nic nodded in agreement.

Michelle turned towards the others and smiled. "We used to make the cutest clothes of paper and flowers."

"HUH?!" Lucy flushed with red, and Vanessa put a hand to her mouth with shock as well.

Natsu leaned in towards Gray, confusion all over his face. "How do you make clothes out of paper and flowers?"

Gray shrugged. "Beats me…"

Of course they both tried to picture it, and seeing a sexy image of Lucy in paper and Michelle in flowers and leaves made them blush, which earned them a one-way ticket to being kicked to the sky by Lucy.

"Pervs!" The blonde shouted.

* * *

Everyone was inside the abandoned mansion, where everyone was set. Natsu and Gray were present with large bumps on their heads catered by Erza. With everyone back on track, the mission started.

"So uh, does anyone know where to start?" Wendy asked, holding Carla in her arms.

"Yes, and do we know what we're looking for?" Carla wondered.

Nic crossed his arms, sunglasses still on his face despite being indoors. "We'll cover ground by splitting into teams of two, with the exception of Vanessa, Pavo, and myself." He elaborated. "We'll look for clocks. Anything related to clocks. If you find an inscription of any evidence that may lead to clocks, take thorough note of it."

The teams all split up, and Nic's team with him, his sister, and Pavo all soon found themselves in Lucy's Father's library.

Looking at all the books, Vanessa raised a brow. "Oh, no wonder Lucy's a bookworm."

"Yes, she does have some insight when it comes to literature." Nic pointed and scrolled at the various book titles around him. "Hopefully her father left something in the form of a book, or something that Lucy could relate to."

Pavo posed in various ways in conjunction to scrolling his finger through the various titles. "Hmmmm."

As Pavo scrutinized the titles, Nic took a moment to stop and look at Pavo. "Hey, Pavo."

The peacock-obsessed dancer turned towards him. "Yes, Nic?"

Nic grinned. "Thank you for helping us out earlier; back in Dahlias, and with Cana and Sophie from last night. We really can't thank you enough."

Pavo's huge grin returned and looked modest. "That's what friends are for. I value the bonds I make with all who help guide me through the darkest times, and you three just happen to fit into that category."

Nic glanced back at the book titles. "Speaking of which, what are you gonna do now?" He looked at another shelf. "Are you going to join another guild, or do you need some time?"

Pavo looked back at the bookshelves. "Well…I haven't put much thought." He then smiled back enormously. "I just want to be around the ones that I can count on."

Nic continued looking ahead at the various books. "Well whatever it is you choose, there's a home for you."

Pavo's pacing slowed down dramatically as his perky expression began to dim. His grin slowly began to dim to a weak frown. "H-home…home…" His voice was so irregular it was almost despondent.

Vanessa looked at Nic and his friend and kept a grin. She then took notice of a book right beside her, different by the hand-made binding.

"Huh." She then read it aloud. "Let's see, 'To My Daughter'." She then looked back at Nic. "Hey, Nic, Pavo! I found something!"

"Oh really?" Pavo took a large leap and held a pose in front of Vanessa while Nic walked up to her.

"What's it say?" The older Pularis sibling asked.

"It says 'To My Daughter'." She scrolled through the pages, and much to their shock, every page was blank. The three were more than a little confused as they expected at least a single word in one of the pages, but all were completely left untouched by time. "Why aren't there any words inscribed?"

"A spell maybe? Or maybe we need special glasses to read?" Nic inquired.

Pavo hummed while he tried to process the information in front of him as well. "Let's see now…a riddle perhaps."

Nic and Vanessa turned towards him at what he said.

"Call me crazy, but maybe approaching the only words inscribed is the best way to go. Maybe perhaps, switch them around or backwards?"

Nic and Vanessa turned towards the other. "Well he's not wrong. Let's gather the others and decipher what we can."

Vanessa nodded in agreement.

* * *

"Gah, so boring!" Natsu entered the library. "Just what the heck are we supposed to find anyway?"

Before him and Happy was the whole gang, all of which having various letters spelling out 'To My Daughter'. Despite their efforts, they keep scrambling up the words.

"Hey, you guys making a crossword?" The pink-haired mage asked.

"Don't be silly, we're making an anagram." Carla answered.

"Please, be quite." Erza said.

Nic looked at the words before him, but no matter what, it didn't help. "This is more elaborate than we imagined."

"Sounds fun to me!" Natsu had his huge smile on his face and approached everyone, but when he came to a point, his nose twitched and he hitched a few huffs and let out a large sneeze, one strong enough to completely blow away all the letters in front of everyone.

Carla showed a latter with snot on it. "You just ruined our train of thought!"

"Wait a go, Natsu." Gray remarked coldly.

"Woops, my bad." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly with a smile.

A sudden clang sound and he was met with a sword in front of him, causing him and Happy to jerk back in shock.

Erza glared at Natsu angrily. "I was on the verge of a breakthrough!"

Vanessa sweatdropped. "Well, remind me to not break her concentration."

Nic half-grinned nonchalantly at Erza's usual self, which was one of the things he admired about her. He looked down and saw the words in front of him spelling out something. He looked surprised as it spelled out 'MYTH'.

"Hm, 'MYTH'?" Pavo questioned.

"It looks like it; perhaps it's best to make it important." Nic said. "But…the question now is, what is it that we spell with the remaining letters?"

Vanessa, Lucy, and everyone else each individually then presented letters that made some sense, now spelling out 'DUO GREAT MYTH'.

Erza read it aloud. "'DUO GREAT MYTH'?"

Immediately, Lucy sprung an idea. "Oh, I know!" This caught everyone's interests. "There's a pair of books known as the Two Great Myths. Both were written by Will Neville; with one being called Life of the Clockwork, and where the inscription originated!"

Nic's eyes widened a little by this surprise. "Interesting. And what's the second book?"

"This!" Lucy held up a picture book with a key, a girl looking away, and stars. "Ta-da! Key to the Starry Heavens!"

"A picture book?" Pavo questioned with a scrutinizing facial expression.

"It's more than that! It's a work of art!" Lucy argued.

"Well on the bright side, at least we have a lead." Gray stated.

Erza nodded. "It seems like the perfect place to start looking for clues."

Vanessa narrowed her eyes. "Hopefully this isn't another anagram. Maybe another message is within the book this time."

"Hopefully…" Getting an odd idea, Lucy looked agitated when Happy was behind her. "Uh, is there something you'd like to share with us, Happy?"

"This is one of my favorite works of art. The Tortoise and the Hare is a classic!" He held up a book that looked as though a child drew on it, showing a rabbit and a turtle.

"If you would be so kind, we'd like that book." A mysterious voice called out. Immediately, everyone got on guard.

Happy held the book close to him. "I'm not giving this book to some stranger!"

The door handle to the library glowed green and began to expand. "Sorry, but I don't find your jokes satisfying in the very least." The double doors couldn't hold the weight of the door handle and the whole thing went down.

"The door handle broke it!" Vanessa exclaimed in shock.

A small figure was seen walking through the dust. Large glasses were seen on its face. "How naïve. The door handle merely doubled its length, thus rendering the door unable to support its weight."

Before everyone, shocking Carla and Happy the most, was a light blue cat with a huge hat with the Zentopia symbol. He had white 'pants' and dark blue shirt with a red scarf.

"I don't believe it!" Happy exclaimed.

Carla's eyes narrowed. "Yes, I'm quite shocked as well…another Exceed."

Happy stepped back. "But he doesn't look like anyone from Extalia."

"That's because he wasn't there. He watched from one of the eggs sent to Earth Land." Carla assumed.

Natsu stepped forward. "Alright, who the heck are ya?!"

The Exceed adjusted his glasses with book in another hand. "The brains of the Legion Corps. The name's Samuel."

Gray, shirtless, readied his Ice-Make Magic. "So you Zentopia clowns came snooping around for answers now, did ya?"

Samuel nodded. "Precisely." Wings sprouted on his back and be began to ascend. "I must admit, as of this evening I was caught in a revelation. My calculations never called for the clock hand retrieval to be a failure. You can imagine my surprise, Luminous. Byro was mighty scornful of your giant dragon, as was Sugarboy with this talking reptilian creature."

Nic remained quiet as Samuel stopped displaying his worrisome ways.

Samuel opened a book he was carrying. "That aside, I was precise on the assumption of you coming here to find a clue, and here you are with one in hand. I amaze myself sometimes."

"How about you assume this! **Ice-Make: Lance!**" Gray unleashed several lances of ice.

Erza requipped into her Lightning Empress Armor. She aimed her spear and shot lightning at Samuel.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Natsu released a stream of fire.

"Try this! **Emanation Beam!**" Vanessa put her hands together and released a teal beam of aura.

Before Nic could launch his attack, something sprung up in his head. He gasped. "Wait-!"

But it was too late as a man with brown-red shaggy hair and sideburns in a knight's attire with a giant spear and shield appeared in front of Samuel. The shield was put in front, and the attack all bounced off of the shield and headed on various directions.

"WHAT THE-?!" Lucy panicked as several holes were created and the walls cracked. "AAAAHHHH! YOU GUYS! I WAS GONNA BUY THIS PLACE BACK SOMEDAY!"

Pavo turned towards Nic. "That's why you didn't attack?"

"Yeah." Nic said with an unsettling vibe. "I had a theory; if there were brains…there'd be brawn."

"You got that right! You got experience and intelligence!" The knight with a huge grin looked at Nic. "I'm the spearman of the Legion Corps! The name is Dan Straight."

"Another weird guy?" Happy wondered.

Dan held up his shield. "You guys like Ricochet? Quite a nifty shield. It can deflect any attack right back at ya."

Erza clenched her fists. "Such a strong shield."

"Looks like being careful is a priority. We can't turn Lucy's home into a trash heap." Gray stated.

"You guys suck! I'll take you on!" Natsu shouted, covering his fists in flames,

Dan held up his shield with a smirk as Natsu roared and swamped the shield with fire, but all of the fire converged into one point and dispersed everywhere, causing everyone to dodge in various directions.

Samuel, untouched by the fire, pointed at Lucy. "That girl! She has the book!"

Lucy found herself targeted and she held up the book, acting as bait. "You want this?! How about you come and get it!"

Dan was left startled for a moment before blinking. In his eyes he saw a vision of loveliness. As Lucy turned to run, this magnified her beauty even more, causing his heart to thump. "Don't go!" He screamed. He threw the humungous spear, piercing the ground in front of Lucy, making her squeal and stop.

Dan appeared behind her. "Such beauty! OH I CAN'T TAKE IT!" Everyone looked on as he dropped to his knees and pounded the ground.

"Such incredible beauty! It's like love has struck me with its arrow and every beat gets stronger and stronger! It's almost too much to handle!"

His reaction made everyone completely white with revelation, blinking out at what in the world was going on. Nic, Vanessa, Pavo, Erza, and everyone just stood there nervously as Dan shook Lucy's hand as she was the most bewildered.

"And what do they call the vision of beauty before me?" He questioned.

"Uh…Lucy." She answered nervously.

"LUCY! OH YES!" He shouted to the heavens. "OH SUCH PERFECTION BEFORE ME! LU~CY!"

Samuel shook his head. "I feared for this."

"L-O-V-E! LOVE!" Dan shouted with great joy.

"Uh…I'm confused. What's happening?" Lucy wondered.

Dan was gonna progress his love more, but he sensed something behind.

"Lucy!" Erza swung her spear down and Nic was seen doing a Crush Claw motion, cracking the down a little as Dan jumped dodged both attacks.

Dan landed and turned towards the two. "Stay back! No one comes between true love!"

Erza requipped into her Flight Armor, as to where Nic shifted into his Mind Plate Form.

"Lucy, Michelle, escape while you can. Everyone else, cover them!" Nic ordered.

However, they were all so dazed from Dan expressing his love. Vanessa was the first to finally speak up.

"U-uh…what?" She asked.

"I just blinked out there." Gray said.

"Very overwhelming." Pavo figured.

Natsu was able to shake off his initial shock and looked annoyed. "Hey! Let me take care of them!"

Erza continued looking at Dan. "Your job is to keep Lucy safe. Now go!" She barked, much to Natsu's annoyance. Though he let it slide and began to run, though not without a parting shot, along with Gray.

Both shot fire and ice at Dan, who eagerly had his shield in front and the ice and fire streams deflected into various directions, breaking down the wall that led to outdoors.

Happy and Carla carried Lucy and Michelle respectfully as they screamed from Natsu and Gray's attacks, though as they left, Happy looked back at Samuel and kept on going.

Samuel turned a page in his book. "Let's see…given the layout of an estate…yes. Dan, I trust that you'll incapacitate Titania and Luminous?"

"Yeah I got it." He assured with a huge grin. With that, Samuel departed and left Erza and Nic to handle Dan on their own.

"En guard!" Erza zoomed in to slash at Dan, but to her shock her body bounced right off the shield with slash waves following in her direction. "Even physical attacks are useless?!"

"Erza!" Nic caught Erza in time before she hit the ground. He quickly set her on the ground and turned to see Dan advancing with his spear. He quickly lurched out of the way without touching the spear. He and Erza then watched as the spear touched the ground, which flashed a green color before expanding into giant rocks, prompting them to jump out of the way.

"He made the rock grow?!" Erza exclaimed.

Nic narrowed his eyes under his sunglasses. "It's gotta be those weapons he uses."

"Right again! My spear is called Habaraki. A weapon that can enlarge or decrease one's mass!" Dan held up the spear and pointed it at Nic and Erza. "Now, just try and hit me!"

He jumped at them again and thrust his spear out, which forced them both to move in opposite directions. The spear hit the ground again, causing the rock beneath to grow into large boulders that hardly grazed the two as they moved so fast.

Nic skidded to a halt and extended his arms out. "I'll try and stop him! **Psychic!**" Nic's eyes glowed and he targeted the shield.

"Nuh-uh-uh~!" Dan's shield was pointed out at Nic, and the telekinetic force created from Psychic deflected itself back at Nic. Nic felt the force shoot back at him, causing him to grunt harshly as he crashed into the bookshelves behind him.

"Nic!" Erza had little time as Dan thrust his spear again rapidly at Erza, but her Flight Armor made her fast enough to evade all of the blows, to which touched the books behind her, causing them to grow and crash into the ground, making the floor rattle.

"HRAH!" Erza slashed with her swords, but were met by Dan's shield, once again bouncing back her attack, causing her to crash into the shelves.

Nic grunted as Dan readied his spear for Erza. _'I gotta do something. That spear and shield combo is very troublesome.' _Looking around quickly, his eyes caught note of one of the books right beside him. _'Of course!'_

"HYAH!" Dan thrust his spear at Erza, who was still recovering from that thud. As Dan advanced, he was caught surprised when his spear in hand glowed one moment and was replaced by some book. Dan came to a halt and blinked. He and Erza alike were both caught surprised.

"Whoa now, what just happened?" Dan was too confused until he felt a wind from behind.

"HRAH!" Nic thrusted forward with the giant spear, in which Dan turned around and widened his eyes. He only had space to jump and dodge before Nic followed through and drove the spear into the floor.

Once again the little rocks from the cracked flooring expanded, which turned into boulders that were around Nic as he held Habaraki and stood in front of Erza.

Erza was grateful that Nic pulled off a great move, but now wasn't the time for questions. All she did was look past him and glare down Dan.

Dan pointed a finger at Nic and looked surprisingly baffled. "But…but how in the world did you get Habaraki?!"

Nic kept a calm demeanor as he poised Habaraki. "It's a move known as Trick. It swaps a held item of any whom I choose." He took a new stance and straightened upwards. "Now, do you wish to continue?"

Dan grunted as he saw that Nic was turning his own weapon against him. He couldn't risk harming his offensive weapon; and he was fortunate as the flooring caught all of their attention. The ground shook as the flooring cracked violently.

"Uh…gah!" Dan realized it. "The floor's weight! It's too much!"

"What?!" Erza exclaimed.

They all saw the floor finally break apart, and the three fell down below with books of various sizes and debris falling down with them.

* * *

The group ran down the hallway, hearing constant rumbling. They made it down to the first floor, where they were making a break for the exit.

"Do you think Nic and Erza are okay?" Vanessa questioned while running.

Pavo looked down at her. "Oh don't be ridiculous! Those two are fine!"

Vanessa looked ahead. "Yeah I guess so, as long as they have each other…" A small smile crept on Vanessa's face as she pictured the two.

Michelle brought everyone back to attention. "What?"

They all stopped when Samuel appeared in front of them.

"What the-?! When did you get here?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Approximately 10 seconds ago. Your movements were so easy to track." The Exceed stated. "Calculations of floorplans and someone's state of panic is as simple as putting 2 and 2 together."

Natsu immediately fumed. "Time to shut you up!" He swung his flaming fists around, but not a single one hit Samuel when he flew through the air as nimble as a Noivern.

Samuel snickered.

"Hold still…"

The floor above suddenly gave in, and everyone gaped their mouths, save Samuel who glided out the window as debris, books, and three people fell from above. They all screamed as they crashed, and they all made way and made a break for the outside as Nic, Erza, and Dan fell through.

The dust and debris settled, and Nic and Erza were seen just mere feet away from the other and slowly got up. Nic slowly arose to a knee, followed by Erza.

"You alright?" He asked.

Despite the few scratches they both ascertained, they weren't affected. Erza looked at Nic. "Don't worry, I'm okay."

Dan picked up Habaraki, which was several feet away from Nic. "I'll be taking this back, thank you." He retrieved his weapon and jumped out of the opening of the wall created from the shattering books and debris. Both Nic and Erza grunted as they arose to their feet in unison.

Outside, Lucy and the others were intercepted by Samuel and Dan. They all scowled and readied themselves to attack.

Samuel lowered to the ground and adjusted his glasses. "Look, please just hand over the book so we can be done with this unpleasant business." He insisted.

Wendy and Vanessa stepped forward, along with Pavo keeping a pose to use his dancing expertise. Lucy pivoted and made a last-ditch attempt.

"Happy, grab it!" Lucy threw the book and it spun in midair. The Exceed grabbed the book in midair and started flying off.

Dan fumed and stomped. "HEY! You can't go flying off like that!" He exclaimed.

Unlike him, Samuel wasn't at all impressed. He sighed as he stood behind Michelle. "How simple-minded can you get?"

He flipped up her skirt, causing Michelle to squeal and Dan to blush. But his blush was replaced with bewilderment and surprise when Samuel grabbed the actually book from her skirt.

"This is the book we want." Samuel held the 'Key to the Starry Heavens' book up.

"What?!" Natsu exclaimed.

Happy stopped flying away and held the bait, which was the 'Tortoise and the Hare' book he showed earlier. "Aww, he didn't fall for it!"

"How'd he know?" Lucy wondered.

Samuel began taking in the words and pages fast with Gale-Force Reading Glasses, which allowed him to take in more information far faster than what one would imagine. "I calculate every possible outcome for any situation." He stated before closing the book. "Meaning that I'll always be countless steps ahead of you."

Having enough, Natsu, Wendy, Gray, and Vanessa shot their individual attacks at Dan and Samuel. Their beams closed in, but Dan easily blocked using Ricochet.

"You can have the book back now. I've memorized every single page." Samuel announced.

"WAIT-!"

Lucy was too late to act as she only turned tail and ran as the attacks bounced off in different directions. The beams blasted all about and Nic and Erza rushed out just in time only to find beams raining down at them. Nic and the redhead quickly covered up as the whole terrain was swallowed up in dust.

Through the dust, Nic grunted and his eyes glowed. Using his Psychic once again, he swiped his arm in a long and fast arc, ridding the dust all around. Of course this left him with a bad taste in his mouth because Samuel was flying away with Dan.

Dan smiled as he looked back. "Bye LuLu! Next time we meet, let's make it you and me!"

Samuel looked ahead with an omniscient look. "Dan, tell me, have you been putting weight on _again_?"

Erza and everyone watched on as they made their escape, not wishing to pursue them.

"At least we have the book." Happy said, looking on the bright side.

"Only after ridiculing us." Carla stated sourly.

Natsu raised his fists. "Outsmarted by a cat in a diaper! Man this is dumb!"

Vanessa narrowed her eyes. "We'll settle this eventually."

Nic and Erza alike both clenched their fists in unison as the confrontation between Fairy Tail and Zentopia was reaching critical levels.

* * *

**Here's a chapter update for the first day of March. I tried to make the second half not as op in the case of Nic, despite how heavily experienced he is. Though I won't say the same for Garchomp, he is Nic's most powerful (and lethal) Pokémon. **

**By the way, if I didn't tell you guys, Garchomp's voice is much like Helios from **_**Bakugan: New Vestroia**_**, at least in my perspective.**

**I won't say anything about Pavo nor his significance, except for those I explained to in PMs. I have this idea that'll happen when we get deep into the Key to the Starry Sky Arc.**

**On an unrelated note, I started collaborating with RavenousYetMysterious again and we are making the next **_**Fairy Ed **_**chapter. I know it's been a really long time and we're sorry for the wait, but we'll be working as fast as we can and be as elaborate as ever.**

**I'm getting close to 300 Reviews for this story. Keep those comments and opinions coming guys, I appreciate it!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter as always! :)**

* * *

**Next Time: Ruins of Ruin**


	59. Ruins of Ruin

Chapter 59 – Ruins of Ruin

**This week was interesting to me. A couple of my favorite stories came out with new updates, so I'm feeling chipper to update as well!**

**Guest: While Nic's Pokémon all have unique personalities; they aren't perverted one bit. Sorry, but they're all very mature.**

**Enjoy this next one!**

**To Recap:**

The Legion Corps attacked Fairy Tail for Lucy's clock hand, but fortunately for her, Nic and his Pokémon arrived just in time to drive them away; and a helpful ally in the name of Pavo showed up as well. The next day, a small group went to Lucy's old home to find clues, finding one in the form of a picture book. They were followed by Dan and Samuel of the Legion Corps and the two manage to memorize the book's content, giving them equal ground in the Holy War.

* * *

**Chapter 59 – Ruins of Ruin**

Later on that day, everyone was seen back at Fairy Tail, where they tried to assess the situation at hand. Lucy was sitting at a table alone, re-reading the book. While she was doing that, everyone else gathered around the other.

"Sounds like we got some competition." Cana said after hearing Vanessa talk about the events transpiring a few hours earlier.

Vanessa nodded in distaste. "Unfortunately. I can't imagine why this Holy War is happening to begin with." Her thoughts were interrupted when she found something missing. "And where's Sophie?"

"Is she still recovering?" Natsu asked.

Cana put hands to her hips. "Oh relax, blondie's gonna be here any minute. We both managed to recharge our Magic Power and get some shut eye while we were at it."

As if on cue, Sophie arrived with the clock piece in hand. She yawned as she advanced towards everybody. "Sorry for the holdup guys."

"It's alright, Sophie. Handling that clock piece and the events involving last night does leave quite a toll." Makarov noted. "Though I fear keeping it in a single possession for too long can be dangerous."

"You've got a point, Master." Nic brought up. "The Legion Corps are still after the clock pieces. It'll be no surprise if they try to attack us again just to get the clock hand."

Natsu punched his own palm. "And when they do, we'll be ready!"

"Uh, Natsu? Remember you got your butt handed to ya by Sugarboy, remember?" Natsu commented.

"Shut up, Happy! I was getting warmed up!" He barked.

Pavo had crossed arms. "These clock pieces sure are important, and this idea of a war is not very easy-going in any perspective sought." He confirmed his position.

Makarov closed his eyes. "Agreed."

A sudden chair screeching the floor got everyone's attention, and they all turned to find a surprised Lucy standing up and faced them with the book in her hand.

"I managed to figure some things out." The Celestial Mage said.

Natsu crossed his arms. "Yeah? Like what?"

Lucy pointed to the book. "My Dad followed the book to the letter."

"And what does this mean?" Erza asked.

"That there's more facts than simple fiction written." Lucy explained. "The story is about a girl who searches for six keys spread all over the world. These keys were said to bring happiness to the young girl, but in turn, brought great misfortune to everyone around her."

Gray's face twisted. "Geez, guess happiness comes with a price."

"I know my happiness is priceless!" Juvia looked with hearts for eyes at her beloved Gray.

Nic looked at Lucy and took a step forward. "How does the story begin?"

Lucy looked down at the book, scrutinizing the contents very briefly. "Well it says here, that the first key takes a journey."

"What that's crazy. Keys don't take journeys." Natsu remarked in disbelief.

Gray groaned and looked at Natsu. "Come on man, get with the program. It's a metaphor."

"So where the heck did it go?!" Natsu barked at the Ice Mage.

"Do we have to spell it out for you? Think about it. Where'd the Legion Corps strike first?" He asked, Of course the Fire Dragon Slayer immediately realized the idea and realized Fairy Tail was the first target.

Lucy confirmed for him. "That's right. Michelle carried the clock hand; in other words, it took a journey. Everything that has happened so far is because the clock hand's journey was the catalyst." Everyone took a long silence as Lucy then looked down at the pages of the book. "The little girl then goes in search of the five remaining keys, finding them in a variety of places. And she finds the last one in a cathedral."

"A cathedral?" Erza looked in the direction of Magnolia. "Do you think…?"

"No, it's not the Kardia Cathedral; in fact, it's nowhere near Magnolia."

Nic looked from Erza to Lucy. "How is it that you know?"

"When I was young, I read this story over and over. It was my favorite book out of all of them." Lucy reminisced with a frown. "Then one day, I realized that the places the girl traveled to…were real." She looked back up at the guild members. "Then if that's the case, then my Dad hid the clock pieces in those other five spots." The blonde turned towards Michelle. "Did he ever mention this?"

Michelle hiccupped before turning away. "No, sorry. Mr. Jude was very quiet when he passed."

Lucy's frown deepened as she turned back to the others. "In any case then those five clock pieces should be in those spots. If so, then we should have no trouble finding the rest. So who's with me?"

Everyone around her retained an uneasy silence, unsure of this whole idea.

Lucy's moral began to get defensive. "Come on guys! Whatever happened last night and this morning with the Legion Corps, we can't let them do as they please! I'll go by myself if I have to!"

Natsu stepped forward. "Well I ain't standing by while some punks get ahead of us. I say we get this little race started."

"Aye!" Happy agreed.

Michelle sniffled. "I…I'll go with you."

"Well from the looks of it this is one-sided." Sophie turned towards the ones on her left, "And it looks like we have a lot of ground to cover."

"This is too much guess work." Makarov's voice got everyone's attention. "We don't know the Legion Corps' motives or directives other than this Holy War. Gathering these clock pieces are also what bothers me because we don't know what gathering them might bring. Therefore we must do whatever we can to stop this chaos."

There was a silence as he announced them getting involved.

Erza was the one to break the still air. "I'll take care of assigning teams."

* * *

The fresh sea air was refreshing to the nostrils of everyone aboard. The sea waves and coastal breeze was like a sweet treatment from a spa…that is, unless you take in the hideous sounds of Natsu vomiting over the side of the ship, the contents splattering in the sea.

Lucy sweatdropped as she sat in a chair right next to Michelle. "Well this sure is a journey."

"Yeah, a journey out of Natsu's stomach and into the ocean!" Happy joked.

Natsu recoiled slowly and lurched over the ship's edge, groaning with a pale face. "S-Shut up Happy." He then put a hand over his mouth as his cheeks puffed. He faced the open seas again, giving the sea yet another gift from his stomach.

This was dated one hour after Erza assigned teams. The team heading overseas was comprised of Natsu, Happy, Lucy, Michelle, Romeo, Nic, Vanessa, and Pavo. And much to the questioning of some, Lucy decided to take the key along.

Vanessa sweatdropped. "Poor guy wishes Wendy were here."

Lucy sighed. "Unfortunately even Wendy's Spell won't work because he's become immune."

"Are you still sure it was such a wise idea bringing the clock hand along, Lucy?" Nic asked, steering the gut-grossing conversation in another direction. "I know the key shouldn't be in the same location for long, but don't you think this rather bold?"

Romeo stepped in. "Maybe it'll be like a radar?"

"Ah, the boy might be onto something!" Pavo stated. "Perhaps the key shall be like a homing device!"

Nic, his sunglasses on, didn't find any reason to argue. He chose to go along with the idea since it could prove to be useful, but if they ran into the Legion Corps, then things might get messy. He allowed the matter to pass as he let the cool sea breeze brush his head and short, slanted black hair.

Lucy got up from her seat and leaned over the balcony, looking out at the swaying waters. "…towards chaos. Why would anyone want that?"

"Excuse me." An unknown voice caught everyone's attention. "Might you be the members of Fairy Tail?"

The voice belonged to a tall man with the looks of an archeologist. His thick beard and facial hair were the primary features of him. On both of his sides were three shriveled up elderly archeologists. Their sudden appearance on the ship from out of the blue caught Nic in a startled manner, and he took up a defensive stance while keeping a distance.

"And who are you?" The defensive person with sunglasses asked.

"Actually we're members of the Archeological Society." The tall man announced while the three small, elderly men quivered.

"You mean you're archeologists?" Lucy asked.

"Indeed." One of the short elders said. "And we've become we've heard Fairy Tail is searching for pieces of the clock. Is this true?"

Saying they were all surprised would just about sum it up. Nic and the others were caught astonished by this information, but didn't take any vital action.

"Y-Yeah." Lucy said, still getting over her startled behavior.

"And where did this information come from? Hmmmm?" Pavo inquired suspiciously while hiding the current clock piece under his cape, far out of sight.

"Now that hardly matters now, right?" Another elder asked.

The tall man then took lead. "We'd actually appreciate it if you stop your pursuit for the clock."

"What?!" Lucy exclaimed in disbelief. "How come?!"

Another elder spoke. "According to the data we've collected, we've learned that the clock pieces are scattered all over in ruins, shrines, and other various locations." He took the rlarge telescope and looked at Lucy through it. "And your guild is trying to collect them all, correct?"

Vanessa blinked. "How did you know?"

The tall archeologist approached her with a stern look. "After years of studying The Key to the Starry Heavens we've actually came across a very simple conclusion."

"Such as?" Lucy asked.

"It's so simple! We've learned that the locations in the book that the girl traveled to are actual locations here in Earth Land. Those include actual shrines and monuments. Our ultimate goal as archeologists is to keep these sites from getting destroyed."

"If you and your friends go prancing around willy-nilly in ruins, you could very much damage what was before us." An elderly archeologist pointed out.

"They're remnants of our cultural heritage and must be respected." Another elderly man stated.

Lucy blinked before she shook her head with a sad smile. "You've gotta be kidding me." She remarked. "I figured all of that out as a little kid when I read the book. I can't believe it took you this long to realize."

The four archeologists gawked as this revelation and were left unbound by shame as Lucy beat them by light years.

"Wow Lucy, you're smarter than I thought." Happy said with mild surprise.

"I'd shut up if I were you." Lucy stated angrily.

The tall man then got into Lucy's face. "Listen! Please! It's imperative you forget about the clock at once-!"

He was stopped and recoiled when Nic appeared in front and quickly held out Cut in a flash, startling everyone and making the tall man recoil back to his pals.

Nic didn't seem too pleased. "You'd be wise to ease on your approach." He warned. "Besides, we've already made our goal firm, so there's no turning back, regardless of what you say."

Lucy then proceeded off of what Nic said as she took a more assertive front. "Yeah. We understand that the ruins are very important…but this is my Dad's dying wish!"

This sudden reason caused the archeologists to widen their eyes and gasp. Nic sheathed Cut away and had Lucy continue with thin tears in the corners of her eyes.

"He waited for 7 long years, he waited so long, for me! He believed that I could stop the world from plunging into chaos! He left the task to me and no one else! That's why I'll never give up because I don't wanna let him down!"

Michelle teared up heavily, as did Pavo as waterfalls were running down his cheeks. The others looked down at the flooring at Lucy's exclamation and watched as she wiped to tears from her own eyes.

A long silence passed before the tall archeologist finally realized this dream of Lucy's and closed his eyes.

"Actually…" His eyes were filled with sparkles with a glow. "That the most moving speech in my life!"

Another archeologist nodded.

"It's touching to see a young woman devoted to her family." Another elder archeologist with sparkles in his eyes announced.

As the sentimental scene was beginning to dial down, a sudden strong sea breeze made everyone's hair wisp and Natsu, who was still hurling over the edge, was caught unbalanced and fell overboard, splashing into the water.

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted.

"He's gonna drown!" Happy yelled, seeing Natsu flail in the water.

Surprisingly, the four archeologists were seen running towards the edge of the boat and jumped into the water. Everyone watched as the four began swimming towards Natsu.

"Any friend of Lucy Heartfilia's is actually a friend of ours!" The tall archeologist exclaimed. "We always help out our friends!"

The tall archeologist and his four men managed to surround the motion sick Natsu as the waves left him all sickly like he was on a vehicle. The four men, despite their physique, threw the Dragon Slayer into the air and back onto the ship, leaving him to land on his face with puffed cheeks still.

"Thanks…" He muffled through his sick behavior.

"Consider it a thank you for touching our hearts with your father's wish!" The tall man called out as he and his colleagues floated in the water. "We wanna wish you safe travels and best of luck to you in hopes of fulfilling your father's last wish!"

Lucy waved back at them with a smile. "Thank you! Safe travels for you too!"

The ship with everyone on board went off, but as it went off, Vanessa came to a realization.

"Uh…did we just leave people floating in the sea with complete disregard?"

"Trust me, they'll be fine." Nic said. He looked out with his sunglasses glistening the sun's rays as he began to listen to his metal music.

"Well she sure has the Heartfilia stubbornness. I must say, I was surprised." And elder archeologist said as he floated in the water.

"Hm, what an unlucky coincidence." Another archeologist stated. "What do you think, Jean-Luc?"

Jean-Luc continued bobbing in the water. "As things are now, I'm afraid even if we stop Lucy, the clock pieces will be found regardless."

* * *

The sun was shining ever so brightly through the grasslands as Erza led her group with a large cart of suitcases. The group she had was comprised of Wendy, Carla, Cana, and Sophie.

As the sunlight beamed down on them, Cana put her hands behind her head and looked relaxed. "Now this is what I call a mission."

"You can say that again." Sophie agreed, stretching her arms over her head.

"It feels like we're like the girl in the story." Wendy remarked. "She traveled all over the world to find the keys. I'd imagine her journey was as nice as this."

Carla looked up at Wendy. "How naïve, don't forget that in the story she maintained happiness while misfortune reigned wherever she went."

"Well let's just be glad we're all not ruining lives as we go along." Sophie remarked.

"True to that." Cana agreed.

"My friends." Erza's voice caught their undivided attention, in which they turned off to the side to find her luggage in place and she was having something very out of place – a picnic. "Would you join me?"

"Uh…I'm sorry, what?" Sophie wasn't sure how to assess the scenario at hand. A picnic out of the blue was just too peculiar, even Cana showed massive confusion.

Erza sat on her knees as she looked on at the group with a smile as well-prepared food was placed all around. "My, it's certainly is a wonderful day for a picnic, don't you agree?"

Cana put a hand to her hip. "You're joking, right?"

"This is Erza we're talking about." Sophie groaned.

Erza looked passionately at the space in front of her. "I've always dreamed of having a picnic."

"Uh, okay~?" Cana wasn't sure how to process this information as the mighty Titania was having sparkles in her eyes with a big smile and enjoying a small bite of a sandwich.

Sophie was mind-boggled just as much as her friend. A thought then came to her mind and she mischievously smirked.

"Oh my, Erza." She chimed. "What a predicament! You should've had Nic come along!" Her tone obviously feigned surprise, but Cana caught on quickly once she saw the still look on Erza's face.

The brunette smirked just as mischievously. "Oh yeah. I'm sure Nic would love to be out here with ya."

Erza's face turned bright red at the thought of having Nic here with her. His warm smile, his blue eyes, and the very thought of the other side by side and laughing while having a glorious picnic alone in the pleasant fields.

"Now that you mention it, Cana." Sophie added on. "I was wondering why Erza chose to have Nic go elsewhere? Perhaps he'd be here with a picnic with her. You know, days on end, alone?"

The two giggled as she saw Erza shake at the very epiphany of not bringing along Nic. Cana turned around and closed her eyes as she put her arms behind her head.

"Perhaps if she brought along an omelet or two, maybe she'd watch Nic enjoy her cooking even more." Cana chimed. "Oh well. Guess she'll just have to spend her first picnic without him~." She opened one eye and glanced back at Erza.

Sophie's eyes widened briefly as she thought of adding even more fuel to the flame. "Hmmm!. Maybe she was thinking of Nic when making this picnic. You know…pic-_Nic_?"

That just about sent Erza over the edge as her face was red. "SILENCE!" She huffed and puffed as Cana and Sophie laughed at her dazed state of thinking of Nic.

Carla shook her head. "How ironic. The strongest woman in Fairy Tail, and her enamored self can't stop thinking of Nic."

Wendy nervously laughed at the seen as Erza calmed down.

Behind Erza, a commotion went on and as she was still calming down from a steaming fantasizing head, Sophie and the others took notice of some thugs with horses, which were really men in costumes, riding in.

"Alright, who gave you ladies permission to have a picnic here?" A tough-toned thug asked.

Erza was brought out her thoughts as a shadow cascaded over eyes so no one could see them. She slowly turned to look over her shoulder.

"Who? No one." She said in a hollow tone.

Another thug held up his sword. "You're trespassing on our grassland! We can't have people picnicking whenever they want!"

Wendy smiled nervously. "Is it me, or is everything today about picnics?"

Sophie became a little uneasy. "I got a bad feeling about this."

Erza slowly put the one sandwich she bit into back where she got it from and slowly stood up. "Let me get this straight. It's prohibited to have a picnic here just because you said so?"

One of the thugs pointed a sword at her. "Hey what do you know? They're from Fairy Tail guys! Rumor has it that they've been going about looking for treasure!"

"Well this sure is our lucky day! Treasure and food!" Another thug remarked. The other two (five if you count the men in horse costumes) laughed hardily with him.

Cana was caught in surprise. "How'd word get out already?"

Carla crossed her arms. "It must be the Legion Corps. They're trying to get in our way."

Erza turned around and saw the thugs, and 'horses' laughing as they began to chow down at the various meats and sandwiches provided, not giving a care to the world. As they mind their own business and ate, Erza's fists were shaking heavily and her body gave off a red aura. She growled low and her eyes glowed bright as a dark shadow cast over her face.

"I'll never forgive you!" She roared low. "This was the first picnic of my life! **Requip!**"

Erza glowed an in a flash appeared in her Lightning Empress Armor, her spear discharging blue electricity in a crazed fashion. Her monstrous glare struck fear into the thugs' hearts.

"Uh oh!" Cana exclaimed.

"I was afraid of this. Nice knowing them." Sophie sighed.

"Those miserable fools will be barbequed!" Carla shouted.

"Uh…Erza?" Wendy called out.

"I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU! SAY YOUR PRAYERS!" Was all Wendy could see as her answer before she shot the thugs relentlessly with a thousand blue lightning bolts. The endless discharge and guys screaming out of sheer shock (pun intended) went on as Erza's anger spiked.

The bolts of lightning were like Thor's wrath, only Thor's wrath wasn't as fierce as Erza's as she let out cries and shot even more lightning.

Cana reeled back. "Man, she's going overboard."

Carla shook her head. "All of this over a silly picnic."

Sophie sweatdropped. "You know…I'm actually glad Nic didn't come along."

Erza's glare sharpened. "For as long as I live, I will never forgive you!" Her spear charged up a huge sphere of blue lightning and she brought it down like a mighty hammer, engulfing everything in a large field of electricity.

The thugs were seen burned to a crisp and flying off into the sky, becoming glints.

As the dust settled, Erza huffed as she let out all her anger.

Sophie raised a brow. "Well…I think we'll skip lunch today."

* * *

The group soon found themselves in the middle of a desert, despite being on seas not too long ago. How they got from sea to desert is something that'll be hard to figure out. Point being is that they had no idea where they were going.

After a small lunchbreak, Nic's voracious appetite was filled and he and the others soon found themselves in front of some old floating relic in midair. Said relic was all battered and broken, but was intact for the most part.

"What do you think it is?" Michelle asked.

Lucy was currently holding the clock hand and she was just as confused as Michelle. "I'm not sure, but…it kind of looks like a door maybe?"

Natsu scrutinized it further. "Huh? Now that you mention it, it does have a keyhole in the middle."

Lucy then pulled out on of her keys. "Then just leave this to…" Lucy caught herself and slowly retracted her hand from the air. Her confidence downgraded drastically. "Oh right."

Everyone had a moment of silence fall for Lucy's predicament as her Spirits wouldn't show, as none have for 3 years.

Trying to lighten things up, Pavo smiled. "Oh don't be so down, chum! Please allow me to pick the lock!"

Lucy and everyone watched as Pavo took one of the peacock heads off of his shoulders and used the sharp beak on the end to pick the lock. The lock was heard twisting and reacting as the beak turned inside.

"Good thinking!" Romeo commented.

As Pavo picked the lock, the entire keyhole and everything else began to shine a golden light that illuminated the area. The entire structure slowly began turning clockwise and the light began to dim.

Lucy blinked. "Uh…I got a bad feeling again…"

And she was right as the sand swirled under everyone and they all screamed as they fell below the surface. Everything around them was swirling in sand and it was so much to process in one go. They all saw sand and the next thing they knew was that they were at the bottom of a huge chamber, seeing only a glint above as it was sunlight.

"Hey." Natsu said, trying to get up. "Is everyone alright."

"Well I've felt better." Happy commented.

"I think that was a little too much sand to take in." Vanessa groaned as she got up.

Nic slowly got up, as did Pavo. Everyone slowly arose, and Michelle let out a waterfall of sand in her mouth, much to Lucy's bewilderment.

"Aw man, what happened?" Natsu wondered. He turned and everyone else followed his example. In front of them was a large, circular door that was almost the same design as the key structure back up on the surface. "Oh great, another locked door?"

"Looks like it, but there's no key." Michelle said worriedly.

"I got this guys." Lucy said. "This puzzle-solving is where I come in." She turned to face the giant door. "All we have to do is choose the correct phrasing and it'll open. Let's see…Open Sesame!"

The door didn't respond.

Lucy grew a little confused. "Uh, okay? How about…Abra Kadabra!"

The door still didn't answer.

"Why is she referring to Pokémon now?" Vanessa whispered.

The elder Pularis sibling shrugged. "Beats me."

After several phrases, Lucy completely ran out of ideas, and she was huffing hysterically. Finally, her head drooped. "Give me a break, will ya?"

Natsu turned towards Romeo. "Well, you got something to add?"

"Hmmm." Romeo put his hands together. "Hey, Mr. Door, can you please open up for me and my friends?"

The door then began to slide open, moving off to the side.

"Saying pretty please, smart thinking!" Pavo praised.

Lucy was left in a state of disbelief. "H-HUH?!" Her expertise was of no help, and she could only follow the group inside the small tunnel. They all followed through the long passageway, soon coming to another chamber that had four large Zentopia emblems and an odd statue piece of a Zentopia emblem on it.

"What? This is Zentopia's emblem. Why's it here?" Happy wondered.

"Well I guess it makes sense." Lucy said. "You see, these ruins are called the Holy Tomb. It's inscribed in a lot of Zentopia's literature and culture, but its existence was never proven, until now that is." She sounded quite prideful with that remark.

"Wait, so you're saying we're the first ones to step in these ruins?" Michelle asked, handling the clock hand with care.

As they talked, Nic was only hearing muffles as he had this uneasy feeling again. It was almost like some sort of radar was going off in him; no enemy approach, but more of a detection. After his experience with the Plates it was made clear to him.

His eyes widened as he came to a realization. _'This feeling…another Plate? In here of all places?"_

"Nic, are you alright?" Vanessa asked, seeing him all spaced out.

Nic composed and turned towards her. "Huh? Oh, I'm fine." He lied, but his sister didn't press the matter further as they had important work to attend to.

"Let's see. If I turn it like this…" Lucy turned the statue 180 degrees counterclockwise.

"And what's the point of that?" Natsu asked.

The four chamber doors began to open, much to Lucy's joy. "That." But her joy was replaced with terror as large statue faces with spikes were seen on the other side of the doors, and slowly began to close in on the group.

"What the heck are those things?" Natsu exclaimed.

"They're so creepy!" Romeo exclaimed.

"I think they're beautiful." Michelle said.

"Seriously?!" Happy exclaimed.

"Never mind how they look! It's a trap!" Nic reminded them as the small protrusions on the walls also reached out.

Natsu's cheeks puffed. "Then how about this-!" Natsu let loose a roaring flame at an incoming statue, but if proved to be backfiring matters as Happy's paws were feeling the floor get hot since he didn't have shoes.

"Natsu, stop!" Lucy shouted.

"Well it seemed like a good idea!" He shouted in surprise.

The statues all closed in and Nic took his sunglasses off. "Alright then…" He glowed, revealing him to have shifted into the Earth Plate. "Then let's go down!"

Lucy turned sharply towards him. "Wait, what?!"

"**Dig!**"

Nic drove his hands into the earth beneath him, surprisingly making a large hole that expanded greatly. Everyone gawked as they began to fall and they all began to yell and scream as they began to fall beneath the chamber and into the darkness below.

"Why does this keep happening?!" Lucy shouted.

They all began their descent to greater depths, soon finding themselves in yet another chamber that was far larger and had a multitude of statues with a huge hole on one end of the chamber. The whole group was left to groan as they laid down for a few minutes before finding themselves back up on their feet.

"Can this day be over now?" Vanessa groaned as she got to her knees. "I'd rather have a nice nap."

Nic got to his feet and cracked his hand, neck, and abdominal bones, every crack making Lucy flinch. "Who knows how long we have until we reach that clock piece." He turned towards the other direction. "And on another note, I think I'm sensing another one."

This news startled everyone and Lucy greatly. "Wait, hold on! You mean to tell us that there's a Plate down here too?!"

Nic turned his head. "I'm not entirely certain…but I think that if we find the Plate-"

He was then cut off by his sister. "Then we'd might find the clock." She finished,

Natsu punched his palm again. "Alright! This whole adventure just a lot more exciting!"

Romeo turned to various places. "That's great guys, but…where's a door?"

Everyone blinked and looked around, as they all realized that there wasn't any door but statues with people faces on them.

Happy flew close to one and admired it. "Whoa, even the statues are as creepy as last time!"

"Actually…I think those are coffins." Michelle explained, much to Happy's horror.

Romeo walked up to them as well. "So you think there's a trick to these as well?"

"Well considering what happened last time, we better not touch them." Nic stated.

He glanced over and turned to find Natsu glaring at some random statue. He growled as he eyes the whole face awkwardly, and finally had enough as he punched the face right off the statue.

"What is wrong with you?!" Lucy shouted.

The rock fell and Natsu sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Whoops sorry. That statue looked so much like Gray that I couldn't help it."

"GAH! YOU CRAZY?!" Pavo exclaimed.

The ground began to shake as they all began to feel strong vibrations, especially Nic. He felt a strong force with his Earth Plate Form still active and he sensed something coming their way, and not good at all. Immediately he took action.

"Everyone, get moving!" Nic shouted, turning away and began running off with his gifted speed.

Everyone turned back to the giant hole, wondering why Nic told them to run, and the answer came when a massive boulder rolled through the hole. "AAAAHHHH!" Everyone followed Nic as they ran away from the huge boulder.

Natsu turned around with flames. "Take this! **Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**" He threw the ball of fire at the boulder, but the flames didn't even faze it as it rolled along. "AHHHH! I'm sorry my best didn't work!" He wailed along as he turned and ran off with the others.

"When will you ever learn?!" Lucy shouted.

"For the record pyro, this is all your fault!" Pavo exclaimed back at him and his idiocy.

Nic ran on ahead and came to a halt in front of a three-way bridge that was over a pit of darkness. He was surprised as three bridges were in front and everyone else couldn't tell.

"Gah! Three bridges?!" Happy exclaimed.

"Which one is real?!" Vanessa exclaimed.

Nic hurriedly pressed his hands to the ground and closed his eyes. Using his Earth Plate powers, he was pinpointing the density and thickness of the bridges, and when the radar bounced back to him, his eyes opened again.

Nic pointed ahead. "Everyone, the middle one! Now!"

"Right!" Everyone began to follow Nic as he led them down the bridge. As they followed him, the two other bridges began to crumble away. The boulder followed them onto the stone bridge, and they continued running until they saw a second boulder heading their way.

Happy reeled back to a halt. "A second one?! Now what?!"

"I don't know. They got us in a pincer attack." Natsu explained. "We can only jump!"

"What?! I can't jump that high!" Lucy roared.

Natsu clenched his fists. "Dammit. There's gotta be a way…"

Nic glowed and shifted into his Sky Plate Form. His change caught attention and he looked at everyone. "Vanessa, Lucy, hang onto me! Happy, carry Michelle! Romeo, Natsu, Pavo, jump!"

Without hesitation or time to counter, everyone did as told and Pavo grinned as huge as ever. Vanessa and Lucy latched onto Nic as he took flight while Happy shot into the air with Michelle holding onto the key tightly. Pavo twirled in place before he tapped the stone bridge and bounced up high into the air. Natsu and Romeo jumped high as well, and the boulders collided beneath them. The boulders all crumbled beneath them, falling down into the darkness below.

"Alright!" Natsu shouted. "Nice jumping!"

Vanessa perked up. "Alright!"

Nic also smiled, but it quickly faded when the stone bridge began to crack greatly and shattered as well. Everyone gawked as they found themselves descending. Happy was holding up until he was hit on the head by a small rock remnant from the boulders, and he and Michelle went plunging down with everyone.

"AHHHH!" They all screamed.

"WHY IS IT THAT WE'RE ALWAYS FALLING?!" Lucy screamed. "CAN'T WE GO UP FOR ONCE!"

"WHY UNIVERSE?! WHYYYYY?!" Pavo exclaimed. "…oh wait, that's right." Pavo realized that he had the capabilities of a peacock, and he unfolded his huge peacock cape and used his elbow wing appendages to glide safely along the wind.

As Natsu descended, he quickly engulfed his hand in thick flames. "Romeo, grab something with your Magic!"

"Right!" Romeo shot a streaming purple flame and Natsu shot flames of his own in the form of a giant hand. The two fires grabbed the same stone column and they both swung down and latched onto the column.

Nic glowed while descending. "Hang on!" He was revealed to have shifted into the Meadow Plate Form. Everything from before looked the same in terms of V-Neck, pants, and boots, but the coat was now grass green with jungle green edging, as were the sleeves. He also had a jungle green belt to keep it in place.

He fell while holding onto his sister and Lucy. They both held onto him as he was forced to let go. "**Vine Whip!**" With one hand, he shot a vine that went out and wrapped around one column and used his other hand to shoot a vine and caught Happy, Michelle, and the clock hand. The two were left suspended while Nic kept a tight hold.

"Is everyone alright?" He called out.

Pavo glided and left himself positioned in the air. "Ah! We've all made it!"

"Yeah, we're good." Natsu shouted, still embedded into the column with Romeo.

"We're just a little bumped up is all." Romeo reasoned.

Happy looked down at the darkness while being suspended by Vine Whip. "This stinks. How do we get down from here?"

Vanessa looked down at the darkness with him, looking rather annoyed as to how this was all playing out. "It looks like we're just gonna have to keep going down."

"Looks like it." Nic said.

"Can't we ever hear up once in awhile?" Lucy groaned.

Natsu didn't see any other option. "Well, then let's get moving."

About an hour later they found themselves touching ground again. This time it wasn't any stone ground, but rock, meaning nothing elaborate. There were candles lit all over, and everyone saw underground ruins and the ever growing darkness above.

"Okay, where are we now?" Romeo asked.

"It looks like the lowest level of the tomb." Michelle stated.

"Actually it looks like an underground city to me." Pavo explained. "Quite the awful decorum."

Vanessa sweatdropped. "Right, considering it's only a few centuries old." She sarcastically added.

"Well according to the legends, monks who were in charge of guarding Zentopia lived their entire lives down here." Lucy said. "Imagine never seeing sunlight in your life."

Natsu put his arms behind his head. "Sounds unhealthy."

Vanessa frowned. "Sounds like Nic…" She put her head down. "Sorry."

Despite the sour note and bitter memory, Nic; clad in his normal form, kept a warm smile for his sister. "It's alright, Vanessa. Let's just keep on going, okay?"

Vanessa looked on ahead, a half-grin appearing on her face. "Okay."

Nic looked heed. "And besides, we're getting close. I can feel the Plate's signal greater than before. This should also mean the clock part is also not far behind."

Lucy turned towards Natsu. "Do you smell anything?"

The Dragon Slayer shook his head. "Nah, this funky smell keeps getting in the way like the one in Michelle's hand…" His nose twitched and he sharply turned to another direction. "Wait…you smell that?"

Vanessa lurched as her Aura Magic began to sense impending aura somewhere close by. She turned in the same direction Natsu faced. "What…oh no."

Nic and everyone turned towards their direction, seeing where the source of trouble was. As it turned out, looking down on them was Coco and Dan of the Legion Corps.

"I hate today." Lucy muttered. She then saw Dan and she immediately panicked. With a swift motion she hid herself behind Michelle.

Nic began to step forward. "How did you find us?"

Dan pointed his lance at them. "Samuel told us everything about The Key to the Starry Heavens." The two then took a step down towards them. "And guess what? There's a piece of the clock here as well."

Coco struck a pose similar to a salute. "And Samuel also calculated that the current clock piece is with you, and he was right."

Pavo instantly got irritated. "No! Not you again!"

"The feeling is mutual!" Coco barked back.

Dan's eye caught sight of Lucy behind Michelle and he smiled widely. "Is that my LuLu~? Oh how I've missed you!" And once again his romance clouded his train of thought.

Nic showed dismay while Vanessa facepalmed. "Oh, here we go." They groaned in unison.

Dan scooted closer to Lucy, bypassing Michelle and completely disregarding the clock hand in her possession. "It's destiny that we met again, my sweet LuLu! The thread of destiny binds us as one!"

"How about to take that thread and stitch your mouth shut!" Lucy barked.

"L-O-V-E! True lo~ve!" Dan raptured so much in his fantasies, but that didn't stop himself from blocking a flaming fist from Natsu, using Ricochet as a defense.

"How about you shut up!" Natsu barked. He jumped back and jumped into the air. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" He fired a stream of fire, but Dan's Ricochet deflected it in all other directions.

Dan looked away, disinterested. "I can't waste my time with you. Because, love beckons me! Oh yeah!"

Of course he completely disregarded the fire streams shooting about uncontrollable, one of which grazed Lucy's butt and the blonde flailed on the ground. "Ow! Ow! Someone help me! My butt's on fire!"

Nic shifted into the Splash Plate and he used Water Gun to put out Lucy's butt fire. Lucy sighed as the cool water washed away the burning pain.

"Natsu, be careful! You're gonna hurt some of us!" Romeo shouted, but his call fell on deaf ears as Natsu relentlessly punched the shield Dan held. Every attack Natsu threw rushed off in another part of the underground city, bombarding locations with his reckless flames. The nearby structures began to crumble and everyone retreated as rocks fell everywhere. With the rocks and dust used as cover, the group began to make a quick escape.

"Exactly like I planned!" Natsu shouted as they ran off.

Lucy showed dismay. "Yeah right. Still, let's just find the clock piece and Plate so we can-"

"Go for a honeymoon~?" Dan reappeared behind a broken wall, intercepting Lucy and the others. He advanced with a big smile. "Now LuLu pumpkin, we have to water our garden of love!"

"That's the creepiest thing I've ever heard!" She hollered.

Coco appeared behind Dan. "Dan! You and I need to find the clock piece, remember?"

"Did I remember something?" Dan's eyes were filled with hearts. "Of course I remember…I remember my love! L-O-V-E!"

"I thought so." Coco sighed.

"SHUT UP!" Natsu shot another blast of fire at Dan, who had no trouble with deflecting with his Ricochet. As if déjà vu had its time to shine, Lucy's butt was on fire again.

The young blonde flailed on the ground once more. "Ow! Ow! Why me?! Why me?!" Her thick bottom was put at ease when Nic's Water Gun was applied once again, putting out the fire once more and leaving her a sulking mess as she was burnt twice now.

Natsu looked back. "Sorry!"

Dan pointed his lance at Natsu. "You dare burn my love?! For that I'll destroy you in a merciless fashion!" His lance began to get poised to strike. "Prepare for my Magic Lance! Open wide!"

The Dragon Slayer dodged relentlessly as he shifted and evaded every swift, green glowing strike.

"Careful Natsu! If you get hit, you'll be either shrunk or enlarged!" Nic warned.

"Gah! Gwoh! Hah! Hee!" Natsu was being extra careful and heed to Nic's words. He dodged all around the spear attacks and Dan advanced once again as he jabbed relentlessly. As he jabbed repeatedly, he finally got a target…in the form of Lucy.

"YEOW…" Lucy was turned into a puff of smoke. Michelle and everyone briefly gasped as the smoke vanished, and Lucy was seen lying on the ground.

She opened her eyes to find that everything, even Happy, was bigger than her. "Hey! Wait?! What?!"

She realized that she was just shrunk by Dan and everyone looked on with revelation and Pavo's huge mouth hung open in his own way of shock. Lucy was all sorts of disbelief. "No! No! This isn't happening to me!" Even her voice was shrunk like her.

Dan immediately felt mournful of his actions. "GAH! Oh Lucy babe, I'm so sorry my love!" He cried rivers down his face. "I never meant for this to happen to you!" Said river turned into a fountain that sprinkled over Lucy's head. "I'VE SHRUNK THE LOVE OF MY LIFE!"

Lucy thrashed as she squandered out of the fountain of tears. "Turn me back to normal!"

"Yes, right away!" Dan readied his lance and Lucy crossed her arms as she waited for Dan to change her size back to normal, only Dan was found blinking as something sparked within him. He was seen contemplative as he scrutinized Lucy's tint but busty form.

"Uh, is there a holdup?" Lucy asked, somewhat impatient as she wasn't to regular size yet.

"You know…you're a whole lot cuter like this." He chimed. He then picked up Lucy as she was caught surprised. "You were smoking hot before, but now you're the most adorable thing I've ever seen! I'll carry you with me everywhere!"

"So not happening!" Lucy hollered back, but was easily ignored by Dan.

"I'm just gonna keep you like this for just a little longer, okay?" He then suspended Lucy by his waist and held her like a keychain.

"Eh?! She's like a little keychain!" Vanessa squealed.

"Oh gosh! I want a little Lucy keychain too!" Michelle admired.

Lucy's eyebrow twitched. "Will somebody unhook me from this weirdo?!"

Dan walked towards Natsu and Nic. "Now that I have my love by my side, I have the courage of a lion! Nothing can stop me!" He then fired his lance relentlessly at the two. Both individuals dodged; one being shocking in his dodging, and the other being as nimble as a Toxicroak.

Coco ran up to Dan as he jabbed away. "Dan, we can't waste our time with these clowns! We have to find those clock pieces!"

"You got this one. I got business with these two!" Dan hollered.

"I can't because Samuel gave you all the details!" Coco countered.

Michelle reared backwards to protect the clock piece as Pavo and Vanessa got in front of her. Romeo clenched his fists as he was trying to think of something, but nothing came to mind.

"We gotta do something! We can't hit Dan because we might hit Lucy too!" Romeo warned. Lucy was swirling all around on her thread as Dan lurched left and right and she was doing spirals and feeling very nauseous.

Nic dodged once again as his reflexes didn't let up. He went about and scrutinized how Lucy was swirling and unable to control herself. He glowed as he shifted, and Dan momentarily stopped to see Nic shift into his Icicle Plate.

"Hm?" Dan quickly shrugged it off and began his attack again. Nic quickly opened his mouth as Dan aimed his spear at him.

"**Haze!**" Nic let out a black mist that began to obscure everyone's sight. Dan got the worst of it as he was close range and began to retreat back a little.

"Aw man, what's this? I can hardly see." He stated.

Lucy coughed as well, but for some reason as she inhaled Haze, it wasn't at all like smoke, but it felt like a soothing fragrance. Her whole body began to flash and engulfed her entirely. The next thing she knew, she was unhooked from Dan.

"Natsu! Now!" Nic shouted through the Haze.

"**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" A flaming kick struck Dan's face, sending him skidding backwards out of the Haze and barely kept his footing. He looked back as Haze cleared to find his dear Lucy back to normal size.

"GAH! My love, no~!" He shouted with deep sadness. He then sharply turned towards Nic. "What did you do to my Lucy pie?!"

"I used Haze, a move that resets all stats; in this case, any shrinking or size changing done to Lucy." Nic explained.

"Hm? Stats?" Dan tilted his head. "D'oh whatever! You're gonna pay for coming in between me and my Lucy! Her heart belongs to me and not you!"

Nic sweatdropped and stepped back. "Er, what?! Don't be superficial!"

Vanessa shrugged. "Besides, Nic's heart belongs to someone else."

Nic's cheeks showed a little hint of pink. "Vanessa!"

"Then my love shall not escape!" Dan rushed in towards Nic, but was stopped by Pavo, who gave him a good kick to the face.

"Back off, pal! **Descending Peck Memoir!**" He kicked downwards in a sharp angle again and Dan skidded on his back until crashing into some rocks. Pavo landed in front of Nic. "AHA! Now it is my turn!"

Natsu stepped right by his side. "And I still owe him for being annoying!"

Nic turned towards everyone else. "Lucy, Vanessa, you and the others take the clock piece and get out of here!" Though he also felt the Plate close by, he couldn't have Dan shrink and keep Lucy again. He had to stay behind and have Natsu and Pavo help in taking the clown out. "Get moving!"

"Okay!" Lucy turned and began to run with Vanessa and the group.

Coco saw the key in Michelle's possession. "We gotta get that clock piece, so hand it over!" She began sprinting with her great speed, almost rivaling Nic's. Romeo turned back and fired a blast of purple fire, but Coco dodged it and kept on running along towards them.

"Hurry! We gotta find the keys!" Vanessa turned towards Lucy. "Any luck on finding the location?"

Lucy pulled out her book as she ran. She looked down at the content. "Let's see…"

WHAM! She ran into a feminine statue and she fell on her back. The eyes of the statues lit up and turned red. Everyone there began to grow uneasy as they got a bad feeling, and they were right as the floor underneath disappeared and began falling. Coco found herself running into the hole and screamed as she fell down.

The several individuals managed to latch onto ledges and were left to hand as they were over a pit, with the bottom being engulfed in skulls of dead remains.

"Oh come on! I ran out of Magic Power?!" Coco shouted. She then saw a skull was right in front of her face. "AAAHHHH!"

Lucy looked at Coco and back at Romeo. "Hold this." Romeo accepted the book with his one free hand and Lucy reached out to Coco. "Hurry, grab my hand!"

Coco looked back at Lucy, seeing her hand extended out and a long silence came in between the two.

Coco finally answered. "I can't accept an enemy's mercy." But her phrase went in the wrong direction as Lucy grabbed her wrist anyway.

"Quit being stubborn!" Lucy told her. A silence fell in between them once again as they looked the other again in the eye and the rocks underneath Lucy began to crumble. The two girls found themselves rolling down the slope that led to the bottom.

"Lucy! Coco!" Vanessa called out. Her eyes also widened when the rocks she held onto chipped off and she wailed as well. She found herself sliding down with the other two girls, all three crashed to the ground and fell down into a narrow chamber of skulls.

"Owww." The three girls groaned as they were sprawled all over the floor.

"Lucy! Vanessa! Are you both alright?" Michelle called down to them.

"Yeah, we can still feel our limbs at least." Vanessa called back up.

"Hang on, we're coming down to get you!" Romeo shouted down to them.

"No, don't worry about us!" Lucy shouted back up. "We can take care of ourselves. You guys just worry about those two clock pieces! Vanessa and I will meet up with you eventually!"

There was a small silence as the Happy, Michelle, and Romeo were rather contemplative, but agreed.

"Okay, but you two be careful!" Michelle called out.

"We will!" Vanessa then turned away and rubbed the back of her head. "Oh geez, just when things aren't as bad as they are now."

"Yeah you can say that again." Lucy agreed. She then turned to look at Coco, who was slowly getting up. "Hey, are you okay?"

Coco looked at her and swatted her away. "I don't need your help! In case you've forgotten, you're the reason we're down here to begin with!"

Lucy balled a fist. "You better watch your mouth little girl or you'll end up somewhere a whole lot worse!"

Coco lashed out just a shard. "I can't think of any place worse than with you!"

"Shut up! Both of you!" Vanessa hollered out, striking the girls' nerves as they flinched to her direction. Vanessa put her hands to her hips. "Now listen!" She sounded a little calmer. "That doesn't matter anymore. What matters is that we find our way out of here and back to the others."

"Hmph. Whatever." Coco turned away and began walking, much to Lucy's annoyance. Vanessa didn't seem as bothered as she started walking, leaving Lucy at the tail end.

The four made way down of what appeared to be small catacombs, as they saw endless rows of skulls piled up over the other. They've been walking for only a few minutes, but Lucy couldn't help but feel curious. With her anger about Coco subsiding, she decided to ask her.

"So Coco." She started. "What exactly is the Legion Corps' goal? Does the clock pieces have anything to do with it, or what exactly is this Holy War about?"

Coco turned towards her. "Well I got a question for you! Why are you guys getting in our way when you don't know what we're doing? Huh!"

Vanessa crossed her arms under her bosom. "Well for one thing, we don't necessarily like anyone who messes with Fairy Tail. You mess with us, and it's automatically our business."

Coco now turned to her. "Oh yeah? Well even if you did, you'd still end up being outmatched by us!"

Vanessa's eyes narrowed. "Oh? Then how come Nic and our friends whooped your butt the first time?" She argued.

Coco fumed and she growled. She turned away and began walking again.

Lucy sighed. _'Well aren't we all making friends.'_

A short while went on again and the three were still traveling down the catacomb. Lucy decided to break the silence yet again.

"We should be careful. There's probably traps like before."

Vanessa nervously sulked as she walked. "Boy aren't we getting lucky today with all the traps."

"Yeah I know, right?" Lucy's agreement was jinxed unfortunately when she found herself stepping on a tile that went down.

"Oh no." Vanessa said.

Giant rock spikes then shot up from the ground and Lucy squealed as she covered up. She thought she was a goner, but then a sudden pop sound was heard, followed by dark slashing all around. The next thing she knew, Lucy was on the floor, moved by Coco.

"Eeeh…" Lucy was saved as Coco slowly got up. "Thanks."

Vanessa smiled. "Nice job, Krokorok."

Krokorok deactivated his Shadow Claw as the remains of the rocks spikes were scattered about on the floor. He then pointed at a fellow debris. "Let me tell you something, stupid spike remain from a spike triggered from a trap triggered by Lucy Heartfilia! You got spiked instead!"

Coco got up as turned away. "Well, you did try and save me from before, so I might as well consider it even when I really save you."

Lucy blinked, but a grin appeared on her face, as did Vanessa.

The three (four if you count Krokorok) eventually marched their way through the remnants of the catacomb without much trouble. They soon found themselves climbing up a staircase with the same look as the tomb they were in previously, meaning they were heading the right direction.

Lucy was still a little peeved of Coco's behavior. "Are you seriously this unfriendly? The Coco I met is a lot like you, which is what makes this weird. Only she's a whole lot nicer."

"That so?" Coco replied as she kept her gaze at the staircase. She and the others finally made it to the top, where Krokorok turned to look back down at the staircase.

He pointed at the staircase. "Let me tell you something unbelievably high staircase! Krokorok does not like how you're so long! I will make you shorter the next time I step on you over and over!"

"Krokorok!" Vanessa ushered without looking back.

The Desert Croc Pokémon turned towards his trainer. "…sorry." He then began walking in pace with the others again.

Coco then turned towards Lucy as they walked, piqued. "So, Lucy, how am I like this other Coco?"

"Aside from your personality, you're both practically the same." The blonde mage responded.

Coco was in disbelief. "What?"

"Yeah. Like I said you both look and sound exactly alike, and believe it or not we started out as enemies too." Lucy remembered the Edolas Coco from a long time ago. She was a really big help with the Legion and along the end of the Edolas adventure. "But by the end, she was one of my closest friends."

"I see, so this happened before you guys came to Kalos." Vanessa added.

Lucy glanced back towards her. "Yeah, that's right. We didn't tell you the full story, did we? I'm pretty sure Sophie told her side of the story to you. We'll tell you soon after this is over."

Coco looked a little at dismay. "That's not me at all, because I don't wanna be friends with a wannabe mage like you."

Lucy stepped towards her, stopping momentarily before continuing the course. "Hey we don't mean to get personal. We just wanna stop the clock pieces from bringing ruin to the world." She then took a pause. "Honestly, if only I got the message from my Dad a lot clearer."

"Wasn't your father this wealthy man? Jude, was it?" Vanessa asked.

"Yeah, of course he and I never did see eye to eye, even though I am his daughter." Lucy continued to walk, her pacing equal to Coco's. "This isn't an exception either. Why go through all the trouble to hide clock pieces in all of these weird locations?"

"Grah! Clocks are overrated!" Krokorok shouted. "Why can't it be something like a watch instead?!"

"I know." Vanessa agreed. "I wish there an easier way to go about this."

"That's one thing we can agree on." Coco remarked. Lucy and Vanessa then looked at Coco, who took notice. "Mind telling me what's funny you two?"

Lucy looked back ahead. "Oh nothing. It's just…you're silly."

Coco huffed. "Hmph. I am not!"

Vanessa chuckled lightly of Coco's defiance. She stopped when she looked back ahead when they were coming up to a dead end with a human-sized statue in place.

"Huh? A dead end." She figured.

Lucy looked worried. "Do you think we've made a wrong turn?"

"You're both so naïve." Coco began walking towards the statue. "These places always have a secret passage hidden away somewhere."

She stopped in front of the statue with confidence and slowly reached for it.

"Coco! I wouldn't do that if I…" Vanessa's warning fell on deaf ears as Coco touched the chin.

The whole place shook and everyone looked up and saw the ceiling crack above Coco. The ceiling gave way, and Coco screamed as rocks began to fall down onto her.

"Hang on!" Vanessa's hand was covered in teal aura and she launched the aura in a similar fashion to how Natsu and Romeo used their Magic to grab the columns from before. The teal stream coiled around Coco's abdomen as she was unable to act. Coco was yanked as the rocks fell down and dust took up the scene ahead of them.

Lucy was surprised. "Whoa, nice maneuver!"

Vanessa, having a serious look in her eyes, retracted her teal aura. "I picked it up from Natsu and Romeo." The dust then settled. "Coco, are you okay?"

Coco was seen with her legs beneath some rocks as her whole world was dizzy. She was out like a light and it didn't seem like she wasn't gonna be up for quite some time.

"Is she okay?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Lucy! Vanessa!" The sudden call from above made both girls looked up to find the whole breaching above revealed Happy, who also had Romeo and Michelle beside him.

Michelle looked worried. "Are you both alright?"

"We'll pull you guys up!" Romeo called down.

Vanessa and Lucy both looked at each other and looked back at the unconscious Coco. What ran through their minds was the same ideal. Though she was the enemy for now, it'd be sickening to leave her like this. They couldn't take her as well, so they both had to act while they could.

They nodded at the other and Vanessa turned and extended her arm out. "Krokorok, **Dig!**"

Krokorok understood the idea and didn't have regrets as he clawed through the rock and dust, drilling out enough space to finally dispatch the rock on Coco's legs. He hoisted her over his back and took him over to the girls, where he laid her down. Lucy took out a pink handkerchief and wrapped it around what seemed to be the small injury on Coco's leg. Once the handkerchief was applied, all three nodded before being pulled up by the others.

As they all ran through the tomb, Happy looked at them. "I would've just left her there."

Lucy smiled as she ran. "Yeah, well, it wouldn't sit right with us if we did."

"True." Vanessa agreed, with Krokorok running in tow. All of them made way and began to go deeper into the tomb to find the clock piece.

Back with Coco, she regained consciousness and opened her eyes. She slowly stirred back up and took in her surroundings. Her memories came back and realized that Vanessa and Lucy were gone. She then looked down and saw a handkerchief around her ankle. All she could do was half-grin.

* * *

Erza's group stood in front of what seemed to be a very tall tower. It went up for what seemed to be forever, almost similar to the Tower of Heaven. The group looked at the surprisingly tall building with mild surprise.

Erza stood in front of the circular doorway. "We're here."

"The Library of Sorcery has documents and books of almost every Magic accounted for in history. Certainly we might find the clock piece, or at least a clue about it in here." Carla explained.

"But it looks like this place hasn't been visited in a long time." Wendy remarked.

Cana crossed her arms. "Man, just look at the size of this place. I can't even see the top."

Sophie stretched her arms over her head as a smile was on her face. "Ah, such sweet memories!"

Everyone turned towards her in shock. "Wait hold on! You've been here?!" Carla exclaimed.

Sophie looked down at Carla. "Yeah I have. I used to visit this place when I was still working with my father's wealthy merchant business. We always came here when we needed information; which is also where I began conducting my Memory-Make."

Erza extended her arm out, and her Magic Power opened the heavy circular door sideways. When it opened, the site was astounding and disturbing at the same time. Row upon row, column by column, there was endless books lined up beside the other. It was going up into the darkness above.

"You mean there's this many books on Magic?" Cana said, still finding it hard to believe.

"My word, so much knowledge." Carla remarked.

"Yeah, we need to bring Levy the next time we come here." Wendy cheerfully implied.

Sophie took in a very deep breath. "Ahhhh, the sweet smell of old dusty books. How I've missed you!" She sighed. "Don't worry guys, that clock piece is as good as ours. I can navigate through this place like Nic knows Pokémon."

Erza began making way towards a direction. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. Now listen, the Archeology section's on the third section below us. I also remember an old saying on that floor. If we remember right, of which I do, Lucy told us there was a spot similar to that." The Memory-Make Mage then began to walk down the slant that led to the floor beneath them. "And another thing, why is that the Legion Corps got in the way like spreading the word?"

"Probably to cause interference with us getting involved." Cana said, walking behind Sophie as they pressed on towards the next floor beneath.

"That's what I said earlier!" Carla exclaimed. Though no one cared, Wendy nervously laughed.

Erza went down to the next floor, following Sophie. The redhead wasn't saying much as she was keeping focus on the mission at hand, but then the picnic sprung up in her mind. Still remains of a possible first picnic was in her head, and she couldn't help but still see Nic among that ideal.

She closed her eyes and washed away the idea, but she didn't realize that she was being looked at by Cana and Sophie.

"Are you spacing out again?" Cana asked.

"We were just messing with your head, lighten up." Sophie explained.

Erza turned stiff. "Don't be so foolish." She sternly stated. "I was just traumatized by my first picnic being ruined by such savages."

"More like you were the savage one." Carla commented under her breath.

Cana sweatdropped. "You can say that again."

"Shh!" Wendy hushed her.

Still, what bothered Erza was where she stood in this ordeal around Nic. Her mind just went deeper and deeper as the concept grew all the more complicated. Through it was the concept that they were getting interrupted every chance they get. The most recent being no exception, of course seeing Nic humiliate the Magic Council made her chuckle in amusement. It was still hard to comprehend regardless. From the start all the way to now, their affiliation with the other thickened to an unbreakable point. Of course she wanted Nic by her side, so why didn't she bring him along this time? Was she just waiting for the right time to tell him what he meant to her, or was it so that their feelings don't interrupt their mission? If that were the case, they never would've gone on all those adventures together to begin with.

She was so caught up she accidentally bumped into Cana when the mage in a bra came to a stop. The brunette turned around to find Erza snapping out of her contemplative state, noticing how she was having a small pink in the cheeks.

She smirked. "Someone thinking about their love still?"

Erza's eyebrow twitched and she growled. She passed Cana and stood right next to Sophie, who stood in front of a saying. 'Upon the knowledge of angel history, time does rest.'

"Looks like you've found it." Erza remarked.

Sophie nodded. "Two obvious clues are here; either we press a bookshelf, or we take out an individual book."

Cana crossed her arms. "If it were the latter, then this'll take forever and the Legion Corps might find us."

"Well then I guess we better start now." Carla remarked.

"Maybe spreading out will help." Wendy suggested.

"Alright, everyone disperse and start by pressing on shelves. We'll go with that option for now." Erza ordered clearly. She watched as the girls and Exceed spread out and begin looking at the various shelves of books, each labeling a different archeological aspect; from culture of the first civilizations in Fiore, to the history of Magic.

Cana slowly pressed her arm against a shelf's side, but the shelf didn't turn. "Find anything guys?"

Wendy shook her head.

"This isn't as easy as we expected it to be." Carla figured.

"Maybe there's another trick. Maybe we have to sense it magically." Erza figured. "Maybe-!" She found herself falling backwards when she was lightly pressing her back against the shelf behind her. The whole shelf went toppling down.

"Erza!" Sophie and the others ran towards the redhead as she got back up and rubbed the back of her head.

"Are you okay?" Wendy asked.

"Yeah I'm fine." Erza sat up and looked behind her. "But look." In her direction lied what seemed to be a dark passageway that led down to the unknown.

"Well halla freakin llujah! Looks like Sophie was right after all!" Cana exclaimed.

"Let's see where this leads to at least." Erza led the small group onwards towards the dark tunnel, and with the mission at hand and keeping focus over this development, Nic wasn't anywhere in her mind. She trailed with the group until the tunnel finally came to an end.

They were in a dark chamber, of which a large object was seen with golden legs curved upside down. Its size was humungous, at least five times their own.

"We've struck gold!" Cana shouted.

"High five!" Sophie and Cana both shared a high five.

Erza grinned. "Well this turned out better than expected. We can pack it along with my luggage."

Sophie smirked. "And then we can reunite you with your conquering hero~." Sophie teased.

"Guess we'll be expecting a wedding once this whole clock crap is over with." Cana mused. The two girls laughed at their own amusement as Erza growled and her face grew red with embarrassment.

"Just get moving!" She barked back at them, disregarding her feelings of embarrassment rising.

Cana and Sophie chuckled nervously as they may have slacked just a little. "We should be serious now."

"Yeah, that stuff comes later." Cana agreed.

Wendy and Carla sighed, and Erza turned away as a half-grin came across her face, succumbing to the amusement of the scene.

* * *

**Here's an update for you all. A lot happened over this chapter, and I didn't bother to add the other clock pieces being found, as that would be pointless fillers. As usual I went by the course of the anime, with several tweaks here and there.**

**In retrospect, the last bit was pretty pointless and boring, but I rather not have written about the Jiggle Butt Gang as that part was completely ridiculous, so I altered it to make it more of a contemplative Erza thinks of Nic moment.**

**On an unrelated note, I have decided to start setups for this OCxCana story, as I have already figured out my OC's design. I don't know when, but the story's first chapter should be out soon.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter as always guys!**

* * *

**Next Time: Freedom of Religion**


	60. Freedom of Religion

Chapter 60 – Freedom of Religion

**The 60****th**** chapter guys! This story is getting super long!**

**To Recap:**

With everyone on edge, they all spread out to find the remaining clock pieces scattered about, with Nic's group heading overseas and talking briefly to archeologists before reaching a desert, where they descend deep into an underground city. There, not only did Nic sense a Plate, but they meet Coco and Dan of the Legion Corps and quarrel briefly, though Dan was more caught in his infatuation with Lucy. Soon, Coco, Lucy, and Vanessa all end up separated from the rest briefly, but within that time got to have an understanding. Meanwhile, after Erza's 'first picnic', her group reached the Library of Sorcery, where Sophie led them to a clock piece.

* * *

**Chapter 60 – Freedom of Religion**

Natsu jumped into the air and puffed his cheeks. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" He released a strong stream of fire down at Dan, but the Spearman of the Legion Corps was confident in his abilities and used his large shield to deflect the fire, quick ended up destroying more stone walls all around.

Nic balled his fists. "That shield and spear are both troubling."

Pavo took up a stance. "Truly. A strong offense and defense to boot."

Nic used his speed and started running towards Dan while the latter thrusted forward. At the last second, Nic sprung overhead and while in midair glowed and shifted to his Splash Plate Form, and landed behind. He quickly pivoted and became covered in water. "**Aqua Jet!**" He shot ahead like a torpedo and made his mark in Dan's back and the knight stumbled forward, to which Pavo took advantage of.

The peacock-dressed man sprung up in the air and two images representing peacocks appeared and he glowed a pink aura. "**Peacock Capoeira!**" He sprung in as Dan lost momentum, and let loose some barrage of kicks on Dan's armor. The barrage of kicks was in rhythm as Pavo began to cartwheel forward. Finally, he did a handstand and spread his whole legs out and did a spinning kick, which struck Dan's face and he shot back into a large statue.

"Nice shot peacock guy!" Natsu shouted.

Pavo got back to his feet and remained on guard as the dust settled and Dan stood up. Nic stood among the three as Dan was seen smirking despite the damage he's taken.

Dan smirked. "Now this is the kind of fight I was looking for. You three are going to pay the ultimate price when I'm done with you." He guaranteed. To prove his point, without so much as looking, he pointed his spear behind him and poked the statue he struck. Everyone watched as the statue instantly grew in size by an immense margin, as it went from being twenty feet to at least eighty feet tall.

The sudden growth caught the three off guard but still able-bodied. With the weight being unstable, the statue began to fall forwards. Natsu was readied to move, but Nic wasn't budging.

"Pavo, now!"

"Gotcha!" Pavo sprang into action and jumped up towards the descending statue. With a harsh battlecry and a crazy face, he closed the distance and spun around and struck the statue with the point of his shoe. The shockwave spread throughout the statue and the entire structure shattered apart into tiny fragments. The small rocks fell below, landing all around the four, turning the territory they were in into what seemed to be a quarry.

Dan eyed his three opponents at once and grinned wider than before. He was having a blast. He wanted to have the thrill of a battle such as this, and to take out Salamander and Luminous alike would be a major bonus for the Legion Corps.

The knight snickered. "Tell me something, Nic was it?" Dan asked. "Is it true that you and your guild traveled through time?"

Nic wasn't sure what Dan was implying, but he did ask a question with a basic answer. "Yes, we did."

Dan then chuckled. "Then that explains why you all feel so weak. Salamander's Magic especially."

Natsu grew angry. "Say what?!"

"Your Magic, I was thinking about it from before. Your power isn't comparable to mine, because mine beats yours by a large margin. There's no way you can defeat me!"

Dan's boast was like a Venipede using Bug Bite because they all grew annoyed of Dan's false accusation. Of course Nic could remind him of what happened the last time, but he didn't because that would lead to giving away the only advantage they would have.

From the last fight he and Erza had against him, they both learned that Dan relied on his spear and shield the most, which left his close-range combat weak. If he could get Dan away from those items, or at the very least neutralize their effects, they could finish him off.

Natsu took lead and cloaked his arms in streaming flames. "**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**" His flames went lashing at Dan, but as excepted his shield took the full blunt, and the fire went dispersing in sharp fragments all around, destroying even more stone walls than last time. The backfire shot back at Natsu, and the Dragon Slayer shot backwards into a skid.

"Natsu!" Nic shouted and quickly turned back ahead. He watched as Dan pulled out his spear and the tip glowed green and he began to relentlessly jab once again. He jabbed and thrust in succession and Nic and Pavo both dodged the shots by either zooming with excessive reflexes or by the use of dancing.

"Face it! You guys don't stand a chance against a strong defense and offense like I have!" Dan shouted. He ceased with the jabbing and aimed the spear to the ground, where a small pebble was, and he poked it. The small pebble immediately glowed into a huge sharp rock that went at Nic, Pavo, and Natsu.

"Oh no you don't!" Nic jumped after the sharp stone and his arm was coated in spiraling water in the shape of a large crab claw. "**Crabhammer!**" He jabbed forward and the entire stone completely fell into small fragments that flew in all directions. As it all shattered, Dan appeared in front of Nic and jabbed. Nic leaned back as the spear aimed for his head and watched it go over him.

Dan retracted his spear and he and Nic both gained distance in between. Nic glowed once again and shifted from the Splash Plate to the Psychic Plate. Dan recognized the 'Requip' and immediately grew uneasy due to last time. Nic's Trick caught him by surprise, but as long as he had the other weapon, he might as well be okay.

Nic clasped his hands together. "That spear and shield are strong, but now we'll see what they can do when their effects are suppressed." He closed his eyes and opened them once more. "**Magic Room!**"

Nic shined a white light and the remaining individuals looked around to find the space around them beginning to distort. The space began to get all wavy with a dimensional room with white lining and shifted with distortions continuously.

"What the heck?" Natsu wondered.

Dan frowned but remained nonchalant. "Alright, so you made a bizarre room. That won't stop me from having Habaraki skewering you like a kabob!" Dan pointed his spear at Nic and lunged after him.

Nic remained calm and extended his ram out. "You may be able to do so, but…" When the spear reached him, he grabbed the tip and used his raw strength to suppress and keep the spear from poking his skin.

Dan realized that Nic wasn't shrinking upon contact, and that he couldn't increase either. He blinked and grew worried. "Wait hold on!" Realization dawned upon him and he looked around the Magic Room.

"That's right." Nic said. "You may have the use of your shield and spear's powers, but with Magic Room, they're nothing more than tools." His eyes narrowed. "Natsu! Pavo! Now!"

Dan's eyes widened and he turned around to find Natsu and Pavo in midair and leaping. Natsu had a flaming fist set and Pavo had his legs out and ready.

"**Glory's Integrity!**"

"**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**"

Pavo let loose a 360 roundhouse kick that struck Dan's shield when he pulled it up, but when the kick landed, it didn't bounce off, which made Dan get caught by surprise. Following through with the kick, his folded up cape followed and swiped the shield's side, leaving it to get knocked away and Dan was left open for Natsu.

"You'll never understand that even though you may be stronger than me, you don't have a prayer when we work together! HYAH!" Natsu punched with all his might, striking Dan so hard that he shot right through the Magic Room, leaving a shattered area of it and he continued onwards with his fall downwards.

* * *

While the fight escalated, Lucy, Michelle, Romeo, Happy, and Vanessa all were inside of what appeared to be an underground church with the Zentopia emblem on the wall in front. Despite being underground, the church was surprisingly lit well.

"So you think it's here?" Happy asked.

Lucy pulled out her book and opened to a page. "Yeah, I'm positive. There's a line in here that relates to this location." She recited it. "It says 'Long in silent had the key rested, embraced by reverent prayer'."

"Prayer?" Michelle wondered. "You mean like a church?"

Vanessa put her hands to her hips and turned about. "Well I guess when you think about it, it kind of makes sense."

"Still, there aren't many places to look now, are there." Romeo pointed out. "I guess all we can do is just look around and-"

One of the windows above broke when a projectile shot through and crashed into the ground behind them. They all swiftly turned around and looked on with deep shock as they saw the dust settling and Dan was lying among the debris, unconscious and defeated.

Lucy and her group were caught in a state of confusion until they retraced their eyesight upwards towards the hole in the window, where they found three figures looking down on them.

"Yo. Sorry to drop in all of a sudden." Natsu smiled and waved down to them and jumped down to meet Lucy and the others. Nic, in his normal self, and Pavo were in tow and landed right beside him.

"Natsu!" Lucy stated. "Thank goodness!"

Pavo struck a pose with a leg out from behind, having his humungous grin plastered on his face. "Oh don't be silly! We clipped this ugly duckling of his wings is all!"

Nic nodded. "It took a little longer than we had thought, but we managed to suppress his equipment and finish him." He looked around and noticed that the Plate signal within him began to get crazy. With this sudden pulse, he grew a little uneasy, but that meant they were probably right on top of it.

Still, he kept a façade. "So is this the place?" He asked.

"Most likely." Lucy informed.

The Zentopia insignia on the wall in front of them shined a bright light, which caught their attention. They all turned to face the wall to see the entire diamond shape now glowing. The entire structure itself shined so strong that they all narrowed their eyes.

"What's this light?!" Vanessa shouted.

"I don't know, but it looks like we'll find out!" Nic shouted through the light shine.

Finally the light began to dim, and the wall itself began to fade away, concealing something behind. Nic's Plate sensory went crazy, and at that moment he realized that not only did they find a Plate, but when the light faded, it revealed what appeared to be a clock piece. It was a giant, silver ring with another, smaller ring inside of it. The inner ring was brown with gray bulges. The two rings were bound by chains. Encasing the rings was a giant red ring, similar to Saturn in a way. The ring was trimmed in silver and had gray knobs; four in total in all positions similar to a clock. Floating in the dead center of the inner ring was a shining, rectangular plate that seemed to be made of iron.

"Whoa." Lucy muttered.

"Double whoa." Vanessa added. "That thing's huge!"

"Is that the clock piece?" Happy asked.

"If so, it'll be heavy to carry." Nic added. He then saw something in the middle, as it was something he was looking for all along. His eyes widened as his radar was going blank as he had reached his destination. He gasped as he saw the iron-like Plate slowly rotating in the center.

"Wait, is that what I think it is?" Lucy pondered, seeing the Plate in the middle.

Nic nodded. "There's no mistaking it. It's gotta be the Iron Plate." He ran ahead of the group and hauled himself up towards the rings. Everyone watched as Nic soon found himself just mere feet from the Iron Plate.

The Iron Plate in the center reacted by glowing brighter than before and Nic remained still as the Iron Plate slowly drew itself towards him as he was atop of the ring. He looked down as the Plate drew closer and touched his chest. When that happened, a flash of light blinded everyone and Nic felt the merging with the Plate.

Unlike the previous first couple of times like the Dread Plate and Stone Plate, and with him merging with so many, the merging didn't sting in the slightest. The light faded, and Nic felt a dense flow of iron swell within him, making him feel as though he was heavy, but the feeling faded away with the light.

Natsu and everyone else smirked. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"

Vanessa smiled happily. "Alright! I think that only makes two left, right?"

Nic nodded. "Yeah." He looked down at his hand and slowly clenched it. "I finally found another one. The Iron Plate."

Hiding from view atop the window Dan crashed through, Coco witnessed everything and found herself outmatched by a large margin. She never would have a prayer.

'_I have to find a way to steal that clock piece from Michelle and them all.' _She thought as she laid low.

Dan jerked up from his unconsciousness and got everyone's attention. "Hold up, wha…?" He was still trying to process stuff, but he wasn't fast to comprehend as he was still tired from his fight.

Nic, Pavo, and Natsu gave hardened glares towards him, not giving him an inch. Natsu held up a fist in pre-meditated retort. "You still want some more?"

Dan crossed his arms. "No, I'm afraid you beat me fair and square." He sat down on the ground and crossed his legs. "I admit defeat. I surrender."

Michelle stepped forward. "So, will you tell us why you're gathering the clock pieces?"

"Yeah, and just who are you exactly? And why are you chasing after a girl like Lucy?" Happy asked rudely.

Lucy huffed. "I don't like your tone, cat."

Dan took the question and took action by standing back up. "So, you want to know my backstory do ya?" In a sudden out of the blue moment, he presented a picture of himself on a stand. "So you want to know of my tale? Very well then! You shall experience my life story in unadulterated detail, starting from the beginning!"

Everyone sweatdropped at the sudden display of a picture on a stand. They didn't have any way of processing this and they were blanked out.

"Uh…r-really?" Vanessa questioned.

Dan started anyway, and he flipped the picture to show a little town. "I, Dan Straight, was born in the glorious town of Cedar. Ah, Cedar, what a happy time." He then flipped to another picture, showing him as a young kid and with a bunch of knights. "Such a nice town, home to an ancient brotherhood of knights, and as a successor to this line of knights it was my sworn duty to keep going with the knights' tradition." He flipped to a picture of himself training with a sword. "And so I lived a happy childhood of the finest of respect from my fellow knights with the greatest of fruit juices."

Vanessa raised a brow at hearing fruits involved, one of them hopefully being lemons, her favorite.

Dan then flipped to another picture, where the church was on fire and knights held up their arms and weaponry of all forms. "But then out of nowhere, a civil war broke out and the entire city of Cedar was split into two."

"Wow, never knew you had such a bad time." Romeo said.

Michelle began to tear up sourly. "And your family had to struggle in order to survive!"

"Actually…" Dan, flipped the picture, showing what actually happened, which were knights shaking hands and looking happy. "The fight only lasted half a day, and no one was seriously injured. We got along again very quickly too!"

"Wow, that _was_ quick!" Happy said with surprise.

"We've had more intense brawls in the Guild Hall before lunch." Lucy countered, but Dan got up to their faces.

"Hang on to your skirts, because the story's just getting started!" He then flipped to another picture, to which showed Dan, older. Having flowers in hand and admiring a girl looking a lot like Lucy. "A long time later, I come across the most beautiful girl, my first love." He then flipped to a picture where he was looking at the darkened sunset with battleaxes and sword embedded into the ground. "But I was soon forced to go to war, and when I returned I searched for her…but she was nowhere to be found."

Lucy looked relatively startled. "So this girl went missing?" She gasped as she came to a quick conclusion. "You don't think she got caught into the war?!"

Michelle, once again, began to tear up. "She must have lost her life! How tragic!"

Pavo began to cry strong waterfalls onto the floor. "Bohohohoo! Oh the misery of losing love in fighting!" He cried out.

Dan had sparkles in her eyes. "Her beauty was unlike anything in the world. Actually Lucy resembles her very much."

As Michelle and Pavo shed even more tears, getting the ground beneath them wet, Lucy looked towards Natsu. "Now I guess it makes sense, but now…I feel kind of bad."

"So what? Did you find her body somewhere?" Natsu asked.

Dan still had sparkles in his eyes. "Actually…" He flipped the picture again, revealing the woman from before. "She was completely unharmed!"

"Are you kidding me?!" Everyone exclaimed in disbelief.

"I know, right? Only our reunion didn't turn out quite as I intended it to be." He flipped the picture to find her running and turning away from her constantly. "My daily marriage proposals made her so happy that they always frightened her, and in the end her fear won and she decided she wasn't worthy of my heart."

"You know, I could be wrong, but I don't think the pictures and the stories match up." Michelle figured.

Lucy groaned. "It's obvious she couldn't stand him."

Dan showed a picture of himself crying. "And even though she was right, the truth hurts. I cried for three whole days and nights. Not long after, I decided to set out on a journey to ease my sorrows and heart…" He then flipped a few pictures of ladies that he'd met. "And of course met quite a few charming ladies."

"So basically you went out on a journey to find a girl that doesn't remind you of your first love." Michelle figured.

"Nah I'll never learn true love if I limit myself to one chick." He gave a thumbs up. "The entire world's a buffet, and every girl is a dish I'm dying to try."

"And the respect level drops back to zero." Vanessa sighed.

"It makes you wonder who painted those pictures anyway." Happy said.

"Oh, Hughes and Sugarboy did. They used my travel journey entries and some old photos as references." Dan sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Of course the guessing was a dilemma, so the pictures may not be entirely accurate."

"Actually the pictures are more accurate than him." Vanessa whispered to Nic, to which he nodded in agreement.

Dan then flipped to another picture, showing him alongside the Legion Corps. "And soon I found myself joining with the Legion Corps. Since then, I've dedicated my life to Lord Byro and gathering the clock pieces!" Dan showed a happy smiled as he showed a slide with a big 'THE END' on it. "And that's how I got to grace you with my presence!"

Lucy rubbed her head with slight agitation. "That's great and all…but we were just wondering of the story of the Legion Corps."

Vanessa sighed. "You trade to get a Graveler but instead get a Golem." She groaned.

Happy held up on of the slides. "Yeah, and if you didn't tell us that, then why'd you tell us your story with poor production value?"

Dan had sparkles in his eyes. "It's obvious! So my Lucy-pie can learn more of her future husband! My sweet love~! Let us embrace under the watchful eyes of God!"

"NO~! Stay away!" Lucy began to run all around the church, with a lovey-dovey Dan dragging himself to follow her for a loving moment, but the blonde only sped away faster.

Natsu hunched over. "Ugh. I'm getting a headache from all this."

Nic put his hands to his sides. "Well I suppose there's nothing more to do. All we can do is wait for the others to rendezvous with their clock pieces to our location since ours is going nowhere."

Michelle looked around to notice something out of place. "Wait, wasn't there another member here?"

Hearing that, Coco swallowed and hid behind the window to conceal herself.

"You mean Coco?" Vanessa asked. "Now that you mention it, I wonder where she is?"

"Bet she turned and ran!" Happy stated.

Romeo began to look stuck up like Happy. "Why worry? She is our enemy, remember?"

"Maybe she is, but she's still young." Vanessa defended. "Besides, she's not all bad."

Hearing that, Coco felt a little better.

Watching over the whole scene, a shadowy figure looked on with a frown plastered on his face. It was hard to tell of his facial expression since he was concealed, but he obviously didn't look too thrilled. Seeing them all chilling and Dan fawning over Lucy left him bitter, not that he was to begin with.

"How disappointing." The voice started, getting Nic to jerk at the resemblance of the voice. His sensory and instincts got a bad feeling, and he and his friends (and family) looked around at the voice.

Coco's eyes widened. "Wait, that's…"

"Your actions resulted in failure, and thus you left my patience to rot. That's unforgiveable." The escalating voice was followed by a heavy quake that left the church to tremble. The thing they knew, a giant octopus crashed and broke through the wall, destroying the sacred church, but left Nic and the others unscathed, as well as the clock pieces.

Quickly collecting herself, Coco scrambled to her feet as dust blew away and small rocks fell down. "Lord Byro, sir!"

Standing atop of Kanaloa, Byro had a scowl that could put Makarov's to shame. "I can't seem to understand why is it that you two are having such a difficult time."

Dan stood up and found himself at the mercy of Kanaloa and Byro. "Gah! L-Lord Byro, sir! I beg for your forgiveness, for I have terribly shamed myself!" Although a smile then perked him. "Though on a much light-hearted note, this is where I met the girl of my drea-!" He was cut short by a falling rock on his head, which left him to fall unconscious on his back.

Coco looked startled as she saw Dan fall backwards into la la land. "Well I can't say that I wasn't expecting that." She muttered.

"You two, fall back and reflect on your incompetence. I'll have to clean up the mess made here." Byro's words were strict, absolute, and stern.

Natsu balled his fist. "Octo-Geezer!"

Nic, remembering how persistent Byro was before, began to grow uneasy and very annoyed. "You…"

Byro scrutinized the ones below him and recognized their faces and the clock piece in Michelle's care. And what left him bitter to the core even more was Nic, who had control over the dragon that demolished him last time, according to what he thought.

"I will claim what is rightfully Zentopia's; the clock pieces, relinquish them immediately." He demanded.

"Gahahahaha! Check it out guys! He's riding that giant octopus while being all mighty!" Natsu laughed, which completely contradicted what was meant to be a serious dilemma on their hands.

Romeo looked uneasy. "I wouldn't laugh at them if I were you, Natsu. He held their own against Gildarts, remember?" He reminded the Dragon Slayer.

Natsu shrugged it off. "Yeah, yeah. He's powerful and all…but he's on a giant octopus!" He just couldn't contain his laughter and Kanaloa, offended, slouched a bit.

Suddenly, realization dawned upon him this time. "Wait…if I beat Octo-Geezer here…" A large smirk came across his face. "Then it's like showing up Gildarts!"

"Natsu's such a terrible role model." Happy commented poorly, much to Vanessa's sighing of agreement.

"Everyone be careful!" Nic shouted and warned. Unlike Natsu, Nic wasn't being overconfident, and was keeping himself weary.

Byro's face didn't change in the slightest. "We'll destroy you. Kanaloa!"

The giant octopus responded by shooting acid-like ink at Nic and the group. Sprinkles of it dripped as it was launched, melting and sizzling small bits of the ground beneath.

"OOOH! We are gonna be smoked and served as calamari!" Pavo shrieked.

Nic and Vanessa took action as both Pularis siblings got in front, bit arms extended out.

"**Protect!**"

"**Aura Guard!**"

Nic made a turquoise, translucent shield while Vanessa's arms glowed a teal aura and swiped them in opposite arcs, making a large dome of solid aura that encased the group of any acid ink that deflected off of Protect.

Everything else around them, however, was melted and steaming in sizzling ink. Both siblings lifted their defensive moves and looked wearily about. Vanessa looked the most uneasy of the two. "Reminds you of Acid?" She asked.

Nic nodded. "No question, only of a higher caliber." He noticed the acid-like contents and with the move Acid mentioned, something clicked inside his head. He came to a realization and jumped ahead in front of the group.

"Nic, what are you doing?!" Romeo shouted.

The answer came in the form of Nic glowing and seen with a new look. Everyone looked with awe as Nic's eyes opened again, and his attire consisted of a lighter gray t-shirt with his sunglasses hanging on the collar as usual. He had on aluminum colored-like baggy pants that tucked into dark gray boots. His coat consisted of a metal-gray solid color with what appeared to be metallic scales. The edging was dark gray, as well as the ring and Fairy Tail symbol on the back. The belt was a similar gray to the t-shirt.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing." He assured.

"Such arrogance." Byro extended his staff out, which was the signal for Kanaloa to shoot ink at Nic.

Initially, Vanessa got worried, but her worried dimmed away when she realized what Nic's intentions were. She remained cautious as she and the others kept their distance while Nic was enveloped in melting ink.

Byro sneered at Nic's foolishness, but his eyes widened when a sudden beam of silver energy blasted right through the ink. The attack shot Kanaloa, making a silver explosion that made the giant octopus back up several feet.

"What?!" Byro jerked when he saw Nic unfazed as not even his sunglasses were melted. He remained standing in the middle of a melted crater, frowning with seriousness at his opponents as his Flash Cannon move caught them by surprise.

Pavo took a shocked pose. "HWHAAAA-?!"

"No way! That didn't even faze him!" Happy shouted.

"So that's why." Vanessa figured, getting everyone's attention. "Nic must have known that the ink was like Acid, a Poison-Type move. And Poison-Type moves are ineffective on Steel-Types!"

Nic jumped up and his hands glowed a metal-gray color and elongated. "**Metal Claw!**" He slashed diagonally on Kanaloa's head, which only agitated the octopus when he took the hit. He whipped one of his tentacles at Nic from the side and Nic covered up as he took the attack on his right. He was sent towards a wall, but got footing and jumped off the wall, evading another tentacle that broke through the wall.

Natsu jumped. "Alright! Now it's my turn!" He puffed his cheeks and spewed fire. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" His attack shot at Kanaloa, but the octopus saw it coming and spit out ink, which cancelled out both attacks that shook the ground and made the air smell foul.

Nearby, Coco was looking back and forth at the raging battle and then Dan, who was out with a smile on his face. She looked heavily hesitant as the recent events of Lucy and Vanessa and the different point of views left her uneasy.

Looked down at the ground in confusion. "What do I…what do I do?"

"**Aura Guard!**"

"Coco! Look out!" Lucy quickly pushed Coco out of the way while Vanessa made a dome of teal aura to keep them from harm from an incoming tentacle. Although the octopus's attack did rough up the defense as Vanessa lost footing and yelped as her shield broke, but quickly regained footing while Coco and Lucy both hit a wall from their tumble, small bumps on their heads appearing.

Lucy looked concerned. "Are you alright Vanessa?"

Vanessa nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine!"

"And what about you, Coco?"

Coco turned towards Lucy, disregarding her bump. "I give that 7 points…wait! Is Dan okay?!"

Natsu held Dan with one arm as he fumed at the octopus while Nic landed nearby. "Hey Octo-jerk! Did you forget who was on your side?!"

Pavo pointed a finger at Byro. "What's the matter with you?! Do you not value your bonds with Dan and Coco?! Well?!"

Byro stood tall atop of Kanaloa, looming down at everyone below. "I'm fully aware of their allegiance to Zentopia, however as members of the Legion Corps, they are prepared to do whatever it takes to win this Holy War."

"That's crazy!" Lucy spatted out. "She's not your slave! You are in no position to speak for her! She doesn't belong to anybody or Zentopia! She can make her own decisions!"

"Coco can do whatever she pleases! Her life is hers alone!" Vanessa exclaimed.

Coco's eyes were all shaken with shock as she was caught touched by the girls' defense. She looked down and looked even more contemplative than before.

Byro was unfazed as he glowered down at them. "You are in no position to reprimand me, fools! This Holy War has many more lives at stake than you might think."

Natsu didn't hesitate to act as he jumped up with a flaming fist to attack. "This Holy War crap ain't our style!"

"Kanaloa." Byro ordered. The octopus responded by lashing one of his tentacles that struck down Natsu. The Dragon Slayer crashed into the ground, a heavy and thick tentacle keeping him pinned.

The Dragon Slayer was left unable to budge. "Gah! So heavy!" He then saw the giant octopus pointing its mouth at him, ready to spurt ink. "W-wait! Hold on-!"

"Vanessa now!" Nic shouted. He threw a Poke Ball up into the air. "Greninja, **Dark Pulse!**"

Vanessa followed her brother's motives and threw her own Poke Ball. "Venusaur, **Venoshock!**"

Both Pokémon appeared out of their Poke Balls, and Greninja appeared in the air, and wasted no time as he made dark rings with purple outlining and launched it at the ink spitting at Natsu. Venusaur appeared out on the ground and let out a quick roar as he let loose a thick stream of purple liquid from the opening from his bulb.

The Dark-Type and Poison-Type moves traveled fast, and both attacks made it just in time, intercepting the ink spray that would've melted Natsu.

"Just in time!" Lucy shouted.

Natsu grinned, despite the close call. "Thanks you guys!"

A purple fire emanating from Romeo's hand far away stretched out like a fishing line and coiled around Natsu's arm. With a quick yank, Romeo pulled Natsu out from Kanaloa's hold. "I gotcha!"

"It's like Natsu fishing!" Happy commented.

Pavo gave a thumb's up. "Only this catch can't be thrown back."

Natsu found himself perched atop of a small structure, overlooking Kanaloa. "Romeo, can you get the mouth open?"

"Just leave it to me!" Romeo made a lighter shade of purple flare in his hand and threw it. "**Purple Net!**" The flame went into the opening of the octopus's mouth, opening into a flaming web that forced his mouth to open wide.

Natsu jumped off the structure and puffed his cheeks. "Alright, now to-!" His attempt to shoot fire into the octopus's mouth was in vain as one of Kanaloa's tentacles snagged Natsu, yanking him in the air. The Dragon Slayer's fire diffused, as did Romeo's Purple Net.

Byro shook his head, "Don't be foolish. Kanaloa's a veteran warrior such as myself. Such pitiful attacks will not work."

"Such experience." Nic commented.

"Yeah, and look." Greninja noted, and everyone took notice as to how Natsu was getting pale and ascertaining puffy cheeks. "He's getting sick."

"We have but one piece left to collect. Kanaloa, seize the clock hand, if you would." Byro said.

With a spare tentacle, Kanaloa raised it and shot at Michelle, who had the clock hand in her possession. The dark blonde shut her eyes as the tentacle zoomed in towards her.

"Pincers off the girl and clock hand, you creature!" Pavo came in between the tentacle and Michelle and raised a leg. With accuracy and elegancy of a peacock, he kicked the pincer end away in one fell kick, strong enough to deflect it away.

"Pavo!" Michelle happily announced, to which Pavo responded by posing and spinning in place with satisfaction.

"Hoh! Anything for a friend!" He stopped spinning and pointed a finger at Byro and the octopus. His demeanor suddenly changed to a darker tone. "Now! To be rid of you both, and get back our pal!"

Byro's patience grew thin. "You fools don't seem to understand. Do you not see that defying us is the ultimate sin?"

"The only sin we care about is letting our friends down!" Romeo backlashed.

Nic kept a heavy glare. "Byro, what is it that you hope to gain from commandeering Lucy's keepsake? Tell us." He demanded.

Byro's eyes narrowed. "You really want to know, despite it being Zentopia's business alone?" He asked. "Fine, since you have gotten involved enough. Those clock pieces belong to the Infinity Clock. The Archbishop has demanded that we retrieve them."

"The Infinity Clock?" Lucy parroted.

"But…why?" Michelle asked.

Greninja and Venusaur both looked up at Byro as he looked down below, looking in contemplation as well.

"If you must know…"

_In a room lit solemnly by candles, a short, elderly man laid in bed as Byro bowed before his eminence._

"_Time ticks forward, on towards inevitable chaos." The archbishop restated. "I don't suppose that you'd understand what that phrase stands for, right Byro?"_

_Byro kept his head bowed while on a knee. "My apologies your grace, but I do not."_

_The archbishop did not seem bothered in the slightest. "Once a century, the Infinity Clock released the Magic Power it has accumulated, and becomes active. It is said if all six scattered clock pieces are gathered when it is active, then…" His gaze grew worrisome, which made Byro uneasy. "…Then the clock shall begin to tick down to a new era."_

"_This cannot be." Byro said, showing mild surprise._

"_According to the cardinals, a fellow mage guild is looking to assemble the clock pieces. Byro, we are the only ones that are between them and the end." He looked down at his sheets. "Prepare…for a Holy War."_

Lucy grew even more confused as she processed what Byro reiterated from his tale. "Tick down…towards inevitable chaos?"

"So that's what the inscription meant. If we gather all the clock pieces…" Michelle trailed off.

Venusaur crouched a little. "Then it'll be the end." He finished.

"Thing's just got a whole lot more serious around here!" Happy shouted.

Byro glared down to them all. "Now you see? A mere guild doesn't have the power the uphold the world on their shoulders. Relinquishing the Infinity Clock pieces shall bring this Holy War to an end."

Everyone looked down, uncertain as to what should be done. On one hand, they want to keep Lucy's father's wish alive, but another part of them didn't want such a burden. However, two individuals stepped forward, and said duo caught everyone's attention.

Nic and Greninja alike crossed their arms and stood tall. "You're so naïve." Nic stated.

"What was that?!" Byro retorted in deep offence.

"Even if this world were held in your hands, it wouldn't belong there to begin with. You believe that you were given power by a higher ranking, but we all know that's nothing more than a lie, and I should know. The stars no longer in the sky are by a God, someone who has entrusted their power to me, and me alone."

"And on top of that." Greninja added on. "It won't change the fact that you'll regret acting against us. Whoever this Archbishop is, he has no right, nor the power to keep the world safe, nor the universe."

Byro showed something that he's never shown before – anger. A dark shadow cascaded over his face. "You…" He growled. "You dare question, no! _Defy _Zentopia and the Archbishop?!"

"My Pokémon and I will defy _anyone_. We won't be held down by rules we will never be obliged to." Nic swiped his arm. "Damn us for all we care! The Infinity Clock will not be yours! Nor the burden of the universe's life!"

"Sinners like you do not have the power to stop Zentopia!" Byro shouted. "Kanaloa!" In response, the octopus raised a tentacle high, which was the one that had Natsu held, which triggered his sickness yet again.

Nic turned towards Vanessa. "Vanessa, now!"

Vanessa extended her arm out. "Venusaur, **Grass Knot!**" The Grass and Poison-Type's eyes glowed a bright green in his eyes, and he raised his head and pressed hard on the ground. The ground shook briefly, causing Kanaloa to slow down. The next moment, glowing, twirling vines sprouted rapidly from underneath.

"What's this?!" Byro was caught surprised as the octopus's individual limbs were snared by the wines and tie around him, and then they tightened and hauled all if his limbs to the ground with a grand thud. This action caused Natsu to be freed from Kanaloa's hold and he jumped away.

"Alright! I'm free!" He roared. "Now to send that octopus packing!"

"Everyone! Now!" Nic shouted. He charged up silver and white energy to a single point in front of his mouth and opened it. "**Flash Cannon!**"

"**Emanation Beam!**"

"**Rainbow Fire!**"

"**Water Shuriken!**"

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

All of the attacks went beaming away towards the incapacitated octopus. Byro jumped at the last second to avoid the all-out attack and left Kanaloa to sustain the entire attack that swallowed him up. A huge explosion quaked the surroundings and debris flew about as the octopus shot backwards from the assault and crashed loudly into a large wall behind. More debris flew all about and Byro looked on with a stern face, hiding his impressed demeanor. He watched the dust settle, and Kanaloa was unconscious.

His eyes turned towards the enemy. "To think they defeated Kanaloa by banning together. Seems that I've underestimated their craftiness." He told himself out loud.

He extended his arm out as Kanaloa had begun to shrink, similar to Minimize. Gradually, the octopus had begun to shrink down until he fit into Byro's firm hand. "You did an excellent job Kanaloa, allow yourself to rest." He then put Kanaloa away and turned towards his enemy.

Natsu pointed at Byro. "No way!" He laughed. "That octopus is pocket-sized!"

Michelle's stomach grumbled. "It's great for a snack!"

Byro grew agitated yet again. "He's a warrior, not seafood!" He then turned towards everyone else. "Now, back to business at hand. I'll be taking the Infinity Clock's pieces."

Natsu punched his own fist and cracked his knuckles. "I don't think so! You heard what Nic said, Zentopia means nothing when the universe is at stake! So you're basically being selfish!" He puffed his cheeks and didn't hesitate in the slightest. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

Byro waved his staff and the attack vanished into nothing but thin air before it could reach him. The sudden nullification was but a huge shock.

"No way!" Happy shouted.

"He neutralized it." Michelle said.

Natsu jumped into the air, unfazed by that failed attempt. His hands lit ablaze. "Like heck I'm done with you! **Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**" He lashed his arms and shot streams of fire, but once again Byro was unfazed as his staff glowed and his attack vanished into thin air once more. Natsu was seen falling down towards him and threw a punch, but it was utterly useless as Byro caught it with one hand and drove a harsh knee into Natsu's gut, making the Dragon Slayer gag up a little red and was swung into a broken wall.

"Hang on!" Vanessa shouted. She coated her fists in thick teal aura that shaped into gauntlets. "Try this-!" But then the teal gauntlets vanished away and Vanessa was left started. "What?"

Pavo jerked away with his huge grin becoming a frown. "He's stopping all of our attacks!"

Byro planted his staff firmly on the ground. "My Nullification Magic neutralizes all forms of Magic. You are helpless against me."

Natsu was seen unimbedded from the wall and ran up with a flaming fist. "I've had enough of you!" He jumped at him, but Byro spun around and Natsu's flame vanished, and then a spinning leg kicked him and sent the Dragon Slayer skidding on his back.

"This isn't fair! Quit fighting dirty!" Romeo exclaimed.

"Are you alright?" Lucy shouted in worry.

Natsu wiped the blood from his chin with his sleeve. "Don't worry, this is nothing!" He assured, though Nic and Greninja knew that behind his overzealousness that he was indeed hurt, but they didn't say anything. Instead, they let Natsu have his turn with striking down Byro. He ran up and receive a punch, followed by a staff to the face.

As the fight dragged on, Pavo clenched his fists and Lucy covered her mouth at the barbaric actions before her. Natsu was getting hammered left and right, thrown around like a rag doll. He clearly didn't have the combat experience or training like Nic underwent. While Nic was reflexive, fast, and forceful, Natsu was head-on and bashing left and right, which left him at a disadvantage.

"This is sad." Venusaur morosely stated. "And our point of views are too different for a compromise."

Coco watched from afar, gritting her teeth. "This is so wrong."

Dan jerked upwards, waking up from his unconsciousness. "Huh- sorry sir! Overslept again!" He noticed he wasn't dreaming and sighed. "Oh, it was a dream. Too bad, I was gonna do some one-on-one sparring with…" He looked and Natsu that his enemy, Natsu, was taking a painful beating left and right by Byro, seeing as how he received another staff to the face.

"Happy!"

"Aye sir!" Happy spread his wings and grabbed Natsu and the two were seen flying overhead and circling around Byro.

Without even looking, Byro's staff glowed and Happy's wings vanished, leaving the two screaming as they fell and landed on some broken debris, with Happy getting momentarily dizzy.

"Aye, well that didn't work." The Exceed groaned.

"Damn him." Natsu cursed under his breath. He began to stand back up and he jumped off the debris, standing a distance away from Byro.

The Legion Corps' leader turned towards the Dragon Slayer. "I've told you before, Magic does not work. You should try and use your brain the next time I say it."

"But, without Magic, we're completely helpless." Michelle said with great uncertainty.

"There's gotta be a way." Lucy hoped.

Vanessa was hoping for an idea, but her Aura Magic would be futile, and after she's improved so much from using it before. Then again, she did recount she had something else in the form of Pokémon.

Looking at her Venusaur spectating, she was ready to give a command, but before she could let even a word out, her older brother extended his arm to his side, blocking her. She turned towards her brother, who stared at the battle ahead. Knowing that he was noting her to let Natsu try, she backed off and spectated some more.

"Well, if Magic won't work, then it's back to brute force!" Natsu shouted. He held up a fist as veins popped out, smirking with excitement. "Old Gildarts got nowhere using his Magic, so that means that I'll be showing him up! Man, I'm all fired up!"

"And there he goes again." Lucy sighed.

"Such blasphemy." Byro retorted. "The fate of the entire world is at stake, yet personal affairs clog your mind." He slowly raised his staff and planted it firmly on the ground. "Our burden will always be greater. Such petty guild brats such as yourselves can't relate."

"I beg to differ pal. Nic's got some serious weight on his shoulders, and your little affair or the world means nothing; like he said before, you're not getting the big picture." He then ran in towards Byro with a fist ready. "So I'll just have to beat some sense into ya!"

Byro blocked with his forearm and used his right fist for an uppercut that got Natsu's chin, which was then followed by another punch that sent Natsu crashing backwards. He quickly got up and went to attack yet again. He let out a cry as he kicked, but Byro's staff blocked it and the Dragon Slayer got a foot to the chest, knocking the air out of him and fell to the ground. Byro kicked him up and drove another knee into him, sending him tumbling.

Natsu was barely up as he tumble-rolled, yet he wouldn't stay down. He went in to attack again, but all that got him were pounding as he recklessly kicked and punched, only to receive more pain in his bones. Everyone looked on, but Nic was seen with a blank expression as he watched Natsu take a relentless thrashing. To him it was like having a Pokémon up against a Shedinja with no super effective moves, leaving them helpless.

"This is out of hand." Greninja said low as Natsu took another fist to the face.

Dan sat cross-legged as he and Coco spectated. "The man's got guts. A truly worthy adversary."

Coco flinched when Natsu was pounded some more. "And Lord Byro didn't use a single offensive spell yet."

Natsu punched the ground beneath him and huffed as he was barely recognizable. He was bruised all over, but he still didn't back down. "So you and your pals are willing to risk your lives for your mission huh?" He huffed. "That's a big load of crap."

He stood up again, but not without being all wobbly. "Life isn't something you should throw away, it's something you have to protect and cherish, along with everyone in it. Friends aren't people that you use as tools! THEY'RE WHAT DRIVE US TO SEE THE LIGHT OF ANOTHER DAY! AND NO AMOUNT OF CHURCH BELIEF CAN CHANGE THAT!"

Engulfed in flames, he furiously charged ahead, but Byro waved his arm and dispersed the flame around Natsu as he zoomed in. He uppercut Natsu and he was airborne and left Byro to kick him away, shooting him back to the ground.

Greninja kept a straight face. "It looks like several bones are broken. Despite how relentless he is, those injuries would fall a normal man…but the look of defeat isn't on him."

Natsu struggled to get up and coughed up some blood, but that wasn't holding him back. He soon made it back to his feet, and he gave a grave and serious look.

"Listen guys, stay out of this." He said with a slight choke. "I'm taking this guys down myself. That's a promise." He began walking towards Byro. "Now to rearrange your fa…" He lost footing from his accumulated injuries and fell down with a thud. He could hardly breathe as his ribs felt all broken.

"Get up! Natsu!" Happy screamed.

Lucy began to shudder. "Please, get up."

Vanessa grew anxious as she also grew worried as Natsu struggled with all his might, but alas barely made it to his knees. He looked at Nic to find his facial expression and Greninja's still blank. Was it time for them to step in?

Byro advanced towards Natsu slowly. "You don't have a prayer, not that you would comprehend that."

Natsu constantly struggled again, but his legs weren't making it easy. Byro towered over him, glowering down onto him. "You say that the universe is at stake, and that the stars are gone because of some God. The heavens would never do such a calamity; therefore it is a power acted by the sins of mankind. Corrupted nature has cursed us and so transgressions can't be forgiven." He raised a boot. "Your vendetta is but a low-life's ambition!"

"Natsu!" Lucy screamed.

Pavo gawked and looked away from the Dragon Slayer receiving a boot to the face, only said action was interrupted by a sudden contact. Everyone's eyes widened when they heard the sound and Nic was seen blocking the boot with one hand.

"That's enough, don't you think?" He asked. "This fight is already over."

"Nic!" Lucy and Michelle cheered.

Pavo looked back and cheered happily with a pose. "AH! Such bravery! Nic to the rescue!"

Natsu slowly raised his head. "What the…Nic?" Greninja appeared behind him, looking down at the Dragon Slayer as Nic shoved the boot and Byro away.

Nic stepped forward, engulfed in a golden light and shifted into his Fist Plate Form. He stopped when ten feet away from Byro. "Natsu, you've got guts." He admitted without looking. "But you're in no condition to continue."

"What are you saying?!" Natsu hollered. "I said I'll take him down!" He suddenly felt a sharp pain and he grunted as he fell forward, but before his face hit the ground, Greninja caught and supported him.

Nic looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry…but I don't make promises anymore. Just leave this to me and my combat experience." He sounded more morose than confident, as he knew that Natsu would be really pissed, but he would put up with it.

Greninja didn't say a word as he turned with Natsu as he was hauled away, much to Natsu's disappointment and dismay. As he was supported, that left Nic and Byro alone while everyone watched.

"So you really think that mankind's foolhardy sins caused the stars to be rid of? You think this is a punishment by God? Your beliefs are nothing but misguidance, and you're heavily foolish." Nic scolded sternly.

Byro narrowed his eyes. "You mock the Archbishop yet again? This Holy War is already bad enough with you opposing us, but making a mockery of Zentopia is but deepening your sins."

"There's more chaos out there than what you realize." Nic argued. "Out there, a true sinner among all else feeds off of the evil, and taints and darkens the night, destroying everything, and you only care about your religion." His fists clenched. "Petty matters such as those won't help, and it won't bring the stars back."

"And how would you know?" Byro countered.

"Because my friends and I met a God, and he bestowed me with the power to gradually overcome this darkness. I'm no God, and if you think I am, that'd be a wretched sin, because I have enough of a burden to carry out, and you can't compare."

"Silence!" Byro threw a punch, swift and quick, but Nic ducked and shot a right harsh jab into Byro's abdomen, making the man's eyes widen as he felt the strength and stumbled back. _'Such reflexes and power.'_

Byro recovered quickly and Nic rushed in. He went for a palm strike, but Byro dodged right and went to drive a knee into Nic, but Nic twisted and spun in midair and spiral-kicked Byro's face. When his feet planted, he went for a punch that struck his face with the power of a wrecking ball.

Byro stumbled back, having a few bruises on his face. "Grrrrr! A weak-minded fool like you can't bear the world's sins on your shoulder's! You're unfit!" He drove a fist in and struck Nic's abdomen, making him skid back. Nic stopped his skid and stood tall and proud. "What?"

"I've had extensive training, day and night, lifting heavy and large rocks, pounded by waterfalls, meditating in the spiky terrain of Kalos, and fighting and getting hit by my Pokémon relentlessly. Do you seriously believe that that'll do anything against me?"

Byro was caught off guard when Nic rushed in to punch him. He jabbed with his staff, but Nic sidestepped and followed through with his punch that struck Byro's gut.

Byro, agitated, growled and slammed an elbow on Nic's head, making Nic grunt and receive an elbow swing, but he caught it at the last second. Gripping the elbow, Nic swiftly jabbed and elbow swung Byro's face consecutively.

"I…I don't believe it." Lucy muttered.

"Well believe it, because this is Nic." Greninja watched as Nic spun around to dodge a punch and launched an elbow into Byro's ribs. The attack caused Byro to lose momentum and Nic jumped and stomped down on Byro's ribs and backflipped off as the man fell to the ground. "Believe me, we do this every day. To Nic, Byro's just a morning warm-up."

Dan's eyes were wide. "To think Lord Byro is on par with that barbarian…no, not even."

"Byro can barely keep up." Coco muttered. "He's one of the top 5 in Fiore to have such combat, and that guy's bashing him."

Several blows were exchanged, but when Byro struck with his staff, Nic just deflected it with either an elbow or a knee strike and went in to attack. Byro got a punch to Nic's face, but when Nic stumbled back, he immediately recovered.

"Is that all you got?! I took a Shadow Sneak with more force than that!" Nic taunted harshly. With Byro agitated even more, Nic narrowed his eyes and clenched his fist. "**Drain Punch!**" His fist was covered in a green orb of energy and he charge at Byro with his speed.

Byro's staff glowed. "How impudent! Magic won't work on me-!" Byro was met with Drain Punch to the face, shocking everyone to a grave extent. Dan and Coco were the most shocked as Byro's Nullification Magic was for nothing.

Nic followed through and Byro crashed to the ground some ways away, and green orbs of energy went from the cloud of dust he was in to Nic, and he flashed green. The few bruises on his face were gone and he looked slightly better.

"You don't have your own prayer." Nic said as the smoke cleared, revealing Byro on a knee. "Surrender and leave at once."

Instead, Byro looked dazed and agitated. "I can't be believing this. My Nullification Magic was for naught?! How can this be?! Tell me!" He yelled.

"I come from a world where Magic means nothing. Creatures known as Pokémon help us coincide, and I am bound by their power to rid of malevolence that has fallen from grace." He answered.

Byro was caught with wide eyes. "You…come from a different world?" His surprise was quickly hidden by his hasty anger. "THEN YOU DON'T BELONG HERE!" His staff was held high and glowed a bright light, and everyone could feel the great swell of power building up.

"Wait! No! Byro, you're using Divine Arrow! You'll kill him!" Dan shouted.

Everyone gawked and watched as the bright purple light became a large arrow that pointed at Nic. They saw the power packed inside and watched as Byro threw it with no hesitation.

"**Divine Arrow!**" Using his staff to guide, Byro threw the huge spear at Nic.

Nic put his hands together and a sphere of light blue was formed. The sphere grew in size a bit as the arrow went Nic's way, and then then brought his arms back and shot with all his might.

"**Focus Blast!**" The light blue sphere went zooming with such intense force at the incoming arrow. The two attacks met in the middle, creating a large explosion that rattled the earth beneath. The shockwaves were drastic enough that the ground shattered and Lucy and her group was sent flying and screaming. Greninja jumped safely while still supporting Natsu, though Vanessa and Venusaur had a less softer landing, hitting the ground just like everybody else.

The dust and winds settled down, revealing neither party damaged. Nic glared at Byro, who was in disbelief that his Divine Arrow was stopped.

"This cannot be." Byro testified in a low voice. "My Divine Arrow's purification on you was stopped by your otherworldly power? Such a ridicule! Such injustice have you besmirched me!"

"Never underestimate the power of Pokémon." Nic warned. "What you are doing is but impure. You're not following your heart, and that's what makes you weak!"

"No you're wrong! The only one weak here is you!" Byro retorted. "Such a sin you've committed, a great one at fact. You dare be bestowed the powers from a God, and sent from a world that has nothing to do with ours." His grip on his staff tightened. "These powers you have, they do not rightfully belong to you. They belong to the great one, and you had the audacity to go about and use these powers when this Holy War is at stake?" His eyes sharpened. "I do not believe such a thing! If you are from another world, then you do not belong here! It is you who has cursed us with this! The truest sin has been committed when you've come to Earth Land! Anyone who is not from here must be punished and regarded by enemies by Zentopia!"

Pavo extended out a palm. "You stop right there, you damned fool!" He protested. "Like you have room to talk! You aren't from another world, so how would you know what's at stake?!" He clenched his other fist. "So what if Nic isn't from here?! So what?! You are in no position to criticize on what he has to do to protect us all!"

Nic looked at Pavo with amazement. "Pavo."

"Why don't you put yourself in Nic's shoes and consider his situation! He has the greatest burden in the universe, and not even Zentopia will brainwash him! You guys are nothing more than puppets, because you don't follow the goodness your hearts hold!"

Coco gasped at Pavo's speech, seeing as how he was right. Her heart felt like it was lifted from a burden.

"If you went somewhere, there's always a purpose! I may not have known Nic for long, but he's the purest of any light, even more than your ridiculous Zentopia! Just look at his Pokémon!" He pointed to Greninja. "Greninja doesn't follow Nic because he's absolute, he follows him because he loves him like family, and has his back until the end of time!"

Greninja stepped forward after handing Natsu to Lucy. "I have my morals, and we've all been through hell together, all seven of us! It's because Nic understood us and our hearts is why we always follow him! He would never betray us, as we all would stay together even through death!"

Byro's eye twitched, looking even more frustrated than before. "I can't believe what I am hearing! You dare defy all of Zentopia just to help out an alien?!"

"That's right! And you should have shame on yourselves, for we'll find the right justice without Zentopia!" Pavo shouted.

Natsu smirked. "Way to bring it home, peacock guy."

Nic smiled as he confidently looked at a startled Byro. "You heard them loud and clear. We don't need Zentopia to decide our fate, because that decision was never bestowed upon you to begin with. Arceus trusted me with his life, and we'll repay the debt by saving him!"

Having reached his breaking point, Byro rushed after Nic. "Enough of this!" He punched Nic, but was blocked by his hand. He punched repeatedly, but was either blocked by a palm or a forearm. "Zentopia is absolute! Worms and outsiders can't hold the fate of the world or universe in their hands! This power must not be yours!"

He was silenced when he received a swift punch to the face, causing him to stumble back and receive another powerful elbow strike to the gut. He fell on his back and grunted as he felt pain in all the wrong places.

"Just like Pavo said, you have no room to talk." Nic reiterated. "Zentopia will never confine me, and if this Infinity Clock is what will bring the world to its fate, then I'll deal with it."

Byro got back up and clenched his fists. "Such impudence!" He ran ahead again. "You're impure!"

Nic's arm glowed a red-orange aura, and he ran ahead with Power-Up Punch. His fist collided with Byro's right fist. A powerful shake in the earth was followed as both fists collided and Byro gritted his teeth as the rumbling ceased and Nic was still unwavering.

Nic glared at Byro and let out a battlecry as he punched yet again. The impact from this second punch was like being hit by a bus, as Byro's face felt damaged as he shot back and crashed into the ground.

"You're even more corrupted than what I imagined." Nic stated. "This world's religion means nothing if it can't protect you!" He put his hands together. "Snap out of it! **Aura Sphere!**" He threw blue sphere of aura at Byro as he was on a knee. The Nullification Mage's eyes widened and he quickly swiped his arm, but it was futile yet again as Aura Sphere struck him and he was caught in an explosion of blue that quaked the field around him.

Everyone's eyes widened as they witnessed Byro being overpowered by the likes of Nic. They all couldn't help but feel at sheer awe. They then saw the smoke clear out and Nic was seen standing. Byro, however, grunted as he accumulated some nasty damage.

"You…I WILL DESTROY WILL!" Byro went after Nic, and they both let out battlecries as they both punched the other's faces at the same time. Byro and Nic both stumbled back, but Nic swung around with a kick and struck Byro.

The mage angrily got back up, and the two were at their physical combat again. Nic ascertained bruises as he still took a few blows, but through it, his bones weren't broken. He parried every blow he could, and he was able to get several of his own blows in. Both were at a fistfight, despite Nic being more nimble and reflexive.

Byro shuddered violently and let out a battlecry. "HRAAHHH! THE INFINITY CLOCK IS OURS! IT'S DESTINY!" He reeled a fist back with all his might, and he closed the distance once more, but Nic let out a battlecry of his own.

"**Sky Uppercut!**" Nic drove a glowing light blue fist and used the Fighting-Type move to strike Byro's gut with excessive force. A massive crash sound echoed and Byro spilled some blood from his mouth.

As he slowly dropped to his knees, he lost his grip on his staff. _'No. I can't do it. He has too much strength than me!'_

Nic grabbed the staff that fell out of Byro's hand. "The Infinity Clock nor everyone's fate will ever be decided by you!" With all his might, Nic slammed the staff down on Byro's head, making the whole piece of equipment break into tiny little fragments.

Byro's eyes were white as time seemed to have slowed down. He was barely handling the situation and Nic clenched his right fist with all his might. "HRAH!" A harsh battlecry bellowed and Nic punched with all of his strength, which could've shattered a rock. Byro felt the bone-crushing force and shot backwards into some debris behind him. The man let out a groan as he laid in the debris, unconscious.

Nic slowly retracted his bruised fist covered in some blood. "You say it's destiny, but we both know that is wrong."

"YEAH!" The whole group cheered. Everyone smiled and cheered loudly as Nic overcame the physical match, despite being bruised in quite a few places.

Greninja smirked. "That took longer than I thought."

"Sorry, but he was a hassle." Nic responded with a smile.

As everyone celebrated, Dan and Coco were at their knees, overcome by sheer shock. "But…but Lord Byro was trained to fight 50 men bare-handed at once."

"Is that so? Well I was self-taught in fighting six Pokémon with immense force." He turned towards Byro's unconscious form. "Looks like we've learned whose training was better."

"My, that was sure a show."

The sudden voice caught everyone's attention, and everyone looked up to where the voice came from. Nic was pleasantly surprised when he saw Erza standing close by.

"Erza!" Vanessa exclaimed.

"Everyone! And they have all the clock pieces!" Lucy shouted with joy. Everyone who was divided up was regrouped and standing with their individual clock pieces. All of them smirked at the show that was displayed.

Erza jumped down and began to walk towards them. "He seemed to have been giving you some trouble." She told Nic, seeing the bruises all over him. "But I didn't expect any less from you."

Nic simply smiled at her after he glowed and shifted back to himself. "He was formidable to say the least."

Sophie appeared in between the two. "Well, this is nice for you lovebirds, but…what now?" She stirred the conversation into the right direction, regarding the Infinity Clock pieces.

Lucy's eyes widened. "Now that you mention it, the six pieces are gathered. So what…now…?" She trailed off as the six pieces were beginning to glow brightly. They all turned towards their individual clock parts and they all witnessed them lifting themselves and converging.

"Big sis, look!" Michelle pointed to the center, where the Infinity Clock pieces were coming together.

"I see it, but what's going on?"

Her answer came as a huge glow happened and her eyes remained wide with awe as the glow emanated a huge tower clock sound. Everyone around watched with uncertainty as the glow emanated millions of small comets all around. In the center of the glow, there lied the twenty-foot tall Infinity Clock.

* * *

All over the world, the clouds in the sky moved rapidly and a huge ding was heard. Church people in Zentopia were screaming and panicking.

"What's going on?!" Someone shouted.

"It's the end of the world!"

"Time is ticking towards chaos!"

In the guild Hall, Kinana was going out of her mind as she laughed crazily.

Makarov stared up at the sky as an ominous wind blew with the clouds. "What is happening?"

* * *

"Gah! My ears!" Natsu screamed as soundwaves traveled all over the tomb from the Infinity Clock.

"The tomb is collapsing!" Erza shouted.

"Hurry everyone! We must make like ostriches and run!" Pavo wailed.

"You heard him!" Nic shouted. "We gotta-!"

"Wait!" Everyone turned towards the sound of Natsu, they all saw him sniffing the air, which meant something was on the rise. His nose twitched as his eyes widened. Standing, he bared his teeth. "That smell, how?" His face darkened. "Keep your guard up!"

Dust blew as the Infinity Clock shined. The entire tomb was still shaking and through the dust beneath, up on a taller point than the rest, six figures were seen through the dust, which began to slowly settle. The six figures slowly advanced and their shadows slowly faded, revealing them to be a very unpleasant company.

The first figure to appear was very familiar. The man smirked as his underlings followed behind, revealing them to be an ample white-haired woman, a guy in a black suit with red lines, a blood red-haired man with one eye, a pink-headed bear with a slot belly, and a hooded man with a scythe.

"No way…" Gray muttered.

"The Oracion Seis?!" Lucy exclaimed.

Nic's eyes narrowed. "I was hoping to never come across them again."

Vanessa grew anxious as she took a stance. "I take it you know them beforehand?"

"Yeah, and they're bad news." Sophie said.

"And it appears they have new members." Erza commented, seeing Brain and Hoteye, or Richard as they called him before, replaced by the scythe wielder and the slot machine with a bear's head.

The latter raised his arms. "You got that right! The name's Jackpot, and meet the new Oracion Seis!" He pulled the lever on his side, and the slots spun rapidly. Consecutively, they ended up on saying 'SIX DEMONS'. "May we present, the Reborn Oracion Seis!"

"Did he just say Reborn Oracion Seis?" Everyone exclaimed.

Midnight fiddled with his hair. "You seem surprised. A great deal has changed since the last we've met."

"I remember you! You're Midnight!" Natsu shouted.

Midnight held his hand up to his face. "I no longer go by that name. I am now Brain the Second."

Nic clenched his fists. "What's your business here?"

Midnight stared down at Nic. "It's but one desire: To make my father's dream a reality, to pick up from where he left off. From where _you_ finished him." The last sentence has quite the spite in it, as his anger seemed focused on Nic.

"I still can't believe you're spouting his nonsense." Erza stated.

Midnight and everyone else held their arms high. "We thank you for your assistance, but you are no longer useful to us." The clock above began to emit a foul green aura, and six markings were added onto the Infinity Clock, each saying 'SIX DEMONS'.

"What do we do?" Dan asked.

"For all that is necessary, we have to fight!" Coco stated.

"I'm all for it!" Natsu, feeling better, flamed up a fist and ran ahead, along with Dan.

Midnight scoffed as Dan and Natsu ran ahead. He made a Magic circle and from it, Darkness Magic went shooting out at them. Dan stopped and held up his shield. The shield took the attack, but as it was being shot back, Reflector Magic, Midnight's trademark Magic, engulfed Dan and Natsu, bombarding them with Darkness Magic from all around. The two were seen screaming and hitting the ground.

"N-No way! Dan's shield was useless!" Coco exclaimed.

Dan cried waterfalls as he held onto Lucy's leg. "Lucy-y-y-y! He's making a fool out of me-e-e-e!"

"Quit your wining! I can't do anything!" Lucy retorted, trying to get Dan off of her leg.

Midnight disappeared with a scoff and reappeared atop of the Infinity Clock. "I hope that you are aware that when a Mage brands his or her seal on the Infinity Clock, it becomes their property." His eyes narrowed. "And you know what that means? It now belongs to us."

The clock then ticked once again, emitting strong soundwaves that echoed through the tomb, making it shake even more. The Reborn Oracion Seis listened to the sound and looked unfazed.

Angel had a hand to her ear. "My, such a beautiful sound."

Seeing Angel, Dan's cheeks turned red. "Whoa, s-such a beautiful maiden."

"WHAT?!" Lucy exasperated, seeing how Dan was fawning over her not even a minute ago, and was now huffing and puffing for Angel.

"I can hear it. Your growing desperation and anger. It's building up." Cobra stated.

Racer smirked. "What a laugh."

"Since us malevolent-hearted ones are forbidden from touching it, all we had to do was wait for you guys to assemble it." Angel said elegantly.

"And that's how the game works!" Jackpot enthusiastically stated.

"No way…we were…used all along?" Coco said, unable to believe such a thing.

"But then…what does this have to do with my dad?" Lucy thought.

Cobra's smirked widened. "I hear the anguish, it's beautiful."

Happy got shivers up and down his spine. "You guys feel that?"

Erza nodded. "Yes, this dark Magic Power. It's immense." She said.

Natsu clenched his fists. "Well I say we beat them like before!" He ran ahead and puffed his cheeks. "Nobody uses Fairy Tail! **Fire Dragon's Roar!**" He unleashed a grand stream of fire that went streaming at the Reborn Oracion Seis.

The hooded man with a scythe appeared in front with a flash and extended his arm out, where a dark Magic seal erupted wind and Natsu's attack was diffused in front of the seal.

"He just stopped Natsu's fire attack!" Gray exclaimed.

"No way." Erza said.

"Wait, that's Wind Magic!" Wendy exclaimed, seeing the wind trump and suppress Natsu's fire.

The wind blew around the man. "Indeed. However my Magic is not just mere wind." The wind was enough to reveal his bald head when the hood came off. "My Magic is far more lethal, for it is like a storm."

Happy grew suspicious when he saw the scythe, but more importantly, it was the blue markings on the chest and shoulders. "Hey, doesn't he seem familiar to you?"

Natsu tilted his head in suspicion. "Now that you mention it, he does remind me of someone."

Jackpot laughed hard as he pulled the lever on his side, making the slots spin. "You got that right! You may recognize him from long ago as the Shinigami of Eisenwald!" The slots landed on three pictures of Erigor. "May I present Erigor!"

"Only these days, I am Grim Reaper." He corrected.

"Wait, that's Erigor?!" Gray exclaimed.

"He's like a completely different person." Erza said.

Nic growled, disregarding his bruises. He remembered those faces, exclude Jackpot, but moral of the point is that he wasn't gonna like where this was heading.

Cobra crossed his arms. "Brain, just how long are we gonna be here? I wanna hear the sound of the end already."

Midnight grinned. "Of course. We have but an urgent matter of causing chaos." He turned towards a fellow member. "Angel?"

"Yes, as you wish." She reached for the medallion atop of her ample chest, which glowed a golden light. "The cost is 30."

Happy pointed to her. "Isn't she the Celestial Mage you went up against Lucy?"

Lucy nodded. "Yeah, and I remember beating her last time too."

From Angel's hand, three shining, golden coins floated. She mischievously smirked. "To think that after seven years, there can be such a gap. I was but a mere child; now, I am an angel."

Pavo pointed at her. "What you blabbing on about, missy?!"

Angel ignored the peacock-themed man and the coins floated up high into the sky. "Allow me to belittle you with the art of my Angel Magic. The very sight of it shall render you to your knees!"

The coins glowed and shined a golden light that radiated all about. The entire tomb quaked violently as a ripple of light bellowed and everyone could hardly see. Appearing within its radiance was but a huge white angel with three stone faces and large wings and arms.

"Shine, and cleanse us of these wretched fools! **Barakiel!**"

The radiant angel that shook the entire tomb shined a destructive light, and all Nic and Greninja saw was a strong flash before everything around the two was but a complete blank, and them along with it.

* * *

**Well here's chapter 60, hope the wait was worth it. At the end, I chose to skip the Oracion Seis humiliating them because that's something I'd rather save for next chapter, plus there's something extremely important that'll happen next chapter; that, and I really didn't feel like adding that big of a filler when I'm close to finishing the chapter.**

**On another note, I have started on the new OCxCana fanfic! It's called **_**One's Road to Remembrance**_**. Hope you guys like it too.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter as always! Thanks!**

* * *

**Next Time: Motives Behind Actions**


	61. Motives Behind Actions

Chapter 61 – Motives Behind Actions

**By the time this chapter's over, you will be flipping out.**

**To Recap:**

With the combined efforts of Nic, Natsu, and Pavo, Dan was defeated, and shared his long and uninteresting tale afterwards. The gang finds the clock piece, and Nic also finds the Iron Plate, only needing to acquire two more Plates. Byro soon arrives with Kanaloa and fights off Nic's group. After dealing with Kanaloa, they try fighting Byro, but their Magic did nothing to his Nullification Magic. Natsu resorted to close combat, but he failed, leaving for Nic to use his physical combat and Pokémon powers to defeat Byro. After everyone meets up, the clock pieces come together to make the Infinity Clock, and that's when the Reborn Oracion Seis arrives and takes it, leaving Angel to bask everyone in a destructive light.

* * *

**Chapter 61 – Motives Behind Actions**

Nic's eyes slowly opened, coming out of the haze that he was in. Not too far away from him, Greninja slowly arose with his trainer. They both sat up, feeling themselves on what felt like fine, black leather.

"You're up." Nic recognized the voice, and he slowly turned to where the feminine voice resided. Sitting with one leg over the other. There she was, a grinning Erza.

"E-Erza?" Nic looked around, seeing that beside her was Vanessa and Venusaur lying on the floor beside his trainer. His eyes averted to the remaining surroundings, which looked like a fancy lounge with dark pink bricks. Suffice to say it didn't lack in the fashion department.

"The last thing that happened…was Angel using her Magic." Greninja's memory slowly began to process. "After that, everything went white."

A familiar face sparkled close by, revealing himself to have longer hair than last time. "Me~n. What a relief that you are safe from harm's way." Ichiya was the familiar face, and he looked satisfied when Nic and Greninja were seen awake. The two were up pretty early compared to the rest, as Gajeel, Cana, Sophie, and the others were still coming around not too far behind them. "Think not, for we are happy to have swooped in and rescued you and your beloved parfume."

"We were fortunate that sir Ichiya came to rescue us before the tomb collapsed." Erza explained. "Unfortunately the Legion Corps and the Reborn Oracion Seis got away."

Lucy looked down at the ground. "We didn't get a chance to counterattack."

"Those creeps have definitely gotten stronger since last time, that's for sure." Gray remarked.

Pavo struck a pose out. "And how! And once and for all, we shall be as extravagant as the mighty peacock!"

Nic turned towards Ichiya. "We appreciate the save, thank you." He sounded genuine, and didn't seem at all bothered.

Ichiya continued to sparkle and struck a pose. "Man! I know you and your animal comrades would do the same." He struck yet another pose. "Unfortunately it was only I who helped with the Christina Advance. Hibiki and the others are currently on another mission, but rest assure, we shall rush to all of Fairy Tail's side! MAN!"

"We should try and get some more recovery while we still can. Lucy and Michelle are re-reading the Key to the Starry Heavens as we speak to see if they missed something, or how to get it back at least." Erza stated. "We should all lay low. Especially you, Nic."

Nic wanted to say something, but when he followed logic, it did make sense. With Nic defeating the Legion Corps' leader, Byro, that meant he might become a prime target, and the Reborn Oracion Seis would want to take him down too. Aside from the small bruises he still had, he decided to lie back down and gazed up to the ceiling.

Greninja followed suite, which left Vanessa and Erza to talk. The younger Pularis sibling turned to the redhead, frowning. "Tell me, what are you gonna tell him?"

Erza frowned as she stared at Nic as he was in a calm sleep. He looked so peaceful when he slept, in contrast to the stress and burden he had to carry for the longest time. As far as she knew, he needs all the rest he can get.

"I don't know." The Requip Mage answered, looking down sullenly. "Watching him take blows constantly for us can be disheartening, and I don't know how to tell him that I…" He caught herself and cut herself off there.

Vanessa looked up to the ceiling with a smile. "It's no rush. Everyone knows that." Knowing that made Erza flush a small red. "Still, it's alright. You just need to go at your pace, and protect each other, just like how he protects me, like a good older brother would."

Hearing her words of comfort, Erza began to relax and sat back in the black leather couch, and Vanessa soon followed, leaning closer to Venusaur before going out like a light.

* * *

A few more hours rolled by, and by that time, Nic and everyone else was up. Natsu was up and getting some food into his belly, Nic was taking it easy with one ear with an earbud in as metal rattled through with low volume.

Cana was seen chilling with some fine wine in her hand, resting her elbow with her hand supporting her chin. "Well this bites. This Infinity Clock stuff's hurting my brain."

Pavo sat in between her and Sophie. Unlike the two, he tried to keep a smile. "Oh quit your whining! We're all safe, riiiiight?"

"Well I guess so." Sophie still felt a little bummed. Pavo caught the mood and he too frowned in silence. The mood was making him very uneasy, and it personally made the peacock man feel grim, to which he couldn't accept.

He looked at the two with crossed arms. "I know it is bad…but, we have to keep moving forward. If there is a light up ahead, it must be reached." Cana and Sophie turned to look at him as he preached. "Living in a pit of sorrow is never good. Trust me, even the bravest can lose heart, but as long as you have hope…you can't fail."

Sophie caught on quickly and she grinned. After Pavo's speech, she actually felt much better, as did Cana. Both female mages grinned happily at Pavo.

"Well, thanks. Guess we needed that." Cana figured.

"Yeah, thanks. Uh…" Her eyes narrowed as she saw the circles under Pavo's eyes, and he actually looked more pale than before. "Hey uh, Pavo? Are you alright?"

The peacock dancer seemed unwell, yet they expected him to answer in contrast. As they knew, he smiled, despite this one being fake.

"Yes, I'm quite capable!" He assured.

The girls weren't fooled in the slightest. They knew that Pavo seemed under the weather, but they honestly couldn't tell that if he was going through something, or Angel's attack had hit him hard. Either way, they both may as well figure that he may have had it rough since Dahlias, and helping Nic out however he could. Maybe the fatigue was catching up to him? They would be too.

The mages looked at each other in concern and dropped the subject. "Alright." Cana bluntly shrugged.

Nearby, Nic overheard everything, but didn't press the matter as he had one ear in with his hardcore metal. He looked on as he heard Pavo feeling and looking sick, and he had a feeling something was off, and this involved something from their first encounter. He was still some sort of mystery. Like the girls, he too dropped the matter and heard a gasp from close by.

It turned out the gasp came from Lucy as her eyes were wide and she closed the book, swallowing a lump. "Guys…I got it wrong. Very wrong."

Her team surrounded her, and Vanessa, Nic, and Greninja were close by, and everyone else heard her realization.

Erza stepped in. "Lucy, what is it?"

Lucy turned to look at Erza. "The clock pieces, now I get it." She stood up from her seat in a hurry. "It turns out we weren't supposed to gather them!"

"We weren't?" Erza asked.

"This book was a warning! I re-read it, and it turns out the book, it had a different message. I warned us _not_ to assemble the Infinity Clock!" Her eyes shook as she stared at the book on the table. "Just how…how did I miss it?"

"This is bad." Michelle said worriedly. "This is way out of hand."

Wendy looked just as discouraged. "So we did the exact opposite."

"So…we were puppets for the Oracion Seis." Happy figured.

Carla nodded. "I'm afraid so. We walked right into their hands."

Lucy's body began to shudder at the epiphany falling onto her. She put her hands over her eyes as tears of revelation and guilt began to slowly drip down. "I got so careless. I thought I was doing the right thing…but, I was wrong." Tears dripped to the table a couple of times. "Dad, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry, everyone."

Everyone looked on at Lucy's self-pity, not having any say. They couldn't say anything, for there was nothing to be said. But luckily, someone managed to speak up, and it was none other than Ichiya.

"It would seem your good intentions were misguided." He stated.

Lucy turned away. "That's putting it mildly. Something's gonna happen, and it'll be all my fault."

Natsu, unlike her, was unfazed. "Nah, if anyone's to blame it's your old man." He sounded so relaxed and nonchalant as he sat back with arms behind his head. "He made things too complicated; besides if you ask me, that book could have had the phrase 'Do not gather the clock pieces' in bold letters."

Gray smiled as he caught onto Natsu lightening the mood. "If he wanted you to not gather 'em, then he would've just told you."

"But apparently some can't think like others." Erza noted.

"Ain't that the truth." Lucy turned towards Natsu. "I like the easy way!"

"Aye, cuz we get more time to play!" Happy cheered.

"Yeah! And who doesn't like to play?"

Hearing the two, Lucy's sorrow and self-pity began to slowly wear away, and she smiled.

"Ah, there's that smile again!" Pavo enthused.

Lucy perked up. "Yeah, I just can't help but smile when everyone's putting me back on my feet."

"Well good, cuz no sense in worrying!" Natsu remarked lightly.

Lucy smirked towards him. "Are you actually trying to cheer me up?"

Natsu scowled as he turned away. "So?"

"I think Natsu could use a tip or two in flirting." Gray's words sparked a strong glare from Natsu, who instantly rushed to get in front of his face.

"Those are fighting words!" Natsu proclaimed.

"Oh yeah? How's about I shove them down your throat!" Gray retorted.

Guild Master Bob, the crossdresser from the Lullaby incident, popped up in between the two, breaking their little argument and embracing them both. "You two shouldn't be fighting over little ole' me!"

"GAH! Not over you!" The two shouted as they tried worming their way out, but to no avail.

Lucy sweatdropped with a nervous smile, but felt comforted by their antics. "Guess some things never change."

Ichiya had arms behind him as he stepped forward. "Everyone fails sometimes, but you can always make it right. Don't be sad. Look around you. You've got so many friends who care about you, and no power can ever chance that. It is their love that shall guide you forward."

"Yeah." Lucy smiled.

Nic, Pavo, Cana, Sophie, and Greninja all turned towards the other and smiled at Ichiya's words of sheer wisdom.

* * *

In the Magic Council domain, the frogs were working as hard as ever, and Org was standing, looking out at the scenery ahead. Unlike the other Magic Council members, he seemed less weary. He was originally as stoic as could get, but after Fairy Tail has done so much in the past, he seemed to have mellowed out some. One could say he may favor Fairy Tail more than the rest, which is accurate enough.

"I can feel a disturbance, and it's growing steadily." He affirmed. When he got word that the Reborn Oracion Seis escaped as of recently, he was on edge, and the wind was making matters uneasy for everyone.

He turned when he heard firm footsteps. The familiar figure made him less weary. "Ah, Gran Doma."

The chairman of the Magic Council stopped as he passed by Org. His two eyes showed discomfort, as they have been or quite some time. "Hmm, Org."

"You know, things happen." Org started the conversation. "It'd do you good to know you can't control everything and everyone."

Gran Doma slammed his stave's end into the flooring, making frog workers nearby flinch. "Do not speak of Nic Pularis! He may have unworldly power, but that gives him no right to defy me!"

Org stared at Gran Doma, unfazed by his demeanor. "Actually when you think about it, he has every right to." He turned to face the outside. "When you think of the stars not appearing, and that level of near-infinite power, Nic Pularis does have a heavy burden. I for one pity the boy for that much."

Ever since Nic defied and humiliated the Magic Council several days ago, the Council was in a major uproar. Gran Doma was completely outraged that Nic overpowered and humiliated his name. The entire Council was not allowed to interfere or they'd feel the wrath of Dialga and Palkia, to which they were helpless against last time. They dare not take their chances again, yet the position they in, suppressed by a power greater than theirs, was leaving a horrible taste that they just couldn't accept. Only Org was able to let the matter slide.

Gran Doma growled. "You fool. You know there is no power greater than that of the Magic Council! I still shall not accept this. The boy has doomed us with this power he has."

Org turned towards him. "Gran Doma, I'd rather not take my chances against the likes of those who serve under Nic. The ones called Dialga and Palkia, despite what you think, have greater power to even fend against the likes of Acnologia."

Gran Doma, fed up with this talk, decided to change the subject. "And these years of those meddlesome Fairy Tail pests aside, how are those reports?"

"I'm afraid these three years were very unkind sir." Org responded. "Still, reports are coming in that Celestial Mages are unable to call their Spirits still. Many were caught in heaps of trouble because of that. Sadly we can only deduce that it's a cause related to the Celestial Spirit World."

"I know that!" Gran Doma barked. "This has been news for several months now, and we still can't find the answers we're demanding!"

"With all do respect, we'd best put our fate in that the matter will be solved soon. These reports and innocent lives at stake keep piling on, yet we have no way of knowing who or how the matter will be solved." Org turned and slowly began to walk away. "Please try and develop some patience, it'll do good for your health."

Gran Doma stared coldly outwards as Org walked off. The pressure he was giving off made the nearby frogs scurry as fast as possible. His low patience, his demanding composure, having no answers to the Celestial Spirit incident, his grudge on Fairy Tail, and especially Nic, made his eyes shake.

"Mark my words, the Magic Council will have the answers and their way. No outside force will change that."

Despite the distance, Org heard Gran Doma and sighed. "The poor fool's over his head."

* * *

The next day, Fairy Tail was given a ride home back to the Guild Hall. Once there, the news went to the members present.

"The Oracion Seis. I never thought I'd hear that name again." Macao said.

Erza confirmed Macao's concerns. "Our guild was responsible for their members' arrest; and from what's happened they not only acquired new members, but grew to a greater level of strength than before."

"How they escaped from prison is beyond our comprehension." Sophie commented with a sour note. "To have grown to such a level, it's unfathomable."

Carla held a small cup in her paws. "We didn't get a chance to fight back. That one blow left us hopeless."

"Sorry, but I feel that it's my fault." Michelle insisted.

Lucy put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't feel down. Remember what Natsu said? My dad left this mess for us to clean up, without an explanation as well."

"Do you know how your dad got into this mess with the Infinite Clock?" Wendy asked.

Lucy shook her head. "Honestly, I wish I knew."

"Well that matter can be dealt with later on." Nic moved the conversation into the right direction. "We'll have to locate the Reborn Oracion Seis, and then covet the Infinite Clock."

"Of course finding them is another key." Greninja remarked.

Vanessa looked uneasy. "Aren't we missing some people? I think it'd be best to round them up so that our odds strengthen."

"I agree, but Gildarts and Laki haven't returned yet." Max informed.

Erza looked down at the ground. "It's time like these, we need as much power as possible."

Natsu clenched his fists. "No problem, because we got all the power right here!" Of course he was referring to himself, but him alone wouldn't stop the Oracion Seis at all.

Nic was standing idly, sunglasses on his V-neck. He was just as on edge as everyone else, but he had to keep himself as calm as possible. They were currently at square one once more, and finding solutions were harder than what one would think.

Despite how he was trying to lighten things up, the sickly-looking Pavo gloomed.

As though by sheer coincidence, their prayers came to a close, and the guild doors opened.

"Yo!" Bickslow of the Thunder God Tribe entered. "The Thunder God Tribe is back."

Evergreen winked. "Of course you missed us, but don't worry, we're back."

Freed noticed the uneasy vibe as he scanned the startled faces. "Excuse me, but are we intruding on something?"

Nic and Greninja turned towards the other with surprise, and Pavo blinked.

* * *

"Okay, so let me get this straight." Bickslow said. "So you guys gathered clock pieces, only to realize it forms the Infinity Clock and it will count down to the end of the world?"

"Yet the only upside is that Luminous got another Plate, meaning we're one step closer to getting the stars back in the sky." Evergreen said, leaving a brighter note. "Honestly, we leave for a couple days and you guys can't do anything right without us, can you."

"Actually, now that you mention it, I have heard some rumors going around." Freed explained, making heads turn towards him.

"While we were on our mission, I was in the market, getting ingredients for our meal that night. While I was walking about, I heard Rune Knights conversing of the destruction of Shirotsume Town's churches. Apparently the culprits were a hooded man carrying a large scythe, and his accomplice who had great speed."

"I remember those descriptions perfectly, and who better than Erigor, now dubbed Grim Reaper, and Racer." Sophie recalled accurately.

"From what I can gather, church attacks intensified as of late." Freed concluded.

"Wait, you knew? So why didn't you tell us?" Bickslow barked at him.

"I told you two over dinner that same night. I can only assume you were raptured by my cooking to pay attention." Freed explained, much to Bickslow and Evergreen's embarrassment.

"But why churches?" Erza asked. "I still can't seem to grasp their motives."

As they pondered, Nic was left in a heavy contemplation. There was a three-way struggle going on and he had little idea as to how this should be comprehended. Key ideals were still out of place, but all that was on his mind at the moment was Pavo.

When he glanced at the peacock dancer, something still didn't feel right. There wasn't anything normal about him, that much is certain. The man has always been a mystery, and how he decided to get involved on his own accord was something that Nic intended to find out.

Still, he couldn't shake off the feeling he saw those sickly eyes before. He might have, but that would've been a long while back.

'_Nic.'_ Nic's eyes widened as he heard a familiar voice inside his head, and it was all too familiar.

He blinked, only to find himself in a field of white. His senses were completely blank as he was left baffled by the sudden field of white all around him.

"This field. Do I…I think I know this place." He confirmed. "But wait, if this is true, then-"

The white all around began to dim, showing him floating in black space, where pink and blue stardust was scattered all around. From his previous encounters, he knew full well that this was none other than Dialga and Palkia's doing.

"Dialga, Palkia; is that you?" Nic asked loudly.

His answer was heard as the pink stardust in front began to converge, as was the blue stardust. They accumulated rapidly, creating two towering figures that flashed pink and blue lights. When the lights faded, there they were, Dialga and Palkia.

"Young Nic Pularis." Dialga said, getting straight to the point.

"It's been but a brief visit from last time, but this visit has but a higher caliber." Palkia foretold.

Nic stared up at them, having a feeling where this was going, but he had to be sure. "So what's this about? It can't be to congratulate on acquiring the Iron Plate, am I right?"

Dialga looked down. "Sadly, but this matter does involve the Plates."

"As it always does." Palkia noted. He turned towards Nic. "Nic Pularis, tell me, do you remember the last time we were in your sub-conscious?"

Nic's eyes narrowed as he contemplated with a hand to his chin. He considered the number of times Dialga and Palkia contacted him via sub-consciousness, which was very little. The last time he recalled them contacting as such was probably before the Edolas incident.

Thinking back to that incident, his eyes widened as he caught on. He turned his head up towards Dialga and Palkia, shock all over his face at the epiphany he had.

"It seems you realize it." Palkia deduced. "And what you are thinking is correct. Arceus will need the energy accumulated from the Plates once more."

"While Arceus is restoring his power, you can't use the Plates you have on hand for 24 hours. Do you understand?" Dialga reminded him.

It was tough, very tough. But knowing the sacrifices that were meant to happen, Nic had to obligate to those sacrifices, and if it meant not using the Plates, then so be it. He remembered the warning from before, how he would be in a reboot stage, and that experience left him to quarrel bare-handed with Knightwalker back in Edolas. The Plates' individual Types stored up a lot of power, so he should be able to prolong Arceus health for some time. The amount of moves he used, and the number of Plates added since last time increased, so he should hopefully keep Arceus safe for some time until he finally gets the 18th Plate.

Nic nodded. "I understand fully. Begin the transfer."

Dialga nodded. "Very well." He and Palkia raised their heads and roared up to the space above them. Nic's body was then going numb and shined a multitude of colors, each color matching his Plates. He had sixteen different colors flashing consecutively all over his body.

The procedure made him grunt harshly as he forgot the pain he had to endure. "M-My body is-!" Recalling the draining feeling, he grunted harshly as the flashing all over his body escalated, soon leading him to wincing a lot.

Finally, his body let loose a rainbow beam of light that shot straight up, far beyond their sights. The light beamed up to where it met the pale and withered Arceus. The Alpha Pokémon was engulfed in a strong light, to which his body began to gradually absorb.

In reality, Nic was grunting harshly as his body shuddered. Everyone was startled and gathered around Nic as he grunted in pain and didn't know why.

"Nic, what's wrong?" Mira asked.

"Is he okay?" Lily asked.

"What's happening to him?" Vanessa panicked.

Nic grunted harder and started to stumble back against the wall. His back hit the wall with a definite thud. His whole body began to shine so many colors that represented his Plates, catching them all by surprised.

Natsu jerked in surprise. "Hey man, what's going on? Why are you glowing so many colors?" The Dragon Slayer questioned.

Erza and Greninja looked worried the most. Both redhead and Pokémon sprang in front and saw Nic in an incredulous amount of pain as his body was giving off a vast array of lights.

"Nic! Can you hear us?" Erza exclaimed. "Say something!"

Nic let out a long and loud grunt as his shine brightened, blinding everyone present. His grunt diminished and the light flourished all around the Guild Hall for a long, several seconds. The light soon began to fade, and everyone uncovered slowly to find Nic slumped back to the ground.

Greninja and Erza slowly set themselves down to help Nic up. The two saw Nic panting just a little, but no physical harm was dealt, which was what relieved them.

"Are you okay? What was that light?" Greninja asked.

"I-I'm fine guys." Nic, still feeling the aftershock, and despite what he said, was seen uneasy. "Just…give me some space."

Everyone backed away, and Greninja and Erza stepped back to allow Nic to get some air. He was seen panting and unbalanced, but he was able to hold himself up and finally calmed down.

"That light was super manly. What was it?" Elfman asked.

"It seems to have something to do with Nic. He's all worn out." Lisanna observed.

Nic finally settled down and sat in a nearby chair. He dazedly looked down at the table, disregarding Cana and Pavo sitting down at the same one.

"Guys." He said. "Listen…"

After a minute of explaining the situation, everyone was left in sheer distortion. Pavo's huge mouth was gaping.

"I'm afraid…I'm powerless for 24 hours." Nic summarized.

That one sentence was like an Icy Wind, sending a horrific chill down everyone's spines as their trump card was left powerless. For Erza, it wasn't an Icy Wind, but a Blizzard. Hidden fear was in her eyes as she stared at Nic with the revelation of how he would be completely vulnerable for 24 hours. To her, she was getting this overwhelming feeling; something so foreboding, that she was having a rough time hiding the fear in her eyes.

Greninja crossed his arms, understanding the predicament with blank eyes. "So, it's back to what happened in Kalos, right?"

"So Nic's gonna be in this 'reboot' stage for an entire day?" Vanessa questioned.

"I don't know about you, but I think our odds just dimmed." Elfman bluntly stated.

Despite how worry was getting around, Nic was expecting this. He wanted to assure everyone that he was alright; but before he could get up to argue his position, a hand slapped down on a table. "Everyone silence!" Pavo barked out, which made everyone as quiet as Noctowl. They all turned towards him as he held up a passionate fist.

"Yes Nic may have no power, but what does it matter? Whether or not he has powers makes no difference, for he has us to back him up! And he has Greninja and the others! Besides, with his combat, the Oracion Seis cannot touch him!" He held up a fist high in the air. "So in the name of everyone let's do our best as always, and say aye!"

"AYE!" Everyone yelled with confirmation with Pavo. So what if Nic couldn't use his Pokémon powers? He still has six loyal-beyond-death Pokémon and his combat experience to back him up. To everyone, they looked beyond this predicament; but for a certain someone, she wasn't so easily convinced.

As everyone was being cheered up by Pavo's declaration, Greninja was just like Nic; never as rowdy as everyone else, but still happy nonetheless. He couldn't help but notice Erza having a hardened look on her face.

"Nic." Erza's voice was firm, and he slowly turned to find Erza standing closer to him than last time.

Nic's grin faded away and saw the concern she had hidden away behind her hardened expression. He had a feeling something was wrong. "Erza, is everything alright?"

"Can we talk outside?" The redhead turned and walked outside. Nic followed right behind her while everyone began to cheer on.

As they were getting their moral back up after all that's happened, footsteps were heard on the second floor the tavern-like Guild Hall. Everyone's attention turned to find the culprit that was Kinana. She had a shadow over her eyes as she hesitated down the stairs.

"Kinana." Macao remarked with heavy concern. "You shouldn't be up."

"You're still too tired. You're in no shape to be moving like that." Wakaba told her, but the call had fallen on deaf ears as the barmaid stumbled down the steps, her feet reaching the bottom. When everyone looked at her, they now saw what appeared to be sharp green eyes, almost like a snake's.

She picked up a fork as she made way towards a wall. "Wasted…too much time…" She was mumbling negatively as she walked to one of the walls. "The sorrow…is what drives me forward…" She started picking the fork into the guild wall's writing along the wall in some peculiar language.

"Kinana, what are you doing?" Levy asked.

* * *

Nic and Erza were outside the Guild Hall, where a light breeze brushed past them, but with the Infinity Clock looming about, the breeze was more malevolent than comforting. Erza stayed silent as she had her back turned to Nic, who was still uneasy as to what Erza wanted.

After what felt like forever, Erza turned towards Nic as his sunglasses were still off. Her gaze was fierce, which left Nic even more uneasy.

"Nic, I know how much everyone means to you, and I know you have the universe burdened on your shoulders. Everything must be stressful for you, believe me I know that feeling as well. I understand that you have a lot going on right now, and I know you have everyone to back you up." Nic wasn't liking where this was going. He could hear the hint of regret in her voice.

He decided to get to the point. "Erza, if you have something to say, then say it."

Erza's tone was colder than a Sheer Cold.

"Nic, you're staying behind."

Nic's eyes widened slightly at Erza. He couldn't tell if she was serious or was getting out of hand. Yet he tried to be careful as to how to approach this predicament. "Erza, if this is a sick joke, or if you're really holding me back, then it won't wo-"

He was cut off when a loud shing and a flash happened. Nic grew stiff when Erza was holding a sword at him.

"Erza…" He didn't understand what was going on with her, whether it'd be manipulation or paranoia.

Her tone was far sharper than a Slash.

"I'm not asking you, Nic. You have to stay here."

The wind shifted in between them, the friction between them increasing with every second passing. Nic would normally understand Erza since they're both so serious, but the regret behind her stern and demanding gaze was making him feel doubt.

"Erza, what's going on? Why are you asking me to stay behind?" He asked harshly.

"My reasons are something that I can't share." She said with swift vigilance.

"So you're implying that I just stand by with my Pokémon while you all risk your lives to stop the Reborn Oracion Seis and Legion Corps and get back the Infinity Clock? Is that what you want?!" Nic's tone was making Erza hold back the urge to shudder. Underneath his demanding tone was a hint of doubt, but she swallowed and pressed on.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. You'll only be putting yourself in danger."

"I'm sorry…but I can't believe you." Nic told her. He slowly clenched the sword pointed at his throat and used his strength to move the sword away. "Tell me, why are you doing this?"

His eyes met hers and vice versa. There was a huge amount of uneasiness and it was as though a war was gonna break out. Nic was so confused. He didn't understand why Erza was being so reluctant. As for the redhead, she knew that there was no easy way. This was the only option she had. To keep Nic back…she had to…

"Fine." He let go of her sword and turned away. "If you're not gonna tell me, I'll be taking my business back to helping get that clock." He started to walk back to the closed doors.

"Nic, stop right there!" Erza demanded, but Nic flat-out ignored her and pressed on. "I said stop!" Even louder and colder, Nic's stubborn behavior trumped her.

"NIC…please…" She said her please low. Her body was beginning to shake. "Nic, don't make me, I really don't want to do this." But she saw no other way to see him wrong. Her eyes swelled with regret as her shuddering became violent and she glowed a bright light and slashed a sword as Nic turned back to her.

"I'm sorry! HRAH!"

* * *

Kinana was lying on Mira's lap as she fell backwards into another coma. Everyone around weren't sure who or what to be concerned with: Kinana, or the writing she inscribed onto the wall, which was a full paragraph.

"Kinana, is she okay?" Macao asked.

"The gates of Hell…will finally open…" Kinana mumbled softly in her coma.

Wendy turned her attention towards the writing on the wall. "Does anyone know what she wrote on the wall?"

"Do you think she'll be alright?" Lucy asked.

Max crossed his arms. "Honestly, we don't know." Elfman past everyone as he slowly carried her back upstairs. "She's been bothered by that a lot lately."

Levy leaned in and scrutinized the writing. She recognized it and turned towards the group. "Guys, I know this writing."

"How peculiar. It describes a man named Will Neville." Freed translated.

"Wait, for real?" Lucy asked.

Pavo clasped his hands together. "Oh~? And what does it say?"

Levy scrutinized the context. "Well, it's a rough translation, but-" She was cut off when a rumble bellowed, and slashing was heard. Everyone's attention turned towards the doors.

"What was that?" Vanessa asked.

"Are we under attack?" Gray asked.

"Better not be the Oracion Seis or those Legion jerks again!" Natsu made way towards the door and rammed open the doors. "I'm ready for some reve-!" He fell stiff as the site before him made him unable to speak. His spine shuddered as he saw Hell break out before him.

Lucy went around him. "What is it? What's wro…" Lucy trailed doff s her eyes widened and her entire spine stiffened. One by one, the mages of Fairy Tail gathered around the doorway and shuddered at the sickening site. Even Pavo's huge mouth hung open in horror, it almost made him cry.

Everyone's eyes saw the two people engaging in a life or death battle. And the two were none other than Nic and Erza, both angrily attacking each other. This wasn't like the last one they had. They were both pissed.

Nic was using his two hands to hold onto one sword, but Erza had a sword in her other. She slashed, but Nic angled himself and the sword he held, throwing her off and sending her to the ground. That didn't stop Erza from lunging at Nic and striking his abdomen with her pommel. He gagged, but he angrily threw a downward fist to her head, striking her down.

"You guys! Stop!" Cana shouted.

"Whatever the hell is going on, stop!" Gray yelled, but it fell on deaf ears.

Everyone watched in horror as Nic had ascertained a few cuts all over; from the cheeks to all over his arms. Erza had some heavy bruising from Nic's reflexive strokes. Neither side was gonna stop, and even if Makarov were present, to which he was at a meeting, perhaps he might not stop the fight, especially with Nic involved.

Vanessa swallowed hard. She's seen quite a few battles as rough as this. This one time on Route 8, she saw a wild Seviper and Zangoose go at the other, and to her horror still, only the Zangoose came out – alive.

Nic dodged a slash, but as he kicked Erza in her Giant's Armor, he got a punch in the shoulder by her heavy gauntlet, dislocating it. With his shock and harsh grunt, he received a stomp to the chin and crashed to the ground.

"Stop this!" Lucy shouted. "This isn't the time to be fighting!"

Nic found his feet underneath and popped his shoulder back into place. He charged again, but Erza shifted to her Flight Armor, and he had no choice but to block in time and take the bloody slashes to the arms, getting thin cuts. Quickly, he had his instincts take over and he started using his agile reflexes and training to dodge the katana slashes. With an opening, he delivered a sharp blow to her face, followed by an uppercut to the gut.

"STOP!" Lucy began to tear up. "YOU GUYS SHOULDN'T BE FIGHTING!"

"NIC! ERZA! STOP!" Sophie begged as loud as she could.

They still were ignored and as Nic punched Erza's abdomen again, he got punctured in the right shoulder, but only very small, but still painful. Both shot back but continued pounding and slashing away.

Pleading bellowed through the air, and soon Nic was at his wit's end. His eyes were bloodshot, as his anger was at its peak before they'd turn bloody red, and if that happened…he could very well put Erza down. He roared violently as he dashed at Erza with incredible speed, all while Erza rushed ahead in her Lightning Empress Armor with her spear out and covered in lightning.

"**STOP!**" Vanessa screamed as loud as she could, tears swelling up.

In a bright flash, everyone was startled when a sudden star of water sliced through the spear tip, stopping Erza's attack, and a peacock-like beak aimed and touching Nic's throat.

Both angry individuals went stiff when they were met by Greninja and Pavo becoming the stalemate. Greninja's stare at Erza was cold, while Pavo was angry, but had tears in his eyes.

There was a dreadful silence and it felt as though time had slowed down drastically. Nic and Erza were staring at the ones who held them back, yet their focus was meant on the other.

"Both of you, _enough_." The icy chill in Greninja's voice was enough to send a chill down a multitude of spines. They've never seen Greninja so hostile. Granted he was the spitting image of Nic, but he only got angry during the Phantom Lord battle and back in Kalos when Nic was gonna die. He was _dead_ serious.

Despite his sickly look, Pavo gritted his teeth at Nic. "_You_…" His tone was even more devastating than Greninja's. "You…had the daring act of harming the other. UNFORGIVABLE!" His foot had the peacock's beak at Nic's throat still, yet Nic wanted to strike so bad.

"Back away, _NOW!_" Their tones in unison, both individuals slowly complied. Nic slowly stepped back, and Erza requipped back to her usual armor and stepped back. They both got in a safe distance away from the other before Pavo slowly placed the peacock neck back onto his shoulder, and Greninja stopped holding his Water Shuriken.

Macao stepped forward. "Both of you." His tone was just as grim. "What is the problem? Why were you two fighting?"

Erza had dark shadows blocking her eyes. Her fists clenched as she shuddered. "Nic…"

Nic had a shadow over his eyes as well. His body violently shuddered. Slowly, he turned his back, looking at the forest. He choked a little. "…Fine. You win."

"Nic…" Greninja cut himself off.

"I know where I'm not wanted. If you don't want my help, then don't bother asking me again." He took himself and began to walk off sternly, disregarding the faces that everyone made. Some were left confused, but many were just plain devastated.

Vanessa reached out. "Nic…"

Sophie reached and touched her shoulder. Vanessa looked, only to see her friend frowning and shaking her head. "Just leave him be Vanessa. He needs time." Though it was hard, everyone backed off.

"Erza, inside the Guild Hall this instant." Macao ordered. Erza made way and remained silent as her hair was over her eyes and she made way inside.

Greninja looked back and followed Nic in absolute silence. He'd dare not say anything. Everyone watched with sorrow as Nic and Greninja made way into the forest. He just kept on walking, and inside he was all torn up. The number of scratches he got was nothing, for it felt as though a deeper cut was just made; one that would be extremely hard to sow back together, one that only Erza could mend…his heart.

Macao looked down and sighed. "I guess there's no choice then." He turned towards everyone. "Everyone back inside, we've got some work to do."

Erza sat alone at the bar, her bangs covering her face as her lip quivered. She was so angry, but not at Nic. Nic had every right to be angry at her. She was angry at herself.

As Nic and Greninja pressed on through the woods, the Water and Dark-Type stayed close to his trainer's side. He could feel the bottled up frustration he had, and he only heard but a few words come from Nic as he choked some more."

"Why, Erza? Why?"

* * *

A couple hours went by, and everyone was still on edge. Trying to get their minds off of that happened, their attention was redirected towards the location of the Oracion Seis members; of course this tactic wasn't that simple. Cana, being one of Nic's closest friends, his first friend when joining Fairy Tail, couldn't hold herself up too well. Sophie was in the same boat. Vanessa was swallowing her pride and trudging on as best as she could, but she had to guide a certain someone along the way.

Point being, Cana used her Fortune Telling Magic to find the locations of the Oracion Seis, and small groups were decided. While several stayed behind, including Cana, Sophie, and Pavo; Erza was convinced by Vanessa that Nic will be fine.

Cana was currently drinking up the bar like she always does. Mira was wiping off the dust on the counter with a half-grin on her face. The mood from earlier seemed to have lightened up some, although some lingering concern was about, but everyone powered through.

"Cana?" Mira questioned.

The Card Mage looked up at Mira. "Yeah?"

"There's something I can't quite understand. With your Fortune Telling, couldn't you throw more cards to the board than just one for every location?"

Cana sipped her mug, pulling off her best expression of dismay. "I was just finding the Reborn Oracion Seis; nothing more, nothing less. Besides, everyone didn't seem bothered by the choices made when Macao assigned teams."

"Evergreen and Erza are on the same team." Mira bluntly stated.

Cana was hit by realization, but all she did was blink. "Well…Macao's got some work to do."

"I heard that!" He shouted across the Guild Hall.

Sophie and Pavo were both sitting at the same table, sitting back just like everyone else. Team Shadow Gear was nearby, but they tried talking, which helped them lighten up. However, Pavo was another story as his sickly face only put emphasis on the gloom he carried.

Sophie had enough, so she slowly sat up. "I'm gonna get some fresh air. This guild air is making me feel suffocated." She made way out.

Pavo groggily got up to. "Yes, I could use the air to refresh my feathers and cape. This confound air won't do any good as my clothing will get wrinkles." Like Sophie, Pavo got up and made way outside the Guild Hall, to which hardly anyone paid attention to.

Cana sat her empty mug down and sighed. "Well, drowning my doubts didn't work. Better go blow off some steam." The brunette got up from her stool and nonchalantly made way out towards the doors. Everyone noticed Cana walking out and took a mental note that she went out. They were sure they were gonna go check on the beast. He was probably all cooled down by now.

Outside, walking through the forest, Sophie and Pavo were caught up to by Cana, who made way right beside them. They didn't care in the slightest, as they all thought the same thing.

"You too, hm?" Pavo's inquiry was met by a nod from Cana, and the three trudged on towards the direction Nic and Greninja went off to earlier.

* * *

"Come on! My feet are killing me!" Evergreen was whining all the way up the rugged mountain pass. Hear team was comprised of herself, Max, Vanessa, and Erza. Evergreen was lagging behind while Max and Vanessa were having no trouble following behind Erza, who remained silent along the way.

Vanessa looked back at the Fairy Mage. "This is what happens when you wear high-heels."

"Well why aren't you complaining?" Evergreen backlashed.

Vanessa turned her attention back ahead. "Because Trainers travel around all over the Kalos region, so this is nothing but a nice walk."

"Vanessa's right. Why bother complaining? It'll only slow us down." Max entered the small tiff that Evergreen started.

"Well sorry, but fairies must be elegant all the time." Evergreen huffed.

Erza had her eyes closed on the walk, wanting to say as few words as possible as she was still too hurt from what she did earlier. "Evergreen, you have plenty of energy, so instead of using it on your little dramatic fits, why not use it to keep your legs moving."

"Well my bad, Queen Erza!" She sarcastically bounced back. "I was hoping for some sympathy from my teammates." She put her fan to her mouth. "But I guess someone doesn't understand sympathy after a small tiff."

Erza stopped dead in her tracks, and just like her, Vanessa and Max grew cold and stiff. Their looks of still sadness cascaded down to the ground as not even the wind could shift from the unsettling mood set. Evergreen immediately regretted what she said and made the matter far more personal than she'd imagined. "Erza, I…" The Requip Mage had tightened fists as a shadow cascaded over her eyes. The distraught sensation never left.

"…just keep moving." Erza slowly pressed forward, her heart hurting from Evergreen adding insult to injury. "I don't want another word out until we reach our destination."

Evergreen lagged behind some more, yet she did feel guilt. Max trudged on in silence for Erza, and Vanessa morosely looked back at Evergreen and shook her head in dismay. They all continued onwards in uncomfortable silence, for Erza's sake.

* * *

Cana lead the group through the woods, where she saw what seemed to be some grim footprints scattered about. Recognizing the second footprints as Greninja's tiptoes, the three followed the droopy trail to a small clearing up ahead, where the site was more pitiful than they imagined.

Greninja remained silent as he was perched on a branch, overlooking with sadness and discomforting as Nic had his head against a severely battered tree. All around, thin trees were leaning one way, one was completely tipped over, broken branches laid about, and Nic was seen on the verge of tears as his hands were nearly raw.

Staying cautious, the group slowly made way out as Nic looked down at the ground. His anger fit at rest, they all were safe to approach him.

"This isn't right…I know life is never fair, but…"

"Nic? Are you there?" Sophie's voice made Nic gasp in surprise and he got up and looked at the incoming group. Greninja saw this too and jumped down to meet the three.

"Cana. Sophie. Pavo." Nic said.

Cana smirked. "Are we all calmed down? Do you need to lie down?"

Nic continued to look at the ground and grew uneasy once more. "No, I just…"

"Say no more." Pavo implored. "Listen, what happened, happened." He took another step forward. "Are you ready to go back to the Guild Hall?"

Nic didn't want to answer. Pavo could see the fear Nic had. This was very rare to see, even for Cana and Sophie. Knowing their answer, they all could see Nic didn't wanna go back as long as Erza was there. Wanting to change up the subject, Sophie pulled out some bandages and ointment she brought along.

"I thought this would happen, this'll only sting a little." Sophie applied the ointment all over Nic's cuts and knuckles, and much to her surprise, Nic didn't wince one bit. As she began to wrap bandages around, she looked at Nic.

"Nic, look at me…please." Nic reluctantly complied with Sophie's plea and looked up to see three serious faces. "Everything's gonna be alright."

Pavo took a pose with arms connecting over his head. "Yes, for as friends, we have an obligation to help you in your distress."

"I'm not in distress." Nic argued. "I'm just…"

"Hurt?" Everyone turned towards Greninja, who leaned back against a tree. Everyone could've guessed Greninja had it all figured out since he knew Nic better than all of them put together. If anyone can brighten up Nic, it would be Greninja.

"It's not that hard to figure out. I know-no. _We_ know that Erza means so much to you." The frog looked down. "Believe me, if you or the other Pokémon were holding restrictions, we'd be faltering on what we've achieved."

"Greninja…" Nic trailed off as Greninja continued.

"If you falter, who do we have to depend on but us remaining six? You changed us from what we were to someone we can't live without. That's the same thing with Erza. She cares deeply about you, and your well-being."

Cana turned towards Nic. "He's right. You might be the most important thing Erza needs to be happy."

Nic looked down at the ground, contemplating.

"We all know you love her, and maybe she reciprocates…but that's for her to decide and say to your face." Cana allowed or Sophie to take lead.

"Nic, whatever happens, the matter with Erza and an apology can wait. Please, Plates or no Plates, we'll need you." The Memory-Make Mage insisted.

Nic didn't find this very convincing. The whole argument was tempting, but he was still feeling hurt. It would take more than this to mend the wound. But he also had to give credit where credit was due when they tried. He truly loved Erza, and since she wasn't around, he would have to make do with Greninja and his friends.

Despite his melancholy, he tried to grin. "Yeah, you're right."

Cana smirked. "There's improvement."

Pavo struck a pose with a big grin. "WOOHOO! Oh the greatest of bonds trumps sadness!"

Nic snickered at Pavo being upbeat as always. "I suppose."

Pavo spun about on one leg, laughing. "So what if Erza doesn't need your help? You got us and your Pokémon! Let's find the Reborn Oracion Seis and-!" Pavo gawked as he came to a slow stop, his eyes widening as a startling sensation enveloped him. Nic and everyone's attention grew weary as they saw Pavo's pale body slowly fall over.

"Pavo!" Sophie caught her peacock-obsessed friend and had him supported. Pavo was seen panting and looking unwell. Everyone could sense it; Pavo's Magic Power was declining. He had only so much when he met them.

"Are you okay? What's happening to you?" Cana asked.

Wincing, Pavo was feeling light-headed. "N-no…I'm almost out of time."

Sophie blinked. "Wait, out of time?"

"I-it's nothing!" Pavo assured.

Nic was no fool. Nobody was. They saw that Pavo was running extremely low on Magic, but to have to be drained as such made Nic narrow his gaze as he was starting to get a small case of nostalgia. To have Magic Power loss for no reason, sickly eyes, pale, and lying. This was a familiar sign, and it soon dawned upon him.

Nic gasped at the realization. "…Pavo…you're…" He looked at a shocked Greninja and back at Pavo.

"Pavo, is there something you're not telling us?" Cana asked, despite Pavo's condition.

Pavo began to grow nervous as he stumbled back up to his feet. "No~! Now why would I hide stuff from my friends?"

"Because friends find it very difficult to keep secrets to themselves." Sophie pointed out. Pavo grew stiff as he got cornered. His worries grew when Sophie crossed her arms. "Pavo, your Magic Power has been declining since you met us. What's wrong?"

"Uh…well, I…uh…"

"I think I figured it out." Nic answered. Everyone turned towards him as he stepped forward, the gloom completely gone and replaced by a serious look as before. "Pavo, can I ask you a question?"

"Uh…sure!" Pavo answered.

Of course this question wasn't easy in any way to ask.

"Are you a Celestial Spirit?"

Everyone stopped at that instant. The trees, wind, even the breathing. Pavo began to widen his eyes slowly as Nic had been letting him on. He found himself in no way to lie. Nic and Greninja were glaring the answers right out of him. Pavo swallowed hard, and hesitated.

"I…I…I…" To everyone's shock, Pavo dropped to his hands and knees. Nic and Greninja were caught surprised, but were even more startled when they saw something else.

Tears dripped down onto the grass beneath Pavo as he had wide eyes. His body was shuddering and he found himself unable to do anything but confess.

"Yes…I am." He sobbed. "I am Pavo – Gate of the Peacock."

Everyone's eyes widened at the realization. Cana was the first to react though. "Wait, you were a Celestial Spirit? And you didn't tell us before?" She balled her fists. "Why didn't you tell us?!"

Sophie grew weary. "Cana, take it easy! I'm sure Pavo has a perfectly good explanation." She turned towards Pavo. "A better question to ask is…why are you here?"

Pavo clenched his head, sobbing. "NO! DON'T MAKE ME GO BACK THERE! I DON'T WANNA RETURN TO HELL!" His uproar made everyone jump back as he broke down and sobbed at his feet once more.

As he cried, Nic slowly advanced. When he got close enough, he slowly crouched down. After a small silence of crying from Pavo, he finally spoke up.

"Pavo, it's okay." Nic assured in a calm voice. "We're not gonna hurt you."

Pavo looked up and sniffled. He saw the calmness Nic had, and he sniffled once again before he finally cried it all out up to the sky. "WAAAAHHH!" The four looking on stayed quiet and comforting as Pavo let out his sorrows.

After a couple minutes, Pavo calmed down and sat against a tree.

"Okay, I'm good. Thank you." He thanked.

"We're glad you calmed down." Cana then frowned. "But what was that all about?"

Pavo frowned as he looked at the ground. "I suppose…you have the right to know."

"We know you're a Celestial Spirit now, but I thought Celestial Sprits didn't appear on Earth Land for three years." Sophie recalled. "If that's true, then how did you get here?"

Pavo grew a great deal of regret. "I needed help."

"Help?" Cana was confused. She turned to look at Nic, seeing the confusion he had as well.

"Nobody saw it coming. The Celestial World lost its luster and turned into a bleeding hell. The stars are gone, and we were left to suffer."

"Pavo, what happened?" Greninja asked.

Pavo was shuddering violently as his teeth chattered at the bitter remembrance. He didn't want to remember, but he needed help. Plus, they were his friends. But what he said next, no one was prepared for.

He swallowed and finally spoke. "A Celestial Spirit genocide."

Their hearts stopped and their lips were parted. They found themselves unable to breath as Pavo left them unable to find any room to comprehend as to what he was saying.

Nic's heart slowly pumped again. "A…genocide?" He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

Pavo shuddered some more. "Three years ago, the Celestial World still had no stars. No one knew why. We couldn't be guided or warned by the catastrophe that had fallen upon us. Out of nowhere, a great evil entered our world. Without warning, he began to slaughter!" Pavo paused as the bloody images began to unfold. "Heads were sliced! Hearts punctured! Swallowed by dark shadows and implode! One by one, Celestial Spirits suffered a bloody demise! An apocalypse happened! So many lives lost! They couldn't get to the human world because the evil destroyed their keys and gutted them!"

The four were paralyzed by the haunting tale.

"My fellow brethren fell, and soon enough our numbers were dwindling…sooner or later, some were forced to side with the enemy, and those who didn't, perished." He looked up as tears fell down his face. "This genocide was pure hell! I escaped to find help, but now I'm too afraid to go back there! I don't wanna die at the hands of _him_!"

Sophie quickly put a hand on Pavo's shoulder before he could breakdown again. "Pavo! Pavo! Relax!" Sophie took a deep breath, and Pavo followed. "In…out…in…out."

Pavo calmed down, and he began to stand back up.

"So that's why the Celestial Spirits were unable to head to Earth Land. Either they were all dead, or they sided with the enemy." Cana stated.

"Hold on, I thought you guys were immortal?" Nic asked. "How could you-"

"Our immortality meant nothing to him!" Pavo blurted out. "Our powers of Celestial Spirits had no effect on him! He shed blood like it was a celebration!"

"But…wait! Loke! And the Zodiacs!" Cana shouted. "What happened to them? And what about this Celestial Spirit King Lucy met?"

Pavo swallowed again. "Our King didn't even have a remote chance! The enemy had so much power, he didn't have a prayer because any prayers could've died!" He panted for a few seconds before recovering. "He and the Zodiacs were all imprisoned, and chained up behind his throne as trophies. With our King overthrown, we were left in peril. Me and only a couple others banded together as a resistance, but we needed more help, so…"

"That brings you to now." Nic morosely concluded. He crossed his arms. "Now I see. You wanted to befriend us so we could help you."

"I'm so sorry for deceiving you! Honestly, I can't forgive myself!" He got to his knees and slowly bowed to the four in front of him. "Please, forgive me. Desperate times call for desperate measures."

Nic looked to the others and saw their faces. They all had the same expression of regret and pity. They all knew that with their better conscience, they knew what had to be done. Nic stepped in front of Pavo and the Celestial Spirit looked up. His eyes widened as Nic was reaching down to him like how their first fight ended. He was so relieved that Nic was forgiving him, as were Greninja and the rest.

"Pavo…we'll do everything we can to help." Nic said.

Pavo gasped harshly. "You…you mean it."

"Of course" Greninja stepped forward. "That is what friends do, right?"

Pavo wiped away his tears and smiled. "Yeah! Yeah, you're right! Thank you!"

However, Nic frowned. "Pavo, I know this will be hard but…please tell us everything you know of this evil. Any information will help."

Pavo frowned again and looked at the ground. "I…I dare not speak his name. I fear too much. He'll find me, and…"

"Pavo, just tell us. We want to help." Cana insisted.

The Celestial Spirit swallowed as he grew excessively nervous. "H-he is known by many names. He is the bringer of Hell. Hell itself. The king of all devils. The destruction of everything. But his real name…we dare not speak." He choked a little.

"Pavo?" Greninja asked.

"His real name, is…is…Lysandre!"

Everything at that moment grew silent once more. A dark and ghastly wind bellowed as everyone's eyes dilated from the horror that was the truth. Cana and Sophie grew stiff at the gory remembrance of the one who wanted Nic dead. The recollection of his left eye and his right-sided scar came clear to them, and they turned towards Greninja and Nic.

Unlike the girls, Nic was left in a state of shock. Greninja understood fully and he was left in a distraught state as well. What they heard, brought back the most bitter memories of that monster. Nic was bottling up all of that fear and frustration of Lysandre, and slowly, his face turned sour and angry.

"So, Lysandre's been hiding out in the Celestial Spirit World this entire time." Greninja figured out.

Cana looked down, discouraged. "Then it makes sense. The same thing happened on Tenrou Island. Zeref's Black Arts was only absorbed by Lysandre. That would explain why immortality doesn't affect him."

Sophie nodded. "He tainted a god, but even so…" She turned towards Nic. "This changes things." They could see the resentment in Nic's gaze. It was cold, but determined.

"Nic, as much as I want to, with Lysandre as the mastermind, we have to-" Cana was then cut off by Nic.

"Cana, there's no argument. We have to go." They could all feel the resolution in Nic's voice. "I feel as worried as you do, but Pavo's world is crumbling beneath that poor excuse of a man. He's been taking his anger out on those poor Spirits. The least we can do is save them by driving Lysandre away."

Greninja stepped forward. "We know he's solemnly after you, but you won't be in this alone. We'll be there, and we'll keep you safe until your Plates are done rebooting." He assured.

Nic smiled. "I appreciate it." He looked down at the ground. "If only Lucy were here, she'd be wanting to help her fellow Spirits…it's for the best."

Seeing as talking him out won't solve the problem, Cana and Sophie both had no choice but to go along and help Nic in being the hero.

"Well, if you're going, guess us two are as well." Sophie said.

Cana put hands to her hips. "We better brace ourselves."

Nic nodded. "Agreed, it'll have to be us five. With our low numbers, we should have a better chance in getting a surprise attack on Lysandre if the time comes. We'll leave the Infinity Clock to Erza and the others…" Nic was caught trailing off after mentioning Erza, so Greninja picked up almost immediately.

"Yes. It would be a huge problem. Having so many numbers would give away our position, plus everyone would be focused on the Reborn Oracion Seis and the Infinity Clock. We'll have to be discrete."

Cana smirked with a raised fist. "Well then I guess it's settled. We're taking an all-expense paid trip to Hell!"

Pavo presented clothes he had on hand. "Here, these are for you." To Cana and Sophie, he presented clothes. "Wear these."

"Clothes?" Cana was given a dark purple dress with light purple arches, and light blue lines with a light yellow underneath (think like the anime in the Eclipse Arc if you've seen it). Sophie was given a white dress with detached sleeves and a skirt, much like the one Lucy wore back on Tenrou Island.

"Listen carefully. Humans cannot breathe in the Celestial World, and even with those clothes, it'd only be a short while." Pavo informed as the two dressed. "However…the monster had distorted so much in our realm, and that rule extended to indefinitely due to his spatial powers, as long as you wear those you're fine. However…" He turned towards Nic and Greninja. "With Greninja being a Pokémon, and with Nic's Plates inside of him, the entire rule has no effect on them."

Cana and Sophie had their dresses on and they looked ready, as were Nic and Greninja. Pavo was getting nervous. He was actually gonna return to the Celestial Spirit World. Hell. The thought of finally going back was terrible, but with his little army, and Nic, Lysandre would surely meet his match.

"Is everyone ready?" Pavo asked, to which everyone nodded.

"Not really. It feels like we're gonna die." Cana joked lightly. "But I'm game!"

Everyone else nodded. Pavo reached out both of his hands. Everyone gathered around in a circle and held hands like on Tenrou Island.

Pavo swallowed, but the smiled. "Then off to the Celestial World we go!"

In a golden flash, everyone became a flash for a few seconds before they completely disappeared.

* * *

In the Celestial World, five figures arrived. They all revealed themselves to be Nic and the group. When they uncovered themselves, they looked around, only to be stricken with sheer horror right before their eyes.

What they saw was truly Hell. They were standing on solid, black ground, devoid of any life and had red cracks running all around. The sky was dark purple, and not even a twinkle of stardust was seen due to Lysandre. Shattered fragments of what appeared to be planetary orbs and moons were all around.

Every pathway seen was destroyed, and stained by bits of red. The air was foul and corrosive, like a massacre, probably because that is what happened. All around were blood red crystals.

"What the…oh my god." Sophie muttered, her spine shaking.

"You were right. This is Hell without a doubt." Cana remarked. No one was really prepared for this kind of Hell.

Pavo swallowed and shivered violently. "Only the strong willed can survive, otherwise the vile air will suffocate the weak and make you rot."

Nic's eyes dilated with horror at the black ground and purple sky, it's void infinitely going and getting darker. "Lysandre did all of this."

"Pavo did say he did a single-man genocide. I never imagined he'd do all of this destruction." Greninja said, uneasy as his spine rattled.

Pavo swiftly turned and pointed in another direction. "Let us hurry in that direction, where that pile of crystals are!" Their eyes barely saw it. In the far distance, there was a large mound of blood red crystals, as though it could be used as a large hideout.

"Forwards!" Pavo led the group and they followed, though they kept hiding. They knew they had to be watched, so they hid whenever they could. Sneaking around, they scurried to the other side of the makeshift dome, they snuck towards the entrance of the blood red domain. A giant red crystal was the door, and Pavo moved it with all his might, slowly felling it with a thud.

"Hurry! Hurry! Inside!" Pavo ushered the group in, and he hauled the crystal back up as a door.

Inside, everything was very spacious. "Whoa, not too shabby." Cana said, impressed.

Turning towards them, there were three figures. "LUPUS! CORVUS! VOLANS! DID YOU MISS YOUR OLD PAL?!" Pavo happily shouted with a pose.

Corvus happily clasped his hands together. "P-PAVO! YOU'RE ALLIIIIIVE!"

Volans sat on his knees and opened his eyes. "You took longer than anticipated, Pavo. We barely got out unscathed several times."

Lupus growled and barked at Pavo and who he brought along. "So, this is who'll help us? Better be worth the wait."

Nic and his pals were standing with uncertainty. They'd expected a few more numbers, but just 3 was all they got, and they all were very weird to them.

"Uh…" Sophie was confused.

"So~. This is the resistance against Lysandre?" Cana asked.

Pavo struck a happy pose. "You bet! These are the guys that'll help us!" He presented his friend. "Corvus, Lupus, Volans, meet Cana, Sophie, Nic, and his froggy pal, Greninja!"

"Hey." Cana remarked,

"Hi!" Sophie happily greeted. "Guess we're on the same side!"

"A pleasure." Greninja said.

"Indeed. It looks like we'll be joining forces to stop Lysandre and drive him away, am I right?" Nic replied.

"You bet!" Corvus tipped his black witch hat up. "I'm Corvus – Gate of the Crow!"

Corvus was a slim character of average height with short, spiky black hair underneath a witch's hat. His face had a long nose in the shape of a beak. He had slim arms and legs, yet had crow feet. Jointed to his arms were a pair of black wings that also connected to his gray t-shirt and black overalls.

Lupus growled at Nic and his Greninja. "Well, if this'll take that tyrant down, then let's take our chances. Name's Lupus – Gate of the Wolf."

Lupus resembled that of a humanoid wolf. His slick, thin fur was gray, as well as his snout. His arms were lean with protrusions from the elbows like a Gallade almost. He had strong, gray wolf legs and his claws were black. His bushy tail and long, flowing mane was a midnight blue. He had yellow eyes with black outlining, with no pupils. While his legs had black bands, his biceps had light green armbands with three red claw marks with a black gash running vertically. The same symbol was repeated on his breast attire, which was a one-piece suit that was light green with black trimming on the legs.

Volans nodded as he looked at Nic and Greninja. "We are honored to have you join us in our cause, Nic Pularis. We hope for great things from you and your friends. I am Volans – Gate of the Flying Fish."

Volans looked like a large, humanoid fish-like man. He had a very stocky build, but was nonetheless muscular. His skin was light blue, and his face had deep, serious eyes with black pupils and thin, fin-like eyebrows. He had a wide nose and a frown with two pointed teeth sticking up and out. His thick neck had gills, and his barely noticeable chin had a bushy black beard. The top of his head had a blue fin that was surrounded by bushy black hair. Two other blue fins ran down his back, stopping at the tail. His arms had protrusions on the elbows like Lupus, only much thicker, like fin-like blades. Aside from his thick arms and hands, Volans had legs and feet with brown sandals. He had a long tail with blue fin-like ends. The most emphasis was on the large pairs of wings he had folded behind him. His attire was but a single orange kimono with blue edging and sash. All over his body, there were deep blue markings on the legs, arms, and neck.

Cana sweatdropped. "Well, this is something."

"Yeah, but we're all working together to take down Lysandre. To do that, we have to find him before he finds us." Nic said.

Volans nodded. "Hmm. Yes, and freeing the captured Zodiacs and King himself should be in conjunction."

Corvus raised a fist. "Alright Lysandre, you're going down!"

"HAZA! In the name of friendship, Lysandre shall know defeat!" Pavo exclaimed. "Onwards towards victory!"

* * *

On a wide, open pathway that swerved all about through the void high up. The trail past a field of blood red and purple cosmic dust, where it seemed tangible. The low field of negativity and path led as a walkway to a spacious domain that showed the Celestial World in view.

Sitting on a throne nonchalantly, a man swerved his tail as he chuckled. The deadly purple aura engulfing him intensified at this feeling he had. It showed bloodthirst as his teeth turned blood red. He could feel Nic here already.

There he was, Lysandre. He sat with a chuckle. "Well now, seems as though my patience has finally paid off." He said in an amused tone. "7 years, and he finally turns up. Guess my hobby wasn't such a waste after all…it brought him right to me."

A larger view showed him chuckling as six shadowy figures were bowing before him, holding back their smirks of glee.

Behind Lysandre, his chuckling escalating, showed all of them: The 12 Zodiacs. Every single one had torn up clothing, and they had bruises and a few bloody marks. Stains were all over them as they were chained and cuffed by their wrists and ankles against a mighty black wall with bright red markings.

In the middle…was the Celestial Spirit King. 6 Zodiacs were on either side of him. He had a withered old moustache, and his cape was all but tattered and destroyed. His armor was severely destroyed, and he had more bruises and wounds compared to the other Zodiacs.

Lysandre roared with laughter as he was feeling so excited. "I've been waiting for so long! I'm so excited, it makes me wanna gut even more pitiful spirits!" He laughed and roared some more, his bellowing would've paralyzed a normal man and make him go into a distraught stage.

Lysandre calmed down and kept a smirk on his face. In his one corrosive hand, he used his powers to make something spin above his hand. It looked like a rectangular plate that was grim gray. He could feel a lifetime of anguish and the power of souls course through the plate he twirled in amusement with his hand movements.

"So, Nic Pularis, let's see what you and you little resistance can do to reach me and your fellow Spirits…and your little piece of the puzzle."

* * *

**Are you mentally breaking down? Are you startled beyond comprehension? Behold guys, I present the Celestial Siege Arc! How's that for a hectic twist? So I decided to cut off the Key to the Starry Sky Arc here, since I wanted something more original. If you guys haven't watched the anime, I advise that you do that so you know how the rest of the Key to the Starry Sky Arc goes, because this arc is in conjunction with that arc.**

**I actually thought of this little idea when I was watching One Piece, one of my other favorite shows. I was watching a little bit of Enies Lobby Arc, Impel Down Arc, and Fishman Island Arc, and then it came to me. So you'll be expecting some strong similarities of characters and locations.**

**The Celestial Siege Arc will be the second to last arc of this story, meaning the GMG Arc will be the final arc of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**. We're nearing the end people!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you are loving this crazy twist!**

* * *

**Next Time: A New Destination**


	62. A New Destination

Chapter 62 – A New Destination

**I left you all emotionally shocked last chapter, for it is now time for the Celestial Siege Arc! I've been waiting for this arc for some time, and to finally make it to this point is an achievement. Hope you guys enjoy as always.**

**Natalie: I won't be doing the Tartaros Arc in this story. This story will have a sequel; and no, I won't make openings.**

**Guest Valvrave: I might not include every Legendary Pokémon because there's so many, but in the sequel you'll see a few more as well.**

**On with the first chapter of the new original arc!**

**To Recap:**

Nic and friends found themselves saved by Blue Pegasus, and Lucy learned that they weren't supposed to get the clock pieces. Later on, as they formed a strategy, Nic was forced to go into reboot for Arceus, meaning he was vulnerable for a whole day. Erza insisted Nic stayed behind, but since she didn't give a reason, the two got into a bitter fight; and though Pavo and Greninja broke it up, Nic complied and walked away. Later on, Cana, Pavo, and Sophie try and cheer Nic up, and as they succeeded, Pavo grew ill due to lack of Magic. He finally confesses that he's a Celestial Spirit and tells them all that Lysandre started a Celestial Spirit genocide, and chained up the battered Zodiacs and King. The group then heads to the Celestial Spirit World, where Pavo reunites with Lupus, Corvus, and Volans. Meanwhile, Lysandre sits on his throne with the Spooky Plate in hand, excited to have Nic arrive.

* * *

**Chapter 62 – A New Destination**

Volans stepped forward at the exit, facing away from everyone present. "Now, let's get the matter settled. Once we leave this dome, there's no going back." His fists clenched tight. "However, with his whereabouts and reliable forces, there's no point in hiding. Lysandre had maimed too many; he must be rid of, no matter what the cost." His brief speech was effective as Lupus clawed the ground in excitement, Corvus clenched his fists with an excited grin, and Pavo took an excited pose.

Volans raised a fist high. "Today, we set out and take back what is ours!" Everyone was aboard with his speech, and all raised fists and wings to honor them all. Once everyone settled, Volans cleared his throat and became stern once more.

"Now…the prime objectives: To stop Lysandre, and free the Zodiacs and our King." Nic and Greninja, whose eyes were blank, looked around to find the Celestial Spirits swallow at the mention of those two objectives. "To free the Zodiacs, we must overcome Lysandre…and with Nic telling us of this 'reboot phase', we'll have to occupy as much time until he regains the power to stop Lysandre."

"So what you're saying is that we must avoid as many of Lysandre's forces as we can while on the run." Lupus bluntly asked.

Volans nodded. "Yes. And with your sense of smell, you should be able to be our radar."

Corvus looked relieved. "Phew! I was worried we'd have to fight an army! Thank goodness we're avoiding that kind of stuff!"

Lupus looked up a little. "Well this should be easy since we all know where that tyrant is."

Sophie raised a brow at him. "Er, we don't. We just got here." She deadpanned.

Lupus looked down at her and groaned towards the ground. "Uuugh, fine." He thus explained. "Lysandre is far away, in a place known as the Hell Field. At the end lies his thrown. But to get there, we have to climb a tower known as the Andromeda Tower, and unfortunately we don't have the keys to get there."

"Keys?" Greninja asked.

"Yes, keys. Unfortunately the key to Andromeda Tower is locked up in another location. We need to head there first." Volans stated.

Corvus clenched a shaky fist. "Then we'll have to stay alert. Getting to that key isn't going to be easy."

Pavo took another dramatic pose. "Ah, but we all agreed that with this risk comes possible sacrifices, and we shall get to Lysandre yet!"

"Pavo's right." Nic announced, the floor all his. "I've quarreled with Lysandre many times in the past; even beyond that. He's cunning. Like his plan with a weapon, he needed keys. It's more than likely he hid the key on purpose so no one can reach it, but if it's for that reason, then that we shall find him yet!"

"Well then what are we waiting for, ya big sissies! Let's get moving!" Cana shouted. With that, everyone roared and Volans moved the large blood red crystal out of the way. With Lupus taking the lead, he sniffed the pungent air and flinched. They all took it as a good sign though, as it meant Lysandre's lingering trail was easily traceable. Lupus began his run and everyone followed behind.

* * *

Lysandre sat on his throne, continuously spinning the Spooky Plate out of boredom. He felt the light that was coming after him, and he wanted to snuff it out so bad, but alas he'll have to wait. However, those behind him were more enthusiastic than him.

"H-heh." Scorpio, his tail projectile nearly destroyed, chuckled.

"Scorpio, no." Aquarius pleaded, her body all battered and bloodied like the rest of them.

Lysandre disappeared into shadows from his throne and manifested in front of Scorpio. His appearance and bloodthirsty eyes made Scorpio cough and pale even more. Lysandre showed no mercy as he shoved his right claws into Scorpio's left arm that was chained and cuffed to the wall. Scorpio had to hold back the urge to scream, despite how he felt so rotting in his arm. He coughed up a little blood and he winced. Lysandre pulled his claws out, covered in fresh blood, much to his pleasure.

"Mind telling me the amusement?" He asked, his demonic tone making Aquarius shudder.

Despite his concealed cheering, he didn't want to lose his heart or a body part. Scorpio lowered his head, a half-grin on his face. "…nothing."

Lysandre backed away, sparing Scorpio. "I know what you all are thinking, but know this…" His teeth began shaper and blood red. "I-will-slaughter! I can maim your heads right now!...but I have more important matters to deal with."

He leaned in close to Aquarius and Scorpio, his voice going into a harsh whisper. "And if you try stepping out of line, any of you…" He held up a dense and corrosive Shadow Claw up to their necks, the very tips barely touching and making their chins burn and rot. They both gawked and had small tears fall from the pain. Lysandre then pulled back. "…you'll lose more than just your lives."

With that warning, he disappeared into shadows and reappeared on his throne, looking out again. "Give them a nice, bloody welcome, my slaves."

* * *

The group reached an area where there were dead trees, something uncommon in the Celestial World. Yet Lysandre messed the entire realm up just for kicks. Regardless, Nic and everyone made way through the small forest of blood red crystals and black, dead trees.

Cana turned towards Lupus and Corvus. "So~, you guys in this little cause too?"

Corvus turned around towards Cana and blinked. "Yeah. I mean, this is our world, but I'm ready to take it back."

The brunette raised a brow. "Really? Cuz your shaky feet say otherwise."

"Huh?" Corvus looked down as he walked, and noticed with a nervous expression that his feet were trembling as he slowly walked. It was clear he was scared, and he wasn't good at hiding it. Lupus even chuckled and snickered in amusement.

"Are you a crow, or are you a chicken? I forget." Lupus joked.

"S-shut up!" Corvus protested. "I got this!"

"As do I!" Pavo agreed, though his face showed discomfort as he trudged on.

Nic and Greninja kept moving along, and he turned towards Volans. "So Volans?" Nic asked. "How did this whole rebellion start anyway?"

Volans kept his gaze forward. "…Hmmm. Nic, Greninja, it started with only us four. We are the only ones that started this rebellion."

"It must take a lot of pride and honor to stand up against him." Getting a morose note, Nic looked ahead instead of Volans. "To put your pride above all else and standing up to that enemy. It's admirable."

Volans could hear the slight hint of uneasiness in Nic's sentence. With his experience, the Flying Fish Celestial Spirit could tell Nic had a neutral opinion on Pride. He looked like someone who would throw his pride away to fight for what was precious to him, something that Volans respected, yet remained uneasy of.

"Thank you." Was all he said.

Sophie felt chills running up her spine as she went on with a serious face. "This dead forest, it's like walking through death row." Her eyes grew steady as she saw rotting branches on and below the trees. "…it's like a garden of pure evil."

"This is what becomes of any residual life lingering from Lysandre." Corvus said.

Pavo grit his teeth. "To think he would slaughter not just Spirits, but _everything_ else. What did we do to deserve this?"

Nic looked down at the ground. "That's who he is now. He'll kill for sport. He seeks to darken the void…" His voice was cut trailing off as he could've sworn his instincts picked up some very weak sounds. Greninja's blank eyes turned serious and ready as he too had the same feeling.

Lupus stopped in his tracks and began sniffing the air. He raised his head high and sniffed towards east. Everyone present began to stop as Lupus was picking up something.

"Lupus?" Pavo asked.

Corvus swallowed. "What is it?"

Nic and Greninja took a step towards east and narrowed their eyes. The sound was getting somewhat louder and from the darkness of the dead trees, in the shadows from afar, they saw dark yellow eyes. They heard some howling, and that's when Lupus backed away.

"Oh no." He muttered. "Oh no!"

Nic turned around towards Lupus. "Lupus, what is it? What's up ahead?" He demanded.

"No time! RUN!" Corvus screamed. Instantly, Volans spread his hulking white wings, and Corvus's attached black wings flapped with his arms. Both took flight and everyone else began turning and running behind them.

As they ran, Sophie looked back to see the figures approaching. Despite the seemingly large distance, they were closing in fast. "Oh crap! What are those things?!"

What she was looking at that were tailing them was a pack of maybe no more than fifteen dog-like creatures. Like Lupus, they had no pupils, and had plain dark yellow eyes. Their fur was a spiky brown, and their legs had black armbands on the ankles and forearms. They all had a light green vest on with blood red markings on the back and front. They were seemingly out for blood.

Corvus screamed as he flapped for his life, and Pavo wailed with arms over his head as he ran close behind. Nic and the group were moving as fast as possible through the black, dead trees.

"Greninja, the trees!" Nic shouted as he ran with speed as always.

"Right!" Without hesitation, Greninja followed Nic's lead and the two saw a fallen tree up ahead, sloping up a little. It wasn't much, but enough for them to run up it and jump to reach for a fellow branch. The two grasped one, and flipped up and their feet landed on the tree branches. They moved fast and quick, their feet leaving the branch, only for the dead branches to fall to the ground once they left them.

Cana was moving as fast as she could, but even she felt uneasy with all of the dogs from behind catching up. "We have to shake them!"

"That won't work!" Volans argued within the upper part of the trees. "They have a hyper sense of smell, just like Lupus! They'll pick us off one by one if we divide!"

"Then what do we do?!" Sophie exclaimed.

Volans turned towards Corvus. "Corvus, can you divert them long enough for us to by some time?"

"Leave that to me! I'll keep them occupied!" Volans slowed down and turned around, facing the pack of savage dogs chasing them. He spread his arms out and flapped. "Alright, try hunting these! **Daze Wing!**"He flapped hard, sendinga black wind that wend rapidly towards the dogs.

The dogs were all engulfed by the attack and they all growled as they momentarily lost their footing. As the him passed on, they stopped and began looking around. Their eyesight, normally black and white, was now all jumbled up, and when they looked at each other, they saw blurry black images. Each one growled at the other and their noses twitched. They smelled familiar, but their visions were so screwy that they weren't sure. They were all looking at the other and growling in uncertainty.

Corvus smirked and turned back ahead, a snicker escaping him. "That should buy us some time."

As Nic was leaping from branch to branch, he looked back at Corvus. "What did you do?"

"I'll explain when we get somewhere clear. Keep running!" Corvus insisted.

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Pavo picked up his pace and everyone followed behind with pants in their breaths.

After several minutes of escape, the group soon came to a secluded area of trees. With the repulsive air and bark, they were sure to blend in, but to be safe, they all stayed close and began to catch their breaths. They all panted and the ones not on the ground descended or climbed down.

Pavo panted heavily. "I think…we bought us…some time."

Lupus sniffed the air, but the dead bark was mostly in the air. "Yeah, it seems we were able to get away, for now."

Cana rested a hand against a tree and looked down. "Man, just what the hell was that back there."

Lupus looked out with stern eyes. His tail wagged once like a whip. "Canes - Gate of the Hunting Dogs, and Lysandre's little elimination squad."

Greninja crossed his arms as he looked at everyone with blank eyes. He grew unsound as he saw Lupus and the other Spirits grow uneasy from the mention of Lysandre again, but Lupus seemed the most bothered as his claws were clenching.

"Nic?"

Nic nodded. "Now's not the right time. We'll have to wait until everything is clear." Nic knew exactly what Greninja was thinking. Something was off about the whole team. It wasn't that they were getting along by any means, they seemed just fine. Volans has an ideal on pride, Corvus is a complete coward unless he is needed, and Lupus somehow brings an uneasy wave among Nic and Greninja.

Trying to pick up another note, Nic turned towards Corvus. "So Corvus, what was that you used back there?"

Corvus turned towards Nic curiously, and then sheepishly put his hands behind his head. "Oh, that? That was my Black Wing Magic." He answered.

"Black…Wing?" Cana inquired. It was then that Lupus began to sniff the air.

Corvus rubbed the back of his head. "W-well yeah. It's nothing to be proud of really. My black winds and feathers can create illusions and leave opponents dazed, but some damage can be done." He put his hands to his sides. "After all, I may be weak, but I can get us out of a lot of-!"

"RAWR!" A sudden pounce from the shadows behind Corvus sprung and bit into his shoulder. The Crow screamed in pain as one of the pack members of Canes sank his fangs into him and the Crow tumbled and rolled like crazy.

"Corvus!" Greninja rushed in and let out a harsh grunt as he elbow-hammered the hunting dog on the back, making him gawk and left for the ninja frog to throw him back into the shadows. Another dog pounced out at Greninja, but in a flash grabbed the dog's mouth and threw it at another dog that was coming after him.

Nic and everyone turned to find more dogs slowly emerging from the shadows, snarling as their paws tapped the ground. Corvus grunted as his shoulder was hurting with small amounts of blood, but he did his best to ignore it and grew weary as Canes surrounded them.

Pavo's eyes bulged out of his head. "GGWWOOOOH! They found us so quickly!"

Sophie grunted. "Remember? These guys and Lupus have a keen sense of smell. They just picked up our trail while this secluded area kept us from doing the same!" She looked back as the pack of fifteen slowly converged.

"Guess we have no choice then." Greninja readied his Water Shuriken.

Pavo took a pose. "You're right, froggy! We have no choice but to fight our way out!" He gave a gesture for them to attack. "Come and get us!"

Nic took up a defensive stance as the dogs went running after them. _'I have to be careful. All I can do is my hand-to-hand combat.'_

Canes then pounced. They all individually went to sink their fangs, but Cana acted by shooting her cards at the few targeting her, making the cards explode upon contact. The dogs shot back and hit the ground with a thud. Sophie used a familiar Memory-Make Spell and made jagged blades of yellow stone shoot up, making a yellow explosion when hitting the dogs coming at her.

Pavo did a fingertip jab and shot a dog away, but one dog bit into his legs. He felt pain and he raised his other foot and stomped on the dog's head. The dog pouted and backed away and he saw another dog head after him.

"**Glory's Integrity!**" He did a 360 kick, kicking one of the dogs that went after him, and the other one that pounced was swatted by his cape that followed into the kick, hitting both.

Corvus dodged the dogs pouncing at him and raised his arms to take flight. When above, he flapped downwards. "Take this! **Dusk Shower!**" He flapped his arms once, sending a barrage of black feathers like bullets coming down onto the dogs, making explosions upon impact.

"**Water Shuriken!**" Greninja threw compressed stars of water at some incoming dogs. The dogs pouted as they felt the shredding attack and thudded against nearby trees. He turned around and saw Nic falling onto his back and doing a Circle Throw motion, despite not using the actual move itself. He threw the dog overhead onto another dog and flipped back to his feet. Nic spiral kicked a dog and the corner of his eye caught a dog pouncing overhead.

"**Dark Pulse!**" Greninja covered Nic as the trainer used one arm to throw the dog he kicked upwards towards the pouncing dog, and both ended up being engulfed in a dark explosion.

"Nice cover, Greninja!" Nic hollered before back-kicking a dog in the lower jaw without looking.

Volans's palm was surrounded in deep blue water and faced an incoming dog. "**Abyss Palm!**" He did a palm strike, and the deep blue water erupted violently upon contact. The dog shot back and hit yet another dog. Volans grunted and turned away, swatting his fish tail at another dog.

"They're relentless!" Pavo wailed. He screamed and ducked to avoid another pouncing dog.

Nic dodged a dog and then jumped. When he looked down, he stomped down on the dog that he jumped to dodge. He landed and threw the dog into another one. "They're just not stopping!"

Lupus snarled at a fellow dog, but this dog was slightly different from the others, for the one Lupus was against had a darker vest on, and the ears were thicker and had more air. Lupus snarled at the member of Canes, and vice versa. The dog pounced and bit into Lupus's arms, but all Lupus did was swat him off. The wolf bared his claws, and that was enough to make the dog uneasy.

As if a chain reaction occurred, Canes began to grow uneasy. With this, the dogs all began to slow down on their assaults. Cana looked over and saw Lupus snarling at the one dog, of whom lashed out with another vengeful bite to the arm. Her eyes widened as the dogs quickened their pursuit yet again.

"Lupus!" Cana shouted.

"Shut up and cover your ears!" Lupus howled. Everyone turned towards Lupus and did as told. He opened his mouth and unleashed a sonic howl-like attack. The attack shot midnight blue shockwaves and the dog Lupus was using it against felt the full force. The dogs all around pouted and covered their ears from the sonic howling.

As the howl echoed, everyone else uncovered their ears and saw that the dogs were all wincing. Nic then got the idea. "Sensitivity to hearing. Great idea!" He turned towards Greninja next. "Greninja, get us cover! **Smokescreen!**"

Greninja did as told and he took in a deep breath before huffing out a huge thick cloud of smoke. The attack engulfed the whole area, and the dogs pouted wildly as the smoke was making their noses burn. With the sensitivity to hearing and the Smokescreen riling them up, they all scurried and began a hasty retreat.

As the smoke cleared, Nic and the group was gone as well.

* * *

"Did we lose them for good?" Cana asked.

Greninja nodded. "It sure seems like it. We should be safe to travel for a little while now that we know they dislike loud sounds and my Smokescreen."

Nic turned towards a wincing Corvus. "Are you okay?"

Corvus let go of his shoulder. "Yeah, I should be okay. That attack surprised me out of nowhere."

The group was currently in another section of the dead forest, where blood red crystals were scattered all around them. They were catching their breath once more from the sudden assault, and once it was clear and they recovered, Lupus stared out the direction they came from.

"What's up with him?" Sophie asked. "Lupus?"

The wolf looked over his shoulder back at Sophie. His stare was as blank as a sheet of paper. "What?"

"Nothing, it's just…you seem a little off." Sophie inquired.

Cana stepped forward with some suspicion on her face. "I don't know what's going on, but it's clear that you and those dogs have some sort of history."

Pavo turned and shook his hands as a gesture for her to back off. "C-Cana, don't go there!"

"Why shouldn't I? After all, I noticed that the one dog he fought was different from the others, and the other dogs reacted because of him." She turned back towards Lupus. "And also, they seem to fear you, and I don't think it's because you're just a wolf."

Volans closed his eyes. "Miss Cana, sit down."

"But-!" She was stopped when Volans shot a death glare at her, and the brunette reluctantly complied and sat down, along with Nic and the group Pavo group. She grew silent as Lupus gained stares.

The wolf's claws grinded against the other, and his feet claws gripped the ground. "Geez, this is so annoying." He sighed and sat down on a fallen tree. After composing, he spoke.

"That dog I fought is the key to Canes. That dog is the Beta of the whole pack." He explained.

Nic crossed his arms. "If that one is the Beta…then who is the Alpha?"

Lupus's head lowered. "…you're looking at him."

Shock was all over the others faces, and their mouths were left open. They were startled to say the least, and Sophie got up.

"Wait, you mean to tell us that you…you…" Sophie was getting the idea, and she didn't like where this was going.

Lupus looked even more ashamed. "The truth was…I used to work under Lysandre."

"So that's why you guys know his whereabouts and that we need a key!" Cana accused. "Just what the hell are you expecting to gain out of this?!"

"SHUT UP!" Lupus barked, silencing Cana. Nic and Greninja both had narrowed eyes filled with suspicion, but they remained the most silent and allowed Lupus to explain himself.

Pavo grieved. "I suppose we can help you with this…" He was stopped when Lupus held out a claw.

"No, it's my story. I'll explain." The wolf insisted. With a pose, Pavo slowly spun off to a dead tree fallen over and sat down. "Now, where was I?" Lupus looked up at the dark Hell-like sky. "Well to be more accurate, I _was_ their Alpha; that is, until I quit and left the pack."

"Left the pack?" Sophie wondered.

Lupus nodded. "Yes. You see, Canes always needs an Alpha to lead them; without one, they'd be left to take orders from the Beta, but even so, not much order would be established. When Lysandre started killing off so many, he spared me and my pack, offering us a position, so I was forced to comply." His claws were embedding into the fallen tree. "Things were decent. We were allowed to live, as long as he hunted and killed off our victims…but…when we ended up failing a few times, Lysandre would kill one of our own."

Sophie felt a bomb drop. "He what?"

"He would end up ending one of Canes's lives, just because of one mistake. He's such a tyrant. Pretty soon my pack and I began to fear him, and the dogs would begin to do as he said under fear. In a way, he's a bloodthirsty Alpha, something I never wanted."

"Then what happened?" Cana asked, easing up a bit.

He lowered his head. "I took a long thought, and this wasn't what I wanted. _My_ pack was taking orders from a monster, and not _me_! They _always_ followed _my_ orders! And then he changed it all…" He shook his head. "I just couldn't take it anymore. This constant ordering by fear, it drove me away." He looked at his armbands and chest attire with the red claw marks printed on them having a gash across them. "And so, I cut my ties with his forces, and I quit and left my pack."

He turned towards Pavo, Volans, and Corvus. "Soon enough I found myself joining the club with these weirdos. Through it all, we came to an understanding."

Volans bowed his head. "We may have different perspectives, but that's no reason to be open-minded. We all lost something precious to us, whether it'd be a necessity or not."

"Whether we liked it or not, we all came together to live with the little peace in mind we had." Corvus explained. "We're all so different…but we four shared an understanding to take back what is ours, and soon enough we found each other to look after."

Nic half-grinned. "Like a small family?"

Pavo took a pose. "YES! And so we went on running and running! We were still left to die, and so, much to my reluctance, I headed for Earth Land approximately a year ago!"

"Now it makes sense. So regardless of what you guys went through, you all came together to bound whatever hope you could." Greninja stated.

Attention was back towards Lupus as he held up a clawed hand and clenched hard. "I swear; I will get my pack back once that bloody beast is gone. They won't take orders by fear anymore. But for now, they are my enemy; and if they get in our way…then I will do everything in my power to stop them."

Cana and Sophie got it, but Nic and Greninja had it from the very beginning. They knew full well, due to experience, that Lupus was being serious. This wasn't a lie. He was telling the truth. He wanted to right what was wrong, just like Jellal and Magnezone. He wanted to make up for what he did wrong by staying good. It was this ideal that Nic and friends had some respect for Lupus, as for Pavo and the others.

After a long silence, Volans stood up. "We should hurry. They'll be coming back for us."

"Right." Nic and everyone thus began their march towards Lysandre once more.

* * *

Back on Earth Land, things were bad. The sky was dark due to the Infinity Clock being unleashed, and the Oracion Seis had captured Lucy, with the help of Michelle, whose real identity was the sixth member of the Reborn Oracion Seis – Imitatia.

Everyone was currently assessing the situation as Elfman looked down at the ground. "I couldn't save Natsu or Lucy. I'm but a sad excuse of a man."

His self-pity was the last thing the guild needed. Warren told everyone via Telepathy that Nic, Cana, Sophie, and Pavo all went missing awhile back, which left them all on edge. This left so many worried, especially another Pularis sibling and a familiar redhead.

Mira was doing her best to stay calm, but even the situation was too grim to perk up. "C'mon Elfman. This isn't anybody's fault."

Wendy looked around and noticed that something was off. "Hey, does anybody know where Erza and Vanessa went?"

Gray crossed his arms, sulking downwards. "Knowing after _that_, I can bet Erza's run off to blow some steam. I can also guess that Vanessa isn't too far behind either."

"There's too many problems going around." Makarov frowned in sorrow. "There's the calamity with the Infinity Clock, the apprehension of Natsu and Lucy, and the sudden disappearance of Nic and others; whatever happened, this wasn't a coincidence."

Mira looked down at him. "Then what do you suggest we do?"

"Excuse me." Everyone turned to look at the sudden appearance of arrivals. It was none other than Jaune-Luc. "Fairy Tail, hello…"

* * *

Erza ran into the direction she saw Nic walk off too awhile back. She ran with swiftness and worry through the bushes and her heart pulsed with guilt.

'_I have to find him! I have to see that he's alright!'_ Her mind was going ballistic as she darted right into the small clearing, where she came to a slow stop. Her eyes widened when she saw that a few destroyed trees laid around, no doubt Nic's handiwork.

"He was here, I knew it." She was having worry flood her mind. Throughout her battle with Cobra, with the help of Vanessa, Evergreen, and Max, she was left unable to focus as guilt and regret clogged her mind over Nic, which left Cobra to use that against her. And when she learned that Nic went missing, she snapped and ran off to see if he was okay, only she'll never find out now that he was gone.

She swallowed hard. "…I did this."

"Erza!" The shrubs and foliage behind Erza rustled and the redhead turned around to find Vanessa catching up to her. The single blonde-banged girl huffed as she finally reached Erza.

"Erza, what happened?" Vanessa questioned. "The second we showed back to the guild, you just took off."

Erza turned her back towards her. "I'm sorry."

Vanessa's words were as hard as an Iron Defense by an Aggron. "Well sorry won't fix what happened to Nic."

Erza grew stiff and grunted. "This isn't about Nic."

"Don't lie Erza." Vanessa calmed down greatly, getting a gentler approach at hand. "Look, I know you're ashamed of what you did, but that doesn't mean that the guilt should get you all jumbled up."

"Really, I'm fi-"

"Then why did you lose focus against Cobra? Normally you'd be level-headed and swift, but you were all so…"

"He just caught me off guard."

"He caught us all off guard."

"I know. I just…" Erza was starting to fumble on her choice of words.

"Erza…why did you do what you did?"

Erza continued to have her back turned. "You…you wouldn't understand, Vanessa."

Vanessa grew offended. "Actually, I do understand."

Erza looked back at her. "How could you-" She was cut off by Vanessa.

"Erza, listen." Vanessa's tone was harsher, yet as calm as she could get. An uneasy silence fell between the two as Vanessa was getting an upper hand in the argument.

"Do you know how angry I am right now? Heck, I feel downright upset with you! I look up to you, everybody does. As Nic's younger sister, I have the right to know why you did what you did. I worry about him just as much as you do. He's my brother, and he loves you…and how did you repay him? By fighting him and keeping him from helping? You should know just how wrong that was."

Vanessa's words were hard; we were talking Rock Throw hard. Erza never heard Vanessa being so hostile in her wording before. And every point she made was dead on.

"Nic wasn't mad because he didn't get to help Erza, he was mad because you didn't trust him enough to try with his own capabilities and Pokémon. I trusted Nic my entire life, and I respect him above anybody else because he's family and protected me from the day I was born. I owe my brother and idol everything! Up to this point, things looked fine between you two. Did you trust Nic?"

Erza turned back to face her in defiance. "Of course I do! I respect your brother with all my heart! I've always trusted him, and I never doubted his power! I trusted him with my life and he never let me down!"

"Then why? Why did you turn him away like that?"

Erza turned around to face where Nic was before, and it took a long time. Her fists clenched and she shook. Finally, she turned around to face Vanessa, and the look made Vanessa's heart sink. Erza, one of the strongest mages ever known, the mightiest female in Fairy Tail, the one person that everyone admired…was downright scared. Her eyes showed fear…fear that could break her at any given moment, the fear that could leave you a living trash heap, the fear that keeps one from moving forward.

"I don't want Nic to get hurt. I don't want anything to happen to him." She confessed. "When he shined that light, when he was rendered powerless, I just couldn't take it anymore. I lost it. When he almost died by Lysandre's hand those few times, I was broken. If I lost him for good, I…I don't know what I would do." Her head turned downwards as she shuddered. "I know it was selfish of me, but I just couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't risk Nic getting hurt before my eyes again. He has such a heavy burden, and he has to protect us, even if it means…" She remembered back to when he lost his eye and right side. "I just want to protect him, like he has all this time."

Vanessa took a moment of silence, and then she grinned. "Erza, it's fine. I felt the same way you did."

"What?" Erza looked at Vanessa in shock.

"He protected me his whole life, and I couldn't take it anymore and I got a beat down, but did that change things? No, he still went ahead and protected me regardless." She looked at Erza with gentle eyes. "We get to make our choices, but Nic gets to make his own too, right? When he decided to go on a journey, I wanted him to stay so bad, to see him finally relax and learn what a real family should be like, but he made his own choice to leave, and I trusted him to care for himself."

Erza's eyes widened in realization. Vanessa was dead on, and her experience backed her up. She couldn't deny it. Ever since she bonded with Nic, she became more trusting of him, yet tried her best to protect him, but it was him who always protected her. She left Nic capable because of his Pokémon powers, but even without them, why should she leave him behind when he had Pokémon of his own? She was right, she was being selfish when she should've considered his family of Pokémon. Her pride was too much, and that overshadowed her trust.

Realizing this, Erza grinned. "You're right. I was such a fool. I was just thinking of Nic and not the hard work he's put into himself and his Pokémon. They could look after Nic just like he was with them." Her fists unclenched,

Vanessa smiled. "That a girl."

"But…" Erza frowned. "That still doesn't make up for what I did. Nic went missing, and so did Cana, Sophie, and Pavo. I'm still angry at myself for what I've done, and Nic has every right to be too."

Vanessa looked down at the ground. She did have a point, and she had to help Erza restore what she had broken. "Then, how about you apologize once he comes back?"

Erza looked away. "But I don't know if he'll be back."

"He'll be back." Vanessa sounded so confident. "This is Nic we're talking about, right? He'll come back."

Erza continued to look down at the ground. "Still, I don't think I can apologize."

"What do you mean?"

"I was never the best with apologies. I don't even know what to say if I ever saw him again. I might just end up making things worse between us." The redhead huffed.

"Don't beat yourself up anymore. Okay?" Vanessa turned her back to her. "Nic has faith in you, and vice versa." She looked over her shoulder. "You can work on an apology after we stop the Infinity Clock and get our friends back. For now, just have some faith that he and the others will be fine."

Erza smirked at the motivation Vanessa was, ironically. But she was right yet again. She'll apologize when this is all over, and if Nic ever turns up again. For now, she'll have to stay focus while hoping Nic will forgive her.

She and Vanessa both walked out of the clearing with guilt easing up for the redhead.

* * *

Lupus sniffed his way out to where the trees began to clear us, as were the blood red crystals that were around the area. Everyone followed behind, and Nic grew unsound by the recent revelation of Lysandre from before. Him revealed inside the Celestial Spirit World is a shock beyond comprehension.

Pavo was just as uneasy. He was in Hell for two years, while his companions stayed behind for an extra year. To have them waiting so long is basically unforgiveable, but to lose hope after so long would be even more unforgiveable.

Volans was following behind Lupus as the wolf was leading them out the forest. Trees became less in numbers, giving way the rugged black terrain. "We should be closer than before."

"Volans." Greninja asked behind him. "Just where exactly are we heading off to?"

"Somewhere that'll get us away from Canes for the time being." He stated bluntly. It was a short intermission before he started to speak up again. "No, Nic."

Nic turned to Volans. "Yes?"

"I was told that you have numerous battles against the monster. Is this true?"

"…yes, and the best I've managed so far was by wounding him enough to drive him off." He sounded regretful in retrospect that he was completely vulnerable. Without the Plates now, he would be open.

"I see." Volans sounded so stoic it was almost frightening, but Nic nor Greninja were fazed. "Again, I thank you for coming along. These three years have been bloody Hell."

"How did Lysandre know of this place to begin with? A better question is why he decided to attack this place to begin with?" Sophie wondered.

Cana walked with arms over her head. "Save those questions for the monster. For all we know, he wanted something to kick."

Pavo continued walking, but he was more than uneasy. His eyes widened when he heard some howling from the south. He turned around and gawked with fear. "Gah! Oh no! It's Canes, and I bet they're not alone!"

"What?" Nic inquired as they began to run.

They all began to make way in high sprints outwards and came to where the trees were no more. They were fully out of the forest and Were running on black ground.

"When they howl like that from before, it means their Alpha had given them an order." Lupus explained.

Sophie kept running. "Well I don't wanna find out who it is!"

Behind them, Canes was tailing them, and their distance was closing in fast. Their snarled and barks were escalating and they were tailing the group. Soon enough they were also out from the tree line, and everyone saw their images far behind.

Nic grunted as he glanced back. "They're persistent I'll give them that." He reached back. "Greninja, **Water Shuriken!**"

Greninja followed his command and threw several stars of compressed water behind him. The spinning stars gained speed as the distance closed and Canes saw the attack coming in. Immediately the dogs all jumped away and the Water Shuriken exploded as they hit the ground.

Corvus grunted and jumped. He flapped his arms and turned around in the air. "Try this again! **Daze Wing!**" He flapped his wings, sending a black wind after the dogs. The wind blew right past them, and the dogs all began to sniff the air and snarled at each other.

"Heh! Boy are they easy to fool." Corvus commented as he flew in the air.

Volans kept on running. "Maybe, but their noses are sharp. Something like that will only make them all the more relentless. Move faster!"

"Can't you see we're trying!" Cana hollered out. "You're yelling isn't helping!"

Everyone went on as the disoriented dogs sniffed about and growled. They were all discombobulated from Corvus's Black Wing Magic and they didn't seem like they were gonna be disoriented for much longer. Sooner or later, they all found a brief hiding spot where black rocks secluded them. Their stale smell should cover them; this time, Lupus can smell them incoming.

"So, anything?" Volans asked.

Lupus sniffed the air and looked down. "They're not here for now, but they're close."

"Then what are we waiting for? We have to hurry!" Pavo insisted.

Sophie seemed more than a little confused. "Hold on guys."

"What?" Corvus asked hurriedly. "We got so little time! What is it?"

Nic grew weary as he looked around. "Corvus, don't you remember what Pavo said?" The Crow tilted his head. "…I don't think they're alone."

Lupus's nose twitched as he caught a whiff of something – and it was coming in fast!

"Oh no." Lupus said as he stepped back. "Guys, their Alpha is closing in!" He turned towards the shocked faces. "Hurry, get mo-!"

"HARROOOO!" A blood red sonic-like howl blasted the rock shielding them to bits. Scattered rock remains flew and the group covered up so as not to get hit. They all stepped back and felt a foul odor polluting the dust-filled air.

As the dust began to settle, a snarling voice echoed. "So, the traitor and his new pack. You'd think you could escape with _me_ in the chase?"

Volans grunted and Lupus snarled and growled violently as the dust finally blew away. Greninja and Nic grew extra cautious as the figure wagged his tail ominously, with Canes behind him.

The figure was tall, dark brown, dog-like creature. It was hard to tell if he was a hyena or a super wolf, but regardless a dog. Hs sharp fangs were complimented by the blood red claw mark over his left eyelids that housed actual feral eyes with dark yellow pupils and feral slits. On his upper body, forearms, and whole lower body was armor. The wrists had black armbands, and the abdominal armor had blood red claw marks. His claws were black, much like Lupus, only they were much longer and sharper. His back plates had dark ridges that were part of the neck trimming. And black trimming was on the forearms too.

His teeth salivated. "Finally something we can sink our fangs into."

Cana reached for her cards. "So, that's their apparent Alpha?"

Lupus growled angrily some more at the other dog. "Yeah. He's even nastier than you think. The Alpha of Canes; Sirius – Gate of the Great Dog."

Sirius's claws embedded into the rock below, cutting through it like knives. "I must say, you left a great position open for me. Lysandre was very generous in having me become the new Alpha in exchange for slaughtering every soul not on his side." He looked down at Canes as the dogs all slowly crawled up towards their prey.

"I should thank you, but it'd be much more entertaining to kill you all! Do what you do best!"

Immediately Canes went in for the attack. They all snarled with open mouths as they individually pounced.

Nic swiped his arm. "Greninja, **Water Shuriken!**" Greninja crouched and swiped at the incoming dogs ahead, sending compressed stars of water at them. Water Shuriken exploded upon contact, making light blue explosions, and dogs with shredded fur flew backwards.

The other dogs pounced, and Pavo took a fighting stance. "Try this to sad little pooches! **Glory's Integrity!**" He did a 360 kick and his huge folded cape followed, swatting the dogs that went at him.

Cana were side-by-side; one holding up cards and one pointing a finger to her own head. "Ready?"

Sophie's eyes were set on her targets. "More than you can imagine!" The dogs darted for them, and Sophie made a quick chain of memories. "**Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**"

"**Thunderbolt's Fate!**" Cana held up her cards high and hundreds of small bolts electrocuted the incoming dogs while a few beams of darkness originating from mirrors made of ice blasted several others away.

Nic jumped, as did another dog. Both were in midair and the dog's savage look sure didn't back it up as Nic twisted in the air and axe kicked it on the head, sending it crashing into the diseased ground below. He landed and felt two more dogs rushing at 4 and 8. He did a handstand and back kicked their jaws, driving them onto their backs.

He twisted his body again and pounced back to his feet. "Greninja, **Bounce!**"

Greninja heed Nic's command and sprung into the air above. Nic found the Beta of Canes running after him, and that was the perfect opportunity. He rushed after the Beta and grabbed the paws, barely inches away from the snapping teeth in his face.

With the Beta incapacitated, Nic spiraled and threw the dog. As the dog as immobile, Greninja shot down like a meteor and stomped on the Beta's back while in midair, crashing the dog into the earth. The frog jumped again and landed by Nic's side. Both were seen back-to-back as they saw themselves surrounded.

"It's just like before." Greninja said.

"Then we'll have to hit them harder!" Nic lunged forward into the fray, as did Greninja.

Volans punched a dog, knocking him into other dogs. However he was caught off guard from behind when a dog sank his teeth into his leg.

"Lousy mutt!" Volans kicked the dog off of him, but with his back turned once more, another dog sank his fangs into his thick shoulder. He turned angrily towards the dog but found his left arm bit into next, which left him angered greatly.

"**Trench Shredder!**" With his patience low, the sharp, pointed ends of his elbows glowed a bright blue. The dogs close by all pouted as they were knocked away by Volans spinning his body fully around and dust was also sliced by his attack, like a Gallade using a Slash or Leaf Blade.

"**Dusk Shower!**" Corvus shot down several black feathers and the dogs all barked and pouted when they were hit. The crow huffed in relief as the smoke cleared, but was short-lived when a dog pounced up at him. His eyes bulged out and he screamed franticly as he raised his crow legs and the dog missed. "Why do dogs hunt crows?! Why?!"

As for Lupus, he growled at Sirius and vice versa. Both had their claws bared and their teeth show great friction.

"You savage mutt." Lupus cursed softly yet angrily. He ran on all fours at Sirius. "You're going down!"

Sirius charged again. "I doubt that since we use the same Magic!" Both of their legs met, coated in midnight blue and blood red, which was their Sonic and Dark Sonic Magic colliding. The area all around them shattered as the sonic waves rippled through the cracked ground.

Sirius gained the upper hand when he used his other leg and kicked Lupus's abdomen, the sonic kick moving and sounding faster than what the wolf could trace. He skidded to a stop at the end of a trail.

"You're forgetting that I'm the strongest of the pack. I can't be beat with your petty Magic." Sirius's taunting only agitated Lupus. The wolf ran up to bite into Sirius, but the dog raised an armored forearm and Lupus bit into that instead. Sirius grew a cocky smirk and Lupus let go.

The wolf drew a claw back, and it was coated in midnight blue. "**Sonic Slash!**" A midnight blue slash motion was made towards Sirius, but the armored dog swatted it away. A second passed and the dog smirked; that instant, the large rocks behind Sirius shattered, catered to the deflected Sonic Slash.

"Not too bad." Sirius commented. "Sonic Magic is fast, and has a faster sound wave acceleration than Sound Magic so those with that Magic won't hear it coming…but when you have Dark Sonic Magic like me, your Magic isn't just the loudest or swiftest!"

Lupus opened his mouth wide. "We'll see about that!" The inside of his mouth became a bright midnight blue. To match that, Sirius opened up his mouth, and blood red light shined from within.

"**Sonic Howl!**"

"**Dark Sonic Howl!**"

Midnight and blood red sound waves met in the middle, and around them the ground completely shattered and quaked violently from the sonic vibrations and waves rippling. The entire area was echoing in sonic shockwaves and the dogs and Nic's group covered up from the shockwaves. Soon enough dust spiraled and everyone was assessing the situation.

"GAHH!" Corvus screamed. "Just what kind of power is that?!"

Pavo grew weary. "This isn't good. We have to retreat again."

The dust began to settle, though the sound waves still filled the air. Lupus was seen on a knee while Sirius was standing without hesitation. It was clear who the advantage belonged to, and Sirius chuckled in amusement.

"You're even more persistent than that dumb pack I lead, but no matter, I do give credit where credit is due though." His claws glistened as he held them up. "End of the line, Lupus!"

Nic extended his arm out. "Greninja, **Water Shuriken!**"

"On it!" The Water and Dark-Type shot compressed stars of water that spun at the downward claws aimed for Lupus's face. The Water Shuriken made it in time and with swiftness and the claws were deflected to the ground mere feet to Lupus's left.

"What?" Sirius didn't have much time to think before Nic gave another command.

"Greninja, **Smokescreen!**" Greninja followed the order given and he gave cover for them by shooting out a thick cloud of black smoke yet again. The Smokescreen engulfed Canes and Sirius alike, and left Lupus to be assisted by Corvus and Sophie.

Corvus helped in getting Lupus away and turned towards him. "Are you okay?"

"He should be fine once we get somewhere far away!" Sophie assured. "He doesn't look too bad, but the last attack left him pretty banged up."

Lupus groaned as he was assisted by Sophie and Corvus on both of his sides. "Gnnngh. Damn mutt."

Nic turned around and swiped his arm. "Everyone make an escape! Hurry…" Nic's sensory caught something and his reflexes made him turn to see Sirius diving out of the smoke cloud after him. He looked pissed and had a blood red Dark Sonic Slash with his name on it.

Nic made an attempt to scoot back, but he began to lose traction on the ground and the claw was bound to reach him.

"NOOOO~!" Pavo lashed out fiercely and swift as possible, kicking Sirius as possible, but he was caught even as he was slashed maliciously across the chest. The blood red slash left an open gash and Pavo gagged as blood spilled from his abdomen.

Nic's eyes shot wide with horror, with Pavo saving his skin. Cana and Sophie both gaped and looked horrified as Pavo fell backwards.

"PAVO!" Nic shouted.

"Pavo!" Cana and Sophie screamed.

Greninja looked at the fallen peacock man and back at the dog, who had his breath taken from that sudden blow to the vulnerable midsection. Greninja angrily put his arms together. "You bastard!" He shot Dark Pulse with all his might and struck Sirius, engulfing him in a dark explosion.

Sirius was heard grunting as the explosion settled, but when it cleared, he was met with a punch to the gut by Nic, who had anger in his eyes. Following through, he punched Sirius back into the thick Smokescreen, and hearing other pouts made them realize he was knocked into a few members of Canes.

Nic looked back and knelt down to Pavo, who winced at his wound across his chest diagonally downwards. "Pavo! Pavo!" Nic called out. "The hell were you thinking?!"

Pavo coughed as winced as he struggled to stand. "I…I know…" His eyes showed no regret. "…but that's what friends *cough cough* do!"

Cana rushed on over and helped Nic in getting Pavo back to his feet. "Damn fool!" The brunette was holding back the small tears for her friend's condition. "You just have to play the fall guy!"

Nic growled and looked back. "Greninja, once more! **Smokescreen!**" The frog did as told and turned towards the Smokescreen behind him and thickened it some more. With that cover, he turned back ahead and retreated as fast as his legs could carry him. Volans hauled Lupus and Sophie with his muscles, Corvus could barely haul Cana, and Nic and Greninja moved as fast as they could while supporting their injured friend.

* * *

They were down a slope, hiding inside a concave rock to seclude them for a short while. With the close clear, Greninja traced back inside and looked at the wounded Pavo. Nic, Sophie, and Cana also gathered around to aid Pavo in whatever ways they could, which was very little.

"Oh man, that attack was way too serious." Cana said in worry.

"*cough cough* Don't be silly!" Pavo insisted. "I can still stand, I just to lie down for a bit."

Volans looked down with a still gaze. "I'm afraid we don't have a bit. Sirius and his pack will be on our tail again soon."

Nic grew a scowl. "This is getting redundant. At this rate, we can only run so much. It'll be an endless chase until Sirius and Canes catches us."

Greninja had his arms crossed. "If we could somehow get away faster, or find a method to reach Lysandre without foot or a way for them to hear or smell us, then we'll be less occupied with them."

Pavo winced as his gash was still hurting. Sophie looked down at her panting friend and grew worrisome. _'Come on. I gotta us my head…'_ Looking at Pavo again, she grew a small idea in a flash.

"I'm no Wendy, but I think this'll do the trick." She reached her arms out and closed her eyes. "If I remember Wendy's Healing Magic, and Juvia's Water Magic…" A small chain of memories encased her hands, and materializing around her hands was turquoise water. Her eyes opened. "Let's see what this can do. **Memory-Make: Seabed's Miracle.**"

She pressed her hands onto Pavo's gash, and when the water touched Pavo, a sharp sting made his eyes nearly bulge out. It felt awful at first, but then it felt like a puffy cloud was washing away the pain. His gash was slowly fixing itself and soon enough the wound was gone.

The water flashed away and Sophie put a hand on her head. "Nnngh. That left me with a little headache."

Pavo sat up and looked down at himself. "I'm okay?" His attention was directed towards Sophie. "You…Sophie!" A big smile got on Pavo and he happily hugged Sophie, much to the latter's discomfort because if her headache. "Thanks you for saving me! All of you!"

Sophie nervously smiled. "That's great Pavo, but can I have my space back now?"

Corvus cried waterfalls down his sides. "Sophie is our hero! The heavens have blessed us!"

Cana huffed. "Alright, save your praise until we all are in the clear. We're still being pursued you know."

"She's right. We're still not in the clear." Nic informed. "If we run into them again, it would mean we'll be cornered. Volans." Nic's attention went towards the stocky build fish man. "Do you know a route?"

Volans turned out towards the exit, looking at the dark purple sky. "There is a way."

Lupus turned towards Volans. "You mean _that_ route?...yeah, that might be the only way."

"What way are you guys talking about?" Sophie asked, her headache calming down.

Corvus stood up and walked towards Volans and Lupus. "With the entire realm in chaos and all, a large majority of it erupted with water, just like the trees back there. And with that…" He remembered what the little rebellion smuggled. "Means new ways across."

Pavo's eyes widened and he looked enthused. "Oh right! I forgot we had a ship made! It's been so long!"

"A ship?" Nic asked.

Volans nodded. "Yes. For us to get to Lysandre, we'll have to cross the sea made. The location Lysandre and the key are being by sea."

Cana grew intrigued. "Guess we're taking the party off land for awhile. Let's get moving!"

"Right!" Everyone followed Volans and Lupus, who made sure that the coast was clear before leaving their safe place. They all began their arduous trek, but Cana mistook it for an excursion and thought it'd be 2 miles away, not two hours.

The brunette was getting tired and she was ready to ask if they were close, but then she saw something up ahead. Sea. It looked a little filthy in terms of water, but if it was the sea, then their destination wasn't too far. "I think we're almost there!"

"Yes, we're closer than before…" Corvus trailed off when howling was heard far away, and he immediately stiffened. "H-HAAAAHHHH! NOT AGAIN!"

Lupus ran on all fours. "They're picking up on our trail again! We have to get there fast!"

Pavo ran with arms over his head in a wailing fashion, but he was seemingly slower from before and he was panting a little. It was evident that he still wasn't fully recovered from Sirius's attack. He was trailing behind everyone else, but was doing his best to keep up.

"Just a little farther now!" Pavo and everyone found themselves on the rocky shores, and Volans saw a humungous pile of rocks. Turning towards the rocks, he ran ahead in haste and everyone followed.

"Where is he going?" Sophie asked.

"I think he's leading us to where he hid the ship." Nic answered.

Volans came to a stop in front of the giant slab. "This is it." Everyone stopped behind him and watched him take in a deep breath. Once he exhaled, he slowly retracted one of his palms. With a swift yet soft palm strike, Volans struck the giant slab. He slowly stepped back and waited patiently for the aftershock.

It was a light rumble and everyone stepped back. The whole black slab began to piece apart, and it was like an entire layer fell off. A thin layer of rock crumbled away, revealing something hidden away inside.

Inside, there it was, a big ship. It wasn't beautiful by any means, and it looked like the ship Nic took during the journey for the clock pieces, but it looked like it was in good condition.

"A ship?...Inside a slab of rock?" Cana inquired.

"H-how did they even get it in there?" Sophie added.

"We can worry about that later. Right now, we have to get it into the water and away from Sirius and Canes!" Nic announced.

Volans took a step forward and faced the ship. He took a moment and clenched his fists tightly. He gathered some Magic Power and pressed his hands to the ground. "**Deep Geyser!**"

Underneath the ship, the rocky ground rumbled with such a magnitude. Everyone grew weary as they felt some pressure below. Nic and his group looked down to find the ground cracking up a little. A multitude of cracks emerged underneath the ship and then deep blue water spouted like a geyser that shot all around the ship. A massive geyser line sprouted closer and closer towards the sea until reaching it.

They all then saw that once the deep blue water cleared, and to their shock, Volans made a small slope. The ship creaked as it slowly tilted down the sloped, where it descended into the sea and floated atop.

"Impressive." Nic remarked.

Volans turned around. "Deep-Sea Magic. Unlike normal Water Magic, my Magic is a colder temperature, and is far more pressurized like the deep depths."

Corvus raised a fist high. "ALRIGHT! ON TOWARDS THAT KEY AND LYSANDRE!"

"ONWARDS, BRAVE FRIENDS!" Pavo cheered.

Everyone began to hurry up as the howling afar began to get louder. They all hurriedly reached the ship, but as Volans was advancing towards the ledge, he felt something off. He turned towards the sea, where he felt a very ominous Magic going around.

"…" All he did was stare. He was getting a bad feeling, and he was getting this overwhelming anticipation.

"Volans, something wrong?" Greninja looked down and asked.

The Spirit slowly turned away. "…no, we're going now." He spread his wings and he slowly ascended up to wards the ledge. As he was placing his feet onto the deck, his head, Nic's, and Greninja's all jerked towards the sea.

They saw sudden blasts of deep blue water bombs aimed at them. Everyone got down as fast as possible and Volans jerked out of the way while in midair. The water bombs continued their course and blasted the slab, making it crumble and collapse upon itself.

"Gh-gh-WHHAAATTT?!" Corvus screamed.

"That giant slab was blown to bits! What the hell was that?!" Pavo shouted.

Volans eyes were wide. "This Magic…no! It can't be!"

A deep blue water swirled in front, and then a geyser arose before everyone. They all gaped their mouths as they were blocked by something that sprung up and stood in the shallow water.

Out came a humanoid monster. To be accurate, he was seemingly reptilian. He had green scales all over his body, with light blue skin underneath the arms and abdominal region. Like Volans, his scaly elbows had protrusions that resembled long fins with a light blue membrane. He had scaly feet and hands, with razor-sharp claws. He had a super thick neck, bulky build like Volans, and the gills were there as well. His mouth was huge with sharp teeth, with a huge fork tongue. His eyes were yellow with feral black slits. His nose and hair was just like Volans; big and black. He had three green fins on his top with light blue membrane, the middle one being the longest. His green tail was long with black spikes, and had find on the end. His attire was deep blue pants and a tattered vest that was black and became blood red when going up.

The monster smirked maliciously as he saw the startled Volans's face. "Volans, quite some time, has it not?"

Volans's eyes dilated. "…Cetus."

Cetus's smile widened and showed all of his teeth. "Think you can still fight the power?"

Cana grew weary. "Okay, just what are we dealing with now?"

Volans's eyes dilated when he looked at Cetus's, whom was excited and brimming with power, dark power. The two had a long stare, and the two were slowly giving off a great pressure.

Lupus stared outwards, seeing the vile energy and the stern look on Volans. "That…is Cetus – Gate of the Sea Monster." His eyes narrowed. "Trust me, I can't say anymore."

"What? What do you mean?" Sophie questioned.

"Have Volans explain when we make it out of this! We gotta move!" Lupus heard the howling and turned around. They all began to grow restless as the howling and barking grew louder. Atop of the slope high above, Sirius and Canes stood, scoffing down at their prey.

"GWWAAAHHHH! We only have a few minutes!" Corvus and Pavo screamed in frightening unison.

Volans flapped in the air and glowered down at Cetus. "Should've known you'd be here. What do you want?"

Cetus held up a hand, which materialized deep blue water. "Isn't it obvious? Since Sirius led you here…" He brought his ram back and punched forward, sending a stream of deep blue water at Volans. "I get to have some fun old man!"

Volans's elbow protrusions glowed and he swiped, the attack went straight through the stream down the middle and the two streams digressed onto the shore, making the ground burst.

The Spirit slowly descended onto the ground, folding up his wings. "Holding back against an enemy?" Volans taunted with hatred. "I have the right to label you as a coward!" His fist reeled back and was coated in deep blue. He punched forward and sent a stream at Cetus. The enemy Spirit covered up and took the attack. He swiped his arms and appeared unscathed.

"Look who's talking. C'mon, I barely felt that one!" Cetus sprung out of the water with great speed and his elbow fins spread out and shined dark blue. "You're the real coward!"

Volans brought his hands together and grabbed the fin blade with great timing. He restrained him for only a few moments before Cetus jerked back and swatted his mighty tail, striking Volans on his side. The Spirit regained footing and threw a right hook that Cetus blocked. Yet Volans didn't ley up as his left elbow protrusion glowed and slashed as before, making Cetus skid a few feet back.

When Cetus uncovered, he looked amused. "Hardly felt that." He heard Volans grunt, and the monster had a palm with deep blue water in front. "Face it! I'm stronger!"

Volans brought his palm around and he had deep blue water in front. "**Abyss…**"

"…**Palm!**" Cetus and Volans made contact square into the other's palm, and simultaneous eruptions of pressurized water erupted in between them both. Everyone aboard covered up as shards of water passed them.

The two were seen far away. Volans was seen on a knee while Cetus was seen knocked back into the water. Both looked unscathed, and their menacing glances were more than just scary.

"Come on, we both use the same Magic. I know your tricks inside and out! Every technique!" Cetus's eyes narrowed, and Volans's fists clenched. "After all-!"

"**Summoned Lightning!**"

The voice belonged to Cana and Volans looked with shock as green bolts of lightning infiltrated the water and electrocuted Cetus. The enemy Spirit screamed as strong electricity shot through him. Once the electricity stopped, Cetus grunted and shook himself.

"**Dark Pulse!**"

A Dark Pulse went shooting at Cetus, who recovered in time and clasped his palms together, making a geyser of deep blue water shoot in front and intercept Dark Pulse.

"Miss Cana! Greninja!" Volans shouted.

"Volans, we can't stay any longer! We have to go!" Corvus shouted. "**Daze Wing!**"

Cana swiped her cards again. "Let's a little **Thunderbolt's Fate!**" She sent bolts of lightning that combined with the black winds Corvus had shot. Black wind and yellow lightning blasted and engulfed Cetus, who wasn't at all budged, but was left annoyed.

"What the?!" The winds settled for him, and he found himself twitching slightly. That hazardous wind made him see blurry images and he was stiff in all the wrong times.

"Volans, we have him stunned! Hurry up!" Nic exclaimed.

Though heavily reluctant, Volans knew better. This was a terrible time to fight. Fighting Cetus anymore would be an exhaustion of energy and time. This was very important, but the matter with Cetus would have to be solved another time. With fists clenched hard and nearly shaking, Volans growled viciously and spread his wings.

"Very well. We'll settle this when the time is right." Volans flapped his wings and ascended up to the deck. With Volans aboard, Corvus pulled down the rope and the vermilion sail stretched. The group thus began to feel the ship move slightly outwards.

Cetus couldn't see, but he felt their Magic going off in a direction. "I knew it! I knew you were a coward! Running away from greater power than embracing it is what a weakling would do!" He shouted, unable to chase due to being exceedingly stiff.

Volans looked back at him. "Call it what you want. I'm not willing to pick unnecessary fights when there are bigger fights ahead. Patience and wisdom is something you clearly lack…Cetus."

Sirius and Canes all made it to the shore, but they stopped in their tracks. They all barked violently and snapped their jaws as the ship was already out at sea. The dogs all growled low and Lupus looked back and snarled, to which Sirius snarled back in a cocky manner.

Volans and Lupus both turned their backs and faced forward, their eyes closed and each seemingly filled with something they knew from before – regret. It was a bitter feeling, but it couldn't be helped.

"Volans?" Pavo sounded concerned, but he turned back ahead and Volans opened his eyes.

"We're fine. Let's set sail!" Volans walked with haste and grabbed the steering wheel. With his hands on it, he steered the ship forwards towards the dark seas ahead.

Nic and Greninja both looked at each other. "Greninja…"

Greninja nodded. "Yeah, I agree. When the heat dies down and we collect ourselves." He looked on over to Pavo resting against a barrel, his dress shirt torn from Sirius's attack; Lupus's ears down and his tail not waging; Volans looking ahead rather than seeing the land shrinking in the distance.

Cana sat down at ease right next to Sophie. The two girls looked up to the mast, where they saw Corvus peeping out at the top over the vast distance. "Cana?"

"Yeah Sophie?"

"Just what did we get ourselves into?"

A long silence fell before Cana answered. She looked up at the dark skies above. It all happened with Nic's nemesis. She looked at Nic, who was sitting right beside Greninja with his earbuds in his ears. She then looked at her knees.

"A huge mess that we'll clean up, no matter what."

The foul winds filled the air as the ship sailed with a straight course north.

* * *

**How was the first chapter of the Celestial Siege Arc? Startling? Entertaining? The sheer friction between Volans and Cetus will be answered. Bet the craziness back on Earth Land with Erza was startling as well. Again, this is following the same timeline as the Keys to the Starry Sky Arc, so the end of the anime arc will be like the end of the Celestial Siege Arc, though time is slightly altered a bit, though not much.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter is you are loving it!**

* * *

**Next Time: Dark Waters**


	63. Dark Waters

Chapter 63 – Dark Waters

**Hi guys! I'm still trying to update once a week since I alternate back to **_**EDventures in Kalos**_** and then here, with **_**One's Road to Remembrance**_** partially at night. After this update, expect another one next weekend at the very least.**

**Guest: The GMG Arc will be the final arc of the story, that's how I intend it. And then the sequel will come around, but I won't do the Eclipse Arc; instead I chose an alternative with this arc.**

**Here's the second chapter of the Celestial Siege Arc! Enjoy!**

**To Recap:**

Nic and his group began their pursuit towards Lysandre, but as they traveled, they were relentlessly pursued by Canes – Gate of the Hunting Dogs. After escape, Lupus revealed that he was once the alpha, but quit due to Lysandre's cruelty. Back on Earth Land, Erza and Vanessa talked, and Erza revealed that she just wanted to protect Nic and not see him get hurt. Vanessa respected that, but pointed out that Nic could make his own decisions, leaving Erza to think of an apology as they get to the Infinity Clock. Meanwhile, Nic and his group is ambushed once more by Canes, and briefly confront their new alpha, Sirius – Gate of the Great Dog. They escape again, but not without Pavo getting injured saving Nic. After recovery, they made way to the sea, where Volans unveiled a hidden ship. They were met with Cetus – Gate of the Sea Monster briefly, much to Volans's reluctance, and they got away and sailed off to sea.

* * *

**Chapter 63 – Dark Waters**

In the slow moving waters of the Celestial World. The ship was steered by Volans and his eyes were set only at the never-ending waters ahead. An indefinite time had passed on; it felt like forever, but it was only a few hours.

With the time to recover, Nic and everyone else got some rest and had some food the ship's cargo had held. Some meat and a few rations, nothing spoiled, but enough to sustain themselves for a small period of time.

Pavo bit down and chewed off a small piece of meat off of a bone, and the smile he had was quite contradictory to the grim view the crew had.

"My, someone's got an appetite." Cana remarked as she sat in a chair on the deck, opposite of Pavo. "And it seems you recovered well."

Pavo swallowed and huffed. "Ahh. Ah, Cana. Yeah, I feel much better now! That was a nice nap!"

Corvus bit into a piece of meat he had in hand and turned towards them. "Mm, we haven't slept like that in awhile. We could hardly sleep, but now we're at sea, we have less worry." He noted with a stuffed face.

Sophie put her arms behind her head and leaned back. "Well let's be glad we've been safe for a short time at least." Her attention turned towards Volans. "What's our trajectory?"

"Still north." Volans rotated the steering wheel just a little.

Lupus looked more relaxed as he laid down like a dog. "Oh be easy you guys, if anything would come up you'd know I would hear it. We're clear."

Pavo and Corvus happily arose from their seats with huge smiles on their faces. Mugs were raised high to commend a celebration.

"And we're on our way fellas!" Corvus shouted happily.

"In the name of comradery, we stand tall!" Pavo declared.

Pavo, Corvus, even Lupus was cheering. After so long of running, they got a short break out at sea. Their spirits seemed up, and Cana and Sophie both had elbows on the small circular table they shared.

"Reminds you of a specific bunch?" Sophie chuckled at how their party manner was similar to Fairy Tail, save the destruction that revolves around the guild.

Cana sighed with a smile. "Yeah you can say that again." As they all were busy laughing and amusing themselves, the Card Mage noticed that Nic was elsewhere. Her body propped up from the table and she turned towards the end of the deck, where Nic looked out with earbuds in his ears. And of course Greninja was right by his side.

Cana was aware that Nic wasn't the full-scale party kind of guy, but she could tell that Nic was acting up. She knew the reason must have been Erza. She got up from her chair and walked across the deck towards Nic.

Nic was looking out at the sea, some level of agitation brewing. So many thoughts ran through him as the heavy metal filled his ears. The metal was working out the filtering for him, but still, he seemed upset, though you couldn't tell with his sunglasses on his face rather than the V-neck.

'…_Lysandre invading, the Infinity Clock back on Earth Land, and…Er-"_

He felt a sudden tap on his shoulder and was brought out of his discomforted contemplation. He and Greninja both turned around and saw Cana standing there.

"Cana." Nic pulled his earbuds out and stashed them away.

"Still not the party goer I see." She amused. "You know it wouldn't hurt to loosen up a bit. Pavo and everyone seem content. Why not have another piece of meat?"

"I'm okay, really." He turned back ahead, Greninja doing the same. "I'm not very hungry."

Sophie walked up to Cana's side and both looked at each other in discomfort. They knew he was lying, they were smarter than that. Even without those sunglasses on his face, they could see that he was still brimming with uncertainty. Their eyes cascaded towards Greninja, who stayed silent; knowing the ninja frog, he must know the exact reason, and knew that only a certain someone could fix it.

Sophie cleared her throat. "So, how are you and…?" Leading on, she saw Nic's ear twitch and he looked like he was gonna reach for his earbuds to drown them all out.

Cana quickly caught Nic's discomfort. "You know you can't hide from it. Greninja knows that too."

"And you know that this matter is Nic's." Greninja rebuffed.

Nic crossed his arms instead and his coat flapped gently as the chilly, foul breeze passed by. He didn't seem happy in the slightest, and all he did was mutter one simple word that everyone got. "…Erza."

"I knew it. You're still upset that she didn't let you help. Is that it?" Sophie asked. "Please, try and understand."

"Understand what? That she actually doubted me, or she tried to subdue me through violence?" His tone was thick, filled with hostility. Lupus's hearing caught on and he stopped celebrating. Thus a chain of reactions occurred, and the party stopped. Pavo and Corvus grew quiet as they heard Nic's distasteful tone.

His fists clenched tightly on the ledge. "I don't know what is going on anymore. The Infinity Clock and this situation are two things, but with my powers on reboot, that left Erza to have the right to keep me from helping? I guess I feel…betrayed."

Everyone's faces saddened.

"We were looking happy, satisfied, and then Nirvana happened, and Jellal. Things were starting to pick back up again in Kalos, I was able to trust her…then this happened." Intensity was all around him. "It's like the tides turned; I pushed her away and now, she pushed me away." Unlike Erza, but also after talking to Greninja awhile back, he was more open about the situation than Erza, and since it was with Cana and Sophie, he could make an exception.

Sophie looked down at Nic's feet. "No one's to blame Nic. We're all worried about your well-being."

Cana crossed her arms. "She just took it more personally. She cares deeply about you, you know that."

"I know, but-" He was cut off by Greninja.

"I don't have a place to say in this, but I stand to believe that despite what happened, you have every right to be upset, but don't be mad because she wants you safe. She's having just as hard as a time with this as you do. The universe isn't holding up and pressure is all on you."

Nic huffed as he had his arms on the ledge and rested his head. He rotated his head a little and looked away. A short silence went by before he spoke.

"…you're right. I guess…I guess she's worried about me as I am about her. She's just trying to protect me."

"So, are you still mad at her?" Pavo asked.

Nic stood straight up and looked back at everyone. He took off his sunglasses and put them on his V-neck. He shook his head. "No, I guess not…at least, for now."

They could tell he was just as confused and questionable as the others. Even he didn't know how to answer it. They all considered that he had resentment still tucked away, and Sophie looked away.

"I know that feeling." She started. Everyone turned towards her as she sat down on a barrel. "I get the position you're in Nic." A sad smile crept onto her face when she pictured her mother and father, both mature faces turning away. "I was completely lost when my parents got divorced. I was beginning to question why they separated in the first place? I was feeling a lot of things; I was sad; I was angry; and I felt heartbroken." She looked up at the dark sky as a sickening breeze shifted her long, blonde hair.

"Was their love real? In truth…it wasn't. Love is deep; something that keeps people together forever. The only reason my parents got back together was because they couldn't be apart, but I knew the real reason was all finances." She turned towards Nic. "But what you and Erza have, is something my parents never had felt. I see it in those eyes, you want to be with her. You want to know if she truly loves you back."

Sophie's words hit it home. The first time he felt open was to Greninja, and now it was Sophie because she had common ground. Nic did love Erza, just like he does with all of his Pokémon; in truth, he needs all six, his sister, and Erza. With Vanessa included, but Nic had faith in her from the day he left home, faith that would be unmatched. That level of faith went to his Pokémon, and if he's to have faith in Erza, he'll have to have faith that she can trust him again.

Nic softly smiled. "Thanks Sophie."

Sophie smiled wide. "Well I did promise that I'd help you see that you get together, right? To see for myself the kind of true and devoted couple my family never was."

Pavo streamed tears as he spun in place. "OH, HOORAY!" His spinning escalated to one foot. "To see love and friendship in our darkest days! A light that will always shine!"

Corvus sniffled. "That was beautiful."

Cana smirked as she put her hands on their shoulders. "Alright you big softies, we'll reassure loverboy's reality once we finish up our business in this world." She looked ahead. "We still got a job to do."

Greninja nodded. "Apologies and reconcile will be for later. Onwards towards freedom!"

"YEAH!" Everyone boisterously cheered in agreement with Greninja and they pressed on with their route. The only one who remained silent was Volans, who only half-grinned at their cheerful demeanor. He found it contagious actually. He briefly smiled, but lost it after almost two seconds.

A chilly wind blew past him, and an image of Cetus from before they left flashed in his eyes. His grip tightened at the prospect of what Nic felt before he was just cheered up. Keeping a steady eyesight, he pressed onwards.

Behind them, some ways away, a long back fin arced out of the water and crept back into the sea.

* * *

Lupus was up on the mast, being a lookout while everyone else was remaining idle on the deck. Nic had his heavy metal at a low volume as he was sleeping soundly. Pavo and everyone felt relieved now that Nic was getting more sleep after his worries were lifted of Erza. They knew when he will get home, he'll make things right with her, but it wasn't in their place to say or think for him. Whatever will happen, they'll help him.

Behind Nic was Greninja. The two were sleeping back to back and getting some rest. Being the most fit of everyone, they exert more energy. They and the other Pokémon get plenty of sleep after being tuckered out by training.

"How does Nic sleep listening to metal?" Sophie asked.

Cana crossed her arms. "Beats me. Guess he has hardcore dreams."

Lupus howled high into the sky, and Nic and Greninja both woke up. Nic immediately pulled the earbuds out of his ears and stood up. With everybody up, Lupus dropped down from the mast and onto the deck, where he turned towards the bow.

"We're approaching the Red Sea." He said. "Everyone be careful."

Pavo paled. "Gyah! Y-you mean _that_ sea?!"

Volans nodded. "Yes, and we're about to hit its waters." He pointed ahead. "Look out ahead and you'll see what I mean."

Everyone turned their heads towards the bow, looking out at the water they were sailing on, only for it to slowly fade to a blood red as they sailed on in. It was the most disturbing sea they've ever seen. The water they passed by was a dark blue, then it began to slowly erode into red as they kept their course.

"The Red Sea? You weren't kidding." Cana said. As she looked deeper into the water, a chill crawled all over her spine.

Sophie looked back at Pavo and the others. "So this is why it was called the Red Sea?" Immediately she regretted asking as the Celestial Spirits looked as though they were gonna throw up. Corvus paled and shivered, as Pavo tried to provide friction on the arms and keeping warm. Lupus's tail sat on the deck and Volans growled mournfully.

"Sophie…" Nic quietly said, looking at the dark waters they were floating. "I don't think it's just water…"

Sophie looked down at the Red Sea again and was starting to get the idea. When she realized it, her eyes widened and she covered her mouth in horror.

"It's also blood." Greninja concluded.

Pavo crossed his arms and swallowed. "Yes, I'm afraid that you are right. It was all Lysandre's doing."

Lupus stepped right by his side. "This part of the sea was originally named the Starry Sea, or Sea of the Stars. The water would glisten with beautiful neon stardust particles in the depths." His head lowered. "And then Lysandre began the genocide, and the Spirits living in these waters…"

"That's enough Lupus, we'll be slowed down." Volans stated sternly, but everyone could hear the quickened pace of his voice. Apparently he was just as appalled as everyone else. "If we hurry on our course, we can make it out of this sector in a few hours."

They all nodded in understanding and all got away from the bow and gunwale.

As the ship sailed, behind it was a long back fin that slowly arced back into the bloody water, and a green tailfin followed.

A half hour rolled by, and nothing seemed off. Cana was staring out at the Red Sea ahead, and she was caught staring off by Pavo.

"Why so glum, chum?" He asked with crossed arms. "Is it the sea?"

Cana looked down. "No…it's just." She turned back towards Pavo, discomfort in her eyes. "Before we came here, we had S-Class Trials for my guild."

"S-Class? Sounds hard."

"Yeah, and while we were passing the first part I didn't get along well with one of Lucy's Spirits." She remembered Aquarius from before and the remembrance of the mermaid made her grow a visible tick mark that made Pavo uneasy. "She was a real pushover, and a devil of a sea beast."

"Uhh…"

Cana crossed her arms and looked away, a pout across her face. "I still can't believe that I'm sticking my neck out for her. She better owe me."

Pavo raised a brow, confused as to what Cana was implying. He just stared at her, that was all he could do. Seeing the pout and distaste on her face…made him laugh out loud. His mouth was big and his laugh was boisterous and hectic, which was what caused Cana to nearly fall over.

"Why are you laughing?" She shouted in offense.

Pavo wiped the tear from his eyes and smiled at Cana, calming down the laughter he had buildup. "Nothing." He said in between his chuckle. "It's just…I never seen you so worked up over a Spirit!" He nearly fell over as he went back to laughing, his leg kicking the air. "You might get along in the end. Who knows!"

"Eh…" Cana was just left white as Pavo was left to calm his laughter. She was more than confused, but when she tried to think it through, I guess it was silly. From her last encounter with Aquarius, they seemed alike, yet nasty. In a way, it was ridiculous for Cana to be devilish to her when she's been all battered and chained for these years.

Feeling kind of bad about it wasn't making it any better, but a chuckle did escape as she considered the irony. "Guess pity shouldn't be brought on. She'll be fine once we free her and the other Zodiacs."

Underneath the ship, the red water was dark and deep, and underneath the boat something very long swam steadily.

"Hm?" Greninja turned his head, his blank eyes turning focused again as he felt something off. Following behind was Nic, who sensed something strange as he felt something below. The two remained absolutely still, and what they felt was like an instant shut down on fun time.

Everyone on board felt a bizarre feeling from right underneath their feet. It was severely discomforting, but the feeling drifted outwards. Still, what they felt was something to be aware of.

"Rocks?" Corvus wondered.

Pavo took up a weary dancer's stance. "It's too deep for there to be any rocks." His eyes shifted left and right, and they narrowed. "Boys, I think we got company."

Volans pointed ahead. "Off starboard!"

The crew ran towards the right side of the boat, where they looked out to see something. A large, scaly back fin that arced with the long body, barely prodding over the water. Nic climbed the mast fast while Greninja jumped up to the top without hardly any trouble. The two reached the top of the mast, where they got a greater view of something long swimming into the dark red waters.

"Did you see that?" Greninja asked.

Nic's eyes sharpened. "Yeah, it's very long…" They narrowed. "And it spells trouble."

"What was that?" Sophie questioned. "Was that…?"

Corvus paled and squealed. "YEEEEK! Oh no! It's…_her_!"

Lupus and Pavo tuned towards Corvus with shock. They looked startled to say the least. They were not prepared for something like this. They had little time to consider any action before they felt a slight bump under the ship. It was so big that the whole ship rocked back and forth, throwing everyone off balance.

The boat rocking was leaving everyone startled, as they didn't see where it would be. Sophie turned her body and her eyes widened at she pointed right behind them, on the left side of the boat. "Guys-!"

A giant splash erupted and a green tailfin arose from the red water. They all turned around and looked severely surprised as the tail splashed back into the water, but the red mist created from the giant splash let out a shrill cry.

The mist cleared out, showing a long and tall green serpent. Its whole body was green, and the backside of it had tattered light green membrane for the long fins they saw before. It had fins on either side of its face, and dark whiskers, similar to a Gyarados. It had a large mouth, but no visible teeth; instead having sharp green protrusions jutting outwards. The lower jaw had a shorter fin on either side, and the head, which was connected to the whole slithery and slimy body, had a large fin atop. What disturbed them was that as it screeched out, its dull yellow eyes showed no mercy.

Nic looked startled as the ship was slowly rocking back and forth from the small waves the sea serpent gave off. "What…what the hell…?"

Volans stepped forward with an intimidating glare. He swiped his arm as the serpent hollered out to them and slowly advanced towards them, slowly opening its mouth.

"Is that the 'she' you guys were panicking about?!" Cana exclaimed with a deep shiver up her spine.

"It's Hydrus – Gate of the Sea Serpent!" Corvus shouted.

Nic looked down at the crew. "Everyone look alive!"

Hydrus began her assault on them. She opened her mouth and lunged at the deck. Everyone below jumped out of the way to avoid her unkempt mouth that chomped down. She slowly retracted and sneered loudly at the crew.

"Greninja, **Water Shuriken!**" Nic shouted. Greninja made several compressed stars of water with perfect balance atop the mast and shot them at Hydrus. The attack shredded into her face, causing small blue explosions that made her shrill and jerk backwards.

Hydrus looked up to see where the attack came from, only she was met with another Water Shuriken exploding in her face, causing her to open her mouth wide and cry out in annoyance.

Nic looked back down at the crew. "We'll divert her attention! You guys try and find a weak point!"

"Right!" Everyone below immediately rushed ahead towards the side of the ship, while Hydrus screeched at Nic and Greninja, only to get hit by yet another Water Shuriken, this one exploding right on her slimy chin, making her cry in agitation.

Cana flashed her card. "How about a little electricity for ya! **Summoned Lightning!**" Cana shot three cards at the sea serpent, which turned into green lightning bolts. The bolts closed in, but Hydrus jerked her huge, long body left, watching the bolts miss.

"So she's fast too." Cana cursed under her breath.

"**Sonic Howl!**" Lupus opened his mouth and glowed midnight blue, shooting out midnight blue soundwaves at Hydrus, making direct contact and shoving her back only a few feet, but as Lupus kept up the Sonic Howl, Hydrus only sneered and growled in agitation, meaning she wasn't wearing down in the slightest.

"Try this!" Pavo leaped up at Hydrus with determination. He brought a leg back as he closed the distance to her. With his cape spread open and elbow wings out, his jump escalated to where he was right above her.

"**Descending Peck Memoir!**" He had a foot pointed down at Hydrus and shot down like a rocket. Hydrus screeched as he fell and her long tail and tailfin rose up from down below. Hydrus cried out viciously as she slammed her tail into Pavo, breaking through his assault and smacking him hard into the lower mast pillar.

Volans grunted. "Our attacks aren't affecting her. She's strong."

Hydrus cried down at them and snapped her jaws at them again. Everyone jumped out of the way to avoid getting bit or eaten by her, and they all scrambled about as the boat rocked back and forth from the waves created from Hydrus's weight. Her tail waved wildly as she shrilled more cries as they saw how disoriented they were. As Sophie was closest, she brought her tail down onto her.

Sophie pointed a finger at her forehead and managed to conduct a chain of memories, despite the rocking boat messing up her concentration. "**Memory-Make: Bryon Lightning Impact!**" She unleashed a light green beam engulfed in lightning at the incoming tail. The attack crashed against the tail, making an electrifying explosion up close and everyone covered up and looked away as electricity flourished briefly.

Hydrus shrilled a violent cry as her tail was repulsed. She wailed and screeched violently and turned back towards the ship, only to be met by another spell by Sophie.

"Take this you sick sea-dweller! **Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**" The blonde shot dark beams from ice mirrors that formed all around her at the giant serpent before her. The attack was evaded when Hydrus dodged backwards and screeched down at Sophie.

Corvus spread his legs apart and brought his arms and wings back. "**Daze Wing!**" He flapped his wings and unleashed a black wind at the giant monster. The attack engulfed the serpent, and she screeched in bitter annoyance. The sea creature cried out at them again before she plunged back into the red waters, creating a big splash.

Cana and everyone else hurried over towards the ledge while Nic and Greninja kept an overhead view of the area for any sign of her. The two knew that she wasn't gonna be taking this lightly. Wherever she was, she was waiting for them to drop their guard.

"Where do you think she went?" Pavo asked, disregarding the bump on his head.

"I doubt she would've ran away." Volans stated. "Hydrus never lets her prey get away, not without a fight that is…"

Behind them, in Nic and Greninja's view, they saw a giant tailfin slowly rise out of the water. "Guys, on starboard!" Nic's shout made them turn around, where they saw the massive tail slam down onto the deck. The board cracked and everyone flew in various directions, hitting either the cabin wall or another part of the deck.

On port, a giant splash erupted, and Hydrus arose from below once again, looking madder than ever. Her mouth was open and she lunged out at Volans, who was already on a knee from the sudden attack from before.

Volans spread his wings and took flight into the sky, dodging Hydrus's jaws. He looked down at her as she retracted back, and he grunted. "She's as crafty as she is strong."

"Nic, let's go!" Greninja insisted.

Nic nodded. "Right! **Bounce!**"

Down below, Hydrus eyed everyone as the boat rocked back and forth. As they all wobbled back to their feet, Hydrus closed in on Pavo. The peacock man looked scared as Hydrus's mouth opened and she rushed at him.

From above, Nic and Greninja fell down onto Hydrus's head when she lunged for Pavo, hitting her square in the head. Bounce's force was so strong that it smacked her right into the deck, and Nic fell down at that same time with an axe kick that hurt just as much.

Everyone looked on as Hydrus was enveloped in yellow sparks all over her body, meaning that Bounce's paralysis effect kicked in. Greninja and Nic were momentarily relieved, but it didn't last that long when Hydrus's eyes opened back up.

To everyone's horror, Hydrus retracted and cried out, flailing as Nic and Greninja were holding on for dear life in her head fin.

"Nic! Greninja! Hang on, and don't let go!" Lupus shouted. The crew watched as Hydrus started up waves and swayed violently all around with Nic and Greninja on her head. She raised her head high and violently nodded, hoping to lose them.

Nic turned towards Greninja as both were trying to keep a good grip. "Greninja, **Dark Pulse!**"

Hydrus continued to fling her head all around, and to her fortune Greninja let go and jumped onto the net that led to the mast, but then was caught getting hit near the neck line by a jumbled dark ring band with purple outlines. The attack created a dark explosion, and Hydrus wailed in pain.

Nic held onto her head fin as tightly as he could. "Try…this!" Yanking her head fin, he steered her into the side of the ship, making her hit the side of her head. She retracted and shook her head after the bump, but Nic steered her with full force again and bashed her right into the ship.

Hydrus screeched in annoyance and pain, and then yellow sparks engulfed her body, making her twitch again. With the opportunity at hand, Nic steered her head fin forward and smacked her right into the side of the ship once more, making the ship sway all about.

"Nic! You fool! Hang on!" Sophie shouted.

Exasperating, Hydrus angrily screeched out and she turned her body back into the bloody sea, hauling Nic right in as well. Both plunged right into the Red Sea.

"NIC!" Cana and everyone rushed on over towards the gunwale, where their eyes were wide and looked with worry as they didn't see air bubbles rising to the surface. "Nic!"

"Oh no!" Pavo screamed. "What are we gonna do?! Without his powers, Nic can't fight underwater!"

Greninja clenched his fists. "Nic's too stubborn to be defeated like this. Don't underestimate him…besides, he can hold his breath for a long time."

* * *

In the dark red depths, Hydrus screeched and swayed her head as her extremely long, green body swam right underneath the ship. The bloody water was cold and stinging to Nic's skin, and he couldn't describe this horrible feeling as he was clinging and holding his breath through the red darkness.

He gritted his teeth in frustration. _'Damnit. All I can do is hold on. I can't last that long down here!' _He jerked with his brutal strength and steered Hydrus all around in the red water. The sea serpent grew agitated with all the steering Nic was doing and violently swayed her head in all directions, hoping to shake him off.

It wasn't working as his grip was tough, but she knew that all she had to do was stay underwater. She knew species like Nic was incapable of breathing, so at some point he'll have to let go, and that's when she'll go in for the kill.

Nic was clinging on as Hydrus serpentine through the water probably thirty feet below the ship. His grip was loosening as time accumulated. He wasn't sure how long he was doing this for, but it was well over a minute now and his head was beginning to feel light.

He had no choice. He had to take a gamble. He finally let go and Hydrus swam on ahead. He felt motionless and suspended, as though he was in space…only he wasn't. He had to be sure this would work, if not, then more oxygen will be lost.

Hydrus turned around and sneered at Nic. Her eyes saw the ferocity of a warrior, and she disliked it. She cried out as her jutted mouth opened up and she swam at Nic, and Nic braced himself as her mouth opened and he saw her gums and green protrusions of teeth close in, and then everything went dark.

* * *

"That's it, I'm going down there!" Volans protested.

"Are you serious, Volans?!" Corvus exclaimed. "Your gills can't take in that kind of blood! You'll suffocate!"

Volans angrily turned towards Corvus. "And lose one of our kin?! I refuse to take those chances!" He flapped his wings and looked down at the red water, and took in a deep breath. Afterwards, he began to dive downwards into the bloody water, but when he got halfway, a giant splash erupted on starboard.

Stopping his descent, Volans and everyone turned around to find Hydrus flailing with anger. Everyone ran to the other side of the ship while Volans circled around. "Nic!" Everyone reached the ledge and Volans circled fully to see something holding the mouth of the serpent open.

It was Nic. Drenched and covered in bloody water, he had his feet and hands on the roof and bottom of the mouth, his raw strength keeping the mouth open wide and Hydrus flailed in agitation. She tried snapping her jaws to crush Nic, but the man was using his strong arms and legs to keep the jaws apart.

"Nic's still hanging on!" Sophie exclaimed.

Mentally, Nic was relieved that his plan worked. He got the timing right and kept the jaws open, making Hydrus flail violently and led him above water. With the plan accomplished, he was able to take in oxygen again.

Hydrus grew tired of Nic. Seeing as how things weren't gonna work well with him, she chose to rid of him. She opened her mouth some, loosening up her assault on Nic, and swung her head at the ship. Nic lost his grip and shot back to the ship, falling back onto the deck.

Greninja jumped and caught him before he could hit the deck. Landing on a knee with Nic, he was only relieved a small bit before a giant projectile went slamming down onto them. Greninja tapped the deck and backed away when Hydrus slammed her tail down, cracking the area where they once were.

When Greninja landed, Nic coughed up a little water and panted. Cana rushed on over and looked surprised yet relieved at the same time. "The hell was that for?! Did Natsu rub off on ya or what?!"

"Nic, are you alright?" Pavo asked.

Nic sat back up and got to his feet, still aware of Hydrus still in pursuit. Wiping the bloody water from his mouth, he half-grinned. "I'm fine. But because of that…I was able to find her weakness."

Volans descended and folded up his wings. "Her weakness?"

Hydrus screeched out at them and lunged past them, which was what surprised them. They didn't get it until she dove into the water on the other side of the ship, and them arose back up on port.

Greninja got the idea. "She's constricting the boat! She's trying to break it apart!"

Hydrus screeched at them from eye level from the ledge, cracking the gunwale and the ship bobbed a bit more.

"**Water Shuriken!**" Nic commanded. Greninja made more compressed stars of water and flung them. The spinning stars went exploding at Hydrus's lower jaw. The sea serpent howled in annoyance and her tail arose on port. Greninja turned around, and together with Volans, blocked the huge tail with their forearms. Their arms were holding up as best as they could, and the tail's weight was extremely heavy, but nothing they would be subjected to.

Nic turned ahead to see Hydrus attacking once more, her large mouth aimed at him. She went in sideways and tried to bite down from the sides. Nic shoved both his arms out on either side and caught the pair of jaws on either end, avoiding the sharp, green protrusions jutting out that were mere inched from his limbs and neck.

"Nic!" Sophie shouted.

Nic was in a struggle, but with his physical training he's done through the years, he could hold this off well enough, but because of earlier, he was more than a little exhausted. Looking back at everyone, he grunted and told them three words.

"Guys, the mouth!"

Lupus, startled, processed the information. "The…mouth?"

Cana's eyes widened. "Gah! I think that's her weak point!"

"Yeah, the gums look vulnerable! If we can send a full-scale assault down there, we should win!" Corvus exclaimed.

Cana swiped her arm. "Lupus, Pavo, Corvus, get her off the ship! Volans, cause as much damage to her tail as you can!" She turned towards Nic. "Nic, try and keep her head in place!"

Immediately, everyone went in for the attack. Volans was still feeling suppressed, as was Greninja, but Volans brought back a palm and deep blue water swirled in front. "**Abyss Palm!**" He thrusted his palm forward, colliding with the tail and letting loose an immense shockwave of deep blue water was erupted outwards. The tailfin membrane was pierced, and Hydrus screeched in pain, but couldn't move due to Nic holding her down.

"**Sonic Slash!**" Lupus's claws were coated in midnight blue and he slashed down on the long body constricting the ship. The harsh raking motion was so sharp that it left a large gash, leaving Hydrus to screech more in Nic's face.

Corvus dug his talons into another part of Hydrus's body. The sharp talons made her cry louder, and it seemed as though she was beginning to loosen up her hold.

Pavo put the two peacocks on his shoulders onto his feet, and he lunged to another part of the long body. "**Peacock's Awakening!**" His cape unfolded and he let loose a massive barrage of kicks on the section he took. The sharp beak strikes were like individual bullets that finally made the long body retreat. They saw the slimy yet scaly body uncoil around the ship and everyone turned their attention up front.

Nic turned back as Hydrus was struggling from the pain. "Guys! Now!"

Cana swiped and sent flaming cards at Hydrus. "**Sun's Strength!**"

Sophie made a quick chain of memories. "**Memory-Make: Baryon Lightning Impact!**"

"**Dark Pulse!**" Greninja shot his Dark Pulse with deadly accuracy.

"**Sonic Howl!**" Lupus unleashed midnight blue soundwaves.

Corvus crossed his wings and flapped them, sending a black twister at Hydrus. "**Night Storm!**"

All of the attacks closed in, and once they were close enough Nic let his grip go and jumped out of the way. Hydrus was met with several attacks at once that struck her entire face and her huge mouth. The sea serpent was met with a massive explosion to her face and everyone covered up.

Through the smoke, Hydrus was seen flailing violently as her mouth was sparking and set aflame. She screeched all around, and Volans spread his wings and took flight. Once he reached a high enough point, he shot down in a slant at her enflamed face. He brought his hands close and a sphere of dark blue appeared, and it was shining with brilliance.

"GRAH!" He shot the Water Pulse-like attack right into Hydrus's open mouth, and the beast cried violently as the attack's force made her mouth shut and she fell head first back into the red water.

Everyone watched her body arched on down and her tattered tail was the last thing seen before she submerged completely.

Volans landed on the deck and folded his wings. His eyes slowly opened. "And now…**Tsunami Implosion!**"

Everyone saw the sea flash briefly beneath, and a ripple bellowed through the area. A giant geyser arose from where Hydrus sank, and it reached great heights and sprinkled like rain down the area she sank in. With that attack doing what had to be done, they had won the battle.

Everyone on the ship panted as the area beside them sprinkled with bloody water. Nic panted with narrow eyes and remained quiet. It wasn't a pretty thing that had to happen, but it happened nonetheless.

Volans closed his eyes. "This is what happens to those who cross the line."

Sophie got to a knee. "Ahhhh, that was a killer. She was _so not_ friendly."

Cana put her hands on her knees and huffed. "Well, it's over now." She looked around the ship, seeing the serious damages taken. "How's the ship looking?"

Pavo and everyone looked around, seeing as how a large fraction of the deck as cracked, the boarding was nearly destroyed, the port was damaged, but everything else seemed alright. But the damage the ship had taken was still rather hefty.

Corvus turned towards the crew. "This isn't good. We need to make repairs fast."

Lupus looked up and he began climbing the mast again. He climbed up to the top to scout for any sign of stop, since they had to check the hull and underside of the ship.

His howling from above got everyone's attention, and they all looked up to see Lupus howling northwest.

Corvus and everyone went to the damaged gunwale on port, and they squinted to get a better view. The crow-man pointed ahead. "Land-ho!"

In the far distance was a small island. It seemed far, but they could reach it.

"An island!" Cana said in surprise.

"That's a good idea. We can rest up and make repairs once we reach shores." Nic said.

Pavo got a whiff and recoiled. "Bleh! Nic you smell like blood and fish!"

Nic's eye twitched. "I'm well aware of that, Pavo. Thank you very much."

"That aside…" Greninja steered the conversation to the right course. "We'll make any necessary changes we need. We'll get Nic all washed up if possible, and tend to any injuries possible too."

Volans stepped towards the steering wheel and grabbed it. "Everyone, set a course for the island!" He steered the ship, and the whole mode of transportation began onwards towards the island, with Lupus howling.

* * *

Dead grass was the setting, with a dead forest not too far away. Instead of a slanted rocky shore from before, the island had no shore, but was flat land altogether, so once they set off on the island, they met dead grass.

A fire was made and everyone was gathered around it. Lucky for them, Sophie had some bandages on hand, and much to Nic's annoyance, he was treated for his few injuries accumulated. He was currently topless, showing his very toned and fairly muscular physique as Sophie was getting the bloody and fishy smell off in the dead grass.

"So where was that sea serpent ranked in Lysandre's arsenal?" Greninja asked, rather sullen by how the Spirits were all against them.

Volans sat on his knees as the fire warmed him up. "…Hydrus was a subordinate of Cetus. I would imagine that he ordered her to attack us."

Nic crossed his arms. "So what you're saying is that it works like Canes and Sirius? Or perhaps she was a weaker subordinate?"

"I'm afraid it's the latter." Pavo sighed. "If memory serves me right, Lysandre has six top subordinates, or the big six that call the shots."

"Any information on them will very much benefit us in the future." Cana insisted. "If you guys have anything that you know about them, we can use that right about now."

Volans grumbled while he remained silent and stoic as ever.

"I got more wood guys!" Corvus arrived from the thick, dead forest with a huge pile of dead wood. He huffed as he set the wood down near the fire.

Lupus was seen jumping of the ship and walking away from the repairs that he tried to do. He was no shipwright, but the cracked places and damaged boarding was intact to say the least.

With everyone gathered around the fire, two figures were seen in the dead, spiky shrubs to the forest. Their figures were silhouettes and their eyes glowed.

Corvus looked at the group as the ire felt nice. "Well, how do we put this? Hm…?"

"Lysandre's top subordinates are those who are at his side." Lupus stated. "You already met Sirius, he's one of those six." He turned towards Volans. "Cetus too."

Volans remained silent, but Cana, Nic, and Greninja just stared at him.

"I'm not sure if things changed, but I at least remember the names of the other four. Right next to Cetus and Sirius, there's Vul, Apus, Aquila, and Camelo. All six are extremely strong, and their powers and Magic is never to be messed around with."

"I see." Nic stared at Volans, but even he grew weary with him. "And that's all you guys know?" He sounded conspicuous, but Volans just closed his eyes.

"For them…yes." Corvus said.

Immediately, Volans stood up. "No, Corvus." He said. "They're apart of this, they may know as well."

"Volans." Corvus said.

Volans was only quiet, and then Cana spoke up.

"Volans, what do you know about Cetus? You looked hesitant in your fight against him, and what was all that you said back there?" Cana's analysis was getting to everyone. "It was as though you talked on a personal level; he also said he knew all your tricks and techniques, even the same Magic."

Sophie came closer, handing Nic's coat and shirt to him, but looking at Cana. "Cana, I think you need to slow down."

There was a very uneasy silence and friction that came about. There was a hard look in everyone's eyes. One of resolute and serious. The fire flickered and showed the burning intensity in Volans's eyes.

Volans closed his eyes and bowed his head. "I apologize for not telling you of Cetus. He is…a very rough and incorrigible individual, and furthermore…my disciple."

Surprise was in Nic's eyes, as were Greninja, Cana, and Sophie. All four were very startled, and they could only say so much.

"So…you were…?" Sophie couldn't finish, but Cana did.

"His master?"

Much to his disgrace, Volans nodded. "…yes. He was my student. I met Cetus a long time ago, and he was feared." He remembered looking down at the disgrace Cetus was before he met him, all tattered and rugged. "When I came across him, I took him in. He was looking much happier, and I thus began to teach him by Deep-Sea Magic, all of my techniques…he was like family to me." His fists clenched tighter than before, and everyone could feel the pressure he was giving off. "I taught him everything about honor. About pride. And to stand up for what you believe in…but I was too blind to see that all he ever believed in was power."

He stared right into their eyes, his look of fierce shame sinking their hearts. "Lysandre soon arrived, and when it came to the choice, Cetus couldn't refuse. He was like a son to me…and then he stabbed me in the back just to show he has greater power than what I ever had. To surpass me, and to have all respect and fear him. That was his real motive." His head lowered and his eyes shut. "He believed that I grew soft, that I became a coward to greater power."

He shuddered. "There were no words to describe how I had felt…the moment he betrayed me, when he left…that was the one time I shed tears." Out of warning, he punched the ground while on a knee, the sudden punch shaking the ground and making Corvus flinch. "It was like I lost everything…my disciple threw away all of what I taught him, just so he'll never be looked down on again." He sat back down on his knees slowly, taking a deep breath. "All I have now…is my pride."

A long silence went about. They had no idea on what to say. It was pure betrayal for power, and the temperature all around diminished. They never heard Volans so broken. All this time, he was so stoic, like how Erza was before the Tower of Heaven.

Nic looked down at the flickering flames that brightened the shadow over his eyes. "You're wrong, Volans."

"What?!" Volans exclaimed, offended by Nic. "How am I wrong! HE BETRAYED EVERYTHING I TAUGHT HIM-"

"Quiet!" Nic's bellow was enough to silence Volans, and the Spirit grunted and backed off with hostility in his eyes. He was honorable to allow Nic the right to say what was on his mind.

"You didn't let me finish. You were wrong about what you have. Cetus made his own choice, and none of that was your fault. It was his twisted ambition for superiority and surpassing you. If anyone's a coward, it would be him, because he turned his back on you when all you did was support and took him in."

Feeling Nic's enlightenment, Volans sat back down and began to listen deeper into what Nic had to say.

"You were just doing what you thought was the right thing, and there's nothing shameful of that. You were good to him, and you taught him everything you knew. He threw away honor and pride because he was afraid; unlike you, he never had the guts to stand up in what you taught him. He embraced dark power rather than defy it like you have. His heart was weak to begin with."

Nic's eyes cascaded around the area. "You think you just have pride and honor? You think you lost the only family you had? Look around you."

Volans's eyes widened a little as he looked at the expectant yet grinning faces of everyone present. They all had individual beliefs, and each one may not have the strict beliefs he had…yet through it all they all stayed together, thick and thin.

"Family in some technical definition may be by blood, but I believe that family is those who would be by your side to the end of time." He looked at Greninja, who looked back at him. "Those who have your back, and those who support each other. To grow up together. To believe in the other. To beside the other, through better or worse."

Cana smiled. "Couldn't have said it better myself, Nic." She looked at Volans. "Fairy Tail is more than a guild, it's like a family of its own kind. We look after each other, just like what you, Lupus, and Corvus have been doing."

Pavo stood with pride. "Whether we all believe it or not, in the end, we may be from different worlds, but we're like brothers and sisters the other never had." He raised a hand high. "I say we're a family altogether! Just like Fairy Tail!"

Lupus's tail wagged as he grinned. "Hmph. You all maybe sappy, too sappy. Especially Corvus…"

"Hey!"

"But like my former pack, it's like I have my own new pack now." Lupus smiled. "I still can't believe I've grown to like you guys."

Sophie chuckled. "Now you see? We're all family, whether you don't see it yet or you do."

Volans closed his eyes after taking it all in, and that's when a smile took on his face. He may still have a ways to go, but through the past few years, he's gotten to know the other Spirits well, with Nic's little group included. They stood by his side, so it was only fair that he stands by theirs all the way to victory.

"HOORAH!" Pavo shouted, and everyone cheered, save a smiling Nic, Greninja, and Volans.

Inside the bushes watching one of the figures grew annoyed. "All this mushy talk is making me feel warm. I can't stand it."

"Me neither, but let's wait it out just a little longer." The other insisted. "You know how we work."

* * *

A short reprieve was all they needed. Nic sat up, with his coat and shirt on, and turned towards the ship. "Okay, I think that should do it."

Sophie sat up. "I got my fill of rest, let's set sail again."

Pavo jumped back up and huffed. "Ahhh, I say so too. We can't waste our time being party-poopers. We gotta get that key."

Cana turned towards Volans. "So what key are we looking for exactly? I wouldn't imagine it's a key to the world or anything like that, right?"

"Correct, Miss Cana." Volans stated. "What we are after is known as the Andromeda Key."

"Andromeda Key?"

Lupus nodded. "Yeah, the Andromeda Key was made by Andromeda…of course Lysandre already took care of her." Lupus caught himself off track and looked back up at them. "But what she made was a special key, the Andromeda Key. The key has many purposes. It unlocks not only the chains and anything binding the Zodiacs and the King, but it's also the key to the roof to Andromeda Tower, where it's a passageway towards Lysandre."

"In short, it possesses the needs we must ascertain to get to Lysandre and free the Spirits." Pavo added.

Volans thus added on. "However, we must reach the Andromeda Key through one of the most lethal and heavily guarded fortresses in the Spirit World: Comet Descent, or the Keeper of Hell as they now call it. It was once a prison for malevolent Spirits, now a guarded armory and storage for Lysandre and his pets."

"It would make sense." Greninja noted. "To have the Andromeda Key guarded from all enemies at all costs would forewarn such a catch."

"It sounds risky, extremely risky, but we must risk whatever necessary to get that key." Corvus said, swallowing a lump right afterwards out of nervousness.

As they talked, dead shrubs nearby shook, and something was seemingly making way towards them. But much to everyone's surprise, Nic and Greninja's eyes narrowed.

"Alright, with that settled, let's go get that key!" Cana exclaimed, and everyone began to make way towards the ship, yet the only ones not moving were Nic and Greninja. The two were as still as rocks, and their gazes were both set behind their shoulders and looking back at the dead grass behind them.

It was a bad feeling, yet they knew all too well. When it came close, Greninja swiped his arm and threw a Water Shuriken without warning. The sudden attack made everyone turn around and see a blue explosion erupt, and they all heard a scaly and rough screech.

They all saw something fly back and tumble to a skid, stopping soon on a knee. Reappearing, it looked like a humanoid alien-chameleon hybrid of sorts. The whole body was light purple, and it had dark purple spots all around like camo. It had sharp claws and a long tail. The upper jaw upwards towards the pointed top was completely dark purple, and it had huge red eyes and a black line going from the tip down towards the forehead, where a vertical light green eye was.

The creature hissed as he grew startled. "Grah! Clever little act! I can't believe you saw that coming!"

Cana looked surprised. "What just happened?! A chameleon man out of nowhere?"

Lupus snarled at the chameleon. "Even my hearing didn't pick him up. He was so quiet."

The chameleon man stood up and sneered. "Tch, guess the jig is up. Call me Chamaeleon – Gate of the Chameleon."

Volans fists clenched. "So we were watched this whole time, and they were waiting until our backs were turned."

Chamaeleon sneered once more. "We were getting impatient. Lacerta, let's go!" On que, they all heard several trees fell and make the ground quake. They all heard grunts and a few more trees fell and then a scaly figure walked out of the forest, clutching the dead bark and breaking it with no trouble.

Before them was a tall lizard-man. He was a few feet taller than Chamaeleon, and far more hulking and muscular. His head was that of a lizard, with thick orange scales all over and going over the shoulders onto the back. The same colored scales were at the feet, tail end, and claws and forearms. The rest of the body had blue scales. His black eyes were looking right at Nic and Greninja.

"About time!" Lacerta announced. The lizard hunched as he advanced towards Chamaeleon's side. As he opened his mouth, his forked tongue slithered and moved all about. "Time to claw apart some heads."

Chamaeleon sneered. "Behold, Lacerta – Gate of the Lizard!"

Nic's Fists clenched. "More of Lysandre's underlings."

"They don't seem as dangerous, but we gotta be extremely careful. Chamaeleon can turn invisible, and his accomplice looks like he's raw strength." Greninja observed. His glance shifted over towards Nic. "What's the strategy…?"

"No room to make one!" Chamaeleon rushed at them, and as he advanced, he became invisible as before. He and Lacerta both rushed at them, and Nic and Greninja both jumped to opposite directions to dodge a claw and a punch to the ground, the latter making the ground shake.

Nic tumble rolled and found his feet under him. "Everyone get to the ship! We'll hold them off while you guys hurry out to sea!"

"We'll catch up! Just go!" Greninja exclaimed. The ninja frog jerked left to avoid a clawed punch from Lacerta, and then jumped a backflip to avoid his tail swing.

Volans nodded in understanding and looked down at everyone else. "We can't waste time worrying. Nic and Greninja can take care of this. Let's go!" Everyone reluctantly followed him aboard the ship, where they hoped for the best with Nic and Greninja against their reptilian foes.

Chamaeleon swatted her tail, but to his surprise Nic grabbed the tail as it swung at his right. When he clenched harder, Chamaeleon stopped being invisible.

"H-how are you seeing me?!" He shouted. "Let go-!" He was thrown overhead by Nic and slammed against the ground. As Chamaeleon was gagging from the attack, Nic assaulted him with a strong kick, hitting the Spirit's abdomen.

Chamaeleon grunted as Nic took up a fighting stance. "I deal with someone similar to you every single day, and because of her, I can read your movements as clear as day."

Chamaeleon sneered and jabbed his claws at Nic, but every stabbing blow as dodged as Nic went left then right and back, dodging the sharp claws.

Meanwhile, Lacerta slammed his tail and Greninja caught it. He skidded back from the intense force, but kept his grip and yanked as hard as possible, making Lacerta lose footing and Greninja used all his might to slam him into the dead earth, making the Spirit gag and the ground shake.

While in midair from the force of the throw downwards, Greninja used the opportunity to strike fast. "**Water Shuriken!**" He threw compressed stars of water and they all exploded upon hitting Lacerta. Smoke arose and Greninja landed on the ground. He looked ahead, and through the smoke cloud a scaly orange head went to punch.

Greninja's eyes opened up and he dodged it with no problem. A slashing claw motion was made and the frog ducked. He quickly initiated a handstand and spun, kicking Lacerta away a few feet and getting back to his feet.

Looking at Lacerta, Greninja saw no visible injuries. "His scales and body give him a lot of durability."

Nic looked back as he dodged another claw jab from Chamaeleon and saw Greninja going head-to-head, but Lacerta had bulky scales that made it look hard for a lone man to break through. Looking back at Chamaeleon, he blocked a tail swing and skidded back a few feet. When he uncovered, he looked fine.

Nic reached for his pocket and pulled out a Poke Ball. "I'll fight fire with fire." He held the Poke Ball out to Chamaeleon. "Time for what you would consider an invisibility fight!" He threw the Poke Ball up. "Go, Kecleon!"

The Poke Ball popped open, and out came the Color Swap Pokémon. Kecleon tilted her head upon coming out. "Fellow camouflage reptile, prepare for pain." She warned in her creepy monotone voice, tilted her head right back up.

"What? Another chameleon?" Chamaeleon smirked. "Tch, this'll be a hoot."

Nic swiped his arm forward. "Kecleon, go!" Immediately, Kecleon advanced onto Chamaeleon, her body turning invisible, all except the red stripe. Chamaeleon rushed in as well, turning fully invisible.

"You're no chameleon if you can't change your colors fully! I'll have your head!" The invisible Chamaeleon jabbed forward with his sharp claws, but like Nic, all of his strikes were unable to make contact as Kecleon bobbed and weaved in swift movements. He didn't expect her to be fast, even when visible.

"I am a Kecleon." She corrected, not even remotely taking offense.

Chamaeleon jabbed forward once more, but he was shocked when Kecleon grabbed his wrist. He was unable to escape as Kecleon was still mostly invisible, but one of her claws glowed and elongated. It was so fast he only saw a flash. Her Slash scored a clean and decisive blow and Chamaeleon skidded back with a gash across his abdomen.

Chamaeleon grew startled as he reappeared. "How can you tell where I am?"

Kecleon became visible again and tilted her head. "I am in the same boat. I change color, though mine are true, yours are ugly."

Chamaeleon understood. He was still startled at how Kecleon got her point across, but he got the message anyway. She could turn invisible as well, meaning it was an eye for an eye fight.

Meanwhile, Nic and Greninja ducked and slipped past Lacerta as he tried grabbing them. They both jumped and midair kicked him in the back with battlecries. The muscular lizard fell forward with a thud, and his tail followed, though Nic grabbed the tail and then yanked with all his might. His strength was enough to haul Lacerta overhead and in midair.

"**Dark Pulse!**" Nic's command was heard, and Greninja shot the Dark-Type move with great force. Lacerta was caught in a big explosion of darkness in the air, and as it settled, he crashed back down into the ground with thunderous force.

The dust cleared, and Lacerta stood back up, his forked tongue slithering out. He sneered violently as he swatted his tail with the force of a wrecking ball, and Nic and Greninja both covered up their right sides and got slammed by the tail. Both flew left and skidded to a stop. They uncovered and saw Lacerta in front of them, where he began to punch forward.

"Hold still you weaklings!" He exclaimed as his punch rushed to Nic's face. At the last second, Nic intercepted with a hand, catching the fist, but barely. He grunted as this guy's strength was brutal, and Nic was struggling as he held his ground with hand-to-hand combat.

As Nic was occupied, Greninja readied to attack, but Lacerta used his spare arm to punch him, and thus Greninja blocked the blow as well. Both Trainer and Pokémon were caught in the same standstill as Lacerta loomed with suppressing force.

Meanwhile, Kecleon continuously somersaulted backwards as she dodged Chamaeleon's invisible claws. The Spirit grew frustrated as Kecleon was relentless in her dodging and nimble reflexes she got from her trainer.

The Color Swap Pokémon soon jumped and spin kicked the chameleon's face, making him stumble back. When she landed, she wasted no time going in for the attack. "**Slash!**" Her claws glowed and elongated, and she appeared in front of the startled bigger Spirit and slashed diagonally downwards, making Chamaeleon yell and skid on his back.

He sat up and growled at Kecleon. "Lucky lizard." He then turned invisible once more, and everything grew silent again.

Kecleon tilted her head once again, and waited for her opponent. She heard something slimy from her right and she leaned forward to dodge a long, slimy tongue. She turned her body and felt a strong breeze, and that's when she was met with an invisible claw to the face. She shot back in a harsh skid, leaving a trail in the ground as she dug one of her claws into it.

She looked back up, hardly looking injured and sped forward, turning invisible once more. She saw an open mouth and a long tongue shooting at her again. She shifted left and the tongue missed. She sped on in and followed the tongue. "**Thief!**" She continuously front flipped ahead and brought both claws down clasped together and slammed them down on Chamaeleon's head.

The attack sent a ripple all around and the shock from the attack made Chamaeleon turn visible again. He looked in shock and was unable to recover as Kecleon midair kicked him, sending him and his long, slimy tongue into some dirt.

Kecleon turned visible once more and tilted her head. "Your tongue is long…and slimy."

Chamaeleon arose, having recovered and sneered. "I'm through playing around!" He turned invisible again, and without much of a single sound lunged at Kecleon, who in turn turned mostly invisible again and let out a battlecry.

With Nic, he and Greninja both glanced at the other and back at Lacerta. They both crouched and let momentum takes its role. They slipped right underneath and between Lacerta's legs and the hulking lizard fell forward, leaving him to get kicked from behind again and slam into the ground.

"We can't waste time here! They're slowing us down-!" Nic was met with Lacerta's sudden tail, the attack hitting him hard in the abdomen and shooting him back. Greninja looked back with shock, but then saw Nic straighten out and jump off the trunk, and on a knee he landed.

Greninja turned forward, only to get a vicious punch from Lacerta, making a ripple upon contact. Greninja shot back from the attack, skidding back, but his eyes opened and he got his hands underneath and flipped into the air, twisting and turning his body and landing beside Nic in a pose.

"He's got durability. We have to make a weak point through those scales." Greninja stood and made Water Shuriken in his hands.

"Alright, I'll get his attention and you create a gash big enough for a strong blow! Go!" Nic and Greninja both rushed at Lacerta.

His tongue flicked at them. "Fall scum! Lysandre needs nothing to stand in his way!"

With Kecleon, in the space between nothing and a red stripe, there were flashes from claws and Slash parrying the other, with Kecleon's blows deflecting and making more damage, but she was soon hit on the side by a tail. She shot to her left, but that didn't stop her as she used the skid she was in and ran in a long, speedy arc around the invisible Chamaeleon.

As she ran around the invisible Spirit that she could easily detect due to having the same kind of capabilities. The invisible Color Swap Pokémon opened her mouth. "**Screech!**" As she ran circles around him, red shockwaves went from her mouth rippling out and Chamaeleon covered his ears in pain.

"GAH! What is this?!" He exclaimed, his body's visibility was flickering on and off, and he couldn't stop covering his ears from the pain.

"The sound of defeat!" Kecleon shouted as her Screech ended. "**Shadow Sneak!**"

Chamaeleon's eyes widened as he was still invisible, yet the shadow he still emitted darkened. _'No! I can still emit a-!'_ The shadow reached out at him, and stretched upwards and struck his abdomen full force, making him gag and turn visible again. Shadow Sneak went upwards still, and he soared upwards until at a high enough point.

Kecleon jumped into the air with her legs and was found atop of Chamaeleon when her red stripe was seen, and she turned fully visible. "I know the secret art of stealth! We don't disappear, we camouflage, and the shadow stays!"

Chamaeleon's eyes widened even more. "Damn you!"

"The dark side shall return to the earth it came from! **Thief!**" She spun vertically a multitude of times and let out a battlecry as she brought down an axe kick square on Chamaeleon. The very impact let loose a large ripple through the dark air, and Kecleon followed through with her attack, shooting Chamaeleon into the dead grass, making the ground shudder and break.

As rock and earth flew about, Kecleon spun and straightened out in the air, landing on a knee looking away. Her eyes were closed, but the second the dust cleared, revealing the defeated Chamaeleon, Kecleon's eyes opened.

She stood back up, and then her head tilted in a direction. "You have poor taste in colors."

Lacerta roared out as Greninja zigzagged all around, unable to catch him. He felt several blows all around his body by Nic, who palmed struck, punched, and elbow struck wherever he could. It reminded him of when he fought Gajeel a long time ago. It was hard, literally, he had to continuously pound away at his scales to make a weak point, which was what he was doing right now.

"HRAH!" In front of Lacerta, Nic punched with excessive force, making a pounding noise and Lacerta stepped back from the strong blow. He looked down at Nic, but in a flash Greninja appeared from nowhere and slashed at His abdomen with a close-range Water Shuriken, making a blue burst of energy.

"Grah! Pesky frog and human!" He swung his tail at them, but they just jumped and dodged.

In midair, Greninja back flipped and made more compressed stars of water. "**Water Shuriken!**" He shot them at Lacerta, and the lizard covered up and took the blow to the arms. He felt a sharp sting as the compressed attack was actually painful to an extent.

Nic landed and extended his arm out. "Greninja, **Smokescreen!**"

Greninja landed and made several ninja signs and blew a thick, black smoke cloud at Lacerta. The Spirit's eyes widened and was engulfed in the attack. He began to cough as Smokescreen made it impossible for him to see.

"Where did…they go?" He was unable to detect them and began coughing. It took a few short seconds before he was struck out of the blue by a palm strike to the abdomen, where he had already taken some damage. He stumbled backwards and grunted.

He punched forward, but when he did nothing was there. Confused and open, he heard something above, and looking up, he was hit in the chest by a descending Greninja's Bounce, the attack's impact shot the Spirit to the ground, where he gagged and screamed in pain.

The smoke cleared, and Nic and Greninja were seen beside the other and Greninja put his arms together. "Ready?"

"Let's go!" Nic ran ahead as Lacerta was getting up, and with his fists clenched he held one out as he let out a battlecry.

"**Dark Pulse!**" Greninja let loose his Dark Pulse attack at Lacerta, where the beam began to catch up to Nic. Nic's right fist was held out as the Dark Pulse was rushing right beside him. The two were so close and then Nic's arm was enveloped in the Dark Pulse. Black with purple outlining coated the forearm and fist as he rushed up at Lacerta.

Lacerta roared out as he ran at Nic with a scaly fist of his own. Both warriors roared as they closed in, and as Lacerta punched, Nic did as well.

Nic's was the fastest, a sit was unfortunate for Lacerta. And it was square in his abdomen again. His mouth gaped and his eyes were devoid of pupils as Nic screamed and used all the strength he had in continuing the punch. He followed through and the Dark Pulse enveloping his arm disappeared as he had a finished punch pose. Lacerta shot back like a rocket from the attack's intense force, and the lizard screamed and smashed into the earth. The whole area shook violently as dust blew about everywhere.

From the ship, everyone's eyes were wide from the battle. They were astonished by Kecleon's display, and now Nic and Greninja's combined assault. These guys were full of surprises.

The dust settled, and Nic was panting from the battle damage he took. He huffed in and out as his right arm had a few scratches and bruises from pounding away, but he powered through and saw Lacerta unconscious and embedded in a crater in the ground.

"That should do it." Nic muttered.

"YYEEEAAHHH! NIC! WAIT A GO!" Corvus screamed in joy.

Pavo clapped. "Great show! Hoorah!"

Cana smirked. "Wait a kick ass!"

Volans nodded. "You are indeed worthy if such praise. You and your Pokémon have done something we never would've foreseen."

Nic smiled. Despite feeling some damage all around and the aching parts he had, he had worse. For a physical display without powers, he held up well. He looked left and right, where Greninja and Kecleon gathered around him.

"Looks like we took care of them." Greninja said.

"And it was getting intense too." Kecleon stated.

Nic slowly stood back up. "I know, they were tough adversaries." He smiled. "But I knew we could hold our own." He reached and petted Kecleon's head. "Well done, both of you."

Greninja and Kecleon smiled happily at their Trainer, and then they heard Cana whistling out to them.

"Hey, c'mon! Hurry up!" She shouted, the ship already fifty feet out in the red water.

"Hurry up, slowpokes!" Sophie called out.

Nic returned his Kecleon and put her away inside his pockets. He turned towards Greninja and the Ninja Pokémon grabbed hold of Nic and crouched. He leaped into the air and jumped far overhead, ascending with his great leg prowess. He and Nic descended downwards onto the repaired ship, landing on a knee.

Everyone smiled at them as they both stood back up and Nic looked back ahead. "Sorry or the wait, I hope it wasn't too long."

Cana slapped him on the back. "Nah, you and that Kecleon of yours gave us one hell pf a show. Now let's get this party ship moving people!"

"YEAH!" Everyone cheered in agreement and the ship began to pick up speed. "Next stop: The Keeper of Hell!"

* * *

Little did they know, Lysandre sat on his thrown…his dark and bloody-monster look and vermilion eyes piercing into the devastated that would so much as peep at him. His blood red fangs were shown.

The six before him bowed before him as he stood up from his thrown, placing the Spooky Plate in his stead. "Well know, seems we'll have company sooner than what we'd imagined."

* * *

**I was gonna have this uploaded sooner, but college comes first. Sorry for the wait, but I sure hope it was worth reading.**

**On Wikipedia, it said Hydrus was the lesser water snake constellation, but I chose to rename it sea serpent instead as a better fit.**

**I was starting to get foggy around the last bit, so I began to use my trick to every fight scene. I began listening to Ill Nino songs and heavy metal. The music helps me generate better fight scenes. Anyways, let me know if this was satisfying, as well as Kecleon's little invisibility fight.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are enjoying **_**The Fairy Contender**_**!**

* * *

**Next Time: Luminous Falls**


	64. Luminous Falls

Chapter 64 – Luminous Falls

**Many of you may have already feared for this chapter, and I don't blame you by the title. I'll still make it as hectic as can be while powering through this arc.**

**Guest Valvrave: Nic and Erza confessing to each other after the arc? It'll still be a short while, but that moment is drawing near, I assure you. As for Frosch wanting to be a ninja like Greninja, that's an ideal consideration.**

**Guest: Don't worry, Sabertooth will still be the enemy guild in the GMG Arc, with just a few adjustments here and there.**

**Guest: Because Nic knows his sister is mature, so he isn't too protective of her.**

**Time for the 64****th**** chapter! **

**To Recap:**

En route to Lysandre, the crew talks and comforts Nic on his worries with Erza. They soon come across the Red Sea, where they were attacked by Hydrus – Gate of the Sea Serpent. Through a gruesome fight, they all made it out and made repairs on a small island, where they told Nic's group that they must head to Comet Descent and retrieve the Andromeda Key to reach Andromeda Tower, where it'll be a gateway to Lysandre. As they left, Nic and the crew were attacked by Chamaeleon and Lacerta, both underlings of Lysandre. Nic used Kecleon to fight and defeat Chamaeleon while Nic and Greninja fought Lacerta. With their defeat, Nic and his Pokémon caught up to the crew and made way towards Comet Descent, or now dubbed the Keeper of Hell.

* * *

**Chapter 64 – Luminous Falls**

The ship was sailing on, and the seawater was clearing up again, becoming more blue than a tasteless red. It was a good sign at least, meaning they were getting somewhere.

"We're now escaping the Red Sea. The coast is clear…for now." Volans announced.

Cana stretched above her head. "Thank god! I was beginning to see red while half-asleep."

Pavo slumped to the ground, off his chair. "Hoo boy! I was worried that we'd never be free from that accursed sea." He sprung back to his feet and began spinning on one leg. "It's as if the peacock's have given us our wings back!"

"This certainly makes us feel slightly less on edge." Nic admitted. He then turned his head forward. "But what I'm concerned about is the huge gray mist ahead."

The crew looked back ahead, seeing the gray mist that was beginning to grow for quite some time. It was tough to explain, but it looked as though it wasn't dispelling, yet it looked like some form of barrier. It was tough to comprehend, but Volans was seemingly aware. "This gray mist…it must mean we're approaching the Heavenly Gates."

"The Heavenly Gates." Corvus explained. "A gateway to the Keeper of Hell, right?"

Lupus nodded. "Yeah. There's rumors that it's always surrounded by a gray mist, and once present in front it unveils a heaping gate that allows access inside." He then began to crawl up the mast.

Cana began to settle into her chair. "Well whatever the case, I think we can pull through." She turned towards Sophie, who was sitting right next to her. "Hey Sophie."

Sophie turned towards Cana. "Hm? What's on your mind."

"Nothing." She slowly looked ahead. "It's just…you never told us in depth of your family, did you?"

Nic, nearby, was listening. Greninja kept his back turned away, aware of the anticipation that might go awry.

Sophie looked nonchalant as she rested her head on her arms. "Well, I'm sure every book has a clue in it. I was always on good terms with them, nothing against. My mom and dad were just…how do I put it…?"

"I think I get the picture. Incompatible but forced to be together, something like that?" Cana turned her head towards Sophie. "I think I get the idea, though I don't think I can relate to that."

Sophie smiled and shook her head. "I wouldn't think so either. You knew Gildarts all your life, and just recently he learned you're his daughter. Talk about a one-sided shock." Cana looked away sheepishly and Sophie raised a brow. "What's the matter, trouble in paradise?"

"No." Cana rebuffed. "It's just…he doesn't have to be all mushy on me. I made it clear that he didn't have to act like my dad, yet he just goes and becomes an embarrassment." She just groaned thinking about it.

Sophie casually put an elbow on the circular table. "Well you can't blame him. He's just trying to make up for what he did wrong. He's your dad, and like it or not, he'll be by your side."

"…at least your parents loved you." The entire conversation dropped, and the two girls heard the familiar voice. Footsteps approached from port, and they knew it was a bad time to talk when Nic is around.

Sophie turned to look at him with shock. "Nic, we were just-"

Nic shook his head. "Now don't tell me you were just talking behind your parents' backs." The guilt trip had begun. "Let me tell you something important. Is it not wrong to care about family? People who broke their backs to clothe, bathe, and raise you?" He began to take a seat, a firm one at that. "People, who loved you, and protected you the best they could. People, who perhaps gave the best years if their lives to see you grow." His demeanor began to grow into a more aggressive tone.

"Don't treat it like some expense because it isn't. There are those fortunate, and there are those not fortunate, _myself _included. My parents, they hated me. Accused me as an 'unwanted accident'." Cana and Sophie had their gazes at the table. "They mistook me as their little punching bag, something to get their frustrations out of, and they directed all their attention and care to Vanessa, and even she didn't feel safe."

He reached for his pocket, plucking out his phone. "Do you understand what this is? It's my phone, a symbol of my grandparents, aside from Vanessa, _the only_ other people who cared for me. They loved us, they loved their grandchildren, unlike their children."

"Nic…" Cana trailed off, unintentionally provoking a sensitive Nic.

"Cana, tell me, what can a phone do? Let me answer that in your stead. One can hold apps, one can take pictures, storing precious memories in them…but the primary function." He turned at the phone, looking at the blank screen. "To call someone. My grandparents were indirectly helping me, giving me a chance to escape from the torment. With my phone, I could've contacted 911, and yet despite the numerous chances that came, I powered through." He stashed the phone away. "I could've called for help, but then my parents would use that very reason and lie, give yet another façade, saying that it was a miscall, or perhaps turn their sadistic selves onto Vanessa." His gaze turned downwards.

"No, I stuck on for my sister's safety, and I love her…that's what family does." He turned towards Cana, his voice calming down and getting more easy. "Don't ever take Gildarts's love for granted. Treasure it, and hold it dear."

Despite the reprimanding demeanor Nic gave off, Cana and Sophie got the message. They should count themselves lucky, for being in Nic's shoes would be the last thing they want. A subtle wind shifted through their hair, and the two girls grinned.

"Got it." Cana said, some energy in her voice. "Thanks for the little reality check."

Nic lightened up and smiled. "Well that's what friends do, right? They have each other's backs, realize what's important to them."

Pavo scooted in from out of nowhere, sobbing streams down his face. "Oh! Such strong words from the heart! I couldn't agree more!"

"What the-?! Pavo?! When did you get here?!" Sophie exclaimed.

"Oh silly, there's no running or hiding from me when I hear of troubled souls." He clenched a passionate fist. "Good or bad, cherish the family you have, no matter whom."

Nic grinned and nodded in agreement. Just then he frowned as a pulse went through his body. Everyone in the crew felt this sudden pulse and they turned towards Nic, seeing his body shine a multitude of colors.

"His body…" Corvus felt an immense power beginning to low. "Is that…?"

Sophie smirked. "You're right! Nic's powers are back!"

The light faded, and Nic was seen fine, though he felt the Plates vibrate a little from finishing their reboot, but it was to be expected. "I forgot, 24 hours passed that quickly."

"I guess time goes by slightly faster than it did in Earth Land and Kalos." Greninja figured, walking up to his trainer. "So what's the next plan of action now that your powers are back?"

Before Nic could answer, Lupus howled above, getting everyone's attention. Once the howl stopped, Lupus looked down at them. "Guys, we're approaching the Heavenly Gates!"

They all turned ahead, and saw that thy were right in front of the gray mist. A closer examination revealed that it was a humungous gate, one that seemed to go on forever. On the front was a golden star on it, a huge one.

"So that's it, the Heavenly Gates." Nic said. "And the Keeper of Hell should be inside, right?"

Volans nodded. "Yes, once inside the gates, we'll sneak in, retrieve the Andromeda Key, and get out."

Sophie stepped forward. "If that's the case, then what…" She trailed off as they all heard a large gear shift. Their eyes widened a little as they heard the gear and creaking resonating from the Heavenly Gates. They were opening. Almost immediately the current began to drift inside, and the ship swayed left and right as the current was dragging them inside the large doors that seemed barely open.

Volans's eyes narrowed and he raised his arms. Taking action, he grunted and looked up. The crew huddled around as water began to rise up on all four sides. They witnessed the ship enclosed by a dome of water, catered by Volans's Deep Sea Magic.

"This should elude us from their security." Volans informed, with eyes turning towards him. "With the Keeper of Hell's immense security, there's a good chance that they may as well spot us if we get close."

Nic turned ahead. "Okay, then what should be the ideal action…"

* * *

About fifteen minutes later, the ship was in eyesight of a large fortress. It had a grand drawbridge and iron gate that went up and down, and all around were celestial guards. There was a watch tower that was double the fortress's height, and perched on a pedestal on the top was Telescopium – Gate of the Telescope.

Telescopium wasn't a telescope, rather he was a small goblin that sat on a stool and managed a humungous telescope. The goblin was green, and his eyes had no pupils, and had a dark purple mask on. Telescopium was looking into his telescope, not seeing any signs of enemies. He saw the gates open earlier, meaning they had uninvited guests present inside, yet his telescope didn't pick up anything but gray mist and water

"Hmm…" He mused. "I wonder what my trusty telescope will pick up for good ol' Lysandre. Let's see now…" He zoomed in on the water close by, and his telescope picked up on some form of water that seemed out of place. Unlike the waves all around, it looked spherical, and his telescope put so much emphasis on it that it never left his eye.

"What-?!" He was cut off when the veil of water had ruptured, and it revealed the ship that was concealed inside. "My telescope was right! There was something fishy!" From the ship, he was seeing a figure fly off of it and onwards towards the watch tower. The guards below were unaware of the projectile that flew in towards them.

Telescopium zoomed in, seeing Corvus fly in. "The hell is that fool thinking! No one can escape my sights, so why's he charging right at me?!"

Corvus kept a serious gaze as there was an earpiece in his ear.

"…_and that's what we'll do." Volans explained. "It's bold, but stealth and speed is something that can't work in this prison/storage. We'll have to rely on Corvus creating illusions with his Daze Wing and keep them occupied long enough for us to submerge and come back up undetected."_

"_Once inside, we'll be able to manage with a surprise attack. We'll attack hard and fast, then descend so that we can find the floor where the key is located and get out, am I right?" Nic added, transforming and flashing into his Splash Plate Form._

_Greninja's blank eyes looked at Nic. "With the outside guards dazed, we'll be able to get inside without them having a warning."_

_Lupus clawed the ship's boards. "I've been waiting for something like this! HAHA! Time to make a lot of noise!"_

_Pavo clasped his hands together and held them overhead. "Oh yes! Let the dazzling peacock showed this garbage dump that it shall not hold us down! Inside we go!"_

_Cana smirked. "Then let's get rocking!" She turned her head, looking at Volans, whom presented small earpieces for them. He held one out to Cana. "What?"_

"_These are communication lacrima." He explained. "The signal corresponds with one's condition. We should be able to stay in touch in the case we stay separated." Everyone grabbed an earpiece, having the lacrima in them. For Nic, he instead put the communication lacrima on his phone so it'd be on a more suitable level for him. _

_Nic turned towards Corvus. "Corvus, good luck."_

_Corvus smiled and gave a thumbs up. "You can count on me. I'll be a great distraction."_

"_Yeah, because your screaming gathers a lot of attention." Lupus mused._

"_Shut up!" Corvus backlashed. With that comment, Corvus spread his wings and began to take off. Volans surrounded the remaining others in water veils, exclude Greninja and Nic, and all of them dove downwards into the water, submerging with oxygen supplied for their underwater advance._

Corvus smirked. "Time to put the plan into action! **Daze Wing!**" He flapped his wings once, sending a black wind at the watch tower. The black winds expanded and Telescopium's telescope saw Corvus attacking.

"What the-?!" He reached for the large communication lacrima right beside. "Attention, security, we have a-Gnnngh!" He was engulfed by Corvus's Daze Wing, making him cover up and his telescope fell over. He nearly fell off his stool and shook his head. When he opened his eyes again, he only saw blurs.

"This is the security room, what's wrong Telescopium?" A guard's voice spoke through the communication lacrima.

"H-er, what?" Telescopium looked around, seeing nothing but blurs. He tried rubbing his eyes, yet still everything was a daze. "Let me get back to you on that…just, stand down."

"Roger." The communication lacrima clicked, and Telescopium looked down all dazed.

"I think I'm going blind looking through my telescope for too long." He sweatdropped and grunted, unable to take in the disappearance of a possible enemy.

Corvus tapped his earpiece. "Alright, he's down. Time for the attack."

"Roger that, Corvus." Volans's earpiece beeped, and he swam through the water with everyone else following. "The coast is clear. We handle ground-level. Everyone, engage!"

"Right!" They all swam on ahead, where they soon got to the docks of the Keeper of Hell. The individual guards were losing all signs of care as the gates opened earlier, and they didn't seem to notice the ship far out.

"Why do we always get the outside guarding post? It's cold out here." One complained.

"Would you rather say that to Lysandre's face?" Another stated.

"…no." The guard swallowed hard and stood affirm, not wanting to think of the boss. His wicked evil tainted the world. Stepping out of line meant death.

"Well the shift is almost over. Another hour and we can-!" The other guards shriveled and turned their bodies as the port sent a strong wave splashing upwards. They all covered up briefly as the waves dialed down, yet the second they looked back, they only saw a blur.

"**Trench Shredder!**" Volans swiped his glowing fin-bladed elbow, slashing in a long and fast arc that sent several guards flying at once.

Guards posted nearby turned towards the commotion and were met by a swamping blast of water. "**Hydro Pump!**" Nic blasted them full-force with a Hydro Pump that sent more of them flying.

A few security guards were reaching into their pockets, pulling out communication lacrima. They were about to speak into them. But not a second went by as Greninja shot stars of compressed water. "**Water Shuriken!**" Shooting the stars, they all hit the guards, and sliced right through their individual lacrima.

With all of the guards taken down before them, Nic reverted back to himself and everyone was free to use the open drawbridge. Nic pointed ahead. "Everyone, advance!"

They all went and ran ahead onto the open wooden drawbridge, and they soon found themselves in front of the iron bars in front.

"I got this guys!" Lupus advanced forward and his claws were encased in midnight blue. "**Sonic Claw!**" He raked the bars that were ahead, where a sonic sound echoed through the metal. Lupus jumped off and skidded back. "What? No effect?"

Cana flashed her cards. "Let me give it a try!" Her cards glowed and she threw them at the bars. Once they reached the bars, they exploded, creating a small rupture. When the smoke subsided, it all was for naught as the bars didn't even have a scratch. "You're kidding!"

"Hang on, I remember something like this back in Edolas." Sophie commented. "There was this door that had anti-magic coated all over it. I think these iron bars are just like that."

"Then how are we gonna we inside?" Pavo asked, striking a dancing pose.

"Leave that part to us." Nic explained. He glanced over towards Greninja. "Greninja, **Water Shuriken!**"

The Ninja Pokémon crouched and made more compressed stars of water. With them in hand, he threw them at the bars. Several went past the bars, and mere seconds passed before anything happened.

The bars shattered, making an entrance wide enough for them to enter. The sudden assault made Pavo's eyes bulge out of his head in shock, and Lupus's ears perked up in surprise.

"Now let's go get that Andromeda Key!" Nic exclaimed, and he and everyone ran inside, following Nic as they went into the dark prison/storage.

* * *

On Earth Land, Erza and Vanessa were on the Infinity Castle, and Happy just informed them that the chance of saving Lucy should increase if they defeat the Reborn Oracion Seis. So off they went, and as expected, Erza and Vanessa were up against Cobra…again.

Erza and Vanessa were shot out of a wall on the Infinity Castle, both flew back and started falling, but in suspense, Vanessa was able to shape her aura and shot it at the large chain nearby. She used her other arm and grabbed Erza with her aura and reeled themselves in, both flying right into the chain.

Vanessa had a rough landing as she tumbled down the chain, barely keeping her grip. She winced as her shoulders felt pain. "Oww, I gotta work on my landings." She looked up, seeing Erza now clad in her Lightning Empress Armor. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Erza countered, glaring up at Cobra, who was higher up on the super thick chain. "His tricks don't scare me."

"Is that so?" Cobra rebuffed. "Because I can hear that pain loud and clear still from before."

Erza's eyes narrowed.

"Your still scared Titania, but not by me, or the fate that'll transpire. You fear…that Luminous won't be so easy to forgive!" Erza's grip tightening was what Cobra was looking for. "Now I'm hearing the reluctance growing, how you might not battle functionally with self-doubt on him."

Erza wanted to rebuff, but Cobra could just counter everything she would have to say. "So maybe I made a mistake, and yes I still feel guilt…"

"Erza." Vanessa muttered.

"But I won't have that stop me from saving Lucy. She's our priority, and I'll make you step into the light!" Erza jumped and twirled her spear, making lightning surge and static. She aimed the spear at Cobra, shooting tons of bolts at him. To their surprise, Vanessa and Erza alike saw that every bolt missed, as Cobra heard them.

Cobra didn't so much as blink as Erza landed back on the chain. "Is that so? Well if fail to see how I'll do that…when I lost the only friend I had!"

Vanessa hummed a low grunt. "So that's why you're so low. You lost everything, and now you want retribution." She had aura coat her fists. "That's just low!"

"Shut up!" Cobra released a soundwave that echoed out at Vanessa, hitting her Emanation Beam that she launched. The dispersing aura made Vanessa momentarily lose her footing, causing her to grow unsteady. The next time she blinked, Cobra was right in front of her face.

"I know who you are. Those eyes I've seen before, they belonged to Luminous." His glare made Vanessa swallow. "His snake caused Cubellios pain! And since he's not here, you're the next best thing!" His arms burst into poison, ripping the sleeves and showing crimson scaled with a milky underside.

In a flash, Erza appeared in front of Cobra, clocking his swing with her katana of her Flight Armor that she requipped in time. She intercepted the blow and Vanessa jumped back in shock.

"Taking your anger out on someone is never the ideal solution!" Erza exclaimed to him. "You'll fall, Cobra!" Erza slashed her katana, forcing Cobra to jerk back. The Poison Dragon Slayer scowled down at her with his one eye.

"Now you're just riling me up more, Titania!" Cobra let loose another blast of his Sound Magic, causing Erza to skid back some every few seconds. With the distraction, Cobra went in and was intercepted by Erza's katana out of instinct. "Do you have any idea on the pain that I went through? I lost my only friend! My sacrifice gave me power! What you and your pathetic friends will never do, is make the same kind of sacrifices for great power!"

Erza struggled to overpower Cobra. "You're wrong!" She shouted through the sound. "We made sacrifices! And Nic made horrific sacrifices fighting!"

Cobra was hearing her loud and clear, and he heard it all. His eye widened and his pupil began to dilate as he heard the memories of what Erza saw. He saw Nic get his gut pierced, the anguish, and he heard the ripping of his right side, and the loss of his left eye…through it all, the level of dread he heard, the boiling bloodlust of Lysandre. All of that bloodlust and hatred was on a near-infinite level. He stumbled back in a dazed state, panting from hearing the blood and horrors.

"What the…what in the hell was that…?" He was so disoriented that he didn't realize Vanessa was right in front of his face.

"HRAH!" She gave a right hook coated in a teal aura gauntlet, socking Cobra right in the face and shooting him back into a skid. "You heard that?"

Cobra wiped his cheek and his eye continued dilating. "You…what was that? The level of pure unrivaled bloodlust and vanquish against everything!"

"Then you heard it after all." Erza said, glowing and requipping into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. "The man that Nic gave sacrifices to. The one who wants everything dead. _Everything_."

Cobra took a step back as that vile sound was more than what he could have anticipated. In fact, it was far more bloody than what he had ever experienced in his entire life. It was so much retribution, darkness, and contempt that it couldn't leave his ears.

Vanessa pulled out a Poke Ball she had on hand. "Let's stop your poison! Mawile, go!"

The Poke Ball opened, and out came Vanessa's Mawile. The Steel and Fairy-Type stood on the chain, seeing Cobra barely focused. "You call me for poison control?"

Cobra was startled. "What the-?!"

"**Feint Attack!**" Mawile appeared behind Cobra, and the Dragon Slayer's eye widened and turned around, using his scaly arms to block the jaws slamming down onto him. The attack was enough to make him step back.

Cobra wasn't getting any better. His arms were coated in poison and he assaulted Mawile as swiftly as possibly. "**Poison Dragon's Twin Fang!**" He shot the spiral snake-like venom attack, and Mawile tensed up and took the attack in full. Cobra smirked as he saw Mawile get caught in the attack, but it turned to shock and disbelief as the poison disappeared, revealing That she wasn't even fazed.

"But how-?!" Cobra's hearing caught onto what went on behind, and Vanessa and Erza charged with aura covered arms and swords. Cobra turned around to stop them. "Oh no you don't!" He let loose a blast of Sound Magic, which caused them to fly backwards, barely getting ground back.

"**Poison Dragon's Roar!**" Cobra inhaled and fired his roar, sending it at Erza and Vanessa.

In a hurry, Vanessa extended her arms forward. "**Aura Guard!**" A dome of teal aura cascaded over herself and Erza, completely blocking the two from the poisonous roar.

"Grrr! You guys are really making me mad!" Cobra exerted another blast of Sound Magic, the soundwave roaring through the air, making it harder for Vanessa to keep her focus on her defenses. "Now that I have nothing, I have no fear! I gained power from my loss! That's what power is for!"

Mawile was on a knee as the soundwave rattled her, yet it wasn't effective enough to stop her from standing back up. "**Swords Dance!**" She was surrounded by blue sword, of which circled her and a red aura encased her. They crossed over her head, enhancing her Attack prowess.

Hearing the power increase, Cobra turned around to see Mawile charging after him. He lashed his arm at her, sending scales of poison that struck her and the chain they were on, yet the Pokémon did not falter, though the chain had nasty rough cuts catered to Cobra's attack.

"**Crunch!**" Mawile turned around and her jaws opened wide and snapped down, with the elongated and glowing fangs sinking into Cobra's arm. The Dragon Slayer grunted as Mawile's Crunch was painful to his smooth skin.

Erza flew on in towards Cobra, but she was hit when Cobra swung his arm and hammered Mawile right into Erza, sending both smashing into Vanessa, causing all three to hit the rough chain.

"Now I hear your agony, how I'm still so overpowering, yet you think I'm still wrong on the idea of power." Cobra explained. "You think that I…" His eye widened, but then squinted in annoyance. "…am a coward?!"

All three got up, coughing a little. They stared at Cobra, their eyes fixated on him. "That's right." Erza took flight in her armor, and summoned many swords in the air. "Giving all that's dear to you, that's nothing but the coward's way!" They started spinning around her. "You should learn to protect those precious to you! **Circle Sword!**"

Erza shot the multitude of swords down at Cobra, yet the Poison Dragon Slayer heard them all coming and evaded them all, jumping into the air and had the swords all completely slash right through the chain. Erza hurriedly grabbed Vanessa and Mawile, and the chain began to fall downwards towards the earth below.

"Thanks Erza!" Vanessa shouted in the air.

They were caught unsound when Cobra was in the air just like them. "Too bad!" He let out a massive blast of Sound Magic, hurling Vanessa and the others over to a nearby chain intact. Erza requipped back into her Heart Kreuz Armor as she was sprawled on the chain, and Vanessa was groaning as she was sprawled nearby. Mawile grunted as she had a few scratches and bruises.

Cobra landed on the chain, looking down onto them. He watched as Erza slowly got back to her feet. "Yes it's all true, but you can't see it. Your too blind to hear it, Cobra. I admit that I messed up too; I was too blind to know that Nic was hurting." Her fists clenched tightly and she began to glow. "He thought I needed Jellal, and he loved me, and how did I repay him…?" Her outfit was her Robe of Yuen, and as a bonus, she was holding the mighty hammer Jean-Luc bestowed to her before she embarked for the castle. "This is the second time I pushed him away. It's my fault, but I swear on my life, that I will make it up to him!"

Erza jumped into the air, bringing the hammer back. "Because I know deep down he'll always treasure me!"

"Your talking's pointless! **Poison Dragon's Roar!**" Cobra shot a poisonous roar at Erza, the attack streamed at her viciously, yet the hammer shined a golden light and she swung valiantly, her swing deflecting the poison in different directions.

However this tactic left the poison to fade, and Cobra appeared in front as soon as the poison faded away. He had a hand out and shoved Erza into the chain, slamming her down hard. "I never cared what you said about Luminous, that's your business!" He drew his hand back as it was coated in poison. "Cubellios was precious to me, and I'll do what it takes so that I can see her again!"

As he drew his hand down, he felt a tug. He looked back to find his arm suddenly caught in teal aura. "What?!" He traced the line all the way back behind himself, seeing Vanessa restraining him. With a mighty tug, she yanked Cobra off of Erza, pulling him towards her and crashing into the chain several feet in front of her.

Vanessa released her hold and the teal aura line vanished. "You were so caught in confusion that you can't hear so many things anymore. You're getting disoriented because you're being doubted." She clenched her fists. "Well if I were Cubellios, I wouldn't ever look at you in the eyes again!"

Cobra, hearing her voice pierce his mind, became shrouded in poison. "You dare…"

Vanessa was coated in teal aura all around her body. "If you really think that this is the right thing, just so you could see your friend again, then how do you expect them to think of you no more than scum?!" She fired an Emanation Beam at Cobra, the teal aura beam scoring a clean hit and engulfing Cobra in a teal explosion.

It settled, and through the smoke a Poison Dragon's Roar bellowed. Vanessa hurriedly raised a shield made of her teal aura, but the roar was too overwhelming and she was hit. She was engulfed in a venomous explosion, much to Mawile's horror.

"Vanessa!" Mawile angrily turned towards Cobra. "You slithering snake! **Crunch!**" Mawile flipped her jaws ahead and the fangs glowed and elongated. She lunged at Cobra, yet the Poison Dragon Slayer didn't bother flinching.

"How about you stay down this time!" Shoving an arm ahead, Cobra let loose a pulse soundwave at Mawile, making her scream and fly back. She smashed into the chain, creating a dent in it and was embedded into it. Her body had ascertained more damage, and she could barely move.

Cobra turned around, hearing Erza get back up. "You still want more?"

"I'll get up as long as you're still up yourself." She rebuffed.

"Likewise." The voice belonged to a bruised Vanessa, shocking Cobra as the poison faded away.

"What?! You should be decomposing!" He exclaimed, seeing her still in one piece. "How in the heck are you…" He saw her body outlined in teal aura. "What? Her aura shielded her from the effects of my roar?"

"Cobra." Erza voiced. "We'll make this as clear as possible, bonds are what drive us forward. That's true power."

Vanessa held her right arm forward, showing her armband with the Key Stone engraved in it. "And we'll show you just what that means. Mawile."

Slowly arising, but still exceedingly exhausted, Mawile emerged from her fallen position. She wobbled, but looked like she could keep going. She grinned. "Yeah, I know."

Vanessa raised her arm as the Key Stone glinted and the strong winds shifted her black hair and single blonde bang. "Let's finish this!"

Cobra stood confused, while Erza's eyes widened at what Vanessa was gonna show. "She's gonna do Mega Evolution like Nic?"

Vanessa tapped the Key Stone, and Cobra and Erza both began t sense great power. It was strong, very strong. Erza forgot how intense Mega Evolution was, because when Vanessa held up her armband high, light waves wormed through the air.

"Mawile! Mega Evolve!"

The light waves traveled back towards Mawile, and she exerted grunts and let out strong waves of power of her own. The light waves from her body went flailing, and Cobra and Erza felt the power escalate as the two light waves connected. Energy traced back to Mawile, and they all witnessed Mawile giving off the Mega Evolution light.

They saw the jaws separate, and her height increased. They watched her hakama enlarge, and it all came together when the light exploded, sending strong shockwaves around, though not nearly as strong as Charizard or Garchomp when they undergo Mega Evolution.

They all covered up as thick winds past them, and once they settled, Cobra and Erza felt a strong power resonating from Mega Mawile. She had a second set of jaws jutting from the back of her head, and both sets had spiky tufts of hair. The ear-like extensions on her head were longer and had tips with two points. The fur on her legs was magenta, and she had longer fur on her arms with magenta markings around the wrists.

Mega Mawile had her jaws turned towards Cobra. "Say your prayers!"

"The heck is this power?" Cobra asked.

Erza held her hammer back. "It's the power of Mega Evolution, which is brought out by bonds!" She swung her hammer, but Cobra jumped and dodged the hammer swing.

"Mega Mawile, **Feint Attack!**" Vanessa shouted. Mega Mawile disappeared and then reappeared moments later, startling Cobra as she was above him in midair. Hearing her, he turned and blocked her double jaw slam, but the shockwave emitted from the attack was too overwhelming for him, and he screamed as he slammed down on the chain.

"GAH!" He gagged as the shock rendered him unable to move. "Did that thing just get stronger?"

"Yeah! Huge Power helps me well! **Crunch!**" Mega Mawile's double jaws opened up and glowed and elongated. Cobra jerked himself back up and dodged her one jaw that completely crunched through a large piece of chain beneath him, but when she got her feet on the ground, her second pair of jaws went at Cobra on her right, catching him in her jaws.

Cobra winced in searing agony as her Crunch felt incredibly strong, stronger than before. Mega Mawile pivoted. "Try this!" Using her prowess, she swung her jaws, and Cobra revolved around her until she finally stopped with enough momentum, hurling him skywards. "Now!"

"Right!" Vanessa and Erza exclaimed.

"What?!" Cobra saw Vanessa shoot a line at him. "I'll just-!" Cobra brought his right arm back, but it hurt so bad from Crunch, and he couldn't recover in time. Vanessa's teal aura snared Cobra in the abdomen, holding him up high and positioned just right for Erza as she was above with the hammer.

"You have to hear the plea of your friend!" Erza shouted. "She wouldn't want you like this! Remember that! HRAH!" With all she had, she slammed the mighty hammer down on Cobra, creating a shining bright light that overpowered his scream of pain. The booming didn't stop there as Cobra smashed right through the whole chain, breaking it apart entirely.

The chain remains began falling, and Cobra was barely conscious when he heard one last thing. His eye widened and Mega Mawile appeared in front in midair as well. "How about you say goodnight to this nightmare! **Feint Attack!**" Mega Mawile swung her double set of jaws, and with her powered up might, slammed them into Cobra. The crash made the Dragon Slayer feel his being break and he fell to the earth below, a golden light around him from Erza's hammer swing.

Mega Mawile jumped back up to the chain bit still attached to the Infinity Castle, and Erza and Vanessa both looked down as Cobra fell like a star.

Vanessa and Mega Mawile turned towards the other. "Megs Mawile, great job."

Mega Mawile was encased in rainbow coloring and she reverted back to being herself. "Ain't nothing too it." She then sat down, exhaustion taking up her body. "Man I'm beat! That was the hardest thing I've done in my life!"

Vanessa was more than a little exhausted herself, scratches and bruises all over. "Yeah, me too."

The wind shifted past them all, and Erza held her hammer and her brown eyes were set on how strong Vanessa and Mawile's bond was. Her eyes closed, and then grinned. _'Nic, I'll believe in you. Just like Vanessa believes in her Pokémon. Just please…wait for me, and believe in me.'_

* * *

Unconsciously, Nic grew a strong worry as he and the others were fighting the guards inside. Quickly, he smirked. "…Yeah, I'll believe in you."

"Nic, just who are you taking to at a time like this?!" Sophie exclaimed before she made a Memory-Make and sent flaming saucers at celestial guards, making them fall over the edge of the dark blue stone bridge connected inside. The layout was nothing but a labyrinth of dark blue bridges that seemed to even reach downwards. Suspended all around were empty cages, and they seemed out of reach.

They were currently fighting on a very large, circular intersection point, like every other point where many trails connected. They were fighting many guards, but it was nothing they couldn't handle.

"**Abyss Palm!**" Volans exerted a great swell of deep blue water, which erupted upon impact and sent many guards flying off.

"**Sonic Howl!**" Lupus opened his mouth and howled midnight blue soundwaves at the guards, pushing them back.

Nic glowed and shifted into his Zap Plate, in his updated state, Nic's Zap Plate Form had dull yellow baggy pants, and the shoes remained as they were in its past form. His t-shirt was yellow, and the sleeveless coat had become a bright solid yellow with dull yellow trimming. The belt was also a dull yellow, yet the buckle was gold.

He raised an arm up above, and storm clouds hovered over the enemies ahead of him. They all looked up, only to have a heavy bolt of lightning shoot straight down onto them. "**Thunder!**" He let loose a grand jolt and the bodies of the guards all zapped and sizzled as they fell downwards into the darkness below.

Corvus got a good look from the air, seeing that the circular intersection was now empty. "Alright guys, we're clear!"

"Then onto the next floor!" Pavo exclaimed. Everyone followed along as Pavo pirouetted on towards the stairs that led downwards into the darkness beneath. As they descended, they saw celestial flames flickering in the sides of the prison, which was neon flames. With each step they took, the colder and more hollow they seemed to feel.

Nic was growing weary, and his body was sensing so much hatred from this prison. But this level was weak compared to Lysandre, and yet something still felt off, and he couldn't quite get it.

They've reached the next floor, where they began to run along the dark passageway with darkness looming on the sides. One wrong step and they might fall to the bottom, as well as their own demise.

"Anybody see it?" As they ran, they tried looking through the cages they passed on by. They looked inside, and saw nothing that looked like a key. All they saw were some empty cages, pointless junk…and a few corrosive remains of rotted spirits.

They soon reached the next circular intersection, where they didn't see any form of guards so far. They seemed safe, yet something was still off as a sizeable cage was hanging above.

"Freeze!" Nic and the group were intercepted when guards suddenly began to run from all of the intersection points. The floor's point they were on was starting to loom with guards from all over. Nic began to spark and readied a counteroffensive, while Greninja readied more of his Water Shuriken.

"Looks like their numbers are increasing by the floor. Let's go!" Nic shouted.

Sophie's eyes narrowed. "This is getting out of hand. We're losing Magic again with every spell used…" She noticed the cage above them, seeing something beginning to slither out a tail.

Cana readied herself for the guards. "Then let's-!"

"Cana, look out!" Sophie screamed.

The brunette turned around, only to become entangled by a long tail. She screamed as the coils began to tighten, and everyone hurriedly traced back up to the cage above. Its door was open, and down dropped the rest of the long body that tangled around Cana. They all saw that it was a jungle green serpent with a crimson underside.

Its body kept constricting Cana, and the brunette could not bring herself to break free. "What the hell…is going on…?"

"It's her?!" Volans exclaimed, clenching his fists. "I should've known!"

"What is that?!" Sophie exclaimed. "Get off of Cana-!" Sophie was lashed by the tail end of the serpent, and she felon her back, slamming into Pavo in the process.

Nic coated a fist in lightning via Thunder Punch. "Let her go!" He rushed on in and punched the snake, and the snake's tail end slammed into Thunder Punch, making lightning crackle everywhere and caused Nic to get at a stalemate. "Damn you!"

Nic stopped his own punch and only grasped the tail, keeping it in place. "Volans, who is she?!"

"Serpens – Gate of the Snake." He explained, to which Serpens hissed at him. "She's a very durable spirit, and her heavy and long body can make her a lethal weapon…but there's a really good reason why she's locked up down here."

Greninja fended off the guards with a single Dark Pulse, driving the attack in a long arc and making dark explosions. With the explosions as cover, he turned back around. "Why is that?!"

Serpens loomed over Cana as the brunette as struggling to break free. "I can't reach my cards!" She was breathing fine, it's just that she couldn't move. She heard a tongue flicker above, and saw Serpens's jaws opening up.

"She has a nasty habit swallowing her contractors whole…alive." Volans explained. "Hurry! We'll take care of the guards, while you stop Serpens!" Volans turned around, pivoting and slashed with his fin-bladed elbow.

"Greninja, **Water Shuriken!**" Nic shouted. Greninja shot more compressed stars of water, and Nic extended his arm out. "**Charge Beam!**" The yellow beam traveled along with the shuriken, and the Electric-Type move was circled by the shuriken of water that began to static. The combine attack shot at Serpens's head, engulfing her in a large explosion. The snake hollered in pain as her jaw locked back in place and she was flung off of Cana, slamming into the ground.

Cana coughed and Sophie caught her, supporting her. "Cana, are you okay?"

The brunette angrily turned towards her. "I was almost snake food! That thing almost put me in its mouth! Of course I'm not okay!"

Serpens shook her head and hissed out at everyone present. Pavo, Corvus, and Volans were the ones fending off the massive swarm of guards, leaving the rest to handle Serpens. The 30-foot snake hissed at them, and slammed her tail against the floor.

Cana flashed some cards. "Time for a little payback! **Summoned Lightning!**" She threw her cards, which streamed green lightning bolts, and they closed in on Serpens. The snake slithered out of the way, dodging Cana's assault. "Whoa, she's fast!"

Serpens began to close the gap between her victims and hollered out at them with her jaws wide. Lupus jumped ahead and slashed at her with his sonic-enhanced claws, striking her right across the face and recoiling back.

"**Thunderbolt!**" Nic blasted Serpens with a large bolt of lightning, yet the snake's eyes opened and she slithered right past the Electric-Type move and getting a distance. "She's evasive…" He eyes Serpens as the snake Spirit hissed out at them. An idea came to mind and he lucked out a Poke Ball. "If that's the case, then let's leave this to him! Go!"

The Poke Ball opened, and out came Nic's Arbok. The Cobra Pokémon hissed as he was unleashed, and in immediately response, Serpens hissed harshly back.

Cana smirked. "Now that's more like it! We got our own snake!"

"Nic-sssssama, what issss it that you dessssire me to do?" Arbok obediently asked while keeping a foul gaze on Serpens.

Nic extended his arm forward. "Take out Serpens while we handle the guards!"

"Asssss you wish." Arbok hissed out, and without any further hesitation lunged at Serpens, his speed startling the larger snake as he slithered vigorously and powerfully. Arbok's mouth opened and he hissed violently at Serpens, while the larger snake opened her toothless jaws and lunged back out at Arbok.

Nic turned towards the others, shifting into his Stone Plate Form. "Arbok is capable of this. Come on." He ushered everyone back around, where guards and their numbers began to increase.

"**Rock Slide!**" Nic raised his arms and ripples appeared in the darkness above. Huge, gray rocks began to shower down from the ripples, and the guards all shouted and screamed as they were pelted and buried under rubble that shook the intersection flooring.

Pavo clenched a fist. "HAHA! Nice one! Hm…" He narrowed his eyes, and he swiftly round house kicked a guy coming up on his left. "Back off, jerk!"

Arbok and Serpens both began to serpentine slowly circles around the other, both eyeing the other and spectating their individual physiques. Arbok's mouth opened and his tongue flicked. "You're sssso low, making living beingssss assss ssssnacks! How about I make an exxxample out of you!"

Serpens snapped her jaws at Arbok, who in turn had opened his mouth and the fangs glowed light blue, elongated, and became thick ice. "**Ice Fang!**" Both snakes then rushed at the other, mouths wide open, and yet Arbok was the faster one, snapping his jaws down in Serpens's neck, and the snake hollered as she felt the icy cold attack pierce her scaly body. She was driven into the ground by Arbok's muscle and thrown to the side, tumbling some before recovering.

Serpens hissed and swung her long tail horizontally, yet Arbok wasn't pegged as his reflexes made him duck and dodge the tail. "Issss that all you got?!"

"**Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**" Sophie made a chain of memories and the ground beneath the guards all around her erupted with sharp stones from the earth coated in yellow lightning. The attack erupted all around her, and the guards were engulfed in lightning.

Corvus brought his wings back and quickly gained distance from the guards in front of him. "**Night Storm!**" He let loose a black twister that swirled hazardously about, sending guards flying to who knows where. "Alright!"

"Behind you!" Corvus heard the warning and turned around to see a guard aiming his spear at him, but was stopped when Greninja's Bounce landed right on the face, crashing the victim into the earth, making a crater.

"Thanks!" Corvus turned around at that instant and flung more of his black feathers at a guard he sensed.

"I think the numbers are beginning to quell!" Cana shouted as she shot cards that exploded upon impact.

Arbok and Serpens both roared at the other and spiraled around the other, semi-coiling and intertwining in attempts to restrain the other. Both snapped their jaws at the other, yet Arbok was more reflexive and reeled his head back when Serpens snapped her jaws.

Arbok was bit on the hood, but her bite wasn't lethal enough to incapacitate him. Arbok made Ice Fang and he bit down on Serpens's neck again, making her holler as she felt the icy attack yet again. With his pure muscle, he threw off Serpens and the snake screamed and slammed into the earth.

Serpens shook her head as she hollered out at Arbok, of whom was seeing how she was acting up.

"You don't like the cold?" His eyes narrowed as he hissed. "Then you're gonna hate thissss! **Ice Fang!**" He rushed on in and snapped his jaws down on Serpens's long body again, and the larger snake hollered and flailed as Arbok held on with all his might. Serpens flailed and shivered as Arbok's Ice Fang was starting tomake her slow down.

As she flailed, Arbok held on and his eyes narrowed. _'I sssssee, cold-blooded.'_

Meanwhile, Nic backflipped and kicked several guards while in the air. Landing on his hands, he spun and spiral kicked many guards onto their backs. He rushed back onto his feet and glanced on over towards Arbok, seeing how he was briefly looking at him.

Immediately it clicked. Nic grinned. "Got it!" He glowed, shifting onto his Icicle Plate Form. He took in a deep breath and exhaled out. "**Frost Breath!**" He let loose a strong, cold wind with blue sparkles at Serpens. Arbok used his upper body and shoved Serpens in front of him, and the large snake hollered and shivered as she took in the entire Frost Breath.

Serpens began to shiver violently, and she could hardly move. Arbok let go and slammed his tail upwards, sending her skyward.

Nic turned towards everyone. "Everyone, grab onto someone who can fly!" Nic glowed and shifted into his Draco Plate Form, he thus began to take flight. "Arbok, **Earthquake!**"

Arbok hissed a low roar and he sprung upward. In the air, he arced down onto the shivering Serpens and the tail was brought down like a hammer. The whole attack emitted an immense shockwave upon impact, and Arbok slammed down, with Serpens first, into the intersection. The ground shook violently and catastrophic shockwaves boomed everywhere. Rock and stone bellowed all about and everyone on the circular intersection felt the ground cave in.

Nic had Greninja get on his back, and Arbok sprung up and Nic held on, despite the weight, yet it was still manageable. Sophie was carried by Pavo, and Volans hauled Lupus, while Corvus remained airborne freely. They all watched the ground shatter, and every guard and Serpens below fell downwards into the darkness, along with the debris.

"Well that's one way." Cana noted.

Volans nodded. "Well done. We should descend lower now. The Andromeda Key is perhaps at one of the lowest levels."

Nic pulled out his Poke Ball while holding Arbok under one arm. "Nice job Arbok, return."

Arbok hissed in gratitude and he returned back to his Poke Ball. With the weight slightly better, Nic began to fall less painfully. He flapped as Greninja was on his back, and they all looked down at the darkness below.

"I guess we'll see since this is the only way down now." Corvus stated.

"Let's see what we find down here." Pavo said.

They all took a long time to descend, and as time progressed, the temperature dropped even more, and Nic felt his spine tingling. It was bad, and it kept getting worse. It felt so mind-wrecking, yet it doesn't stop growing.

"Anybody else feel that?" Sophie asked. "It's like…my body is getting all disoriented."

Pavo felt uneasy. "Yeah, I feel the same way. Lysandre's foul and corrosive energy must have drenched this place bad."

It was so dark that they couldn't see the bottom, yet their feet all touched hard stone. They didn't see any sign of…well, anything.

Nic turned his head around. "Anyone see anything?"

"No good. This darkness is too thick, and to make matters worse, I think we're on the lowest level." Volans paused. "One of the forbidden Spirit chambers."

"What?" Sophie asked.

Pavo gulped, and his eyes shrunk. "Gyah! Y-you mean to tell us…that we're quite possibly…"

"There's no question. Everyone on your guard!" Volans tensed up, and everyone else looked around attentively.

Greninja's eyes were dead serious, and he remained still. He was beginning to turn left when his sensory picked up something rather…humungous. He turned sharply right, and his glance went upwards. _'This energy…'_ He had his arm all around. "Everyone, we've got trouble!"

Everyone's heads turned towards where Greninja was at, and Nic, still in his Draco Plate Form, was having his eyes wide, and he began to tense up bad. "…oh no."

"Nic, what's wrong?" Cana asked.

"In my Draco Plate, I may have the advantages of all capabilities and abilities of dragons and dragon-related tactics…but I can also…sense one."

Corvus stepped back. "D-d-don't tell me-?!"

"Yeah…we're not alone down here." Greninja and everyone else felt their eyes widen even more, and the cracks beneath the ground had begun to glow a bright red. The red glow was enough to give them a look at whose eyes opened.

Cana and Sophie both were left mind-blown, as their eyes shuddered, as well as their bodies. "Oh my god." They muttered in unison, seeing a 50-foot tall orange scaled dragon. His mouth was huge, and razor sharp teeth jutted out from the jaws. It had yellow eyes, and orange pupils with feral sclera. It had a massive snout, and bony horns jutting out from the back of the head. His long neck reached down to his armor-like scaly body, with muscular arms and legs, and a long tail with black spikes running along the back. The whole underside was yellow, and it had two, surprisingly small wings. There was a huge chain around his neck as well.

The beast glared down at them as the bright red beneath made his presence all the more gruesome.

Volans's eyes narrowed, yet still showed horror. "Draco – Gate of the Dragon!"

Draco roared up to the prison, the roaring he made bellowed all around, and Nic and everyone covered their ears in pain. They all felt the ground beneath rumble, and small flames were seen at Draco's feet. Once the dragon Spirit settled, he spectated the crew down beneath his feet.

"So why is he a forbidden Spirit?" Sophie rhetorically asked.

"You're about to find out!" Pavo exclaimed, seeing Draco growl down at them.

"His power is unmatched. He's a very powerful and untamable Spirit, hence his sentence down here." Volans bluntly stated, taking a karate stance. "Whatever you do, don't turn your back to him!"

Draco roared up once more, shaking the entire circular floor that was wide in diameter. On the sides was still heaping darkness. It was dark as it already was as they were so far down in the storage/prison, with the light from high above and the flames below being the only light possible.

Nic flapped his wings. "I'll take the lead!" He soared up after Draco, getting high above him. "Fight a dragon with a Dragon-Type at best!" He brought an arm back as Draco looked up at him. His hand glowed light blue and emitted claw-shaped energy.

Nic descended quickly. "Let's find out his durability! **Dragon Claw!**" Nic slashed viciously and swiftly on the side of his face, the shock from the attack making winds fly. Draco buffeted his neck away as Nic was suspended in midair. Draco's low growling confirmed it. "His scales are like steel!"

Draco's eyes opened back up, and looking at Nic, he swung his tail around. The long tail lashed at Nic, and he only had time to block with his arms as the long tail slammed into him, shooting him away.

"Nic!" Greninja appeared behind Nic in time to catch him, but all that supplied for was a cushion as they both shot back still and smashed into the wall far away, embedding them both in so they didn't fall into the darkness.

Cana swiped her cards. "**Summoned Lightning!**" She shot the cards that were coated in green lightning bolts and struck the dragon Spirit's body, making green static run through, and yet that looked as though it only tickled. "Not even a flinch!"

Draco opened his massive jaws and went to bite at Cana. He closed in quickly, and Corvus came swooping in. "Cana!" He grabbed Cana by the arms and zoomed out of the way, avoiding the snapping jaws and ascending upwards.

Cana looked up at him. "Thanks for the save."

As he flew Corvus tipped his witch's hat. "Don't mention it." However his heroics were reduced to cowardice once again as Draco turned to look up at them. "Uh oh…AAHHHHHH!"

Draco let loose a searing flame from his mouth that raced up at Cana and Corvus. They screamed like sissies, mostly Corvus, as he maneuvered in a panic around the flames that erupted skyward, making him bellow more cries of cowardice.

Once Draco stopped the flames and shut his mouth, Pavo was seen above, and he had the peacocks on his feet already. "Alright you lizard, tell us where the Andromeda Key is! **Peacock's Awakening!**" Pavo let loose a fast barrage of stretched peacock beak assaults down on the snout, retracting and kicking back so fast and so hard it was almost like rapid bullets.

Draco moved his head away, showing no visible pain, yet it did show some signs of hindrance. He swatted his tail again, hitting a gawking Pavo and the peacock man screamed as he spiraled backwards and actually straightened out in a twirl, getting his hands to the ground and jumping back, skidding to a halt.

Draco went to attack Pavo again, his mouth open and launched a blistering flame at the group below. The fire was so hot, and Volans went in front of them all. "I'll handle this!" He made a great sphere of deep blue water in between his hands, similar to a Water Pulse. The middle shined a bright light and let loose. "**Tsunami Implosion!**" The sphere erupted in midair, exploding volatile water in all directions. Everyone around covered up as the blast of immense water pressure countered the fire, making a great wall of mist erupt in between the two.

The mist cleared quickly, and Draco lunged through the mist, and attacked Volans with his teeth. Volans reached out and stopped the fangs, using just his bare hands. A great shockwave ruptured the earth beneath, and the fishman grunted and growled as he was barely holding on with his physical prowess. "He's so strong!"

High above, a glint was seen spiraling, catching a few eyes. The dragon lost focus and saw the spinning image coming down onto him, revealing Greninja. "**Bounce!**" Greninja's foot smashed right on Draco's snout, making the dragon Spirit lose momentum in his dominance over Volans. Greninja jumped off and had Volans bring a palm back.

"**Abyss Palm!**" Volans's right palm had deep blue water and did a palm strike on the lower jaw, making an aquatic shockwave bellow all about. Draco reeled back slowly rom the shock of his attack, and howled in pain. He got a front foot behind, keeping him from slipping, and shook his head.

Nic flapped in the air, having a few scratches from that sudden attack. "His skin is like fierce armor. It takes massive strength to slice or dent them."

"I know." Sophie said. "Let me see if I can make him slip! **Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**" The ground beneath shook, and beneath the dragon the red cracks began to glisten with electricity. Draco roared up and raised his front claws. His small wings flapped once, and his feet left the ground, making winds fly that everyone had to cover up from.

The attack on the ground completely missed, and the chain on Draco's neck was attached to a wall, keeping him from going so high. Once he was at his highest altitude possible, he roared down at the crew,

"He can fly too?!" Corvus exclaimed.

"This will complicate things. Fortunately the chain attached to his neck limits his mobility for us." Lupus stated.

Draco roared down at them, and that's when decided to initiate Plan B.

"Very well then." He pulled out another Poke Ball. "Aside from Greninja's Water Shuriken, there's another chance we have." He tossed the Poke Ball up. "Garchomp, come on out!"

The Poke Ball opened, and on the floor arose Garchomp. His body unfolded and his eyes opened up. His mouth bared his razor sharp teeth and bellowed out a great and fierce draconic roar that made the whole floor quake, causing everyone to cover up and barely keep balance.

Above Draco flapped his wings and eyed Garchomp, feeling a great dread arise up for some odd reason.

Garchomp growled up at Draco. "Seriously, this world just keeps getting weirder." His monstrous gaze sharpened. "Who is this scaled freak think he's fooling? Let's punish him for being a horrid inmate, Nic!"

"I couldn't agree more! Now Garchomp, **Slash!**"

Garchomp's claws glowed and elongated, and he lunged up at Draco, making the ground where he stood crack and rumble. He lunged up at great speeds that left Draco unable to blink before Garchomp reappeared in front of his face.

"Try this!" Garchomp slashed at Draco's side, making white trail behind. The attack gashed across Draco's face, leaving the dragon Spirit to bellow a roar of pain as his scales were torn into. Garchomp jerked back as the dragon recoiled in the air, and growled at Draco.

Volans's eyes widened while Corvus and Pavo were gawking. "Incredible. He has so much power." He stated.

Draco dragged his tail around and slammed Garchomp with it. The Mach Pokémon had his claws out and held off the blow, barely maintaining steadiness in the air above as ripples and shockwaves bellowed out.

"Grrrrr! You're nothing special! Do you hear me?!" Garchomp bellowed out as the airspace around shook. Finally he crossed his claws and swiped, his physical prowess actually making the tail retract a bit. Garchomp flew in and his claws created Slash again. With another snarl, he used Slash and slashed across Draco's face again, slashing deeper than before as the scales were bleeding out.

Pavo spun in place. "YEEHAW! Looks like Pokémon are better than evil Spirits!"

"That thing's physical prowess is uncanny. He fended against that tail swing like it was nothing." Lupus said in amazement.

Greninja turned towards him. "It's all thanks to Nic. He, as well as all of us for that matter, undergo immense combat and reflexive training daily." Greninja looked up to see Garchomp fly back from getting swat by the tail, but his feet bounced off the wall with no problem and used the momentum to lung back at Draco. "We're all gifted in immense durability and endurance."

"**Dragon Rush!**" The appendages on his head glowed light blue and he exerted a great swell of power. Garchomp was enveloped in draconic energy that shaped into a dragon and rushed out after Draco. The attack met its mark, and Draco's abdomen that engulfed in a draconic explosion, making the dragon Spirit roar up in agonizing pain. The shockwaves spread out, causing Corvus to fall backwards as well as land on his face.

Draco smashed into the ground, causing a great tremor that made everyone jump. Stone flew in a few places and Nic spread his wings quickly enough and ascended into the air. "**Dragon Pulse!**" Nic gathered energy in his mouth and fired a multicolored dragon-shaped energy at Draco, with the head chomping down on Draco and causing an explosion that expanded outwards.

Through the explosion, Cana covered up. "Geez, this is an all-out dragon showdown!"

"Just don't tell Natsu! He'll get pissed!" Sophie shouted as the explosion began to settle.

Nic and Garchomp landed on the ground beside the other, giving expectant glares as the smoke and dust began to settle. They saw Draco's figure slowly arise from the cloud and witnessed his mouth opening up, roaring out at them.

"It looks like we aggravated him even more." Nic stated, not surprised in the slightest.

"He's a rough sucker, that's why he's gonna fall harder than before!" Garchomp exclaimed.

"I couldn't agree more." He crouched, as did Garchomp. "Let's go!"

"Right!" Garchomp roared up at Draco again, and the dragon Spirit lunged his head back down at them. Garchomp ran on in with incredible speed. He stretched his claws and fins out, enabling green to glow on them. "**Dual Chop!**" He smashed his find into the teeth of the beast, keeping them spread out as the gaping jaws were durable at the very least.

Garchomp was holding his ground as his Dual Chop restrained and grinded against the teeth. "Is that all?!" He challenged, using all of his muscle. "Come on, tell me, can you do better, because I got plenty!"

Nic and Greninja jumped overhead and unleashed their attacks.

"**Dark Pulse!**"

"**Dragon Pulse!**"

Both attacks soared down at Draco's back, causing an explosion that made him lose momentum. The shock from the attack was more than enough to give Garchomp the advantage. Garchomp brought his Dual Chop back and skidded back a little before he lunged ahead, slashing Dual Chop across Draco's face and running down the right side of his neck in a fast, green glint.

Garchomp didn't bother looking back as a line of green explosions erupted from Dual Chop, making Draco roar in pain and flail his neck around as he was bleeding bad. His scales were all torn apart, but he caught himself and angrily turned his neck towards Garchomp.

"Garchomp!" Nic warned.

"On it!" Garchomp pivoted and reached his claws out, the tips piercing into the dragon Spirit's lower jaw when he was lunging at Garchomp. Draco reared back and bellowed in pain.

"Now we're getting somewhere!" Cana exclaimed.

Garchomp ran past Draco and stomped his foot. Coming to a halt in front as Nic and Greninja landed right beside him.

"He's annoying." The Mach Pokémon scowled.

"It looks like we're gonna have to…" Nic trailed off. He was gonna suggest a strategy he came up in less than two seconds, but everything grew cold, and it was as though everything tuned to a hollow silence, like a death silence. "Wait…do you guys…?"

Greninja began to shudder. "Yeah, this corrosive energy…"

Garchomp growled as he bared his claws, yet even he felt this foul and extremely potent energy. "This is bad." He looked up as everything above turned pitch black, enveloped in corrosive darkness.

Pavo gaped as he began to shrivel, his breathing becoming unsound. "Ah…ah…ah."

Cana recognized this energy as her spine was shaking. "Wait…oh no."

Sophie swallowed as she remembered all too well, as this energy was familiar to her. "No…no…"

Volans shuddered, despite his stern look even he was unnerved. "No! We're too late!"

Lupus's hair and mane stood on end, and growled as he got on all fours. He recognized the empty and nose-burning smell. "He found us!"

Draco stopped moving as he sniffed the air. It was as though his nostrils were rotting on the spot. He shook his head and winced backwards in freight. The bright red cracks on the flooring slowly turned purple, and they instead went from hot to shivering cold.

A maniacal chuckle started low, and then escalated into a strong and evil laugh. It was blood-curdling and vile to say the very least.

"Found you."

"Is that who I think it is?" Garchomp asked.

Greninja swallowed. "This very bad."

Nic began to sweat as the energy all around was making his heartbeat escalate uncontrollably. He heard something high above, but by the time he looked up, the high speed blue beam crashed down and engulfed him and his Pokémon in a large-scale explosion, creating a dense crater from where they stood.

"Nic!" Sophie screamed through the bellowing wails of the attack. Everyone saw the smoke clear, and Nic was lying in a crater, scratched up slightly to say the least. Garchomp and Greninja were the same as they all grunted as they slowly got up.

Looking up, they all heard the same bellowing laughter, and a stream of shadow seeped down from the pitch black darkness above. It was revolting, and that's how they recognized it once the drooping shadows swirled and solidified into a familiar someone. Lysandre.

His eyes opened, and they all saw the bloody look in his eyes. "I found you."

Nic swallowed as his eyes dilated. _'Lysandre, no. This was an ambush!'_

Everyone was paralyzed in fear, unable to move. They watched Lysandre turn his back to face Draco, whom was shuddering.

"I must say, Draco, you were very helpful in buying us time to arrive." In response, Draco roared down at Lysandre, whose breath was hot and foul, yet didn't even make the man blink. "I see you're scared." He extended his hand out. "You couldn't even suppress Nic's Garchomp. If you were an actual Dragon like this Acnologia fellow, then you'd be of great disappointment!"

He clenched his fist, and that's when shadows converged and pierced Draco through his whole body, body, wings, neck, and all. Everyone watched in horror as Lysandre tightened his grip even more, and more shadows rushed out of the darkness, and the shadows screamed in shrilled cries as they encased Draco in a cocoon of sorts.

"Begone!" He opened up his hand, and the whole cocoon imploded, shooting darkness all around, as well as shrilled, scared cries. Not even hot blood remained as Draco was completely maimed in the shadows that rot away even his bones.

Garchomp grew unsound as he couldn't move his feet, but knew everyone else felt the same. "The monster."

"More than that." Volans said, barely breathing. "He's even worse than Satan. He's Satan's assassin, the bringer of all death."

"Draco, he…" Sophie could only trail off as she almost forgot how to breathe.

Pavo's eyes were wide as he shuddered like he was gonna fall over. "He just killed Draco…with just shadows!"

Lysandre turned around, his dark purple and vile aura encased his entire being. The ground from where he stood slowly caved in as his feet went in an arc, facing Nic. His blood red teeth looked at Nic, who was tense. "Surprised?"

"Lysandre!" Nic roared lowly, with Greninja and Garchomp both bellowing out at Lysandre as well.

Lysandre chuckled. "I can see you're just as determined as last time. From what I remember, I left a beauty mark in quite a few places."

Nic put a hand over his right side, and tried not to blink as his left eye was artificial. Through it all, he had to remain confident. "Lysandre, you're gonna pay for killing off so many Spirits." Nic warned. "I was wondering what happened to you while everything was in suspense, guess now I know."

"Oh, my little genocide?" Lysandre shrugged, still smirking evilly. "It was nice little hobby."

Nic's eyes widened a little, and his body began to grow restless. "…what did you say?"

Lysandre's eyes narrowed. "Oh? Did I strike a nerve?" He chucked for a bit. "Good, I'll absorb that contempt, and all that despair, and make it my power. It was all my doing. It was a little hobby, and conserving my energy all these years left me with great joy."

A jumbled up pile of dark rings were formed in his palm. "Now I can pay you back from last time!" Without warning, Lysandre shot Dark Pulse. The attack trailed on in, shattering the ground and reducing the rubble to literally nothing.

Garchomp rushed in front of Nic and coated his fins and claws in Dual Chop. "Oh no you don't!" He brought the Dual Chop down, bisecting Dark Pulse and making it smash elsewhere. However, Garchomp was not safe as the immense force was still making him skid back and lose. Finally, a dark explosion erupted, and Garchomp screamed as he shot back, slamming in front of Nic.

"Garchomp!" Nic shouted.

Garchomp had a few scratches on him, but it wasn't enough to keep him down. "You…swine! Now I'm really angry!" He bellowed as he stood back up, ready for another offensive.

Lysandre crossed his arms as he levitated up in the air. "No ordinary Garchomp could stand, let alone bisect an immense attack like that. I must say Nic, you clearly trained all of your Pokémon for upmost durability."

"Silence with your vile comments!" Nic glowed and shifted into his Insect Plate Form. He ascended into the pitch black air and let loose a silver wind with silver sparkles. "**Silver Wind!**"

Lysandre moved his arm in an arc, dissipating the attack, much to Nic's horror. "What?!"

"**Ominous Wind!**" Lysandre moved his other arm in an arc, releasing a vile and corrosive purple wind that spread outwards. Nic was struck by the wind and screamed as he fell back to the ground, and his Greninja and Garchomp grunted as they covered up, yet it was still too much for them as well as they fell over. Everyone screamed as Lysandre's Ominous Wind kept stretching out, and they were sent soaring and tumbled on the ground.

The dust settled, and Cana coughed a little. "These foul winds, it's like my skin was rotting."

"Yeah, *cough cough* he's just toying with us. I remember his demonic power." Sophie said as she slowly tried getting up.

Nic hurriedly got to his feet and rushed after Lysandre in the air. "You've gotten stronger, but that won't keep me down!" His hands glowed light blue and he crossed tem, making an X shape with magenta outlining. "**X-Scissor!**"

Lysandre reached his arm out, and Nic was caught in suspension. He was completely frozen as his mind processed quickly. "Ps-Psychic?!"

"**Shadow Sneak!**" Lysandre hollered, and a long shadow reached out from the bitter darkness afar. The shadow went behind as Nic was unable to move.

Nic! Nooooooo!" Pavo jumped up with a valid and valiant jump, twirling as he leaped up behind.

"Pavo!" Sophie screamed, only to watch Pavo take the hit and gag blood as the long shadow had a piercing end. Nic, Greninja, and everyone's eye were wide with horror as Pavo slowly fell back down head first.

"Pavo!" Corvus caught Pavo as he fell, breaking his fall by using his back as a cushion. Corvus ignored the agent his back had felt glanced over his shoulder. "Pavo! Are you okay?!"

Pavo grunted as he could barely move. He coughed a little blood as he was helped up. His abdomen was bleeding, and he took a pierce hit.

Nic's eyes were wide as he gazed down at Pavo, seeing his friend take the Shadow Sneak that would've pierced his back. He saw everyone gather around below, and then Nic began to shutter violently.

Lysandre smirked. "Hmph."

Nic's pupils were small, feral, and filled with bloody anger. He was mad. Very mad.

"You…" Nic's fists clenched so hard they almost stopped circulating blood. "You hurt Pavo! You hurt my friend!"

"SO WHAT?!" Lysandre slammed his arm down, and Psychic completely smashed Nic into the earth, making the whole area violently quake as rock fell everywhere. Nic screamed in riling agony as his back felt immense pain from the surprising force.

The dust cleared, but Nic never had the chance to get up as Lysandre suddenly appeared atop and grabbed his neck and clenched tightly, holding Nic down to the ground. The hands clenched Nic's throat tightly enough that it was actually making his skin burn.

Seeing Nic in trouble, Cana flashed cards. "Get away from him!" She shot cards, and Greninja crouched and fired his Water Shuriken move. Both attacks spun into Lysandre, whom reached with his spare hand unleashed glowing stars with golden sparkles.

"**Swift!**" Lysandre's assault glided through the air, colliding into the Water Shuriken and Cana's cards. Through the small explosion, Swift went on, and Cana and Greninja covered up as they were pelted by Swift.

"G-guys-GLAH!" Nic's neck was squeezed tighter and he was driven into the ground even more.

"I think it's more fitting for you to perish down here. It's cold, desolate, and very much fitting for someone of your poor stature." Lysandre readied a Shadow Claw, the corrosive energy all gathered up and poised at Nic.

"Hands off!" Garchomp came down above with his Dual Chop, ready to strike down Lysandre. Lysandre's purple aura continued to seep and he changed tactics. He instead picked up Nic and threw him up at Garchomp, making both collide. Lysandre then used a vicious Dark Pulse that exploded in the air, engulfing the two.

Sophie and everyone watched his horror as Nic and Garchomp smashed into the ground, both heavily damaged, yet tumbled onto a knee.

Volans stepped up. "Lysandre."

Lysandre looked over at Volans, seeing his grumpy and vengeful expression. The heinous man thought little and scoffed. "You are not my priority. I leave you to my subordinates."

He snapped his fingers, and all around the passages that led to the darkness all around. Everyone began to feel overwhelming pressure, and they all turned their backs and saw the enemies advance.

There were six. Two were clearly Cetus, and the other being Sirius. The remaining four were much different. One was a tall guy, who had tanned skin and fancy sunglasses, much fancier than Nic's. He had his highly muscular body showing without a shirt. He had a loose chain like a collar that was golden bling with red jewelry. He had very short golden hair as well, and a golden belt with blue laces that crossed. While his shoes were magenta colored, as well as his pants, he had a very large rainbow-feathered coat draped over him in a way similar to Laxus.

The second new face was an average-sized person. He had a purple t-shirt and dark red pants, and yet the rest of his body was orange fur, like a human fox almost. While the underside of his arms were bare, his arm and legs had orange fur, and his bare d\feet and hands had claws. He had a large, bushy tail jutting out. He had headgear similar to a fox's upper head, but without eyes. His eyes were a cynical green, and he had bushy orange sideburns. His sharp teeth were added by whisker marks on his cheeks.

The third new face was a seemingly calmer man. He had a white, feathery crown with a golden jewel in the center, complimenting his slicked-back white hair. He had a thin, brown mantle that covered his shoulders, and the arms had skin-tight brown sleeves. Under the mantle was a brown shirt that stopped at the abdomen, where it was covered in black armor. He had brown pants stopping at the shins, revealing his eagle-like talons, sharper than Corvus's. Much like the Crow, the man himself had more elegant brown feathers attached to his arms. His eyes were a serious and shrouded blue.

The last new face was distinct. He had long legs and arms that had sharp hooves. He had black pants and black jacket with orange lines running down the arms and middle, with an orange handkerchief in a pocket. He had a spotted, long neck and had sharp brown bristles along the back of the neck. He had a large, round and brown snout and angry-looking eyes and a sadistic grin.

The six stood all around, surrounding everyone and leaving them speechless.

"L-Lysandre's…top subordinates." Volans shuddered.

"They're all here…we're so dead." Corvus muttered.

Sophie looked uneasy. "This level of power…and this overwhelming dread." She couldn't even swallow as she became stiff. "Nic-!"

The tall man in the rainbow-feathered coat appeared in front with a large smirk. His appearance startled Sophie as he also brought an arm back. "Sorry little lady, but…" He pushed forward, sending a spiral of rainbow feathers at Sophie, sending her flying. "Your friends are gonna drop dead!"

Lupus snarled at the enemies all around, turning his head. When he looked ahead, he met by Sirius, who leaped in front and dark sonic kicked him hard in the chin.

"L-Lupus!" Corvus exclaimed.

"It would appear you have met defeat, novice." The eagle-like man said.

Corvus turned ahead, looking at the Spirit before him. "N-no…A-Aquila?" His surprise turned to anger as his teeth began to grit. "HOW COULD YOU…"

He trailed off as he suddenly began to feel light-headed, and he collapsed. Aquila appeared behind him in a flash and looked unfazed as Corvus fell behind him.

"There's no room for utter remorse, you fool." Aquila backlashed.

Volans watched Cetus advance before him, and the two glared heavily at the other. Former master and student had a long stare down before Cetus began opening his mouth.

"Well now, seems now we can pick up from where we left off, old man." In a flash, Cetus lunged after Volans, reaching a fist across and Volans punched back, both releasing a strong shockwave that rattled the ground. Volans grunted while Cetus sadistically smirked with glee.

Cana pulled out some cards. "There's so much Magic and darkness, but we can't-!"

She was cut off when the fox man appeared in front, startling her as he didn't even make a sound. Cana gasped, but that was all the time she got before the fox man's fox was engulfed in shadows and kicked Cana across, making her scream and slam into the ground.

Lysandre stood with a devilish presence, chuckling at Nic as his Pokémon were panting as well. "Now you see? You're finished!" He suddenly disappeared, yet reappeared behind Nic. Nic turned around and blocked the tail swing that was Lysandre's Feint Attack, yet skidded backwards on his feet.

Greninja jumped backwards and made ninja hand signs. "**Smokescreen!**" He huffed out smoke, encasing Lysandre in a huge and thick smoke cloud.

"Tch, annoying." He swiped his arm, dispelling the Smokescreen, yet it revealing that Nic, Garchomp, and Greninja were all not present. "Hm?"

"HRAH!" Nic descended downwards, clad now in his Iron Plate Form. Greninja descended downwards using his Bounce, and Garchomp sailed down with Dragon Rush. All three rushed down at an unsuspecting Lysandre.

Lysandre's eyes closed, and then opened once more. "Don't make me laugh!" A large spatial hole appeared above him, and Nic and the Pokémon's eyes widened.

"What's this?!" Nic, Greninja, and Garchomp all fell in, and traveled through what seemed distorted and suspended space before another hole opened back up, and they all went through and smashed into the flooring some feet away from Lysandre, crashing and failing hopelessly.

As the dust settled, they hurried to their feet, but a swift Dark Pulse trailed across the stone flooring, shattering it and striking Nic right in the abdomen. Nic screamed in agony as Dark Pulse struck him hard and engulfed him in a dark explosion, having his Pokémon get caught up in it as well.

The explosion was restless as darkness swelled all about, and Lysandre smirked as his bloody fangs showed. His purple aura began to thicken and his power was escalating further. He watched the dust clear out, revealing Nic with a badly damaged abdomen, gagging blood on the sides of his mouth.

Nic was huffing in and out as he dazedly glared at Lysandre. "His power…it's even more corrosive, and deadly…these years have been very unkind to him."

Lysandre chuckled. "Thank you for the compliment. All of the hatred and hopeless despair I put this world through made me crave even more malevolence. I said it before Nic, I feed off of despair and dread, and as of now, you don't have a PRAYER!"

His eyes turned bloody red and vermilion, and feral enough that it felt like bleeding Hell. A grand shockwave bellowed all around, leaving him in a very deep crater beneath, and the subordinates of Lysandre covered up while the injured screamed as a vile and deadly Ominous Wind expanded out, making them slam to the ground.

Nic and his Pokémon grunted as they felt so much pain. The last seven years left Lysandre extremely powerful. His eyes shook as he refused to give up, despite the painful injuries he's taken.

"COME ON LYSANDRE! I'M RIGHT HERE!" Nic challenged.

"Very well!" Lysandre morphed into shadows and he disappeared into a hole of pure hell and darkness, and he disappeared fully as the distorted space shrunk into nothing.

Nic panted as the level of power Lysandre had was more than what he could take. All of his attacks had more power and hate in them; the rage and vile in them was making him a little dizzy, and Greninja and Garchomp were holding up no better. Despite their strong will, this near-infinite level of dread was more deadly than last time.

The air above them cracked, as though space was literally cracking up above them. They all looked up and saw the huge cracks finally shatter.

While on the ground, Pavo got back up and his eyes widened, and tears fell. "NIC!"

"**Legendary Arts – Shadow Force!**" The shattered space revealed the same distorted darkness. Lysandre rushed through with his jacket collar glowing light blue, yet the pure darkness and shades were a compliment to his dark purple aura.

Nic, Greninja, and Garchomp all widened their eyes as they only saw pitch black, and everything became a flash. A devastating shockwave bellowed all around, and the entire stone flooring with darkness on the sides completely broke apart, shattering and crumbling. The rebellion screamed out as they barely held on to what little possible yet skin-rotting ground they had.

Their gazes all turned downwards, where they saw sheer horror as Lysandre floated above darkness, unscathed as he had a smirk on his face as Nic, Greninja, and Garchomp all screamed as they fell into the pitch black darkness below.

"**NIC!**" Everyone screamed in despair as the last images of Nic, Greninja, and Garchomp faded below.

* * *

On the Infinity Castle, Erza and Vanessa were running along, and they suddenly came to a stop and their eyes widened, as though a wave of dread washed upon them. It was quiet for a moment, and their gazes were forward. They didn't know why, but it felt like something went wrong, very wrong.

Vanessa turned towards the redhead. "Erza, I have a bad feeling."

Erza tightened her grip. "…me too."

* * *

**This wasn't as well-written as what I had intended, but it'll suffice until the next chapter comes out. I know this went by fast, with the fights and all, and I wanted to make Nic VS Lysandre more epic than intended, but I'd rather save that for another confrontation. I will say something else that'll be big and important will go down, so expect another chapter shortly.**

**As for Erza and Vanessa, I wanted to show them in relation to where Nic and friends were, plus she needed to show Mega Evolution as well, so that's a plus.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are enjoying every fight written!**

* * *

**Next Time: Going Out in Style**


	65. Going Out in Style

Chapter 65 – Going Out in Style

**We're getting closer to the end people!**

**You'll see a strong One Piece parody near the end; either way, get the tissues ready! You have been warned.**

**To Recap:**

Nic converses a bit with Cana and Sophie of their parental ideals since he had a bad experience, telling of the meaning behind his phone, and soon regains his powers in time to arrive at the Heavenly Gates and the Keeper of Hell and broke in. Meanwhile on Earth Land, Erza and Vanessa squared off against Cobra, with Mega Mawile aiding in the fight. Back in the jailbreak, Nic and everyone fought against several lethal foes, and were trapped by an empowered Lysandre, whose strength has grown over the years and despair he's brought. He easily wounds Nic and uses Legendary Arts – Shadow Force to obliterate the spot where he stood, having Nic plunge into darkness while his allies watched in horror.

* * *

**Chapter 65 – Going Out in Style**

Cana was all shaken up as she watched Nic's image disappear. "No, this…this can't be."

"Lysandre…he just-!" Sophie was cut off when a sharp hoof grazed her back, making her fall forward onto her face.

"Quiet girly, you and little friends are finished." The giraffe Spirit taunted.

Pavo was pushing up with the strength he had, yet he was already terribly injured from Lysandre's Shadow Sneak. His eyes became all watery and he swallowed several lumps. "N-NIIIIIC!" His cry bellowed and echoed through the enclosed darkness all around.

Lysandre turned his attention towards the group in despair. His subordinates in front cleared the path, and he watched as Volans was slammed to the ground by Cetus's tail. He began walking forward. Each step caving in the shattered fragments of the stone flooring.

"That was easier than I thought." Lysandre stated. "Now for you." He reached out ahead, where a venomous and corrosive Shadow Ball with immense dark power had been formed. Without warning, he fired Shadow Ball, and the attack let out a shockwave of dark force as it traveled towards Pavo and the rest…

* * *

It was dark and damp; no signs of life anywhere. Not even small rodents could stomach this pressure and intoxicating air. All around was nothing put complete darkness that seemed to go on forever.

Three battered figures were sprawled on the floor. One was Nic, one was Greninja, and the last one was Garchomp. All three were unmoving, seemingly devoid of all energy. It was like they were nothing but torn up rag dolls.

A dreary silence swelled through the darkness, but there was a slim hope as Greninja's webbed hand slowly clenched the rotten ground. The Ninja Pokémon was barely shuddering as he clenched tighter. A small grunt escaped and he slowly placed both arms underneath.

With what strength possible, he grunted in agony as he struggled to push up. He pushed up against his body's better judgment and finally made it to his knees. He panted profusely and ignored all of the visible and lethal damages his body had taken.

'_Those blows, they could've killed a normal Pokémon.' _Greninja was using this time to be grateful that he was still alive, as his body had sufficient durability and endurance.

Another grunt was heard, and Greninja turned his head to see Garchomp grunting and getting back to his feet already. Greninja's head looked up, seeing the uneasy and shuddering look in Garchomp's eyes. The dragon was just as exhausted; perhaps he might fall over, yet his instincts said no.

"Gnnngh!" Garchomp grunted and impaled a claw to the ground, using it as support so as to keep himself steady.

Seeing as how they were both in one piece, Greninja only panted or a short bit once more and finally spoke up. "Garchomp."

The vicious yet battered dragon turned towards Greninja. A painful breath escaped. "Greninja."

"Where are we?"

Garchomp turned his head and looked around. "Beats me, but the last thing I remember was…"

Greninja struggled to his feet, wobbling and looked as though he was gonna fall over again. Garchomp hurriedly caught him and supported him.

Greninja's eyes opened up again. "Thank you, Garchomp."

"Don't worry, let's just figure out where we are."

Greninja's glance went downwards, and he began to process. "…Lysandre's last blow caught the ground to shatter, and I think we blacked out as we fell into the darkness."

Feeling some strength come back, Greninja supported himself, and Garchomp pressed his feet against the ground. "If that's the case, then if this is the darkness, why is there solid ground?" It was a skeptical question because they thought Draco's floor, which was the lowest of all floors in the Keeper of Hell, was the last one. It's the time to consider that maybe there was more to the Keeper of Hell than we thought.

"I could be wrong, Garchomp, but I think that we're now officially at the lowest floor." Greninja said. "You feel this energy? It's fouler than before.'"

Garchomp's eyes narrowed. "…which means there must be more forbidden Spirits." His mind then caught onto something off key, causing him to widen his eyes a little. "Hold on. Where's Nic?"

Greninja's eyes widened. "Nic?" He turned around, looking around for their trainer. "Nic!"

In the darkness of the fallen rubble, not a single sound was made, yet a long yet massive tail arose and waved away.

Garchomp narrowed his eyes as he got that bad feeling again. His instincts were making him suspicious, yet Greninja brought him back to the scenario at hand.

"Garchomp, look!" Greninja showed Garchomp the same direction he looked in. It was extremely bad, and it made them both shudder. It was none other than Nic, clad in his normal self. He was sprawled on the floor and drenched in fresh blood. He looked battered and beaten to a bloody pulp, and he was barely shuddering. The two Pokémon rushed on over and looked down at Nic. "Nic, say something! Anything!"

Nic was grunting, and his red hand was clenching the ground tight. He was barely holding on and red continued dripping from the sides of his mouth. He was covered in dirt and looked like he was gonna rot. He was slowly panting, but not a single word could be mustered. At best, only grunts escaped.

Greninja and Garchomp hurried to aid Nic. "One three one, two, three!" Nic was hauled up by the shoulders and the sudden movement made him choke on a scream that couldn't seem to escape. With his front showing, they saw the torn abdomen showing blood, lots.

"This is bad. He can't fight his way out. Not in his condition." Garchomp muttered. He remembered back to Lysandre's last attack, aimed at Nic yet swallowed all three of them. "He took more damage than both of us put together. I doubt he can stand without help…heh?"

Garchomp and Greninja both looked worrisome, yet something was close by and they felt a radiating force nearby. It was faint, but sensible. There wasn't much power underneath the rubble, but Greninja left Garchomp to support Nic while he went and search among the wreckage. His eyes wandered about, sensing the power, yet not a good lock on it. His eyes darted left, where he saw a faint glow under the debris.

"What?" He jumped on over and used his physical gift to punch through the tough rubble beneath. The pieces cracked, and Greninja jerked back as the light was bright. He covered up and jumped away from the rubble. "What is this?"

The bright light's lamination began diming, and in the background, many pairs of sharp teeth glistened as they were sharp.

Greninja and Garchomp's eyes were wide with surprise as the remaining rubble shook and eroded away, revealing a glowing object that was levitating. It had dim colors that shined like the rainbow. It gave off a luminescent feeling as it slowly rotated in suspension.

Garchomp stared at it. "Is that what I think it is?"

Greninja's eyes shook. "This has to be it, no question."

The key's brightness increased a little.

"The Andromeda Key."

* * *

Lysandre entered the control room, his dark aura tainting the air as the guards all around were stern and very productive. They were all forced to work under him and looked through the monitors all around. Within some monitors they saw some broken passageways, and some rubble, yet they never really helped since Lysandre's evil and wicked darkness never made anything easy to see inside the prison anymore. The prisoners were all either dead, and some with loose cages but never bothered escaping because of Lysandre.

A guard stood up and saluted to Lysandre. "Lord Lysandre, sir!"

Lysandre kept a neutral expression on his face as his dark purple energy coating him made the air almost hard to take in, yet his subordinates surrounding him seemed unfazed. "I take it that the drawbridge is now up?"

"Yes, sir!" The guard stated firmly.

"Good." His monstrous smirk turned towards the way he and his six subordinates came from. "Even if they did survive, they'll never escape the Keeper the Hell as long as I'm here."

The six subordinates bowed before him and his corrosive power. "And we shall make sure that they don't escape, Lord Lysandre." Camelo assured. "Even the Heavenly Gates shall never open for them."

Lysandre chuckled in delight over his enemy's misery.

* * *

A pair of eyes fluttered open, seeing rusty bars and dark stone underneath. Pavo groaned as he was coming around, having himself wounded in all the wrong places. "Where…are we?"

"He's awake." He heard Sophie's voice in the distance. Turning his head back, he looked baffled as everyone was locked up in suspended cells like he was, like cages with wounded birds. Everyone was severely battered from Lysandre and his subordinates.

Cana looked from inside her barred cage. "Pavo!"

"Cana! What happened to us?!"

Volans was sitting in his knees in his cage. His eyes opened up as he looked at Pavo. "We were captured by Lysandre and his top subordinates. Despite our best efforts, his evil outmatched us by an unquestionable margin."

"What?" Pavo stood up in his cage in disbelief.

Corvus looked gloomy in his cage. "We didn't have a chance. He had us from the start."

Lupus gave a pout inside his cage. "We came all this way, and for what? To end up being caged corpses." He shook his head. "I never imagined going down like this."

Pavo looked determined. "Then don't imagine it. Come on guys! We have to get out and get that key!"

Sophie leaned against her cage bars. "We wanna get out of here as badly as you; really, we do." She looked sad. "But Lysandre's gotten overwhelming through the last 7 years. Nic didn't even have a chance."

"That's because he had the element of surprise on us! We weren't mentally prepared!" Pavo argued. "We'll break out of here and get that key!"

"Without Nic?" Corvus didn't at all sound optimistic; like that of his feathers, his mood was black. "Pavo, admit it…without Nic, we're hopeless."

Pavo grunted up at the crow. "Don't be stupid! What's with all of this negative talk about? Come on, Nic's still out there!"

"WRAR!" The harsh snarl emanated from Lupus, startling Pavo so much that he fell on his bottom and shuddered at the crestfallen wolf. Lupus gripped the cages. "Pavo, this is serious! For all we know, that guy and the others may have already fallen to their deaths!"

Cana looked at Lupus in disbelief. "How can you say that?! You don't know Nic as well as we do!"

"We know him well enough that he wasn't strong as you say he was." Corvus backlashed. "You told us he went head-to-head with the monster, and even underwent an incredible transformation to beat him. Well where was that?!"

Sophie gripped her cage bars. "Corvus! Lupus!"

"Enough, everyone!" Volans exerted without looking. His commanding and deep voice was enough to completely silence everyone again. A still and foul air seeped all around them, still making it hard for them to breathe normally. They all had to take deep breaths.

"Whether or not we see it in black or white, it doesn't change the fact that regardless of what happened, the outcome was still not in our favor." He paused. "The kind of vile tongues we're giving off is what's feeding the monster, and perhaps Nic does need to use this transformation, but since it didn't happen, it left us with little success." He began wincing. "We have been defeated, and Nic's gone."

Pavo was left with huge eyes. He gasped as he saw their fearless and honorable Volans broken. It was almost too much too take. Pavo didn't know what was going on anymore. His head was like a hurricane, and he didn't know what to do. He came all this way, but not to just give up like his friends.

Volans continued. "This power…it's too gre-!"

A sudden kicked stretched by a peacock beak reached out and smacked Volans right in the cheek.

"SHUT UP!" Pavo screamed, echoing through the dark space. Everyone grew silent and stiff as the mood shifted. Volans's teeth were apart as he looked at Pavo while toughing his cheek, where Pavo kicked him.

Pavo was panting as he stood up. "You can say all that you want about me. You can tell me that I'm dumb. That I'm inadequate. That I'm unworthy of a peacock…" He began to sniffle. "But what I will not tolerate *sniffle* is the neglecting of a true friend!"

"Pavo." Cana muttered.

Pavo's fists clenched. "We all came together to stop Lysandre, not mope around and give up like a bunch of sissy-babies! We all agreed to keep fighting until the bitter end! Is honor more important than a friend's life?! Is your own life more important than those you love?! We've all worked so hard to get back what was ours, and we can't give it all up now!" He began kicking the cage bars with relentless spins. "I want hope, thus I will keep it until my final moments. That means, I always hope for the best, and that means…I BELIEVE NIC WILL BE ALRIGHT!"

He reached into his all but destroyed attire, revealing a pocket intact that had the earpiece inside. He put the communication lacrima inside and began to speak into it, hearing static on the other end. "Nic! Answer me! Ni~c! Ni~~c!" Everyone was left baffled by Pavo not giving up. Corvus wasn't sure if Pavo was persistent or stupid. "Don't you dare stay silent! Come on, this static can't mean you're on the brink of death! You're the light, so shine bright! NIC! NI~C!"

"Pavo, just what are you trying to accomplish?" Corvus asked in disbelief.

Pavo ignored his friend's call and continued shouting into the earpiece. "You can't die on us buddy! We need you to live! Hang on, please! I will keep cheering out to you, to the bitter end!"

His desperate and supportive plea was like a wave of guilt that washed over everyone. As Pavo yelled out his support and faith, all they could do was watch on and feel guilt rile them up. Sophie and Cana looked down as images of Nic flooded their mind; and all of the crazy times they've shared in all the wrong places. If they gave up here, what kind of friends would they be?

"Hang on, Nic! I believe in you!" Pavo continued screaming.

Sophie winced as pools of tears went down her cheeks. She reached for her lacrima and put it in her ear. "Nic! Answer us! Ni~c!"

"Hang in there, Nic! Answer us!" Cana shouted as tears sparkled down her cheeks. "If you die, who's gonna accompany me behind the bar?! Who was the first to relate to me with decency?! Don't you dare die!"

Corvus winced and his body shook, Lupus included. Both haven't known Nic for more than twenty-four hours, but within that course of time, it felt like they all connected on a similar level. They all remembered the determined look Nic always gave, and ready to give it his all in battle. Whether they liked it or not, they were all friends, so if they threw their lives away, then what would they be standing for?

Corvus began to quiver and sniffled. Reaching for his communication lacrima in his earpiece, he began yelling in a swell. "Nic! Answer us!" He bellowed through the heavy static, indicating Nic's severe condition.

"Nic! Live!" Lupus bellowed.

Volans grumbled and lifted his hand from his cheek. He had too much pride on the line, and a reputation. Giving up to a great force, and letting a comrade die, is something that he can't seem to let happen."Nic! Answer us right now!" Volans exclaimed with a strong voice.

"Nic!" Pavo shouted. "Plea~se, answer! Ni~~c!"

"Nic!" Sophie screamed.

"Get your butt in gear! Nic!" Cana shouted.

"You and your Pokémon! Come on, answer!" Corvus shouted.

"Nic!" Lupus howled.

"Nic! Arise!" Volans shouted.

"NI~~C!" They all bellowed in unison. Finally, after all of that effort, the static on the other end began to muffle and the static began to lessen some.

It was a long wait, feeling like forever when it was actually so many seconds on the other end. Pavo's teary eyes remained still and watery until the static settled at long last, and then they began to hear an incoherent message.

"…sorry for the wait…guys…"

It was those words they waited to hear, and they finally reached them. Pavo began to sniffle and tears began to scroll down his cheeks. He was so happy. "NIC!"

Cana smirked. "Finally! You had us worried there."

"What a close call. You scared us there for a second." Sophie grinned.

In the darkest pits, Nic was speaking into his phone that was laced with the lacrima. He smirked as he spoke into it while being supported by Greninja. "Yeah, sorry for the wait guys; hope you can forgive me." His eyes glanced over to Garchomp, whom was in front of the Andromeda Key. "And we've found something that'll be most satisfying."

"What did you find?" Lupus's voice was heard in Nic's phone.

Nic smiled. "…The Andromeda Key."

Back up above, everyone gasped and had wide eyes. "The WHAT?!" Pavo bellowed. "You mean you've found it ?!"

"Yeah, it has to be. It's giving up some radiant energy." Nic paused. "It'll be awhile, but are you guys alright?"

"Yes Nic, we're just fine." Volans explained.

"I'm thankful. You guys hang tight." He insisted, not understanding that he was being ironic with them in suspended cages. "We'll get the key and-!"

"**GWWOOOHHHHH!**"

A monstrous bellow roared through the earpieces, making them all widen their eyes and cringe in freight. The monstrous roar was loud and sounded heavy, almost draconic. Everyone heard the roar one the line and heard it settle.

"Nic, what the hell was that?!" Cana shouted into her lacrima.

Static began to take up the sound as low growls were heard. Pavo's eyes shook as this sounded like a bad omen.

"Guys, I'll have to call you later…we got company." Just then, Nic stopped the line. Back down in the darkest pits, he, Greninja, and Garchomp all stood up and glared up at the dark beast before them. All were on their highest guard as the air was even deadlier because of the scent the huge beast glowering down at them had. It was a giant monster, the same height as Draco before being slaughtered by Lysandre. It was as dark as the shadows, and each of the five heads had glowing dull eyes and razor sharp teeth. It also had five smaller tails with forked ends that were attached to a single and thicker tail. All around the body was dark, spiky scales that ran along the back, necks, and the tails.

The five heads opened their mouths, showing their huge mouths and hot, rotting breaths, making the three's skin burn. As it settled, they winced and looked back up as the heads retracted slowly, hovering over the Andromeda Key. If the predicament they were in wasn't bad enough, they were already exhausted from before.

"This is bad." Greninja muttered. "This enemy is giving of a malevolent amount of Magic Power."

"And we're exhausted as we are." Nic muttered. "We gotta get that key."

Garchomp stepped forward, his feet pressing against the dark ground. He roared back up at the monster that looked like a Hydra. His roar bellowed just as loudly, sending dusty ripples all around and shaking the airspace.

"Garchomp…okay, it's all up to you." Nic put his faith in Garchomp as Greninja was supporting him. "Hold nothing back! We must get that key!"

"I never hold anything back!" Garchomp crouched and lunged up at Hydra, cracking the ground from where he originally stood. His claws and fins glowed green as he shot up at Hydra.

"Okay you bellowing bastard, time to lay some hurt! **Dual Chop!**" He swung his fins down harshly in a chop down on one of the heads as said head went to attack. The fangs clashed against Dual Chop, making a green explosion erupt as air ripples bellowed. Garchomp reared back from the explosion and growled out as the remaining heads bellowed out at him.

One head lunged at him, and Garchomp dodged with ease with his speed. "Too slow!" He glided and shifted as more heads lunged at him, all failing to snap down on him. Despite his smaller size, Garchomp was far more maneuverable than the whole beast itself.

As soon as he came to a stop, he found himself surrounded by all five heads. He showed no smirk, despite how easily he maneuvered them into a trap.

Hydra's heads all opened their jaws and lunged at Garchomp. The Mach Pokémon shot up at sonic speed, reappearing above the heads, watching them all bash into each other and gawk due to the sudden shock running through their heads.

"**Dragon Rush!**" Garchomp's head appendages glowed and he exerted great amounts of draconic energy, shaping into a thick dragon. The attack soared straight down onto all five heads, smashing into the converged point. A massive draconic explosion erupted that expanded outwards, rattling the ground and making all of the heads bellow and fall back in agony.

Garchomp emerged from the smoke cloud and arose above, he snarled downwards as the smoke began dispersing, but was attacked through by a tail shooting through the smoke. Garchomp moved fast and dodged the tail swat, and shifted and twisted to evade the spiky tails.

"**Slash!**" Garchomp's claws glowed and elongated. Raising both claws, he slashed diagonally, leaving a white trail as he gashed across one tail. Another tail lashed in its place, and Garchomp used Slash at it as well.

Slashing and dodging was his only capability at the moment, while Nic and Greninja had to secure the key. Greninja leaped ahead as fast as his legs could carry him, and a few heads looked down to see Greninja advancing.

They let out vile roars bellow, and unleashed dark beams from their mouths, spewing them like lasers. Greninja jumped and dodged as the ground beneath shattered from the explosion, leaving him in midair and to have a head charge for him with an open mouth.

"**Dark Pulse!**" He fired a jumbled array of dark rings, striking Hydra in the incoming face. The dark explosion erupted, and Greninja was able to straighten out a little, yet the head continued its course and rammed Greninja, sending the Water and Dark-Type screaming and falling to the ground.

He backflipped and landed on the ground, yet another head looked down and fired a vicious dark beam at him, forcing him to jump back and retreat in a skid beside Nic.

"No good, he's got all the points covered." Greninja informed.

Nic wasn't convinced. "Then we go in low! Garchomp, **Dig!**"

Garchomp heard his trainer's command and wasted no movements. He dove down at sonic speed, claws first as he impaled into the earth, making it shake as rock and stone shattered. Hydra looked down at the hole in front, and sensed hardly any vibrations.

In a few seconds, the ground beneath the Hydra cracked and shattered, exploding rock and debris all around as the Spirit fell backwards. As he fell, Garchomp shot up out of the blue and presented a foot. "How do you like…this!" He stomped his foot in the center of his body, making a shattering sound and a shockwave as Hydra crashed downwards into the stone.

Garchomp landed on the ground with a thud. "What did I tell you? The bigger they are, the harder they fall." He turned towards Greninja. "Get the key!"

"On it!" Greninja dashed for the floating Andromeda Key a distance away from the fallen Hydra. He closed in with excellent ninja movements, yet from his left a tail swung, causing him to jump and dodge the tail.

He landed and skidded back again, but had to jump once more as another tail went swinging down. He landed yet again, scrutinizing Hydra getting back up and each head growling and snapping at them.

"He doesn't even have a scratch on him!" Greninja said.

"How is that possible?" Garchomp angrily bellowed.

Hydra opened his five mouths and fired five dark beams simultaneously at the two. Each one was overwhelming with power like the ones before. Garchomp crouched and arched downwards, and Greninja crouched and sprung high upwards. The beams converged and made a humungous explosion that rattled in a dark field that expanded, causing Nic to cover up and get some cover while he was still able-bodied.

"**Bounce!**" Greninja shouted, descending down onto Hydra. The beast readied to exterminate Greninja, but as before, the ground beneath cracked and broke apart again, leaving him to fall back and lose momentum, making the dark beams fired miss.

"**Dig!**" Garchomp shot out of the ground behind the falling Hydra, roaring as he drove his knee into his back, making a forceful ripple echo through the beast's entire body. The shock made Hydra suspended from falling for a few moments, leaving Greninja's foot to stomp down on his abdomen, making yet another shock that drove Hydra back down onto the ground, making more dust and debris bellow.

Greninja and Garchomp landed in front of him again, watching the dust settle. Greninja wobbled a little, still not fully recovered. "Did we leave a mark?"

The dust cleared, spreading out as Hydra roared into the darkness all around. He didn't look at all exhausted; in fact, he seemed more excited than ever.

"Grrr! Blasted beast!" Garchomp scowled. "Now I'm really mad!"

Hydra opened all five mouths, shooting a bellowing beam of darkness that took up the whole area, shattering and shaking the earth as it traveled. The attack made the two wide-eyed, and engulfed them in a painful explosion. They screamed and shot back into a painful thud, slamming against the earth.

"Greninja! Garchomp!" Nic cried out, seeing his two Pokémon shaking as they could barely get up from that devastative blow. He tried moving, but when he took a step, a shock ran through his body and he got to a knee.

'_Curse these injuries.' _He thought. He looked ahead, seeing the Andromeda Key, and his gaze followed up to Hydra, starting to close in on him. _'I won't have time to use Recover. I gotta move!'_

Garchomp and Greninja both stumbled back to their feet. The three were ready to evade if possible, and watched the five heads converge onto them.

"**Descending Peck Memoir!**" The sudden attack call was followed by a sharp foot angled down and striking one of Hydra's heads. Said head recoiled as the figure twirled his body with elegance and landed with a pose on one foot, with the other high.

"Did you miss little ol' me?" Pavo asked.

"Pavo!" Nic shouted with pleasant surprise.

"**Memory-Make: Piercing Frigid Darkness!**"

"**Night Storm!**"

An arrow of ice and darkness was supported by a black twister that gave it a powerful spin. The forceful attack created a huge icy explosion as it seemingly pierced another head of the Hydra, making him roar in agony.

More figures descending downwards revealed themselves to be none other than the ones that have been calling out to Nic – everyone that was caged up. Lupus landed on all fours, Volans descended while carrying Cana, and Corvus barely held up Sophie while Pavo was present.

"We have come in the name of our friendship! We'll not allow it to tarnish!" Pavo exclaimed, spinning in place.

Volans clenched his fists, ready for battle as the icy mist settle, showing the agitated beast known as Hydra. "The most lethal and darkest Celestial Spirit. I never would've imagined confronting Hydra. He's wicked beyond comprehension." Of course in retrospect he was still far below Lysandre's bloody caliber, though he dared not say.

Corvus clenched his fists. "Alright, let's beat this sucker and get that key!"

Lupus snapped his jaws at the foul air. "Time for pest control to do its job!"

Cana looked just as ready. "Let's kick this guy's ass and break out with that key! I'll lead!" She swiped her cards. "**Icicle!**" She shot giant icicles from the cards and they all pierced the ground right in front of Hydra, making the powerful Spirit lose concentration for a brief moment.

"**Memory-Make: Baryon Lightning Impact!**" Sophie launched a green beam with yellow lightning infused into it, making a direct hit in Hydra's abdomen, but to no avail as the beast wasn't even fazed. "He's still grinning away!"

Hydra roared out at them, making shockwaves bellow through the space and made everyone slid back some feet, but all were able to hold their ground, but just barely. The beast fired more dark beams again, and they all closed in with great force as before.

Lupus and Volans got in front, both readying their attacks,

"**Tsunami Implosion!**"

"**Sonic Howl!**"

Both Volans and Lupus unleashed their assaults, with water and midnight blue soundwaves bellowing. The force of both attacks met with the beams coming in, making an explosion with violent, foul winds that felt like a hurricane.

Once settled, Hydra bellowed down at them again, looking unfazed and more than a little angry. All of those attacks dealt so far barely made a scratch on him. He was more powerful than Draco even, hence why he was down in the darkest level.

"I shall get the key!" Pavo began spinning off like a top and onwards towards Hydra, attempting his shot for the Andromeda Key.

Hydra had one of his heads open the mouth and lunged at Pavo. Pavo kept on spinning and maneuvered around the head, dodging the fangs while spinning. He maneuvered left and right while dodging tails and more fangs. "Hyaaaaahhhhhh!" He leaned forward, increasing his momentum and rotation power.

"Alright, Pavo!" Cana cheered. "Go!"

Pavo let out a battlecry as he advanced onwards, and finally did a small skip and jumped. He grabbed the 3-foot key and twirled with it in hand. "I GOT IT!"

Lupus howled up in glee. "Wait a go, buddy!"

"HAHA! Now we can get out of here!" Corvus shouted in glee.

Pavo laughed as he held the Andromeda Key, so happy to have finally gotten the key. He was brought out of his musings when a snarl was heard overhead, and looking up, his eyes nearly bulged out of his head as a Hydra head went straight down from above. He screamed like a sissy and held the key tightly as he turned away to escape.

The Hydra head was closing in fast. And Pavo looked as though he wasn't gonna make it away in time…

A sudden dark and purple beam with massive force roared from out of nowhere, and the attack struck the head attacking Pavo, engulfing it in a rippling explosion that sent Pavo screaming and flying off through the winds.

"AAHHHH!" Pavo landed head first into a pile of debris, still holding onto the key. Winds continued bellowing and they quelled soon enough, leaving Pavo to pry his upper body out of the rubble with a 'pop' sound.

"Sorry for the sudden assist." He turned to see where the attack originated, revealing Nic to be the savior as the sides of his mouth steamed from the remnants of Hyper Beam. Pavo couldn't be any happier at the time as Nic grinned. "Glad Hyper Beam made it in time."

Greninja and Garchomp were right beside him, both ready to keep on going.

"Nic!" Pavo exclaimed.

Nic smirked in satisfaction and turned towards Garchomp. "Okay then. Garchomp, we've been down here long enough. Let's bury him."

Garchomp got the notion as Nic motioned his left wrist, showing the Key Stone embedded in the wristband. Garchomp deviously smirked. "Finally, now let's see what kinds of damage we can do!"

"Right!" Nic held up his Mega Wristband, emanating a strong power already. "Garchomp, stop Hydra will all the fire power you have!" He tapped the Key Stone, and it began to emanate a lot of rainbow colors, which had a great swell of power, enough to startle Volans and everyone around.

Cana's eyes widened as her hair shifted from the winds already given off. "Wait, his Charizard did this back on Tenrou Island." She looked at Nic and Garchomp both. "So that means…"

Nic tapped the Key Stone, releasing strong waves of light. "Garchomp, Mega Evolve!"

The light waves flailed about wildly through the dark air, illuminating the place. Garchomp began to grunt and roar as he unleashed purple light waves from his body. All eyes were on the transformation, and they all saw the light waves flail until they reached out to each other and connected. The connected light wave thus shined a bright light that began trailing down towards Garchomp.

Volans was feeling an overwhelming sense of power. "M-Mega…Evolve?"

Sophie swallowed as Garchomp was engulfed in a peculiar yet ominous light. "So he can do it too…Mega Evolution."

Everyone watched as Garchomp grunted through the power enhancement, and watched the small debris all around actually defy gravity due to the power given off. They watched the head and shoulders get angular, and the tail sing became a different shape. The claws and find seemingly combined, becoming blades.

When the light exploded, a massively loud and deep draconic roar bellowed through the airspace, letting loose a volatile shockwave that shattered all of the floating debris and shook the ground with impressive magnitude that cracked the ground profusely.

When it all finally settled, everyone gazed with deep awe at Mega Garchomp. They saw his sharp fangs and feral gaze set on Hydra. His snarling sent a shiver down their spines. Even Hydra was caught surprised.

"HWHAAAAAT?!" Pavo exclaimed. "Your Garchomp can power up?!"

Nic kept a confident grin. "Everyone sit tight, Mega Garchomp will handle this."

In compliance, Mega Garchomp snarled out at Hydra, and he stomped a foot forward, thudding the ground hard. His power had drastically increased, now it was time to bury Hydra like they said they would.

"**Slash!**" Nic shouted. Mega Garchomp crouched and the blades glowed. He lunged off the ground, sending a strong wind and dust in all directions, completely shattering the ground from where he stood. He lunged at sonic speed after the Hydra, whom recovered and fired beams at Mega Garchomp, same as before. Mega Garchomp brought a raised blade right behind him and let out a roar as he diagonally slashed, leaving a long trail of white that soon faded away.

In a second's time, the combined beam of darkness was bisected diagonally, making Corvus and Pavo's eyes nearly bulge out of their heads. All eyes were set as Mega Garchomp continued his course and raised his other blade and let out a low roar, slashing diagonally across Hydra's abdomen, leaving a white trail that faded away.

Seconds after that, a massive gash sliced across the abdomen, leaving Hydra to bellow screams and roars of agony. Mega Garchomp remained positioned in midair and bellowed out at Hydra, making air ripples that shook the air and earth they stood on. He looked as one of Hydra's heads lunged up at him, baring razor sharp fangs.

"Open wide! **Slash!**" Mega Garchomp slashed his blade once more, grunting as he followed through. At first the Hydra head didn't seem fazed, but a glint ran across the teeth, and then the teeth all were completely sliced.

The Hydra head screamed and flailed his head back in agony, and then the remaining four head all surrounded Mega Garchomp, all baring their fangs. Mega Garchomp narrowed his eyes. "You wanna join him? Be my guest!"

All four heads opened wide and attacked, lunging at Mega Garchomp. "**Dual Chop!**" His blades glowed green, and he let out a deep, bellowing roar as he spun in place with both green blades out. After making a full circle and remaining still, the aftershock kicked in, and the Hydra heads all slowed down to a complete halt. A green glint was seen and all of the teeth on all of the heads were sliced, falling off and apart like shattered glass.

All eyes were wide, except Nic and Greninja, whom gave expectant looks as the Hydra heads all bellowed in riling agony. They all flailed about and the tails wagged in agony. Everyone could've shuddered, but they were too in awe to even do that.

"Unbelievable." Lupus said. "Before, they were barely putting dents in that thing…now they're slicing that thing up like it was a piece of fruit."

Cana and Sophie looked up as dust past their feet. Both were too amazed to look away at this level of power. It was just like the time when Charizard Mega Evolved against Hades. It was so unreal that it terrified them.

Mega Garchomp landed on the ground with a thud, and snarled out as Hydra was unable to control himself. He was blasting dark beams from the broken mouths everywhere in his rage and confusion. The beams passed the group, rattling the ground as a line of explosions bellowed all around. Everyone covered up as Hydra was having no sense of what's right anymore.

Volans uncovered and assessed the situation. "He's lost control! All the sudden damage he's taken is too much, and he's become unstable!" He covered up as an explosion happened nearby. "We have to defeat him now!"

"Right! Mega Garchomp, go!" Nic shouted.

"With pleasure!" He lunged ahead, making the ground crack and shatter yet again and air ripples went about. He accelerated past a beam without flinching, and slashed diagonally to completely slice through a beam. He straightened out and kept a steady course for the cut abdomen.

"**Dragon Rush!**"

Mega Garchomp bellowed out a roar that made the earth shake again, and the appendages on his head glowed light blue again. His body that then enveloped in gruesome, draconic energy that shaped into a devastating dragon.

Mega Garchomp roared out some more and Hydra roared in searing agony when Dragon Rush met his cut abdomen, the shockwave expanding out so much that the entire ground they all stood on shattered and broke, making them fly away, though Nic, Greninja, and Volans were able to just skid.

A massive, sound barrier-breaking ripple echoed and the humungous beast screamed in agony as he shot backwards a far distance away, his roaring getting weaker and weaker, until he finally crashed and was enveloped in a dome of draconic energy that spread out, erupting the land once more and leaving everyone in sheer awe.

They all watched the dome disperse, and Mega Garchomp landed on the ground, making it thud and crack beneath his feet. He snarled out as the Hydra heads all let out a bellowing cry before falling back to the earth, defeated and literally scarred for his life.

In victory, Mega Garchomp let out a mighty draconic roar that echoed outwards, shaking the earth and having dust ripple in all directions.

Volans's eyes shook in awe. "Hydra…defeated."

Cana whistled. "Dang, I am never gonna mess with those guys."

Sophie looked in sheer awe, her eyes wide. "I can't believe it myself, and I've remembered it all, yet I didn't." Her Memory-Make couldn't remember or forget Pokémon moves, to her implication.

Pavo's awe slowly grew into pure happiness. "Ah…ah…I knew! He is the light!"

Mega Garchomp walked on over towards Nic, each footstep shuddering the ground until he was present in front of a smiling Nic and Greninja. Nic reached out and petted Mega Garchomp's head, who seemed surprisingly delighted. "You were amazing, Mega Garchomp." Mega Garchomp then lifted his head, seeing the serious look back in his trainer's eyes. "Now that we have the Andromeda Key, let's get out of here."

Cana smirked. "Now we're talking. Let's get the hell out of here!"

Volans spread his large wings out. "Lupus, Miss Cana, hang on." The two latched onto the fishman.

"I gotcha." Corvus grabbed Sophie by the arms and hoisted her up.

"Greninja, let's get going." Nic commanded and he latched onto Mega Garchomp's back, and Greninja's light weight was no trouble for the Mega Evolved Pokémon. With all of them set, they all crouched, and left the floor of pure darkness, with the only light being the Andromeda Key Pavo carried as he ascended.

* * *

Sirens were going off in the control room and everyone turned to the visual monitors. The guards looked into the dim screens, barely catching glimpses of figures breaking through the flooring of the mid-level. "Lysandre, sir! We have a problem!"

"What?" His dark purple aura nearly rotted the guard's entire body as he leaned in to look at the few monitors onscreen. Despite the dim darkness, he saw as clear as day, witnessing the intruders escalating up the floors and opened ways. "What?! Nic is still alive?!"

A low growl escaped his breath, exerting dark, steaming air that could've melted or rotted anything it touched. Angrily he turned towards the six subordinates. "Don't let them escape alive!"

"Right!" They all went out the door in an attempt to stop Nic.

* * *

"**Abyss Palm!**" Volans did a palm strike with deep blue water in front, erupting and sending many guards flying.

"**Peacock Capoeira!**" While holding onto the key, Pavo unleashed a furious amount of kicks at the guards, so fast and nimble that they never had time to attack. Many guards laid at their feet, giving Nic and everyone room to go on ahead.

"Mega Garchomp, shoot up!" Nic bellowed. Mega Garchomp roared outwards, and everyone followed his lead as he lunged up from the passageway, breaking it apart with his raw power. They all continued flying upwards, though Volans and Pavo stayed behind to assure that the guards don't get a shot at them.

Pavo spun into the enemies with elegance and with his cape slapping them, and Volans slashed at many in one go. The nearby guards advanced, yet even they were left unmatched with Pavo's furious spinning and kicking, keeping them on their backs and groaning.

He posed with one leg up with still holding the key. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"

Volans nodded. "Excellent work, Pavo." As he turned to spread his wings, Pavo looked a little shocked as an epiphany flourished. "We should hurry up and meet with them as quick as we-"

"Wait, Volans." Pavo said. The sudden intrusion made the fishman turn back towards him. "I just realized something!"

"What?"

"The Heavenly Gates!" Volans's eyes widened as he quickly caught onto Pavo's epiphany. Pavo continued. "How did the Heavenly Gates work? It has to be a one-way trap. If we remember correctly, the Heavenly Gates has two sets of gates, right?" He began picturing a square, with entrances on the top and bottom, with the Keeper of Hell on the left-hand side. "If that's the case, then…"

Volans looked down as he clenched his fists. "Of course. Now it makes sense. Even if we get out of the Keeper of Hell, we're left to open the other set of the Heavenly Gates, which is impossible."

Pavo clenched the key tighter than before. His eyes were shaking and he looked troubled. "…no, there is a way…"

* * *

Mega Garchomp roared as he plowed and smashed through the passageways as they shot up like rockets. The others followed behind, evading the debris. As they advanced, there was a glint high above, descending downwards.

"Stop!" Aquila shouted, his wings tucked in as he soared like a missile. "HRAH!"

"Out of our way!" Mega Garchomp bellowed, rocketing into Aquila, forcing the Eagleman to get out of the way so as not to get his bones shattered.

"You're doing it all wrong!" The tall and tan man with the huge rainbow coat hovered above, swiping his arm. "Like this!" He fired a swirling wave of rainbow feathers downwards, and yet despite it, Mega Garchomp bellowed and slashed right through. "Heh?!" Mega Garchomp sailed with the others upwards, with Aquila and the other following behind.

"I think I can see the top floor!" Sophie shouted.

"Alright, We're almost there!" Corvus shouted. "Just a little more!"

Lupus smirked. "It's 'bout time! I thought I was gonna shed due to the foul air down here!" They all landed with a great thud, dust rippling upon their arrival to the first floor. With the ground much more solid than the other floors, they all ran ahead, seeing the exit and some lighter darkness ahead.

Cana smirked. "Alright! Now we're-!" She stopped and her eyes widened. A sudden wave of fear echoed and they all came to uneasy halts. Greninja and Mega Garchomp both came to slow stops from running, and they were on guard as the energy growing was immense.

"What?" Sophie wondered. "But…but we were so close."

A maniacal laughter echoed through the first floor, and they all looked uneasy as dark shadows eroded from all around, streaming in front and shaping into the one man they thought they could pass by.

"I told you, you're not getting away." Lysandre, now revealed, said.

Nic grunted as he, Greninja, and Mega Garchomp were all on edge and still uneasy from the last confrontation. Just the remembrance alone was enough to make them hurt again, though they powered through.

"Lysandre." Nic said.

Behind the group, the six subordinates all stood with rough smirks on their faces, all glaring out at Nic and the present group. The group looked back and forth, seeing as how they were caught on both ways. They looked from all positions and Nic and his Pokémon looked out at Lysandre.

Lysandre smirked. "Try dodging this! **Shadow Ball!**" He conjured up a heinous sphere of black and purple. The immense hatred in the attack was swelling, and he fired the Ghost-Type move at Nic and friends.

Nic extended his arm out. "Mega Garchomp, **Dual Chop!**"

Mega Garchomp roared out and his blades glowed a green color. He raised one of his blades and slashed his blade downwards. The attack completely bisected Shadow Ball, making the ball split into two and travel outwards on either direction, exploding in the darkness. Mega Garchomp lunged after Lysandre with his other green blade, and in turn Lysandre readied his Dragon Claw. Both attacks met in the middle, where they slashed and created a blistering shockwave that rampaged all around, shattering the nearby walls to the entrance and making the ground quake violently. A huge crater encompassed the two and shockwaves made everyone all around cover up.

The two growled angrily at the other, and much to Lysandre's shock, Mega Garchomp was actually holding up and finally broke through the Dragon Claw, but just barely. Lysandre scooted backwards and as Mega Garchomp ducked, Greninja appeared, jumping from behind and lunging forward with a Drak Pulse in hand.

"**Dark Pulse!**" Greninja let loose the Dark Pulse, where the Dark-Type move went beaming at near point-blank and blasted Lysandre, engulfing the man in a dark and super effective explosion. Greninja and Mega Garchomp both backed away in a hurry and landed with thuds right beside Nic.

Both suddenly dropped to their knees, exhaustion piling on. Nic looked worries. "Stay strong!"

The dark explosion was converging, and everyone watched as Lysandre was converging the residue to a single point. "**Mirror Coat!**" He roared, and fired the newly-formed Dark Pulse and blasted it at the group. They were all engulfed in a heinous explosion that erupted upwards, as though a bomb went off and black dust looked around.

It settled, and Lysandre chuckled in amusement as everyone was on a knee, severely bruised and looked like they could barely stand. Nic grunted as the attack backfired, yet refused to give in as Greninja and Mega Garchomp were just as exhausted. "Do you ever learn, Nic Pularis?" He began to advance forwards Nic, looking distasteful and unwavering.

"Did you really believe that you could just run away when you're inside of a one-way prison? If that isn't sad, I don't know what is." His eyes narrowed with sadistic satisfaction. "You don't have a prayer in the state you're in, which is why I'm having my subordinates take care of you while I watch."

He morphed into shadows and reappeared some ways away. He watched as the six slowly closed in. "This should be a nice show. My masters and I will finally watch as your helpless state is left to rot by those weaker than me. Have at them."

Cetus raised a scaly clawed hand. "Oh, I know I'm gonna savor this!"

Nic, Greninja, and Mega Garchomp all slowly arose to a knee, all ready to fend them off…

"HYAAAHHHH!" A sudden spinning kick rotated with unparalleled speed. It was like a rampaging beast that kicked the six beasts and was followed by a sudden blast of deep blue water moving in an arc that swamped the six, knocking them onto their backs.

"What?!" Lysandre bellowed.

The figures revealed themselves to be none other than Volans and Pavo, both finally caught up with grins on their faces. Pavo laughed out loud as they all didn't see that coming.

"You guys!" Cana shouted in surprise.

"It's about time you caught up!" Lupus exclaimed.

Volans began to run towards them and Pavo spun out to them as well. Volans was ahead by just a little. "We can't beat him like this! We have the Andromeda Key, let's go!" He had the Andromeda Key, to which Pavo had previously.

"Kill them!" Lysandre bellowed.

"**Blizzard!**" The sudden call from Nic caught Lysandre by surprise, and he turned to only be bombarded by the fierce Blizzard from Nic, who was clad in his Icicle Plate Form. Lysandre was engulfed in the super effective attack and grunted as the cold attack smashed him against a nearby wall. The Blizzard stopped, and Nic turned towards Greninja. "Now!"

"**Smokescreen!**" Greninja made ninja hand signs and spewed out smoke. The thick, black cloud expanded outwards, and the enemies all covered up from the smoke. Sirius snarled as he couldn't get a lock on the targets since the smoke was violating his nostrils.

"**Slash!**" Mega Garchomp bellowed, and a white trail glistened through the smoke, and everyone heard something enormous break apart.

"What was that?" Camelo wondered.

"Don't tell me…those brats knocked down the drawbridge!" The tan subordinate exclaimed.

Lysandre swiped his arm, dissipating the Smokescreen and seeing the drawbridge door was sliced up, despite being five-feet thick. His eyes narrowed and his aura thickened. "Grrrr!"

* * *

Now on the edge of the port, everyone looked out to the ship, and Volans still held the Andromeda Key. "We need to get out of here, and fast. No matter what, don't look back!"

Mega Garchomp growled and Nic looked at him. He saw how tired he was, though if they were both honest, they might actually go on for awhile, but Mega Garchomp did his part. "Mega Garchomp, well done."

Mega Garchomp made an array of rainbow colors and was encased in them shortly, and flashed back to being Garchomp. He huffed as he had scratches all over his body. "Yeah."

"Return." Nic finally recalled Garchomp back into his Poke Ball, and with him out of harm's way, he turned towards Volans. "We're ready!"

Lysandre rushed out of the prison, his lower half nothing but shadows as the six followed behind him. "Stop them now!"

Volans clasped his hands together and grunted. Water began to encompass everyone present, and they all were in water veils with plenty of oxygen to reach the ship. Everyone let out cries as they jumped into the water, splashing and evading the incoming Lysandre that arrived at their spot just mere seconds afterwards.

He looked down at the water, unable to find them. "Where are you? Where…?" He growled and turned around, facing his six subordinates, whom hurriedly bowed before his growing wrath. "Cetus, you be ready to make a current. Apus, get us a ship!"

Apus, the tan man with the rainbow-feathered coat, smirked with his head down and sunglasses covering his eyes. "On it, boss man."

Lysandre looked ahead, taking a pause. "The Heavenly Gates will be their end."

* * *

The small group were carried by Volans by his Magic, and they all shot up from the sea and onto the deck. They were all stepping foot on the wood and Corvus stretched overhead. "ALRIGHT! WE ACTUALLY BROKE OUT!"

Volans went for the steering wheel. He grabbed it and began turning. "Everyone be ready! With the Andromeda Key, we're leaving the Keeper of Hell!"

Cana raised a fist. "Let's get rockin'!" She and everyone got into position as the ship began to turn, and they all sailed off northwards, not looking back as Volans told. Though if they did, they'd see that there were eight ships, all armed with Lysandre's forces. They all sailed off, and as shocking as it was, they were moving extremely fast.

"Don't let them escape!" A member shouted.

"They'll be executed for sure!" Another one bellowed.

"We'll be dead if we fail!"

"Go!"

Corvus grunted as he was on the net ladder that led up to the mast top. "They have ships incoming! And they're moving in fast!"

"How the heck are they moving so fast?!" Sophie bellowed.

Lupus looked ahead, shocked. "Forget about those guys! They're the least of our worries! Look!" He pointed upwards. To their horror, they realized that they were sailing right into a trap, and that was known as the Heavenly Gates.

"GAH! We forgot about the gates!" Corvus screamed.

It didn't hit them at first, but even Nic felt like a fool. "Don't tell me…" He looked up at the Heavenly Gates, seeing as how they were unmoving with them advancing. "…the gates are a one way opening."

Greninja was still on a knee as he panted on the deck. Catching his breath, he looked up. "If this is a prison, it has to be designed to make sure no one escape; in other words, it's a one-way trip."

"Yes." Volans said, having the Andromeda Key close by. "…it would seem so, the Heavenly Gates only open up from the inside of the Keeper of Hell's control room."

Corvus immediately grabbed Volans by the collar and looked startled. "Please tell me there's a plan! There is a plan, right?!"

"We're going on through." Volans stated firmly.

"WHAT?! We can't do that!" Corvus shouted back. "That's physically impossible! How are you not panicking like the rest of us?!"

Volans remained sternly silent.

"Say something!" Corvus shouted in concern.

"Forwards!" One of the captains of the incoming ships bellowed. They sped in like jet skis surprisingly, and they were looking as though they were gonna catch up if the crew ran into the gates. They were all closing in, and as long as the gates didn't open, they'll catch up in time and corner them.

"Ready the grabbling hooks!" The ships all began to open up compartments, where hooks were seen ready. "When we get close, reel them in. We'll haul them back to Lysandre and…" The commander trailed off as they all heard loud clang sound. They all heard a loud gear shift and saw the gates actually beginning to open, "N-no way…."

The crew looked shocked as the gates were opening up slowly for them. They felt the current beginning to slowly pull them out, and the ship wobbled a little as it was surprising to say the least. "It's opening!" Cana exclaimed.

Volans kept a stern look on his face as they began their course. They began to slowly advance towards the Heavenly Gates

"W-what?! How are the gates opening? I thought they were controlled inside?" Sophie asked.

Nic looked around. He and Greninja were both catching onto something. Something was off, and it was feeling like a terrible omen. As they looked around, they saw the individual faces of the crew, seeing how happy and curious they were.

That's when it hit them. Their eyes widened. "Hold on, guys!" He cried out. Everyone turned towards him, while Volans remained firm.

"Where's Pavo?!"

* * *

"That's it Cetus, keep those currents going." Lysandre directed, watching Cetus with his hands in the sea and jutting out a great current for the ships aiming at the ship leaving. Lysandre turned to board a ship that Apus had gotten. He was ready to board it with a serious frown.

"Hey boss, you might wanna see this!" Camelo exclaimed. Lysandre looked up at the giraffe and turned his head in the direction he was looking at. Ahead they all saw the Heavenly Gates opening up, much to their shock.

Lysandre gasped. "But how?!"

* * *

Inside the control room, all of the workers were being exceedingly cautious. They watched through the monitors, seeing the gates open up and letting the intruders escape with the Andromeda Key. The chief was looking nervously at the monitor and back at someone.

"Are you definitely sure about opening the gate…" He turned to look at the person that was making him nervous and very shaking. "…Lysandre?"

Lysandre was in front of everyone, yet he wasn't giving off an aura for some reason. A good mood maybe. Whatever the reason, he looked displeased.

"You dare question me?" He threatened.

"A n-no, sir!" The chief saluted, and turned back towards the monitor.

"Good, then close the gates when they pass through, and not a second sooner. Understand?" He instructed.

"Y-yes, sir!" The chief stated.

Suddenly, the doors to the control room rotted away by the shadows, and they all turned around to find seven figures present. On the other side of the rotted doorway was none other than a _second_ Lysandre, whom was followed by his six subordinates.

"What the hell is wrong with you all?!" He bellowed. "Why are the gates opening…" He looked and saw the copy of him, surprisingly catching everyone off guard. Lysandre's dark purple aura flared as he didn't know what was going on.

'Lysandre' turned to face him. "Uh…hello~!"

* * *

"He did WHAT?!" Nic bellowed, hearing every word that Volans told. His body and heart were thumping like crazy, and Greninja was just as shocked as his trainer.

Even after explaining, Volans was keeping his gaze forward.

"You mean, Pavo is…" Nic turned around, seeing how the ships had slowed down gradually from having no current. He looked at the fortress itself. "…oh no."

* * *

Lysandre had his eyes go pitch black with blood red slits. "You…"

'Lysandre' scoffed. "Looks like I've been found out!" He turned into smoke, and in his place was none other than the one guy he never had expected – Pavo! "Surprise~!"

Pavo struck a pose with a leg up and out, laughing in glee that his plan worked.

"You scum!" Aquila scolded. "You dare trick us!"

"I knew learning Transformation Magic on Earth Land would come in handy!" Pavo shouted while spinning.

Sirius turned towards Lysandre. "Lysandre, sir! The gates are open, they'll escape!"

"We won't let that happen." Lysandre scoffed while Pavo had a huge grin and spin in place. "The Heavenly Gates won't close unless we do so. We'll get on a ship and then speed on towards them. They can't outrun us."

Pavo thus gave a glint in his eyes. "Oh, is that so?" He jumped up, startling everyone present. The guards all gawked as Pavo spun and pointed his foot down on the control panel.

"**Descending Peck Memoir!**"

He crashed his foot on the close button of the panel, ultimately breaking it and causing a huge malfunction, keeping the gate's settings to closing up.

Pavo smiled confidently. "Did you like that elegant display?"

Lysandre's fangs grew blood red. "You…"

Pavo smirked. "If you wanna go after Nic, you'll have to deal with me first!"

* * *

"The gates, they're closing!" Corvus shouted out, seeing the gates starting to close as they were starting to get closer to passing through. "If we get through, they'll be stopped."

Cana turned towards Nic. "Alright the-!" She was cut off as she and everyone was hearing the argument boil up.

"We were with him just before we went to the port! You mean to tell me he used that chance to head to the control room just to open the gates for us?!" Nic shouted up at Volans, yet Volans could not answer fully, yet he was silent entirely. "He's our friend! We can't leave him behind!"

Volans still couldn't say anything.

"It's because of that man we all came together and got to know each other, and this is how we repay him?!"

"YOU THINK THIS WAS EASY?!" Volans snapped, catching all of the crew's ears. "He knew the risks! He knew we had little time! He was the one who figured out the Heavenly Gates could open up through the Keeper of Hell! DO YOU WANT TO GO BACK AND GET KILLED BY LYSANDRE IN THE CONDITION YOU'RE IN?! DO YOU WANT TO PUT HIS PLAN IN VAIN?!"

A struggling silence fell through the air, as Nic could only stare out as a shadow fell over Volans eyes as he panted in exhaustion. If he were completely honest with himself, he hated this plan just as much as Nic; he hates himself because he agreed to the plan. Thinking back at it only made the shadow over his eyes blacken some more.

"_Volans, I'll be the one to open up the Heavenly Gates." Pavo stated. "With my Transformation Magic, I'll trick everyone in the control room while he's after you guys."_

_Volans looked back as they ran through Greninja's Smokescreen as cover. "How are you gonna get back to the ship, or a better question is what are you gonna do to reach us?" He sounded uneasy, remembering that Pavo said there was a way._

_All Pavo did was smirk. "If I told you, then where'd the fun be in that?"_

_Volans's eyes widened as Pavo went off in another direction. "Don't come back for me." He looked back with a smile. "A peacock…always likes to go down in style."_

Volans kept a stern gaze back ahead, focusing on passing through the gates. "…the communication lacrima." He said low.

"Hm?"

"Remember what I said. They correspond with its user's condition." Volans paused. "Nic…use this time wisely."

Nic looked down at his phone and his eyes shook with uneasiness.

* * *

The machinery wasn't budging and the chief was looking scared. "Sir! It's impossible to fix it in time! We're stuck on the closed setting!"

Lysandre's aura thickened and his pale face was that of the devil. "Damn you, peacock!"

All Pavo could do was laugh some more as his plan actually worked. His mouth was huge and he couldn't stop laughing.

"I still can't believe that my cheap disguise worked! Even without the powers of you, they feared you with just your presence!" Pavo blurted out. His mouth was wide and he bellowed out more laughter.

"Pavo!" His earpiece ringed, and everyone around him backed off in slight surprise.

Pavo hiccupped and raised a brow. _'Nic?'_ He reached for his earpiece, and he held it out as the voice of his friend was loud and clear.

"Pavo? Can you hear us? Pavo!" Nic shouted. Lysandre and everyone gave death glares and Lysandre's infuriated face made him look as though he was gonna kill him. "Pavo, tell me! Why are you sacrificing yourself again to buy us time?! This is the second time now!"

Pavo's eyes shook as he remained silent. Small gasps were escaping him as he remembered the first time he met Nic, Cana, and Sophie back on Earth Land.

_Looking back at the alley's darkness afar, he spoke. "So…for the sake of one's duty…and to never turn your back on those who need to be saved." Pavo put up a brave smile with small tears of joy running down his cheeks, much to everyone's surprise._

"_Listen, Nic and friends." He started, turning around towards them. "There's something that must be done…_

…

_Pavo landed on the ground with a twirl and struck a pose. His face had a grave shadow over it as he looked down at his palm._

"_I never liked you either." Pavo said low. "You planned to kill many innocence. You go against humanity. You want nothing but war. You are but a fraction of what I put up with. And so…"_

_Kaulas got into a fighting stance as Pavo's expression was by far very dark with a grim vibe._

"_Bring it on!"_

…

_The next thing that happened was Kaulas's shoulders and elbows jutting out sharp bone-like extensions. He rushed in at blinding speed as Pavo clenched his fists and turned his body as Kaulas went to attack._

_Pavo let out a primal cry as he went to attack Kaulas, both heading at the other with sheer intensity._

"Why are you always taking the fall for us?!" Nic continued. "We never wanted you to resort to this drastic measure!"

'_Nic…'_ Pavo thought. _'I didn't think you would be that considerate of that time we were enemies, I was so wrong!'_

Back on the ship, Nic was shouting into his phone with the crew gathered around. "Pavo! We came this far because of what you've done! Do you know how many times I was saved by you from start to now?!"

Pavo looked away and gritted his teeth, stoically remaining silent.

"We came together, all of us, and we came to this world to meet your friends, and it was all you! Pavo, I know you're there! Please answer!"

Sophie bit her lip and shuddered. "W-wait, so that's it? You mean…he stayed behind so to buy us more time!"

"Pavo!" Nic yelled again.

"Come on man! Don't leave us hanging like this!" Cana yelled while her body was shuddering. "Please, you're our friend! Answer us!"

"Why aren't you saying something?!" Greninja shouted. "Please, explain!"

"Pavo!" Pavo heard Nic and everyone's plea, yet despite what they were yelling, he remained stoic and silent. As seconds past, he found it harder and harder to stay silent as guilt was piling on.

Lupus was gritting his fangs and was looking over the edge. His eyesight was set on the fortress, where the peacock was. "Pavo!" He howled.

Corvus was streaming polls of tears. "Pavo! You foolish peacock! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry for every negative thing I said!" He apologized.

Volans kept a stern gaze forward, but his eyes were still shaken up bad.

"Pavo!" Cana shouted again.

The gates were beginning to slowly shut as they all were slowly passing through.

"Pavo!" Nic bellowed into the phone. "PAVO!" Still, no answer.

On his knees, Pavo's lips were quivering as his teeth were still gritting. "Pavo…the gates are beginning to close." Nic's voice was low and swelling with sadness than plea. Pavo could barely swallow a gasp.

Nic leaned in closer to his phone his eyes misty. "My friend…we have to…go on ahead."

Cana and Sophie looked at Nic as tears were in the corners of their eyes. Even Greninja was becoming sad. But they all knew what Nic said was true; in anything, he looked as though he was hurting more than all of them.

"THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING!" Nic cried out.

Pavo was having a very hard time. This was the most strain he's put on himself to remain silent. Shadows were very slowly converging from all around him, catered by Lysandre. His eyes were streaming tears. So much that they were huge globs running down his face. He began to cry profusely and gritted his teeth tighter.

"Pavo! Thank you! Thank you for everything!" Through the lacrima, all of their voices cried out, save Volans. All of their voices were clear it made Pavo feel so happy, yet guilty. He looked up to the ceiling and sobbed even more.

Finally, he couldn't take it anymore.

"NNIIIIIIICCC!" He screamed through the lacrima, his tears flying all about.

Nic gasped in surprise. "Pavo!"

"Nic! Everyone! I should be the one to thank you! Thank you for everything!" He bellowed.

As the gates began to shut, sealing Pavo's fate, Nic began to cry. Small tears were running down his cheeks.

"Nic, I know you can do it. You're the one who can save us all! I was so glad to have a friend like you on my life, as your Pokémon!"

"Pavo!" Nic screamed, his heart shattering as his friend was embarking his final words.

"Cana! Sophie! I'm so happy to have met you two! You two kept strong and beautiful faces throughout the hard times! Don't ever lose those, for all of our sakes!"

Sophie and Cana were shedding tears and having hands over their mouths. Sophie and Cana at first were grateful considering Pavo as a friend after the Dahlias incident, but now he was like a dear friend to them; and because of that, they just couldn't stop crying.

"Volans, Lupus, Corvus! I'm so glad we all came together! You guys were my family, as was Nic and everyone else! I know, that all of you can work together, and save our world! Everyone…"

The gates behind them finally shut.

"…the time we've spent together…good and bad…was the happiest and proudest of my life…"

It all hit them like a massive flood. The memories from start to finish began to come to them.

"_Why hello~! And how are we this fine day?"_

The memories of Nic's first meeting with Pavo arose; how he lost to Nic. How he met up with Pavo again. How he got them time by sacrificing himself. How he met up with Cana and Sophie once more.

"_It's good to see you alive and well! Old friends!"_

Remembering how he assisted them in Lucy's quest; how he stopped Coco. Meeting Nic again. How he accompanied him to the mansion. The small smiles and talk in the library. Traveling through the ruins. How they evaded traps.

"_Hoh! Anything for a friend!"_

How he battled against Dan. How he fought against Kanaloa. How he backlashed at Byro.

"_Why don't you put yourself in Nic's shoes and consider his situation! He has the greatest burden in the universe, and not even Zentopia will brainwash him! You guys are nothing more than puppets, because you don't follow the goodness your hearts hold!"_

How he was caught in the Reborn Oracion Seis attack. How he recovered at the Blue Pegasus Guild. How he pleaded for Nic to stop fighting against Erza. How he admitted he was a Celestial Spirit.

"_Then off to the Celestial World we go!"_

How he reunited with Corvus, Lupus, and Volans. How he ran off with them. How he took a wound for Nic from Sirius. How they found the ship. Fighting against Hydrus. Sailing off for the Andromeda Key.

"_Don't be stupid! What's with all of this negative talk about? Come on, Nic's still out there!"_

Infiltrating the Keeper of Hell. Battled many guards. Fought Draco. Ended up in a cage. Not losing any signs of hope. Screaming that Nic will be okay.

"_Hang on, Nic! I believe in you!"_

Rallying everyone's hopes up. How they all confronted Hydra. Stopping Lysandre's minions from behind.

_He looked back with a smile. "A peacock…always likes to go down in style."_

"**PAVO!**" The crew screamed, tears flying.

Inside the gates, the crews on the malevolent ships all grunted as they were in front of the gates. They all looked up and down, seeing there was no way in and out now. The crew began to despair.

"Oh crap…they got away!"

"We're so dead."

Back on the ship, sniffles and tears were streaming as the crew was beginning to hear static from Nic's phone. Volans was the only one keeping his eyes forward on the open waters.

Pavo tears glistened as he spun around slowly, letting out a primal battlecry as he tore his cape off and it landed in the shadows, immediately rotting away. He took up one of his signature fighting poses as his face had stained tears.

"We shall dance in joy in elegance, when we all meet up again someday!" He bellowed outwards, no longer speaking into the lacrima, but as a primal statement to all the world. "And ours feathers shall be spread with hopes and dreams!"

On the ship Nic, Greninja, Cana, Sophie, Corvus, and Lupus were all crying out as tears ran down their cheeks.

"PAVO!" Nic cried out.

"Pavo~~!" Lupus howled out.

"Pavo!" Greninja and Corvus screamed.

"Pavo!" Cana and Sophie yelled out.

All of them had thick tears and cried outwards, their tears glistening.

Lysandre crossed his arms, and the shadows all around Pavo snatched him, keeping him in place and making his whole body sizzle and burn. He felt his own skin rot; but through it all, he shed no more tears, and gave a confident smile.

Lysandre raised an arm and shot a vicious Shadow Claw. "Any last words?!"

Pavo kept his smile and confidence to his end. "A peacock has no regrets when going down in style!"

With those words, Lysandre's Shadow Claw pierced Pavo's chest and heart, and the shadows coating Pavo began swallowing him up. Lysandre retracted his Shadow Claw, and the blob of shadows imploded the rest of Pavo, yet it all dispersed in dainty streams than a blast of shadows everywhere.

"I can relate to style, so consider this mercy." Lysandre scoffed, choosing his method and watched as there was nothing left in Pavo's spot.

Nic's phone went dead silent. As was their beings. They all shed tears as Pavo had met his fate and accepted it, so that they could save the world.

As the crew cried, Volans remained a steady course, but he only let a single tear escape, running down his cheek and splashing on the boarding.

A feather fluttered out of the prison, being carried off by the winds, twirling and spinning all carefree and off into the sky.

"_Until we meet again…with wings spread to show the elegance in our eternal friendship…farewell, my friends…"_

* * *

**I'm not gonna lie, I was sobbing as I was writing the last 1/3 of the chapter. I could be wrong, but this may very well be the most emotional chapter I've written up date. For One Piece fans, you guys clearly saw the parody there, but it was still just as effective. I'm sure many of you were fond of Pavo, and you may have had mental breakdowns and may be crying into your pillows, but please be strong.**

**Throughout the story, I've been having hiccups, but I never gave up. I had a crappy beginning, granted, but I made do with what I had, and look just how far I've taken the story. I went all over the place; from romance, to horror, to awe-inspiring action, to the most insane adventures ever, and now I made a tragedy. Every story needs a tragedy in some way, this is one. I assure you, things will get better from this point onwards, just sit tight and I'll have another chapter in at least a week's time.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys were touched by the writing, the drama, and the friendships made throughout the story.**

* * *

**Next Time: The Meaning of Bonds**


	66. The Meaning of Bonds

Chapter 66 – The Meaning of Bonds

**As expected, you guys were emotionally shattered from last chapter. I made Pavo a likeable character, and then you all cried when he sacrificed himself. You'll see how his sacrifice affects the next few chapters.**

**Guest Valvrave: For Vanessa being paired with someone, I haven't put much thought into it. So probably not.**

**Let's see how you guys react to this chapter!**

**To Recap:**

Pavo and the others were defeated and put in cages. Pavo was the only one who never gave up hope, and so he cheered through his earpiece, and soon enough Nic responds, with him, Greninja, and Garchomp all at the darkest and revolting level in the Keeper of Hell, where they found the Andromeda Key. Nic was confronted by Hydra, but Garchomp and Greninja fended him off until everyone arrived, where they worked together to get the Andromeda Key back. Garchomp Mega Evolved into Mega Garchomp, impressing everyone and defeated Hydra with ease. They all ascended back up, and were cornered by Lysandre and the six subordinates once more. After a narrow escape, they reached the ship and got to the Heavenly Gates, where they realized it could only be opened up by the inside of the Keeper of Hell. The crew soon realized that Pavo was missing and used his Transformation Magic to trick the guards to open and close the gates for his crew, and is confronted by Lysandre. Realizing he wasn't gonna make it, Nic and everyone cried out to him in thanks, and Pavo expresses his happiness and yells for them to go on ahead. With no regrets, Pavo was killed by Lysandre, and everyone is left mourning for their loss.

* * *

**Chapter 66 – The Meaning of Bonds**

The waves crashed up against the ship, yet it didn't deter from its northward goal. The ship was so quiet, so unsound, that it was as though the waves themselves weren't enough to make it rock with invigorating energy. That's exactly what the crew felt.

Desolation and silence was all that seemed possible to accomplish. The entire crew didn't even speak a single word for the longest time; it was all because of one man who gave his life so that they could pass through the Heavenly Gates. Pavo. With his death, the crew could only mourn in silence for their close friend.

Lupus was sitting up on the upper deck, his tail and ears drooping as he looked down at the boarding, whimpering like a sad puppy. While he howled out cries before, literally, no more could be hollered out. It was as if he put a mute button on himself as howling would be pointless.

Volans was mentally scolding himself. He felt just as guilty as the rest, and he was there when Pavo took the gander. His single tear that he shed when Pavo died a while back was something he resented. He felt attached to the crew, and he felt it was an obligation to keep them all alive…only to fail.

Corvus was having arms resting on his knees. He looked disclosed, mourning with a few stained tears swelling in his gaze as he looked out. While he bellowed out like a sissy before, he couldn't muster up anymore tears because many were already shed.

Sophie was sitting on the opposite side of a small table, where Cana was. Both girls could only sulk and feel nothing but broken spirits. Sophie never felt so sad before; it was a scornful memory that she would remember for the rest of her life. If there was booze, Cana would've thrown it overboard. This was the exact same feeling from when Nic seemingly died back in the Tower of Heaven. She couldn't drink a drop, and she most certainly couldn't at this point.

But perhaps, the most affected of all was Nic. Nic had his sunglasses on his face, to cascade the tear stains his eyes had ascertained from crying. He sat atop of the mast, with Greninja sitting on the opposite side. Nic felt the most connected to Pavo, primarily because he was the first human friend to the peacock guy. He was never good with losses in terms of friends and allies, hence the remembrance of when his grandparents died made his core harden to the point of hurting.

The crew wasn't sure how long the silence went on for. An hour? Maybe two? It felt like forever to them, and it was as though they weren't getting anywhere.

Sophie looked at the plate of portions she had. It was the last bit of her share. After that, they wouldn't have any felt. She swallowed hard, and reached for her fork…her hands shook so much. Saying she was unsteady would've been an understatement. She hesitantly picked up her fork, but her breath hitched as her hand was so unsteady that the fork fell, clanging when hitting the floor.

The clang echoed through the ship, and eyes gazed up to Sophie. Nic and Greninja's teary yet stern eyes glanced down, seeing Sophie just looking down at the fallen fork.

"…the memory…it hurts."

Finally, Sophie was the catalyst, admitting her feelings. A small silence continued for a few minutes before another voice spoke up, said voice resonating from her brunette friend.

"This is how Fairy Tail felt a long time ago. We all thought Nic died at one point." Her sullen eyes glanced at Sophie. "We all felt horrible. This is no different."

Nic and Greninja both looked at the other in sadness. When they saw each other, they saw their own reflection of grim. An image of Pavo with his huge grin and posing poisoned their minds, but it faded away like a distant memory. They both clenched their fists and choked on some lumps.

The crew down below was starting to come around after Sophie and Cana began the conversation. Corvus and Lupus came around with uneasy footsteps.

"This sadness we feel, it's like an epidemic." Lupus said. "I still can't believe it…when I think about it hard, he wasn't a bad guy. He was a true friend."

Corvus gritted his teeth, sniffling. He looked like he was having a mental struggle. "Pavo…"

"This act of despondency won't do any good." All eyes and heads turned towards Volans, who turned back towards the crew.

"That man didn't give his life so we can just sit around and mourn. We've had our fill, but this we can't stand anymore."

"Volans! Can you be anymore insensitive?!" Corvus cried out. "Our friend just died for us! And you're casting it away like an old rag?!"

Volans's eyes closed. "It's what he would've wanted."

Corvus rushed up to Volans's face, exasperated. "What?! He was a friend and comrade in arms! We all cried out to him! We cared about him! And what did you do?!"

"Corvus, enough." Lupus insisted, but fell on the crowman's deaf ears.

"How many tears have you shed?! You're just bottling it all up! Just why can't you just cry out one lousy ti-!" Corvus was cut off when a blur pinned him to the mast, and the left side of him was barely touched by a fist that embedded into the mast.

Everyone remained calm, despite the scornful look Volans had.

"You don't know a damn thing I'm feeling!" He shouted in Corvus's face. "Do you think I never had a heart?! I cared for Pavo too, but the fact is that when we banded together, we all knew that there was a strong chance that some of us wouldn't survive! I was fully prepared for that time to come, and now you have to be ready, Corvus! Toughen up, for Pavo's sake!"

Corvus gritted his teeth and winced. Tears were beginning to fall from his face again. It was the hard truth, but Corvus learned the hard way that the truth hurts. The more he tried to resent that fact, the more effort it took to keep himself in check. It was hard, but Corvus knew that Volans's words were right. He had to move on, and continue on. Yet the tears just couldn't stop.

"*sniffe*…I just…" Corvus clenched his fists. "…it's hard to see a friend go."

Volans retracted and turned away, getting back to the steering wheel. "Accepting a loss is enough. You can mourn all you want, but that attitude won't benefit the group."

"He's right."

Everyone looked up, hearing the voice of Nic. He jumped down from the mast, with Greninja following behind. The two landed in the midst of the group, and both looked serious, yet even with the sunglasses on his face, the crew could feel the sadness still lurking around him.

"I'll tell you what we're gonna do, because we're not having Pavo die in vain." He looked at Greninja. "Erza was shattered and irreparable when I died, meaning neither of us couldn't be without the other…the same goes for me and my Pokémon." He looked at everyone again. "If we're gonna get through this, we have to stay together. That man was whom brought us all as one, so it's only right we respect his dying wishes. We can move on; we just have to keep looking ahead."

Corvus was boggled at how emotionally shattered Nic was, yet saw how he was using every bit of willpower to push himself forward. When he swallowed one last time, he took in a deep breath, and exhaled.

"…you're right." He said, looking as though he calmed down. "We've gotta save the mourning for after we achieve victory. We'll honor Pavo properly when this is all over." Having that resolve, everyone nodded individually in agreement.

Cana and Sophie stood up, with Sophie talking. "For now…we'll live up to his expectations, and stop Lysandre."

Cana nodded. "Yeah, we'll kick his ass and free those Zodiacs."

Lupus's tail began to wag again. "They are so going down! We're pressing onwards! To the tower!"

Corvus raised a fist high. "To the tower!"

Everyone cheered as their spirits were repaired enough. Nic and Greninja raised fists as well, having half grins on their faces. Volans still had a hand on the steering wheel, and had one fists up while looking ahead. In truth, Volans and the two former were still broken up by Pavo, but they knew the risks, and they had to live with it. They missed Pavo, but they had to keep going.

As their little motivation speeches were finished, some time passed and the dark fog ahead was clearing up, and Volans's eyes widened. His mouth parted as the dark fog was starting to fade, revealing something up ahead.

Nic and Greninja looked ahead. "What is it…" His eyes and Greninja's widened, and they were left in a state of awe.

Soon enough everyone followed their gazes forward, and they were all left with great disbelief and sheer awe. Their breaths hitched, and it felt like they all stopped breathing. The giant structure before them was left with no words to say. Their eyes barely shook as their own skins grew goosebumps.

"Oh my god." Sophie muttered.

Cana looked hesitant. "So, that's gotta be it, right?"

Lupus nodded. "There's no doubt in my mind."

The ship was closing in on a pitch black tower, giving off a vile and rotting smell that probably would've made anyone cry if not strong willed. The tower was more rectangular than cylindrical compared to the Tower of Heaven, while it did equal its extraordinary length into the sky. The sky, unlike the dark purple and darkness as before, was pure pitch black, and reached out as far as the eye could see. The water they all ventured in was dark, and vile winds spewed everywhere, making their goosebumps shrivel.

Volans kept his strong gaze ahead. "We've finally arrived…Andromeda Tower."

Corvus looked up, still uneasy. "Well, it's clear that Lysandre's done some redecorating."

"Ugly and repulsive; definitely something worth his tastes." Cana scoffed in disgust.

"Can you feel that energy? It's so dark and malevolent. It almost makes you fall over on the spot." Nic noted, feeling Lysandre's evil power all around. "I believe it's best to assume that he's waiting at the top for us?"

Volans kept the course ahead, the waves still crashing against the ship. "More or less. According to Lupus, the top of Andromeda Tower is the passageway towards Lysandre and where he keeps watch over all within the dark skies."

"Everyone, no matter what, prepare for the worst." Greninja said.

"Yes, do be cautious. Lysandre may have his six subordinates already inside. Prepare for a great fight ahead." Volans warned.

The ship soon came within shore distance, and already they saw the shores lined with a number of guards, all armed with weaponry. It was quite the welcoming party, which got them all ready for the shores. With fists clenched, everyone was ready to charge into the tower, with Volans holding the shiny Andromeda Key in arms.

Many guards had already begun attacking, throwing spears and shooting arrows into the sky, raining down on the crew.

"**Sonic Howl!**" Lupus fired a midnight blue soundwave from his glowing mouth, and the soundwaves expanded out and repelled the spears and arrows back into the air and at the several guards on the shore, making them all panic and get hit, getting knocked down.

Still, many went for the attack, and shot harpoons ahead. Corvus screamed as he carried his feet across the deck, dodging harpoons impale the deck boards. He ran and turned around, and saw more harpoons and arrows coming his way. In a hurry, he flapped his wings. "**Night Storm!**" He fired a tornado of black winds at the incoming attacks, which shot the harpoons and arrows back at the forces.

Sophie's eyes narrowed. "Is it me, or is there something wrong?" While she didn't digress from the raid, there was some questioning in her mind.

Nic understood it too. "Yeah, their numbers fall short. Why is that?"

"It's gotta be Lysandre." Volans figured, steering the ship towards the dock, where the forces were running off to. "I'd imagined his genocide and rampaging only left him this much in numbers…in all."

"Gee, the guy really did a heavy number. There's only like a hundred up there!" Cana flashed cards in readiness as the ship finally stopped. "Whatever the case, let's get them all what they earned!"

Nic charged for the dock. "Everyone, attack!" He jumped off the ship and readied a midair attack. "**Boomburst!**" The inside of his mouth glowed light blue, and he fired immense soundwaves that roared outwards, crashing into the many guards while blowing back their weapons in arms.

"**Dark Pulse!**" Greninja fired a jumbled beam of dark rings that shot into guards, causing a dark explosion and shook the dock. Him and Nic landed in crouched positions on the dock, and everyone followed their lead. Greninja sped on in and jumped. He twisted his body and shot Water Shuriken all around, all perfect aims and shattering apart harpoons and arrows.

Cana flashed her cards. "Try this! **Thunderbolt's Fate!**" She showed her card, and it was like Discharge, as many of the several guards remaining screamed as they were electrocuted on the spot.

Volans spread his feet apart and clenched his fists. He took in a deep breath and slammed his hands to the ground. "**Deep Geyser!**"

The ground and water ruptured all about, and the remaining guards felt an immense pressure shaking the ground beneath. They all saw the ground crack up, and then deep blue water spouted upwards, bombarding the guys and screamed violently.

The spouts all settled, and the remaining guards all screamed and slammed into the damp ground with painful thuds.

Lupus got on all fours. "Let's hurry!" He and the others hurried off towards the doorway, which was a large, purple door with black ridges. As they ran towards the door, they all heard a sound resonating from up above.

"What?!" Cana looked and saw something like a white Psycho Cut in a way, and it fell down from the upper part of the tower. To their shock and horror, their eyes cascaded towards the ship, and saw the attack split the ship in half.

They all gawked and shook as the very ship they've traveled on, the one that they've been using, the one they had many conversations on…get split apart. The remnants of the ship collapsed, and Nic and everyone watched with small sadness as the ship sunk.

Cana looked pissed as she looked back at the doorway. "…no turning back now."

Volans's fists clenched. "Let's go."

Everyone turned ahead, their fuel for vengeance filled to the brim. Sophie gave Volans the key, and Volans held up the Andromeda Key to the front. There was no handle, and no lock. The Andromeda Key slowly touched the door, and then the key and the door both shined a rainbow light. The light took up the entire doorway, and Volans retracted the key and himself.

Everyone watched as the doorway opened up from the center, and they all stared inside. All they saw was some lighting for the ceilings, but they also saw some corroded black vines growing all about.

Nic was the first to step in, being extremely cautious. Once inside, he looked up to see the ceilings were rather high, and a spiral staircase was immediately to his right, ascending all around the building interior upwards.

He looked back at everyone and nodded. "Let's go!"

Everyone followed behind, and they proceeded up the staircase with determination and fast hear rates. The more they climbed, the more pressure and energy seemed to pile on. They all ran up, and it felt like the longest time until they were finally getting to the second level.

The spiral staircase led to the ceiling, where a doorway was like the first, only much smaller. Nic and everyone made way for Volans, as he presented the Andromeda Key. He kept a stern face as he inserted the key, and the tip touched the door. Both the key and the door shined a bright rainbow color, and everyone saw the doorway open up.

They all made haste inside, and on the level they reached, it was a domain of red columns all around. It looked messy with seaweed all about, and kelp was rotted on the floor. As they stepped in, they felt the humidity and moisture weigh them down a bit.

"Geez, it's like the coast or some post-hurricane. Why's this place so humid and wet?" Cana questioned. She looked around, seeing how there were holes all over the floor, which struck her as peculiar.

"What's with these holes?" Sophie asked, seeing several all over the place. "It's like…" Her eyes cascaded downwards. "…storm drains?"

Lupus looked around, sniffing the air. "I smell water. You just might be right."

Nic stepped forward. "No." Everyone's eyes glanced at him. "If they were storm drains, they'd had lids and be caved in. I fear it's just the opposite."

Volans looked sternly ahead, contemplative about this room and its energy. His eyes widened when an epiphany struck him. His gasp caught some attention. "Oh no, Cetus!"

"Surprise!"

Everyone turned all around, seeing the holes in the ground spout out water. The holes thus revealed themselves to be geysers. The water immediately began to flood the flooring, quickly getting its water level to everyone's feet.

Corvus looked down. "GAH! What the…this room is a flood chamber?!"

Volans stepped forward, looking peeved, despite the calm face he had. "You can show yourself, Cetus. I know you're here. There's no point hiding it."

A dark, sadistic smirk loomed on the creature's face in the shadows. He slowly stepped out from behind one of the columns on the far side of the flooring. He presented his green and scaly form, and his tongue slicked in the moist air.

"Should've known you'd try something like this. You've had a level customized so as to fit your style of battling." Volans announced. "The way I taught you."

Cetus chuckled. "You're right, but I should ask how are you gonna stop me?" He brought an arm back, poised to swing. "Better yet, how are you gonna stop the big guy himself, when you can't get past us six?" His creepy eye widened. "**Mariana Blade!**"

Cetus swiped his arm in an upwards swing, sending a crescent of deep blue traveling across the rising water, now up to everyone's ankles. Volans brought his arm around slowly as the attack traveled after him. His pointed elbow glowed and grunted as he swiped in an arc, completely shredding Mariana Blade in half.

A long silence fell between the two, and anticipation grew. Seconds later, the two columns around Cetus, and the ones around Volans and his group, all were sliced up. They slowly crumbled apart, falling into the water with huge splashes.

Corvus swallowed. "T-there powers…they cancelled out!"

"Such vicious intensity." Greninja noted.

"Nic. Everyone." Without looking, Volans took the Andromeda Key in his one hand and threw it overhead, where Lupus caught it from behind.

"Volans?" Lupus asked.

"You guys go on ahead. I have a score to settle. It's time I put this dishonorable rapscallion in his place." Volans made it sound more like a command than a request. If Nic and everyone could argue, they would've, especially after last time when a certain someone was left behind.

But when a score needs to be settled, they did not intervene. "Okay then, good luck Volans." Nic led the group off towards the staircase right past Cetus. "Be sure to catch up to us!"

Volans put his hands up as the water level increased to his knees. "Don't worry, I promise." With those words, Volans watched on as his friends and crew went up the stairs, getting themselves out of the rising water.

The water didn't stop, and soon it reached the top of their knees. Cetus looked on with a sadistic smirk. "I've been waiting such a long time for this. Finally, I get to show that I've surpassed you…_master_!" He sounded spiteful when saying master, as it humiliating and degrading Volans.

"You have no more right to call yourself a student as I was a master. I gave you value, I gave you honor and my trust, and this is how you repay me!" He spread his wings apart and ascended into what air was left. He looked down at Cetus and glared at him. "It's time rather I show you the error of your ways!"

"Try me, you old timer! **Mariana Blade!**" He swiped his arm up, sending a deep blue crescent at Volans.

"How predictable." He flew out of the way, having the attack slice the top of another column, causing it to tumble down into the water. Volans growled as he flew about in the air, spiraling and maneuvering around the columns.

He looked back down, noticing that Cetus was gone. "What?" He lowered some, and looked around in the water. "Where did he go…?"

A sudden splash from below got his attention, yet it wasn't a good sign as Cetus arose. The sea monster embedded his claws and fangs into Volans, making the flying fish grunt in agonizing pain.

"Who's predictable now?!" Cetus muffled. He used his weight and strength to haul Volans underwater. Both amphibians submerged and found themselves in an underwater battle, with the water level now at least ten feet.

As he was freed, Volans looked up to the rising water, and his glance turned towards the stairs, where he saw the crew near the top, though he hardly saw through the water reflecting the dim lighting. _'Everyone…' _He turned back towards Cetus, and saw the sea monster swim ahead towards him. Both headbutted the other, sending a shockwave through the water. _'I'll catch up!'_

Cetus brought his tail around and slammed Volans on his side, knocking him away some. Cetus remained floating in the water. "Are you done holding back old man? C'mon!" His finned elbow glowed and raced after Cetus. "Hrraahhh!"

Volans brought an arm back and the pointed elbow tip glowed as well.

"**Trench Shredder!**"

But of their attacks met, clashing together like swords. The shockwave went all around, cracking apart the nearby columns. Both glares were set on the other, their rights and oppositions on the end of each spectrum.

* * *

Nic and everyone saw the water level reaching to the tip, and Lupus hurried to the doorway. "Out of the way!" Everyone made way for him to put the key in front, and they all looked back to find the water level finally stopping just ere inches from their feet. They all turned back as the door shined, and saw it opening up, allowing entry to the next level.

The next level looked like a wide expanse of low, dead grass, with some scattered boulders all around; a terrain well suited for an ambush if displayed correctly. They all ran inside, where they began running onwards.

"With Cetus being dealt with, do you think the other five are nearby?" Cana asked.

Nic turned towards Lupus. "Anything?"

Lupus was sniffing the air, and it was as foul as ever. His glance cascaded left and right as many scents loomed about in the atmosphere. "They're close. Everyone look alive!"

On their right, several pants and huffs were coming towards them. With that number rising up, and the sound increasing, they group had found out whom this floor was the domain of.

They all stopped and got into a circular formation. The boulders were hiding several dogs, whom crawled out and growled at the group. The crew's eyes were sharp and weary as the dogs had them surrounded.

"Canes." Greninja muttered.

"And when there's Canes, there's…" Nic's eyes widened as his sentence was cut off. He turned towards his left, and all eyes were set as a blood red soundwave echoed and smashed the boulders in front, causing the soundwaves and terrain to pound them. They all blocked and maintained footing, but they had little ground as Canes closed in on them; one dog snapped its jaws when Sophie got too close.

They all looked where the rubble and dust was, watching it subside to reveal the snarling mutt that made Lupus growl back. Sirius gave a smirk that showed all of his canines. He looked enthused to see them again.

"Well now, boy oh boy." He began salivating, his claws sharpening. "You've kept me very impatient. I was hoping we'd meet up again."

Lupus growled at him some more. "Hello, Sirius."

Cana flashed her cards. "We don't have time for this!" Her cards had a sun symbol and she pivoted. "**Sun's Strength!**" The cards lit ablaze and struck the area in front of her, causing an explosion of fire that made the dogs nearby howl and jerk away.

She turned towards the others as the fire was beginning to dim. "Hurry, let's get moving!"

Nic turned towards Greninja. "Greninja, **Smokescreen!**" Greninja made ninja hand signs and huffed out a thick, black cloud of smoke, obscuring all eyes through the area. Canes and Sirius jerked back as they were intolerable of the smoke.

"Let's get moving!" Nic and everyone rushed through the Smokescreen, rushing out and seeing the spiral staircase on the other end. They continued to advance onwards, having seemingly cleared the way, but a figure sprung upwards from the cloud and snarled. Sirius dropped down on Lupus, making the wolf howl on pain. The Andromeda Key fell out of his grip and hit the ground close to everyone as they all turned back.

"Lupus!" Sophie shattered.

Lupus struggled as he was pinned down, and the Smokescreen was beginning to fade. He saw no alternative and grunted as Sirius sank his fangs into his mane. "Grr! Guys, go on without me!"

"What?!" Corvus screamed. "But we can't just-!" He gasped as Canes slowly emerged from behind the smoke cloud, the figures coming into view.

Lupus struggled a bit before he got his legs beneath and fell backwards, now pining Sirius to the earth. He turned back towards the crew. "What are you standing around for?! I said get moving!"

Corvus clenched his fists and grunted. "Okay! Be careful!" He hurriedly grabbed for the Andromeda Key with his talons and flapped his wings upwards. "Come on, we gotta go!"

"Right behind ya!" Cana and the remaining crew kept on running, and they all ran towards the spiral stairs as Lupus was kicked off of Sirius and skidded backwards to a halt. The wolf didn't bother looking back as everyone was climbing the stairs, and his tail wagged.

Canes began to charge after them, passing Sirius. Lupus opened his mouth and fired his trademark Sonic Howl. The attack echoed and expanded all around, and it repulsed Canes and skidded back behind Sirius, and they all covered their ears from their sensitive hearing.

Lupus took a single step forward, and glared down Sirius. "Now this is more like it. Just you and me." He crept on all fours, his hair standing on end. His growling intensified.

Sirius also got on all fours and growled back. "Looks like it, but remember…" Canes began to advance in his stead. "You're outnumbered."

Lupus snickered. "Perhaps…but you know my Sonic Magic can cause some damage, so no matter how you look at it we're even."

"That's what you think, pooch!" Sirius fired a blood red kick, and the swing made a sonic crescent that traveled like Razor Wind would. Lupus jumped up and dodged the attack that shattered the boulder behind him, reducing it to smoldering rubble.

In midair, Lupus lashed a kick of his own, sending a midnight blue crescent slicing through the air like a Sonic Boom. The shockwave traveled at Sirius, but the Great Dog Spirit raked downwards, bisecting the attack and making it erupt on either side.

Lupus landed and lunged after Sirius and vice versa. Both snarled with their claws grinding outwards and each parried the other's blows. Both parties slashed and clashed claws, neither giving an inch. All they did was block and parry their claws, until finally they were caught in a stalemate.

Both sides glared down the other, yet Sirius was more relaxed. His eyes narrowed. "Don't forget, I have the number advantage!"

One of the dogs sank his fangs into Lupus's legs, making him grunt in pain. A second dog suddenly showed up and bit into Lupus's right shoulder. Sirius backed away and watched as Lupus struggled as angrily lashed and slashed, kicking the dogs off only for another to take its place.

"Get off!" The wolf howled, but found it that much harder to keep up his whole weight. Ultimately he cringed as their fangs sank deeper, forcing him to howl loudly, unleashing a strong shockwave from his mouth, rippling rapidly and bellowing through the air. They all pouted and flew off of him, hitting the ground with loud thuds.

However as Lupus panted, he wasn't clear as Sirius used this chance to get a good hit in. "**Dark Sonic Claw!**" His claws glowed blood red and he slashed at Lupus. The wolf howled as he skidded on his back and smashed into a boulder several feet behind him, reducing it to rubble that buried him.

Sirius laughed hardily as the dogs gathered around him, and looked on as the rubble shook. "I gotta say, Lupus, you've got quite the guts to become a traitor. While I do thank you for the position from before, it wasn't wise to turn against Lysandre like that."

His chastising only made Lupus grunt as he slowly arose from the rubble, standing fully up. He had a few scratches on himself, and looked rather disgusted. "What can I tell ya? My conscience isn't as black as everyone had hoped." He continued as he looked at Canes. "I may have left Lysandre and my pack, but I did it for the greater good. This world doesn't deserve such a poor leader who doesn't look after his own."

"How noble." Sirius sarcastically toned. "But that won't stop you from getting shredded to death." He nudged his head, and Canes slowly advanced towards Lupus. "So, what other tricks do you have up your sleeve?"

Canes kept getting closer, but Lupus didn't move at all. Much to Sirius's shock, he could've sworn that Lupus…was smirking.

"Just one." He spread his feet apart, his bold demeanor causing Canes to stop advancing. "Sirius, I claim the right of challenge, for control of the pack!"

Sirius and Canes alike looked at each other and looked surprised to say the very least. Sirius could've sworn he heard Lupus issue a right of challenge.

He scoffed. "Tch, don't make me laugh. You? Issue a right of challenge? You've gotta be out of your mind if you think a former pack leader can issue such a thing!"

Lupus's smirk grew. "That's where you're wrong."

"What?"

Lupus stepped forward. "I never lost to someone who claimed the right of challenge. I quit, remember? That means, I'm still valid to take the position back, if I win that is." That did the trick as Canes backed off, knowing that they cannot interfere in a right of challenge.

Reluctantly, Sirius found himself with no luck getting out of this. He got on all fours and smirked. "Very well; your challenge is accepted!"

Lupus got on all fours. "Winner gets control of the pack."

Sirius added his own measurement. "Very well! Loser leaves and can never again come in contact or be an Alpha for eternity!" Both had their hair standing on end. "Now, time to die!"

"You first!"

Both bared their fangs and claws and ran after each other. They met in the middle, where they savagely bit into the other's neck and thrashed about violently as Canes watched from the sidelines.

* * *

"This way, c'mon!" Corvus rushed everyone to the doorway, where they were at the top of the level. Down below, they could've seen the intense brawling Lupus and Sirius were throwing down.

Corvus lifted up the key with his hands. "Now, I just take this, and~…!" He touched the tip to the door, and both objects shined a bright rainbow color. Once again, the door opened up, and Corvus clenched a fist. "Okay then, let's go!"

They all ran inside, where they saw yet another scene change. The ground was all rock, and the ceiling gave off a rather peculiar light kind of like the sun on a weak level. Of course this prompted Nic to flip on his sunglasses.

"Geez, what is this?" Cana asked. "Some sort of smelly wasteland?"

Sophie uncovered herself, her body beginning to adapt to the sudden change in light. "Well let's not get our hopes up. This sunlight is starting to make my skin burn. I doubt we can last long on this level without our skin peeling off."

"And when people say don't go towards the light." Cana sarcastically implied. "I think we're gonna have it rough climbing the stairs. We might be shriveled up before we get there."

Nic advanced forward. "We can't back down now. We have a job to do." He led everyone off towards the stairs on the other side of the level. He and everyone made way, soon making it to the center.

Greninja's eyes darted up, and that's when a projectile shot down. He couldn't see well with the harsh light, but it was his instincts and reflexes that made him jump and dodge the attack.

"Greninja!" Nic turned back towards him. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Greninja looked out as the dust settled, and before everyone, standing tall and silent, was Aquila.

"Aquila?!" Corvus bellowed, shuddering with a gaping mouth.

Aquila's calm yet deadly eyes glared at them all. He was silent at first, then finally spoke up. "Not bad. Your reflexes are immense. That attack couldn't hit you even if it tried. Still, you all shall not reach Lysandre and his power."

Sophie grunted. "So, he's Aquila. I can already tell that he's a calculating warrior."

"Yeah, and judging by how fast he went straight down, it's hard whether or not he's holding back on that first blow." Nic said. "But we won't be taking any chances."

He lunged ahead, carefully keeping an eye on Aquila as he advanced with his great speed. He put his hands together and spread them apart to unsheathe Cut. He brought it back, and that's when Aquila's brown wings glowed and sharpened at the lower tips. He crossed them, and used them to block Nic's Cut. White sparks clashed with brown ones, and both grunted as neither were giving an inch.

Several seconds passed before they both backed away with a loud boom, with both skidding back. Nic's eyes narrowed underneath his sunglasses. "Interesting."

The wings stopped glowing and eased up. "You interested in my Valiant Wing Magic? My strong wings and feathers alike can give off a variety of properties. It's quite lethal if you're not careful."

Nic growled at Aquila as the eagle's feathers sharpened. He watched him shoot the feathers at them, and as Nic readied to intercept, sudden black feathers shot from behind, and clashed with Aquila's feathers. Both attacks met in the middle and surprisingly cancelled out, much to Aquila's slight astonishment.

"My sharp feathers, glazed in my valiance, cancelled out?" He looked on as a pair of talons touched the floor.

"You've gotta learn something pal." Corvus stood in front of everyone, darting his eyes right at Aquila. "This team's got a flock of its own!"

"Corvus!" Cana said in surprise.

Corvus glanced back at them. "Guys, as much as we have to go on ahead, these guys are gonna slow us down." He walked up slowly, and without looking, he tossed the Andromeda Key, and Cana managed to catch it. "You guys get moving. I'll buy you some time."

Sophie grew worried by her biting lip. "This isn't the time to play the cool guy, Corvus! Look at him!" Sophie pointed to Aquila, whom exerted a brown aura that made the atmosphere all the more uneasy to take.

Corvus was starting to get beads of sweat on his face. "I…I know, but just don't worry. We're all gonna get to the top, right?" He sounded so absolute, despite how easily scared he looked. Nic and Greninja looked at each other and back at Corvus, seeing how he was trying to get some courage. Whether he came out dead or alive, he'd be fighting to make sure they got to where they were intended to go.

"Alright then." Nic agreed.

Sophie and Cana turned to him, the former holding some worry. "But Nic-"

"You know Corvus is right. We have to make it to the top. Volans and Lupus are already buying us as much time as they can. We can't stop to worry, right?" The girls and Greninja knew that there was some hint of worry in his voice, but as much as it was hurting him, they had to keep on going, no matter what.

"Okay." Cana looked up at Corvus as he ascended into the air, followed by Aquila. "Make sure to catch up when you're done!" She and the others thus began their trek and went towards the stairs.

Corvus smirked confidently at Aquila. "You hear that? With my friends backing me up, I'm as strong as 100 falcons!"

Aquila still had his arms crossed as he was maintaining his position in the air. "You can say all you want about falcons, but that won't change the indefinite fact that you're nothing more than a crow. A bird of one's mourning sadness and pity." Aquila uncrossed and flapped, spreading his large wings attached to his arms. "Your black wings mean nothing to my valiance! Perhaps I should show you!"

Corvus continued to flap as he gritted his teeth. "Bring it on! I'm not afraid!"

"No, but you will be." Aquila crossed his wings and arms. "**Defying Dance!**" A large mass of brown, thick feathers at Corvus.

"**Night Storm!**" Corvus flapped his wings, unleashing a black tornado straight at the brown mass before him. Both attacks created a turbulence of black and brown that collided and expanded outwards. Eventually both attacks cancelled out, but the recoil made Corvus lose balance and grunt as he took a few scratches.

He looked up at Aquila, who wasn't even touched by the attack. When he saw his stern face, he only clenched his fists tighter. "I can't believe I looked up to you. You used to be so cool, talking about valiance and bravery…and I thought I could reach your height." He pointed an accusing finger at him. "But now look! Siding with the enemy?! That's a low height!"

"You'd be wise to silence yourself, fool!" He reappeared in front of Corvus with a talon stretched out. He jabbed Corvus, making him gag in pain as he pinned him to the ground below, making a thud. "Do you know why people look up to others?" His talons pressed harder onto Corvus's chest. "Do you want to know why I sought power from Lysandre?"

Corvus's eyes shook.

"Ambition. To be an eagle, it meant to look down on others as prey, not for someone to look up to…because I'll swoop down and make you dinner." He pressed harder than before. "You thought that you could reach my level of power, and it was such an ambition that you worked to achieve. Ambitions like those won't mean anything if you don't have power behind you." He lifted his foot, kicking Corvus and sending him crashing to the nearby wall.

"The greatest ambitions deserve nothing but the greatest power. And if that means killing and serving under eternal evil, then let it be."

Corvus slowly arose from the wall, struggling to get up. "You…bastard…"

"Such weak calls from an inferior bird. Try and take me down." He glared at Corvus, whom soon got his feet under himself and steadied out. The crow lunged ahead, arms and wings spread out and giving out a battlecry as he went to attack a calm and devious eagle.

* * *

Water filled the whole floor, bubbles popped and it seemed silent. Flashes appeared in the water, and a closer examination showed the flashed being Volans and Cetus's trademark Trench Shredder attacks colliding and parrying all over the place. Columns had pieces sliced off, debris was scattered everywhere, and all seemed like the floor was cracked, yet no water flushed out.

Both former master and disciple crashed their elbows again like swords, barely suppressing the other. Both reeled back from their attacks, and both seemed rather exhausted at most. Volans huffed, as did Cetus. Both parties glared at the other with deep hostility for only several more seconds before both swam towards the other.

"GRAH!" Cetus swiped with his sharp claws, in which Volans swam around and behind. Cetus turned around to swipe again, and Volans swam up and over him, sinking to his elevation once more.

"You're as vicious as you were in training, Cetus." Volans stated. "Why must you be filled with contempt?!" He rushed ahead, his left palm swelling with deep blue water. "**Abyss Palm!**"

"**Mariana Blade!**" Cetus swiped up, sending a shockwave of pressurized water in a crescent at the palm. The two assaults crashed into the other, making strong currents flourish and Volans grunted in trouble as the Abyss Palm was spliced.

"GAH!" Volans was struck by Mariana Blade, and he felt the shredding pressure nearly cut him in half. His face and fat nose had some blood, and he grunted as he lost momentum. That's when Cetus's shadow loomed over him and grabbed him by the thick neck.

He pulled Volans closer as his claws dug into him. "So, old man, still thinking I'm weaker than you?" He threw Volans aside, crashing into a column. The Spirit only had a few brief moments to get his breath back before he was pinned against the column by Cetus and his scaly arm.

He sadistically smirked at Volans. "You can't fight the greater power! You're nothing more than a coward, who was nothing more than a stepping stone for me. Now all I have to do is throw you away."

Volans growled in distaste. Out of sight, he had an Abyss Palm set in his right hand. "Your views are as murky as the depths you swam up from." He shot the palm right into Cetus's gut, making an explosive shockwave of water that made Cetus gag and shoot backwards into a column. Volans advanced. "I told you, you're the one being a coward. You threw away everything I taught you, just so you could be spared from Lysandre's wrath. You're the true coward, and you're the stepping stone that my crew needs to throw away."

Cetus's sharp teeth gritted as he snarled at Volans. He brought his arms together. "You're nothing to me! The biggest mistake you made was trusting me!" He began morphing a blue sphere that shined brilliantly.

Volans repeated the same motion, making his own shining sphere of immense pressure. "The biggest mistake I've made, was taking you in!"

Both made the floor shake as the pressure coming off of those was extraordinary. They shot their attacks, making shockwaves roar as they traveled through the water. "**Tsunami Implosion!**"

A turmoil of water erupted, making everything set off like atomic bombs. The water all around swamped and cleared away from the immense force given off. Volans and Cetus screamed and covered up, but that didn't stop them from smashing through shattering columns throughout the floor. Shockwaves kept up until they at last settled, and the turbulence and water settled back in.

Volans laid in a pile of rubble, and slowly got back up. Cetus was already on his feet and scoffed down at him. A snicker passed his lips and he lunged ahead with a punch. Volans jabbed ahead as well, their punches meeting in the middle, making a ripple, through the area.

Volans grunted and winced, feeling the most pain. "Damnit!"

Cetus saw the opportunity and struck with a tail swing, swatting Volans away. The Spirit recovered and saw Cetus advance with the trademark Trench Shredder, to which Volans parried with his own, while dodging some slashes from Cetus's claws.

"It's time for a new generation! You can't see that I was only being taught so as to keep your skills and techniques after Lysandre or someone comes along and takes you out, but you're too stubborn to fall!" He slashed with his fin elbows, patting Volans's Trench Shredder in return. "You're even too stubborn to shed tears in front of your own kin! You're nothing but a hard-scaled fish who's made of nothing but stone!"

Then Cetus said something that he should have never said. He was getting so arrogant, and that's what made everything turn south.

"You should just fall like your friend back at the prison!"

Volans stopped moving as his eyes widened, leaving him to get a harsh punch to the face, knocking him back a few feet. Cetus laughed at Volans as he was still stuck in a distraught manner. For him, all seemed to have stopped. It was like silence fell and Volans only heard his disciple badmouthing Pavo.

An image of the peacock man with a smile and pose was pictured, and Volans had thick shadows covering his shaking eyes. From remembering the last moments of Pavo, he remembered the bond he had with his crew, how they all had smiles, and how Corvus lashed out at him. He then remembered the single, shameful tear that was shed.

Cetus advanced on towards him, swimming in at great speeds. "Finally, I surpassed the old man!" He readied an Abyss Palm in his right palm. "Time for you to-!"

He was cut up when a harsh fist smashed into his face, and the bone-breaking punch echoed through the area. The impact was so strong that Cetus shot backwards and yelled in pain when hitting and shattering through a pile of rubble.

"Gahhh!" He gagged blood and winced as the pain his face took. "Where the hell did that punch come from, huh…?"

He looked ahead, and what he saw was something that defied everything he has known. While thick shadows still covered his eyes, Volans…was crying. Small tears were scrolling down his face, and his fists clenched so hard as light blue Magic Power was blooming all around him.

"…tears?" Cetus questioned. "What's going on?"

Volans kept on tearing up, and his head turned up and he winced as the tears kept on coming and the Magic Power kept exerting itself. His power just kept escalating, and he finally spoke outwards.

"You…" He roared low. "Pavo…WAS FAMILY!" He lunged ahead, swimming in a full lung at a speed Cetus couldn't stop. He was punched in the gut once more, and time slowed down as Cetus felt a great pain swell through his entire body. He smashed through several columns at once, each shattering from Cetus.

Volans glared viciously at Cetus through the clearing debris through the water. "That man Lysandre killed, the one you poorly stated, he was more family than you ever were to me. Family, protects one another, care for another, and cherish the other, no matter what."

Cetus got up and wiped away the blood on his face and looked up at Volans.

"You don't know me as well as you thought you did, which is why you will never win!" Volans rushed on ahead, immense light blue energy swelling with intense pressure around him, and his Abyss Palm. "I'll show you what real power comes from – Emotions!"

Cetus countered the incoming attack with his tail, swatting Volans as he zoomed in, but his spare arm blocked the tail, and Volans let out a cry as he brought the palm up and slammed it straight down on Cetus. The attack let loose a violent shockwave and Cetus felt himself get crushed by the attack.

He glared back up at Volans, his tears still fresh as his emotions ran wild for his crew and late friend. Cetus readied Trench Shredder. "Who cares?!"

They both parried again, their individual Trench Shredder attacks blocking the other; while he was on the defensive before, Volans was now on the offensive, blocking and making it hard for Cetus to get a clear shot in. Cetus broke it by getting a roundhouse kick in, but Volans caught it and swung Cetus around, letting go and sending him tumbling through the water.

Cetus narrowed his eyes. "You're really stubborn. This talk of feelings is pointless! **Trench Shredder!**" He lunged at Volans with all his might, swift and quick as he was taught. He let out a battlecry as he slashed his arm fins, but he fell short a decisive blow when Volans only grabbed it with only one hand.

"Impossible!" Cetus then saw Volans bring his right arm back, and his elbow shined a bright light than before. His Trench Shredder slashed across, making Cetus scream as his long arm fin was sliced right off. In his scream, he was delivered a gruesome kick in the abdomen, and cried out as he hit the floor again, hard.

Cetus looked up from his pain, looking like he was seeing a ghost. Ignoring the pain in his arm, he saw the power surging around Volans. _'No way. Did…did his power suddenly increase when he released his emotions?'_

Volans still had small tears coming out and he growled as his power surged the more he thought of the crew. "We'll all make it to the top! Alive!"

"Tch, that's quite the statement, but that won't save you from me." Cetus said, recovering from his shock. "We know the exact same spells. So what if you got a little touchy and powered up? I'll just blast it away with Tsunami Implosion." He brought his hands and claws together, and a shining sphere of pressurized water began to shake the ground again with great magnitude. "It's over, old man!"

Volans growled some more and felt the light blue energy flowing and waving all around him exert more force. He let out a primal scream as light blue encased his body. Cetus watched as a pillar of light was summoned, and the force made him shoot back in the water. The pillar of light faded, revealing the blue markings on his body glowing a dark blue color as thick, plate-like, dark blue scales covered his forearms, legs, upper tail, and around his eyes and neck. His wings went from being feathered, to being pure scales.

The disciple's eye widened in shock. "What? How did you hide this from me?!"

"The better question is, why was I hiding my emotions, when they are what give me true power." Volans said. "And I'll fix what I've done wrong!"

Cetus let out a roar as he conjured energy for Tsunami Implosion again. "Emotions won't save you from this!" With the energy gathered, he threw the immense sphere of extremely dense water. "**Tsunami Implosion!**"

The sphere zoomed in like a missile at Volans. He was unmoved by the attack, and swiped his arm across. His dark blue scales swatting the attack away, exploding with immense force. Shockwaves roared, but as debris flew through the water, Volans wasn't even fazed.

"No way. This isn't right." Cetus looked outraged. "I'm supposed to win! Me! I'll show you I have more power!" He rushed on ahead, his remaining fin glowing and spreading out. As he swam ahead, he added a spin with his attack, making him a spiraling torpedo with a light blade jutting out.

Volans swam ahead as well, fists clenched and had an arm back as the huge scales over his pointed elbow jutted out, making it look like four glowing dark blue blades that lengthened. As he swam, the actual water behind sliced in half, open air taking in the gaps.

Volans and Cetus let out primal battlecries the other closed in.

"**Primal Torpedo!**" Cetus raced faster than before.

Volans closed his eyes, getting an image of the crew, and Pavo. His eyes then opened, and the markings on his body glowed brighter.

"**Deep World - Sakratua Pala!**"

A bright glint flashed and all seemed bright. A long time passed before it all faded, but as it did, Volans and Cetus were seen pass the other. Volans had shadows over his eyes as the immense energy around him continued to wave about. Behind him, Cetus had a gaping mouth, and a giant gash over his chest, penetrating all of his scales and his other arm fin sliced off.

Cetus gently floated down onto his back. "Impossible…the student…always surpasses…the master…" With those words, his injuries made him fall onto the floor, his dull yellow pupils devoid of any consciousness, let alone life.

The energy and scales on Volans slowly faded away, and the Spirit kept his stance, not bothering to look back at the fool Cetus was. The water in the entire room began to sink, and soon enough the water plunged back into the holes, leaving the floor wet.

Volans eyes were seen full of repent and resolute. "You may have been my disciple…but you will never be nor understand family."

* * *

Harsh barking filled the air as howling did as well. All around were shattered remnants of boulders and rocks. Canes was standing far away as they watched the scene continue on.

Lupus and Sirius were sinking their fangs into the other's neck, though mane and armor covered the other. They thrashed violently and kicked rubble away as they attempted to overpower one another. Lupus was losing ground and Sirius turn his body so as to drag Lupus along and shoved him back into a boulder still in one piece.

"**Dark Sonic Howl!**" Sirius shot a blood red soundwave traveling through the air, reaching out after Lupus. The wolf saw the attack echoing after him, and hurriedly used his wits to pick up the boulder behind him and threw it at the soundwave. The boulder took the hit, scattering into small fragments.

"Smart." Sirius admitted.

Lupus ran ahead on all fours and pounced, claws stretched out to grip into Sirius. Sirius sidestepped and watched Lupus fall forward, giving him the chance to drive an armored knee strike into the wolf. Lupus tumbled away to a skidding halt, shaking his head.

"Bastard." Lupus growled.

Sirius lunged forward, ready to snap his jaws at him once more. Lupus stood up so as to dodge, and he gave a kick with midnight blue energy, sending a midnight blue shockwave near point-blank range. The soundwave boomed upon impact, and Sirius howled as he zoomed back. He recovered quickly and grabbed the ground, stopping his sailing back. He wagged his tail and pounced again.

Lupus lunged at him as well. "**Sonic Claw!**" He slashed, sending a shockwave at Sirius, only for it to miss when the Alpha jumped up to evade. "Uh oh!" Lupus was then met with a kick of Dark Sonic Magic to the face, sending him skidding backwards and barely maintain ground before he was met with yet another kick, the blood red shockwave from the attack sending him skyward.

Lupus crashed down into some rubble with a harsh thud, sending dust flying. It soon settled, and his eyes opened up, only for him to get held by the neck and pinned to the rubble. "You were a fool, Lupus." Sirius spited to him. His teeth showed raging hostility. "If you really think that you can take control, you have to be willing to risk everything. That's what Lysandre did."

"What?" Lupus choked out.

"Perhaps you didn't know." The Alpha snickered lowly in a chuckle. He leaned in closer, his growling turning into a sinister loud whisper. "Lysandre was so mad that you guys got away, he killed every single thing in the Keeper of Hell. Hydra, the guards, and all. He even destroyed the entire prison while he was releasing quite the hysteria."

His hold tightened, making it harder or Lupus to breathe. "The only reason we were spared, was because that fox, Vul, used is sly tactics, and convinced that bloodthirsty gut-shredder that we can dispose of you guys so that Nic Pularis will be left for him to strike down."

Lupus snarled and snapped his jaws at Sirius, but he still found himself pinned by the armored dog. His snarling only seemed to make him chuckle. "Yeah, that's right. Keep biting at thin air, that'll show me." He brought a claw back, ready to strike down Lupus. It became enveloped in Dark Sonic Magic, and his glare sharpened.

"Now it's time for you to suffer the same fate at that pathetic waste of life!"

Lupus's solid yellow eyes widened when Sirius told the ultimate insult. Time seemed to have slowed down as Lupus still could've sworn that the armored dog just spoke ill-will of the dead. And that happened to be Pavo. His face, and his spinning; images of Pavo and the crew came to him, and remembering his final moments, Lupus was all choked up, and finally snapped.

"Goodbye-!" Sirius stopped in midsentence when a vicious knee strike crashed itself into his jaw, sending him straight up. He gawked in pain, but that didn't stop Lupus from spinning around and round-housing a kick to his face, smashing Sirius into the wall.

Lupus landed and growled up at Sirius. "Pal…you have just made me mad."

Sirius dislodged himself and sprung down after Lupus, readying a Dark Sonic Claw. He rushed at great speeds, but failed when Lupus swatted it away like it was nothing, sending the shockwave elsewhere. While his opponent was still in shock, the wolf opened his mouth.

"**Sonic Howl!**" He emitted another close-range soundwave of midnight blue, the attack bellowed and Sirius was seen tumbling away until he smashed into some fragments of boulder.

The Alpha shook his head and got to his feet. He looked back, only to find Lupus's fur prickling with midnight blue static, as if the molecules inside him were moving so fast actual electricity could be seen pulsing through his limbs.

"What? How did he…?" Sirius grew weary. "This Magic Power increase…"

Lupus took a step forward, which gave off a deafening boom like an explosion. "Alright you lousy mutt, now you're gonna pay for what you did." Lupus got images of his friends and crew. "That peacock you just insulted, he was a close friend of ours, a brother. And you and your boss killed him in ice, cold blood." His Magic Power was beginning to encase his limbs in his Magic through unconsciousness. "Lay even one claw on my crew, you're so dead!"

Sirius got over his shock and looked peeved. "Please, I can take you down right here and now! Come on!" He jumped into the air high above and gave a kick, sending a shockwave at Lupus. To Sirius's shock, Lupus disappeared. _'What? But he didn't even make a sound!'_

Lupus suddenly appeared in front, and his Sonic-encased claws slashed so fast that the bone-breaking sound didn't follow until after Sirius was shot down, smashing into the flooring. The dust settled quickly, and he saw Lupus disappearing and reappearing all around, faster than what his sensitive hearing could trace. _'It can be, can it? Did his Sonic Magic get new and true power from the resolve of protecting his little crew?'_

Lupus began running on the walls on all fours, his limbs still coated in midnight blue, glowing Magic. He was faster than the speed of sound – he was sonic speed fast. "My true power, comes from the hearts that I care for, and those in turn! I'll race faster than anyone to reach them in time!"

Sirius have having nothing of this and got a lock on him. He opened his mouth and fired a howl that traveled across the wall and following Lupus, but Lupus was too fast to even get touched. The wolf leaped off the wall to evade and lunged after Sirius. He moved so fast through the thin air he wasn't even there.

"**Sonic Claw!**"

He slashed in a fast blur, and Sirius didn't even have the time to block. His eyes and ears only heard air, which left his armored body to take a serious toll as he skidded back. He got to a knee, panting as he tried catching his breath.

"How is he moving faster than the speed of sound?" He looked up, and saw Lupus opening up his mouth wide. "You pathetic traitor!"

"**Sonic Howl!**"

"**Dark Sonic Howl!**"

Both soundwaves zoomed after the other, but Lupus's Sonic Howl was much different from before. The soundwaves were thicker, and it looked more like a high-speed beam of soundwaves that traveled faster than sound. Both attacks met in the middle, and an immense shockwave sent violent winds, knocking Sirius away while Lupus was unmoved.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Sirius shouted out, his canines showing. "You can't just get new power based on your friendship and bonds, it's inconceivable!"

Lupus howled up towards the ceiling. The entire floor shook as midnight blue energy swirled like a tower all around Lupus. The Magic Power and frequency was so high that a normal person could go temporarily deaf. The tower of spiraling midnight blue energy raged as Lupus glare at an astonished Sirius.

"You would think, but throughout this entire journey, I've learned many things." He said through the tower of Sonic Magic. "My comrades – my pack – has each other's backs, and if you think I'll let a cold-blooded dog like you rule the pack with iron claws…you're dead wrong!"

The tower's entire energy began to swirl and converged into Lupus's right claw. To Sirius's shock, the entire arm's energy manifested into an ethereal wolf with glowing light blue eyes and mouth.

Sirius clenched his fists in anger and frustration, and readied for a Dark Sonic Claw, but to his great horror and confusion, Lupus disappeared, and in less than half a second's time, Lupus lunged, with the wolf racing right by his side, encasing his clenched fist and arm. _'What?...It's like, time itself can't stop him! I can't be that quick!'_

Lupus let out a devastating howl as he raced up as Sirius couldn't even move a few inches from his original position. He brought his fist forward, and the wolf's huge mouth opened up. The attack was so fast it was beyond Racer's speed even, breaking all points of sound.

"**Great Wolf – Sound Barrier Fang Crush!**"

He punched forward, and the ethereal wolf bit into Sirius. Everything was in a hue of white as it sounded like a dynamite explosion bellowed, shaking and shattering the ground to an immense magnitude. All that blasted about was an eruption and white.

Outside the tower, midnight blue ripple stretched out from high above, and the entire level ruptured. Sirius howled in agony and violent pain as he shot straight through the wall and fell into the earth outside the tower at a speed faster than sound. He was like a sonic speed meteor and the land ruptured outside.

The dust settled, and Lupus was standing in a huge crater that took up a large diameter. He looked down and out the broken wall, looking down to see Sirius far below in a carter, his armor destroyed. With the Alpha not moving, barely looking alive for that fact, Lupus had won.

He looked back at Canes, and the dogs all looked in awe as Lupus stood tall. The wolf howled up loudly, and Canes howled up as well, acknowledging Lupus as their Alpha once more.

After the howl of victory, Lupus grinned. "Feels good to be back in the saddle." He looked back up at the ceiling, knowing the others were still climbing. "Hang on guys, we're coming."

* * *

"**Dusk Shower!**" Corvus was overhead and flapped his wings, raining down black feathers onto Aquila. The bird's attack rained down, yet Aquila only stood still as every feather passed him. "What?"

"Such poor aim." He put an arm around and the end feathers sharpened and glowed. "**Brave Snipe.**" He swiped his arm, and the feathers went up and stabbed Corvus was they passed him. The crow screamed in pain as he lost momentum, leaving himself open to get a knee strike to the jaw. The impact made him gawk as he fell to the round with a thud.

He panted as his breath didn't seem to be catching up to him. The strong light above also made it all the more unbearable, and he felt nothing but pain bloom as he was caught blind.

Aquila maintained his position above Corvus, seeing his battered form. "How feeble. Like a crow." He swiped his arm downwards, shooting down more sharp feathers hat glowed light brown. They all rained down and Corvus could barely.

"GAH!" He saw swift images of feathers and his teeth clamped mouth as he braced for the impact, but to his relief, the feathers all pierced the ground, barely inches from the head and limbs, but pinned him down.

"Huh? You missed!" He countered. But Aquila's facial expression was unmoved, instead, Aquila snapped his fingers.

"**Wing Judgement.**"

The glowing feathers exploded, and Corvus screamed as he felt pain through all of his body as he was caught in the attack. He was sent flying in the air and his whole world was a haze and spinning. He barely flapped and pulled himself together, but that only got him another barrage of feathers that attacked, this time pinning him to the wall.

Aquila snapped his fingers yet again. "**Wing Judgement.**"

Once again, Corvus was caught in an explosion, screaming and jerking his body as the pain only escalated. Parts of his arms, legs, and head had blood, including his witch's hat, which still stayed on. He fell to the floor with a thud, cringing and unable to move.

Aquila continued to look down upon Corvus, seeing as how he was unable to move. "I pity such a soul as yours. To have such a feeble dream of flying higher than an eagle, when in reality you belong scavenging and left on the ground."

Corvus couldn't move, despite seeing how he had to keep fighting. _'He's too strong. He's got more skill than me.'_

Aquila raised an arm, and a bright light began to illuminate, and said light was beginning to burn all around his body, almost like brown flames taking up the gaps and outlines of him. "This ends now! **Destruction Fall!**" He called out like an eagle and the brown flames around him thickened. He charged in full force and sailed into Corvus.

The crow's body twitched as he could still move, but barely. _'Is this it? My body can't move well.'_

The distance got slim, and Aquila looked like he was in a diagonal dive. "Perish! Even that peacock wouldn't compare to me!"

Corvus's eyes widened as he heard what Aquila called out. That same sentence fell on his ears about twenty different times until he felt a pulse run through him. Images of the crew went through his head, and individually saw the smiles on their faces. The last face seen…was Pavo. His huge smile and teeth while posing. Giving up now would be a major insult to him, and the efforts he put in getting the crew to the tower.

Corvus felt time slow down drastically, and he stood up with shadows over his eyes, concealing hidden feelings. He looked down as Aquila closed in.

As the eagle let out a battlecry, he was met with one hand shoving against his forehead, stopping his advance and brown flames surged throughout the area, raging briefly and diminishing into nothing. To Aquila's horror and astonishment, he found his forehead touched and held back as Corvus intercepted with just his hand to the forehead, though his hand was sizzling, but it only made him shudder.

"Impossible." Aquila muttered. He was pushed back when Corvus swatted at him, sending black feathers pounding him. Aquila skidded to a stop and looked back, seeing Corvus with his hand still sizzling and his eyes covered by shadows.

"You've got the audacity." He growled lowly. "My burned hand is nothing compared to the pain I've felt when Pavo died. He went out in style, just like he wanted. He wasn't someone you couldn't pick fun of." His fists clenched tighter and his body shuddered, and his gaze followed up to Aquila. He was mad. "He was like family to us, a brother. And you took pleasure in watching him die." He pointed an accusing finger at him. "Let me tell you this! That peacock was far better than what you could ever be!"

Aquila's eyes widened at the insult, and he glared with deep offense, but his glare wasn't startling Corvus like it did before. "You're gonna pay for your disrespect, fool!" He flapped his wings, sending light brown wings with light trailing behind.

Corvus brought his wings back. "Grrr…**Night Storm!**" He flapped his wings forward once, sending a tornado of dark winds ahead, but it was aimed low, bouncing up to make an updraft and redirected the attack upwards.

Aquila, frustrated, swatted his arm in an arc, dispelling the winds, but to his shock, the wall of black winds hid nothing. "What-?!"

"**Night Storm!**"

Right at his feet, Corvus was seen on his back. He smirked as he blew up at an angle, tactfully hurling Aquila into the air, spiraling with the Night Storm. The eagle barley straightened out, and grunted when the attack ended.

Corvus ascended upwards and met his height. Both birds glared the other down, both were clearly not backing down, and Corvus let out a battlecry as he flew on in. Aquila did the same attack again, and the feathers all closed in. Corvus kept on flying in, getting faster and charged in head first. The feathers all missed their mark as Aquila was rammed by Corvus.

The eagle tumbled back in the air and recovered quickly, and he saw Corvus clenching his own head. "Ow! Why did I do that?! Nobody told me headbutts hurt!"

"You moron! Why do you continue to fight?! I clearly surpass you! I am an eagle!" He screamed out in vicious retort.

"I hear ya, but from what I know, you're nothing but a chicken!" He looked up at the blinding light that was the ceiling. "I'll make you see that this phony light just hides your fear!" He twisted his body and began spinning. Black winds swirled all around him.

"Improvising? You are foolish!" But Aquila's warning went unanswered as Corvus shot up to the ceiling at ful spped, and as he went on, the black winds made a black tornado that followed him. The actual black winds enveloping him shaped into a large bird.

"**Soaring Midnight!**" He smashed into the ceiling, fists first that completely cracked the ceiling, and thus made the bright lights shatter. Darkness filled the entire level and black winds bounced off the ceiling, making Aquila grunt as he lost some altitude.

With everything dark, it was hard for Aquila's eyes to tell where his enemy was at. "Where are you?!" He heard some movement behind, and turned to find nothing. He was then struck by talons behind, and he turned again to find nothing there.

"Using the darkness to your advantage? How low."

"Not low, just smart! HRAH!" Corvus's talon went down, but Aquila heard it in time to stop it with his hands. As he held on, he noticed that Corvus's strength was much greater than before, and the resolve was seen even through the darkness.

"The biggest chicken here is you!" Aquila shouted. "My power shall exceed yours!" He let go and readied to flap, meaning another attack would come Corvus's way. The crow looked uneasy as the eagle let out a battlecry.

"Begone-!"

"HHRRAAHHH!" Corvus punched with every bit of force he had. The impact was so strong a ripple was seen, and Aquila crashed into the wall in a crater.

Aquila grunted in pain, and yet he was left in amazement. "But…" He tried dislodging himself. "Is he really that strong?!"

Shadows were over Corvus's eyes, and when they vanished, they showed his eyes tearing up and his mouth gawking. _'OOoooooowww! I thought my bones were gonna snap!'_

Aquila dislodged completely and looked with distaste. "You're nothing but a silly crow!" He let out a primal battlecry as a ball of light was made, and it traveled from his arm down and outlining and filling the gaps with brown flames. "It's over for you!"

Black winds went around Corvus, encasing him as before. He also let out a battlecry and the swirling black winds turned into a bird. Both raced after the other with great battlecries.

"**Destruction Fall!**"

"**Soaring Midnight!**"

The two attacks met in the middle, both players fist-to-fist as a wall of brown and black took up the room. Brown flames and black winds were n opposite ends, and Corvus and Aquila were right in the middle. The ground shook heavily as the room was starting to become a turbulence of fire and wind combining.

Corvus was feeling his momentum slip, and grunted as pain was catching up onto him. "Tch!" Aquila's smirk only made him feel worse, but Corvus still held off as best as he could, with the flames beginning to overtake the winds.

Corvus was still not giving up. With a battlecry, greater than before, he took in the voices off all his friends.

'_Corvus!'_ He imagined the crew cheering him on, and even saw Pavo's image, looking serious and full of hope. His eyes widened, and with not wanting to fail, he screamed even louder, and his body exerted a huge mass of black feathers through the wind. Black was all behind Corvus as he let loose as much power as he possibly could.

'_What?! Is his power enhancing from his friends? And are those…?'_ Aquila was seeing Corvus with shadows over his eyes as black feathers and winds surged madly all around, so much and so fast that the feathers seemingly became black fire. _'No…no! Eagles are mightier!'_

Corvus screamed as he let loose newfound power, and to meet the expectations of his fallen friend, he gave it everything he had. Soon, the black feathers that were in black flames and black winds began to extinguish Aquila's attack, and the entire room was a swirling typhoon of black fire, feathers, and winds.

Aquila was suspended in midair as Corvus was still surrounded by the enormous mass of everything he exerted, and zoomed up and high above, Aquila saw a _giant_ crow exerting immense power while lit ablaze in black fire.

"Nooo!" Aquila screamed as he saw the huge crow cry out and descend, unleashing massive black winds with every step. Corvus sailed down, being the being's head.

"**Nevermore – Amaterasu Sky!**"

The entire being came down like a Dragon Rush, crashing into Aquila and making an explosion of black all around. Everything was cracking and shaking from the raging black winds, feathers, and fire. The floor continued to shake and rattle as the Amaterasu and everything Corvus exerted faded away, showing Corvus standing tall and very much tired.

He looked expectantly, seeing a massive crater with Aquila, still cut up and bruised to a near-death pulp, with some parts of him still lit on black fire, but dwindled. With Aquila devoid of pupils, that signaled Corvus's victory, and the crow narrowed his eyes.

"I told you, I'm more than just a crow." He turned away, looking proud. "I'm a crew member of those who call themselves family, and we never disappoint the other."

He turned forward, and despite being hurt some, he could still walk. He grinned. "Looks like crows can fly higher than eagles! My feathers aren't as smudged as yours!" He thus happily trudged onwards towards the stairs, leaving the crater filled with the bird who has fallen from grace, whose judgment was by the crow.

* * *

**Big battles this chapter, and with Sophie, Cana, and Nic &amp; Greninja still left, expect three more big fights next chapter! You all liked how scores were settled this chapter? How new powers and attacks came around?**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the action and battles!**

* * *

**Next Time: To the Top**


	67. To the Top

Chapter 67 – To the Top

**Insane Dominator here, and trying to pick up the pacing with my stories! I'm doing my best as always guys, so here's another chapter of the ever-suspenseful Celestial Siege Arc!**

**Fami: I'm happy to know that you are always loving the story, and I'm glad you wait anxiously for every chapter, but I have other stories and fans who followed those stories. If I slow my pace down to focus on one story, the other stories won't keep up. **_**EDventures in Kalos**_** needs just as much attention as this one does, and said story is nearing its end, so things are picking up. But I'll try the best that I can.**

**Hope this one gets long reviews! You know I love those!**

**To Recap:**

The crew mourned deeply for the loss of Pavo, but they had to move on for all of their sakes. They soon reached Andromeda Tower, and they charged on in. In no time, Cetus was pit against Volans; Sirius was challenged by Lupus for the right of the pack; Aquila was confronted by Corvus. All three crew members gave their all, and through the memory of each other and Pavo, new power was made and Cetus, Sirius, and Aquila were all defeated.

* * *

**Chapter 67 – To the Top**

"Hurry up!" Nic ushered everyone as fast as he and Greninja could speed up the staircase, where they stopped at the doorway. Cana and Sophie caught up, though the two were more than a little exhausted from the running and escalating.

"A little breather would be nice." Sophie huffed.

"Suck it up. We gotta get to the top. Now come on!" Cana made way and she stood in front of the doorway, she presented the large key and the tip touched the door. Simultaneously, the key and the door shined a rainbow light. Cana gave a serious face as she kept her hold on the key.

Moments later, the doorway opened up, and everyone ran inside. It looked like a forest almost, with withered tall trees, and a rocky ground, bringing back the memories of them running through the dead forest back in the beginning.

"Déjà vu." Sophie muttered.

"No kidding. It's like the forest we ran through from before shrunk and fit itself into here." Cana looked around, seeing the familiarity of the place. Her eyes went upwards, seeing the staircase on the other end of the floor.

Nic stepped forward. "I see the stairs!"

"We should get there as fast as we can!" Greninja said. With a nod from Nic, the two ran up and jumped, clutching onto the branches. When they planted their feet on them, they turned around, and Greninja's serious eyes were looking at the girls. "Follow us!"

Nic and Greninja leapt from branch to branch, and kept their pace so that Cana and Sophie would have no trouble in following. They were making a quick distance naturally, and as they traveled, a Magic presence was easily sensed; a malevolent one.

"Someone's here." Greninja noted.

Nic kept his focus ahead. "I know."

The two girls underneath were moving as fast as they could, but they couldn't help but feel a great sense of shriveling energy. It was moving fast, and it was practically all over the place. Cana wasn't having much luck, and her eyes widened when a force from behind tried to pierce her. The brunette pivoted and dodged the piercing shadow that fell a tree in front, forcing her to get out of the way.

"Cana!" Sophie shouted. "Wait, I remember this sly tactic!"

"Well look at what the cat dragged in." The voice belonged to the creature casually walking out from the shadows – literally. In the darkness of the tree shadows, a familiar figure had a smirk and relaxed his body on the side of a rotten tree. "I knew I smelled a sweet aroma. Surprised?"

"You're Vul, that fox guy." Cana remembered full well of that scornful remembrance, how the fox appeared from the shadows and attacked her in the prison, along with the other subordinates. Her glare hardened. "So you use Shadow Magic."

"A sly Magic for a sly fox. Put two-and-two together and it's what makes this all work out in the end." His claws swiped the tree he no longer leaned on, trailing shadows as it followed through and toppled the tree over completely.

Nic and Greninja above grew weary, and they knew this was going to get ugly. "Greninja, **Dark Pulse!**" Greninja did as told and he jumped into the air. He put his hands together and spun until he ceased, firing at a critical point. Dark Pulse raced down after Vul, but the Spirit scoffed as he slammed his arm against the ground and he merged with the shadow beneath him, disappearing completely before Dark Pulse to apply damage.

Greninja landed on the tree branch again softly, and the two remained still and waited. Nothing seemed to be happening at first, but Nic's second-nature reflexes made him lean away and dodge Vul as he came up from the trunk, his claws cloaked in darkness.

"Damn you!" Vul shouted, but got no more room as Nic grabbed him by the wrist and threw him to the ground. Vul hit the hard surface with a thud, and the fox had no room when Cana flashed some cards with her free hand.

"**Icicle!**" She threw the cards, and giant icicles crashed, but Volans dodged, though he found himself trapped around ice.

Cana turned towards everyone. "This ice isn't gonna hold him for long!" She threw the key at Sophie, whom caught it. "Hurry and get moving! Don't worry, I'll handle this!"

There wasn't any point on fighting it. Nic and Sophie looked down at the other with hidden worry, but they knew better than to protest. Nic and the remaining group looked on as Cana faced Vul, whom sprung up from the shadows beneath to attack Cana.

"Be careful! Come on Greninja!" Nic turned his back and took a slight pause. _'Cana, be safe.'_ Personally, Nic didn't wanna lose anymore lives. And he didn't wanna lose his first friend when he joined Fairy Tail. He had to have faith that she and the others would make it out alright.

With no sense of lagging, Nic paced himself through the trees, with Greninja by his side, and Sophie, holding the Andromeda Key, followed, leaving Cana all by herself to tango with the fox.

Cana flashed more of her cards. "Well it looks like it's just you and me, you sly devil." Her cards shined a bright light.

Vul scoffed at her, a dark smirk across his crazed face. "You wanna bet? I can put you in your place in no time."

"How's about proving it!" She threw her cards at Vul, which turned to flames. "**Sun's Strength!**" The cards closed in, and an explosion erupted, destroying and falling a few trees around.

Cana took a quick notice and knew that Vul was more cunning. She stepped back to avoid any possible attack from below since he always tried that, but when she did, nothing happened. She was caught confused at first. _'That's weird. Did I actually hit him?'_

"Boo."

Cana tensed up as the voice was right in her ear. She turned to her right, and Vul slammed a shadow cloaked kick right to her face, shooting her back into a tumble. Though it pained a little, she jerked back up and skidded to a stop.

"I didn't even hear that coming." She remarked, seeing Vul's tail wag. She began muttering to herself. "He's so silent and sly. He just follows me around, like a shadow."

"You done yammering?! Then get ready to be schooled!" Vul crouched and dove into the shadows beneath, merging and silently heading towards Cana.

Cana pulled out another card. "I haven't run out of smarts yet! **Thunderbolt's Fate!**" Her card hit the ground, and bolts of lightning traveled all over the ground, even electrifying the trees. Static charged everywhere, and Cana's eye caught the sound of Vul cringing at ten o' clock position.

"There you are!" She got cards while the ground was still sparking, and that led to a clear shot at a bulging shadow with explosive cards. Smoke and explosives rattled the area close to Cana, and Vul was seen flying back from the explosion, grunting as he dug his claws into the earth to avoid getting blown away.

"Now you're just asking for it! Vul slammed his claw on the ground, and Cana covered up as the shadows beneath shot solidified black shards. Cana felt her dress get torn a little, and the upward black rain made her unable to act. Each shard was like a sting.

Soon enough the attack stopped, and Can uncovered, only to get a kick cloaked in shadows that shot her away into a tree. Vul landed as he saw Cana grunt in shock and pain from Vul and his sly tactics.

"There's plenty more from where that came from."

* * *

Up ahead, Nic, Greninja, and Sophie climbed the spiral stairs, and that led them to the next section of the doors. Sophie advanced. "Ready?"

Nic turned towards her. "We might as well be. Everyone's counting on us."

Sophie turned towards the doorway. "Then off we go!" She tapped the key's end into the doorway, and she stepped back as the Andromeda Key and the door both glowed a bright light. Sophie gave an expectant look as she watched the door open from the middle, and inside, they found the place unlike the others.

"What kind of place is this…?" Sophie couldn't help but seem curious. She stepped foot into a rather dark level, with a brighter upper lighting as it got darker below, which was where her an Nic and Greninja were located. All around were huge, white blocks that stood up unevenly. All around, she and the others saw huge, rectangular white blocks and smaller blocks of white. It wasn't like a maze, but it was unorthodox to say the least.

"Who designed this place?" Sophie questioned. "It's like every level is suited for someone."

"That must be the case." Nic looked around. "Speaking of which, of the six subordinates, only two remain for us. There's no doubt in my mind we're close to one."

"I don't doubt you." Sophie walked onwards with Nic and Greninja on the flat, white blocks. "My memory remembers that there are two left; the one that has sunglasses like you but has a coat of rainbow feathers, and the giraffe. Either one will be on either floor."

"So no matter how we look at it, we're bound to fight someone." Nic said. He turned forward as his eyes cascaded up to the white, spiral staircase ahead and going around the sides. "Then we should hurry and prepare for the worst."

They all made way, but Greninja's sensory caught note of a great swell of energy erupting from seemingly nowhere. Greninja turned and shot Water Shuriken, shredding and nullifying the wave of rainbow feathers.

As the explosion settled, Sophie recognized the memorized Magic. "Rainbow feathers, then…" She turned up to a high white block, where the man with the sunglasses and rainbow feather coat over him chuckled and looked down at Sophie.

"So, it was you." Nic said, readying himself.

"Luminous, you and your friends sure left quite a name for yourselves through the Celestial Spirit World. You think that will last long, once I send you all to paradise?" The Spirit asked with crossed arms.

Nic grew curious while still stern. "Paradise?"

"That's right. I am Apus – Gate of Paradise." He jumped down, planting his feet thirty feet in front of them. "Some call me the Exotic Bird, some call me an Extraordinary Bird…" His devious smirk expanded. "But I fancy myself as the Bird of Paradise, because I put people there."

"And by Paradise, you mean Hell." Nic corrected.

"You can say that, but it makes no difference now, does it." Apus certainly looked exotic with the bling on him, but it only made him flashy. "Sorry, but your road ends here. Can't let Lysandre down, otherwise we all lose our head."

"Really? Because it seems like you already lost everything to him." Sophie countered.

"Care to prove me wrong?" Apus waved his arm, and rainbow feathers materialized and tunneled after the group. The mass of rainbow feathers closed in quickly, and Sophie stepped up.

"**Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**" A chain of memories was made, and saucers made of pure flame went shooting at the huge wave before them. Both feathers and flame cancelled the other out, and Sophie kept a stone-cold gaze on an evilly-smirking Apus.

"So blondie, you think flames can douse paradise?" Apus challenged.

Sophie spread her feet apart, and handed the Andromeda Key over to Nic. "Nic, I'll handle Apus. You and Greninja get moving; we've got to settle the score of memories and paradise now, don't we." Of course Sophie wanted to get the score settled from the Keeper of Hell, in which Apus easily overwhelmed her. She wanted to even things out, and to buy time for Nic.

Nic nodded in understanding. "Alright Sophie, just be careful now. Greninja!"

"Got it!" Greninja made ninja hand signs. "**Smokescreen!**" He exerted a large amount of smoke, and the thick cloud engulfed the whole area.

Apus frowned and grunted. "How annoying." He waved his arm and huge coat, sending a sparkling, rainbow wave that dispersed all of the smoke. However it was too late as Nic and Greninja were already gone, and Apus turned to look up, seeing the two already climbing the spiral stairs.

"Hey, your attention is on me!" Sophie put her finger to her forehead, and memories began to chain themselves around her. "**Memory-Make: Stone Lightning!**"

Above, lightning flashed, and Apus jerked backwards to dodge. He jumped with great might, his coat flailing as he evaded the lightning bolts that layered the spots they struck with stone. Apus planted his feet on a white block above, glowering doesn't at Sophie.

"You know for a Bird of Paradise, you don't look anything like one." Sophie backlashed.

"That's saying something, but alas I don't care." Apus's tone was dark as his sunglasses had Sophie's reflection. "I'm making you all see a living paradise before venturing to hell! **Shining Flock!**" With a wave of his arm, he fired a funnel of rainbow feathers, much more intense than before as it made the ground shake.

Sophie jumped and dodged the funnel, jumping onto a white block and saw the funnel leave a deep indent in another white block. Sophie looked at the block and cringed with wide eyes, seeing how powerful that one blow was.

She turned towards Apus, who just seemed amused. "So, is that the best that you have to offer me?"

She clenched her fists. She pointed at her own forehead and another chain of memories was made. "**Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**"

The ground beneath Apus shook, and he looked down to find the white block cracking. With no time or movements wasted, he jumped up again and watched as yellow stones prodded out from below, exploding in yellow and static beneath.

"Very interesting." While in midair, he reached out to her with both arms. "**Paradise Falls!**"

Sophie looked up, and she screamed in pain as she was immediately pelted by a great expanse of rainbow feathers that was like a waterfall, but of feathers. The force was so strong that it was able to crack the white block she was on.

She grunted as the attack settled down, and slowly got to her knees. She looked back at a deviously smirking Apus.

"So, let's see how long you can live without paradise for."

* * *

Nic and Greninja both finally made it to the last doorway. Once they stepped up, they would be at the highest floor of Andromeda Tower. Everyone down beneath him was fighting hard while he had the key on him. He had to make it onwards, and onwards he'll go.

Turning towards Greninja, both gave an expected nod and turned back towards the doorway. "This is it, on to the last floor."

"Let's do this." Greninja said, ready for whatever was ahead.

Nic took the Andromeda Key and inserted the tip onto the doorway. The rainbow color came and went, and the door opened up for the two. When it opened, Nic and Greninja entered in, seeing that before them was nothing but as grassy field and white walls. That was all.

They slowly proceeded in, being aware of their surroundings. "So, from what Sophie said, the giraffe Spirit is said to be here, right?" Greninja asked.

"Right, only where is he?" Nic looked around, but saw no trace of the giraffe. His and Greninja's eyes widened when they sensed something, and high above, stuck to the ceiling, was the giraffe.

Their eyes were wide as they saw that his hooves were embedded into the ceiling. The whole giraffe lunged down and landed in front of them. He stood up and looked down at Nic and Greninja, seeing the serious look in their eyes.

"So, I am left facing off against Lysandre's worst foe, Luminous." He said. "Quite the shock. I am Camelo – Gate of the Giraffe."

Nic and Greninja said nothing.

"Quite the terrifying presence you both give, but rest assure, I am not afraid. Lysandre made sure all of us six were equipped with no fear and strived to kill anyone who stood in our way."

"I wouldn't think otherwise." Nic pointed out.

Camelo chuckled coldly. "You took the words right out of my mouth. Now…" He leaned back, and planted his hands on the ground as he kicked his legs up and out at Nic and Greninja. "**Razor Leg!**" His kicks let loose air pressure current-like crescents shooting at Nic.

Nic's hands glowed and the fingers elongated to make Slash, and Greninja crossed his arms with two Water Shuriken in hand. Both swiped their arms and the crescents made a clash sound. Seconds later, the wall behind them had great and deep cuts in them.

Camelo got back to his feet. "So you think you can deflect my Sharp Magic now, right. I can sharpen any part of my body and use it as a weapon, such as my hooves, and can sharpen the pressure thrown at ya."

"I see, so matter what way we see it, every strike you make would be enough to cut steel." Nic figured.

Camelo smirked. "Something like that. Now, bring it on!"

"Greninja, let's go!" Nic and Greninja ran forward, both picking their feet off the ground in fast sprints. Their legs left and touched the ground quickly and swiftly. Their speed made Camelo falter but for a little bit, but he was able to bounce back and intercept Nic's sheathed Cut with his sharpened hooves, slightly longer so as to resemble daggers.

Greninja jumped overhead as Nic and Camelo were parrying the other's blows, and he jumped down onto Camelo. "**Bounce!**" He soared down, but Camelo's gaze turned upwards, noticing Greninja's descent.

While he intercepted Nic's Cut, he kicked one of his legs up backwards. "**Razor Leg!**" A crescent went escalating up from behind, and Greninja was forced to take action. He stopped his Bounce and barreled rolled in the air, out of the crescent's range and landed on the ground while the crescent left a mark on the veiling, nearly cutting it open.

Both Nic and Camelo parried some more, yet Nic couldn't seem to advance as Camelo's sharp strikes were on par, keeping the two from advancing onto the other.

"This is getting annoying quick." Camelo suddenly disappeared, much to Nic's surprise.

'_He's fast!'_ His attention went up, were zip lines were seen until Camelo was present right over their heads.

"**Razor Leg!**"

Camelo kicked downwards, a crescent went shooting down at Nic and Greninja. Greninja spread his feet apart and swiped his arms, firing his Water Shuriken attack. The sharp attacks both met, and Water Shuriken spliced the Razor Leg in two, right down the middle, saving himself and Nic as the attack eft gashes in the ground on their sides.

Camelo was still in midair when he stabbed his hooves into the ceiling, keeping him up as he was before. He smirked down at them, impressed.

"Not too shabby. **Shrill Cutter!**"

Instead of a single kick, he lashed his legs a multitude of times, sending smaller crescents in a familiar fashion to an Air Cutter that rained down onto them. Nic glowed and shifted into his Iron Plate Form. His hands and fingers glowed and shined a metallic light.

"**Metal Claw!**"

Nic deflected all of the sharp attacks with his hardened, metallic claws, making sharp swiped every second as to make the attack deflect to either side, shredding up the flooring and walls on his sides. After a full minute of kicking and slashing, the attacks finally stopped, and the dust cleared to show Nic huffing a little, as it took a great deal of focus to keep an eye on every single shot.

Camelo dropped to the floor. "You're quite the powerhouse, Luminous. As expected." He smirked once more. "Now let's see you and your friend stop this!" To their slight confusion they saw Camelo on his side, held up by a hoof. The two saw the giraffe swing his head around like a wrecking ball, and the winds picked up, as did his speed.

Having a bad feeling, Nic put up a shield of a shiny silver net. "**King's Shield!**"

The winds picked up as Camelo spun around faster, and then he jumped up, and stopped in midair. "**Skyscraper Slice!**" A ripple of sharp energy rippled and expanded outwards, but avoided Nic and Greninja as they hid behind King's Shield. Elsewhere, the walls all around the tower were hit.

Outside, the sharp wave continued out, and Camelo smirked. Despite not hitting his target, the entire upper half of the level they were on completely shifted, the cut marks on the wall making the roof fall out of place.

The shield lifted, and Nic and Greninja looked around with wide eyes.

"He sliced through the walls." Nic turned all around. "And shifted the rooftop."

Camelo chuckled lowly. "So tell me, are you ready for more?"

* * *

Cana felt the ground shaking and looked up. "What was that?"

Vul chuckled. "Oh my, it seems Camelo is getting a little carried away. If he's not careful, he may split apart the tower."

Cana turned her focus back to the battle ahead of her. With a battlecry, she fired her cards at Vul again, but Vul passed the cards in the blink of an eye, shadows encasing his claws. The cards exploded behind him, slicing in two in the process.

"So fast." Cana said in shock.

Vul smirked maliciously at her and closed the distance quickly. The brunette saw him close in, but she readied her attack. When Vul was but a few feet in front of her, he suddenly disappeared into the shadows once more.

"Are you kidding me?!" She shouted. She looked around. "Where'd that guy go?" She was trying to sense his Magic, but he was shifting all over the place, and it only made it that much harder for her.

"Hey, what's that?"

Cana heard his voice, and she turned to her right to ready for his appearance, but he wasn't there. To her bewilderment, she was kicked from behind, and screamed as she tumbled into a dead tree.

Vul laughed out loud as he pointed at her, seeing her fall over. "Ow man, you fell for that old trick?! What a riot!"

Cana grew impatient with what Vul had done. "You're such a stereotype. Trickery, sneakiness, and deceit; just like a fox."

Vul shrugged. "Guilty is charged, but hey, can you blame me? Just try and outfox me." He dove back into the shadows, adding fuel to Cana's agitation. The brunette looked around to get an understanding as to where Vul was at, but alas no luck was on her side.

"Man this sucks. He's like a ghost." An idea arose. "Hey, wait a minute…" She quickly and quietly pulled out some cards. "Maybe I can use that to my advantage." Holding up her card high, and another one low.

"Time to flush you out! **Sun's Strength!**" Her card in her hand flicked up, and a fireball exploded overhead with cindering intensity. The bright flames made a lot of shadows all around, cascading from behind her, and the dead trees. "**Prayer's Fountain!**" And using her second card, she created beams of water that swamped the ground, flooding over the shadows and knocking down a few trees in the process.

Not too far from Cana, a splash was heard, and Vul erupted from the flooding water. He wailed about. "Hey, I hate water!"

Cana turned and put the tip of her card into the water. "Then you're really gonna hate this! **Summoned Lightning!**"

Electricity traveled through the water, electrifying Vul and making him yelp in pain. Static bloomed through his body as the water evaporated. Mist went through the area, but simmered down as it revealed Vul and Cana, the former panting and on his knees.

Cana smirked. "I knew that would trip you up."

Vul snarled at her, his fangs bared. "How?"

"Too easy." She thus gave an explanation. "I used Sun's Strength to generate enough shadow so as to smoke you out. With that out of the way, that left to get rid of those shadows with Prayer's Fountain. Of course with no shadows and the distance away, that just left me to get a good hit in once you've resurfaced."

Vul shook in anger. "Damn you." He stood up and as his body tensed, so did a shadowy aura that thickened around his body. "You can't outfox a fox by snuffing it out of its hiding hole. That just makes it angry and vengeful."

Cana got a little spooked by the sudden Magic power increase. "This power…"

"For the record, we're only doing our job." The voice sounded like Vul, and when Cana turned around, she saw another Vul, and it looked at her with a smirk.

"What?!" She turned back and forth at the two. "You're kidding, right?"

"Nope." Cana's attention went to behind, seeing yet another Vul leaning against a tree. "You like our little trick?"

"No illusions, thought the thought is tempting regardless." The second Vul stated.

They all began to close in on her.

The first Vul pressed his foot against the ground, catching Cana's attention. "You like my Shadow Clone technique? It's great for an ambush." He bared his claws. "Anything to say before you're dead meat?"

Cana reached for her cards, but a shadow lunged out from Vul swiping his claws, and the card flung out of her hand. Cana quickly found herself cornered.

"This is very bad."

The fangs and claws on the clones and real Vul were cloaked and had spheres of dark shadows in front. "**Exodus Bomber!**"

The shadows in front of the claws and mouth shot at Cana, like several shadow energy bombs that shot in rapid fire. Cana screamed as she was swallowed on an explosion, was seen flying up from the attack. A clone looked up and gave Cana no chance as he extended his arm up and shot rapid fire shadow bombs. Cana found herself pounded left and right by the attack.

The smoke in the air lifted, and Cana fell to the ground with a thud. Her dress was all torn to shreds, but still was good enough to stay on her. She winced as her body felt so much pain. It was a struggle that she couldn't seem to overcome.

Vul's Shadow Clones remained put, and the original slowly crept forward, his fangs baring as Cana finally got to her knees. "Now, you see that a fox can't be outdone? I'm as sly as they come."

As he crept forward, Cana wobbled to her feet, but managed. Then Vul went too far.

"Time for you to wind up dead like your friend. Good riddance to that freak."

Cana's eyes widened as Vul had reminded her of the painful memory that made her sad. The memory of her dear friend Pavo dying and left her and the crew crying. The remembrance of him and his posing was like a shot to the heart, which made her recall how she couldn't save anyone on Tenrou Island against Bluenote.

Cana hurriedly put her right arm forward, and used it as a shield. Vul sank his fangs into the forearm, making Cana wince in pain.

'_Pavo…everyone…' _Cana shut her eyes as the pain was increasing. _'I can't…let them down…'_

Cana felt the pain slowly stop, and she figured she was dead, but when she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a yellow and white space. Her mind was baffled as she failed to comprehend the situation.

"Wait, wasn't I attacked just a second ago? Where am I?" The brunette looked around, and found endless space all around and going on to no end. "Is this…a dream?"

"No silly, this is your subconscious." The unfamiliar voice came from behind her. The brunette turned around to see a blonde girl standing just a few feet away from her. To say Cana was surprised would be an understatement. To know someone you never knew was in your mind. "Relax, I mean no harm." Cana seemed to have relaxed, but it didn't seem to ease her curiosity. The girl smiled. "My, such a hard worker you are."

"Who are you?" Cana asked, her patience wearing thin.

"Who? Me?" The girl asked. "I'm Mavis Vermilion. Fairy Tail's first master."

Cana's eyes widened. "What? Mavis…Vermilion?" The remembrance of that name caught her nearly falling over. "No way! What is this? A ghost?!"

Mavis chuckled. "Something like that."

"Well what are you doing here?"

Mavis was quite at first, but spoke up. "That's a good question. Why are you near the brink of giving up?" Cana jerked back at how Mavis knew such a claim. "Fairy Tail members never give up, and I sense a great deal of resolve. Even now, you can feel it too, the great deal of power coursing through you, calling to avenge your fallen friend, right?" Mavis saw Cana swallow, and that was all she needed. "This strong feeling of revelation and resolve, it reminds you of when I gave you Fairy Glitter back on Tenrou Island?"

Cana remembered when she was back on Tenrou Island, when it was a rainy night and she found Mavis's grave on her own, abandoning Lucy to become S-Class. She bitterly looked down, and the remembrance of her plea to save her friends and being given Fairy Glitter was of no avail against Bluenote.

Her mind then flashed to her friend Pavo. The memory of him was enough to make her shed a few tears. She didn't have the power to save him, as he sacrificed himself. He gave up everything so that the others could save the world. His resolve was clear, and now that resolve was entrusted to Cana.

Cana felt her fists clench at how she shouldn't let her dead peacock-dressed friend down. If she was to save the Celestial World, she needed to show no reluctance.

"Cana." She looked at Mavis, whom stepped forward with a circle of light in her palms. "You have an incredible amount of concentration and Magic Power. I know your friend would be proud to know you're still carrying his resolve."

The light floated to Cana's right arm, embedding into her forearm. Everything was then beginning to fade.

"Remember the resolve, and use this power from now on, to protect the thoughts of those closest to you."

Cana opened her eyes again, and she snapped back to reality, and her arm was glowing a golden light. The light shined brightly, and Vul's eyes squinted. He let go and recoiled back, covering up.

"Gah! What the heck is that?!" Looking back, he saw that the pure light was making the Shadow Clones behind him vanish completely. "My Shadow Clones!" He looked back, and saw Cana standing up with a fierce glare aimed at him.

Her right arm was giving off a red glowing insignia. Her confidence was high, and she looked more than ready. _'Thank you, Mavis, for letting me harness this power.'_ The brunette held up her forearm with a smirk. "Alright, pal! You're about to pay for insulting my late friend!"

Vul felt an incredible power surging before him. Cana's hair was going crazy. "What's going on?!"

Cana was enveloped in golden energy that beamed upwards as she held her forearm up as well. "Now! Gather, O' river of light guided by fairies!"

The tattoo gave off a brighter gold glow than before, and Vul watched the energy race up to the ceiling. The ceiling miraculously turned into space, and a mystical ring of golden light descended down fast onto Vul. He had no chance of escaping as the pure attack was closing in as Cana aimed her arm at him.

"Shine! In order to perish the fangs of evil!" The ring crashed down onto Vul, and the Spirit screamed as she felt his cold heart being vanished by the light. "**Fairy Glitter!**"

Cana let out a scream as the ring ruptured the whole ground. She was giving off a great swell of power, and the more she focused, the more she pictured Pavo with his huge, happy grin.

"I WON'T LET HIM DOWN! FOR PAVO!" She screamed, strengthening her resolve and intensifying her focus.

Vul screamed violently as the golden light blinded him, and the entire floor was ruptured by a golden explosion that rippled out of the walls and outside. The entire tower shook as Cana let loose all of her resolve and devotion to her late friend.

As she huffed, her arm sizzling gold, she looked and saw the entire area before her was nothing but crumbled remained. All of the trees on the floor were destroyed, and lying the center was a petrified and paled Vul, barely alive and unable to use any Magic for the rest of eternity.

The brunette smirked as she fell to her knees. "How's that for outfoxing you?"

* * *

Sophie jumped and dodged another funnel of rainbow feathers that cracked yet another white block. She landed in a skid and looked back at Apus, but to her shock he was not present. Her eyes widened when she caught a glimpse of a rainbow mass zooming behind her. The rainbow mass turned into a smirking Apus, who appeared and turned back into a mass of rainbow feathers that zoomed off as Sophie turned around.

Sophie was at a loss for words. She couldn't seem to track him with his high level of speed. The next thing she saw, a spiral of rainbow feathers surrounded her. Atop of the spiral, the rainbow mass turned into Apus once more.

"Surprise! **Paradise Falls!**"

Sophie looked up, and was able to be quick on her feet to dodge a massive downpour of rainbow feathers that would've otherwise made her feel immense back sores.

With some space at last, she saw Apus high above. "There you are!"

"Just because you think you can see me, doesn't mean you can come close to hurting me, blondie." Apus was floating above, and had both arms extended out to Sophie. "How's about handling this. **Shining Flock!**"

The attack went spinning after Sophie, but as it traveled towards her, she merely stood still. "I got it all memorized from before. Now…" Her eyes widened. "Forget!"

The raging funnel stopped, and Apus was caught off guard by the sudden dispel. "What?!"

"**Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**" She made mirrors of ice that were aimed at Apus, and she let loose dark green beams that exploded upon impact with Apus. The explosion engulfed the sky, and Apus scooted back from the explosion, looking annoyed at Sophie.

"Now you're really pushing my buttons." He scowled.

"The feeling is mutual." Sophie countered, straightening up some. "You really think you're so full of yourself. Do you really think that you're extraordinary? That such a paradise befalls people like you?"

Apus kept his wickedly toothed smirk. "Well if you wanna get technical, we're Spirits. But you have a point. I crave to see people go to paradise; a nice place for them to cry and shrivel. A place where wrecked souls squander for violence and failed retribution." He chuckled at the prospect. "Now isn't that such a paradise?"

Sophie kept a cold stare. "Paradise for you."

"Oh?" Apus seemed amused.

"You wanna see people rot in hell, yet you say that's paradise. Paradise is for all who wanna be happy, not those who seek paradise for their own personal gain!" Sophie argued. "You're nothing extraordinary! Just back those words up!"

Underneath his sunglasses, Apus's eyes narrowed. "Making fun of my status? Such a heart-breaker. Fine, I'll show you what no mercy stands for." He turned his body and shot down towards Sophie with a fist reeled back. He punched, but Sophie barely dodged, yet that didn't save her from the shockwaves emitted as the strong winds made her hair go nuts and she tumbled to a knee.

Apus lunged at her at high speed, and Sophie was met with Apus passing her, swamping her with rainbow feathers that followed Apus like Erza's Blumenblatt.

Apus smirked. "**Tailwind Dance!**" He finally said, calling his attack name as Sophie fell to the ground once more. He chuckled as he turned around towards her. Seeing her sprawled on her back was something he found amusing still. "Blondie, are you really that persistent? You're just pestering me."

Sophie swayed her body as she stumbled up to her feet, feeling more than a little exhausted. She coughed as she hunched over, and groaned as her limbs and body in general was sore and scratched up. Still, she found no reason to back down as turned around towards Apus.

"I'm not done." She groaned. "I will never be done, not until Lysandre and you are finished." She took a breather as she panted some more. "You guys caused so much suffering. It's time someone stood up to you all."

"You talk big." Apus raised both of his arms up. "Let's see you back those words up as before." He swiped his arms in opposite arcs. "**Shining Flock – Flood!**" This time, two funnels, larger than before, went spiraling off after Sophie, attempting to hit her from both sides.

Sophie pointed a finger to her forehead. "Memorized. Now…" She extended her arm out. "**Memory-Make: Jagged Barrier!**" Sophie spread her arms out, and two stone walls rose up and protruded thick ice. The two walls blocked the funnels, but as the funnels kept pushing, the walls cracked. Soon enough the attacked ceased, which was the same time the walls cracked and gave in.

When it all settled, the residue feathers fluttered down and a mass of feathers passed Sophie, making her move out of the way. She saw the stream of feathers and saw how Apus was basically turning himself into an intangible mass that flew circles around her. The rainbow mass dove at Sophie, but she dodged again and the mass arched up.

"Alright, now I got you." She took aim and a chain of memories went around her. A multitude of translucent black swords with purple wavy blades emerged and began to spin rapidly, glowing bright purple.

"**Memory-Make: Spectral Saber Flash!**"

The many swords converged their tips to a single point, and the swords went shooting at the exact same time, streaming black and bright purple, looking similar to Giga Impact. The fast moving attack shot through the air at incredible speeds, landing its mark on the mass of rainbow feathers. A bright purple flash erupted, shaking the air.

Sophie looked on as the through the flash, the swords diverged and vanished. Apus was seen falling head first and smashed into a white block, bouncing off and hitting another, and then a few more before thudding on his back, making a crater on the white floor.

His body shuddered at the pain. "But…how?"

Sophie looked down from the high-elevated block. "That Memory-Make in particular can hit tangible and intangible matter. You may become feathers, but that attack shut you down."

Her explanation seemed to have fallen on deaf ears, or seemed like it. Apus chuckled low, and it grew, catching Sophie in surprise. The chuckle grew into an insidious laughter, and she watched as Apus arose to his feet, his body giving a low rainbow aura.

"Quite the crafty woman you are. Your Memory-Make is nothing short of a surprise every step of the way." His face darkened considerably. "But you know…Paradise doesn't fall on those who never satisfies others. I'll have to give you a demo of what I mean by that." In a bright rainbow flash, he vanishes, yet no trace of him showed until he reappeared in a swift flash in front of Sophie. His smirk turned more devilish and he saw the startled look on Sophie's face. "Like right now!"

He swatted his arm up, and Sophie found herself spinning in a twister of rainbow feathers, making the Memory-Make Mage scream as she was left adrift in the open air and open as Apus extended out and blasted her with a torrent of rainbow feathers. The girl could only yell in pain as she was blasted to the wall, continuously assaulted by a relentless torrent of feathers.

'_I can't move! He's pinning me down!'_ Her frustration wasn't helping as she felt her body falling onto a white block, thudding and making her cough.

Apus had both arms out, and his smirk only made his demeanor stable as his magic bloomed about the entire level. The entire room was a huge whirlwind of rainbow feathers; a tempest of raging magic was made Sophie unable to find her feet as she was just blown back down.

"What sad excuse of a human you are." Apus laughed. "Now to put you out of your misery!" He brought his arms forward, and energy began to swell, making a huge bow made of rainbow.

As Sophie struggled to her feet, she felt the sheer level of Magic Apus was putting into the attack. _'That power, he really is gonna…'_

"So much for paradise, for you that is! Extraordinary Spirits and humans alike deserve paradise! Your little friend that died for you…he was never as extraordinary as me!"

Sophie felt a bomb go off in the pit of her gut. Something in her completely snapped. She didn't know what was happening, it was as if every bit of memory of the peacock-dresser was resurfacing in a flood. Her find was just giving a multitude of images, good and bad, of Pavo.

Her eyes just didn't seem to brighten up as dark shadows overshadowed them. As she began to remember every single thing about Pavo, from start to finish, her lips couldn't help but quiver. Her Memory-Make made her remember the joyful first time they met, and how they met up once more during Lucy's peculiar quest for the Infinity Clock, then came the revelation of him being a Spirit, and soon coming to the thrilling adventure that ended with Pavo's sacrifice back at the Keeper of Hell.

Unconsciously, Sophie stood up with no problem, and her body was shuddering at the tumultuous memories. "You're gonna regret that."

While readying, Apus frowned as he saw her eyes overshadowed and her body shuddering. A power shift loomed in the atmosphere. He was getting something off, and when Sophie looked dead at him, that's when he got a little spooked.

Sophie was mad.

Her eyes showed a lot of pain, but with it a lot of resolution and vengeance. The matter was more personal when Pavo was foretold, now she was gonna make Apus regret saying those very words.

"You have no room to talk of him." She growled, her blonde hair still shifting in the tempest of rainbow feathers. "He was a great person. Someone who was smiling through the dark time you guys brought upon this world, and he had to bear with the pain."

Apus felt another shift of power, and saw a large scale of memory chains beginning to surround Sophie, which caused him to lose focus of his spell and made it disperse. "What's going on?"

Sophie let out a battlecry as the more she remembered the late Spirit, the faster the memory chains swirled around her, creating a twister that escalated upwards and the tempest all around her was being blocked out like a shield.

Apus covered up as he felt strong winds rising from Sophie, yet through it his heavy coat didn't fall off. "What kind of power is this?"

"This is the power of memories! Memories of what made me get this far!" Sophie extended her arms forward, and the violent twister attacked Apus. She made him get smashed by the raging memory twister of pure memories; memories of all the pain and anguish she had endured throughout her time in Fairy Tail. She let it all out, letting loose a scream as she pivoted and the tornado of raw memory shot Apus skyward.

"**Memoir Hysteria!**"

The raging memory chains in the tornado faded away, and Apus screamed as he smashed into one of the tall white blocks, breaking off a large upper part and fell over, smashing into cracked bits. The dust cleared, and through it, Apus grunted in pain. His coat and body had taken a lot of damage, and just from the power of her pure memories.

"You're wearing out my patience." He grunted, standing up from the dust as his tempest stopped. "How are you able to deal so much damage in one blow?!"

Sophie clenched her fists as she stared out at Apus, her eyes showing resolve. "You wouldn't understand the pain my crew endured. We all started off happily, full of turbulence and crazy hysteria that would've made anyone go crazy…" Her body emitted a strong glow., signifying her Magic Power. "And then we felt all sorts of emotions as the journey went on. And our hearts broke apart when Lysandre took our dear friend away. It's the memories of all sense of emotions; joy, sorrow, anger, happiness, bliss. Everything that makes a person grow." She swiped her arms and a chain of memories began to form around her. "But you don't feel anything but greed! You'll never win if you never pen your heart to a whole new experience!"

Apus denied all that she said, and swiped his arm. "Dream on, pest! **Shining Flock – Flood!**" He reached out, sending two huge funnels at Sophie. The Memory-Make Mage extended her arms forward.

"**Memory-Make: Piercing Frigid Darkness!**" She swiped her arms and let out a battlecry as a dark arrow with ice around it was launched at such an exhilarating speed. A bright flash erupted in between, making both Magic users grunt.

Apus lunged through the blinding flash, attempting to take control quickly. As he went after Sophie with rainbow feathers following behind. "**Tailwind Dance!**"

"Memorized that, now…forget!" Sophie's eyes widened, and the mass behind Apus vanished, making him lose balance. Sophie let out a battlecry as she pivoted and a memory chain erupted from her again. She swiped her arm up, making the whole attack spiral towards Apus.

"**Memoir Hysteria!**"

The whole emotional tornado twisted and shot Apus high into the air. He covered up as he felt light, and found himself in the air. Despite the few injuries his body had, he was still able to get around, the tornado of raw memories seemed to have taken a massive toll, and Sophie panted as she dropped to a knee.

Apus smirked. _'The more feelings and the harder she remembers, the stronger her attacks get, but it doesn't look like she can use it much. This is my chance.'_ Taking a gander, he swiped his arms and his coat flailed. A massive rainbow energy surged and shaped into a large bow in front of him. "Now this time, you're going down!"

Sophie looked up, seeing the shining attack in front of her. _'This is bad. Those memories, the remembrance is taking a toll. I'm not sure if I can…'_ As she was starting to get doubts, her mind caught another image of her crew, and the smiles they had. _'Everyone!' _She couldn't give up, not while they were still fighting with their very lives on the line. She had to risk her life to avenge Pavo, and that meant she had to take everything she knew about him, and throw it at Apus.

"This is it for you! **Rain-Bow!**"

Apus shot the huge bow at Sophie downwards, the force strong enough to make violent winds, ones that made nearby white blocks crack and partially shatter. As the dreadful attack zoomed in closer to Sophie, the more anticipation and determination wet through her veins.

She put her hands forward, letting out a cry as her hair shifted. A chain of memories appeared behind her, and they flashed. In front of Sophie was spring-colored energy, seemingly flaming and spiraling. It gave off a very sparkling neon light. To Apus's shock, the energy took the shape of a bird – a peacock. Its tail and wings were spread out and it gave out a large call.

"This is for Pavo! For all of the memories we've shared together!" She pushed forward, sending the sparkling spring-neon shining peacock energy at a remarkable speed. "**Memory-Make: Peacock Bravery Soar!**"

The energy called out once more, responding to Sophie's recollection of Pavo, amplifying its shine and power. Apus covered up as the neon-spring light shined brighter, and the Rain-Bow collided in the middle, meeting the attack with even strength. Sophie let out one last cry.

"FOR PAVO! AND FOR MY CREW!"

The peacock obliterated the bow, continuing to shoot after Apus. As the light closed in, Apus could feel the immense power coming from the attack and closing on. "No! Impossible! I'm extraordinary! I create paradise! I can't lose it! I am paradise itself!" He screamed in hysteria as the attacked finally met contact, and he was caught in an explosion that beamed upwards, erupting shining, neo-spring sparkles and lights that sent shockwaves that shattered almost every white block, all but the one Sophie stood on. The attack rampaged and the walls nearly shattered.

The light faded, and Sophie fell to her knees in exhaustion. She panted, but the serious and expectant look never left her eyes and face as she saw Apus lying in a large, white crater, sunglasses broken, rainbow coat tattered and destroyed, and body nearly shredded up and damaged to the point of possible demise.

Sophie huffed once more as she had claimed victory, managing to stand up with a wobble in her ankles. "You should know…that peacocks…are far more elegant…and extraordinary…than you." She chided with a victorious smirk.

* * *

Nic was in his Toxic Plate Form, jumping down onto Camelo. "**Cross Poison!**" He crossed his arms and a purple, venomous X appeared before him. The attack met Camelo's thick, round nose. The force was strong enough to make a poisonous explosion erupt in front of the giraffe's face, but it wasn't enough to deter him when he was found not moved.

Nic landed and skidded back, regaining distance as Camelo looked out at him, seemingly unaffected, or heavily built to say the least. "Having a big nose has its perks. Being round and thick, it's like a battering ram. Still think you can get by me now when I have sharp and sturdy defenses?"

His taunt, however, did little as Nic only kept a solid facial expression on his opponent. "Are you through?" He glowed, shifting into his Flame Plate Form. "I don't have time to hear your taunts, we're here to put an end to Lysandre, so either you surrender or you fall trying."

Camelo scoffed at Nic's demeanor, having a goal to reach. While he did have a few words in mind for him, he was best to leave them be. Nic was giving off some sort of strong willed vibe, one that was clear to tell that he was true to form and the only well to settle was by tactical force. "Very well, try and hit me with your best shot."

'_I gotta go long-range to see how versatile he can be.' _With an action in mind, Nic took in a deep breath and exhaled an attack. "**Flame Burst!**" While he fired the fireball, Greninja provided an assist with Water Shuriken. Both attacks went blasting off to attack Camelo, but it wasn't successful as the giraffe brought his hoof to the floor and brought his legs across in a roundhouse kick, blocking out the attacks that made an explosion, causing the giraffe to skid back with a grunt.

Camelo's eyes widened as Nic lunged through the dispersing explosion, having Fire Punch coated and punched forward. Camelo jabbed forward with his sharp hooves, but Nic was smart and reflexive enough to effortlessly shift right.

He jumped up, and did a Fire Punch in the form of a back fist. Camelo leaned away to avoid getting hit, but didn't account for Nic to add a Blaze Kick as he was following through. He was kicked on the side of the neck, feeling pain surge in flames and the giraffe skidded to his side on all fours.

"You'll pay for that one." He swore. "How's about something long-range receiving on your guy's end?" While still on all fours, he arched his neck upwards, the bristles looking sharer than razorblades themselves.

Getting cautious, Greninja got close to Nic, and Nic glowed and shifted into his Iron Plate Form. He watched as the bristles on Camelo's back and shot up in thousands of numbers, arching downwards onto the two. "**Bristle Shower!**"

"**King's Shield!**" Nic made a silver net shield and brought it up overhead. The whole attack was like arrow-like raindrops that were relentlessly showering down on the two, but King's Shield protected them all. _'He's got us pinned down. We can't attack with these bristles coming down on us.'_ True to what he thought, the bristles didn't cease, and that left them to block while Camelo swung his neck around like a wrecking ball, unaffected by his own attack.

Camelo swung his neck into Nic and Greninja just as the bristles and King's Shield faded, hurling the two alike into the nearby debris. Camelo chuckled maliciously as his attack strategy worked, however, he frowned once the dust settled, and Nic and Greninja were seen back up on their feet already, albeit having just a few scratches.

"You think that you took an opportunity like that and achieved victory? You're nothing short of an arrogant animal." Nic chided, his voice stern and threatening.

Camelo looked a little dismayed. "You seem to be needing glasses rather than sunglasses. You're the short ones!"

"Listen to yourself. You're just worried about taking us down, when you don't get the big picture. I have a crew, and we're gonna win our battles and get to the roof, and I'll be more than obliged to back those words up." Nic then voiced to Greninja. "Greninja, **Smokescreen!**"

Greninja huffed out a thick, black cloud of smoke, which scattered across the area. Camelo covered up as he was unable to see. He looked through the smoke with squinted vision, and caught slight of a glint, and his offenses kicked in.

"**Metal Claw!**"

"**Razor Leg!**"

Both attacks met at the same time, and the whole Smokescreen swirled and vanished, revealing Nic posing right behind Camelo, grunting as his fingers twitched at the slight shock from Camelo's leg kicking up to defend.

The giraffe looked back at him. "The fact is that my attacks can cut through steel. Unless you're stronger than that, then you won't have much of a fight against my Sharp Magic."

Nic pivoted and turned back towards Camelo. "Then it's time to take an unsubtle course of action then." He closed his eyes and shifted into his Fist Plate. "**Bulk Up!**" Immediately, he was outlined in a red aura as his arms and muscles seemed to have intensified in density.

"I see, going forward this time. Let's do it! **Nose Shot!**" He sprung his neck forward, lunging his head and nose at the speed of a bullet.

Nic jumped up and brought his arms around, his body now coated in a blue outline rather than red. "**Superpower!**" He drove a hardened fist forward, colliding with the nose. The collision made a shockwave that made the ground beneath make a crater. It was easily decided when Nic followed through with his punch after the intense struggle, and Camelo shot back and slammed into the wall, making dust and chunks fly about.

Nic landed and looked as the dust settled, seeing Camelo grunt and giving a wild look as he got to all fours. "So resilient! But I do admit you had me there. Now try this!" He began to twist his neck like a corkscrew, and Nic and Greninja grew weary as his neck was fully coiled.

"**Spinning Slay!**"

Camelo's whole body began to spin rapidly, save the head. He charged at the two as the ground and air was being sliced up from his hooves. In a hurry, Nic stepped to the side and crossed his arms and they glowed, making Cross Chop. Greninja made a huge Water Shuriken and stepped to the side. They both used their attacks as the hooves grazed them, blocking them as the attacked followed through. Nic and Greninja skidded back and Camelo followed through and skidded to a stop, turning around to face them.

"Clever, but now try a second one!" Once again, Camelo put his neck in a corkscrew, and his body began to spin and slice up the air and ground as he traveled towards the duo.

Nic brought a leg back and shifted once more, this time into his Draco Plate Form. The sudden shift was enough to catch Camelo off guard, especially when Nic made his arms get coated in Dragon Claw, and multicolored energy surged in his mouth.

"**Dragon Claw! Dragon Pulse!**"

Nic spun his body, and the Dragon Pulse followed his Dragon Claw. The attack combo made a spiraling Dragon Pulse spiral and quake the ground, shooting Camelo up to the ceiling, the very same tactical move he used against Lysandre on Tenrou Island. The giraffe yelled as he slammed into the ceiling, making dust and debris fall.

Greninja looked up, eyes narrowed. "He's not gonna quite."

Nic felt it as well. "Yeah, he's got a lot of energy." His eyes widened. "Incoming!"

Through the dust above them, the giraffe fell straight down onto them, hooves sharpened like daggers. He slammed his hooves down and met Nic's Dragon Claw and Greninja's Water Shuriken attacks. The stalemate easily broke, and all three skidded away from the other.

"Very perceptive of you both." Camelo crossed his arms and hooves. "You both are very skilled, but no matter!" With no more words to say, the giraffe lunged ahead, and his dagger-like hooves jabbed forward and slashed in relentless fashion. Staying on their feet, Nic and Greninja parried them with their Dragon Claw and Water Shuriken. Both were starting to feel their feet losing ground as Camelo didn't stop, and his attacks, according to their perception, were very sharp and deadly; no single swipe was wasted.

Eventually Greninja found the opening and sidestepped. He grabbed Camelo's wrist and mustered up all of his strength and pivoted. He slammed Camelo overhead into the earth behind, making the ground shake.

Camelo gagged as the recoil and shock made him numb for a few seconds. _'Such physical strength.'_

Nic glowed and shifted once more into his Earth Plate Form. He crouched and went diving in with arms clasped and spinning. "**Drill Run!**" With his aim set on Camelo, he drilled right on in, hitting Camelo and sending the giraffe slamming against the ground with a loud thud.

Nic landed right beside Greninja as they regrouped. "You're outmatched, Camelo."

"Like you're one to talk!" The giraffe raised a hoof and kicked viciously at them. "**Shrill Cutter!**" He fired a vicious display of cutting blades like Air Cutter. In response, Greninja got in front and swiped his arms viciously yet perceptively at the same time.

"**Water Shuriken!**"

Many compressed stars of water and sharp air blades collided in midair. Both attacks didn't seem to stop until Camelo ceased and appeared in front of Nic and Greninja. The giraffe smirked as they saw they hardened yet astonished looks they had. He began an arduous display of kicks once more, accompanied by jabs and slices, forcing Nic and Greninja to dodged and reel away.

"You should know better than to defy Lysandre." Camelo taunted as Nic and Greninja continued dodging. "A small rebellious group like yourselves are nothing to the one singular power that the man holds! A mere word of defiance can only result in one's death!"

His eyes never swayed from looking at them. "Just like the same fate as Pavo!"

Nic and Greninja's eyes widened as they remembered images on Pavo as he was smiling and spinning. That was more than enough for them both to remember the pain they felt when he died.

Both trainer and Pokémon stopped in place. They had shadows over their eyes as they remembered the go-happy peacock-dresser. Nic felt a strong swell of energy and it loomed beneath, bellowing out in green lights that raced through the cracks of the flooring.

Camelo ceased his advancing and looked around. "Huh? What the hell?" He felt a massive energy coming from underneath, and it seemed extraordinary. He looked back at Nic, seeing an angry and hazardous gaze upon him. _'What is this power? Did he start gaining prowess just by having the mention of his dead ally fall upon his ears? It's stupid!'_

He looked with a glare. "It's the end of the line for you!" When he only saw Nic, something felt off. Greninja wasn't around. Camelo was caught off guard at first, but then he was pounded and slammed to the earth by a foot pressing against his head. Camelo felt everything go hazy as Greninja jumped off him, as the giraffe was engulfed in static as paralysis from Bounce kicked in.

Greninja looked back at the giraffe. "You're gonna pay for saying such malarkey. Making fun of our friend, that's crossing any and all boundaries."

Nic clenched his fists tighter, the green beams in the earth fluctuating from his emotions. "We won't let this world suffer. You're all are going to pay harshly for your crimes."

"Such big words." Camelo pushed up, but found it to be a struggle as yellow static made him cringe and fall to the ground again. "What's this?! I-I can't move!"

Nic began to glow a bright green and Greninja jumped right beside his trainer to avoid the upcoming blow. Nic exerted much force as he let out a battlecry. Another image of his crew, and of Pavo, was seen, and he let out a louder battlecry as he brightened.

"**Legendary Arts – Land's Wrath!**"

Nic pressed his feet and hands on the ground, and the green beams all around multiplied. The beams erupted as the ground beneath cracked some more, and then it completely broke apart. Camelo's eyes widened at the shattered earth raced after him, and with his paralysis, he cried out violently as he was engulfed in the immense wave of green beams and shattered earth.

Land's Wrath ruptured the entire tower, including the multitude of other floors beneath. The attack soon settled down, and the green beams faded way. The dust began to settle, showing Nic panting as he was now in his normal self. The dust clearing up also showed the large chunks of destroyed rock that were scattered all over the area. Among them was Camelo. The giraffe Spirit was devoid of pupils as he laid on flat rock.

"We told you. You were gonna pay dearly." Nic said, slightly fatigued, but didn't falter as he stood back up, showing no more signs of wearing down. He looked back at Greninja and smiled.

"Nic! Greninja!"

They both turned around, facing with surprise on their faces as the remaining crew had finally arrived. Volans, Lupus, Corvus, Cana, and Sophie were all present, and the presence of Canes was a heavy shock to say the least.

"Everyone!" Greninja exclaimed. The crew finally caught up to one another and looked pleasantly surprised.

"We've felt a tremendous shake. Was that you?" Corvus looked over Nic's shoulder, shocked to find Camelo defeated among the debris. "Oh man! You took him down! Way down!"

Nic ignored the crow-man's comment and spectated the few injuries everyone had. "Are you guys alright?" When his eyes glanced at Canes, the hunting dogs showed no snarling or growling, which made Nic weary.

"Nic, hold on." Lupus intervened. "It's alright, I won them back. I'm the Alpha once more. They won't cause anymore trouble."

While he was still suspicious about Canes, he was lightening up as the hunting dogs still didn't attack. The Beta was still, as was the rest. With calm washing over, he turned his attention towards Volans.

"It would seem that we have defeated Lysandre's six subordinates." He said. "However, the real fight looks as though it's about to begin."

"You can say that again." Cana remarked. "These guys were wearing us down. That was just a taste of what Lysandre will dish out at us."

"Well we can't wait any longer." Sophie remarked, powering through her injuries. Suddenly, the entire tower began to shake, making the ground rupture and quake with great magnitude. Sophie nearly lost her footing. "What's happening?"

"Andromeda Tower had taken too much damage in the fighting! It's about to collapse on us!" Volans shouted.

Corvus panicked. "GAH! Hurry! To the stairway!"

"Everyone follow me, hurry!" Nic led everyone past the rubble and debris, jumping over the rock all over the place. Some rocks shifted, but not so much that it made the crew and Canes take any detours. The tower was shown to be falling debris outside, dust falling and the bottom was beginning to break apart, as were the other floors.

The crew made it to the staircase, but found that due to Camelo's attack, it was too far apart and destroyed. Volans wasted no time in pressing his hands on the ground. A water current sprouted up and traveled up towards the stairs and up to the door. Everyone got on, surprisingly not falling through the current, and all of them rode it on their feet like an elevator up to the upper half of the stairs. Once everyone was present, Volans looked back and saw the ground cracking, nearly caving in on itself.

"Hurry!" He insisted.

Nic proceeded and hurriedly inserted the Andromeda Key he still had on hand. The door still responded to the shining key, and the door opened up for them, showing a dark sky as before. "Come on!" Nic and everyone ran up, and despite the quaking, he and the crew, and Canes, all made it up.

Now on the very top, Nic felt a sudden pulse coming from inside. "What?" As he and the others ran towards the path connected to the middle of the rooftop that went about on a large, ever-expansive ocean of pitch-black darkness from before, he felt the Plates vibrating rather harshly. _'A…Plate? But why didn't I sense it before?' _

"Everyone, jump on!" Volans and everyone, and Nic despite him being caught off guard by the sudden sensory of a Plate, made it onto the path that sloped and served up. Canes followed up to as the tower in whole cracked and crumbled downwards, and they all looked down with shock and horror as the extremely tall tower finally fell, debris and all.

Cana looked in shock. "That was way too close."

"Yeah, good thing we've made it." Lupus stated. He looked at the pack that was behind him, all huddled in because of the close space. Glad to see them all alright, Lupus howled up, and Canes howled up as well.

Nic looked ahead at the path as it seemed to swerve on forever and upwards. "Something is definitely up there…and it's more than just Lysandre."

Greninja stepped by his side. "He's probably got the Zodiacs up here as well."

Nic nodded. _'And maybe…' _Shaking the uneasy thought out of his head, he continued his walk. "It's time, the real battle begins!"

"Let's go kick his ass! For the Celestial Spirit World!" Corvus screamed.

Everyone ran ahead along the path, the darkness looming on either side. They all were seen following Nic and Greninja once more as the Andromeda Key was strapped to Nic's back. All seven, many more when including the hunting dogs, seemed to be running ahead with serious glares in their eyes as they were ready to save the world.

* * *

**Here's a Happy Mother's Day update! Sorry for the wait guys, I was gonna update earlier, but my pacing lacked and I saw the new Avenger's movie. At any rate, hope this chapter sufficed well enough. According to my word count, Nic and Cana's fight were over 2K, while Sophie's was over 3K. Speaking of Sophie, she got a lot of credit this chapter, plus it's been over a year since she's been added to the story. Comments about Sophie would make the Memory-Make Mage happy!**

**If you guys listen to music while reading my fight scenes, last chapter with Volans VS Cetus, I used the Dragon Slayer theme, starting from when Volans began tearing up. The other two fights, I listened to actual heavy metal music I like.**

**The next chapter will be the last chapter of the Celestial Siege Arc, so be ready for an explosive finish just like any other arc! Big conclusions shall be drawn!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving the action, plot, and the emotional combat scenes.**

* * *

**Next Time: For My Friend**


	68. For My Friend

Chapter 68 – For My Friend

**Okay folks, here's the last chapter of the Celestial Siege Arc! I hope it was worth the wait; fights, drama, and all. Be ready to have your spines chill and feel the emotions and fluffy stuff all around.**

**Guest Valvrave: Remember when I said I got this arc idea from watching One Piece, and that I used a few references? That's why.**

**Doodledoo2431: Glad to know you are loving my story still. Unfortunately, I haven't got much to say or do about Sophie, and I won't have her assisted by Mew or anyone. I'll think of something.**

**Here's the concluding chapter of the Celestial Siege Arc!**

**To Recap:**

In the upper floors of Andromeda Tower, Cana was pit against Vul; Sophie went up against Apus; Nic and Greninja quarreled with Camelo. Cana put up a struggle, but with the help of Mavis Vermilion, she was bestowed the power of Fairy Glitter and defeated Vul. Sophie unlocked a new Memory-Make in honor of Pavo and defeated Apus. Nic and Greninja combined their efforts and defeated Camelo. Soon, everyone came together and reached the path to Lysandre before the tower collapsed. The group thus went on their way towards Lysandre, ready to free the Zodiacs and take back the Celestial Spirit World.

* * *

**Chapter 68 – For My Friend**

The crew continued their arduous walk on the path, with an ocean of pitch black darkness and rotting force just below them. The air made it hard to breathe, and Canes was seen panting. Everyone made it a nice, easy walk with determination in the air. Above their heads looked like an endless void, swelling with near-infinite evil and scorn.

Greninja looked up ahead. "You guys see that?"

The group saw the layer of blood red and dark purple cosmic dust that seemed to give off a rotting odor, and everyone saw how long it reached out ahead.

"What is this…ocean of death?" Sophie dubbed.

Lupus sniffed the air, making him and his pack cringe and shake their heads at how they felt their nostrils burn. "This is definitely Lysandre's trail. We're getting close." He said with his nostrils covered.

He turned towards his pack and looked down at the Beta. Lupus barked at the Beta, and in turn the Beta did the same. The Beta then sat down, and one by one, the remaining Canes members sat down.

Lupus turned to face the others once more. "This is where I draw the line. Canes will remain here."

"Oh, smart thinking." Corvus praised. "So, now what?"

"We must be well enough to proceed ahead. This ocean of rotting dust means we're closer to our destination." He turned towards Nic. "Nic, can you use your powers to give us our strength?"

Nic stepped ahead of everyone. "Yes." He began walking ahead, and as he only proceeded a couple of steps, he felt the energy swell up more and more. Nic knew that a Plate was up ahead, but he had to question how and why he couldn't have sensed it before. He ignored this matter for now as he glowed and shifted into his Mind Plate Form and readied to heal his crew.

"**Heal Pulse!**" An orb of bright pink converged in front of him, and then it exploded, sending sparkling pink waves at everyone in front. Immediately, Cana sighed and Corvus gave a longer sigh of relief as energy came back to them.

Sophie smiled with energy. "Okay, now we're ready."

Volans nodded. "Right! Now that we've recovered, no holding back!"

Nic glowed and shifted back to his normal self. His attention drew towards the dark and hazardous sea of horror before them. "Alright everyone, head on out!" Nic thus pressed ahead, but he and the others paced themselves so as not to intake much horror-induced cosmic dust on either side of the wide path they followed. Canes stayed put as instructed and howled up, wishing their pack leader luck.

It felt like a while before they made any real progress, but as they walked along the path, something came into view up ahead. It looked like a giant wall of huge arches, and it was clear there were figures up ahead. It was also a sign as the energy swelling all around was getting more intense to the point where their goosebumps shrieked and nearly made them lurch, but alas they finally arrived.

"It's them." Corvus swallowed, seeing the Celestial Spirit King up ahead due to his huge size.

"His majesty, and the Zodiacs." Volans muttered strongly.

"Come on!" Cana called them forward, and they all ran ahead some more.

Nic was feeling the energy swell to a greater extent, and he felt the pure, ghastly power emanating from all around. It was savage and deadly. _'A Plate, and its energy is escalating. How can this be? Does Lysandre have the Plate in his possession? If so, this is bad.'_ Nic had to be strong. If that were the case, then he could counter with his Dread Plate Form, since that meant a Type advantage. Whatever the case may be, they all soon came to a halt.

Their eyes widened in sheer horror. Cana and Sophie swallowed as they saw all of the Zodiacs, some they never saw before. One looked like a tan woman with balances in hands, and the others were of a mother and son duo, sporting fish ornaments. The other one seemed to be a sea goat in a suit, presuming to be Capricorn, the one Lucy had recently contracted with.

Every single Spirit had torn clothing, blood stained all over their bodies, and gashes were all over their bodies. Every single one, including the King, looked as though they were on the brink of death.

"Loke! Aquarius! Taurus!" Sophie looked all around and was appalled by the rest and how they were hanging by chains. "Scorpio…everyone."

Volans clenched his fists. "It's a horrific site before us."

"I know, isn't it just so gut-wrenching it fills you with joy?"

They all heard the voice echo through the foul air, and their senses crawled with their legs trembling, though Volans, Nic, and Greninja were able to remain stern. The air was starting to make them all feel as though they were suffocating, and no one dared to move as dread swelled their bodies.

The energy around them was starting to converge on the throne before them. Malicious shadows eroded forward to make a dark cocoon mixed with dark purple. The mal force began to pressurize to an extreme level, and everyone felt a rather brief yet hair-pulling gravity field.

It all soon faded, and the cocoon of evil faded away, giving way to Lysandre, fiercely smirking as amusement was written all over. "Well now, glad you could make it. I was tempted to slice one of these guys in two if you didn't satisfy my patience."

Nic clenched his fists. "Lysandre."

Lupus snarled up at Lysandre. "You scum! You took everything from us!"

Corvus couldn't find the strength as all of his nerves were paralyzed by this overwhelming dark power. Coupled by the darkness and the void that was looming over their heads, you couldn't blame any of them if they took a step back.

Lysandre gave a straight face at the wolf. "Lupus, the traitor. I see you've defeated Sirius and won back your pack…" His eyes narrowed. "Too bad that means all of you will have to lose your lives."

Nic stepped forward. "Lysandre, what have you done to the Zodiacs?"

"Oh, you mean my trophies?" He didn't bother looking back at them, a malevolent chuckle came from him. "I just put them in their place, hopefully use them as bait to draw you here. It worked, obviously."

"You nearly slaughtered all of them so that you could get to me?!"

"The King wasn't even a remote challenge. He was easy to take down. Once that was settled, taking over and slaughtering was easy." His tail wagged. "And as a bonus, I picked this up along the way." Lysandre held up his left palm, and the Spooky Plate was slowly spinning using his psychic powers.

Nic's eyes widened, as did everyone else's. "I was right!"

"He had a Plate this whole time?" Greninja wondered.

"He found a Plate?" Cana asked. "This is bad."

Corvus looked uneasy, but didn't back down. "So, he's got something Nic needs, huh?" He slowly clenched his fists. "If that's the case, then we'll have a number of things to handle once this is all done!"

"It's time we settle things once and for all." Volans stated, his fists clenching. "Time to make you pay for the treachery that befell us because of your ambition to kill Nic, then everything else."

Lupus clawed the ground. "We're gonna make you suffer for all of the pain you put us through."

"And what you did to the Spirits in this world." Cana said.

"And for what you did to our friend." Sophie said strongly.

Lysandre's tail continued to wag about in amusement. "Hmph. So, you really think you seven can possibly stand up to infinite darkness. I can make a black hole in space now. I can turn a star into pure darkness and make a world shiver and dissolve into ashes if I chose to do so!" Everyone's bones rattled as they felt the malicious force quake the area, and the sea of blood red and purple beneath swayed with his huge power flux. "I can crush any who stand before me, you are no different! I explained this before, and I will not repeat a second time! I can make the very earth fall before me!"

Huge pillars of darkness erupted from all around in the darkness sea. The whole area quaked as the pillars erupted instantaneously and the level of evil kept on rising. Lysandre stood up, his dark purple, rotting aura still encasing his body and escalating as he let out a growl.

Nic's eyes showed hesitation and anxiety as he shook from the force of Lysandre releasing a lot of power to show an example. "He's not bluffing!"

The pillars faded back into the darkness beneath, and Lysandre floated in the air, some ways from his throne, where the Spooky Plate was sitting.

'_Everyone…'_ Nic's eyes went from Lysandre back to the Zodiacs and the King. Seeing all of their helpless states was sad enough, but seeing them pounded and nearly dead and unresponsive was shaking Nic to the core. His dread was being replaced by resolve and vengeance, and this was just more fuel to add since this was the man who took a dear friend away. _'I swear, though I don't make promises anymore…I will make him leave this world.'_

"Everyone, be ready!" Volans shouted, getting an arm up and in a fighting stance. "Don't hold back, and don't let everyone's efforts be in vain!"

Cana crossed her arms, head lowered as she glared at Lysandre with cards in her hands. Sophie pointed at her forehead and readied herself. Corvus spread his arms out, his black feathers reaching out. Lupus got down on all fours and snarled. Greninja took up a stance, and Nic glowed and shifted into his Dread Plate Form.

Everyone looked up as Lysandre's bloody eyes stared sharp daggers into them, making anyone go blind and feel their own eyes hurt. Though it pained them, they all began their charge.

"Everyone, for all that have suffered! For all who've died trying! For the universe! Attack with everything you got!" Nic shouted.

Lysandre raised his tail behind and crossed his arms. "Very well. It's time you learn the hard way, that no matter how many times you may try, you will never be mighty enough to defeat me!"

His tail swiped from behind without him having to move. The tail swiped across, sending a Psycho Cut that extended outwards with a huge and violent area. Everyone ducked and dealt violent winds and shockwaves as the flooring cracked, and the enormous Psycho Cut continued onwards out.

Everyone arose and begun their attacks. Lupus growled up at the monster and jumped up. He spun around with a roundhouse kick that sent a sonic shockwave at Lysandre. Lysandre waved his arm and the attack dissipated, much to the wolf's shock.

"Futile!" He glowed and an image of himself dissolved from his body and spiraled into a silver sphere. "**Ancient Power!**" With his arm reached out, a silver shockwave bellowed out, quaking the area as the silver sphere zoomed after Lupus. While he was still in midair, Lupus vertically axe kicked the incoming attack, embedding his Sonic Magic for optimal effect, but the collision made midnight blue and silver sparks that erupted into an explosion, sending the wolf falling backwards.

"Lupus!" Corvus flew in and caught Lupus by his talons. He hurriedly dropped his comrade onto the pathway again and went zooming in with a spiral. "**Midnight Soar!**" Surrounded in black energy and shaping into that of a crow, Corvus made way at high speed.

Cana threw some of her cards. "How about this!" The cards glowed as they traveled towards Lysandre.

Lysandre's eyes glowed light blue and didn't move a finger as the cards were redirected and sent into Corvus, catching the crow by surprise as he was forced to redirect his attack to avoid the exploding cards, but failed miserably as the cards exploded and he shot out from it.

"What?!" Cana shouted in disbelief.

Lysandre reappeared in front of Corvus and swung his tail, hitting Corvus hard and right into Lupus.

"Sophie! Nic!" Volans shouted as he passed the wolf and crow with wings spread out.

"Right!" They both hopped onto Volans's back as he sailed close to their level. While Volans was flying in, Sophie and Nic readied for their attacks.

"**Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**"

"**Dark Pulse!**"

Both attacks of dark green and jumbled dark purple beams went sailing after Lysandre. The man looked down as the attacks closed in, but showed little interest. He swiped his arm, sending a rotting and wailing Ominous Wind down onto the group, completely overwhelming Nic and Sophie's attacks.

As Nic and Sophie flew off of Volans's back, Lysandre smirked. He was caught frowning when he heard a swift sound behind, and Greninja appeared.

"**Dark Pulse!**"

Greninja fired a close-range Dark Pulse as Lysandre turned around. In turn, Lysandre was struck by the attack, but only grunted as he didn't budge much. The attack kept on pushing, and he grunted some more until disappearing into shadows, and the Dark Pulse continued onwards, hitting a chunk of the area. Greninja's eyes widened as he looked behind, his reflexes picking up on Lysandre.

"Behind you!" Cana provided and assist as she made the cards in her hands glow with green lightning. "**Summoned Lightning!**" She sent the cards up behind Greninja, where Lysandre had converged. Lysandre swatted his tail and the cards all dispersed. The brunette's eyes shook with horror. "But how?!"

Volans went zooming on in and flapped his large wings. He closed the distance quickly and his pointed elbow glowed. "**Trench Shredder!**" He slashed at Lysandre, but all Lysandre did was swiftly swipe his arm, and he used Slash as a means of interception. The force between the two attacks made a shockwave as neither side backed down.

Volans felt his momentum slipping, and soon enough he was shot back in midair. Lysandre smirked and slowly extended his right arm out. "**Psybeam!**" He fired a streaky blue beam with pink circles at Volans, and the Spirit barrel-rolled and dodged the Psybeam the best he could.

"**Dark Pulse!**" Nic didn't hesitate to strike Lysandre and used his Dark Pulse that went zooming up towards him. Greninja landed right by his side and added in his own Dark Pulse. Both attacks went flying up and fused in midair. The large Dark Pulse made contact as Lysandre was distracted, and a dark explosion shook the air violently, sending strong shockwaves that cracked large parts of the area.

Through the smoke, Lysandre grunted as he was caught surprised. "Lucky brats."

"**Dusk Shower!**"

High above, Lysandre heard the call, and looked up to see the smoke clearing out, and black feathers pelted down onto him. Corvus was shown to be high above, and raining down his assault.

"How do you like that?!" He shouted from above, but to his disbelief, Lysandre wasn't even fazed as he stood in place while Dusk Shower rained down onto him. Corvus looked shocked as his eyes bulged out. "EH?!"

Lupus ran up on all fours and skidded to a stop right underneath Lysandre. "Open wide! **Sonic Howl!**" He let loose a midnight blue soundwave that echoed up towards the monster.

Corvus recovered from his shock and flapped his wings downwards, sending a twister of black wind at Lysandre. "**Night Storm!**"

The two attacks closed in onto Lysandre, and the man kept a frown as he opened up a purple hole above. With no warning, he became shadows and went up into the hole. The hole then disappeared, and the two attacks aimed for him collided in place. Lupus and Corvus looked startled and jerked back as their attacks met, and a harsh explosion erupted, causing both the wolf and the crow to scream as they were shot away.

"Corvus! Lupus!" Nic shouted.

Greninja looked ahead as Lupus and Corvus fell onto the pathway. "He's got us overpowered and cornered again…" His eyes widened when he felt a malevolent energy came from above, and he instinctively dodged left as Lysandre shot down from the hole.

"**Phantom Force!**"

Though the attack missed, the dark shockwaves and the large crater made sent Greninja flying off, spiraling in the air and straightening out, though he landed in a harsh skid.

Sophie made a chain of memories that made a huge light green beam that sailed off after Lysandre coated in lightning. "**Memory-Make: Baryon Lightning Impact!**" She sent the attack with sheer force, and she watched as Lysandre stuck his arm out.

"If you're trying to impress me, you'll never succeed." He taunted. A spatial portal appeared in front, sucking up the entire Memory-Make attack.

Sophie looked shocked as her attack was taken in. _'Oh no! I remember he can do that!'_ Her attention drew towards Volans, who was in midair and looking for an opening when a spatial portal opened up behind him. "Volans, watch out!"

"What?!" He turned around, but was too late as the Baryon Lightning Impact. Light green and static engulfed him, making the Flying Fish Spirit scream.

With Sophie in shock from accidentally hitting her ally, Lysandre reappeared from shadows and deviously smirked at her. "**Feint Attack!**" Lysandre's malevolent aura made Sophie's skin burn as the proximity was too close, and she looked back to get a tail slam to the face, making her scream as she shot away.

"Sophie!" Cana called out to her, but Sophie slammed into her, making both girls fall over.

Lysandre smirked in satisfaction at how the rebellion was on its feet. He was having no trouble such as before. While he was in his musings, his dark level of sensory picked up a sound from behind. He figured out who was behind him and disappeared into shadows before Nic's Night Slash could get a slash in.

"Damnit." He cursed under his breath.

The shadows reappeared some distance above and behind Nic, and Lysandre reappeared and smirked down towards Nic before bringing his hands together and shooting an attack of his own. "**Dark Pulse!**"

Nic pivoted and turned upwards, hurrying so as to use the unsheathed Night Slash and used it to block. Though it did manage to hold up for a little while, the impact continued to pelt Nic, and the pathway continued to crack. "He's…he's got so much strength!" Night Slash didn't hold up as Dark Pulse ended up making a dark explosion that engulfed Nic. He grunted as he tumble-skidded and felt the sting from the attack.

Nic's face twisted. "I gotta change tactics." He thus glowed and shifted into his Flame Plate Form. He began to coat himself in fire and glared up at Lysandre. "Greninja, **Smokescreen!**"

Greninja heard his call and made ninja hand signs before huffing out a great mass of black smoke up at Lysandre. The attack engulfed Lysandre, and the monster snickered as he thought little of the Smokescreen. All he did was close and reopen his eyes, and a huge shockwave bellowed, dispersing Smokescreen in a flash. The shockwave even knocked Nic back as he was using Flame Charge, but that only made the fire go out and he shot back down, and Greninja lost footing.

"How impudent!" Lysandre snapped his fingers, and the entire area began to shake violently. Everything all around went crazy as the ocean of darkness sprouted two enormous geysers of blood red, dark purple, and pitch black, which escalated far up into the sky. He slowly brought his arm down forward in front of the crew. "Begone!"

The two pillars of pure hatred and evil shot down from the sky, and seemed to be resembling meteors almost. Nic and Greninja, as well as the crew, all hurried away from the two pillars. Yet it was still unfortunate for them as the two pillars crashed down and emitted violent shockwaves and ruptured the entire airspace as far as the eye could see. Wails and catastrophic shockwaves of wretched darkness went outwards, and Lysandre showed his sharp teeth as the evil shockwaves just fazed through him.

He levitated close to his throne as the scene was starting to clear. The entire pathway that reached as far as the eye could see was in shambles. It was completely obliterated, and the crew was lying on the very edge of the remains of the attach point. They were all severely bruised and battered, and they cringed in pain.

Nic slowly got up, with Greninja slowly following. "Is everyone okay?"

Volans slowly arose to his feet. "Hm, I can still manage." He wobbled a little, but he was able to still get up.

Corvus clenched his fists as he began to arise. "I-I'm good."

Cana and Sophie arose and grunted, feeling pain and torn shreds hanging on their dresses. "This is bad." Cana looked down at her hand. It was shaking uncontrollably. She remembered this level of evil. It wasn't like Zeref, it wasn't like Acnologia, for this…was worse. The vision before her was the eternal definition of bloody, uncensored hatred and bellowing evil.

Lupus shook his head as he got up. "There's not even a scratch on him. Guess we're gonna have to go crazy to really lay a few scratches on him."

With everyone up, Lysandre's eyes narrowed as he shot a Shadow Ball down at them. "Do us all a favor and just die!" His Shadow Ball missed and exploded upon impact with the area ahead. Everyone either ran, jumped, or flew away as a ripple reached out and exploded, sending more devastation around.

Lupus rushed ahead with his claws coated in Sonic Magic. "**Sonic Claw!**" He jumped up and sprung down onto Lysandre, but the monster dodged the swipe that quaked the area.

Volans went diving down from above, charging in with full force. When he got to a point, he brought his hands together and made a shining sphere of deep blue. "Corvus, assistance!"

"Gotcha! **Night Storm!**" Corvus sailed right beside him, and he flapped, sending a twister of dark winds that raced down and followed the shining sphere. The two attacks combined, and thus made a dark comet with a blue meteor in the center.

Lysandre looked at the attack incoming and made a blue sphere of sheer intensity. "**Aura Sphere!**" He threw the forceful attack, and it collided with the comet. It sounded like jets crashing into each other as shockwaves were so strong that Lysandre himself was caught surprised as he was pushed back by the attack._ 'I was pushed back?!'_

"Hit him hard!** Icicle!**" Cana swiped her cards, and huge icicles went after Lysandre. With little effort, Lysandre opened up a spatial portal in front and the icicles went inside. The portal then closed and the man twitched his fingers just a little. Cana looked up as the portal opened up overhead, and she dodged her own attack that pierced the land.

Sophie extended her arm ahead. "**Memory-Make: Scorn of the Armored Winds!**" The area all around Lysandre was then surrounded by iron-like twisters that closed in on him. "Everyone, don't hold back!"

Cana raised her right forearm as a red tattoo appeared, and she looked ahead. "We hear ya! Volans, Lupus, Corvus, soften him up for me!"

Corvus grunted as he stored his own power. Black flames and aura began to erupt from him, and everyone felt an immense charge coming from him. Volans grunted as he opened his eyes wide and let out a battlecry, light blue waves of energy flowed around him, and his wings, arms, legs, and tail all were coated in thick, solid deep blue scale-like armor while the markings on his body shined. Lupus howled up to the void as he began to exert force of his own. His arms and fur all around gave off midnight blue static as midnight blue Sonic Magic encased his limbs.

"Altogether now! Make him pay!" Volans shouted.

Corvus shot up into the air with a battlecry, his black winds, feathers, and flames shaping into a crow. Volans himself had several blades erupt and extend on one forearm, and Lupus gathered all of the energy he had and it shaped into a wolf that took up his whole arm.

As Lysandre swiped his arms, dispelling the Memory-Make, he was caught with several figured coming at him at once.

"**Deep World – Sakratua Pala!**"

"**Great Wolf – Sound Barrier Fang Crush!**"

"**Nevermore – Amaterasu Sky!**"

All three attacks made an explosion of mixed blue and darkness that erupted upwards into the eternal depths above. The ground shook as violent winds nearly broke everything to pieces. The King, whom was barely conscious, noticed this Celestial power, and his eyes briefly widened from the awe of the three Spirits and their seemingly unmatched power.

Nic and everyone was starting to get blown away, and that's when Nic skidded back harshly with Greninja while Cana was barely able to hold on and Sophie was near flying. Nic glowed and shifted into his Earth Plate Form, and he pressed one of his foots back.

"Hang on!" He stomped backwards, and then some small level of earth eroded out from the area. With the added area just to cover their ground some, they were all safe, and Cana arose with her red tattoo glowing and she held up her arm once more.

The dust settled, and the three Spirts were all close to the other, panting as they had dealt harsh blows to Lysandre at one time. Lysandre was seen on the ground, on a knee as his body had some bruises and deep scratched.

"These guys, they're actually making me feel pain after such a long time." He growled as his body stung from the combined assault. He slowly arose back up to his feet, and ta the same time felt a great amount of Magic Power and a golden beam went up to the sky.

Cana was found to have been the source, and her hair flailed wildly. "Now! Gather, O' river of light guided by fairies!" She aimed her arm forward, and a golden ring with sparkles went down onto Lysandre.

"These damn brats." He muttered, his eyes becoming feral. "They are now annoying me…"

"Shine! In order to perish the fangs of evil!" The golden ring of great energy began to encase Lysandre, shining a great light that nearly blinded everyone.

"This Magic!" Sophie shouted trough the quaking earth. "I think this feels familiar!"

"Yeah, I feel it too!" Nic shouted. "It feels like Fairy Law before-!"

"**Fairy Gli-!**" Cana never finished as the golden light turned black and exploded out. The shockwaves all around bellowed and Cana and everyone fell backwards in pain and tumbled off. The darkness dispersed, and all saw Lysandre with a looming look of shrilled darkness. His dark purple aura encasing him was so thick and a great energy shift was in the air. The ground beneath him had a grand crater from his power surge.

"ENOUGH!" He roared, exerting a quaking black wind that was Ominous Wind bellowing and reaching out. Everyone felt the intense and grand pressure shake the entire area, and Lysandre didn't look too pleased.

"It can't be…" Sophie muttered.

"Fairy Law…never had a prayer?" Cana muttered. She cringed when pillars of darkness sprouted up all around, and continued to increase in numbers as far as the eye could see. Lysandre's face was more pale, and his fangs were a bloody red, and his eyes were that of feral vermilion. Corrosive winds blew that made everyone shiver to the core. Everyone felt their heartbeats quicken and nearly became paralyzed by the immense power that left even the stoic Volans quivering while trying to get up.

"This is…his great power." He muttered. "He hid this from us."

"This is bad. He's just as they all say." Lupus swallowed as he felt his will drain away. "He truly has no equal."

"I've had it with you all!" His primal proclamation bellowed, and the pillars of darkness all around him thickened and intensified greatly. He exerted yet another Ominous Wind, this one being far more ruthless as it was like a massive hurricane that made everyone scream as they were caught in the painful and burning turbulence.

They all screamed as they fell down, hitting the surface. They all groaned, yet Nic was able to push up. His head swayed as he was barely able to stand. He looked around in shock as everyone else was on the ground, and unable to move.

"Guys!" He looked horrified as he saw the severe bruises and injuries they all took; it was nothing short of a miracle for himself to be standing after Lysandre exerted so much force…which was what he was doing right now.

The vile energy never stopped growing, and everyone, even Greninja, looked as though the shockwave and energy exertion completely overwhelmed them. Unlike seven years ago, this shockwave was far more powerful, and this level of vengeful evil was of no bounds.

Lysandre never stopped as he unleashed a shrill roar and a swift Dark Pulse that ran in front of them. As the roaring of the land continued, it made the dark explosion that sent the group flying once more sound shrilling. They all slammed back into the surface, crashing so hard that their bodies were nothing more than numb, plain and simple.

Nic twitched as he hardly had any strength. Lysandre slowly closed in, and his body shined a bright light. Nic's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. _'Recover…damn him.' _Lysandre began to close the distance as he floated towards Nic. Nic sent whatever impulse to his brain and sent it to all of his limbs. He mentally screamed at his limbs to move, and he was more than fortunate when he soon struggled and made it to his feet, albeit with swaying and great fatigue.

Lysandre levitated several feet in front of him, the proximity being lethal enough to make his skin sting from his corrosive aura and exerted power.

"Now, Nic." Lysandre started. "Do you finally see, that even though you're fancied as a beacon for the good of everything in the universe, darkness will always last longer. Your time is up."

Nic swayed left and right, his body exhausted from the damage from the couple of shots took in. He straightened up and looked at Lysandre dead in the eye like he did in the past. He showed no reluctance, despite hearing bells.

"You keep saying that, but you know that I'll get back up until you stay down." He whipped his arms to make them face the ground ahead. "I'll take any measure of pain if it means destroying you! **Earth Power!**"

He sent a crack with ground-shaking golden energy running and made way towards Lysandre. Lysandre merely scoffed as he pushed his arm forward, sending a crack resonating from beneath and colliding said Earth Power with Nic's. The ground shook some more and a golden explosion rattle beneath, breaking the area's surface and making Nic grunt loudly as he fell back onto his back and then onto his stomach.

Once again, Nic found himself stumbling to his feet, and glared at Lysandre once more. Lysandre shook his head with a smirk. "Okay, Nic, time to face judgement. Giratina and the others have been waiting long enough. I think it's time I deliver them to good news that you're gone…for good!"

He snapped his fingers, and shadows began to loom all around and converged onto Nic. Nic grunted as he jumped into the air as the shadows slowly raced after him, but Lysandre's lower half turned into shadows and he sprung after him. He made haste and maliciously smirked as his sharp claws grabbed Nic's neck. Nic gagged as he was caught held up by Lysandre above shadows that were trying to reach for him.

"All I have to do is drop you in." Lysandre noted.

Nic's breathing was cut off, but that didn't stop him. "That's what you think!" In one of his hands, a light green bone materialized and he gripped it. "**Bone Club!**" He jabbed the gone right into Lysandre's gut, making him gag and drop Nic. The shadows beneath retreated due to reacting to Lysandre, thus leaving Nic to land in a crouched position and lunged up as Lysandre was still in shock. "**Drill Run!**" Nic spun in and shot into Lysandre's gut yet again. The harsh stab made Lysandre fall backwards and hit the ground in a skid.

Nic landed on the ground, a slight pant in his breathing. "Is that more like it?!"

The dust settled quickly, and Lysandre disappeared into shadows and reappeared in the air. His bloody teeth were shown. "That's better!" He extended his arms out. "**Psybeam!**" He fired a gruesome streaky blue beam with pink circles, zapping away with great intensity.

Nic took in a deep breath and opened his mouth wide. "**Mud Bomb!**" His mouth then fired a large, brown ball of mud that shot hard and fast like a missile. Both attacks met in the middle, creating an explosion once more that made dirty, volatile winds. Nic hurriedly used the recoil to gain distance and jumped to the side as Psybeam powered through, zapping where he stood and made rubble shake violently, sending it everywhere and forcing Nic to cover up as he skidded away.

He swiped his arm, clearing the smoke ahead. Lysandre suddenly appeared from converging shadows once more, and Nic's skin was burning again from the close proximity. He readied to attack, but even Nic's own reflexes didn't foresee the next part.

Lysandre swiped his arm up, and the shadow beneath Nic thickened and zoomed up and struck his abdomen, making Nic gag blood as he Shadow Sneak arched all the way up, hurling Nic into the air as he yelled in agony.

"Nic! No!" Sophie shouted.

Greninja looked in horror. "Nic!"

Lysandre disappeared and reappeared once again in front of Nic at the highest point. With Nic in shock, Lysandre snapped his fingers, and down below the shadows slowly converged like a blanket and was below Nic. Lysandre's eyes glowed and he extended an arm as Shadow Sneak retreated.

Taking in a deep breath, Nic only had a few moments before he felt a strangling force. He gagged once more as his body was unable to move. He felt Lysandre's Psychic weighing him with immense pressure and he could only stare and feel pain as his body had taken too many harsh blows to act from before.

"He's got Nic pinned in the air with Psychic!" Sophie shouted, just before her body felt a great surge of pain and she collapsed once more, unable to stand.

"Damnit. He's not getting away with this." Corvus muttered.

Down below, the shadows were reaching up to Nic as Lysandre had him stuck and rendered unable to move. Nic's body was just too exhausted. Though he did recover from the battle with Camelo, he had to admit that the giraffe did leave him a little worn out; and with Lysandre's power amplified greatly, no advantage was with him today.

Nic gagged some blood, much to Lysandre's glee. He felt the bone-crushing force of Psychic, and his hazy vision caught Lysandre raising an arm.

His face was so pale, yet it was the darkest and coldest, devilish face anyone's ever seen. "Farewell to you, Nic Pularis. Join your friend in suffering!"

He created a dark, spatial hole, and he zoomed inside of it. Nic was left suspended as Psychic stopped, but a spatial hole appeared over his head. Lysandre appeared through it. "**Legendary Arts – Hyperspace Hole!**"

He crashed into Nic and a volatile dark explosion erupted. Nic screamed as the force was immense, and everyone watched in horror as Nic smashed into the earth, creating a grand shockwave and a crater as the attack's pressure practically erupted. Dust and rock were sent flying, as were violent ripples and shockwaves. Everyone screamed as they felt the rotting shockwaves nearly burn their skins and they fell to their sides.

"N-Nic…" Greninja mustered up his willpower and looked weak, but he didn't stop as he stood up…only to find his trainer lying in the crater, grunting as the shadows began to swallow him.

Cana's mouth gaped open. "No…" Her eyes began to mist. "You can't…"

Sophie shuddered in agony. "Nic! Get up!"

They got no answer as Nic's vision was only the void up in the sky. He heard nothing but deadly silence as he felt the cold, skin-burning shadows take him in. If he could yell anymore, he would have done it by now, but he no longer had the strength.

'_I can't…move. Lysandre…has to be stopped, and yet…I can't…succumb to this…dread…'_ Nic's consciousness began to fade, and Lysandre began to raise his arm, slowly making a human-sized cocoon erode from the shadows, having Nic inside. He laughed maniacally as he held his arm out.

Volans grunted as he didn't have the strength as everyone was left to sit and watch as Lysandre was about to do to Nic, as what he did to Hades long ago. _'Nic.'_

"N-NIC!" Corvus cried out.

Lysandre looked excited as he was beginning to close his fingers into a fist. "Time to finish this. Arceus shall die, and now to spread the eternal void!"

* * *

Nic slowly opened his eyes, seeing nothing but pitch black. His body was numb, and he couldn't feel a thing. _'How could I have let this happen to me? I can't give up, even to the bitter end.' _Images of others came to his mind, all from the past. _'Guys; Cana. Sophie. Volans. Lupus. Corvus. Greninja…Erza…Vanessa…and-!'_

A sudden light, though very small, slowly began to light up. Nic's pain and numbness was starting to fade away, and he was able to move freely. The darkness all around was starting to brighten up as the light ahead made a great flash, and Nic went blind.

When he opened up his eyes again, the entire dimension was white. His eyes looked around in confusion. "How did…is this…my subconscious?"

"HAH~! Right on the money!" The sudden voice came from the golden light that was in front of Nic, but the voice made Nic's heart stop. He gasped as he felt nostalgic, and his body began to shudder.

"That voice…"

The golden light took shape, and it revealed the one man who gave his life. The glow faded, and it revealed…Pavo. The peacock man struck a pose as he was still in a weak golden glow.

"Pavo!" Nic shouted, shocked beyond comprehension.

Pavo struck a pose. "Nic! I'm so glad to see you still fighting!"

Despite how happy he was to see the image of Pavo, Nic sullenly looked down. "I wish I was. I can't get the upper hand, but I know I can do this." Nic looked ahead in realization. "Wait, are you…"

Pavo stayed still and silent, but soon he gave in and his eyes mist. He looked down, tears beginning to form as he tried to smile. "Unfortunately, I'm just a subconscious Spirit. I really am dead…I'm sorry."

Nic's head looked down as sadness overcame him. "I failed. I failed miserably." He began shuddering harder. "We let you die. And I don't know what to do."

Pavo stopped his posing as Nic looked disheartened. As he saw Nic's gaze getting misty, the Spirit's spirit gave a sympathetic smile.

"Nic." The mentioned looked up at Pavo. "It's okay. I sacrificed myself so you guys could save the world. I didn't wanna see you like this, please don't be sad. That's the last thing this world needs." He raised a pumped fist high. "You still have the rest of the crew, right? You can't let them down! Letting them down, is letting me down! You all are my family! I wanna see you guys smile in the end!" Pavo smiled, despite the pools of tears he and Nic had.

"We've all been through so much, haven't we? At first, we were enemies, but now we're friends for eternity. All of us are counting on you. Lucy is counting on you. Erza wants to see you again. Your Pokémon, all of us. We're all betting on our light! Don't ever fade!"

Hearing Pavo, Nic felt more than a little shocked at how he was wavering, yet the dead one before him was bringing back his spirits. "Pavo."

"You have all of us by your side. Lysandre may have the darkness, but we have something more." He pointed to Nic's chest. "The light's heart; Luminous. He makes the earth tremble, and makes the fire in our hearts burn when he fights! So go back out there!"

Nic smiled as tears were going down his face, but he gave a serious and determined smile. "I will. Thank you Pavo, for everything."

Pavo gave a pose. "That's what friends are for!" He opened up his arms, and Nic and his friend embraced in a hug. The light that was Pavo began to shine brightly. "I'll always be with you guys…always…"

The golden light blinded everything, and Nic's eyes snapped back to reality, with pitch black encasing him, and his eyes refilled with no pain and full of burning spirit to avenge his fallen friend and crew. He began to exert a great red light.

* * *

Lysandre spread his fingers out. "And now! You…will…"

He trailed off when the temperature suddenly began to escalate. It was getting hot. Lysandre frowned when there was a pressure change in the atmosphere. The lightened momentum began to make the crestfallen team confused, and Greninja was able to comprehend the change of momentum.

He looked at his skin, and felt the heat actually steaming away the pain from the foul air. "Heat?" His eyes widened when he turned his attention forward, seeing the black and dark purple cocoon Nic was in beginning to shine a molten yellow. "Nic!"

Volans was able to get up, and he also felt this extraordinary power. "What is this power? It's…it's so primal…the energy beginning to surge, it just keeps rising!"

"Not to mention this temperature." Sophie said, starting to feel small sweat.

Lupus's ears flipped up as he heard a great shift down below. His head turned down and looked to see something that was of zero comprehension.

"Guys." He said. "Are we…falling?"

Everyone looked down to where he was looking, and just like him, they all felt their heartbeats quicken. They saw actual land rising up from beneath the darkness. It was molten fresh, and they all felt the heat.

Corvus's eyes bulged out of his head. "GAH! WHAAAAAT?! L-LAND IS RISING?!"

Cana's eyes showed astonishment. "Just what kind of power is this? To raise the land." She gasped when the same scenario and sensation was coming back to her. She heard and felt this energy from before, back on Tenrou Island, only it was of the sea.

Her head turned back at the cocoon, as it was now lava-colored and giving off a great swell of heat and immense power. "Nic."

The entire world shook as the ever-expanding land had begun to rise through the pitch black darkness, and the energy and magnitude of the molten rock seemed almost endless. Volans and Corvus hurriedly grabbed their comrades and took flight – way high up.

Lysandre felt the power level being extreme, and he was getting uneasy, but he knew what was going on. His feral vermilion eyes narrowed. "It looks like the real battle begins."

As if on que, the cocoon of lava exploded, and it was like a bomb went off. A hot shockwave went through the area, and everyone high in the air felt the heat from their distance. Their mouths gaped wide and lava exploded beneath.

The land and quaking had finally settled, and Lysandre saw that the dark sea he's created was burned away and replaced by fresh black rock with lava in the crevices. He looked ahead, and the sight of a figure surrounded by steam and dripping in a fool of lava made him grunt. Even the Zodiacs and King looked in sheer awe.

Standing before them was Nic, but his eyes were now yellow pupils with black sclera. He had on a red headpiece with ridges that started from over his head and sloped down to stop at his nose. The headpiece was connected to his eyes as black crevices separated the upper red headpiece to the sides, where red pieces hung and white spikes were on the sides. He had sharp teeth, yet his chin and neck were left bare.

Red segmented plates with black ridges ran along his neck, and his coat seemed to have become red as well. The coat had black edging, with segments running on the back of the coat between the hardened red scaled that layered the coat, similar to armor. The belt was a cindered black, and the buckle was a red bulb. The sides of the coat also had two spikes on either side. The sleeves were red with black crevices, but had bulbous, red shoulder plates. The coat also had a large tail that curved out, being nearly five feet long and ending in razor blades like the headpiece. The tail was red and segmented, and had three spikes and a gray underside.

While the chin and neck were bare, the arms were red with segmented black lines, but didn't seem like armor. The underside and the abdominal region and t-shirt layered under the coat was gray. The pants were red, and had black circles around the knee caps and separating onto five black lines that traced down to the red bare feet and to the five claws. The hands had the same black circles, with fives lines individually racing down one finger each to the sharp claws.

Nic took a step forward, and lava dripped from his mouth. As he stepped, land jutted up from beneath on one side. Pillars of rock coated in fresh lava prodded from the earth, and Nic took more slow steps and more small pillars jutted up.

"This power, I remember it." Sophie muttered.

"Don't tell me." Cana muttered, her body shuddering from high up. "I think it's one of those Legendary Pokémon that kicked Acnologia's ass!"

Greninja looked with concern. "Yeah."

Volans swallowed as everything was like a molten lava battlefield that went for miles around. He followed his attention down towards Nic as he stopped several feet in front of Lysandre. "So…this is Nic's power that was told."

Corvus could barely breathe. "That's Nic…AWESOME!"

Nic bellowed a hot roar that sent heated shockwaves all around, making the land quake and crack, making lava bubble and having Lysandre scoot back some.

"**Legendary Force – Groudon!**" He bellowed out, roaring once again and making land bulge all around.

Despite how much power Lysandre felt from Nic, he scoffed angrily. "Heh! Don't think that just because you used that power again doesn't mean you will be mighty enough to defeat me! How can you have activated it when you don't have a motivation! Doom is what should've killed you!"

Nic head lowered as steam arose from his mouth. "You're wrong. I was saved once again, and an old friend got me back to my feet." He brought his head back. "And now…to avenge Pavo and my crew!" His mouth glowed and he brought his head forward. "**Fire Blast!**"

He fired a huge, pulsing blast of fire, shaking the land beneath as a fire in the shape of a star went blasting ahead after Lysandre. Lysandre put his hands out and emitted a violent shockwave of hatred that shrilled outwards. The assaults collided, and fire and darkness erupted in between the two, quaking everything once more.

'_This temperature is so high.'_ Lysandre thought. He was caught shocked when a sudden green beam raced through the explosion, and Lysandre found himself screaming through a disastrous green explosion that shattered small parts of the land around, sending lava and fresh hot rock all around.

Lysandre emerged from the explosion as shadows. He reemerged at a higher altitude with a grunt of annoyance and pain. He watched the explosion settle, and saw Nic down below, unmoved and emitting a low roar.

"How annoying." Lysandre brought his hands together and made a blue sphere of negative aura. He shot his arms forward and a ripple bellowed as he shot it at Nic. "**Aura Sphere!**"

As the move shot towards Nic, his arm glowed a bright white. His Hammer Arm was brought back and he forcefully punched forward. Both attacks met, their individual force making air ripples that shook the newly established earth. It sounded like more bombs went off, and a bright flash took up the scene. A few glints passed before a shockwave sent violent winds all around, making Nic skid back several feet.

After regaining foot, he looked back up, seeing Lysandre far overhead and sailing downwards with shadows on his lower body. He flew in a harsh slant and had Dragon Claw formed as he flew at astonishingly fast levels.

"**Lava Plume!**" Nic tensed up and curled up just a little. The segments all around his body and attire glinted a lava red and his body expelled a shockwave, an eruption of fire that went in all directions. The blast wave expelled out, and Lysandre's Dragon Claw met the tsunami of fire. Both attacks fiercely clashed, and Lysandre grunted as the immense force of the enhanced Fire-Type prowess actually cancelled out, leaving him in place as the fire cleared out, and yet another Solar Beam was fired from Nic, which beamed with intensity after him.

"You're aggravating me!" Lysandre let loose a loud roar as his body expelled a catastrophic hurricane of darkness and Ominous Wind. The raging force of darkness was like a veil that shielded the Solar Beam, and the green blast diminished into nothing.

Everyone above watched in awe as no words came to mind. Fur and hair flew as mouths hung open. They've never felt such a force and heat up close. This battle was beyond what they could comprehend at the astronomical levels playing out.

Nic growled up at Lysandre as he felt Lysandre's growing power. The dark purple surrounding the monster's body thickened, and his bloody vermilion eyes didn't falter. The power Lysandre had continued to escalate, and dark pillars ruptured and pierced the lava-like landscape all around.

Nic looked around, but said nothing as he looked forward at Lysandre and his growing force. All he did was look up at him.

"**Dark Pulse!**"

Lysandre unleashed a devastating beam of dark rings that broke the sound barrier. The attack beamed ahead, and Nic inhaled and roared out, exhaling another Lava Plume. Simultaneously, everyone above saw a huge wall of fire and darkness erupt upwards, and the land shuddered in response.

"GAH! NIC HAS THIS MUCH POWER?!" Corvus screamed.

Greninja only stared, not even moving his head to nod as the catastrophe down below settled. "Yeah. This is the power of Pokémon."

The black and fiery explosion settled, and Lysandre was twenty feet away from Nic. Both had vicious expressions, and Lysandre readied Shadow Claw. "You foolish light." He rushed don in. "I'll never stay down as long as you are up!"

"The feeling is mutual!" Nic opened his mouth and fired molten rocks at Lysandre. Eruption, however, didn't make its course as Lysandre faded into shadows and reappeared in front of Nic. Lysandre slashed up, making the blow strong enough to make Nic grunt in pain as he sailed back, but still had his feet under him and new land came up from behind and acted as a cushion for Nic, thudding into it, but took minor injuries.

Lysandre conjured up a sphere of black and purple and fired it. "**Shadow Ball!**" His attack sailed at Nic with immense force, yet Nic opened his mouth and fired a booming Solar Beam. The two attacks actually passed the other this time, and time slowed down as shock came across all faces. Time sped up again and the two attacks met their marks, causing both sides to get caught up in explosions and yelling.

"GAH!" Lysandre fell and smashed into the fresh earth.

"GURH!" Nic smashed through the earth behind him, falling onto his back.

Both sides got up, the dust and steam dispersing. The dark pillars piercing the ground and earth alike faded, and dark energy swelled around Lysandre as he got back up. "You can never see that destiny demands that the void is to be eternal?! All shall perish! And I'll make a note of that starting with you!"

The energy swelling around Lysandre began to glisten, and the land never ceased to quake as the energy emitted began to converge to a single point. The dark energy tuned into a vicious sphere that became a shining silver.

"**Ancient Power!** And…" He opened his mouth, exhaling a blue beam that swallowed up the sphere and both the sphere and the beam attacked together. "**Dragon Breath!**"

The attacks went after Nic, yet he didn't falter as he emitted a violent roar. He stomped on the ground, and violent cracks raced through the earth and lava. Lava and golden energy erupted as the cracks raced after the incoming combined assault. "**Earth Power!**" The attacks met right in the middle, and several glints appeared before everyone and a violent explosion ruptured once again, sending shockwaves of lava, silver, and blue in all directions.

The ground cracked some more, and lava filled the gaps. Everyone held onto Volans and Corvus as they had to escalate higher as heated rock spouted below.

"It's madness!" Volans exclaimed.

"Those two are fighting with their highest capabilities. This could go either way." Sophie said.

"**Fire Blast!**" Nic opened his mouth down below, and let loose a raging star of fire that enflamed the earth. The attack met its mark once more on Lysandre, engulfing him in great flames that exploded. The monster screamed as he skidded backwards into the earth, shattering fresh rock.

"I won't lose! Not to you again!" Lysandre's fists clenched as he roared up to the void above, and Nic felt a great energy swell. A white force field and a multitude of energy comets surged. Te energy was massive, and Nic began to curl up again.

"**Earth Power!**" He made the ground rupture as the cracks and gushing earth and lava raced ahead, just as Lysandre expelled his attack.

"**Legendary Arts – Psystrike!**" Lysandre let loose a shockwave once more, and the force field and comets all expelled outwards and ruptured against Nic's Erath Power. The comets all bombarded the wall of lava and earth, and Nic was left baffled as Lysandre's force field was still behind the comets. Nic screamed as the attack engulfed him, powering through his Earth Power. The remaining comets also bombarded Nic, and he roared as agonizing pain shot him back from a huge wall of white before him that expanded out.

Down below, everyone saw a huge trail went far away from a massive crater beyond comprehension. Their eyes were wide as they got a closer look…Nic was on a knee. At the end of the long trail, Nic's body was steaming and his armor-like attire had bruises. The attack left a harsh mark and he was panting and on a knee while Lysandre was still levitating with his dark purple aura still coating him.

"Are you through yet?!" Lysandre bellowed. "HRAH!" With no time to waste, Lysandre fired a fierce and large Dark Pulse, shaking the hot ground and beaming its way towards Nic.

Nic felt fatigue catch on, and he tried standing firm. He grunted as he saw that Lysandre was truly a savage beast and had power. His eyes narrowed as Dark Pulse closed in…

"Nic! You can keep going!" Nic's eyes cascaded up and he saw the crew high above. Their voices began to strengthen as his eyes slowly widened.

"Everyone…"

"Vanquish this scum from our world!" Volans declared.

"Give him what for!" Corvus shouted.

"All the way!" Lupus shouted.

"We're in this to the end!" Cana shouted.

"I wanna remember a happy ending!" Sophie cried out.

"No backing down! Just like we've done for all those years!" Greninja cried out.

'_Guys!'_ Nic looked back ahead as the torrent-like Dark Pulse closed in. His eyes stared at it. _'They're right. We're in this together, and with Pavo always with us…we can't fail!'_ He roared loudly as heated ripples exerted out, and his body shined a bright crimson color.

The Dark Pulse made contact, but instead, Nic was veiled by the crimson energy, and the attack's damage didn't faze him.

"What?!" Lysandre was in nothing short of an uproar as Nic had protected himself. "You damn brat…" He felt the strange power escalating, and the untamable force began to rise, as did the heat. His eyes widened as the land was beginning to scorch. "The land…this power…is he…?"

Everyone above felt yet another power shift, this one being hotter than before, and the cracks in the black, steaming ground began to flare. Everyone felt the land quake as Nic's crimson glow turned red and drew in so much power and unparalleled energy that an actual field of red surrounded him.

"Lysandre! I'll make this world the way it was, before you ruined it all!" The energy around Nic began to condense while shining brightly. "I'll reconcile with Erza! I'll avenge our fallen friend! And I'll make this place home to all of the Spirits left in this world!"

The condensed energy seemingly crystalized with two layers. The outer layer looked like red glass, whole the inner layer looked like lava flowing through.

"This immense level, it's escalating more than before?" Lysandre felt so confused as the flaming ground steamed and shook. "He's used Legendary Force a number of times in the past, how can he be pushing to this level?!"

The energy chrysalis condensed as pressure build up even more. The two layers actually fused together, making a dark purple. Lysandre and everyone felt something_ extreme_ in the power shift, for it was rising exponentially.

A glowing upside down orange 'U' with arrows appeared on the sphere.

The core finally cracked and shattered. Hot shockwaves and lava erupted all around, and more fresh land erupted over the cooled layers. Pillars and more cracked land erupted, and the cracks in the land lit ablaze.

Lysandre looked down as the land was on fire. "What is going on?!" He looked ahead as a footstep was heard, and everyone was left shocked once again.

Nic let out a hot roar into the atmosphere once more. The red color on his armor and attire had become a crimson, and seemed thicker than before. His teeth, underside of the arms, spikes, and shirt and gray scales underneath had become charred black. The back of the coat, the back of the hands, and the bulbous crimson buckle all had a lava upside down 'U'. The blades on the tail were more separate, and all of the black segments all around his body now flowed with lava, and his pupils were red. As he opened his mouth, the inside was glowing a lava color.

"He…t-transformed again?" Corvus could barely breath. The heat was just so primordial, as was this power. The fire was like a magma chamber.

"Whoa." Lupus muttered.

Cana was left staring as a field of steam was behind Nic. "It was like what Groudon did against Acnologia. He transformed like before."

Nic bellowed out a strong roar once more, making Lysandre cover up as the air itself had small embers, indicating the particles themselves couldn't survive the heat. "**Legendary Force – Primal Groudon!**" He said confidently. His lava glare darted right at Lysandre, making the recipient weary as his bloody evil air was being burned. "Like I said, everything you've done, we'll fix!"

"GRAH! **Shadow Ball!**" Having no words, Lysandre threw a blistering Shadow Ball. The black and purple sphere went lying away at Nic, yet to Lysandre's shock, Nic opened his mouth, and charged up green orbs all around.

The orb in front of Nic fired away. "**Solar Beam!**" The green beam blasted at the Shadow Ball, making a large, burning explosion in the middle. The burning ground rattled, and as the smoke cleared, Nic glowed a lava color.

"**Lava Plume!**" Nic exerted a lot of force, and then the land kept quaking as he exerted a shockwave of fire, proceeded by an explosion of molten fire, far hotter than last time. Lysandre infused his hands in Dragon Claw once more. With all of his force, he thrusted before like last time, but the impact of the two attacks was different, and Lysandre actually felt the burning heat and screamed as Lava Plume took over, and was far more powerful than before.

Everyone looked in shock as the tide was actually on both sides. To say it was gonna be even would be an understatement. They all witnessed the battle unfold, and the fire and explosion vanished.

Lysandre wasn't seen anywhere, and he reappeared in the air, emerging from shadows. "You're going down Nic Pularis!" He swiped his arm and made a Shadow Claw in his right hand. "DIE!"

Nic closed his mouth and then opened it up again, firing molten rocks at Lysandre. "**Eruption!**" The attack went blasting away, but Lysandre reached out ahead, and a spatial portal appeared. The Eruption went inside, and the portal closed.

Nic turned to his right, seeing the portal open up. The molten rocks went zooming through and blasted his right side, creating a great explosion of fire that made him step towards his right. He regained footing, but only had enough time to look back at Lysandre.

Lysandre was closing the distance, but the closer he got, the hotter it was. He felt like his darkness was being burned, and the extraordinary heat and lava didn't seem to end. Still, he pressed on and slashed Nic. His Shadow Claw met its mark right on the side of his armored face, making him skid back a few feet.

"YOU CAN'T BEST ME!" Lysandre's claim wasn't easily backed up, as Nic's armored side only made him grunt, and he looked back at Lysandre and saw the man give a feral glare, despite how his Shadow Claw faded away since Nic hardly sustained much. _'How is he not taking as much damage? This primal power, it's tremendous! But I won't have him have his way!'_

Nic's eyes glinted. "**Lava Plume!**"

Lysandre's eyes widened as he felt the heat escalate, and he was suddenly swamped by yet another shockwave of fire that was followed by an explosion. His feral and bloody roar bellowed through the fire as it reached out. As it traveled, Lysandre shot back and smashed into the earth.

The fire faded, and Nic opened his mouth and green energy orbs were made once more. "**Solar Beam!**" He fired the green beam once more, and it raveled over the land and shattered the ground it traveled upon, making lava burst.

Lysandre grunted and his aura fumed. His arms swiped in opposite arcs. "**Psychic!**" He manipulated the Solar Beam, and the beam split into two. The two beams went pass him, and in the far distance behind him, explosions could be seen that beamed up into the sky.

"I can't take anymore! The eternal void shall rot you all!" His rage spilled out, and the land behind him ruptured. Several dark pillars of the darkness spouted upwards, and Nic grunted as he felt Lysandre's power escalate even further.

"GRAH!" Lysandre extended his arms forward, and by using Psychic, the molten lava and rock behind him rose up. The debris came like a massive tsunami that flooded after Nic. The raging tsunami went crumbling away at Nic. But the embers and heat all around him never faltered. This made Lysandre frown as Nic raised a foot.

"**Earthquake!**" The sudden attack call made all eyes widen.

Nic roared and stomped his foot down. The second it touched the ground, all of Hell broke out. A crater was underneath Nic, and then cracks ran along the earth. It was like the entire landscape cracked like glass. The crew above saw that the cracks ran as far as the eye could see, and then the ground completely shattered entirely. The land shifted into uneven fractions, debris rippled as immense shockwaves rattled through everywhere. Everything was in disarray, and the shockwaves and rippling chaos echoed out and clashed with the torrent of debris and rock Lysandre threw ahead.

A giant collision bellowed, and it all quickly fell to the ground as it continued shaking, throwing Lysandre off. "What?! How did he get this much power?!"

As the lava swished, Nic then glowed an aura of pure lava color. He roared ahead, and a hot shockwave echoed. "For everyone! FOR PAVO!"

The entire land began to glow lava color as well, and Lysandre felt an immense energy flow. The dark pillars behind him faded as lava replaced them, and He watched with a roar as Nic slammed his hands down into the earth.

"**Maxus Legendary Arts – Precipice Blades!**"

A near infinite level of incandescent blades of stone tipped in lava pierced through the lava ground, and the entire land ruptured and shattered as hundreds of blades pierced through the earth. Lysandre screamed in violent agony as the Precipice Blades caught up to him, despite how he was causing a great power flux. Darkness swelled about, but the forceful blades and sheer number out ruled, and the monster roared as a lava explosion roared, and the land quaked so hard that it shattered completely. Everyone covered up as a field of stone and lava made them go blind, and a beam of lava exploded entirely.

* * *

Lucy sulked as she was floating in suspense in front of a large blue core. "I can't believe this really happened to me. One minute I'm normal, the next I'm Happy-food?!"

"Don't worry, I won't eat you!" The Exceed's voice echoed, despite him not physically present.

Natsu pounded the ground of the Infinity Castle. "Damnit! Lucy! Hang on!"

"Everyone, remain calm." Warren insisted. "Apparently Lucy sped up the Real Nightmare Spell, but there should be a way to fix it."

"Okay, then how?!" Natsu shouted.

"We got it from Jaune-Luc and Levy back at the guild, apparently you have to-!" Warren suddenly felt a vibrant pulse running through the area, and his eyes shook at the sudden immense power shift.

Gray shuddered. "You feel that?"

"What's going on?!" Erza shouted.

The whole castle shook, and every single person inside looked uneasy as an earthquake bellowed. They all felt a great deal of panic, and the most affected was Lucy. She was still in front of the huge core, and she saw the actual core slowly turn lava colored.

"What the-?!" Lucy became stiff. "What is this? Does this feel like…Celestial Spirits…?"

Her eyes widened when the core jutted out blades with lava tips. They jutted all around, even in the space she was in. Lucy was left in shock as she went blind. Everyone else aboard the ship screamed as the blades actually pierced the ground, and the Precipice Blade scattered all across the entire Infinity Castle, piercing every corner.

When it reached the Infinity Clock in a certain location, the clock, despite the immense power it had, was no match for the sudden attack, and the entire clock was stabbed. It was pierced right through, and the entire Infinity Clock itself ruptured and exploded in lava.

The small ghost that came with the clock screamed violently as she was swallowed up by the lava and blinding heat, and the Infinity Clock and Castle entirely let loose a lava-like shockwave.

Not long afterwards, Natsu was seeing darkness, and he awoke to find shooting stars in the sky. He groaned as he thought something was beneath, and he slowly got up to find Ichiya posing with sparkles around.

"Man! I'm glad you're alright!" Ichiya stated.

"I don't get it, what just happened?" Romeo questioned. "It's like everything went…kaboom."

In truth, all of Fairy Tail was riding on Kanaloa, the octopus everyone fought before. Natsu wasn't too fond of the idea, and his cheeks puffed as his motion sickness kicked in.

"Wait, Kanaloa?!" Vanessa looked down to realize that it was indeed Kanaloa.

"There's no need to worry. Kanaloa and I have basked in the parfume of friendship." Ichiya explained. "He shall assist us in our cause to find your comrades."

Happy shifted the conversation. "Natsu…" He sounded so low.

Natsu gasped. "Lucy?" He looked around. "Lucy!" He turned towards the others, hoping they'd know.

"Relax, Warren and the others are already working on it." Gray informed.

Natsu stood up. "That's not good enough!" His eyes widened suddenly. "Wait…that smell." His nose twitched, and he turned towards the sky as the comets went overhead. "Lucy? I think I picked up her scent!"

"Point the way like a real man!"

Natsu pointed in a direction. "That way!"

"Very well, Kanaloa!" Ichiya insisted kindly towards his new friend. Kanaloa then jumped up and onwards, and so they went to search for Lucy, whom was falling out of the sky.

* * *

The lava and blazing fire all around the entire landscape faded away, and the cracks cooled down, giving off endless steam. The ground was completely leveled from that explosive finish, and Nic growled as he was still surrounded by a pool of lava.

Cana's eyes were wide. "Whoa…"

"That was…" Sophie trailed off.

"Awesome." Lupus muttered.

Nic growled out as steam and lava surged all around. His energy was extraordinary, and compared to before, Lysandre's energy was lower than before, just like when he finished him as Kyogre. A thick purple shadow wisp in the air far away, and it gave off a corrosive vibe.

The wispy shadow of pure evil shaped into Lysandre, but only his top half. He was badly injured. That last attack left some charred parts on his corrosive and dead-like body. "Nic Pularis." He growled. "You…you can't possibly win! Damn you!" His upper body cringed as his vile aura stayed steady, yet he couldn't.

He relented once more as Nic growled out at him. "I swear Nic Pularis, no matter how many times this ends, one of us will fall in the end. You may have overwhelmed me this time, but rest assure…" He was slowly encasing himself in shadows. "The true battle shall test whether the blackest of voids can destroy all that is good, and destroy and eradicate the universe. Until then, enjoy the time you have left." With those words, the shadows disappeared and faded into thin air.

Lysandre was gone, and then all at once, the vile and corrosive energy all around lifted. Everyone breathed in fresh air for the first time in what felt like forever, and the dark void that loomed like a ghost high above brightened up a little.

As the ground cooled, everyone descended to the ground, and they all ran up to Nic. He turned around as he saw smiles on their faces. He grew a rainbow field that encased him, and the lava around him. In a bright flash, Nic reverted back to himself, and he fell over.

At the last second, Volans swooped in and caught him as he fell. "Hang on, we got you!" He helped in supported Nic, as the latter was unable to stand.

Everyone saw his panting and saw how completely exhausted he was. He pushed himself bitterly this time. He looked barely conscious, but at the same time lightheaded.

Sophie smiled. "That was amazing. You drove away Lysandre again."

Cana frowned. "Though he's still went back into hiding…" She smirked. "He so got the ass-kicking he deserved."

"That was the power you possessed. That's incredible." Lupus admitted.

Corvus clenched his fists and jumped. "YEEHAW! We did it! We won! We actually won!"

Greninja went over and supported Nic in Volans's stead. Greninja looked down and saw the small grin on Nic's face. "We won."

Nic's grin never faded. "Yeah, we did. This time."

Sophie got back to the matter at hand. She gasped and looked over. "Wait, what about…"

Everyone looked over, and to their shock, Lysandre's throne was in shambles, yet as shocking as it was, the Spooky Plate didn't have a single scratch on it. Sophie went over, and she dusted the small rubble off. The Plate was hot. She found it surprisingly heavy and she turned back and walked back to face Nic with it.

"Now, here's your prize." She gently and slowly approached Nic with the Spooky Plate. When the Plate touched Nic's chest, a bright light flashed and blinded everyone. Sophie and everyone else covered up as they felt the radiating ghastly energy shining.

Nic felt no pain as he grunted. His body, with all of the Plates he's ascertained, had finally made it so accepting the new Plate was no problem, despite how ghastly the horrors and energy it possessed. The light soon faded, and Nic was seen huffing still as he still couldn't stand.

Greninja adjusted and helped to keep Nic up. "You okay?"

"Yeah…I think so." Of course Nic would be lying if he said he felt nothing more than a headache. His body felt so much strain. It was hard enough to remain in Legendary Force, but going beyond the limit this time took a toll, and it seemed his body couldn't function for a bit.

Corvus turned towards a giant pile of rubble, getting a bad feeling of what was underneath. "Uh, guys…?" Everyone took notice of where he was pointing and looking, and noticed it was the same spot where the Zodiacs and King were before.

"Oh no." Lupus muttered.

"Everyone, uncover them!" Volans shouted. Everyone, who was able-bodied, rushed on over and began to pull off the rubble, and Lupus's Sonic Magic was able to hear them underneath. He and the other were able to get all of the Spirits out, and it took some time to get the King out.

Cana helped in getting the injured and near-death Aquarius out. She supported her, and the Spirit opened one of her eyes. "You…" She recognized Cana, but Cana was in no mood to argue. She just wanted to help, despite how much they disliked the other. Aquarius just remained silent as a small grin came across her face.

Sometime later, after all of the Spirits were pulled out, they were all sitting on the land and recovering from hanging from the chains after so long. The crew stood in front, with Nic barely able to stand on his own.

"You all, we can't…we can't thank you enough!" Aries insisted, tears running down her face full of joy and pain as her body still hurt.

"You and your crew are just…wicked." Scorpio had no words to say.

"Thanks man, and ladies." Taurus thanked, and he was surprisingly nice rather than perverted, After the horrors he's been through, it would take a small bit of time for him to be back to his old self.

"Baby." Cancer said.

Loke smiled with deep gratitude. His quite was barely intact, and blood was stained all about. His glasses lost a lens. "You guys, Nic, you have our thanks."

Cana smirked. "Glad to see you're alive."

"So much punishment…so much punishment…" Virgo was traumatized to say the least. "Thank you…but please, stop the punishments."

"Relax, no one's getting punished anymore." Volans said.

"I must say, thank you for your valiant services in freeing us from the demon." Sagittarius saluted.

"It was our honor." Nic said.

The destroyed cape of the Celestial Spirit King shifted, and all attention was turned towards him. Though he looked anything but majestic, he still had the floor.

"Old friends. You have risked your own safety in stopping the greatest force that has ever destroyed our world. There have been incidents before, and yet this one has trumped everything. This level of darkness that our world suffered was of no bounds, and you all gave it everything you had into freeing us and driving away the monster." He sounded more than gracious.

Volans looked up at him. "Your greatness, we've done everything we've could, but not without the help of Nic and friends."

"It was more than those from Earth Land." The King explained. "Without certainty, this was a group victory. The kindness and dedication you all held dear was but by true bonds, and by those who gave themselves up so that they can allow comrades to venture ahead."

Everyone looked a little sullen as they all thought of the same thing. A certain late Spirit.

His majesty smiled. "Pavo would've been very proud of you all. All of you, we are forever in your debt."

Nic smiled up. "We owe everything to each other." He turned back towards the crew with smiles. "And to our eternal friend."

The crew's smiles and eyes turned towards a fluttering feather that was carried off by the winds. The feather was dancing in the winds; fluttering all carefree and with no regrets. As they all watched the feather flutter up and into the air above, they all felt a wave of happiness fill them.

"_My friends, we did it."_

They could hear Pavo congratulating them, and that thought alone was enough to make all of their eyes mist, but they turned their attention towards the Zodiacs and the King.

"You have all banded together…but now it would seem that this is the end."

The crew gasped in shock.

"With Lysandre gone, it shall take some time to repair our world." The King looked crestfallen. "The stars cannot guide us on this journey, and so we must rely on Nic to vanquish Lysandre once and for all. Only then shall all be restored."

"What are you saying?" Corvus asked. "You mean…?"

"With him gone, we can now repair the damage done, and the Celestial World shall regain its former properties." The King looked up to the blank space above. It was now dark blue, as it should be. "Once Lysandre's darkness is permanently gone, maybe, just maybe, everything will be back to normal."

The crew looked at each other, hopeful grins on their faces. They knew what he meant. He meant that the stars shall return, and the world shall be restored, and hopefully everything else, including the Spirits. Who knows? Maybe someday, they'll see Pavo again…someday. But for now, they must press on, and remember him forever.

Volans frowned. "Nic, Cana, Sophie, Greninja."

The mentioned turned towards him, hearing the tone of his voice.

"At first, I was more than reluctant to put my faith in you, mainly due to pride and past experiences." He looked dead at them. "We all came in this together, and we weren't too fond of each other…but, as the time went on…you guys are my crew…you all are my family." His fists clenched. "No matter how far apart we are. No matter who or what we are. No matter the pain we've been put through. This crew, is forever."

Lupus stepped forward. "This is my crew too! I may have won my pack back, but you guys are worth more than a hundred packs!" He swallowed as his eyes got misty. "I wanted to make Lysandre pay for the harm he's done to Canes, and now it's over. Our crew won."

Corvus began to tear up waterfall. "It's actually over. *sniffle* W-we won…and now *sniffle* we can rest and relax after so long!" He swallowed hard as he caught his breath. He slowly walked on over towards the humans and Greninja. "Guys."

"Guys…" Volans closed in.

"Guys…" Lupus joined in as well.

Nic, Greninja, Cana, and Sophie felt their hearts hurt. In a flash, it was a group hug, with small tears running down their faces as their time was over. All at once, they began to rethink the adventure they've shared. They've come across many lands, and made many sacrifices along the way. They all went through the dark seas, and took nothing but pain; yet, they all powered through together, and with that came bonds. Bonds that made them who they were today, a victorious crew. It was a long way, but they all came so far and settled matters, and now it was tie for half of the crew to finally part ways.

"Lupus, Corvus, Volans," Nic muttered.

"We know." Volans's squeeze got a little tighter. "We'll see each other again real soon."

Everyone pulled apart, and Corvus pumped a fist, despite the tears running down his face. He smiled happily. "We'll all pull off a big celebration, and we can't wait for you guys to see it!"

"For now, please return home." Lupus said, despite the words hurting. "You guys need to recover as much as we do."

Sophie nodded. "We will."

Cana smiled as her arms crossed. "We'll be sure to get rest, and you guys do the same."

Greninja smiled underneath his tongue. "Take care."

"Until next time." Nic announced, a soft smile on his face."

Everyone took in the faces of the Spirits, humans, and crew in general. With a nod, the King waved his arm, and the humans and Greninja vanished away, leaving the Spirits of the crew to look up with proud smiles as they pictured Cana, Sophie, Greninja, and Nic, all with smiles.

The same feather fluttered faster than before, filled with joy as it flew off into the unknown sky, free from darkness and into light.

* * *

In Earth Land, four figures emerged. When they uncovered themselves, they quickly took in their surroundings. It was all nature. They heard the birds chirp, the river nearby running, and they felt the nice breeze pass on by.

Nic and everyone turned towards the other, small smiles on their faces.

"Well, we're back." Sophie said quietly.

Cana looked up at the sky. "Well what do you know, haven't seen the sun so long it almost feels foreign to me."

Greninja's blank eyes turned towards Nic. "We're home."

Nic smiled. "Yeah, we are." Of course the guys realized the location; it was the exact same spot from when Pavo sent them to the Celestial Spirit World. They could tell by the markings and broken branches from when Nic had a bad fuse from being upset.

Sophie looked towards the direction of the Guild Hall. "Alright loverboy, let's get you and Erza that apology."

* * *

"I'm gonna stuff my belly!" Natsu opened his mouth wide and chomped down on a thick piece of meat, nearly taking the whole thing off of the bone.

"Not before I do first!" Dan from the Legion Corps wasn't one to back down from a competition, and he and Natsu engaged in an eating competition.

Wendy nervously smiled. "You think that's such a good idea?"

"They're barbarians, but at least they have the guts to prove such a claim." Carla sighed.

The battle over the Infinity Clock was over – considering it was completely destroyed and nothing of it remained! The Reborn Oracion Seis was arrested, and the Legion Corps made amends with Fairy Tail. To show their new friendship, a celebration went around. It was as loud and boisterous as can be, with laughter and some ideal pain, but that was all part of the spirits.

Erza turned towards Master Makarov, seeing him relax with little Asuka right underneath his arm. "Master?"

"Everything is finally peaceful as can be." He muttered, leaving Erza to turn ahead.

Vanessa was right by her side, looking at her and seeing that she wasn't grinning as before, rather she was still looking slightly contemplative. She knew what was going on, but as much as she wanted to assure Erza that Nic will be back, she herself couldn't help but feel worried.

He and the others have been gone for a long time. The battle was over, but where were they? It was more than a little discomforting to say the least.

Figures appeared in front of the Guild Hall, and the Legion Corps and everyone turned their attention to the mysterious guests that appeared.

Byro looked behind. "It would seem we have some unannounced visitors."

Gildarts turned around. "Oh yeah, who could that be?"

Natsu's eyes as the meat fell from his face. All eyes were on the four ahead of them, and they didn't find any way of moving from shock. They couldn't believe who started walking in, and the most awe struck was none other than Erza.

Cana winked. "Hey, we having a party?"

Sophie looked surprised, but smiled. "I don't remember us getting along so well. Must have happened while we were gone."

"It's nice to see you guys once more." Greninja announced.

Nic had a soft and inviting smile. "Hi guys."

"YOU'RE BACK!" Everyone shouted. They all rushed up to the four with big smiles on their faces, some sentimental tears dripping from a few members.

"You had us worried sick! So unmanly!" Elfman exclaimed.

"Huh, so you decided to stop hiding." Gajeel noted, as grumpy as can be, but grinned.

Juvia looked excited. "We're all glad you're okay! Right my beloved?" She turned towards Gray with big heart-like eyes.

"What timing you guys got."

Natsu smirked. "Yeah, you're just in time for a celebration! We kicked butt!"

Lucy flashed a smile. "We were worried. Thank goodness."

Cana sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "Oh come on guys, you're embarrassing us!"

Though karma just so happened to be against her, as insult to injury just occurred with Gildarts springing off his seat and clasping his hands together and having hearts around his face. "Cana, sweetie! I knew you would make it home!" He looked so happy, and he embraced his daughter in public.

Cana could only feel embarrassment grow, and everyone around just laughed at her misfortune. But if she were honest with herself, the brunette was secretly just as happy as her father. She just accepted the hug and grinned softly.

"Yeah, sorry I worried you…Dad."

Nic crossed his arms and smiled at the sentimental reunion before him. He knew that it was tie that he faced the music as well. It was time to face what drove him away. Taking a deep breath, he turned towards Erza, who was standing some ways away. He went over and stood in front, both half-grinning and looking a little reluctant.

Erza looked dead into Nic's eyes. Finally, Erza spoke. "Nic, I…"

"Erza, uh…"

Both actually spoke at the same time, and they cut the other off. Nic coughed and talked first. "You first."

"Okay." Erza slowly advanced, and she stood closer to Nic. "Nic…I'm…I'm sorry." She admitted. She then looked away. "I shouldn't have been so selfish. I was just-"

Her eyes suddenly widened and she was cut off by a warming embrace. All hearts stopped as everyone saw Nic embracing Erza, with his chin resting on her shoulder plate. Erza was left breathless as Nic hugged her after such a long time.

"I understand, Erza." He said. "It's okay. I know you were just looking out for me. I was upset…but it all worked out in the end. I'm glad you're still okay."

"Nic." Erza was shocked, but a soft smile of relief washed over her as she was forgiven. She dug into Nic's embrace and everyone watched with warm smiles.

Makarov walked up, and the two separated from their hug of forgiveness. "Well done. I was worried what happened to you."

"Wait." Jet looked around, confused. "Something's off."

"Yeah." Droy looked around as well, holding a tin of turkey. "Wasn't there that peacock-dresser guy?"

"Yeah, what was his name? Pavo?" Wendy inquired.

"How peculiar. Why isn't he here?" Natsu questioned. He turned towards Nic and the others who had just returned. "And why are Cana and Sophie wearing fancy dresses that are all torn up?"

Inquiry was in the air as all attention grew conspicuously at the four. Nic looked back at Greninja and the others, and the more questions they were given of Pavo, the more their hearts sank. It was time to face the music once more, but it won't end well, that's for certain.

"Listen." Nic started. He glanced at Lucy. "Lucy, this is important."

Lucy blinked. "Oh, really? What is it?"

Nic took in a deep breath, and shifted into his Mind Plate Form. The sudden Plate change was a surprise, and Nic backed away. "Everyone, join hands." Everyone, even the Legion Corps, all held hands in a circle. The radius was huge, and Nic closed his eyes. Using his mental powers, he and everyone suddenly saw the scene around them become a blur, and then they suddenly found themselves in a flashback that started when Pavo fell over.

"What's this?" Jet exclaimed.

"He's using his powers to recap." Levy analyzed. "It's like a third person omniscient point of view."

Everyone thus paid attention to the _entire _flashback. Lucy was left in horror when she heard that Lysandre went on a Celestial Spirit genocide, and saw the group head to the hazardous world. All eyes were filled with horror as they saw the Celestial Spirit World, and watched Nic and the members meet Volans, Lupus, and Corvus. The dark energy was still creeping them out as they could feel it, despite it being a flashback.

"No way. You mean you guys went to the Celestial World to stop Lysandre?" Natsu muttered.

"And joined up with Pavo, who was really a Celestial Spirit?" Gray said.

They continued watching as they saw how the group was on the run, and how they saw Sirius, Canes, and Cetus attacking them, but watched them sail off. Their eyes nearly bulged out when they saw the crew fighting, especially with Nic against Cetus. They continued watching as the saw them enter the Heavenly Gates, and saw the vicious battles inside. They all felt immense horror when Draco was killed and Lysandre arrived.

Erza was the most horrified when she and everyone witnessed Nic falling down into the darkness, and watched the crew get their butt kicked pretty bad. They then saw Nic arise, and spines crawled and a few shriveled in terror as they witnessed Garchomp Mega Evolve into Mega Garchomp, surprising Byro especially.

"S-so Garchomp can Mega Evolve?!" Bickslow exclaimed.

"I ain't never facing that guy!" Max stated.

They watched in awe and terror as Mega Garchomp brutally thrashed Hydra, and they grew silent after the crew made it to the next pair of gates. Everyone, including Nic and the others who returned, all cried as they had the third person omniscient view, and watched the memories and Pavo's sacrifice, leaving the whole guild in tears.

"P-Pavo…" Lucy had tears running down her face, and Wendy was crying in her hands as she watched Pavo die. Natsu was outraged, but it was of no use as they watched the flashback continue on, and they all grew ecstatic once they saw the six individual battles of the crew against Lysandre's top subordinates. The entire guild and Legion Corps was astounded by how Volans, Lupus, and Corvus fought, and won. Gildarts looked so proud as Cana defeated Vul, and everyone was shocked as Sophie took down Apus. No surprise with Nic and Greninja taking down Camelo though.

Then came the escalating fear. Lucy gasped in terror and guilt as she saw the King and the twelve Zodiacs bloodied and hurt, and chained behind Lysandre. All felt scared and paralyzed as the power escalated, and no words could be said when Nic went Primal Groudon.

"My word, this energy level…it's almost infinite." Makarov felt the mixed power between Nic and Lysandre, and all never felt so much power in their lives. They all then saw Nic use Precipice Blades, and watched Lysandre retreat. They watched as the flashback ended after the Zodiacs and King were freed, and they returned home.

Nic glowed and shifted back to himself. He slumped down, and was caught by Greninja. He was more than a little tired from using the Mind Plate too much there, but at least now everyone knew what had happened.

Lucy had misty eyes. "All this time…the Spirits were either killed or chained…by that monster." She turned towards Nic, no words coming to mind. "…you saved them."

Nic looked down. "We couldn't have done it without Pavo."

"He was truly a great man." Makarov noted.

Lucy thus explained her side of the story, about how she was needed as a sacrifice and everyone went up to a place called the Infinity Castle. They explained the numerous battles fought up there, and then explained Michelle turning back into a doll. It was sad, but it happened. Then they explained of the Precipice Blades.

Nic gasped. "Are you saying that my Precipice Blades actually crossed over?!"

"Yeah, and it completely reduced the Infinity Clock and Castle to nothing!" Happy added.

"I wonder how that was even possible?" Erza wondered.

Questions arose, but Cana drew up a conclusion. "Maybe because the Infinity Clock uses Celestial power. With Lucy's Celestial Spirit Magic as a key, and that lava explosion, Precipice Blades must have used the core of the castle to cross over and obliterate the clock and castle alike."

"An interesting theory." Makarov thought.

Byro looked conspicuously at Nic. "So, you're responsible for the Infinity Clock's destruction. I'm not sure whether to be thankful or astonished that your power destroyed something so maleficent."

Natsu pumped a fist. "Man, those Spirits you teamed up with kicked butt!"

"Volans, Corvus, and Lupus, were they? They seriously kicked some behind. I sure wouldn't wanna face them." Gray admitted, after seeing their individual fights.

Vanessa looked a little crestfallen. "It's still upsetting that our friend…"

Nic put a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. He was proud in the end."

Everyone thus rejoiced as their connections and mishaps were sorted out, though it was gonna take some time for Lucy to understand and process it all since her Spirits were imprisoned. She just couldn't stop crying, and Natsu was there to ease her. While Lucy was letting it all out, knowing the horrible truth of what happened, everyone took it easy for a bit, and allowed Lucy some time before sundown came, when she felt much better.

At that point, Byro and the Legion Corps decided to leave. "Thank you for your understanding. We must now head back to Zentopia, and seek a new path and purpose."

Makarov nodded in understanding. "Very well, we thank you."

Lucy looked better as she smiled. "You all take care."

Natsu put hands behind his arms. "I bet we'll see you guys again real soon."

"Keep in touch, okay? Let us know if you need our help." Gray noted.

Byro nodded, and so the Legion Corps set off, and Nic, Greninja, Cana, and Sophie looked up as a passing wind went by them. Lucy looked up to, feeling a breeze of relief. She felt happy now that she could summon her Spirits again, and she had the crew to thank.

* * *

A week went by rather quickly, and as the crew that returned from Fairy Tail decided to rest, the Magic Council, however, was in an uproar. In a long hallway, Lahar and Doranbolt walked, and met up with Org.

"Welcome back, Master Org." Doranbolt greeted. "How was your meeting?"

Org sighed. "As precarious as it could get. These reports of a few Spirits returning is still astonishing; still, I can't help but wonder…" His one eye looked out at the sky in the distance. "What kind of power was accountable?"

Lahar stepped up. "Sir, am I to say that the chairman still intends on blaming Fairy Tail?"

Org scoffed. "Honestly, the chairman beliefs that we're making Zentopia the victim rather than an involved party. He intends to hold the last laugh, of course I on the other hand know that isn't wise."

"Especially with Nic Pularis." Lahar added.

Org nodded. "He can't let it go, despite my better judgement. It's been seven years since the clash between those so-called Pokémon and Acnologia." A small smile appeared on his face. "Still, the face the chairman made was priceless when Nic made that warning. We'd all be wise to stay clear."

Doranbolt tilted his head with a smirk. "Zeref, these Pokémon, Acnologia, and now the universe is on one guy's shoulders? Things just keep getting weird, don't they?"

Org began walking pass them, giving a light chuckle. "That indeed, Doranbolt. That indeed."

* * *

Makarov led Gildarts down some stairs. It was dark, and barely lit. While others back at the Guild Hall were doing whatever, Gildarts was led to the former Guild Hall, down towards the basement. Each step echoed, and he grew all the more concerned.

"Okay, just where are we heading to exactly?" He asked.

"You'll find out soon enough." Makarov continued the long descent down the staircase.

"Still. Aren't we trespassing?"

"This place shall be ours again soon enough."

Makarov and Gildarts reached the bottom of the stairs, where there was a silver double door. Makarov opened up the doors, and the two entered inside, with Makarov closing the doors behind them.

They now stood in a very spacious chamber, with a shiny Fairy Tail emblem in the middle of the floor. It was elegantly decorated on the sides, and a very large door was in front of them.

Gildarts's curiosity never stopped mounting. "Just what are we dealing with here?"

He turned towards Makarov, and saw two fingers swiping across, and then across again in the opposite direction. He pointed the two fingers forward, and a large golden seal was inscribed on the door.

The door began to open, and inside, Gildarts's eyes widened as his cape began to blow. He suddenly forgot how to breathe. His lips were apart as what was before him was beyond anything he felt, though he couldn't lie when this level of immense power was like that when he saw the flashback of Nic against Lysandre again. The levels there trumped the power before him, but was still grand nonetheless.

"Wha…what the hell is this?" He turned towards Makarov as the shining light was before them. "You mean this was right beneath our feet the entire time?!"

"Behold…Lumen Histoire." Makarov announced, as his own ceremonial cape flew from the force. "This overwhelming feeling, it may not be like Lysandre, for his essence is pure eternal evil of infinite levels, but witness Fairy Tail's essence, the one of which Mavis spoke of."

Gildarts only stared. No words came to mind as he looked at the shocking phenomenon before him. He stepped back. "I don't…I'm speechless."

"I don't blame you." Makarov stated. "When Precht revealed this to me, I nearly forgot how to breathe." The mention of Precht didn't seem too bothersome, despite how Makarov nearly lurched when he remembered the former Master being killed by no trouble by Lysandre.

Gildarts turned towards the smaller man. "Hold on, why are you showing this to me?"

Makarov's deep glare rid Gildarts of any sense of awe, and was replaced by a case of seriousness. The gaze he was given was startling, and it looks very expectant.

"Like the previous Masters before me, it is my duty to pick the next Master." He paused as Gildarts's eyes stared at a loss for anything to comprehend.

"Gildarts Clive, you shall be the next Master of Fairy Tail."

* * *

In an open field, with rubble, two figures were seen, and they looked pretty calm and collective. One was blonde, and the other had black hair. Both looked out, disregarding the number of Dark Guild soldiers they had taken down from a few minutes ago.

"You hear?" The blonde asked as wind shifted in his hair. "The members of Fairy Tail that traveled through time seven years ago are back."

The black-haired guy looked up. "I don't care."

"Come on, yes you do. I can tell you looked up to Natsu just like I did."

The black-haired man still had his back turned. "That was a long time ago, back when we were kids."

The blonde snickered. "True." It was quiet for awhile before he spoke up again. "Still, you were a fan of Gajeel especially. I didn't care, he was scary."

"I know." The man's face turned towards the sky. "Still, I can't lie when I admit that it is fortunate both Gajeel and Nic Pularis have come back."

The blonde stood up. "Still out for a little revenge from what he did?"

The black-haired man looked back down. "It's not that I want to admit I want vengeance and answers, but-!"

"Sting!"

"Rogue!"

The mentioned turned around, and Sting turned around to face where the voices came from, as did Rogue. "Lector, Frosch, where were you guys?"

Lector was an Exceed. He had red fur and pointed ears. He had narrow eyes and a blue west. Frosch, however, was green with large eyes full of wonder and had a pink, black-spotted frog suit.

Lector scoffed. "Oh, just a little scouting. I still say those First Generation Dragon Slayers and that Nic fella got nothing on you, that's for sure."

"Fro thinks so too!" Frosch agreed.

Sting smirked. "I know, right?" He crouched down, and he gave his little Exceed pal a high-five.

"You're the strongest ever! And Natsu and Nic are gonna see it soon enough!" Lector proclaimed.

All four began walking away, looking nonchalant as they felt satisfied. Rogue was followed by Frosch, while Lector followed Sting.

Sting clenched a fist. "Ya know, I think I can take Natsu easily."

"No duh, you are the strongest Dragon Slayer out there!" Lector noted.

Sting snickered and turned towards Rogue. "Challenging them soon enough sounds fun, what do you say?"

"Not interested. I don't care." Rogue stated, not nearly as competitive as Sting.

"Fro thinks so too!" Frosch agreed.

All four went on ahead, back towards the Guild Hall, with their sights set on victory and being the strongest of them all.

* * *

**And that's the end of the Celestial Siege Arc! What did you guys think? Was the arc good? Details great? Anything that was appealing to it? I added a lot of originality to it for extra flavor, so if you guys have any opinions or comments on the Celestial Siege Arc, leave a review.**

**All in all, how did you guys also like Volans, Lupus, Corvus, and Pavo? Did you grow fond of them? Were they likeable, and were their friendship and values touching?**

**I'll be honest, the entire second half of the fight, I was in a blank space. I had no idea what I was writing, but near the end, I was getting a grasp again as I was listening to the Primal Kyogre/Groudon music as motivation. Still, it may not be the best fight between Nic and Lysandre, in my opinion, but please tell me what you guys thought.**

**I know I keep tormenting you guys with Nic and Erza still not being official, even after they both embraced and apologized this chapter, but I know what I'm doing. Trust me on this, Nic and Erza will become official VERY soon! I won't say, but until then, I'll keep giving the teases and tender moments between the two.**

**And so, the next chapter shall begin the GMG Arc, the final arc of the story! It'll be big, and a bit of originality, obviously, so be ready for huge things to go down, especially with Nic having 17 Plates and nearing being official with Erza!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoyed the arc's end, and how the battle played out!**

* * *

**Next Time: The One I Love**


	69. The One I Love

Chapter 69 – The One I Love

**Now that the Celestial Siege Arc was a success, it's time for the final arc of the story, the GMG Arc! This story is reaching the end, and I'm still shocked that I actually pulled the previous arc off; time sure does fly when your imagination puts itself into words. **

**Guest: I'm going for the usual cannon pairings.**

**Doodledoo2431: I wouldn't go that far. I'd prefer to not think about her nor the correlation of Pokémon at all.**

**Burstroc: A little, though I'm more on the patient side. I'm occupying myself with Y; plus, I have developed an immense level of patience when it comes to Pokémon since 3****rd**** Grade, so I can wait for as long as necessary.**

**There shall be immense levels of NicxErza in this chapter, with OVA 4 involved. Now, on with the great level of romance!**

**To Recap:**

Gearing up for the final brawl for the Celestial Spirit World, the crew made it to Lysandre, and their epic battle went underway. While they were able to get a few good hits in, the crew was overpowered and Lysandre was close to ending Nic's life, until Pavo's spirit gave Nic the motivation needed to invoke Legendary Force – Groudon. It all seemed even until Lysandre pushed his powers to the extreme, yet Nic was able to push into Primal Reversion and become Primal Groudon. Nic used Precipice Blades, and not only drove Lysandre out of the Celestial Spirit World and freed the Spirits, but the attack crossed over into Earth Land and destroyed the Infinity Clock and Castle. With the Zodiacs and King free, and with Lysandre out of their world, the crew rejoiced in victory, before having to say goodbye and having Nic, Greninja, Cana, and Sophie transported back to Earth Land. After a week, the Council is in an uproar of everything, Gildarts witnesses Lumen Histoire and is dubbed Fairy Tail's next Master, and two figures named Sting and Rogue thought they could beat Natsu and Nic.

* * *

**Chapter 69 – The One I Love**

Two blurs were seen parrying the other's blows. One let loose a barrage of attacks involving a multitude of arm jabs and swipes, while another parried with no room for mistakes with its tail. Beads of sweat ran down their bodies as they were locked in combat, not taking the eyes off of each other.

In lightning-fast motions, Nic and Arbok were trying to get direct hits in; wherever they had an opening the other left, the other took it, only to have their second nature reflexes make them dodge and attack, only for the other's reflexes to kick in and dodged.

Nic punched, but Arbok swatted the punch with his tail and pivoted, using the back edge of his hood to hit Nic, only for him to duck quickly before having to barrel-roll to avoid the tail coming around. When his feet landed, he leaned left and evaded Arbok's fangs.

This endless barrage of punches, kicks, tail swings, pivots, and blocks were all a part of their gruesome reflexive training. They've been at it for over four hours, the minute that Nic got up.

"**Glare!**" Arbok's pattern shined a red glow, but Nic pivoted around to avoid Glare and balled his hand and swung in the back of Arbok's head, only for Arbok to duck and arch his tail end around to jab Nic without so much as looking.

Nic caught the tail end without looking, and spun out when Arbok's back edge of his hood swung towards him, and barely evaded the fangs as Arbok Followed through.

Nic let out and backflipped out of range. He and Arbok panted las the two had been going on for no rest, just how they rolled. Still though, enough was enough, a sit was ten in the morning, and the two had finally caught up on the extensive training for their reflexes to sustain.

"I think…that should it." Nic said as he caught his breath.

Arbok lowered his head as he panted towards the ground. "Agreed. Reflexxxessss are…at optimal." The Cobra Pokemon continued panting for a bit, but looked up at Nic once he got enough breath in himself. "Ssssso, everyone shall engage in individual combat training today?"

"As I would intend." Nic told the cobra. His sunglasses didn't show the weariness he had, but the two shared the same level of heartbeat and exhaustion. "Come on, let's get some omelets."

"Assss you wish." Arbok turned with Nic, but the two stopped when they saw someone slowly walk through the clearing, more like two individuals,

To their surprise, it was Erza, followed by Kinana, both having fresh water bottles and towels.

"We thought you'd be here." Erza's smile was warm, and she seemed content seeing how hard Nic has been working. He was also shirtless and coatless as well, but she paid little heed. She handed Nic a fresh towel. "Here you go."

Nic accepted the towel with a soft smile in return. "Thank you." He applied the towel to his face, soaking up the copious of sweat. Erza handed a second towel to Arbok, who accepted it with his tail, nodding in respect.

"Thank you, Erzzzza-sssssama." Arbok said, before applying the towel to his scaly head.

"I've got fresh water, here for you guys!" Kinana had a while carton of water bottles, but just a half dozen. She set the carton down, and with the towels behind their heads, hanging, they both grabbed a water bottle each.

The two drank up an entire bottle each, their thirst surprising Erza and Kinana both.

"Thank you both." Nic huffed.

"Towels and water were a bit much, so I had Kinana help bring them." Erza explained. "You can use it."

"By the way, what brought you two out here?" Nic questioned. "It's not like you to assist me after I finish my morning training."

Erza got to the point, having her real reason for coming to him. "Makarov has an important announcement to make in an hour. Be fed and refreshed by then, okay?" She sounded more concerned for his well-being. One of the many reasons Erza deeply admires about Nic was his straight-forward dedication, training before the sun comes up right to when it sets. Seeing how he worked that hard made her smile, as she saw that he got physically stronger to protect and look after everyone and himself.

Nic sat the empty bottle back in the carton and carried the carton. "Alright." He looked towards his family member. "Arbok, we're going."

"Very well." Arbok slithered on and followed Nic as he, Erza, and Kinana all ventured back to the Guild Hall. They trekked through the woods for quite some time, the shade cooling off their bodies. Arbok couldn't help but notice how Kinana was staring at him in a peculiar manner.

"What are you sssstaring at?" He snobbishly sneered.

Kinana looked away. "Oh, n-nothing. Just a passing thought."

"Keep your thoughtsss in sssspace rather than to my facccce why don't ya." Arbok thus turned his attention forward, following Nic.

Kinana, however, couldn't help but get a strange ideal. Whenever she looked at Arbok, she got these weird images of him and another snake clashing. It looked purple with a milky smooth underside, and Arbok seemed to have dealt the finishing blow. _'This is weird. Why is this snake so familiar? It's like I know him…yet, I don't'_

The group trudged on ahead towards the Guild Hall as the leaves shook calmly through the soft breeze.

* * *

The guild members stood inside, and the only ones not present were the remaining members of Team Natsu (minus Erza, who was present). The air was calm, but there was a hidden level of assertiveness to it. Among the crowd, Vanessa yawned out.

Cana raised a brow. "Somebody's a sleepy head." She teased. "Did you sleep in, again?"

Vanessa looked away, a slight red as she was embarrassed. "…no." She lied.

"What are you talking about? You were out like a light before I yelled you awake." Sophie argued, much to Vanessa's chagrin. She then faced Cana. "You won't believe this. She was a mess. She was sprawled all over the bed like she was some sort of slob!" She laughed.

"Shut up!" Vanessa barked angrily. "If your memory serves you right, you know I love my sleep!"

Sophie crossed her arms. "And yet waking up at nine or ten is healthy?" That was the ticket as Vanessa just sulked in defeat over her favorite thing/habit. The girls just laughed it off until Master Makarov stood up on the bar and looked at all of the faces of the present guild members.

He cleared his throat, and his calm yet quiet voice cascaded around the tavern-like domain. "Listen up kids, I have been a very proud Master, but now it is time for me to introduce the next Fairy Tail Master."

Cana looked a little despondent. "You're really stepping down?"

Macao adjusted his collar. "I'm honored. I shall do my best as I have over the years."

"It's not you, stupid." Wakaba chided.

"With no further delay, allow me to introduce Fairy Tail's Fifth Master." He gestured to his right. "Gildarts Clive."

Although instead of Gildarts, it was actually Mirajane Strauss he gestured to, much to his own surprise. The rest of the guild left confused, while Mira played along and gave a cheeky smile and giggle.

Nic turned towards Erza, both looking at each other with confusion before looking back at Mira.

"Where the hell is that guy?" Makarov asked Mira.

Mira handed Makarov a small letter, still smiling. "I'm not sure, but he did leave a note." She handed Makarov the letter, to which he opened up the second he got it. The face he made was priceless as he looked like he had just gotten a stack of papers from the Council.

**To Makarov and Fairy Tail,**

**Sorry for not being here, but being Master ain't the gig I can live by. No hard feelings.**

"WHAT?!" Makarov shouted, much to everyone's amusement.

**But, since I have a rare opportunity at hand, I might as get two things done with. The first, I hereby reinstate Laxus Dreyer as a member of Fairy Tail.**

Laxus, surprisingly present after a long time, stood with his Thunder God Tribe in shock and disbelief. His eyes looked like revelation had just happened. "No way."

"Awesome! Glad to be back in the saddle ol' buddy!" Bickslow cheered.

Evergreen hugged Laxus by the arm. "The Thunder God Tribe is back in business!"

Freed stood with pride, tears rolling down his face. "This is a historic day. Bless that man."

**Secondly, I hereby state Makarov Dreyer as Fairy Tail's Sixth Master.**

"I JUST RETIRED!" Makarov shouted in utter despair, much to everyone's amusement yet again.

"Well, guess full circle came and went." Alzack said aloud.

**It's time I hit the road again, but don't worry, I'll come around when I can. Nic, best of luck getting that last Plate. I'll be looking up every night in hopes you make the stars shine and vanquish Lysandre. Makarov, I'm counting on you to bring Fairy Tail back up to the top; I know you guys can do it, because we never go down without a fight. As for the rest of you, see ya around.**

**Gildarts**

Mira walked up to Cana, presenting a small envelope. "Oh, and Cana, Gildarts wanted you to have something. Here."

Cana accepted the envelope and stared at it. She was getting a small idea what was inside, but didn't take chances as she opened it and there was a small tarot card with Gildarts's face. She only stared as there was another note attached to it. A small sentimental wave came around the guild.

**Cana,**

**To you, I might be rather selfish, and I don't blame you. You might be right after all, and I still can't find it in my own heart to forgive myself for not realizing you were my daughter. Still, in the end, you're the most important thing to me. If you ever need your old man, just use this card to get in touch. Whether I'm overseas or in the mountains, I'll race to your side.**

If Cana were honest with herself, she wanted to tear the card, and she was close to doing so before she remembered the small talk with Nic and Sophie back in the Celestial Spirit World. She didn't need him, but tossing him away when he's trying so hard would be the biggest insult she could ever make. She remembered how Nic was fiercely abused for the sake of his sister, and recalling how he told her what was said on the ship. With that in mind, she would be hurting Gildarts, Nic, and Sophie alike. A small grin came across her face as she instead stashed her new card away safely.

"Cana?" Nic asked.

The brunette turned with a smirk and thumbs up. "He's my old man, it's the least I can do."

Nic nodded in agreement.

"THAT DOES IT! AFTER WHAT HE DID, I'M STICKING TO THIS JOB UNTIL I DIE!" Makarov exclaimed, and once again, the whole guild went in an uproar of laughter at his chagrin. He just grumbled and crossed his arms. _'Gildarts, you better keep your mouth shut about what you saw.'_

* * *

A short while came and went, and everyone was still settling down from the announcement.

"Does Gildarts really think we can beat Fiore's number one guild?" Max wondered.

"Not to be rude to the old guy, but that's a really tall order." Warren added.

Erza, however, didn't see it as a big issue. "I think we should rise to the challenge. Climbing back up to the top isn't impossible."

"Quite the tall order you've established." Alzack said. "Sabertooth is pretty darn strong. It's take a miracle to take them down."

Nic eyes narrowed underneath his sunglasses as he leaned against a window. _'Sabertooth…Sabertooth…where have I heard that guild before…?'_ He was left to ponder, but despite how keen he was, he only heard it that one night was when…

'_Wait!'_ His eyes widened as he looked back at everyone else. _'Sabertooth, that same guild Minerva was in! The one her father ran, that guild?!'_ Nic's arms in his pockets tensed up as he looked distressed, but his façade was easy to fool anyone. _'So, Minerva has gotten stronger. I hope she's alright. I shouldn't say anything about this…at least not of yet.'_

He remained silent as Romeo got up on the table. "I'm sick of waiting! It's been seven years! We know a way to beat them, and you all know what it is!"

Macao got up from his chair and looked at his son with defiance. "No! I told you a thousand time that we're never entering that thing again!"

Max nodded. "I hear ya."

Nab sulked. "It was so embarrassing."

"I never want to go through that hell again." Jet groaned.

"You're not the Master anymore, dad! You don't have to say otherwise!"

"I'm speaking as a member of Fairy Tail! You know as well as I do that we're no match for that thing!"

Makarov decided to intervene the two. "Excuse me, but what is this 'thing' you both are squabbling about?"

"What's all the fuss?" A shirtless Gray asked as he entered the guild, along with Team Natsu that went to see Porlyusica. Wendy was seen with papers in hand, but no one said anything.

"Some sort of fight?" Natsu wondered.

"Dad, we have the Tenrou Team with us, and our ace, Nic!" Romeo argued. "With him, we're shoe-ins for victory!"

"Not to be getting involved and all, but just what exactly are you guys talking about?" Sophie questioned.

Romeo turned towards the blonde. "While you guys were traveling through time, a big tournament started to determine Fiore's number one guild! It's called, The Grand Magic Games!"

Vanessa's raised her brow. "Games?"

"Guilds from all over Fiore enter this tournament." Romeo explained. "If we win, we'll be number one!"

Vanessa looked piqued. "Huh. It sounds like the equivalent of the Pokémon League in other regions back in me and Nic's world. Kalos wasn't like that, but I watched such a thing on TV, like Kanto, Johto, even Sinnoh. Sounds rough."

Natsu clenched a fist. "Well I say it sounds fun!"

"I'd love to play some games!" Wendy shouted.

"I understand." Erza said. "Sabertooth is number one because they won last year's games."

"But if we win, we'll be back on top." Nic added. A smile crept onto his face. "Sounds entertaining."

Makarov looked piqued as he put a hand to his chin. "That sounds nice, but I'm not sure we can win with our current level." He said otherwise.

"That's what I'm saying!" Macao exclaimed.

"But the winning guild also gets 30 Million Jewel!" Romeo added.

Immediately, Makarov did a complete 180, and he had a fiery passion on his ace. "We're in!"

"What?!" Macao shouted.

Droy didn't seem too confident. "But Master, it's gonna be hard!"

"Even Sabertooth is gonna enter!" Warren added. "Along with other guilds!"

Makarov punched the air in vigor. "Then we'll just have to beat those other guilds and rise to the top!"

Natsu cracked his knuckles. "Now we're talking! I'm all fired up now! That first place circle has our names written all over it!"

"Well I believe that we can pull it off." Nic said. He turned his attention towards Erza. "After all, we never go down without fighting, right?"

Erza smiled at him softly.

"So, when does this thing start anyway?" Lucy asked.

"In three months." Romeo said.

"Awesome! That's plenty of time for us to train! We'll be back up to 110 percent before you know it!" Natsu's words of encouragement gave Team Tenrou smiles and confidence to be ready for what was to come.

"Natsu, you know this isn't a free-for-all brawl, right?" Bisca asked.

"What?" Natsu asked, disappointed.

"It's more than that." Alzack stated. "I hope you guys know what you're getting into."

Makarov stood up on his stool, arms crossed. "Listen up, the decision is final! We're entering the Grand Magic Games and claiming victory!"

"Yeah!" Everyone shouted.

* * *

It was then settled. Everyone had begun preparations for their training. It was gonna be rough, but that's how Fairy Tail likes it. They all had decided to make it so that they went to individual terrain to train; Laxus led his team to the mountains, the same with Cana's group of the Strauss siblings, and everyone else went their own way in groups.

As for Nic's group, comprised of Team Natsu, Juvia. Team Shadow Gear, Sophie, and his sister; the large group made their training camp located where it was best suited – the beach!

All of the girls were fit into their swimwear, and Nic in his black swim trunks. Sophie had her dark blue bikini, and Vanessa's was teal.

"Wow, such nice air today." Lucy sighed, taking in a deep breath.

"It's so peaceful." Wendy agreed. "The sun is so bright."

Nic had his sunglasses on as he turned out to the water. "This seems like a fitting spot for us. I haven't done beach-terrain training since Route 8. This should bring back some nostalgia."

"Listen, we're here to train!" Carla enforced.

"Let's get to it!" Happy agreed.

"I'm not sure you both can say." Droy argued, seeing the two Exceeds in their swimwear.

"Don't worry about it." Erza said. She stood in front of everyone, hands to her hips. "Listen up, everyone! We are here as a means of training camp! For the next three months, this shall be our training camp! We are to ascertain as much rigorous stamina and power as we can accumulate within that time range to make up for the seven years that Dialga was transported us through!" A smile then crept onto her face. "However, just for today, we can all take it easy and get into the swing of things tomorrow!"

"Yeah!" Natsu and Gray shouted, as did everyone, although Nic…wasn't as lenient. While the thought of relaxation seemed rather appealing, he hated _not_ getting exercise. His body has gotten so adapted to the physical demand. Still he did decide to take it easy, just for a few hours, but then get to work.

As the others were relaxing and doing their own thing, Nic decided to lie down for a few hours before starting his bone-crushing exercise. With just his black swim trunks, sunglasses, and earbuds to listen to his metal; his entire, condensed, toned upper body showed. While it did woo the women around, it also scared them a little because of the huge scar that took up a large part of his right abdominal region.

Sophie was lying on her back, while Vanessa was close by with her Pokémon out and basking in the sun. Venusaur especially seemed happy as he took in a lot of sun.

"This is nice, right Vanessa?" Sophie didn't get a response, so she turned her head. "Vanessa?"

Vanessa was in her own little world. She was loafing atop of Venusaur, using the large petals spread out as shade, almost like a tropical umbrella. She sipped her lemonade glass, of which she made all by herself.

"Geez." Sophie sighed, but squinted as her eyes glanced off towards the lemonade. "Uh…do you know where the rest is?" She felt parched, but her thirst was delayed when she saw Erza with a lot of baggage and a beach towel, heading towards Nic. "Well, well, what do we have here…?"

Nic heard some shifting and opened one of his eyes. He unhooked one of his earbuds from his ears, and his eyes opened up fully to see Erza setting up her own little camp, full of fruit and tanning lotion and sunscreen.

"Hope you don't mind." Erza apologized as she slowly laid on her stomach and rested her head on her hands.

Nic closed his eyes with a grin. "It's fine."

"Thank you." Erza remained silent as she sunbathed. She looked so peaceful, and she was giving off a happy vibe, to which Nic felt. It was hard to explain, but he could tell that Erza deliberately wanted to be close to him, though he didn't see it as a big issue. In fact, he actually enjoyed her company.

A short while passed before Erza asked a question. "Nic?"

"Hm?" He turned his head.

"Can you lotion my back for me?"

Nic's eyes widened as he felt a small pink flush his cheeks. "W-wait, are you sure?!" He stammered.

Erza looked so calm and relaxed. "I'm sure. I trust you."

Nic took the words to heart. She was true, as she really does trust him, and he sees that. He shook off his worries, though he never did such a thing before, so he was actually slightly nervous. He looked around for the lotion, and his eyes glanced behind. On his other side, a bottle of fresh lotion sat there, much to his shock and confusion. His sunglasses looked up, and noticed a short distance away was Sophie, waving all carefree at Nic.

He quickly put the pieces together and squinted at the Memory-Make Mage before slowly reaching over and grabbed the cool bottle. He squeezed out some onto his hands and sat on his knees as he was beside Erza.

Gently, yet tenderly, he applied the white, cool cream onto her smooth back. Her skin was so soft, and smooth. He spread his hands out and slowly traced his hands back and forth on her mid-back region. He went side to side and then up and down, running all over her back and pressed down just a little harder, of course this earned a moan from Erza. Nic was caught off guard, but rather seized it as a good sign.

As a bonus, he applied slightly more pressure, turning his lotion rubbing into a massage. He pressed down and his thumbs pressed into her lower back, making a big smile and soft moan come from her. He slowed down and was a little unsure as to how to proceed when he finally reached the lower back, just before where her big behind was.

His face grew a slight pink, but then his eyes raced back to Erza's face, seeing how relaxed she was. _'Come on Nic, pull yourself together.'_ He used both hands and got the sides of her lower back without touching the bikini bottom, applying a decent amount of pressure before retreating back up to her upper back, which another obstacle laid. Her bikini top.

"Here, let me." Erza brought her hands behind her back and reached for the laces. She was successful and the laces slumped to her sides.

Nic remained as calm and quiet as he could. He remained as gentle as he could, while unsure if he was still violating her. The fact that she trusted him didn't mean that he was still unsure himself; but if she was okay with him so far, then why should he be worried now? With that in mind. He applied pressure to her upper back, getting his thumbs into the muscles behind the shoulder blades.

Erza moaned a giggle as she never felt so good before. She was never this bold before, but it paid off. She felt Nic's hands run up and down her back, a pleasurable touch to say the least, and feeling his strong yet careful touch was a sign he was being tender. She liked it; and when Nic applied pressure and made a massage out of it and got her muscles, it was like heaven.

"That should do it." Nic retreated his hands and sat back in slight exhaustion. He couldn't believe that he actually did that. When he looked behind, Sophie had a big grin with thumbs up. Nic groaned at her as he wasn't amused, but was glad that she was around when she was.

"Thanks, Nic." Erza said.

Nic smiled. "You're welcome…" He trailed off when the air suddenly felt a little chilly. Erza noticed this as well. Everything seemed to have dropped a few degrees, and Nic looked out ahead. "Why did it suddenly-!"

He then realized the ocean was frozen, and Gray was the culprit. His surprises mounted then flames were seen in the distance, and the ice cracked and shattered. Large chunks suddenly flew high into the air, much to everyone's shock.

Vanessa's eyes widened and her lemonade glass dropped. "You've gotta be kidding me!"

Venusaur shook his head. "Oh dear, those two…"

Sliggoo looked troubled. "Uh…falling ice, getting closer!"

"We're gonna get crushed!" Levy screamed out in the water.

"Those two-!" Erza got up and rushed after the beach, but seemed to have forgotten something.

"Huh?" Nic looked down, and noticed that as Erza ran ahead, she had left her bikini top behind, meaning…

"Erza! You forgot…" He trailed off as she was soon out of earshot, and his face turned red at the prospect. "Oh geez…"

Erza stood there, a face full of determination and huge juggs exposed. The last part meant nothing to her as she eyed the ice. "Their impulses are aggravating!" Her eyes shut. "**Requip!**"

Now focusing at hand, Nic rushed to her side and glowed as well. He was shown in his Flame Plate Form, while Erza had requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor.

"Are you ready, Nic?" She called out.

"Training starts now!" Nic hollered out. "Our first task is to keep the beach safe!" He took in a deep breath, and then he exhaled. "**Flamethrower!**" His blast of fire spewed from his mouth, and his head went from left to right. Melting fractions of the ice and making rain drizzle down.

"**Blumenblatt!**" Erza used her Magic and sent a great multitude of swords ahead, slicing and breaking through the falling ice.

Vanessa got up and looked ready as teal aura coated her hands. "Then I guess it's my turn! **Emanation Beam!**" She fired a teal beam of aura, breaking through the ice with no trouble.

"**Razor Leaf!**" Venusaur added in with his added, his Razor Leaf spinning in and slicing up ice chunks.

Sliggoo made a round of loops around her body and shut her mouth. "**Dragon Breath!**" She fired a blue beam, destroying ice high above.

Magnezone's body was surrounded in light blue sparks and his magnets glowed light blue. "**Magnet Bomb!**" He fired many light blue orbs that destroyed more ice.

Krokorok was seen in the action as well, jumping and using his trademark Crunch that snapped a thick chunk into small bits. "Let me tell you something, giant chunks of ice of impending doom! KROKOROK DOES THE SMASHING AROUND HERE!" He jumped off an ice chunk and attacked with Shadow Claw.

Braixen aimed her wand ahead. "**Fire Spin!**" Her attack was a spiral of fire that melted more ice.

"**Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**" Sophie made a chain of memories and several saucers made of fire attacked the ice.

Jet, Droy, Juvia, and everyone were working hard, though Lucy and Levy, plus Carla and Happy, just stood off as their Magic wasn't all that beneficial; still, the group and Vanessa's Pokémon worked hard and fast, which paid off when constant Magic blasts and moves were applied, leaving once huge ice chunk left.

"I got it!" Nic took in a deep breath. "**Inferno!**" He opened his mouth, and the ground shook as Erza covered up as Nic let loose a large and mighty blue flame-like beam that soared upwards. The small ice chunks left in the air completely melted, and the attack pierced the huge ice chunk. The whole ice chunk shattered and turned into drizzling sparkles that rained down on the smiling Fairy Tail group, all proud that they accomplished the obstacle.

After everything was sorted out, Natsu and everyone walked back onto the beach, with Nic and Erza back in their attire beforehand. "That was awesome, of course I could've handled that last bit myself ya know!" Natsu cheerfully stated.

"That was exciting!" Wendy cheered.

"Well this is a nice warmup for the first day." Gray said, still completely naked.

"Gray, you're completely indecent!" Carla chastised. "Are you a barbarian?"

Juvia blushed as she squeezed a beach ball. "My darling looks so hot!"

Sophie and Vanessa both facepalmed and shook their heads, groaning.

Lucy looked despondently while Levy looked with big eyes of revelation. Both examined the remaining ice chunks that they all seemed to have missed…which left the huts and little shops on the beach in complete ruin.

"More importantly…" Lucy's sweatdropped and her eyes twitched. "We're in big trouble when the bill comes our way."

"This was bound to happen." Levy reasoned.

The rest of the day, with them already on their feet, the members all trained. Gray trained in the ocean, along with Juvia and Sophie, Natsu ran with tires strapped to him, Lucy, still trying to ease her discomfort, helped Levy with deciphering Grandeeney's letters Wendy had; Erza was on a cliff, slashing her swords and cutting through crashing waves.

Vanessa practiced hard with her Aura Magic against her Magnezone. At the same time, Magnezone was training hard with Vanessa and using his battle experience to intercept her aura.

Elsewhere, Nic was facing Kecleon in their trademark strength and speedy reflexes training. Nic was trying out his new Spooky Plate Form, where the coat was a dark purple color, with a shadow gray lining the edges and Fairy Tail mark and ring on the back as well. The belt was black, and the buckle had a Dusk Ball symbol on it. His shirt was pitch black, as were his shoes, yet the laces and pants were a shadow gray.

Nic and Kecleon jabbed at the other, but the other dodged and used openings to attack, only for the other to find an opening, yet their reflexes made them untouchable. Kecleon pivoted and skidded back she got ground back. She turned invisible, exclude the red zigzag, and lunged ahead and axe kicked, but as she was swinging down, she sensed something beneath and barrel-rolled right to evade a Shadow Sneak. Her feet landed and she flipped again, evading a Shadow Ball.

Nic was still working on the properties of his form, and he tried fazing into shadows, something like Lysandre did. However, he only disappeared for a few seconds and reappeared only a few feet away from where he was previously. He intercepted Kecleon's now visible kick thanks to his reflexes, but seemed out of it.

"How does he do it?" Nic questioned. "I gotta get better concentration!" He huffed and relaxed. He turned into shadows, and he found himself weightless and zooming as a shadow. _'I think I'm getting there!'_

"Be one with the shadow, Nic!" Kecleon exclaimed, then tilted her head. Moments passed before she detected him with no worries and Nic turned visible again, attacking with full force in return.

* * *

Day turned to night, and the boys were seen in robes as they walked through the inn's hallway. After that intense training they all underwent, they were starving. They worked up an appetite.

"Man, what a day!" Natsu sighed. "I'm up for some grub!"

"Save some for the rest of us, will ya?" Gray asked.

Jet noticed something off. "Hold up, where's Nic?"

"Uh, I think he stayed out late to train. You know how he can be. He can go all day and possibly night." Droy pointed out. "I'd imagined he'll need a lot of food and water, right guys?"

"Let's just worry about filling up ourselves." Gray said.

The guys opened the sliding door, big smiles in hopes of a feast. Everything they'd ever wished for…was gone. They all paled and gave off ghastly expressions as their mouths hung open, gawking at the horrid site that was most disturbing. The girls were in the room, clad in their robes as well, but on the floor were empty booze bottles.

"WHAT?!" They four screamed. "WHO LET THE GIRLS HAVE ALCOHOL?!"

Erza angrily held up a booze bottle. "Where is my booze?! There's not enough booze!"

Wendy was passed out on the ground, her eyes spinning. "My whole world is dizzy~."

Juvia sniffled. "Wendy *sniffle* hang in there!"

Lucy erotically held up a cup. "Hey, does anyone care to have a drink?"

Sophie was swaying her head left and right, soon rocking back and forth. "I'm loving this song! It rocks my world!" It was unfathomable because there was absolutely no music playing, so she must've been imagining a rock n' roll concert.

Vanessa was, not surprisingly, breaking stuff. She slammed booze bottles to the walls and soon began to resort to throwing nearby books and hit the walls. "I won't read! And I hate these bottle colors! I hate society, and I want to throw it!" She made as much sense as Krokorok would.

Levy laughed. "This is too fun!"

The boys shuddered in despair. All of their hopes and dreams went down the drain.

"T-the food…" Droy muttered.

"Forget the food, just what happened here?" Natsu muttered.

Gray pointed at them. "Alright, who gave them all alco-!" He was smacked on the side of the head by a thrown booze bottle, catered by Erza.

Erza's drunken anger gave off a fiery vibe. "Natsu. Gray. Get me more booze! And after that…get me more!" She exclaimed.

Gray rubbed the side of his head. "Well, at least she's better than Nic when he's-!" He never had a chance when another booze bottle hit his head, knocking him over. This one came from Vanessa.

"You are unable to battle, and I win the experience!" She spatted out. She then faced the wall, pointing at it. "I challenge you next, as I hate you!"

Juvia latched onto Erza. "No hurting my beloved!" She whined.

"Let go, you scoundrel!" Erza tried pushing her off.

"Don't change the song! I'M LOVING IT!" Sophie's hair flew around as she headbanged like a metalhead, something similar to what people did that listened to Nic's music.

Carla rose on Happy as he cried tears down his face. "Now listen fool, you are a horse! Got that?!"

"But, I'm a cat." Happy whined.

"Even Carla…" Natsu got a weird feeling and looked ahead. On all fours, Lucy stared intensely at him, her eyes glistening. "LUCY?!"

Her vision was all blurry, but she could barely make out Natsu. She got up and clasped her hands with a drunk smile. "Aw~, two Natsus!" She chimed happily.

Levy nearly fell over her. "*hic* Come on, Lucy! That ain't right!" She thus turned into laughter some more, leaving Natsu to stare with utter disbelief.

"What the heck is going on?" Natsu muttered.

Down the hallway, turning the corner, Nic walked in a robe just like the others. After an immense training day, he was exhausted. He had just gotten out of the shower and stretched. He walked down the hallway rather slowly as he pondered.

"I managed to get the hand of my Spooky Plate properties." He quietly told himself. "And with my combat training going strong, I should add the Spooky Pate's properties to make my style more versatile."

His musings were short-lived however, as he noticed the open door and looked inside. The room was like a zoo. His eyes widened with horror as he saw Happy whimpering as Carla used him as a 'donkey', to her recent declaration that is; Wendy was out like a light, Juvia was cuddling Gray, almost practically drowning him; Natsu was, angrily, petting Lucy's chin as she meowed like a cat; Sophie was headbanging for no reason, Vanessa was throwing the old Pularis tantrum and throwing random projectiles at the damaged wall, Levy was hiccupping, and Erza was standing atop of Jet and Droy with swords, looking challenged.

"Show yourselves, cowards!" The redhead hollered.

"We're under you." Jet wheezed.

"And dying." Droy added.

Nic could only stare in disbelief, "What in the world?" He sniffed the air, taking in the smell and the labels of the glass bottles still intact. "…booze? Alcohol?!" His head whipped towards Vanessa, as she was growling at the wall.

The younger Pularis sibling pointed at it viciously. "You are strong, that gives me a reason to want to throw more pointless junk at you!" She spited.

Nic shook his head in disappointment. "Vanessa Pularis." He muttered his sister's name. "We're gonna have a serious talk in the morning."

A sudden sword was requipped on the other side of the room, and Erza swung the sword, pointing the tip at a faraway Nic, although Nic calmly looked over. He saw how Erza's face was red, and looked mad. "Scoundrel, who are you! Answer…me…"

She stared off in silence at Nic, looking rather discerningly at him as she requipped her sword away. Nic remained still and looking alarmed as Erza's eyes narrowed as she actually was able to recognize Nic, despite how dizzy her senses and vision was. She lifted herself off of Jet and Droy, relieving them of agony. Erza stumbled towards Nic. "Nic…Pularis…"

"Erza?" Nic found himself unnerved as he stepped back as a drunken Erza advanced. There was a good chance she might attack, but what would he do? He found himself against a wall, and Erza stared at his face, just less than a foot away. To Nic's surprise, Erza's hostile expression turned drunkenly happy, and her face seemed to have softened into a kind-hearted level.

"Oh, Nic." Without warning, Erza fell forward and wrapped her arms around Nic's neck. Nic was caught baffled as Erza then hiccupped. He was left stiff as Erza's drunken hug made her snuggle up to him some more. "You're so sweet to me."

"E-Erza, calm down!" Nic insisted, but it was no use as Erza made Nic trip, and he fell down onto his back. He grunted as he slowly got up, and his eyes widened once more as slender arms draped themselves around his neck again, with Erza popping over his shoulder with soft eyes and hiccupped.

"Carry me, you caring fool!" She demanded.

As awkward as it was, Nic latched Erza onto his back and he piggy-backed her. With his strength, it was too easy, and in his mind he knew what was for the best. _'If I get Erza to a bed, perhaps she'll fall asleep and wake up sober soon.'_ With a goal set, he carried the redhead onwards away from the scene.

"Way to be a hero, Nic!" Jet wheezed out.

"We're saved!" Droy insisted, but was hit by a flying book that made him fall over.

It came from none other than Vanessa. "Who dares challenge me?! I'll throw the book at you, and make you read the words, AND THEN LIKE THEM!"

"Mommy!" Jet and Droy screamed.

* * *

Opening a door and closing it upon entering, Nic made it onwards and reached the bed. "Just a little further."

"No!" Erza bounced and jumped over Nic, the sudden shift of balance forcing Nic to fall down before he could reach the bed and drop Erza off. He fell with a thud and grunted as he fell on his side this time. He could only lay there as Erza crawled over and hiccupped.

"You are not going anywhere, Nic *hic*!" She stated firmly. She crawled on top and straddled him. The position made Nic blush a bright red as he found Erza's huge cleavage exposed by a great margin, but the real worry was the drunken Erza moving her hands up and down his abs and chest, and looked hazily at him.

"E-Erza, wait-!"

He was caught shocked as he suddenly felt a strong hug from the drunken girl. Her red head was pressing against his right cheek, and her arms were around his neck, her huge chest against his toned one. He heard Erza quietly. Her body was shaking, he could feel it. She wasn't like she was mere moments ago. She seemed…scared.

She began to speak. "I can't…*hic* I can't lose you." She sounded so sad. "There were so many time I thought you'd die. If you died…" She sniffled, followed by a hiccup. "I don't know what I would do!"

"Erza." Nic muttered. He never heard Erza say these things. Sure he made her worry, but she never expressed it this way. It just shows how much she desperately cares for him.

She got up and looked down at Nic, her drunken eyes misting up. "You're a dedicated worker. You're so kind-hearted and looking out for your friends. *hic* Your heart is of no bounds. *hic* I was glad I got to have spent so much time with you, and I'm glad you came into my life." She smiled drunkenly. "You've been burdened terribly, with this mission to save us. *hic* I just…I just can't stand seeing you get hurt anymore!"

"Erza…"

"You nearly died too many times! You made my heart pull, and I can't take that anymore! I just…*sniffle* I just, wanna protect you too!" She bent down and hugged Nic deeply. "I wanna be by your side! You can't *hic* take this pain all by yourself, it's unbearable! Why must you be burdened like this?!"

Nic felt the small tears that touched his neck. His heart began to hurt as he heard Erza speak from her drunken heart. He didn't really have anything to back her up, or what to say against. She was right when he was tired of this as well. He just wants this to be all over, and get the Plates and Arceus back life.

"Please, just promise me, that when this will be over, you'll let me protect you, rather than have yourself protect me all the time." She slowly retracted, and her hands held Nic's cheeks. She leaned in. "Please."

Nic didn't really know what to say. He was stuck. She was drunk, but her words came from her heart. All he could do was softly smile. "…I…" He thought about it, but he really didn't want to make promises. He couldn't say I promise, but rather something else came to mind. "We'll beside the other, when this is all over. I want us to protect each other, but for now…" His smile softened even more. "Please, bear with me."

He was responded by Erza hiccupping and his eyes widened. His heart nearly stopped when he felt something warm and soft press against his forehead. Realization came and went as Erza was drunkenly yet softly kissed his forehead.

She parted and rested her head against his chest. It felt so strong, yet tender. "Nic, I really lo…" She never got to finish as sleep took her.

"Erza?" No response came and he looked up at her. "Erza?" She was soundly asleep. Despite her soon-to-be sober state, she looked so peaceful with her face red and softly smiling as she held onto Nic in a loose embrace.

Not wanting to fight it, Nic accepted the embrace and decided to not fight it. His head lowered to the floor as sleep overcame him with a smile as well. "I feel the same way…Erza."

* * *

Vanessa's head throbbed. "Does your arms hurt too?"

"Not as much as my head. I don't recall anything." Sophie pouted. "Memory-Make my butt. I got the biggest headache in the world right now! I'm getting in those hot springs!"

"You and me both." Vanessa looked away, pondering. "Still, why were Jet and Droy so scared? It's like they'd seen ghosts."

"I'm not sure." Sophie slid open the door. "Come on, let's get towels and…and…" he never finished as she and Vanessa both stared ahead, startled as they saw something that made them put hands over their mouths.

There they were, Nic and Erza, the latter atop of her lover. Though on the floor, they were embracing the other with smiles on their sleeping faces.

"Aw~~~~!" The two cooed. "So adorable~~!"

Erza stirred in her sleep, and the two immediately silenced. Vanessa ushered her and Sophie out of the room, but not before Sophie retrieved what she came for. With towels, they both exited the room and silently slid the door shut behind.

As they walked down the hall, Sophie turned towards Vanessa with a smirk. "Your brother's quite a keeper for sure."

"Let's just keep this to ourselves." Vanessa assured, much to Sophie's agreement by nodding.

* * *

Erza moaned as she stirred awake. "Mmmm." Her eyes opened, and she felt her head hurt. "Why does my head hurt? And why do I feel-!" She gasped as she felt arms wrapped around her robbed waist. She turned her head, and her face turned a very deep shade of red when she saw how she was atop of Nic. "N-Nic?!" She grew suddenly stiff, but then relaxed when she saw the smile on his face, and found his embrace actually comforting.

"Nic." She softly said. She didn't remember anything from what she said, but she could tell it made Nic happy, and that was enough for her. She squeezed her way out of Nic's hold and stood up, watching him sleep on the floor soundly and saw him use his arm as a pillow. With herself satisfied, she retreated and ventured out to the hot springs, draped in a towel.

"Hey, Erza!" Lucy shouted up to the redhead, who was descending downwards.

"You're just in time. Vanessa was just telling us more about how she fought a Gym Leader named Grant." Levy said.

Erza put the towel aside and her naked yet busty form entered the warming hot springs, clearing her headache. "Sorry."

"Why the wait anyway? What took you so long?" Juvia wondered, huddling behind a rock due to being shy.

Erza recalled waking up in Nic's warm embrace and red grew on her face. "Just had to clean up some matters." She lied, and Sophie and Vanessa kept their giggles low.

Erza entered the hot springs, and then all of their attention drew to Vanessa. "So, anyways, after Grant's Tyrunt took down my Ivysaur, I resorted to using Sandile…"

* * *

"I'm all fired up now! I feel like a new Dragon Slyer!" Natsu shouted in readiness for day two.

Gray stretched his arms. "Yeah, but we can't get lazy. We gotta get our butts in high gear."

"Still." Natsu whispered into Gray's ear. "How come Erza was so mean to us, yet Nic didn't get the beating?"

"Love does that to a woman when drunk, I think." Gray figured.

Erza turned towards them. "Did you say something?"

"Nothing!" Both stammered in fear.

"I feel like my Magic Power's increased already." Wendy cheerfully said.

Vanessa smiled at the group. "We've had our fun yesterday, but now we get serious."

"We have three months to go. We can't hold back for even a second." Nic said.

Lucy sat back in the sand. "Three months didn't seem like a lot, but this seems easy now that we got the hang of it." She looked ahead and clenched a fist. "Alright to wo-ahh!"

She was suddenly sent flying and fell on her face in the sand. Something came up underneath like Dig. She pushed up and the sand fell from her face. She looked behind, and her eyes widened, as did everyone else's.

It was Virgo.

"Virgo!" Lucy exclaimed, overjoyed.

"Hello, Princess." Virgo's maiden's outfit was fully restored, and she looked healthier than she did from before.

"Hey, it's Virgo!" Happy exclaimed. "It's been a long time!"

"Well I can't say that I'm surprised with her casual entrance." Carla noted.

Lucy stood up, baffled as she grabbed Virgo's hands and smiled. "Oh Virgo, I missed you all so much!"

"We missed you too, Princess." Virgo stated. Her attention drew towards Nic, whom actually had Greninja out to start the morning regiment. "Nic Pularis. Greninja, Sophie. This matter is important."

The three mentioned drew some attention, and everyone gathered around closely.

"It's the matter of the crew. They wish to see you." Virgo explained.

Nic and Greninja turned towards the other, and back at Virgo. Without hesitation, along with Sophie, all three nodded.

Natsu intervened. "Now hang on just a minute, we wanna see what's up too!"

"After what happened last time, I think going as a group is better suited." Gray insisted.

Virgo bowed. "Very well then. Let us meet with the King at once!" A great Magic seal enveloped everyone beneath their feet, and the seal glowed brightly.

In a flash, they were all gone, all except Jet and Droy, whom was left in confusion.

* * *

In a flash, the group found themselves in Celestial attire, and Lucy and Natsu found themselves in the same clothes as when they were fighting the Oracion Seis long ago. Nic was in his usual attire, as well as Greninja, since the former had the Plates' powers making him immune to the world, and the latter was immune because he was a Pokémon.

"Where are we?" Levy wondered.

"The Celestial Spirit World." Sophie said, only it was more sparkly than before. "You guys clean up fast." There were lively planets floating in space, and while there were no stars anywhere, sparkles and stardust were everywhere.

"Well just this sector at least." Virgo stated. "By the way, you all look fitting." They all looked at the other's attire; while Lucy and Natsu had the attire from the Oracion Seis incident, Levy had clothes from the Tower of Heaven Lucy wore, and Wendy was in nice pink dress. Sophie's outfit was recognizable, yet Vanessa's, Gray's, and Erza's attire was all new.

"Nic Pularis, Greninja, and Sophie. I bid you all welcome." A loud voice called out. Everyone's attention drew upwards, where they saw a recognizable person, whom was very huge as was his moustache.

"Stache Face?!" Lucy exclaimed. "You're okay!"

Everyone remembered full well of Nic's flashback and how they remembered his size was huge, so they knew what they were dealing with.

"Indeed." The King smiled down. "Nic Pularis and friends…" His cape waved. "Welcome to my world!"

Suddenly, the 12 Zodiacs appeared with big smiles on their faces, all happily present, and the biggest surprise was the three recognizable Spirits and human as well.

Said brunette held up a booze bottle. "Let's party!" The Spirits cheered.

"Cana?!" Sophie exclaimed, seeing her in her dress from before. "When did you-?!"

Cana wiped her mouth of booze. "Virgo came out of nowhere and dragged me here. Gotta say, they sure know how to make wine." She turned towards the crew with smiles. "Hey guys!"

Volans nodded with a smile. "Miss Cana, it's good to see you again."

"Hey, hope you're rested well guys, because it's time to celebrate our victory!" Corvus shouted.

Lupus howled up to the sky, and Canes behind him howled up as well in declaration.

Nic smiled as he, Greninja, and Sophie all reunited with the crew, the 7 back together. "It's great to see you guys again." Nic said sincerely. "So, you guys are all recovered?"

"You got that right!" Lupus stated. "We're rested, and we even used the energy to repair this bit of our world, though just this much at least."

Taurus gave a thumbs up. "Miss Lu~~cy! It's great to see you and your rockin body back in action after such a long time!"

Cancer snipped his scissors. "I've been dying to style and cut, baby!"

"La~dy Lucy, we apologize for how Lysandre had kept us as such." He bowed. "But let me say that because of these seven, we are reunited. So, as such, this celebration is for the mentioned and their heroic deed."

Greninja smiled happily. "Well we can't be anymore appreciative of you guys."

Lucy and a few others went up to Volans, Lupus, and Corvus. Lucy smiled up to them. "You three, thanks so much for helping out. I'm Lucy!"

"The name's Natsu!" Natsu greeted.

"Aye!" Happy exclaimed.

"Gotta say man, Nic and his Celestial Crew rocked!" Scorpio admitted.

Aquarius smiled. "Perhaps, but this is a one-time thing, so live it while you can."

"Piri~piri!" Gemini exclaimed.

"You know Lucy, I've been waiting for a hug after the trauma that's been endured. A woman in my arms would be a nice medicine." Loke insisted as he spread his arms out.

Lucy sighed with a smile. "Oh, you."

"Tonight, we shall make merry, as we celebrate Lysandre's retreat and the liberation of the Celestial World with the help of Nic, Greninja, Cana, Sophie, Volans, Lupus, and Corvus! Let us party!" The Celestial King shouted.

"YEAH!" Everyone exclaimed in celebration.

The Zodiacs and the crew rejoiced as food was everywhere, and Natsu was stuffing his face. Loke was catching up with Gray about the S-Class trials, and the Spirits were getting to know the humans. Volans was very respectful, and Corvus gave off quite a show with his Black Wing Magic.

Cana sat at a table, with Aquarius on the other end. Both looked the opposite direction, yet they glanced at the other.

"So…"

"So…"

Aquarius turned towards Cana, guilt. She slumped forward on the table, looking down at the white cloth the table had. "Listen…you know I still hate all women, right?"

"Yeah, I remember crystal clear." Cana noted, holding up a wine glass. She turned ahead and swished it around. "You and I also didn't see eye to eye from before." She chuckled in amusement. "But now that I think about it…first impressions are overrated." She leaned back some more. "You know, when I think about it, despite being a seabeast, Cetus and Hydrus beat you by a mile." She smirked. "You're alright."

Aquarius snickered with a grin as she leaned back as well. "The feeling is mutual, but try not to push your luck with me."

"Gotcha covered." Cana sipped from her glass, and soon enough Juvia entered the conversation.

The party escalated some more, with more games and Lucy and the others getting acquainted with Pisces and Libra. The Spirits and humans told many stories, of which Nic and his crew shared; all were fascinated by the tales and arduous trials the crew had to go through. Food and happiness arose, and laughter filled the air.

Erza looked over at Nic, who was lightly laughing as Corvus greatly exaggerated a tale and played along. The longer she looked, the more sincere her smile got.

After the festivities, everyone gathered around the King as he stood affirm. "Now, since we have all celebrated…it's time for us to give something in return."

"Return?" Cana asked.

Capricorn bowed. "Lady Cana, you and your friends have made the most important history in the Celestial World. Books upon books will detail of you and your crew."

"That is why we have come up with this. Follow me." Everyone thus followed the King. It was a short walk down a clean path, and they all traveled to where it was black rock beneath, which Nic recognized.

'_This land…'_ He looked ahead, and they all saw a statue, a huge one. Everyone's eyes widened as they looked up at the enormous monument.

"Oh wow!" Wendy marveled.

Covus's eyes sparkled. "AWESOME! I FEEL LIKE A GOD!"

"How humble." Lupus added.

"And right where Nic finished Lysandre too." Sophie added with a smile.

Standing in front was a large statue. It had eight figures, and all of them were of the Celestial Crew, and the late Pavo, who had a pose. All eight members stood proudly as they shared the same statue, with fighting vigor in their expressions. Cana had cards, Sophie had a finger to her head, Corvus had a pose with one wing in front, Lupus was in a crouching position, snarling, Volans was seen in a fighting stance, Greninja was seen with a shuriken in hand, and Nic was seen standing proudly in front of all of them.

"It's beautiful." Greninja said, mournfully smiling when looking at Pavo's part of the monument.

"It is." Nic added. He looked down at the inscription in the center and read it aloud.

THE 8 WHO HAVE DEDICATED THEIR HEARTS AND VALOR TO ASSURING SAFETY,

THE 8 WHO TRUMP THE 7 STARS THEMSELVES WITH THEIR BONDS,

THE 8 WHO HAVE SAVED THE WORLD FROM THE DARKNESS OF LYSANDRE,

THE CELESTIAL CREW

"The Celestial Crew, adds a nice ring to it." Lupus said, Canes barking in agreement behind.

"Well I like it." Cana said.

"I'm sure grateful to you all. And in Pavo's stead, we thank you." Volans bowed to the Zodiacs and the King.

"No, no, Volans." The King said. "You bow to no one." Instead, the King himself bowed to a knee, and all 12 Zodiacs got to a knee if possible, and one by one all bowed in respect to the crew.

The crew itself smiled with ride and honor as they felt overjoyed.

Later, at the entrance, they all began to say their farewells. Aquarius, Cana, and Juvia all shook hands with smiles on their faces, and the Zodiacs that belonged to Lucy couldn't wait to be by her side again.

"We're still a little banged up sweetheart. We still need to repair the entire world, and that'll take some time." Loke apologized.

Sagittarius saluted. "But rest assure, we shall be at your call and we shall resume our repairs!"

Lucy smiled. "Thank you all."

Volans looked at the crew, his eyes misting a little. "It would seem, that this is farewell."

Nic nodded in sadness. "It would seem, but I do hope we meet up again," He extended his hand out. "I'm gonna miss you, old friend-!" Nic was brought into a group hug so suddenly by everyone, as smiles of sadness filled their faces, yet through it, they made the best of it.

"You guys rock." Cana admitted. "I wish we could meet more often."

Corvus seemed sad, but stayed strong with a thumbs up. "Don't worry, we'll be thinking of you guys all the time."

"With my memories, that won't be a problem…take care, guys." Sophie said.

Nic and Greninja both looked at everyone present. Greninja spoke. "Volans, Lupus, Corvus, this was fun. I'm looking forward to us meeting again, someday."

"Once our world is fixed right up, and Lysandre is finished, then we can probably throw another celebration!" Lupus suggested. "But even so…" He slowly reached his arm out, and the crew did a fist bump in a circle. "No matter what happens, we'll always be there in spirit."

"Right!" The humans of the Celestial Crew and Greninja both then stepped back, and with proud smiled, they were bid farewell by the Spirits.

"And so, until we meet again." The King whipped his cape, and in a flash, everyone was engulfed in a bright light.

* * *

The group found itself on the beach again, and yet when they came back, they noticed something wrong. Nic and everyone grew confused as the beach was empty, and the atmosphere wasn't as lively as they remembered.

"Wait, hold up." Cana said, having been transported with the group and not back to the Strauss family. "Ain't it supposed to be nightfall?"

"A day must be really short there." Happy figured.

"Actually…" Everyone turned around to see Virgo had transported to their world as well. "There has been changes. While time was warped in the Celestial World, so that it moves slightly faster than the human world by Lysandre's tyranny, it's now back to normal."

"Wait, so…?" Sophie's inquiry sounded suspicious, and not in a good way.

"The real time sequence was restored, so one day in our world…is three months in yours."

Virgo's statement of fact left a breeze to have a wrapper pass the group. She then vanished away, and Nic, Greninja, Gray, Natsu, and Erza all had dark shadows over their eyes and stared at the waves ahead, soon falling over onto their faces in despair.

Wendy dropped to her knees. "No way…"

Vanessa sulked as her gaze looked at the ground. "Why us?"

Lucy's body shuddered as she turned her head up and looked to the sky. "WHY CAN'T WE GO BACK IN TIME?!"

"Guys!" Jet and Droy caught up to them. Both looked excited. "I hope you've been training hard, because there's only five days left until the Grand Magic Games!" Jet reminded them.

"Shut up!" Lucy shouted, making them stumble back.

Sophie sighed right by Cana's side, shadows over her eyes. "Do we ever have good luck?"

"No." Cana stated.

Later, with everyone out of their clothes, and Nic in his swim trunks and gray V-neck with sunglasses over his face, and Erza with her black bikini but having a light purple attire it, and so on, they all despaired.

"First Dialga, now this?" Vanessa sighed.

"This sucks." Natsu groaned.

Happy sniffled. "How am I supposed to catch up to Lily now?"

Wendy and Carla looked shocked, the latter more so. "I didn't know you cared!"

Erza had a red aura as she held up a fist and her teeth grip. "It's not over! We have five days left to train! Prepare yourselves, you may not live!"

Gray was caught off guard. "I didn't live so as to die from a workout!"

Natsu stood up with a fiery aura. "I'm ready when you are!"

Nic had a purple aura while Greninja had a dark blue aura, both giving off their determination, but showed less excitement and more calm. "If we're gonna push ourselves, we'll have to take this our way."

Greninja cracked his knuckles. "You all in?"

"That's the spirit!" Erza exclaimed. "Now, everyone start with running…" Before she could get started however, she felt something land on her head. She remained stiff and awkwardly looked up as a feather dropped. It turned out a small pigeon landed on her head.

"A bird?" Lucy asked, seeing the bird on Erza's head.

"And is that a note?" Vanessa wondered.

"Let's see." Happy saw the small piece of paper attached to the leg and unrolled it.

"A love letter perhaps?" Lucy questioned.

"You could've given it to me directly, darling." Juvia said, enamored by Gray to no end.

"Oh sure, like I wrote it." Gray backlashed.

"Okay, here's what it says." Happy began to read the letter. "Hey Fairy Tail, meet us at the broken suspension bridge on the western hill." He turned to look at everyone else. "That's all it says."

"Sounds like a trap." Vanessa said, uneasy.

"By that tone, it seems like a challenge." Sophie thought.

Nic crossed his arms to ponder. "Well regardless, we can't take any chances, but we can't ignore this call."

"So you're saying we go despite it looking like a trap?!" Lucy stammered.

"We'll just have to wait and see." Erza said, ignoring the pigeon still perched on her head, but it flew away once the group began to move. They all ventured with caution, with everyone following Nic, Greninja, and Erza's lead. The three did as the note said and led the group west, where instead of sandy beaches it turned to grass and forest.

The group advanced no further as they were at the broken bridge that had a river running through the ravine. Natsu looked unsatisfied. "Cowards must have duped us!"

Lucy, on the other hand, seemed satisfied. "Well now that we're not in danger, let's…"

However, her hopes were dashed when rumbling was heard, and Greninja's blank stare remained unchanged as he and everyone saw the broken bridge fix itself. The boards and rope all connected once more, and the bridge looked good as new.

"Wait, what just happened?" Gray asked.

"I don't remember a bridge being able to fix itself out of thin air." Sophie said.

"Well, I guess we're gonna have to cross it." Vanessa suggested.

"I still say this is a trap." Levy said, unsure.

Natsu showed excitement as he punched his own fist again. "Well they're on the other side, so let's get crossing!"

"Good luck!" Gray slapped Natsu's back and shoved him forward, forcing him to trip forward but used the rope to stay up. Natsu growled back at Gray, but then his face paled and grimaced as the bridge moved up and down. Gray raised a row. "Seriously?"

Natsu covered his mouth. "Just watch me!" Though slow, Natsu powered through and ran, nearly falling over. With one big leap, he hit solid land on the other side and smiled back at everyone.

"Huh, I thought it'd break once someone stepped on it." Lucy figured.

"Everyone thought that." Cana noted.

"You used me as a guinea pig?!" Natsu exclaimed on the other side, but his rambling of frustration was ignored as Erza turned to face the group.

"Now that it's safe, let's get moving. On the double!" Erza ordered. Everyone then crossed the bridge and made it to another section in the forest. They continued to venture on ahead, but Erza, Nic, and Greninja all stopped dead in their tracks and glared ahead as three cloaked figures were seen in the distance.

"Someone's there." Lucy informed.

"Keep your guard up!" Juvia said.

The three figures slowly proceeded ahead, walking towards the group silently. Natsu's nose twitched as he picked up a rather peculiar scent. His eyes widened. "That smell…"

The cloaked figures stopped in front of the group. "You have arrived." The middle on said. His voice was so familiar that Erza had recognized it. They all proceeded to taking off their hoods. "Thank you."

Erza and Nic's eyes widened with shock. Before them was an older Meredy, Ultear…and Jellal. Immediately, Nic grew a sense of uneasiness when the corner of his eye caught Erza in a state of shock.

"It's been a long time, old friends." Jellal said with a grin. "I assume word of my prison break has gotten to you?"

"Yes." Bic said, slightly cautious.

Jellal looked away. "Please know, it was never my intention."

Ultear smiled. "Meredy and I never really gave him much of a choice."

Meredy turned towards Ultear. "That was all you! Don't bring me into this."

Juvia and Vanessa's eyes were wide with sheer shock. The two girls were in disbelief. "Meredy."

Meredy turned forward and smiled and waved at the two girls. "Long time no see, Juvia, Vanessa!"

Both girls smiled happily at Meredy. _'She's grown into a beautiful and happy young woman.'_ Juvia thought, proud of her, as was Vanessa.

"So, Jellal broke out of prison?" Lucy questioned.

"And with Grimoire Heart." Natsu growled, his eyes narrowed.

Gray stepped forward. "Chill out, they're not our enemies anymore." He turned towards Ultear. "Isn't that right?"

"Yes." She assured. "The crimes I've committed cannot be erased, so, as a small compensation to those atrocities that's I've committed, I've dedicated myself to saving people. Until the day that I die."

"You risked a lot to save Jellal." Sophie said.

Ultear's gaze went to Jellal. "Because Jellal is one of those acts I've committed."

"You don't owe me anything, Ultear. You and I were in the darkness all this time. It's in the past now." Jellal assured.

"So Jellal…has your memory returned?"

"Every bit of it." He said, looking down at the ground. "Including my sins."

Erza's eyes widened as she gasped. Nic remained silent.

"For six whole years, I have been holding the weight of guilt over my shoulders…Erza, I'm terribly ashamed and sorry for the pain I've caused you." He said.

"I was the one responsible for the Tower of Heaven incident." Ultear admitted and looked towards Jellal. "I'm accountable for everything, so no anguish should be put on him. Besides, I think he's been through more than enough."

Jellal looked at his feet. "I could either spend the rest of my life in prison, or lose my life and be rid of it all; however it ends, my penance would've been paid."

Erza remained silent.

"But now you have a chance to find a positive purpose in your life." Wendy countered.

Jellal looked at her. "Wendy, I'm sorry, but the Jellal you knew, he's not me." He apologized.

Wendy smiled. "Oh it's fine, we cleared that up a long time ago." She assured.

"I've found a purpose, but I can't say it's all that positive." Jellal answered her question.

Ultear turned around. She undid her cloak briefly and showed everyone her exposed back. The scar she had was giant, just as bad as Nic's. Over it was an emblem with a hat. "The three of us have constituted a guild of our own. It's an independent; neither official or aligned with anyone. It's named Crime Sorciere, or Witch's Crime."

"An independent guild?" Levy questioned.

"So, you're not related to anyone?" Vanessa asked.

Jet seemed piqued. "Crime Sorciere, I think I've heard of that name…yeah, now it's coming back. You guys took down a bunch of Dark Guilds over the years."

"Unfortunately, our true goal is still out there." Ultear said.

"Zeref." Jellal clarified, earning surprised gasps from everyone, recalling how Zeref was on the same island and how his Magic was absorbed by Lysandre. The thought made Nic's eyes narrow beneath his sunglasses. "Dark Guilds, and any evil force; we'll purge until there's none left to destroy the lives of innocence."

Lucy smiled. "That's such a great cause!"

Gray followed Lucy's example. "With all the good you've done, I'm surprised the Council didn't acknowledge you."

Jellal smiled. "Well I am a convict after all."

Meredy sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "And Ultear and I used to be in Grimoire Heart."

Erza's gaze grew suspicious.

"We're far more useful as we are now anyway." Jellal assured.

"At any rate, now that we all caught up, there's an important matter we need to discuss." Ultear got back on track. "Is it true you all are entering the Grand Magic Games this year?"

"Yes." Nic said.

"We can't get anywhere near the colosseum, so you can, there's something we need you all to do."

"I see now!" Natsu guessed. "You want someone's autograph!"

Ultear's eyebrows twitched. "I'll pretend you didn't say that."

Jellal corrected Natsu. "Every year, there's an ominous Magic power in the games. We want you to help find the source."

The air grew very serious and ominous.

Sophie looked surprised. "Are you sure? Guilds all over Fiore have strange Magic at their disposal."

"This Magic we feel isn't like those, because we feel Zeref's Magic involved." Jellal explained.

"Zeref, are you sure?" Erza asked.

"We believe our prior involvement has given us the ability to trace him. This power we feel, it's evil."

"Now you see why ascertaining the truth behind this power is important?" Ultear asked. "Tracking them with your help with help locate it."

Meredy smiled. "Discretion is important, so we can't have anyone know."

Nic crossed his arms. "Sounds risky, but we'll accept."

"Thanks." Ultear said.

Natsu turned towards him. "You sure man?"

"We can't take any gambles. Guilds all over Fiore will be around this power. Who knows what effect will happen with the close proximity."

"Did we mention we'll be paying you guys?" Ultear added with a sly smirk.

"RENT/FOOD MONEY!" Lucy, Happy, and Natsu shouted.

Ultear chuckled. "Oh no, nothing so material." She held up an orb. "I've had years to experiment and enhance my Arc of Time and can use it to increase your abilities. A power-up as one would say, though it's a bit farfetched. In reality, a Mage has his or her own container that determines how much Magic they can hold, but recent research has told that there's a second container. They believe to have called it, the Second Origin." She paused to let everyone have the information sink in. "Not only can I force your containers to grow, but also access your Second Origin; to put it in simple terms, you'll be able to increase the power of your spells."

Everyone cheered in delight over the opportunity at hand. Smiles went around as Gray and Ultear talked, Juvia and Vanessa happily talked to Meredy, but Jellal just stood there, glancing at Erza at the corner of his eye. The redhead returned the gaze.

Nearby, Nic was unable to be read since he had sunglasses on. Greninja stayed by his side, the frog being weary of how silent his trainer was acting.

* * *

Natsu's entire body screamed in pain as he felt his spine break, and his senses were dulling. His body laid on the ground and he wrestled with thin air as red marks were all over his body. He screamed in agony as the pain increased and his limbs twitched violently. Everyone watched in discomfort as Natsu was getting the power-up by Ultear, and undergoing it was gruesome as he thought he was bleeding on the inside. He clenched his teeth as he tried enduring so much. "GAAAHHH!" Still, he yelled out in pain.

"I know it's tough, but you have a ways to go, Natsu." Ultear said.

"GAAAHHH!" Natsu's only reply was yelling as he crawled on the ground.

"I hope this isn't some kind of sick joke." Lucy hoped. The sunset was at her back as the group was in front of the hut and on the beach.

"Just what exactly is he feeling?" Gray wondered.

"Want a Sensory Link and see?" Meredy suggested.

"Are you nuts?!" Gray stammered.

"I'm so proud of her. She's even developed a sense of humor!" Juvia said.

Vanessa smiled. "She sure did well these last seven years." She turned towards Sophie. "So anyways, who is this Jellal person?"

"Well…" Sophie began to explain in detail, with as much detail and experience she was given and told from Nic.

"Speaking of which…" Carla turned towards Happy. "Do you know where Nic went?"

Happy turned towards her. "Well since Nic can't use Magic, the Second Origin thing won't work. I think he went tree jumping instead."

"Too bad Nic can't go through this." Cana said. "Man is he gonna be behind." She noticed something as Natsu yelled and twitched. "Say, where is Erza?"

"I think she and Jellal went to talk alone." Lucy explained.

Vanessa and Sophie looked at the forest, slight worry at the three away. _'I'm not sure if that's such a good idea.'_

* * *

Perched high on a cliff, watching the sunset and the sea and its waves, Erza's hair shifted in the winds. Jellal sat down on a rock right beside her. They were there for maybe an hour, maybe more, but the only sound that came and went were crashing waves and shifting winds.

Finally, Erza spoke. "So, you remember everything?"

"I do." Jellal said.

"Does include…Simon?" Erza asked in a hardened tone.

Jellal looked at the rock at his foot, remaining silent for a bit. "…he died by my hand."

"And of Nirvana?"

"Everything." He explained. "I remember it as being in a fog of amnesia, with little to understand. It's a strange feeling. Like I witnessed a past life rather than experience."

"Is it fair to say you're back to who you were as a child?"

Jellal had shadows over his eyes. "Perhaps, but even so…" He clasped his fingers tighter. "Given what I've done to you, I won't blame you if you keep away." He looked up at the sun as it set further. "And if try to avenge Simon, don't hesitate."

Erza looked ahead. "Do you really believe Simon would want you to travel as a meaningless shell?" She turned back towards him, her tone and voice raised. "What about your guild, and all of the good you've done?"

"Don't get me wrong, Erza, but I don't think it's that simple for my atonement." Jellal explained looking back down. "I did create Crime Sorciere in hopes of bringing peace to mind, but the things I've done in the Tower of Heaven can't be made up that easily." His eyes closed. "I ask myself what point am I making. What am I really doing? Am I escaping my fate? I've hurt and let too many people suffer from my wrong doings. I don't know, maybe it's best that I did die-!"

Jellal felt a hard smack across his cheek. His pity fogged him up from seeing Erza appear in front and slapped him out of his little world. His cheek stung from the pin of her slap, but he didn't move.

"What is with all of this talk of a coward?!" Erza barked.

"I'm not strong like you, Erza." Jellal countered.

Erza swiped her arm. "I'm not strong either, no one truly is! It's…" An image of Nic flashed in her mind. "You need to find the strength to live on!" However, Jellal didn't respond.

"What happened to you?!" She angrily exclaimed to him. "I don't see the old Jellal before me! He'd never quit so easily!"

Jellal's eyes narrowed. "Maybe he's gone!"

Erza's eyes grew angry. She pulled Jellal up by the collar. "Snap out of it! Dammit!"

Jellal lost his footing, and the two slipped, with Erza falling forwards. Jellal and Erza tumbled backwards and rolled down a hill.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the same time, Nic was jumping and leaping from branch to branch, not losing momentum as he was zooming and leaping with grace of a ninja. Speaking of which, Greninja followed behind, his blank eyes not showing any signs of worry, despite how he had a very bad feeling. Still, he knew of Nic's nature. Part of the reason he was out here was so that he got some exercise, and another part was because he wanted to destress himself of Erza and Jellal.

Greninja took a big leap and caught up to Nic, looking towards him and seeing how his sunglasses were still on, but he could see the uneasiness as clear as day. A façade of resolution that wasn't fooled by. "Nic…"

"Hm?" Nic looked at Greninja as he leaped off a branch and landed on another. He was getting the idea, and he looked ahead.

"I'm okay, really." He said, but he was lying. He frowned.

Greninja continued jumping with Nic until their pacing slowed drastically. "Don't tell me, I know."

Nic and Greninja stopped when they reached the end of the forest, overlooking a field of plants as the sun set in front. With the sun setting, Nic put away his sunglasses onto his V-neck. He looked over at Greninja.

"Even after everything, I still felt peculiar, like my heart tugged when Erza was in shock over Jellal." He confessed, standing still and resting his hand against the trunk. His eyes softened. "Don't get me wrong, with Jellal's new goal, I can respect that, yet when I think of him and Erza…"

"You hurt. No one blames you." Greninja looked ahead. "It's clear that you love her…but you're not sure she's over Jellal."

"…" Nic looked down. He felt unsatisfied knowing that, but his mind made him recall all of the fun they had yesterday, or technically three months ago. Erza trusted him, and in turn, he trusted her. They embraced, and she cried a little while drunk for his safety. She truly did care, and Nic saw that. He smiled as he recounted how Erza was pretty adorable at her display of affection while being drunk, and recalled how she almost said she…

They heard bodies roll, and Nic was bought of his musings and free of doubtfulness when his eyes widened to the sight of Erza and Jellal tumbling down the hill, plants expelling glistening pollen.

Erza and Jellal found themselves at the bottom of the hill, pollen slowly raining down brightly. Jellal found himself atop of a shocked Erza.

The scenario left all faces shocked, a watchful and hidden Nic and Greninja as well. Nic's eyes were filled with shock as he saw Erza and Jellal's face close. He kept his mouth shut as he watched with uncertainty.

Jellal looked down at Erza, seemingly calm, smiling for the first time since seeing her again. "You always were right, weren't you."

"No, that's not true." Erza said. She could feel her own heart race. "I just get clumsy without the others beside me."

"Erza…" Jellal replied softly.

Erza was feeling so many things at once that swamped her head. She couldn't speak, nor could she move her hands as Jellal put his to her cheeks. When Erza looked at his eyes, they were filled with guilt, but warmness as well. She was brought back to how she and Jellal met in the Tower of Heaven, how they first fell for the other.

Without realizing it, her lips parted as she and Jellal began to slowly close in on the other, a kiss to be made reality.

In the trees, Nic's heart was sinking like a rock, but his blank face didn't show anything. His head was feeling like a tempest as he could do nothing but watch as Erza and Jellal's proximity was closing. The closer they got, the more saddened he got. He frowned as images of Erza flooded his mind; how they first met, how they interacted lightly, how they went on their first mission together, how he saved her life – on several occasions; then to how they accidentally kissed on their first date. Just the remembrance of that kiss, despite being accidental, made him remember how soft and how Erza tasted like strawberries.

Looking at the scene before him, he saw Jellal was closer than what he could ever be to really kissing her. After everything that he and Erza went through, and how they had just reconciled, and how they shared a tender moment, he felt so shattered again.

He just watched in emptiness while Greninja gave a blank stare, remaining silent at his trainer and how it looked like Erza chose her childhood love over Nic.

Erza continued to look into Jellal's eyes as the images of their past proceeded to the recent Tower of Heaven incident, how Jellal murdered Simon, and how Nic unshackled Jellal from the darkness he was put through.

As their kiss got closer to being a reality, Erza's mind then began to flood with new images, ones that made her heart pulse faster than the previous ones. They were all of Nic. All of his attributes; his strong will, his calmness, his sense of justice, his stubborn rebelliousness, his eternal dedication and loyalty to his Pokémon, looking out for everyone he can, his warm and inviting vibe he had when around her. Images then went to their first encounter, to the events of Phantom Lord, to their first mission together, to where she was happy to see him alive, then seemingly sacrificed himself in the Tower of Heaven, how she was crying tears of joy upon his return, to their first date, to Edolas, to their nights and battles fought in Kalos, to Tenrou, to how she cared for him and tried protecting him, to her being alone with him, to their fight, and finally to their warm hug after reconciling.

But through all of those emotional memories, after looking back after what the two have been through, the one thought she remembered out of almost all of them…was his smile and eyes. Seeing Nic smile, always made her smile.

'_Erza.'_ She could hear Nic's voice, and actually see his face as his sunglasses off and she saw his warm eyes that had seen the evils of the world, yet didn't break.

Knowing she was thinking of nothing but Nic, even though she and Jellal were so close to the other, she knew she found the one she wanted to be with. Surprisingly, the two backed away at the last second.

Nic's eyes widened as he saw the two back away.

"I'm sorry." Erza said, looking away.

"No." Jellal she, looking away in shame. "I can't…I have a fiancée."

Erza faced Jellal again, her face a small red as she was left shock. "Eeehhh?!" Her eyes were wider than ever, and the surprise made her body jerk away more. She grew flustered. "Er, no! I apologize, er, I didn't want to make it think…"

"N-no, I'm the one who should…sorry." Jellal bowed.

Erza turned her head away. "Well a fiancée. That's a surprise." Her eyes closed as her blush faded as she frowned.

Jellal noticed how she showed discomfort. "What's wrong?" He asked, confused.

Her head lowered. "Nic." She said, looking at Jellal.

Once again, Nic felt his heart pulse in shock from the trees.

Jellal didn't show much surprise, rather he smiled softly. "You love him, don't you?" He sounded as though he knew, and there was a small tint of pain detected knowing this.

There was an uneasy silence between the two as the sun fully set, giving way the night sky, but no stars. She didn't know how to put it, as she never faced the question in person; yet she knew she couldn't hide from it, especially from Jellal due to their history. It was time to come clean.

"Yes, I love him." She admitted, place a hand over her own heart. "I don't know how, but he and I made a connection. He can be a little overzealous when pushing himself, but I also love him because of that. Despite his demeanor, he's kind, caring, strong, selfless…yet he can be shy and sensitive at times as well." She smiled as her hand over her heart balled. "Whenever I'm down, he's always there to pick me up. I never wanted to take a chance at love after the Tower of Heaven, but Nic…he made me give love a second chance; he picked me up from my past and brought me to my feet. He's never failed to put his well-being before my safety." She looked down.

"I love him, and even if we never say it to one another, even if we get separated and never see the other again, my feelings for him will never change." She frowned as she brought her hands to her knees and balled them tight. "I've been selfish, and I have messed up more than enough times and left him doubting my loyalty and trust to him. I left him hurt after Nirvana, and then I drove him away when his powers wouldn't work…" She looked in pain. "And this is one last strike I will never make. I could never live with myself knowing that I broke his heart so many times. It's clear that I don't deem myself worthy of his forgiveness." She faced Jellal again. "But I won't walk down that path. I want to be by his side, and even though he may push me away, I'll stay. Wherever he goes, I shall follow. Without him, I don't know what would become of me."

With her opposite hand this time, she placed it over her heart. "He's saved my life; a debt I can never repay. All I want is to protect him in return. I want to be by his side and protect each other, if it means showing him how much my love for him is true."

There was a very long silence over her speech and proclamation. Erza's words were so strong and resolute, it was clear she meant every word she laid bare. She was much different from the Erza Jellal knew as a child, something he had to put behind him.

He smirked. "You've grown, I'm proud that you've overcome your past and looked to the future." He said in a solid and understanding tone. "I wouldn't have expected anything less from you." His smile never left his face.

"What about you? Don't you love your fiancée?" Erza asked softly.

Jellal looked down, still smiling. "Yes."

"Then you know what you have to do, you have to live, for hers and your sake. That's your purpose."

"Yes, I can do that." Jellal and Erza then remained there in that spot or a few minutes before they got up and headed back to the beach.

Meanwhile, Nic was standing speechless on the tree branch, unable to move. His eyes practically mist at Erza and her beautiful speech. Everything she told, was what he thought she forgot when that close to Jellal. He soon recounted the entire speech endlessly, and seeing her face of resolution, his face grew a soft smile of happiness. He was free from worry now. It was clear she made her decision, and he was more than happy that she made it that way.

Though Nic was happy that Erza loved him back, he couldn't help but feel guilty. He half-grinned when he saw the hidden pain Jellal had, yet took solace knowing Erza moved on to Nic himself. He had to ask if this was fair to Jellal, if he was robbing him of happiness and his first love.

Given their history, it was a conflicting feeling. If he was in Jellal's shoes, he'd be upset…after all, seeing someone you love with someone else is a pain that will take time to heal. Nic accepted what Jellal was possibly thinking, and he turned away back to the forest, his soft smile returning as he thought of Erza's words. "Greninja."

Greninja nodded, saying nothing more as he followed Nic as they leaped from branch to branch through the dark forest.

* * *

Erza underwent the same effects as everyone else from Ultear's Magic. While everyone inside riled in agony and cringing, Erza only suffered mild discomfort, much to Ultear's surprise. Erza talked with Crime Sorciere since she was the only able-bodied one possible, and after restating the agreement, Crime Sorciere took off.

"Bye!" Meredy shouted,

Ultear put her hood up. "Give the others our regards. As for Gray, take care of him for me." Turned away, walking off.

Jellal smiled as he put his hood up. "Be sure to tell Nic before it's too late." He turned away, smiling. "Until we meet again." He then walked off with his guild, leaving Erza to see them off. A breeze shifted her hair as she turned towards the moon and smiled up. She was gonna tell him. The next time she meets Nic, she'll tell him everything, and hopefully he'll reciprocate after everything that's happened. She then turned and headed back to the hut.

When she was gone, Nic and Greninja emerged from the trees, and walked along the sandy shores. They stopped at the shoreline and heard the calm swaying of the waves against the beach. The water barely touched their feet, but this wasn't anything they wouldn't worry about.

"So, you ready?" Nic asked.

Greninja nodded. "If we're to get stronger, we're to find solace. All the way."

Nic glowed and shifted into his Splash Plate Form. He turned back towards the hut one more time and smiled softly. _'Erza, please wait for me.' _ He turned ahead. "Let's go." He then dove into the water, and Greninja followed. The two disappeared into the sea, swimming into the far open water, away from everyone.

The two swam out for what seemed to be a long time. However long, they heard nothing but water. Soon reaching a point, Nic closed his eyes.

'_Dialga. Palkia. Please answer my call.'_ Nic thought.

* * *

In space, far within the confines of the unknown, Dialga and Palkia were watching Arceus as his aura was still weak, but seemed stable as he sat on stardust. The rulers and almighty masters of Time and Space stared up at Arceus as they were receiving Nic's message.

Their eyes widened, and they looked around. Palkia was able to speak first. "Nic Pularis? Are you using the Plates to contact us?" He asked.

"_Yes, I apologize for the inconvenience." _Nic's telepathy told.

"You're fine, young one." Dialga said. "And to have such an achievement with seventeen Plates. One more to unlock, and Arceus shall be restored."

"_That's why I need your help."_ Nic implored. _"I can't beat Lysandre as I am now. If I'm to enhance my Plates and my abilities, I need more time. Dialga, Palkia, can you do that?"_

The two looked at the other and then back up in the space above. They seemed confused as their auras of blue and pink still had their bodies outlined as their tails also swayed.

"Just what exactly are you asking?" Dialga questioned.

"_I'm saying my Pokémon and I need a training dimension of sorts, where the time span is ninety days to this one night."_

The Legendaries' eyes widen at Nic's request.

"What?!" Dialga roared, making ripples in the stardust. "Are you asking for the ridiculous?!"

"That's very risky!" Palkia exclaimed, roaring out. "If we did such a thing, you might be trapped. After the ninety day's mark. The dimension would vanish, with you in it! Are you sure this is the best suggestion?"

Dialga turned towards Palkia. "I would think we would have to look in his point of view if we're to get his logic." He looked down. "I admit that it sounds foolish, but he is right. The time sequence can't be altered from our world and Earth Land, and I can't send him back in time three months to the past with all of the dark energy looming, he might end up somewhere lost in time for all we know."

Palkia looked down as well, contemplative. "You have a point. If we give out a small fraction of our power, this shouldn't be too much of a hindrance." He looked up to Arceus. "Arceus corresponds with the Plates as before, so the time sequence should remain the same, regardless if one day or three months."

"Now that we think about it, this may be the chance to add fuel to Arceus." Dialga said, looking on the positive. "If so, the ninety days of training and honing the Plates will allow Nic Pularis to send more accumulative power."

"_So will you comply?" _Nic asked.

The two Legendary Pokémon turned towards the other and nodded. They then looked up to the space above.

"Very well, you shall have your wish." Dialga announced.

"But be warned." Palkia stated. "Ninety days shall be your limit in that makeshift dimension. Every property after that shall disappear. You must call upon us prior so we can get you out."

"This is our limit to our power we use to help you. Train hard, young one, and don't make us regret this!" Dialga roared up, his blue diamond shining. Palkia roared up as well, his pearls shining a bright pink.

* * *

In the water, up in front of Nic, a spatial tear was seen, and particles of an array of elements were seen flushing in and out. Nic could feel the interstellar energy flourishing, and the energy signature was indeed of Dialga and Palkia. The dimensional rift was about five feet, but that was more than enough for Nic and Greninja to pass through.

The two passed through, and as surprising as it was, the water didn't flood in like they had thought. The energy blocked the water like some invisible shield as they passed through. The two found themselves falling, but caught themselves on some grass.

They looked up and took in their surroundings. The temporary dimension created had a normal forest with trees of various sizes, a large expanse of water, mountains, and what seemed to be a volcano on the far end. The sky was of wavy spatial energy, and high above was a huge clock.

TIME REMAINING: 90 DAYS

Nic looked around at the far scenery, and saw waterfalls and rivers as well. Ragged crags were seen in the mountains, and they were more than ready.

No longer wasting time, Nic reached into his pockets. "Come on out!" He called forth all of his Pokémon. Right beside Greninja, Charizard roared, Kecleon tilted her head, Staraptor spread her wings out, Garchomp bared his claws, and Arbok hissed.

With all six Pokémon out, and looking excited and expectant about these next ninety days/one night, Nic took in a deep breath and stand affirm, shifting into himself.

"Now listen up, by the time the ninety days are up, it shall be sunrise in Earth Land. We have that amount of time to train and give 200 percent! Don't you dare slack!"

Charizard grinned. "Like hell we ever slack. We always go that extra mile."

"I'm ready when you are!" Staraptor enforced.

Kecleon tilted her head. "Let us feel the burn, and then enforce the burn."

Arbok hissed. "Let'sssss get ssstarted."

"Let's get pounding away! No mercy!" Garchomp roared.

Greninja nodded. "All set!"

"Then…" Nic pivoted, pointing at a hundred-foot tall tree that started a colossal forest of tall trees. "Everyone start climbing and jumping until you reach the end! On the double!"

"I like a bigger number than double!" Kecleon shouted, rushing ahead with the others as they headed towards the tall trees.

With that, with determination and with all seven smiling, loving the burning exercise to come, their training had begun.

* * *

**There was A LOT to take in, but I hope the wait was worth it. I'm sure many of you are banging your heads against the wall knowing what will come next after what went down this chapter. I know you guys desperately want to see Nic and Erza official, but just hold out just a tiny bit longer; but even so, how was this chapter in detail and plot? Did you guys find Nic and Erza's moments touching? Did you like anything else? I like to hear your detailed comments and what you guys thought.**

**Next chapter will be the 1 night/3 month timeskip, just to save time. Hang in there!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving NicxErza, their lovey moments, and OVA 4, and the Pokémon that appeared!**

* * *

**Next Time: Nic &amp; Erza**


	70. Nic & Erza

Chapter 70 – Nic &amp; Erza

**Congrats to making it to the 70****th**** chapter folks! I've made it so incredibly far in the story, and I'm proud to have never stopped, now this chapter pays off all the waiting. Many, perhaps all, of you will be having big smiles by the end of this one. Time to get further in the GMG Arc and the timeskip!**

**To Recap:**

After morning training with Arbok, Nic and everyone meet back up at the Guild Hall, where Master Makarov is dubbed the Sixth Master after Gildarts took off. The group then decides to partake in the Grand Magic Games, which was in three months. Nic's group heads to the beach, where they trained, and Nic got cozy with Erza. That night, when drunk, Erza has a tender moment with Nic. Later on, the group is taken to a party in the Celestial Spirit World in honor of Nic's Celestial Crew saving them all, of course this led to three months of training wasted. The group make it back and find Jellal, Ultear, and Meredy, and how they ask for help in the Grand Magic Games. While everyone gets powered up by Ultear, Nic watches Jellal and Erza have a moment, but both back out, and Erza finally tells Jellal that she's moved on and loves Nic. After Crime Sorciere left, Nic and his Pokémon head into a training dimension and begin private training to hone the Plates and enhance their prowess in one night.

* * *

**Chapter 70 – Nic &amp; Erza**

'_Almost there…a little more…'_ Nic felt his muscles tighten as they were as stiff as steel. _'C'mon Nic! No backing down. Just a little bit more!'_ He felt the weight and mass of the three large boulders balanced on his two arms each making it difficult, but he was far from backing down. To add insult to injury, he was cross-legged on a flat rock underneath a waterfall. He wasn't moving an inch, and yet the three boulders on either arm were all unmoving with the water pressure coming down.

It's been a long time since Nic and his six Pokémon have begun their immense training. They've been through a lot in their usual training, but these three months have been testing their bodies to an unmeasurable level. Their physical strength levels were of a greater caliber than before, as all had three large boulders on either end of arms, wings, and Arbok's case hood, that had would've crushed a normal man, and yet they were treating it as stamina and means of concentration.

For four hours, the seven have been under the heavy waterfall, and had the boulders on their possible body parts mentioned. Finally, all seven opened their eyes at the exact same time, and stood up. All threw the boulders up into the air, and with no hesitation jumped.

In a flash, Nic and his Pokémon found themselves atop of the suspended boulders, where they were all sliced in half and feel into the waters below. All seven landed on the flat rock and took in a deep breath. Nic looked up to the sky, where the spatial, wavy sky was becoming unstable.

TIME REMAINING: 5 MINUTES

It was time to go. Nic looked at his Pokémon with smiles as they dove into the water and swam with long, slick strides until jumping out on the grassy end. Charizard wasn't even fazed by the water, nor did it effect his flame, not that it never does to begin with.

They all were in front of a clearing and spectated their work done.

In the massive forest sector, about half of the trees were stumps, as they were all destroyed. The second half was spared for climbing and jumping, but many diced and cindered branches were below. In the volcanic sector near the mountains, rivers of lava went in different currents since they all nearly leveled and reshaped the currents. The mountains themselves were hardly mountains, as the large cliffs were destroyed. It looked as though the mountain itself was upside down, but in reality was tarnished, as were many more. The ocean and beach section looked placid as the sands had footprints and leveled sand, and the snowy mountain sections and badlands were reshaped. In short, Nic and his seven Pokémon nearly devastated the dimension's multi-terrain.

Nic took one more deep breath before returning everyone but Greninja. He turned his attention to the sky as the 5 turned to a 4. He closed his eyes.

'_Dialga, Palkia, we are ready to depart.'_ He telepathically announced.

A spatial tear opened up in front of the two, and they could see past the stardust that there was deep blue water. It was clear from their perspectives that it was the same location that they'd last came in. Nic turned into his Splash Plate Form and both jumped into the tear, finding themselves swimming into the cool waters as the tear faded.

They never looked back with regret as the dimension began to distort and fade to nothing as the tear closed. Instead, they swam on ahead back to the beach.

* * *

The first rays of the sun peeked over the horizon, and the ocean's cool breeze was adding flavor to the smell of fresh air and the sound of waves calmly swishing up and down the shore. Inside of a little hut, groaning was heard. Many figures emerged from the hut, the first being Natsu Dragneel.

The Dragon Slayer stumbled out and hunched over as he didn't have a fun experience last night. "Can we just sleep just a few more…" He fell forward into the sand. "Hours?"

Gray exited, nearly toppling over. "This bites."

"I can't feel my arms." Lucy whined as she stumbled out.

"I can't feel anything. I can't even feel my stomach aching." Levy groaned.

Wendy, Juvia, Cana, and the Exceeds all left the hut next, looking as exhausted as everyone else. The mentioned were followed by Vanessa and Sophie, both looking as though they had been hit by a Meteor Mash. Sophie couldn't recall the last time she felt so much agony, and Vanessa was still experimenting the properties of her Aura Magic, so the strain from Ultear's doing made her lightheaded.

"I could really go for some breakfast." Vanessa admitted, sitting down on the beach sand. "I think we need energy, and fast."

Sophie slumped down as well. "True, I can't remember my bones and muscles having to go through that."

Erza was the last to exit, still in her light pink dress over her black bikini beneath. "Everybody up, we have a big day ahead of us." She announced with crossed arms. "The Master is expecting us to be back before noon."

"Can't we stay for five more minutes?" Natsu whined.

"Sorry pal." Happy said. "We got the big day ahead of us!"

"Yes, we can't be wasting too much time. What happened is over with, now up on your feet." Carla chided, much to everyone's dismay.

Everyone only groaned as their bodies felt like jelly. "Damn Crime Sorciere better not have pulled our legs." Cana growled as she found her feet underneath. She nearly wobbled but got her balance. She looked around, noticing something off. Quickly doing a headcount, she glanced at Vanessa.

"Where's your brother?" The brunette asked.

Vanessa looked up. "Nic?"

Sophie glanced around as well. "I don't know where he is. Last I checked, none of us had seen him since sundown yesterday." She turned her head to look. "I wonder where he's gone?"

Erza put a hand to her chin and looked down as the sun finally began to peek over the horizon. The bright light made her remember the man she loves, and yet he wasn't seen. She was worried for a bit, but alas she knew better than to doubt Nic. She still had to tell him.

Everyone was beginning to question where he was, since he was gone for a long time and all, but then they've felt a massive wave of vibrant energy closing in, originating from the sea. Everyone felt an immense level that wasn't what they had imagined.

Natsu's eyes widened as she started to get up. "You guys feel that?"

Gray was up and looked up at the sea. "Yeah, and it's coming in fast." His eyes narrowed as he stared in weariness. "Wait…"

Wendy's eyes widened as she perked up. "You guys feel that?"

"It's familiar." Juvia said.

"Too familiar." Levy added.

Vanessa stood up, a look of suspiciousness cascaded. "I can feel it. There's aura heading our way." Her eyes widened when she sensed the aura's signature; she knew it all too well. "It's…"

Erza's eyes widened as well. "Is it…?"

A sudden geyser erupted from the sea, and everyone felt the strong swell of force emanating from the geyser. Jet and Droy both ran out of the hut in confusion and caught to everyone else, their mouths gaping wide as strong energy emitted from the geyser. Everyone saw the clear water spout upwards, and they all something at the top.

"Is that…?" Lucy trailed off.

Sophie grinned with crossed arms. "Well speak of the devil."

The geyser arched downwards and headed almost twenty feet away from the group on their right. They all turned as the torrent smashed into the sand, and the arch was connected to the sea still. Everyone saw something inside, two beings actually, almost identical in signature. They all saw one figure shine a bright light, and then faded quickly, as did the water arch.

They all stared in surprise as two figures were on a knee, looking away as the sun rose up. One's coat flapped soundly until it touched the sand, and his sunglasses glinted. Him and his accomplice both had serious frowns on their faces as they stood up on their two feet.

"Nic!" Vanessa exclaimed happily.

Nic and Greninja both turned around, small yet warm grins on their faces. Nic managed to speak up. "Hey, everyone. Sorry for the wait."

Cana put hands to her hips. "Talk about making an entrance! Where the heck were you?"

Natsu grew suspicious as well. "Hey man, c'mon! You were gone the whole night!" He exclaimed.

Sophie tilted her head. "How strange. It's nice seeing him again, but something's…off."

Vanessa kept her smile, but she sensed it clearly. "Nic and Greninja's auras have gotten so much stronger."

"Stronger?" Sophie pondered.

Erza stood in stunned silence. She saw Nic right there with his warm and soft smile. She felt a surge of relief wash over her as she saw that he was in one piece. She grinned at him while everyone else gathered around him.

"So what happened last night?" Droy asked.

"C'mon. Where were ya when the others were having their Second Origins unlocked?" Jet added.

Lucy looked down, an eye twitching. "Where were _you _guys when that happened?"

Nic looked at Greninja and then back at the group. A small silence blew in the cool morning breeze.

"It's rather a long story…"

About five minutes of explanation was summed up rather bluntly and to the point by Nic and the Ninja Pokémon. Both explained of their small strategy and how they trained to the bitter bone.

"WHAAAAAAAT!?" The group screamed. They all leaned in with exasperation.

"You went into a temporary dimension to train?!" Gray shouted.

"And you and your Pokémon worked on honing the Plates?!" Happy exclaimed.

"And the time sequence was different by Dialga's doing! You made up the three months in one night?!" Sophie spatted out.

Nic looked ahead at them, unfazed. "Yes."

Natsu of all people was outraged. He held a fist up. "What the hell man?! That is so not fair! While we were getting that power up, you just went off on your own and got stronger without us?!" He did not sound pleased at all. "You should've brought us along! I'm calling foul play!"

"Yeah, what's the big idea? We could've all had our Magic increased further!" Gray exclaimed.

Nic turned around and faced away. He looked more than a little displeased with how selfish the act was, but it couldn't be helped. He had his reasons, so it was only fair that they knew the reasons.

He frowned as he started to speak. "I don't think you guys any place to say…" It was a little painful to admit, but everyone just stayed quiet, including a frowning Erza. "Don't get me wrong, I know how you guys feel about lagging behind. These games coming up will put Fairy Tail back on top." His head turned to face the now brightening skies with the sun beginning to rise. "But no matter how much you deny it, the universe is more important. It's the painful truth, but survival over victory is what crossed me."

He turned back towards the group. "I can't be at a disadvantage. I have to get as much skill in so as not just for you guys, but all existence." He looked down. "I need this last Plate, more than we need this win."

There was a long silence as everyone heard Nic's reason. As much as the fact was unfair in a way, they knew it was the painful truth. The universe and all existence was Nic's priority, and they had to respect that. Regardless of him joining Fairy Tail, he knew his mission came first.

Erza frowned at the truth, and she had to admit that it was painful to hear, but even she knew better than to say otherwise. The man she loves did have an immense burden on being all of existence's lifeline. If he lagged behind, they were all doomed.

"…sorry we got all worked up." Cana apologized.

"Guess we got a little carried away." Gray admitted. "It's rough, but we wouldn't live long to embrace victory if your powers were weak."

"Aye!" Happy exclaimed.

"Still, whether or not, this was more important than our training since Arceus is counting on you." Levy pointed out.

Greninja nodded in Nic's stead. "It is."

It was another short silence that went by before Natsu held up a fist, but smiled. "Well I hear ya. I wanna see those stars again. We'll put your priority first if that's what it takes! How's about a battle to show us what went on?"

Nic raised a brow. "Are you positive about this?"

Gray cracked his knuckles. "I don't see why not. We can get warmed up for the games, plus we get to see the new powers we have!"

Natsu looked fiercely at Nic and seemed excited. "Oh yeah, I'm all fired up now!"

Nic glanced at Greninja by the corner of his eye and vice versa. They could read the other like a book. It wasn't such a bad idea when they thought about it, but they also didn't need words to say. They both glanced ahead.

"Sure. Be sure to hold nothing back." Nic agreed.

Erza watched on with an expectant look. She could already tell that despite the truth, she knew how this was all gonna end.

Vanessa, Levy, Lucy, the Exceeds, and Sophie all stepped back and joined up with Erza, much to her surprise. "You're not partaking?"

Lucy nervously sweatdropped. "I value my life."

"And I don't do melee combat like he does." Levy pointed out.

"Vanessa?" Erza asked the younger Pularis sibling right beside her.

Vanessa half-grinned. "It's not that I don't wanna fight, it's just that I already know how strong he is."

"I see." Erza said.

"And why aren't you fighting?" Sophie asked the redhead. "You just wanna see how your loverboy has grown?"

She was met with a glare from Erza, making her scoot away and remain quiet, though Erza internally knew that she was right…but there was something more to it than that.

On the beach, Natsu, Gray, Wendy, Juvia, Jet, and Droy were all present and ready for action. They stood opposite of Nic and Greninja as they had crossed arms and Greninja had blank eyes. As the sun started rising up further, Natsu stood up with hands coated in fire. Gray and everyone else on the beach seemed ready as Nic spread his legs apart and got into a stance.

"This is gonna rock!" Natsu shouted. "Now I'll get to show you just how much stronger I've become!"

Lucy sulked on the sidelines. "Somehow I've got a bad feeling about this."

Natsu held up his fist once more. "Alright Nic, let's go!" The Dragon Slayer began taking in a deep breath and fire began to surge inside.

"You feel that?" Gray asked in general, feeling the surge of power.

"He's drawing in more Magic than anticipated." Juvia commented.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

Natsu started off with a large torrent of fire, and everyone could feel the increased power that it had compared to before thanks to the unlocked Second Origin. The stream of fire went zooming in, and both Nic and Greninja had eyes ahead and serious as ever. Both put one foot behind the other and lunged ahead in an even-paced run. Both diverged on opposite ends of the incoming more…then both eyes glinted.

A fiery explosion raged where they were, and Natsu looked more than ecstatic and he thought he got a hit in. He and the others were unfortunately caught off guard when Nic and Greninja were seen on either side of them. "What the-?!" Natsu's eyes watched Nic speed like a missile watched him and Greninja blur out again. (A better picture would be Pokémon XY episode 68, with Clemont's Heliolisk.) They raced counterclockwise and clockwise, both moving so fast that the group's heads were turning nonstop.

"Nic's gotten much faster. I don't remember him being that fast before!" Sophie exclaimed from the sidelines.

"I can't barely keep up with his movement. They're both so fast." Vanessa muttered.

Levy's eyes narrowed. "Nic must have underwent massive speed training. If you think about it, a human can race as fast as 40 mph. Nic must be able to channel his ATP so that he could jolt all around to match that speed in conjunction with his reflexes."

"Meaning…" Lucy muttered.

"He was fast before, but now he's moving all over." Happy added.

Erza remained quiet as she spectated Nic and his Greninja taking control fast. "…"

"Just how fast are they going?!" Natsu exclaimed. He turned his head left and right, and yet he couldn't get a good lock. Nic's feet left and touched the ground faster than anticipated, and he swerved until he stopped cold in front of Natsu in a crouch. "What the-?!"

"**Flash!**" Nic's sunglasses gave off a blinding light, and Natsu's eyes felt a great pain as he went temporarily blind. He covered up and stepped back from Flash. As Nic's sunglasses ceased Flash, Nic did a handstand and spiraled. "**Mega Kick!**" His feet gave off a white glow and he spiral kicked Natsu while still in a handstand. The Dragon Slayer screamed as he shot back and slammed into Gray. Both tumbled harshly in the sands as sand and dust blew.

Juvia looked shocked. "So much power!" She looked back ahead and saw Greninja appearing before her. Immediately she went for the offensive. "**Water Slicer!**" She swiped her arm, sending pressurized water crescents at Greninja.

"**Water Shuriken!**" Greninja crouched and shot compressed stars of water. They spun fast and sharply. The stars met the Water Slicer, and a blue glint was seen and time seemed to have slowed down. They all saw Juvia's attack get sliced into fragments, dispersing into water as Water Shuriken passed through.

"But how?!" Juvia exclaimed. She didn't have time to cover up as the Water Shuriken went through her body, as she was made of water, and it kept on going until it reached some very large rocks far away. A blue glint was seen and the rocks were reduced to sliced bits.

Lucy paled. "Whoa, they're not playing around!"

"Wendy, be careful!" Carla shouted.

Wendy pivoted as Nic went rushing in a swift arc close to the water. She took in a deep breath and breathed out. "**Sky Dragon's Roar!**" She forced a massive tornado at Nic, and the roar was so close, only for Nic to glow and flash into his Zap Plate Form.

Nic stopped in a skid and brought his arm up. He let out a battlecry as he swung his arm straight down. Without warning, a mighty bolt of lightning struck down in front and trailed its way after Wendy. The bolt trailed and dispersed the winds with no problem, and Wendy was left to jump out of the way as the bolt exploded when reaching her spot, discharging great electricity that sent Wendy screaming and soaring off.

Jet began running fast. "Yeah? Well no matter how fast you are without Magic, I'm still at the top!"

Greninja suddenly began appearing in front as Jet ran exceedingly fast. "Think again!" He disappeared, and Jet skidded to a screeching halt as his eyes were wide with shock.

"Huh?! What the-?!" A blur zoomed left, and then his eyes and head turned left and right as wind passed all around, small sand and dust bursting as Greninja was moving so fast he was almost invisible.

Jet didn't have a prayer when Greninja suddenly appeared on his side and delivered a massive knee to the gut, which led to an uppercut kick that made Greninja flip backwards as Jet was sent soaring and crashed into the sand.

Droy threw some seeds at Nic. "Try this! **Knuckle Plant!**" The seeds hit the ground, and then Magic seals sprouted. The seeds thus sprouted into vines with fists and raced to attack Nic.

Without a second thought, Nic flashed back into his normal self and jumped. He put his arms together and spread them apart, making a white sheath. "**Cut!**" He grunted and cried out viciously as he evaded a fist and sliced it, and then jumped again as a fist went in to attack from in front. High up, he descended and sliced the vines and fists in slashes that ran down. When his feet touched the ground, the vines all fell apart into diced bits and he went on ahead, slicing a straggler vertically in half before finally advancing with a cry.

Erza's eyes widened. "His accuracy and swiftness has also increased!"

Nic drew a fist back as it swirled white energy. "**Mega Punch!**" He drove the fist forward, ramming right into Droy and shooting the man back like a rocket, smashing into Jet as he crashed at the exact same moment, knocking both out simultaneously.

Nic pivoted as he felt something coming for him, and in a flash made a Cut again. The Cut was fast and swift, and Nic jumped away as he watched the cards get sliced into small fractions.

"Not bad." Cana admitted, holding up more cards. She slammed one card on the ground. "**Prayer's Fountain!**" The card glowed and a multitude of water spouts went racing at Nic, much like volatile torrents.

Nic glowed again, shifting into his Splash Plate. His eyes narrowed as he slammed his hands to the ground. A harsh cry was emitted and then all of the torrents seemed to have stopped moving forward.

Cana's eyes widened. "No way!"

Nic brought his hands up and swiped them in the same direction, making the torrents all arch around Nic into a U-turn and beam at Cana. The beams were faster than before, and Cana screamed as she was sent soaring back.

Natsu and Gray both went for their attack.

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Ice-Make: Lance!**"

Both attacks went blasting away after Nic, but as the area behind was of a torrent of fire and thick ice heading for him, he didn't bother to look behind. "Greninja."

Greninja suddenly appeared in front, facing the two attacks. He took in a deep breath as he brought a foot back. He leaned forward and his serious eyes remained steady.

"**Scald!**"

Greninja thus fired a torrent of steaming hot water, scalding hot. The Water-Type move raced over the sand, making it fly both ways as it made it to the two other attacks and meet in the middle for a second before the fire and ice were overwhelmed, and Natsu and Gray were wide-eyed as they were swamped by a fierce blast of Scald, sending them smashing into the sand.

Sophie's eyes widened. "Scald? I don't recall Greninja ever knowing another Water-Type move!"

"Greninja must have learned Scald while training. He's gotten much stronger." Vanessa said.

Nic watched as Natsu and Gray stumbled back up. "Greninja may not know Dark Pulse anymore, but Scald more than makes up for the Dark-Type move."

"You've gotta be kidding me." Natsu muttered.

"All that, and he's not even breaking a sweat. We didn't even wear him down." Gray however wasn't gonna say no, as he put his arm together and ice began to mold. "**Ice-Make: Hammer!**" He jumped overhead, and used his magic to swing the huge ice hammer down onto Nic.

Greninja's expression grew blank again as he didn't bother. He remained still as Nic was the target, and said person reached up, catching the hammer with one hand. His strength was so intense that the ice hammer didn't seem to budge.

"What?!" Gray exclaimed.

Nic's eyes narrowed underneath his sunglasses. He used the one hand and threw the hammer aside. With Gray in midair, he called an attack. "Greninja, **Scald!**"

Greninja suddenly appeared over Gray and shot a blistering, scalding blast down on Gray's back. The attack smashed Gray into the sand, making a dust storm that blew shockwaves and shook the earth.

"Gray, my darling!" Juvia shouted.

Nic suddenly swerved and dashed in front of her as her guard was off. He shined into his Zap Plate once again and opened his mouth. "**Thunder Fang!**" Nic's open mouth showed his teeth sparking with yellow static, growing and shaping into four large fangs of electricity and stretched out and snapped into Juvia. The water woman screamed in pain as her body conducted the electricity and Nic grabbed her while he had the chance and swung her around, shooting her into a tumble.

Natsu grunted as he was the only one standing. Despite everyone feeling pain, and him included, he was smirking. "This should be good. Let's try…this!" He engulfed himself in flames and let out a lot of Magic Power. Nic's coat flapped and Greninja stood right beside him as the two felt the great swell of pressure was giving off, but they only stared as Natsu's flames began to spark, soon erupting with electricity.

Lucy's eyes widened. "Wait, is that…?!"

"**Lightning Flame Dragon Mode!**" Natsu roared. The heat and static generated began to electrify the air, and Nic only remained calm and grinned.

"I see. If you want to play it that way…" His body began to flash brightly as a field of electricity was engulfing him. "Then I'll gladly show you what I've experimented and honed with!"

Natsu took in a deep breath, and then a great pressure was unleashed, along with what seemed to have been a fireball engulfed in electricity. "**Lightning Flame Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**" He threw the immense fireball, and the heat and electricity traveled fast.

At the last second, Nic's eyes widened, and Greninja became a blur, ending up in midair through his great leg prowess. A tornado of lightning and static encompassed Nic, and the fireball dispersed upon reaching the tornado. Natsu ad everyone felt and immense pressure that even startled Erza as her eyes widened. The ground shook as the tornado soon reached a high enough point.

Everyone's eyes kept wide as the tornado faded, and in the air was Nic in his Draco Plate Form, but this one was different than before. All of the coral red edging and color in general was replaced by an electric yellow, which was the edging, the laces, and the nails on the shoes. The belt and edging on the coat was also yellow. The membrane on the wings was yellow, while a solid royal blue remained as it did everywhere else.

Greninja landed on his back, holding on and being as light as ever. Nic flapped, and the air was filled with electricity.

"What on earth is that?" Cana asked, still heavily shocked.

Sophie was left baffled. "I don't remember having a fusion of draconic energy and lightning!"

Nic roared up to the morning skies as the first rays of the sun were behind his back. "**Electric/Dragon!**" He announced.

"HUH?! NO WAY!" Natsu shouted as his flames and lightning vanished.

"THAT CAN'T BE RIGHT!" Gray exclaimed. "HE ONLY USES ONE!"

Nic spread his arms apart and wings. "**Discharge!**" Greninja jumped off as Nic's body was engulfed in lightning, and then fired it in all directions with excessive force. When a bolt went up, Greninja barrel rolled and dodged. Down below, everyone that wasn't on the sidelines covered up as lightning bolts trailed through the sand, quaking the earth as the static levels grew out of control. Natsu found himself flying away, and everyone else got low to the ground, but still were unable to comprehend the impact of the lightning.

The Discharge end, and Greninja landed on his back again. Nic opened up his mouth and multicolored energy surged inside. He raised his head and the energy fully converged.

"**Dragon Pulse!**"

He brought his head down and fired the beam that shaped into a dragon. The beam crashed into the earth, and Natsu and everyone was engulfed in a huge field of draconic energy. All eyes were wide as the explosion and trailing beam made the sideliners go blind.

When they all looked back, they were all shocked to find everyone down and out. The sand was completely leveled, Erza was left shocked as she never felt such a power level before. Her red hair shifted as the winds calmed down, and Nic descended with a thud, looking composed and not even close to warn out. _'You've really gotten strong for all of us, haven't you?'_

The victory was clear, and Nic glowed and shifted back to himself. Greninja jumped onto the ground and looked around, seeing the sprawled bodies and weak groaning.

"Well, it seems they know what we went through first hand." Greninja speculated.

"So it appears." Nic said.

Natsu sorely arose to his knees, clutching the back of his head. "Man, that one hurt."

"We hardly dealt a single blow." Gray muttered before he winced in pain. "Damn that water stings bad."

"My head." Wendy whined as she still laid on the sand.

Cana arose with more than a few banged up spots. "I'm gonna feel that for awhile." She looked at Nic with slight discomfort and irritation. "Did you have to go and obliterate us like that?"

"Sorry for the last few calls." Nic apologized. "I guess my power levels were more than what I'd expected them to be."

"Speaking of power, what was that just now?" Vanessa asked her brother with astonishment. "Use combined your Zap Plate and Draco Plate Forms. Was that something you learned?"

Nic nodded at his sister with a smile. "That's right." He put hands into his pockets. "While training to master and exceed my potential with each individual Plate I had, I learned to become dual typed. Two Plates are fused so as to increase their potency, and I can use attacks from both types."

"Whoa, okay. That's a lot to take in." Lucy stammered.

"I got it all memorized." Sophie said in pride.

"You're not helping!" Lucy exclaimed to the other blonde.

Jet's head throbbed as he got up with him and Droy supporting the other. "Man, Greninja beat me by a mile. I'm still in shock that he kept up and attacked."

"Remind me to never face him again." Droy groaned.

Natsu fell over, but not just from the pain, but also the fact his stomach roared like an animal. Everyone heard it loud and clear. "Aw man. I need food."

"Seriously?" Gray asked. "You get your butt kicked and your brain immediately needs food? Where's the sense in that?"

"Natsu has a point." Erza chided softly. "We could all use proper nourishment. We'll head out shortly and get something to eat while we're on the road back to the guild."

Nic nodded in understanding. "Sounds ideal to us." He turned and looked at Greninja and his blank eyes. Nic reached for his Poke Ball and held it up. "Nice job Greninja. Return."

Greninja thus returned back to his Poke Ball, and left Nic to put the Poke Ball back into his pocket. He turned away from the group and looked to the forest close by.

"I'm gonna go and get some fresh air." He said, walking away. "I'll be back shortly." With that, he walked off and climbed the nearest tree with little difficulty. Everything watched him disappear in the canopy.

"Fresh air?" Happy questioned.

"A little farfetched, but perhaps knowing him he just wants to have a few minutes to sleep while watching the sunrise." Carla figured.

"Good point." Wendy figured.

Vanessa looked around, noticing something was off. "Where's Erza?"

Lucy looked around, noticing how Erza was gone as well. "Uh, now that you mention it, where is she?"

Vanessa looked at Sophie, and Sophie gave a rather presumptuous look. Vanessa took a few seconds before she caught on, but said nothing as she looked back at the woods and grinned softly.

* * *

Perched high atop a tree, relaxing on a branch, Nic's sunglasses shielded his eyes as the sun was starting to come over the horizon. He looked so relaxed as he sat back against the trunk and saw the sunrise. _'Ninety days. Ninety days, and this is the first I've seen the real sun after that long.' _It felt like a dream, but after seeing nothing but a spatial sky of wavy elements for ninety days, it felt like a nice reward. It's too bad that depending on how achieving the final Plate went, this may be the last of the sun anyone will have again. He's trained, and his Pokémon trained, just so they could get the potential and strength to overcome any opponents who dare challenge them. It wasn't that he felt superior, it's just that he feels more depended on, to which he could put up with.

He watched the sunrise for a few more minutes before he heard footsteps below. He glanced down, and his eyes caught sight of Erza down below.

"Nic. I know you're up there." She said softly. "Please, come down. I want to talk to you."

Nic didn't say a word, yet he jumped down from the high perch and achieved acrobatics while descending from branch to branch, eventually landing in front of Erza without so much as even a scratch or a flinch. He looked on at Erza.

"Erza?" Nic questioned.

Erza was quiet for a few seconds before she said anything. "How long?" She asked. "How long, were you training for?"

Her tone foreboded some slight doubt. It wasn't a good sign, but Nic took it. "…ninety days."

"So three months." She said quietly. Her head lowered. "I see." There was an awkward and uneasy silence between the two before Erza finally spoke up again. "You've gotten stronger. Is it for the universe and the games alike?"

Nic didn't seem bothered, but he looked down. "Yes, more or less. It was an appeasable motivation."

"Is that so?" Erza questioned. She still had her arms crossed as she spectated Nic. "Well it'll surely get us back to being the top guild once more." She managed to grin slightly. "Nic?"

Nic looked back up to her, confused. "Hm?"

"Why do you work so hard?"

It was more or less an open-ended question, but it did surprise him. He never thought of that question before until she asked. If he was honest with himself, he didn't have the answer. It wasn't that one came to mind, it's just that he does it…just because.

He looked away, uneasy. "I…I don't know." He answered. "I never really had an incentive when it came to my training style. It just felt different, and I liked it. I never thought beyond that."

Erza didn't seem too bothered by Nic's answer, rather she was content. She appreciated how he trained because he liked it. In a way, she had a slight envy of him. She always trained just to get stronger, to protect everyone she held dear, but Nic was different. While she works hard, getting stronger, Nic had more free reign. His training always had a bonding feeling that connected him deeper with his Pokémon, making them feel the thrill of exercise like he ascertained. He never really had to worry about looking out for others because he didn't have anybody to protect other than his sister, who was in better care than before, and then his Pokémon, who he trained and stayed by all the time.

The redhead then frowned. "But now…you have a burden that makes you want to get stronger."

Nic glanced back down, but his sunglasses never showed that. "Yes. My exercise with my Pokémon has gotten severe, not just due to our experience, but the fact that I have to get the last Plate and protect all life as we know it."

Erza snickered, catching Nic by surprise.

"Is there something amusing about my training circumstances?" He asked, a little offended.

"Nothing. This just brings me back to a short while back." She closed her eyes as she grinned softly as the thought. "I don't remember much of it, but I remember small fragments, like how you said I can protect you, and be by your side when your mission is over."

Nic's eyes widened and he looked away with a small tint of red in his cheeks. She wasn't off at all. She was drunk that night, but internally he was happy knowing that she recalled some of the meaningful things said.

He looked back at her, and he smiled softly. "Is that so?" He played along, keeping the memory to himself.

Erza nodded. "Yes…" She frowned. "But, I just can't stand by much longer. I know you're fiercely independent, but this burden you have is of immense measure. You always pick yourself up now because there are lives at stake." She took a step closer to him, closing the distance. "I'll wait for as long as I can to protect you in return."

"Erza." Nic was feeling touched as Erza put a hand to his cheek. She slowly took his sunglasses and moved them over his forehead, showing his warm blue eyes.

Erza smiled softly at him, her eyes showing content and misting a little. The sunrise was behind her, giving her an angelic aura. She thought back to last night and her smile never faded. She let the past go, and now tended to the present and moved on.

"Nic, for as long as I can, for as long as you let me, I will stay. I messed up too many times, but whatever you think, know this…" She leaned in, her eyes misting up a little more. She closed them and gently placed her forehead against Nic. Nic wasn't too tall, but he was actually the same exact height as her. He may have been slightly shorter than Natsu, but at least she didn't have to lean up.

Their breaths intertwined with the other as Nic was left speechless. He never felt such a swell of happiness in such a long time. He liked it. His smile came back as he felt Erza's forehead with his own.

Erza finally said it as her lips parted.

"Nic…I love you."

With that, Erza gave Nic a passionate kiss. Nic felt a great surge of passion and joy swell through every vein in his body. He was so happy in many ways. His initial shock turned to being succumbed to the kiss that taste like strawberries. He loved it. He loved _her_. His eyes closed as he wrapped his arms tightly around Erza's smooth waist while she had her hands to his cheeks. Her bottom lip was over his as she felt so blessed.

Erza then pulled back and looked at Nic alluringly. Nic didn't have the words as he yearned the warmth of Erza and her lips, her scent, everything. Without holding anything back, he smiled.

"Erza…I love you too."

The two pulled the other in and embraced with all their heart, the sides of their heads pressing against the other. Nic felt Erza's red hair against his cheek. It was so soft and shined brilliantly in the rising sun. Both of their bodies were so relaxed around the other. Their bodies were embracing with touching holds.

It felt like a while, but soon they pulled away from the other and Nic felt Erza's arms still wrapped around his neck. He thought of it as very soothing to the touch. His warm blue eyes looked into Erza's brown eyes, both seeing the love in one another as it was true.

With nothing to hold back, as they had laid everything bare then and there, Nic loosened his hold a little and leaned away just a little. Finally, he spoke. "Erza, will you…be mine…forever?"

In a way, he was asking her to be his girlfriend. He wasn't proper in saying it. While was to the point in many matters, it was these kinds of matters that he could only express what he can possibly achieve. Erza knew this, and she respected and like that about him, as she communicated the same way.

Nic felt shocked when Erza's hands reached for the back of his head, and Erza leaned in some more. Her body closed in once again and her eyes were misting so much that weak tears of joy began to flow. With a soft smile, she finally answered.

"…I already am."

With that, she pinned Nic to the tree and pressed her body against his, passionately kissing him. She never felt so much joy before as she now was with him. Her and Nic's eyes were closed as they were embracing the other tightly once more. His fresh taste mixed with her strawberry scent. She loved it, and Nic was having small tears of joy as he embraced Erza and their passionate kiss with all the love he had to give, with his arms wrapped around Erza's back tighter than ever. He loved how Erza's lips were so soft.

Air soon called it quits and the two parted away, their kiss breaking as they smiled happily at another, holding their embrace until Erza finally pulled away.

With the sun fully over the horizon, illuminating Erza some more, they both knew it was time to embark back. They had their fill for now and turned. "I think we've held the others up long enough. Are you ready to head back now?" Erza asked.

"Yes." Nic answered, putting his sunglasses back on.

"Good." With that, Erza began walking back, with Nic following behind as their hands reached for the other, their fingers intertwining as they began walking by the other's side.

* * *

Happy's stomach grumbled as he laid on the floor. "Aye…need fish."

Natsu looked into his bag to look for any provisions to snack on, but alas nothing was edible, leaving him sulking. "At this rate, we're gonna die before we reach the guild."

Levy turned to face the group. "Oh come on guys. It's not so bad. We'll get something to eat once we leave." She insisted with that, everyone groaned as they still felt sore, and they all exited the hut one last time with their things all packed.

Cana took a long gulp from her booze bottle and sighed. "Boy those two are taking their time."

Gray looked out, his shirt still off. "I wonder what's keeping them?" He looked away, being met with despondent looks from Cana, Sophie, and Vanessa as he didn't get the implication. "What?"

Vanessa looked away. "Nothing." She'd rather not say it since Gray probably wouldn't get it. Her attention drew instead to the forest, seeing Nic and Erza emerge with fingers intertwined and smiling. "Nic! Erza!"

"Well, well, speaking of which." Cana mused.

The two walked back, seeing the smiles on their faces as they all saw them holding hands. "Sorry for the wait." Nic apologized.

"Don't be. It's about time you guys actually did something." Cana winked, holding a bottle up.

Sophie beamed with pride. "I feel so accomplished."

Juvia looked over at Gray as she blushed. _'If only my darling and I made it as far as they have.'_

Lucy waved them over. "Now that that's settled, let's get something to eat and get back to the guild!"

Everyone then began to embark back onto the trail, leaving the beach but made fond memories doing so. Looking at Nic and Erza as they walked together, smiles were all around as that was their way of acknowledging his they have sealed the deal. They didn't mind, they embraced it. With that, everyone thus ventured back on the trail and back to Magnolia.

It seemed like a while, but after finding some breakfast in a nearby shop, the group soon found itself back at the Guild Hall before noon. Of course the entire group was sprawled all over the ground, with the only ones up being Nic and Erza, who had hands to her hips and hands in his coat pockets.

"Home sweet home." Natsu groaned.

A pair of footsteps was heard and Macao stopped in front of Natsu. "Are you just gonna lay around all day? Get up!"

Natsu and everyone else on the ground looked up, seeing all of Fairy Tail present and looking better than ever.

"Yeah, stand up! Get up and be real men!" Elfman exclaimed. Elfman had clear results in training, as he had huge muscles and longer and spikier hair. He was even taller than last time, now possibly taller than Garchomp if compared.

Mira walked up with a smile. "Oh hey Cana. What happened? You disappeared."

Cana nervously smiled and sweatdropped. "It's kind of a long story."

Natsu's eyes widened. "Wow Elfman, you've been pumping iron!"

Elfman flexed an arm. "I got the dream muscles of a real man."

"Well done." The voice came from behind the group, and all attention drew towards Master Makarov. He looked at all of them with pride. "It would seem you have all trained hard."

'_Eh, I wouldn't say that.'_ Lucy nervously thought, recalling how they didn't train much at all…except Nic.

"Everyone, please meet me inside." Master thus turned and everyone went inside. All of Fairy Tail was present inside the Guild Hall and huddled around the bar, where Master stood on the raised wooden floor.

"Listen up, I shall now announce the five who shall represent Fairy Tail in the Grand Magic Games." He announced. All grew silent as expectant as the Master then cleared his throat, and anticipation filled the air as there were hearts thumping. Finally, he called the five.

"Natsu."

Natsu pumped a fist. "Now we're talking!"

"Nic."

"I'll do my best." He said with a grin.

"Erza."

Erza stood right beside Nic with a proud smile. "I won't let you down, Master."

"Gray."

"I'm honored." He announced.

"And finally…Wendy."

The Sky Dragon Slayer turned with shock. "Huh?! What?! Why me?!"

Elfman 'manly' sobbed as his sisters comforted him. "How humiliating! Why not a real man?!"

Juvia gaped as she mentally shattered like glass. _'My darling and I separated while he's locked in the jaws of combat?! Oh why must Nic and Erza be so lucky?!'_

"W-wait! Don't I have a say in this Master?" Wendy asked.

Makarov looked away. "Laxus and Gajeel have unfortunately not returned from their training yet, and Lucy's Spirits must tend to their repairs for their world as we must respect."

Nic turned towards Erza, looking with confidence. "Are you ready for the games?"

Erza looked back at him and nodded. "Indeed." She held up an armored fist. "Sabertooth shall fall when they see the results of what we can do."

* * *

Not too long later, Nic and Team Natsu, including Wendy and Carla, all arrived in the large city of Crocus, site of the Grand Magic Games. Crocus was enormous, as was the tall palace in its center; as such, it was the capital of the Kingdom of Fiore. Natsu, Happy, Gray, Lucy, Wendy, and Carla were all on the ground, looking more than exhausted when they were somewhere in the streets of Crocus, with the people around giving conspicuous looks.

"I still feel so sore." Wendy groaned.

"I can't even feel my face. I don't even know if I have a face anymore." Gray complained, feeling the effects of his Second Origin and the pain Nic delivered this morning.

"You all disappoint me." Erza announced down to her guild mates, Nic by her side with hands in his pockets and earbuds in. "Up on your feet."

"Well sorry, but we're not monsters like you and Nic." Natsu groaned underneath his breath.

"What did you say?" Erza asked with a deadly gaze.

Natsu felt himself quiver. "N-nothing! Nothing at all!"

Lucy looked around. "This place is so big. It reminds me of Nic's world. What was that place again?"

"Lumiose City." Nic answered. "I must admit, this has gotta equal that city in size, although I think the Prism Tower isn't as grand as the palace, but no offense applied in any case."

"I see you all made it." A voice announced from close by. Everyone turned to see Master Makarov, Team Shadow Gear, Bisca, Alzack, and Asuka present, with the 4-year-old atop of Makarov's head.

"Master." Erza said with surprise.

"We didn't expect your arrival so soon." Nic admitted.

"We just finished with registration." Makarov then chuckled in a mocking tone. "Just wait, Fairy Tail will be number one once again."

Of course this brought attention to more than a few folk that happened to be close by.

"Did he say Fairy Tail?" Someone asked

"Not that guild again." Another commoner snickered.

Natsu grew a vein on his forehead. Luckily Nic was able to get in front. "Let it go."

"Everyone knows Sabertooth's gonna win again." A woman stated.

"You guys better quite now while you have the chance." Another woman snickered.

Natsu was just about to turn his anger onto them, but Makarov intervened. "Let them have their moment." He said. "For Sabertooth may be number one now, but with you all representing Fairy Tail, we shall put Sabertooth in its place. Remember, we're doing this for the 30 Million…I mean to prove we're back in action." He pointed to them. "The Legendary Pokémon that helped us must have meaning, so we must honor them by winning this!"

The five representing Fairy Tail nodded in understanding. Master then put Asuka down and let her run up to Alzack for a hug. "Now then, that being said, we have no idea what the games shall be."

"What? But I thought you guys did this every year?" Gray thought.

"Yeah, but it changes every year." Bisca said, pointing her gun up. "When me and my sugar pistol didn't participate, they had a target shooting competition."

"And when I sat out, they had a foot race." Jet informed as he sprinted in place.

"They always mix it up. I looked into the records of the previous years, and there's no consistency." Levy said with a discouraged brow.

Natsu rammed his own fist, smirking. "Then we'll play it by ear!"

Of course Nic and Erza were both caught off thinking back to what Crime Sorciere said about their suspicions.

'_Mysterious Magic Power…'_ Erza thought.

'_I wonder if this power is-!' _ Nic was brought out of his thoughts when he was presented a thick book. He looked down with his sunglasses not showing his quizzical expression. "Master?"

"This is the official rule book. Nic, you're to read this by tomorrow." Master informed.

"I have to read all of this?" Nic asked in slight disbelief.

"Oh don't worry, I can handle it." Levy spoke up, revealing her Gale Force Reading Glasses. She thus took the book and began reading through the content, taking in all of the necessary material. "Okay, to put it bluntly, there are three major rules. One is that the Guild Master cannot participate."

Makarov nodded in understanding. "Sounds appropriate."

"Those without their guild's emblem cannot participate." Levy continued.

"Got it." Gray commented.

"And lastly, the games shall remain a mystery and only will the event arise will it be detailed." Levy said.

"Rather counterproductive on that last one." Erza pointed out.

Levy jerked as she caught onto something. "Oh, this is important too." Erza turned back to her. "All participants must be at their inns at 12 o' clock."

"Midnight tonight?" Carla asked. "How strange."

Natsu looked at a nearby clock on a wall, with it saying slight past 1. "Alright, we got tons of time!" He turned back at the group. "And since this our first time here, let's check it out!"

"Aye sir!" Happy exclaimed as he flew to catch up with Natsu.

"Hold on, do you know where we're staying?" Erza called out as the group began to run off by themselves.

Nic turned towards her. "I think someone said the Honey Bone Inn." He answered. He then looked down at the ground. "Still, what's important of midnight? I know the games start tomorrow…"

Erza looked down as well in question. "But surely they don't mean midnight, which marks a new day."

"Let's not worry about that for now. Like Natsu said, we have plenty of time." Nic smiled at her. "Why don't we check out the inn?"

Erza looked to Nic and smiled. This was a nice way to spend some alone time with him. "Yes, let's go."

* * *

The two eventually found their room, and Erza opened and closed the door behind. Nic took off his sunglasses and put them back onto his V-neck, while he also took his earbuds out and put them back into his pocket.

"Six beds, yet 5 participants." Nic questioned, eyeing the six beds present in the room. "Looks as though we'll be sharing this room."

Erza began opening cabinets. "Yes, it would seem to be the case." She then looks around a vase. "Nothing suspicious here as well." She looked behind the closed curtains. "Nothing here either."

"I think it's best that we unwind." Nic persuaded, starting to unbuckle his belt, having his coat hand loose. He sat his coat on the floor and began to take off his shoes. "We can't worry too much, despite this mysterious power Jellal described." He glanced at her. "Besides, even I would be able to sense it."

"I don't doubt you." Erza turned back towards Nic, but looked surprised as he began to lay on the floor, as he always has. She walked on over as Nic used his arms behind his head as pillows and put hands to her hips. "You still sleep in hard places, huh?"

Nic's eyes opened up a little. "Yeah."

Erza looked down at Nic and gazed silently. She knelt down and extended out a hand. The act surprised Nic as his eyes opened up fully. "

"You don't need to do this anymore." Erza insisted. "You've been through more than enough. You deserve to sleep soundly for once."

"Erza?" Nic sat up and looked at Erza. She was as serious as ever, meaning she wasn't pulling any jokes. Nic never thought of sleeping in a bed, especially since when he was little he would always get zapped right off the couch. The hard place thing was what his body was accustomed to, and a bed felt so…foreign.

He looked at the bed beside him and back up at Erza, and then back at the bed. Though reluctant, he extended his hand up to Erza and she helped him up. She turned towards Nic and stood in front.

She smiled. "Now just relax." She gently leaned in and pushed him gently backwards onto the bed. Nic felt his spine and back unfold onto what felt like something soft and cozy. His body never felt a wave of soft hit him so much. His head soon touched the pillow, and he felt like he was laying on a fluffy cloud.

'_So this is what a bed feels like.'_ Nic admitted. _'It's less stiff than what I imagined it to be.'_

Erza requipped into what seemed to have been blue pants and a black tank top, showing her large bust as ever. She smiled down as she saw how comfy Nic looked, and she couldn't help but see how cute he looked as he nuzzled back onto the blanket and pillow.

She went over and sat his shoes and socks against the wall and put his coat on the coat rack. She turned back towards him with a smile. "Now just relax, I'll be back." With that she left for the bathroom, where she shut the door and had begun her bath.

Nic heard the water run and he looked up to the ceiling, being left to ponder. _'How strange. A bed feels odd, but relaxing. While my body likes floors and trees…this is just as pleasant.'_ While he trained back in the dimension, let alone back in Kalos, he was always sleeping against trees, on floors, on roofs, or on grass. He even slept on tree branches. This was a new experience, hopefully it wouldn't affect his posture.

Sometime later, Erza emerged from the bathroom, looking refreshed as she was back in her blue pants and black tank top. "Okay, you can take your shower, Nic…" She turned to face Nic on the bed, but she saw the Nic was already out like a light.

She watched his chest fall and rise, his eyes shut as he slept like a baby. Erza couldn't help but smile at him. _'He must have been training very hard to be exhausted so easily.'_ Her smile softened and she walked over towards him quietly. Nic earned this, and she knew he finally needed to relax. She delicately took his sunglasses off of his V-neck of his gray t-shirt and put it on the nightstand right beside them.

She slowly crawled onto the bed and atop of Nic, smiling down at Nic as he moaned and opened his eyes. "Mmmm. Erza?"

Erza bent down and softly kissed him on the lips. She pulled back a bit and smiled gently down at him. "Go and take your shower, I'll wait for you."

Nic just gazed up at the vision of beauty sitting atop him and broke into a soft smile. He slowly got up from his groggy nap and walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind. Erza waited as she heard the water run for his shower. While she took her time in the bath to relax, she heard the shower go for Nic and didn't seem too bothered. Mentally, she should've asked him to join her in the bath, though that's a privacy issue she couldn't help.

The door soon opened, and Nic came out fresh with his shirt and pants all fresh as can be as well. He grinned softly as he made way back towards the bed and laid down on his side, looking tiresome yet happy at Erza as she did the same.

"You've been through a lot, haven't we?" Erza questioned softly. "You've had it rough all your life, and now here you are, safe and sound in bed for the first time."

"This feels…good." Nic said. "I was always enclosed to sleeping in rough places, but experiencing this feels nice."

Erza wiggled her way closer to him and wrapped an arm around him, pulling him closer so as to have their foreheads touch. "I've been waiting a long time to see you relax." She opened her eyes a little. "You've had it rough, and your training has put you in a tired state."

Nic snickered. "Well I do burn a lot of energy. I need to sleep it off."

Erza chuckled low and kiss his cheek as she began to crawl over him. She turned Nic over onto his stomach and straddled his back. "Let's just both enjoy our own company while the others are out." She began to pull up his shirt and began to massage his back, starting to slide her hands up and down his back, feeling his muscles and tensed up shoulders.

As Erza applied a squeeze to the shoulder tension, Nic had a big smile as he never felt so good in his life. He felt Erza apply pressure and massage his back, getting her fingers underneath the shoulder blades, reaching the muscles and moving her thumbs in circular motions.

"I'd like that very much." Nic muttered as he could've slept. Erza smiled as she massaged Nic some more, sliding and rubbing pressure up and down his very toned body. He obviously kept himself in really great shape since every muscle wasn't large, but very toned to where it was like you could hit him with a punch and he couldn't feel it. She soon slid forward and pressed her body against his back, hugging him as he felt the warmth her body gave off.

Nic soon returned the favor by getting up and allowed Erza to sit on her back, relaxing as he was on the end of the bed and began to show his appreciation by beginning to massage her feet. Erza felt her feet tickle just a little as Nic rubbed his thumbs up and down. He was being nice and slow; applying what came naturally to him.

Erza moaned as Nic curled her toes on a foot and pressed into her foot with his thumbs. "Mmmm. Nic…"

After several minutes of Nic massaging Erza, he slid back up and let out a satisfied moan as Erza turned to him with a smile of satisfaction.

Erza turned herself over and sat atop of Nic, straddling him once more as she pressed her body against his and began to passionately kiss again. Both their worlds spun and seemed like nothing as the two were lost in another, focused solemnly on the other. Comfort and love filled the air, as did the sweet smell of strawberries. Nic felt Erza's body get pulled in closer as she hugged the back of his head as he hugged her by the waist.

As the two were seen on the bed, getting cozy and kissing with pure pleasure, they didn't notice a few faces peeking through the slightly open curtains.

Peeping through the glass and curtains alike were the Trimens of Blue Pegasus, all three lost at how Nic and Erza were so happy.

"Such dedication those two have." Hibiki admired. "It'd be a crime to come between their love."

"Their loyalty is so inspiring. I wish I found someone like that." Eve admitted.

"Yeah, I guess. We're not jealous that they can find love better than us or anything like that." Ren said, acting cool as ever.

"Aren't they just adorable boss?" Eve asked. No answer. "Boss?" He turned towards Ichiya. "Sir Ichiya?"

To their disbelief, and slight horror, Ichiya was holding up a clenched fist, a fiery aura around his body as he looked so serious it almost looked painful.

"Ichiya?" Hibiki asked.

"My Honey has gone and played hookey for another." Ichiya scowled. "This Nic Pularis has My Honey in his clutches, but he shall not win this war!" He pointed at the sky. "You may smell the parfume of love and bask Miss Erza in it, but know this: This is the parfume of rivalry!"

"Uh…" Eve sweatdropped. "I don't think that's such a good idea."

Hibiki nervously smiled. "If he wants Erza, this may be rivalry and war the way he wants it."

Ren looked down nervously. "Oh geez."

* * *

Day soon turned to night, and Natsu, Lucy, and Happy were all on a street and ha a few sets of flowers on them. "It's really amazing how there's so many flowers here." Lucy admitted.

"Well they don't call it the flower blooming capital for nothing." Happy pointed out.

"Fight!"

Natsu's ear twitched when he heard that one word. He turned and smirked with glee. "A fight?! Count me in!" He turned around and saw a huge crowd gathered and he ran towards the scene. "Alright, I knew there'd be action to…"

Natsu's nose twitched, and Happy immediately picked up on his buddy's face growing surprise. "Natsu?"

"You smell that?" He asked. "It smells…it smells like…" His eyes widened. "A Dragon!"

He barged right through the crowd, where he saw two men.

One was a guy with blonde, spiky hair. He had a skin tight gray under armor that stopped before the abs. Over that was a fur-lined blue jacket with no sleeves. He had blue gloves that went up to his toned forearms. His pants were black, and the inner part was white and outlined with yellow.

Right next to him was a black haired man with red eyes. He had a black coat that cloaked him, but you could see his long sleeved gray shirt that had a dark sash at the waist. He huge straps of leather hanging with red symbols that were outlined in yellow.

The blonde smirked as he stepped on a guy's head, spectating the sprawled bodies all around. "Anyone else want some?"

"Talk about weak." Lector commented.

"Frosch thinks so too!" Frosch agreed.

Natsu crawled through the crowd, finally getting a good look as he made way in front. "What's going on?!"

The crowd cleared for him and Happy as they came face to face with the two men, who noticed them and seemed rather uncaring for his presence.

"Rogue, look who decided to show up." The blonde said.

"Natsu Dragneel?" Rogue said with slight surprise.

Happy pointed at the Exceeds of Lector and Frosch. "Cats?!"

Lector pointed at Happy. "Who's this stupid-looking blue pussycat?"

"And they can talk too?!" Happy shrieked.

"Takes one to know one." Lucy stated.

"Alright, who the heck are you guys?" Natsu asked, getting up.

The crowd gasped as Natsu had the audacity to ask.

"You mean you never heard of Sting and Rogue?! The Twin Dragons of the Sabertooth Guild?!" A man exclaimed.

"So wait, these guys are part of Sabertooth?" Lucy asked.

"Oh really? You guys don't look so tough." Natsu growled.

Sting chuckled as he glowered down at Natsu. "So, the rumors about you entering are true."

"How do you know who I am?" Natsu demanded.

Sting gave a cocky smirk. "Everybody knows…" He leaned in, his face darkening. "And we also know you're the so-called Dragon Slayer who couldn't slay a Dragon." He reeled back as Natsu growled in frustration over that memory, about how Acnologia trumped them all and had to be saved by the Weather Trio.

Sting shrugged. "What's sad is that I actually looked up to you." He turned towards Rogue. "And my pal here was a big fan of Gajeel."

"It's rather a curiosity as he was a Dragon Slayer." Rogue corrected.

Natsu's eyes dilated in shock. "No way…" He felt goosebumps crawl. "Don't tell me…"

"You guessed it." Sting said. "We're _true_ Dragon Slayers, because we could've taken down Acnologia."

"You wouldn't know, because you weren't up against that monster like we were." Lucy corrected.

"Yeah, you can't say what you don't know!" Happy shouted.

Lector snickered. "Boy, they're as dumb as they look!"

"It doesn't matter if we weren't there or not." Rogue pointed out. "It all boils down to the fact that we are of a superior generation than you First Generation Dragon Slayers."

Natsu's eyes narrowed. "Generation?"

"Maybe we should clear this up for you." Lector cleared his throat. "You see, the Dragon Slayers of you, Wendy, and Gajeel are First Generation because you got your Magic directly from Dragons. That guy Laxus and Cobra from the Oracion Seis weren't trained by Dragons rather had Dragon Slayer Lacrima implanted, thus making them Second Generation Dragon Slayers. And then there's Sting and Rogue, who are Third Generation, because they were trained by Dragons _and _had Dragon Slayer Lacrima implanted in them, making them more powerful.

"Third Generation?" Natsu exclaimed.

"In other words, you wish you were half as strong as they are." Lector added.

Natsu skipped to the point. "So tell me, did your Dragons disappear the year X777 too?"

"…You can say that." Sting chimed.

"Moral to the point, they died." Rogue corrected.

The group's eyes widened as Lucy covered her mouth. Natsu's heart pulsed as he felt anger boil with a mixture of revelation.

"The Dragons that gave us our power were brought down by our very own hands." Rogue added. "That why we're true Dragon Slayers."

Lucy stepped back. "You killed them?"

"You scum! Those were your parents!" Natsu shouted in retort.

Sting scoffed as he turned around. "Listen, if you somehow make it pass the qualifying round, we'll give you a taste of what true Dragon Slayers can do. And Nic wouldn't last half as long as you." He turned away. "Let's go Rogue."

"Agreed. We wasted enough time with this old generation." Rogue began walking away, with Sting looking back with a cocky smirk as Natsu stood in anger and had veins all over.

Lector scoffed as well. "Makes sense these old generation Dragon Slayers carried around this kind of filth."

"Frosch thinks so too!" Frosch followed Lector as they left Happy with puffy cheeks and tick marks all over his face.

The crowd began to disperse, leaving the two angered and Lucy discomforted. The whole scene dialed down, and Natsu turned away.

"Natsu?" Lucy asked.

Natsu began to walk off. "Come on, Happy! We're going back!"

"Aye!" Happy stormed off with Natsu, leaving Lucy to follow.

* * *

The group met up with Gray at the Inn, walking up the steps of stairs. They all had discomfort written on their faces. It was clear Gray didn't seem to have enjoyed himself, and he could tell Natsu and Happy weren't too thrilled.

"This bites." Natsu muttered.

"Ain't that the truth." Gray agreed. "Should've just stayed in bed this morning."

Lucy's eyes widened. "Speaking of bed, weren't Nic and Erza alone all day?"

"Yeah, so?" Natsu opened the door to their room they were told to go to. They all came to a screeching halt when they saw something that was a complete 180 compared to their situations.

Lucy put a hand over her mouth as she gasped. Happy, Natsu, and Gray all just stared as they saw the two. Nic was sleeping on his side soundly, holding Erza with an arm wrapped around her stomach as he had her back pressed against his abdomen. Erza's hair was right against his nose as their heads were on the pillow, with one leg intertwined with the other. Both were sound asleep.

"Well it looks like someone was having a swell time." Gray noted.

Natsu put his hands over his head. "Well this is something. They sure got cozy. Dozing off like that is a surprise."

"It's so adorable." Lucy stated.

Erza stirred awake, her eyes opening up to find the four at the doorway. She moaned as her vision cleared and lifted her head up.

"You guys…" She looked back at Nic, who was completely out, and then at the clock. She then narrowed her eyes at the four. "You're late."

In a few minutes, through much of a hassle, Erza gently woke up her lover, and he gently arose and the two sat on the end of the bed and looked at the group sitting on their knees in guilt.

"Explain yourselves." Erza stated. "Where have you been?"

Gray's eyes twitched. "Having an unenjoyable dinner." He said.

"We ran into a rowdy bunch. A nasty duo from Sabertooth." Lucy stated.

Nic's eyes narrowed, but he said nothing.

Natsu and Happy both shuddered as they remembered the last comments thrown at them. They both had a multitude of tick marks and finally snapped. Bot balled their fists and shouted up. "THOSE STUPID JERKS ARE GONNA WISH THEY NEVER CROSSED ME!" They shouted in unison.

Nic noticed something. "Where's Wendy?"

Lucy looked around, startled. "Uh, now that you mention it…"

Natsu looked around. "She's not here?"

"I betcha Carla is with her, so I bet wherever she is, the other is too." Happy suspected.

Erza looked up at the clock, almost five minutes to midnight. "It's almost midnight. Where could she be?"

Lucy covered her mouth, gasping and shuddering. "Oh my god. I hate thinking what a little girl is doing so late! Delinquency. Bad company. Up all night." Her mind was racing too fast as she pictured Wendy robbing, becoming a gang member, or even riding a carriage with shades.

"IT'S TOO HORRIBLE!" Lucy muffled.

Gray sighed. "I hate to break you from your trance, but this isn't one of your stories, Lucy."

The door handle suddenly creaked open, and everyone's attention drew to the door opening. They'd expected Wendy and Carla, but to their surprise, and hidden disappointment, it was Vanessa and Elfman.

"Hey guys!" Vanessa happily called out.

"We brought supplies to help you get through the tournament." Elfman stated, holding a large carton of beverages.

Nic looked surprised. "Elfman. Vanessa."

Vanessa smiled. "We came to cheer you on of course. And we thought we could help out." She smiled wider. "That's what family is for."

Natsu walked up to Elfman. "Say, you come to cheer us on too?"

"Yeah, though I wanted to impress my sisters." He looked away, slightly ashamed. "But a real man knows when to quit."

Vanessa looked up to Elfman, grinning in encouragement. "Now don't say that when you didn't begin. You'll get your big break."

Elfman grinned. "Yeah, you're right."

Nic walked over and retrieved his coat and pivoted, putting it on and fitting in the Poke Ball buckle. With his shoes next, he turned towards his sister. "Vanessa, by any chance, have you seen Wendy?"

"No." Vanessa frowned. "You mean she's not here?"

"Yeah, she's supposed to be back before midnight." Gray explained.

"Midnight, for what?" Elfman asked. "Something manly?"

"We're not sure." Erza said. "But we're worried, and if Wendy isn't back before-!"

A large tick clicked on the clock, and a huge ding echoed throughout the whole city of Crocus.

DING! DING! DING!

It was midnight, and everyone looked at each other with uneasiness. Nic and Erza looked with heavy concern as they knew a bad feeling when they felt it.

"Goo~d morning, to all who are participating in the X791 Grand Magic Games, pumpkin!"

Everyone's attention turned to the balcony, where they all ran up to the edge and saw a huge hologram of a short guy in a pumpkin head costume.

"What the heck?" Gray exclaimed.

"Hello! To kick off this year's games, we're starting the preliminaries, which shall narrow the 113 guilds participating, all the way down to a mere 8, pumpkins!"

Erza's eyes were wide. "This is new. Preliminaries?"

"So that's why we were supposed to be back at midnight." Nic said, equally as shocked.

"113 guilds." Natsu muttered. "What a competition."

'_Why would they keep this preliminary round a secret until now?'_ Erza thought, heavily suspicious. _'113 guilds, secrets, and no leads to anything. What are these organizers up to?'_

'_Mysterious power…Jellal's suspicions…holding secrets.'_ Nic's eyes narrowed. _'Something's very wrong.'_

The pumpkin man was shifting and dancing all around, looking fruitful as can be. "Every year, the number of guilds entering always increases, and I was thus told these events have been getting boring." The pumpkin man chimed as he danced some more, pumpkins!" He then pointed to the sky.

"This year, only eight shall participate! The elimination round shall begin, and is simple, pumpkin!"

The ground began to quake, and Nic and everyone felt the whole inn shake. Natsu immediately fell to the floor and puffed his cheeks.

"What's happening?!" Gray exclaimed.

Erza looked over the edge, seeing the ground get farther away. "The inn, it's transforming!"

The inn reached a tall height, with the underside being something metallic. They all saw many other inns rise, 113 total. They all saw many inns held up, shocking them all to no end.

"The rules are simple!" The pumpkin shouted. "This shall be a race! Your goal is to reach Domus Flau, the colosseum! The first eight to make it there shall participate in this year's games, pumpkin!"

A sudden stone pathway began to materialize and escalate in front of the Fairy Tail members participating. Natsu got back to his feet and saw the stone staircase rising up.

"Stairs?" Nic questioned.

"You may use Magic however you see fit! No restrictions, pumpkin!" He announced. "But remember, the first eight shall qualify, and must have all five members present to pass, pumpkins!"

Everyone's shock just kept mounting as they knew things were bad with Wendy not present.

"Oh, and one more thing…we don't take responsibility for any lives lost in the labyrinth, pumpkin!"

"Labyrinth?" Gray questioned. His head turned up to where all the paths led. They all were left baffled as there was a huge sphere in the sky. It was humungous, and it looked like a metal moon with a city inside of it.

"What…is that?" Natsu said.

"Erza?" Nic asked without looking at her. His tone was serious.

Erza balled her fists. "I know, this is bad."

The pumpkin head vanished, but his voice echoed loud and clear.

"Let the Sky Labyrinth elimination round…begin!"

* * *

**13K exactly, that's the total from start to the finish, plus the beginning A/N. There you have it folks! I finally made Nic and Erza official! How did you like their moments? It was a long wait, and it pained a lot of you for many chapters, but the wait is over! Thanks for being patient! Was it as you had hoped? Fluff good and not too rushed?**

**For the next several chapters, everything will be long. I'm gonna cram each day into a chapter each, so these next 4 chapters will detail A LOT and all of each day from Sky Labyrinth to Day 4. So expect the next few chapters to be extremely long.**

**Did you also like Greninja learning Scald? Just so you know, no one else learned a new move, just him if you were wondering.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the NicxErza romance and the escalating fights!**

* * *

**Next Time: Let the Games Begin**


	71. Let the Games Begin

Chapter 71 – Let the Games Begin

**The reviews boomed like crazy, which left me pleased. I'll be keeping up the fluff with the two as much as I can! Just so you guys also know, the next few chapters might be a tad on the boring side, especially with how capable Nic is now with his training and powers and all.**

**And speaking of which, many of you are anxious to see Minerva again, in which I don't blame you. After chapter 43, she's given a better future. Also, this just occurred to me; I can't seem to find any OCxMinerva stories out there. While there are OCxCana stories, my **_**One's Road to Remembrance **_**included, I hardly see any OCxMinerva stuff, what's up with that?**

**At any rate, I've held you guys off long enough!**

**FOREWARNING: The next 4 chapters shall be long and detailed. Get the popcorn and snacks ready!**

**To Recap:**

Nic reappears after his three months of training, and he and Greninja, who had just learned Scald in place of Dark Pulse, effortlessly take out everyone possible. Later on, Nic walks off and Erza follows. She finally expresses her love for him and the two finally become official. The team of Natsu, Nic, Erza, Gray, and Wendy are picked, and the group go to Crocus, where they see the sites, though Nic and Erza head up to the inn for some alone time. After Natsu and Lucy are taunted by Sting and Rogue of Sabertooth, they head back to the inn, where Wendy was missing, and just when the clock struck midnight. That moment, the Grand Magic Games preliminaries was revealed – The Sky Labyrinth.

* * *

**Chapter 71 – Let the Games Begin**

The group looked in anxiousness as the preliminary round began, and Gray shrugged. "Well since this is a race, let's get moving."

"Now we're talking!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Hold on." Erza said, bringing their hopes to a screeching stop. "The rules state that all five members must reach the goal, that includes Wendy."

Collective shock came from Natsu and Gray, as they knew they were stuck unless Wendy showed up, but no luck as she wasn't even heard from.

"Wendy!" Natsu yelled out. "Come out, come out wherever you are!"

Nic looked back up at the labyrinth. "So this means…"

A loud stomp was heard from behind, and everyone seemed shocked as Elfman stood up with his arms out. "Why wait, when you all have someone who's got the manly spirit ready?" Without a second thought, the tallest and bulkiest of Fairy Tail hauled the four up and started up the stairs. "We've got a roster change!"

"Waaaaah?!" The four exclaimed. Natsu and Gray were under Elfman's right arm, while Nic and Erza were carried under his left.

Lucy looked surprised. "Huh?! Elfman?!"

"Wait, what are you doing?!" Vanessa yelled up.

"What's it look like? He's doing what a man needs to do!" Gray yelled back down. "We can't sit by for Wendy to not show up! "

"You just leave it to me!" Elfman shouted.

Nic looked down at the small figures of those who stayed behind. "Lucy! Happy! Vanessa!"

"Yeah, Nic?" Vanessa called up.

"I need you three to go and find Wendy and Carla. I'm worried they may have ran into trouble."

Lucy called up. "Don't worry, we'll be sure to find her! You guys just get to the finish line!"

"Good luck, guys!" Vanessa called up before turning away. "Lucy, let's go!"

"Aye sir! Kick some butt!" Happy shouted as he flew to find Wendy and the white Exceed, all while Team Fairy Tail began its arduous trial that was the preliminary. Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, and Sabertooth ran up the steps just as kick as Fairy Tail was, eventually putting them into the labyrinth that seemingly resembled a city or some altered black and right dimension, where everything was topsy-turvy.

Gray looked around, seeing how there was even sideways stairs. "Geez, this place is freaky. You call this a labyrinth?"

"I really hate stuff like this." Natsu relented. "But if it means getting back to the top, I'll wing it!"

Erza turned towards Nic. "Back when we were on the ground, the colosseum was east of us. I think we should head there."

Nic nodded and looked at where the colosseum was. "Then we should get moving." On that remark, everyone followed Nic up a flight of stairs, where they had begun their venture through the maze. Eventually after so many minutes of running, with Nic leading the charge with Erza close behind, they came to a small stop so as to get the layout on a flat domain.

Erza turned towards Natsu in question. "Natsu, you're not sick?"

"No, not really. You'd think I'd be puking my guts out, but nah." Natsu explained.

A sudden screen appeared in front of the group, where all eyes were set on the pumpkin-headed person that announced the games in the first place. "Allow me to explain. The Sky Labyrinth has been casted with a Magic that makes those that have motion sickness and fear of heights have equal footing, pumpkins!" With that, the screen vanished, having their answers, with quite the peculiar timing to boot.

"Uh…guess it's like Troija Magic." Natsu figured

Nic looked around, seeing as how the surroundings kept him occupied. He crossed his arms as he looked out. He pondered as he considered the labyrinth entirely. "Hmmm…I think we should take notes as we venture deeper. One wrong turn could lead to us falling."

"I see what you mean." Erza agreed, looking in the same direction as him. "We should make it paramount to come up with a map; take note of where we started to where we are, as well as plot along any other essential points and turns."

Gray put an arm behind his head. "Well with how a layout like this is, making a map is easier said than done."

Elfman looked in another direction. "Well a real man's gotta work his way through this stuff, and he's gotta do things he doesn't like."

"Ain't that the truth." Natsu agreed.

Nic glowed, shifting into his Mind Plate Form. With paper provided by Erza that she kept in her Requip space, Nic began to give out lines and dots. He made sure to use the mental memory boost and capacity the Mind Plate provided, and he scrutinized the area and locations all around. But even with the locations and mapping, Nic still had a hard time.

"This is gonna get tedious." He noted. He turned towards the others. "I'll map along the way, let's get moving!"

"Right!" Elfman, Gray, and Natsu all followed Nic and Erza, with the former slowly making lines as they went along.

* * *

"Wait, you mean Wendy is missing?!" Lisanna shrieked.

"Yeah, and we were lucky Elfman stepped in when he did." Lucy informed. She looked back up at the labyrinth. "But I'm still worried about the others."

"I know." Lisanna agreed, looking up at the labyrinth as well. "I hope they'll be okay." However, she caught onto something and turned back towards Lucy. "Wait, where's Happy and Vanessa?"

"I'm sure they're looking for Wendy and Carla." Lucy said. "Vanessa's using her Magic to pick up on Wendy and Carla's aura trail. If anyone can have that great of a lead, it's her."

Lisanna nodded. "Right, but let's tell the others and find them as soon as we can!"

With that, Lucy and Lisanna trailed back towards the Fairy Tail Mages and rallied the troops to find them.

* * *

It felt like forever to them, but Nic assured them that they were making progress, although he was still having his worries throughout the maze. After going through several pieces of paper, he had a pretty good idea on where to go, and as Erza pointed out directions to the others, Nic couldn't help but catch something.

"Everyone…" Nic silenced the group as his eyes narrowed. They saw his sunglasses on his V-neck, so they could see his eyes showing seriousness. "Listen…" He had the group remain as silent as they possibly could, and so they all narrowed their eyes, Natsu and Erza especially.

"This is all your fault!"

"Don't blame me! I'm the one drawing the maps, and you're the one pointing out directions Mr. Smart Guy!"

"Well someone's taking the blame, and I sure ain't gonna be that guy! Just keep mapping!"

Elfman looked up and around. "Oh right, there are other guilds here too. Forgot about that."

Natsu and the group shifted their attention towards a staircase that led up to a platform, where notable figures were giving gloom snickers at them. The figures were not so friendly, as they were the same ones they trashed when they got back. Twilight Ogre.

"Hey, what do you know? Fairy Tail again, what a mess." Thibault noted. "What a joke."

"I see you haven't changed." Erza noted with high tension.

Thibault shrugged. "So? That doesn't mean anything when it comes to you and your guild sucking and ending up at the bottom of the barrel. Maybe we should keep it that way."

"Just you watch! Fairy Tail's gonna win it this year!" Natsu exclaimed.

Thibault reached for the huge mace he had strapped behind him. "We'll see about that."

Gray smirked. "I see where this is going." He put his hands together and started making ice. "But we got other plans besides you bozos!"

Natsu flamed up a fist. "Yeah! We gotta kick Sabertooth's butt!"

Elfman cracks his knuckles. "To become number one in all of Fiore!"

Before Thibault and his other members knew it, the three launched a combined and fast assault on them. Natsu, Elfman, and Gray sent Twilight Ogre flying, without much of a fight put up. However, fate had a way of changing things up, and the labyrinth had begun to shake. Natsu and the others began to lose their footing as the labyrinth was shaking and seemed to be altering.

"Crap! What now?!" Gray yelled.

"Seems the floor is moving!" Elfman answered.

Nic looked out, seeing as how everything was beginning to tilt. "No, the labyrinth itself is moving!" He turned his head sharply and saw how Natsu and the others were starting to tilt and slant off. "Hang on!" With a strong jump, he was found having his eyes glow green, and everyone else was as well.

"**Telekinesis!**"

Everyone suddenly felt weightless as they were floating in the air, as well as Nic. He made sure all five of themselves were levitating close by as the entire labyrinth was shifting.

"Whoa, that was close." Elfman noted. "Thanks Nic, you're a real man!"

Nic glanced at Elfman. "Just looking out for you guys." He looked back down. "Look, I think the labyrinth stopped moving."

Nic slowly sat the guys down on a flat surface. They all felt themselves balanced once more and noticed how they looked down, and they saw how there were green Magic seals all around atop Crocus. A closer view showed that each circle had a fallen team on it, and the numbers were drastic to say the least.

"Man, just who came up with this idea is seriously messed up." Gray said.

"I'm not surprised. It's supposed to narrow 113 guilds down to 8." Erza pointed out. "And that move just shortened those numbers to a brim." She heard paper falling from a flight of stairs on her left, and she turned to see a stack of papers falling from the stairs from one of Twilight Ogre's Mages and it landed right at her feet. She knelt down and scrutinized the contents.

"A map?" Gray asked.

"It appears so." Erza said.

Natsu smiled. "Alright, all we gotta do is combine ours with theirs and we'll have an even better chance!"

Nic looked back at the map and at Erza. Both stared at the other before both smirked suspiciously, coming up with the same plan. Hidden glints were seen in their eyes as they knew how to eliminate the other competition and get ahead in the game.

"Hey, that's our map!" Thibault demanded, barely hanging into a nearby ledge. "Give it back-!"

"You're denied!" Nic appeared in front and stomped down on Thibault's head, causing the recipient to fall and scream in a high pitch as he was eliminated from the Sky Labyrinth. He turned towards everyone else, and smirked as they all had the same mischievous look.

Natsu snickered. "Looks like it's Fairy Tail style!"

As the group treaded on with the combined maps, and with Nic's Mind Plate powers helping him sort out the messes and redirections configured by the labyrinth shifting, they all began to initiate Plan B…stealing maps while emanating competition.

Natsu jumped with flaming fists. "This won't be pretty, but you know what we gotta do!" He shouted as he descended down. He sent a flaming wave that sent guys flying. "We're taking maps!"

"Got that right!" Gray shot ice and froze other guild participants, making them all squeal in agony. "All's fair in love and war!"

Elfman punched and sent guys flying. "This is a manly map war that we cannot lose!" He threw one guy into another. "And we sure is gonna win this thing one way or another!"

Nic was using Confusion that sent a guy into another. He picked up a piece of small debris and his eyes glowed light blue as the piece of debris flashed away, and thus Trick swapped the map that he now had. He looked at the others. "Keep them coming guys!"

"I got six!" Natsu shouted.

"Not bad, but I have eight." Erza informed, clad in her Black Wing Armor.

As Elfman held up an unconscious guy. He had a map in hand, and looked satisfied. "This is getting kind of fun!" His musings were cut short when the labyrinth was beginning to shake, and his eyes widened. "Guys-!"

"Leave it to me!" Nic shouted. "**Telekinesis!**" Once again, he hauled everyone in the air with the multitude of maps included. As the group was safely suspended, the labyrinth was beginning to alter and rotate again, and many groups fell again.

As soon as the rumbling stopped and the labyrinth was reconfigured, Nic sat everyone down and held up all the maps with his psychic prowess. He had a grin on his face. "I think I'm starting to figure it out."

* * *

Happy followed Vanessa as she ran through the streets. "Are you sure?" He asked.

Vanessa's long, black hair shifted as she ran. "Yeah, her aura signature is stronger than before. We're getting closer!" She sounded positive as Happy was in no position to say. They turned another street corner, where they stopped and huffed in front of what appeared to be the center of Crocus. Vanessa and Happy both stared up at the humungous castle, startled beyond comprehension.

"Is that…?" Vanessa was cut off by Happy.

The Exceed nodded. "This is it, the castle of Crocus – Mercurius. The castle was enormous and elegantly decorated. It had a number of buildings that were tied into one. The walls primarily had large, rectangular windows. There were a few domes around the place, and massive spires went up, with pillars all around. All in all, it was grand.

"Wendy and Carla are in there." Vanessa pointed out. "We have to find her."

As they walked ahead, the castle guards took notice and they crossed their blades in front if them, keeping them from entering the stairs that lead to the flower gardens.

"Halt! The grounds are closed!" One guard noted.

"We're sorry." Vanessa apologized. "We don't mean trouble. We're looking for our guild mate that was supposed to participate in the games, but she's gone missing." Vanessa informed.

"We've searched all over Crocus, and this is the only place where my friend here has found her trail." Happy explained.

The guards looked at each other in suspicion, but they looked at them and back at the other.

"Let's just let them in." One said. "I mean his majesty is looking forward to the games, so what's the harm?"

"Yeah, I guess so." He turned towards Happy and Vanessa. "Alright, but don't go pass the palace courtyards."

"We won't, thanks you guys." Happy thanked. He and Vanessa bowed to the guards and ran up the steps as quick as their feet can carry them. They found themselves soon running through the garden and hedges, carefully having Vanessa's aura reading capabilities as a guide.

Happy turned towards her. "Well?"

"We're close!" She turned to corner, and they both grew still as they didn't come to Wendy or Carla, but something more disturbing…her purse. It was lying on the ground, a sure sign that something was definitely wrong.

"Happy…" Vanessa muttered.

The Exceed nodded his head. "Yeah. This is Wendy's alright." He looked at Vanessa, both swallowing.

There was a long, brewing silence before Vanessa's eyes widened. She turned her head towards a direction. "Wait…this aura…" She suddenly broke into a determined dash, with Happy following right behind her. Both ran fast and turned the corner of a hedge, and the stopped and gasped.

There they were, Wendy and Carla, both unconscious and sprawled on the grass.

"Wendy!"

"Carla!"

Both went over and picked up the respective person and Exceed. Happy tended to Carla while Vanessa tried to wake Wendy up, but both seemed out cold. Vanessa looked at Wendy more concerned.

"Wendy?! Wendy, are you okay?" She called out.

Wendy stirred as she began to quiver. "N-no…don't come near me…" She looked frightened, and she most certainly looked troubled. No visible pain was shown, but Vanessa's eyes widened.

'_I can't sense any Magic from her! Or Carla! What happened…?'_ She jerked up and felt something off as she whipped her head towards an unfamiliar signature. She looked up a light post, but nothing seemed there, or escaped before her eyes caught it. Vanessa stared up at the spot, and swallowed. _'Whatever's going on, this is very bad.'_

* * *

The group miraculously found themselves running across a path over a large expanse of water, like an ocean, much to their shock. It was hard to describe really, but the environment all around, the blue sky with clouds, was painted on. Despite the fake facts, that meant they were closing in.

Natsu pointed ahead. "Guys, look!"

Everyone's eyes widened as the oceanic rocky path had a stopping point before it trailed up in an unkempt rock path up to where a door was, with the word GOAL in bright colors.

"That's it, that's the goal!" Elfman shouted.

Erza smiled as she picked up her pace. "We're there at last."

"C'mon!" Nic, in his normal self, picked up his speed, and the group followed behind. They all nearly sprinted as they managed to climb the remaining path to where the door was, where the same pumpkin guy was. Everyone stood with grins as the pumpkin guy clapped mildly as he stood in front of the doorway.

"Elfman Strauss. Erza Scarlet. Nic Pularis. Natsu Dragneel. Gray Fullbuster." The mentioned smiled happily as their individual names were announced. "Congratulations! You have all accomplished the Sky Labyrinth! Fairy Tail has cleared the preliminary round!"

Natsu pumped a fist. "Alright, we did it!"

Gray crossed his arms. "I knew we were gonna make it. Nothing was gonna stop us."

Elfman beamed with pride. "Betcha we came in first, right?"

The pumpkin guy's expression never wavered. "Nnnnngh, not quite there, big guy. Actually, more like…8th place."

Everyone's eyes widened as collective exasperation grew on their faces. They_ barely_ qualified. They were just left speechless, no words to say.

"…EEEHHHH?!" They exclaimed, which echoed everywhere through the Sky Labyrinth.

* * *

The city of Crocus was surrounded by mountains, and what made it so beautiful was the sea that resided north of the city. (I changed the geography for the sake of what I have in store. Just bear with me.) While the north had a beautiful sun rays reflecting off the sea waters, to the western crags hosted the Domus Flau, the colosseum where the Grand Magic Games are held.

The crowds roared loudly as the opening ceremonies took place. Thousands of spectators have taken their seats to behold of the action that was to come. Their roaring was so loud that it reached the locker room of where Nic's group was.

"The crowd sure is worked up." Erza commented.

"Well this place has a big number of guild mages and non-magic users. Of course people wanna see them have at it." Gray commented.

"This should be interesting." Nic noted.

"Hmmmm…" Natsu was grumbling as he looked down at his attire, which was basically the same but was purple and edged in white, with the emblem in white on the left pectoral. "Purple is such a lousy color."

Nic's eyes narrowed. "What was that?"

Natsu flinched. "N-nothing!" He then looked away. "But I still don't see how you got to stay in your clothes while we had to change into these things."

"Because Master said my attire is already part purple." Nic explained with a stern exclamation.

Erza looked down at her outfit and took pride. "I think these outfits are cute." She turned her head to see Nic glancing at her from the corner of his eye. "Something wrong?"

"N-no." Nic protested, eyeing her attire. It was basically a cloak over a bikini bottom, with gauntlets added. He even went from top to bottom, seeing her long red hair in a ponytail and cascading his eyes down to her slender legs. "It's just…purple looks good on you."

Erza couldn't help but smile softly at Nic's praise. She liked how he was worried about her appearance, it made her feel happy being around him. "Thanks, I think purple is such a cute color."

"Uh, it's not the color I'm worried about…" Elfman loomed down at the small purple dress he had in his huge hands, which was meant for Wendy. "I doubt I can fit into this thing."

Natsu pointed and laughed in and uproar, to which Nic and Erza's combined leering made him pucker and silence.

Elfman looked down. "I hope she'll be okay."

The mood he created made everyone look down at the ground, despondent from what happened to Wendy and Carla last night.

Nic glanced up at Elfman. "I'm sure. It's times like these that you have to be a real man, as you always say."

"_Wendy!" Everyone that made it through Sky Labyrinth ran into the infirmary, where they found Wendy and Carla beside the other and unconscious from the unknown experience they went through. Vanessa and Happy were right beside them._

"_What happened?" Nic asked as he was on edge._

"_We don't know." Vanessa replied. "Happy and I found them unconscious in the palace gardens."_

_Wendy's eyes twitched as she began to stir. The action caught everyone's attention as they saw Wendy slowly opening her eyes._

"_Wendy?" Natsu asked._

"_Nnngh…Natsu?" Wendy turned her head weakly._

"_What happened to you and Carla?" Natsu asked with haste._

"_I don't know…I can't remember…sorry." Wendy mumbled as her eyes shut again._

"_She and Carla both have Magic Deficiency Disease." Everyone turned towards the entrance, where they saw the owner of the voice was Porlyusica, much to their shock._

"_Porlyusica. This is a surprise." Erza admitted in shock._

_Porlyusica walked right pass her. "I've heard what happened, so I decided to act upon my duty as a healer." She stopped in front of Wendy and placed a hand on her forehead. She seemed a little tranced. "…Magic Deficiency Disease. An illness that happens when all of one's Magic sucked out, draining their physical and mental strength." She put her hand away from Wendy's head. "The last time this happened was the Guild War against Phantom with Makarov."_

_Elfman looked worried. "How did that happen?"_

"_Wendy, who did this to you?" Natsu asked, his patience thin._

"_Natsu, give Wendy her space." Nic put a hand on his shoulder and pulled him back, leaving Wendy room to think, but her head still hurt bad._

_Wendy's eyes opened up again. "I don't know…it's like…a weird black animal…" The dark creature lunging to attack flashed in her mind, making her eyes widened and she gasped at the painful memory. Guilty and in shame, she turned her body away and silently sobbed, much to everyone's mourning. _

"_I'm sorry, I let you guys down." She quietly said. "I…I trained so hard, but now…"_

_Everyone looked down in silence as she sobbed over her failure._

"_Elfman?" Wendy squeaked, catching his attention._

"_Hm?" He looked at Wendy with worry and seriousness._

"_Please…win this one for me." She pleaded._

_Elfman's brows narrowed. "By a man's honor. You can count on me, Wendy."_

"_This is all very encouraging, but you must leave." Porlyusica informed. "If she's to recover, she needs her rest." Nic and everyone else, including Happy and Vanessa, all exited the room, leaving Wendy to silently weep as Porlyusica headed over and poured an elixir into a flask._

_She looked back at Wendy. "No need for waterworks child. These silly games go on for a number of days. Trust me, you'll participate once you recover. On my honor as a healer, I will see to it that you recover."_

_Wendy looked back and smiled. "…yeah. Thanks Grandeeney."_

"_I told you to stop calling me that." She barked, much to Wendy's indifference as she fell back asleep, facing Carla._

* * *

"Is everyone set?" Nic asked, to which they nodded. They all faced the entrance to the colosseum. "The person who attacked Wendy should be in the games, if not anything else."

"That's a safe bet. Keep your guard up." Erza said, standing right beside her lover.

"You think they're trying to get us eliminated before the games start?" Natsu asked.

"Who knows. Let's just be careful." Gray said.

"Keep your eyes on the prize. The only thing we can do right now to avenge Wendy is to win this thing for her." Elfman said, staying focused for her sake.

Nic reached for his V-neck, and then flipped his sunglasses onto his face, not showing his eyes anymore. His sights were set at the end of the tunnel. "Let's go." Everyone then began to slowly walk out of the tunnel and into the light.

Outside in the massive stadium, crowds roared as they were anxious. "Welcome folks! It's time for the beginning of the Grand Magic Games!" An excited voice announced. It belonged to a young man with a toupee and suit. "I'm your lead commentator and play-by-play, Chapati Lola! And joining me is former Council member for commentary is none other than the 8 Island Restaurant owner himself, Yajima! Thank you for joining us!"

Yajima, a little older and a shorter moustache than before, nodded. "It's a pleasure to be here." He announced in the microphone.

Lola turned his head. "And our special guest today and commentator is the current holder of Ms. Fiore, and a member of the Blue Pegasus Guild, Jenny Realight!"

Jenny was about 25. He had long, blonde hair with a red flower on the side. Sje had sparkling light blue eyes and mature lips. Among that was her voluptuous and large curves, including the hip. Her buxom size was grand, just like Erza's, and she had on a light purple dress that hugged her body.

"Hey guys! This is gonna be Blue Pegasus's year!" She cheerfully exclaimed.

"And now to announce the eight teams who have qualified for the Grand Magic Games!" Lola announced. The crowd began roaring once again as the teams all began to exit their tunnels upon their respective place in the preliminary.

"In 8th place, looking to reclaim their former glory from seven long years ago, a wild bunch from Magnolia! Give it up for Fairy Tail!" Of course, as Natsu raised his fists as the others walked out calmly, they were instantly met with not cheering…but jeering. Boos ran out as their faces twisted.

"Wait, what the heck?!" Natsu shouted.

"Geez, what's their problem?" Gray questioned.

"Every year, they've come in last place, so taking a spot in the preliminaries was no easy feat." Lola announced as Jenny waved down at the bunch. "And to make things more interesting, the Tenrou group has finally arrived after traveling through time! Yajima, can you detail what transpired such a thing?"

Yajima leaned into the microphone. "Sorry, but the Council prefers to not speak of that incident." He smiled and gave a thumbs up. "But nice one, Fairy Tail!"

"CHEER UNTIL YOU BURST THE LUNG!" Team Fairy Tail's attention was drawn to the stands in a place for their guild. There, banners were up as all of Fairy Tail was cheering like crazy. Makarov was cheering like crazy on the stone railing.

"Go, Fairy Tail!" They all screamed. Vanessa was present, cheering, as were all six of her Pokémon that were present.

"LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING, FAIRY TAIL! WIN, OR I'LL MAKE YOU WIN!" Krokorok yelled.

"Woohoo! Go, Fairy Tail!" Another, more softer, voice yelled. All of Fairy Tail and the team present turned their heads to the side, and all eyes widened.

"Wait, is that…?" Erza started.

"It has to be." Nic finished.

Elfman blinked. "What?"

Cheering them all on was Master Mavis Vermilion, the same one they saw from Cana's fight in the Celestial World. Makarov was shocked beyond words. "Master Mavis?!" He exclaimed.

"I wanted to cheer you on, silly." She replied, turning her head towards them.

"W-well okay, but aren't you know…dead?!" Makarov spatted.

"Don't be such a party pooper. Only those who bear our emblem and Pokémon alike can see me." She tilted her head. "Although, even I don't know why."

"O-okay? But that's not me concern…" Makarov was still rather loss for words.

Natsu laughed. "Man, with Master Mavis cheering us on, we got this in the bag!"

"Now, onto our next team!" Lola announced. "The wildest of hellhounds that managed 7th place, Quatro Cerberus!"

"Wild!" One member shouted, with many others screaming out the same phrase.

"And now, onto 6th place! The female guild that dances among the waters, give it up for Mermaid Heel!"

Five female figures walked out, two of which left Nic and Erza slightly unnerved and their skins prickling with anticipation. As the members passed by, Erza was especially on edge with the purple-haired woman that frowned and had a sword. Her movements her controlled and heavily stern. The second one was the one holding up the banner and had a sly smirk underneath her hood.

Vanessa raised a brow. "An all-female guild? Everyone's full of surprises."

Mawile nodded. "Ain't that the truth."

"And in 5th place, a guild that knows no bounds when it comes to glimmer, give it up for Blue Pegasus!" All the members, Ichiya, the Trimens, and a bunny suit, all posed.

Jenny smiled down. "Do your best guys!"

Lola continued. "In 4th place, we have the underdogs, known as Lamia Scale!" From the tunnel, Lyon, Jura, and two other guys known as Toby that looked like a dog, and Yuka, emerged, along with a young girl with dark pink hair that seemed to be as old as Wendy.

"Is that Jura?!" A spectator exclaimed.

Obaba looked annoyed, "WHY'S YOU ONLY COME IN 4TH PLACE?! I SAID 1ST!" She yelled.

The small pink girl looked back. "Yeah sorry old hag." She apologized. "I wasn't looking where I was going-!" She suddenly tripped. Making her appeal less than what it was.

Natsu tilted his head. "Say, doesn't she look familiar to you?"

"She reminds of that Sherry girl." Gray noted.

Lyon turned towards Gray. "Perhaps you never met Chelia, one of Sherry's cousins."

Gray shrugged. "Guess that answers the resemblance then."

"And she's crazy strong." Toby informed.

Chelia sheepishly rubbed her head. "No offense, but I need more love if I'm to compete with her."

"I was praising you!" Toby shouted.

Lyon then stepped closer to Gray. "Don't forget, Gray. If we win, Juvia joins Lamia Scale."

Gray snickered back. "Funny you should say that, because last I checked I never agreed. But you guys were gonna lose anyway."

In the stands, Juvia had hearts in her eyes. _'Oh my darling, we cannot be apart! Our love shall give you strength!'_

"If that's the case, maybe I'll take Miss Erza if we win!" Ichiya announced, sliding right over to the Requip Mage.

"No, you troll!" She exclaimed, slightly frightened by the small man. She suddenly felt a hand grip to her own, the hold firm yet warm. She looked to her side, seeing Nic holding her.

"You stay away from her." Nic said, a fire of dominance on his eyes beneath his sunglasses, but his tone was all that was needed to tell this factor.

"Nic…" Erza felt her heart raced as she blushed.

Ichiya eyed Nic. "Ah, the challenger! Heed my words!" Ichiya struck another pose, pointing at Nic as he had a fiery aura. "By the time these events are over, I shall have My Honey bask in my parfume! May the better man win!"

With that, Ichiya scooted back to his team, leaving Nic and an embarrassed Erza to themselves, their hands tighter than before.

Erza was still red, but had a tick mark. "He should learn a thing called personal space." She growled.

Nic looked at her. "If he wants you, he'll have to go through me."

"And now, onto our 3rd place contestants." Lola announced, getting all the teams on track. "Moving on, we have…oh my, this is a surprise! This team's entering for the first time, snagging 3rd place from a midnight dreary…"

Said them had black feathers down as they cleared from the tunnel, showing a dark being in armor and a thick coat, a large guy with a straight blue face with a small animal on his shoulder, a stout pink man with blonde hair, a psycho-crazy girl with ted hair and dress, and a man with a skin-tight black vest.

"Welcome, Raven Tail!" Lola announced.

Nic's eyes widened just a little. "Raven Tail…"

Erza grew uneasy as her spine crawled. "This is bad. Their leader is Ivan, Master Makarov's son."

Makarov had veins popping out of his head. "Grrrr…! WHAT WERE YOU OFICIALS THINKING! THEY'RE A DARK GUILD! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MINDS?!"

"Master, get a grip!" Lucy shouted as she and Lisanna both restrained Makarov from going wild.

Mavis's eyes grew suspicious. "I sense malevolence from them."

Lola looked down at the papers he had in hand. "Well…records have shown that they have been having activity for more than seven years, but they have recently become official."

"So if the committee sees them as official, they're not labeled as a Dark Guild." Yajima added, but showed slight worry.

"Damn you Ivan!" Makarov held up a fist. "Whatever is happening, I'll put a stop to it!"

In the stands, Ivan was slightly darker in skin compared to Makarov and Laxus. He had unkempt dark hair and beard. His black cloak and gold shoulder armor overshadowed the purple vest and dark blue pants he adorned.

He smirked maliciously at Makarov, cocking a brow. "Just wait old man, I want you to live to see your guild fall."

The armored man leading Raven Tail glared at them all. "Fairy Tail." He announced so that they could hear. "I trust that you got our little 'gift'."

Next to him was a tall person with the big head and long nose with a top hat. The creature on his shoulder snickered as it turned its head to look like that of Wendy. It mimicked a groan and fell over.

Natsu glared viciously at them. "So you guys attacked Wendy." He growled as his teeth gritted. "You're gonna pay."

The armored man was smugly turning away. "The real games begin, so let's enjoy them while we can."

Team Fairy Tail just glared at Raven Tail angrily and remained quiet.

"And now, the last two teams!" Lola announced.

"Two?" Gray asked. He looked in another direction. "Oh, right. There's still two others, and one of them is Sabertooth."

"It's possible one of them is tied to Zeref in a way." Erza said, her eyes narrowing. "So Jellal's suspicions might be right."

"Now for 2nd place…oh my goodness folks! I did not see this one coming!" Lola announced, immense shock as all attention drew towards the tunnel. Static discharged as five members emerged, shocking even the Fairy Tail group.

"Wait…HUH?!" Natsu's eyes widened hugely.

"It's Team Fairy Tail B!" Everyone was left frozen in bewilderment as the second team emerged, comprised of Sophie, Gajeel, Mirajane, Laxus, and one more member thought to have left.

"Big sis?!" Elfman exclaimed.

"Gajeel?!" Natsu shouted.

"Sophie?" Nic questioned.

"Laxus? Just what kind of crap is going on?!" Gray shouted in disbelief.

Natsu looked over and pointed at the fifth member. "Wait hold on, even Mystogan's here?! How's that possible?!"

Erza scrutinized the last member. "It can't be…Jellal?" 'Mystogan' put his finger over his mouth, and Erza grew silent. Nic looked over and remained quiet as well.

Ichiya crossed his arms. "I never expected them to have two teams."

"What the heck?!" A spectator shouted.

"How is this fair?!" Another outraged.

Lola turned towards Yajima. "I do believe our fans haven't been debriefed of the new rules Mr. Yajima, care to elaborate?"

"Yes." He said. "The committee in charge decided that this year they would allow two teams from each guild to participate, which they thought would make the preliminaries more exciting."

Makarov scoffed a triumphant laugh. "You see that?! This is how Fairy Tail makes its comeback!"

"I see, so he decided on a pincer tactic." Nic stated with crossed arms. "Still…"

"We should've known Master would do something like this." Erza sighed.

Jenny looked dissatisfied. "I'm not sure the committee thought this through. I mean, if they had a team-based competition, there wouldn't be anything to stop them from joining up."

"I say that's an advantage they'll have to make the use of." Yajima gave yet another thumbs up. "Nice job, Macky!" Of course Lola and Jenny raised brows at the nickname.

Natsu ran passed his team and stood in front of Team B. He looked pissed. "SCREW ALL OF THIS!" His yelling brought surprise to everyone around. He pointed at Team B. "Being in the same guild means nothing! If you get in my way, you're eating dirt!"

Gajeel smirked as he leered at Natsu. "That's fine by me. I've been meaning to make you eat dirt instead, Salamander." He mocked.

Mira looked up at Elfman with her cheerful smile. "What's the matter Elfman? You looked terrified."

Elfman swallowed as he looked down at Mira. "It's because I am!"

Sophie grinned and managed to chuckle. "I ain't holding back either, but don't think I'll want to remember losing to anyone."

'Mystogan' remained nervous as Nic and Erza quietly approached him, with the redhead more peeved than her lover. "…what are you doing here?" She asked quietly.

"When I stated the situation to your Master, he was a very understanding person." He answered. "He gave my plan his blessing."

"But you said you couldn't get anywhere near the colosseum." Nic reminded 'Mystogan'.

"It was…until I learned of this chance." He responded.

"It's against the rules. You're not a real member." Erza informed, slightly irritated.

Despite the fact, 'Mystogan' remained calm. "As I understand it, Mystogan and I are technically the same."

A sudden arm went around his shoulder. "Don't be so dramatic you two, c'mon. This is a festival, right? We're all friends here." Laxus said in a hinting warning. The three looked at each other and gazes were still, but they knew Laxus was right to just drop it.

"It'll be fine you two, trust me." 'Mystogan' insisted.

"By the way, 'Mystogan', you're normally never this much of a chatterbox." Laxus's glance went to Nic and Erza. "Remember that."

'Mystogan' nodded in understanding.

Mavis looked at Nic, Erza, and Jellal down below, her suspicions rising about. "That man…he's not apart of our guild!"

"Gyyaaahh!" Makarov began showing and pleading rapidly towards Mavis. "I'msorryI'msorryI'msorryyyyyy! Please forgive me!" He begged on his small knees.

"Told you this plan sucked." Wakaba said.

Mavis turned towards the scene yet again. "And yet…I don't sense any malevolence from him; in fact, he has the same heart as Fairy Tail itself."

"It's a long story, but I guess you can say he's technically a member." Happy pointed out.

Lily crossed his arms. "I get it, he's Earth Land's version of Prince Jellal. I thought they seemed alike."

"Is he strong?" Mavis asked.

"O-oh yes! He was actually one of the Ten Wizard Saints not too long ago!" Makarov said.

The top hair on Mavis's head wiggled in delight. "…OK!" Much to the others' shock, she had sparkles in her eyes. "With him on our team, we're sure to win!"

"Should've guessed it." Droy sighed.

"Yeah, who cares about rules when there's victory to worry about." Levy sighed.

Jellal didn't face the two, but whispered as they were looking away over his shoulder. "Did you find anything suspicious?"

"Aside from Raven Tail, we don't have any solid evidence." Erza explained.

"We've sensed the power in previous years, so it can't be them." Jellal informed.

"…we'll let you know if we find anything." Nic said, keeping his tone quiet. He was recalled back to his previous encounters with Jellal, and it's fair to say that he was still slightly on edge with him, but with past experience, he can trust him.

Jellal then walked away, and Erza grabbed Nic's hand and brought him out of his small shock. Jellal looked back as he saw their backs, their hands holding the other. Underneath his mask, he gave a small smile.

"Alright fans! Now the moment we've all been waiting for!" Lola announced. The crowd instantly went nuts as whistling and roaring bellowed. "That's right! You know 'em! You love 'em! Behold…the one any only…SABERTOOTH!"

From the tunnel, Sting exited, along with a calm Rogue. The crowd went nuts over them, and a white-haired girl in a cloak appeared, and a bulky man with black tattoos all over his body, somewhat similar to Laxus's estrange tattoo over his guild mark. The last one was a well-dressed man, who had long blonde hair, though darker than Sophie's. He has a masquerade mask and a fancy red hate with a pink fluff.

Natsu glared at Sting. "Sabertooth."

Sting wagged a finger, smirking. "Well, this should be fun."

Rogue's glare was to Nic and Gajeel, both returning the glare, but Nic's wasn't able to be seen.

"What are you looking at?" Gajeel snarled.

Rogue turned away. "Nic. Gajeel." He muttered.

Sophie looked at Sabertooth just like the rest of them. Fairy Tail was glaring at them all and vice versa, but Sophie's gaze stopped at the dark blonde with the mask. Her eyes widened a little. _'Wait…' _As his eyes turned towards her green ones, she began to make a connection. _'Is that…how can this be…?' _Sophie just swallowed as her eyes were shaken and fixated on the dark blonde as he tipped his hat with a scoff towards her.

"All in all, we have an impressive lineup, right?" Lola turned towards Yajima. "Any comments, Mr. Yajima?"

"Yeah…Mermaid Hell makes me yearn for my youth." He answered.

"Uh, that's…not what I meant." Lola turned back ahead with a sweatdrop. "Anyways…let's get on with the schedule for the Grand Magic Games!" As he spoke, a large slab of rock emerged in front of all eight teams.

"Well Nic, looks like you were right when things were gonna get interesting." Erza commented.

Lola looked down at the papers he had. "Each first round shall be a contest. The members shall be chosen by their team, and then shall be ranked from 1st to 8th place depending on where they scored in the contest. After that will be battles. These battles will be a treat, since the fans will decide who shall fight who."

"I see." Erza said,

"So if we don't watch ourselves, we'll be sent into a battle with no rest from the contest." Elfman swallowed.

Nic crossed his arms. _'This committee, just what are they doing? They're constantly giving us zero hints. Are they eluding us from something?'_

"Battle rules will be simple. The winning team gets 10 pts, while the losing team gets none. In the event if a tie or after time is up, each team will get 5 pts." Lola cleared his throat. "Now, let's get started with the first event of the Grand Magic Games – Hidden! All teams, please pick a member to represent and then the rules shall be explained then and there."

"I'll handle this one!" Yeager of Quatro Cerberus announced; his guild mates cheered for him as he stepped up.

Beth, a country girl of Mermaid Heel, stepped up. "How's about letting little ol' me get us a start?"

"Go." The swordsman stated, and then Beth went off.

"Go, Nullpudding." The armored leader announced for Raven Tail.

Nullpudding, the stout pink man with big arms, looked up. "I won't let you down, boss man."

Eve of the Trimens smiled. "Allow me." He stepped up, and the Blue Pegasus members all posed and danced as he walked ahead.

"Please, allow me to enter." Rufus announced of Sabertooth, momentarily taking off his hat. "I'm feeling inspired by the crescendo of this dawn."

Sophie calmly yet nervously stepped forward. "…I'll go."

"Just don't make us regret it." Gajeel sneered.

Chelia turned towards Yuka. "Well, I guess it's either me or you since we're both little!"

"Don't call me little." Yuka chided.

To their surprise, someone else stepped up, and it wasn't either of them. It was Lyon. "No, I'll start us off right. You leave this to me."

Gray snickered. "Well if that's the case, I'm stepping in." He announced as a representative.

"It looks like the players are set!" Lola announced. "The let's get started with…Hidden!"

* * *

Ultear had a hand to her hip as she overlooked the whole scene. She and Meredy both stood atop of a statue that was far away from the colosseum, and so they looked through Ultear's crystal ball to see Gray participating.

"Well, seems Nic and friends have finally got the games underway." Ultear smirked. "Too bad, I thought Nic would start things off with a bang."

"Well at least Jellal was able to get in." Meredy sighed. "If he was gonna participate, doesn't that make our talk with that Fairy Tail group rather pointless?"

Ultear snickered. "Well in Jellal's case, it was worth it." She hinted well of how Jellal and Erza's talk went. "Besides, with him close, we can get a better reading of this power."

She and Meredy then looked back into the crystal ball, seeing Gray and Sophie's images.

* * *

Juvia glared at Sophie and Gray. "That should be me down there with my love! Not her!" She exclaimed in a frantic manner. _'She better not take Gray during the competition!'_

"Juvia, calm down!" Vanessa sweatdropped nervously.

The pumpkin guy who announced the Grand Magic Games overnight then appeared. He seemed as happy as ever, or at least that's what his headgear expressed.

"Huh?" Gray turned towards him. "Say, you're that guy from before. Just what are you exactly?"

"U-uh, me…?" He stammered. "U-uh, I'm a pumpkin, silly, pumpkin!" He exclaimed, feigning the question.

"…right, okay." Gray just allowed the matter to slide.

"Before we begin, I'd like to express a problem, see?" Nullpudding expressed. "I don't exactly know what Hidden really is about, and I say these Fairy Tail Mages have an unfair advantage in terms of numbers."

Gray and Sophie glared at Nullpudding. But before they could object, Rufus tipped his hat.

"I see no problem with it." He announced. "In fact, this reminds me of a saying. Two heads aren't necessarily better than one; therefore, in the case of a hostage situation, they'd have no choice but to comply."

"I don't know whether to feel complimented or appalled by your words." Sophie stated blankly at Rufus, her tone solid, which caught Gray's attention.

Rufus looked away. "However you see it makes no appeal to me, but all I'm saying is that having a comrade my only hinder you." He pointed his fingers to his head. "You'd be wise to remember that."

The pumpkin man waved his arms. "Now, let's begin!"

At that cue, large buildings began to materialize all around, shocking the presence of everyone. They all looked around and saw numerous buildings becoming a city that left them all to suddenly diverge. The city kept growing until it made up the whole colosseum.

"A city?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"I definitely didn't expect that to happen." Nic admitted. "Just how can this be possible?"

"Yes, and does it require a lot of Magic Power?" Erza questioned.

Inside the city, Gray found himself alone. "Lyon?! Sophie?!" When he got no answer from his call, he got uneasy. "Geez, just what happened?"

In another part of the city, Sophie looked around, remaining calm. "The others…I can't remember them up and vanishing like that."

Yeager of Quatro Cerberus looked around. "I see, an advanced Hide-and-Seek. I used to play this as a kid." He took a few paces forward. "Is there supposed to be something looking for us?"

"Now, we'll see the action, so sit tight!" Lola announced as huge screens emerged all around the stadium. The monitors showed the individual characters looking around. "Alright, here are the rules of the game folks! The layers are hiding and seeking at the same time!"

"What?" Natsu asked.

Nic's arms crossed. "He means something like a hit and run tactic. I do this kind of training with my Pokémon on occasion for stealth and perception training. This is no different." He informed.

"The objective is to locate the other players." Lola continued. "You must find and attack them. Once the attack makes contact, whether it does damage or not, the recipient gets a negative point, while the sender gets a positive point."

Suddenly, many more players began to materialize. Copies of the other players became present, and all the players looked around in suspicion.

"What's with all the copies? To psych them out?" Elfman asked. To his side, Natsu suddenly puffed his cheeks. "What's wrong with you?"

"…too many Grays." Natsu muffled.

Erza's eyes narrowed. "This is extremely difficult. Even after knowing Gray after all these years, I can't tell them apart."

Nic looked silent, but spoke up as he glared through the monitors. "…I can."

His team towards him with deep shock. Natsu looked shocked the most. "Wait, you can?!"

Nic tuned towards him. "Yeah, it's no different from Staraptor's Double Team. After years of knowing that move and having Staraptor use it, I can tell the difference with no problem." He looked back up at the screen. "But in Gray and Sophie's cases, they need as much perception as they can get."

"I see." Erza turned towards Nic, surprised at his level of perception experience. She knew he trained unlike any other back in his world, and yet perhaps there, Trainers may know the Double Team move and yet still have a hard time knowing the fake from real. Nic's been scrutinizing his Pokémon and characteristics very well, a trait which made her admire him.

"I know they're pretty, but the copies aren't just for show folks!" Lola announced. "Attack a fake even by mistake, and it'll cost you a point."

Juvia was panting like crazy as she had hearts in her eyes. Her hips wiggled profusely. "Oh! There's so many Grays that I just want them all!" She squealed.

"I don't think that many Grays is good for her health." Lucy groaned.

"Let Hidden…BEGIN!" Lola announced.

In the city, Sophie looked around, weary of all of the copies she was around. _'I know that real ones can cast shadows, so all I need to do is-!' _Unfortunately Sophie wasn't looking where she was going as the copies of Rufus caught her off guard. She had an impulse run to her head and she turned to face a Rufus, only to fall over through the copy and thud to the ground. A buzzer went off as Sophie got a negative point and vanished, reappearing in another location.

"And from that display, you all learned the hard way. Even if just an accident, Sophie lost a point and must start over after ten seconds." Lola announced.

"Damn klutz." Laxus murmured.

"I don't know; that slip-up seemed provoked." Mira countered.

Elsewhere, Gray was walking and was looking irritated. "Man, just a misstep and everything goes crazy."

"Says you." A voice from behind announced. Gray turned around and the small purple man was present, with his dark grin on his face. "You'd best know the ruled early on and take advantage while you can."

"You, you're from Raven Tail!" Gray stammered in disbelief.

"That's right, the name's Nullpudding." He introduced with his dark grin.

However, Gray took advantage of the situation. He smirked as his hands got coated in ice. "Well it's nice to meet ya, how's about I give you a welcome gift of my own?" His hands began to shine. "**Ice-Make: Hammer!**" He brought an ice hammer down hard, crushing Nullpudding with immense force, earning cheers from his comrades in the stands.

"Damn! That ain't his normal maker Magic!" Jet exclaimed.

Happy beamed. "Aye! That's what training gets ya!"

"Gotcha!" Gray felt proud, but the buzzer sound and Nullpudding disappearing confused him. "Wait, what…?"

"Sorry, but that didn't work." Nullpudding said, appearing from behind the crushed copy and grinning to mock Gray. Said Ice Mage suddenly found himself vanishing and reappearing in another part of the city, having a negative point.

Gray winced. _'Damn, that was dumb.' _He got up and looked around, remaining quiet with a frown. _'I think I get it. If you use your copies to your advantage, you can get in a surprise attack while their guard is down. That's how you play the game.'_

"Boy, glad I didn't go." Elfman stated nervously.

Erza turned towards Nic, having a serious gaze. "He got careless, and that left him open, but even the smallest misstep can lead to your revilement."

Nic nodded. "Yeah, Gray and Sophie are gonna have to be a lot more careful now from experience."

Gray looked around the group of copies and looked irritated. "Man, just how am I gonna tell who the real on is?"

"Gray…" A voice called ominously. "Found you!"

Nullpudding's arms enlarged and were lined with sharp needles. He punched Gray hard and made him scream in pain as he teleported to another location.

"What was that?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"How did he find him?!" Erza exclaimed.

Nic's eyes narrowed. "Seems I'm not the only ne with perception."

"And with that, Nullpudding has taken the lead." Lola announced.

On the field again, Gray was walking around. "Man, this game stinks…" He suddenly saw the ground ahead quake, and then a hole suddenly appeared. "Wait, what-?!" He hurried and dodged incoming carrots that were fired like missiles. He was super close to getting hit, but got lucky.

Beth emerged from the hole. "Aw shoot, I missed." She was suddenly driven up from the ground, attacked by a plant that arose by the likes of Yeager.

"Aw heck yeah! I was waiting to do that!" Yeager shouted, but was cut off when a sudden chill cut him down, making him vanished. The source was Lyon as he was behind him.

"As was I." Lyon said. He then stared down at Gray. "Finally, Gray."

"Lyon." Gray announced.

"**Memory-Make: Charge Blades!**" A third party yelled out, and Lyon suddenly found the ground beneath him breaking apart. He was suddenly struck by a sharp stone coated in lightning. The Ice-Make Mage was send soaring filled with static, teleporting once he hit the ground. Sophie emerged from the alley, looking satisfied.

"Sophie?!" Gray stammered.

"Surprised?" She asked, having her points back to 0. "Still, I'm not one to lose so easily, actually I'm determined to win because of what Master said."

_While the others were heading the Crocus, Sophie, Mira, Gajeel, and Laxus were all present. They were announced by Makarov, in privacy, that they shall partake as the B Team for Fairy Tail, although some people thought otherwise._

"_Have you lost your marbles?!" Gajeel exclaimed." I want nothing to do with that freak show!" _

_Laxus shrugged. "Well I got no problem with it, but being put on the B Team is rather insulting you know."_

_Makarov rubbed his chin. "Hmmm…then how's about I sweeten the deal?" The idea then came. "Yes, that's it! The members of the winning team get to do to whatever they want to the losing team for a whole day!"_

_Lily crossed his arms. "Sounds like a penalty game."_

_The four present then began to imagine themselves with Team A: Laxus found himself musing of having Natsu as his personal slave, Gajeel thought using Gray as a footstool or a stand to read his music off of, Mira thought of having Erza as her maid for the day, and Sophie thought of having Nic as her servant for the day, not that the latter is never distasteful of helping a friend out._

"What?!" Gray exclaimed. He turned towards one of the lacrima in the sky so his face was in the monitors. "Hey gramps, you better make it fair so that if we win they have to do what we want!"

"Yes, yes…of course." Makarov nervously stated.

Lucy half-grinned. "Man, that's some deal. Boy I'm not down there…" Lucy suddenly felt a dark aura rise from her right, and she looked to her side and saw Juvia as she glared up at the screen, seeing Gray and Sophie in the same monitor. The look Juvia gave scared Lucy.

"My darling…" She growled as her aura thickened. "I should be the one to be there! I need to be by his side~! I need_ my _wish!" She thought of Gray and her finally confessing and sharing the most passionate kiss ever, and when she snapped at reality again. "I can't have Sophie stealing my beloved, not after that display!" she looked up at Sophie more intensely "…new love rival." She growled like an animal.

Lucy looked away despondently. "Oh geez, there she goes again."

A sudden rush of something grand pounded Sophie and Gray at the same time, the culprit being none other than Nullpudding.

"Two for the price of one!" He shouted, and he watched them both teleport to another location.

When Gray materialized somewhere else, he stood up. "Man, just what is his problem…?" Suddenly snow began to fall down, and Gray was caught shocked. "Snow?"

Jenny smirked. "That's Eve's doing, no doubt."

Snow suddenly began to fall, and Eve smirked as he made it a lot colder than usual. Eve looked around, and snow kept coming down.

"I see." Ichiya's eyes were wide. "When humans are cold, they shiver, and their breaths show steam."

Hibiki smirked. "Pretty sound thinking, wait a go, Eve."

"HRAAH!" Eve swiped his arm, sending a blizzard of white snow that struck the victims comprised of Beth, Yeager, and Nullpudding, scoring Blue Pegasus some points.

"And with that, Eve has scored some serious points for Blue Pegasus!" Lola announced.

On the screens, Sophie was seen taking out two opponents at once with Charge Blades again, and the other participants were scoring hits left and right again. The competition was getting intense.

Sophie closed her eyes as Beth and Eve were present. "**Memory-Make: Scorn of the Armored Winds!**" Sophie swiped her arm, unleashing mini tornadoes of iron that struck them, earning her team some points. She grinned in satisfaction, but then something was recalled.

"…Rufus?" She looked around, not sensing Rufus nor his Magic. She looked all around, and her shock never stopped mounting as Rufus Lore was perched on a high point, where all could see him. Immediately, Sophie grew unnerved. "Rufus!"

Rufus tipped his hat, smirking down at her.

"Odd, Rufus hasn't scored yet, but he hasn't lost any points either." Lola announced. "Just what is he planning up there?"

"He could've picked a better hiding spot." Happy commented.

Lily grumbled. "No, he seems too relaxed. Something's wrong."

"I have memorized it all; tone, footsteps, moods, all in my memory." He said quietly. "It's a clear picture, inside my mind." He put both hands to his forehead and a red seal and chains of memory wiggled behind him. "**Memory-Make…**"

All of Fairy Tail's eyes widened, them being the most shocked out of all of the audience.

"No way! Did I just hear that right?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"He can use Memory-Make Magic just like Sophie." Nic murmured. "This is bad."

The sky instantly grew into a night sky, but it wasn't normal. The sky was so pitch black, and no stars were seen. As the layer went around the stadium, the real bodies off all the other contestants glowed. It was like a pinpoint almost.

"**Night of Shooting Stars!**" Rufus's body shined and light diverged and went at the seven other contestants.

"It's just like Nic's Swift!" Erza exclaimed.

Simultaneously, Gray, Yeager, Beth, Eve, Lyon, and Sophie all screamed as they were hit by the attack, falling to the ground with a thud.

At the last second, Nullpudding pivoted and dodged the attack aimed for him, which left him to jump up at an exposed Rufus. However, Rufus was just smiling. Nullpudding's arms were lengthened and stacked in needles.

"This game is called Hidden for a reason, pal!" He punched through Rufus, literally. Rufus vanished like a ghost and Nullpudding went through. "A…fake?!"

"Not quite!" Rufus materialized back in the same position, frowning as he held his hat in place. "You didn't lose points. That was just the memory of me being there…" His arm flashed a bright light and swiped it up. Nullpudding was attacked as he was hit by the attack as before and screamed as he fell like a star.

Rufus smiled as the sky returned to day. "I find that much more effective than decoys at best."

The crowd went wild, and Sabertooth smirked in satisfaction of their victory in that round. The Exceeds cheered loudly, and Sting scoffed as he saw Rufus claiming victory for them.

Getting back up, Sophie glared at Rufus. "So you can use my Magic the same."

Rufus looked down at Sophie, who was in a street down beneath him. "One could say…" His hat shielded his eyes. "But then again, my memories are far superior."

Sophie was ready as she stood a stance, but then the bell suddenly went off, and her eyes widened in surprise as the city suddenly began to fade away. The monitors all vanished as the players somehow joined up again in the middle of the colosseum.

"And with that, the game is over!" Lola announced. "With Hidden gone, let us see the scoreboard!"

**Sabertooth – 10**

**Raven Tail – 8**

**Lamia Scale – 6**

**Blue Pegasus – 4**

**Mermaid Heel – 3**

**Quatro Cerberus – 2**

**Fairy Tail B – 1**

**Fairy Tail A – 0**

Obaba swirled her finger at Lyon. "What's the meaning of 3rd Place?! I should spin you!" She shouted.

"M-Master, calm down!" A guild member insisted.

Ren smirked. "Not bad."

"Eve has indeed given us a valuable start." Ichiya noted, making a stylish pose. "Let us pick up from the ground where he has tread and make it sparkle!"

"Well, this is a little unnerving." Arana of Mermaid Heel admitted.

"Oh come on, Beth did her best." Risely insisted.

"As expected folks, Sabertooth has claimed the top spot!" Lola announced.

"But you gotta give Fairy Tail for trying though." Yajima insisted.

The crowd booed and laughed aloud at Fairy Tail A and B alike. The ridicule fell on Gray and Sophie's shoulders hard, the latter having darker shadows over her eyes as she looked away from the others.

"Ha! I knew Fairy Tail was all talk!" A spectator shouted.

"They never be the best! Sabertooth is gonna sink their fangs into them like they do every year!" Another scoffed.

Natsu had lots of veins over his forehead as Gray passed him. He glared angrily up at the audience. "Shut your mouths or I'll burn your asses!"

"Oh, look, we're so scared." A spectator teased.

"Just keep in your place why don't ya!" Another one shouted.

Erza put a hand on his shoulder. "Let it go." She said to the angered Dragon Slayer. "Just let it be…for now."

"Yeah, let them laugh while they still can, because in the end we'll be laughing at them." Elfman said.

Gray walked pass Nic, dark shadows over his eyes. "Sorry, I let ya down."

Nic turned towards Gray, watching him pass towards the tunnel. He knew words of comfort wasn't gonna be any good. Gray took a pain in his pride, and Nic knew he'd only add insult to injury by commenting if it was okay. He was still bothered by the crowd some, and knowing Erza, she was a little too. If Nic were infuriated, he _could've _blown them away…or to bits depending on the moves used, but he kept a calm stature as he glared off and watched Sophie on the other end of the colosseum pass her teammates and head into the tunnel.

Inside, shirtless, Gray punched the wall in frustration. Images of Nullpudding and Rufus flooded his mind in anger as he suffered defeat at their hands. _'Those two.' _His veins on his forehead twitched. "I will get payback, one way or another."

In Team B's tunnel, Sophie rested her forehead against her hand on the wall, looking down as her nails began to slowly grip into the wall. She thought back to Rufus, and she felt embarrassed and humiliated by the likes of him and his Magic. "Rufus, you won't have the last laugh." She growled.

"And now, onto our next section of Day 1, the battle portion!" Lola announced. "One member of each team will be pit in a match, but this isn't a tournament setup!"

"The organizers will decide who'll be duking it out, am I right?" Jenny asked.

Yakima smiled. "I'm sure they'll display great magical skills."

Lola held up the paper in front of him and read off the first match. "I just received the lineup, so let's see just what kinds of spectacular they'll be!" He took a moment for the crowd to show anticipation. "Okay, our first match shall be…Nic Pularis of Fairy Tail A…"

Nic stepped up, sunglasses on his face. "Very well."

"Versus the crimson terror, Flare Corona of Raven Tail!"

The red-haired woman with the scary look tilted her head with a weird smile. "Luminous." She said eerily.

The white-haired woman of Sabertooth disregarded how her team didn't seem so worried, but her eyes were set on Nic. She caught his image and she swallowed. _'So…that's Nic Pularis.'_

"Nic, do your best!" Lucy shouted.

Makarov held up a fist. "I expect a clean win! Show Ivan he's got nothing on us!"

"Nic, good luck!" Vanessa called out to her brother, and her Pokémon cheered right behind her.

Nic looked up at Vanessa with a smile. "I won't let you down." He looked back at Flare. "…I swear."

Erza smiled. "You can do this, Nic." She expressed full confidence in him.

Nic glared at Flare, his sunglasses shielding all from his focused gaze. As Nic heard constant encouragement from his team and guild, he frowned. _'Raven Tail…they've attacked Wendy, and deliberately humiliated Gray in Hidden. I have to get payback, no matter what.' _His fists clenched, but not tightly, but determined. "I'll be sure to show Raven Tail not to toy with my comrades."

"Mr. Yajima." Lola began. "I understand that the Masters of Fairy Tail and Raven Tail are father and son, am I correct?"

Yajima nodded. "Yes, coincidentally of course. I sure hope they do not show conflictions within the competition."

Jenny had her elbows on the top, holding up her head as she smiled down at Nic. "Let's hope they also show that cutie down there some comradery."

"HUH?!" The crowd all gaped their mouths as Jenny just called Nic cute aloud in a flirtatious manner, which earned many glares from male spectators. Even Nic was caught surprised as he looked up at the booth and Jenny's bodacious body was leaned against the top and she winked down as him, making him look away back at Flare, very much embarrassed as his cheeks showed hints of pink and groaned just a little.

Mirajane laughed a little. "Oh my goodness. Well I guess you can't blame her."

In the Fairy Tail A balcony, laughing aloud, Natsu pointe down at Nic. "H'oh man! Sucks to be him right now!"

Unlike Natsu, Elfman seemed nervous. "Uh, Natsu…"

"Hm…" Natsu slowly turned his head, and his eyes widened as he saw Erza with her crossed arms her under her ample bust, her eyes closed, and her brows her twitching profusely. She was just as embarrassed as Nic, perhaps even more so. Her cheeks were a bright pink as Jenny flirted aloud with her boyfriend, her lover.

"Grrrrrrr…" She hummed a groan of anger that was directed to Jenny.

"A-anyways folks, let's get back to the first battle!" Lola steered the shock out the window and back to the action at hand.

Mato, the pumpkin-headed guy, raised his arm. "All both competitors ready? You've got 30 minutes to seal the deal, or else it'll be declared a draw!" He announced.

Nic, almost immediately regaining composure like it never happened, focused back on Raven Tail. Flare and Nic glared at the other as they stepped forward.

Mato brought his arm in a chop. "Let the battle…begin!"

Flare's hair suddenly began to wiggle as strands suddenly began to come alive, shocking everyone. The hair raged around as it seemed all but dead.

"What the heck?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"I've never seen that kind of Magic before." Erza admitted.

"Too bad for you, Luminous." She said eerily. "You, shall-!"

A glint was seen, and a shockwave raged through the area. A straight trail of shattered ground was seen as the ground was also partially cracked as it trailed at Flare and went behind her, stopping where Nic suddenly was.

"**Extreme Speed!**" He announced.

The shock from Extreme Speed finally caught up, and Flare screamed as violent winds exploded from the late tailwind of Nic's attack. Flare trailed and tumbled through the ground, smashing into the wall with dust flying.

All of the audience was dead silent, even the 8 teams in general were of a still silence. Erza's eyes were wide with astonishment as Nic didn't seem fazed as he stood up from his position, and looked at the clearing dust. Flare was lying on the ground beneath a dent in the wall.

'_He's gotten that strong.' _Erza noted, as the attack struck Flare before she could even blink.

Elfman swallowed. "Whoa, they don't call it Extreme Speed for nothing!"

All of Team Sabertooth was silent, Rogue especially had wide eyes, followed by Sting. _'Nic took her down in one blow…is he really that strong?'_ Rogue mentally questioned.

Yukino swallowed.

Rufus tipped his cap. "So these tales of the great Luminous aren't just tales after all. As I recall, he has immense power."

The purple-haired woman of Mermaid Heel narrowed her eyes, eyeing Nic as he took a calm yet determined stature. _'…Luminous.'_

The bell ringed, and Lola leaned into the microphone. "That's it! Nic Pularis of Fairy Tail Team A scored 10 points!"

The crowd was breaking into quite the roar.

"Whoa, that was fast!" A spectator acknowledged.

"And with just one blow?!" A spectator then gasped. "Wait! That's Luminous of Fairy Tail!"

"Well it looks like they can put up a fight after all, with their light in the game after all!" Another yelled.

Vanessa looked down at her brother with a smile. "Wait a go, Nic."

Venusaur looked up to his trainer. "Extreme Speed is the fastest move ever. That was so fast that it took a bit for the shock to catch up."

Magnezone nodded. "Yes…young Nic sure has adapted well to his powers. Looks like that 3 month dimension training helped him greatly."

Nic walked back, but not before looking over his shoulder to see the armored man throw the unconscious Flare over his shoulder. Nic's eyes narrowed as he watched the ominous figure haul his fallen member back into the tunnel.

"You failed me, Flare." He said. "You know what awaits you."

Flare, slowly gaining consciousness, felt a great dread fall over her. "N-no. Please, have mercy Master." She insisted weakly. "I'm sorry."

Her apology fell on deaf ears as the armored man remained quiet, his ominous aura making Flare chill to the bitter core.

Nic saw how scared Flare was, and how the armored man was called Master. His suspicions and slight pity fell on his shoulders, but all he could do was walk back towards the balcony.

Nic soon walked back to his friends, with Erza giving him a generous smile. "You execute that very well." She admitted. Before she could do much of anything afterwards, she suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist. She felt her breath hitch again when she was hit with realization that Nic was hugging and holding her from behind, his head resting on her right shoulder.

A smile was on his face. "Thanks, but I couldn't lose with your support ow, could I?"

Erza blushed a little, but she accepted Nic's comment and embrace and pressed her back to him, both smiling.

"Look you guys." Elfman noted.

"The next battle's gonna get rockin." Natsu informed.

Both Nic and Erza watched as Ren from Blue Pegasus and Arana Webb of Mermaid Heel stepped forward, themselves facing off. Nic watched with mild interest as he let go of Erza, much to the latter's hidden dismay, but she knew their romance could wait after the day is over.

They all watched as Ren and Arana battled, neither side giving an inch. The battle itself was giving the crowd great anticipation. Each participant traded blows with the other, using their respective Air and Thread Magic against the other.

"Not bad." Elfman admitted.

"Indeed." Erza agreed.

"Ren has improved over the years." Nic added. "I think he has the advantage, for now at least."

"Flying beats Bug, so this is no different from Types from how Nic and I see it in our eyes." Vanessa said from the stands.

Ren skidded to a stop, as did Arana, both staring at the other with great anticipation. They had expected no less from the other from the previous years.

"You've gotten stronger." Ren admitted.

Arana chuckled. "Flattery will get you nowhere." She shot more threads, to which Ren jumped and dodged.

His feet touched the ground, and a voice called out from Lamia Scale, belonging to Sherry. "Ren, do your best sweetheart!"

Ren blushed and looked up at Sherry. "W-what?!"

"You're open!" Arana shot her threads at the distracted Ren, but Ren caught on at the last second and dodged.

"Keep going Ren, you can do it!" Sherry cheered, much to the tsundere's embarrassment.

"Stop cheering for the enemy!" Obaba shouted at her.

"Bit Master, you know they're engaged." A member pointed shout.

Obaba turned towards him, spinning her finger and making said guild member spin like crazy. "Quiet, or I'll spin you!"

"Bu-u-u-ut I'm already being spu-u-un!" The recipient shouted.

Ren looked back up at Sherry. "We're not engaged! She just won't leave me alone!"

Sherry covered her mouth in deep shock. "You meanie!"

Arana kept the onslaught of threads coming, and Ren relentlessly dodged them. "You're always stuck to my side! It's annoying!" He shouted in between shots. When Arana finally stopped Ren planted his feet and looked away, blushing. "But…it never feels right without you." He admitted.

Sherry blushed and had hands to her cheeks. "That's so sweet of you." She squealed.

Nic and Erza couldn't help but smile at the hidden affection.

Ren looked back at Arana, determined than ever. "With her watching, I cannot fail!"

Arana watched Ren swipe his arms around, but she took no chances as she shot threads at him, but she was a fool to do such a thing.

"**Aerial Phose!**"

Ren fired a cyclone of air went straight through the threads, proving the testament of 'Flying trumps Bug-Types' ordeal. Arana screamed as she was swirled upwards and crashed down to the ground with a thud, out like a light.

"And the winner of that round is Ren from Blue Pegasus!" Lola announced as the bell went off, earning a roaring crowd and a swooned Sherry.

"Yeah Ren! That's how you do it!" Jenny cheered from the booth, though she was shaking Yajima through her joy.

"You were right, his skills have improved." Erza backed Nic up on his earlier statement. "So these Flying-Types do have an advantage over Bug-Types in Kalos, right?"

"In general, yeah." Nic said, turning towards her. "Though Bug-Types have a number of other weaknesses as well."

Natsu clenched a fist. "Man, he rocked. You think he's stronger than Ichiya?"

"Don't be so foolish." Erza chided Natsu, catching him by surprise. "Despite Ichiya and his personality, he is an extremely capable mage. He's the strongest in all of Blue Pegasus."

"Really?!" Natsu exclaimed. He looked as Ren walked back to his team. "Man, now I really wanna fight him some more."

Erza looked away. "Still, I can't help but be suspicious of who's hiding in that rabbit suit."

Elfman looked shocked. "Uh, yeah! Good, I thought I was the only curious one."

"And now, time for the third match!" Lola yelled. "From Quatro Cerberus, it's Warcry!"

A man wearing a dog pelt emerged from Quatro Cerberus's tunnel, howling as his guild cheered him on.

"Versus Sabertooth's Orga Nanagear!" Instantly, the crowd went wild as Orga emerged. As said, he had the strong built muscle like Elfman with intricate tattoos and a headband that kept his long green hair back.

"Alright Orga!" A spectator screamed.

"Show them why you rock!" Another yelled through the roaring crowd.

"Can you hear that? Orga has lots of support folk!" Lola shouted. "This should be a hoot!"

"Show them how wild you are, Warcry!" Rocker of Quatro Cerberus screamed.

"Aroooooo!" Warcry howled in excitement.

"Hey check it out." Sting commented. "It's Warcry. His Magic's pretty awesome."

"Yes, it's fascinating. I've memorized it." Rufus noted.

Rogue got up from his seat. "I couldn't care less." He commented. He walked away from his seat and into the hallway, having no interest. _'Nic, Gajeel, you two are the only ones I am interested in.'_

"Pay attention guys." Nic said. "We'll see how Sabertooth handles a fight."

"Let the battle begin!" Lola shouted, and a gong went off.

Orga and Warcry both glared down the other, but Orga was caught ogg guard when Warcry began to have watery eyes.

"W-what the…?" Orga muttered.

"Wahahahhhhhhhh!" Huge tears were on Warcry's face as he cried out.

"There it is folks! Warcry's Tear Magic!" Lola shouted.

"Tear Magic?" Nic asked, completely caught surprised by the bawling Mage.

"He's bawling, bad!" Natsu screamed.

"Yes, he is." Erza said, caught just as surprised as everyone else.

"That is so not manly." Elfman said. "What Magic lets a man shed tears?"

Mawile sweatdropped. "…I remember knowing Fake Tears awhile back…" She lowered her head. "But this is just sad."

Vanessa nervously smiled down at Mawile. "Uh, c'mon Mawile, it's not that bad."

"With my Magic…" Warcry sniffled. "The more tears I shed…THE STRONGER I BECOME!"

Orga's eyes narrowed as he raised his arm.

"LET'S GO-!"

Warcry was suddenly blasted by black lightning that boomed through the stadium. Electricity discharged as Nic's team was left with shocked expressions just like with Nic against Flare. All of Fairy Tail and Quatro Cerberus watched as Warcry and his tears were fried, and the man fell to the ground in black static, unconscious.

"Lightning, huh?" Laxus wondered.

Lily covered his ears as his body shook. "H-he used…l-lightning?!"

"Just one blow…" Braixen said, feeling her fur stand on end.

The bell then went off, signaling Sabertooth's win. "And with that obe-hit KO like Nic Pularis, Sabertooth has earned 10 points, bringing their total to 20 pts!"

Orga began walking away, but Sting called down to him. "Why the rush big guy? Couldn't you have made it look more entertaining?"

Orga looked back up at Sting, glaring at him. Orga then surprisingly turned and began walking back where he came from.

"Okay fine I'll sing a song."

"That's not what I meant you meathead!" Sting barked out.

"Give me the mic!" Orga was given the mic and tested it. He then began to sing…rather terribly. The crowd was going nuts over his singing, but Natsu was covering his ears, and Elfman looked in pain, and Nic and Erza both sweatdropped and groaned in dismay; the redhead's bangs covering her eyes, while her lover had sunglasses shielding his dismay.

"I prefer Nic's heavy metal over this!" Elfman exclaimed, much to Nic and Erza nodding in agreement.

"That Orga…he's strong." Mavis admitted.

Romeo swallowed. "Yeah, he's crazy strong."

After Orga finally finished his song, he went back into the tunnel with everyone cheering for his song. "And with that, it's time for our last matchup for the day!" Lola announced. "There's only two teams left: Lamia Scale, and Fairy Tail B!"

Jenny gave a thumbs up. "Do your best, guys!"

"From Fairy Tail B, we have the mysterious Mystogan, against the Iron Rock Wizard Saint, Jura Neekis!" Lola announced.

The crowd instantly went nuts. They all screamed their lungs out at Jura emerged, support on his side.

'_Jellal's fighting?'_ Erza questioned. _'And against Jura of all people.'_

Nic put his hands into his pockets as he watched the competitors step forward.

"Good luck, Jura!" Chelia cheered.

"This match is ours." Yuka stated.

Laxus crossed his arms. "Well it seems luck isn't on your side today."

"Give him a break. He's just a bald priest. Is he really that tough?" Gajeel sneered.

"Yeah." Mira rubbed the back of her head nervously. "I'm not sure Erza and I together can beat him."

Gajeel turned towards 'Mystogan'. "Whatever. Luminous's team is ahead of us, so you better get us even."

Jellal nodded. "Understood." He adjusted his hood and began to walk. As he walked, he pondered back to Wendy and Carla, and how Sophie and Gray were very much down. If he was to bring them dignity again, he would have to make sure to win, for their sake.

Jellal stepped out, meeting Jura in the center. Both competitors were on opposite sides and glared.

Jura spoke. "Personally, I'd like to see Fairy Tail to do well." He admitted. "But the old hag would throw a massive fit."

A wind blew pass them both, anticipation filling the air.

"My sincere apologies, but I'm not holding back."

"Nor shall I." Jellal said. The grip on the stave in his hand tightened, and his eyes showed determination. _'I never wanted to compete on these terms…but if it means giving my friends hope for victory, I'll gladly help. For Fairy Tail!'_

Looking in the crystal ball, Ultear and Meredy both nearly fell over. "Say what?! Jellal's fighting next?!" Ultear exclaimed.

"You think he'll be alright? He won't blow his cover, right?" Meredy asked, instantly worried.

Ultear calmed down a little. "No, he's too smart to let that happen…" She crossed her arms as her eyes turned blank. "Unless he starts going overboard."

The gong went off, and Jellal undid the straps that held his staves in place. The staves floated as he rushed after Jura. _'I won't get a chance like this again. I have to defeat Jura!'_ His feet left and hit the ground fast, much to Nic's own surprise. Jura made a motion with his fingers and cylindrical columns shot up in a straight line, eventually reaching Jellal and shooting him in the air.

"Whoa!" Natsu exclaimed.

Jura lifted his fingers up, and pillars arose from the ground and actually curved from behind Jellal. Jellal acrobatically dodged and had the pillars all clash into each other. Using the momentum, he landed and ran along a pillar, while using his speed to dodge more curving pillars. He used the staves and had them directed towards Jura. As Jellal jumped off and planted his feet into a horizontal pillar, the staves punctured the ground around Jura.

Jellal made hand signs. "**Five Layered Magic Circle: Scared Song!**" Many layers of Magic circles emerged above Jura, all stacked and a pillar of energy struck the ground and Jura, making the earth rumble.

"He was able to copy Mystogan's Magic. Nic." Laxus said, impressed.

"Jura!" Chelia exclaimed as a grand dust cloud emerged from where Jura was.

Lyon crossed his arms. "I don't mean to belittle Fairy Tail or Juvia's guild, but they wouldn't have a prayer against Jura."

As Jellal was on the pillar, his eyes widened when a massive gauntlet of hardened rock went shooting after him, and Jura smirked, looking unharmed.

Jellal made another hand sign. "**Three Layered Magic Circle: Mirror Water!**" A Magic seal appeared in front of him, and the massive fist collided with it. The fist swerved and was sent back at Jura, only the Wizard Saint scoffed as he made a Magic seal of his own, to which made the rock swerve yet again back at Jellal.

"He deflected it too?!" Elfman exclaimed.

Jellal was hit and the pillar smashed. He was sent flying and landed on his back, with the crowd roaring for Jura.

"And that's why Jura rocks as one of the Ten Wizard Saints!" Lola announced.

Jellal got back up with a stumble in a step and pondered. "I should've known I wouldn't beat him using someone else's Magic…" His eyes narrowed as he had to take the initiative. He got to all fours as he made a Magic shift in pressure, growing. "**Meteor!**" Jellal was in a glory light and he sped past Jura, faster than what the eye could trace. Jura turned in shock as Jellal flew right past him.

"But that's-!" Jura was left speechless.

Nic's eyes were wide in shock. "I forgot how fast his Meteor was." _'That's as fast as my Extreme Speed, faster than what Jet could do.'_

Jellal flew on the wall and curbed towards Jura. The Wizard Faint put up a wall, but Jellal swerved around and struck Jura, making him falter as Jellal zoomed away in a curb. Jura regained footing and motioned his fingers ahead, shattering the rock wall and sending the pieces at Jellal. He jumped and dodged every piece of rock, flashes faster than most eyes could trace. He shot straight up, evading more shooting rocks controlled by Jura's Magic.

"…Gotcha!" Jura motioned his fingers down, and a rock from above struck Jellal, stopping him. Jura smirked, but his eyes widened when he saw golden Magic circles drawn in the sky, much to Jellal's delight.

"It's the other way around." Jellal said as he straightened out and planted his feet to the ground.

"Where did those come from?!" Natsu shouted.

"He must have been drawing those as he was dodging Jura's attacks." Erza explained.

Jellal glared at Jura. "May the seven stars bring judgment upon you!" The Magic circles all flashed. "**Grand Chariot!**" The Magic circles then unleashed strong beams of light that went shooting down after Jura, shooting with great force.

Jura felt the pressure and palmed his hands together. "**Rock Mountain!**" The ground shook as a heavily armed human-like shield emerged behind him, looking to have Eastern armor with a helmet and a frown, complete with red eyes.

The two attacks collided, and dust and gale violently spread across the arena. The spectators, judges, and Nic's group all were gaping and shock as the force nearly blew them away. The immense pressure that scary, and the dust cleared and the rumbling ceased, with Jura seen unfazed and unharmed.

'_I see. I know who you are now…Jellal.' _Jura thought with a smirk. _'I was suspicious of your guild for quite some time. I never suspected you to be aligned with Fairy Tail. Perhaps I should've gone with my intuition, especially with how Luminous threatened the Council.'_

Jellal grew tiresome as he knew Jura was a formidable adversary, but the battle was getting nowhere. _'This is getting us nowhere. I have to win, for everyone!' _He closed his eyes as he crouched. _'Forgive me Ultear, but I'll have to use it.'_

Jellal took a stance, with an arm pointed up and another one down.

Ultear gaped her mouth, recognizing the stance all too well. "Is he insane?!"

"He's going to use it!" Meredy exclaimed.

Ultear held up a fist and a tick mark grew on her head. Her teeth grit pretty bad. "Jellal, I knew this was a bad idea!"

Meredy turned towards Ultear. "What do we do?"

Ultear, in her frantic anger, sprouted a devious plan. She turned towards Meredy, the pink-haired woman quickly getting nervous.

The sky began to swirl with dark clouds, and Jellal was giving off an immense Magic Power escalation. Natsu and Elfman both gaped in horror, and Nic and Erza were left speechless.

Vanessa's eyes widened. "What is this?!"

Sliggoo began to shiver as she thought she was gonna pass out. "I don't know!" She screamed as she looked at the dark cyclone over the arena.

"**True Heavenly Body Magic: Sema!**"

Jura's eyes widened in horror. "What?! No! This spell…" He readied to brace for the attack, and Jellal was at his peak…

Jellal's face suddenly grew read, and his eyes widened when his tongue suddenly began to burn. Jura looked suspicious as the dark cyclone dissipated, and Nic and everyone looked with curiosity as Jellal was holding his own throat.

"M-my mouth!" He wheezed out. "It's on fire!"

Fra away, peppers were shoved down Meredy's mouth, with Ultear smirking maliciously. "There you go, have some more!" She scowled as she shoved the hot peppers down her adoptive daughter's throat.

Mystogan got to a knee, much to everyone's confusion. "I don't know what's going on, but Mystigan is in agony folks!"

"Now how about this?" Ultear began tickling Meredy, making the girl laugh as she was tickled all over. At the same time, Jellal was spatting out laughter, kicking and laughing to no end, confusing even the likes of Jura.

Jellal soon reached his breaking point and reached up, twitching as he was all worn out from laughter. He fell over, passed out from laughter. Jura slid over with immense disbelief.

"HUH?!"

"Uh…uhhh…" Nic and Erza were both completely white with big eyes in unison, gawking at Jellal's mishap. The whole stadium deadpanned in disbelief.

"Uhh…w-well, I have no idea, but whatever was funny put Mystogan out of commission!" Lola announced. The bell rung, signaling Jura's win.

Jura twitched in disbelief. "U-Uhhh…"

"You've done good!" Obaba shouted.

"W-what just happened…?" Jura asked, still in shock and twitching.

"What was that?!" A spectator shouted in disbelief.

"At least now we know who the better team is!" Another one spatted out, though dismayed.

"With Day 1 over, let's check the scoreboard!" Lola announced.

**1****st**** Place: Sabertooth - 20**

**2****nd**** Place: Lamia Scale - 16**

**3****rd**** Place: Blue Pegasus - 14**

**4****th**** Place: Fairy Tail A - 10**

**5****th**** Place: Raven Tail - 8**

**6****th**** Place: Mermaid Heel - 3**

**7****th**** Place: Quatro Cerberus - 2**

**8****th**** Place: Fairy Tail B – 1**

Makarov still couldn't get over that display. "W-well…at least Nic's team showed Raven Tail." He said through his profuse shaking.

"My, Fairy Tail has actually done a pretty decent job, for the A team that is." Yajima acknowledged. "Let's see what the B team has in store for us."

Jenny winked down at the arena. "The A team wasn't so bad, especially with Luminous shining bright like the hunk he is."

Once again, this made Erza have shadows over her eyes as a red aura encased her body, her arms shaking as a low growl emit from her. Nic stood with hands in his pockets right beside her, having nothing to say.

"As expected, Sabertooth is in 1st place, with Lamia Scale in 2nd!" Lola announced. "What a day, and I'd like to give thanks to Yajima and Jenny for participating!"

"It was our pleasure." Yajima insisted.

Jenny perked a confident smile. "Just wait, Blue Pegasus is gonna pick up its pace!"

"See you all tomorrow for day two folks!" Lola announced.

Jellal slumped forward as he felt disappointment over his humiliating display. The jeering and laughing he got certainly was insult to injury.

Erza sighed. "Well that happened."

"What just happened?" Natsu asked.

"My guess…Meredy." Erza answered, knowing Meredy's Sensory Link. She grabbed Nic's hand and turned. "Come on, let's go meet up with the others."

"Uh, right." Nic followed Erza, with Natsu and Elfman in tow as they went away from the balcony.

Far away, Ultear smirked. "Sorry Jellal, but we couldn't risk our cover being blown." She turned towards the twitching Meredy that was sprawled and passed out. "No hard feelings."

As Jellal walked pass Team B, they didn't seem pleased.

"What an embarrassment." Laxus scolded.

"That was just sad!" Gajeel exclaimed.

"You did your best." Mira reassured.

Jellal kept his hooded head down. "I have nothing to say of what happened." He groaned.

Vanessa sighed as she sat back beside Venusaur. "Phew. That was nerve-racking." She looked up at the scoreboard. "But we still have a ways to go."

Unbeknownst to them, a knight-like man was smirking as he eyed Lucy amongst the guild members, taking note of her presence all too well.

* * *

Carla's eyes shot open with a gasp, feeling the air coming back to her. She was hit with a wave of dread as her eyes were filled with immense fear.

'_What…what was that?'_ She stared at the bedsheets, mortified by what she saw. _'…I don't know what that was, a prophecy maybe…but I fear something drastic is gonna happen.'_

* * *

**There's your cliffhanger folks! Just as I said, this chapter covers all of Day 1, and next chapter will be Day 2, but not the night of which. I'll make the chapter work in the best way that I can, this was nearly 16.5K in total, just so you know.**

**Something crossed my mind as I was writing this chapter. Remember how I said there's low numbers of OCxCana and hardly any OCxMinerva stories? Well I was discussing with a few people about how there are no OCxJenny stories as well. What's up with that? I know those three in particular aren't too popular, but even minor characters can shine with an OC to love them, right? **

**Anyways, stay tuned in for another chapter in perhaps a week's time!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys loved the action, plot twists, and NicxErza moments.**

* * *

**Next Time: All Bets Are Off **


	72. All Bets Are Off

Chapter 72 – All Bets Are Off

**Here's Day 2 guys! I didn't really change much in terms of the games, but enjoy nonetheless.**

**To Recap:**

With Wendy mysteriously gone, Team Fairy Tail had Elfman step in as a replacement and managed their way up the Sky Labyrinth, while Vanessa and Happy located Wendy and Carla in the Palace Gardens. Fairy Tail managed to barely qualify by coming 8th, and the next day the Grand Magic Games began, revealing the remaining teams being Quatro Cerberus, Mermaid Heel, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, Raven Tail, Fairy Tail B, and Sabertooth. In the first round, Hidden, Sophie and Gray both were humiliated by Rufus of Sabertooth and Nullpudding of Raven Tail, earning hardly any points, but Nic bounced back for Team A with a single strike against Flare of Raven Tail in the battle round. After Ren of Blue Pegasus and Orga of Sabertooth won their fights, Jellal, disguised as Mystogan, battled against Jura. To prevent him from going overboard, Ultear and Meredy intervened and made Jellal pass out, leaving Team A with 10 points while Team B had 1 point. Carla then awoke, having a horrible premonition.

* * *

**Chapter 72 – All Bets Are Off**

Nighttime in some pub in one of the canals of Crocus. It sounded like animals rampaging, and some called it gladiators in an uproar, but other could say the damned haunted that bar.

"*hic* Way to kiss our winning spot goodbye losers." Cana slurred as her face was red from intoxication. "Seriously *hic* since when did we start getting pathetic?"

"You're one too talk." Elfman chided. "You weren't even there!"

"All the local pubs had lacrima vision so we can see. Besides *hic* Nic just had to go and save your guys' asses again." The drunken brunette nearly fell over if it wasn't for Vanessa's Braixen pushing her back up, with her mentioned trainer sitting at the same table Juvia and Elfman sat at.

Meanwhile, Nic was conversing with Erza at the bar. "This was an eventful day."

Erza nodded. "That's putting the matter lightly."

Natsu held up a fist. "Well that won't be a problem anymore! Tomorrow I'm gonna knock some numbers into that scoreboard!"

"Aye sir! Natsu's gonna burn some booty!" Happy cheered.

Gajeel heard from the bar and smirked. "Heh, if Salamander's gonna step in, I'll just have to step in as well."

"This is the perfect chance to show everyone the results of your training. This couldn't have come at a better time." Lily side-noted.

Lucy's eyes looked around the bar, noticing some people absent. "Uh…guys, where's Gray and Sophie?"

Levy caught note and looked behind her shoulder. "Now that you mention it, I haven't seen them since the games."

"Well can you blame them? You saw how miserably they had it." Macao noted from another table close by.

"They'll show up eventually I hope." Vanessa said. "Sophie looked pretty upset…maybe I should go and check on them."

Lucy put a hand to her shoulder and stopped Vanessa from getting up. "Don't worry, those two are as tough as nails."

While they were talking things out, Juvia's mind went off in its own little space. _'Oh Gray…'_ Her mind flashed the image of Gray and Sophie in the same apartment, with the lights off. Her mind went out of range as she could only think of the unmentionable.

_"__Oh, Sophie." Gray said in a low tone._

_Sophie's cheeks were flushed. "But Gray, what about Juvia?"_

_"__Forget her; you're all I need, you're all I ever need." Gray said. He pinned Sophie to the bed. "Sophie…"_

_Sophie began to feel her mind race as Gray had her pinned. "Oh, Gray~."_

"GRAY! How could you do such a thing to my new love rival and not me?!" Juvia screamed to the ceiling, startling the people at her table.

"Love-what?" Sophie despondently sighed as she and Gray had just entered the bar.

Gray groaned. "Man her imagination is a killer."

Erza noticed their entry and looked piqued. "Oh, Sophie, Gray."

"How are you doing?" Nic asked as Sophie walked over and took a seat right beside him. "Are Wendy and Carla holding up okay?"

Sophie nodded and grinned. "Yeah. Those two are still bedridden, but Porlyusica said they should be fine by tomorrow." Sophie slowly cascaded her frown as she thought back to earlier with her performance. It wasn't so much the humiliation as it was with Rufus. That image of his face alone was enough to make her look like she was gonna shudder in anguish.

"Sophie? Sophie?" Natsu's voice brought her out of her thoughts, and Sophie snapped her head to Natsu.

"Hm? Sorry, what were you saying?" She asked. She noticed that Team Natsu, Vanessa, and Braixen were present around her, seeing how out of it she was.

"You've been staring off like that for over thirty seconds." Lucy informed. "Is it about your loss?"

Sophie shook her head. "No, not really. I'm just a little…startled."

"You mean from that Sabertooth guy having the same Magic as you?" Vanessa questioned. The site of Sophie looking away answered her question.

Natsu questioned himself as he looked up. "Huh, now that I think about it, how does that guy have the same Magic as Sophie? Coincidence maybe?"

Nic looked over and saw Sophie being more hesitant than before. He was good with reading cues, and this one was no exception. He could tell that something bothered Sophie, and it wasn't the fact she only scored 1 point. "Sophie, if there's something to say, just say it."

"If it's about our opponents, we can use whatever information we have against them." Gray noted.

"A bit harsh with blackmailing, don't you think?" Braixen questioned.

Sophie finally gave in and sighed. Her eyelids her halfway shut as she gazed down at the table. "…okay, you guys deserve to know." She took a slight pause as everyone around her got quiet. "If I was honest with myself, I could never have been more unsatisfied with how Rufus was present."

"Rufus? That member of Sabertooth?" Lucy questioned.

"Seems you have a connection with Rufus, am I wrong?" Erza asked.

Sophie glanced away. "No, you're right. Rufus and I have…a connection of sorts." She looked up and out at everyone, her gaze turning less melancholy. "The one fact is what you all need to know. Rufus, he's really…my cousin."

All eyes widened in deep shock, with Natsu and Happy's mouth hanging open.

"WHAAAAAAAT?!" The two shouted.

"You're kidding, right?!" Lucy exclaimed. "That Rufus guy is really your cousin?!"

Sophie nodded in guilt. "It's the truth. Our fathers met up on the occasion. Rufus and I, we never saw eye-to-eye with things." She was recalling her childhood when they would go to the library or even go to playgrounds. "Rufus and I were what you could say be the opposites of a spectrum. While we did learn our Memory-Make Magic at young ages, and from the same books, he had a completely different point of view than what I had. He always used memories as a tool, but I have memories as a treasure. He was rather excessive in his memories and more theatric than what my side of the family could tolerate. He was never the one to seek adventure and make new memories; rather, he always held onto the past and forgot the least important stuff on purpose…" Her gaze went shut. "That's why he never made any friends, and he embraced isolation to study his Memory-Make."

Vanessa blinked after a minute of silence filled the group. "Whoa…that's heavy."

Nic looked down at the floor, his gaze despondent. "Now it makes sense. You were frustrated that you and Rufus saw the other again, yet he didn't acknowledge you as such."

Sophie just remained quiet as her answer.

Natsu patted her back, making her eyes widened. "Hey, quit your worryin' huh? You'll get a chance to beat him the next time!"

Sophie looked up at Natsu and the gang grinning away, her concerns being lifted. Just their grins alone was enough to make her grin herself.

"There's something we wanted to see!" Happy pointed at her smiling.

"What?! You again?! No you pig again!"

A mocking laughter was heard and was meant for Cana. "Oh come on sweetheart, don't think you can beat me with some good ol' liquor?"

"I'd rather be satisfying a younger guy who isn't such a jackwad."

Everyone's attention drew towards where the yelling and arguing was held, and it turned out to be Cana lashing out and rejecting a familiar figure that she, Nic, and Sophie remembered all too well, and it wasn't a pretty site.

It was Bacchus, and he was trying to get his game on with Cana…again.

Bacchus offered her a drink. "Come on, just a few drinks to pass the time?"

Cana put her hands over her head and turned away. "Do you ever learn? Or is that brain of yours dead?"

Immediately, Nic, Erza, and Sophie all got up from their seats, recognizing the drunken beast known as Bacchus. The guys all gathered around as Macao did too.

"Hey you!" Macao ordered. "She said to leave her alone-!" He was cut off when a sly palm sent his face into the wall, making him slump down.

"Dad!" Romeo shouted in worry.

"Bacchus?" Erza questioned. "I should've known you'd be causing some trouble in any pub."

Hearing his name and the voice that it came from, Bacchus hiccupped and slumped over rather close to Erza. He smirked. "Erza Scarlet? Long time no see. *hic*"

"You haven't changed a bit." Erza noted.

"Wait, you know him?" Lucy asked, walking up close.

Bacchus laughed uproariously and couldn't himself. "I heard you al traveled through time, man what a riot. You missed out on some hell. Huh?" He looked over to Erza's side, where Nic and Sophie were present.

"Bacchus Groh of Quatro Cerberus, S-Class Mage." Sophie's eyes narrowed. "I remember you and your style from memory."

"*hic* Well, I remember you as well, blonde chick. *hic*" Bacchus then turned towards Nic, but when he did, his cheerful drunken self seemed to have snapped to a halt. Bacchus frown and seemed to have stepped back some. "Nic Pularis?" He said wearily.

Nic crossed his arms. "Yes, it's been some time." He replied. "I see you're still as volatile in proximity as before."

Erza glanced over towards Nic, surprise in her eyes. "You met Bacchus too?"

"Yeah, and what about you?" Nic looked at Bacchus, but was talking to Erza. "You've met Bacchus before?"

Erza's fists clenched. "Yes. As Sophie stated, he's an S-Class Mage of Quatro Cerberus. His fighting style is formidable to say the least." She said as she eyed Bacchus. "He and I met on jobs, and of course we got into battles…there was never a clear winner."

Lucy's eyes widened. "Wait, you mean he's a strong as you?!"

A sudden laughter erupted from a table, bringing everyone's attention back to Cana. She was seemingly enjoying herself as she shook her head. "Oh man Erza, that's a riot!"

"And why do you say that?" Erza questioned.

Cana kept a cheeky smirk as she tilted her head towards Nic. "Because ol' Nic here's beaten you by a mile! Remember?"

Erza looked at Nic in question, but all Nic could do was cross his arms and keep his eyes closed, nervous somewhat.

Sophie herself looked nervous as she shuddered. "The horror. The unexplainable horror that day was. We met Bacchus on that mission in Dahlias, and then Nic accidentally got drunk…" She trailed off as she remembered Nic becoming a savage beast, rampaging.

Bacchus hiccupped as he looked away. "I learned a hard lesson. The hell I'm never messing with that guy as long as I live."

Erza's eyes widened. "You mean Nic beat you Bacchus? This is quite unexpected."

"You should've seen it. Ol' drunk Nic rampaged like some wild animal. Not only was half the western part of Dahlias was destroyed by him, but man did Bacchus just have no prayer!" Cana exclaimed. "Bacchus's palm techniques were just trash, and boy did Nic break every bone in his body."

Lucy's mouth gaped. "EH?!"

"NIC THRASHED BACCHUS LIKE NOTHING?!" Natsu screamed.

"Even when he's on the same level as Erza?!" Happy yelled in revelation.

Bacchus laughed at the bitter remembrance and turned away. "H'oh boy. That dude can't handle his liquor, and man…" He began walking away. "I never thought my spirit could be so crumbled compared to that animal. Instead, how's about we rampage in the ring instead, eh Erza?"

"We'll see." Erza commented wearily, but then she caught on. "Hold on, you mean you're in as well, Bacchus?"

"*hic* How'd you guess? At first I wanted to set this one out and have the rookies take up the show, but after the display Warcry gave, my heart's looking for vengeance." His eyes narrowed as he looked back at her. "I'm a reserve member, and I'm gonna stir up some heapin trouble."

"Not as much trouble Nic was when he teared ya a new one." Cana snickered.

"Cana, we get the message." Nic said, slightly embarrassed and part guilty from that event he couldn't remember. He was drunk, so he couldn't recall thrashing Bacchus even if he tried. Still, hearing it all right on the spot was a little nerve-racking, especially with Erza looking at him with shock since he thrashed Bacchus better than she could before.

As Bacchus left for the door, he turned back one more time. "Know what we say in our guild? We'll always be…?"

"Wild." Nic, Erza, and Sophie mumbled in unison.

"At least you bunch can still chuckle!" Bacchus roared as he stumbled out the bar, toppling some as he exited.

After Bacchus left the scene, Erza turned towards Nic. "Is it true? You fought Bacchus and broke his bones?"

Nic put his hands in his coat pockets and looked uneasy. "…yes, but I was accidentally drunk. At least what Sophie and Cana explained."

Erza turned ahead. "I see." She smiled, which surprised Nic. "Good. I was hoping he would learn his lesson."

Nic just grinned as he and Erza looked at the closed door, all while Cana fell over from her drunken stupor.

* * *

Porlyusica looked at Carla, who was now awake and sitting on a stool. The old healer saw how distraught Carla's eyes were. "Tell me more of this vision of yours."

Carla touched her own head and her gaze was set still yet shaken up as it was to the flooring. "It's all just a bit confusing because it was but pieces." Carla did her best to recap what she could get.

"There was a huge gate…and Crocus itself…"

"Is there anymore?" Porlyusica asked.

Carla's gaze looked dead at her, and her gaze was of one emotion – fear.

"I saw something, something that I was never meant to see…I saw Crocus breaking apart, a battleground that shattered into bits…and I saw a dark monster, and it had four others right beside it…all glowering down…at Nic."

* * *

"Good morning fans! Welcome to day two of the X791 Grand Magic Games! I'm your main commentator, Chapati Lola! And right beside me is Mr. Yajima, and our new guest, from Sorcerer's Weekly, Jason!" Lola announced.

"This is gonna be so cool!" Jason screamed, his excited demeanor skyrocketing.

"My, let's see what today's events bring, yes?" Yajima said with a smile.

"That indeed Yajima, now let's see how the contestants are holding up the Chariots contest!" Lola announced.

Day 2, and the contest for the day was Chariots, where one member from each team is represented to race through the open Crocus streets while on Chariots. If they fell off or quit, they get no points. It was basically a race among moving chariots, and the ones competing were Risley, Ichiya, Yuka, Kurohebi, Bacchus, Natsu, Gajeel, and Sting. The fans in Domus Flau were watching through the lacrima screens in the colosseum, and Fairy Tail was just groaning at the sight before them.

"Remind me again why we picked him of all people." Gray groaned.

"He was absolutely insistent." Erza said with crossed arms.

"Did he expect to fight Chariots or something?" Elfman questioned.

Nic had hands in his pockets. "Why are we not surprised?" He sighed.

In the far back, Natsu was barely putting one foot in front of the other. His face read the expression that he was sick., and it looked like he was gonna keel over. But lucky for him he wasn't alone…Gajeel and Sting both were right beside him, feeling less than okay.

"Uh oh folks, I don't know what's going on back there, but Natsu, Gajeel, and Sting are as slow as snails!" Lola exclaimed in shock.

"No…why do I have Salamander's weakness?" Gajeel murmured weakly, his face looking sick.

"Urgh…" Sting as slightly ahead by a few inches, but he was but a heaping mess.

"I'm not sure what could cause such a disturbance." Lola turned towards Yajima. "Mr. Yajima, what do you think is wrong?"

"I could be wrong, but I say they have a similar case of motion sickness." Yajima answered.

Vanessa glanced over to Lucy. "I didn't know Dragon Slayers got sick."

Venusaur looked unappeased. "Certainly not what we expected, that's for sure."

Lucy sighed and looked despondent. "It just gets worse, trust me."

Lector of Sabertooth crossed his arms. "Well this spells rotten luck. This contest explores Sting's only weakness."

Rogue looked at the lacrima screen and had his eyes set at Sting. Rufus looked at Rogue with interest. "I don't recall any others getting sick. Perhaps it's a trait among Dragon Slayers."

"Perhaps." Rogue said quietly. _'I'm glad it's not me down there.'_

Mira turned towards Laxus. "So, does that happen to you too Laxus?"

Laxus turned away. "Just don't tell Natsu, I'll never be able to hear the end of it."

"Anyways folks, let's just get back to the front, where we actually see Kurohebi of Raven Tail in the lead, with Ichiya of Blue Pegasus in 2nd!" Lola announced, getting the crowd up and roaring yet again.

In the front, while Kurohebi was in front of the others, Ichiya was barely ahead of Yuka and Risley, and Bacchus was behind them, still barely sober.

"Fell the burn! Man!" Ichiya exclaimed. "I must look good for My Honey!"

"I'm surprised someone of your stature can keep ahead for so long." Yuka commented to Risley as she was tied with him.

Behind them, some ways away, Bacchus hiccupped as she seemed rather slow. "*hic* Hey, can't you all pipe down *hic* and let a man work off his booze in peace and quiet."

Yuka took a harsh sprint forward and managed his way in front of Risley and Ichiya. "Try using Magic in this! **Wave Boost!**" Yuka put his arms behind himself and let out a mass of shockwaves that spiraled back, surrounding Ichiya and Risley.

Risley smirked. "Don't underestimate me, shortstuff!" Risley suddenly began to charge ahead and changed directions…running on the side of the Chariots. "Chubby power rules!"

The crowd went wild for Risley as her Gravity Change Magic, and they went even more nuts as Ichiya made his own counter onscreen.

He inserted two vials into his nostrils. "Very well, try this! **Fleet-Foot Parfume: Zero Distance Inhalation!**" Bu using that, Ichiya ran past a shocked Yuka. "MAAAAAN!"

Bacchus, still very much behind, smirked at the competition ahead. "Oh wow, they're going all out huh?" He mused to himself. "It just gets my soul as shaken and stirred." He raised a foot. "Well, guess I should put some effort into this too!"

Bacchus put all his weight down on his raised foot and stomped down. That single stomp shattered the chariot Bacchus was underneath as the shock traveled to the other chariots, making them go out of line and pile over the other, rendering them immobile. The contestants in front flew and landed on the chariots that were misplaced, groaning as Bacchus had a triumphant smirk.

"Amazing folks! With brute force, Bacchus threw the chariots out of line!" Lola shouted.

Erza's eyes were glued to the screen. "I don't believe it. He was stronger than before."

"We've seen Stomp used before, but this takes the move to an abominable level." Mawile noted. "How distasteful."

Bacchus passed the guys that were getting up and crawling over the chariots, sending regards as he ran ahead with great speed. He laughed as his body was like a Steelix that used Autotomize because he was moving so fast and was light on his feet, slithering past Kurohebi and running off the chariots and reached the goal, sliding on his knees with a rousing applause.

"And Bacchus scored Quatro Cerberus 10 points!" Lola announced.

"My soul's all shaken and stirred, babe!" Bacchus roared.

Goldmine smirked. "Now that's how it's done. Way to show them that you're wild."

"WILD!" Team Quatro Cerberus roared.

The rest of the competitors were then lead by Kurohebi as he made it in 2nd place. "Kurohebi takes 2nd place, earning Raven Tail 8 points! Followed by Risley in 3rd, Yuks in 4th, and Ichiya takes 5th! And now that just leaves the three-way battle for last place."

Back in the competition, Natsu was in super slow motion with puffy cheeks, and Gajeel covered his mouth. "What the hell? I was able to ride vehicles just fine." The Iron Dragon Slayer muffled.

Sting swallowed as he smirked back. "I guess that means *hurgh* that you're a real Dragon Slayer now." He said as he looked at a struggling Gajeel. "You're the real deal now…welcome *gurgh* newbie."

Gajeel growled as he mustered the strength to ram into Sting, but not knocking him over, and sandwiching in Natsu as a bonus. "Newbie?!" His cheeks then puffed.

The crowd was laughing it up at the three was just making fools of themselves, much to Fairy Tail and Sabertooth's embarrassment. Both guilds just stared at the big screens and couldn't help but just be in baffling shock.

"Well this is unfortunate." Mavis chuckled.

"Yes, yes it is." Makarov nervously agreed.

"Grraaaaah! Gotta keep moving! All the way to the finish!" Natsu shouted through his gastric and mental pain on the moving chariots. He and Gajeel both growled and grunted through the pain as they both never stopped advancing through crawling.

"Talk about uncool." Sting grunted. "You're just making fools of yourselves."

"Hraaaaah!" Natsu and Gajeel both yelled as their faces looked in pain, much to the spectators and their guilds' shock. In truth, them going through that pain was quite admirable, though Sting thought otherwise as they kept crawling.

"Whatever. I don't need this win so I'll let you two have it. Sabertooth's just gonna keep getting those points up anyways." Sting pointed out as he stayed still.

Gajeel smirked as he looked back. "One point is enough to move your guild to 2nd place pal, and don't you forget that!" He looked back ahead and kept crawling. "Hrraaaahhhhh!"

"Hyaaaahhhh!" Natsu screamed as he kept on crawling.

Sting just blinked. "I don't get it. Can you explain something to me?"

Natsu and Gajeel looked back, and the entire crowd was hearing their conversation through lacrima.

"You're nothing but crap, so why did you bother entering the tournament? Seriously. You're nothing like the Fairy Tail I knew as a kid. You always did whatever you wanted whenever the hell you wanted, so what happened to that guild? They never cared what others said because it was always them against the world."

Natsu kept his eyes set forward, slowly crawling. His face was the warrior's face; one that was set on victory, no matter what the cost. "The reason we entered…is for our friends!"

Sting was left speechless, but as Natsu's words echoed, the Fairy Tail members that were left behind for seven years began to feel their hearts pull as Natsu kept belittling.

"The ones…who waited for us! For all the years we skipped through! Who fought through the pain! And the misery they endured! Their hearts hurt!...but even so, they stayed strong…and they kept our guild together!" Natsu nearly fell on his face, but caught himself and kept crawling. "WE'RE DOING THIS FOR ALL OF THEM!" He fought through his troubled stomach as veins sprouted from his forehead. "And we're gonna sure…that everyone here knows…THE FAIRY TAIL GUILD NEVER GAVE UP, NO MATTER WHAT! SO I'LL NEVER QUITE FOR AS LONG AS I'M IN IT TO WIN IT FOR ALL OF THEM!"

"Natsu!" The members that were left behind had tears of touched souls. They couldn't help but cry at Natsu's speech and he and Gajeel just kept on pushing themselves. They never stopped crying, and the rest of Fairy Tail looked on proudly and some having tears as the two kept on going. Nic and Erza both smiled with proud and thoughtful eyes, and Lucy in the stands with the others was so moved she was almost crying.

"HRAAAAAHHHHH!"

"They did it! Fairy Tail A's Natsu has crossed, earning 2 points!" Lola announced.

Natsu slumped down and fell to his side. "Now we're getting somewhere…" He mumbled, his motion sickness worse than ever. Gajeel followed behind and thudded as well, having a smirk.

"And Gajeel scores 1 point for Fairy Tail B!" Lola added.

"That was awesome." A spectator acknowledged.

"Yeah, those guys definitely got the moxie." Another said.

A spectator sniffled. "That got me right in the feels."

"They're from Fairy Tail, right? You know I might as well start rooting for them." Another said.

The audience clapped, proud for Natsu and Gajeel as they made it across. "That's the way to rock Fairy Tail! You just earned yourself a new fan!"

"And Sting of Sabertooth forfeited, giving his team 0 points." Lola added.

As Sting walked through the tunnel, his head was low and he looked distasteful. "You're really doing this for your friends?" He questioned in thought and remembrance to what Natsu said. He just kept on going and his gaze looked displeasing. "You know that's nothing more than crap."

"Now folks, let's check that scoreboard!" Lola announced.

**Sabertooth – 20**

**Lamia Scale – 20**

**Blue Pegasus – 17**

**Raven Tail – 16**

**Fairy Tail A – 12**

**Quatro Cerberus – 12**

**Mermaid Heel – 9**

**Fairy Tail B – 2**

"It looks like both Sabertooth and Lamia Scale are tied for 1st Place!" Lola exclaimed.

"So cool!" Jason yelled.

* * *

Natsu was lying in bed, safe and sound as his face was still pale and had a bucket nearby. "Oh, my stomach just wants to hop out of my mouth." He grumbled.

Lucy turned towards Porlyusica. "Is he really gonna be alright?"

"Why wouldn't he? It's motion sickness." Porlyusica noted with annoyance. "He just needs bedrest."

Lucy turned towards Wendy as she was asleep. "What about Wendy?"

"She's coming along slowly, but she's still down." Porlyusica answered.

Carla just stared.

"At least you're okay Carla." Lucy said, unable to read Carla's expression. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine." She answered in a flat tone.

"Great!" Lucy walked out, but not before looking back at them. "I'll be sure to check up later, okay?" She then walked out with a smile. Once she was gone, the mood in the room went to being rather melancholy.

Porlyusica turned towards the Exceed. "You didn't tell her?"

Carla looked down. "How could I? She'd never believe me." Her gaze cascaded down. "In fact I can hardly believe what I saw."

Porlyusica turned away. "It's probably for the best anyways. Something like that shouldn't be spoken of…especially with how Nic was involved."

* * *

With Chariots out of the way, the competition moved on towards the battles, with Raven Tail's Kurohebi partaking yet again against Toby of Lamia Scale. The battle seemed to be heated, with the Raven Tail Mage dodging Toby's elongated green claws.

As the two seemed to be duking it out, Nic had hands in his pockets and looked away from the battle, noticing Raven Tail and its members looking placid at the moment, but he couldn't be sure what to expect out of the ring, especially with what happened yesterday.

Flare was covered in bruises, and she was shaking as she glanced at Nic and shuddered away, much to the armored man's warnings. Nic's sunglasses concealed his eyes, which showed remorse. In a way, Flare kind of made him feel guilty. It's not that he didn't wanna feel it, but when he saw Flare, something ticked off inside of him.

"Nic?" Nic heard Erza and he turned towards her. "Are you okay? You seem a little grimace."

He knew lying wasn't the way to go. But he wasn't sure how to approach the matter. Knowing Erza, and what he went through in regards to experience, he decided that it was okay to tell her.

"Do you ever feel like that you have your own reflection? Like that someone was you?" He asked. His gaze cascaded down. "I guess, when I see that girl…"

Erza glance over and looked at a shuddering Flare, covered in bruises from the beating she was given by the armored man. It took a minute, but Erza made the connection. She had her eyes widened just a little as she realized the reason Nic was uncomfortable: Flare was abused, and so was Nic is the past.

Now it made sense. Knowing that, Erza couldn't deny that she felt a little uneasy herself, but she knew Nic was tough, yet his heart pitied Flare, no matter how malevolent she seemed to be. She knew that Nic was abused and never had much of a fight, but he was past that now, and knowing how Nic has grown to rely on himself, she knew that her lover can endure Flare's bruises.

"Nic…" Erza softly smiled at him, which caught him by surprise. "You truly are a pure-hearted person, you know that?"

Nic looked ahead, now focusing back on the battle. His worries and past dwindled away as Erza's comfort made him feel better. He smiled softly. "Thanks."

"Aroof! You sure are strong!" Toby admitted on the battlefield against Kurohebi.

"You're not so bad yourself." Kurohebi admitted in a slithery tone.

"I wish I had a name like Kurohebi! It translates to Black Snake!" Toby noted.

Kurohebi slumped forward. "It's just my Mage name."

"YOU LIED?!" Toby, in his usual viciousness, ran ahead and slashed at Kurohebi, but he dodged all of the green claws. "If I win…you tell me your real name!" He shouted in between his slashed.

"That's fine!" Kurohebi shouted as he dodged. "And what if I win?"

"Aroof!" Toby slashed and missed. "Then I'll tell you my secret that nobody else knows!"

Kurohebi smirked and his eyes widened as he dodged again. "Alright, it's a deal!"

"Oh? Looks like they've struck a friendly wager." Lola announced.

"So co~ol!" Jason screamed.

In Quatro Cerberus's balcony, Bacchus spectated. "A little gamble, eh? Interesting."

Fairy Tail and the spectators all watched on as Kurohebi and Toby parried and slashed. Kurohebi was light on his feet and kept himself away from the claws. He was moving and used his Mimic Magic some more, copying Max's Sandstorm through unknown means. The crowd was getting a little crazy, and then Kurohebi let loose a powerful blast of spiraling sand. When it settled and the dust subsided, Toby was down for the count.

"And there you have it! Raven Tail wins!" Lola announced. "That brings Raven Tail to 1st place with 26 points!"

"That was impressive." Erza bitterly admitted.

"So there's Magic that works the same way as Mimic or Copycat. You don't see that too often." Nic commented. "Although…it seemed that Raven Tail seemed to be holding back."

"Well considering that they've been mainly harassing us, that's a given." Elfman noted.

Lamia Scale seemed sulked while Raven Tail had a placid look, though you couldn't really tell. Kurohebi looked down at a mournful Toby as he twitched on the ground.

"Alright, now you owe me a secret." Kurohebi recalled.

Toby sniffled as he laid on the ground. "…it's…it's my sock. I can never find it." He admitted. "It's so frustrating because it feels like it's right under my nose. For months I've been looking, but I still never found it."

Much to Kurohebi's disbelief and slight pity, the very same sock Toby was mentioning…was right around his neck. Lamia Scale just shuddered and the crowd was just baffled at the immense cluelessness he had.

"I'll spin out." Obaba growled.

"Hm." Kurohebi pointed at his own chest and Toby looked in confusion. His glance went down and his eyes widened and he realized that his sock was there. His joy and shuddering disposition, making him look like a fool, but a happy fool nonetheless.

Erza was so moved as she was near tears. "It's so touching, I'm so happy for him."

"Really? You're moved by a sick joke like that?" Gray asked. He turned towards Gray, but Nic was the same. He had a placid smile as he had a hand in his pocket still, holding onto his phone tucked away.

"The emotion is so cool!" Jason shouted.

Kurohebi towered over the happy Toby as he extended his arm down. Many had guessed that it was a sign of respect, but they were wrong, when the next second he completely snatched and shredded the sock right before Toby's eyes, earning a howling shock of terror.

"AROOOOF! NOOOOO!" Toby screamed.

Erza was held back by Nic as he kept her from getting over the balcony to thrash Kurohebi, and many were left in shock as Kurohebi added insult to injury as he turned and left a sobbing Toby in his pity.

"You should have never told me." Kurohebi noted. "The more precious something is to someone, the more I wanna tear it before them."

"You, spin instead." Taking pity on Toby, Obaba instead spun the guy next to her.

"Okay, even I know that was just wrong." Mawile noted, giving a contemptuous glance as a laughing Raven Tail.

Up near the greatest of spectators right next to a throne, a man in armor looked over his shoulder as a soldier approached. The two nodded and the soldier turn his back into the darkness. The armored man then looked back at the games, mainly keeping an eye out for Lucy.

"Let's move on to the next round!" Lola announced, getting the shock away from him. "Our next match shall be Quatro Cerberus's God of Wine – Bacchus!"

Bacchus entered the ring, holding up a bottle. "Yeah." He mumbled.

"Facing off against Fairy Tail Team A!" Lola added.

"So it's one of us, huh?" Erza questioned.

"If Natsu is picked, I'll just go and slap him up." Gray said.

Back up with the armored man next to the throne, in said throne, a stout man seemed appeased. "Ah, it's just as I had expected."

"Yes, just as you had wished, your majesty." The man answered.

"Such the pairing; the wild Bacchus versus the graceful Erza Scarlet."

The man's eyes widened as he seemed surprised. "Uh, pardon, did you say Erza?" He asked. "I'm…sorry but I arranged for a different fighter in the ring."

Lola then made a call no one had expected, not even Fairy Tail in general. "Elfman Strauss!"

"M-me?!" The big guy exclaimed.

"It's Elfman's turn?" Mira questioned.

A grim aura surrounded Macao, Wakaba, and Happy as they all frowned. "Well, we're screwed."

Erza looked up to the nervous Elfman. "Relax, just believe in your heart and victory will be yours."

"Uh…yeah." Elfman nodded, and he quietly and stoutly entered the tunnel to make it down the ring.

In the throne, the man fumed. "You fool! I wanted to see Erza! Not Elfman!" He exclaimed to the armored man.

The armored man bowed as he shuddered. "F-forgive me, my lord."

_The night of Day 1, and the armored man was at the end of a red carpet that made way up to the king's throne. He bowed before him. "Your majesty, do you have any requests for the matchups tomorrow? I shall humbly arrange at your will."_

_"__Hmm…" The kind pondered as he sat on his throne. "How about adding Bacchus. I'd like to see him do battle." He answered._

_"__Of course, and of his opponent?"_

_"__How about that one from Fairy Tail A. The one that can transform. Er…El…uh…"_

_The man thought he had the idea and cut him off. "Why of course. I promise a battle that you shall not forget." He stood up. "If his majesty has other requests I shall take my leave."_

_"__Very well, get some sleep Arcadios. We have a big day tomorrow."_

_The man, now revealed as Arcadios, turned and walked out of the throne room and turned down towards the dark corridor, smirking. _

_"__Sleep is the furthest from my mind, not while we're so close."_

Arcadios had his eyes cascaded by shadows, disclosing his hidden shame. "I've failed."

Down in the ring Bacchus was lying on his side, nonchalant and smirking as Elfman stood up. It was clear one side was stronger than the other, but Elfman couldn't back down. His swallowing didn't help.

"Say, let's pick up a little tradition and pass down a little bet like those guys did." Bacchus suggested.

"What?" Elfman asked.

Bacchus motioned his eyes at Lisanna and Mira both. "You got some smoking hot sisters. It'd be a shame to not have them as some prizes." His smirk grew dark as Elfman grew uneasy. "If I win, they get to spend the night with me."

The Strauss girls both shuddered at the sickening implication.

"Both of them?! That's seriously messed up!" Happy shouted.

Cana grew annoyed from up in Team B's stands, spectating there at the time being. "That guy's just made my list."

Elfman had dark eyes and his body was shuddering. The prospect of both his sisters in the clutches of such a man was what drove him insane. This, however, didn't seem to bother Bacchus. "Alright man, what do you want if you win?"

"Listen pal." Elfman growled.

"Hm?"

"A real man doesn't tolerate that level of disrespect." His fists clenched harder than before, and veins popped out. His white hair began to flare. "You're about to get schooled!"

"Aw, so you accept the wager do ya? Well you might as well make your call later on while you have the chance." Bacchus put his bottle down to the ground. He turned back and his smirk was still there. "Well then, to the better man."

* * *

Back in the infirmary, Natsu arose with a stretch. "Aw man, I slept like a log!" He groaned as he sat up in bed. "Now that was what I call a nap." He looked over to his side, looking at Wendy's bed. "Hey, still…" He suddenly grew still and confused as he was the only one in the room. "Wait, Wendy? Carla? That's weird…" His nose suddenly twitched, and immediately he got back to his feet, a stern look on his face.

He turned towards the doorway. "Somebody was here. I can smell them." With his scarf around his neck, he barged the door open and used his nose as a tracker. His nose twitched as he made way down the hall, passing by other doors. He silently crept around a corner, where the scent was much stronger than before.

Right there, over the long path above the stands, four guys with masks were hauling unconscious women, which were of Carla, Wendy, and Porlyusica.

"Hey!" Natsu shouted. "Stop!"

The four all looked back and screamed. "Oh crap! We must have woken him up! Get moving!" One yelled and ran off.

"I said don't move!" Natsu yelled, running faster than their pacing.

One guy looked back. "What the hell?! After that display, I didn't think he was this crazy fast!"

"Oh yeah?" Another turned around, pulling out two guns while the others carried the girls away. "Let's see him outrun a bullet-!"

Said guy was suddenly punched in the face, immediately unconscious as Natsu's strength nearly broke his mask in two. The Dragon Slayer raged ahead, the heat given off scaring the guys that ran.

"What do we do?!"

"How the hell should I know?! Dump the two!"

"No!" The third yelled. "We're supposed to grab the girl in the infirmary!"

Natsu's eyes widened as he heard them.

"They're all technically female!" Another exclaimed. "Does that count as anything else?!"

"I don't know-!" The second guy froze as he felt a hot and raging breath right behind them, and fire was unfused in with a fist driven back.

"Who hired you guys?!" Natsu demanded.

The man all screamed like sissies as Natsu pounded them in a fiery explosion.

* * *

Elfman's upper attire had torn sleeves as he was on a knee and panting. He had a few bruises on his body as Bacchus had not even a scratch. Bacchus just towered over an exhausted Elfman with a smirk of malicious intent. "Say, looks like I'm getting my wild night after all."

"This is just sad. The big guy can't even keep up with that guy." Gray said, pitying Elfman as he had taken one blow after another, bringing him to now. "I'm still shocked that Nic took down that guy when he moves like that."

In the stands, Lisanna looked uneasy as her brother was losing. "You think he'll be okay?"

Evergreen was standing right beside her, smirking with confidence. "Don't worry, your brother never fails to come up in a pinch."

"Elfman, go get 'em!" Happy cheered.

Elfman ran ahead, picking up his pacing. "HRAH! **Beast Soul: Weretiger!**" Elfman glowed and his body transformed into that of a humanoid feline with yellow fur and dark spots. His claws were large and he slashed and raked at Bacchus, but the enhanced speed seemed to have done but little effort as Bacchus maintained a smirk and ducked, constantly evading Elfman's attacks.

"That Take Over seemed to having increased his speed." Mira said.

"But Bacchus is just too fast." Sophie said. Her eyes narrowed. "I remember his style all too well, back in Dahlias. That special technique is what Bacchus has learned that's dubbed as Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm. A unique style of martial arts that uses Palm Magic with a skill known as Chop Hanging Palm."

Nic was explaining the same thing to the others over on the other balcony. "Bacchus used that technique all too well back in Dahlias, and he was never touched."

Erza and everyone looked back as Elman was struck by a palm upwards and Bacchus pivoted and thrusted his elbow into Elfman's gut, sending him to the ground.

"Yes, and what from we may know…is that it's amplified with that small gourd f alcohol." Erza noted, seeing Bacchus smirked as Elfman got up and missed his strike. "His style gets more unpredictable when he drinks…only he hasn't had a drop to drink."

Bacchus shot a lam into Elfman's gut, sending him to the ground again. "What are we boys?"

"WILD!" Quatro Cerberus yelled.

Elfman's Take Over vanished as the man was left still on the ground, struggling and grunting as Bacchus's assaults accumulated to an intense point.

"It looks like his Take Over has won off, and Elfman is back to being a best of a man!" Lola shouted.

"And he's lost a great deal of Magic Power." Yajima added.

"What an awesome fight! COOL!" Jason yelled.

"Can Elfman get up?" Lola asked through the microphone.

Mira and Lisanna were both heavily on edge as their brother was on the verge of defeat. The thought of having to spend the night with Bacchus horrified them. They had to keep their hopes up.

Elfman got back up, but barely. Bacchus looked back at him with a scoff. "Ah, back on your feet?"

"Listen you dog. I never told you what I wanted." Elfman said with a tired tone.

"What?" Bacchus looked a little confused.

"Our bet; what you do when I win." Elfman clarified.

Bacchus seemed in a good mood, so he gave no reason not to comply. "This is gonna be the only time this opportunity comes up, so tell me what you want if you win."

Elfman smirked. "I want you and your guild, to be called 'Quatro Puppy' for the rest of the games."

Bacchus had to snort out a laugh while Team Quatro Cerberus' jaws dropped. "WHAT?!"

Cana snickered up in the stands. "I think that suits them."

"It is pretty silly." Mira noted.

"Krokorok thinks the little puppies would look more ridiculous with their names being that too!" Krokorok yelled.

Bacchus returned the smirk as he reached for his little gourd that hasn't moved in the dirt since the start. "Okay pal, deal." He popped open the cork as everyone watched him tilt it up. "Let's wrap this up." He then began to gulp down large quantities, making the gourd empty. As he drank, a small pressure shifted through the area, in which Gray was able to feel.

"You guys feel that?" He asked.

"Yes, and I'm afraid he just got serious." Erza informed.

Nic's eyes narrowed beneath his sunglasses. "This is bad."

Bacchus's face was red as he smirked. His stance changed as he eyed Elfman. _'Let's see this guy knock down this drunk, shall we?'_

"**Beast Soul…**"

Elfman began transforming and Bacchus rushed ahead in a flail. "Pointless!" A sudden flurry of blows shot Elfman like gun bullets as Bacchus laughed as he passed Elfman, feeling the wind of his speedy assault.

"I didn't even see that coming!" Vanessa admitted, her eyes wide as she felt Bacchus's aura enhance.

_'__Seven strikes in the blink of an eye.' _Erza thought. _'That's the fastest I've seen of him in a long time.'_

"That sure looked faster than before." Mira admitted. "However…"

Bacchus hiccupped as he looked over his shoulder at Elfman. "How's that-?!" He suddenly felt a sting in his hands and the plated near his wrists shattered and the hands themselves were bleeding. "My…hands?!" He glanced back at Elfman. "What did you do?"

Elfman had long white hair and a black scaly grown. All around his body was black spikes and thick, green scales. He had sharp teeth and long claws.

"**Lizardman!**" Elfman finished. "If I can't hit you, go ahead and hit me all you want!"

The entire crowd was left uneasy and speechless as Elfman made the claim.

_'__It's like Elfman is using the Rough Skin Ability.' _Nic noted, his eyes showing shock along with Gray and Erza. _'Elfman's making a big risk.'_

"That guy's making a gamble. And it looks like he's all in." Cana muttered.

Elfman ushered Bacchus with his hands as he smirked. "Alright, c'mon! Go nuts and hit me with everything you got! I wanna see those arms bleed!"

Bacchus raised a brow and smirked. "Man, this guy is wild."

"It looks like Elfman is giving out a challenge! Will Bacchus accept and throw his chips in too?" Lola asked.

"I hope Elfman knows what he's doing." Mirajane said.

"We all hope." Sophie said. "I know those thick scales are tough for someone to get through, but we best not underestimate Bacchus.

"Bring it on!" Elfman shouted.

Bacchus laughed. "I like your style man! Alright, but don't say I didn't warn ya!" Elfman covered up as Bacchus charged ahead with a battlecry.

The battle of endurance and stamina had begun. Bacchus spiraled and landed blow after blow in a voracious frenzy. The impact after impact was like that of a full speed Rypherior landing sever attack after attack. Scales and blood shed as Elfman was as stiff as stone, taking the blows that sent scales and Bacchus's own plates chipping off.

The audience couldn't help but gasp at the awe in front as Elfman and Bacchus were in a vicious duel of endurance, and Vanessa covered her mouth as she saw nothing like it. She saw Close Combat used once or twice, but that was nothing compared to the bullet-like blows Bacchus was throwing, and Elfman was taking it all.

"Be a man!" Evergreen screamed as she was too excited to notice that she was choking Freed.

"And thus the blows rain down! This is no ordinary fight, blue a pure showdown of endurance and will!" Lola announced. "Who shall remain standing?! Bacchus, or will it be too much for Elfman?! Who shall be left standing?!"

After what felt like an eternity, both Elfman and Bacchus both felt their bones broken. Bacchus's arms up and down were bare and bleeding, and his pants were torn. Elfman however had chipped scales. Elfman and Bacchus both fell to their knees as they panted and had no less than bruises over their bodies.

"Your names…Elfman…?" Bacchus questioned in between breaths.

"…yeah…" Elfman exasperated.

Bacchus showed a huge smile at he began to uproariously laugh as his feet were underneath. His laughing was but a shrill taunt to Fairy Tail as his satisfaction grew. "WILD!"

"And Bacchus is up to his feet!" Lola shouted.

All of Fairy Tail grimaced at the defeat and felt bitterness and pity for Elfman.

Suddenly, Bacchus lost his balance. "I gotta admit pal…you…" He suddenly fell onto his back with a roaring thud, a huge smirk on his face. "…are a real man."

All of Fairy Tail grew smiles as the mood did a 180 and Elfman looked up at the fallen Bacchus. Evergreen was so happy that she almost squeezed Freed's head off.

"And what a turn-around! The Drunken Falcon has fallen to the beats of a man! The winner is Elfman, and scores Team Fairy Tail A 10 points!" Lola announced.

Elfman heard the call as the crowd cheered. He raised his fists high into the air and let out a primal and manly scream that raged through the entire atmosphere, and the crowd roared louder in response.

"And that's the roar of pride! Fairy Tail is making its comeback folks!" Lola shouted.

"SO COOL!" Jason screamed.

"That was amazing!" Lucy said.

"He did it." Juvia said with a grin.

"I must admit, that left me speechless." Magnezone confessed.

"Tch, the big guy's a real man after all." Laxus commented.

Up above the stands, Natsu and Wendy saw the fight after being rescued. Wendy was up and well again, and she couldn't help but feel all excited.

"Yay Elfman!" She cheered.

"The big guy sure showed them!" Natsu cheered.

"This is all nice and all." Porlyusica said, not giving any enthusiasm about the win as their priority came first. "Natsu, about these hooligans…"

Natsu recalled the memory all too well.

_The four were all tied up in rope and a guard had them in custody. After teaching them a lesson, they were handed over to the Rune Knights._

_"__We were just doing our job! Raven Tail hired us!" One kidnapper confessed._

_"__Yeah, yeah! We were just supposed to get the girl who was in the infirmary!" Another admitted._

_"__You can explain all the details back at headquarters." The guard said._

"Raven Tail…" Natsu growled. "They just crossed the line."

"_Was _there." Wendy caught on.

Porlyusica caught on. "Actually, there was the girl before you."

Their eyes widened when they all realized their intended target. They turned to the stands and all eyes were set on one girl: Lucy.

* * *

"The operation failed." The soldier informed.

"You fool." Arcadios scolded with little patience. "Did you not tell them what the girl looked like?"

"My apologies."

"No matter. We do have a Plan B." Arcadios turned away. "At least the kidnappers still believe they were hired by Raven Tail. We shall use Fairy Tail and Raven Tail's rivalry to our advantage." His grin turned into a dark smirk. "And in the end, we shall have a Celestial Mage yet."

He turned back ahead down the dark corridor, the soldier following. "The Eclipse Project shall soon meet its destiny…" He lightly chuckled as he disappeared away.

* * *

"You have impressed us with your manly spirit, Elfman. Your tenacity and uncanny ability to withstand the greatest of damage and beatings is among the best that Fairy Tail has ever known. This victory was important, and you've given us great momentum."

Erza's praise was but to a bandaged Elfman in the infirmary. Elfman was nothing short of a mummy, and was out of the games for the duration of his injuries from Bacchus. Accompanying her was Team Fairy Tail A, Wendy, Lucy, Carla, Lisanna, and the Thunder God Tribe.

"I've never heard of such a high praise from Erza in a long while." Lucy commented.

"Well the big guy sure earned it." Gray grinned.

"You were awesome out there today man." Natsu complimented.

Elfman opened his eyes. "thanks guys, but really you should just stop. I was just doing what I could." He then winced when a wash cloth was applied to his cheek by Lisanna.

"Still, despite your injuries that was worthy of recognition." Nic commented with a grin.

"Thanks Nic." Elfman acknowledged. "Thanks to you all…but Wendy's gonna have to tag back in there."

Wendy smiled. "Right, I'll do you proud!"

"This is all very nice, but you mustn't lose focus. Get back to the games; after all, knowing is half the battle." Porlyusica informed.

Nic nodded in understanding, plus since the next match was gonna involve Mira, Lisanna tagged along and they all exited, leaving just the Thunder God Tribe with them.

"Don't worry man, we'll hand back here." Bickslow said.

"After what happened, I'll set up an Enchantment to keep out intruders." Freed said.

"Thanks, sorry I made you guys do this." Elfman said.

Evergreen smirked down at him. "It's fine, but I do think you should change your strategy next time."

Bickslow suddenly grabbed her shoulders. "I'm sure Evergreen will cuddle with you if you want!"

She was pushed down by Bickslow and atop of Elfman, and both angrily looked back at Bickslow. "Cut it out!" They both yelled, heavily embarrassed and flustered.

Freed snickered.

* * *

Walking down the corridor, Natsu didn't seem so appeased. "We've gotta take care of Raven Tail."

"Agreed. It's like they're lowering our numbers." Erza noted.

Carla stopped in her tracks. "Actually, I'm not entirely convinced.

Everyone turned around in slight surprise.

"And what makes you say that?" Nic questioned in slight disbelief.

"The fact that Raven Tail hired a group of kidnappers that failed in the end. Their intent was for Lucy but ultimately got the wrong person. Their actions raised a red flag, and what makes matters worse is that they have a mage that can instantly drain Magic."

"You mean the same one that attacked you and Wendy last night?" Lisanna questioned.

"I wonder what they would've don't to Lucy if they caught her?" Erza questioned.

"Let's try and not picture the alternative." Nic insisted. "The fact that Carla brought up does be=ring some concern. If Raven Tail did have someone like that, they would've used him or her to make the kidnap easier; instead they deployed a scapegoat, but the question is why?"

"Maybe to draw away any suspicions." Gray answered.

"The organizers want all participants nearby in case if they were called, so it's likely the audience would be suspicious." Lisanna added.

"I think you're giving them too much credit." Wendy said, brushing off the excess worry.

"Well however it's done, they just want someone hurt in the end." Lucy said with a distasteful tone.

Nic glanced at Erza. "If they're after us in and out of the colosseum, we can't go anywhere alone."

"Yes." Erza looked at everyone else. "Until further notice, everyone is to remain in groups of a minimum of two."

Carla crossed her arms as she looked down, pondering as she looked at Nic. Seeing him was bringing up that horrible premonition. It wasn't pretty however she saw it. The remembrance of Crocus breaking apart and five monsters glaring down Nic was something that still scarred her mind. She continued on with the others in still silence towards the stands to meet up with the others and to root for Mira.

* * *

"It's time for the third match of the day folks!" Lola announced. "It's time for a beauty battle! From Blue Pegasus, it's the bombshell known as Jenny Realight! And Fairy Tail B's dazzling Mirajane Strauss!"

The crowd roared in excitement as the two young women entered the ring, with Mira taking a polite pose while Jenny maintained a sassy yet sexy hand to her hip.

Lisanna and Lucy entered the stands to meet up with the others. "Hey guys, we're back!" Lucy stated.

Vanessa looked at them. "Oh, hey guys. How's your brother, Lisanna?"

"He's down, but he'll pull through." Lisanna answered.

"Looks like you're in time. That Jenny chicks about to go up against Mira." Cana informed, moving herself to the stands. "I remember Jenny. Seven years ago, she was named the 'Number One Mage I Want to Be My Girlfriend' in Sorcerer's Weekly."

"Rumor has it that she saw Mira as a role model, so much that she wanted to be just like her." Lisanna noted.

Romeo turned towards them. "But since you guys haven't aged in seven years, Jenny's technically older than Mirajane…"

Lily took notice of Carla approaching. "Oh, I see that someone has recovered."

Happy looked over and saw Carla approaching. "Carla!" He cheered happily.

Carla stood up on the edge on the balcony and looked back. "I was told that all non-participants are to remain here during the matches, so that brings me to here."

Happy sprung forward with happiness. "I was so worried for you~!" Unfortunately he was then met with cement and stone as Carla shifted and dodged Happy's affection.

_'__I can't keep myself down on my dream.' _Carla looked back at the battle. _'Right now I have to cheer my guild on!' _ She turned ahead and looked determined. "Come, Mirajane! Fight…"

Caral's face was then stricken with sheer horror as her tail dropped. "Wha…" Her body shuddered. "…what's going on?"

Master Makarov had hearts in his eyes as he was panting like a dog. His mouth hung open as he couldn't contain himself.

"Master, get a hold of yourself." Romeo insisted.

On the battlefield, sheer chaos was unleashed, all the men in the crowd were whistling and left admiring as Mirajane and Jenny were both in swimsuits and showing off their unique curves. All the men just went wild, while the females were left in question.

"What kind of battle is this?!" Natsu and Gray exclaimed at the same time.

Erza eyes narrowed.

Wendy's eyes were shaking. "What is, Mira…"

Nic's eyes underneath his sunglasses showed only mild surprise, and yet little interest in the appeal. He just looked at Erza with a raised brow.

"Hey boys~." Mira cooed as he sat up on her knees.

"Hi~." Jenny swayed as she was in another swimsuit.

The men nearly had nosebleeds as they were panting like dogs.

"I most certainly wasn't expecting this." Juvia admitted.

"Uh…yeah." Lucy said, uneasy as well. "I hope this is a rule only to them."

"What a treat! Two bodacious babes and pinup models that excel at Transformation Magic! This is surely the stuff that dreams are made of! Again, lady's man Yajima and Jason of Sorcerer's Weekly Magazine is here!" Lola shouted.

"I'm feeling like a young man today!" Yajima grinned.

"This is so hot and cool!" Jason screamed to the heavens, unable to control himself.

Lola leaned into the microphone. "I can't wait to see what they'll turn into next-!"

"Not so fast!"

All heads turned to where the voice of defiance came from. Three shadows emerged from the Mermaid Heel section.

"You don't expect these bimbos to hog all the attention now, do you?" Risley asked, her Gravity Change making her body slimmer.

"We've got beautiful chicas as well! That's what Mermaid Heel is all about!" Arana announced.

"This is embarrassing." Beth said.

Once again, the men all went crazy.

"Now hold on!" Another voice announced. Two figures fell from the Lamia Scale stands. "What's the point of running around in swimsuits if you don't have the love?"

Sherry and Chelia both emerged in their own swimsuits, and the men went wild again.

Levy raised a wrinkled brow. "Wow, that takes guts…I guess."

Mavis slid over to the females gathered. She smiled wide. "Why are you all just hanging on the sidelines?"

"Are you implying what I think you're implying?" Vanessa asked, more than a little shocked.

Lisanna pointed to herself. "You think we should go down there?"

"For real?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Are we just supposed to have swimsuits handy or something?" Cana questioned, earning raised brows from the other females.

Mavis chuckled. "No, silly. But you never know what will, so you should be ready for anything." She swung her arms up, and as if by magic raining bikinis fell from above, like rain. "I brought one for all of you!"

Makarov, Macao, and Wakaba all shuddered in expectance as they witnessed the unquestionable wisdom of the First Master. They said no words, but allowed the madness to happen, much to their own pleasure.

Erza snickered. "I see no reason to hold back any longer either."

"Huh?!" Wendy exclaimed in disbelief.

Sophie already had on her swimsuit, smirking. "I suppose can indulge myself a little."

"Whatever floats your boat." Gajeel groaned.

In no time flat, girls were sprawling all over the ring in swimsuits. Even Carla and little Asuka with Bisca present were in the ring. Girls were posing and bending over, causing severe nosebleeds to many spectators.

Mira kept her smile. "The situation has gotten pretty out of hand. Wouldn't you say?"

"Oh yeah, but the fans are loving it." Jenny insisted.

Erza was in her black bikini, down on all fours and stretching her lower back. She grinned as she saw something that pleased her. She actually saw Nic put his sunglasses on his V-neck, and he leaned over the balcony and rested his chin on his arms, grinning softly and having a bit of a dreamy look in his eyes. The look he was giving was of enamored feelings and loyalty. No matter where Erza went in the ring, Nic's gaze followed, but not perverted, but far from it. It was the look of loyalty.

Nic could have admired the whole show of girls; he could be watching from Cana, to Jenny, to Arana, to Bisca even, but through it all, Nic was paying attention to Erza, and she loved every minute of attention her boyfriend and lover was giving her.

Her smile widened as she adjusted and had hands to her knees and had her round behind in the air. Her red ponytail was to the side as she faced Nic and gave him a wink.

Nic settled into his spot and had all eyes on the girl of his dreams. Gray and Natsu were getting all the eye candy they could, the former near a nosebleed, but Nic knew loyalty and followed it. If he was honest with himself, his eyes were on the one girl he'd want to look at all day and night.

Lola was giving out random calls of girls changing their uniforms. From school swimsuits, to bikinis in thigh-highs, to bondage gear, to glasses, to cat attire; and through it all, each girl stood out from the other.

"I didn't know Vanessa appealed this well." Braixen noted, seeing Vanessa with a grin as she was in her teal bikini.

"I don't even know what to describe this bandwagon." Sliggoo admitted.

"The bandwagon of fanservice." Braixen said with a sweat drop.

"Now or a blushing bride challenge! Ladies grab a lucky guy and squeeze into wedding dresses!" Lola announced with overzealous excitement.

In no time, Mirajane was in a beautiful gown with a bow at the waist. "Thank you for the help, Master."

Master cleared his throat, in a suit of his own size. "If it means a win for my guild, I shall do what it takes."

Jenny was in her own bridal gown and she was paired with Hibiki, much to the others' pleasure. Jenny smirked. "Well you're not such a bad man, are ya?" She cooed.

"Maybe we're not so as incompatible as the other would expect." Hibiki insisted.

There were so many beautiful women in bridal gowns with rose decorations patterned all over, especially Sherry's when she paired with Ren. Cana and an abundance of Mermaid Heel women were all single; and Vanessa and Sophie were included.

"Oh Nic."

Nic turned around in the ring, and before him was the vision of beauty. His stomach suddenly didn't feel so good as he suddenly got nervous at the sight of Erza in her wedding dress. Her bridal gown was a ball gown that was long enough to allow her white slippers to be seen. The waist was hugged tight, as has her bust. Her beautiful and long red hair fell down the way it always has. Her white gloves covered up her forearms, and one hand held a sword with a cute yet huge white bow, while the other carried a bouquet of white roses.

Erza was surprisingly nervous as well. Her body was nearly trembling at the sight Nic, much to his own surprise as he was in a black tuxedo with a dark purple vest and bowtie, accompanied by nice black dress shoes.

They looked at each other in the eyes and found themselves blown away by the other. They couldn't help but be drawn to the other's appeal. Though they had only recently become official, they never really thought much about marriage. They were both still too early for the concept, but the thought of marriage was but a blissful and frightening one.

"You look…beautiful." Nic could find no other words to describe her. She was as she was called.

Erza smiled as she cozied herself right next to Nic, holding her bouquet as their shoulders and arms touched. Their blushing and mature, vibrant looks and smiles got the most appeal and whistles amongst everybody else, and the other girls couldn't complain otherwise.

It eventually came to a close, and Lola came to another announcement. "Now let's get to another swimsuit-!"

"STOP! I CAN'T TAKE ANYMORE OF THIS!" The outraged voice bellowed through the stadium, and all were still at what was heard. All eyes diverted upwards towards one of the statues that overlooked the colosseum, and the person behind the yelling was Lamia Scale's Obaba.

"What is this?!" Lola shouted.

Obaba spun her finger as she pointed down at them. "Foolish young people! I'll show you! Watch, and learn what it means to be a real woman!"

She sprung down from the statue head and onto the colosseum, her cape flowing and prying off. All eyes and anticipation exploded as Obaba's tiny feet touched the floor. She was, to put it lightly…an abomination. Her body was so frail as she swayed her hips and whistled.

All time and essence turned pale and everything that was but blissed died. Mouths gaped as flies hung over many heads, and reality came back to them. The entire colosseum was dead silent for but a whole minute.

"…and with that crash course of reality, the mood has returned to Earth Land." Lola sighed, grimacing over his scarred memory over the image. "Parties over folks. The other teams have begun clearing out."

"…cool?" Jason groaned as his head was against the wall.

All of the boys picked and girls exited, leaving just Jenny and Mira again, the two smiling at the other still.

"That was entertaining, but now it's down to you and me again." Jenny reminded.

"Aw that's a shame. It was fun while it lasted." Mira teased.

"We need to wrap this up so that we can move onto the final match! So let's initiate the final beauty challenge!" Lola announced, feeling better and in the mood again.

Jenny looked away, glints in her eyes. _'Yes! Sorry Mirajane, but I have a little trick up my sleeve that will ensure me victory.' _Her smirk grew cheeky as a snicker emerged. She turned back towards Mirajane, full of confidence. "I have a little proposition; a bet just like everyone else. It's a tradition today, don't you agree?"

Mira tilted her head, smiling still. "I'm game, so what do you have in mind?"

Jenny pointed at Mira with a prideful smirk. "Loser poses for Sorcerer's Weekly, naked! And as a bonus if I win, I get a little date with Nic Pularis!"

"AAHHHHH!" Many men screamed as they had nosebleeds, falling over in unconsciousness. Those who were conscious in the end picked up on the second part and have devilish glares down at Nic.

"That's crazy!" Lucy exclaimed.

Vanessa pinched the bridge of her nose. "It always comes to something this drastic in the end, doesn't it."

"Well this just got nuts." Gray smirked. "Guess a little treat's gonna come our way…"

He trailed off when a fiery aura flared nearby, catching his attention. Both he, Wendy, and Natsu all recoiled and shuddered as Erza was giving off a volatile aura and had er arms folded as her body tensed and shuddered. Her teeth gritted as she thought if Mirajane lost, then Nic may very well end up thrown onto a bed by Jenny.

"If she thinks she can get away with this, then she's wrong." Erza was on the brink of drawing a sword. "Mira, don't lose!"

Nic just had hands in his coat pockets and he remained silent in embarrassment.

Mira tilted her head. "…okay."

"WHAAAAAAT?!" The crowd exclaimed.

Jenny devilishly smirked. _'I got her right where I want her. Mirajane's been the apple of the public's eye for quite some time, so she may have more fans in the crowd compared to me, but the ones calling the shots are those judges up there.' _She thought back to last night, where she had a conventional dinner at a restaurant with Yajima and Lola. _'So I've done some digging, and it seems they're into younger girls, which is just too perfect for me, and as an added bonus, getting around the famous Luminous after his accomplishments will increase my popularity even more. It's obvious who they'll pick.' _Jenny spread her legs as energy began to flow.

"Sorry for being naughty, but this is just too perfect." Jenny flashed, and she was in her combat form. Her long blonde hair was wilder than before, and had red gloves and shoulder pads, including high thighs. She had a frilly crown-like headpiece and wore a skin-tight white and blue battle suit with red edging. "You think you can handle this form?"

Mira was flaring her own energy. "Nah, I'm not too worried about it; in fact, since we're all making bets today, let's continue the trend and finish off this with a battle of strength." She flashed, and then just like that, she was surrounded by flames, as she now had unkempt white hair, huge golden horns, a black cape over a white cloak over her white and dark blue suit. Her gauntlets had sharp claws. She smirked maliciously at Jenny, who just had a blank expression, as she was just too stupefied.

"What the heck is that?!" Natsu shouted.

"It's one of Mirajane's Take-Over forms." Erza explained. "It's known as Sitri, her strongest Satan Soul."

"I agree to the terms you've set, so I'd appreciate it if you return the favor." Mira growled as a dark shadow was over her.

Jenny quivered in fear. "Wait, are you serious?!"

"…yes."

In less than a second, a violent slash sent Jenny soaring, as Mira screeched as she passed behind her. The shock from the attack left everyone in shock, and Blue Pegasus despondent as Jenny flew in the sky. The crowd roared as the excitement did a 180 and beauty thus became brawn.

Jenny hit the ground and reverted back, as did Mira, the latter with a smile.

"And Mirajane wins!" Lola announced. As the crowds roared, Nic and Erza both heaved sighs of reliefs, thankful that Mira came out on top.

"Yay!" Happy cheered.

"Wait a go, Mira!" Lisanna cheered.

Natsu smirked. "And that's how it's done!"

"Wasn't this a beauty contest though?" Gray wondered.

"For the most part anyway, but Mirajane bent the rules." Erza said, still in a thankful mood that Nic didn't have to spend a night with the devious blonde that was Jenny.

Mira smiled as she waved at Jenny. "Sorry about that. But if it makes you feel better, I'll buy an issue when it comes out."

Jenny slumped to the ground and mourns that she lost the bet and would have to go nude. She began sobbing like a baby, and yet it didn't sit right for a certain someone.

A sudden pair of footsteps hit the ring and Fairy Tail and the crowd itself watched in curiosity as Nic was stepping out towards Jenny.

"Hold on folks, something's going on." Lola speculated.

Jenny kept on sobbing, and Nic still didn't have his sunglasses on; they were on his V-neck still, and had a frown. He took in a small breath as he undid his coat and put it around Jenny's shoulders, making her eyes widen and stop her crying.

"Huh?" Jenny looked up at Nic, seeing his mournful but sincere smile.

"Sorry, but I'm already spoken for." He said. He helped her up. "But that doesn't mean I have to be cruel."

Jenny smiled as Nic helped her to her team's tunnel, clapping going around as Nic was being kind compared to the harsh brawling happening. When he got her to her tunnel. He took his coat back and pivoted, putting it back on and clicking the Poke Ball buckle.

As Nic walked back, Jenny spoke out to him in a sincere voice. "Erza's a pretty lucky girl."

Nic's eyes closed as he smiled. "More like I feel the luckier one."

"Isn't that a chivalrous act." Lola announced. "Despite the loss, comfort was given!"

"This is SO COOL!" Jason screamed.

Nic hopped back up the balcony and over to stand back up with the others, staying rather quiet as questionable gazes of Natsu and Gray glowered before him.

"The hell was that for?!" Natsu exclaimed. "She's an enemy!"

Nic glared over to them, making both back off. "We're not Raven Tail." He reminded them. "Besides, I was aware she was trying to tease and flirt…but that doesn't mean I should relent or not acknowledge her as a human being, right?"

Wendy smiled. "Well when you put it like that, it's actually a very nice thing to do."

Nic put his hands back into his coat and looked down with a half-grin. From his actions, he would understand if a certain redhead wasn't as forgiving.

A sudden pair of warm lips got his cheek. His eyes opened when the smell of strawberries filled his senses and noticed how soft the lips were. Natsu, Gray, and Wendy al looked curiously as Erza pulled back from her kiss, leaving Nic embarrassed and slowly looking to face Erza.

She knew of his nature. It wouldn't be nice of Nic to leave someone, especially a girl that acknowledges him, crying that they wouldn't at least get to meet him face to face. It was enough Toby had his sock destroyed, but alas this was another story. Once again was being shown Nic's loyalty through actions, as he was sincere in helping an upset damsel back to her team. She could live with that.

"You have a soft heart Nic." She smiled wider. "I love that."

Nic blushed a little more as he smiled back, flipping back on his sunglasses and getting ready for the last fight of the day.

* * *

Walking down the dark corridor, Arcadios was making one step before the other. "Chief Arcadios!" The knight turned and saw a small yet old minister-like man. He had the attire to back it up and a mark over his nose.

"Defense Minister Darton, what are you doing here?" Arcadios questioned.

"You've got some explaining to do, and don't play dumb with me." Darton demanded. "Now explain…why are you apprehending a Celestial Mage?!"

Arcadios took a moment of silence. "…now Darton, we need one to ensure the Eclipse Project is at full power."

"But it's not ready!" Darton countered.

"On the contrary, it's actually been ready for quite some time."

Darton's eyes widened. "Wait, you mean you already gained the Magic necessary? And you didn't inform me?!"

"I can understand your concern on the matter, your opposition on the Eclipse Project is in bold, but do not take this matter so personally. I in fact kept this as a secret from everyone to ensure secrecy and funding. Needless to say we need a Celestial Mage to make this plan a success." Arcadios turned his back, his cape shifting with him. "But at this point, nothing can be undone."

"Are you some kind of monster?!" Darton shouted.

Arcadios snickered. "If that is what must be done, then so be it."

He looked up at an enormous gate. The huge structure was at least a hundred feet tall. It was outlined in massive mechanics and had a sun-like center. It had twelve huge slots that reached out on the upper part of the gate, with gold vertical lines on the bottom half. A small staircase was at the very bottom.

"If this mission requires a young girl's life, then so be it." Arcadios maliciously smirked.

* * *

"Let's move on to the final match of the day! Our fourth match will be Mermaid Heel's Kagura Mikazuchi, against Sabertooth's Yukino Agria!" Lola announced.

Orga turned towards his team. "We gotta get this win so we get some points on the board, since _someone _screwed up on the Chariots before."

"The fact that it involved moving vehicles couldn't help." Yukino said.

"You just make sure you know what you gotta do." Sting informed her.

Yukino nodded. "Yes." She stepped out into the battlefield, ignoring the crowd roaring. Her eyes glanced over at Nic Pularis for a moment before she swallowed and kept on walking.

"Do your best Kagura." The hooded woman said.

"She's up against Sabertooth…" Risley said with worry.

"Relax. Kagura won't let us down." Arana insisted.

Kagura stepped out, entering the ring. "I know where my sword must follow."

Both Mages stepped forward, meeting each other in the middle of the ring.

"Looks like Sabertooth's up." Gray noted.

"Right. Observe her carefully." Erza warned, but she still felt uneasy watching Kagura.

"Many of you fans know Kagura as one of the top female Mages in Fiore in Sorcerer's Weekly." Lola announced. "And although this is her debut battle in the games, Yukino will make her mark for Sabertooth! Let this final match finally get under way!"

The gong went off and the fans were cheering.

"Let us both hold nothing back." Yukino said.

"Likewise." Kagura said, stern in her voice.

"Before we begin, allow me to say. In the previous rounds, wagers have been casted. Shall we do the same."

Kagura was still unfazed. "Sorry, but I do not gamble on such mal terms. Wagers have no value to me."

Yukino's eyes narrowed. "Then what are you afraid of?"

Kagura's glare hardened. "If you're steering me into that course, then I guess it'd be rude of me to not hear what you have to say." She respinded.

"Then let us wager on a more drastic measure." Yukino paused. "Our lives."

All shock and jaws dropped through the stadium, and all teams were at a loss at Yukino's inclination.

"Their lives?" Erza parroted.

"That's a foolish gamble." Nic said. "Either she is overconfident, or she is underestimating her chances."

"Is she having her carrots peeled in the wrong places?!" Beth exclaimed.

"She's gotta have a death wish or something!" Risley retorted.

Kagura readied herself as she put a foot back. "If you really do want to take that course of action, then I guess I must parry. Very well."

Once again, shock echoed through the arena.

"Thing's just got a whole lot serious here folks!" Lola announced.

"SO COOL!" Jason screamed.

Yukino pulled out a gold key and swiped it. The action caught the attention of Lucy.

"Hang on! You mean she's a Celestial Mage just like me?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"And that's…" Sophie's eyes widened.

"A…Zodiac." Cana mumbled, still surprised as she recalled being a part of the rebellion to save all the Zodiacs.

Arcadios's eyes widened. _'I had no idea there would be another Celestial Mage amongst us.'_

"**Open: Gate of the Fishes – Pisces!**"

From a flash, two giant fish emerged. One was black and one was white. Both were hundreds of meters long and slithered through the air like flying fish, howling. Both aimed and went to attack Kagura.

"Giant fish!" Happy squealed.

"Is that another form of Pisces? Because I don't recall them looking like that before." Sophie said.

Nic looked on with heavy weight in his eyes, carefully examining Pisces and Yukino alike. How she had a Zodiac in her possession was very abnormal.

The black fish went to attack in a dive, but Kagura jumped and easily dodged. She then flipped in midair as the white fish swerved in from the side and landed on her back. Kagura dashed along her back and evaded the black fish once more.

The audience watched as Kagura continuously jumped and dodged. Their eyes were glued to her as she moved so little and yet so nimble.

"She's good." Natsu noted.

"Yes, she's very efficient in dodging." Erza admitted.

"If all you're gonna do is run, then I should weight you down." Yukino held up another golden key, which shocked Lucy, Nic, Cana, and Sophie even more.

"She can open two gates at once?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"And it's another Zodiac…" Cana noted.

"**Open: Gate of the Balance – Libra!**"

Appearing before Yukino was Libra. It was another Zodiac the others met in the Celestial World and the party. Libra was all better and healthy. She adjusted a stance as the men grew hysterical over her slender form.

"Libra, can you shift the target's gravity down?" Yukino asked.

Libra moved her scales as she did a dance. "Yes, as you wish." A sudden blast of gravity hammered Kagura, making her feel rather immobile as Pisces began to swirl around her.

"No way! That lady Spirit uses the same Gravity Magic that I do!" Risley exclaimed.

"Now Pisces!" Yukino ordered.

Both huge fish swerved up and howled. They arched down and went to attack Kagura. Kagura, however, kept her serious demeanor as she stared up. There was a massive dust cloud as Pisces rammed the ground, but all eyes lifted up when Kagura was actually above and high in the air.

"WHOA!" Natsu screamed.

"No kidding. That was one hell of a jump." Gray noted.

"Libra, adjust the gravity sideways!" Yukino announced.

"As you wish! She won't escape this time!" Libra did another dance and adjusted her scales. A blast of gravity blasted Kagura from her side. Kagura grunted when she hit one of the large statue's forehead, making a crater as pressure was weighed down onto her.

"Pisces!" Yukino exclaimed. Pisces then emerged from the ground again and swerved through the skies, swimming after Kagura.

"Aw yeah! That's the power of double summoning two Zodiacs!" Lector shouted.

Pisces went to attack, but Kagura's eyes sharpened and Pisces suddenly stopped moving. Instead, the huge fish duo twitched as they felt heavy. They both fell to the ground, and Libra suddenly found herself on her knees as her gravity was heavy.

"I…can't move!" Libra muttered.

"Those things are bigger than Gyarados and can fly, and yet they were brought down that fast?!" Mawile exclaimed.

"She must have used gravity." Venusaur said.

"Gravity is so painful!" Krokorok shouted. "Gravity's got nothing on Krokorok! I DEFY YOU GRAVITY!"

Eventually the gravity weighed Pisces so down that the two fish fell onto Libra, making her immobile and unable to move.

Yukino saw the predicament and knew the best solution was but to withdraw. "Libra. Pisces. Please return and help your comrades in the repairs." On her call then and there, both Zodiacs returned to their world. Kagura landed on the ground in front, but Yukino seemed calm.

"You're not too bad, but I guide my own faith." Kagura noted.

"Then I guess I should pull this out…" Yukino presented a third golden key, having a black snake coil around it. "Behold – the Thirteenth Gate."

Nic, Cana, Sophie, and Lucy's eyes widened.

"Thirteenth Gate?" Nic questioned. His eyes narrowed. "No, that's not possible; if that were the case, then it can't be official."

"Yeah, you have to be right. Lysandre enslaved and bloodied all twelve Zodiacs, this thirteenth one…" Lucy trailed doff. "…I only heard rumors of it, but I never expected them to be true." Her eyes narrowed.

Sophie swallowed. "Thirteenth Gate…"

Cana's eyes narrowed as well. "This has gotta be a joke. The twelve Zodiacs are official, so what is this one?"

The arena was suddenly engulfed in a dark mist, and the sky had a black cyclone like Jellal's Sema spell yesterday. As the key glowed, the air got heavy.

"Your luck has run out." Yukino warned.

"Luck? I don't believe in luck." Kagura countered, reaching for her sheathed blade. "My life up to now is the choices I've committed."

"**Open: Gate of the Serpent-Bearer – Ophiuchus!**"

Emerging from the black mist was a huge snake. Ophiuchus had large red eyes and markings on its head. The upper part of her body had dark scales while the lower section was more technological and inorganic. Plates were all underneath, and had an artificial lower jaw.

"HOLY COW!" Natsu and Gray screamed in unison.

"That's as gotta be as long and huge as Hydrus." Nic recalled how the crew was up against the huge sea serpent known as Hydrus back on their sea voyage.

_'__The Thirteenth Gate. This girl is impressive indeed.' _Arcadios smirked.

_This isn't good. Not only are there two Celestial Mages, but they both are Zodiac wielders.' _Darton thought nervously as Ophiuchus hissed and closed in on Kagura.

Kagura poised her sheath and watched as the huge snake closed in. She pivoted around and closed her eyes.

"**Drudge Sword: Archenemy…**" Her eyes opened. "**Sheathed Longsword Technique!**"

Ophiuchus passed the Mage as she dashed on ahead, and the serpent in full was sliced into bits.

"What?! But how-?!" Sting exclaimed as Ophiuchus vanished and everything cleared up.

"She never drew her sword!" Erza gasped. "How can she do that?"

Yukino gasped and was left still in terror as her ace was used up, and Kagura appeared in front of her.

The hooded woman had a grin. "Kagura's got this in the bag."

_'__But…how?' _Yukino was left in mortal peril as Kagura's vicious eyes pierced right through her soul, her fiery blaze never hindered since the beginning.

"Your bet was foolhardy." Kagura chided. Her sheath in hand, she swung and ended up behind Yukino as the white-haired Mage fell over onto her back, much to everyone's shock. Kagura, however, just had her eyes closed and stood triumphantly. "There was a time, when mermaids feasted upon tigers."

The crowd was left baffled at first, but then they all roared as Kagura walked away full of pride.

"M-Mermaid Heel completely annihilated Sabertooth's Yukino! Mermaid Heel earns 10 points!" Lola stammered.

"Wait a go, Kagura!" Beth cheered.

"I wasn't worried. She could handle herself." Risley noted.

"That Celestial Mage was most impressive, yet she still fell." Arana said.

"This is a major shocker! Sabertooth hasn't scored any points today!" Lola announced.

"Their Master won't be pleased about that." Yajima noted.

"This is the coolest thing to have ever happened!" Jason screamed.

"Mermaid Heel's Kagura." Nic repeated. He looked to Erza, who seemed just as perplexed as her.

The redhead narrowed her eyes as Kagura walked away. _'I had no idea there was someone like her. Kagura Mikazuchi.'_

_'__I…I have lost…?'_ Yukino shuddered as she laid on the ground, tears starting to rise up. "I…I've tarnished Sabertooth."

Kagura was meters away before she stopped and looked over her shoulder. "Your life is now in my hands, don't forget that."

Yukino nodded as tears went down the sides of her face. "…yes."

"With that last battle, let's check the scoreboard!" Lola then displayed the scoreboard for all to see.

**1****st**** Place: Raven Tail - 26**

**2****nd**** Place: Fairy Tail A - 22**

**3****rd**** Place: Sabertooth - 20**

**3****rd**** Place: Lamia Scale - 20**

**5****th**** Place: Mermaid Heel - 19**

**6****th**** Place: Blue Pegasus - 17**

**7****th**** Place: Quatro Puppy - 12**

**7****th**** Place: Fairy Tail B – 12**

"Everything has been scrambled up folks! One team of Fairy Tail is ahead while the other is tied with the now dubbed Quatro Puppy!" Lola announced.

Yajima nodded. "They've sure risen their game."

"YEAH! How'd you like that Sabertooth?!" Makarov mocked, doing a mocking and pathetic cheer on the balcony.

Sting's fist clenched so tightly that part of the balcony cracked away. "Yukino…"

Rocker's hair drooped. "They really…changed it!" He turned shaking towards Bacchus. "Hey man! Please tell me they're just fooling around! We're really Quatro Puppy?!"

Bacchus turned away with an uproarious laugh. "The big guy and I made a man to man agreement in there, so yeah." He raised one of his casts that was his arms. "Alright, we're drinking tonight! WILD!"

"And that wraps up the second day of the Grand Magic Games folks! See you all for tomorrow's next contest!" Lola announced.

Jellal was walking away with his team, and he looked down at the ground, uneasy. _'This is odd. It's the end of day two, and yet this dark power isn't present. Are they onto us already? Or are they hiding out this year?'_

* * *

Once again walking down the corridor, Arcadios smirked maliciously once more. He felt pleased knowing there was a Celestial Mage amongst Fairy Tail known as Lucy Heartfilia, but he never expected all the Zodiacs together, and bound by Yukino, handling the remaining official two.

"So Sabertooth harbors their own Celestial Mage." He said aloud. "The Eclipse Project will be a success."

* * *

**And so I'll cut things off here. I wanted to get more done and get the nighttime conversation out of the way, but instead I'll move to Plan B. I'll have to alter my course of action and make these next chapters get pushed back by one. I have to reconfigure a strategy for next chapter since now that one will be the night of Day 2 with the beginning of Day 3 and Pandemonium, according to what I have in mind.**

**I'm sure many of you are anxious to be ready for the reappearance of Minerva, this time being calmer and less arrogant. I also have a special OC that I planned to mess things up a little, and said OC will play a role in the games, rest assured.**

**I also changed up the beginning scene so Cana disliked Bacchus greatly, given the X791 Arc incident; besides, I never really liked the idea of the two together. I hate that picture. Speaking of which, for those who read _One's Road to Remembrance_, I have a new chapter up there as well.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoyed the 2****nd**** Day and what went down, and how I made more NicxErza moments.**

* * *

**Next Time: Friends and Foes Alike**


	73. Friends and Foes Alike

Chapter 73 – Friends and Foes Alike

**Hey guys, here's the next chapter. I hope you all enjoy it! I'm trying to as fast and as diligent in my updates as possible, because ****_EDventures in Kalos _****is nearing its finale, so more attention will be put there. Still, I am hoping for this story to be finished by the end of the summer.**

**Guest: All good questions, but I won't spoil.**

**Guest Valvrave: I have it all planned, so I won't say; as for the children part, I didn't think that far ahead.**

**Okay folks, on with the reuniting of Minerva, among other things!**

**To Recap:**

Day 2 commenced, with Nic meeting Bacchus again at the bar beforehand. Natsu and Gajeel participated in the Chariots competition; and though they got 6th and 7th place, Natsu's speech got Fairy Tail fans. The battles were of Kurohebi defeating Toby, Elfman barely defeating Bacchus, Mira defeating Jenny after a beauty contest, and Kagura defeated Yukino, earning Fairy Tail A a spot for 2nd place with Fairy Tail B tied for 7th with Quatro Puppy, dubbed after Bacchus lost a bet.

* * *

**Chapter 73 – Friends and Foes Alike**

Night soon fell onto Crocus. Underneath a bridge that overlooked a canal that passed through the city and connected to the sea, three individuals were present. All three were at the rendezvous point, and they had concern on their faces.

"Have you been able to trace the Magic you've been looking for?" Erza questioned.

On the opposite side underneath the bridge, Jellal was unhooded and was the recipient. "No, not yet at least. This Magic represents Zeref, but there's no solid lead."

"Why do you think that is?" Erza asked.

"There can be a number of possibilities. Let's say a Mage alone is responsible, then the odds would be that they're not attending this year. Or they are here, but they haven't used that particular Magic yet."

"Maybe it's someone who's entering the games, but hasn't competed yet."

"If it's a device or a specific location, that makes things more complicated. If that were the case then, the device hasn't been activated, or there's a filter that prevents the Magic from being sensed."

"If you can't sense it at this time, then there's no need for us to worry." Erza said, relieving them.

"I hope so." Jellal said otherwise. "However the scenario goes, we can't lower our guard, not with your guild's rivalry with Raven Tail and the mishaps looming in and out of the ring. I'll take a look tomorrow for any clues while everyone is watching the festivities."

A third party nodded his head in understanding of Jellal's plan. "If that's the case, I'll ask Cana to step in." Nic said.

"I'd very much appreciate that. Thank you, Nic." Jellal said. He put on his hood and mask began to walk away. "I hope you two do your best."

Nic grinned at Jellal, but it was but a half-grin. "We will. Make sure to keep discrete as ever."

"I'm aware…Ultear made it clear last night." Jellal nervously pointed out, recalling the scolding he received. "Goodnight."

As Jellal walked away, Erza paused for a moment before she and Nic turned and walked away. They didn't see Jellal turn and look back at the two walking the ways back. _'It was nice to have talked again like that.' _He thought before heading away into the shadows of the night.

Nic and Erza both traveled through the streets in a smile yet comfortable silence, mild easiness as they walked from lamp post to lamp post. They had no aim nor objective. They just wandered through the streets a little, walking and enjoying what peace they had as their fingers interlocked.

"Still no stars." Erza voiced. "But it's still a peaceful night."

"Yeah, it is." Nic agreed. "I'll bring those stars back to life." It sounded like a promise, but that wasn't his intention. He was true to his word that he would do whatever it took to bring the unstable universe back to its feet again, and that was enough for Erza.

The redhead and her lover turned a corner and began to make way towards the inn, but then something was caught on Nic's sensory as he suddenly stopped.

Erza took notice. "What's wrong? Someone there?"

"I finally found you!" A voice called out.

Both individuals turned their gazes towards the moon. On a bar balcony, a hooded woman was sitting on the railing. Thye both realized that it was the hooded woman that belonged to Mermaid Heel. "Hello, Erzy!"

Erza's eyes widened. "Erzy…?" Her body suddenly began to shudder as memories of one person began to fill her mind. The same one whose calls her that. _'Only one person ever calls me Erzy…'_

The hooded woman revealed herself, showing herself to be something they haven't seen in the longest time. "Long time, no see!"

"Millianna!" Erza exclaimed happily.

Nic was left just as surprised. He only remembered Millianna as an old friend of Erza's and meeting her in the Tower of Heaven. He backed away as the cat woman jumped and hugged Erza, both beginning to glisten tears.

"I've missed you so much!" Millianna smiled.

"It's great to see you too." Erza said with a smile. "So you've joined a guild now?"

"Mhm! I'm in Mermaid Heel!"

"And what about Sho and Wally?"

"No silly. Mermaid Heel is a girls only guild, so they continue their travels. I still talk to them every now and again."

"I see." Erza pulled Millianna into another blissful hug. "It's so good to see you alive and well."

As the two old friends embraced the other, tears running down their faces, Nic just looked on with a soft smile.

* * *

Crocus housed many inns, but in a particular inn knows as Crocus Gardens, one of the more decorative and expensive inns. This housed the current champions known as Sabertooth, but instead of celebration, the guild members were in front of a large room with a red carpet that went up to a lone couch.

All of the members had hands behind them and frowned. They could only be appalled by today's actions, invoking the notice of their Master, and by all means he wasn't pleased as the five competitors were standing affirm in front of him.

"Pathetic." He roared. "You disgust me with your performance today." He sat the glass of grape wine right beside him. "Did you all forget how we stand above all else? We stand above the insects and crush them beneath our feet. They are not worthy of being acknowledged, they are only worthy of defeat and our wrath." His guild members were stiff at his cold, hard tone and berating comment.

"We make the heavens roar…to make the land shake…to silence the seas, that is Sabertooth!" He roared.

The person was none other than Sabertooth's Master, Jiemma. He hasn't changed in appearance at all, and his demeanor was just as volatile as before. The only difference at all was that there was a mark in his center, and a scar over his chest, from Nic's Focus Punch and Kecleon's Slash from seven years ago. The memory still burns with intensity to this day.

"Sting!" He roared.

Sting stepped forward away from the crowd. "Sir."

"Your performance was but a disgrace. However, since this is a Dragon Slayer's unconditional weakness, I am allowing the matter to slide but this one time. I don't ever want to see you fail again. You understand?" Jiemma said.

Sting bowed. "I understand, Master Jiemma. I will do my best to live up to your expectations."

Jiemma's glare darkened as he held up a bushel of grapes from the tree beside him. "Yukino!"

"Yes sir." Yukino stepped up this time, looking into Master Jiemma's dark gaze.

"This is no excuse for your failure in your match today. You are another matter to be dealt with." He growled. "Do you realize what you have done?"

Yukino's eyes were shut as she bowed. "Yes, sir. I was beaten by another guild. I have disgraced what Sabertooth has preached."

"No!" He silenced her by throwing the bushel of grapes that landed in her hair and falling to the ground. "You bet your life! A gamble that you hopelessly lost! You embarrassed Sabertooth with no exception!"

"Yes, Master…" Juices dripped from her hair as she felt remorse. "I am ready for whatever punishment is fit for my disgrace."

Jiemma's glare darkened. "Good, now strip yourself."

"As you command." Yukino nodded, and complied by taking off her clothes.

Normally the guys would be panting over her figure, but this matter was but another story entirely. A small fraction of Sabertooth was lowly growling at Jiemma, the handful that watched him through the years and put up with him, as they stood by the other's side, only Yukino wasn't part of their group, but that never stopped their pity.

Yukino's naked form was exposed, and she covered her breasts as cold air through the room made her stiff. She never felt so embarrassed in her life.

"Now, rid yourself of your guild mark. You are not worthy of it." Jiemma ordered.

Yukino nodded, holding back tears in her misty eyes. "Yes…as you wish." She closed her eyes and managed to focus her Magic Power. Everyone watched as her guild mark glowed a green light and it vanished. She got to her knees and bowed. "Even though it was for a short time, I thank you for letting me be a part of Sabertooth." She said, choking back any sorrow in front of Jiemma.

"Now…begone." Jiemma growled.

Yukino nodded and she grabbed her clothes. Everyone made way and watched with hollow gazes as Yukino passed them with a gaze down to the ground. She exited the room, closing the door behind her.

"That is a lesson to you all." Jiemma warned. "No matter who you are, despite these years you've been in Sabertooth, you shall forfeit your dignity and be damned. We shall accept no further mistakes. Dismissed."

"Yes, Master." They all said in unison. They all exited and left the room. As they all went down the hallway, and Sting and Rogue and their Exceeds followed.

"Man, that was harsh." Sting said. "He can rule with an iron fist and all, but come on."

"Well that was done." Lector commented. "Sabertooth's gotta be the strongest, right?"

"Fro is sad." Frosch admitted as he walked down the hall, distraught in the eyes.

"I know, Fro, but I won't let Jiemma hurt you…I swear it." Rogue assured, picking up his Exceed and the two smiling, relief washing over Frosch.

Sting stopped for a second and turned towards Rogue. "Come on man, don't be soft."

"And why not?" Rogue argued. "Yukino was a comrade as well. She deserved respect."

"Yeah, _was_, Rogue." Sting turned away. "She was weak, there you have it. We don't need people like that."

Rogue just glared at Sting as he kept on walking ahead of him, not valuing Sting's ill-will.

"Oh, right!" Lector looked up to Sting. "Sting, I heard milady's gonna be back soon!"

Sting looked excited. "Really? That's awesome! With her in the games, she'll take Yukino's spot and we'll be sure to climb back to the top!"

"I don't know." Lector said, shaking her head. "You know how Milady can be. She'll only participate if she wants to. Knowing what happened to Yukino, she's gonna be pissed with Master Jiemma again."

* * *

Team Fairy Tail exited the pub they partied in from the previous night, with Natsu patting his stomach full of food, and Wendy accompanied them.

"So is it really okay for me to join you guys at the inn?" Wendy asked.

Lucy turned towards her. "Yeah, no sweat. There's like six beds. You just need to worry about Natsu's snoring and Gray sleeping naked." Lucy nervously reminded herself of that last night. "And yet Nic and Erza share a bed and sleep like babies. It's adorable when you see it."

"Speaking of Nic and Erza, where are they?" Carla asked.

"They went for a walk, I think." Happy answered.

They all turned the corner, reaching their inn. Yet something stood out front with luggage.

Natsu blinked. "Huh? Wait, hold on…"

"Isn't that…?" Happy trailed off.

"Yeah, it's gotta be…" Wendy and everyone noticed the person in front of their inn's entrance was someone they knew from before. Yukino. "It's that Yukino from Sabertooth!"

"What does she want?" Natsu growled.

Yukino turned towards them, showing no ill will. "Good evening."

* * *

In the city park, Nic, Erza, and Millianna were sitting on a bench near a tree. The park wasn't too far from the hotel Fairy Tail stayed at. Erza and Millianna did most of the talking, and Nic just sat right besides Erza, remaining quiet.

"So why didn't you reveal yourself at the start of the games?" Erza asked.

Millianna smiled. "Well to be honest, I wanted to wait until after the games…" She then pulled Erza into a hug. "But I wanted to meet you again so bad! The last time we saw you, you were all sad and miserable!"

Erza frowned at the remembrance of that time as Millianna and the others left, and she could only mourn and cry over Nic's 'death'. She was so happy to have him back right now.

Millianna took notice of Nic at long last and her eyes widened. "Oh, Nic! I was shocked when I saw you on the first day! I didn't know you were alive!" She apologized.

Nic didn't show any ill-will. "It's okay. I don't blame you." He got up from the seat right next to Erza and turned away. "I think I'll head back to the inn. I'll leave you two to catch up."

"Okay." Erza agreed. "Be careful."

"I will, besides…" Nic smirked as he looked back over his shoulder. "I have my Pokémon with me, remember?"

Erza smiled softly as she watched Nic walk off, with hands in his pockets. She was a little concerned after all that's happened, but she knew better than to underestimate Nic and his Pokémon. They can handle anything thrown at them. Besides, she knew he was right when she was left alone to talk to her old friend. She turned back towards Millianna and kept a smile.

"Nic is super strong! He wiped that Raven Tail girl out in one blow!" Millianna said. "And you two are so close."

Erza laughed at the amusement. "Yes, we are." Her smile softened as she looked back at Nic and his black and purple coat as he disappeared behind a street. "The truth is, we love each other."

"So that means…" Millianna gasped. "You two are a couple!" She grabbed Erza's hand and fiercely shook it. "Oh, congratulations, Erzy!"

"Thank you, but really, I should be the one to congratulate you." She reasoned. "You've joined such a strong guild to compete."

Millianna sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "Oh, thanks, but we're not that strong."

"Don't be so modest. I'm impressed by your guild. Especially by that swordsman." Erza admitted.

"You mean Kagura? Yeah, she's super strong!" Millianna said with cheer. "She's the strongest Mage I know!"

Erza raised a brow. "Is that so?"

"Yeah…" Millianna paused. "Although, I don't think she'll show her power to anyone."

"What do you mean?" Erza questioned.

"You remember that sword she never sheathed once? That's her blade, Archenemy." Millianna explained. "As the name implies, that sword shall never be drawn until Kagura comes face to face with her sworn nemesis. A person that has ruined her, and shall never rest until that person is slayed."

Erza sat quietly, listening as she felt uneasy. She frowned as she felt a shift in the air. Millianna's face darkening with her tone most certainly didn't help. Millianna finished with one last sentence.

"That person that she seeks to slay for all of his crimes, the person that shall die by her hand…is Jellal."

Erza's eyes widened as her heart skipped a beat. A gasped escaped as she heard the name loud and clear. "Jellal?"

Millanna's smirk darkened. "Yes, and I'm with her all the way." She said in a sinister tone, the mood dialing to a darker level than before. "You feel the same, don't ya? That fiend murdered Simon. I hate him as much as Kagura could. I can never forgive him for making us slaves again, and he took our friend away. He'll pay, and by joining a guild, I can help Kagura and stop him."

Erza could only frown and mourn. She felt the venom in her words, her feline friend lost in the demons of the past she couldn't let go. Erza was able to let go of the past entirely and move on to the future, but Millianna was another story entirely.

* * *

Yukino sat on the cushion chair in front of the suspicious Fairy Tail members. They weren't fully trusting of Yukino considering that she was an enemy in their eyes. Fairy Tail A, minus Erza and Nic, gathered around Yukino.

"So hold on, let me get this straight." Gray intervened. "You wanted to see Nic?"

Yukino nodded. "Yes, I wanted to tell him about something. Something important."

"It better not be a confession, because Erza would be pissed." Natsu said in suspicion.

"Natsu." Lucy chided. "Sorry Yukino, you were saying?"

Yukino reached into her pockets and pulled out her two Zodiac Keys, getting everyone's attention. The two keys were present and Yukino looked down at them.

"Are those…?" Lucy spoke.

"Yes." Yukino nodded, her tone sullen. "Up until recently, my Spirits were unable to beckon at my call. I was so disheartened, and I thought it had something to do with me." She looked up at everyone, mainly Lucy. "But Lucy, surely you must have realized what happened too, right?"

Lucy nodded, her mood getting infected with sadness as well. "Yeah, Nic's mortal nemesis. Lysandre. He made a genocide in that world and chained the Zodiacs. If it wasn't for him, we'd never been able to see our Spirits again."

"I was gonna go and thank Cana Alberona and Sophie Lednick, after I was able to thank Nic and his Greninja. I learned about all the members of the Celestial Crew, and I want to thank the ones that are possible and appreciate them for helping save Libra and Pisces."

Gray crossed his arms, having no shirt on. "Well when you put it like that, I guess we can't blame you. I guess you can stick around until he and Erza get back." He complied. "But don't get any funny ideas while you're waiting."

Yukino nodded. "Thank you."

Lucy caught onto something. "Wait, hold on. How did you get finances if your Spirits were chained or…" She decided to not say the last part, knowing what happened to a lot or most of the Spirits.

Yukino looked away. "The truth is, Minerva helped me in finances."

"Minerva?" Wendy questioned.

"She's Master Jiemma's daughter, but the two are at war with the other." Yukino explained. "She's much more sympathetic, along with other guild members. They helped me on my feet when I couldn't get up…but I wasn't safe with her out on a job. She was out on a job, so I was a step-in."

"So the Master's daughter isn't as disheartened as Sabertooth in general?" Gray questioned.

Natsu's eyes narrowed. "So what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be back at your guild?"

Yukino looked away, her eyes misting. The slow emerging of tears caught Natsu off guard as he backed away.

She wiped them away. "The truth is…"

* * *

Nic walked silently through the streets, remaining as quiet and as on-guard as possible. He knew that due to the disturbances, he shouldn't be alone, rather in a group. He traveled in discretion and kept his senses sharp.

_'__With all that is happening, I hope everyone is safe.' _He thought back to Sabertooth, and Raven Tail alike. He most certainly didn't not show any likes for Sabertooth, but then there was that one side with full of concern. It revolved around the past, and his mind drifted off to when he fought Jiemma and assisted Minerva in rebuilding her confidence again. To this day he still wondered what happened to her.

He was so caught in his musings that the voice behind him barely managed to get through to him. "Nic…Nic…"

He turned around, and he saw Erza, finally caught up. He was a little surprised, but he didn't show it. "Oh, Erza it's you." He watched Erza approach. "How was your talk with Millianna?"

Erza didn't show any moral joy or sadness, but instead showed just a mild disposition. She thought back to Millianna's venomous comments, which discouraged her. "It was…memorable to say the least." She said. "Your pacing was rather slow, are you okay?"

"Just…contemplative is all." He looked up. "Sabertooth is a formidable adversary to say the least."

Erza smiled at him. "Yes, they are. But we'll surpass them."

Nic softly smiled at his lover and girlfriend. "Yeah, you're right…"

A small explosion erupted in the distance, bringing the two back to reality as their eyes were wide. They turned their heads towards the explosion and where it came from. It sounded unpleasant, and smoke could be seen.

"What's going on?" Erza questioned.

"I don't know." Nic pivoted and sped off, faster than what Erza could trace. "I'll go and see!"

* * *

"Out of my way!" Natsu rampaged through Sabertooth's inn as to get his hands on the Master for what he did to Yukino. He swatted a ninja member with a flaming fist and he smashed into a wall, falling to the ground with a thud. Sting's eyes were wide in horror and disbelief.

"Holy crap! Dobengal was taken down just like that?!" Lector exclaimed.

Jiemma glared at Natsu as veins were on his forehead.

Sting stepped forward, all tensed up. "Master, let me-!" Sting no longer advanced as Jiemma's arm was right in front of him.

"No." He ordered, stepping forward as he alone faced Natsu as the enraged Dragon Slayer enflamed a fist and roared a cry. "We don't have someone like you in our guild, you brat." His glare was hollow. "Interesting."

"Take this you jerk!" Natsu fired a blistering blow into Jiemma, but the large man blocked with his forearm and didn't budge. The impact sent a shockwave that force Natsu into a skid.

"Your spirit is not enough!" He roared at Natsu.

The Dragon Slayer slid across the floor from Jiemma's shockwaves, covering up from debris. He regained footing and enflamed another fist and drove it up into an uppercut, scoring a burning blow to Jiemma's gut.

Sting and Rogue were in shock, and the rest of Sabertooth was left in unbelievable shock as Natsu scored one blistering punch after another. Each punch was like a flaming hammer that shot as fast as bullets. Natsu reeled back a fist and Jiemma's eyes widened as lightning began to crackle with the flames. Natsu then punched forward.

"**Lightning Flame Dragon's Firing Hammer!**"

He punched forward, and a hole was blown through the inn's top floor, catching the attention of a few citizens out and about on the streets, Erza included. The smoke from the attack went through the room and dispersed, but then a woman stood in between Natsu and Jiemma.

The woman had long black hair, with a few braids in as well. Two bangs framed her face and parted in the middle. She had eyelashes and black lipstick. Two bun-shaped loops were on her head. She was considerable curvaceous as her figure was hugged by a black and blue dress with the same colored gloves that covered her arms. Her light colored front had a saber-toothed cat on it.

The woman smirked.

"Minerva?!" Jiemma exclaimed.

"Who?" Natsu growled.

"I believe this calls for a ceasefire." Minerva said. She turned towards Jiemma, showing contempt in her look. "Wouldn't you agree this has gone on far enough? I think a time-out is in order." Her hands drew back and relieved the spatial energy. All eyes were open at Minerva's appearance, with a handful of guild members smiling upon her return. "Jiemma, don't be so foolish as to get a quarrel out of hand as it already is."

"You dare…" Jiemma growled at his daughter.

"I know the boy started the altercation, but think about the guild. If you were to eliminate or have quarreled with Fairy Tail, you would have sullen Sabertooth's reputation. I believe it's wise for both parties to back down…if they know what's good for themselves."

Jiemma growled down at Minerva as she looked away at Natsu.

"As for you, you seem to have been quite the handful." She told Natsu as he glared at her. "However as much as I would enjoy to see how this plays out, I say this party comes to a close. You seem to have injured quite a few of our guild members, some of my comrades included." She frowned. "That I don't appreciate."

"Who are you? Tell me!" Natsu bellowed.

A sudden blur entered the room, entering the domain as his coat shifted. His back was too Minerva as the rest of Sabertooth diverted their attention to him instead.

"Enough! Everyone!" Nic roared, silencing the whole room, leaving Natsu, Jiemma, and Minerva all in a shocked disposition.

_'__Nic's arrived?' _Rogue questioned.

"Hey, wait, isn't that…?" One member started.

"It is, it's Nic Pularis!" Another member exclaimed.

"I haven't seen him in a long time! And now here he is again!" Another mage smiled, and several more began to cheer just a little, much to most of Sabertooth's disbelief. Orga and Rufus both looked surprised as well, among the rest of the elites.

Nic turned his head back to meet with the girl's gaze. He only stared in slight confusion before the eyebrows and the hairstyle began to come back to him. He gasped and his eyes widened as he realized who he was staring at, and vice versa.

"Minerva?" Nic asked.

"Nic?" Minerva responded.

A sudden pressure filled the room, and the ground shook as all attention drew towards Jiemma. His body was giving off grand pressure. Natsu, Minerva, and Nic all looked back as Jiemma had veins all over his body.

"Nic Pularis!" Jiemma howled. "You!"

Nic was ready for whatever he could throw, but rather he took an alternative. He glanced at Minerva. "Minerva."

Minerva smirked. "Of course. Let's get some space from this beast, shall we?" Her hands gave off the spatial energy again, engulfing her, Nic, and Natsu, and the sphere taking all three in vanished before a blast wave left a crater where they were.

The members all were shocked as Jiemma huffed in frustration over Nic returning. The scornful memory arose again of him losing to that man and his Kecleon. Jiemma only stared in growling frustration at the crater.

"Damn you Nic Pularis…Minerva…" He cursed.

Sting looked down at the ground, his body quivering. _'That was insane. Natsu's way stronger than what I thought.'_

Rogue's eyes narrowed. "What's going on? Why has Milady sided with Nic and Natsu of all people?" He questioned.

"Do you not know? She has a history with the last party." A female voice called from behind.

Sting and the other members turned their attention towards the feminine voice that aroused from within the crowd. Her shoes tapping was heard as she approached the Dragon Slayer in question.

She was a slim young woman of average height, much like Minerva. She had brown eyes and dark pink lipstick on her smirk. She had long, sky-blue hair that reached down to her lower back, with two bangs reaching her shoulders, with the right bangs being at a lower point. A guy would be craving her as she was the curvaceous body, and her ample bust size was held in place by a tight garment of sorts that showed a massive load of her bust and stopped inches from her stomach, showing her smooth waist. The garment was a neon green with dark blue edging. Her gloves were neon green as well, stopping at the elbows in a dark blue edging as well. Her dark green leggings were over her thighs and tucked into her neon green boots. Around the waist was neon green armor with dark blue edging, similar to Erza's waist armor of her Flight Armor. Her neck was hugged by a fur-lined mantle that was like a mini cape that reached down to her lower waist. The inside was dark blue while the outside was dark green.

She stopped and shifted weight to one hip. "Are you aware of Nic Pularis's history with Master Jiemma?" She questioned.

Sting looked shocked. "Lady Bellona!"

Rogue's eyes narrowed. "You mean that Sabertooth has a history with Nic?"

Bellona's smirk never left her scoffing expression. "It was such a shameful time, and I believe that Milady has told this tail, but never expressed names, now, am I right?" She looked around at the quiet guild members and chuckled. Her smirked widened. "Well then, let me tell you what I learned from her colleagues that are just as free-lifting as her…"

* * *

Underneath yet another canal bridge, refuge was upheld. Four figures met up after the scuffle at Sabertooth's inn was abandoned, and that was where Erza met up with Nic, Natsu, and Minerva.

Natsu was met with a fist to the back of the head. "Ow!" The bump enlarged as he whined. "Erza? What was that for?"

"You deliberately assaulted a guild outside of the arena. Do you have any idea on how much trouble we can get in for this?" Erza roared lowly.

"Be calm, Titania." Minerva insisted. "Natsu has his reasons that we can understand."

Erza turned towards Minerva. "And who might you be?" She questioned, her guard up high.

"Everybody calm down." Nic said, walking in between Erza and Minerva. "Let us just take a moment to take this matter one step at a time." He looked to Minerva and back at the two. "Natsu, Erza, I'd like you to meet a friend of mine. This is Minerva."

"So, you're the Master's daughter that Yukino told us about." Natsu growled.

Minerva smirked. "Indeed. Then I guess Yukino is left at your domain then."

"Natsu, what is she talking about?" Erza asked.

Natsu looked down at the ground, his gaze glowering as he growled. As the canal glistened with a half moon, Natsu told everyone there of what Yukino told them. He left nothing out as he told of her being shamed and stripped, and left to be excommunicated for her failure. By the time he finished with his tale, Erza and Nic were left in shock.

"That's borderline cruel." Erza said with crossed arms. "I know Sabertooth has standards, but what they did was unforgiveable."

"That's why I came around, to knock some sense into them." Natsu said.

Minerva frowned. "I see…I just got back, and now I left Yukino to be bared with a burden." All attention was turned to her. "I leave for a job and now Yukino is out of the guild."

"It wasn't your fault, Minerva." Nic said. "If anyone's to blame, it's Jiemma. I see he hasn't changed."

Minerva chuckled. "True. Regardless of how the circumstances came around, it's great to see you again." She grinned.

Nic grinned back. "It's good to see you're doing well too." His eyes widened. "Of course, I'm sure you want to see another old friend of yours again, right?" He pulled out a Poke Ball. "Come out, Kecleon."

The Poke Ball opened, and Kecleon emerged in front of everyone, tilting her head and looked at Nic and Minerva.

Minerva smiled down. "It's great to see you again as well, Kecleon."

"The celery is still fresh from the day it was plucked from the dirt! Minerva!" Kecleon cheered.

"What'd she say?" Natsu questioned.

"She said she remembers her all too well." Nic told.

"Oh…"

"So Minerva." Nic asked. "How's Sabertooth through the years?"

Minerva crossed her arms and grinned away at the two that helped her in her past. "That's a good question. It's a long story, but I'll indulge you." She recounted. "After you and Kecleon left, me and the present guild mates, we all were rather close, and we still are to this day. Unfortunately after that new members joined such as Orga and Rufus, and Sting and Rogue joined, and they all never decided to partake in my inner circle of family rebels. I guess you can say there's two sides to Sabertooth; one that's a friendly housecat, and the flesh-eaters sort of speak." She closed her eyes and closed away, still smirking. "Jiemma and I never interacted afterwards. I did as you and Kecleon did and me and my inner circle always stayed away and trained hard, far from Jiemma's reach. He knows we're one of the more stronger members, but he thinks little since they side with me and prefers to acknowledge the ones that follow under him."

Erza looked at Minerva in curiosity. "If that's true, then couldn't you have made a guild of your own?"

"Perhaps, but we all stayed to show that we can fight the power too. We're not a cowardly bunch, but they see me as a ringleader."

"So follow the leader." Kecleon tilted her head a little.

"Precisely, Kecleon." Minerva frowned. "That's why we couldn't do anything about Yukino, since I wasn't there to defend her. In any case, Jiemma and I never see eye to eye, but he does know of my power, and that's why we only agree or disagree if I enter the games or not."

"I see." Nic smiled. "I'm proud that you managed to hold onto faith."

"A very tight grip that you never let loose of." Kecleon added.

Minerva chuckled at Kecleon and her way of talking and she turned towards Erza. "Titania, Erza, would it be alright if I meet Yukino?"

Erza. With her guard lowered due to Minerva being an ally, nodded. "Of course. A friend of Nic's is welcome."

"Just don't do anything that we should regret." Natsu warned.

"I am aware. Thank you." Minerva then followed along back towards the inn, trailing behind Nic and a happy Kecleon. She smiled as she remembered that day full well. _'You two, thanks for being alive.'_

Half an hour came and went, and the five entered the inn. Immediately they were caught with the attention of everyone there, including Yukino, who stood up immediately as Nic entered the room.

"Where have you been you idiot?!" Gray barked back, holding Natsu by the scarf. "What the heck was your problem?! You told us you went for a walk!"

"Honestly, must we resort to barbarism for everything? Obviously nothing else comes to mind for Natsu." Carl chastised. "That was very uncalled for."

"Yeah, and who's she?" Lucy asked, her attention towards Minerva.

"Milady?" Yukino questioned.

Minerva grinned. "Yes, Yukino." She frowned. "On behalf of my fraction of Sabertooth, we're very sorry for how we couldn't have saved you. I feel accountable."

Yukino looked down, a little sad. "It's okay, it happened." She held a clutched hand to her heart. "Still, I can't thank you enough for your gratitude and help in finances for all this time." She bowed. "I will forever be indebted to you."

Minerva just grinned and kept her gaze at the ground. "t's with a heavy heart have I have to bare your place. It's something that I feel humiliated to do, but I believe that I'm obliged to uphold that burden."

Yukino nodded. "I'd like that, thank you."

All around the room, everyone just smiled, and Kecleon tilted her head.

Yukino turned her attention towards Nic. "Nic Pularis." She said. "On behalf of what you and the Celestial Crew has done for the Zodiacs, I cannot repay you enough for freeing my friends." She got to her knees and bowed to Nic, the action making Nic raise a brow and look down at Kecleon. "I am forever in your debt if kindness, as I am to your Greninja, and Cana and Sophie."

Nic knelt down to her, keeping a warm grin. "Yukino, there's no need to feel so guilty. We were all risking our lives so free them from Lysandre. There's no need to bow before me."

Yukino looked up at Nic, a smile and tears pouring down her face. "Thank you…thank you so much…" She sobbed to her hands and continued to cry tears of joy, with everyone smiling all around.

Erza nodded. "It seems that we are on good terms with two of your guild, right?" She asked Minerva.

Minerva nodded. "Indeed. But don't think that I'll hold back in the arena. Nic and Kecleon may be my friends, and we may have gotten acquainted Erza, but I shall show you why I'm the strongest in all of Sabertooth."

Erza and Nic smirked at her challenge.

"We're all a bunch of good eggs." Kecleon said. "And we taste delicious."

Minerva chuckled. "Speaking of food, why not have a little snack while I'm here?"

"No way!" Natsu exclaimed, perking up. "You mean you can cook?!"

"Oh yes, Minerva's one of the best cooks in Sabertooth." Yukino said. "And she really is unrivaled in it too." Of course the white-haired mage seemed a little confused as she also recalls the references that Minerva made, a small habit of food that she seemingly picked up from a certain someone.

Kecleon smiled. "She is a tree above all others in her forest."

"I'm in." Gray shrugged.

"Yeah, I'm a little hungry myself!" Wendy smiled.

Later on during that hour, Minerva had decided to cook and had small desserts and meals all planned out. She laid them all out and everyone indulged in her cooking, with Erza marveling in the cheesecake she managed to make. Greninja ate along with Kecleon, getting acquainted with Yukino and Minerva and having small bites to eat as well. All in all, it was a fun time, despite Minerva being a part of Sabertooth, she made a great impression. She recounted the long story of how she met Nic and Kecleon and how he defeated Jiemma with the new Fist Plate at that point in time, shocking everyone about Nic and Kecleon's connection to Sabertooth.

"So Minerva?" Nic questioned as he sat his plate down. "What are you gonna do now?"

Minerva swallowed her food and turned towards Nic. "Good question." She sat the plate the plate down on the table. "Nic, I'm indebted to your kindness, but I'm still obliged to not hold anything back in the games." She snickered. "If I'm honest with myself, I'd like Fairy Tail to surpass Sabertooth for once, that'll show Jiemma why I think our guild is rather troublesome in its own right."

"The empire shall soon strike back." Kecleon noted. "Patience is the key."

"You couldn't be anymore right." Greninja said as he sat right beside her.

"I'm still stuck on the fact Nic fought their Guild Master years back and actually won." Gray said.

Natsu chomped into a piece of small meat, shoving the whole thing into his mouth. "Aw man, and I really wanted to smack some sense into him too."

"Jiemma won't change, no matter how hard you try." Minerva admitted. "Still, if he finds me being friendly to enemies, there's no question we'll get into a scuffle, but I'll manage like I have all these years."

"Your endeavors are admirable, Minerva." Erza complimented as she sat her plate down. "It's nice to see friendly competition rather than mediocre melee."

"That we can agree on." Minerva replied. "I'm just waiting for my Master's empire to turn on him, then I shall be satisfied. But for now, I'll enjoy what company with my associates."

Nic held up a water bottle to Minerva. "I hope we be fair in the arena."

Minerva held up a wine glass and toasted to Nic. "And to whomever guild comes out on top."

* * *

Sting's eyes were wide with horror. "No way!" He almost stumbled. "You serious?! Nic and his chameleon friend actually defeated our Master seven years back?"

Bellona turned away. "Yes, and I'm afraid that because of him, Minerva is how she is now." She took a few paces with a sway in her large hips. "I'm afraid Milady is a handful, among her followers that are under Nic's influence."

"No wonder Milady and a few others are more compassionate." Orga said.

"I most certainly can't recall Milady ever mentioning that tale to us in person." Rufus acknowledge in disbelief.

Bellona turned towards another wave of members. "Milady is soft. She has no desire to rule over such a filth of a guild that she believes we are. She tries to keep her handful of friends and whatever sanity she harbored and keep Sabertooth as a caring guild, just like Fairy Tail is. Wouldn't you all agree that's the reason how Fairy Tail has become so pathetic? Are bonds really such a thing that grants one power?" She turned away to another section in the room. "I say, that's such a foolhardy belief. Haven't you all heard nice guys finish last?"

Rogue looked down. _'Honestly, I wish Sabertooth really wasn't so disheartened. Milady and her followers have that concept. I just wonder…'_

"You got that right, Lady Bellona." Sting smirked. "Comrades really are a burden if they're just weak. If they're not with you and can't jeep up, then they won't be any help at all."

Rogue could only glare at Sting.

"That's a good boy, Sting." Bellona said with a smirk and such an erotic tone. "And be sure to stay to those beliefs, and show everyone that Sabertooth tramples over the weak. Show them why bonds only hinder. Show them, why we shall never let Fairy Tail have their way. Nic's infectious bonds shall not be tolerated!"

She pivoted and turned to meet the guild members with a malicious smirk. "Milady may be participating in Yukino's place, but if she believes that we'll let Sabertooth get soft on her watch, she'll have to go through the second strongest in all of Sabertooth."

Sting clenched a tight fist. "That's right, and I'll show Natsu and Nic no matter how strong they may seem, the Twin Dragons will squash them like insects." He scoffed with hidden excitement as he remembered what Natsu did, and hearing what Nic and Kecleon did to Jiemma, he could hardly contain himself.

Orga punched his own fist. "I'm stepping in tomorrow. They'll all get a taste of my Black Lightning."

"I remember your lightning being most destructive. I agree that you should do the honor." Rufus said.

Bellona smirked. "Fairy Tail may have its fun yet, but we'll prove our power is superior. Milady will allow the matter to remain silent since she seemed to enjoy her father getting a lesson..." Her eyes narrowed as the tone in the atmosphere grew venomous. "But we shall have the last laugh yet. We shall keep our title as the strongest guild, and all shall tremble."

Her face cast a shadow of darkness as the elite smirked and agreed out of fear. Bellona turned towards the vast window that showed the black night sky.

"Perhaps I should show her what true power is when the time comes."

* * *

Everyone was exhausted. After stuffing themselves, and Minerva left to head back to her inn and Yukino went elsewhere; Natsu and Happy fell asleep, snoring with bloated stomachs. Gray was practically naked under his sheets as he was out. Lucy was sleeping on her side and having a pillow to cover her ears from Natsu's snoring. Wendy and Carla were both sound asleep beside the other, leaving Nic the only one awake.

Erza was still in the bathroom, drying herself from her bath as Nic was silently resting his head back against the pillows and seemed placid yet contemplative at the same time. He used his knees as a board to hold a sketchpad in place as he lightly drew a small scenery from Kalos.

He lightly applied shading to the seawater of Route 8 as the coves and cliffs were of the right hand side. Little Dwebble and Binacle could be seen among with Wingull flying overhead. Shellder and Clauncher were seen peering out from the isles and small rocks and sandy mounds far out to sea. By drawing Route 8 again, he reminisced in the training he shared with Frogadier, Charmeleon, and Kecleon at the time, all training for the heck of it on the beach, of course they all relaxed too, but it was the thought that counts.

Nic sat the sketchpad aside with the pencil as Erza emerged from the bathroom and walked over. She looked a little tired as she crawled underneath the sheets and got cozy as she laid on Nic's naked upper body. She didn't mind that he slept with a shirt off. She never cared if he was shirtless or was, but Nic had a long night, so she can't blame him.

"Minerva seems like a reasonable person." She said quietly.

"Yeah. She is." Nic said in a quiet tone. "I just wished Sabertooth was like that in general."

Erza adjusted herself and was pulled into an embrace as Nic used an arm and turned the lamp off.

"You think Yukino will be alright?" Nic asked.

"I'm worried too, but we gotta focus on winning." Erza pointed out, the side of her head on Nic's chest as the mentioned laid his head down onto soft pillows. "I know you're worried, but she has her Spirits to look after her, like you have your Pokémon. Let's just do what we can and give Minerva a run for her money."

Nic smiled softly as he bent over and kissed Erza's head softly. "Okay." The two accepted the other's embrace as they fell asleep.

* * *

The crowd was going nuts as the third day has arisen.

"It's time, folks! Welcome to the third day of the X791 Grand Magic Games! I'm Chapati Lola!" Lola announced as he sported a new hairdo. His wig was a long blonde one, making him almost look like a woman.

"I hope today's events make the last two days worth the wait." Yajima hoped.

"And our special guest today is someone to be on your best behavior for." Lola announced. "Our guest today is Council member, Lahar!"

Lahar leaned into the microphone. "Thank you for having me today."

"As head of the Custody Enforcement Unit, you're in charge of stopping any crime and bad guys, right?" Lola asked.

"That's right." Lahar said. "So all you cheaters better not be in my sight, or you'll be in trouble." He teased.

In the entrance of the hall to the stands, Doranbolt was oblivious to the crowd as he was zoned out. His head was lowered as he was in his own thoughts. "Damn you, Lahar. You just had to go and drag me into this mess."

_Doranbolt nearly dropped the book he was putting away. "You serious? They want you to be a guest at the Grand Magic Games? What did you tell them?"_

_"__I told them that I'd be happy to. You should come along." Lahar insisted._

_"__Thanks, but no thanks." Doranbolt said, turning back towards the shelves. _

_"__The full ranks of Fairy Tail will be there." Lahar informed. "I'm sure you'd want to see them again."_

_"__After what I did, abandon them and have them travel through time and have you guys get scolded by Nic…I doubt they'd want us there." Doranbolt's head lowered._

_"__Doranbolt." Lahar took a long pause to let Doranbolt see his grin. "That's in the past. You did it to save your life. Just look to the future, everyone else is."_

Doranbolt walked along and saw Romeo, Wendy, Carla, and Happy running along as they were late. As they ran ahead, Doranbolt walked along slowly and kept his eyes on them.

"Time for our event! Pandemonium!" Lola announced. "As before, we'll have one member from each team competing, so choose wisely!"

Natsu held up a fist. "I got this one! I'm still burning up from last night."

"Don't be stupid." Gray said. "You went yesterday."

"Right…" Erza's arm were crossed. "So I'll go." She began walking off, leaving Natsu enraged.

"Hey no fair!" Natsu whined.

"Good luck Erza!" Wendy cheered.

"Erza, do your best." Nic supported her all the way.

Cana had weight shifted to her hip. "I'll go. Nic asked me to step in, so that's what I'm doing."

"Oh no you don't. I gotta redeem myself from yesterday." Gajeel countered.

"Say, where is Mystogan anyway?" Laxus questioned.

"He's a recluse, but why go into hiding at this time?" Sophie asked.

Cana leaned into Mira, whispering. "The guest announcer's the same guy who arrested him, so he decided to hide."

"Oh, makes sense to me." Mira said, uneasy.

"If Erzy's going, I am too!" Millianna cheered.

"Very well." Kagura agreed.

Millianna rushed onto the field, passing Erza. "Sorry Erzy, but I'm not gonna lose!"

"We'll see." Erza watched Millianna pass her, and seeing her brought them back to last night. The shrill venom in her words over her hatred for Jellal. The redhead could remember her words clearly, but realized where her attention was entitled to be. She smacked her palms against her cheeks. "I mustn't lose focus!" She proclaimed.

"Obra, be sure to not show anyone your Magic." The armored man enforced.

The man with the blue head nodded as he entered the arena.

"I should go, for the fans." Hibiki said, making girls squeal.

Orga clenched a fist. "I said I was gonna take this!"

"Just be sure to not go overboard." Minerva said.

Sting just stared. _'I don't care who goes. If Natsu isn't competing, then why bother?'_ He thought to last night as he remembered Natsu's raw power first hand. He was still left surprised, but amazed at the same time. He could still feel his bones shuddering.

Rogue was another story. He was so troubled over how Bellona's words was the opposite of what Minerva operates. If he were honest with himself, he was confused at the tales and beliefs being tossed all around. He thought back to how Nic and Kecleon influenced Minerva a long time ago about the value of friendship, something the rest of Sabertooth neglected.

Jura rubbed his long beard. "Victory shall be mine, don't you worry."

Nobarly stepped forward for Quatro Puppy. "WILD!"

"It looks like the competitors have been chosen! Give them a rousing applause folks!" Lola announced. The crowd cheered for them, and then Lola announced once more. "And now the rest is up for Mato to explain. Let's start Pandemonium!"

A dark Magic seal appeared high above the castle. The whole area began to shake as something appeared out of the Magic seal. A malicious castle of a massive spire emerged. The theme was more of a deadly gothic than anything else. Four large monster skulls were on the top roof, and chains were all around, connecting to other corridors and buttresses. The gigantic structure was more menacing since the entire thing was completely upside down.

All of the participants look in awe and with slight fright.

"Holy crap." Cana muttered.

"What is this?" Erza said in shock.

The spire touched the bottom, and the entrance opened up, and the stairway was open.

"Before you is Pandemonium!" Mato announced. "Welcome to the castle of monsters!"

Jura looked down at the pumpkin man. "In other words, you want us to do battle with these monsters."

"That's right, pumpkin!" He explained, shocking the audience. "Inside are a total of 100 monsters! Don't worry though, they're Magical Projection solemnly for this game, and harm shall fall onto the crowd. They are classified by their level of difficulty, and the rankings are divided up as D, C, B, A, and S. If you _really _want a first-hand look, then here!"

A projection showed the inside of Pandemonium. A D-Class monster was white and armor-looking. It alone was enough to smash a pillar and end up unscathed. Its image alone was enough to frighten many, but what made many scared was the fact the C-Class monsters were red and were twice as large and powerful, B were twice as strong than C, and so on. However the S-Class was but a mystery, as it was told that it might put a Wizard Saint through its paces.

Natsu and Gray glared with shaken eyes at the monsters inside the projection, but, unlike them, felt a chill of adrenaline, but in a good way. He and his Pokémon lived for this thrill, and the fact they all fought Hydreigon and Gurdurr way back in Victory Road made him a little envious of Erza.

"You will all take turns in fighting these monsters. We call it the competitor's writ to challenge." Mato said.

"Writ to challenge you say? So we get to choose?" Erza asked.

"That's correct, pumpkin! So if you wanted to fight three monsters, then that number shall appear before you; of course you'll go in alone. Once you have dispatched those three, you will be given three points. The next competitor in the rotation shall then pick a number out of the 97 that still remain. The game will end when either all the monsters have been vanquished, or when everyone runs out of Magic Power; whichever comes first. Keep in mind that all of these monsters aren't equal. They're random, so you may end up with a couple B or C-Class monsters. The points are added up by the total of monsters you can defeat."

"So what happens if we get knocked out?" Cana asked.

"Yu will keep the points given from the previous rounds, but you'll be out of the game." Mato answered.

"So Erza and Cana have to be careful in choosing the number of monsters, and yet choosing so little won't give them much points." Vanessa said.

"This is on the more gruesome scale if you ask me." Braixen said, slightly uneasy by the gothic theme and large monsters.

"Now…" Mato materialized a box with sticks in front. "We shall draw straws to determine who goes first."

Erza and everyone drew their individual straw. Her stick had a Magic seal with the number 1, startling her. "I'm first?"

"Lucky you." Cana remarked. "That also means you'll get the most turns." She showed hers, revealing the number 8. "Meanwhile I'm stuck dead last."

Erza looked up at Pandemonium, inspecting it in all. "I see…I would've expected the luck of the draw to be a factor."

"Actually, the list can go on and on for pacing, monster levels, opponents, etcetera." Mato explained. "It's all how you play the game."

Erza smiled. "No, in fact, this isn't even a game anymore."

"Huh?" Mato questioned.

Erza stepped forward, facing the entrance. "Inside this castle…awaits 100 monsters. I choose to fight…all 100."

"WHAT?!" Mato screamed, and every single person in the stands were left speechless. Cana, Millianna, even Jura and Orga were left speechless by Erza's declaration. All eyes were wide, including Krokorok's. Many questioned her health, her sanity, and yet Natsu and Gray could only laugh. Nic, unlike all of them, smirked with excitement underneath his sunglasses.

Erza walked passed everyone, her stride reflecting her confidence.

"B-but that's impossible!" Mato exclaimed. "You can't be serious in challenging all 100 at once! It's designed to have equal chances for competitors!"

"Watch me." Erza challenged as she embarked for the stairway up to the entrance. Everyone watched with heavy breaths as Erza embarked inside the castle. She traveled through the dark corridor and her armor clanked as she emerged from the shadows.

In a large room, she looked at the many accommodations and stood affirm. "I am Erza Scarlet of Fairy Tail Team A. I choose to fight…100!"

Emerging from doorways, all 100 monsters emerged. It was one by one, but then horde by horde. Monsters of various sizes in their respective categories emerged and gathered around Erza, snarling and growling at her.

"You think she's gonna be alright?" Lucy asked.

"I certainly wouldn't wanna face that many." Juvia admitted.

"What was she thinking?" Gray wondered.

"Erza can do this." Nic caught their attention. "This is Erza, she never disappoints." He smiled. "She won't let us down."

"This is crazy and reckless, but expected." Sophie said.

"She'll pull through somehow." Gajeel said.

Laxus crossed his arms. "That's right, just relax and let her go to work."

In the stands, Doranbolt watched through the monitors as the monsters closed in on the infamous Titania. "There's their famous recklessness. Looks like Tenrou Island hasn't changed them one bit."

Erza was in the middle. She relaxed all of her tensed muscles and her eyes shot open. "Come." She demanded.

As all monsters swarmed her, she glowed and suddenly sliced through a few D-Class monsters with her Heaven's Wheel Armor. She perched herself atop of a spire in the middle of the room, where her arms were spread out, and hundreds of other swords appeared in a circle around her.

"**Blumenblatt!**"

Swords rained down on the multitude of monsters, all yelling and covering up, some weaker one getting eliminated right on the spot. Her eyes caught the sight of a small little eye bouncing off, which caught her attention and suspicions.

"And just like that, Erza has gone all out, elimination more than a few monsters just like that!" Lola announced.

"Did she just try and wipe them out at once?!" Romeo asked.

"Doubtful." Mavis said. "I think she was testing the waters, to see how and in what way her opponents measured up."

"**Requip!**"

"Yes, that must be it." Makarov said. Everyone watched as Erza requipped into her Black Wing Armor, amplifying her single sword swipe that eliminated several D-Class monsters at once. "She discovered their weaknesses with that one attack."

Erza slashed again, sending a wave at several more at once, eliminating them. From her side, a C-Class monster that was red and had a triceratops head opened its mouth and let loose fire, blasting Erza full force.

"Erza!" Wendy exclaimed.

"It'll take more than that." Nic said, keeping his confidence high. "Remember…"

The smoke cleared, revealing Erza in her Flame Empress Armor, and yet she had the sword of her Sea Empress Armor in hand.

Nic smirked as he watched Erza eliminate the C-Class monster that blasted her. "She is very skilled."

Erza slashed and posed again, eliminating five more C-Class monsters in mere seconds. The crowd was thrilled as Erza was dwindling the numbers.

"Using Water against Fire. That's a strategy that'll put her at an advantage." Vanessa smiled, feeling better knowing Erza knew what she was doing.

"It's like Types, interesting." Magnezone said.

Erza flashed a Requip and brought another sword up, blasting and swiping many more foes that fell and sliced into ribbons. When she came to a B-Class monster as it materialized from bubbles, it roared at her, and yet its attack was nothing as she requipped to her Sea Empress Armor and used the spear that went with her Lightning Empress Armor. She electrocuted and slayed many B-Class monsters then and there, but as she flipped, her mental and physical strength was starting to add up, and she was hit by a claw from a B-Class and smashed into the wall.

She recovered as she requipped into her Flight Armor with her Purgatory mace, slicing her many C and D-Class monsters at once. Her mace hit the ground, and she used it as support as she panted, trying to keep herself up.

"She's amazing." Mavis admitted. "An amazing Mage to behold."

"I don't believe it! 50 monsters have already fallen!" Lola announced. "What raw power she has!"

"Erzy's amazing!" Millianna cheered.

Orga however wasn't so easily impressed. "Seriously? Look at her. She looks like she was gonna keel over."

Erza panted as she saw more monsters heading her way. She requipped her Lightning Empress and Sea Empress spear and sword alike and sliced again through many that came her way. She was swatted with a tail and smashed again into the wall, but that didn't stop her as she evaded beams and blasts of fire, countering with her own blows of aquatic waves and electricity.

The dust and smoke cleared, and Erza was on a knee and at the feet of a massive A-Class monster, which resembled a red ogre with a mask almost. The beast punched down at her, and the audience immediately panicked.

In Mermaid Hell's balcony, Kagura spectated. "Interesting…using its power against itself."

The dust cleared, revealing Erza with her Adamantine Armor and shielding the blow, shattering the A-Class monster's arm. The audience wowed with wide eyes at her counter, and watched with greater awe as she used The Giant's spear and forced the A-Class monster out of the room.

Erza ran out and onto a bridge, chasing the small creature she saw before. B-Class monsters shot beams at her, but she shielded with the shield and eliminated them when she threw her spear, eliminating nearly ten at once.

Requipping to Morning Star, to Purgatory, too many combinations in the blink of an eye, and everyone was growing ecstatic over her counters and strikes. Monster after monster fell before her, and she just couldn't stop. The more Nic watched her, the more joy he couldn't seem to hide.

Erza panted when she requipped back to herself, using her Purgatory mace for support. "Titania cannot be stopped folks! 96 monsters have fallen! 4 remain!" Lola screamed into the microphone.

As Erza raced for the A-Class monster on the other side of the bridge, she passed the jumpy eye again, this time catching everyone's attention.

"Did you see that?" Juvia asked.

"What was that?" Bisca said.

The A-Class monster smashed its fist into Erza, but it failed to land a blow as she was in her Adamantine Armor with the hammer she got from back in the Starry Sky incident. She requipped in time, slicing the A-Class monster in half while in her bandages and red hakama, holding but a single sword.

The bridge gave way and she started to fall. The last two B-Class monsters pounced on either side. Erza turned and sliced into the head and then raced along the back, swiping but once. She turned back and vertically flipped, slicing into the other B-Class monster. She landed on a chain and panted as both monsters vanished.

"Amazing! 99 are down! 1 remains!" Lola shouted. "Just what is our heroine up against now…w-wait a sec-what?!"

Lola and everyone gaped their mouths at the sight. Erza was standing affirm, her posture ready as she stared at the small eye creature that was constantly bouncing around. It looked uneasy at Erza. "I thought it was you."

"That thing?!" Natsu and Gray exclaimed in disbelief.

"For a monster, it's kind of cute." Wendy said.

"This is gonna get bad." Nic said, not lowering his guard.

Erza requipped two katana and stared cold and assertive at the S-Class beast. Her posture was stiffer than before.

Happy snickered. "Looks like Erza's going overkill."

"No." Lily said. "Take a look at her body language. She's readying for the real fight."

Erza's eyes narrowed further. "Come at me."

The little monster's eye widened, and then a purple shockwave went through the whole Pandemonium castle. A bright light engulfed everything, and suddenly Erza and the beast were no longer there. All attention instead went to the top of the tower.

"I told you it was impossible." Mato said, shaking his head. "The monster's strength was to increase three-fold if came to the last one standing. You had a good run, but now it's game over."

Erza was trapped underfoot as the top, or in this case the bottom, of the tower had blue flames all around. Darkness loomed all around as she and the S-Class beast were on a platform. The S-Class beast turned into a humungous black demon, heavily armored like a dark knight with the eyeball in the space between the lower and upper body.

The monster had Erza under foot and tried crushing her against a stack. It kicked Erza off and smashed her into the middle of the arena, where she laid there, struggling to get up as the S-Class beast towered over her.

"I most certainly wouldn't wanna be in her shoes right now." Yajima admitted.

"This place certainly deserves the title of Pandemonium." Lahar added.

"Get up, Erza!" Natsu shouted.

The beast kicked Erza, sending her soaring, but she still had both katana in hand and slashed twice, evading and slicing off the sharp fingers of the beast. While Mato was left baffled, Nic smirked out of pride and being proud of her.

"HRAH!" Erza appeared behind and slashed the back of the beast's head, slicing off a horn. The crowd, including Fairy Tail, was beginning to cry over how Erza swatted down once again, but soared back into the fray, showering strikes as she never gave in, like a scarlet rose that bloomed through the dark times. All eyes were left in tears over the beauty as Erza sliced clean through the center eye, and the beast crumbled as she looked away with a pose.

Erza took a sigh and stood triumphantly with bruises and injuries, but no matter what, the sword was still in hand as it was aimed to the dark sky as her ponytail shifted through the dust.

Lola and Yajima gaped their mouths in disbelief, so much that Yajima didn't realize his cap tilted.

"That…was…UNBELIEVABLE! Erza Scarlet has single-handedly defeated all 100 monsters!" Lola screamed into the mic. Fairy Tail A has swept today's contest with no question! Let it be known, the strongest guild from seven years ago has returned from the grave!"

The castle disappeared, and the dark Magic seal shrunk and lowered to the ground. In front of everyone, the seal vanished, leaving Erza to take its place.

The entire crowd went ballistic as they screamed to the heavens.

"WOOOOOO!"

"THAT WAS AWESOME!"

"That's Titania! Fairy Tail's most powerful female Mage!"

"Hail to the queen! Wooo!"

"And the crowd is growing nuts!" Lola shouted.

"I honestly thought the suspense was gonna kill me." Yajima admitted.

"That was absolutely breathtaking." Lahar admitted.

Doranbolt smiled as he wiped away the tears in his eyes. _'It took me the longest time, but now I see it, the strength within your recklessness.'_

Erza sighed and relaxed. Her sword lowered and she heard her comrades all coming to her, racing across the field with huge smiles on their faces.

"That was so beautiful, I'm still crying!" Wendy said, showing tears in her eyes.

"That was totally awesome!" Gray cheered.

"That was just too good!" Natsu agreed.

"That was amazing, Erza!" Nic said, a proud smile on his face.

Erza smiled back at her lover. "Well I couldn't afford to lose with you cheering for me, right?" She asked him.

Nic's cheeks showed a small shade of pink as he just continued smiling. "True."

Makarov and everyone was cheering with pride at their balcony. "Erza, you made our guild proud!" Makarov cheered.

"LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING, ERZA SCARLET OF FAIRY TAIL TEAM A! THAT WAS BEAUTIFUL THAT IT MADE KROKOROK FEEL HIS FACE LEAK WITH TEARS!" Krokorok shouted, his eyes still listing.

"Yay! Erza!" Lucy yelled.

"You were awesome!" Levy cheered.

Erza smiled at everyone and raised a fist, and at once, all of Fairy Tail raised their fists as well with proud and cheering smiles.

"Fairy Tail A earns 10 points from that stunning display!" Lola announced. "All of that jeering turned into cheering; the chiding feels but a distant memory for them."

Cana held up a bottle. "That girl is in a league of her own."

"Erzy's the strongest!" Millanna cheered.

"Nic's girlfriend is a fight to behold. Those two have showed a dazzling display." Hibiki said with sparkling passion.

"What?! That chick wasn't so great!" Sting exclaimed. "Orga could've beaten them all 10 seconds flat!"

"She was awesome though…" Frosch admitted.

Minerva smirked. "Seems Nic's guild has some fangs of their own. This makes things very interesting."

Kagura of Mermaid Heel glared down, studying Erza. _'Erza Scarlet.' _She thought. _'She's the closest to Jellal.'_

Mato approached the remaining seven left. "Okay, under this revelation, we've established Plan B." As he noted the claim, a medium-sized device floated appeared right beside him. It had a blue orb standing atop of a black structure like a pod with measurement arrows. "This may be on the boring side compared to Pandemonium, but I think it'll suffice."

"And what might that be?" Hibiki asked.

"The Magic Power Finder, or MPF for short." Mato answered.

"So in other words, it measures a Mage's Magic Power?" Jura asked.

Mato nodded. "That's correct! You cast a spell on this device and displays its power in numerical form. We'll use it to determine the rankings instead."

"Is this solemnly a question of strength?" Hibiki pondered. "I wonder if I can work around that…" His gaze followed to Cana, who was drinking right next to him. Being the ladies' man, he slipped an arm around her. "But the bigger question is if you're free tonight."

Cana smirked. "Well I could be, but then there wouldn't be enough booze to go around." Right behind her, barrels upon barrels of booze were piled about, scaring Hibiki some.

"How in the world are you not dead yet?!" Nobarly exclaimed.

"The boozer is drinking on the job! I knew I should've gone ahead." Gajeel said in disbelief.

"Well, she's useless." Laxus groaned.

"Cana, pull yourself together!" Sophie exclaimed.

"Eh?" Cana gave a distraught and questionable look that was plastered onto her face. She was clearly not listening and just noticed them in her stupor.

"Let's continue in the order that you drew straws in, shall we?" Mato started. "That means Millianna of Mermaid Heel is next!"

"Meow! I'm ready!" Millianna swiped and removed her cape and hood, showing her skimpy clothing. She put her hands in front, where a Magic seal was seen. "**Kitten Blast!**" She fired a tube in a spiral, in which hit the orb. Immediately it read 365.

"And Millianna scores 365!" Lola announced. "But…does anyone know a benchmark for these things?"

"Perhaps I can be of help." Lahar said. "We Rune Knights use MPF in training often. That number Millianna scored can make her a squad captain."

"That's great and all, but raw power ain't Millianna's specialty." Beth noted.

Nobarly went, but his score only measured up to 124, much to his own despair. Then came Hibiki, in which he despaired further with a score of 95, leaving him sobbing to the ground. Of course again he tried to flirt with Cana, but she only provided a pat on the back through his despair. Then came Obra.

"Raven Tail." Natsu growled.

"The same one who attacked Wendy and Carla." Happy growled.

"I wonder what he'll do?" Vanessa wondered.

Obra spread his arms and something emerged from the shirt beneath. The small animal from before emerged and lunged at the MPF, tackling it, scoring 4.

"Obra clocks in at…4 points?" Lola questioned.

"Uh, does anyone buy that?" Wendy asked.

"No." Erza said. She had bandages on her arms, and one on her cheek. She had a black skirt as she also had a white shirt on.

"Uh…sh-shouldn't you rest?" Wendy asked. She looked at Nic, and realized what Nic had done before. She remembered he could use Heal Pulse. She sweat dropped. "Oh, never mind."

"Obra! You idiot! We can't get points!" Flare shouted.

"Quiet Flare!" The armored man scolded. "You know Obra can't reveal his Magic to everyone."

Orga then stepped up. "Okay, now it's my turn." He said, getting the crowd all worked up again. He put his hands together as he smirked. "Watch and learn…" Black lightning began to surge in his palms. "**120mm Black Lightning Cannon!**" A compressed beam of the entire black lightning blasted the MPF, leaving it smoking a little, and the MPF displayed 3825, startling everyone there.

"Oh my god! Orga's attack just shot down everyone's scores!" Lola shouted.

"He's 10 times stronger?!" Millianna exclaimed.

"WHAAAA?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"That can't be right!" Gray shouted.

Lahar stared with wide eyes. _'I've never seen such a score like that in my life.'_

Jura stepped forward. "Very well, do you mind if I give it my all?"

"Well that is the point of the game." Mato said.

Jura put his hands together and inhaled. Almost immediately an immense pressure could be felt, in which the entire stadium had begun rumbling and quaking violently. All spectators could barely sit still as an intense Magical pressure escalated, and it all was because of Jura.

His eyes opened up. "**Rumbling Mt. Fuji!**"

A pillar of huge light and Magic shot through the earth and expanded, quaking and rising hundreds of meters into the sky. It rattled like an eruption until it faded, revealing the MPF being 8544.

"I don't believe this! Wizard Saint Jura has made MPF history!" Lola shouted.

"What?!" Orga shouted.

Erza smirked. "And here I thought it'd be higher."

Lyon crossed his arms. "Looks like we were worried for nothing."

"Outstanding, folks!" Lola said. "And that shows the power of the Ten Wizard Saints! And so, we move on to Fairy Tail Team B's Cana Alberona!"

"*hic* That's so thoughtful of you saving the best for last." She cooed.

Makarov looked ahead. "I knew Jura was strong, but I never expected him to be that strong. He may be the same level as Gildarts. I wouldn't wanna follow Jura after that."

"Perhaps." Mavis smiled. "But remember Cana's his daughter."

As Cana dropped a booze bottle and advanced towards the MPF, everyone in the stands were rather unsure.

"Well we're screwed." Happy said.

"You never know." Lily said. "If she can beat Millianna's score, she'll nab 3rd place…" His brow wrinkled when Cana took off her white blouse, showing her bra. "What?!"

All eyes widened as they saw something they only saw once, twice in some cases. Nic and Sophie grinned as Cana's arm had the red tattoo, the same one she had back in the Andromeda Tower awhile back. They knew what she was gonna use.

"Time for the grand finale!" She shouted.

Mavis smiled as she remembered granting and bestowing that spell to Cana awhile back. She watched with happiness as Cana raised her arm and the tattoo glowed. "Cana, remember what you're fighting for. Remember those that give you your strength. Remember the promises and the conviction behind everything that you do."

A pillar of light risen from her and she made the chant. "Now! Gather, O' river of light guided by fairies!" An immense Magic Power was felt and all eyes widened as a ring of light shined down from the sky. "Shine! In order to perish the fangs of evil!" The ring slammed down onto the MPF. "**Fairy Glitter!**"

The remaining competitors, even Jura, had their jaws drop as the ground shattered as the MPF vanished from within the light. Ivan looked with wide eyes as well, startled at Cana's spell as it was one of the three Grand Fairy Spells he's never seen before.

The dust faded, and Cana's arm was sizzling gold. A hand was to her hip as the MPF was destroyed, leaving 9999 in its place.

As Sting was filled with shock, Fairy Tail cheered happily at Cana.

"OH MY GOODNESS!" Lola screamed. "Cana Alberona had just eliminated the MPF! Fairy Tail is taking today by storm! This must be their strength! Can anyone stop them?!"

Cana smiled as she faced the crowd. "There's no stopping up! Fairy Tail will be number one again! We're just getting started!"

The crowd screamed out in cheers for Cana, and Sophie and Nic both showed smirks at their friend.

Mato turned away from the crowd that was in a frenzy over Fairy Tail. "Well this is a turnover. I'll have to rethink this through." He mumbled.

Nullpudding of Raven Tail handed the armored man a small piece of paper. "Here's the lineup boss. I think you'll be most pleased with the lineup."

The boss accepted the note and he turned away, with Raven Tail walking down the dark corridor to deliver it to Lola. "Yes." He answered. "This one in particular. Time to close in on Raven Tail's true objective."

Lola smiled back outside. "Now, let's see that scoreboard!"

**Fairy Tail A – 32**

**Raven Tail – 26**

**Lamia Scale – 26**

**Sabertooth – 24**

**Mermaid Heel – 22**

**Fairy Tail B – 20**

**Blue Pegasus – 18**

**Quatro Puppy – 14**

"In 1st place…It's Fairy Tail A!" The audience went wild for Fairy Tail, compared to the last few days. Their cheering put smiles on Fairy Tail's faces. "Tying for 2nd is Raven Tail and Lamia Scale! 4th place belongs to Sabertooth!" Even though their rank decreased, Sabertooth still got cheers. "Mermaid Heel has 5th place, and Fairy Tail B has gained ahead with 6th place." Again, Fairy Tail gained cheers, much to their delight. "And…among others."

Rocker's hair drooped. "Nah! Fine! I don't want out name being called anyway!"

Ichiya clenched a fist as he had comical tears. "M-man! What a parfume of ridicule we smell! How am I to win My Honey now?!"

"Looks like we're back on top." Nic smiled.

Erza smiled. "For now, but we still have to keep our guard up for the battle round."

"Now it's time to shake up the scoreboard further folks! Time for the battle rounds!" Lola moved the audience ahead to the action at long last.

"This should be proven to be entertaining." Yajima smiled.

"Let's see…" Lola looked at his sheet given to him. "Our first match is Mermaid Heel's Millianna! Versus Quatro Puppy's beast of a giant, Semmes!"

Semmes was the tallest and largest on Quatro Puppy's team. He had a yellow X over his black shirt. His headgear had two gyros on either side, and he had red shorts.

Millianna stepped forward, pumping a fist. "Meow! I'm ready!"

"You got this Semmes! I know it!" Rocker shouted. "Because we're…WILD!"

"Let the match begin!" Mato announced, and the gong went off.

Immediately Semmes's headpiece brought a shield to his face as he began to spin fast, showing everyone his spinning Magic. "**Wild Spin!**" He spun like a top into Millianna, but the cat woman dodged him and tried to gain some distance, but Semmes was spinning faster and faster, changing his course and maneuvering towards Millianna.

"How about this? **Nekosoku Tube!**" Millianna shot an orange tube, but the attack only bounced off the spinning man, resulting in her getting hit and sent flying. The action made Quatro Puppy smirk while Mermaid Heel looked distressed.

Millianna regained footing as Semmes advanced further. "Then try this!** Kitten Blast!**" She shot a pink spiral at Semmes, but yet again her attack bounced off, resorting to getting yet another spinning blow.

"Come on! Fight!" Beth cheered.

Kagura, however, didn't seem fazed. "There is someone Millianna must defeat; until then…she will not fall."

Millianna got back up, ready as her body still had some energy left. "I won't let myself being apart of Mermaid Heel be in vain!"

Semmes ran ahead. "It's time I finish you! **Wild Spin!**" He zoomed ahead, his spinning faster than before.

"**Nekosoku Tube!**" Millianna shot another thick tube at Semmes, this one aimed low. The tube tangled around the bottom of Semmes, and Millianna struggled as Semmes was like a raging top as she slid and skid around as Semmes refused to stop. Semmes lost his balanced and he and Millianna crashed into the ground, dust blowing.

The dust settled, and Semmes was seen on his stomach with Millianna having his limbs tied behind his back. "W-wiiillld…" He groaned.

"Meow. I am feeling pumped up!" Millianna said.

"And Mermaid Heel takes the win!" Lola announced, getting the crowd cheering for Millianna. "That gives Mermaid Heel 10points, giving them a total of 32, tying with Fairy Tail A!"

Quatro Puppy was pale as they had their mouths gaped. Yet again victory slipped from them, and they just wallowed in despair.

Erza smiled as Millianna pranced back to her tunnel with cheering, but her smile turned into a frown, recalling her talk with her last night.

"And now, we move on with the second match! Our match is Sabertooth's Rufus Lore, and Blue Pegasus's Eve Tearm!"

The crowd once again grew ecstatic over Sabertooth. Rufus entered the battlefield, as did Eve. Rufus had a calm grin on his face. Sophie kept her eyes on Rufus, narrowing them.

"So this guy uses Memory-Make just like Sophie." Gray recalled. "And to boot, they're cousins. Let's see how he improvises."

"Go, Eve!" Ichiya cheered. "May the parfume of triumph reek you in itself!" Ichiya cheered.

"I may have had the disadvantage before, but I'm ready today!" Eve declared.

The gong went off, signaling the match to begin.

Eve started off almost immediately. A blue Magic seal appeared before him. "**White Fury!**" A small blizzard was unleashed, shot straight at Rufus. The Sabertooth member smirked as he took the attack, and yet to all, the attack went through him. "What?"

"What you struck was but a memory of me." Eve turned to the side to find Rufus in the same stance, unhindered.

"It's just like Double Team again." Nic mumbled.

Eve snickered. "I got a taste of your style back in the first day, but now I'm ready!" He ran ahead after Rufus, ready to attack. Suddenly Rufus vanished, and in his stead was a terrifying image, something that left Eve baffled – Ichiya in a bubble bath.

"Man." He said.

Eve skidded to a stop. "Sir Iciy-AH!" Eve was struck behind by Rufus, being duped by his Magic yet again.

Blue Pegasus, especially Ichiya, was left mortified by the image. Mawile, however, could only laugh aloud, while others including the other Pokémon Vanessa had included was just confused.

"Wait, what?! This was in Eve's memory?!" Hibiki exclaimed.

"Sir, you have explaining to do!" Ren shouted.

"Ah..ahhhhh~!" Ichiya was still trembling and he looked away. "Believe me and my parfume when I have no memory of such a thing, men!"

The sky turned dark as Rufus made a chain of memories like Sophie does. "**Memory-Make: Night of Shooting Stars!**" A comet of light swam through the air and struck Eve directly as he was on a knee, but as everyone was shocked, Eve suddenly dissolved and disappeared into snow.

Rufus turned around as Eve was unscathed.

"Nice job, man!" Ichiya praised.

Eve smiled as white flurries picked up, and another Magic seal appeared. "**White Blizzard!**" He shot it at Rufus, but Rufus didn't budge, however Eve only smirked as he turned his attention elsewhere. "Now…**White Fang!**"

He actually swung his free arm behind in a claw-like slash, and a cyclone of snow blasted at a spot, and yet the real Rufus arose, dodging his attack.

He smirked. "I have it memorized; still, not a bad tactic." He landed as the raging attack faded. He put both fingers at his forehead. "Time to warm things up; a counter if you will."

Another Memory-Make seal emerged and Sophie's eyes widened as the sky and the whole area had begun to turn orange, almost like that of a sunset. It filled the area with an increased temperature, bringing surprise to all.

Molten rock arose around Eve, and Nic's eyes narrowed as lava and rising earth made a shiver crawl up his spine. _'This Magic, it's like Groudon's power…no, it's of a lesser scale.'_ Nic felt the power, and it was a lower caliber compared to when he went Primal Groudon a long while back, where he completely raised the entire and all over the Celestial World. Still, this was a first for him.

"**Memory-Make: Karma of the Burning Land!**" Rufus brought his arm down, and the land cracked apart, unleashing an explosive blaze that sent Eve flying. Rufus kept his smirk as the orange and the molten land faded away, leaving everything the way it was as Eve slammed to the ground, cringing as his clothes were all torn.

"And that's the match! Rufus has scored Sabertooth 10 points!" Lola announced, making the crowd go nuts yet again.

_'__Using Memory-Make like Sophie, huh?'_ Gray thought as his fists clenched.

Sophie leaned against the balcony of her own team, her fists clenching as well. She felt a small shudder run down her spine as Rufus walked away, and yet she knew that she had to be the one obliged to show Rufus his wrong doings. _'Rufus, you never changed. I'll make that happen, yet.'_

Ren sighed. "Well at least he tried."

Hibiki turned towards Ichiya. "So what do we do now? Our rank is falling behind."

Ichiya turned towards them, along with the guy in the rabbit suit, both having sparkles as they shared the same poses in sync. "Rest assure men, for we have a secret weapon yet."

The rabbit stepped forward, nodding. Hibiki and Ren just stared.

"Ah yes, a secret weapon so important that I mentioned it twice." Ichiya said.

Both bowed. "Very important indeed."

Hibiki looked at Ren. "I still wonder who's inside the suit."

Ren sweat dropped. "I guess we'll find out soon enough."

Mato called out to everyone. "Alright everyone, time for the third match!" He called out. "This match…it shall be Fairy Tail B's Laxus Dreyar!" Mato took a second to allow the fans and crowd to cheer him on. "Versus Raven Tail's ruler of darkness, Alexei!"

The armored man and Laxus both glared at the other, both meeting the other's field of vision.

"Come on, Laxus! Kick his butt!" Natsu cheered.

"Of course it's someone from Ivan's guild." Erza pointed out.

Nic nodded. "I have an odd feeling about what might transpire."

"Good luck, Laxus!" Mira cheered.

Gajeel snickered. "No doubt we're gonna win."

Cana smirked. "Well this is Laxus after all."

"Go, Laxus! Defeat Raven Tail and show them why we're better!" Makarov shouted wildly.

Laxus and Alexei paid absolutely no attention to the crowd, as both gave off a serious aura that each could not back away from. Something about Alexei made Laxus get an awkward feeling, but he knew better than to have that little matter get the best of him. He crossed his arms and glared at Alexei, knowing that despite his father's guild as his adversary, he knew he had to triumph.

Both remained silent and watched the other step forward. Meanwhile as they advanced slowly, Vanessa looked over to her side to see Makarov berating Raven Tail as they stood there in their corner, and yet she felt something was very wrong from the get-go. _'Raven Tail.' _She thought. _'Why is your aura…not there?'_ Vanessa turned her attention to the stadium, where her eyes narrowed as she felt a strong horde of aura. She began to mumble. "Wait…if there's just the two…then why do I feel more signatures?"

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**And thus I cut it off from there. This wasn't so bad in my terms. I got the night of Day 2, and half of Day 3 picked up. How was Bellona? Did you like Minerva being nice? Comments are appreciated.**

**I didn't squeeze all of Day3 in like planned, but I'll wrap up Day 3 and the night of Day 3. I'll also try and squeeze in the Naval Battle so that the tag battles will be its own chapter.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving the GMG and whatever changes I made.**

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**Next Time: Two Sides to Every Rivalry**


	74. Two Sides to Every Rivalry

Chapter 74 – Two Sides to Every Rivalry

**So the layout is that I am hoping to get through to the end of the Naval Battle by the end of this chapter, but if it seems like too much, then I'll at least get finished with the day and night of the third day. However the case goes, I hope you all are excited for the climax that is coming to be.**

**To Recap:**

On the night of Day 2, Nic and Erza brifly meet with Jellal over Zeref's Magic, and then the two meet up with Millianna after reuniting, though Nic let early and had Erza see the truth that Millianna and Kagura want to get revenge and kill Jellal. Meanwhile in Sabertooth, Yukino was shamed for her failure and excommunicated, which invoked the wrath of Natsu. Fortunately for everyone, Nic intervenes, along with an old acquaintance named Minerva. After the melee settled, Minerva caught up with Nic and everyone was in good terms with Yukino and Minerva. Day 3 then came, and Erza curb stomped the Pandemonium contest, making the fans love Fairy Tail again and bumping Team A up to 1st Place. Millianna and Rufus then had their battles against Quatro Puppy and Blue Pegasus, leaving Laxus to now confront Alexei of Raven Tail.

* * *

**Chapter 74 – Two Sides to Every Rivalry**

The crowd was roaring as Fairy Tail and Raven Tail were gonna go at it yet again, this time Raven Tail wasn't looking so pitiful as Alexei was holding the front. The armored man was silent as night, and Yajima turned towards Lahar, his mouth covered so the mic wouldn't overhear his conversation.

"Excuse me, Lahar." Yajima asked. "Did you bring any of your men with you?"

"Uh, yeah. A few as regulations require, why?" Lahar wondered.

"…keep an eye out for Raven Tail. If they try anything, let me know and I'll stop the match." Yakima whispered.

Lahar caught his stern note and nodded in understanding.

Back in the Fairy Tail stands, Makarov had Bisca dispatched as a sniper atop of the colosseum, a gun aimed for Ivan and his insidious smirk. Lisanna and the Thunder God Tribe were dispatched to another location, overlooking the members in the Raven Tail balcony. However as they were all keeping tabs for Raven Tail's nasty habits, no one noticed Vanessa looking ahead with a distasteful gaze, knowing that their aura was nowhere near the balcony, but gathered all around the battlefield…and closing in. But for now, she remained silent as the gong in the background sounded the match to begin.

Laxus began to proceed. "So, you're that mysterious member of my old man's guild huh?" He asked. "How's about taking off that mask and tell who you really a-!"

He was silenced when Alexei surprised him and struck a strong blow, making Laxus's coat fly off. Natsu, Gray, and Erza on their balcony had astonished gazes, but Nic's was unreadable as he watched.

The oddest thing that he picked up was that, in his point of view, Laxus and Alexei didn't move an inch, so why was everyone acting so shocked for nothing? His arms crossed as the audience looked more shocked as Alexei shot a blast or darkness at Laxus. Still, Nic's field of vision wasn't as what the others would've believed it to be.

'_Two Laxus?' _He thought as he saw one standing still while another was getting beaten down, but the field was a hazy darkness, as was one Laxus and Alexei. His glance went towards Erza, and yet she was just as shocked as the others, as though their attention was to the Laxus and Alexei actually fighting. _'Hold on…' _He wasn't sure of himself as he looked to the Raven Tail balcony.

They were all as hazy as the background.

Nic had a bad feeling. He looked towards the Fairy Tail stands as everyone was yelling at Laxus, but Vanessa was still silent. From the corner of the young sibling's eyes, she saw her brother's same suspicious expression. Both looked at the other, and then Vanessa motioned her eyes down to the battlefield again.

That was all Nic had to get to understand. Now it made sense. Vanessa sensed aura, so if she felt something off, and if was centered to the arena, then it made sense that everyone was looking at a fake Laxus and Alexei fight.

'_Illusion Magic. Powerful Illusion Magic.' _Nic figured. _'But why am I not affected…?' _His eyes widened underneath his sunglasses, and his attention was to one eye in particular. The left eye. The one that was his artificial eye, the same one Erza had. He remembered something about Porlyusica saying how it was more potent, or something about strength or immunity to Magic related to eyes, something around that. When he looked at Erza again, he could see the shock on her still, making his suspicions feel more insecure. It had to be certain that his artificial eye was stronger since it was newer and had more potent ingredients that Porlyusica guarantee strength in eyesight and among other parts.

With that in mind, he decided to remain silent and watch the real Laxus and Alexei in the middle of the battlefield, though he couldn't make out what they were saying.

Laxus looked as his illusionary copy as he got up, but was punched back to the ground. "So, care to explain what's going on here?"

"I've made this a more reserved and private party." Alexei explained. "My Illusion Magic makes it so that we can talk despite being invisible to others."

The fake Laxus was slashed by Alexei's gauntlet and struck an uppercut to boot. Master Makarov growled as he saw the predicament, but he couldn't understand. "Ivan…"

Despite everyone's protests and cheers, Vanessa and Nic were the only ones not convinced. The former felt aura in the arena still, and the signatures didn't move. The latter could see right through, but not make out what was going on. However the case may be, neither can do a thing, since them entering the ring would just throw everything out of whack.

'_Whatever's going on, I have to aid however I can without gathering attention…'_ Nic remained silent and strategized while the brawl went on.

"I'm sure your guild will be heartbroken to see one of their mightiest fall." Alexei said.

"I'm still not following. This plan of yours isn't making sense." Laxus said. "You have a point of using an illusion?"

"I'm glad you asked." Alexei informed. "Depending on how our negotiations go, we may let you have your way."

To prove his point, the Laxus illusion suddenly began to throw punches back. He blocked the Alexei illusion from an attack and fired a roar of lightning, with many hooks and punches. Natsu and everyone began to grow smirked on their faces as they saw the tide turning in their favor, but Nic and Vanessa were still uncomfortable.

Laxus got the predicament. "Okay, so what's your deal here? What's this 'negotiation' nonsense."

Alexei held out an arm. "Depending on how our negotiations go, we can make this work out for both of us. You get your win, and we get our answer."

Laxus began to static as he took off his coat. "Sorry, but no way in hell I'm falling for that one. Your illusion means nothing, so I'll defeat you here and now!"

"Sorry." An eerie voice said within the hazy darkness. "That's not gonna happen."

Laxus kept a straight face as the remaining four Raven Tail members emerged from the darkness, all standing right behind Alexei. Laxus didn't really say anything as Alexei also reached for his mask.

"There's also, one more thing to consider…" He took off his mask, and Laxus looked away, looking unappeased. It was the real identity of Alexei, a man that Laxus was never on good terms with.

"Should've known you've been behind there…" He looked ahead. "My deadbeat Dad."

Ivan smirked. "I knew Makarov would rather die than reveal his secret, but alas you're a different story."

'_Ivan…' _Nic looked away at the stands, where Bisca was aiming. He realized then and there that he was but an illusion as well. _'Alright, guess it's settled.'_

There was a swift silence before Nic's sunglasses glinted. "**Foresight.**" He said. His body then expanded a force field outward. The expansion wave was noticed by Ivan and Raven Tail as it passed them. Immediately the Laxus and Alexei illusions vanished, and the crowd and spectators all saw Raven Tail on the battlefield.

"Whoa! What just happened?!" Lola screamed.

Makarov's eyes widened. "Ivan?! But I thought-?!" He turned his head towards Ivan's seat, only for him and Bisca to be dumbfounded by the vacant seat. His shock was all amongst Fairy Tail.

"He was Alexei the whole time?" Mavis wondered. "How could we not see?"

"What?!" Natsu and Gray exclaimed in unison disbelief.

"I was right." Vanessa muttered. "I knew something wasn't right. Those aura signatures were Raven Tail after all."

Ivan looked around, seeing his dark illusion gone. "What?! But how?!" He looked at Laxus and he growled. His fists clenched in anger and his teeth grit. "Grrrr! Fine! I don't need illusions!"

"Illusions?" Erza questioned, her eyes widened. "His were that powerful?" She looked to Nic, where the Foresight came from. She stared at him and looked back at the stadium.

"T-this is a violation!" Mato shouted. "Raven Tail's members are down here! And their Guild Master!"

"So we were fooled?" Lily asked.

The crowd was just confused with that was happening, but Laxus and Ivan were still in their chat.

"Tell me boy." He demanded. "Where is the Lumen Histoire?"

"Sorry, don't know what you're talking about."

Natsu tilted his head. "What is he talking about?"

"Lumen…Histoire?" Lisanna wondered.

"What is he talking about?" Max asked Macao, who was right beside him.

"Not a clue." He turned towards Makarov. "Hey Master, you got any clue?"

On the balcony, Makarov was shaking in anger, his teeth almost shattering in agitation. "Ivan, how can you-"

Mavis's eyes were wide. "How…how can he know about that?"

"Come on, boy. Surely Makarov told you." Ivan continued.

"Nope. Not a word."

"You don't realize the predicament you're in."

"Oh I do, but even if that were the case, like I'd give it away to someone like you."

"You're in a hopeless situation, boy." Ivan pointed out, gesturing to the four members behind him.

Laxus began to spark a lot of static and scoffed. "You know…" Laxus held up an arm, surprising all of the audience. "Now I see why the old man gave up on you. You're nothing but trash that just need to be put into its bin. You're an enemy of my guild, so get ready!"

"Are you hearing this folks?!" Lola shouted. "Laxus dares to challenge Raven Tail at once!"

Lahar got up. "This match is over! Raven Tail will be taken into custody!"

Yajima looked down at the scene. "Now hold on…" He asked. "I'd like to see where this goes before you take them in."

The crowd was in awe as Laxus declared the challenge.

Natsu punched a fist. "Hey! Save a couple for me to-!" He was cut off when Erza swiped an arm in front.

The redhead kept a sharp stare ahead. "No, Natsu."

"What?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"You can't be serious!" Gray shouted. "Laxus on his own against Raven Tail?! Even I know that's-!" He too was cut off by Nic.

"Be quiet." Nic said in a harsh tone. "…Laxus can handle them. Besides, this is a family affair." His eyes narrowed. "And you know better than to get involve. Stay out of this."

Ivan and Raven Tail gave off a vile dark aura. Their eyes glowing red and giving the air a vile chill. Ivan smirked maliciously. "This tournament means nothing. The only reason we entered was to our hands on the Lumen Histiore, and finally crush Fairy Tail. That's the whole reason this guild was made, and today is the day we get what we want! You're about to learn a very painful lesson boy!" With him and his chuckling, Raven Tail was provoked into a malicious chuckle, one that scared the audience, and left Makarov and Mavis holding in their anger at Ivan's leaked goal. Ivan swiped his arm. "Obra! Drain his Magic! Destroy Fairy Tail!"

Obra raised his arms, but he never had anything else to achieve as Laxus was static and raced as fast as lightning, appearing in front of Obra.

"This one, if for Wendy and Carla!" He sent a kick that was vicious and packed full of lightning, making Obra fall to the ground.

Ivan, the spectators, and the other guilds competing had shock as Laxus took down one, but then Flare and Nullpudding were high above.

"**Red Hair Scorn!**" Her hair lit ablaze and it stretched like crazy. The locks all shot down at Laxus, but he was in electricity and hopped away, dodging.

Nullpudding had huge needles of his own and he rained down onto Laxus, throwing punches. "**Needle Blast!**"

Laxus easily leaned away without looking at any blows. Each one failed to hit. "As for you…this one's for Gray!" He threw an electrified punched down onto Nullpudding, smashing him into the earth. This action again startled everyone at Laxus's raw power.

Flare's locks wrapped around Laxus's arm, still searing with blazing heat. Flare smirked. "I gotcha!"

Laxus was engulfed in electricity and he turned towards her. "You think so? Think again!" He opened his mouth, firing a blistering roar of lightning. Flare screamed in violent pain as she was engulfed. The whole stadium rumbled at the power and static filled the air. Everyone's eyes widened as their hair stood on end, and Sting's eyes were wide.

Orga of Sabertooth smirked with excitement as his black lightning crackled.

"Here!" Kurohebi appeared behind Laxus using Mimic Magic to become sand and slip past everyone.

Laxus looked behind with another scoff. "As for you…" He swiped his arm, and a wave of shuddering lightning went upwards, frying Kurohebi, and surprising the audience yet again with his one-hit KO prowess.

"Laxus?!" Gray exclaimed.

"No way! He's really that freakin powerful?!" Natsu screamed in disbelief.

"Such brute force." Erza said.

Gajeel smirked. "Keeping tabs on those clowns was worth seeing them become fried."

"Is he really that strong?" Levy shuddered.

Makarov was staring in disbelief at Laxus's raw power. "Is this his power?"

"Man, that guy's wild." Bacchus admitted.

Kagura's eyes narrowed as she crossed her arms, seeing the raw power displayed.

Ichiya posed. "Man, just a parfume fit for cheaters."

Jura had a frown but had a hidden delight. "Justice is being dealt right before us. Cheaters shall never prosper."

Minerva chuckled. "My, shocking now, is it? These Fairy Tail individuals of Nic's really are fun in their own right."

Ivan looked baffled and in shambles as his elite was just wiped out, one blow each. "They were all…defeated?!"

A thunderous footstep made him recoil in fright. Laxus stepped forward with a dark look in his eyes. "Look deadbeat. I don't know what this Lumen Histoire is, but I don't care. There's only one thing you rightfully deserve – pain!" He advanced forward slowly.

"W-w-wait! Laxus!" Ivan reasoned nervously. "I'm your father! We're family!" But that reason wasn't enough to make Laxus stop. "Laxus! You'd really hit your flesh and blood?! You'd hit family?!"

Laxus' static reflected off his eyes. "My family is with Fairy Tail, not scum like you. This biggest mistake you've made was turning on your own!"

"S-stay away! Begone!" Ivan shrieked. Out of fear, he fired a torrent if paper dolls at Laxus, but Laxus ploughed right through them all without any effort. He reeled back an electrified fist, and Ivan saw a beast before him.

"Anyone who messes with Fairy Tail…GETS NO MERCY FROM ME!" With a mighty punch, the while stadium shook, thunder roared and the audience shook in fear and awe as Ivan smashed into the wall, making a crater. He slumped to the ground with a thud, and the crowd was in gasping shock.

"I don't believe it!" Lola shouted into the mic. "Despite being alone, Laxus defeated all of Raven Tail and their Master! Laxus wins and gains 10 points!"

The crowd was left in sheer awe.

"Did that just happen?!"

"There's no way I'm messing with Fairy Tail! Those cheaters got what came to them!"

"That was crazy! Laxus is that strong?!"

Gray put his hands into his pockets. "Damn, and just when I was set for payback."

Natsu shuddered and looked peeved. "AW! NOT FAIR! I WANTED TO GET IN THERE!" He yelled.

Nic took in a sigh of relief. "Well, at least Flare won't be abused…as far as I know."

Erza turned towards him and smirked. "That was a crafty trick you pulled, Nic." She said in a chiding tone. "But you had the heart and reason to do it."

"I'd be a fried slug if I messed with him." Sliggoo shuddered.

"Such electricity…" Magnezone said.

Mavis glared down at Ivan. "How could he know?"

Makarov crossed his arms and looked down at Ivan's body as well. "I don't know, but now I think we're to be careful. If Ivan has that information and wanted it, then it's fortunate for us that no one else knows." His glare sharpened as Rune Knights began to take Raven Tail in. "It's only known to those entitled Guild Master, but if he knows, who else does?"

Laxus began turning away before Ivan spoke up. "Wait, Laxus." He said. "I admit, you have defeated me this time…" He smirked. "But be warned, some day, you shall see that Lumen Histoire is not what you thought it was…it's Fairy Tail's darkness."

Laxus's eyes widened as his father was hauled away hysterically laughing. He grunted and returned to his tunnel as the rest of Raven Tail was apprehended.

Obra was limp, as if unconscious. The knights checked to see if he was okay, they felt him and felt nothing but plush, which struck them as bizarre; in fact, the animal he had was gone.

Said animal smirked as he looked down at Fairy Tail one more time, snickering before retreating.

"Uh, due to that incident, Raven Tail is disqualified for immense violation and threat!" Mato announced. "Now with that behind us, let's say we just put that behind us and move onto the final match of the day, right pumpkins?"

The audience's cheer was a good sign and agreement, although Fairy Tail, more precisely Makarov and Mavis, were still a little shaken up with Ivan's knowledge, but they relented and watched the two competitors walk out.

"From Fairy Tail Team A, it's Wendy Marvell!" Lola started blushing as he looked at the next contestant. "Versus Chelia Blendy of Lamia Scale! Wooo!"

Lahar and Yajima both looked awkwardly at Lola as he was seemingly…off.

"Go get'em." Gray and Natsu said.

Wendy nodded. "Right!"

"I feel the love!" Chelia cheered.

"Give it your all out there." Jura said.

"Right!"

Chelia and Wendy both emerged from their tunnels. Chelia cheered and waved at the crowd happily, which left her to trip on a pebble. She fell forward, making the crowd laugh. Wendy ran ahead to see if she was alright, but then she met the same fate and fell on her face, making the crowd's laughter intensified.

Both girls got up to their knees and rubbed their foreheads. They got up and smiled.

"Hi. Let's give it our all, what do you say?" Wendy said.

Chelia nodded. "I'm with ya."

Lyon smirked. "Watch out Gray, you have no idea what Chelia can do."

"Don't underestimate Wendy." Gray retorted.

In the stands, Doranbolt looked down at Wendy, his attention on her. _'Wendy.' _He thought. _'It's clear that you've grown by leaps and bounds, but still…'_

Lola had hearts in his eyes as he was wiggling his hips. "This is gotta be the cutest wittle fight ever! You two have fun out there!"

Lahar sweat dropped. "Sit down."

Mavis's eyes narrowed as she looked at Chelia. She looked piqued. "This girl's Magic…"

* * *

In the city of Crocus, where it was all desolate due to everyone at the colosseum, Jellal was walking in his disguise and his eyes widened. Far away, Meredy and Ultear did the same. Their eyes widened as they felt something foreboding and heavily deadly, like they have in the past. Jellal turned towards the colosseum, worry on his face. _"Did you feel that?"_

Ultear nodded and responded to his Telepathy. _"Yeah, it's that power again."_

"_I'm heading to the colosseum now!" _Jellal ran as fast as he could through the streets. Remaining silent and swift as lightning. He had to hurry towards that power, no matter what. It got away in the previous years, and he shall not let it pass him again.

* * *

The gong went off, and Wendy had Magic seals right beside her. "Now! **Vernier! Arms!**" Winds began to gather much faster around her due to her speed and strength getting enhanced by her support spells. Chelia smiled and looked in slight suspicion as Wendy began to gather whirlwinds faster and faster, and then lashed them. "**Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!**" She fired the winds viciously, but much to her own disbelief, Chelia maneuvered and dodged the winds. "What?!"

Chelia took a big jumped and black winds began to surge in one of her open hands. "**Sky God's Boreas!**" She fired black winds at Wendy, who screeched as the whirlwind was more violent than her own. She managed to dodge the attack though and landed back on the ground.

"Wendy!" Carla screeched.

"Black winds?!" Natsu exclaimed.

Orga's eyes widened. "No way, her too."

"That's lost Magic too!" Mavis exclaimed.

Doranbolt's eyes widened. _'Impossible. A little girl, and yet she possesses God Slayer Magic?'_

Natsu looked tense. "So she's a God Slayer too." He said.

"Too?" Gray asked.

"Yeah, that Grimoire Heart guy, he used something like that, only it was like black fire." He laughed awkwardly. "But nothing I couldn't handle."

"God Slayer or not, Wendy has a very tough battle ahead of her." Erza watched as Chelia emerged from Wendy's left, readying a blow.

"**Sky God's Dance!**" Chelia lashed her arms again, and a black cyclone swallowed up Wendy and made her airborne. The Dragon Slayer was in midair while the God Slayer below jumped up and readied an attack. "Now the fun begin-!"

"**Sky Dragon's Claw!**"

Wendy suddenly brought a kick of winds around and struck Chelia, making her fall to the ground with a thud. Wendy fell and she stood, albeit wobbly just like Chelia. When both girls got their feet under them, both puffed their cheeks, much to a lot of Fairy Tail's shock.

"Hang on!" Gajeel exclaimed.

"The same Magic!?" Vanessa exclaimed.

"**Sky Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Sky God's Bellow!**"

Both attacks raged in the middle, and a violent tempest raged and scattered through the whole colosseum. Many fans were literally blown away, and Lola lost his wig as a maelstrom raged and dust raced through the area, soon settling and revealing Wendy slightly hindered with shredded sleeves, while Chelia was without a single scratch.

"Lyon told me about you." Chelia said casually as her opponent panted. "I was so excited to see someone who uses Magic just like mine, and I couldn't help myself."

Wendy adjusted her footing. "I don't blame you. That's what you're supposed to do in a fight."

"Well why not have fun?"

"Fun?" Wendy was confused. "I'm not sure what you mean by 'fun', but I'm not gonna let Fairy Tail down!" She straightened up, ready as her words proclaimed.

Both girls rushed in and collided their attacks again. Black and light blue whirlwinds were blasted, swung, and a lot of blows were dealt here and there, and the crowd was way into it.

"Just look at them go!" Lola shouted, his bald head showing as his rump was wiggling with his blushing face. "Those two are really giving it their way, but wittle Chely-welly win?!"

Lahar looked disgusted at Lola. "just what's wrong with him?"

"I think he needs a restriction." Yajima figured.

Wendy found herself caught in a black whirlwind again and felt her feet losing their hold. _'I can't stop. I can't quit. Everyone worked so hard to get us to where we are now. Elfman put his trust in me, and I won't let his efforts be in vain!'_ She remembered the various efforts that her team had put in the games, and remembered Elfman bandaged up. Her eyes opened up and she ahold of ground again as the wind ceased. Her mind then raced back to the farewell of her former guild after Nirvana was destroyed, and the hand of comfort Erza provided. _'Fairy Tail has always been there for me…now it's time for me to return the favor!'_

To everyone's shock, Wendy inhaled greatly. She took in a huge breath of air, and the wind and air all around began sucking into her. She felt her Magic Power restoring and enhancing.

"Oh, you eat air too?" Chelia asked. "Well then I guess I should stock up too!" Like Wendy, she began taking in huge quantities of air.

"Well, well." Jura said. "I never saw Chelia gorge in air during a battle. Young Wendy must be a very formidable opponent.

Wendy let out a loud cry, and a thick maelstrom began to surge around Chelia and Wendy alike. The tempest was raging and growing greatly. Chelia found herself unable to escape as a thick Magic seal was underneath Wendy.

"Alright, here it comes!" Natsu shouted, excited or what will happen.

Porlyusica was in the stands, shocked. _'Wendy learned that spell? And at such a young age.'_

Lily had astonishment as well. "Wendy has this much Magic Power flowing?"

"**Dragon Slayer Secret Art - Shattering Light: Sky Drill!**"

The barrier turned into a massive blast of whirlwind, one full of power and energy that surged and rammed Chelia. The God Slayer screamed as the stadium was engulfed in a light blue light that escalated and strong winds raged. When it all settled, Wendy was panted and looked like she was gonna keel over while Chelia was lying on the ground.

"Chelia!" Lyon shouted.

"Yeah! That's right!" Natsu shouted.

Wendy staggered and looked exhausted. _'That used up a lot of my power, but I think…'_

Mato leaned over to see if Chelia was still able. He jerked back as Chelia was starting to get up, and her body was glowing a faint light. The God Slayer sheepishly rubbed the back of her head, not noticing the shock and horror on Wendy's face.

"Oh, sorry. I guess I underestimated you." Chelia said as her glow faded, and her injuries were all gone.

"Wait, what the hell?" Natsu exclaimed.

"Her injuries, she can heal just like Nic can." Erza said.

Lyon smirked. "God Slayers can self-heal, something Wendy can't do."

Gray shook with bitterness at his rival. "So this was their trump card."

Doranbolt looked worried. _'Come on Wendy-!' _He was budged behind and that made him turn around. "Hey, watch it…" His eyes widened when he saw who passed him. It was Jellal, and he couldn't hold back his surprise. _'Mystogan?'_

"_I'm at the colosseum now." _Jellal turned towards the stadium, seeing Wendy barely able to stand. He looked at Chelia with heavy concern. _'Is she responsible for the connection with Zeref?' _He maneuvered around the colosseum, bypassing curious spectators. He looked behind him, feeling a presence that seemed to lurk. Sure enough he saw Doranbolt eyeing him. _'He's from the Magic Council. That's just great.' _He sarcastically thought.

"Poor girl." Erza said.

"Wendy's exhausted a lot of strength. It pains me to admit, but Wendy's at a terrible disadvantage." He gripped the balcony. "But we can't give up, since she isn't either."

Chelia looked confused as Wendy wasn't keeling over. "Hey, it's okay to give up. You're just gonna make things worse."

Wendy winced, but she relented. "No!"

"Hm?" Chelia wondered, as did others.

"I won't quit! I stand because I represent what everyone has done for me and my guild! Quitting now means throwing it all away, and I won't ever accept that! If I'm going down, I'm going down fighting! Don't you dare give me pity, come at me with everything you got!"

"Oh, Wendy." Carla said after a thoughtful silence.

Chelia gave a cheerful smirk. "If that's what you really want." She twirled around as Wendy had a fierce fire in her eyes. "I'll let you take it all in then!"

Black winds began to spiral around her arms, outlined in a purple. The spiraling winds were raised over her head, as were her arms as she had a smile. The winds thickened into what seemed to be a feathery mass of black and purple.

"Chelia, no!" Lyon shouted, fearing of what she was gonna do.

"Don't use that!" Jura yelled.

"You idiot!" Obaba shrieked. "You wanna kill her?! I'm spinning you after this!"

Wendy faced Chelia as the God Slayer brought her arms around.

"**God Slayer Secret Art – Heavenly Gathering of Clouds!**"

The spiraling mass traveled after Wendy, and everyone's hearts raced as the attack traveled after her. All Wendy could do in her condition was close her eyes and await for the attack to come and get her…at least that was what everyone thought. The whole spiral completely went pass her, and Chelia was shocked.

"It…missed?!" Lucy wondered.

"Wendy didn't move, and yet the attack was thrown off course." Makarov said with shock.

"Chelia's Magic can self-restore, and yet it doesn't help in stamina." Mira realized.

"But Wendy's is the opposite." Carla added. "While she can't self-heal, stamina increases."

"So then…" Happy started.

"I see." Nic said. "By increasing her opponent's power, Chelia's attack was thrown off balance. Clever."

Chelia blinked, realizing what Wendy did. She adjusted her stance. "Wow, I never saw that one coming! You really surprised me." She then watched in amazement as Wendy was still able to run ahead.

"**Sky Dragon's Crushing Fang!**"

The attack slashed compressed whirlwinds, and Chelia blocked with her arm. She managed to heal though, and yet that didn't stop Wendy from going all out as she went ahead to attack.

Chelia couldn't help but smile. "Let's go!"

The two girls ran towards the other, Magic embedded in their kicks as wins went wild again. Jellal, Nic, practically everyone stared with awe as Chelia and Wendy both had spirits that reached for the skies, their attacks blowing at the other, and yet they got up, ready to go again. They traded blows after blows, dancing with light feet as they tangoed with two winds storming up a feeling of adrenaline and excitement as it was recovery against stamina.

Everyone was screaming out in sheer excitement. No one sat in their seats as they gave it 110 percent of all they had. The two girls had small fists, and yet they never ceased with their fun. This was what Wendy was feeling. She realized the joy that Chelia was trying to show.

Fairy Tail and Lamia Scale alike watched the two trade and deliver punches and kicks to the stomach and face, neither side quitting as dust raged with their winds.

The bell sounded, and both girls huffed in exhaustion. The audience screamed and cheered yet again.

"And that's that folks!" Lola shouted. "The match between Wendy and Chelia…is a draw!"

"That was awesome!" Natsu smiled.

Erza nodded. "Both girls really gave it their all."

"Wendy sure is strong." Gray admitted.

Lyon crossed his arms with a proud smile. "Young Chelia and Wendy are stronger than what we thought."

"They were magnificent." Yuka said.

Jura looked at Wendy,a thoughtful look in his eyes. _'When it comes to Magic, Chelia's is far superior, and yet…'_ He thought back to the Oracion Seis incident awhile back, and he remembered how shy Wendy really was. She couldn't look at anyone in the eye, and yet here she was now, fire in her eyes and facing an opponent right in their own face. Jura's smile widened. _'Wendy has really grown. Well done.'_

Porlyusica sat in the stands, looking at Wendy with a thoughtful gaze as she was feeling very proud of her.

Wendy fell to her knees, panting.

"Hey." Chelia asked, standing up. "Are you hurt? I'm sorry!"

Wendy turned towards her. "No, no, I'm fine. You really apologize a lot."

Both girls laughed at the irony of that statement before Chelia knelt down and began healing Wendy.

"Hey, thanks." Wendy admitted. "That was a lot of fun!"

Chelia smiled. "I had fun too!"

Both girls smiled happily at the other. When Wendy and Chelia finally stood, they both shook hands, acknowledging their blossomed friendship.

"Isn't that such a sweet thing! Friendship is born from battle!" Lola shouted. "This is too touching that I might cry! Both teams get 5 points each. Thank you for such a splendid end to Day 3 ladies!"

"Now, let's see that scoreboard, shall we?" Yakima asked.

**1****st**** Place: Fairy Tail A - 37**

**2****nd**** Place: Sabertooth - 34**

**3****rd**** Place: Mermaid Heel - 32**

**4****th**** Place: Lamia Scale - 31**

**5****th**** Place: Fairy Tail B - 30**

**6****th**** Place: Blue Pegasus - 18**

**7****th**** Place: Quatro Puppy - 14**

**X Raven Tail – Elimination**

The crowd roared at the score, and they were more than impressed with Fairy Tail finally having their groove back. Natsu pumped fists. "Yes! It's about time we kick but again! We're back on top!"

Sting scoffed as he saw Natsu cheering. He and the others were never gonna hear the end of it tonight, hearing Jiemma roar of Nic's guild ascertaining their glory. His fists clenched tighter.

Mato began walking away from the arena. "I never thought Fairy Tail could do so well." He muttered. "I'll have to put some thought. Yes, a reconsideration."

Jellal blinked. _'Wait, the Magic is supposed to disappear after a fight. Was Chelia not the culprit?' _He began to move with the crowd, away from all of them. His senses made him see something ahead. _'Up ahead!'_

Realizing the Magic and ark energy was elsewhere, Jellal filed out with everyone else. He caught onto something and as the open area began to make room for others, he finally caught sight of two cloaked figures, side by side as they were leaving. _'There! I found them!' _He broke into a run in hopes of catching up with them, but he stopped right in his tracks when a person appeared in front. It was Doranbolt, which spelled bad news as Jellal's eyes widened. _'When did he…?!'_

"Who are you? Tell me." Doranbolt demanded.

Jellal felt uneasy and watched the two cloaked figures walk away, getting far out of his sight. _'No, I can't let them get away. Not while they're still here.' _He looked back at Doranbolt. _'I gotta do something about him before-!'_

"Doranbolt." The voice was all too familiar and Jellal glanced back, seeing Lahar and his men following behind. "What are you doing?"

'_Damnit, I'm cornered.'_

"I know you're not Mystogan, so who are you really?" Doranbolt demanded.

A long, bickering silence brewed around as the public was taking notice of the skirmish. Lahar was getting antsy as well, seeing Doranbolt confronting 'Mystogan'. A long silence came and went and Jellal and Doranbolt were in a standoff.

"I'll ask one more time." Dornabolt growled. "Tell me who you are!"

"…I'm sorry but I don't have time for this." Jellal said, walking pass him. "I'm in a hurry."

Doranbolt teleported to his side and put a hard hand on his shoulder. "I know Mystogan is not in Earth Land. Who are you?!"

"I assure you I am Mystogan." Jellal said. He glanced back and saw Doranbolt's hand reach for him. "What are you-?!"

"Let me see your face!"

The hood went flying off, and time seemed to have slowed down as Jellal's scarf also lowered. Doranbolt and Lahar's eyes widened in sheer shock as the hood landed on the ground.

"Uh oh." Jellal said.

"Jellal?!" Lahar exclaimed.

Another silence fell as Jellal was in the worse predicament anyone could be in. Lahar and Doranbolt both stared with shock and intensity. He could make a getaway with Meteor, but then someone spoke up through the ominous anticipation.

"Ah, I see someone revealed you, Mystogan." Yajima said, making a surprising entrance.

The three men turned towards Yajima, shock still mounting.

"Mr. Yajima?" Lahar exclaimed.

"Lahar, now you see why Mystogan is face is disclosed to the world?" Yakima questioned, much to Lahar's confusion. "Mystogan has spent his entire life dealing with the fact he is identical to Jellal. So some sympathy."

"He's…not Jellal?" Lahar questioned.

Jellal remained quiet as he looked at Yajima, his eyes telling him to play along.

"Tell me Lahar, are you aware of our counterpart world known as Edolas?" Yajima asked. "If so, then you must know that they have a duplicate, a counterpart of their own that inhabits that world."

Lahar connected the dots and looked at Jellal. "Then, that means you are Jellal's counterpart?"

"Yes." Jellal said, looking down and playing along.

As the commotion went on, Mermaid Heel passed through the area.

Beth turned towards her comrades. "That last battle was so cool."

"I'll say." Risley said.

Kagura was walking behind them, making way with her team. She noticed the commotion and time slowed down as she only needed a second to see Jellal. Her eyes widened. "Jellal…!" In that instant, her mouth was covered as sharp eyes revealed themselves. Hate and boiling rage were swirling and she nearly collapsed. She tried to hold in a gag.

"What's wrong?!" Millianna exclaimed.

"Kagura!" Arana shouted.

Kagura fell to her knees as one of her hands was covering her mouth while one was on her scabbard.

"Kagura, keep it together girl!" Beth implored

"She needs help! Fast!" Risley shouted.

"Kagura, what's wrong…?" Her gaze followed Kagura's at the scene. She picked up at what she was looking at. Jellal. Her teeth clenched. "Jellal!" She snarled. With no hesitation, she went to attack, but she was stopped when Kagura grabbed her arm. Millianna looked back at Kagura, seeing her starting to come around again.

"No." Kagura said, slowly getting to her feet. "I'm fine."

"Kagura! It's him! He's right there!" Millianna pointed out. She got silent when Kagura's face was calm and upright, and yet still full of rage.

"I said I'm fine, I'm sorry for making you all worry." Kagura apologized. "Millianna, I'm fully aware. To think Fairy Tail was harboring safety for him."

"Fairy Tail…keeping him safe?" Millianna looked down at the ground, her insides churning as she felt betrayal and anger at the same time. "Erzy…how could you…?"

Back at the scene before them, the men retreated, and Lahar turned towards 'Mystogan' as Yajima cleared up. "I apologize for my ignorance. I did not take that into account."

"Thank you for understanding my situation." Jellal said, putting his hood and then scarf back on. "I find the resemblance rather worrisome between us. Jellal can be very shrewd." He felt like holding back a twitch as he was making a bad name for himself, especially coming from his own tongue. "If I find him, I'll let you know."

With that Jellal turned away, passing Yajima. _"Thank you, Mr. Yajima. I'm in your debt."_

"_This was a one-time chance. I won't be able to bail you out again, so you'd better make haste before your presence causes anymore trouble for Makey's guild." _Yajima responded to his Telepathy.

"_I will."_ Jellal said, walking into the ground. _"My leave shall be immediately after the games."_

Lahar walked up to Doranbolt. His eyes set on Jellal as he went away. "I know that was really him." Doranbolt's shock didn't faze him. "I'll let Mr. Yajima save face, but never again."

Outside the colosseum, Jellal entered sunlight and looked around. Amongst the crowd, he felt nothing. _'That trail has gone cold. It wasn't Zeref, but there were two of them. Just who are they?'_

* * *

Night fell upon Crocus. And close by the park, underneath one of the bridges that acted as a gateway from the streets to the park, Laxus leaned underneath and looked like he was rendezvousing with someone. As he waited, his mind flashed back to earlier today, from which his father was revealed and he demanded the Lumen Histoire. He even noted the hostile look on Makarov's face.

He was brought out of his thoughts when Makarov appeared, giving each other a look. Both saw the serious yet mutual expressions and could tell one was curious while the other was on his guard.

"So gramps, just what was he saying?" Laxus finally spoke up. "Something about Lumen Histoire."

Makarov looked at Laxus and cascaded his glance to the ground. "Ivan, that weasel found out our greatest secret. How could he?" His hands were twitching. "To think he was after it, and dared to announce it…luckily no one gave much care or concern, so I shouldn't worry."

"He said it was Fairy Tail's darkness." Laxus reminded him.

"No." An unknown voice said. Laxus and Makarov turned towards the sound, where it revealed Mavis. "Lumen Histoire, it's actually the light of our guild."

"Remember, you mustn't tell him." Makarov reminded.

Mavis smiled. "I know. It's top-secret information reserved only for Guild Masters." She turned towards Laxus. "Sorry Laxus, I hope you can understand."

Laxus shrugged. "Hey as long as it's nothing weird, I got no reason to pry."

Makarov changed the matter. "How could Ivan know of such information?"

Mavis had an idea. "I think…that maybe the second Master, Precht, told him."

Makarov put a hand to his chin. "Yes, it could be him."

"I never thought he'd turn on us like that." Mavis grimaced. She looked to the ground, her eyes getting misty. "It's all my fault. I chose him…*sniffle*"

Laxus and Makarov cringed in horror as the ghost turned away from them, starting to cry.

"Hey, geezer, what do we do?!" Laxus asked.

"I'M NOT CRYING!" Mavis yelled, shaking up the two more. "I'm not…crying…" Her misty eyes shut again, tears falling.

"Laxus! Do something!" Makarov shouted, shaking his fists.

"Me?! What about you?! I don't know what to do!"

The two were just baffled at how to make her stop crying.

* * *

In another section of Crocus, in a placid, quiet street, two people were seen walking out in the half-moonlight. It was a rather nice night, and with Raven Tail finally caught ad held in custody, Fairy Tail could relax, for the most part that is.

"This certainly has been an eventful day." Nic said.

Erza looked over at him, walking right by his side and smiling. "Yes, it most certainly has."

"Now that Raven Tail has been caught, at least we don't have to worry about trouble brewing." Nic looked up at the dark sky. "But then there's the energy Jellal informed us. You think he sensed it?"

"I'm not sure. He must have retreated for today since Lahar was present. I'm still rather shocked he decided to show his face after what you did back then."

Nic smirked. "Well you know me, I fight the man and take no belittling."

Erza's smile increased. "True."

The two decided to get some alone time by taking another walk. It had felt like an hour, but it was really just a little bit more than that. While the others were partying and barrel-surfing, Nic and Erza decided to have quality time and enjoy the other's company.

"Why don't we settle here? It'd be nice to sit down for a bit." Nic suggested as he took a seat to a bench that was beneath a light post.

Erza smiled. She didn't refuse as she sat down on the bench as well. Her shoulder touching Nic's. Nic's face blushed a little.

"Are you okay?" Erza wondered.

"Yeah." Nic said, his blush fading to a light shade of pink. He grinned, but his gaze was to the space ahead rather than Erza. "I guess I'm still getting used to the concept of being a boyfriend."

Erza couldn't help but chuckle. It was cute to see Nic like this. It's not often that he's flustered or nervous in an affectionate manner.

"It is a weird feeling, isn't it?" Erza asked, trying to get on common ground.

"A little. I heard of the concept, but experiencing it is another thing entirely. I always was rather socially awkward." His eyes closed as the memories came flooding back to when he left home. "It's hard to say, but I never developed proper social skills. After I set out with Froakie, at first I was seeing a huge world, and I wasn't sure how to greet or interact with others, but as I traveled, I got a little better." He snickered at his own thoughts. "I guess we both came a long way."

"That's putting it mildly." Erza said. She briefly remembered her slavery past, but that remembrance didn't seem to bother her much since she felt Nic's warmth. She snuggled into him more with a softer smile, her head on his shoulder. Nic reciprocated by trying to lean his head so his cheek was touching her head. Seeing her blush meant it was the right move.

A long silenced passed before Erza spoke.

"Nic, what was that move you used? The one that stopped Ivan's Illusion Magic."

Nic didn't move an inch as he thought back to it. "Foresight." He said. "I guess you can say that it's a cancellation for Illusion Magic."

"It must be a very handy move."

"If you play your cards right, yeah." He took a short pause before properly explaining. "Foresight is a move that allows one to hit Ghost-Type Pokémon with Normal and Fighting-Type moves. It also makes them tangible since their Type is self-explanatory."

Erza sat back up and looked ahead. "Pokémon moves and Pokémon are so unique. There's always a way to counter something. Pokémon are such a mystery, and yet these Trainers that you and Vanessa have become can bring out their potential." She turned towards Nic. "And from what I've heard from Vanessa, Trainers just battle and go through standard training…but you went beyond that and you became them sort of speak. An isolated but excessive training that no one took. You and your Pokémon can jump through trees, lift boulders, climb waterfalls under heavy pressure…then there's the reflex and battles you do. Stamina, will, and durability, even your strength was just never ceasing to rise."

She turned away from a curious Nic. "I guess what I'm saying is that, your unorthodox method is what makes you so admirable. You train and go through it like a routine that can last for days, and you all love it. You'd think many would be envious of you."

Nic was getting the point and smiled. He turned away. "I understand. Normal battles and Pokémon training are one thing, but how me and my six go all physical is something one seems to fear. You can't blame them."

Erza smirked. "I call that loyalty to what you love."

"Yeah."

Another strong silence passed. It felt like another ten, maybe fifteen minutes, both sitting and remaining quiet while their shoulders touched.

"We should go back to the inn." Erza insisted. "We need to get some sleep for tomorrow."

"Yeah. We need our strength for tomorrow." Nic stood up, followed by Erza. "I think I'll step in first tomorrow, as long as everyone else agrees."

Erza grabbed his hand and the two walked away. "We'll see. By the way, we should see if a bakery is open this late. I've been meaning to have some strawberry cheesecake since I haven't had any lately. And I think we should Vanessa a lemon cake too."

Nic smirked. "Great minds think alike." He turned ahead as they walked, thinking how his sister was able to give him the right signals that everything was wrong in the arena today. "Vanessa's really grown. It makes me happy."

Erza smiled at Nic as they waltzed down the street under lamp post after lamp post.

* * *

On one of the top balconies of Crocus Gardens, Sting was leaning against the railing, gazing up at the moonlight. He seemed rather distracted, yet so focused at the same time. The moonlight was the only thing he ever saw in the sky since he hasn't seen the stars in over seven years, to which no one knew why.

Lector walked out to the balcony, aroused from his slumber. "Sting? What's the matter bud?"

Sting looked down at Lector, seeing him up. "Oh, het Lector." He looked back up at the moon. "Can't sleep. I'm pretty excited."

"How so?"

Sting smirked. "I got a feeling that I'll get to fight Natsu soon. I can't wait for when that time comes. I'm sure I can take Nic on too, no matter how scary he might look."

Lector looked pumped. "You got this!"

In the room over, Rogue was staring up at the ceiling while Frosch was sleeping soundly right next to him. He couldn't sleep as well. He remembered the terrifying display Fairy Tail showed today. Erza, then Cana, and then Laxus. Laxus and his one-shot display was what startled everyone as he was just brutal. A Second Generation Dragon Slayer had such power, but he wasn't doubting himself, but he was still unsure since he never saw the extent of Nic's power. It made him rather curious.

He decided that he should get some sleep as well, since tomorrow was told to be brutal in terms of the battles.

* * *

In one of the high-class inns, in the bathroom, in the shower, Kagura was feeling the hot water cleanse her skin, but she never seemed relaxed. She never could, not after what she saw today. Jellal still rattled her mind, and it didn't seem to settle.

Outside on the balcony, Millianna was sitting on the railing, looking up at the moon. She was just as bitter, and at the same time confused. _'Why is Erzy's guild harboring Jellal? Is Nic and Erzy even aware of this? Why are they…'_ She was brought out of her thoughts when Risley emerged.

"Hey, Millianna, you okay girl?" She asked. "You and Kagura have been acting all weird since earlier today. Did something happen?"

Millianna looked away with a smirk. "You can say that." She said.

Risley had a confused look as she had hands to her hips. "Well you know you can always talk to us. Being guild mates means we're always there for one another."

"I know." Millianna said. Another smirk came across her face. "…I won't worry you guys. I'll get stronger. I'll work harder. For all of our sakes."

She was gonna take revenge on Jellal, even if it meant going down the path of hatred with Kagura. She will do whatever it took, and if she had to fight Erza, then she knew she had to take that risk, just so she can get her claws on the man who ruined her childhood.

* * *

"Welcome to day four of the 7th annual Grand Magic Games folks! It's your host, Chapati Lola, followed by Mr. Yajima, and our special guest for today, Rabian of the theater group!"

"Thank you very much!" Rabian said.

"The contest today is called Naval Battle folks! Out in front is a huge bubble of water. All participants representing their team shall enter the bubble and engage in what you can consider an underwater sumo match! You'll be eliminated if you get pushed out, and thus your ranking will be based on the order you're pushed out. In summary, the last man, or woman, left in the bubble is the winner." Lola detailed.

"However there is but a small twist." Yajima added. "When there are two competitors left in the bubble, there will be a five-minute rule. If you're pushed out within those five-minutes, you won't get any points."

"Such adrenaline! Such risks in the script! Thank you!" Rabian announced with joy.

"Now, let's see who enters the sphere…" The contestants then dove in. The people entering was Chelia for Lamia Scale, Jenny, stepping in for an injured Eve, for Blue Pegasus, Risley for Mermaid Heel, Sophie from Fairy Tail Team B, and then for Quatro Puppy was Rocker, then…

"Minerva Orland, quite the pleasant welcome." Minerva announced.

The crowd went wild for Minerva.

"Can you listen to that crowd? Minerva is here, making Sabertooth consist of its five strongest members now!" Lola said. "And lastly…"

The last person entering into the Naval Battle was Nic, in his Splash Plate Form. The crowd, once again, went nuts as they recalled Nic's display on the first day.

"Go get'em, Nic!" Natsu shouted.

"We got this in the bag. Nic's got this." Gray said, expressing confidence.

Erza smiled. "We'll cheer as hard as we can for him."

"Let the Naval Battle…begin!" Lola announced, the gong going off again.

Nic took a one-arm motion and swirled it in a circle. "**Whirlpool!**" Immediately, a cyclone raged through the domain of the bubble, and the girls, and Rocker, all swirled around as they could hardly hold on.

Sophie pointed a finger to her forehead. "**Memory-Make: Scorn of the Armored Winds!**" Sophie unleashed cyclones of raging iron-like winds, similar to Gajeel's roar. The raging cyclones met Nic's Whirlpool in the middle, and the whole bubble was quaking and uneven as the inside was swirling tempests.

Rufus looked at Sophie and lowered his cap, smirking.

"She's not bad." Gajeel admitted. "Though I'm calling her a copycat for that play."

"Oh relax." Laxus shrugged off. "Her Memory-Make can make use of this. Don't underestimate the blonde."

"Go, Sophie!" Mira cheered.

"Nic's Whirlpool is starting off strong." Magnezone said.

Vanessa grinned at the contest. "Yes. Whirlpool is generally meant for restraining and isn't that strong, but in this case, it's working just perfectly for Nic."

Jenny smirked as she saw Nic with his sunglasses. "My, he's certainly the looker underwater as well." She swam away and towards an opponent. Rocker looked behind, but got a kick to the face. "Sorry, only one boy is allowed!"

Rocker fell out of the bubble and landed on his face. Quatro Puppy despaired with more revelation and shock as Rocker groaned. "This isn't wild."

"Quatro Puppy is out!" Lola announced. "Sadly, they only get 1 point. Now it's just the bikini babes against the lone wolf – Nic!"

"Hmph! Well if you ask me, he's ruining the fun." Rabian huffed.

Cana crossed her arms. "Sometimes that boy can be a killjoy." She paused as she looked at him. "But they don't realize how screwed they really are. Nic's just testing the waters."

As the participants were going at it, Nic added a trick. Chelia and Risley were duking it out, and yet all eyes went down as Nic glowed and altered. Nic's Splash Plate Form was the same, and yet the edging was a dark pink with the ring around the symbol on the back, while the rest of the coat was dark blue.

"**Water/Psychic!**" Nic announced.

"Oh wow, it's that new technique he can use!" Happy shouted.

"Wait, you mean Nic can use two Plates at once?" Wakaba asked.

"Which means he'll be twice as lethal." Macao said.

Sophie kept her Memory-Make active as she still went for the assault. "How about a two-for-one! **Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**" She fired the attack, with ice mirrors firing dark beams at Nic as the iron-like cyclones raged on.

Nic's eyes widened as he let out his prowess. The Whirlpool he made suddenly expanded, almost getting twice as big, taking in the blasts. Sophie's eyes widened as her Memory-Make – in terms of both spells – were stopped as the Whirlpool looked more like a huge shield than a raging cyclone.

"He changed the property from offense to defense?" Sophie asked.

"HA!" He swung his arms, and the Whirlpool was unleashed in a massive maelstrom in conjunction with Nic using his Splash Plate manipulation over water. All the girls were caught in the supreme underwater cyclone, and waves raged like tsunamis as the girls had no chance.

Juvia's eyes widened as she sat in the stands. "He can manipulate water at such a vast level?!"

In the order, Jenny, Chelia, and Risley all fell out. Earning Blue Pegasus 2, Lamia Scale 3, and Mermaid Heel 4.

However, as the cyclone raged, Minerva smirked as she used her Magic, bending the space around so as to defend from the attack. "Not bad."

The attack raged on for another few moments until finally the swirling settled, revealing Sophie just on the edge of the sphere. She panted as she barely held on. "That was…close…!"

Her eyes widened, and she suddenly found herself outside of the bubble. She blinked once, then twice, and fell down. "Aaah!" She plopped onto her face, groaning and grunting as she was gonna feel that in the morning.

"And lastly, Sophie has somehow left the ring, getting Fairy Tail B 6 points!" Lola announced. "…wait! Now we see!"

Minerva kept her smirk as the spatial energy dissipated from her hands.

"Wait, that's her Magic?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"So the chick, got teleported out, huh? Now that's freaky." Gajeel said, leaning against the railing.

Minerva chuckled at Nic as he clenched his fists. "Finally we get to square off. I was wondering which power was better: Yours, or mine?"

Sting leaned against the balcony. "Milady, she's so mischievous. She could've just ended it from the start, but she'd rather conserve her energy for Nic."

"I hardly know what goes on in her head." Orga said. "She could've won this thing by now, so why is she holding back until now?"

"If I recall, she was always the rebel. Her act of defiance is even detailed before us." Rufus said. "Remember well of her history with Nic Pularis."

Sting clenched his fists. "That Nic. He's made our strongest one of the more softer. I'm gonna get him when the time comes."

Rogue looked away, disinterested.

"You ready?" Nic asked.

"As I'll ever be." Minerva said.

"The five-minutes are underway!" Lola announced. "Let this exhilarating match commence!"

The crowd went wild as Nic and Minerva glared off, sunglasses against green eyes. Minerva extended her arm at Nic, not wasting a second as her Territory Magic was unleashed. Nic's body went all second-nature and acrobatically swam and evaded Minerva's spatial explosions that erupted within the sphere. He swam like he was born in the water, and when a spatial blast was unleashed upon him, the range wider than before, he swiped his arm, and manipulated the water to divert the spatial energy around him.

Minerva's eyes narrowed as Nic was unhindered. "Not bad! HRAH!" She reached out, and from where Nic was a massive spatial blast imploded, sending waves throughout the sphere. The crowd gaped as Minerva's blast rattled the entire sphere.

"Whoa! The heck is she doing?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"She's giving it her all…I think." Gray said. "I know she's acquainted with Nic and all, but don't you think she's a bit extreme?"

"Perhaps." Erza pointed out, watching the explosion disperse. "But we'll see how far the two will go."

Minerva smirked, but then she was kicked in the back of the head. The hard water shoe pressed down and she descended. Looking back, upside down, she found Nic there, still unharmed.

Sting's eyes widened. "He escaped her Territory by teleporting?! How?!"

In the Sabertooth stands, Bellona eyed Nic wearily. "Nic Pularis…"

"**Hydro Pump!**" Nic made a mirror of water in front, and a great volume of water blasted forth. Minerva straightened out and smirked again. Her hands had spatial energy again, and then Nic and Minerva traded places, with Nic emerging on the receiving end.

"She traded places?!" Natsu exclaimed.

Kagura's eyes glared at Minerva's Magic.

Nic showed a calm demeanor as he reached out with one hand, and the water manipulation through his form made the Hydro Pump disperse all around him, dispersing as the streams diverted in random directions. Using his arms, he conducted the various streams and sent them at Minerva. In retaliation, the Territory Mage, made more spatial energy and the streams all missed her as the space around her distorted.

"What an impressive turnaround folks! Nic and Minerva are actually on toe to toe with another!" Lola announced. "The strongest in Sabertooth and her Territory cannot keep Nic's teleporting suppressed! Just how will anyone respond?"

"Time is halfway up within the five-minute range." Yajima reminded.

Minerva aimed her Territory Magic, but no matter how she saw it, Nic's Teleport seemed to cancel out her spatial teleportation as well. "Hrah!" Minerva used her Magic and Nic was transported in front, where she attempted a kick, but rather Nic ended up on her side, using his Teleport as he was traveling through her Territory to end up elsewhere. Minerva blocked a kick from Nic and both participants backed away, grins on their faces.

"Your Territory's improved, Minerva." Nic said. "I'm impressed."

"Your powers are a sight to behold as well. No one can escape my Territory like you can. Seems we're both even since I can alter space and you can manipulate the water and teleport."

"You have a point…" Nic's eyes narrowed beneath his sunglasses. "But I'm more than that. **Psychic!**"

Minerva found herself outlined in light blue energy. She was forced backwards by a great force and went near the edge. She grunted as she zoomed back, but her eyes opened a little to see Nic again. Her hands glowed green again and switched places with Nic.

Nic felt himself lose the momentum in the brawl, but he twisted and his stomach was facing the edge.

"Nic, look out!" Natsu shouted.

Minerva held her arm down at Nic. "We agreed to not hold back, so let's end this!"

"**Aqua Jet!**"

Nic was cloaked in a mass of water and shot like a rocket up, barely escaping the spatial explosion that would've pushed him out. Minerva saw how fast Nic was traveling in Aqua Jet as he arched himself along the edge. "What?!" She watched him fly overhead and around, little to no water resistance applied. Minerva saw him swimming beneath, and she shoved her arms down, applying a strong explosion that encompassed all of the lower half of the sphere. Spouts of water erupted all underneath, making the ground beneath drenched.

However, she was caught shocked as Nic appeared in front, evading via Teleport again. With a swift punch, he struck Minerva and sent her spiraling through the water. The Territory Mage hurried to regain her balance and spatial orbs encompassed her hands yet again.

"You're a slippery one." She said. "Let's see how you handle an anchor!"

Nic's left ankle was within its own orb of spatial energy. Before he could teleport, Minerva swiped her arm, and Nic was dragged along through the water in a long arc. The heavy weight of water passing him was managing to slow him down, and he used the momentum yet again.

"**Aqua Jet!**" Again he was covered in thick clear water and used the swinging momentum and shot around like a rocket. His body swerved into an askew arc, spiraling some and Minerva blocked with her Magic, but she was pushed back from the force.

"That Minerva chick, she's keeping Nic on his feet!" Romeo exclaimed.

"Her Territory is extremely lethal. Anything around her can be encompassed in space." Carla analyzed, watching the two go neck and neck again. Minerva traded places with Nic again, but Nic's reflexes kept him from accepting critical blows as he dealt some back. "She's obviously learnt some close combat skills too."

With a Territory infused hand, she punched forward, yet Nic swiped and a current dragged the punch away. "**Brine!**" With the close range, he doused Minerva with a jet of saltwater. Minerva grunted as she was shoved back, feeling a sharp sting from the few bruises she took that was grazed by the sodium within the jet. She escaped through a spatial orb, reappearing behind Nic for an axe kick with no signs of wearing down that easily.

Nic caught on, using a forearm to block without looking. He flipped backwards underwater and his knee almost collided with her face, yet she barely escaped by sweeping herself to the side. If it wasn't for the water resistance, that would've dealt a blow that could've caused a concussion.

Minerva grinned as Nic turned towards her, returning the expression. This was the thrill of a friendly competition. Two allies giving them a run for their money. It wasn't like Nic to be on even grounds with anyone, but Minerva's Magic in particular really made things even.

"It looks like the five-minute interval is up!" Lola announced. "Both competitors are seriously still going! Can they even stop?!"

"I don't know. Nic seems to have more durability and stamina it seems." Yajima explained. "But Minerva's Magic can elude herself and apply damage. This is very much even."

"Equal footing on spotlight?! Thank you very much!" Rabian announced.

Minerva had both arms spread out. "I say we end this! I need to get some points for my guild!" Her Territory began to spiral around her.

Nic had both arms spread out as well, both arms spread out. "I couldn't agree more! My guild shall retain its place yet!"

All at once, spatial explosions went off like fireworks, while cyclones and melee water streams rampaged all around. The crowd was wide-eyed as they could see the entire bubble of water erupting and swirling like some small-world apocalyptic hurricane. Fairy Tail and Sabertooth looked in anticipation as they couldn't tell what was happening inside as raging explosions and great rapids blocked Minerva and Nic's vision.

"Hrrraaaah!"

Both ley out yells, and the bubble erupted madly. Geysers exploded and explosions raged. All the girls, and Rocker, cleared way as the stability wasn't supported for the great force Nic was using to use the entire sphere to attack Minerva. The bursting sphere fell to the earth, where a massive splash and explosion raged. The audience covered up as water sprayed onto them.

As it lightly drizzled, Lola, Yajima, and Rabian were gaping at the site down below. Nic and Minerva were both standing, yet their breaths weren't labored in the slightest, meaning they exhausted some energy, but not enough to tire themselves out too bad. Nic did seem to hold up better though.

"I…I cannot believe what had just happened folks! Minerva and Nic's attacks on the other had made the entire sphere collapse on itself! What a massive turn of events!"

Mato crossed his arms. "Alright you two, that's it!"

Nic and Minerva both relaxed and seemed to sigh a little. Minerva had a few more bruises than Nic, but other than that, she was fine. Her training over the years have paid off. The crowd cheered for both teams proudly for one heck of a show.

Mato looked to the crowd. "In this situation for the Naval Battle, the committee never considered a draw, but in this case, both teams shall tie for 1st! Both Fairy Tail A and Sabertooth earn 10 points for their teams!"

The crowd seemed appeased as they cheered in the battle portrayed. Fairy Tail seemed curious while Sabertooth was looking all the while smug. They can live with this. They knew now that they had to work much harder if to defeat Nic Pularis and Fairy Tail and put them back in their place.

Nic turned away. "Minerva…you've improved. Great display."

Minerva turned away as well, hand to hip and a grin on her face. "You put me through my paces. Reflexes and close combat is where you have the advantage, as I learned from before. It was quite pleasant to square off like this."

"Likewise." Nic stated walking away with a solid tone. "But if we meet in the ring again, don't expect me to be holding any limits of my power."

Minerva chuckled. "Indulge me, but you'd best save that for those who you would really wanna watch out for. Sabertooth's Twin Dragons won't hesitate after this."

"I will." He walked back to his tunnel, and Minerva did as well.

Minerva stepped inside her tunnel, where the audience seemed rather excited some as they saw Sabertooth and Fairy Tail at it.

"I want more!"

"Yeah! I wanna see Sabertooth and Fairy Tail at it again!"

"Sabertooth VS Fairy Tail!" One screamed. The phrase went around the colosseum, as many were dying to see another heated confrontation like that. It was so heart-pounding, and a lot of people knew of Minerva's nature as demonstrated by her display over the past few years, so they expected the rowdier members to have a piece of the action.

Rufus and Orga both snickered at her display. "The Master ain't gonna like how you're not so dominant." The latter informed.

"Minerva knows better than to treat someone like that." Rogue said, looking away. "After all, she can get away with it. Her father and herself never agree anyways."

Sting punched his palm. "Fine, then I guess we'll have to show Fairy Tail why we rampage and will keep our top place! Those punks are gonna go down. Natsu. Nic."

Back up in the stands, Bellona smirked and chuckled lowly. _'It would appear Milady is above showing brutal dominance like Sabertooth always works. It looks like I'm gonna have to get personal with her and Fairy Tail alike.'_

* * *

In the locker room, Nic met up with his team. They all gathered around him and were seen with great smiles on their faces. Natsu seemed to be impressed. "Damn man, you sure know durability!" He beamed.

Gray crossed his arms, grinning. "That Minerva chick's got something to prove alright."

Nic nodded. "Yeah, but if you ask me, I do believe it was more of herself than anyone."

"I understand. Since she dislikes her father running the guild, she's really doing this as a favor for Yukino." Erza explained. "That must be the considered case."

Nic smiled at Erza. "Her Territory has improved. She's a formidable foe." He sounded genuine, and he had a feeling that she was holding back some, but so was he; but he knew it was out of respect, though it was rather ironic when they agreed _not _to hold back.

Erza nodded and smiled back. "She is very strong indeed. The strongest in Sabertooth is I remember right." She turned towards everyone. "We'll have to be sharp if we ever come across her. Her Magic is most terrifying."

The door to their locker room opened up, and Makarov was proceeded by Fairy Tail Team B, much to everyone's surprise.

"Master." Erza said in surprise.

"Gramps?" Gray asked.

"Uh, wait." Wendy said. "Why is Team B here? Is there something wrong?"

The ten participants present looked at one another in confusion while the small Master in the middle cleared his throat. "Listen well kids, I am proud of your display in the games thus far, and because of all of our efforts, we are near victory, but Sabertooth won't hand their crown to us without a fight." He paused, making a small silence fall. "However, the matter cannot be changed. I have an important announcement for you all…"

* * *

**I've cut it off there, hope it was enough to take in! I got the Naval Battle squeezed in just like I said, so that means next chapter shall be the Double Battles only. Comment what you liked or what changes I've made that appealed.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the action, battles, and the great events that shall transpire!**

* * *

**Next Time: Dragon Slayers VS Pokémon **


	75. Dragon Slayers VS Pokemon

Chapter 75 – Dragon Slayers VS Pokémon

**Hey guys, Insane Dominator here! Before you read, I want to announce that I have finally completed **_**EDventures in Kalos**_**, and so it's the first Pokémon/Ed Edd n Eddy crossover to be completed in the archives. So now you know why the update took so long. Now that **_**EDventures in Kalos **_**is complete and over with, updates for this story will be faster than normal, at least in July.**

**And now, here's the next chapter! Chapter 75!**

**To Recap:**

Laxus against Alexei occurred, but Nic's Foresight saw through the illusion Ivan, who was Alexei's real identity, made, and Laxus defeated all of Raven Tail by himself, disqualifying Raven Tail for cheating and cruel tactics. Wendy and Chelia alike put up a great fight, and yet they ended up tying, gaining 5 points each. Fairy Tail A ends up in 1st place, leaving Sabertooth on edge. After the events, Jellal's cover was blown, but Yajima covered for him from Lahar and Doranbolt, though Millianna and Kagura were distraught somewhat. That night, Nic and Erza had some romantic time alone and strolled through the streets, safe and sound. On Day 4 in the Naval Battle, Nic and Minerva were the only two left, and they actually ended up tying on good terms, earning their teams 10 points each. After the competition, Makarov joined Fairy Tail A and B for a brief discussion.

* * *

**Chapter 75 – Dragon Slayers VS Pokémon **

"Hang on a sec, Gramps. Run that by us again, would ya?" Laxus asked as confusion and bewilderment ran through the room.

"The game organizers asked us to do away with the Team A and B." Makarov reiterated. "With Raven Tail disqualified, that leaves seven teams remaining, in which the odd number makes it difficult to do battles. As of now until the end of the games, we are to turn our two teams into a single 5-man group."

"So we'll have to be like everyone else now." Nic stated with crossed arms. "And how will our scores play out?"

"We'll only be allowed to keep the lower score, so it shall be the 36 points of Team B." Makarov informed.

Happy stomped. "That's so unfair! That puts Sabertooth back in the lead!"

"Like it or not, the decisions been made. We'll just have to adapt from this setback." Erza said.

"Look on the bright side." Cana said. "At least now we get to make a kickass team."

"Well I wish they did that earlier, because now we only have the double battles, right?" Gray asked.

"No." Porlyusica retorted. "In tradition, there's a mandatory day-off, then there's Day 5, which is where a battle of all members takes place. It's important to choose the members carefully.

"My point exactly." Makarov stepped forward, looking up at the contenders before him. "And with that reason, I have decided on the five that shall be of Team Fairy Tail…"

* * *

The crowd was as cheerful as ever as the Naval Battle had them all stoked for the double battles that are to take place. Lola leaned into the mic with a smile and a blue wig. "This is Day 4 folks! Now we'll back to the exciting battle, and who's on Team Fairy Tail." Lola turned towards Yajima. "Mr. Yajima, you have a long history with the guild, yes?"

"Ah, yes. Good times." Yajima mused.

"Now, let's pay attention to the battle lineups!" Lola announced to the audience. Turn your attention to the monitor."

**Blue Pegasus VS Quatro Puppy**

**Mermaid Heel VS Lamia Scale**

**Sabertooth VS Fairy Tail**

The crowd was going bananas over the final matchup. They wanted to see the score settled once and for all between Sabertooth and Fairy Tail.

Lola got their attention to the Fairy Tail tunnel. "And now, let's see who made the cut for Fairy Tail…"

Inside the tunnel, five silhouettes could be seen. One was in the middle and had sunglasses on, reflecting the lighting in the tunnel, and his coat had the Fairy Tail emblem in purple. The second had what seemed to be pink, spiky hair. The third had a skirt and clad in armor. The fourth had long black hair, with his iron-like muscles showing. The last one had a large coat and blonde hair. All five walked out towards the light outside, approaching the five other teams.

In the stands, Makarov nodded in satisfaction. "With the spirit of Fairy Tail imprinted in these five, we shall overcome this obstacle."

"I told ys this was gonna be kickass!" Cana said.

"This team, it's gonna get us to the top again." Vanessa said.

"Go get 'em, guys." Lucy smiled.

"And now, introducing…TEAM FAIRY TAIL!" Lola shouted.

In front, standing tall and mighty, the crowds bellowed at the immense anticipation of the five people that put up a grand show. Nic. Natsu. Erza, Gajeel. Laxus. The team that shall be of Fairy Tail. The crowd's screaming was so strong that the stadium was actually shaking, and Fairy Tail banners were put up, giving everyone full support.

The five other teams glared at Fairy Tail, showing no mercy in their rivalry. Sabertooth especially was giving off a vibe that clashed with Fairy Tail's.

"I can tell everyone's looking forward to the final match by their cheers. I wonder if they'll handle it?" Lola wondered.

"We'll see." Yajima said.

"I'm so thrilled to be here today to witness such drama!" Rabian said.

Looking down at the Fairy Tail stands, Arcadios and Darton glared at Lucy solemnly. Their interest was only in her, and what seemed to be her Spirits. To be frank, it was really her power they both sought. Her Celestial Magic was powerful, and they knew that. They could only focus on such a thing as the battles seemed pointless, yet it was a way to buy some diversions.

"You better not screw up like last time." Darton told him.

Arcadios adjusted his posture and stood affirm. He recalled the group that took Wendy, Carla, and Porlyusica, and failed. "I assure you, that was just a misstep. Next time shall be certain." He walked closer towards the balcony, spectating the arena. "For now, just relish in the festivities. The project will be in three days' time."

Darton grimaced and grumbled. "Damn eclipse. Is there really no way to stop it?"

Arcadios's smirk turned malicious, the mood in the air growing malice. "We can't keep Zeref waiting now, can we?"

Darton exited the tall domain, walking down an open corridor that overlooked everything. He seemed distraught, and he was only discomforted by what was to come. Hell was gonna come, and yet nothing was to prevent it. To kill Zeref, that was the idea. Yet to him it seemed impossible.

He entered a chamber in the darkness. "The Grand Magic Games." His tone could make one get goosebumps as the dark room set the mood. "Those who know history know that it went by a different title. The title that plagued ruin upon all…"

He looked up at a mural painted on the wall. It was a large-scale painting, one of a city and waves in the background. In the foreground were two figures. One was a man with Magic being used, and the other…was a Dragon, spewing fire. The Magic and fire were against the other, war wages as the other sought to end the other's life.

"…The Dragon King Festival."

* * *

"Now, let's get to the battles!" Lola diverted the crowd to the lacrima screen, where it showed the four people that were to duke it out. "Our first match is Blue Pegasus Ichiya and Rabbit!"

Ichiya and the rabbit costume struck the same stylish pose. "Man."

"Against Quatro Puppy's Bacchus and Rocker!" Lola continued.

"WILD!" Quatro Puppy shouted as Bacchus and Rocker stepped forward.

All four competitors walked towards the center of the arena, two facing the other. As Nic and Vanessa both watched the battle unfold, they couldn't help but see this as a Double Battle in their eyes. They both fought in several against Trainers before back in Kalos, and in Nic's case a few Triple Battles, but moral of the point is that this scene brought back some nostalgia.

"Let's show these pretty boys that we mean business!" Rocker declared. "We gotta get some points too."

"It's cool." Bacchus said, expressing a subtle demeanor and a smirk. "All I want is to have my spirit shaken and stirred up…huh?"

When he looked back at Ichiya and Rabbit, both were surprisingly in their faces, causing them to become uncomfortable. Both extended an arm out, sparkles around their faces with smiles.

"Sirs." Ichiya said.

There was an uneasy pause, but Quatro Puppy complied and shook hands, putting up some gentlemen aspect. Both Ichiya and Rabbit then walked back into position, leaving Bacchus and Rocker confused.

"Did I just shake hands with a bunny suit?" Rocker questioned.

Bacchus held his hands to his nose and sniffed. Surprisingly it smelled good. "You know, that guy smells pretty damn good." He said in shock.

"Now, it is time we unveil the full power we possess. Cascade your handsomeness no more!" Ichiya shouted.

The rabbit costume nodded, and he slowly reached for his headpiece.

The audience stared in complete silence, barely mumbling as suspense was piling on.

"Seriously?! We're finally gonna see who's in the bunny suit?!" Happy shouted.

"Well it's about time. I almost forgot about that guy." Gray said.

"It's so bizarre, and yet the suspense is killing me." Ren looked behind, hearing kissing noises. He looked and saw Hibiki and Jenny making out, though this only left Ren irritated. "WOULD YOU TWO LOOK FOR JUST A SECOND?!"

Everyone leaned in, the suspense amongst them being lifted as the headpiece was lifted. The rabbit costume, in truth, was Nichiya.

The audience, Lola, Rabian, Yajima, and all of Fairy Tail was left speechless, disbelief plastered on their faces as the unveiling was just unable to be processed clearly. Not only was the identity an Exceed, but he looked exactly like Ichiya.

Both jumped and posed, with Nichiya appeared in his small form with a light purple suit. Both took a stunning pose that was unison, sparkles everywhere. Their faces had the exact same expression, and everyone could've sworn a little bit of vomit went up in their throats.

"Holy crap!" Natsu exclaimed.

"That cat from Extalia?!" Gray exclaimed.

Erza had a shadow over her eyes. The reality of the situation made her almost go blind. "This can't…be happening…can it?" The two identical faces replayed over and over, and she began falling over. "Two Ichiyas…this can't be…" She fell over in shock, not looking to well. Nic caught her.

"Erza? Erza?!" Nic asked.

"Make this nightmare end." She mumbled.

"Sir Nichiya?!" Lily shouted.

Rocker pointed haphazardly at Nichiya. "That's not wild, man! Is that freakin cat thing even a member of Blue Pegasus?!"

Ichiya chuckled in pride. "Behold!" Nichiya took off his shirt and showed his back, where a Blue Pegasus emblem was on his back, startling the audience.

"Of course I made that darling pussycat a member of our guild before the Grand Magic Games!" Master Bob put a hand to his cheek. "It'd be such a crime to turn such a handsome creature down!"

"Krokorok feels like he's gonna be sick." Krokorok held back a gag. Mawile had a twitch in her eye as she was just baffled. Vanessa, Braixen, and Venusaur all were stiff in speechlessness, all three just baffled with what this world had to offer.

"Pardon my intrusion." Magnezone wondered. "But how exactly did such a creature get discovered?"

Ichiya struck a pose. "Ah, yes. The parfume of memory." He started. "I shall relish in the tale. It was a stroke of luck, was it not? I found myself wandering in the forest looking for an experience. As I traveled within, I couldn't find my way out, and then I collapsed, all famished and parched to the limit." He turned towards Nichiya. "And as it turned out, that forest was home to Exceeds that came to Earth Land. I have found my partner in crime, and we thus planted the seed that bloomed into the flower of friendship."

"And we thus relished in the parfume of memory and valor." Nichiya added humbly.

Bacchus slid up front, done with the story. He brought back a palm at a clam Nichiya. He brought the palm strike forward and Nichiya held out a palm, looking as though he was gonna block. To everyone's disbelief, Nichiya was sent flying.

"What have you done?!" Ichiya exclaimed as he saw his counterpart flying.

"Meeeeee~n!" Nichiya shouted, soon thudding to an end.

Ren looked astonished. "What the heck?! Ichiya, can he even fight?!"

Ichiya struck a pose. "Naturally." Nichiya's eyes opened, sparkles appearing. "As we have the same face, we share the same fighting strength!"

The two stared at the other, sparkles around the other. Nichiya tensed and struggled to hold his eyes open. He let out a huff and he passed out, completely unconscious.

"He's completely out of commission!" Ren yelled.

Ichiya had sweat running down his body, seemingly unable to take in what just happened to Nichiya. He finally broke and looked like he's seen a ghost. "This cannot be!" He bellowed at the tragedy.

"Wild…" Ichiya cringed and slowly turned around, seeing Bacchus and Rocker cracking their knuckles.

"Now we're done messin' around. Let's take this guy down." Bacchus said with a smirk.

"It's now or never. We're gonna get the win and the points." Rocker added.

"The revealed identity of Rabbit has been swatted down like a fly! That makes this two against one!" Lola announced.

"Not looking too good for Blue Pegasus." Yajima added.

"It's so tragic and yet exhilarating! Thank you very much!" Rabian cheered.

Ichiya found himself getting surrounded by Rocker and Bacchus as they closed in, taking the opportunity to take out Ichiya as he was at a loss for words. The Parfume Mage stepped back as he was mentally ill-equipped for the situation. "Uh, p-please, wait a sec-!"

"Drilling rock for you!" His leg span so fast like a drill and kicked Ichiya.

Bachhus brought his palm back and smirked. "Alright! **Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm: Under Moonlight!**" He slapped Ichiya with a forceful strike, making dust rise and Ichiya was sent soaring.

"ME~~N!" Ichiya yelled.

"Ichi…ya." Nichiya's eye winced as he could feel the energy and his buddy losing the brawl.

Ichiya, while still soaring, looked down to Nichiya, striking a pose. "Ni…chi…ya." He mumbled, posing through his landing and sliding back.

Quatro Puppy ran after their only-standing target. "Time to eat dirt, fancy boy!" Bacchus yelled.

Rocker smirked. "This win is ours!"

'_Nichiya.' _Ichiya thought as Bacchus and Rocker began landing blows and punches that continuously sent him flying. _'I'm sorry for misreading you. I did not realize that you were a gentleman that couldn't fight. I am to blame.'_

"Drilling rock for ya!" Rocker's arm spun like a drill and he punched Ichiya, sending him spiraling.

'_And yet…you chose the path of fighting alongside your comrades.' _Ichiya gawked as he was dealt by another blow by Bacchus to the chin. _'You put your handsomeness at risk for all of us.' _Rocker kicked him viciously again. _'What have I done?! I did this!' _Bacchus delivered an uppercut by means of a palm strike. _'HOW COULD I HAVE LET YOU FALL?!'_

Ichiya kept a stylish finger pose as he slid on his face near Nichiya, his attire all dirty and his face all banged up. He laid there, seemingly out.

"Did Bacchus deal the final blow?!" Lola said over the mic. "Things are looking bad for Blue Pegasus folks!"

"What are we boys?" Bacchus and Rocker shouted.

"WILD!" Quatro Puppy yelled. They seemed excited, but they were left bewildered and their celebration came to a standstill. Bacchus and Rocker both stopped their short-lived rise to victory as Ichiya struggled to his knees. They saw how badly damaged he was, and yet he kept on going.

Lola looked surprised. "Wait up folks, it looks like Ichiya still has some fight in him!"

Ichiya opened his eyes, sparkles still around him and his fallen friend. He saw the lone tear that Nichiya shed, which finally made Ichiya snap. _'I swear, my friend. I won't let your struggle be for nothing.' _Veins sprouted from his forehead and body. _'Handsomeness…IS JUSTICE!' _

Everyone all around saw Ichiya's body exerted a massive Magic Power. Bacchus and Rocker stepped back and as Ichiya stood up, and his muscles and size began to grow into a hulking force. His muscle mass expanded, and his shirt was ripped off.

Bacchus was startled by Ichiya's power enhancing, and he felt rather insecure. "How did this guy get so wild…?"

"Is this, the power of parfume?" Rocker questioned.

Ichiya looked up to the sky. "To my dear friend…THIS SHALL BE DEDICATED AS THE PARFUME OF VICTORY TO YOU!" His body flashed more sparkles and Magic Power, leaving all in awe.

"Ichiya!" The Trimens and Jenny shouted in support.

Ichiya's hulking steps advanced, his size being twice as large as his opponents.

Mato clenched his small gloves. "This is so touching…pumpkins…" He mumbled.

"WILD!" Bacchus and Rocker both charged with brute force, ready to lay some damage onto Ichiya.

"Take this!" Ichiya yelled. "You will at my…Beautiful Dreamer!" He tensed up his face, and he suddenly changed his looks to a realistic and beautiful face.

Bacchus and Rocker both stopped in midair. "Huh-?!"

"**Smiling Smash!**" Ichiya sent an uppercut that sent a ripple through the air, letting out a cry as Bacchus and Rocker were sent skyrocketing. Both spiraled and back had into the colosseum wall, leaving a crater that was huge. Both contenders fell down to the ground with thuds, with Quatro Puppy paling in despair and shock as they saw Rocker and Bacchus down and out.

"Quatro Puppy is down! They're down!" Lola yelled as the bell ringed. "The winner is Blue Pegasus!"

The audience cheered loudly at Ichiya's display as he blew kisses at everyone. Not only did he get his team 10 points, totaling to 30, but he avenged his fallen comrade.

"He defeated Bacchus." Erza said, admittedly surprised.

"Even when it was two against one. He's good." Nic admitted.

"That was awesome!" Natsu shouted.

"Now that was pretty handsome." Ren said with a smile.

"What a cool guy!" Jenny cheered.

"Ichiya's the man." Hibiki said.

"I knew he could do it." Eve remarked while still wounded badly.

"What an amazing battle if I do say so myself." Lola said. "Mr. Yajima, what did you think?"

"In a way, maybe." Yajima said, though not entirely convinced.

"A sappy ending for my tastes. Thank you very much.!" Rabian said with enthusiasm.

"Now, onto the second match! From Lamia Scale, we have Lyon and Yuka…"

Both contenders stepped into the ring.

"Versus the top dog and top cat of Mermaid Hell, Kagura and Millianna!"

The remaining two stepped into the ring, both ready to take on Lamia Scale. The crowd seemed excited as cheers went on again, and Erza was keeping a close eye on Kagura, while Gray was keeping an eye out on his sibling student Lyon.

* * *

Two cloaked figures walked aimlessly through the area where Jellal had the small confrontation with the Council yesterday. The two had hoods on to hold their hidden identities. Their heads were down and they seemed to be alone, as all eyes and population were within the colosseum. They could hear the crowd roar as Millianna was seemingly holding her own against Lyon and Yuka, but they were nothing to the two cloaked figures.

They moved on through the entrance and walked down the corridor. Their footsteps didn't even echo. They were like silent ghosts that hid in the shadows. Only their frowns were visible as everything else was veiled up.

One cloaked figure stopped for a brief moment. This caught the attention of the other cloaked figure as it turned and saw the halted one look at the small book it carried in one hand. It looked like a diary. The figure was beginning to quiver and tears began to fall down, dripping onto the words of the diary that had words like "Eclipse" and "Dragon King Festival".

The other figured reached a hand out and gently put the diary back into the other's pocket. The figures seemed remorseful as they talked incoherently, and the one figure that was crying stopped and nodded in understanding, remaining positive. The two then pressed on towards and went outside to overlook the battle. Both seemed contained as Kagura and Lyon were the only ones left.

* * *

"Now!" Lyon extended his arm out, sending his Ice-Make creatures of a tiger, ape, and serpentine dragon after Kagura. Kagura jumped and dodged the ape and tiger that pounced, but she was rammed by the dragon, sending her flying. She twisted her body and landed soundly yet cautiously.

"Kagura against three of Lyon's aces? I think we know who's got this in the bag now!" Chelia cheered.

Kagura stood back up and the three ice animals opened their mouths and charged right for her. Kagura held her sheathed sword and the hilt glowed bright red. "You won't win."

The stadium was suddenly at a standstill when a big, red Magic Seal appeared, and Lyon and his creations were lifted into the air. They were all immobile, and Lyon found himself stuck within the suspended field of gravity.

"There's that special Gravity Magic!" Lola announced. "It looks like She's got Lyon right where she wants him!"

"I didn't expect Kagura to use that Magic unless threatened. I guess that means Lyon is that formidable indeed." Arana stated.

Lyon couldn't ascertain any momentum from where he was. "She got me…!" His eyes widened when Kagura sprung up and used her sheathed sword. In a flashy glint, she passed all of Lyon's creations, and they were bisected and shattered into nothing.

Lyon turned around as Kagura came down onto him all of a sudden. "You're finished!"

The bell went off, and Kagura stiffened and stopped her advances when her sword was just mere inches from his face. Lyon felt his heart pulse as he could feel the sheathed sword's cold touch without being physically touched. If he would've been hit at that instant, he'd be done for like Kagura foretold.

"That's the bell! The match is hereby a draw!" Mato announced.

The crowd cheered for Lyon and Kagura alike as both fell and landed on their feet. They only stared at the other blankly and in silent retort before simultaneously retreating and walking away.

"Aw, and we were so close." Beth whined.

"That guy was literally saved by the bell." Arana pointed out.

Risley shrugged. "Well, as long as Kagura is okay with it, guess we should be too."

Millianna sheepishly rubbed the back of her head as she caught up. "Heh, uh, sorry I let you down."

"There's no need. Lyon and Yuka were formidable opponents." She paused her sentence as her stride was still and unsound. "However, if this was a real fight…you'd be dead."

Millianna choked a little and fell a little behind Kagura.

Yuka got up with Lyon's aid. "Something tells me she was holding back."

"Every year it's the same story with her. No matter what, she always holds back, never drawing that blade of hers." Lyon looked over his shoulder and back at Kagura, focusing on her blade. "If not for the time running out, it would've been the end."

"I hope they're ready for a spin." Obaba warned.

The audience watched the four Mages return to their tunnels. Once they've entered, it was like a switch was flipped. The mood went from exhilarating to deadly.

"Now it's our turn." Mavis said.

Cana had a hand to her hip. "This is gonna be good. Sabertooth's gonna get its ass kicked bad."

In Fairy Tail's tunnel, two figures were seen. One tightened his scarf while the other took the sunglasses from his V-neck and put them on his face.

"You ready?" One asked.

The one started his calm yet ready stride out towards the light. "Yes." He and the other figure stepped out into the light, where were met with a deafening cheer by the crowd, both them and the duo they were gonna face.

"At long last, we have come to the fight everyone has been waiting to see." Lola said, his tone filled with seriousness. "One guild was the strongest seven years ago, and now they square off against the guild that holds that title to this date. This is gonna be the most intense match as of yet. This match will be Fairy Tail's Nic and Natsu, against Sabertooth's Sting and Rogue. This is more than just any regular match, this is a battle of three Dragon Slayers and one who is told to have power beyond Magic."

"Go get 'em, Sting!" Lector cheered.

Sting smirked, barely able to hold in his excitement. _'I've been looking forward to this my whole life. Natsu.'_

'_Nic Pularis. You will pay for making Milady becoming soft, and for what you did all those years ago.' _Rogue thought, his gaze solemnly on Nic.

Nic and Natsu stared at their respective opponents, saying nothing as they had a red and purple aura respectively.

Gajeel scoffed, but kept a smirk. "That should be me down there, but I get my fun yet when it comes I guess."

"Natsu! Nic! Win this one for Fairy Tail!" Erza cheered.

"And get a couple of hits in for us while you're at it." Laxus added.

"Woohoo! Go beat them up guys!" Happy cheered.

"Nic, do your best." Vanessa hoped.

"This is it. This is our chance. Don't hold anything back." Makarov said lowly, glaring at Guild Master Jiemma and vice versa.

Mato raised an arm. "This is it! You all better give it everything you got within these 30 minutes! Let the match begin!"

Sting and Rogue smirked as they prepared to advance onto Nic and Natsu, but to their surprise, the Fairy Tail Mages closed the distance in no time. Both lunged, and Natsu and Nic slugged Sing and Rogue in their faces, sending them flying.

The crowd roared as the fight had begun. The anticipation was well worth it. Erza smiled at Nic's first strike, while Sabertooth grimaced.

Sting continued to soar and Natsu lunged again after him, kicking him to the side while Sting was still soaring. Sting slid along the ground on his feet, getting a good grip before he made a counter.

"**White Dragon's Roar!**"

Sting fired a concentrated beam of light from his mouth. The Fire Dragon Slayer leaned to the left to dodge. "A laser?!"

Sting turned his head, making the beam curve over towards Nic.

Nic extended a hand back as the beam was heading his way, and a turquoise shield emerged and shielded Nic from Sting's roar. His Protect activated without him having to look behind as his attention was on Rogue as the Shadow Dragon Slayer jumped and cloaked his open hand in shadows.

"**Shadow Dragon's Slash!**"

Rogue punched down onto Nic, but to his sheer disbelief, the attack didn't faze Nic as it instead went through him. "What?!" Rogue had no idea that Nic was technically a Normal-Type within his usual self, meaning Ghost-Type moves like his won't do anything. When the attack fazed through, Nic glowed and shifted into another Plate. In a flash he disappeared and ended up behind Rogue in his Zap Plate Form.

Rogue looked back and was gripped by Nic with a single arm. He was thrown into Sting, both gawking from the force. Nic swung an arm down, and a mighty Thunderbolt zapped downwards, shocking the Twin Dragons.

"Such raw power." Rufus remarked.

The Thunderbolt xeased, and Sting and Rogue were barely holding their ground as a small perimeter around them was fried earth, sizzling, and their bodies had a few scratches as well. The shock from Nic's assault lasted long enough for them to be caught off guard by Natsu's attack.

"**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**"

Natsu lashed his arms lined in fire, and the two Dragon Slayers were overwhelmed yet again as they thudded onto the earth.

"Amazing folks!" Lola shouted through the deafening roars of everyone present. "Sabertooth's Twin Dragons are actually being overwhelmed by the Salamander and Luminous of Fairy Tail!"

Fairy Tail cheered loudly. Frosch and Lector stared down in shock and disbelief as their pals were getting hammered. Lector kept fate as he knew Sting was warming up.

Sting wiped the spit from his chin and got up. Rogue stood back up, glaring at Nic. The duo was unsound by the power that they were struck with, but it seemed their arrogance only was provoked.

"You just are strong. That lightning especially." Sting admitted. "Orga's is something, but I gotta give credit where it's due."

"So tell me." Natsu asked. "Did you seriously beat your Dragons with that crappy power?"

"We didn't just beat them…" Sting clenched a tight fist. "We killed them with our own hands."

Nic was turned to the side as he remained silent as this was a talk amongst Dragon Slayers.

"But didn't you think of them as your parents?" Natsu barked.

Sting spread his knees and held his fists to both sides. "What happened to our Dragon's got nothing to do with you." His body and Rogue's began to glow light and dark auras. Sting's was a holy light while Rogue's was of dark shadows. "Now if you want a taste of a true Dragon Slayers, we'll demonstrate for ya."

Nic and Natsu remained on guard.

"**White Drive.**"

"**Shadow Drive.**"

Jiemma glared at the scene, his grimace clear. "Makarov, your dying guild will perish. Both of you, destroy them…especially Nic Pularis."

Sting closed the distance in a flash between him and Natsu, bringing a fist forward and a flash and powerful burst of light erupted, causing Natsu to reel back a few feet. "Damnit!" He got his footing back, and barely blocked a second, more powerful, light-coated punch by Sting, his cocky laughter escalating. Sting let loose a barrage of punches onto a defenseless Natsu.

"Natsu!" Nic shouted. His eyes widened when his reflexes kicked in. He pivoted and ducked an incoming misty shadow.

"Not bad." Rogue's voice echoed, but try evading this!" The misty shadows became Rogue with glowing red eyes. He vanished and reappeared all around Nic. In vicious flashes, Rogue vanished and fazed through the area, delivering punches and kicks to only be blocked every single time. When he reappeared behind Nic, he let a backhand loose, but without turning around, Nic reached back and caught it. "He's so fast!"

"**Spark!**"

Nic's body was cloaked in electricity and the instant contact shocked Rogue, making him yelp as he was stunned temporarily, making him tangible and Nic lariat him into the earth. Nic flipped and pivoted on his hands and glowed. When he was on his feet again after another flip, he was in his Dread Plate Form. "Come!"

Rogue rushed ahead after Nic, and his punch was caught with one hand. "But…what are you?"

Nic said nothing, and instead used Foul Play. He twisted his body and kicked Rogue harshly into Sting, giving Natsu a breather as he had been given a beating. Nic was back to Natsu's side, his eyes set on Sting and Rogue.

"Thanks for the save." Natsu puffed in his cheeks. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" He fired a concentrated blast of fire at Sting and Rogue alike, but the Twin Dragons rushed ahead and dodged the roar. They closed in and dealt vicious blows after the other, with Natsu on the defensive and Nic was budging back only a few inches per assault. Rogue grunted and yelled, but his attack enhancement didn't seem to be doing much damage.

"**Shadow Dragon's Slash!**" Rogue attacked again with a punch.

"**Crunch!**" Nic opened his mouth and his teeth glowed and elongated. He snapped them down onto Rogue's incoming fist, and Rogue felt the blood being cut off. "You think you got us? You should pay attention to your own weaknesses!" Nic used his free hand and bashed Rogue's face again, sending him to the earth.

Sting dealt another blow to Natsu, and it was followed by a knee strike. "I finally got the chance to show the world I'm better than you! You're nothing compared to me, Natsu!"

Lector nodded. "Now that's Sting for ya."

"Fro thinks so too." Frosch said.

"That damn Luminous is really pushing Rogue's buttons, isn't he?" Orga questioned.

"Such speed, agility, reflexes." Rufus watched the two battles unfold, each battle opposing the other. "To think one twin is covering the other."

"**White Dragon's Claw!**" Sting's hand was cloaked in a bright and mighty light. He struck Natsu right in the stomach.

"Natsu!" Happy shouted.

Natsu planted his feet to the ground. However, he felt his limbs go numb. "Wait…" He looked down, and right where Sting punched him there was some stigmata. "What did you do?!"

"My White Dragon's Claw is infused with Holy Magic. Bearing that insignia with make you unable to move." His fists were cloaked in light. "Now you're my new punching bag!"

"HRAH!" Rogue slashed at Nic, put his wrist was caught. His grip was tight. Rogue was at wit's end with Nic. He had so much durability and endurance. It was like hitting a tank, but he couldn't understand why.

"If you honestly believe that your guild and members themselves are mighty, they haven't seen anything what we can do." Nic's spare hands created a light purple needle, the move being Night Slash, he drew it back. "Everyone suffered for seven years as we went through time, and we intend to repair their heartache in full!" He swiped across Rogue, sending him flying back and his cloak all just ripped into shreds.

"Nic can adapt to a battle's conditions faster than an opponent's trace of movements." Erza said, watching Nic retain a calm focus despite being in the thrill of battle.

Gajeel snickered. "Don't go gloatin' your boyfriend like he's king of the ring, Erza." Gajeel countered. "Don't forget Salamander's got some gutsy moves himself."

As Sting raced after Natsu, he noticed the Fire Dragon Slayer smiling, which bugged him. He drove a punch forward, but Natsu suddenly got the upper hand with a fire-coated fist to Sting's nose. The crackling burst all about and Sting stumbled backwards.

"What the…you shouldn't be moving!" To his shock, the insignia wasn't there, and Natsu's stomach was instead sizzling. "He burned off the insignia…?"

"You're strong." Natsu cracked his knuckles. "But you're gonna have to do way better than that." He brought back a fist and it was coated on flames. "**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" He dealt a blow to Sting's cheek, sending him flying and colliding with Rogue in midair.

Nic appeared overhead, changing into his Meadow Plate Form. He opened his mouth. "**Seed Bomb!**"

Sting and Rogue looked up to see dozens of fast-moving seeds showering down onto them. Both lunged and ducked out of the way and fumbled from the shockwaves the Seed Bomb made. The attack left uneven indents in the ground, small craters that made it look like the surface of the moon.

"That power, is it really that intense?" Rogue questioned as Nic landed beside Natsu.

"Afraid so. That would've hurt us bad." Sting replied. He took a stance and his body was giving off an intense light. "Rogue, stand back." Rogue did as told and Sting concentrated even more light. "Sorry guys, but when we go all out, we make sure you're not standing! Ready yourself, Natsu!"

"What's this?! I can't see anything!" Lola announced, covering himself from the bright light.

"Sting is concentrating every ounce of power he has to one point." Yajima informed. "He's gonna unleash a devastating spell."

"You feel that Magic Power? It's humungous!" Romeo exclaimed.

"Fire and the elements Nic has is nothing compared to this!" Sting's massive concentration converged to his right arm, swirling with pressure that could be felt amongst the spectators in the area. He lunged at Natsu, bringing his arm forward. "**Dragon Slayer Secret Art – Holy Nova!**" He punched Natsu at point-blank range, the light letting loose at that moment. The blast wave was tremendous, and it encompassed the entire arena. Debris and shockwave raged through the area, forcing everyone in the stands and balconies to cover up.

When the light faded and the dust cleared out, Sting looked down and grinned, thinking he finally laid some hurt. He felt something off as his hands had a tight grip. He looked up, and he was struck with horror as Natsu blocked his attack with one hand. To say Sting was mortified and astonished would be an understatement, because the shock he expressed was priceless.

"You've gotta be joking." Orga said.

"I don't remember Sting's attack being blocked without much effort." Rufus reported.

Lector could barely swallow. "Impossible."

"Wha?" Frosch mumbled.

"Natsu Dragneel just stopped Sting's attack with just one hand!" Lola yelled through the mic.

Nic's coat flapped in the low winds and he felt something behind. His glance underneath his sunglasses shifted, as Rogue appeared from out of his shadow to strike from behind. "NIC PULARIS!"

"Stay down!" Nic pivoted and shot a lightning fast punch square into Rogue's face, making the Shadow Dragon Slayer skid along the ground. Natsu brought a fist back and delivered yet another punch to Sting. Nic and Natsu were on offense as they pounded Sting and Rogue left and right, dealing blow after blow; in Rogue's case, he was bloodied in a few places from Nic's assaults.

Everyone watched as Sting and Rogue fell to the earth, thudding and grunted as they felt immense pain. Lector and Frosch were startled and on the verge of tears at Sting and Rogue being of no match against them.

"Sabertooth's Twin Dragons are at the complete mercy of Fairy Tail's Nic and Natsu!" Lola stated, much to the crowd's cheering. "Will Sabertooth lay in the dirt and face defeat?"

Rogue struggled up and blood was on him. He panted as his gaze on Nic was hazy. _'Nic…Pularis…'_

"Come on Rogue. We're not done yet." Sting reminded him. "We didn't expect this to be easy, remember?"

"…yeah. It's time we show these clowns *cough* what a Third Generation Dragon Slayer can really do."

Sting closed his eyes. His mind was lost in the remembrance of a little Lector, who had tears in his eyes. A long time back, when he met the Exceed, he pat his head and that made him smile. Sting made a promise and he swore to defeat Natsu, and no matter what, he intended to keep it.

Sting and Rogue suddenly pulsed, and the air shifted. The two were exerted a massive amount of Magic Power. "Natsu, I intend to keep my promise to Lector." His body was covered in white marks, while Rogue was in black ones.

Makarov's eyes widened. "I don't believe it."

Minerva grinned. "It looks like they were pushed this far after all."

Spectating discreetly, Jellal's eyes widened. _'No. This power. It can't be!' _He remembered Natsu having the same transformation, and that was back in the Oracion Seis incident. _'It was only when Natsu ate the Flame of Rebuke, and yet these two can activate it whenever they seem fit?!'_

Mavis looked nervous. "Dragon Force."

"So this is the natural Dragon Force." Erza said, feeling the immense and unbelievable Magic Power.

"Well this ain't good." Gajeel said.

Laxus's eyes narrowed. "I wouldn't put my eggs into that one basket. Those two have something to prove yet. Besides…" He paused. "Don't you guys remember what Nic can do?"

Sting and Rogue stepped forward, with the latter set on Nic. "Nic Pularis, you're all mine. Sting, don't talk me out of this."

Sting snickered. "So you're that intended on revenge huh? Well I won't stop ya. Just don't get in the way when I bash Natsu, okay?"

Lector huffed. "Sting and Rogue are in control now. I can't believe we were so worried."

"They're getting cocky." Natsu said.

"Careful." Nic countered. "Here they come."

Sting and Rogue both instantly met them both. Sting punched Natsu so hard he sailed backwards towards the wall. Nic met Rogue head on, their punches colliding. A small crackle could be heard throughout the arena. Rogue viciously attacked Nic, parrying blow after blow. Physical punches were dealt and deflected by both parties. Nic's surprise was cascaded behind his sunglasses, but he adapted well. He dealt a kick to Rogue's stomach, and followed it up with his forearms turning into Leaf Blade. Rogue turned into a shadowy mist again and dodged. Nic ducked to evade a kick, and pivoted, now facing Rogue again and parrying blows, and yet Rogue was just being parried.

Natsu sprung of the wall and used flames as a boost. He shot head first with cloaked flames. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" He went after Sting, but Sting kneed him in the chin, leaving Natsu to feel the blow before Sting kicked him away.

"**Shadow Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Leaf Tornado!**"

Rogue and Nic's attacks collided in the middle. Making a maelstrom of black and green. The field of colors dissipated, and Rogue shoved back a couple of feet. _'Nic is seriously holding his own? His combat experience is like any other…is this how he beat them?' _Rogue cloaked his hands into shadows again and attacked. "Stop holding back!"

Nic back flipped and dodged the attack. In midair, he made a sphere of green and light green. "**Energy Ball!**" He fired the attack, and Rogue disappeared, evading the explosive attack that made a green explosion.

Nic and Natsu looked up, seeing both Dragon Slayers. Sting smirked at their astonished looks.

"**White Dragon's Holy Breath!**"

Sting fired a humungous volume of light that blasted Nic and Natsu. The entire stadium quaked and rattled violently, and everyone covered up as debris flew. Bright light flashed relentlessly and the floor to the arena shattered. In the center was a humungous hole that dust and rock were falling into.

"The whole floor just gave in! Sting's brutal attack had broken even through Domus Flau!" Lola yelled.

"I can't believe how destructive it is." Erza shuddered.

"Damn." Laxus was just a surprised.

"Those guys are messin' with Third Generation." Gajeel said. "They gotta make another comeback yet."

Nic and Natsu were seen falling down the hole into the catacombs, both having some damage accumulated. Nic shook his head and cleared his vision.

"Nic!" Vanessa shouted.

"Natsu! Hang in there!" Lucy shouted.

"In a moment folks!" Monitors appeared on Lola's call. "Let's see the action go underground through lacrima-vision!" The lacrima showed Nic and Natsu falling, with Sting and Rogue diving after them.

"We're not through!" Rogue shouted. He folded in his arms and sailed down faster after Nic.

Nic changed his course of action and glowed. Rogue was suddenly caught and gagged when Nic slowed down, hauling Natsu with one arm. When the glow faded, Nic's attire was the royal blue color of his Draco Plate Form, and the edging was a grim gray, with the belt buckle being a Dusk Ball and the belt itself was gray, with the emblem and ring on the back of the coat being that same color. "**Ghost/Dragon!**" Nic confidently shouted.

As he held Rogue, he threw Natsu up to Sting as he fell. Natsu used the momentum and was coated in flames. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" He headbutted Sting in the stomach, sending him crashing into a piece of falling rock, shattering it.

"Yeah! That's the way!" Happy cheered.

Nic threw Rogue into rubble beneath, where Rogue broke through. Nic's mouth opened wide. He charged up a multicolored energy and concentrated it into his mouth. "**Dragon Pu-!**"

Suddenly he felt some vague pulse that went through him. It was odd. His draconic energy in his mouth dissipated and he seemed to be in shock. It was a bad feeling that Nic was getting, and in a way, it felt like draconic energy. _'What…is this my Spooky Plate acting up?' _His sensory added with the now-active Spooky Plate resulted into something like ghosts being sensed. It was leaving Nic distraught to the point where the battle seemed all but a background. He flapped his wings, gliding down slowly as Natsu landed on some debris that continued falling. _'Am I sensing ghosts, or can it be…?'_

"Hey, what's wrong with Nic?" Droy asked.

"He looks out of it." Jet stated.

"Come on, Nic! Get your head back in the game!" Levy cheered.

"Whatever's going on, Nic's feeling it." Gray noted.

Nic got his focus back where it belonged and he saw Sting and Rogue both landing on the ground. Sting put his hands together and smirked. Light and Holy Magic was infusing into one. He reached out at Nic and Natsu, both seeing his assault.

"**Holy Ray!**"

Thousands of light arrows went converging onto Nic and Natsu. The audience was in wow as the assault closed in fast.

Nic grabbed Natsu and made a dark hole above. "Hang on tight! **Phantom Force!**"

"Hey, wait! I didn't approve of thi-WHOA!" Natsu was hauled by the scarf as Nic flew up into the hole. The hole vanished as the light rays closed in, flashing repeatedly and missed their target.

"That's our Nic. Always thinking on the fly." Makarov said.

"Quick to snap judgments. His experience in battles and fighting is very lethal." Mavis pointed out.

Sting and Rogue looked around at the bottom of the catacombs, turning their heads left and right. They tried to sense the Magic, but they got hardly any idea where. Their glances then turned towards the same location: Up. Both dodged at the last second as the hole reappeared overhead. Nic and Natsu appeared out of the hole, making a dark explosion that made a carter at Nic's feet.

Sting and Rogue shot back on opposite ends, both skidding to a halt and lunged back at their targets. Nic and Natsu diverged and assaulted at their attackers. Natsu was barely keeping up with Sting pounding and blasting light in his face, as to where Nic was dodging with speed and reflexes. He turned into shadows and swerved through the atmosphere, reappearing behind Rogue.

"**Shadow Claw!**" He slashed at Rogue with black shadows outlined in purple. Rogue turned around and caught it in time, but Nic swatted his arm away and jumped back into a skid. His hands made a sphere of black and purple. "**Shadow Ball!**" He threw the attack at Rogue, traveling over the land as it left a broken and destroyed trail. Rogue dodged with a huge jump, evading the dark explosion that encompassed a very large area beneath.

'_What power!' _Rogue thought. He was met by Nic as he took flight. Nic brought a fist back and it released draconic energy that shaped into a claw.

"**Dragon Claw!**" Nic slashed at Rogue, and the Shadow Dragon Slayer morphed into shadows like Nic did earlier. As Nic followed through, he suddenly got another pulse of some ghastly force, and it felt heavy in draconic energy. _'There it is again. Where's it coming from?'_

"Above you!" Cana shouted.

"Nic, look out!" Sophie yelled to the monitor.

"**Shadow Dragon's Roar!**"

Nic looked up and before he knew it, he was too distraught and took the blast of shadows. He went sailing downwards and crashed into the catacomb walls. He grunted and gagged as the shock from the roar made him fumble from large rock to large rock until he used his wings and spread them out, gaining resistance and managed to land on his feet harshly.

"Damnit." Nic shook his head, trying to get his head back in the game. "It's like there's ghost inside my head."

Sting and Natsu both attacked the other, but Sting just pounded away. He dodged every counter Natsu threw, and he threw Natsu in midair, and he let loose a powerful light beam that got Natsu.

"Are you seeing this Lector?!" Sting shouted with a smile.

Lector sniffled. "Uh huh!"

"_What's up Lector? Why are you crying?" A younger Sting asked, seeing the little Exceed having tears run down his face. "Are those guys bullying you again?"_

"_It's those jerks!" Lector cried. "They won't believe anything I tell them! When I told them how you killed a Dragon with your bare hands, they just laughed and called me a liar straight to my face!" His pitch was altering sometimes as he cried._

_Sting leaned against a small rock on the grassy sloped. "Oh let them talk. I don't care what they say."_

"_I do!" Lector retorted. "You didn't hear them yourself!"_

"_It's not a bother to me, really." Sting insisted._

"_I know! It's…it's just…I don't like it when people talk smack about my best friend!" Lector shouted._

_Sting's eyes widened at Lector's words. It touched him, and he grinned. He sat up and rubbed Lector's furry little head. "Okay then, I'll prove to them you're not a liar." He looked up to the sky rather than a confused Lector's face. "There might not be any Dragons left, but there is that Salamander of Fairy Tail." He smiled and looked down to Lector. "Someday, I'll take him down in front of everyone, that'll show that you're no liar…it's a promise, count on it."_

Sting huffed and raised a triumphant fist over a pile of rubble. Natsu laid down on the ground in front of him while Nic was on a knee, not at all panting, but discouraged as his head wasn't in the game. He took some damage from Rogue, and although it did annoy him some, he seemed durable enough to stand, which he did.

"Yay, Sting! That's one down!" Lector cheered.

Happy looked like he was on the verge of tears. "No…"

"And now it all comes to defeating Nic." Rogue said, stepping forward. "You're gonna fall just like Natsu."

"Natsu! Get up…please." Lucy implored, her fists shaking on the balcony of her guild's stands.

Nic remained silent as he looked down at Natsu, disregarding the several scrapes his form took. He was fine, but Natsu wasn't such a case, but there was something that Nic knew that was too good to be true. This was Natsu.

Sting turned away. "Well, I finally got my break. Thanks Natsu, this was the toughest I had, thanks for this chance."

A long silence breezed through the area before Nic broke it.

"Are you done lying down?" He asked. "No need to play dead anymore."

The Twin Dragons looked back in sheer disbelief as Natsu was getting to his knees.

"Yeah, yeah. I hear ya." He mumbled.

The crowd raged on in loud cheers as Natsu was back on his feet. Fairy Tail cheered on loudly, Happy being the most proud. Lucy smiled wide as Natsu was seen cracking his neck.

"Aw man, I'm gonna feel that for awhile." Natsu groaned. Nic snickered as that was classic Natsu.

"It's like Sting's attacks didn't do anything at all!" Lola shouted.

"No way…how is he even standing? I used Dragon Force!" Sting shouted.

Natsu snickered. "Now I'm all fired up."

Lector looked at the monitor and his eyes shuddered. "No way…this can't be real, can it?"

Erza smiled. "It looks like Natsu's alright. Nic should be too." Her smiled widened when she saw Nic step forward with Natsu on the monitor.

Both contenders looked unfazed as their heads were back in the game. Nic glowed and shifted back to himself, glaring through his sunglasses. "If you honestly believed that Natsu could be held down that easily, you're bigger fools than we thought."

"What'd you say?! Our Dragon Force was supposed to keep you down! I'm surprised enough that Natsu is standing, but how in the hell are you even a match against Dragon Force, Nic Pularis?! There's nothing stronger than a Dragon!"

Nic frowned as he processed Sting's retort. "…you're wrong."

The Twin Dragons narrowed their eyes as Nic said otherwise.

"Dragons are powerful, yes, but you weren't there. Acnologia, the King of Dragons, was humiliated by Pokémon. He lost against them, and it was hard to comprehend, but it happened." Nic looked over at Natsu as he stared at the ground. "There are others that are superior out there."

"Are you saying these Pokémon creatures have more might than a Dragon?" Rogue asked. "I say you're bluffing."

"Yeah, like Rogue said! Nothing's better than a Dragon! This power killed Weisslogia, a Dragon! Pokémon don't have the power to do such a thing!"

It was as though a switch turned on once more because Nic gave off a vibrant energy flow. All of the Magic Power around them was at a complete standstill as Nic's body gave off a pulse. The Twin Dragons widened their eyes at this unbelievable energy that Nic was giving off.

He was holding back alright, and even so, they were still no match for his might. Now…they were screwed, big time.

"Then I'll show you the error of your ways." Nic retorted. The Twin Dragons both stepped back while Natsu smirked and jumped away, aware of this power shift.

"Can you feel that power? What is Nic doing down there?" Lola asked.

"He's generating and giving off so much power…" Yakima looked like he was gonna shiver. "This power, it's horrific."

The audience was in the same boat. They all held the other as a _massive _extent of power was being unleashed, and the area was starting to heat up gradually. Sting and Rogue found themselves trembling and shuddering, and they couldn't control it. Kagura and Jura both nearly fell back, their strong wills being startled by this overflow of power, which scared their guild mates as well.

Makarov's eyes shuddered. "Nic, it can't be…"

Mavis's eyes were dilating out of shock. "It's not Magic, but this power is exceeding the Dragon Force…"

Gray gasped. "Hang on! We've felt this before!"

"Is Nic…?" Vanessa stared at the monitor, ignoring the increased temperature all around. Her Pokémon seemed unsound as this level of power was unleashing in massive quantities.

Nic gave off a strong, lava-like aura that covered his body. The area around him was starting to sizzle violently, and what appeared to be hardened and molten rock exhausted from his feet. The lava aura he gave off almost made everyone watching feel like the earth was mad at them. Jura and Kagura's pupils were dilating uncontrollably as they fell back at last, this massive power flow too much for even the strongest of Mermaid Heel and a Ten Wizard Saint could stomach. Molten rock and lava sprouted from the ground, gushing out and encompassing Nic.

"Impossible…" Sting muttered, feeling the burning sparks shift by.

Everyone saw Nic was no longer visible underneath the mound of molten rock with lava cracks. The power level was beyond comprehensive, so much that Minerva was in shock. _'He's had this much power, even hiding it from Jiemma?'_

In the stands, Bellona was looking down as her hands was trembling. This level of power was humungous. She never felt this kind or level of strength. _'Nic Pularis, just what are you?'_

"This power." Erza started, her eyes wide. "I never knew Nic could do that on his own now." She recalled as to how Nic was always using that, but there was a catch. "Whenever he used that, there was always an incentive, something to provoke him. I never thought he'd be able to use it at will now."

Natsu hid behind some rubble as rays of orange light went through the lava cracks. Sting and Rogue backed away and found cover when the mound erupted, sending a beam of light into the sky. The bright beam reached up high above everyone's heads and dissipated into the atmosphere. The temperature then began to burn to an intensive degree. Molten rock exploded and sent a shockwave all around. The land quaked and the catacombs all around cracked, with lava geysers spouting up around Nic and splattering all around, cooling off instantly and leaving fresh, hardened black land with lava cracks running through all of the catacombs.

Sting and Rogue peeked from their cover and they shuddered. Nic was standing there, growling and completely transformed. Lola and Yajima were both gaping their mouths and Yajima's hat fell off.

"**Legendary Force – Groudon!**" Nic roared, sending hot and violent ripples through the atmosphere, sending the Twin Dragons flying and pillars of molten earth arose. Lava dripped from his mouth and steam was all around him.

"I remember this Legendary Force." Sophie said, her body quivering.

Cana swallowed. "Yeah. That was when we up against Lysandre in the Celestial World. He's packing more power than ever now."

The land bulged and cracked some more, and molten rock and lava filled the crevices. Nic's eyes diverted all around. He raised an arm and brought it out an around, roaring low. Behind Natsu, massive mounds of molten rock and lava spouted. Molten rock even spilled from the catacomb walls, spilling into the area. Nic finished his long arc, and the area all around him was molten and lava-like. Steam and skin-burning heat exerted from all around, making Sting and Rogue become paralyzed.

'_Is…is this a dream?' _Sting thought, seeing the beast that Nic had become.

'_Nic Pularis, he really has this much power?' _Rogue thought.

Nic took a step forward, and landed and small pillars of molten rock jutted up with every slow step he took. He growled low again, and roared at the Twin Dragons. "Now to bring your arrogance to sunder."

In the stands, the two cloaked figures looked surprised, and one was looking at the might Natsu was applying as he was flaming up profusely, more so with this searing heat and great sunshine. The cloaked figure let a tear fall, and far away, Jellal's eyes widened when that power was felt. _'This power!' _He turned towards the source, but the two figures weren't there. Jellal ran off. _"I'm in pursuit guys! As much as I wanna stay and watch, this is more important!"_

Sting growled and struggled to keep himself stable, but he never felt so much power resonating from a single source. _'No! I can't give up, not while I have a promise to keep!' _Sting took a step forward. "**White Dragon's Roar!**" Sting fired an intense blast of concentrated light at Nic and Natsu.

Nic opened up his mouth and green orbs were being made. The solar energy gathering was tremendous, and he let it all out in one go. "**Solar Beam!**" Nic let loose a gigantic green beam that traveled and shattered the molten ground and raced straight through Stong's roar. Sting was left paralyzed by how gigantic the attack was, and yet Nic shot it so it barely grazed Sting's shoulder. The Solar Beam was so brutal that it blasted straight through the rock of the molten catacombs and the beam traveled out of the crags and reached somewhere in the open avenues of the vacant Crocus. A massive green explosion could be seen on the lacrima-vision and shot up.

"OH MY GOODNESS!" Lola screamed, paling at Nic's raw power. "Nic Pularis is unstoppable!"

Sting slowly looked behind and looked horrified by the depth and size of the hole made. He never saw such devastating force in one go. The distraction led to him getting assaulted by Natsu from above.

"**Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**"

Natsu's massive fireball showered down onto Sting, bursting into spouts of flames. "Bull's eye!"

"That was strong." Lily commented.

"It's gotta be the sunlight." Vanessa said. "In this weather, in a Pokémon's scenario, Fire-Type moves do more damage. Remember Moltres back in Kalos?"

"Oh right. That flaming bird Charizard defeated. Yeah, I get it." Lisanna said.

Lucy held up a confident fist. "Which means Natsu's getting a boost!"

Rogue took no haste and went to attack Nic. "HRAH!" His hands were cloaked in shadows and he punched Nic, but his hand burned from the proximity and touch to Nic's chest, in which he wasn't fazed in the slightest. Rogue stepped back, being weary of the cooling lava in between the cracks. "No way. Not even a scratch?"

Nic raised his arm and brought it down. Molten land jutted underneath Rogue and stretched out to pin and smash him into the nearby wall. The molten bridge was broken when Sting shot through it with a beam of light. The Twin Dragons regrouped and stepped back as Nic seemed to be glaring.

Natsu used this chance and dealt a flurry of punches and kicks, the heat and molten earth leaving him unfazed. The Twin Dragons diverted their attention towards Natsu and assaulted back. They let loose a massive array of blows, and Natsu deflected and punched back, knocking them both away.

"**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**"

With one swing in a spiral, Natsu let flaming lashes send the Twin Dragons sliding back. They both got to a knee and a massive fire was heading their way on their right.

"**Fire Blast!**"

A pillar of fire erupted from the massive hole, and everyone gaped as the huge pressure within the pyro mayhem below. The shock from the fire dissipated quickly, but that didn't mean Jura wasn't trembling.

"Immense power. He created land." Jura said, pupils dilating. "Luminous has that much power? He can create land all over the world!"

The hole's rubble was reduced to ashes or melted. The entire floor was cooled earth and lava cracks bubbled. Melted rock dripped down from high above, sizzling upon touching the ground where Sting and Rogue were. Both had destroyed clothing, and burn marks were all over their body. They were on their last legs, and they were startled and shaken up bad.

"This is bad." Orga said.

"I don't remember such a force as this." Rufus noted, equally as shocked. "And yet…I can't memorize Luminous's power?!"

Minerva had a blank expression. Her opinion ad opposition was clear. "This power Nic has, it truly is one that surpasses Dragon Force. We see that now."

"**Holy Ray!**" Sting desperately fired light from a huge sphere and hundreds of light arrows went at Nic. They exploded upon contact, and yet Nic didn't budge back a single inch. He took it all, and he bellowed a heated roar, dissipating Sting's attack.

Sting stepped back. "No way…"

"**Fire Dragon's Roar!**" Natsu blasted right through Sting's dissipating attack and struck the two again. Sting and Rogue were engulfed in an explosion and fell back.

Both Dragon Slayers stumbled up to their feet. They had the same tired look. Rogue brought back his right arm. "ENOUGH, NIC! NOW STING!"

"YEAH!" Sting brought his left arm back.

Sting exerted massive amounts of light that began to overlap Rogue's sphere of shadows behind him. They were generating so much power and the light and shadow began to merge.

"They're attempting a Unison Raid." Makarov said in disbelief.

"Their individual Magic is now one." Mavis noted.

Frosch was tearing up. "Come on, Rogue."

Lector sniffled. "They can pull it off! Sting's never gonna lose! Not ever!"

"Oh my. It seems that the Twin Dragons are using a Unison Raid." Lola announced.

"It's technically considered Fusion Magic. You can spend your whole life training and never master it." Yajima said.

The two gigantic spheres began growing immensely, and Sting and Rogue glared at Nic and Natsu as they only stood there. This was their last shot. The gigantic spheres the two had suddenly vanished, and a still might rattled through the atmosphere. Right then and there, a small but very compress ball of light and shadow was swirling.

"Look out!" Happy shouted.

'_I know Nic can do this.' _Erza thought. _'The Twin Dragons are nothing compared to what Nic had to face.'_

"**Holy Shadow Dragon's Flash Fang!**" Sting and Rogue brought their fists forward, sending a swirling blast of light and shadow that rattled the molten earth. The immense force was enough to make Lola nearly jump out of his seat as so much Magic Power was in that one shot.

Nic glowed a lava aura and molten rock bulged all around him. His eyes widened and glinted.

"**Maxus Legendary Arts – Precipice Blades!**"

Nic folded his claws and clasped them out front. A gigantic rumbling bellowed beneath, and the earth suddenly heated up. Natsu looked down and his eyes were wide as the cracks spouted lava he had to evade. He got behind Nic as he roared out. Random incandescent stones tipped in lava jutted forth from the earth, sprouting all over the ground. The Twin Dragon's Unison Raid dispersed as it was hit by a single stone. The Twin Dragons were left hopeless as the attack closed in.

At that instant, a lava shockwave bellowed beneath the crags. The whole level exploded massively, and a pillar of fire, debris, and molten rock shot up. Everyone screamed at the raw power as the Domus Flau Colosseum's structure melted just a little, and the whole structure, along with the crags themselves, cracked and dropped maybe thirty or so feet. The audience was spared, but the stadium had hot spots and melted locations, including the four huge statues. Everyone was at a loss for words as the massive pillar and shockwaves stopped rumbling, and the lacrima-vision was static briefly before clearing up.

All around, the catacombs were reduced to literally molten rock and ashes. A layer of fresh, cooled rock overlapped the shattered and destroyed bits of…everything. Shambles and hot rock steamed profusely, as though they were in a lava pit. Cooled lava sizzled in several places, and lying atop of a random pile of smoldering and destroyed rubble was Sting and Rogue. They were unconscious, barely in one piece, and many parts had burns and charred places.

As the steam shifted, it revealed Natsu and Nic, the latter in his normal self, and not looking exhausted at all.

The bell went off, signaling Fairy Tail win.

"OH MY GOD! NIC PULARIS HAD JUST DEMOLISHED THE ENTIRE CRAG THAT DOMUS FLOW WAS ESTABLISHED ON!" Lola yelled. "In no contest! Fairy Tail dominated and ruthlessly defeated Sabertooth's Twin Dragons! They moved back into 1st place! This is a major upturn for Fairy Tail, as they have demonstrated the ruthless and raw power of their mightiest!"

"Yeah!" Natsu held up a fist and looked excited.

Nic remained satisfied and his sunglasses reflected the sunlight as it went back to normal.

Makarov gaped his mouth, twitching at Nic's insane power. "He…he…"

"Demolished everything?" Mavis giggled a little. "That's Fairy Tail for ya!"

Cana snickered. "He could've used a little more juice if he wanted to."

Sophie crossed her arms. "As I remember, Nic's Precipice Blades back then in his Primal Groudon destroyed the earth entirely in the Celestial World. He could've taken Crocus and the mountain range if he wanted to. Guess he decided to go easy on collateral damage."

Erza smiled as she looked at the monitor, her focus on Nic.

"And that is a wrap for Day 4!" Lola shouted, excited over that display. "Tomorrow is a day of rest for our fighters, and then it's on to the big finale! All fighters are gonna duke it out in a battle royal, and only one guild's gonna take the title! Who will it be?! Don't miss it!"

The scoreboard showed the results.

**1****st**** Place: Fairy Tail - 46**

**2****nd**** Place: Sabertooth - 44**

**3****rd**** Place: Mermaid Heel - 40**

**3****rd**** Place: Lamia Scale - 40**

**5****th**** Place: Blue Pegasus - 30**

**6****th**** Place: Quatro Puppy – 15**

"Those fairies made it, I knew they would!" Bob mused.

"That was wild." Goldmine was still fixated on that last move. "Too wild."

"Aim for not just Fairy Tail! Makarov and his little child Nic Pularis better be conquered!" Obaba shouted.

Makarov snickered triumphantly. "Bring it!"

Over the smoldering and molten hole, Lector looked down and cried at how badly his best friend lost. The tears just didn't stop.

"Fro is sad." Frosch sniffled.

Orga looked unsound. "Okay, that was insane."

"Yes, a sight that I could only remember somewhat." Rufus reluctantly admitted.

Minerva turned away, her hair shifted as she walked down the tunnel. "I always wanted to see something like that, and now I did." She stopped briefly and looked outside. "I wonder how Nic got that strong to begin with?" She shrugged. "It doesn't matter. His power trumps anyone's. Now I can't wait for Jiemma's face."

In the stands, Jiemma gave off a purple aura, scaring off the spectators around him as his guild lost miserably against Nic. His seat cracked under his pressure. He growled and his eyes showed. He was furious over the outcome. He was gonna deal with Sting and Rogue when they healed.

"That was a good fight." Nic praised, grinning.

"Hell yeah! Let's do that again some time!" Natsu said.

* * *

As the audience left the arena, Jellal, still in disguise, his amongst the crowd. The crowd was diverted on a safe route after Nic's last move. Looking back, he saw the brutal devastation Nic's Legendary Force could wield. It was a shocker. He diverted his attention back ahead, and he saw the two cloaked figures present, walking silently amongst the crowd. Jellal kept on the trail and never took his eyes off of them.

In the locker room, Happy high-fived Natsu. "Aw yeah!"

"Now that's how we roll!" Natsu shouted.

"Great job you guys." Lucy praised. "I knew you guys could pull it off."

Gajeel crossed his arms. "Not bad, Salamander, Luminous. Betcha I could've gone solo myself."

Natsu slipped right in front of him. "Say what?! I could've beaten them myself!"

Gajeel butted heads with Natsu. "What are you yammering on about?! Luminous had control the entire time! He did most of the work!"

As the two leered on, Vanessa smiled at Nic. "You gave us quite the scare a few moments here and there." She said. "I'm glad you came out alright."

"Thanks." Nic smiled at his younger sister. He had a hand touch his shoulder, looking back over his shoulder, he saw that it was a smiling Erza.

"Erza." Nic said joyfully.

Erza turned away, a small blush on her cheeks. "…Nic."

"Yeah…?"

Nic was suddenly met with a pair of soft lips on his cheek. His cheeks gave way to a blush as Erza pulled back, having the same blush Nic was having. Erza looked away, her eyes shut as she proudly smiled.

"I figured you've earned a reward for putting us back on top." She backed up.

Nic cleared his throat and his blush settled down somewhat as everyone uproariously laughed at the cute scene of Nic being embarrassed, but took it in stride and shrugged off their laughs, as it was the thought that count.

"Great work to you both." Makarov walked up to the winners. He stood affirm alongside Mavis and looked at their confident faces. "You both have shown that Fairy Tail has more than just bark. Our bite is mighty, and today we proved that fairies are triumphant over tigers. Rest up tomorrow, for Day 5…we take the 30 Million Jewel!"

"That's not why we're here!" Everyone spatted back.

"1st place! Alright!" Natsu shouted, with Happy and Lucy cheering with him.

As they all cheered, Nic seemed amused as everyone had big smiles and cheered. However, the more he looked at them, the more uneasy and foreboding feelings he felt surging. He half-grinned. _'What was that ominous and ghastly energy back down underneath? What was down there?'_

"Nic?" Erza's voice got his attention and he snapped back to her curious face. "You okay?"

Nic grinned as a means of façade. "Yeah, I'm well." He snickered. "Although an omelet sounds pretty good right now."

Everyone laughed as they were being their cheery and happy selves. Although deep down, Nic did have a _very_ bad feeling.

* * *

Day soon turned to night and the streets were as quiet and desolate as a forest. Still no stars, and so many wished for them to be back. Among the few that hoped, Sergeant Yukino, now with the Rune Knights, was looking up from the large window at the damaged Domus Flau colosseum. She would be at a loss for words if not for the fact she wasn't present.

'_So Nic and Natsu defeated Sabertooth.' _She thought. _'They really did it.'_

"You seem conflicted." A fellow soldier speculated, walking up to her with arms behind his back.

Yukino continued facing at the outside. "No, my attachments to Sabertooth are no longer valid. I assure you…" She turned around with a smile. "What's difficult is being called 'Sergeant'."

The soldier nodded. "I understand completely ma'am. It's an adaptation, but your involvement in the Eclipse Project means you need a rank, but you'll get used to it soon enough. I'm sure."

Yukino's expression went from soft to serious. "This is an important step we're taking." She turned and laid her arms onto the window balcony. "I will do whatever it takes to assure Eclipse goes as planned. I owe Arcadios for this chance…wait. I suppose he's Kernel instead, right?"

"It's no trouble. I just call him 'Sir' to play it safe."

"I understand." Yukino looked down in the gardens below, where Arcadios was walking calmly yet sternly through on his patrol. "He's trying to save us all, and no one knows."

* * *

"_Jellal? What's going on?"_

"_Did they get away, again?"_

Jellal kept his distance as he overlooked the two cloaked figures that walked soundly through the streets. _"No, I'm on their tail. They won't get away this time." _He silently treaded a safe and cautious distance from them. _'I have to know how they're connected to Zeref. You two are not getting out of my sight.'_

Jellal followed them through an alleyway, where the two crossed into another street, unaware of Jellal trailing them. He kept a silent and steady pace as they went down the street underneath each light post.

After what felt like half an hour of tailing them, the cloaked figures made it to a high balcony by means of stairs. Jellal finally made his moves. "Stop right there."

The cloaked figures grew stiff and ceased moving.

Jellal made it to the top of the balcony, taking his hood and scarf off. "Reveal yourselves. I have already revealed my identity."

The night wind went by and the cloaked were picked up, showing one figure with slender legs and sandals and the other had shoes and pants.

"A woman?" Jellal speculated of the sandal-wearing cloaked figure.

Tme seemed to have slowed down as both cloaked figures turn to face him, confronting Jellal head on. Their faces were as clear as day underneath the hoods thanks to the moonlight. An ominous tension went through the air and Jellal stepped back in deep shock and revelation.

His eyes shuddered at their identities. "…impossible…"

* * *

In the confines of space, sitting amongst the stardust, Arceus's eyes widened. A weak gasped came from him.

Dialga and Palkia both looked up a at the tainted gold-glowing God. "Arceus, what's wrong?" Dialga asked.

Arceus was fixated on the vile and ominous feeling. "I have had a dark wave went by. Whatever is coming, it's gonna arrive…and it's massive."

Dialga and Palkia looked at each other with uneasy dread as Arceus was sickly and pale enough as he was. He was on his last legs and unable to move. He didn't have too long.

"Dialga. Palkia. A bad omen that had plagued the stars to become dark will arrive. No matter what happens, do whatever it is you can to help Nic Pularis." Arceus winced and coughed, and as he did, Dialga and Palkia tensed up further. Arceus composed and looked down at them once more.

"Prepare yourselves for the war of dark and light. This shall be the battle to determine if the universe survives…or dies."

* * *

**Cliffhanger! Sorry for the wait again, but I'm happy that **_**EDventures in Kalos **_**is over with and I got this chapter up. Now I know many of you consider the second half of the GMG Arc the Eclipse Arc, but it's still technically the GMG Arc, so keep that in mind, so that means this will go through the Dragons invading, with my own flavor added in. **

**Also I'm leaving for vacation for the weekend, so if I don't update before the 2****nd**** of July, it'll be another week. I'll work as fast as I can, but if not, at least I got this in.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the battles and the foreboding action!**

* * *

**Next Time: Graveyard of Omens**


	76. Graveyard of Omens

Chapter 76 – Graveyard of Omens

**Hey, Insane Dominator here! Like I said before, I was on vacation, and that meant a vacation from FanFiction as well. Now I'm back in action. I got a decent sized chunk done before vacation, and then I finished up right after I returned. This one includes a small bit of OVA 5 with my unique flavor added. This story also has reached over 1 million words in total! Let's add to that!**

**To Recap:**

Fairy Tail Team A and B consolidated into one team of Nic, Natsu, Erza, Gajeel, and Laxus, and they readied for the Day 4 double battle against Sabertooth. After Quatro Puppy lost to Blue Pegasus, and Mermaid Heel tied with Lamia Scale, Nic and Natsu went against Sabertooth's Twin Dragons and were on fair grounds. Nic had an odd sensation during the battle, but he briefly overcame that and shocked everyone with his mastery of Legendary Force and his Groudon Force to win with no contest, putting Fairy Tail ahead of Sabertooth. That night, Jellal confronted two cloaked figures and was shocked by their identities. In space, Arceus anticipated the biggest scuffle that shall rise, and tells Dialga and Palkia to prepare.

* * *

**Chapter 76 – Graveyard of Omens**

In the darkness of the eternal dimension of darkness, dreadful, ear-bleeding silence shrouded Giratina, Mewtwo, Hoopa, and Darkrai. The four were in a rotting and dark energy that would've made human skin peel off and be reduce to literally nothing. The corrosive energy was like a veil around the four as they floated in suspense. They all had a bloody and look of pure retribution, more so more domination over the eternal void that'll undo the universe. The stars were dead mostly, and yet Arceus was holding on with the last hope in the universe – Nic Pularis.

Giratina's corrosive energy was followed by the Satan-red eyes he had. Looking at him would be looking at the ruler of all renegades and bloody murderers, making the demons of Hell rot. His aura was the vilest and massive, enough to blacken the skies and leave despair in dark hearts and make them explode and disperse into the eternal nothingness that was the void. That's how much hate and wretched contempt he had for all life. He was gonna have his way yet.

Hoopa chuckled lowly. "It's so close! The energy Lysandre's accumulated is almost there!" He yelled excitedly.

"Just a little more. Not much longer until everyone shall have eternal nightmares in Hell." Darkrai said, holding up a clenched fist. The more he anguished and the more he desired it, the tighter his fists clenched.

"Arceus won't have much longer. He shall perish before our hands before Nic Pularis gets that eighteenth Plate." Mewtwo scowled. "All humans and living beings shall be reduced beneath our feet.

Giratina's serpentine body moved up and he bellowed out, rattling the violent dread and desolate air. All that be caught in the universal genocide. Everything shall be extinct. Lysandre has been a help indeed. He's very close to accumulated ll the dark energy we need to break free, and exterminate all that is good." His energy became a dark and bloody red as it signaled his need to dominate and slaughter Arceus. "Nic Pularis shall fall, when Lysandre finally unleashes the infinite darkness that waits before us."

They all sneered and snarled as they fell back into contemptuous silence, waiting for the little time to pass.

* * *

The sun wasn't even up yet. The small and weak rays it emitted only peered over the mountain range pass Crocus. The sunlight reflected over the northern seas, where small crabs were washing up and scuttling along the damp shores before being whisked back into the waters. As the near-full moon was vanishing among the western horizon, all seemed placid and calm for a typical July morning.

In the Honey Bone Inn, the former Fairy Tail A's room had sun rays peering within. Everyone had yet to have awoken from their sleep, but Nic stirred awake, a weak groan coming from his throat as he opened his eyes. He was lying on his stomach with his head turned to the side. He felt the soft fabric the sheets and pillows were. It was still something he was getting accustomed to, but he wasn't complaining.

He laid there, his mind contemplating about yesterday's lamentation during the battle. _'What was that energy? Did it involve what Jellal had been looking for? Whatever it was, why is it still lingering around?' _ His eyes slowly closed again. _'This is getting tedious, whatever it may be or may become…'_

"Mmmm."

Nic looked over his shoulder as he noticed the weight on his back. It was Erza, and she slept with a soft smile as she was hugging Nic with her body sprawled over him, hovering like a knight protecting her king. Her head rested on the back of his shoulders as she slept like a baby.

Nic smiled at his girlfriend and watched her sleep. It was a beautiful and comforting site to behold. Light began reflecting over her red hair and she stirred awake. A weak groan came from her and her eyes opened.

Her head moved a little and she saw Nic smiling at her from over his shoulder. She smiled back. "Good morning."

"Good morning, Erza." Nic responded. _'I shouldn't wallow in something like that…at least not of yet.' _

Casting his worries aside, Nic stirred and turned over to lay on his back, with Erza laying her side right beside him, overlooking him. While Erza had pajamas on, Nic just slept with his shirt off. It didn't bother anyone. "You ready for the day?" He asked.

"Yeah." Erza saw the look of sincerity Nic had, but when he got up and got to his feet to stretch, there was something off. He wasn't all morning-person. He was _always _a morning guy, so she knew something was up. "Are you well?" She asked him as she sat up.

Nic looked towards her as he stretched his arms. "Yeah, I'm fine. Really."

Erza façade a grin. She let the matter slide, but she did keep it in mind that if Nic kept it up, things were gonna get rocky.

* * *

Breakfast came at a local bar, which of course supplied fruits, bread, and omelets for Nic. As they ate, they inquired how the day off was to be spent.

"A pool?" Erza asked, her eyes widened by Levy's explanation.

"That sounds relaxing!" Wendy cheerfully said.

"Is there one close to us?" Lucy inquired.

"Of course." Levy answered with a smile. "It's a summertime resort known throughout Fiore. Ryuzetsu Land."

"I'm down for that!" Natsu shouted with a fist high.

"Aye sir!" Happy exclaimed.

"'Bout time we go somewhere to cool off!" Gray said, his shirt off unsurprisingly.

Nic turned towards the conversation, a smile on his face. "A water resort, huh? Sounds entertaining; I say it's worth the trip."

Vanessa sat at the same table as her brother and smiled. "We could all relaxed there."

"I remember a word or two while out on some jobs. It's a highly recommended resort if you ever needed a day off." Sophie informed. "My vote is a definite yes."

"Well then I guess we have no choice! We're off to Ryuzetsu Land!" Natsu announced. "This is gonna rock!"

"Yeeeeah!" Everyone cheered.

* * *

Not even an hour later, with everything set and in order, everyone found themselves in Ryuzetsu Land, located near the seashores of Crocus. There was a limitless number of people all around, and their roaring and amusement seemed as lively as can be. There were numerous slides, wave pools, small lazy rivers, and the sunlight going through the clear glass of the resort made it seem safe.

"It's huge." Lucy said with joyous shock.

"That's an understatement." Sophie said.

"This is a lively atmosphere indeed." Erza remarked as she stretched her arms overhead.

"This should be very relaxing." Nic hoped with his sunglasses and black swim trunks on.

Lucy had a cheerful look as her view went from left to right and back. "This is amazing!" She turned towards everyone else. "Let's have some fun!"

There was no need to tell Natsu twice. He was already on it once they all dispersed and left to do whatever they seemed fit. Nic, Erza, and Vanessa all went off somewhere, and the same was said for the others. Everyone let loose and Natsu was riding a water train. "H'all right! A water train!" He suddenly fell forward and his cheeks puffed. "Urgh…ugh…"

"Why'd he get in that in the first place?!" Droy despaired.

"Just don't spew, ya hear?! The Master's never gonna let you hear the end of it!" Jet forewarned Natsu as he was holding in his vomit the best he could.

Elsewhere, Happy led the charge to the aquarium. "Come on guys! The aquarium's this way!" He shouted as his pace sped up.

"Now why do they have an aquarium in a place such as this?" Carla inquired. "But I guess it's worth looking."

Lily followed behind, kiwi juice in a cup being sipped. "Their kiwi juice is nice."

* * *

"Hmph, should've thought this through. Do they have beverages in here?" Cana questioned in mumbling groans. Unlike the other, she, unfortunately, didn't have a swimsuit on hand as she left it in the inn. However, Plan B was her undergarments, which got some attention.

"Underwear?! Seriously?!" Macao exclaimed.

Wakaba didn't look amused either. "Gee, her usual attire was swimsuit-like enough."

Sophie slid a glass of fresh water with a lemon on the side towards Cana. "It'd do you good to try and get natural fluids into your body, and not those that can turn a normal person's brain cells into mush." She insisted.

Cana leaned against the bar and looked over to her left and eyed the glass. "Geez." She accepted the glass. "You're like a broken record."

"Maybe a broken record, but my song still drills into skulls." Sophie reasoned on a metaphorical note.

* * *

"I wish we brought big brother Elf with us." Lisanna grimaced with a grin.

Mira turned towards her with the same expression. "Yeah, poor Elfman's still in the infirmary. Hopefully he's fine."

As the two sisters contemplated over their brother, a shadowy figure looked from behind and turned to hide behind a large rock in the water to be unnoticed when Mira and Lisanna looked over their shoulders as they had a feeling. It turned out that the figure was Elfman, his bandages gone and all well again. Evergreen accompanied him of course, and the two had to remain clandestine.

"If they find out the two of us came here, we'll be screwed." Elfman whispered.

"If they find out, I'll never recover from this." Evergreen sulked.

"Hey, it wasn't my idea! You brought me here!" Elfman argued.

Evergreen turned away. "Don't be ridiculous! I just wanted a change of scenery!" She huffed. "Clearly you're misguided if you thought we came here for any other means!"

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Elfman shouted, their conversation clearly heard, and yet got no attention.

"Nothing, moron!" Evergreen yelled.

Unbeknownst to them, Bickslow and Freed were watching the whole thing from above, snickering at the irony and tsundere type of love they displayed. The more they watched their 'old married couple' act, the more they snickered. It was something worth watching.

* * *

The Love Love Slider was one of the more renown parts of the resort itself. It was a towering slide that went all over the park, and each pair had to hold onto one another…if they valued their lives. Cupids were all over the design, with pink hearts as gates at the entrance when heading onto the slide.

Almost immediately, Juvia took interest and pointed at the slide. "My darling! Let's go on that ride together!" She insisted.

"Why that one?" He asked. He read the title. "'Love Love Slider'? Why the weird name?"

Juvia wiggled her hips, hearts pouring out from around her. "It's for pairs to hug and hold onto one another as they slide." She cooed with hands to her cheeks.

"No way!" Gray declined.

"Then if that's the case, allow me to assist you."

Juvia was suddenly picked up bridal style as someone came out of nowhere. Juvia looked up and shuddered in his clutches. "Lyon?!"

Gray looked just as astonished. "Wait, since when did you start popping up like weasels?!"

* * *

Everyone else was in their own amusements. Wendy was found by Chelia and they seemed to play, Quatro Puppy arrived and caused an uproar as well, Mavis was being lifeguarded by Makarov and Laxus, although they seemed the opposite of enthusiastic.

In a fellow wave pool, where but a few people were, Nic and Erza were on a two-person raft, feeling the waves rock them back and forth as they seemed unfazed.

"The water is very refreshing, despite the chlorine being bad for your skin." Erza said in a relaxed state.

"True. We'll take showers when we get back to the inn." Nic suggested. His head turned up to the sun overhead, his sunglasses shielding his eyes. "This break is just what we needed to keep our minds lifted from the scuffling."

"You're not wrong." Erza said, turning her head. "I wonder-!"

She suddenly was cut off when the raft rocked harder than before, catching them in an unsettling tide. The two were whisked all the way out from where they were to the shore of the pool, their raft up against the smooth concrete flooring.

Nic groaned and looked dizzy from that sudden tide. "I didn't think this suggestion of yours, really wasn't the best in mind." He groaned.

"I'm ashamed of this fault…gah!" Erza's eyes widened, feeling something heavy. She looked up and blushed. "N-Nic?"

"Hm…?!" Nic realized where he was, that his head was right into Erza's huge cleavage. That wave rocked Nic out of place and made him flip onto the other end of the raft, where his face fell right onto Erza's chest. Nic shot up, as well as a stunned Erza.

"Uh…s-sorry." Nic apologized.

"It's fine." Erza said. "It was an accident…" A small silence crept upon them and Erza looked down as her oversized bust. "Well then…"

"Let's just find somewhere less rough, like a lazy river?" Nic insisted, his suggestion beating Erza's by a mile. The redhead agreed and followed him away.

Around the same area, Vanessa was gulping down lemonade as she watched the scene before her. After finishing her second cup of lemonade, she giggled at the adorable couple playing out their embarrassment and got up. "Wait up guys!"

The three were then seen walking around, looking for the lazy river. Nic lead the charge as he walked towards a small sign close by. He leaned in and pointed at the red dot. "Okay, so we're here. We just need to head to the northern end of the resort."

"This place is so big that it needs its own map?" Vanessa nervously smiled.

"Well of course." Erza pointed out. "With all of these attractions and vast space, it's only natural just a place requires a little guidance."

"Okay, then let's get going." Nic led them yet again, passing by the slides with long lines.

Vanessa looked over as little Asuka was being watched in the kitty pool by her parents, and she saw the little girl laughing and looking blissful. Vanessa's mind traveled back to her past. When she was very little, her parents took her to a small resort, only Nic was left in the magnets of Magneton, probably shocked if he did something out of line. When she really thought about it, she also remembered how her parents didn't let her have much of any time with other people around the pool, not even allowing her on the slides. She was miserable. Things were a lot more fun when Nic was trying to cheer her up and putting a smile on her face at home, despite him getting a smack or two for even interacting with his little sister.

Vanessa looked around some more and she never seemed to be fully amused, in reality, her no-fun experience with resorts such as these never really made her feel welcome. Despite the past being in the past, it was something that made her wish never happened. Maybe she'd be amused like everyone else, but she didn't really have the energy like Natsu nor the perky smiles and laughs like Wendy and Lucy. She was just someone in her own place, just like Nic. The Pularis siblings; those who try to find peace in mind.

Stepping pass a caution sign, Vanessa slipped on some water and accidentally began falling onto Nic. "Nic, look out!"

"Huh?" Nic turned and was Vanessa accidentally shoved him into Erza. The couple plopped back down after what felt like a turbulence, Vanessa was on her hands and knees, shaking her head.

"Uhhhh…sorry guys," She apologized. "I wasn't paying attention…" She looked ahead and a small blush appeared on her face. She covered her mouth. "Oh my…"

Erza looked perplexed as Vanessa seemed nervous. Feeling something below, it was her turn to feel embarrassed. "Uhhh…eeh?!" She realized that her large butt was right on Nic's face, and Nic was muffling and looking like he needed oxygen. "Gaah!" Erza stuttered up and gave Nic some air. His face was red too from that display.

He sat up and looked at the ground, ashamed. "This is, uh…"

Erza cleared her throat. "I…apologies." She bowed to him, although secretly she got a funny feeling both times from when Nic was in her boobs and when her rump was on his face, though accidental. The culprit was clearly the funny books she had stashed away underneath her bed back in Magnolia. Her face blushed harder. "It wasn't what you think."

"N-no harm done…" Nic looked away, looking at some random direction. Although he did feel embarrassment from her assets being in Nic's face both times, not that it was too big of an issue, the real matter was that though he was trying to relax, he couldn't. It was frustrating. His eyes darkened beneath his sunglasses.

Erza's blushed vanished when she saw Nic looking uneasy, like he was before. "Nic, are you okay…?"

"I wouldn't imagine he needs more of those accidents." Vanessa said.

"Hush!" Erza silenced her, shielding her blush as well. She turned back towards Nic, seeing him just sitting there, uneasy.

"Sorry." He finally said. "I…I'm not feeling so lighthearted right now."

"Are you okay?" Vanessa asked, showing concern.

Erza walked over and knelt down towards Nic, a seriousness over her face. "Nic, I know there's something wrong. You've been like that after the battle yesterday, and with when you awoke this morning. If you have something to say, say it. We're here for you."

Vanessa nodded. "We have your back, so don't hesitate."

Nic softly smiled. "Thank you guys. I mean it." He slowly sat up, cracking his bones to loosen up a little. Despite his smile being soft, it was more remorseful than anything. "I hate to admit it…but despite this being a day-off, I can't relax. There's something wrong." He looked away. "_Very _wrong."

Erza felt the vibe coming from Nic. He was onto something, and there was no way this was gonna be dropped until it was resolved. Erza and Vanessa also realized something else about Nic. He had the burden of saving them all, and so in truth, he really can't relax. Maybe if they survive in the end, then they all can finally be in peace, but as of this point in time, Nic couldn't afford to waste anytime relaxing, sad as it may be. The two felt sad as well, knowing Nic wouldn't be able to enjoy anything out of a guilty and conspicuous conscience. They had to remain positive, knowing that Nic will finally get to relax after his mission is over, when he'll actually be able to enjoy himself, and settle down.

The two girls were by him all the way. "Very well, Nic." Erza said. "It would seem we have no choice."

Vanessa shrugged. "To be honest, I wasn't having much fun myself. I just wanted to sleep and have lemonade. The beach is honestly more soothing."

Nic snickered at his sister's remark. "Looks like the Pularis siblings think alike."

Both laughed a little before the matter got serious again.

"So Nic, you ready to go?" Erza asked. "If you're going, I may as well too. I'm with you, all the way."

Nic smiled at Erza's devotion. "Thanks Erza. Come on, let's leave."

As they began walking to the exit, with the resolve to choose beaches over noisy attractions, Vanessa followed behind the lovebirds and caught sight of what was the caution sign from before. Looking down, she realized the situation again. Her eyes cascaded up as Erza was about to step somewhere.

"Uh, Erza! Wait!" Vanessa shouted. "This is still a caution…"

She was too late as Erza's feet slipped underneath the wet, smooth surface and she found herself off balance. The redhead found herself falling forward just as Nic was turning around at Vanessa's warning. Vanessa reached over and tried grabbing onto her, but she also lost her footing and instead fell back while Erza fell forward onto Nic. Thuds were heard in the area, and Vanessa groaned as she sat up.

"Man, my head…" She groaned. She felt something in her hand and lifted it up. In her hands was the top of Erza's black swimwear – her bra. Vanessa didn't grab onto Erza if not for her bikini top laces. So when Vanessa fell back, it became undone and went with her. That meant…

Erza realized her bikini top was undone, and that meant she was exposed. She looked down and saw Nic was underneath her once again. She couldn't see his red and burning face as her exposed, heavy mounds her on him. Erza's face grew a bright red as she was stunned from the embarrassing and accidentally smutty dilemma with her chest on Nic's face.

Vanessa face palmed. "Oh geez."

* * *

A half hour later, now in their usual attires, Nic, Erza, and Vanessa were walking through the streets of Crocus as they were all bustling as ever and as lively as it was in Ryuzetsu Land. Vanessa didn't leave without a decent lemonade in hand and took it with her. As she walked through the streets, eating the lemon slice that came with the lemonade, Nic and Erza were recovered from those…certain scenes and were on the move.

"So Nic." Erza said, turning a glance at him. "So where might this odd feeling be coming from?"

Nic stopped and looked up at the western crags, more specifically at the Domus Flau colosseum in repair. The women followed his gaze and looked at the colosseum.

"The catacombs o the Domus Flau colosseum." Nic answered. "While I was in that dual form, I sensed some ghastly presence, and yet it wasn't tangible."

"So a spirit?" Vanessa questioned.

"Maybe." Nic took a turn and started walking towards the colosseum. "Whatever I was sensing, the answer lies underground. We have to head back there."

Erza nodded in understanding. "We'll follow."

Vanessa was taking a last-minute sip from her lemonade before it went empty. She turned towards the nearest garbage can and threw the cup in there. When she did, at that instant, a chilly atmosphere was felt and ice glistened from behind. She and the others turned around and widened their eyes as the Ryuzetsu Land was suddenly layered in ice.

"Wait, how is it…?" Vanessa was getting a bad feeling. Her aura sensory was picking up a strong confliction. And she felt a red hot aura beginning to increase in intensity. "Oh no."

"Vanessa, don't tell me…" Nic got a bad feeling from the start when Fairy Tail entered Ryuzetsu Land, and now this was the part were Natsu trashed everything.

And he did. The whole Ryuzetsu Land went up in flames, and Erza and the Pularis siblings grimaced irritably at the outcome.

"Well at least we left beforehand." Vanessa said.

"Another reason why we decided beaches over resorts." Nic mentioned. He turned away, back to the matter at hand. "Anyways…"

* * *

Domus Flau colosseum had a lot of workers there, getting paid and fed as they worked double-time to repair the damage Nic Pularis had caused. Since it was noon at this point, the construction had just started, and they were all primarily working on the now reshaped and leveled paths for the spectators to take for tomorrow.

They were too busy working as Nic, Erza, and Vanessa climbed up the crags and retained their clandestine route to evade detection. It was a matter of time before mountains of dirt would be filling up the hole, so they had to be quick. Nic was in the lead and crawled through the open hole from when he used Solar Beam. The molten rock had long since cooled, leaving a smooth, black layer all around the entire hole. The group walked in and looked around.

"So it was in these catacombs you said?" Erza asked again.

Nic nodded. "Yes." He took steps ahead, and he glowed. Vanessa and Erza alike saw him transform into his Ghost/Dragon Form, the same exact one that he used against Rogue. They both watched him advance forward, and he looked around with caution. It was still very spacious for them to move around the cooled debris carefully and quietly.

"The energy signature from before, it was faint, but it was here." Nic informed as he stopped and looked around. His eyes went from right to left, overlooking the layer of black and smooth rock. "It's a very spectral feeling, that's all I can say."

Erza stepped ahead. "You mean like a spiritual energy among the catacombs?"

"It's possible." Nic turned towards them. "But if it's linked with the Draco Plate fusion, then-!"

His eyes widened, which caught the attention of a startled Erza and Vanessa. Nic felt the pulse again. It was extremely faint, but it was there, hiding amongst them from deep below. His distraught expression returned like from when he fought the Twin Dragons. The signature was around again, and Nic was not gonna turn a blind eye to it again.

"Nic, you have it?" Vanessa asked.

Nic's eyes glanced towards his right. His body shifted and he looked intensely at the hole that wasn't blocked off by molten rock. It looked like a mine, which was the most ideal source. He clenched his fists and had a dead-serious look on him.

"I found it. There's no other way but down there." He said in a foreboding tone.

Erza looked at the mine, how it was dark beyond the black rock. She was morally surprised it wasn't affected or layered among the rest of the catacombs. "Stay on guard."

Erza and Vanessa were suddenly hauled up by Nic, one arm each. They dangled as he flapped in the air. "Let's go." He advanced slowly and dove into the mines, carrying the girls downwards into the mines. He descended slowly yet carefully downwards, getting darker as they went into the depths of the undergrounds of the Domus Flau colosseum.

"What is a mine doing down here? You don't think it's to hide anything like they did back in Terminus Cave in Kalos, with the whole Zygarde incident?" Vanessa inquired as they kept on going deeper and deeper into faint black. "If so, then why would the designers build a colosseum atop of it? Why above catacombs to begin with? I can't be sure."

"Neither can I. We'll just have to see if you're right. They may or may not have something hiding, we'll just have to wait and see what we can find." Erza said, her voice having a fierce intensity as she was getting one of those bad feelings as they trudged through uncharted territory.

"We're getting closer." Nic warned.

The three were set foot onto solid ground. The lower caves of the mines had no tracks, and only small glumps of moss was their lighting through the long tunnel. It wasn't as dark as they had thought it'd be thanks to the moonlight, but that was no reason to remain careful underground. The steps they made into the caves were hollow.

Nic felt a lump go down his throat. "The energy is starting to swell. There's no mistaking it's draconic energy down here." He slowly advanced with careful steps. "Stay close."

"Understood." Erza said.

The trio ventured on, their guards up high with this odd foreboding vibe. Nic was not gonna leave until he found what concerned him all this time. It didn't matter how long, but if it was close, then no matter what, it was gonna be big.

"Over here." Nic's spectral and draconic flow flourished as they reached the corner into another cave, this one being overly massive. "The energy is insi…"

"Nic?" Erza asked as she caught up. "What could be…?"

Vanessa was the third to have a loss for words. All three's eyes were wide and their mouths hung open in sheer disbelief. What was before them was what made their spines shiver to the core, the one thing that would leave even a Ghost-Type shuddering, and Nic was barely keeping himself from swallowing another lump.

Nic took a moment of silence and his eye narrowed. "…so, I was right all along."

Before them was a massive boneyard…Dragon bones. Skeletons and decayed skin. It was all there; the bones and shattered and broken spirits and anatomy of Dragons sprawled for what seemed to be a long ways. It was horrifying. A Dragon Graveyard.

"This was what was underneath the colosseum." Nic said in a dreading tone.

"You were right to be worried." Erza said, her tone at the same level of steadiness."

"Oh my god…" Vanessa said, covering her mouth as she gasped. "This…this is…"

"Yeah." Nic nodded. "A graveyard of Dragon bones. Now I get why my Spooky and Draco Plates were acting up. It makes sense now that we've made it down here. Guess there was a reason this was hidden after all."

They all stared at the desolate field of skeletons that laid waste in the caves ahead. Hundreds of meters long and high, the bones seemed to have stockpiled up to at least fifteen other Dragons, maybe twenty. Who knows what number was down where they were? Whatever the case may be, this was something gigantic.

Nic turned his back to the graveyard, his eyes set back from where they came from. "This is big, and yet this find brings up too many questions with so little answers."

"We need to at least tell the Dragon Slayers about this. I'm sure Natsu would want to see this." Vanessa pointed out, her tone quieter with the suspense around. "And we better move about quickly. This aura down here is making me tremble."

"We need to find the others, now." Erza turned with Nic and Vanessa as they left in a hurry, yet silently, back from where they came from, leaving the hollow bones to lie in pieces and remain unmoved…as they have been for centuries.

* * *

In another pub, to be more accurate the same pub Fairy Tail has been in after each day, everyone was alive and all as energetic and rowdy as they can possibly get. Yesterday in particular was very enthusiastic for them, for their guild had gotten to 46 points, putting them in 1st place, above the humiliated Sabertooth. They still couldn't get over the excitement as they channeled that energy even through today up to now. However, things weren't calm with a certain pink-haired Dragon Slayer clashing with an ice-cold Mage.

"You started it!" Natsu butted heads with Gray, fiery and icy auras around them.

"I don't care if I started it! At least _I _didn't go and blow up the entire stinkin' resort!" Gray retorted. He gained ground on the glaring contest. "Seriously, you're a moron!"

Natsu regained and added ground to his side, making Gray bare his teeth. "Oh yeah? I'll show you who's the moron!"

Elfman stood up and saw the two tussle around again. "There they go, being sour as lemons."

"Yup, those two really have too much energy." Mira said with her cheeky smile. Her smile grew nervous somewhat. "Although, you'd think they'd learn to not put that into punching the other."

"Tch, Salamander's got himself some sick trouble going on." Gajeel snickered from the bar.

"Well he did destroy Ryuzetsu Land to silence Gray and Lyon's frantic behavior. Sometimes people just can't get along." Lily pointed out.

"I'll kick your butt twice as hard as ever!" Natsu remarked as he pulled Gray's cheek.

Gray repaid the favor with more stretch in it. "I'd like to see you trump me!"

Lucy face palmed. "Why does it always end this way?"

"Aye!" Happy stated. "Natsu's burning butts across the land!"

"Well those two never change, that's for sure." Carla chastised.

Wendy sweat dropped with an uneasy smile. "Yeah, well, fire and ice don't really mix so well, right…?"

Makarov sulked in absolute despair in a corner. "M-my jewel…" He was still mortally traumatized by the events of Natsu demolishing Ryuzetsu Land to the ground. And as it turned out, Fairy Tail had to pay a very heavy amount, enough to leave Makarov weeping with tears running down his face. "I'll never be able to relax again."

Sophie was enjoying a small at a small, round table. She bit into it and raised a brow. She blinked, and she shrugged. It wasn't terrible, but the dish sufficed. As she chewed, her glance went behind. "This is a really long day." She muffled with small bits of food in her mouth.

Lucy looked back to her with a grin. "That's one way of putting it."

Cana sighed as she chugged down another booze barrel. She had a conspicuous look across the pub and wrinkled a brow. "Okay, I'll bite, the heck is taking Nic and his posy?"

"To be honest, I only saw them a little bit in the resort before they disappeared." Levy said.

"Not certain, but I think they decided on time away." Max thought out loud.

"Maybe they headed back to their inns for the day to sleep? You know those Pularis siblings like to sleep." Warren reminded everyone.

Speaking of the devil, the door opened up, and the missing trio emerged. Not much attention, but they were noted. The three walked through the area, all the way to where Natsu and Gray were pummeling away at the other in ridiculous fashion.

"I'll try you hard!"

"I'll chill you until your brain freezes over!"

"You walking popsicle!"

"Cheap-shot of a lizard!"

"Grrrrrrr!"

Both threw back and forth wallops followed by cheap retorts that seemed to go on endlessly. The wooden flooring and nearby support beams were being cracked, and the two were bombarding the other to no limitations.

They were both suddenly clutched by a crushing armored hand on their heads. They were lifted up and felt their bodies go numb as their heads smashed into the other. They slumped to the floor and twitched. Standing above them was none other than the 'mediator' of their scuffles, Erza. "Stop it you two. Enough hysteria goes around as it already does. You should try and lead an example for once." She scolded.

"Sorry…ma'am." The two mumbled.

"Oh, Erza, Nic, Vanessa!" Lucy said in surprise.

"There you guys are. We've been wondering where you've been." Wendy commented with a grin.

"Honestly, you three have been gone all day. What in the world could you have been doing?" Carla asked.

Lily walked up, piqued. "I assume that it's either training or something."

Nic looked at the two girls, all three having the same cautious expression on their faces. There was no easy way to explain what they saw. Nic decided to explain it as brief as he could.

"Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel. You come with us." Nic said. "There's something you have to see."

The three Dragon Slayers raised eyebrows in question and had no clue as to what they were about to behold.

* * *

On the other side of the city, in Crocus Gardens, things were less anticipated and more disastrous. And all knew why; when someone fails Jiemma, things never turn out well. Sting and Rogue were about to meet that bitter thought head on.

With dread and humiliation hovering over them, the Twin Dragons stood with their heads down in front of everyone. They all felt horror as to what might become of them due to their humiliating loss against Nic and Natsu. The safest bet is their fate with Yukino.

Jiemma glared down with anger being felt all across the room. "Sting…Rogue." He began with a boom in his voice. The bitterness in his voice reverberated off of every block within the room. "What do you two have to say for yourselves? Well?"

They said nothing, for there was nothing that could possibly cover up their loss. They never had a chance, and Jiemma wasn't accepting any excuse, no matter how reasonable.

"You two couldn't be anymore disappointing. All of your ranting and boasting of being Dragon Slayers was only for show after all. Not only did you two get your asses handed to you by another Dragon Slayer, but you were bested by Nic Pularis." Nic's name had a vile tone when spoken of. "I wanted you to eliminate him on the spot, and this happens."

"You were right. There is nothing to cover up our defeat by Nic Pularis." Rogue answered mournfully. His fists clenched tighter in frustration over his revenge never being accomplished. "Nic Pularis was able to best us with a Legendary Force, something that trumped our Dragon Force with no contest. We didn't even have a prayer."

A loud stomp quaked the room. A table was sent flying and shattered against the wall. Jiemma towered between Sting and Rogue. "That's not what the mightiest say! Does 'being the strongest of them all' mean anything when you can't beat anyone before you?!" Jiemma roared to their faces, making the two retreat back a step. Jiemma's demonic and strong aura could be seen all around. The other members of Sabertooth lost all sense of humor over Sting and Rogue's scolding. "You're nothing more than weaklings!"

"But, Master…" Sting tried insisting.

"ENOUGH!" Jiemma widened his eyes and his Magic caused a powerful shockwave to vibrate. Sting and Rogue were shot into the walls and landed with thuds. The shock from Jiemma's assault didn't retreat as their pride took more damage than what it should've taken.

"Sting!" Lector ran over to Sting.

"Rogue!" Frosch did the same with Rogue.

"You both have nothing to prove. If you're smart, you'll remove your emblems and get out of my sights." Jiemma threatened. "Remove them and crawl away like what befell Yukino!"

"Hold on, M-Master!" Lector finally intervened, he quaked his body with his voice in conjunction.

Jiemma's glare and attention went to the small Exceed.

"Lector…" Sting mumbled as he looked down at his pal defending him. "What are you…"

"I mean I know Sting lost, but he and Rogue really tried their best. They really tried, and that's what matters, right? I-I'm sure you're not pleased, but I say they should be proud, I know I am for Sting having a chance to shine."

"Lector…" Sting thought back to the promise that he made with Lector all those years ago. He may not have kept it, but Lector was okay with it.

"Who are you?" Jiemma asked.

"H-huh?!" Lector stepped back. "Uh, c-come on Master, you know me. Lector." Lector nervously laughed. "See?" He turned around and pulled up his vest, showing his guild emblem on his back. "I'm a member of Sabertooth like everyone else."

"Such nonsense!" Jiemma's voice boomed. His Magic was surging in his vicious rage. "Sabertooth's mark is for only those worthy and strong! You are nothing like that! A cat?! A worthless cat?!" The room rumbled as a Magic energy of purple began to engulf Lector. Jiemma's hand was shrouded in a bright purple. "Away with you, worthless insect!"

Lector's body shuddered as the Magic was beginning to engulf his body. Tears of distraught and confusion poured down his face.

Sting and Rogue gasped.

"Lector?!" Frosch yelled.

Lector was in suspense as he was seconds away from demise. "…Sting…" He whimpered.

Lector was then engulfed and erupted in the explosion.

"**LECTOR!**" Sting bellowed.

The explosion silenced everyone, as horror as on their faces. All, even Minerva, was horrified. The only one who didn't seem fazed was Bellona as she had a straight face.

Sting had no words as his heart was ripped right out. Tears fell as anguish filled him to the brim with his best friend gone.

"Hmph, guess this is what happens when I don't keep an eye on my guild. Minerva enough is incorrigible with her share of members with feelings." Jiemma scoffed.

"Lector…" Froasch was looking scared as tears swelled his shuddering eyes. "He…went boom…"

Rogue ran over and clutched and held onto Frosch tightly, shielding him from Jiemma and his tyrannical wrath.

Sting's body had broken down. On his knees, he cried tears that ran down and sprinkled across the ground. His lungs contracted and he let out a loud cry of anguish that could be heard throughout the whole inn. The cry was of a roar that echoed, like that of a Dragon's grieving breath.

"Keep it down, Sting!" Jiemma ordered.

Sting covered his face as he got to his feet. His tears kept flowing, but the tears began to change. Instead of mourning and grief over Lector, they were replaced by anger and vengeance. "You…what have you done?!" Sting yelled. "What have you done?!"

"Silence!" Jiemma ordered. "Bawling over a stupid cat is pitiful, even for you!"

Sting's head moved up, showing his eyes. They were feral with a Dragon's rage.

Jiemma never saw it coming. His eyes widened as Sting let out a cry when a punch of light bore through the Master's abdomen. The action caused all Sabertooth members to be riddled in horror and shock, although Minerva and Bellona seemed to be more intrigued by the action.

Jiemma gagged blood as he fell forward, a large hole in the same place Nic's Focus Punch got him all those years ago. The thud roared through the halls as Sting stood above Jiemma, huffing with exasperation.

The look Sting had was but of anguish and ferocity as he overlooked Jiemma as he was unable to get up.

"And so the empire falls." Minerva said.

"Sting…what did you do?" Rogue asked in disbelief.

"Mark my words, Sting. You will pay…I swear it!" Jiemma groaned as he was sprawled across the floor.

"I highly doubt that." Minerva intervened, getting Sting and everyone's attention. She walked up to them both. "I have finally seen it all, and now it's finally safe to say the reign you've had is now over." She stopped with a hand to her hip. "This is the dawn of a new Sabertooth, one that I have been trying to drill into your section's craniums. And rest assure, your seat shall be for someone worthy." Her gaze went towards Sting. "And I believe Sting has the honor of fulfilling such a role."

Sting stepped back. "Milady…"

"Minerva, you pathetic excuse." Jiemma coughed. "How dare you…"

"What was it you always taught your members? Something about 'the predator always preys on the weak', yes? Prey like you isn't worthy here, isn't that what you believe?" Minerva retorted with a grin.

Jiemma growled and succumbed to his injuries at last, leaving his reign to end, much to Minerva's delight.

Minerva turned the attention towards Sting. "Now that Jiemma's own hand choked him in a manner of speaking, we can settle this. Sting." She started. "This is your power, the power of emotions that I have held onto since Nic and Kecleon taught me such a thing, and now you've grasped it."

"Emotions?"

"Was that how Natsu didn't succumb to us?" Rogue muttered.

"Allow me to simplify the terminology for you." Minerva said. "What Jiemma believed, you thought differently. Your feelings for Lector are what gave you hope and power, to want to see him again. That strength is how you see it, but know that emotions are what drive many humans to act. You basically went on instinct for your friend. Friends are what drive Natsu, and Nic. Those two value friends more so than anyone out there."

Sting looked down. "Milady…I'm not sure if I have that strength anymore."

Minerva smirked. "Relax. Lector is alive and well."

Sting's eyes slowly widened. "…what did you say?"

"It looked like Jiemma's Magic reduced him to ash, but I teleported him at the last second. A close call, but he's alive.

"Y-you mean it, Milady?!" Sting fell to his knees.

Frosch smiled as his tears flowed. "Lector didn't die?"

"That's right." Rogue held Frosch tighter in rejoice.

Sting sniffled and wiped away the tears from his eyes. "Milady…thank you." He sniffled again. "Thank you! Thank you for keeping Lector safe and sound!" He bowed to her. "Please, can you bring him back?"

Minerva smirked. "Why of course. That's what guild mates are for, right? We have each other's backs. That's what I've learned from Nic and his Kecleon." Minerva held up a hands and readied her Territory.

"I think not." A voice popped up from the crowd. Minerva and Sting turned around as boots were echoing, and Bellona stepped up from the crowd.

"Lady Bellona?" Orga asked in disbelief.

Bellona stopped and had a hand to her hip. "Milady, with all do respect, I do admire Sting's actions for taking down Jiemma, but you also must consider our reputation. We're not so merciful on weaklings if all they do is beg."

"Bellona." Minerva said with caution. "Your views are no match for mine. I am nothing like Jiemma, as I do favors in kind for my own."

"Your father may be a tyrant, but keep in mind that we can't fall behind. We've failed to defeat Nic Pularis, Jiemma's adversary, the only other one besides you and Sting who can take him down. Such a role is only fit for someone that knows to keep an iron fist, and lead an example."

"Which is what I am doing." Minerva insisted. "I'm desiring for a guild of heart, not just power."

"Lady Bellona, just what are you saying?" Sting asked. "We don't understand."

Bellona gave a scoff as her presence darkened the mood. "I believe Sabertooth is the only guild fit for greatness. We have a reputation, and so we need every ounce of power and drive so that we can win. With no drive or motivation, all is for nothing." She turned towards Sting. "Sting was driven by emotions, so what's the point of giving Lector back now and Sting losses his drive?" She looked back to Minerva. "Milady, I'll only ask once, do consider Sabertooth and how we all must have absolute dominance. We came this far with such a belief, and so we must keep it. Survival of the fittest."

Minerva stepped in front of Sting, her eyes glaring down Bellona's. "You can't be serious. I believe a pack is stronger than a lone wolf. Bellona. Two heads are better than one. To be frank, I couldn't care less if we win or lose. All I care is that we shall reborn Sabertooth into a guild that everyone shall look up to and not by fear. This isn't a game where you misuse the pieces given."

Bellona grew quiet and frowned. Her eyes closed. "Very well then…you left me with no choice." She slowly raised her arms, where a hollow and dark purple energy spiraled like galaxies around her hands. Minerva and Sting both grew worrisome as to what Bellona was doing as she gave off intense pressure.

"Lady Bellona, what are you doing?" Rogue asked.

"Remember this well, Milady. This is all for keeping our glory. No hard feelings." She struck a conniving smirk. "Although I never guarantee satisfaction…for the recipient that is." The spirals in her hands became one, and Bellona aimed it at Minerva. Bellona became dark energy and entered the flat spiral. The spiral turned pitch black and dissipated, becoming streams that swirled around Minerva.

"Milady!" Sting shouted.

Minerva screamed as the dark energy slipped into her body, the cold feeling ran through her veins, taking her over from the inside. Minerva stumbled and grabbed her head as what appeared to be shadows entered her body.

Everyone watching felt the temperature drop in the room as the shadows faded, and Minerva finally stopped screaming.

"Milady?" Sting asked.

Minerva slowly turned around, and when she opened her eyes, they flashed a dark purple. Her demeanor was much more gruesome as Bellona was in complete control. Sting and Rogue were in disbelief as Bellona had taken over Minerva, physically and mentally.

"You naïve fool, it's me." 'Minerva' answered. "Since Milady's views are clearly inferior, I'll just have to burrow her for until she comes to her senses or when we win the games."

"Bellona, you used your Nightmare Magic on Milady?! Why?! How could you do that to her?!" Sting demanded.

"Silence, fool!" Minerva spat. She released a spatial energy and shot Sting to the ground, making everyone shudder yet again. "Now that I have control over Milady, I can use her Magic however I see fit. That's how the game is played after all. Use the pawns and watch them fall or protect, that's how a queen plays the game."

Sting got up to his knees and shuddered. "Lady Bellona, please, let Milady free from your control!"

"No." She said. "I don't take orders from desperate pawns. The only other way for Milady to become free is by her own will or if her body gives out. My Nightmare Magic can leave anyone in a dark state and so I can manipulate it at my disposal. If her will isn't strong enough, or if I choose not to lift this Magic from her, she'll be at my disposal for an indefinite period of time."

In her psyche, Minerva was floating in pitch darkness, struggling and hearing nothing but silence as she had images of ghosts resembling Bellona coil and chain her up. She could only shudder as she was floating in darkness.

"Lady Bellona, give back her body! Please! I'm begging you!" Sting begged. "She was about to bring Lector back!"

"No, silence Sting." Minerva walked on over and stood to face Sting as he was uneasy. They were only a few feet away, and Minerva smirked. "If you really want her and Lector back, listen to your queen."

Sting's fists clenched.

"Careful now." Minerva's hand was in her Territory and she held it up to her stomach. "You wouldn't want anything to happen to Milady now, would you?"

Rogue was left with no comprehension as his eyes widened. "She's been taken hostage by Bellona's Nightmare Magic."

Sting backed off and swallowed. He got to his knees and lowered his head in regret. "Please…I'll do anything you ask of me, just let her go."

Minerva was silent and turned her back. "Very well then. You may be a pawn, but I'll listen to a knight. In other words, prove to me that I can accept your request." She turned towards Sting again. "Heed my words, while I can't use my own Magic in a victim's body, I can still use Minerva's. I can use her Territory and any other Magic she's got, so that means if you want Lector back, I shall fulfill that request and leave Milady's body, freeing her from my Magic." Her eyes narrowed. "However, this shall only be possible I you win the Grand Magic Games. Unlike Milady, I won't ever accept defeat. Sabertooth shall win, no matter how tactful it may get. We'll show them all, that is an order."

"She's a monster." Rogue held Frosch tighter.

Minerva turned around. "Keep in mind, your actions will determine Milady and Lector's fates. Cross me, and I'll never let Milady wake up again, and that means Lector too shall end. Is that clear?"

Sting had a lot to take in, but he was in no place to turn it down. Lector was his friend, and Minerva was the more caring members. Both individuals appeared in his mind, and Sting had his resolve. He stood up. "Yes, I understand, Lady Bellona."

"Good." Minerva walked pass everyone, leaving them all in silent remorse. "Now you understand how the game is played. If you play by my rules like a good and loyal knight, and not only will I keep my word, but I might add some sweet treats for a good boy like you." Minerva turned her head back and licked her lips. "A queen can have pleasure, even when not smiting her victims." She turned back and walked down the chamber and into the darkness, her smirk as demonic as her threats.

Sting looked down in shame as he had to agree, but no one could blame him. All of Sabertooth had a threatened impression of Bellona as she knew how to play the game.

'_Bellona, I'll win for Lector, and Milady's freedom.' _Sting stared ahead, cold.

* * *

"What? That's inconceivable!" Ultear argued. "Is that really a possibility?"

"I didn't know that was even possible." Meredy said.

Jellal stood with them with their sanctum in the mountains. Under the cover of darkness, he just told everything he saw and heard from the two cloaked figures.

"That is what she said." He said.

"Did the other speak of such a thing?" Ultear asked.

Jellal lowered his head. "No, only quiet remorse." Jellal looked up at them again. "But it seems this a fate we cannot determine we'll come out alive from. We've been deceived by misconception. The Eclipse, it shall change the world…"

* * *

In the dark tunnels, Nic, Erza, and Vanessa led the Dragon Slayers and their Exceeds through to where the three saw an unholy wreck.

"Nic, so where exactly are we going?" Wendy asked.

"Just remain silent until we get there." Nic answered.

"Do you think it has something to with Dragon Slayers? I mean that's the only people brought down here." Happy said.

Carla turned her head. "Well except the peanut gallery of course." She noted, which was of Lucy and Gray following along.

"We have names you know." Gray argued.

"Let's all be nice." Lucy insisted.

Pretty soon they all met their destination. "We're here." Erza answered.

Everyone grew stiff as the Dragon Slayers were wide-eyed at the site before them. Gajeel's mouth hung open, as was Natsu's. Wendy gasped in shock.

"What the…?!" Lucy lost her words.

"Whoa…" Gray was in the same boat as he barely kept his cool.

Natsu slowly walked forward towards the bones, passing by a carcass and piles of other miscellaneous bones. "…a graveyard of Dragons."

Gajeel followed behind. "Luminous struck gold." He looked up at a huge skeleton of a Dragon as its massive structure.

"This is creepy." Happy remarked.

"If you wanted to know the existence of Dragons, here's your proof." Lily explained.

"What an odd find." Carla said.

Nic led the group as they stepped over a pillar-sized bone. "This wasn't anything I couldn't shrug off. Vanessa, Erza, and I left and we came across this. It's something we thought you could see."

Happy stopped and turned in curiosity, "Say, maybe is Igneel down here?"

"Happy!" Carla shouted at him.

Happy covered his mouth after realizing his mistake. "S-sorry…"

Natsu stopped in his tracks. A grim silence fell as Lucy looked at him. His face was filled with hidden anguish. "No, he's not here."

"Our Dragons disappeared 14 years ago." Gajeel reasoned. "The remains at rest here are more ancient."

Wendy seemed interested. "Ancient…ancient…!" She gasped and stopped in her tracks. "Milky Way."

Erza turned around to face her. "What is it, Wendy?"

"Milky Way. A Secret Dragon Slayer spell that Miss Porlyusica told me of." Wendy saw the faces of everyone, they were all at her attention. "It said 'Listen to the voices of the Dragon souls that continue to the heavenly river.' When I thought it was meant for attacking, I now see that it's meant for this?"

"'This'?" Vanessa questioned.

"I think Milky Way lets me speak to Dagon souls." Wendy elaborated.

"What?" Gajeel nearly lurched.

"Then…" Natsu turned his gaze from Wendy to the boneyard among them. "We can find out what happened here."

"And possibly ours Dragons too." Wendy added.

* * *

In an alleyway, two cloaked figures were seen sitting on a bench. One opened up a cap to a pen and began writing in the diary.

"Hey, you two!" A guard told them, getting their attention. "These areas are off limits. You'll have to-!"

A sudden blur and everything went black. The man was knocked out in a single shot, and the one cloaked figure stood with might before turning away. The cloaked figure walked pass the one still writing. It looked back and their faces met, and the one writing finally ceased and put the diary away.

The two thus walked off in the moonlight, away from the alley.

* * *

Wendy had just finished using the stick to write a Magic circle in the dirt. She stood in the center and overlooked her writing. "Okay, I think I got it."

"So this is called Milky Way." Vanessa parroted.

Wendy held her arm to everyone. "Everyone, step back." Everyone did as told and backed away a step each.

The caves remained silent as Wendy went to her knees and initiated the chant.

"Wandering Dragon souls, I would receive your voices." She moved her arm overhead. "**Milky Way!**"

The runes of the Magic circle drawn grew bright green and shot green energy up. There were green sparkle-like stars flowing with the pillar. Ripples went up overhead and scattered all across.

"Beautiful!" Lucy smiled.

"Stars? Wow!" Happy shouted.

Green firefly-like sparkles went all over the caves, where the bones were. As they went around, the bones rattled some, causing Lucy to hold onto Natsu.

"W-Wendy!" Lucy warned.

"I'm looking for remnants of Dragon souls…" Her eyes widened when a light came from a spot. "There!" Immediately, she clasped her hands together and concentrated. The green pillar she was concentrated on, was pushing out a lot of energy.

A green vortex was in the air, and it was growing large.

"That's a soul?!" Lily stepped back in shock.

"This is beyond extraordinary." Erza noted.

The vortex grew large, and then a ghostly green claw reached out, spooking almost everyone. Gray couldn't speak, for there was nothing to say. The Exceeds paled as well as the vortex became a ghostly Dragon.

The soul manifested into a large, green Dragon with light green membrane on the wings. He had a massive scaly mouth with all incisors. His jade-colored eyes were accompanied by orange eyebrows and two stands of skin that were like a moustache on the corners of his chin.

He roared down at them, causing the Dragons Slayers, and Exceeds, to grow spooked and scream. Nic and Erza stepped backwards and felt their spines cause a quake that nearly made them lose balance. Vanessa shuddered and nearly went blank.

The Dragon laughed mockingly at them and their frightened state. "**Those horrified looks you humans give off never gets old.**" He told.

Everyone was left speechless.

"**I am Zirconis, also known as the Jade Dragon. The spell used to summon the remains of my soul, it's by Grandeeney, the Sky Dragon, is it not?**" He looked around at the faces of everyone, finally seeing Wendy on her knees and using her Magic. "**Ah, so this little Dragon Slayer summoned me, huh?**" Zirconis chuckled, making Wendy sweat drop.

"Hey, back off!" Natsu threatened, butting heads with Zirconis as his head was lowered to the earth.

"**Fine by me, I can just eat you along with her!**" Zirconis rebutted. He sneered at Natsu. "**Kidding, look.**" His finger jabbed Natsu, but it went through the Dragon Slayer, in and out. "**I'm an astral body, so I can't eat you even if I wanted to. You humans are so easy to play with.**"

Natsu grew a twitch in the eye. "Bastard."

"Of all the guys we can get, and we get this one." Lucy said in retorting disbelief over Zirconis's demeanor.

"Uh…yeah." Gray agreed despondently.

"Not very helpful." Nic noted.

"**I am Zirconis, also known as the Jade Dragon.**" Zirconis repeated absent-mindedly.

"We heard you the first time!" Gray yelled.

"What happened here?" Carla asked.

Zirconis's attention drew towards the Exceeds.

"We want to know what happened." Happy added.

"That's why we summoned you here." Lily finished.

Zirconis looked up and lifted his head. "**I have no business with humans. Go away!**" He scowled.

Happy raised a paw. "But I'm a cat."

"**Okay, let's see. It started roughly 400 years ago.**" Zirconis started.

"Gee, he's loose to his rules." Gray said.

"That's one way of putting it." Vanessa added nervously.

"**Long ago, Dragons ruled the world. Everything was ours; the land, seas, and skies. It was all ours. We prospered with great satisfaction as we lived on and thrived…that is, until some foolish Dragons thought it was possible with coinciding with humans. They were our prey, but their views were no so lenient. Between those who agreed, and those who disagreed, a war broke out. I fought with the side that disagreed.**"

Lucy lurched in fright. "You…disagreed?"

"**I am not fond of humans, unless there's food related to the conversation.**"

Natsu snickered. "heh, you're talking to your food!" He was whacked in the back of the head. "OW!"

"Quiet, Natsu." Nic scolded. "This isn't a joke."

"So then, what became of the war?" Carla diverted the attention back to Zirconis's story.

Zirconis continued. "**Things heated up. The land was ravaged and all was torn to shreds. Then the Dragons decided to make a stupid strategy.**" Zirconis's eyes narrowed in spite at the memory. "**The Dragons took the humans into the war with them. They gave them Dragon Slayer Magic, with could destroy Dragons.**"

Natsu and the other Dragon Slayers looked intrigued at the Dragon telling the story.

"So that was the origin of Dragon Slayers?" Happy asked.

Zirconis nodded. "**Dragon Slayers had tremendous power. The Dragons that decoded to coexist with humans had turned the tide in their favor…however, there was **_**one **_**flaw they didn't take into account.**"

"Flaw?" Lily inquired.

"**The Dragon Slayers that were given so much power, had too much of it. And because of that, they killed off the Dragons that wanted to live with them. There was one man in particular, who surpassed them all. He bathed in the blood of every Dragon he could find and slaughter. I fear to even say his name.**"

Everyone could see Zirconis looking uneasy as he seemed nervous just thinking of him.

"**He continued bathing in Dragon blood. His skin became scales; his teeth became fangs; his human nature and body…became Dragon.**"

Vanessa swallowed. "Humans…becoming Dragons?"

"**That's the consequence of Dragon Slayer Magic. The bones all here, they were all Dragons murdered by that one man, whom started another war…the Dragon King Festival. His name…was Acnologia.**"

Horror and shock swelled everyone. Lucy gasped so loud it echoed. The memories of Acnologia attacking them flooded into their minds, save Nic since he was out cold from Lysandre back then. Erza and Vanessa both were stiff to the bone as they never had a prayer against Acnologia, the Black Dragon of the Apocalypse, and the Dragon King who fought the Weather Trio and was forced to retreat. The memory made Natsu clench his fists so hard as he couldn't slay him, and instead the Weather Trio did all the work.

"Acnologia!" Gajeel shouted.

"Him?!" Lucy exclaimed.

Even Nic was so in shock it was hard to take in. "Acnologia…was human. This is beyond a revelation."

Zirconis's body began to fade away. "**He slaughtered almost every Dragon…and that was 400 years ago…you all did this…**"

Those were his final words before his body faded away completely, leaving green sparkles to flutter all around.

"Hey, we're not done with you!" Natsu yelled.

Nic and Vanessa went over towards Wendy as her Magic faded. "Wendy!"

Wendy sighed as the green light faded and she looked up. "that was the last of his soul. At least now, Zirconis can rest in peace."

"That was one hell of a history lesson." Gray said.

"Yeah." Gajeel mumbled.

"Dragon Slayers becoming Dragons…" Erza muttered.

"Things got very deadly all of a sudden." Nic said, assessing the facts.

Iron clad amongst the cliffs. Everyone's attention drew up to the cliffs and their guards went up. "Show yourselves!" Nic demanded.

Two figures emerged from the cliffs. One was Arcadios, and the other being Yukino.

Lucy gasped. "You're…Yukino?!"

"But who's the other guy?" Happy wondered.

Natsu's eyes narrowed. "I don't know, but he's got an odd smell."

Arcadios overlooked the people in front of him. "That's impossible." He countered. "Dragon Slayers killing Dragons to become one? Our books are all based on facts. Tell me, all of you, do you know of the Book of Zeref and its Demons?"

Gray grew an unholy dread up and down his spine. He remembered well the Demon known as Deliora, the one who destroyed his home and entire family. It was a gruesome realization that he wished he didn't know of. _'Deliora.'_

"We believe Zeref turned Acnologia into a Dragon." Arcadios reasoned.

"Zeref?!" Happy exclaimed. He, too, recalled Zeref, despite seeing him once and being of no match for Lysandre back on Tenrou Island.

Arcadios smirked, but it was hard to tell if he was malicious or factual. "Therefore, Zeref is the root of all evil. Eliminating him means that Acnologia is another step to being subjugated." He made his way down to where the others were, with them remaining silent with what Arcadios has to say. When he came up to them, he bowed to them. "Apologies for myself and my intrusion. I am Arcadios, leader of the Cherry Blossom Holy Knights."

"And I am Sergeant Yukino." Yukino said.

"Well, we've kind of met. Ring a bell?" Lucy said to the sergeant.

"I wouldn't take it that you joined the army after Sabertooth kicked you out, correct?" Lily asked.

The matter was ignored, however, and Arcadios brought everyone to his attention. "Please, allow me to explain the scenario down here." He insisted. "Over the past several years, I have been operating in discretion on a top-class military project; however, this project's success required the assistance of a Celestial Mage, which is why Sergeant Yukino is here."

"A Celestial Mage?" Vanessa inquired.

Natsu stepped forward, patience thin. "We didn't ask for formalities, pal! So skip to why the hell your down here! And while you're at it, explain why you need a Celestial Ma-OW!"

Natsy was intervened and bumped on the head again. Erza plucked him up by the scarf and held him in place as Natsu was struggling to get to Arcadios. "Calm down Natsu. Patience, will you?" She scolded.

"When I ask a question, I want an answer! Let at him!" Natsu struggled to reach him, but that was no good as Erza's hold was keeping him at bay while Nic presented himself to Arcadios. His blue eyes met Yukino's, then they digressed to Arcadios.

"Arcadios and Yukino, I suppose you know who I am, correct?" He asked.

Arcadios grinned. "Ah, Nic Pularis, the one and only. I applaud for you and Salamander's victory yesterday. A splendid show indeed." He turned towards Yukino. "We will explain everything in full, but for now, follow us."

"You too, Lucy." Yukino insisted. "If this project is to work, we need all the Celestial power we can get." Yukino saw the distrusting looks, even from a dangling Natsu. "If this works, both Zeref and Acnologia will be defeated."

The reason made everyone grow goosebumps. Erza let Natsu down and they all followed Arcadios, but Nic was very unnerved. He hated authority, and if Arcadios tried anything out of line, he was gonna let loose hell. For now, he would remain steady and on guard.

* * *

"Holy cow!" Natsu shouted as he stood in front of the castle. "This place is freakin' huge!" His glancing went all over the place, as awe was all over the place.

"This palace sure puts Parfum Palace to shame." Vanessa added on.

Arcadios turned around to face the group before him. "This is His Majesty's home, Mercurius." He explained. "Inside is where the project lies. Please, follow inside."

Arcadios led everyone to the front door, where they were about to enter, and that's when he paused. "Before we enter, however, I want to apologize for the incident back on Day 2. I was too aggressive in my approach."

"What's he talking about?" Natsu asked.

Carla knew. She connected the dots pretty fast with Natsu saving her, Wendy, and Porlyusica. "Now hold on, you mean that bunch who tried kidnapping us?"

"You were behind that?" Lucy asked, fairly offended by the low tactics of the Rune Knights. Even Nic was left offended high and mighty people resort to such a thing.

Arcadios opened the door and diverted the group into a dark hallway. "My intentions were to never harm you." He reasoned as they walked pass each and every column. "I was too precarious with my beliefs. I honestly thought you were our only hope. It was a lack of judgment, and I'm sorry."

Lucy and the others narrowed their eyes at Arcadios. This wasn't gonna be easy for them to swallow; if anything, forgiveness was far from their minds. Nic looked to Erza, both having a look of distrust for Arcadios's actions. Nic shook his head to her, expressing his stand. Erza looked forward, almost ready to join Nic's boat in a manner of speaking.

The group kept on going, with Arcadios further explaining the concepts. "Answers are to come. The truth is that the Grand Magic Games is a ruse. It was deceit to accumulate Magic, or siphon it from the participants."

"Wait…" From the beginning, Gray remembered Day 1, and then Erza remembered her Pandemonium contest, then came Wendy with her match, and Nic and Natsu against the Twin Dragons. They all realized, with the exception of Nic for his otherworldly power, that their Magic was diverted from their bodies the whole time. Natsu was furious. "You're stealing from us?!"

"That's just messed up!" Gajeel shouted.

"Beyond deplorable, that's what your actions are." Erza scolded.

"That's beyond reprehensible." Nic chided. "Just why are you doing such a thing?"

"I don't blame you on the opinions you've had. I certainly am aware of Nic Pularis's reputation for insubordination against the Magic Council." Arcadios spoke as they closed in on their destination up ahead. "However, I believe the outcome will be worth it for all." His footsteps came to a stop. "We're here."

Everyone looked up to the massive gate that was constructed. The Eclipse Gate stood tall and mighty, a presence they did not see coming. The structure had a heaping amount of Magic Power, and an energy that left all of them startled. This project was by no means a joke if it was this amount of Magic Power.

"A…door?" Gray asked.

"A gate to be more accurate nonetheless." Arcadios corrected. "With this Eclipse Project, the Celestial Magic used shall open these doors. Lying behind, one can never say but only pure time."

"What does that mean?" Happy asked.

"It means, we can set the course to 400 years ago. We shall use that time and slay Zeref before gaining immortality. That is our true goal."

Everyone, once again, was shocked. They never saw it coming. It was nothing less but shock after shock.

"So…Jellal was right after all." Nic said.

Erza nodded.

Lucy seemed to be pondering as she stepped ahead. "But, how can Celestial Magic play a role?"

Yukino turned towards Lucy. "I know Nic and you all have been to the Celestial World before, and I learned that time flows differently." She explained. "With those time-dimensional properties, we want to use that and coordinate a lock onto a time period."

"When the sun and moon intersect on July 7th, the gates shall open with the help of all 12 Zodiacs and Yukino and Lucy's power. Their cooperation will lead to this being a success." Arcadios explained further.

The date was all too familiar, especially for the Dragon Slayers. Natsu jerked. "July 7th?"

"But that's…" Wendy trailed off as the realization dawned upon her.

Gajeel nodded. "Yeah, the date when our Dragons disappeared. This sounds more than just a coincidence if this is in two days."

"So I guess that's why it's called the Eclipse Project." Erza said.

"That would be enough from you all."

Everyone turned around. They were in trouble now with Darton and Rune Knights beginning to run around and surround them from out of the blue. Darton had a distrusting look as he was around the Rune Knights, and with them at his disposal he was gonna get what he wanted.

"Rune Knights?!" Lucy exclaimed in worry.

"Are they looking for a fight?!" Gray held his fists up.

"Arcadios, it's wise for you to surrender." Darton demanded.

Arcadios looked in shock. "Darton, what is the meaning of this?! Have you lost your mind?!"

"I could say the same to you." Darton rebuffed with a sneer. "This is treason, giving these secrets to outsiders."

"You are making a mistake, Darton!" Arcadios countered. "These people are not outsiders!"

"SILENCE!" Darton shouted. "You are gonna change history! We cannot allow the present to be altered!"

"Change history?" Happy asked.

"Wait." Carla said. "If we do change the past, the present will indefinitely change."

"A rather alter concept. This would certainly put up a two-sided war." Lily noted.

"Arcadios! You and the Celestial Mages are under arrest for your misdeeds! Take them away, and dispose the rest!" Darton commanded. The Rune Knights followed his lead and they all went to apprehend the three mentioned. "You are gonna make things difficult if you resist, all of you!"

Nic pulled out a Poke Ball. "Vanessa, you ready?"

Vanessa followed her brother's lead and pulled out a Poke Ball. She nodded in confirmation. "We'll make a break for it when we manage to do so."

"Then let's go!" Nic threw his Poke Ball. "Charizard!"

The Poke Ball opened up, and Charizard appeared in midair and landed on the ground. His thud caused a brief quake that made Rune Knights back off. Charizard spat out a roar that was hot and made them all back off.

Vanessa didn't hesitate to throw her Poke Ball next. "Braixen, go!"

Braixen appeared out on land as well, taking a step and showing her wand in her fur.

Darton's eyes widened. "What's this? Magic?!"

Nic extended his arm out. "Charizard, **Heat Wave!**"

"This won't take long! You're all going down!" Charizard brought his wings forward, and a hurricane of wot winds whipped up profusely. Rune Knights surrounding him all were whipped around and were blown away, the flooring was steaming as the Heat Wave went about, even cindering bits of clothing. The Rune Knights caught in the skirmish landed on the hot ground, unconscious without even a fight made. In that one blow, almost every Rune Knight, counting 90 to 100, were all defeated.

"Braixen, use **Fire Spin!**" Vanessa called out, dealing with the ones behind and on the sides.

Braixen twirled her wand and pointed it at a group. "Leave us alone!" She fired a tornado of fire that surrounded the Rune Knights grouped up and kept them there. She turned her attention to where Lucy and Yukino were getting apprehended.

"Hey! Let go!" Lucy shouted as the Rune Knights seized her.

"Stop this!" Yukino shouted, but the Rune Knights didn't pay heed.

Braixen slammed her wand to the ground, and a long trail of fire went at Lucy's spot. The Fire Spin arose from behind the blonde and engulfed the soldiers that were taking her. Lucy ran away and scurried to the group present. They all got in a circle, and the soldiers remaining backed off out of scarcity and the might of Charizard and Braixen.

"You are making this difficult!" Darton demanded. "You are-!" He was cut off when a knife hand strike landed on his abdomen. Darton gagged as he shot back, slamming into three other Rune Knights who failed to catch him.

Nic turned back towards the group and swiped his arm. "Charizard, **Flamethrower!**"

Charizard opened his mouth and let loose a blast of fire that bellowed. It raced along the pavement, melting it in whole. The soldiers all dodged, but the explosion's heated shockwaves sent them flying. Thudding and sprawling onto the ground.

"My word…" Arcadios muttered. He was hauled away by Rune Knights and struggled to break away. "Unhand me!"

Charizard knee-strike a fellow soldier being reckless and sent him flying into the few left standing. When took a stance, he huffed out a hot breath. "You honestly believe we'll listen to anything you say?"

"Don't you dare try and steal our own!" Braixen warned with her wand held out.

"Everyone, let's escape while we can!" Nic glowed and shifted into his Mind Plate Form. He jumped and twisted in the air, landing in the center of the group. "Everyone gather together!" He ordered. Everyone did as told and they all huddled around. Nic's eyes flashed. "**Teleport!**"

In a flash, everyone present escaped, save Arcadios and Yukino as they were hauled by the few soldiers still standing. They looked on in shock as to what they have just witnessed. The Pokémon, mostly Charizard, took out the forces in no time nor effort, but also caused some collateral damage.

Darton gagged and coughed as he sat up, pressing a hand to his abdomen. "Damn Mages." He muttered. He coughed again and was assisted up by other Rune Knights. "Just wait until His Majesty hears about those act of treason."

He looked over as a fellow Rune Knight that was in Braixen's Fire Spin from before was assisted away to the infirmary. In his hands was something that made Darton scoff. "At least we didn't let them go empty-handed."

* * *

Nic's Teleport led them to the front of Nic's inn. Everyone ceased huddling and gained space. They all took a second to gather the surroundings and confirmed they were safe.

"What the hell was that back there?" Gajeel rubbed the back of his head.

Natsu looked grumpy as he pounded his palm. "Who cares? I didn't have time to beat some of those punks!" He turned towards Nic angrily. "Why did you and Charizard get to have all the fun?!"

Charizard took a stomp and caused Natsu to jump. "You were fortunate we dispatched them before they got any upper hand on us. Not that they could in any way."

"Still, why would they be after us?" Braixen asked.

"I'm not sure, but what matters is that Darton and Arcadios are on opposite ends of the spectrum. At least Charizard's training paid off and they were easy to dispatch." Nic pulled out Charizard's Poke Ball. "Thanks Charizard, return."

"You too, Braixen, thanks." Vanessa said. Both Charizard and Braixen were then returned to their Poke Balls, and that left the two to turn towards the group. Vanessa seemed more anxious. "We gotta tell the others."

"You're right. We have to…" Lucy stepped forward to run, but she felt something not right. She looked down, and she realized that her key pouch was not there. Her eyes widened. "What?!"

"Her Zodiacs Keys are missing?!" Gray exclaimed.

Wendy gasped with hands covering her mouth. "Oh no!"

"It must have been when those Rune Knights seized her." Erza figured. "They must have taken the Zodiac Keys before anything else. Among Lucy's other Spirits, this leaves her vulnerable."

"Oh no…" Lucy looked down in shock and fright. "And they arrested Yukino." Lucy was having a hard time understanding the situation. Her Spirits were taken, the things she treasured. With them in custody, and Yukino, a fellow Mage of her kind, she couldn't help but feel guilty. "What have we done? We left Yukino to get arrested, and my keys are gone."

Natsu put a hand to her shoulder, comforting her. Lucy turned to see the determined look on his face. "Don't worry, we're gonna get those two out of there. I swear it."

Nic turned towards the street where the rest of Fairy Tail was. "There's no time to waste. Let's go."

* * *

When the group arrived at the pub, questions arose, but they were answered. Nic and everyone told them everything. Nothing was left out. The more they went on, the more piqued the guild was, and the more scared they got. More questions came, but when Zeref was involved, and Acnologia, everything dropped.

"To think Lucy and Yukino were a part of something so world-changing." Makarov spoke after a long period of silence. He had to process a lot. "A Dragon boneyard, and the history of Acnologia. Eclipse. And the assault against the Rune Knights. Things do not seem good on our ends."

"We can say in defense that it was an act of self-defense. They did provoke us by surrounding us first." Nic argued. "But now they might have something for us. With Lucy's keys in their possession, they may strike a bargain for us to get them back."

"Not to mention the arresting of Yukino." Gray added.

"Why'd they go and arrest their own?" Sophie asked. "I mean I know that Lucy and Yukino are needed, but that's no reason to take them into custody by force."

Makarov groaned as he contemplated. He was thinking hard, so he made up a decision. "They tried taking Lucy from us, and they arrested Yukino, someone who we see as an ally. Therefore, this is a hostage situation I am declaring."

"That we can understand, but if we attacked them, why aren't they swarming the city looking for us?" Gajeel asked. "It's like they're letting us go free."

"Those authorities never make sense." Natsu said.

Lily was among the other Exceeds in question. "It was obvious Arcadios was their primary target, so perhaps they let us go free so we can testify against him."

"I'm not so sure." Happy countered.

"They'd be risking their secret getting out." Carla reasoned. "If they didn't try and arrest us right after we've escaped, what could they be accomplishing?"

"Perhaps they think the truth will break out eventually. Otherwise they'd look all over for us by now." Erza said. She turned towards Nic. "As we came here, no Rune Knight was seeking us. It's as if they're letting us roam free or test us."

Nic looked to her, getting a familiar idea. "That's a good point."

"I can't be sure." Mira spoke up. "We're all a 1st place team in the games. Picking us off when he have a high profile would draw immense attention the kingdom couldn't afford. They'd have the other guilds against them, something they had no control over."

"With that in mind, we can't just sit by with Yukino in prison." Sophie reasoned. "She respects us, and she's a friend to us for what we did. It'd be insulting if we left her and Lucy's Spirits there."

Makarov closed his eyes and scratched the top of his head. He grumbled and mumbled incoherently to take the situation in. "The Rune Knights crossed the line with trying to take Lucy from us. They can send us bills, they can give restrictions, but taking our own against their will…this is war."

Natsu stepped atop of a table. "Count on it! Their asses are as good as roasted!"

"Aye!" Happy agreed.

Lucy was present and she looked determined. "If we have a plan, I'm all for it. I feel responsible for Yukino and my Spirits being taken. I'm going in, no matter what."

"And we don't blame you." Makarov said. "We won't let this deed go unpunished for them."

Nic stepped forward. "Master, with all do respect, I think I have a solution that can get us to Yukino and Lucy's Spirits while still taking part of the games." Nic's answer made everyone turn towards him, all ears as they heard Nic's plan of attack. If anyone could come up with a battle plan, if anyone could find a fail-safe, if anyone can strategize a two-sided confrontation; it's Nic.

* * *

July 6th, Day 5 of the Grand Magic Games. Fireworks went off as excitement filled the air. The final day of the exciting X791 games was just making people all sorts of emotions, the primary being excitement for Fairy Tail's comeback.

"Hello folks! It's Chapati Lola here, and this is the final day for the Grand Magic Games!" Lola announced. His hair was blue, with large spikes. "And you know Mr. Yajima, as he's the other commentator!"

Yajima nodded. "My pleasure once again."

"And our special guest today, it's the Grand Magic Games' mascot!" Lola announced. Looking over, it was Mato waving. "It's Mato!"

"Heya!" Hey waved to the audience through the lacrima-vision.

"Usually, he's the referee, but today shall not be the case, for today is the anticipated Battle Royal!" Lola reasoned. "And now, let's meet our teams and competitors!"

As the teams were being listed off, exiting the tunnels, Team Fairy Tail was waiting in its tunnel, all looking out in the lighting. They all had dead serious looks on them, as this plan Nic made was gonna be a real game-changer, quite literally.

"Nic sure knows how to keep us on our toes, that's for sure." Laxus said.

Gray and Sophie were standing in between Erza, who had a purple attire with flowers on. Gray seemed serious to the point being around him made a normal guy shiver. "This is all because Nic's plan's gonna work."

"I hope so." Sophie said. "This is a risk, but it's our only option. The authorities might get suspicious with Nic and Natsu out, but they won't have a prayer when they confront them."

"We'll have to give the public what they want. A good show." Erza said.

"You all be careful." Mira said. "We gotta get going right now."

Wendy nodded. "Don't worry, we'll be back. Promise." Wendy then turned and began running off with Carla.

Mira turned as well. "We'll be sure to give off a red flare if we find her. Good luck and win for us."

Mira turned away and took off. She and Lucy nodded and the two ran into the depths of the tunnels to the outside of the Domus Flau colosseum.

Lily glared up at Gajeel. "Gajeel, be careful, and be sure to get a few good hits in for me."

Gajeel held up a fist and smirked. "You don't have to tell me twice. I'll bash heads before lunch."

Lily thus flew off, leaving Nic, Vanessa, Natsu and Happy the only ones left.

"Hey Gray, if you lose to anyone, that means I'll beat you!" Natsu retorted.

Gray angrily smirked. "Gee, way to encourage me. Become a motivation speaker while you're at it."

Natsu held up a fist as he butted Gray's head again. "Just know you better not screw this up!"

"You better not either, because I'm not bailing you out, ya hear?!" Gray retorted.

"Hey, Natsu?" Happy told him.

Natsu backed off and gave a serious look to Gray and Gajeel, and Laxus as well. "Okay. Lucy's waiting for us. You guys kick ass." Natsu ran off then, with Happy following by his side.

Laxus looked back ahead. "Well that's one way of encouragement."

"Tch, Salamander's got some guts. Guts that I wanna bash if he annoys me anytime after this." Gajeel clenched his fists.

Vanessa looked to Sophie. "Watch out for Rufus. His aura is very…dramatic." Vanessa couldn't exactly find the words, but that was the only one that came to her mind.

Sophie nodded. "Will do. Save Yukino, get her out." Sophie turned ahead. "Vanessa, we'll meet you after we win, okay?"

Vanessa smiled and nodded. "Got it! And knock some out for me if you don't mind."

Sophie snickered. "That's what friends are for."

Vanessa left the tunnel to catch up with the others, leaving Nic the only one left. He looked at the expectant looks everyone gave him, especially Erza. They all knew this was his plan to follow through with, and so he must take action.

"Everyone give it your all. We'll be careful, but if we run into trouble, we won't hesitate to show them up Fairy Tail style." Nic said.

Gray snickered, as did Gajeel. Both didn't expect any other resolve.

Erza looked at him and had a hint of worry in her eyes. "Alright, we'll be careful too. If you need help, you can tell us, and we'll come racing to you."

"I think you're talking about yourself there, because I ain't taking a dive that easily." Gajeel pointed out, but he got a glare from Erza.

"Just fight on, for all of us." Nic said. He looked over his shoulder and saw his sister disappearing around the corner, following the others. He turned back towards Erza. "I gotta go. Win this for us."

Erza walked up, meeting him in the eyes. "I know, we will." He put her hands to his face and gave a warm smile. She leaned in and kissed him on the lips. The affection was pulled back and Erza kept her smile. "Good luck."

Nic recovered from the light shade of pink he had and nodded. He flipped on his sunglasses and turned his back. He darted down the tunnel, as to where the rest of Team Fairy Tail turned ahead and started walking out.

"And now…the moment that you all waited for!" Lola announced. "It's the guild that made a comeback and traveled through time! This is the guild in 1st place, and are on Sabertooth's target list! Please welcome, Team Fairy Tail!"

The crowd went nuts as screams went on. Team Fairy Tail had smoke for dramatic effect, and their figures were seen. The crowd suddenly grew startled.

"What?!" Lola shouted.

"Odd." Yajima said. "I didn't see this coming."

Everyone saw Team Fairy Tail. The members were all switched up. They were Laxus, Gajeel, Erza, then the twist was Gray and Sophie in place of Natsu and Nic. Nobody saw this coming. Even Darton, who growled down at them, didn't see this coming.

"Unbelievable!" Lola shouted again. "Team Fairy Tail is keeping us on our toes yet again! The team is without Nic or Natsu, and instead, have Gray Fullbuster and Sophie Lednick?!"

Rufus snickered upon seeing Sophie entering. "Well, well."

"Nic and Natsu are out?" Rogue asked.

Sting, unlike Rogue, showed satisfaction with the roster change. "Fine by me, that's the best news all day." He turned towards 'Minerva', who gave a look at Sting. He knew the consequences if he stepped out of line and didn't bring a win. The thought of Lector came to him again. _'Don't worry Lector, with those two out of the way, thing's got easier for me to beat them all.'_

The crowd questioned one another over the roster change. They never expected this to happen, not in a million years. The Fairy Tail's almighty light and the flaming disaster weren't present, which sparked curiosity and doubt from Darton above. However he didn't see it as a major threat yet. He walked off from the stadium, his worries on the brink of action.

"Mr. Yajima, I thought each team only allowed one reserve member, is that correct?" Lola asked.

"Hmm…" Yajima crossed his arms. "Well, originally Fairy tail was two teams, and so they had a reserve for those two teams, but fused into one may seem like two reserve members. I say this should count for them as an advantage." He explained. "Besides, the committee didn't see Fairy Tail pull twists like this before."

Mato clapped his hands. "Oh~! This is so exciting!"

In the stands, Makarov sat and spectated, with everyone cheering. He couldn't believe that Nic's plan was actually one we couldn't say no to, and yet it was a good one. Mavis was beside him, looking with a serious and focused eyesight. Both Masters looked at their new team and saw that this was going to get interesting.

"A two-prong strategy, I never took into account that, but still…" Mavis nodded in approval.

"Yes." Makarov answered. "This is a very good plan, and the only plan I like. Nic outdid himself." He took a pause as straightened up, readying for the competition. "Everyone's focused on the games and we will cheer them on, just as they expect us too."

"But that's just a diversion." Mavis pointed out.

"Correct, and while we cheer them on and keep the attention, that leaves Nic's rescue squad to infiltrate and rescue. Good luck, Nic, everyone."

As he spoke, Nic led the charge through the city, leading everyone to Mercurius. He, Natsu, Lucy, the Exceeds, Wendy, Mira, and Vanessa all ran with gusto as they headed off after their objective.

"Let's head out! We're coming to help!" Nic yelled as he and the others picked up the pace as the final day of the Grand Magic Games began.

* * *

**Here's the update guys. So how was it? I had to cut the OVA 5 bit short, sorry, but I added that hot flavor to make up for it. Everything else was as I had intended it to be. **

**As I was on vacation, I had a lot to think about, and I came to a few realizations on my part, so if you don't find me cooperative later on when PMing me, or if you ask or a collaboration or OCs, it's because I decided I'll do everything on my own with no interference. I like working by myself, and I like to keep to my own work; that means I accept nothing now. That's one of the realizations on my vacation.**

**Next chapter won't be long, but I'll try and work fast if I can.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are loving it all and the NicxErza moments, and the fighting and plot twisting about.**

* * *

**Next Time: Memories**


	77. Memories

Chapter 77 – Memories

**Hey guys! Here's chapter 77 of this incredibly long story, and still going. We're nearing the end!**

**To Recap:**

On the day of rest, everyone headed for the water park nearby, but after some distraught realizations, Nic, accompanied by Erza and Vanessa, all left early and headed for the catacombs, where they headed deep down and found a Dragon Graveyard, and later returned with the Dragon Slayers. They talked to a Dragon soul named Zirconis and learned the graveyard was of murdered Dragons by Acnologia, the same Dragon that lost to the Weather Trio. Arcadios led them to the Eclipse Gate, but Darton tried apprehending them, but Nic and Vanessa used Charizard and Braixen to escape, consequently leaving Lucy's keys and Yukino behind. The next day, on Day 5, Gray and Sophie fill in for Nic and Natsu as they went on a rescue mission with a small group and headed towards Mercurius while everyone is focused on the games.

* * *

**Chapter 77 – Memories**

The group led by Nic traveled down the hollow streets, free from any eyes that were amongst them. With everyone centered in the Domus Flau colosseum, this was their chance to initiate the operation.

"We're getting close." Vanessa warned. "I'm getting a copious of aura a few blocks ahead."

"Alright!" Natsu exclaimed in brash excitement. "I've been dying to punch a guy or two. Let's get moving!"

Mira turned towards Nic as he was a little bit ahead of her. "Do you know how we can get in, Nic?"

Nic kept his eyes on the prize. They turned another corner and headed up said street. "…I think I got one."

"That fast?" Lucy asked as she ran close behind.

"Does it involve kaboom?" Natsu wondered, hoping so.

"No, that never solves anything." Nic berated, disregarding Natsu's dismay. "This mission requires levity, and not brute force. If we're gonna infiltrate, we'll have to blend in."

"What does that mean?" Wendy asked.

"Just follow Mira and my lead." Nic explained. As they ran on ahead, Nic thus began elaborating once more.

* * *

Back in the colosseum, Erza saw the ground shaking from the excitement shrilling through the air and land alike. Deafening screams of a mixture of anticipation and excitement filled all ears, but Erza blocked it all out as she faced the participants, along with her team. _'Nic, be sure to return safe.' _

"Alright participants! Show us what you're made of! Your Magic! Your skills! And your comradery!" Lola yelled. "This last day is a survival game! Let's get things underway!"

The whole stadium had a shining light at the participants' feet. They all remained stoic and set on the prize. When the light faded, each team found itself elsewhere.

Team Fairy Tail looked around, figuring out that the surroundings was within the city of Crocus. The streets were desolate, leaving all six teams scattered in random places.

"Surprise!" Mato's voice was heard over the mic and echoed through the city. "For today's survival game, the battlefield itself is the city of Crocus, pumpkins!" He said.

Yajima took over. "The teams have dispersed and are layered all around. They are on standby."

"Here's how it works." Lola added. "The teams split up ad look for any enemies around. Once they encounter one, a battle with erupt. The winner shall get 1 point; however, there's a special twist." He included. "Each team is allowed to elect a leader, which is worth 5 points, but no one will know who the leader is, oh~, a mystery!"

"And so the total one team can get is 45 points, which means fair game, pumpkins!" Mato cheered.

Erza turned towards her group. "Listen, we must win."

"Don't have to tell us twice." Gajeel said.

Laxus had a smirk. "Well it's the least we can do for those guys who've been dragged on their heels for seven years. Let's give them what they deserve."

Sophie and Gray nodded in confirmation with Laxus's statement.

"And now…" Fireworks went up to the sky. "Let the battle…BEGIN!"

The fireworks went off, allowing the games to begin.

* * *

The fireworks were seen even from Nic's point of view. He turned around and saw the games begin. "It looks like they started." He said, wearing a Rune Knight's uniform.

Mira was in the same uniform. "Let's give it our all like they do too."

The two knights in the alley were left in their undergarments and were sizzling, catered by an overzealous Natsu, who had taken the liberty of dishing out the pain. Once Nic and Mira had 'borrowed' the uniforms, they were set to go in. Mira used her Transformation Magic to poof into one knight, while Nic use Transform and applied the same concept.

The plan was disguise and infiltrate. Simple yet effective.

"Why do I have to be the captive again?" Natsu pouted as a disguised Mira carried him and Wendy, while Nic carried Lucy and Vanessa.

"Just do it, would ya?" Lucy barked. "Besides, we have enough attention as we do now. So just play the part."

Natsu gave a grumpy pout as Mira hauled him off. It wasn't his style, which was setting ablaze everything. He just had to hold up, for everyone's sake.

They made it to the castle, and two guards were posted outside the entrance. They seemed a little occupied with talking about the games, but Nic and his group being presented got their attention.

One guard turned towards them. "Hey, who are you?" He asked.

"They're intruders." Mira said, her voice disguised to represent a man.

"They were probably in hopes of rescuing this one's keys." Nic held Lucy up, his one-arm strength hauling her up like she was a bag of groceries. "What do you propose?"

"Fairy Tail?" A guard asked.

"His Majesty and the Minister of Defense are on pretty high ground after last night. I'm not sure what to think of this." The other guard looked to the other and back at the situation. "Just throw them in the dungeon for now. We'll handle with them later."

"Roger." Mira said.

The guards watched the two pass with their 'captives', keeping a worried eye as they entered inside. "Hey, uh, the dungeon's that way." He pointed to the other side of the wall, which was open.

Mira and Nic both turned around and realized they were in the wrong direction. "Uh, sorry." Mira nervously laughed. "We were just recently posted here."

Nic and Mira headed off inside to the dungeon. While they had their backs turned to the guards in the distance behind them, Nic and Mira both lifted their methods of transformation, keeping their disguises, but their faces were confident, with the Exceeds snickering underneath Mira's attire. Everyone had confident smirks as they headed down the stairs that were lit by the torches.

"Hang on, we're coming." Lucy muttered, hopes high.

* * *

Overlooking the Grand Magic Games, a young woman with jade-like hair and a tiara looked out the window. She had a smirk on her face, but not one of mischievous intent. She actually seemed sound, despite the news of the incident last night revolving around Nic Pularis and his group escaping with knowledge of Eclipse. She leaned over the balcony and watched as Quatro Puppy was eliminated, and Sabertooth was back in the lead.

"This is interesting." She said. "This year's games are not what I had in mind. Fairy Tail is full of surprises." She found herself chuckling as the lacrima-vision in front of her caught sight of all the Fairy Tail members opening their eyes in unison and diverging, finally making their move.

"And after such a period of time, Fairy Tail is on the move!" Lola announced.

"Princess Hisui." A guard presented himself to her. "It's time."

Hisui lifted herself from the balcony and turned around, still smirking. "Yes." She answered calmly. "It's time. The news of Eclipse won't hold out long, and now we move on to…Eclipse 2."

* * *

Erza rushed through the streets with grace and diligence. She, along with the rest of Team Fairy Tail, held out their patience according to Mavis's strategy. The redhead and her comrades went through the streets to their designated checkpoints, where they remembered well of Mavis's calculated strategy, and the steps to proceed on after that. To be honest, it was a lot to take in, but nothing they couldn't handle.

'_According to Mavis, Rufus is said to make a move right about now…' _Erza thought.

Her eye caught sight of a shooting star approaching from an angle that traveled across the sky. Her eyes narrowed as she counted. _'One…two!' _She took a leap, and actually dodged the star that almost struck her, leaving the Requip Mage unscathed and sprinted on ahead northwest.

She cut a corner and slid to a halt, intercepting a shocked Jenny. The blonde turned around and winced at the redhead's Magic Power.

"E-Erza?!" Jenny squealed.

Erza put a hand to her hip. "Well, seems the First Master's spot on."

"Uh…" Jenny turned away and leaped off in her dress. "Strategic retreat!"

Jenny ran away, but was cut off by Erza blitzing right pass her and blocking her off. Jenny squealed as Erza slashed with no hesitation, sent soaring and thudding. She fell in capacitation.

Erza couldn't help but smirk in satisfaction. Now she got back at Jenny for flirting with her lover. Revenge was well worth it, and the lesson was by no means the easy way.

Erza kept her smirk as she headed off again, cutting another corner to her right and moving onto her next destination.

* * *

The lacrima-vision was showing Gajeel completely destroying Eve and Ren of Blue Pegasus, leaving Hibiki in the hands of Gray, who left him in ice. Everyone was following the precise orders that Mavis gave out, and not a step out of place, shocking everyone as Fairy Tail was suddenly back in the lead with 50 points, putting them back into 1st place.

"With a succession of points, Team Fairy Tail had curb stomped a number of opponents, putting them in the lead again!" Lola announced, much to the audience's delight and enjoyment.

Jet looked in sheer shock and excitement. "First Master, this strategy is so awesome!"

"How come you never told us?!" Droy exclaimed.

Mavis ignored the peanut gallery behind her, keeping her eyes set on the lacrima-vision that had all Fairy Tail members scurrying. "Sophie, take the rear and secure a perimeter for enemies at your next checkpoint! Laxus head to point F8! Erza, an enemy is on point S5!" She gave out orders left and right, calculations that surpassed Hibiki's Archive Magic by leaps and bounds. Such a thing was beyond astronomical.

Makarov's eyes widened as he watched Mavis gave orders. By watching her in action, it was like a bomb went off. "I just remembered, you had a nickname." He said in bewilderment. His gaze looked back at the lacrima-vision as his mind was set on the stories told long ago.

"A long time ago, wars broke out. Strategies were devised, and many were better than others. With your eyes filled with a gift of genius, you won so many wars!" Realization made him nearly jump. "The Fairy Tactician!"

Macao sobbed tears of joy. "First Master has blessed us!"

"We're never gonna take ghosts for granted for as long as we live!" Wakaba joined in the victorious sobbing.

"So that's why they didn't move at first. They were waiting for the positions to be taken." Lisanna realized.

"Man, for a ghost, she's got credit to be given to." Cana commented.

The battle raged on, with Ichiya, and Blue Pegasus's dreams, getting crushed by the might of Jura. Chelia also scored some points by eliminating Risley of Mermaid Heel, tying Sabertooth and Lamia Scale for 2nd place, with Fairy Tail still ahead of them by one. Even though they held the lead, Fairy Tail was far from secure.

"A battle shall commence. Sophie, take your position at point C6." Mavis ordered.

On the lacrima-vision, Sophie ran down the street, far from enemy reach. She seemed to be heading off somewhere, but it was hard to tell where exactly given the point of view being a bird's eye close up.

"Gray, cover her position and secure the rear." Mavis ordered.

"May, First Master." Cana asked. "Have you given any idea on how to handle Jura?"

Mavis took a pause, pondering with no coherent conclusion. "…to be honest, no. That's how formidable Jura is. If Nic was here, I'd have him set, but in this predicament, I'll have everyone follow with the strategy and keep themselves far from Jura's reach until a conclusion is made.

Cana turned towards the lacrima-vision. She was well aware of how Kagura, even Jura, were spooked from Day 4. Nic's Legendary Force was unlike any level of strength that could possibly be measured. Cana herself gets a shiver every time she even thinks of Nic's raw force. Kyogre first, then came Groudon. It was like a wave of dismay washed over her.

The brunette put a hand to her hip. "This stinks. Better get some booze if this takes too long." She huffed.

* * *

Cold footsteps reverberated off the walls, echoing through the small crevices and enclosed space of the dungeon. Torches lit up the halls as empty cell after empty cell was passed. It seemed as though little to no inmates were present, catered to good behavior around Crocus.

Yukino was lying on her bunk, contemplating heavily. She was so distraught that she didn't seem to mind how much time came and passed on by. "What did I do?" She mumbled. _'This Eclipse is making everything and everyone flip. Why'd they try and kidnap me and Lucy? This isn't right, not to any of us.' _Yukino turned over to her side, her eyelids barely open. _'Is this Eclipse really a good idea if the past will change the present? I wish I knew, honestly. I want to help instead of be a burden. I…'_

Knocking was heard on her cell, which got her to shake off her fatigue. "Who's there?" She looked up, and the residence caused her to spring up to her feet out of shock.

"Hey, get some sleep? Because you've got energy to make it out now!" Natsu, along with the rest of Nic's group, had successfully found Yukino. Natsu had his trademark smile, and everyone else seemed satisfied while Yukino was in shock.

"You guys? What are you doing here?" Yukino asked.

"Stay there, this'll only be a moment!" Natsu gripped the iron bars caging Yukino. His Magic began to burn up the bars and heat them to the point where he ripped them apart, allowing Yukino a way out. "You coming?"

"Uh, sure…" Yukino wasn't sure whom to side with due to the confusion around, but what mattered was that being confined wasn't gonna be of any use for her. She had to take advantage, and she stepped out of her cell. "Thanks."

Lucy gave a perky smile. "Don't mention it."

"Now that the one priority is out of the way, that just leaves for us to retrieve the keys." Lily said.

"Aye!" Happy cheered.

Carla, however, didn't seem so convinced. "I don't think the matter is that simple. How else could we have gotten down here so easily?"

"Yeah, good question." Wendy said, realizing the situation. "Do you think everyone was focused on the games rather than guard the area?"

Nic looked at the group, his gaze serious. "Carla has a point. It's like we took bait."

"If that's true, then how come we're-!" Vanessa was cut off when a click was heard. She and the group looked down as the floor opened down like a latch door and everyone screamed as they fell into the darkness. The latch door-like flooring then closed back up, leaving just heated bars scattered among Yukino's now empty cell.

Everyone hit the ground hard, with Natsu being the cushion for all to thud down upon. Everyone tumbled off of him and sprawled onto the ground.

Natsu got up and rubbed his head. "Ow, what the heck happened?"

"My butt hurts." Lucy groaned.

Nic got up to his two feet. He tilted his head and the bones cracked, relieving him of pain. His little chiropractic therapy set, he realized skeletons, and an endless array of them, were scattered all around a green cavern. In front of them were two massive statues that led to the underground territory that was piled with skeletons.

"Another…graveyard?" Nic asked, slightly disturbed.

Vanessa looked around and looked at the skeleton sprawled nearby, the head dislocated out of place. She recoiled at the site and looked around nervously. "Wherever we are, it really is bad on our end."

"You are now in Hell Palace." A feminine voice told.

"What the…?" Natsu looked around. "Show yourself, coward!"

"You are in your last trap." The voice said.

"Last trap?" Happy parroted.

"Look around you." The voice continued. "Among you are the hundreds of criminals who have been sentenced to rot for their misdeeds. Escape is inevitable for you." The group turned around, where the image of a jade-haired woman with two guards looked menacingly at them. The princess's eyes were resolute. "Rot down here, you criminals!"

Natsu pointed at the screen. "Who are you?!"

"I am Hisui E. Fiore, the princess of the Fiore Kingdom." She answered.

"The princess of this palace?" Mira inquired.

"W-wait! We're not criminals!" Lucy reasoned.

"LET US OUT OF HERE!" Natsu bellowed to her. "You're gonna be sorry!"

Hisui's image was disconnected, leaving the screen to fade.

"The princess has us under a death penalty sort of speak." Lily confirmed.

Vanessa stepped around. "There doesn't seem to be an exit."

"Well she did say escape was inevitable." Yukino pointed out.

Nic looked up at the two statues looming overhead. They were like gargoyles that were gonna watch and enjoy their last breaths. This Hell Palace certainly lived up to the name. It was ugly, no other words could justify the grotesque nature and pungent odor. They had to get out of there, and fast.

* * *

Sophie walked through the narrow steer, free from any enemies for the time being. She had but one objective: To head to her designation that was the library. There was a certain someone there that she's been waiting to confront for the longest time, and it was high-time that came to fruition.

'_I've been waiting years to make you see your faults.' _She thought. _'I won't let you to forget this either…'_ She stepped inside of the library, where her foe was to be waiting. She approached the inside and past the doors. She made way down the dark hallway and into the light, where in the center of the cylindrical library was a lone man with a book in hand – Rufus.

Sophie stood there in silence as Rufus closed his book. "Ah, so you've found me."

"Well I remember First Master's orders and directions by the letter." She reasoned.

Rufus didn't even budge as his smirk was still on his face. "Must I recall you from somewhere?"

Sophie raised a brow. "Now is that really how you're supposed to treat family…cousin?"

The audience seeing and hearing the lacrima-vision got spooked by Sophie announcing their affiliation.

"Oh my goodness! It looks like we have ourselves a little family brawl amongst us!" Lola announced. "Two Memory-Makers are gonna make some noise in the library, and I'm sure they are not gonna turn their volume down!"

"I'm still shocked that they're cousins." Elfman sweat dropped.

Levy looked past Elfman and focused on First Master. "So First Master, did you plan this?"

Mavis retained a steady composure as she watched the lacrima-vision above her. "Not exactly, I doubt that this can be our favor."

"What are you saying?!" Warren exclaimed. "You mean that those two are neck and neck?"

"They both possess the same Magic, a Lost Magic that can make an infinite realm of new Magic. If Sophie makes one false creation, she'll lose." Mavis warned. "But, it is critical that she wins, even if it means defeating her own blood. Rufus is the key to our victory and Sabertooth's fall."

"I betcha Gray wasn't too thrilled." Max interjected.

First Master nodded in confirmation. "In a way, yes. However…"

_The only ones left in the bar were Team Fairy Tail. Everyone else had left after Nic explained the strategy that Makarov agreed to, and so they went to get some early sleep for tomorrow's skirmish. However, First Master had to keep Team Fairy Tail with her to go over the strategy for the games, and her first point was Rufus Lore of Sabertooth._

"_You serious?" Gray asked. "Rufus has to be taken down first?"_

_Mavis nodded. "Yes, indefinitely. Rufus has the ability to track us at all times. It'd be difficult for us to navigate knowing he'll be watching our every move with his perception, which is why we must strike him before pursuing the rest of Sabertooth."_

_Gray got his chance at payback. He stood up and looked at her dead in the eye. "Let me fight him! I owe him a good thrashing for what he did. He's gonna pay!"_

_Mavis, however, seemed to be thinking otherwise as her frown went to the ground. "According to my calculations, you're at significant disadvantage." It's not that she didn't have faith in Gray and his emotions, it's just that she's a calculative warrior and relied on her wits rather than will, for the most part._

_A hand slammed down onto the table. Gray rebuffed yet again. "I don't give a crap!" He yelled to her. Mavis remained stoic in spite of Gray lashing out at her. "You know full well that I'm a proud member, so let me settle the score with him!"_

_A blonde blur whisked itself besides Gray. The Ice-Make Mage turned to see that Sophie was standing with no resolution to move. Her green orbs looked solemnly at him; not Erza, Gajeel, or Laxus. Just Gray._

"_No." She said to him bluntly._

"_What?" Gray asked, his eyes widening._

"_You heard me, Gray, I said no." Sophie repeated. "If anyone's gonna fight Rufus, it's going to be me."_

_Gray stepped to the side and looked at Sophie, showing his opposition clearly. "I'm telling you, I can handle hi-!"_

"_Gray Fullbuster, you listen well because I am NOT repeating myself again!"_

_The whole room went silent as a grave. Gray felt like an inferno was before him, because he could only stare in sheer shock at the firm tone. Erza, Gajeel, even Laxus were wide-eyed. Never before had Sophie been so firm and demanding in her tone. She not only said Gray's full name, but she said it all with an aggressive viewpoint. She was beyond serious with what she had to say._

"_Rufus is __**my**__ cousin! __**My **__problem to straighten out! __**My **__responsibility! He's been a real sore in my family and I have to see to it that he learns that his Magic is not meant to be a discarding tool. Memories are supposed to leave you scarred, so you can learn from them, but he doesn't bother with that. It's my job as a fellow Memory-Make Mage to make him swallow his pride, and I am also doing it in favor as his cousin." She narrowed her eyes. "Now let me ask you, how many demands have I've given? This, I need to do…alone. This, is personal."_

_She had a point. Not only were they cousins, but fellow Memory-Make Mages share the same abilities more or less. Gray was still in shock from how Sophie just owned him. Never had she used the tone or reasons in such a manner. This was the first time she was resolute, and knowing her acting like this, she wasn't gonna take no for an answer._

_Gray relented, and lowered his head. "…just get a good hit in for me."_

_Sophie nodded._

"_Man, remind me not to get on her sassy side." Gajeel noted. _

"_Guess we now know the extent of how serious this feisty one is." Laxus pointed out._

Gray looked up at the lacrima-vision close by, seeing Sophie and Rufus in the library. He remembered the fire in her eyes last night, which he never saw before. It wasn't a grudge Sophie held for Rufus per se, but a matter left for her to settle nonetheless. He could relate with Lyon in a manner of speaking, so this was to be settled by her hands He ran off to find a target after seeing Sophie's green eyes set on Rufus.

Rufus stood up, placing the book in hand onto the stand right beside him. His smirk was like a confident composer's who had written a masterpiece with great reviews, a melody in which he would proudly present to his one-woman audience.

"Ladies first." He insisted.

Sophie stood with a stance, a finger at her forehead. "Very well, but I am not a haste-makes-waste kind of woman, if you remember correctly." A chain of memories began to flow from behind her. "**Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**"

Saucers made of fire were fired and raced through the air in the library. Rufus immediately jumped and dodged, leaving the chair he sat in to be reduce to a burning crisp and sectioned by the saucers. Rufus landed on the ground and seemed unfazed, his smirk unwavering.

"Memorized." He said.

Sophie kept a battle-ready stance. "Now, with the song comes the composure ready to instigate the chorus, as you would put it?" She asked, putting a manner of speaking to challenge Rufus to offer what he had to give.

Rufus snickered at his cousin's remarks. "Glad you see things my way. Memories are but a powerful weapon. After all, knowing is half the battle. Or in a Mage's case as for you and I, knowing is the entire battle." He reached his arm out. "**Memory-Make: Shrine of Turbulent Fang!**"

Rufus thus created several medium-sized twisters that blew through the library, throwing books into a whirlwind. The twisters honed in on Sophie as she extended her arm out. "**Memory-Make: Scorn of the Armored Winds!**"

In Sophie's case, she generated iron twisters of medium size as well. The heavy iron twisters raged like a maelstrom and clashed with Rufus's version. Sophie's heavier version of the attack made Rufus frown as the tempest backfired on him, forcing him to take precaution and backflip up to the balconies as the raging iron-like winds had everything beneath scattered at Sophie's feet.

"You're not the only one with an imagination, Rufus." Sophie reasoned. "I have memories that I hold dear."

Rufus's hat shielded his eyes, yet his grin returned. "How feeble-minded you are, Sophie."

"What?"

"Memory-Make is a powerful Maker Magic. It's a tool, not a mere treasure. Memories are a powerful weapon that you can use to turn one's Magic into your own. Whatever spells you don't find necessary, you can easily forget. That is what separates us." He put a finger to his forehead again and a chain of memories went around. "However, to understand, how's about I give you a preview. **Memory-Make: Sword of Frozen Black Lightning!**"

Rufus raised his arm overhead, summoning black lightning that struck down to the ground. Sophie dodged as the back lightning tailed her, making ice jut out from the ground. Sophie leaped back to gain some distance, where she put a foot back and had a finger to her forehead.

"I have that spell memorized." She said. "But now, forget!" The black lightning and ice suddenly vanished, leaving only wrecked ground. Rufus didn't seem at all fazed, as if he expected her to pull such a trick.

"My point exactly." He stated. "**Memory-Make: Soaring Falcon's Red Dawn!**"

A mass of black winds diverged with points looking like falcon heads. The attack streamed like a Pin Missile and Sophie covered up as the winds pushed her back. The heavy black winds made her lose sight of a red wave that followed. The red wave struck Sophie, strong enough to send her soaring and landing on her back with a booming thud.

"And Rufus has launched an array of Memory-Make attacks onto Sophie!" Lola commented. "How will Sophie respond? Can she even get up?"

"Come on, you got this." Makarov cheered anxiously.

"Memory-Make is pressuring Sophie's originality." Mavis said. "I doubt she can generate new Magic without seeing new ones in action."

Cana turned towards her, arm crossed underneath her buxom. "No offense First Master, but I've known Sophie way more than you." Cana had the upmost confidence with Sophie and her abilities. Since Dahlias, the two have really bonded to being super good friends, proving so during the Celestial Spirit incident. They're like an inseparable force, and both knew the other's capabilities. "Underestimating that girl is the last thing you want to do."

Sophie got up and got her feet underneath. Her finger pointed to her head again. "**Memory-Make: Pyro Saucer!**" Fire-like saucers were launched at Rufus, but he only chuckled.

"Cat and dog, back and forth. Forget." He announced. With his memory of Pyro Saucer forgotten, he nullified Sophie's Memory-Make by making it vanish into thin air, much like what Sophie did with his spell before.

Rufus snickered and jumped down from the balcony, landing without a fault in his footing. "Now you get it. There is a certain tune that must be followed. Whenever you wish to forget about something, it's not easy to rid of because it's a mental pain, but with this Magic, all is fresh as a flower. And now I bloom again! **Memory-Make: Line of Ancient Master Swordsmen!**"

Mavis's eyes widened. "No way, he combined Gray's Ice-Make…with Ancient Magic?"

"That can't be!" Makarov exclaimed.

Sophie found herself pinned by an army of soldiers made of ice. They all had lances and shields and looked a lot like Escavalier. Sophie looked around as they all closed in, jabbing their lances at her.

"**Memory-Make: Firestorm Halberds!**" She announced.

Raining down from above, Sophie summoned a shower of compressed fire shaped into halberds. They crashed down onto the battlefield, piercing and melting the army that Rufus had just created. A big cloud of humidity shrouded the ground, leaving Sophie unable to see her target.

"I know more than just a few spells that can lay waste in terms of fire." Sophie pointed out through a random direction through the humid cloud.

"So it would seem." Rufus's voice echoed. "However, I know more aggressive approaches. Take this for example."

A flash could be seen from Sophie's point of view. "**Memory-Make: Blade of Flashing Lightning!**"

Sophie stepped back as she felt what was a large presence. The humid cloud was suddenly blown away by a swing of what was a giant mounted in ice, wielding a weapon shrouded in black lightning. Before could make a move, the giant slammed his mighty weapon down onto her. The womanly blonde felt the bone crushing weapon crack the ground and her body had more than just a bruise or two.

"And Sophie was hit yet again by a bone-crushing force of Magic! Is she able to keep it up?!" Lola announced.

"Man, just how much power does this guys have?" Max wondered.

Makarov looked grim as Sophie ascertained more damage than Rufus. He turned towards First Master. "First Master, so are you sure this is the strategy Sophie is following?"

Mavis shook her head. "No, she's not following any strategy."

"What?"

"She's letting her emotions and experience be her guide. Sophie knew the risks, and she took them with no regrets. She wasn't gonna have this personal matter settled any other way."

As Gray looked back at the monitor, he grunted as Sophie was pounded and down on the ground. As much as he wanted to go back and help, and teach Rufus a thing or two, he knew better than to have the matter be settled by family itself. _'Sophie, don't make me doubt you.'_

The blonde slowly got up, pain flaring in her bruises. She kept her focus set on Rufus as she made another chain of memories. "Memories can't just be for combat purposes."

"And so the flower refuses to wilt in the drought. How touching." Rufus gestured. He pointed fingers at his forehead again, making a chain of memories once more. "Then if you really want to insist, I'll be your requiem!"

"**Mirrors of Cold Retribution!**"

"**Soaring Falcon's Red Dawn!**"

Mirrors of ice materialized and fired dark green beams at Rufus, as to where the mentioned summoned black winds with ends shaped like falcon heads followed by a red wave. The attacks collided in the middle, generating a powerful explosion that could be seen from a distance along the city. The audience shriveled at the power wielded by the two as the explosion could even be felt from where they were.

When the smoke past, shelves were crumbling, and books were scattered about. Rufus stood a few paces away with his attire slightly tattered, the same with Sophie as she also covered up. Sophie brought her arm around, not wanting to give Rufus an edge. She had to make this next attack fast.

She spread her feet apart, using her Magic to mold darkness into a long arrow with spiraling ice chunks. "**Piercing Frigid Darkness!**"

She swiped her arms in opposite arcs, letting the massive arrow fly like a missile. It closed in with great accuracy.

What was off, however, was that Rufus was still smirking. It was like he could take it, which is when Sophie realized her mistake.

The arrow went straight through Rufus, continuing on and blasted the stairs behind him to shambles that erupted into smaller and reduced chunks. Ice layered the space that was the stairs, and the cold air was like a wave that was supposed to be a shivering dread, and yet Rufus didn't even budge. Instead, he vanished.

"An afterimage." Sophie groaned. "I should've known he'd use an evasive spell."

"Memorized."

Sophie looked up on the second floor balcony, where Rufus was sitting along the railing with his smirk on his face, his attire completely unhindered. "I must say, I must thank you, cousin. Because of your share of Memories, I've been able to experiment with all new spells. Though I do love myself a good catch-up with you, I'm afraid this isn't the time nor place."

His smirk grew insidious, something that made Sophie step away.

"I wonder, what would happen…" Sophie's circumference was blocked off by an array of spiraling streams of black winds that looked like thick masses of feathers. "If you combine God Slayer Magic, with a Unison Twin Dragon assault?"

"He wouldn't!" Makarov screamed.

"H-Hey! That's Chelia's move!" Jet stammered.

"And did he just say Twin Dragon's Unison Raid?!" Droy exclaimed.

"Sophie, get out of there! NOW!" Cana yelled to the lacrima monitor, despite how it was of no use.

Sophie had no way to escape. She was enclosed by the spiraling streams that would reduce her to ribbons if she ventured to close. _'He's got me trapped!' _The floor beneath her spiraled with light and shadows, almost like a pool of light and dark swirling within the perimeter. She was gonna feel this one.

The whole library shook from the Magic Power being unleashed. It was beyond massive, and Rufus had it all at his disposal. "No hard feeling. **Memory-Make: Holy God's Devine Judgment!**"

A pillar of light and shadow fused together shot upwards, breaking through the ceiling of the library. The rupture cracked the walls, blocking out Sophie's screams of pain. The raging assault was so strong that the shockwaves broke the balcony railings Rufus sat on and he jumped down as the black feathers and light/shadow unison slowly dissipated.

Rufus turned around, tipping his hat down with a frown as Sophie hit the ground face down.

The audience gaped at the awe displayed. Some cheered for Rufus, some booed, and most felt a tinge of dread when Sophie wasn't moving. Fairy Tail shuddered as Sophie had taken the biggest toll ever, Elfman clenched his fists so hard the blood stopped circulating, Levy crossed her arms tightly, and Mavis lowered her head in shame.

"I do apologize cousin." Rufus said with a tinge of regret, his back still facing her. "I know you mean well…but alas you see the truth in this requiem's meaning."

Rufus began to walk away from the scene, his footsteps growing weaker and weaker.

"The song's not over."

Rufus suddenly recalled the voice and he turned around, shock overwhelming him as Sophie was on her hands and knees, slowly getting up. The audience gave out screams of joy as Sophie was still able to keep going on.

"She's up! Sophie is up!" Lola yelled, adrenaline getting to him. "Despite Rufus's efforts to defeat his cousin, Sophie remained conscious and able to keep going!"

Sophie stood on her two feet, using her thumb to wipe away the dirt from her lipstick and chin. Her makeup was the last thing she was worried about as of this moment. She'll find time to fix it, after she fixes her cousin.

"You! That's not possible!" Rufus shouted in desperation. "How can you still be active, even after that spell?!"

Sophie had a light shadow over her eyes. "…are you through with the crap you're trying to give?"

"What's this?"

"You don't know what I've felt throughout my life. You're just being a bookworm like you have been all your life. While you seclude yourself in spells and other reads, I enjoyed what was freedom, the key to the full extent of Memory-Make. I joined Fairy Tail. I went on adventures. All the good and bad I never had forgotten, not even once, because that's what made me who I am today. No amount of pain or fear you dish out can compare to what I had went through!" Her eyelids shut and began wincing. "I saw all evils dished out on Nic. I battled against so many formidable foes. I went to places I never even dreamed of. I lost a valuable friend one day…" Her eyelids opened up again, the fire burning brighter than ever. "That is what I refuse to forget for as long as I live."

Rufus still had his frown, taking a step back. "So, you allow your emotions to be integrated into your Magic, thinking it'll give you strength, huh? Well then, show me!" A chain of memories erupted, and a sphere of hot waves expanded out from him. Around Sophie was a bunch of rock that prodded up from nowhere. "**Memory-Make: Karma of the Burning Land!**"

A pierce hot explosion rattled beneath Sophie, engulfing her in a field of molten flames. The area around her was cindering, and Rufus held onto his hat as the hot winds raced past him. He watched the attack fade, but only saw that Sophie wasn't there.

"What? She memorized my afterimage?!" He exclaimed.

"**Firestorm Halberds!**"

Rufus looked up as raging hot halberds made solemnly of fire. Rufus covered up as the halberds crashed down, making explosions of fire erupt and quake the library yet again. The floor was layered in ashes from cindered books and binders stocked full of content now gone. Rufus reared back as he got to a knee after being consumed in the halberd flame explosion.

Sophie dropped down from out of the blue, landing in front of Rufus ten feet away. "I've been molten land before, powerful enough to reshape the world. You can't compare to that with those flames."

Rufus got back to his feet. "And how are you proving your point? We're still even, cousin. What about your memories? Are they truly that powerful?"

Sophie spread her feet apart and put her arms out. The fire she had was fierce, and she glared at Rufus, enough to make him recoil. "How's about I show you."

A sudden shift in pressure loomed in the atmosphere. Rufus felt what was an immense wave of Magic Power, and it was extreme. It was enough to make him almost stumble back. _''Dear lord, what is this Magic pressure?' _He looked as Sophie's hair shifted about, her eyes showing that mad fire. _'This is how much Magic Power she's been wielding all this time? I don't recall so much before!'_

Sophie made another chain of memories, which continuously expanded out and around her. Rufus could feel so much intensity from the elongated chain, and it kept on growing until it was like a small tornado. The chains of memories seemed to be infinite, and ever so expanding and spiraling faster and faster. The more she remembered, the more she recalled Fairy Tail, the more she poured her blood, sweat, and tears, the more power and speed the tornado of memory chains received. As the chains became solid, Sophie kept her focus on Rufus and his shocked expression.

"W-what sorcery is this…?" Rufus was actually beginning to see the memories become visions along the chains. The audience was in awe as Sophie's memories were visible, and with it came the emotions. Flashing randomly were images of her joining Fairy Tail, battling against Racer, and the bone-shrilling torture of Nic getting gutted by Lysandre in Kalos. Then came the painful battle where she was defeated by Azuma, the painful final shot being seen, then came Nic's right side getting torn, the horrors and pain never ended, and Rufus even felt the bitter frustration and despair when he saw an image of Pavo's death, and Sophie defeating Apus. All of those memories flooded at once, and Rufus's own memory just couldn't keep up. She had so many emotional memories of sadness and tears, joy and relief, guilt and anguish, everything.

"I'll forget it all!" He announced. He pointed his fingers at his forehead and his eyes widened. However, the memories didn't disappear. "What?!"

"You can't forget these! These are _my _memories! The burdens and pain that you always try to forget are what I always hold onto!" Sophie bellowed through the raging tempest. "And now you learn those emotions through the experience of my memories!"

Sophie spun around and let out a cry. Rufus felt the emotional memories whisk him up.

"**Memoir Hysteria!**"

Rufus screamed in violent agony and pain as Sophie memories hit him all at once. The spiraling tempest of memories smashed straight through the ceiling, rattling the entire library, engulfing it in a bright flash. A massive rupture made light and smoke explode, being seen from afar. The rattling and quaking caught everyone's attention, and they all turned to look at the nearby lacrima-vision monitors to see what happened.

Sophie stood with eyes closed, facing away as Rufus's hat floated down to her, where she caught it with one hand and smirked. She put the hat on and tipped it, covering her eyes as Rufus fell to the ground, surprisingly clean from the debris of the destroyed library.

Fairy Tail cheered in glee over that astounding display. They never saw anything like it in person. The crowd whistled at Sophie's display, as for her looks with the hat. She winked at the monitors, making a few groups of men fall over.

"And Sophie takes a memento from her cousin! Fairy Tail wins, and Rufus is down!" Lola announced. "That brings Fairy Tail to 51 points! It looks like Sophie won the Memory-Make showdown!"

"I-I can't believe Rufus lost!" Mato exclaimed in disbelief.

Yajima nodded with a smile. "What an amazing battle."

As Sophie exited the library doors, which were still intact, Gray looked through the monitors and smirked. He had it right to give her a chance, and it all worked out. Seeing Rufus getting owned by his own Magic was the best treat he had all day. He turned away and resumed his trek.

"Now that's our girl!" Cana cheered.

"Wait a go!" Lisanna cheered.

Elfman raised his fists overhead. "Alright Sophie! Way to show them how manly you are!"

"Well First Master, looks like it was best to put Sophie in favor over calculations." Makarov said.

Mavis had a placid grin and nodded. "Sophie's inner strength resonated with her emotions. She could channel the pain from the past and bring that memory to life. The Lost Magic that gives one to bring memories to reality, a creation of endless emotions to test another. Sophie has made us proud."

Makarov's happy expression turned serious again, changing the mood to what was the real focus. "Everyone's strength must be superior in order to overcome this. For Nic and his group as well, the battle has just begun. Let us bring Fairy Tail to victory!"

Elsewhere, 'Minerva' smirked. "So, Rufus has been defeated. What an interesting turn of events." She continued walking on. "Let's see how this goes. Will we remain as predators, or become the prey?"

* * *

Hell Palace was immense. As the group traveled through the underground cell of doom, time seemed to be moving rather fast. It felt like forever for the guys as they trekked, with Natsu's nose being the guide. Sadly they only seemed to have gotten more lost.

"I think we've been here before." Yukino said, referring to the statue on her right.

"Huh? Hey Natsu, your sniffer's leading us in a big circle!" Happy pointed out.

Natsu looked over and looked at the statue. "Heh? Oh crap!" He stomped on the ground as his teeth gritted. "This sucks! My nose gots nothing down here!"

"Maybe we should let Nic take the ropes on this one." Mira suggested.

"Yeah, good idea!" Lucy agreed. "His powers with that Earth Form should really help us!"

Natsu crossed his arms and grunted. "Could've done that sooner ya know."

Vanessa shook her head. "We tried, but you absolutely insisted you knew the way." She repeated.

Nic stepped forward in front of everyone. Glowing a bright light and transforming into his Earth Plate Form. "This will only take a moment."

He took a deep breath and exhaled, calming his senses. He lifted his left foot up and closed his eyes. With everyone having expectations o be met, he knew he had to find the exit. He stomped on the ground lightly, and invisible ripples went through the ground at speeds that were ecstatic. The radar was similar to echolocation, as Nic could sense the entire area around him, and he saw what was large entrance points off near the north.

Nic opened his eyes and looked towards his right. "That way."

"That's our champ!" Happy cheered.

"Well I hope it works." Wendy hoped.

Nic took careful steps ahead. "Wendy, I've been active in my Earth Plate in the training dimension for an extensive period of time. I know what I'm do…ing…?" Nic was taking steps forward when he stopped. Something was wrong. He lowered to the ground, taking what almost seemed to be a running stance. "Wait a minute." He said. His eyes shut again, the Earth Plate Form getting more feedback. "We're not alone."

"You mean someone's down here with us?" Carla questioned.

"But I thought it was just us." Happy figured.

"Whatever Nic's sensing, we can't leave it be. Maybe it's someone who needs to get out just like the rest of us?" Vanessa said.

"Let's just take precaution when we go on ahead." Yukino asked.

The group headed on with Nic as the leader. However, as they departed for the exit and the force nearby, a flower bloomed and opened up, revealing an eyeball, zooming in on the group as they walked away.

* * *

In another enclosed location in Hell Palace, several figures were shrouded. One with long, pink hair held her hand up, where a flower bloomed and the middle was a glass orb, showing Nic's group walking off. The holder of the flower chuckled at the large group before her.

"Beautiful." She singed. "Wilted flowers that are such an easy prey."

Another female figure had a purple attire with darker, less wild hair. She seemed more at ease than the other. "Not let's not get ourselves carried away. I get something off from that leader figure. He knows where the exit is. You can imagine what skill it takes to handle such power."

A larger fellow with a bottle held with purple liquid snickered. "Guess that fella be them heavy-carrier."

"Shall we target him first?" The second woman asked the shrouded leader with scythes crossed that had hand structures on the ends that made a prayer.

"Now hold on just that minute!" Another man, more vacation-looking with black hair in a ponytail and a red shirt stammered. "Them other fish be our catch as well! The whopper's got them guppies all tidied up, so we as well haul them in too!"

"Uosuke is right." Kama said, his deep voice shrouded by the mask he wore. "Their judgment must not be waited. We strike them down at once. Garou Knights, do not hesitate, and let their sentence be unleashed! Go!"

* * *

Nic's group made way through the area and got to a point where the area seemed different compared to when Natsu led them earlier. They looked around to see more rock than before, and the area seemed to divert more to an open terrain full of cliffs.

"I think we're getting somewhere." Happy said.

"About time. We better find something to eat while we're at it. I'm starving." Natsu commented, holding his stomach as it grumbled like a growling dragon ready to feast.

"I know you have such a pitiful appetite, but could stop thinking with just your stomach for five minutes?"

Natsu stopped in his tracks all of a sudden, his eyes widening. "Hold on a second." He began to sniff the air. Something seemed wrong, just like what Nic said from before. There was another presence among them, but this smell he was picking up, it wasn't new by any means. "What's that smell?"

Vanessa looked a little surprised as she looked ahead. Like her brother, Vanessa was getting an aura of pain. It was close, but not faint. Whoever was down here was not only close, but was in anguish. At least from the appeal of the aura that it was similar with what Natsu said.

"Yeah, I sense something up ahead as well." Vanessa said.

"Look! Dead ahead!" Lily pointed out.

Everyone followed his eyes and looked down below the low cliffs. Who was down there was someone they never had expected, not in the slightest. Lying on his back with bruises and tattered regular clothing was something they got acquainted with from before, more specifically last night. Arcadios.

"Arcadios?" Yukino gasped.

"Is he okay?" Wendy worried.

"Just what did this?" Nic questioned. He slid down the cliff side with the others, reaching Arcadios and tending to his wounds. He looked beaten up, but the question was who did such a thing. "Are you alright?"

"Wakey, wakeys." Natsu said.

"He took an odd place to have a catnap." Happy said. He took a moment to look around for any reasons why this happened. "Does anybody know what just happened?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out." Carla belittled him.

Arcadios's shoulders were being treated by Wendy's Magic. He felt a little of his strength return, but only enough for his eyes to open. His blurry vision cleared out to see Nic's group treating him. His eyes suddenly widened at the realization dealt with.

"You guys." Arcadios grunted.

"Arcadios." Yukino said.

"Stay still, you're not fully recovered yet." Mira warned him, asking him to relax.

Arcadios looked at Nic, seeing the eyes of a battle-ready warrior, yet someone who would stick to something to the bitter end. However, what Arcadios was about to say will not be what anyone had expected.

"…run."

"What's that?" Natsu wondered.

Nic had a bizarre look, but when he felt something looming behind. He took action almost immediately. "Everyone get away!" He yelled. Nic pivoted and shifted into his Iron Plate Form. Without a second to spare, he crossed both arms and blocked an acid-filled punch.

"SPLOOSH!" The hulking man bellowed.

Everyone jumped away as acid spilled from bouncing off Nic. They all retreated away with extra caution as the acid sizzled and ate at the ground, creating baseball-sized craters.

Lucy looked down at the ground in shock. "Whoa! Acid?!"

"That would've burnt my skin off!" Wendy shuddered.

The hulking guy had the bottle of liquid in his mouth as though it was like a cigar. He raised a brow as Nic's iron-hard muscles were sizzling, but the attire nor any part of him was burning away. He was initially shocked, and Nic swatted his arms, causing the Acid Magic user to slide back several feet.

Nic stepped forward, his shoes sliding into a combative stance. _'Acid is like Poison, so I was safe, but that acid is strong.' _His eyes diverted to purple paper flying through the air, spiraling and converging to the man's side. "We seem to have an obstacle amongst us." He said.

The purple paper turned into a smirking woman. A sudden green mass appeared right beside her and a large carnivorous plant opened up, revealing a woman inside, smirking as well. Stepping out from the shadows was Kama and Uosuke, all of them gathered and ready to take action.

"Who are they?" Mira asked.

"Are they…?" Yukino looked worried as she seemed on edge from the opposing presence.

Nic kept his gaze set on the opponents. "Yeah, they must be the ones responsible for Arcadios's condition."

Arcadios grunted as he tried sitting up. "Get out of here. You're all in serious danger." He warned through his pain.

"And why's that?" Natsu questioned.

"Garou Knights, commence operation 1,500." Kama initiated.

"The hidden forces of the Fiore Kingdom. Those who live amongst us and serve us to rid of the wrong-doers. Bloodthirsty executioners who show no mercy to their prey." Arcadios shuddered. "The knights that kill off all criminals down here – The Garou Knights!"

"Garou…Knights?" Lucy asked.

"They don't look the part, but if the rumors are true, we're in the presence of top-class Royal Executioners." Yukino informed.

"Is this the reason no one has ever escaped?" Vanessa questioned.

"By the authority granted to us by the Kingdom of Fiore, the Garou Knights sentence you to death." Kama ordered.

Everyone had a subtle stare down, a grim force against one another. However that didn't last long when Natsu suddenly broke out into a laugh, catching everyone by surprise. He laughed uproariously and pointed at them, unable to contain himself.

"Uh, Natsu?" Lucy warned. "This isn't exactly the time to go crazy."

"Sorry!" He wheezed. "But you can't blame me, just look at them! Especially that one!" He pointed to Uosuke, who felt offended by Natsu's remark.

Mira tilted her head to the side. "Well now that you mention it, you do have a point, Natsu." She said. "It is a little digressive."

"Hauling armors ain't how we work, hotstuff." Uosuke informed. "We're an undercover squad, so we can't be getting' attention it no needed."

Nic looked behind. "Lucy, Yukino, take Arcadios and get to safety, we'll buy some time." Nic ordered.

Although they were rather reluctant, the Celestial Mages saw his point. Without their Spirit Keys, they're no match and are vulnerable. They didn't hesitate as Happy and Carla joined up with them, leaving Natsu, Vanessa, Nic, Mira, Wendy, and Lily, who transformed, to ready for battle.

"What are they doing?" Arcadios questioned. "Suicide?"

"Don't worry." Lucy said. She looked back at Nic and Natsu one more time, seeing the backs of their heads with their fists clenched. "Don't underestimate Natsu, and Nic's fought far worse than what you can ever dream of."

"Everyone, ready yourselves!" Nic shouted.

The girl with pink hair walked ahead a step raising her arm. "Allow me to make them beautiful. I, Cosmos, will make it so!" She pushed her arm out, and vines began to gather around everyone.

Kamika waved her arms, sending purple paper at them. "Let's see how you like these!" She waves her arms around and at Nic and friends.

Nic spread his arms out and light gathered at his mouth. His eyes were set on the papers gathering around. "**Flash Cannon!**" He let loose a beam of shining light and moved his head all around, blasting and obliterating the papers.

Lily jumped and lengthened his Musica Sword. "I've been waiting for a chance like this! HRAH!" In one fell swipe, he cut down the vines that were about to rain down onto them.

"Hey there, big kitty!" The hulking man exclaimed. "SPLOOSH!" He slugged a punch infused with purple acid. Lily blocked with his sword and the shock from the Acid Magic reached the ground, creating cindered waves.

Lily shot back from the attack and slid along the ground, keeping his feet from touching the sizzling trails in the earth. _'That acid is menacing.'_

Mira glowed, shifting into her Take-Over: Sitri. The Magic Power she had a was immense, and she generated a dark sphere and fired beams from it. The attacks raged on, and Kamika make gray paper materialize and become a shield. Even so, the attack was brutal enough to shoot her back a few feet.

"**Heavy Slam!**" Nic shouted. He was outlined in yellow and he lunged straight ahead with all weight upfront. Kama grabbed his two scythes and looked calm.

"Very well." He sliced at Nic, but to his shock, Nic's iron-like body wasn't fazed. He stood there, blocking the scythe. "Inconceivable!"

"Don't doubt the power of Pokémon! HRAH!" Nic slugged a Heavy Slam punch right into Kama's gut, making him gag and shoot back and slide into the earth, making a massive trail in which Kama slowly got up from, albeit shaken badly.

"So much…power." Kama remarked. "This force is more than just Magic! Garou Knights, fasten the hunt!"

Cosmos swiped her arm. Making more vines erupt from around Wendy and Vanessa, who both were back to back. Both the Aura Magic and Sky Dragon Slayer looked at the numerous vines all around. Vanessa made a quick move by creating a dome of teal aura.

"**Aura Guard!**" She shouted. The vines all went and attacked the dome, but they all bounced right off. Vanessa looked down, feeling more energy arise. "Down beneath!"

She and Wendy both dodged what was a giant carnivorous plant that snapped up its mouth. The two landed on the ground, but they only ended up being snared by the vines set by the plant, much to their astonishment.

Comsos snickered. "Don't worry, my lovely beauties." She assured. "A nice meal for my plants and you'll be reborn into beautiful flowers."

Vanessa and Wendy were hung overhead, upside down. Both girls found themselves incapacitated and slowly hauled down to the open mouth.

Vanessa narrowed her eyes. _'I gotta think! Maybe…' _Her eyes widened at her epiphany. _'Yeah, Flying against Grass!' _She turned towards Wendy. "Wendy, blow a roar!"

Wendy nodded and aimed her head straight into the mouth. "**Sky Dragon's Roar!**" She blasted a tornado straight down, the strong turbulence generating an impact so strong that it shredded it the mouth, leaving bits and fragments remaining.

Both girls fell, but Vanessa and Wendy straightened out. Vanessa fired a teal beam of aura from her hands. "**Emanation Beam!**" Her attack was shot and Cosmos jumped away, evading a beam that caused a teal explosion.

Natsu jumped high into the air, seeing the melee down below. His smirk was wide. "Alright! Let's kick this to eleven!" He generated more fire, creating a huge fireball that caught everyone's attention. They all looked up as a flaming brightness was coming down onto them, and Nic and the others were more than a little shocked.

"Natsu! Natsu!" Lucy shouted.

"**Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**"

"NATSU!" Nic and Vanessa screamed.

A flaming explosion erupted, engulfing everything in a vicious explosion. The area rattled immensely, letting loose a shockwave that caused what was a catastrophic turbulence. Everyone covered up as everything went black.

* * *

**And there's that. I added my flavor of uniqueness this chapter, like I did with the Edolas Arc and Phantom Lord Arc; I omitted a few canon bits since you all got the idea, and rather made more appealing parts. Hope Sophie against Rufus was intriguing. I got lazy with the Garou Knights, so if it looked OP and brief, it's because I don't find them too big to write about since it's so long in my opinion, plus I can always make a few good battles next chapter with one or two members seen against them.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys enjoy the memorable battle of Sophie among other parts of the read!**

* * *

**Next Time: Garden of Turbulence**


	78. Garden of Turbulence

Chapter 78 – Garden of Turbulence

**Last chapter's ending was rushed a little, but I was tired a little. Like I said, I thought the Garou Knights episodes were long, so I might as well try and make up for that with decent battles this chapter.**

**To Recap:**

Day 5 began, with Master Mavis using a strategy that picked off many enemies consecutively. When it came time, Sophie confronted her cousin, Rufus. The two were at a clash of Magic and ideals, and Sophie managed to pull through after so long, defeating Rufus. Meanwhile, Nic's group managed to get Yukino out, only to have all of them enter the Hell Palace. Nic led the group to the exit, but saw an injured Arcadios and confronted the Garou Knight, secret executioners that were sent to kill them. Nic's group, due to coordination and number advantage, managed to hold them off well, but Natsu went overboard, and everyone was caught in a tempest.

* * *

**Chapter 78 – Garden of Turbulence**

Princess Hisui looked out her balcony window to spectate the Grand Magic Games, however, she seemed to have her attention directed to the conversation behind her, though the contents were grim, at least to her.

"Is that true?" One knight asked.

"Yeah, no mistaking it." Another said. "The Garou Knights have engaged Fairy Tail down below. The report is fresh, and they have engaged at…equal levels."

"What?!" Another knight gasped.

"But that's impossible! No one can keep up with them! They're the kingdom's strongest executioners!"

"But the report also states that Nic Pularis and Natsu Dragneel is down there."

"Those two?! M-Maybe they were just caught off guard. I'm sure they can handle it in the end."

"Well this is operation 1500 after all. No one has escaped the Garou Knights."

Hisui heard it all. Her plans were very complicated, and this wasn't part of any of them. She grimaced as she looked at the monitors overlooking the battles. _'My plans are backfiring. This isn't what I wanted.' _She looked up to the birds passing over her castle tower. _'Arcadios, please be safe.'_

* * *

Crevices were all over the area, the shockwaves from Natsu's blow scattered everything, and practically everyone. Rock and debris crumbled as it fell into a crevice, where large mounds of rubble were layered all over the wide hallway. On each side were thinking statues, overlooking what would be doom.

Natsu gasped for air as he popped out of the ground like a mole. "What happened?" He got to his feet and wiped the dust off. He rubbed the back of his head as he looked up, seeing as how he ended up beneath crevices. "Did I overdo it again? I hope everyone's alright." He looked down the long hall. "Hey! Are you guys there?!"

He got no reply. It just echoed down and nothing came back. A sudden shift in the rubble behind got his attention. He looked and saw large rock being thrown to the side. Nic emerged underneath, rising up and dusting himself off.

"Hey, Nic!" Natsu said in shock.

Nic looked over at Natsu, but the look he gave was what made Natsu swallow. Nic glared at him hard, showing how peeved he was with how Natsu's attack completely backfired. "You went overkill, again." He said irritably.

"Hey I can't help it!" Natsu argued. "I gotta punch teeth in or I'll really burn up!"

Nic looked away and down the other hallway. "Well I guess it can't be helped now. We just have to find everyone again…" His eyes narrowed. "After dealing with our company."

Natsu tilted his head to the side, not getting an understanding until the leader, Kama, emerged from the shadows. Nic was spot on, eyeing him as his scythes were still intact. Natsu looked at Kama and readied himself.

"It would seem your friend's destructive demeanor has scattered us all." Kama said, disregarding Natsu huffing. "No matter, even when apart, the Garou Knights are well experienced; no one in your group shall live to go home."

"That's what you think, pal." Natsu smirked, showing his absolute confidence. "But we don't give out fights just because. Sorry, but we gotta find Lucy and Yukino…but I suppose that ain't gonna fly until we smack you down, is that right?"

Nic took an adjusted stance, transforming into his Fist Plate Form. He readied himself for his adversary as Kama reached back and pulled out his scythes.

Kama stood away from them both. "Sins are what covers you."

Natsu blinked. "Uh, sorry pal, I don't remember doin' anything wrong…"

'_I knew Natsu wasn't the best at recalling, but he doesn't even have morals on all of that?' _Nic raised a brow in realization of Natsu's poor brainpower, which what made him grow despondent.

"For this brief time, you shall recall and look back to your past misdeeds." Kama said. "Both of you."

"I told you." Natsu argued. "I don't remember doin' anything wrong."

* * *

Makarov cringed and shivered as he felt something he really wished he didn't. That thought left him stiff and in despair.

"Master?" Levy asked.

"You okay?" Romeo asked.

Makarov coughed and calmed down to a point where he could settle down. "I'm fine. For some reason, I just remembered all of the letters I got for property damage." He said in nervous regret. "We just can't seem to control ourselves, and that always leads to an apology letter."

"Where's this coming from?" Bisca asked, nervously smiling. "Don't bring that up right here."

"You think Nic's group is alright?" Romeo asked.

"We hope so." Makarov said.

"We have to keep high spirits for their safe return." Mavis said. "If we win the games, the king shall have an audience with us…however, I doubt an apology letter will make up for last night's intentions."

Makarov's face twisted. "We never hear the end of it."

Mavis, too, despaired. "The guild's storehouse was nothing but letters of apology when I was around. Everything and every job accounted for…piles and piles, let alone towers of letters describing property damage, broken items, and repair costs were all that we ever got in the mail." She sulked further. "We couldn't control ourselves, and we just went wild, and the burden of Master really hammers down that way."

"Unfortunately…" Makarov and Mavis shared the same desperation in their sulking.

* * *

"Meow." Millianna peered from behind a wall, peeking over to see if anyone was around. She was in the clear, for now. "Awww, this stinks! I wish Kagura were here." She looked at a nearby monitor, seeing as how it showed Mermaid Heel being three players short, leaving Millianna and Kagura left.

She pouted in her insecurity. "This sucks. If I came across Laxus or someone from Fairy Tail, I'm not sure if I can…"

She stopped when rustling was heard from behind. She shifted her attention to the trash can behind, and the garbage fell out, revealing a street cat shaking its head.

"A KITTY-WITTY! MEO~~~W!" Millianna cheered in glee. Her tail wagged and she got on all fours. "Aw wook at you, you wittle pwecious thing! Oh yes you are! Yes you are!"

Overlooking from a nearby rooftop, Millianna was unaware of the eyes of a smirking 'Minerva'. Her smirk was malicious, and she had her sights set on Millianna.

To her, the manipulated will keep on being the puppets to another.

* * *

"Are both of you prepared? It is time for your death sentence." Kama ordered.

Nic's glare was fully set on Kama. "If you insist on us being criminals, then why are we not acting as such a claim? We're guild members. We don't cause intentional harm, only that is applied to the what the job says for us to do." Nic exemplified.

"Does not cover up for the crimes of which brought up down here." Kama said. He raised his scythes. "Now, face your judgement! Lose your heads!"

Nic and Natsu felt a wind pass them, and it was a swift one. Nic ducked while Natsu bent back as one scythe was swung horizontally. The second scythe was hurriedly swung again, aiming for the necks. Again, both dodged with critical precision. Kama swung around his scythes horizontally again, and Nic ducked. He saw the chance and dealt a Low Sweep, kicking Kama's knee and causing him to wince.

"Now!" Nic yelled.

"**Fire Dragon's Claw!**" Natsu jumped and attacked with an axe kick. The flame-infused assault was blocked by Kama's double scythes. Natsu grunted and back flipped off the scythes' edges and landed on the ground in a skid.

"Though shall not had another change-grrngh!" Kama grunted as he felt a small pain from his leg. "What is this confound injury…?" He gasped at the reality of it. He remembered when his scythes missed their mark, and Nic's Low Sweep got a hit in and made him lower than before. He stared in disarray. _'Curse this power of the Luminous!'_

Nix rushed on ahead and his hand was engulfed in blue. "**Mach Punch!**" He became a blur and struck Kama right in his abdomen sending him crashing into the wall nearby, shattering it into small bits. The area rumbled and quaked, and Kama was caught underneath rubble.

"That should keep him down! Nice hit man!" Natsu said energetically.

Nic's stare was among the rubble before him. His head lowered just a little. "…no." He said otherwise.

"What do you mean 'no'?! You got him right in the-!"

Natsu was cut off when a pair of scythes spun like saucers and almost sliced him in two. He flipped and ducked when they came back like a boomerang and was caught by a lone glove raised above the rubble. The pair of scythes separated, and the rubble crumbled and revealed Kama, albeit fairly damaged.

He seemed to have a few cuts and scrapes from that last blow, but his stare was fiercer than ever. He was determined, despite the few cracked ribs he felt. "My patience with you was worn thin." He brought his scythes around. "Prepare for your punishment and pay for your sins!"

"You want us to pay so bad? How's about a tip: Stop yammering and keep brawling!" Natsu rebuffed.

"In order to reach the others, we'll take you down, no matter who or under what authority you are under!" Nic exclaimed. He and Natsu thus leaped into the fray and Kama jumped after them with scythes to swing.

* * *

Walking down a hall, two figures were side by side. They past a few skeletons here and there, but they were over that at this point. The area was crawling with them so much that it didn't bother them. Like Nic and Natsu, they also ended up in a strange hall.

"Mira? Lucy?" Wendy called out.

"Happy? Carla? Lily?" Vanessa called out.

Wendy looked uneasy. "It's no use. We got separated, and it seems we're far from the other."

"Their auras are too far apart for me to get a reading on them." Vanessa regrettably informed. "These walls are layered with a deadly aura that's making it hard for me to sense any living aura."

"Maybe it's because so many passed down here that it's like a foggy field, and this narrow space limits that. I can't sense their Magic either." Wendy said. "We'll have to reach open area."

"Beautiful…" A female voice called.

Wendy and Vanessa both turned to see their foe waiting in a carnivorous flower. Cosmos sat in her flower, arms raised overhead like she was stretching from a small nap.

"Mmm, was that a splendid entrance? I believe so." Her eyes opened and she had her sights set on Wendy and Vanessa. "Now, my lovelies, I'm afraid you'll have to wilt and die right here. Nothing personal."

"She can use Plant Magic." Vanessa reminded herself out loud.

"Yeah, nasty ones that eat people." Wendy said, clenching her small fists.

"We can't wait and hold on forever. She'll have us killed." Vanessa remarked as her hands were engulfed in teal aura. "We have to defeat her and meet up with everyone else!" Her hands converged with the teal aura expanding. "Wendy!"

The Sky Dragon Slayer nodded. "I got it! Let's go!"

Both girls charged after Cosmos as her Plant Magic activated by the snap of her fingers. Giant, rugged vines erupted and slithered up overhead and arched down onto the girls. Cosmos smirked as the girls dodged with no hesitation in their movements, and Vanessa swiped her arm, sending a wave of aura that destroyed the roots that assaulted them. With them out of the way, she pivoted and aimed both palms out.

"**Emanation Beam!**" She blasted incoming roots again, breaking them apart and hitting the ground like swatted lies.

Wendy jumped and dodged a whip-like root and whirlwinds collected in her hands. "**Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!**" She lashed whip-like whirlwinds that attacked Cosmos.

The Plant Mage snapped her fingers again, and a wall of swirled roots acted as a wall that barricaded the lashing winds; however, the wall was severely damaged when large chunks were sliced off and past Cosmos, but she remained calm as the flower beneath her retreated back into the earth and she stood on her two feet.

Her eyes widened a little when slashing and teal glints were heard. Cosmos backed away when the wall was sliced by Vanessa's aura shaping into a small blade and she let out a battle cry as she went to attack Cosmos.

"Hyah!" She slashed at Cosmos and pushed her back a few feet. Cosmos's smirk faded, and Vanessa's aura became orb-like again around her arms.

"You beauties got a lot of spirit, I like that." Cosmos said. "So what do they call you two?"

"Wendy Marvell."

"Vanessa Pularis."

"Wendy. Vanessa." Cosmos repeated. "What beautiful names. I think I'll remember them, along with those faces."

She raised her arms, and trees began to sprout rapidly around them, much like a forest. Wendy and Vanessa both remained on guard as the trees may have hid something, but there was a twist. Popping up from the branches, dried plums began sprouting, much to Wendy's horror, and yet to an intrigued Vanessa. The branches were red with dried plums, and the site was either curious-piquing or horrific.

"D-dried plums?" Wendy grimaced.

Cosmos sat atop of a tree branch and smirked down at her prey. "Wish so, but no. They're magical fruit, so get your fill you two."

She swiped her arm and reached down, commanding the projectiles to be shot at Wendy and Vanessa like bullets. The red bullets rained down and Wendy screamed as she ran away from the sour food while Vanessa held her ground and used her Aura Guard as a shield, making the red fruit bounced off like flies on a windowsill.

Cosmos plucked a dried fruit and held it close. "Oh? Someone's a sour hater."

Vanessa lifted up her shield, looking more calm compared to Wendy, who looked sick from looking at the sour food. Vanessa seemed piqued than appalled. "That's just Wendy." She corrected. "I, however, don't mind." She grinned placidly. "I actually eat lemons all the time."

Wendy screamed and flailed as she knew how viciously sour lemons were, and she wouldn't be able to take it.

Cosmos was a different story. She gasped at the shock of the news.

"Lemons?!" Cosmos shrieked. "That's even sour than dried plums! I'm in the presence of a noble beauty who can look into sourness in its eyes, and then eat it." She put a hand over her heart. "I never had a lemon, and because of the beauty before me, I think I'll relish in a taste of one after I execute her."

"That's a stretch you're making." Vanessa kept her confident grin. "Though I do thank you for your praise of my tastes in sour." She reached back behind her, making Cosmos frown at what Vanessa was gonna do. She saw the black-haired, single blonde bang girl pull out an expanded Poke Ball. "But I don't have the time to relish in flavors with someone like you. We have somewhere to be right now, and if you get in our way, we'll smite you down!" She threw her Poke Ball into the air. "Go, Venusaur!"

The Poke Ball opened up, and a blueish-white energy went to the ground, turning into Venusaur. The overgrown plant-like creature opened his mouth and let out a rippling roar, sending waves of dust around.

"A plant creature?" Cosmos questioned.

Venusaur looked ready for battle. "Let's show them, Vanessa. Let's trim her garden."

"Right." Vanessa nodded. She extended her arm forward. "Venusaur, **Razor Leaf!**"

Venusaur's huge leaves on his sides raised slightly, and he let loose sharp leaves that funneled after Cosmos. The attack missed when Cosmos jumped and dodged, although it did shred up and cut the branches around off. They fell to the ground while Cosmos landed daintily. Venusaur attacked again with Razor Leaf, the slicing funnel heading towards Cosmos once more.

She waved her arms overhead. "**Flytrap Shot!**" Flytraps grew over her head and they opened up, firing seeds to meet the Razor Leaf head on. An explosion erupted in the middle, cancelling out both attacks. Cosmos sneered. "Using plants turned against me, how ugly-!"

She turned around when she felt a presence behind her. She saw Wendy in the corner of her eye with winds whirling in her fist. "**Sky Dragon's Crushing Fang!**" She slashed at Cosmos, driving her back several feet.

Cosmos managed to catch herself using her Magic, where a flower sprouted behind and bloomed to make a bubbly, bouncy center that acted as a cushion. The flower closed, and she extended her arm out. "**Flytrap Shot!**" She didn't hesitate and used the same attack with more firepower. Seeds were fired like bullets and Wendy was bombarded. She screamed and slammed into the ground, ascertaining a few painful scrapes.

"Wendy!" Vanessa shouted. She looked back and saw Cosmos firing more after Wendy as she was already down. Vanessa hurried and used her Aura Magic and a solid teal line stretched out quickly. The aura grabbed Wendy's waist and Vanessa pulled back, hauling Wendy in time to evade the explosive seeds. She had her aura vanish when Wendy's feet touched the ground. "Are you okay?"

Wendy nodded. "Yeah, thanks for the save."

Vanessa turned towards Venusaur, who faced Cosmos. "Venusaur, **Razor Leaf!**"

Venusaur fired his attack once more, sending funneling leaves at Cosmos. The attack struck the ground where Cosmos stood, sending the pink-haired woman flying off again. She fell on her back with a powerful thud, grunting from the pain taken.

"Alright!" Wendy and Vanessa cheered.

Venusaur stepped forward a few paces, gaining ground against his foe. "Look, Cosmos, was it?" He asked. "We do not have any ill-will nor quarrel with you. We merely want to find our comrades and get out. I ask you this once, is your heart really a wilted flower? If you wish for beauty, you have to follow what you preach. Show us the compassion that lies dormant in your heart, and make it a beautiful flower. Will you prove that to us?"

Cosmos got up, a dark shadow over her eyes. "…" She seemed to be settling the matter mentally, but she heard Venusaur's negotiable reasoning. She's always followed her principles on beauty, and here she is, belittle by a plant beast.

A moment of silence followed as Cosmos's stare was on Venusaur. Venusaur returned the determined stare. He suddenly got caught with his feet tangled up in roots that sprouted beneath. He was lifted up, despite his hulking weight.

"Venusaur!" Vanessa yelled in worry.

"Don't tell me what I know." Cosmos belittled. "I know beauty, as my plants are always the most precious and beautiful of my work. But you…you're ugly. You're nothing but an ugly plant, raised without a sweet beautiful drive!" The plants she controlled responded to her by reeling back and flinging Venusaur over Vanessa's head, slamming into a rock and shattering it. Her attention was now on Vanessa and Wendy. "And now these two lovelies must pay!"

The magical fruit from before sprouted rapidly once more and fired like bullets at Wendy and Vanessa. The two were caught surprised and were bombarded again. Both screamed and slid back and thudded against the ground. Cosmos didn't hesitate a single second as she used two fingers and gestured them up, creating roots beneath that coiled around the two girls' waists and hauled them up.

Venusaur shook off the rubble and saw his trainer in trouble. "Vanessa! Wendy-GAH!"

He was struck underneath by a sprouting flytrap. Venusaur yelled as he was sent soaring and crashed to the ground in a harsh skid to boot. He grunted in pain, but he never got a counter in before the giant flytrap's mouth opened up and fired a rapid succession of seeds at him. The seeds exploded upon impact and Venusaur stepped back a foot as he didn't have much room to counter.

Cosmos chuckled at the struggling site. "Oh you poor beauties." She said, giggling as Vanessa and Wendy couldn't break free. "You both deserve a much more blissful death. I'll sure to be kind my sweeties~."

Large, purple buds sprouted from the rock beneath, popping up from all over. They had a very powerful and pungent aroma to them, and Vanessa wasn't looking too good as she felt a foul, aromatic aura arise.

"Let these spores open up, putting you both in a peaceful slumber." Her smirk grew wider. "**Makura Kamura.**"

Her spell made the plants eject a Stun Spore-looking powder into the air. The spores spread like wildfire and the whole area was nothing but a cloud of orange. Vanessa and Wendy both felt their eyes getting heavy. They're eyes closed at last, and they seemed to have drifted into a slumber, for eternity.

Giggling with glee, Cosmos turned away. "Sweet dreams, my lovelies…"

A sudden blast of teal aura caused her to get attention, and she turned her back and dodged the teal beam that shattered a rock. Cosmos got to her feet and looked back in shock.

"What?! Impossible!" She shouted. "How did…?"

She saw Vanessa and Wendy having energy surrounding them. Vanessa's was teal, as to where Wendy's was light green. Both had their eyes open up as they looked at Cosmos with determined looks.

"**Anormaly Resistance Enchant: Re-raise!**" Wendy said.

"And my aura layers my body, keeping me spared as well." Vanessa announced. "Your attack had no effect on us."

"I-impossible!" Cosmos said in her shock. "You should be asleep forever!" She looked over beyond them as Venusaur used his Razor Leaf and knocked down the plant by its stem, stopping the assault that only left him a little agitated. His attention drew towards her as the flytrap hit the ground. "And how is he unaffected?!"

Vanessa had a calm look, despite still coiled by the waist. "Venusaur is a Grass and Poison-Type, meaning nay and all powder moves have no effect on him. Since he also has that Type combination, your attacks don't even leave a scratch on him." Venusaur walked up to her side, his height towering overhead. "And you never like him when he's agitated."

Venusaur let out a roar that made a tremor on the ground. Cosmos looked anxious as Venusaur stepped forward, each footstep making the ground shake.

Wendy looked at Vanessa. "You got a plan?"

Vanessa nodded. "Yeah, and I know how to handle her." Her right arm was raised, with the armband being shown. Embedded in the armband was something Wendy completely forgot about. In there was a Key Stone, which glinted.

Wendy gasped.

"Since we're immobile at the moment, Venusaur can handle her. Talk of peace is over, let's show them never to mess with the Pularis siblings, Venusaur!"

"Ready!" Venusaur declared.

There was an energy shift in the air, one that felt completely natural. Unlike Nic's Charizard's energy that nearly made the temperature rise from the exertion of heat, Venusaur's energy was more lush like a jungle. Vanessa's Key Stone was radiating a lot of rainbow glints that made it shine with valor. Using her left fingers, she tapped the Key Stone and light waves shot out, flailing violently all around.

"What's this?" Cosmos interjected.

Wendy's eyes widened. "Hang on, isn't that…?"

Vanessa raised her right arm up. "Venusaur, Mega Evolve!"

Venusaur let out a roar as he emanated light blue light waves of his own. The light waves reached out and connected with Vanessa's Key Stone's light waves. The two connected, and a bright light trailed from the Key Stone that traveled down the connected lines and reached Venusaur. Venusaur thus gave off a bizarre light that was for Mega Evolution.

Everyone watched as flowers bloomed on the front and back. The trunk of the massive flower became thicker, and heaping amounts of foliage was seen blooming on his back. Everyone watched in awe, and then they covered up as the light exploded, sending strong shockwaves from Mega Venusaur's roar. The shockwaves were so powerful that Cosmos had to step back and all of the girls' hair shifted in the winds that soon dialed down.

Mega Venusaur was different, as the flower on his back grew larger and two smaller pink flowers bloomed, one on his forehead and one on the rear. The weight of the flower made his legs sturdier in order to support it, a such they look slightly bulkier. Additional leaves with woody stems, which were supported by vines, grew around the flower. Mega Venusaur also developed dark markings on the forehead below the new flower.

"Mega…Venusaur!" Wendy said in shock.

Vanessa smiled. "Mega Venusaur, let's do this."

Mega Venusaur nodded back to her and looked forward. With a solemn stomp with his right front foot, the roots incapacitating Vanessa and Wendy began to vibrate. Out of sheer disbelief, Cosmos stepped back and nearly fell backwards, watching as the roots retreated when it wasn't her doing.

"No! This vile thing has manipulation of nature?!" Cosmos berated.

Vanessa smirked. "Mega Venusaur is full of lush life, and now we turn it against you! Go, **Grass Knot!**"

Mega Venusaur's eyes glowed bright green. Out from the ground around Cosmos, light green roots sprouted and gathered at her feet. "What's happening?!" She shouted. The Grass Knot tangled up her feet, and the roots began to twist and grow up. "I can't control it-!" Cosmos screamed as she was slammed down viciously by Grass Knot. The ground broke beneath her slam and she was in a crater.

Grass Knot retreated and Mega Venusaur didn't budge. He was completely overpowering her plant manipulation, as he himself wasn't moved by her Magic. Cosmos was completely at Mega Venusaur's mercy, but she never stopped.

"HRAH!" Cosmos swiped her arms in opposite arcs. "**Spore Bomb: Rinka Renka!**" Spores appeared all around her and fired at Mega Venusaur rapidly. The attack closed in and exploded upon impact, creating a rupture of white amongst them.

The smoke cleared, and Mega Venusaur was seen with a neutral grin. "That felt like rain to me."

Cosmos stepped back again. "Hardly any damage, again?!" She made haste and fired her attack again, sending what looked like a multi-directional spore attack that was all around Venusaur. "Try stopping this!"

"**Razor Leaf!**" Vanessa commanded. Mega Venusaur followed her orders and his jungle-like leaves on his back flapped, sending a storm of funneling leaves all around. The sharp leaves were like green glints that passed through every spore that went his way. All of the spores – every single one – exploded in place, leaving Mega Venusaur unhindered and still ripe with energy. Enraged, Cosmos grew several flytraps all around Mega Venusaur, and readied to open fire once again.

Vanessa's eyes were sharp like a calculated warrior. "**Grass Knot!**"

Mega Venusaur's eyes glowed bright green. "Silence your traps!" He exclaimed. The roots he made reached up as the flytraps all opened up to assault him. As they were about to fire, the Grass Knot roots all tangled and held shut the mouths. The flytraps began to expand with the seeds nowhere to go, resulting in them getting exploded instead. The Grass Knot roots all retreated back into the ground, and Mega Venusaur stepped forward once more.

"This is your last chance to make a surrender." He warned her.

Cosmos looked enraged. "Your nothing but true ugliness, you and those two sweeties! I can never love you all!"

"Who says anything about love?" Wendy asked.

"I'm not sure what her game is…" Vanessa awkwardly noted. She then swiped her arm in an arc. "But this ends now! Mega Venusaur, **Toxic!**"

Mega Venusaur aimed the center of his flower at Cosmos and fired a stream of purple liquid. The attack fired with deadly accuracy like a spear. Cosmos was struck by the purple liquid with no defense left. She grunted in agony as a small purple haze surrounded her and made her stumble back. Cosmos was purple in the face, and toxic bubbles erupted from her.

She held back what was a gag from the tainted venom in her veins. "Gnnngh! What is this? Poison?"

"Don't worry, it won't kill you." Vanessa said. "But this will hurt a lot! Mega Venusaur…"

"**Venoshock!**" He finished. Mega Venusaur's flower center glowed and he fired what was a strong volume of purple liquid that blasted away with a thick density to it. The Venoshock went on ahead, overcoming and blasting through the plants Cosmos arose through her condition. The plants were all penetrated and Cosmos screamed in riling agony as Venoshock's intensity was doubled to a highlighted degree.

Cosmos crashed through so many walls at once, leaving them all to crumble.

Vanessa and Wendy turned towards the other, smiling and giving high fives.

"Alright, we did it!" Wendy cheered.

"Yes, we sure did." Vanessa said happily. She smiled at Mega Venusaur. "Thanks for pulling through, Mega Venusaur.

Mega Venusaur looked ahead and was engulfed in a rainbow light. The light veiled him briefly and reverted back to being Venusaur. He smiled with satisfaction. "Yeah, that wasn't as shabby as I thought it'd be."

**At the same time…**

Nic and Natsu both landed on the ground twenty feet away from Kama. Their adversary looked unappeased as he was huffing, with his gauntlets and masked cracked but a little. Nic was packing a major wallop, enough to nearly break his armor in but a few punches and kicks. Still the three were on their toes.

"You two can run from the sins you've committed, but you can never escape them!" Kama pointed his scythes' backs at Natsu and Nic, putting the hands on them facing the two. "Your sins are what you are, who you are, and are in your soul!"

The hands on the scythes were emitting a purple light, and Natsu and Nic both saw their bodies reacting to the light. Natsu's body was layered in light purple handprints, as to where Nic only have two or three compared to Natsu's multitude of handprints.

"Hey, what the heck are these?!" Natsu demanded.

"They are your sins." Kama answered. "Does your hearts not ache from your destruction, or your insubordination above others? Do you feel the guilt pile on?" He asked.

"Huh?" Natsu looked in question. "So wait, you're saying that all those jobs I'm on and when I crumble buildings and piss off the Council…those were all the _wrong _things to do?"

"Yes, you idiot!" Kama yelled.

"What? No way!" Natsu said in sheer disbelief.

Kama's eyes twitched. "Such dense logic."

"I know how you feel." Nic pinched the bridge of his nose at the thought of Natsu's endless explosive demeanor. "We have to deal with this almost every day. If I were honest with myself, it's a real sore."

"And yet you hold no guilt for your actions?" Kama interjected.

Nic looked at him dead in the eye, the fire in his gaze showing just how absolute he was. "I'd dare stare anyone in the face. I've quarreled with numerous people, and I never once regretted doing such a thing." He said. "I dare threaten the Council, because I have a mission, and if they hold me down, if anyone gets in my way, they shall have more than hell to pay for their faults."

Kama stepped back, hauling his scythes forward. "You're a rebel of all that you seem fit on purpose?! I shall behead you from where you stand!" He reached out and the scythes levitated. The two hands joined up and the scythes spun in unison, making a saucer. "**Guillotine Justice!**"

The saucer went at Nic. Nic, in return, glowed and shifted into his Iron Plate Form. As the saucer made way, he put his arms up to block.

"**Iron Defense!**" Nic shouted. His body gave a fast glint before his body became iron. The saucer struck him, but the assault grinded against his arms, creating sparks that flared. The saucer deflected itself and shot back into the air, and came around after Nic again. However, the saucer's attempts failed yet again.

Natsu looked pumped. "Alright, now I get a clear shot!" He puffed his cheeks and shot fire at Kama. "**Fire Dragon's Roar!**"

The blast of fire went after an open Kama, but the recipient wasn't even fazed. His eyes narrowed as a handprint glowed on Natsu. The saucer attacking Nic stopped and went around and went right in front of Kama. The saucer sliced straight through the fire, startling Natsu as he was forced to dodge the blades.

Natsu looked behind him. "That was a close one!" The handprint on another part of his body flashed. "What the-?!"

He saw the saucer coming around and jumped to dodge again. He got back on his feet and another part of him flashed. The saucer came back around, following him.

"My attack shall not miss. It shall follow you and your sins until you have repented by means of death!" Kama explained.

"Aw man, this sucks!" Natsu dodged the saucer again and looked at Nic. "Hey Nic, use a move or something, would ya?!" He then dodged another assault by the scythe.

Nic nodded. "Understood." He glowed, shifting from the Iron Plate to his Dread Plate Form. He aimed both palms out at Kama as his scythes were honed in on Natsu. "Now, **Embargo!**"

Illusionary chains shot out of Nic's open palms and the chins wrapped around Kama, although they seemed surprisingly loose for chains meant to confine him. He looked down to see his body in a loose band of chains that slowly vanished.

"What's this?" He questioned. He caused note of how his saucer began to slow down, slowly stopping and becoming two individual scythes again. They fell to the ground, clanging and leaving Natsu free with a smirk. "How can this be?!"

"Embargo prevents any of your items to be used by any means, rendering inly yourself as the tool." Nic said. "You should've surrendered when you had the chance! Now!"

"I hear ya!" Natsu rushed forward, head first. "**Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!**"

Kama shuddered as his weaponry wasn't responding. _'How can this be? They both have so much power-!' _He gagged as Natsu rammed into him and he went flipping and soaring. Kama fell to the earth with a thud, but he landed on his knees with more pain to feel.

"So how was that?" Natsu asked proudly as he walked ahead with Nic by his side.

"Damn you both. You are truly enemies of the kingdom-no! The entire continent of Ishgar!" Kama declared.

Natsu's fist was cloaked in fire. "You know what, we don't give a damn. It's an even bigger mistake to become an enemy of Fairy Tail." Natsu announced.

"Never shall we fall to people to try and put us in our place, because not only I, but this guild…" Nic lunged ahead, black static engulfing his right arm to ready Knock Off.

"WE NEVER STAY DOWN!" They both shouted, Fire Dragon's Iron Fist and Knock Off pummeling Kama at once.

Kama spun and smashed through the wall, breaking it apart. He blasted through another wall, and then another, until he reached a hallway where all five members of the Garou Knights joined up from their thrashings and crashed head first into one another, knocking them all out at once.

Natsu and Nic, now reverted back to himself, stepped out of the tunnel made from Kama and noticed four other holes were present, with everyone else joined up.

"Nice." Lily commented.

"Hey everyone!" Mira cheerfully greeted after defeating Kamika.

"Natsu!" Happy cheered.

Vanessa and Wendy appeared out the hole Cosmos made, surprised that everyone joined up with them.

"Never saw this coming." Vanessa admitted.

"We're all here, thank goodness." Lucy said, with Yukino nodding in agreement. Along with them, Loke was carrying a wounded Arcadios with a wave to Nic.

"Hey man." He greeted Nic.

"Loke? What a surprise." Nic said.

"We'll fill in when we're back on track, right?" Mira asked, getting the group to focus.

Everyone nodded in agreement and left the Garou Knights out like a light. Nic shifted into his Earth Plate Form and repeated the foot stomp. Invisible waves went around the whole Hell Palace again, rippling and acting as radar. Nic thus led them out and through the hall, on towards the exit and away from the mayhem that was committed.

* * *

The crowd was going nuts as Sophie had given Fairy Tail an even bigger lead with 51points. They all expected a great fight between the two, but this exceeded their expectations by a mile. "Well folks, I never saw something like this to arise!" Chapati Lola announced. "Fairy Tail leads by 51 points, with Sabertooth and Lamia Scale tied with 49 points!"

"And with Mermaid Heel with 43 point, they need to step up their game." Yajima added.

"This aren't looking good guys." Arana said.

Risley, however, kept a smirk. "Naw, quit your worrying. Don't forget that we got Kagura out there, and Millianna ain't no scaredy cat neither. Those two will come through somehow." She had no qualms with expressing her securities.

Beth wasn't as convinced. "I know…it's just that I got a bad feelin', worse than corn stuck ma' teeth."

Arana looked towards her. "What's wrong?"

"Well…" Beth started explaining. "I've been watchin' them monitors, but we haven't seen Millianna in a long time. I'm worried somethin' might have happened to her."

Risley, once again, showed no worry. "Naw, I'm sure Millianna's got a sweet hiding spot. They'll never catch her so easily.

Beth looked up with worry unable to fade. "I hope you're right…"

* * *

A guard ran down the hall towards Hisui's corridors. His pacing was swift like a steed charging, urgently opening the door. "Princess! Princess!" He barged open the door, huffing to catch his breath, meeting the other knights present. "Everyone, I bring bad news!"

"Calm down and tell us. What happened?" Another guard asked.

"Okay, well we haven't received any updates, so we sent a squad to investigate Hell Palace…" He paused. "It turns out the Garou Knights were all defeated!"

Looking away and out the window, Hisui gasped.

"What?! But that's impossible!" A knight retorted. "The greatest executioners were defeated by that small Fairy Tail group?!"

"And of the prisoners?" Another knight asked.

"I'm afraid they've escaped."

Hisui broke into a small grin, secret satisfaction written upon her face. _'I knew it. Thank you.'_

"I wouldn't celebrate if I were you, Princess." A foreign voice said.

Hisui gasped again and jerked up. "It can't be…" She turned around to find her culprit, standing at the entrance with a scruffy scowl on his face. "Darton!"

Darton past all the knights in the room. "Your plan was too clear to not see. At least now my suspicions are confirmed."

Hisui held up a glove. "I won't tolerate this abuse! Less I remind you that it was _you _who sent Arcadios to Hell Palace without a trial!" She recalled in despair.

Darton's eyes narrowed with distaste. "Which is why you 'sentenced' Fairy Tail to rescue him. You were behind this whole charade from the very beginning, am I right?"

When he saw Hisui gasped a third time, he was right once again. The knights in the room looked at Hisui with slight shock from this revelation that transpired.

He walked and looked out the same window Hisui was looking through. "Arcadios was willing to play the role as villain to divert any ill-will towards himself to keep suspicion from you." His eyes diverted to her. "Princess, I'm right, and you know that." He turned to face her, and his tone escalated as the jade-haired woman looked away. "I implore you! You must understand what's at risk here! Changing the past can very well spell our fates wrapped in doom!"

There was a very long stare off with the two, at wit's end with the other. It was clear that whatever they thought was the opposite. Nobody was gonna divert any attention away from them as they showed opposition to the other. Whatever Hisui had to back up her side, she was gonna to use.

Time for her trump card.

She looked at Domus Flau, seeing birds fly overhead in a unison flock. "Listen…I know you are right, but I cannot agree. It may be our only hope."

"Huh?" Darton looked suspicious.

"I'd swore I'd never tell anyone, but it's come to this. There is another plan…Eclipse 2." She paused as her hair shifted. "Eclipse 2, it is the true purpose of the operation."

Darton's eyes widened in shock.

"And if this is to fail…tomorrow…there won't be a tomorrow."

* * *

Gray walked through the streets, looking around for what may be a foe that was put into Mavis's calculations. _'So First Master said that there should be someone here, right?' _He looked around among the open streets and didn't see anyone. His eyes cascaded up. _'Maybe, an ambush…'_

Chelia jumped from above, catching Gray's attention. "Crap!"

"**Sky God's Boreas!**" Black whirlwinds lashed from her arms, whipping and passing Gray as he covered up from the attack. The Ice-Make Mage slid back and kept his hold on the ground.

He uncovered and looked up at Chelia above. "Should've known someone from Lyon's guild would be here."

Chelia smirked. "So you're Lyon's rival. He's gonna be happy when I beat you!" She said.

Gray put his hands together to make ice, grinning. "Oh yeah, I'd like to see you try. I still got a bone to pick with him myself." He put his hands out. "**Ice-Make: Lance!**"

Gray's ice lances fired at Chelia, where she puffed her cheeks and kept footing from atop of a flat roof. "**Sky God's Bellow!**"

Both attacks met in the middle, ice colliding with dark winds and making a burst of energy that sent cold air all around, making Gray and Chelia to shield from the shockwave.

* * *

As Gray dueled against her, Master Mavis looked at the monitor with a nod. "Yes, just as I had calculated. Gray and Chelia will confront one another, and as those two battle, this will be Erza's chance to trail around and then…" She smirked with sheer confidence. "Battle Minerva and take the big points!"

"Okay, that's just too confident right there!" Bickslow and Evergreen backlashed.

"First Master, if I'm not mistaken, this Minerva woman, she's the one who fought Nic in the Naval Battle, right?" Freed asked. "And if memory serves, I believe those two have an understanding history."

Makarov nodded. "Yes, and although she may be lighthearted compared to Sabertooth, she has the strongest Magic of her guild. Her power is undeniably massive, enough to tie with Nic back then."

"She's seriously scary in battle." Bickslow said.

"I'm sure it's nothing Titania can't handle." Evergreen scoffed.

Erza was then seen next, she stood on a high courtyard of a building with trees as the perimeter. She stood ready as her hair, which was a ponytail that went down from a bud.

'_According to First Master, I should encounter Minerva right about here…'_ As her hair was picked up by another breeze, her mind seemed to drift. _'Nic's group is taking a long time. I hope he's-!' _A shift in the air was heard. She turned around to find something lunging at her with blinding speed. To her shock, it was…

"Here comes KAGURA!" Lola yelled, his excitement making the crowd go nuts as the ultimate swordswomen showdown was to unfold.

Mavis's eyes widened. "…what?"

Erza requipped two katana as Kagura went to attack her. _'The First Master was wrong?'_

Kagura's sheathed sword clashed with Erza's katana, the two slashed and clashed once more, and then it turned into a blinding parry of the other. Their swords moved so fast and clashed and parried that no one could keep up. They struck and slashed, and the fire in their eyes never faltered as they saw the other as enemies they must deal with.

Both blocked each other again and scooted away. Erza glared harshly. _'Her skill…'_

'_Show me what you have to offer, Titania.' _Kagura thought.

Makarov looked at the lacrima-vision with surprise. He was just as shocked as Mavis was, though not as mortified. "Kagura? First Master, this can't be, a miscalculation?! I could've sworn she was gonna face Minerva, right?"

Mavis looked with sullen eyes. "No…I made an error…how could I…" She sniffled.

All of Fairy Tail looked shocked as Mavis was starting to cry. Makarov waved his hands vigorously. "Guuuh! D-don't cray! T-these things happen!" He assured.

Mavis sniffled again. "No…I'm not gonna cry…I'm not gonna…cry…waaaah!" She let out.

"Aw, dammit!" Makarov shrieked.

While that happened, Erza and Kagura were parrying, dodging, and swiftly countering, not a single fault in their movements. They slashed with deadly accuracy, and yet not one was a direct hit, but was parried again. Backflips and twists were implied to dodge. Both woman clashed blades once more, their fiery eyes meeting.

'_Even her sheathed sword is deadly.' _Erza thought, being cautious.

"This is the ultimate swordswoman showdown!" Lola cheered, spinning in his seat. "This is what we've been waiting for!"

"This should be interesting." Yajima said.

The two woman were trying to overpower the other, but they both suddenly stopped when a blue-green blob of spatial energy emerged in between them.

'_What's this?!'_ They thought in unison.

To all that were watching, they saw two arms reached out from the blob and grab their faces. Minerva emerged upside down with a smirk on her face and twisted her body, throwing both Erza and Kagura to the ground, leaving all spectators gaping their mouths.

"What just happened?!" Lola announced. "Minerva came literally out of nowhere!"

"Mind if I play a little?" Minerva asked.

Mavis shuddered, her tears looking dried up, but she was still upset from her miscalculations and her plans falling apart. "N-no." She whimpered. "My plans are nothing now…"

"This has become more than just one-on-one! This is now a three-way free for all! The three strongest women are about to go head to head with one another. The question is, who will win?!" Lola wondered.

Erza looked at Minerva, seeing a sinister smirk on her face. What she felt was a shift in her Magic Power. She felt an immense level before on Day 4, but this was different. It was darker, and that was what got her nerves on edge. Still, this was a battle, and she was to win.

"No matter who I'm up against, friend or foe, I will win." She declared.

Kagura looked towards Erza. _'This makes no sense. I can't read her. From what Millianna had told me, she underwent great pain at the hands of Jellal. Why is she protecting him?'_

"My guild's image has been tarnished by Mermaid Heel, and Fairy Tail. Two guilds that I find an obligation to crush beneath me." Minerva was giving off a purple aura, showing off her Magic Power. "And so eliminating you both will make it clear Sabertooth feasts on the weak."

'_That's not like Minerva at all.' _Erza recalled, meeting Minerva as she wasn't remotely arrogant. And this Magic Power's darkness was growing stronger by the minute. _'Whatever's going on, I have to put an end to it.' _"You're quite ambitious. I didn't know you cared about your guild since your Master is a scoundrel." Erza challenged, her aura becoming red.

Kagura's became blue. "Enough talk, I do not express as much words as I need to show you my power."

The audience watching wasn't even sitting down. Sugar rushed through their veins as they were riled up from the three-woman show that'll throw down. What kept them uneasy, however, was the Magic Power they were feeling. The Magic was so immense that the waves of intensity was reaching out to them. The most affected, however, was Mavis, as her eyes were wide.

The look on her face left Makarov on his heels. "What is it, First Master?"

Mavis's stare was to Minerva on the monitor. "That woman, I sense a corrosive evil lurking within her. A power that I never encountered." Her eyes narrowed. "All I know now is…whatever happened to Minerva, this isn't her."

Everyone's shock diverted back to the screen, watching the three women lunge at the other simultaneously.

Two swords and a sphere collided with another. There was a flash and the whole rooftop exploded from the three impacts at once, sending a cloud of dust and all three women away briefly. When it all cleared, Erza, Kagura, and Minerva all rushed at the other again. Kagura slashed at Erza, but the redhead jumped overhead and used the left hand sword and attacked Minerva overhead, but she blocked it and socked Erza with a right hook infused with Territory. Minerva, however, was kicked by Kagura in a flash.

Erza slid back from her attack and lunged forward at Kagura. Without hesitation, she kicked Kagura so hard that she blasted off the ceiling. Erza jumped off and went after her again, but a fast glint revealed Kagura landing on her knees, her sword still sheathed as Erza yelled and slammed into the ground harshly. Kagura was then left open when Minerva blasted her with her Magic, engulfing Kagura in a spatial explosion.

Minerva looked behind to see Erza jumping to attack. "Victory is mi-GAH!" Minerva was cut off when a pommel from Kagura's sword struck her ribs, sending her flying back. Erza continued her fall and landed a kick to Kagura's face and planting her feet to the ground.

While on the ground, Minerva took her left two fingers and touched her right palm with them. "Hold it right there!"

Orbs encased Erza and Kagura alike, making them both over in the air.

The confused women could only question the limited time they have as Minerva was gathering up an incredible Magic Power, so much that the ground rumbled and spatial energy swirled with her intricate arm movements. Light blossomed beneath her.

She began an incantation. "Niel Wielg Mion Terse Elcantaeus."

"What she saying?" Bickslow wondered.

"Some form of incantation." Freed explained. "But I don't know what it is."

Mavis's eyes widened and shook as she got another look at Minerva's Magic. "No…that's…one the now-extinct Yakuma Eighteen War Gods Magic! How does she have that?!"

"**Yagdo Rogora!**"

A massive god-like man with intricate battle markings on his body erupted, giving a violent and overpowering presence. Erza, Kagura, and Minerva were all enveloped in a beam of light that was so superb that it obliterated the entire structure they stood upon. The light beamed into the sky high above, reaching massive heights and sending shockwaves into the sky. The nearby sea had waves from the shockwaves.

The light faded, but the audience, Lola, Yajima, and Mato all had the same shocked expression. Every single one of their mouths were gaping and hung open from the raw power.

The dust settled, nad Minerva stood on a higher level of debris compared to Erza and Kagura, who had but a few scrapes and torn clothing from that attack. Minerva maliciously smirked as the two woman were seen standing and unhindered.

"OH MY GOODNESS!" Lola yelled in shock. "Erza and Minerva are still standing after that devastating attack! How can they still be standing?!"

Makarov put a hand over his heart. "That one made me skip a beat."

"I can't believe that kind of Magic exists." Freed said. "It's even more shocking that their Magic Power cancelled out."

Minerva chuckled at Erza and Kagura. "Well, well. This is a surprise. Milady's Magic is excruciating. I can feel her power course through her veins. I wonder why she never threatens people that often?" She wondered.

Erza's eyes narrowed. "Now I know for certain, you're not yourself, Minerva."

Minerva's eyes showed a curiosity. "Oh?"

"Your Magic Power is darker than before. So ask me this, who are you really?" Erza demanded.

Minerva's face darkened. "Whatever do you mean?" She asked factitiously. "This is my true power." Erza's stare was too serious to fool, and Minerva saw that. "…although given your history and affiliation with Luminous, I guess I can let a hint or two out."

Erza and Kagura's eyes narrowed.

"If you really wanna know about Milady and who she is, all you have to do is follow my rules." Minerva said.

"Rules?" Kagura asked.

"I see now that going against you both at the same time is rather reckless. I thought she could destroy you and step on your corpses, but it seems that I was wrong. So much for a secured victory." Spatial energy encompassed Minerva's hands as her fur-lined scarf dropped into the rubble. "You wanna know my rules, but your queen must introduce you to the game. Observe."

A large, green orb appeared behind Minerva, and being shown inside was a woman. The woman being shown had a few bloody marks, showing that she was tortured and put through sadistic pain. Her belly and arms had several scrapes and she looked in searing agony.

Lola looked horrified. "You see this?"

Yajima's eyes were wide. "Yes…"

The audience looked in fright as the orb showed someone that made Erza and Kagura gasp in sheer shock.

"Millianna!" They shrieked.

Minerva's smirk intensified. "I found this stray kitten."

"How could she stoop so low?!" Arana yelled.

"I told you something was up!" Beth exclaimed.

"Why would she do such a thing?!" Risley growled.

"The sphere she's in constantly drains her Magic Power. It's a little parasitic trick that I forgot Milady can use. I personally love it. I can get used to doing this." Minerva tormented.

Erza looked at Millianna in great pain. When she saw her, she saw the little girl that was from long ago, who she saw but 8 years later, who was now a young woman. And as of recently they met up again with smiles…seeing her in slavery pain made her come to a realization.

"She's taken her hostage." Erza said.

"I said it before. I am the queen, and you are the pawns. Don't bother surrendering, I want to see some entertainment before I crush you with my own hands." Minerva's eyes narrowed. "Now, play my game, or this little kitten gets a public execution…then you both."

Kagura and Erza both glared with boiling rage from Minerva's tactics. This was so low, but inside, Bellona didn't give a damn. She will do whatever it takes to show domination over everyone.

Seeing the scornful looks on their faces, Minerva smirked. "It seems those satisfying looks on your faces means yes?"

Both woman growled at Minerva as they were caught in her trap, one they were forced to stay in unless they accepted her terms. This fight got very dirty.

* * *

Darton's face showed horror. "Is this for real?!" He exclaimed, hearing Hisui's explanation. "If what you say is true, then we really won't have a tomorrow! We must act immediately, that means calling off the Grand Magic Games at once!" He implored frantically.

Hisui shook her head. "No, not yet." She defied. "If we really are sure of this person's claims, then we must verify."

"Princess, we don't have that kind of time!" Darton pointed out. "We must act now! Countless lives are at severe risk here!"

Hisui didn't answer immediately. She looked from the city below to the Domus Flau colosseum. "This person claims to know of the future…and that means the outcome of the Grand Magic Games." She ignored Darton's shock and continued on. "My advisor told me, that the outcome was something no one had ever expected. This person said…a guild will win in a way that one on had ever thought of; a way that they never saw coming. An act that puts them above all else." Her gloved hands clenched. "If they do come to fruition, only then will I believe what this person claims to know, and thus act accordingly."

Darton stepped forward. "This is our kingdom at risk, and your betting it all on the outcome of the Grand Magic Games?!" He protested.

Hisui nodded. "Yes. To be honest, I have a hard time believing it myself, which is why I am allowing this person's claim on the games to be the only hope." She mournfully frowned. "If so…then there's no choice but to use Eclipse."

Darton looked back at the Domus Flau colosseum, grunting in scorn.

* * *

"So Arcadios really survived that magma?" Vanessa asked as the group walked through Hell Palace. "That's a shock."

Loke turned towards her as he helped carry Arcadios by himself. "After what he went through, we're all still shocked as clear as day."

"Well once we get out of here, we'll get the answers – all of them – from Princess Hisui." Lucy interjected.

Everyone nodded.

Nic's eyes widened a little as he saw something up ahead. "Everyone, look up ahead."

Everyone looked ahead and saw something large up ahead. It was arched and massive, but it was something that put a smile on their faces. It was a large door.

"The exit!" Natsu yelled. "HAHA! You did it man! Your powers came through!"

Lily smirked with crossed arms. "I'm surprised that Nic's powers got us here at long last."

"Aye!" Happy said.

"Well you expect anything less?" Carla huffed. "He did raise the sea levels back on Tenrou Island before."

Nic took the lead, stopping and looking up at the massive door. _'No telling what lies on the other side. If it is a trap, we might as well be set. This is the only exit, so let's go…'_ His thoughts wandered into a mist as he got a foggy, eerie feeling. "What?"

The doors suddenly began to open up, much to everyone's surprise. The bright light began to expand as the doors opened forward. Natsu. Mira, Yukino, basically everyone was caught shocked as the door was opened without their help.

"Whoa! It opened!" Happy exclaimed.

"Everyone stay alert!" Nic ordered. "Be ready for anything that comes your way!"

Everyone paid heed and looked battle ready, especially Natsu as he was aching to pound another face in. To their shock, and slight disappointment, only two shadows were seen, which turned into two cloaked figures who stood at the doorway. The two figures' cloaked shifted as they stood against everyone, saying nothing.

A dense silence was amongst them, one of curiosity and heavy suspense. Eventually, Natsu broke it.

"Uh…thanks?" He quizzically said.

One of the cloaked figures had their lips part and looked shocked at Natsu. The other one looked at Nic and Vanessa, looking more composed, but still shocked.

"Natsu…" One figure whimpered. The figure was starting to tear up, putting a hand to their face.

Natsu tilted his head, his nose wrinkling. "Hang on…" His sniffer went off again, but the smell was what scared him. He gasped. "What the…no way."

Nic looked at the second, more composed figure. It had its head lowered to the ground in guilt. Still, something seemed familiar. "Who are you?" He asked in a calm yet soft tone.

The one crying at Natsu couldn't stop, and the other's head was lowered still. Everyone looked startled as the woman's voice still rang in their heads. They knew it all too well, and to their shock, it sounded like someone they'd never expect.

"That voice…and that smell…" Natsu was unable to think straight. "I know them."

The second cloaked figure reached for its hood, ready to pull it open. "It's good to see you all once more."

The second voice made Nic and Vanessa's eyes widen with realization and explicit horror. They never saw this coming, not ever.

"Impossible…" Vanessa gasped, stepping back.

Nic remained still as he knew the voice all too well. "Is that…?"

The hoods went off, revealing two figures. It was a sobbing Lucy, and a grimacing Nic.

Everyone's spines rattled. Loke, Mira, and a now-awake Arcadios, all had horror and widened eyes of sheer shock as they all nearly feel back from the unveiling.

"No way…me?! And Nic?!" Lucy muttered.

"Two Lucys and Nics?!" Happy exclaimed.

Lily stepped back. "What's going on?"

Carla was shocked again and was paralyzed as she recalled the premonition. The entire city of Crocus was a devastated battleground, and Nic was at the mercy and glares of several creatures at once, all with an infinite level of pure, bloodthirsty evil. _'My vision, it's coming to reality.'_

Nic and Lucy looked at their versions of themselves. Lucy swallowed, but Nic looked in sheer revelation.

"What's going on?" He muttered, his blue eyes shuddering.

The Lucy cloaked wiped away her tears and looked at everyone again. "Please…help."

The Nic right beside her looked at the present Nic and Vanessa, who seemed to have calmed down somewhat. Both were still startled, Vanessa still shaken up some and recovering fast. He didn't budge, but stared at the two.

What he said next was what gave everyone goosebumps. "What is to happen, will decide whether we will survive…or die."

* * *

Far away, in the mountains of an undisclosed location. There was a cave, a large one. Isolated inside was something cloaked in utter darkness. It lifted its head when it felt something shift in the atmosphere. A wave of impurity was sensed, something that made it growl.

A hot breath escaped as the now revealed beast got up from its slumber and arose to crawl out of the cave. His claws left the earth beneath in small craters, his tail swung and hit the cavern sides. His wings, the left wings having lost massive scales long ago, unfolded when he reached outside. The outside air was foul and intoxicating, signs of a foreboding evil, an evil, and a similar energy resonating within it, got him on edge.

The Dragon King was revealed – Acnologia. His face was still mortally scared on the right side, behind the eye. his chest had a massive, zigzag-like scar from Rayquaza's blow, and his large scales on his wings went off from that same blow. His back had a huge burn mark from Primal Groudon's Precipice Blades, which was massive enough to leave the spot weak. The diagonal chest scar was by far the biggest.

The remembrance of the energy made him growl and snarl violently. He remembered the battle from long ago that scarred him and his reputation. This was his chance to redeem and slaughter what was to come.

His wings stretched out and his mouth opened up. He let loose a violent roar, one that would stretch for miles and sounded of a feral beast. Without a moment's hesitation, he took flight and began his way towards his destination, where the otherworldly energy was located – Crocus.

"**I will have my revenge!**" He roared. The remembrance of his scars all over his body made his roar more intense than ever as he sailed into the blue yonder. "**Prepare yourselves, Pokémon!**"

* * *

**There's your cliffhanger! How was this chapter? I didn't put all of the Garou Knights battles in this because it's a waste and you know what happens in them, but as I said, I made it up by adding good battles and making Mega Venusaur appear, so hoorah there! The shock with Future Lucy and Future Nic is clear, and more shall be seen next chapter!**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the battles, Vanessa's Venusaur's Mega Evolution, and the anime battles and changes that I make!**

* * *

**Next Time: Inevitable End**


	79. Inevitable End

Chapter 79 – Inevitable End

**Hey guys, here's the next chapter again. I'm still pacing with every 3 days for an update, if not so 4, so estimates for this story's end is maybe early August.**

**Guest Valvrave: I know Acnologia had no part in the canon, which is why I'm making this change with a very powerful twist.**

**Natalie: I'm working small bits at night with **_**One's Road to Remembrance**_**, but it'll be up soon. As for this story, I already stated that this will end at the end of the GMG Arc. No Tartaros Arc, sorry. And get grammar right in reviews, that's what irritates me.**

**With that out of my way, back to the reading.**

**To Recap:**

Nic's group is split up, dealing with the Garou Knights individually, whereas Natsu and Nic dispatch Kama, and Vanessa and Wendy defeat Cosmos with the help of Mega Venusaur. They all meet up with everyone again and head for the exit. Hisui is found out by Darton then of her plans and implores her to stop, but she says an advisor knows the future and continues with her plans. Gray and Chelia confront the other, and Erza fights Kagura, much to Mavis's shock from error in her calculations. A manipulated Minerva arrives and a three-way battle erupts, and all three were equal, resorting in Minerva to use Millianna as a hostage. Elsewhere, Nic and his group find the exit, only for the doors to reveal someone they never saw coming – another Lucy and Nic. Far away, Acnologia responds to a familiar energy and flies off for revenge.

* * *

**Chapter 79 – Inevitable End**

Everyone in front of the cloaked Nic and Lucy were by no means glad. They were just confused, baffled with anticipation and confusion swarming their senses. Natsu couldn't think straight as he stared between the cloaked Lucy and the Lucy right beside him.

"How are there two Lucys and Nics?" Wendy asked in disbelief.

"I'm sure you're all aware of the Eclipse by now, am I right?" The cloaked Nic asked.

Everyone looked at each other with some slight shock. If they knew of Eclipse, and were aware of its time-related qualities, that could only mean that the cloaked Nic and ucy had full knowledge, at least from their point of view.

"We used its powers…to come from the future." The cloaked Lucy grimaced.

"HUH?!" Everyone gasped.

"The…future?" Lucy asked.

"But wait, how is that possible?!" Natsu exclaimed. "Eclipse did this?!"

"But why? Why did you come back to our time?" Nic asked.

Future Lucy's eyes looked hazy. She didn't look so good. "We came to warn you…" She never got to finish as she fell over, with Future Nic managing to catch her in time.

"Lucy!" Natsu ran over to Future Nic's side, looking at Future Lucy's unconscious form. "Hey, are you alright?! Say something!"

Future Nic's eyes were set on her. The blonde was unconscious, but breathing, much to his and Natsu's relief. "I was afraid she would do this." He mourned.

"The heck is happening around here?" Happy asked.

"I don't know." Lily said.

Lucy stepped back, shock coming across her. _'Why would…why would Nic and I do such a thing?'_ She watched on as Future Nic supported the unconscious Future Lucy with one arm and looked towards the door. Her mind was still unable to grasp the gravity of the situation unfolding. _'We'd never do such a thing unless we were this desperate…right?'_

Vanessa looked over to her brother, seeing his disgruntled face. "Hey, you okay?"

Nic's mind was racing faster than a Floatzel with Agility in rainy weather. The gravity of the scenario was dire if something like this unfolded. Nobody, not even himself, saw it coming. At least he was more calm than Lucy, but he was only as calm as his façade was.

He looked towards his sister. "…yeah, I'll hold."

Future Nic looked over his shoulder back at everyone behind. "We'll explain later, right now follow me."

There really wasn't much of a choice on this one. Everyone could only heed Future Nic's advice and follow him as they exited Hell Palace with a silent and despondent haze in the air.

* * *

Darton looked towards Princess Hisui, taking his mind off the games briefly. While he was focused on preserving the future, there was something not right. "Princess, there's something that boggles me. You need a Celestial Mage for your plans, and yet you threw them both into Hell Palace."

"Yes, that I did." She admitted bitterly.

"And then why'd you hinder your own plans? A little foolhardy if you ask me."

Hisui kept her sights ahead. "The truth is, I only needed their Keys. They're the only things that are required." She explained.

"Well then why'd you get rid of the as well?" Darton asked harshly. "You need to open the gates, and yet you can't do it without them."

Hisui looked towards Darton, a serious look in her eyes. "…I already did that."

Darton's eyes widened. "What?"

"Using the 12 Zodiacs, I unsealed the Eclipse Gate last night. All that we need to do, is open up the doors and step inside."

Darton's eyes returned to looking disgruntled and returned his attention towards the games. "I sure hope you know if this is a good idea in the end."

"Trust me." Hisui insisted. "It'll be worth it."

* * *

Elsewhere, walking down an open corridor, Gajeel's iron footsteps were heard through the path he took, his face contorted with annoyance. "Geez." He grunted. "One slipup and everything goes to sunder. Some Fairy Tactician the First Master is."

In his words, Mavis whimpered. No matter what, her calculations never called for Erza's three-way confrontation.

Lisanna looked to the lacrima monitor overhead showing Gajeel briefly. "This is getting intense." She said. She noticed Levy looking worried right by her side, her eyes set on Gajeel on the monitor. The worried look in her eyes showed that Levy was watching super carefully with high hopes.

Lisanna smiled. "Hey, don't worry. Gajeel is a Dragon Slayer." She encouraged. "It takes a lot to keep them down, remember?"

Levy's nerves eased up a little. "Yeah…good luck, Gajeel."

Gajeel felt a strong Magic from behind. Curious, he turned around and saw someone he didn't expect. Rogue stood there, glaring at Gajeel with no backing down. Gajeel smirked. "Well, well. Looks like we got ourselves a little bug; pesky now are we?"

"I'm afraid I am no match for Nic Pularis." Rogue said. "So you are my primary target, Gajeel."

Gajeel looked satisfied. "I think I'm a little insulted. I'm not like Luminous, because I'll make you lose feeling in your teeth."

"We got ourselves a little Dragon skirmish!" Lola yelled, riling up the audience further.

* * *

Elsewhere, Laxus was charging lightning, crackling around him as a show of his intense Magic Power against Orga, who was his adversary that he came across at an intersection. Unlike Laxus, Orga was crackling with black lightning. His Magic Power equally as destructive as static raged and made hair stand on end.

"How's it going?" Laxus asked, although his tone was less enthusiastic and more mocking.

"I've been waiting for us to square off." Orga said.

"Care enough to tell about your black lightning?"

"Tch, you got brains, I can tell you know that I'm a Lightning God Slayer." Orga rebuffed.

"That so." Laxus smirked. "Betcha it ain't gonna funny knowing your butt's gonna get handed to ya by a fairy."

* * *

Erza and Kagura both glared coldly at Minerva as she had a sneer and held Millianna in her sphere, constantly draining her Magic. The wounds on the feline only added fuel to their desperation to save her from whoever took over Minerva. As far as Erza knew, it wasn't Minerva at all they were up against.

Kagura drew her sword, holding the hilt tight. "I'll only ask once. Release Millianna! I play no games!"

Minerva wasn't remotely fazed. "Oh really? Come and take her, you sad, desperate pawn."

Kagura reappeared in a blinding blur, Archenemy ready to strike as she was but a few feet away.

'_She's so fast.' _Erza thought.

Kagura had a swift and cold stare, but Minerva's darkened one triumphed. In less than the blink of an eye, Minerva was in the same place Erza was, and Erza was where Minerva was recently. Erza and Kagura's eyes widened in shock before Erza used a katana and blocked Kagura's attack that was meant for Minerva. The swordswomen were dumbfounded by the trick played on them.

'_How can she do that?' _Kagura thought.

'_We switched places?' _Erza thought with equal shock.

Minerva turned away from the quarrel, walking off. "Here's the game – last woman standing. You two settle it out, or to the death, however you see it fit. I'll take on the weakened winner."

"You dare run away from a fight you intervened?! You dare call yourself a 'queen'." Erza taunted as she was still in her stalemate with Kagura.

"Silence pawn. This is my board you're playing on." Minerva reminded her, still walking off. "A true 'queen' controls the pawn through mastery of the battlefield. She puts the pawns in place and readies her enemies' downfall. One doesn't obey to power alone, so force is what drives all." She turned back towards the two woman who glared at her, making her smirk widen. "If anything, you should be honored that I chose a strategic regrouping. I now see Milady's powers and body can only wield and handle so much against capable foes."

"Let Millianna go!" Erza demanded.

Kagura's glare darkened like a feral tiger ready to pounce. "Don't you dare…" She growled, catching Erza by surprise. "Don't you dare treat her as an ally!" She overpowered Erza and headbutted her, making the redhead stagger back.

Minerva waved her arm, making Millianna vanish along with the orb and replacing her spot with one her size. "It seems you both have some personal matters to deal with. I'll leave you to figure them out."

"I accept your terms! Just let Millianna go!" Kagura pleaded.

As Minerva slowly stepped towards the orb, a maniacal chuckle came from her. She shook her head. "No." Her chuckling increased. "No." She broke into a laughter of pure sadistic behavior as she vanished inside the orb, leaving Erza and Kagura to themselves.

Erza reminisced in 'Minerva' and her sadistic behavior. "Whoever she is, she's got up in a tight bind."

Kagura looked back at Erza, her focus set onto her. "Silence!" Kagura bellowed, her eyes darkening. "I don't talk to prey, I cut them down."

* * *

In the mountains, Jellal, Ultear, and Meredy were all in a grimace contemplation of sorts.

"I'm afraid we misunderstood our chances on this one." Jellal said. "There's only one joke that I see in this, and that's our fates were sealed."

"Future Lucy explained the situation, and what she said does leave us very little time to prepare." Ultear pondered. "But…"

"What about Future Nic? Did he say anything?" Meredy interjected. "Jellal?"

Jellal sat on a rock, his face contort with grimace as there was no plan, and what bothered him was that when he was given the situation by Lucy, there was something that was wrong.

"Nic was as silent as the night." He said. "That could mean something he knows but refuses to share."

"Well why wouldn't he tell us a possibility?" Meredy asked.

"Perhaps it's for security. Perhaps he thinks overloading us with plans and solutions when they can be changed in the timespan we have will only hinder us."

Ultear looked towards the Domus Flau colosseum, her hair whipped by the passing grim winds. "And yet…he holds a power, a power of a God if I am not mistake. If he came back with Lucy to warn us, wouldn't you come to think something else is in the works here?"

"You really believe that?" Meredy asked.

Jellal remained silent, his doubts notified. There was truly something the works, but he couldn't tell himself. Future Lucy's prediction was bad enough as it was, but Future Nic was a mystery, and that's what left Jellal to believe Ultear might not be wrong. Whatever Nic was hiding, it may determine _everything_.

* * *

The air shifted in between Erza and Kagura as their eyes met, never looking away from the other as their swords were up.

"It's time we settle this." Erza challenged.

"I shall hold nothing back." Kagura said.

"I'd be insulted if you did."

Erza slashed her swords and met Kagura's but the redhead struggled and faltered back from Kagura's swing pulling through. She backflipped while going backwards and got her ground again. She requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor and dashed ahead with twin swords set.

"**Pentagram Sword!**" Erza's swords crossed and made pentagram pattern. Kagura evaded the attack without much movement when jumping. She ended up above Erza with her sword aimed down atop of Erza.

"**Archenemy: Strong Form!**" Kagura brought her sword down like a mighty hammer, bringing it down onto Erza. The impact was so immense that the ground itself gave way. Erza fell as pain made her grunt. Kagura didn't falter as she attacked again. "**Slashing Form!**"

"**Requip!**" Erza shifted her armor to the Adamantine Armor. She put her shield together, but to her shock, the shield sliced into two, and Erza ascertained a few cuts.

"That's insane!" Romeo shouted. "Not even the Jupiter Cannon could get through that armor!"

Makarov stared at the screen with uncertainty. "So powerful."

Erza tried to hold in the pain she felt as she and Kagura fell downwards.

"Persistent." Kagura admitted.

Erza requipped again into her Flight Armor. She dashed around the falling rubble and used them as stepping stones, reappearing in front of an upright Kagura. "**Sonic Claw!**" In a fast and vigorous frenzy, Erza slashed and passed Kagura. To her shock, Kagura didn't seem hindered by the damage taken from Erza's attack.

Erza suddenly felt a cutting pain that made her lose the grip on her katana, howling out pain from the cuts she got in a flash.

"She's faster than Erza's Flight Armor?!" Warren exclaimed.

"Oh no! Erza!" Lisanna yelled in worry.

Erza crashed and broke through the ceiling and laid amongst rubble established. The structure she was in looked very much like the inside of a cathedral. Giant pillars were scattered all over, having intricate vaulted ceilings above. Kagura landed in a crouched stance, looking sharp as Erza was covered in cuts and bruises in her clothes she was force-requipped back into.

Makarov's eyes were wide with devastation. "Erza's being beaten in a swordfight?!" He gasped.

"This wasn't in my calculations at all." Mavis grimaced.

"And Kagura struck down Erza! Titania is completely at the mercy of Mermaid Heel! The woman who took on Pandemonium all on her own is completely overwhelmed!" Lola announced.

Erza couched as she struggled to get up. Kagura eyed her wearily as the Fairy Tail Mage panted from the fatigue accumulated from the blindsided attacks.

"I'm surprised. To think such power is here too." Erza said in between labored breaths. She coughed again and looked up at Kagura, huffing. "Such hatred, it all comes from your grudge against…Jellal."

Kagura's eyes showed distaste. She kicked Erza in the ribs hard, sending her into a pillar. She walked towards the redhead and glared down at her as she struggled yet managed to sit up.

Erza wiped the blood from the sides of her lips. "Go right ahead. You can channel that hatred into strength all you want." She looked up at Kagura dead in the face. "Just leave Millianna alone! She doesn't deserve this path!"

Kagura, instead of responding verbally, swung her sword into Erza's face, slamming her into another pillar.

"You know nothing." She said angrily. Her eyes were dark and insincere. "No matter what, my will is this: I will kill Jellal!"

Erza coughed and sat up. "What drove you to this vendetta?"

Kagura looked at Erza to find her gaze was absolute. Whatever lengths were gonna be measured, Erza was gonna get it, so Kagura may as well deliver.

"You really wanna know?" She started. "The man who passed his will down to me, the will that was all I had of him, it turns out you knew him all too well."

What she said next had so much venom that she was like a poisonous mermaid who'll drown her victim. "The person Jellal took and killed was Simon…my brother!"

Erza's eyes slowly widened from the disbelief that hit her ears. When that name hit her ears, she remembered Simon well. She remembered him from long ago, but more sadly, his death. "You're…his little sister?"

"Our family was poor, but we were happy with who we were." Kagura told as she reminisced in her young childhood. A small rundown home of old wood, with a small kitchen with Kagura and Simon smiling happily. "That happiness was then stolen from us." Her sweet memories turned into scorching blazes as children were running away from the mayhem, and what transpired was bitter death for the adults. "My home was victim to the child hunts. My village was burned to the ground, with myself being the only one who made it out. I was lost, and thus I swore to find my brother, no matter how long that may be. I met Millianna, and that's when I learned the horrible truth."

Erza looked down with her hair covering her mournful gaze.

"Simon had been killed by Jellal. All these years; he's been captured, tortured, enslaved, and then murdered. I lost everything, and now I have nothing." She held up Archenemy. "That's when I took a new vow, the vow that I shall avenge Simon, and kill Jellal when the time comes. Until then, Archenemy shall remain sheathed."

Erza felt a drop in her heart as she couldn't resist the recollection of the bittersweet memories. She should have never been so reckless back then. She remembered how Simon fell before her, and how made forced Nic to promise to protect her, and how he passed away with his breath gone, but with a smile.

"Millianna was wrong." Erza said.

Kagura's eyes glared daggers. "What?"

"She wasn't there to see it." Erza added on. "The only ones there were Jellal, Simon, Natsu, Nic, and me…" Her eyes began to mist as she thought deeper with mournful sorrow. "Jellal may have played the hand that ended Simon, but his death wasn't by that…" She looked by at Kagura, tears pooling down her face. "I'm to blame."

Kagura's eyes dilated at Erza, her blood pressure rapidly boiling an accelerating to extreme levels. Her anger was greater than it ever was. "You…you dare protect that killer?"

"I'm sorry, but it's the truth." Tears dripped down from Erza's cheek. "If I wasn't so reckless and weak, your brother would still be alive and well today."

Kagura held onto Archenemy with a shaking hand. Her entire body was shaking with incredible rage and a torrent of bloodlust. Her lips quivered as she was uncontrollably beginning to do the unthinkable.

"Kagura! No!" Arana yelled.

"Think about what you're doing!" Beth yelled.

"You wanna kill her?!" Risley yelled, but all of their calls fell on deaf ears.

Kagura's dilated eyes were shuddering and saw nothing but red. Her heartbeat was fast and loud. Each beat had a different memory of her better, pre and post-death. The more she thought, the angrier she was. Her untamed gaze was down to Erza, and all went to hell.

Kagura let out a primal scream of anguish and despair, one bellowing of goosebump-rising pitches and tone. Her sword unsheathed in a violent flash, swinging at Erza as her head hung in shame.

"I'm so sorry." Erza apologized before all went wide.

* * *

While Future Nic was supporting Future Lucy, the present Nic suddenly stopped and turned around. A strong shiver went up his spine, as though something terrible happened. He looked back with a suspicious gaze to the dark ceilings. _'Erza.'_

* * *

A bright flash traveled down the city, slicing up everything in its path. The locations hit were all sliced into two. The entire city rumbled from the shockwaves of Archenemy being unleashed.

To all that were beyond astonished, the vaulted location they were fighting was sliced along the ceiling, debris falling continuously. To Kagura and Mermaid Heel's disbelief, Erza was standing and blocking with a single sword to match Archenemy.

"How did she block Kagura's Archenemy?!" Beth yelled in disbelief.

"Unbelievable." Arana muttered.

"That's impossible!" Risley yelled.

Kagura backed away, her grip tight enough to crush bone. Erza glared her down.

"Simon saved my life…" She started. Slowly requipping into her sarashi and hakama pants, wielding a single blade. "As did Grandpa Rob, and so many of my friends risked their lives, as did the love of my life." Her sword pointed at Kagura. "If I give up now, I'd be dishonoring everything they've done for me. Their love gives me my strength."

Kagura's teeth gritted. "You're a coward, like Jellal! I'll kill you both!" Kagura let out a battle cry as she swung Archenemy down again, only to be matched by Erza's sword again.

"If anger and hatred is what drives you, then so be it!" Erza deflected Archenemy and took a big leap, flying over Kagura with her sword back. "But my love from everyone shall never be my downfall!"

"You and I will never see eye to eye then!" Kagura lunged at Erza, Archenemy ready to strike. "Titania!"

Both woman let out a cry and they met in the middle. Both swung their sharp swords and passed the other. Time slowed down as Erza went through with her assault, and Kagura felt a strong pain. Kagura faltered in the air and lost balance as Erza landed with both feet and her sword in a slashed motion.

Kagura gave off tears of shock that fell with her. _'But…how…?' _She landed with a thud on her back, her sword in her loose grip.

The crowd went nuts as Erza had won the duel. They all gave cheers and awed at the shrilling display made.

"And Kagura is down! Erza had bested her, coming back around from what seemed to be a match of sheer fortitude!" Lola commentated.

"That was truly a match for the history books." Yajima smiled.

"That was awesome, pumpkins!" Mato exclaimed, jumping up and down from his seat.

However, Mermaid Heel was another story.

"Kagura lost?" Arana looked on mournfully.

"Even with Archenemy unsheathed." Beth said.

"But how?" Risley said in disbelief.

Erza huffed as her strength was exhausted. She looked back at Kagura as she was struggling on her hands and knees.

Kagura coughed. "I will…avenge Simon…"

Erza heard rumbling from above. She looked up and saw some debris falling. Their battle caused a great deal of collateral damage, which devastated the domain they were in, and the roof gave in and debris fell, heading straight for Kagura.

"Look out!" Erza warned as she rushed ahead of a stunned Kagura.

The rock crashed down, scaring the audience as dust bellowed all around. The structure stopped quaking, and the crumbled mound settled.

Kagura was safe, pushed out of the way by Erza. Unfortunately, Erza was nowhere near lucky. She clutched her teeth in pain as her right leg was crushed beneath the weight of a rock.

Kagura looked on in deep confusion and shock. "But…why?"

Through the pain in her ankle, Erza smiled. "I know…I remember, your face." Kagura's eyes widened and a gasp escaped her lungs. She stood up, nearly ready to fall back down.

"I don't know you personally, but I do remember, meeting Simon's little sister…on that night."

"Then…" Kagura's surprise never stopped mounting. "There's no mistaking it."

"Yes." Erza told. "Like you, my home was Rosemary Village."

_Rosemary Village, a once quiet and peaceful village that was now nothing but fire and bloodshed. Everywhere was an adult corpse, the ones that the masked men killed for the thrill, and so no one would dare oppose them._

_Through the fires, a little Kagura was looking around, scared. "Big brother? Simon?"_

_A sudden hand grabbed her wrist, though it wasn't Simon's. It was a girl with red hair. "Come on, this way!"_

_Kagura didn't have any place to say. "But, I have to find my big brother!" However she heard adults from a distance, and resorted t turning into an alleyway, where the redheaded girl placed her inside of a box._

"_I'll find him, just stay inside, and don't come out." She said._

_Kagura sniffled. "But, what about you?"_

_The redhead looked into the partially open lid, revealing her brown eyes of Erza. "I'll be fine, just stay alive."_

_Kagura whimpered with sadness as Erza closed the box, keeping Kagura safe while she dashed out of the alleyway to divert attention towards herself. The adults all saw her and ran after her, eventually catching up and seizing her to enslave out of misery._

_All while Kagura was accompanied by silence._

Kagura clutched her hand over her mouth. Archenemy dropped to the ground as shock and remorse flooded her thoughts. When she looked at Erza, she matched those eyes. It was no doubt her. Tears pooled in Kagura's eyes, hiccups and tears falling over her hands to the ground as she found her past savior.

"Simon talked a lot about you." Erza continued. "He hoped that you were healthy and safe, and now…here you are."

Kagura's hands dropped to her sides. She had just involuntarily wounded the woman who had changed her life, and more importantly saved it from so long ago. She swallowed and managed to hold down her sadness and tears as she lifted the large rock atop of Erza. Erza crawled out, and Kagura threw the rock aside. "I…I need time for all of this to sink in." She managed to calmly say. She stood upright, looking at Erza at her feet. "But for now, I give this victory to-!"

A sword pierced through her back and straight through her stomach, the blade coated in her own blood. Kagura felt shock and agony purge her gut of all that was sound.

Erza's face was sprinkled by Kagura's blood, as Minerva was back, and stabbed Kagura. Kagura fell over, much to the horrors of all. The audience couldn't even look at Minerva again.

"You may have won, Erza, but the points belong to me." Minerva said, a dark vibe radiating from her. As she foretold the board heed her words and made the score to 54 points, putting Sabertooth back in the lead. Minerva smirked maliciously as Erza's shock slowly boiled into anger, Minerva threw Archenemy away. "You see, Titania, this is how a queen controls the game. She has the simple-minded pawns duke it out, eliminating the weak and leaving the stronger pawns at the mercy of me. A queen gets her pickings of the best cuisines, and nothing else shall suffice. _Nothing._ I like a severed mermaid and a wingless fairy for example. Such fine meals for this famished tiger." Minerva maniacally laughed down in her superiority.

Erza shook in boiling rage. "Damn you…you of all people will pay for that!" He growled.

"I doubt that, I doubt that very much." Minerva showed no concern. "That leg wound only adds to my point, though you're welcome to try."

Kagura coughed blood as her body was shaking uncontrollably. She was unstable, and she teared up as she was an enraged Erza.

"Millianna…" She said weakly. Erza looked towards her. "You have…to save her…"

Erza looked back ahead. "I will, count on it."

"Millianna…oh, that street feline? Hmph, take the furball and squabble." Minerva made a green orb expand in her hand, and it spit out Millianna, who was lying on her stomach an unresponsive.

"Millianna!" Erza exclaimed.

"As you can see, she's already incapacitated. Another point, I demand it!"

The scoreboard changed from 54 to 55, putting Sabertooth ahead of Fairy Tail by 4.

Erza ran over towards Millianna, turning her over to look at her tortured and wounded friend. "Millianna! Millianna!" Erza held as she held the cat in her arms.

Millianna's eyes weakly opened. "Erzy? Is that…you? Thank goodness…" Her eyes shut again, her conscience fading.

"Millainna! Snap out of it! Come on…" Erza's hands felt something on Millainna's back. It was wet and fresh as it felt. Erza moved her hand to see. She gasped in sheer horror and fright as her hand was covered in blood. "What?" She put Millianna on her stomach and removed her cloak. Her back, from top to bottom, was blood marks, scrapes, and deep lacerations. "What the hell is this?!"

"I was growing bored, so I played with my new pet." Minerva answered devilishly.

Erza was looking down, her blood at a point where it was beyond boiling. Her breaking point was almost met, and Minerva finally pushed her over the edge.

"I can still remember her harsh screams. I just love them so much that I could've done it till she went dead."

Erza snapped. Her pupils dilated to where they were small, and of a feral animal. She was past furious, for she was in a blind rage. No matter who was inside of Minerva, Erza's mind replayed that last part, and thus made her vendetta to crush whoever Minerva was now.

* * *

Gajeel turned his head, seeing Rogue reappear and then disappear into shadows. Gajeel was unmoved as Rogue reappeared behind, a smirk on his face. He was about to attack when a hard fist uppercutted his abdomen, causing Rogue to gawk from the contact.

Gajeel didn't give any momentum away. He morphed his arm into a column of iron and he shot it at Rogue. He scored a hit right in his face, landing another few heavy jabs of the column all around him and finishing with a harsh blow to Rogue's chest, sending him in a slide back, shock never ceasing to mount as Gajeel had him on the defensive and unable to keep up.

Gajeel retracted his column and seemed disinterested. "Well this got boring in a hurry. No wonder Luminous stomped you in the dirt so easily." He turned away. "Quit wasting my time, kid. I'm outta here."

Rogue watched Gajeel walk away He needed to keep his attention, no matter what insults were to be thrown.

"You don't scare me. Rogue protested. "You're not as strong as Natsu Dragneel or Nic Pularis."

Gajeel stopped in his tracks, a grim silence falling before him. Rogue had just crossed the line, and he saw that when Gajeel slowly turned back, a darkness on his face, along with veins sticking out. "The hell you say?"

* * *

Laxus kept his smirk set on Orga, his lightning crackling still. "Sorry pal, but second best is all your lightning's gonna be."

"Those are some bold words coming from a fairy." Orga challenged.

"You know, there's always someone better than you. Having you eat gravel is a good way to learn." Laxus told, his smirk never losing momentum.

"Oh yeah?" Orga clutched a fist, black lightning beginning to concentrate into a solemn area. "Try me, punk! HRAH!" He punched forward, sending a vicious torrent of black lightning that traveled across the ground. The attack went past Laxus as he kept his smirk, not bothering to look back as the wave of black lightning crumbled the building behind.

"What's the matter? Scared?" Orga taunted.

"Come on, you and I both knew that you weren't gonna actually hit me." Laxus held up a fist cloaked in lightning. "You have a ways to go in the art of intimidation. HRAH!" Laxus punched forward, sending a blast of lightning that traveled across the land past a smirking Orga, as his attack missed on purpose. The lightning obliterated a row of buildings at once, leaving a crumbled path.

Orga's brow raised. "Some lightning." He admitted.

"There's plenty more from where that came from pal." Laxus clutched his fist again and lightning surged. Orga applied black lightning to his fist and both rushed forward with booming roared. Their fists collided, and lightning and black lightning crackled and quaked the atmosphere and earth around. Thunder boomed and the shock from the attack went up, making a tower of black lightning and casual lightning that could be seen from miles away.

Their fists reeled back, sneers on them. Both were looking even and they stepped back.

"My, my." Another voice called out, sandals hitting the gravel. Laxus and Orga ceased their confrontation when they a third party enter, and his voice was what left then uneasy.

It was Jura, the Wizard Saint.

"Mind if I join you?" He asked.

"Jura?" Orga questioned with heavy shock.

As to where Orga was surprised, Laxus kept a smirk. "So, the monster has arrived. This is gonna be interesting."

* * *

"**Ice-Make: Sword!**" Gray made a sword of ice and swung it, hitting Chelia and pushing her back with a slash mark on her arm. To his suspicions, Chelia's wound immediately healed.

"Man this sucks." Gray said. "It looks like I'll just have to hit you harder! **Ice-Make: Arrows!**" Gray fired a dozen arrows made of ice, but this time Chelia jumped and flipped to avoid the attack.

"**Sky God's Boreas!**"

"**Ice-Make: Ice Geyser!**"

A geyser of ice shot up and met Chelia's whirlwinds. Scattered fragments of ice raged in a tempest and both Gray and Chelia were taught in the tempest of raging black winds and chunks of rock-hard ice. Gray slid back, as to where Chelia fell on her side.

Both got up, having more than a few scratches. Gray wiped the dirt on his chin. "Man, Lyon's guild doesn't mess around."

"Why I'm flattered, Gray." A voice said.

Gray looked behind Chelia and saw someone approach. Chelia showed more surprise than Gray as she turned towards the recognizable voice.

"Lyon!" Chelia cheered.

Another figure appeared behind Gray. "Mind if I pitch in some?"

Gray turned around, seeing who had the voice. "Sophie!"

"My, my, Gray. It seems Chelia's healing abilities are giving you quite the hassle." Lyon taunted.

"Well that was just a warm-up. Now this is where things get good." Gray clutched his shirt. "Sophie…" He ripped off his shirt. "Let's put these clowns out of commission!"

While still fatigued and banged up from battling against Rufus, Sophie didn't show any reluctance as she stood by Gray's side, her eyes set on Lyon and Chelia. "I'm with ya all the wall. We'll make them remember this!"

While watching the monitor, Juvia had a dark aura. Everyone around her leaned away in astonishment as her grip broke off part of the balcony.

"My darling's teaming up – together – with Sophie?!" She screeched, tears running down her face as her scary look intensified. "That should be me with my love! Gray, my darling, don't you dare leave me for my love rival!"

"I thought her love rival was Lucy?" Romeo questioned.

"What is she going on about?" Cana questioned.

* * *

Thanks to Future Nic's guidance, everyone managed to make it out of Hell Palace and made it into what seemed to be a massive dining area. The sides were lined with portraits of royalty and past descendants. With them having a new scenery of fancy ornaments rather than dark green halls, the guys all decided to take a break and rest Arcadios and Future Lucy on the floor.

Natsu looked grumpy. "This sucks."

"It's just one maze after another." Loke said.

"Master Makarov and the guild must be worried sick by now." Lily said. "We need to find an exit and fire the signal flare."

"Not to mention tell them of Eclipse and of the Future Lucy and Nic." Carla pointed out.

"I say we barge through their forces no sweat!" Natsu suggested with a toothy smirk.

"We can't, we have injured with us." Wendy explained.

"And let's not forget that we're still in the Grand Magic Games." Mira reminded them. "This is a sponsored event by the King. If we take out their forces, we may be disqualified."

"I think that ship sailed when we took down their executioners." Lucy groaned.

Yukino looked down, guilty. "I wish I could've been more help." She said.

"None of this is your fault." Vanessa protested softly. "This has nothing to do with you. We came to rescue you because you didn't deserve this treatment by authorities. Don't put any of this onto yourself, okay?"

Yukino softly smiled and nodded.

Future Nic looked down at Future Lucy as she was still unconscious. Nic looked at his future self, wary of how he seemed mellow compared to Future Lucy, who was just grim and sad. There were so many questions that needed answers, but he knew better than to charge in with questions. Given what it took for Future Nic and Lucy to come to the past, there must have something that transpired that left them traumatized.

"Listen, guys." Future Nic said, surprising everyone, including Nic himself. "I can understand you're all concerned and wondering what brought us to such extremes. Please, just here us out…"

Future Lucy's eyes opened up slowly, getting everyone's attention. "Where…?" She began to falter before Future Nic managed to support her again, using his arms to sit her up.

"Hey Lucy?" Happy asked. "You feeling better?"

Future Lucy's eyes opened up again, still as sullen as can be. "Where are we?" She groaned.

"Relax, I led everyone to the dining hall. For now we're recovering." Future Nic explained softly. "You need help getting up?"

Future Lucy looked down again, meaning yes. Future Nic supported her left arm and hoisted her up until she finally managed to stand alone on her feet.

"Lucy, can you recall anything?" Nic asked.

Future Nic looked towards him. "I'll start her off, if you don't mind. She needs some time to recall." With a nod from the present day Nic, Future Nic nodded in understanding. "After we came back in time, our first task was to keep you guys away from the Rune Knights, but we weren't so worried on that part."

"What does that mean?" Happy asked.

"I think I know." Yukino said. "You have Nic and his Pokémon to take them all out, correct?"

Future Nic nodded. "As I recall, but the circumstances didn't change. This palace is still crawling with them." His eyes narrowed. "But we must press on with explaining."

"After we escape the Rune Knights, we all end up outside. We were guided to the mountains…" Future Lucy said, finally making herself clear. "We watched it all unfold, how our nightmares came to fruition."

"What do you mean 'it'?" Happy inquired.

"Nightmares?" Lily asked. "Is the future really that despicable?"

"What made you guys travel back in time anyway?" Vanessa asked. "Something must have happened, and your auras are telling me it's not a good thing.

Future Lucy began to shudder, beginning to break down again. "To…to change it." She answered.

Future Nic looked at Future Lucy as she grimaced at the bitter memory. Nic, however, was still wary of how his future self was so calm. Maybe to keep Future Lucy's morale up?

"What happened?" Natsu asked. "What was so awful, so despairing, that you had to escape back in time to change it?"

Future Lucy's head dropped, a dark aura being so potent that Vanessa was starting to grow goosebumps. Finally, the vicious truth was revealed.

"In the future…a swarm of 10,000 Dragons will attack the kingdom. The castle will fall, the city will burn…and countless lives will die."

A wave of still horror flushed over everyone. What they heard, they never expected to hear in a million years. Hell was gonna break loose, and Nic was just as mortally shocked as anybody else. His spine crawled with horror as the image of endless Dragons open fired on the kingdom, reducing all to ashes.

No one could hold down a lump. Lucy was caught with shrilled terror from her future self's prediction, something she could never believe.

"Dragons…10,000?!" Natsu shrieked.

"WE'RE GONNA DIE!" Happy shrieked.

Mira clutched her arm. "More than 10,000 Dragons?"

"But I thought excluding Acnologia, they were all extinct." Yukino said.

"You think…this has something to do with that Dragon grave?" Wendy asked.

"I was wondering that myself." Carla admitted.

"It's a strong possibility." Lily agreed.

Lucy turned towards Loke. "Do you think we can sense that many Dragons?"

Loke put a hand underneath his chin. "It's possible that we couldn't because they're laying low, waiting for the right time to strike."

Natsu miraculously had dozens of arrows in hand and a soldier's helmet. "Well no time like the present! We gotta start fighting back right now!"

Vanessa shook her head. "We're over our heads. That's a tall order."

Future Lucy's eyes widened as she heard her friends talking of her prediction. This struck her as bewilderment. "You guys…actually believe me?"

"You lying?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Of course not." Future Lucy said. "I would never lie to you; I couldn't. I'm just surprised is all."

Natsu looked towards her with what was a serious face. "You're one of us. We can never lie to each other, meaning we always have faith in your words."

Future Lucy's eyes softened as she softly smiled.

"You really need to put your act together future me. That's what friends are for." Lucy said with a grin.

Future Lucy snickered. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'm surprised that I'm lecturing myself."

Grins were lightening up the mallow mood, but Nic's grin faded when he got a realization to befall onto him. He looked towards Future Lucy, his face giving some worry.

"Lucy, you said we fled to the mountains." Nic said. "But in the end, what happened?"

Future Lucy jerked up at the question, all relief washing away. Everyone saw her frown return, more grim than ever. It was never a good sign.

"Wait…" Lucy said.

Yukino looked down. "It can't be…"

Happy looked like he was gonna cry. "Are we all really…gonna die?"

Future Lucy's head lowered once more. "Only a handful of Fairy Tail was the only ones who made it out. Nic and myself were the only ones who went through the gates…" Her eyelids shut as they misted up. "We left them all behind…to…"

Nic looked down, looking short of any good. "…I see." He couldn't imagine a life without his sister, or Erza. When his gaze was towards Future Nic, Nic saw that he had his head down, shadows covering the despair of having to leave his sister and Erza in the future to fend and perish. It was an unholy fate that left Future Nic to mourn in grief, his eyes hazy with having to deal with the scarring memory.

"We ended up here, July 4th." Future Lucy said.

"Hang on." Mira said. "Today is July 6th, that wasn't even three days ago."

"Is it possible that the Eclipse Gate can only make small jumps into the past?" Loke wondered.

"We're not sure. We knew it was meant to travel four centuries back to kill Zeref, but whether it was broken or not wasn't our concern. Nic and I ended up here in this time period, that's all."

Against the wall, Arcadios opened one of his eyes, feigning unconsciousness. _'Now it all makes sense. These two warned the Princess.' _He thought. _'But something's not right. Why would the Future Lucy lie to her friends?'_

"Once we take an underground route, we have to make it outside the city to rendezvous with Jellal." Future Lucy added.

"How is he involved?" Natsu questioned.

"I explained the situation as best as I can. I'm sure he has a plan of sorts." Future Lucy hoped.

"Why not have Nic come up with one?" Wendy asked.

Future Nic remained silent as he instead looked towards Future Lucy.

"To be honest, the gravity of this is one we can't pull off. We needed help." Future Lucy said. "I'm sorry."

Everyone frowned as they saw how desperate she was. Nic looked at both the Future Nic and Lucy, seeing one despair while the other grimaced in his own little world.

Arcadios was having his ears open to the conversation. _'Just as I thought.'_

_On one night, around a few days before the Grand Magic Games, in the dark hallways was where Arcadios was led by Princess Hisui._

"_I'm sorry, Princess, but did you say future?" Arcadios inquired._

_Hisui nodded. "Yes." She stopped, presenting herself and Arcadios to the large Eclipse Gate towering above. "But hear me out." She asked. "They foretold that there was another way to use the gate, it's known as Eclipse 2."_

"_Eclipse 2?"_

"_Yes. Over the past seven years, we've been building up Magic Power from the participants to manipulate it into energy for the Eclipse 2. As of now, we have enough Magic, enough to rival Etherion."_

_Arcadios's eyes widened. "You mean…Eclipse 2 has enough Magic Power to rival the sacred light of the Magic Council?! But a single Etherion blast can wipe out an entire nation." He recalled with shock._

"_We shall then use that power as the core of Eclipse 2…and wipe out all of those Dragons in one blow." Hisui showed solid resolute, and Arcadios felt that._

Arcadios thought of that as he kept his eyes set on the group before him. _'This doesn't make sense. I know I pondered about this before, but why would she go so far as to lie to her comrades? They have to be the ones who told the future to the Princess…right?'_

Future Lucy looked sadder than ever. "I'm so sorry you guys. I know we should've come to you further…but we didn't know what to do. Please, forgive us."

All had frowns still, but two managed to grin through the darkness. The mouths of Nic and Natsu showed those two grins.

"Lucy." Nic said. "You did what you could. There's nothing wrong with that."

"Huh?" Future Lucy wondered.

Natsu's grin was her attention now. "Buck up. Nic's right. Thanks to you, we know now what to expect." He knelt down to her, staring right into her eyes. He gently placed a hand on her head, and slowly leaned down. His eyes closed as she smiled wider than before.

Future Lucy's eyes widened when she felt the warmth of Natsu's forehead against her own. It was like a wave of a thousand suns purging the darkness.

"Thank you Lucy, you risked your life to warn us." He said. "We're gonna save the future, just you wait."

Future Lucy's eyes began to tears up from happiness, and everyone smiled happily at Natsu's declaration.

Nic's smile never faded. "We'll find a way, no matter what…" His eyes still looked towards Future Nic, who was smiling at Future Lucy being cheered up.

Through her entire speech, not once did Future Nic say a word…and that was something that left Nic on the brink of hidden dread.

* * *

Gajeel towered over Rogue as he was on his hands and knees, panting and huffing from bitter exhaustion. He was given a heavy beating from Gajeel, and thus he got what came to him.

"Man, my ears must be playing tricks on me." Gajeel taunted. "Cuz' I could've sworn you said I wasn't as strong as Natsu or Nic."

Rogue was huffing, unable to find his feet. To Gajeel's confusion, Rogue started to chuckle.

"Must have knocked a few of his screws loose." The Iron Dragon Slayer figured.

"No, that's not it…" Rogue kept his head down, ceasing his chuckling and frowned. "I always wondered why you joined Fairy Tail. I think I know now."

"Oh yeah? Let's hear it."

"You probably don't remember, and I don't blame you because it was such a long time ago." Rogue continued. "When I was a kid, I was no more than a snot-nosed punk, who always had the biggest dream of joining Phantom Lord."

Gajeel's eyes widened.

"As a kid, my biggest dream was to grow up and join that guild. Unfortunately, it never came to pass." His head drooped lower. "Phantom Lord was defeated, and disbanded after losing to Fairy Tail…but more importantly, I learned that the true cause of their downfall was by the defeat of Jose against Nic Pularis and his Greninja. He ruined my dreams; that's why I pursued vengeance."

'_So that's why this guy's been after Luminous.' _Gajeel figured.

"Then when it came to you, you chose to join Fairy Tail afterwards. I was completely heartbroken. You joined one of the most despicable guilds, the one that destroyed Phantom Lord and housed the ringleader of its downfall. I was completely lost, but deep down there had to be a reason why." Rogue finally managed to smile to the ground. "But I think I see now. You wanted friends." He realized as his fingers pressed against the cement blocks beneath. "Friendship means nothing in Sabertooth. All we were was our Master's soldiers, and if we were defeated, he'd make us pay. I don't know what being in a guild means because I have no friends; I don't know what I've been fighting for this whole time. Your guild's bonds is what gives you guys strengths, that's why we couldn't measure up. The only one who was trying to push us in that direction was Milady, and she's the strongest in our guild."

Gajeel stood there in silence over Rogue's speech. There was a time when he really was like Rogue, someone who pummeled his way through without thinking of others, but when he joined Fairy Tail and started interacting with others, he mellowed, and actually felt the cold in his heart turn into a warm sun.

He snickered. "Dumbass."

"What?" Rogue shot Gajeel a look.

"That's the biggest load of bull I've ever heard." Gajeel leaned in, towering over Rogue. He smirked, much to Rogue's confusion. "You got a friend, I can tell. That little frog."

"Fro thinks so too!" Frosch exclaimed.

Rogue got back to his feet, agitated. "Frosch is a cat!"

"If you want technically involved, he's an Exceed." Gajeel's grin didn't leave his face. "Right?"

Rogue stood and pondered over Gajeel's words. The more he thought, the more he managed to realize he was right. He did have a friend, and it was Frosch, who's always by his side, through thick and thin; through better or worse; through night and day. He smiled at long last. "Yeah…you're right, Frosch is my friend. Thanks for reminding me."

Gajeel nonchalantly smiled, making peace with Rogue.

"_Rogue."_

Rogue's eyes widened, hearing a voice that sounded much like his own. He looked behind, but no one was there.

"_Face forward." _The voice told. Rogue as told and looked at Gajeel. _"He is your enemy."_

"Who are you?! Where are you?!" Rogue demanded.

Gajeel looked confused. "Uh, you okay pal?"

"_Rogue, you must fulfill your destiny. You must and will kill Gajeel."_

"Who are you?!" Rogue demanded louder.

"_You fool. Look down."_

Rogue did as told again. The Magic he was feeling, it's what has made him shudder. This feeling, it was cold, and yet so close that he could almost touch it. His eyes shook as suspense made his eyes slowly falter and see his shadow, but his shadow was no ordinary shadow…it was darker, and not normal in any way. Rogue stared in deep distraught.

The shadow had an evil eye, and a demon-like smirk. _"I can give you power. We can crush him together, for he stands in our way. All must fall before us."_

Rogue was feeling his body and mind go numb. A darkness was flooding into his system, making him feel no control. He grunted and clutched his teeth as the pain flared from the foreign, more foul Magic Power. The pain could be seen clearly by Gajeel, who seemed a little unnerved.

"Hey man, you alright?" Gajeel asked.

Rogue could no longer gold on as the malicious shadow crawled into his body, springing up and entering his skin. Rogue let out a horrific scream as his mind was lost, and all went blank.

In the next second, Gajeel was slashed so hard and so fast that he never saw it coming. He slid along the ground, startling the audience.

"Gajeel!" Levy yelled.

Gajeel got to a knee and shot 'Rogue' a look. "Alright, what's the big idea."

Rogue was much different. His Magic was more potent than ever. His Magic was enhanced so much that he was in Dragon Force. Black markings were all over his body, and shadows sizzled off his body. A dark smirk was on his face, one full of hatred and evil. "This is the power we now wield. With it, we can crush anyone. Let us strike down Gajeel without further hesitation."

Gajeel's eyes were wary of the energy shift and speech pattern. "Who are you?"

"Who am I? I am a shadow." Rogue answered. "A shadow that controls destiny, and will reshape the future into my image."

"Now what kind f nonsense is tha-!" Gajeel was cut off when Rogue disappeared into shadows and reappeared a second afterwards, kicking Gajeel in the face and sending him back. Gajeel got his ground and was smirking. He was gonna get serious. "Okay pal, we'll do it your way."

"I thought they made amends? What happened?" Romeo asked.

"Come on, Gajeel!" Levy cheered.

Gajeel morphed his arm into a sword. "**Iron Dragon's Sword!**" The sword extended out at Rogue, but the tip never made contact as Rogue became shadows and coiled and traveled around the sword. His shadow form whipped around and engulfed Gajeel in a shadow-like whirlwind.

"**Shadow Dragon's Waxwing Flash!**" A torrent of shadows sent Gajeel flying. The Dragon Slayer screamed as the shadows hurled him up and into the ground behind Rogue.

"Gajeel!" Levy shouted in concern.

Frosch looked at the monitor, frightened. His tail was stiff with dread. "…Rogue…"

"First Master, what's going on?" Master Makarov asked.

Mavis looked at the monitor, feeling a great force within Rogue. "He's been possessed by someone, or something." She spectated some more as all saw Gajeel throw a kick, but Rogue disappeared in shadows and reappeared all over the lace, smashing Gajeel with a boot to the face or a slash from his shadow-cloaked hands. _'I sense an incredible evil from within.'_

Gajeel shook his head and looked around. "Where'd he go?"

"Look behind you."

"Huh-?!" Gajeel turned around to find his shadow slithering and shortening, revealing Rogue hiding inside and lunging out with a fast flurry of assaults.

"**Shadow Dragon's Slash!**" A flurry of bullet-fast punches socked Gajeel as he tried covering up, but the power was just too great and he shot backwards. Gajeel never found his feet on the ground as Rogue then reappeared behind and dealt a kick to his back, sending shock through him and tumbled into the ground.

The dust settled, and Gajeel slowly struggled. He grunted as he held his arm, facing Rogue.

"Rogue was right. You're nowhere near as strong as Natsu or Nic." Rogue said, his smirk widening. "Not that they can best me anyway."

* * *

Jellal's eyes widened as the sun was setting. The waters near the sea were swaying ominously with his thoughts of impending devastation. "You feel that?"

"That Magic Power." Ultear confirmed. "It's so powerful."

"Yeah, I can feel it from here." Meredy said with caution. "What do you think it is?"

Jellal looked out at the city, where the energy was confirmed. It was dark and erroneous, which made him think of Zeref. "Whatever it is, as long as the Future Lucy and Nic are with Nic's group, they should hold out." Even so, the concern he had was too high. Whatever the energy was, it was evil, and growing.

* * *

On the sides of the walls were huge statues with staves held out. The hallway was long, and everyone in Nic's group was trying to make it out. Trailing behind, Yukino was kept in the tail, before the two Nics that is. She seemed distressed.

"You okay?" Nic asked.

Yukino looked down as she ran. "Yeah, I'm fine…"

She looked over her shoulder, and Nic was there. Nic was looking at Yukino dead in the eye. He could tell when something was wrong, and knowing him, Yukino knew he wasn't going to have the matter slide if it was stressing her this much. The more he looked at her, the more she felt conceded.

"It's like everywhere I go there's misfortune. I feel like I'm nothing but a walking disaster." She admitted. "I don't deserve to be around anyone if all I ever bring is misery and anguish. Ever since I was little, people just seem sad. I'm sorry." She was gonna turn and part ways as it seemed, but when she tried, Future Nic was there.

The way he looked at Yukino was the same way Nic was looking at her. "Yukino, it's alright. You remember what Vanessa said before. You're not at fault; and even if it was, we'd never blame you."

"But-" Yukino was cut off by Nic.

"My future self is right. There can be good, there can be bad, but you can't expect us to play the blame game. We're not like that, and you know that. Everyone has a purpose, no matter how big or small. My purpose may be seen as grand, and whoever out there may see their purpose a greater priority, but however the consideration stands, you have a purpose, and it's your responsibility to see it as a gift."

Yukino stared at Nic and then Future Nic, both looking at her with the same soft look of confirmation, absolute with their words. Yukino's eyes mist as she ran, feeling her confidence back up again.

"Here's the exit!" Future Lucy shouted from up ahead.

They all followed her and finally made it out of the dark hall and finally into a fall fit for the palace, with large windows. Everyone turned the corner, but to their surprise, a large horde of Rune Knights stationed were running towards them with weapons.

"Rune Knights?!" Future Lucy shrieked. "I swear, I didn't know they were here guys!"

Future Nic didn't seem as overwhelmed as Future Lucy. "No matter, neither did I, but we have an advantage."

Natsu stepped ahead, cracking his knuckles. "Yeah, this will be a piece of cake. You ready to go, buddy?"

Loke adjusted his tie. "Hell yeah, let's say we rough em' up some."

"HRAH!" In unison, Natsu and Loke both jumped and brought down waves of light and fire, creating a large explosion that sent the whole wave of troops ahead of them flying back.

Lucy pulled out a key. "This is gonna be tough. There's a lot of numbers!"

Yukino pulled out a key of her own. "Yes, but I'm sure we're more than up for it."

Mira used her Take-Over, turning into Sitri. Her devilish smirk was as gruesome as can be. "I'm through with these clowns. If they want to keep us from our friends, they're in for a world of misery." In a flashed, she zipped through a multitude of men at once, knocking them all down.

"**Open: Gate of the Maiden – Virgo!**"

"**Open: Gate of the Fish – Pisces!**"

Two Magic seals were shown, and out came Virgo on the offensive. The troops were knocked down by Virgo as she punched surprisingly hard, adding momentum from her chains. Pisces erupted from their Magic seal, and they knocked guards down like bowling pins as they swerved around and scared a lot of them.

"Reinforcements, move in!" A guard yelled.

"For the Princess!" Another yelled.

From behind, a countless array of guards all rushed in. Wendy used her Magic and swiftly sent guards soaring, with help from Loke and Natsu adding to the fray and throwing guys into others and knocking them down like bowling pins. Lily added into the assist with his Battle Mode and slashed his huge Musica Sword, knocking down a large group in front. Mira was holding up by blasting darkness at a large group.

Future Lucy was back to back with Lucy, and the same with Nic. Future Nic and Nic both glowed and shifted into their Toxic Plate Form. They both stood at one side, and the other looked at another side.

"**Sludge Wave!**" They both yelled in unison. Both were cloaked in dark purple sludge, and without hesitation diverged and swamped the incoming men at once. Waves of dark purple flushed like waves, making men get hit by one another and incapacitated by the attacks.

Future Nic and Nic both jumped up, seeing the groups far away that weren't hit by Sludge Wave. They landed with silver light converging into their palms, expanding and filled with toxic energy. Two massive and heavy garbage bags were seen, and they were filled with venomous contents.

"**Gunk Shot!**" They hurled the Poison-Type moves in opposite directions, hurling them down the halls and unleashing powerful purple explosions. The explosions were so powerful that the hallway shook and the lighting flickered. The windows caught in the explosion even cracked some.

A guard stepped back from far away. "Wha-?! They're so powerful!"

"Hurry and get every guard in the sectors here! We need more power!"

"The only way to beat them is by numbers! Get em'!"

Nic narrowed his eyes. _'They want to use numbers. Overwhelming, but…' _He glowed, shifting into his Spooky Plate Form. "It won't suppress us."

Future Nic glowed and shifted into his Meadow Plate Form. "We have help that can lay waste."

"And they will never fall to numbers alone!" Both Nics declared.

As she watched Pisces go to work, Yukino realized something. She turned around and saw that someone was missing. "Wait…where's Arcadios?"

* * *

Gajeel was held by one hand and choked by Rogue. The shadows were burning up his neck, numbing his breathing. The audience watched in fright as Gajeel was completely tattered and worn out, his sleeves torn off and vulnerable.

Rogue chuckled maniacally. "To think I looked up to you. How pitiful."

Levy watched with tears in the corners of her eyes. "Stop it shadow, or he'll die!" She pleaded.

Running down a corridor, Frosch's little feet made haste as he escaped the tunnel to go and get Rogue. His large eyes were filled with wavy tears. "I gotta get Rogue back. He needs help."

Rogue dropped Gajeel to the ground, his body plopping like a sack of bricks. Shadows gathered from all around and pooled beneath Gajeel, slowly commencing to consume him. He watched with a smirk as Gajeel was vulnerable.

"Soon there'll be nothing left of you. This world shall be cleansed, and it'll all start with you sleeping in eternal darkness." He said.

However, his smirk changed into a frown when he saw Gajeel smirk.

"Heh." Gajeel snickered. "If Salamander can do it, I can too!" To Rogue's bitter shock, he watched as Gajeel took in a heaping breath, and the shadows began to dive into his mouth and body. The Magic Power was piling on, and everyone watched with astonishment as Gajeel was eating the shadows. Gajeel's body was cloaked in shadows. He began to stand up while chuckling.

Rogue stepped back in slight horror. "What have you done?!"

Levy's hands were covering her mouth. "He…ate the shadows?"

"So, this is what Dragon Slayer lungs can withstand." Makarov observed.

Gajeel's body was getting darker as he stood up, hazardous shadows fuming around him. "I don't who you think you are, but you better leave Rogue."

"And why would I do that?" Rogue inquired.

"Tch, you think you'd learn more about the guy before you go and possess him. His name wasn't Rogue, it was Ryos, a sibling student."

Rogue's mouth opened at the mentioning of his old name.

"You can say you looked up to me, but you know as well as I do that was a flat-out lie." Levy and everyone watched with more shock as Gajeel's iron skin came a dark silver, and his eyes lost pupils. "Be honest without yourself. You didn't look up to me, you were afraid of me. I'm not that kind of guy these days, but perhaps I need to remind you…" His smirk was catching Rogue with overwhelming dread. "Just how terrifying I am!"

"No way…" Rogue said. _'He ate the shadows, becoming…an Iron Shadow Dragon!'_

"I never knew this was the power of Gajeel." Makarov admitted.

Mavis looked on with the same expression of calm surprise. "I have to admit, even I never saw this coming."

"I never would have believed it if I had never seen it." Freed commented.

"HAHA! Gajeel is like a monster!" Bickslow stated with excitement.

"Although he did have that kind of quality." Evergreen grinned.

"Now this was a real turnaround! Gajeel's become an Iron Shadow Dragon!" Lola commentated. "Mr. Yajima, what are your thoughts?"

"Dragon Slayers are beyond predictable. This fight can go either way." He said.

"Still, Rogue is a Third Generation, against Gajeel, who is a First Generation Dragon Slayer, pumpkins!" Mato countered.

Rogue regained arrogance and grinned. "Impressive, but no match for me."

Gajeel was still for a moment before he lunged at Rogue. Rogue swiped at Gajeel, but was shocked when Gajeel disappeared into thin shadows.

"He vanished?" Evergreen figured.

"No, he became a shadow." Freed corrected.

Rogue looked around to locate Gajeel. "You're a copycat, using my Magic against me!" In the corner of his eyes, he saw a long shadow stretch and crawl. "There-!" He turned around with shadows in his hands, but was left baffled when Gajeel didn't appear. "What?!"

Gajeel's shadow form was upside down and behind Rogue. He fired a column of dark iron that slugged Rogue in the back, causing shock to flow through him. Rogue stumbled forward and felt a change of tactics. He became a shadow and slid along the ground. Gajeel sneered as he followed after him, turning into shadows again and racing along the path to catch up.

"This is a fight os shadows?!" Bickslow exclaimed.

"I can't see." Evergreen huffed.

Everyone watched in shock as the lacrima-vision showed the two shadows clash, bouncing off the other and still trailing along the ground. Even the spectators were at a loss for what to say or what to make of such a fight. They could only watch as the shadows trailed, with one being faster than the other.

The shadows raced along the rooftop, keeping up with one another. Suddenly an iron arm reached out of one shadow and grabbed hold of the other shadow, slowly revealing Rogue being dragged out of his shadow.

'_He pulled me out of the shadows?!' _Rogue thought in disbelief.

Gajeel's upper body came out of the shadows and slugged Rogue with a bone-cracking left hook. Rogue was falling back when Gajeel didn't let up and clenched a right fist and slugged him so hard that the roof gave in. The rupture was so massive that dust could be seen from the rooftops. The roof blasted open and debris went wild. Rogue fell with the debris, but as he hit the ground, he became a shadow and maneuvered safely away and down the path,

Gajeel landed and his body became a shadow again. He zipped right after Rogue, moving far faster than him and grabbing his shadow's head. He pulled Rogue out once more, leaving Rogue startled and unable to comprehend as Gajeel had his head in his clutches.

'_Gajeel, he's more powerful than I imagined!'_

"Get lost!" Gajeel threw Rogue right through the ceiling, leaving him suspended for him to attack. Gajeel's cheeks puffed. "**Iron Shadow Dragon's Roar!**" Gajeel opened his mouth, unleashing a blistering beam that was beyond optimal. The attack soared into the sky like a large cannon that could be seen from miles away. Rogue's scream of pain were unheard through the roar as the shock was louder than thunder.

The audience heard the soundwaves raged all throughout Crocus, and the commentators were at a loss for words. Rogue fell straight down with the small gravel, falling onto his back, defeated. Gajeel's Iron Shadow Dragon Mode faded, turning his skin and eyes to normal. He looked back, huffing.

Levy's eyes teared up from amazement at how Gajeel pulled it off.

"T-that's it! That's the match!" Lola yelled, with the audience cheering. "Winner! Gajeel!"

"R-Rogue lost, pumpkin!" Mato shouted in disbelief.

Yajima crossed his arms and smiled. "That's was very impressive to say the least."

Gajeel stared at Rogue's unconscious form. He heard a low chuckle that echoed, which made him grow curious. "Huh?"

"So this is the power of Rogue as of now." The shadow said. "Expectations are well noted." The shadow escaped Rogue, and along with it the maniacal laughter. Gajeel watched the shadow creep away from Rogue and up a column, away from the scene.

His eyes narrowed as the shadow escaped. "The heck was that?"

"Please, no more!"

Gajeel looked down, seeing Frosch standing to protect Rogue.

"No more! Don't kill Rogue!" He pleaded with teary eyes.

Gajeel stared at Rogue's buddy, seeing the desperation in his eyes. With a low grunt, Gajeel got to a knee. "Relax, the fight's over, and that ain't my style."

Frosch eased as Gajeel backed down.

"Frosch." Rogue called weakly.

Frosch turned and ran up to Rogue. "Rogue!" He cried. "I was so scared!" He got to his knees and sobbed as Rogue smiled and pet Frosch's head.

"It's okay. I'm fine." Rogue assured.

"Hey." Gajeel called out.

Rogue looked to see Gajeel roughed up a little. He immediately winced and laid back down. "Wait…what happened? Why am I in pain?" His eyes looked to the open ceiling, his thoughts hazy. "Did I…lose?"

Gajeel looked at the confused Rogue. _'He doesn't remember?'_ He looked down at the sunset, seeing the sun go down. _'That shadow, who was that?'_

"That battle is one people will be talking about. That's a given." Mato said.

"A battle for the history books, that's for sure." Yajima said.

"Yes." Makarov commented. "We're on a winning streak now. We're at 52 points."

Mavis looked at the screen, recalling the image of that shadow leaving. _That shadow. Such an incredibly evil power. Something's set in motion here, but what?'_

* * *

**Here's the next chapter. I didn't leave too big of a cliffhanger, but the action and suspense I put into this chapter was worth it. I will finish up the Grand Magic Games next chapter, and many other things yet to happen. It's after the Grand Magic Games that enormous things will happen.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys loved the battles, escalating climax, and the foreshadowing.**

* * *

**Next Time: War**


	80. War

Chapter 80 – War

**Okay, so I admit that the recent chapters have been boring, and that's supposedly because I've been following the canon a majority of the way. However, after the Grand Magic Games end, that's when things get serious. After this chapter, mayhem shall break loose, and you'll see what I mean soon enough. Thanks for following me for 80 chapters, so here it goes!**

**To Recap:**

Erza and Kagura are forced to battle to get to Minerva, in which the two realized they knew the other from their childhood, and that Kagura was Simon's little sister. Erza manages to defeat her at the cost of a broken leg, and is mortally shocked when Kagura was stabbed by Minerva and sets Millianna free, but the feline was defeated and brutally tortured by the possessed Minerva, sending Erza into a rage. Gray is met up with Sophie as they team up to take on Lyon and Chelia. Orga and Laxus briefly confront until Jura intervenes. Gajeel and Rogue fight, and Rogue gets possessed by a 'shadow', backing Gajeel into a corner until he eats the shadows and becomes an Iron Shadow Dragon, overwhelming Rogue and forcing 'shadow' to retreat. Elsewhere, the Future Nic and Lucy take the others to another part of the castle, where Future Lucy tells the terrible truth of the future of 10,000 Dragons and how only a handful survived; however, only Future Lucy spoke of the tale, leaving Future Nic's side a mystery. They make it to a hall, where Arcadios was found missing and they had to fend against the Rune Knights.

* * *

**Chapter 80 – War**

"**Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!**"

"**Regulus Impact!**"

In consecutive fashion, Natsu and Loke blasted fire and light at their foes, falling and sending Rune Knights soaring and incapacitated. Still, hundreds, perhaps countless, reinforcements comprised of Rune Knights kept pushing forward. It was a wager of Magic against numbers, and with every spell used, Mira, Wendy, Vanessa, and everyone else were getting depleted.

Vanessa blasted a group with teal aura, incapacitating them. After firing, she felt ware in her body due to Magic loss. _'I used too much against Cosmos.' _She grunted. Men were starting to run up to her again, and she snapped back upfront to move her arm in an arc, sending another wave of teal aura that knocked them down like bowling pins.

'_I gotta get help…'_ Vanessa pulled out a Poke Ball and tossed it up into the air, much to everyone's confusion. "Magnezone, come out!"

The Poke Ball opened up, revealing Vanessa's Magnezone. The large magnet-like creature startled the knights, but Magnezone paid no heed to their shock.

"Vanessa, I am ready." Magnezone assured.

Vanessa nodded in understanding and extended her arm forward. "**Mirror Shot!**"

Magnezone obeyed dutifully and his body emanated a rippling light blue aura that concentrated into an orb in front of his body. He fired the Steel-Type move into a bunch of knights at once, knocking them all away.

"What is that thing?!" One knight stammered.

"I don't know, but keep charging! For our kingdom!" Another knight shouted, leading others in tow.

Vanessa swiped her arm again. "Magnezone! **Spark!**"

Magnezone was floating right in front of her, hearing his trainer's call. "Don't worry. I'll hold them off until you get your energy back!" His body sparked and crackled until he was within a field of electricity. "Have at me!" He charged right in, his electrified form electrocuting knights as he passed on through.

Wendy was in her own battle. "**Sky Dragon's Roar!**" She blasted knights and sent them in a massive whirlwind, blasting them far off elsewhere.

Pisces and Virgo were holding up the lines for the knights well with power and size on their side. Lily provided cover for the Future Lucy and present Lucy, and elsewhere, two certain individuals were causing a crazy maelstrom.

Future Nic, pivoted, unleashing a cyclone of leaves and green wind that was his Leaf Tornado that expanded outwards, causing the nearby windows to shatter open once more. Knights incapacitated fell onto more knights incoming, and as the reinforcements ran up to attack from behind, Future Nic turned around towards them with a glare that caught them stiff and immobile.

"**Leaf Blade!**" Future Nic's forearms sharpened and became green blades. In one fell swipe, he cut down the massive row in front.

"**Shadow Claw!**" Nic speed like a bullet, his feet leaving and hitting the ground like a top-speed Heliolisk. He jumped and spun in midair, kicking down knights in the face and slashing his black aura claws for a greater range. Simultaneously, the knights fell like toppling buildings as both Nics sped further with their immense speed, blindsiding many soldiers and using their reflexes to dodge, evade, and jump onto weapons and knee strike, upside-sown spiral kick, and uppercut foes. Through their advances, not a single fault was in their execution.

Both Nics were seen back to back as Rune Knights were backing up from them. Thye never anticipated such raw power and skill. "This is starting to get tedious." Nic said. "Let's knock them down with full force."

Future Nic pulled out his Poke Balls. "I couldn't agree more. Time isn't on our side."

"What?"

"…" Future Nic kept his eyes on the enemy. "I'll explain later. Let's handle these guys as a priority!"

Though skeptical, Nic kept a mental note to be wary. He knew this army they were against has massive numbers, and so they had to deal with them. Understanding, Nic pulled out his Poke Balls.

All the Rune Knights went blind when a flash of light came when the Poke Balls were thrown. The next second, they were all suddenly blown away, crashing into walls and rattling the entire hall, making ripples through the earth.

"We haven't got time to deal with you!" Nic declared, his Pokémon all out.

"Because we've got a future to reshape!" Future Nic added on, his Pokémon out.

Together, their intimidating presence of fourteen left everyone to wait for the pain to come.

* * *

Having left the group, Arcadios was in an undisclosed area. His tattered clothes were no longer adorned, and instead a wardrobe was comprised of a white armored helmet with yellow hair. He put the helmet on last, over his white armor. His gauntlets were secured and his yellow cape had an intricate insignia. If you saw him before yourself, you'd see a battle-ready white knight, who had a menacing demeanor set on his foes.

The large doors to the chamber opened, and Arcadios stepped out. The white armor clanged with each step taken, echoing down the hall of knights stationed.

They looked to where Arcadios was walking down the hallway, stoic and gave off a demeanor that left them spooked.

"Is that…?" One knight started.

"Kernel Arcadios?! But I thought…?" Another knight trailed off.

Another knight recognized the armor as Arcadios was advancing. "Wait, that armor. Is that the battle armor? The White Lily Armor?!"

Arcadios stopped in front of a knight, staring him in the face. "Where is the Princess?" He demanded, slowly as his eyes moved around and looked at the intimidated knights beneath him. "I'm ordering you."

"S-sir! She's on the top floor!" A knight spatted.

Arcadios walked pass them all, leaving them bewildered and confused. He walked down the hall, his mind in heavy contemplation. _'I know for a fact something isn't right.'_ His mind flashed back to Hisui's explanation of Eclipse 2, and then skipped to the conversation Future Lucy had with her group. _'Those tears shed by that girl, they were no way belonging to a liar. If anyone is not being honest, it's the Princess.'_

* * *

Laxus and Orga stared at Jura as they felt the Magic Power resonating at a very brutal level, enough to show Orga looking uneasy, as to where Laxus was looking calmer than the God Slayer, but the Thunder God Tribe could see how nervous he was.

"The Thunder God Tribe's got your back, Laxus! We have 100 percent faith in you!" Freed yelled.

"I've never seen him so on edge before." Evergreen noted. "The only other time, was Nic against Lysandre."

Master Obaba had a smirk as her arms went in circles. "Hehehe, Lamia Scale won the second Jura was picked to participate in the games."

"Rawr! This ain't fair!" Toby barked, having been knocked out near the beginning.

"Quiet! I'll spin you!" Obaba barked. Spinning her finger in circles, Toby's eyes got dizzy spirals and spun so fast that his whole world didn't even have any direction to it.

Jura stood between Laxus and Orga, grinning. His presence was still overwhelming, and yet Orga got a sneer on his face. "Alright, I'm up for this." He gestured for Jura to come at him. He then joined his hands, where black lightning was surging. Thunder and crackling could be heard loud and clear. "I've been wanting someone like you to join the party."

"Oh?" Jura rhetorically inquired.

"Let's see if you have the stones to back up your title. I have to wonder if you got the stones to stop a God Slayer? Are you up for it?" Orga challenged. "You can walk away right now."

Jura seemed quite calm. "Very well. I accept."

"Looks like we got ourselves a battle pitting Jura against Orga folks! Who will be proven stronger; God Slayer, or Wizard Saint?" Lola riled up the crowd further.

"Here it goes!" Orga yelled. "**Lightning God's Charged Particle Cannon!**" He exerted what was a massive voltage of pure black lightning. The attack raced on ahead, and in half a second, everything went to being ripped to sunder.

Laxus gawked at the speed of what happened. Thunder boomed throughout the vicinity and the black lightning began dissipating, but the attack vaporized only the top of a building, leaving a hole right through it. As to where the reason being was Jura face palmed Orga into the ground, making the earth quake with vibrant force. Everyone had no pupils as they were at a loss at how fast and mighty that one blow was.

The dust settled, and all were feeling dread as they saw Jura's monstrous stance, palm out as Orga was in a crater, unconscious. "I remember you now." Jura said. "You fought on the first day…that ended with one blow as well."

The audience soon broke into a cheer for Jura getting Lamia Scale to 50 points. "And now we all see why Jura is a Wizard Saint!" Lola said.

Makarov's mouth gaped open, startled. "He's screwed!"

"Master!" Evergreen chided. "You've gotta have faith in Laxus!"

"Laxus! You can win!" Freed cheered.

"C'mon buddy!" Bickslow shouted. At this point, any and all cheering could be useful, as the lacrima-vision zoomed in on Laxus as his face contorted with uneasiness as Jura's attention went towards him.

"And then there's you." Jura told him.

Obaba couldn't help but snicker in excitement. "Makarov, you fool, this is over for you. While you were gone over these seven years, Jura's Wizard Saint ranking became the 5th. He is now the _human _Wizard Saint." She paused. "I dare say only but a few words of those above him, those that are labeled the 'Ishgar 4'. They can't be human because of their almighty god-like powers. Lamia Scale's won."

"Jura Neekis, the one that's been giving me the most anxiety." Mavis said. "All we can do for Laxus…is pray for the best."

Jura took a few paces forward. "I was hoping to spar with Makarov's grandson…"

"Okay, you can put the brakes on right there." Laxus rebuffed. "You can forget about being called a Wizard Saint, and who I'm related to. As far as you and I are concerned, we're just two men." Laxus's massive coat dropped to the ground, lightning crackling around him. His gaze intensified.

Jura returned the gaze. "So be it!"

A long, harsh breeze went past the two. A vibrant and heavy anticipation went into the atmosphere until some leaves shifted in between the two. Laxus was engulfed in lightning and he sped like a rocket into Jura, thunder booming as he moved swiftly. His roar bellowed like a dragon's ore thunder roaring.

However, Jura silenced the raging beast by a chop to the back. Laxus felt an intense shock drive him into the pavement beneath, shattering it and leaving a crater his size. A gag was heard from him, and Jura kept a smirk.

Everyone watching was left without words. The Thunder God Tribe hung their mouths open, Makarov despaired, Obaba sneered, and Lola and the other commentators gawk in disbelief.

"L-Laxus's lightning was struck." Lola said, still traumatized by the shocking display.

"I don't know what to say." Yajima mumbled.

Mato's shock was equal. "He stole his thunder."

Jura looked down at the crater as Laxus's head was facing dirt. He seemed unfazed as Laxus seemed unmoved. "In this world, someone's stronger than you."

"…yeah."

Jura's eyes widened when Laxus began to move. He was slumped forward and yet his gaze was menacingly up at Jura.

"But what you've seemed to have forgotten…is to pay attention…TO WHO'S AT YOUR FEET!"

Laxus cloaked in lightning and unleashed a devastating uppercut to Jura's chin, sending him flying backwards. The audience awed while Obaba was gaping her mouth in disbelief. She never expected this, and the Thunder God Tribe was overjoyed with excitement, especially Freed.

Jura smirked with adrenaline as he skidded back to a halt. He flung his huge black coat into the winds, finally getting serious. Jura got his footing back and made hand signs with his fingers. Underneath Laxus, a large, flat rock shot up from beneath, sending him into the air.

Laxus steadied himself and got a clear shot at Jura. A massive abundance of lightning gathered in his right hand and made a halberd. "**Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd!**" He fired the halberd at Jura.

"**Talus!**" Jura summoned rock pillars from the earth that shielded him. The rock pillars blocked the lightning halberd, generating a harsh explosion of crumbling rock and lightning that roared like thunder.

Through the dust that was like a massive cloud, Laxus cloaked in lightning and he zoomed right through. He dealt a blow to Jura's forearm, which was so hard that Laxus's attack bounced off. Jura put two fingers up and he summoned rock pillars again, making Laxus weary as he was forced to back away from one appearing beneath; however, he made use of the rock pillars and began bouncing off of them and went after Jura again with a draconic roar of thunder.

Jura let out a harsh cry as he viciously dealt Laxus's head with a palm strike. Laxus was seen on his feet still and dealt a massive fist to Jura's face, in which Jura smirked at. The Wizard Saint blocked Laxus's arm swing and kick in consecutive manner, and then dealt a massive punch to Laxus's cheek, sending him into the ground again.

The audience was thrilled beyond words as they saw Laxus go head to head with Jura.

"No way! Laxus is on par with one of the Ten Wizard Saints?!"

"Well he did take out all of Raven Tail in front of our eyes with one blow each."

Makarov's eyes were wide as he watched the screen overhead, watching his grandson get back up. Seeing him against someone perhaps his level was what was so staggering. "Laxus…"

"Are you surprised? He is your grandson after all." Mavis smiled. "All of your children are gifted and talented in their own ways. They've grown so much."

Laxus brought an arm back with a savage roar. The arm cloaked in lightning and he punched the ground. A shockwave mixed with lightning raged in the cracks, blinding Jura with raging thunder booming his ears and static flying. Even so, there was a massively happy look as he slid back.

"I'm so excited!" He admitted. "I haven't felt this alive in years!"

Laxus's lightning seemed exhausted as small static was around his body. He huffed and panted. "The rumors are true, go are a monster. Geez." He caught his breath, and his eyes closed. _'Come on, think. What would Natsu say, or what would Nic do…?' _

The inspiration came and Laxus got a smirk on his face. Lightning crackled in his left fist as he looked at Jura. "I'm fired up."

"Indeed. May the better man be left standing when this is all over!" Jura yelled.

* * *

In another part nearby, another exhilarating battle was unfolding. The dust brewed and shifted, revealing Lyon and Gray in stances against the other. Both seemed to have a few scratched on their bodies, but that didn't deter them from beating the other and showing who was at the top in their rivalry.

"Try this, Gray!" Lyon fired a lot of eagles make of ice that soared after Gray. As his attack was sailing after Gray, a sudden array of Pyro Saucers spun in and sliced into the eagles, leaving nothing but sparkles in front of a grinning Gray.

"Nice save, Sophie." Gray thanked.

Sophie nodded nearby, where she turned back towards Chelia as she lashed her arms at her. Sophie made a chain of memories that surrounded her. "**Memory-Make: Jagged Barrier!**" A huge slab of thick rock arose in front with tons of sharp ice spikes. The large and wide barrier shielded Sophie from the strong winds and deflected them elsewhere. When the barrier was lifted, Sophie has seen with a straight glare at Chelia. "Your God Slayer Magic's powerful, but I memorized it."

Chelia smirked. "So it would seem, but I'm winning this to get Lyon's heart!"

Sophie raised a brow. "What?"

In the stands, Juvia was using every nerve to refrain from banging her head against the balcony, with help of Cana and Levy spotting her. "My darling and I should be as one! Why must Sophie be robbing my love away from me?! Gray, you win this! Because our love shall give you strength, and not by that blonde right there!"

"Uh…" Cana and the others despondently stared at Juvia's love-crazy antics, and only resorted to diverting their attention back towards the battle.

Lyon glared at Gray. "Now Gray, for my live, I shall take you down right here!" He put his arms up overhead and a large, spiraling serpent arched overhead. "**Ice-Make: Water Serpent!**" His attack was successful as it struck Gray, sending him sliding back with ice all over his body from the serpent attack.

"Gray!" Sophie made a chain of memories behind Gray. "**Memory-Make: Jagged Barrier!**" Sophie, once again, made a large, towering dark stone wall of ice spikes. Gray looked behind as he slid back and snickered. He jumped and landed atop of a spike, thus jumping from spike to spike all the way up to the top.

"Great save, Sophie! Now I get back at him!" Gray jumped at the pinnacle, putting his hands together. "**Ice-Make: Ice Cannon!**" Gray made a hand-held cannon made of ice and aimed at Lyon. The cannon fired a blast of ice that went right at him, but he fell short a hit when black whirlwinds from Chelia erupted, intercepting and breaking Gray's attack.

"Well done, Chelia." Lyon praised.

"Lyon, get your head in the game!" Chelia barked. "There's more people here too, like Sophie! Why don't we just take them out together?" When she said 'together', she got a small blush, but Lyon ignored it.

"Hurting girls is not a wise thing, Chelia. I find it barbaric for a gentleman as myself to harm girls."

"C'mon Lyon, stop being stubborn and get our points! We can just go all-out and be done in no time; and you get hurt, I can heal you!"

Sophie looked distressed. "I remember her Healing Magic."

"Great." Gray had immense sarcasm. "Just our luck."

Lyon snickered. "It would seem my memory is a better advantage I have over you, another sign that I shall win over Juvia's heart."

"Lyon, stop showing off and take them out already! We gotta get more points like right now!" Chelia barked.

"I'm not showing off, they're facts! And I thought I told ya I got Gray while you take out Sophie!" Lyon argued.

Sophie blinked and was a little startled by their poor coordination. She looked towards Gray, who had a smirk on his face. Seeing his smirk, and then looking back ahead, the blonde smirked as well, which glistened on her pink lipstick.

"I think we just found their flaw." Gray said. "And it's gonna be their downfall."

Sophie nodded as Lyon and Chelia kept bickering. "There's a reason why Fairy Tail always triumphs; we have an understanding of another, which is what Lyon and Chelia lack. Gray?"

"Yeah, we're ending this, now." He held his palm out to Sophie. "With your memories and my ice, we're not gonna lose this, because we've endured the pain of a thousand burdens already. Let's go!"

"Right with ya!" Sophie's palm met Gray, their fingers connected. The other could feel their Magic Power converging with their palms shining a small chain of memories around a shining light blue light.

Juvia had a dark aura as a chunk of the balcony was crushed by her grip. "Love rival! Must eliminate!"

Chunks of ice and chains of memories flourished all over, getting Lyon and Chelia's attention. They felt and immense Magic Power and saw Sophie and Gray's palm separate. In between the two was a concentrated light blue and ring of memories.

"Bastard!" Lyon exclaimed. "You take advantage of us?! Be that way, we're no longer holding back!" He turned towards Chelia. "Chelia, get ready…"

However, Chelia was in a daze. She was distracted by the beauty of the attacks combining. "So pretty…"

Lyon shook her horrendously. "Snap out of it and heal me!"

"**Ice-Make: Ice Geyser!**"

"**Memoir Hysteria!**"

By the time Chelia snapped out of her trance, she was at a loss for words as Lyon looked behind and gasped as a raging cyclone of memory chains that were light blue by the ice spiraling around as well went after them. The raging cold and memorable cyclone made Lyon and Chelia scream as they had nothing to defend with and were sent flying off far over the city.

"This is all your fault!" Lyon yelled.

"Sorry!" Chelia apologized before the two became separate glints in the sky.

The attack left golden and light blue sparkles raining down as Sophie grinned in satisfaction, as did Gray as they showed Lamia Scale who was the boss. The score went from 52 to 54, putting Fairy Tail behind Sabertooth by 1.

"That's 2 points for teamwork." Gray commented.

"And for the guild…" Sophie looked despondent as she sweat dropped. "Although…I think this false implication is gonna make Juvia drown my hide." She grimaced.

Gray blinked. "What are you talking about?"

Sophie rolled her eyes. "Of course, why did I bother?" Her mumblings left Gray even more confused. Unaware that in the stands, Juvia was sparkling with determination and a fire in her eyes.

"My love rival may have won a point today, but no matter what, I won't give up! The underdog always gets the prize! My love, I shall make you open your arms for me yet!" Juvia declared uproariously, much to her guild mates' confusion.

"Oh geez." Lisanna groaned.

"Well that's our Juvia." Cana's thoughts, as well as everyone else, cascaded their attention towards another lacrima monitor, revealing another part of the city where Laxus was still in a clash of titans against Jura.

Mavis smiled. "Fairy Tail has a new era upon the horizon. An era where hardships are what keeps us persevering through the dark days. They'll shine on, keeping our hopes and dreams alive."

Laxus's arm roared with compressed lightning. Thunder boomed so loud the ground quaked. "**Dragon Slayer Secret Art – Roaring Thunder!**"

Laxus punched forward with all of his might, landing a devastating blow of lightning that discharged at point-blank range. Jura was electrocuted and his mouth was gaping widely as he was pushed away. The Wizard Saint slowly fell back from the devastating Dragon Slayer move, leaving Laxus barely breathing as static depreciated over his arm.

Jura smiled. _'I lost.' _He landed on his side with a thud, defeated.

The Thunder God Tribe shouted loudly with heavy excitement, especially Freed. The audience screamed with shock at the top of their lungs as they could never block out what was just history being made. Makarov's eyes were filled with shock and happiness as he saw his grandson overcome a Wizard Saint.

"After Gray and Sophie's finish with Lyon and Chelia, things just got nuts!" Lola screamed. "The Wizard Saint, Jura Neekis…HAS FALLEN TO LAXUS! THE WIZARD SAINT LOST! THE WIZARD SAINT WAS DEFEATED!" His tone was shrilling adrenaline, and the points got to 59 for Fairy Tail.

Obaba was devoid of any happiness. "W-we lost?! Even with Jura?!" Her body was shivering with hyper energy. "No…NO! I'M GONNA SPIN!" She spun so fast and screamed with disbelief as her team and guild was out of the competition, much to everyone's horror.

"Master, calm down! You're gonna spin your head off!" Sherry reasoned.

"That just leaves Sting and Minerva against all of Fairy Tail." Mato said. "Will Sabertooth make their comeback with their last two members still out there?"

"Although nobody saw Sting in hours." Yajima commented.

Elsewhere in an alley, Sting was sitting alone, waiting it all out. After taking down Bacchus, getting 5 easy points for Sabertooth, he fled off and remained hiding for the remainder until the last few competitors were tired. That was his plan. _'Lady Bellona, you fight real dirty.' _Sting thought in heavy scorn, his eyes to the cement. _'But I'm gonna get Milady and Lector back.'_

* * *

"You all want a beat down that bad?! Come on!" Natsu set is fists ablaze and swatted down on foe after another. He punched left and right, not letting up after each turn and pivoted.

Wendy panted as she used up a lot of Magic. She looked over towards Lucy and Yukino, who were both panting as their Spirits disappeared back to their world. "Hey, are you two okay?"

Lucy looked at Wendy, though very fatigued. "Yeah, we're fine."

"We used up so much Magic Power today. It's hard to tell if we have enough to last much longer." Yukino warned.

Future Lucy looked on from safety as Lily swiped his sword in front, knocking down a row of knights. He adjusted his stance and grunted. "There's so many!"

"We can't give up!" Mira insisted. "Everybody is counting on us to…to…" She trailed off when shouting was heard down the hall, and knights were either heading in that direction or running away, scared. The melee was a sudden shift in dynamics as the knights were ignoring them, dealing with what was a massive threat down the hall.

Vanessa looked in the direction where the ceiling was cracking and knights were mowed down like bowling pins. "Is that…?"

A vicious shockwave started to come after them, and it was hot. Magnezone hurried and got to Vanessa's side, and everyone else saw the shockwave rage and cinder statues and burst open windows. They realized the attack was but a brutal Heat Wave.

"Everyone down!" Vanessa shouted. "**Aura Guard!**" She swiped an arm up and over, making a dome of translucent teal that shielded everyone so as to avoid the melting attack. The Heat Wave passed on by, leaving the walls cindering and everyone unconscious from the attack.

The dome was lifted, but the air was still extremely hot, almost burning to the touch.

Loke adjusted his tie. "Well I say that was something."

Lucy smiled. "That's gotta be Nic!"

On the other side of the hall, all of the forces were gathered to take down the biggest threat – two Nics and twelve Pokémon. They all ran up to attack with weapons set, but tail whacks and backwings from two Charizard knocked so many away. The soldiers were completely helpless as rows were plowed down by a double Staraptor Aerial Ace. The birds were so fast that the soldiers had no time to blink before they lost consciousness the next second. Then came the stealthy duo of Kecleon. The camouflaged pair used Slash, becoming white glints that past countless other soldiers, even using their Thief move to pound soldiers and turn their weapons on the others in the blink of an eye. Soldiers elsewhere were smacked down after being stunned by a double Arbok Glare, and earning tail smacks that sent them flying with broken bones. They both hissed violently and snobbishly at the soldiers and caused them to back away before being back-hooded by the Arbok duo. The Greninja duo were almost as invisible as Kecleon, punching and upside down spiral kicking down soldiers. Their double Water Shuriken showered and split their weaponry and shields in two. No one was safe when Scald was unleashed. Then came the duo of Garchomp. Roars bellowed violently, causing many to fall down just from hearing them. In a flash, the duo was ripping and tearing into armor and weapons with Dual Chop, fins out and running at Mach speed, making blades of wind knock down many as they slashed and left more than a few gashes on the heavy numbers they've fell.

All the Pokémon were soon seen with backs to the other, as were the two Nics as they glowed and shifted back into themselves. All around them, hurt or not, were the Rune Knights that were stationed inside of Crocus…and had all fallen.

Both Garchomp roared violently, their bellowing reaching down the halls and making ripples that sent fallen men flying off again. Their bellowing was followed with how they had all defeated what looked like nearly a thousand at least, and they didn't even had so much as a few scratches to prove.

"That was fun." Garchomp said.

"Would've been better if there were double that amount." Future Garchomp insisted.

"That thrill ride was a blast." Future Charizard said.

"Thesssse punksssss got another thing coming if we can be taken down that eassssily by numersssss." Arbok sneered. "We crush numberssss."

"I a manner of speaking." Staraptor pointed out.

Future Nic looked away at something. "There's just something else we need to take care of."

Nic looked in the same direction. "And what might that be?"

Nic's Pokémon and Future Nic's Pokémon all looked out into the hallway ahead of them, their eyes narrowed and they either growled or snarled at what was coming down the hall. They saw the silhouettes unfold as they all were battered, but up and ready to fight.

"Hey now, looks like we got ourselves ruffians." The hulking fellow said.

"So ugly…" Another said.

"They won't last against all of us put together." Another female voice said.

"We shall see, because these fishes are like sharks!" Another said.

The one leading them was out of the shadows, revealing himself to be Kama, with the Garou Knights in tow, all smirking. "No matter the odds, they shall never escape justice." He wielded his scythes with the palms in contact. "We shall now collect your heads, all of you."

* * *

Erza requipped a fresh sword and struggled to stay on her two feet, especially since her ankle was alreadt broken. The pain she was feeling was beyond comprehensive, but the drive of avenging Kagura and Millianna was what made her persevere.

Minerva, her sadistic smirk never leaving her face, had no doubts in her mind. "That injury looks like it hurts, shall I put you out of your misery?" Her arms were encompassed by greenish spatial energy yet again. Erza's ankle was in the same Magic, and the redhead was suddenly lifted off the ground.

"Aaaah!" Erza was whipped through the air by the stretched orbs around Minerva's arms. When Minerva swiped her arm, the stretched connection flung Erza into a pillar, followed by another. Her screams of anguish were heard clearly though the crumbling fragments of the pillars. Erza fell with a thud to the ground with a devastating thud, making the audience wince. Kagura and Millianna looked on as Erza was in pain, but they despaired as that was all they could do.

"Minerva is just plain brutal!" Lola shouted. "She used her Magic and throws Erza around like ragdoll!"

Snickering, Minerva watched as Erza surprisingly tried standing up once again. It was amusing for Minerva to say the least.

"I'm surprised you're still getting up with that injury." Minerva said. "If anything you should've stayed down long ago."

Erza faltered and nearly fell over from her ankle being uncontrollable, but she kept her foothold, no matter how painful it was. "It's just as I said to Kagura. I'll keep getting up until you stay down. As long as I am up, I will strive to have the battle won." Her eyes dilated, showing her ferocity. "You've chosen to declare war on Fairy Tail, and took pleasure in torturing Millianna and Kagura. Unforgiveable."

"Hmph, I can declare war on whoever I want. No one scares me; besides, I can annihilate the weak and leave only myself to rule. Nobody's worth it." Minerva backlashed. "Besides, anger may give you wrinkles."

Erza adjusted her footing. "For what you did, my anger is beyond controllable."

"And what of Nic?"

Erza's eyes widened and she gasped.

"Your boyfriend and lover if I'm right? He's quite the charming fellow with all the power imaginable. Perhaps after I kill you and throw away Milady's body, I think I'll take him all for myself. A king fit for a queen." Minerva licked her lips, savoring what thoughts of unholy wretch awaits if she had Nic to surmount over.

Erza's teeth clenched so hard that it could bend steel. "You…you can say all bad things about me, but if you take him away, I will rip out your soul!"

Minerva raised a brow. "You'll try, but that won't happen. Milady's Territory will turn everything on site into a landmine! I'll give you a demonstration!" Her arms were encompassed by the orbs again. Erza's sides were engulfed by explosions, and she was forced to leap and dodge backwards. She evaded the two explosions, but another explosion erupted behind her, making her lose balance and get shot forward. Minerva had her arms out and she chuckled maniacally as she went as far as creating explosions on the ceiling to show off her powers, which proved her point.

Minerva made more explosions, watching Erza leap back and dodge everyone, leaving her overwhelmed with explosive scattering dust in front of the manipulated woman. Her eyes narrowed as her smirk darkened. "Territory, a most powerful Magic. Milady is very helpful."

The dust obscured her vision, but a figure was seen lunging through. The figure was revealed to be Erza as she erupted from the dust cloud, with two blade-like kunai in her hands. She slashed at Minerva, making the Sabertooth Princess back away to avoid the weapon.

"You missed me!" Erza yelled.

Her smug expression now an angry look, Minerva covered her hands in Territory Magic again and proceeded to jab Erza, but she dodged left, then right, and another set of left and right, evading each jab. Soon finding an opening, Erza slashed her, cutting into Minerva and making her back away.

"Damn you…!" Minerva growled.

"This anger I hold is not mine, it's all of Fairy Tail!" Erza declared. Minerva recoiled as she felt an incredible swell of Magic Power erupt to immense levels. "Second Origin, release!"

"Second Origin?!" Jet exclaimed.

"Alright! I knew she had an ace in her sleeve!" Levy cheered.

"She's been hiding it?!" Droy shouted in disbelief.

Erza had a look of a vicious warrior as her Magic Power was so immense that small rocks levitated. It was giving off a bright white light from underneath Erza as Minerva was left uneasy and backed up as the dust engulfed Erza. Her figure was seen manifesting a new armor, one that wasn't seen before.

She wore an elegant armor with a blue robe trimmed in gold, opening up largely in the middle to reveal large parts of her chest. The waist was held by a simple red ribbon tied by a gold bead. The robe had elegant multi-layered trimming; the gold trimming was implied to her two blue gloves. Said gloves had gold dots and red ribbons embroidered. On her shoulders were golden pauldrons that resemble lions with open mouths. The design on her gloves were like the leggings, with golden dots and overall color, and the leggings had gold greaves. The knees had a similar pattern like the tiara she adorned. The tiara itself was two rhombus-shaped pieces with a blue triangle center; each piece had a gold ornament. Her hair strands framing her face were held by golden beads. Behind her was a white sash over her head and ended with golden beads on each end. She had in hand an intricate and huge halberd.

"**Nakagami Armor!**"

Minerva looked in hysterics, very agitated. "Ro hwaset! Ro hwasetya!"

"It's over for you, invader!" Erza challenged.

"I ragd!" Minerva fired a blast of her Territory at Erza, engulfing her in a powerful explosion. The earth shook again, but Minerva was left shocked as Erza cut right through her attack, being completely unfazed.

"But that's impossible!" Minerva retorted. "You should be in the dirt! No, dead!"

"I said it before, I'll keep getting up until you're down. You've caused great pain to others, and now I repay for all of our sakes."

Minerva slowly began to step backwards. "N-no…"

"However, the biggest insult you can possibly conceive, is threatening Nic. I shall eradicate and awaken the Minerva we all know!"

"No! You can't! I'm the queen! This is my game! I'm the strongest! I…I…"

"WAKE UP MINERVA! **Nakagami Starlight!**"

Erza rushed right through Minerva with immense force from the slashing halberd. Minerva's clothes were shredded up and she was spinning in the air, soon landing on her side with a harsh collision and slid. She stopped on her front, grunting and wincing from the immense pain felt that left her incapacitated. Kagura and Millianna looked on with small smiles as Erza stared at the fallen Minerva.

"Meow…" Millianna quietly purred.

Erza and the three girls all stared at Minerva as her body violently twitched, which left Erza uneasy. She and the other girls watched as dark matter began to manifest from Minerva and migrated from her body and off to the side. The dark matter materialized, forming and revealing a battered and exhausted Bellona.

Kagura's eyes widened. "What…?"

"Who is she?" Millianna asked.

The audience's eyes widened in sheer shock.

"Whoa!" Lola shouted, his mouth gaping with Mato's. "What on earth had just happened?! Another participant of Sabertooth?!"

"I-I don't know!" Mato exclaimed.

"It would seem that Minerva was being a puppet this whole time." Yajima confirmed. "I thought that there was a change in her Magic as of recently."

Minerva's eyes opened up weakly as she shifted over to her side, "Gnnngh…what…happened?" Her body winced. "GAH! Why do I feel pain?!" She grunted in agony and tried her best to recall the events that played out. "The last thing I remember…was talking to Bellona…and then all I saw after that was…darkness and wailing."

Bellona balled her fists as she slowly got up. "You…"

"So you're the one who possessed Minerva. Now it makes sense, that dark Magic Power is coming from you." Erza confronted her, much to Kagura and Millianna's shock.

Bellona stood up, her pain in all of her limbs. Her eyes had a hysterical look. "You sickening pawn…" She growled viciously. "How did you surpass Minerva? She was the strongest, and you took her out?! I won't tolerate this! You hear me?!"

"Erza…" Minerva couldn't say much due to her injuries. "Bellona, she's the devil's daughter."

She was suddenly stepped on the ribs by a heel by Bellona, a dark distaste on her face. "Silence, that's the queen's demand!"

Erza's aura radiated, getting Bellona's attention. "Bellona, it's over! You lost!"

"NO!" Bellona bellowed frantically. Her eyes had a sadistic look to them. A crazed-psycho vibe was radiating off of her as dark galaxy-like spirals went around her arms. "Sabertooth _will _be victorious! _I _will make it so, no matter how it's done! Sabertooth _will _remain the highest noble on the board! I_ will _have victory!" The dark spirals in her arms shrunk to cloak her cloves. "I WILL NEVER ACCEPT DEFEAT! **NEVER!**"

"Repent for what you've done! HRAH!" Erza swung her halberd, cutting and blocking off Bellona's Nightmare Magic. The darkness in Bellona's arms vanished, and Bellona screamed violently as she spun in the air, smashing through a pillar as Erza passed her.

Bellona felt time slow down as she fell with the shattered pillar remains. _'But I never got to touch her with my Magic…' _"HYAAAAAAAAH!" Bellona screamed louder as she slid along the ground, landing in a pile of rubble. Minerva, with one eye open, watched in shock as Erza had a steady glare on Bellona as the dust settled.

Bellona tumbled off the pile of rubble, thudding in her stomach with tattered clothes. Her body was barely numb, and tears went down her faced. "I deserved victory." She whimpered weakly. She crawled away weakly, like a weak insect that went to hide under a rock. "Me…me…I always win…"

Erza and the girls watched as Bellona whimpered as she crawled out of sight, good riddance to them. Erza slammed the end of the halberd into the ground, standing proudly as she won. Her armor requipped away, becoming her sarashi and hakama again. She had a sword requipped and put the end to the ground, using it as a cane for her support as she panted.

"Erza…" Minerva muttered.

Erza grinned at Minerva. "Minerva, how are you feeling?"

"Like I was crushed by a train and screamed in the face by a rabid Vulcan." Minerva looked away and frowned. She didn't have the strength to get up. "I was so weak. I allowed myself to become that demon's puppet to take control. If only…" She trailed off as she could only wallow.

Erza felt pity for Minerva as she saw the same predicament she was in. The same time someone else was but a puppet, someone who was manipulated and he didn't realize it. Jellal. It was a tough pill to swallow, but Minerva was going to live with the pain she had inflicted, and Erza could see the resentment in her eyes.

"I don't blame you." Erza comforted. "I'm sorry for what happened, and what had to be done…but there was no other way to force her out of you."

Minerva grinned as her head turned towards Erza. "It seems I was saved again."

Erza nodded.

Minerva turned away, a small despondent grin on her face still. "I can't go on like this, I'm incapacitated…thank you."

The audience cheered as Minerva conceded after that incident. Fairy Tail went all the way up to 64 points. The guild grew very happy from that display as they had big smiles as they had a major advantage.

"Well Mr. Yajima, what do you think this should count as?" Lola questioned, not knowing how to assess the situation of the sudden Bellona.

"Hmmm…" Yajima looked puzzled. "Well from what know, Minerva was possessed against her will, thus making it a second hostage by Sabertooth. But both actions were by the likes of Bellona. Since this was the situation and was settled in the end, we can allow it to pass since Minerva conceded and incapacitated."

Mato looked grumpy. "Sabertooth's been dirty because of that player."

"We'll have a great discussion of these situations with the committee after this." Yajima nodded.

"That now leaves just Sting left against all 5 members of Fairy Tail." Lola announced. "They just might win this folks!"

Droy had tears in the corners of his eyes. "Did you hear that…?"

"Even though we started in last place...kind of…we might win?!" Jet was shuddering with glee.

Macao sniffled. "Knock it off! You're gonna make me cry!"

The audience themselves were having themselves on the edge of their seats. Fairy Tail had so much support now that they were being chanted. "Fairy Tail! Fairy Tail! Fairy Tail!" They all cheered.

In an alleyway elsewhere as the sun went down, Sting looked down at the ground, staying hidden and silent. _'Milady's back. That's a relief.' _He grinned. "But still…"

* * *

Kama had both scythes held, his eyes set on the fourteen before him. "You shall all fall, no matter what the convictions. Your crimes against us are unforgiveable."

Neppa raised a brow while having a soda bottle clenched in between his teeth. "Don't worry, I'll give them a taste of my a-GWUGH!"

To all, even Nic's shock, Future Nic had dealt the hardest punch right to the stomach of Neppa, the force of Extreme Speed had him in a green zip and unable to have been seen until hitting Neppa so hard that the big guy fell over.

"Wha? That ain't good-GAH!" Uosuke was struck hard by a tail slam to the back of the head, instantly knocking him so hard into the ground it cracked. Future Arbok towered above, hissing in retort.

Cosmos swiped her arm. "I'll take care of them at on-!" She was cut off when Future Staraptor delivered a talon kick to the abdomen, the shock being so hard that Cosmos gagged and shot back, tumbling violently and falling to the ground, unconscious.

Kamika swiped her arms, sending purple papers at Future Charizard. "I'll stop them fast!"

Future Charizard opened his mouth and fired Flamethrower. The molten burning attack was so hot that the paper burned away when it was twenty feet away. The stream of rock-melting, giant glacier-destroying fire. Flamethrower struck Kamika, burning her clothes to a crisp and leaving her to scream through the flames as she sailed backwards, lying unconscious on her back.

"T-the Garou Knights…" Kama was wide-eyed with disbelief. In front of him were six deadly figures les by a menacing person who had no time to deal with someone like him. Nic and his six Pokémon were just as shocked as their Trainer. It was startling at how immense those blows of near-death were.

"Whoa…" Charizard muttered.

Kecleon tilted her head. "They punched their tickets for the pain train, hard."

Kama stepped back from being startled, and when he received a glare from Future Garchomp, he was more than paralyzed by fear. "What sorcery is this?!" He bellowed. "Your crimes, you dare not repent?! I shall have at you!"

He swung his right scythe at Future Garchomp, but all the dragon did as open his mouth and the teeth glowed and elongated. "**Crunch!**" He snapped his jaws down on the scythes, completely shattering it like it was glass.

During the 3-month training regiment, Garchomp had acquired a new move in his arsenal, replacing Slash. The move was Crunch, and with it, he's been sinking his immense jaws into so many things and tearing them in two.

Kama's eyes were wide in horror. "So much ferocity…!" He yelled in pain when Future Garchomp swung his tail from the side, smashing into the other scythe still intact and shattering it with so much force. Kama felt the shock and tumbled back from the tail smack, thudding against the ground that left to his unconsciousness.

"We don't have time for you." Future Nic glared menacingly. "We have a role to carry out. We didn't come back from _there_ to have ourselves stalled." His tone was firm and dead serious, a somber aura as his mind flashed forward to what was a terrible premonition.

"Nic…?" Nic asked his future self, his tone calm but uncertain.

An uneasy silence fell between the two groups, even the Pokémon were feeling some somber from their future counterparts, which was never a good sign.

Enough was enough. Nic finally stepped forward. "Alright, what's the dilemma?"

Future Nic's gaze went around towards his Greninja and others. They all looked at their Trainer and nodded in agreement. Future Nic turned back towards Nic, his eyes looking towards the ground. "I guess it's best to warn you before I get myself and the Pokémon into a maelstrom, huh?"

"That ship has already sailed." Nic said, his tone far from humorous.

"Since it's just us down here, it's fine." Future Nic continued, "What the Future Lucy foretold, she wasn't wrong…but she wasn't right either. She went through the Eclipse Gate at an earlier time period."

Nic and his Pokémon's eyes widened. "Are you saying…"

Future Nic nodded. "Yes. We all come from a further time period, sometime further in the future. Lucy's prediction was what she thought was the end of everything, to her era that is. From where my time, it was after the Dragons invaded. Many of the population had already perished by the Dragons, but the catastrophe levels seemed immense as they already were, until the true end erupted."

"'True end'?"

Future Nic's eyes turned hollow. "Nic…you know what happened."

Nic looked uncertain as to what his future-self meant. He knew? There wasn't much of a hint on that. Nic can recall the Dragon King Acnologia almost destroying them, though he was still unconscious at the time, but what could be worse than…

Nic looked into Future Nic's eyes, seeing what was the end of _everything_. As if realization arose, Nic knew what he meant. His eyes widened and the pupils dilated from horror. A wave of goosebumps overcame him as his knees felt slightly weak. He backed up a step, his skin nearly pale.

"You mean…?" Nic's voice itself was trembling.

Future Nic's eyes were still hollow. "Yeah…the one thing worse than everything ever known in the universe."

A shrilled silence fell before Nic composed himself and he and Future Nic spoke the name in unison. "Lysandre."

The name brought back the frightening memories the man befell onto them. The bloodthirsty gut-shredding, the right-sided scar, the left eye lost, nearly falling every time to that inhumane monster, all of it was a bitter reality that was to unfold into an even more shocking, living Hell.

Nic narrowed his eyes. "What happened? Start from the beginning."

Future Nic thus told his tale. "After the events of what Future Lucy foretold, only a handful of people survived, Vanessa and Erza included. I was able to get Vanessa and Erza to safety before a Dragon's Roar…" He closed his eyes, shame falling down. "But I was too late to save Lucy or Natsu or anyone else. I then had Dialga and Palkia assist me in wiping out the Dragons. Using their powers, they summoned the Legendary Pokemon to this world, where the odds were all against the Dragons. The Dragons were easily overpowered and fell one after another due to them being of no match against them all." He looked towards his Future Greninja. "And then after most of the Dragons were wiped out, _it _happened."

"And by 'it', you mean Lysandre?"

Future Nic nodded. "Yes. We all never saw it coming." He could remember the Future Lysandre and his demonic features, all completely altered and unlike the present day Lysandre, with greater power than before. "The hatred, anguish, and every little negative emotion between our world and Earth Land had finally accumulated to a point where he was no longer of no heart, and instead became a void of eternal darkness and rotting existence all around. He was dubbed – Ragnarok Lysandre. With the infinite darkness by his side, the seals to the Dark Legendaries was broken, and all the negative energy was unleashed in one go. Giratina and the others led waste and left nothing. Darkness engulfed and reduced the land, air, and all that was essential to life into inexistence. The remaining lives in the world were ripped away in one go. The cataclysm was so immense that it blackened even the strongest light. Ragnarok Lysandre had the power to destroy all, and that included…Arceus." Future Nic could still remember how Ragnarok Lysandre engulfed the sick God in darkness and wiped him from existence, and it was shown all over Earth Land and our world. Dialga and Palkia barely were alive to send me back in time a short jump before they were terminated with the universe." His eyes shut and his fists clenched tight. "It was all gone…the universe…our worlds…I even had to watch Vanessa…and Erza…" He never finished as he remembered the final farewells of the two before being sent back in time, tears in their faces, but smiles brimming with hope. He saw them get swallowed in the destruction of darkness as he traveled back to the past. Nic could see his eyes mist. "All gone…I made it to Lucy's time, and she managed to open the Eclipse Gate and I followed behind. She didn't know I came farther from the future." His gaze was towards Nic; the Future Pokémon gave mournful but determined looks.

"I had to watch Erza and Vanessa die…I was the only hope left. Acnologia was easy picking, Zeref's immortality meant nothing when Ragnarok Lysandre reduced him into nothing, every unstoppable force in Earth Land, the Mages who could reshape the land and seas, even bring back the dead, be dead themselves, even Lumen Histoire…they all fell by him, no contest. Nic, Greninja, Charizard, Kecleon, Staraptor, Garchomp, Arbok…we're all that's left to save the universe."

Nic looked at his six Pokémon, how they all had a sense of pressure put on them, and how they were basically the only hope of survival for all light in the known universe. This was a role that they had to accomplish, no matter the cost. It was aggravating to know what Future Nic went through, with leaving Erza and Vanessa to their fates. He too would feel guilt.

Nic looked back at his team, all of them looking at him as well. They knew the task foreshadowed was gonna involve holding nothing back. Lysandre was solemnly after him and him only. In the future, it looked like he was above that and had the power to slaughter even Arceus. They had to make their move now, before the Dark Legendaries gathered the negative energy to end it all.

Nic and his team looked at Future Nic. "Okay, so what do we do?" Nic asked his future self. "You know what'll happen."

"Yeah." Future Nic said. "This has gotta be only us, nobody else. If I told Lucy this, she'd be in despair and just accept the inevitable end. And though it pains me to say, Vanessa and everyone else must be excluded."

"What's that going to accomplish?" Nic questioned.

"She'll be fine for now, and Erza I'm sure, but we must make haste. The Eclipse Gate is gonna backfire."

"Backfire?"

"Yes. And so we must be prepared for the worst. We'll gather the troops, and prepare for the biggest war in Pokémon and Earth Land history."

Nic raised a brow. "That's a tall order, but I understand."

Charizard stepped forward, huffing flames with a half-grin. "Well wherever you go, we'll sure as hell follow."

"Nic-sssssama, we shall fight to the death." Arbok said.

Kecleon tilted her head. "We'll cover up the metal so it won't rust."

Garchomp growled with a smirk, his fangs showing. "I rather see a tomorrow, so let's smash them all into a million pieces!"

"I'm not backing away. We're fighting this fight. One way or another." Staraptor said.

Greninja crossed his arms and nodded. "You guys have nothing to fear. Lysandre is a monster, but as long as we fight together, nothing is gonna stop us. We're all in this together."

Nic smiled as the vicious loyalty of his Pokémon, feeling a great deal of proudness from his heart. He wouldn't have wanted it any other way himself.

Future Nic and his Pokémon stared at them, hollow smiles on their faces and looked at another. _'We're in this…for the last time.'_

Nic closed his eyes. _'Dialga. Palkia. Answer my beckoned call. Please help us. We must ready for what is to come.' _Nic telepathically announced. "Hear us, for we must ready. Transcend time and space, and take us back to the world where we came from."

There was an exciting silence, anticipation on a steady level. It seemed like nothing was unfolding, but then a tear in space appeared in between, a large one, big enough to fit everyone. They could see the distortion waves travel in and out of the tear. One jump and they'd be back in their world, more precisely a location near cliffs and ruin.

"You all ready?" Nic asked.

With nods, everyone, all fourteen, jumped through the tear, heading back to their world to ready for what was to be the most intense fight of what will come. The tear then closed shut behind them, looking as though nothing had happened.

On the opposite end of the hall, everyone was around fallen soldiers, unaware of what transpired. Mira looked around, noticing how both Nics were still gone separated from the group. The Future Lucy seemed uneasy, and Vanessa and Magnezone had no clue what transpired other than the fact that Nic had just demolished the countless soldiers. Wendy, the Exceeds, Yukino, Lucy, and Natsu all looked around as well, not noticing that what just happened would determine their fates.

* * *

Night had fallen onto the stadium, and the spectators were still in their seats. The scores showed Fairy Tail with 64 points, but something didn't seem all that grand. One of the spectators gasped when he compared Sabertooth's score with Fairy Tail's.

"What is?" Another spectator asked.

"It's nothing." He said. "It's just…look at the scores. If I remember right, Sting is all that's left, right? But, what if he did beat Fairy Tail unexpectedly?"

The spectator in question counted in fingers. "The leader is worth 5, the others are 1, so…!" He then gasped at the realization.

"9 points, that's the total Sting would get is he can somehow defeat all of Fairy Tail by himself." Lola speculated. "It's possible, but unlikely."

"But if that were the case, then Sabertooth would be tied with 64 points with Fairy Tail." Yajima said. "But since Fairy Tail wouldn't have anybody left, that would leave them out of the competition, meaning Sabertooth could make a come-from-behind victory."

"He planned this?!" Mato exclaimed.

In the center of Crocus, a light went up in the sky, exploding like white fireworks. All of the remaining members looked up to see the white flare, and they knew who was the culprit.

"Alright Fairy Tail, let's go!" Sting declared.

All around the city, Gajeel grunted as he lethargically got up and started walking. Laxus made a slow haste for the area, and Gray supported Sophie as she took more damage than him throughout the day. Erza had found a stick somewhere and used it as a cane, making her move slowly but paced towards the center. Everyone watched with silence, including Fairy Tail as they saw all five members gathered underneath the large, full moon.

Sting stood in front of all five members with a grin. "Finally. Look at you guys, you look like you're gonna keel over."

"Enough chitchat." Gajeel growled. "We don't need sympathy or make pals."

"Who's it gonna be?" Gray questioned.

Sting shrugged. "Why not all at once? I doubt one on one will be any good, not with those injuries."

Sophie got her feet underneath, managing to stand on her own without help from Gray. "Don't underestimate us. Just ask your comrades."

"Wouldn't dream of it. I'm actually giving you guys the respect you deserve." Sting protested. "That's why taking you all out at once seems more appropriate." There was an arrogance in his gaze. "I'll show you all! I'm doing this all for Lector!"

"Is that so?" Gray questioned.

"You wanna fight us by yourself? Are you serious?" Laxus inquired.

"'Course I'm serious!" Sting lashed out. "Losing Lector meant more than pain for me, I also gained power! For my best friend. I'm gonna win it all!"

Erza approached with support of her cane-like stick. "If that's the case, we shall honor your decision. If fighting us all is what you want, so be it. We'll give you the fight you yearn for."

The others' gazes were as determined as her own. They will follow through with the fight, and win, no matter what, for everyone's sake.

Sting chuckled as light began to spiral all around him. "Now you're talking! Prepare to witness the power of an awakened Dragon Slayer!" His White Drive activated, surging all around him with power. _'This is gonna be a piece of cake. I'll see him again, and so, her I-!'_

To Sting's shock, the Fairy Tail Mages before him were all lined up, standing tall and proud. Despite their injuries and the pain they've felt, they radiating a pride and insurmountable aura. The five had the same stoic glare set on their solemn target. Sting felt his power slip away from just looking at them, leaving his White Drive meant for nothing.

His eyes shook. _'Why am I hesitating? They're bruised and beaten to bloody pulps.' _He reasoned to himself. Despite his shuddering, he managed to clench his fists tight. _'What's the matter? Get ahold of yourself! You can knock them all down. After all, they're probably wiped out of Magic Power. Just do what Lady Bellona told you…' _He found it hard to move as his teeth clenched and sweat ran down his face. He tried and failed to put one foot in front of the other. _'Just, beat them…to see Lector again.' _However, his body was still uncontrollable. Something about the five standing before him, and kicking them down as they are, just seemed wrong, and the back of his mind was urging him to stop; which succeeded.

He fell to his knees, his head looking down at the ground. He couldn't even look at them in the eye. Everyone watching, Fairy Tail, the spectators, fans, Hisui, and Darton all saw through the monitors and looked on as Sting was on his knees.

"I can't win. I can't beat you." Sting admitted. "…I surrender."

The score thus changed to 65 for Fairy Tail.

Jet and Droy had tears in their eyes. They looked each other with smiles. The members of Fairy Tail who were left behind for seven long years were left shocked and slow to process what just happened, but it dawned onto them that they won. The pain and heartache was all worth it in the end, and their tears became joyous and prosperous. Cana and the guild had huge smiles on them, cheering beginning to become deafening as Fairy Tail won. Macao hugged his son as Romeo began to cry. For the first time in a long while, Fairy Tail was finally on top.

"It's over!" Lola announced. "The winner of the X791 Grand Magic Games…IS FAIRY TAIL!"

The audience cheered and confetti flew in the air. They never saw it coming as Fairy Tail had won and not Sabertooth. It was a real crow-pleaser to say the very least. Fairy Tail cheered with prideful smiles as they had finally won. Erza, Laxus, Gajeel, Gray, and Sophie all smiled as they made their guild proud.

Erza crippled her way towards Sting as he was still in shock from his actions. She looked down with nothing to support nor put against his decision, still, she was genuinely curious. "Sting, why did you back down from the fight?"

Sting kept shuddering, unable to look up. "I was sure I could win, that's all I had to do. If I did that I could see him again." His teeth clenched tighter. "But all of a sudden, it was like I lost hope. I don't know why, but I can't have your guys' strength. Even if I did win, I don't think I deserved to see him again."

Erza softly smiled at Sting. "Not exactly."

"What?"

"Erzy!" A familiar voice called from behind, revealing it to be Millianna, holding something in her arms.

Sting looked up in curiosity. His eyes opened wide as his mouth gaped open. He was nothing more than speechless as Millianna was holding Lector, cradled in her arms.

Sting's mind was out as his body moved instead. As Lector's eyes slowly opened up, he saw the first thing to be spotted was Sting running frantically after him; continuously near-tripping in the process. Sting desperately ran for Lector.

"Lector!"

Lector struggled as he tried to get to Sting. Millianna saw the struggle and knelt down so that Lector could run towards Sting. "Sting!" Lector had tears in his eyes and a huge smile as he ran for Sting. "Sting!"

"Sting was crying with a huge smile. "You're okay! Lector!"

Erza looked back with a smile. Gray, Sophie, Laxus, and Gajeel looked at the touching scene with smiles on their faces.

"Sting!"

"Lector!"

Lector jumped into Sting's open arms. Both embraced with all their heart, holding the other close with smiles and heartfelt sobs running down their faces. The scene wasn't excluded from the others as Rogue and Frosch looked at a monitor and smiled with happiness.

Though watching, Mavis soon frowned. Her worries were off, way off. Things weren't all that they may seem. Her senses knew that there was something dark and foreboding; so foreboding that her frown thickened. _'This dark power I sense, what is it…?'_

* * *

Arcadios rammed open the doors to the top floor. "Princess!" He ran inside, looking inside the empty room with open windows. "Princess Hisui!"

To his horror, the Princess and Darton were no longer in the room where they monitored the Grand Magic Games. He looked back from where he came from. "Don't tell me…she's already on her way?"

* * *

Footsteps echoed as Hisui and Darton walked down a flight of stairs and into the darkness that lied beneath. Hisui took the lead as she and Darton headed for where the Eclipse Gate was. The Games' end was as they feared.

"Fairy Tail had won; Sting surrendered to them." Darton confirmed.

"As I feared, the unpredictable has been predicted." Hisui said, the duo finding themselves now walking down a dark hallway of tall columns on the sides. The same hallway that led to the Eclipse Gate. "Now I know that my advisor is from the future and what is told is true. The future shall become our terrible present soon."

She and Darton stood in front of soldiers as they stood in front of the Eclipse Gate. "The battle for humanity begins! Move the Eclipse Gate above ground!" She ordered. "It's time for our move!"

* * *

**Okay, now that the games are over, this is where things get very intense. I've mainly followed the anime for the most part, but now the climax will be peaked. It's probably gonna be the biggest battle in the entire story, perhaps bigger than Weather Trio VS Acnologia, but I don't make promises.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are looking forward to the anticipation that is to boil up to the finale.**

* * *

**Next Time: Past &amp; Future Collide**


	81. Past & Future Collide

Chapter 81 – Past &amp; Future Collide

**Hey guys, we're drawing near towards the end, and so thanks to all who've been reading up to now.**

**Guest Valvrave: Honestly I can't really tell anymore between colonel and kernel. When in doubt, do what I do and blame society.**

**Burstroc: Sorry, not all Legendaries are gonna partake. **

**Not much longer left, but I'll keep going until the finale is reached!**

**To Recap:**

As Nic's group fends against the Rune Knights, Laxus takes on and defeats Jura, as to where Sophie and Gray used a Unison Raid to defeat Lyon and Chelia. Erza unlocks the Nakagami Armor and finally knocks Bellona out of Minerva's body and dispatches her. After eliminating the Rune Knights amongst them, Future Nic tells of the real future, beyond Future Lucy's time; a future where Lysandre, hence known as Ragnarok Lysandre, destroys the universe alongside the Dark Legendaries. To prepare for the biggest battle they may ever have, both Nics and their Pokémon head back to their world to gather troops. Meanwhile, Team Fairy Tail gather to battle Sting, but Sting surrenders and Fairy Tail wins the Grand Magic Games. Sting is then reunited with Lector with tears and smiles. Mavis, while satisfies, gets a dark feeling looming around, and Arcadios realizes that Hisui and Darton headed off to ready the Eclipse Gate.

* * *

**Chapter 81 – Past &amp; Future Collide**

"And just starting from a last place start, Fairy Tail just won the whole thing!" Lola announced. "Just listen to the crowd's approval!" The audience kept cheering on at the spectacular show and finale.

"Well done, Makey, well done indeed." Yakima smiled.

"W-wow! They really won!" Mato exclaimed. He looked around, hearing footsteps behind. "Huh?"

Behind him were soldiers who nodded as confirmation.

As Sting continued embracing his dear friend, all of the defeated participants looked up at the monitors and smiled. Though down for the count and some laying on their backs, they didn't feel at all upset. They never experienced nor anticipated such a comeback before.

"Fairy Tail has come a long way from its two teams established that were competing against the other." Lola commentated, with Yajima following his lead.

"Yes, this year's games were beyond extravagant, and set a high precedent. Even without Nic Pularis or Natsu Dragneel, the team had its act from the start and showed us a deal of spontaneous and immense fortitude."

"I most certainly agree. And what about you, Mato…Mato…?" Lola turned to find the seat beside Yajima empty. "Uh, he's gone?"

"Oh? Perhaps he had to use the restroom or something." Yajima shrugged.

The moon was high above everyone's heads, and it was full, though the stars in the dark sky gone made things balance out somewhat. With Fairy Tail still cheering on for their victory, the team established still in the gardens had smiles on their faces, proud of the events that transpired.

"Guess that's a wrap." Gajeel said.

"That just leaves the celebration if I remember right." Sophie said.

Gray looked towards Erza. "Hey Erza, how's your leg?"

"It's nothing I can't handle. A few days of rest and it'll be good as new." She said with a grin.

Laxus seemed to have a twisted face. "You know, aside from the calm-headed demon fighting light as we call him." Laxus referred to Nic. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but it's weird not getting any hollering from you-know-who."

"Yeah, this a change of pacing." Gray admitted.

"He'd run our ears off after all of that." Gajeel grunted.

Unknown to them, as Sting and Lector calmed down, they began to overhear.

"About right." Erza's grin turned to a frown. "By the way, did anyone know if they shot the signal flare?"

Laxus got wary as he turned his head away. "Nope, but I've had my eyes out the whole time, well unless you count Jura knocking me down to the ground."

"I didn't see one either." Gray said.

"I ain't worried." Gajeel told them. "Knowing our Salamander, he probably just forgot to shoot the damn thing. Of course Luminous is a different story."

"Signal flare?" Sting wondered.

Lector looked towards Sting, confused. "What are they talking about?"

"Don't know." Sting looked at them, worried. "Excuse me…"

Gajeel glared over, getting all agitated with Sophie holding him back. Lector hid behind Sting from Gajeel's angry demeanor. "Oh I know you're not talking to me punk! Scram!" He yelled.

"Calm down!" Sophie grunted as she tried holding Gajeel back.

"Sorry, but…" Gajeel and everyone turned towards Sting, seeing the worry on his face. "Where's Natsu and Nic? Why weren't they here today?"

Team Fairy Tail frowned and remained silent.

Lector walked up to them, worry back on his face. "A-are they okay?"

Gray looked back at Mercurius with a blank stare. _'You guys, please be careful.'_

* * *

Rune Knights that weren't mercilessly pounded by Nic and his teams were outside Mercurius, where they had transported the massively huge Eclipse Gate above ground. They were beneath the full moon, which began to show slight hints of red, but not much of it was noticed. Hisui was leading men and giving orders in her fur-lined robe, her attire still elegant but somewhat combative. As she gave out orders, harsh clanging was heard thoroughly to all ears. Hisui took significant notice and turned to see a figure approach from the shadows.

The figure was none other than Arcadios in the White Lily Armor. "Princess."

Hisui had a big smile on her face. "Arcadios, it's you!" She sounded so overjoyed. "I knew you were alive."

Darton's eyes widened from shock as Arcadios stood before him. A sense of guilt ran over his face as he took a step forward. He cleared his throat to speak formally. "Colonel Arcadios, please forgive my actions of sending you into Hell Palace. It was but a misunderstanding on my end."

"You did as you thought right. I hold no grudge." He answered bluntly. He turned towards the men all gathered. "As for the men here, are they informed of Eclipse 2?"

Hisui nodded. "Yes, I took liberty and told them the details. The rest of the forces and everyone else will have word soon spread out towards them. And hopefully that included the Garou Knights as well." She saw Arcadios look back at her, his gaze steadily through the intimidating armor. "The time traveler's prediction of the Games ending, it came true. It means, we have no choice but resort to Eclipse 2."

"Princess, so if I'm to understand this, this means you've abandoned our first plan to go back in time and defeat Zeref and Acnologia?" Arcadios asked.

Hisui shook her head. "No, I'm still wishing to do that, but right now we must focus on the more imminent threat that'll fall on our shoulders."

There was a long silence as Arcadios stared down at Hisui, one that left Hisui uncertain as to Arcadios's reluctance. The knight reached for his sword and clutched the handle. He slowly pulled out the sharp blade, Hisui's eyes shuddering out of deep shock as her startled image reflected off the shiny, sharp blade. She feared what would be her end.

"Colonel!" Darton retorted. "What are you-?!" He was cut off when Arcadios gave the sword to Hisui. It was heavy. She and Darton looked at Arcadios with heavy question.

Arcadios held the blade and positioned the tip to his neck. "A true knight trusts and follows his master's words without question. This code I swore my life to live by. I am bound to put my faith in you, which is why…I ask that you slay me, Princess."

Hisui's eyes shuddered from horror at the ominous request. Darton and the soldiers gathered were no different.

"I cannot suppress the doubt within me of your actions and choices, meaning I have dishonored my master; and so the only course I must take is death."

"Arcadios, have you gone mad?!" Darton bellowed, but when Arcadios shot him a vile look, Darton felt his spine shudder.

Arcadios turned his attention back to the still-horrified Princess. "There is still a question."

"What is it, Arcadios?" Hisui asked frantically, the overwhelming situation making her feel pressured. It was clear by the way her hands shook when holding the sword, meaning she was bitterly trembling. "What's going on?"

"I spoke with your contacts that came from the future. They have no knowledge of Eclipse 2."

Hisui gasped.

"They knew of the impending doom to fall, but the one shed tears because they could not find a way to end it before it begins."

"But, that can't be right. They're the one responsible for the instructions."

"So, you're claiming they had ignorance?" His mind flashed back to Future Lucy shedding tears when Natsu thanked her. "That's not possible. I cannot think of any single mishap Lucy and Nic would gain from lying to their friends!"

Hisui's eyes dilated with goosebumps running al throughout her body. "W-what?" Her tone was uncontrollable. "Did you say Lucy and Nic…?"

Arcadios's eyes widened as well. "Wait, what?!"

A dark and foreboding dread went around them as Hisui spoke. "The person of the future…that person was a _lone _man!"

* * *

Standing in the nearby mountains and looking out at Crocus, Jellal's eyes widened when he sprouted an epiphany. "I got it. I'm sure of it!"

"Jellal, what are you saying?" Ultear asked.

"All this time, and the truth was under our noses." His gaze and tone were both wary. "The Lucy and Nic from the future foretold their arrival was on July 4th, when in actuality it was before midnight on the 3rd."

Meredy and Ultear's eyes widened.

"Then that means they can't be the source of power over these years." Meredy said. "It's not likely with that logic."

"Agreed. The power was resonating from the Eclipse Gate." Jellal confirmed.

"But that isn't possible. The source is a person." Ultear corrected.

"As I am aware, and the Eclipse Gate is made from the Book of Zeref, therefore its use comes with a price. In this instance, all those who use it are traced in its power."

"But if Lucy only arrived a few days ago along with Nic…" Meredy grew uneasy.

Jellal's unsettled suspicions came to fruition. "Yes, this means that whoever used the Eclipse Gate…Nic and Lucy weren't the only ones." Jellal made haste down the mountain with no delay. "Hurry!"

The group traveled down the mountain as fast as they possibly could, hurrying towards the city. Meredy and Ultear fell behind Jellal as he led them. They all passed underneath the moon as it had red slowly inching towards what seemed to be some form of eclipse. When Jellal looked up at it, he felt worse than before. _'Whatever's set in motion, I don't think we can stop it. Lucy had a purpose of warning us, so what could this person's purpose have…and what I can't understand, is what purpose Nic has?'_

* * *

Natsu scratched the back of his head. "Aw man, so what now?"

"I'm sure Nic took care of them all." Vanessa said. "I don't think we'll have to worry about reinforcements."

Mira put a hand to her own cheek. "That's Nic for ya. Pokémon powers sure do wonders."

"So, where is he?" Happy asked.

"Yes, I was wondering that myself." Carla caught on.

Lily poofed back into his little form, landing and crossed his arms. "Maybe they need to catch their breath. I mean they did dispatch nearly a couple thousand men."

Future Lucy looked in the direction Nic and Future Nic were diverged in. "We managed to avoid capture, because of them. Then we fled to the mountains, but we never got separated last time." She said worriedly.

"Maybe we should go and see." Wendy suggested.

Natsu put a hand to his stomach. "Ugh." He sighed. "Can we at least get something to eat? I didn't get anything to munch on all day."

"Suck it up Natsu. We have a world to save." Lucy chided with annoyance. "Seriously, must you think of food even in life-threatening situations?"

Yukino nervously smiled. "Well, uh, he could?"

"He does think with his stomach quite a lot, doesn't he?" Mira thought out loud.

Natsu gave a grumpy pout. "Stop picking on me!" He berated. "Anyways, enough small talk, we got those guys out of the way, now we find exit and get that signal flare up!"

Magnezone turned towards the hall in front, catching something off. It wasn't something he caught whiff of something that made his magnets spin faster than normal. But he wasn't the only one catching a ghastly whiff of something. Natsu's nose twitched when something smelled very wrong.

"Huh…?" He looked ahead, right where Magnezone was looking.

Vanessa followed the looks as well. "This aura…it's full of darkness. Something's wrong."

True to the young Pularis sibling's speculations, everyone grew anxious as what seemed to be a cloud of shadows beginning to erode from far away and advance towards them. The two Lucys took a step back with everyone else on guard. Loke moved to protect both Lucys as the cloud of shadows was giving off a powerful surge of Magic Power.

"What is that?" Wendy asked.

Mira's stance changed when they saw something move inside the cloud of shadows. "Someone's inside!"

"Everyone stay alert!" Lucy shouted.

They all remained ready as their Magic Power was low, but still ready to be used. However, that wasn't the case when they saw a certain someone walk out of the shadowy cloud that withered and dissipated away.

It was a man with a smirk. His red eyes were visible, but the left side of his face had light gray hair that reached down his waist from a ponytail; there was also black markings around his left eye. His hair was also black on the right side. His right eye was gone, and instead had a scar that went to the bridge of his nose. His attire was of a long, high-collared ferraiolo, but the part that drapes over his shoulders is very dark red, with edges in tiger-print pattern. A strap went across the chest with buttons on either end. Underneath he had a light-colored, long sleeved shirt with rolled up cuffs. Over that was a Y-shaped vest with three circles beneath the belt in front. The vest split into four pieces of cloth with four circles. He had light trousers beneath the four straps and the ensemble was complete with boots.

"The shadows transcend the past and future." The calm person spoke, his voice all too familiar and making Natsu go wide-eyed. The man stopped before the group. "It would seem we meet again, Natsu Dragneel. I've traveled quite a ways back to this time. I am Rogue."

Natsu and everyone felt their hearts skip a beat. Never did they foresee such a thing happen. Not only was it Lucy and Nic who ventured into the past, but now also another familiar sight.

"You mean that one from Sabertooth?!" Carla exclaimed.

"No way." Wendy murmured.

Future Lucy swallowed. "So, Nic and I weren't the only ones."

Future Rogue smirked at them.

* * *

The red in the moon began to become more visible. Arcadios and Hisui were doing what they could to assess what was going on.

"So let's get this straight. There were three who came from the future, two of which being Nic and Lucy. They came back in time to warn their friends of the oncoming doom." Arcadios explained.

"And then there's the man who the Princess was advised by, the one who told her how to advert that calamity." Darton said.

"Those parties have the same objectives at heart, I'm sure of it." Hisui said. "They did what they thought could save the kingdom, so we must honor their valor and warning. If the future is bad as they say, there still might be more to come." She handed Arcadios his sword back, whereas he held it with shock. "Take your sword. You'll need it for the battle that is to come. I shall draw my own blade, and take this battle on myself."

* * *

The group stared at the Future Rogue with a certain level of suspicion in the air.

"So then, care to tell us why you came back in time?" Natsu asked.

Vanessa looked on at the smirking Future Rogue, getting something tainted in his aura that left her very unpleasant at heart._ 'His aura, it's a shrewd and malevolent kind. His heart is black as shadows…'_

"An explanation would do wonders for us if you don't mind." Loke insisted.

"All I want, is to utilize the Eclipse." He said.

"But…what's that gonna do?" Lucy asked.

"It can save us all. All we have to do is tap into its hidden power. As you all are aware, it can be used to time travel, be it to the past or future, however grand the jump may perceive. However, it can also be used as means of an offensive weapon known as the Eclipse Cannon. That's your only chance of defeating the 10,000 Dragons."

Future Lucy looked on with slight shock. "So then…the future is salvageable."

Natsu grinned. "That makes things simple. Glad you're on our side."

"Aye! Let's kill us some Dragons!" Happy shouted.

"Does this mean we'll be okay?" Wendy hoped.

Future Rogue frowned. "Afraid not. My time comes a point where everything ceases to exist. I alone was able to hold off by means of innovation, I had to scapegoat my way and weasel back to what is the present and change what would be the future, where there is but only 10 percent of humanity left."

Mira's eyes widened. "Everyone's…"

"…only 10 percent?" Yukino covered her mouth to cover up her gasped.

"This is humanity's last chance at freedom, if not altered. I came back to reshape everything so that all shall be set free. I came back to accomplish the task of making sure the gates remain open."

"Uh, we're not following, is there something going on?" Wendy questioned.

Future Lucy looked very uneasy, and Lucy was just as scared of what may happen. Vanessa kept her suspicions on Future Rogue as his aura seemed to have a more corrosive and bloodthirsty side. She had a terrible feeling. She looked at Magnezone with a steadily gaze, a way in which Magnezone knew to be ready the moment things may seem to get out of hand. For now, they listened.

"Someone prevented the gates from opening. That person made humanity suffer the consequences, and left all but 10 percent to perish by the claws of fire-breathing Dragons, 10,000 raging beasts that swarmed and took over everything and all that were beneath them. So, I will make it a priority to end that person's life."

"How barbaric!" Carla shouted. "You resort to murderous violence to set the future free?!"

"She's right. There's no need to spill another's blood." Lily enforced.

Future Rogue didn't seem to comprehend that. "Destiny cannot be changed. It has been written in stone since the dawn of time. Even if I did persuade them, they would still end up stopping Eclipse. There is no choice for anyone. The living are scarce, and the dead are gone." His tone was beginning to spike. "The one who is the catalyst will remain so for eternity unless eradicated."

"Okay, I'll bite." Natsu spoke up. "Who is this person?"

Future Rogue's eye sharpened, and shadows made a spear of darkness in his right hand. "It's you…LUCY HEARTFILIA!"

Without warning, he drove the spear-like shadow attack that went after Lucy. The present day blonde was still in shock and couldn't even read the attack that was aimed right for her. Time slowed down as the spear went pass Natsu as he turned his back and tried to block it, but he couldn't reach it in time and everyone saw the spear slip right pass him.

Lucy was still paralyzed by the incoming threat.

"LUCY!" Natsu screamed.

A sudden teal blast and a light blue metallic orb suddenly intercepted the attack. The two-on-one collision made a small burst in the atmosphere, causing everyone to cover up. Future Lucy and Lucy both screamed as they fell backwards, along with everybody else.

Future Rogue's eye widened as the smoke cleared up. "What?"

Everyone got to their knees and looked up as they saw that Magnezone and Vanessa stood off to the side, panting as they managed to intercept just in time. They looked at Future Rogue in the corner of their eyes, both looking mad.

"Vanessa, you…" Lucy was at a loss for words.

"She saved my past self…" Future Lucy said with equal shock.

"You…" Future Rogue growled. "How did you know?!"

Vanessa's glare never left her face. "Your aura was nothing but deceit. You lied, just so you can get to Lucy and kill her in cold blood!" She yelled.

Future Rogue clutched his teeth. "I never knew a person's Magic can read aura and what came with it. You snooped me out like a weasel! No matter! I know Lucy will close the gate! It happened before…" Shadows converged into his hands. "And I know it'll happen again!"

Lucy got to her feet and looked shocked. "I would never close the damn gate! Why would I do such a thing?!"

"BECAUSE IT HAPPENED!" Future Rogue screamed. "Every choice you think you've made, IS DECIDED BY FATE!"

"SHUT YOUR TRAP! SCREW FATE!"

A sudden eruption of fire from a Dragon Slayer's fist blazed and streamed, completely cindering Future Rogue's shadows and causing him to block the flames. Future Rogue slid backwards with astonishment by how hard the force of the punch was that was by Natsu. Lucy and everyone looked at Natsu with utter shock.

"I won't let anyone steal Lucy's future!" He declared. "Not while I'm here!"

Future Lucy's eyes began to mist. "Natsu."

"You tried taking Lucy from us. You say she's gonna end humanity; you say that, but I know she would never do such a thing!" Natsu berated harshly, his flames erupting in his fists. He sounded angrier than before, as Vanessa could feel a protective aura within his flames. "I'll turn everything you say into ashes!"

Loke turned towards the two Lucys. "We have to get out of here."

Lucy looked worriedly as Future Rogue glared at them viciously. Her attention was on Natsu. "But…"

"Loke's right. We have to get away from him. He's after you, so we've gotta protect you." Yukino insisted.

"Hurry, let's go guys!" Happy ran with the Exceeds, and the others fled the scene. Lucy and Future Lucy looked over their shoulder once more as the distance became apparent from the Dragon Slayer and the murderer.

"Stop right there!" Future Rogue made an attempt at rushing past Natsu to get at Lucy, but Natsu swept himself in front and drove another flaming fist of emotions into Future Rogue's face, smashing him into the ground and making the ground rumble. He got up and glared at Natsu. "Natsu Dragneel-!"

He was silenced by what was another hard fist to the face. The gruesome force made him slide back several feet by the hands of an infuriated Natsu, who panted like a Dragon in battle. Future Rogue used his thumb to wipe the red on the corner of his lip. "Tch, should've known you'd try and stop me." Future Rogue's body was cloaked in shadows. He slipped into the shadows beneath, where he snaked across the flooring and swerved up towards the walls, zigzagging along the side. "Even if I lose, your fate will be sealed when the Dragons kill you in the future." He jumped out of the shadows with a smirk. "Your choices have been determined already! You can't change that!"

Future Rogue blasted Natsu with a turbulence of shadows, of which pushed Natsu back several feet. The pinkette shook his head and glared daggers at Future Rogue.

"You think we're gonna let you get away with this? You made a huge mistake trying to take something important away from us." Natsu growled viciously. "You crossed the line the moment you tried killing our own. I'll reshape the future my way if it means taking you down and proving you wrong?"

"Oh?" Future Rogue raised a brow. "Care to change fate?"

* * *

In front of the Eclipse Gate, Hisui was making preparations possible. With Arcadios and Darton at her call, they were ready to reshape the future into one that shall be salvaged if it means taking out long-thought-to-be-extinct Dragons. She stood in front of an army of Rune Knights in front of her, hearing her out.

"In preparations for the Dragons to arrive, we shall initiate the Eclipse Cannon!" She turned around and looked at the massive doors in front of her. A long silence arose before she gave the command.

"Unlock!"

The gate's gears made a large clang sound. The small circle on the bottom of the gate moved clockwise very slowly. Everyone's hearts skipped a beat when a clang was heard when the first checkpoint of the gate was passed by the hand.

'_So this is it. The gates are finally opening.'_ Darton thought.

'_Princess, I shall be on your side to the bitter end.' _Arcadios declared.

Another clang sound erupted, meaning the second checkpoint was met.

Hisui looked back at the Rune Knights behind her. "Have there been any reports yet?"

"No Dragons sighted on the east nor west." A knight said. "Also, we've prepared citizen evacuation protocols."

"Good." Hisui looked back up as the third checkpoint was met. _'It won't be long now.'_

In shrubs and bushes nearby, several heads popped out, which was Lucy's group, excluding Loke, who retreated back to the Celestial World; and Magnezone, who was returned to his Poke Ball. The group remained silent and stealthy as they watched the gate's fourth checkpoint being breached.

"It looks like they're opening the gates." Wendy confirmed.

"Let's hope they know what they're doing." Mira hoped.

Future Lucy looked at the Eclipse Gate with uncertainty. "The Eclipse Cannon, it'll really save us all?"

Lucy looked to her future self, unsettled. _'What that Rogue said, what he says really does bother me.' _She remembered about his speech, about how spiteful he was and how Lucy was the culprit. _'Would I really do something that horrible?'_

"We know you're there!" Arcadios announced, startling everyone there. "Please, come out!"

Though reluctant, the Fairy Tail group knew they were caught. Arcadios was looking right at them, much to Hisui and Darton's confusion. They all slowly made it out of the bushes they were staying in, and they stood with uneasy looks.

"We didn't do anything misguided." Vanessa argued.

Hisui's eyes widened. "You're all…from Fairy Tail."

"Arcadios?" Carla questioned.

"Why is he with the Minister and the Princess?" Lily asked.

The group was brought up and they were all given a thorough diagnostic on what has been going on, with Arcadios and Darton assessing the misunderstanding.

"I truly am sorry for how we've treated you." Hisui apologized. "But due to this state of emergency, I'm afraid an official apology will have to wait." She managed to smile at them. "Also, I congratulate your guild on winning the Grand Magic Games."

Wendy smiled. "I knew they wouldn't let us down!"

"Yeah!" Happy cheered.

"Excellent." Lily praised. However, his and everyone else's smiles faded into surprise when another clang sound was heard, where another checkpoint was struck by the passing hand.

Lucy looked towards Hisui. "Why are you opening the gates right now? The Dragons aren't here yet."

Future Lucy nodded. "Yeah, there's no need…not yet."

Hisui's surprise never stopped mounting. "So, you are from the future as well?"

Future Lucy stared at her.

Arcadios looked at Hisui. "She has informed them of the upcoming." He looked at everyone else. "Speaking of, where is the Future Nic?"

The group looked at each other with uncertain doubt, which left a bad feeling in the pits of their stomachs.

Finally, Yukino spoke up. "Colonel Arcadios, I'm afraid both Nics have gone missing."

"Missing?" He parroted.

"It was right before this whackjob from the future showed up and tried to kill me." Lucy explained, shocking Hisui and Arcadios. "He says I'm the one responsible for closing the gates, and doing everyone to being killed by the Dragons."

Hisui and Arcadios looked at one another with uncertainty. They then looked at Lucy, more warily than before. "So, this man tried to kill you?" Hisui asked. "And you swear there are no merits to the claim declared?"

"Of course not, Princess!" Lucy countered, shaking her head. "Like I said before, I don't see any Dragons arriving. Shouldn't we wait to open them once they're all in our sights?"

Hisui shook her head. "No. The Eclipse Gate takes too long to open. If we wait for them to appear, it may just be too late. It has to be done now."

Vanessa swallowed a lump at the dreadful predicament of the situation. "And you're sure this is a guaranteed one-shot?"

Hisui hesitated. "…no." She admitted. "But if anything is to fall into the abyss, the King should have a plan of action ready."

Mira looked to Yukino, and everyone else had the same look of anticipation. However, they did not realize that as the moon slowly became red, the midnight sky began to turn a pitch black.

* * *

All of the guild Mages that were abundance in Crocus were all gathered in the heart of Crocus; its very center being a massive plaza with a white crystal that was extremely tall. Rune Knights were gathered around a stout King that was Makarov's height, as his robe was ceremonial but had pink hearts included. He looked out at everyone, including the non-participants. The ones who had fought were bandaged up, especially Erza and the rest of her team, and Rogue, and Kagura was helped up by Arana.

Toma E. Foire – the ruler of the Fiore Kingdom – stood on the ledge and looked out at the confused guild Mages assembled. "Thank you all for coming." He started. "I despise myself for ruining the celebration and the showmanship of fortitude displayed, especially just after the Grand Magic Games…but, I'm afraid Fiore is in grave danger of what may be a Dragon horde."

Commotion went around, with the audience uneasy.

Makarov's eyes widened. "I thought Acnologia was the only Dragon."

"Last time we fought him, we lost seven years to escape with Dialga and Palkia's help." Cana said. "We can't hold our own against a horde."

"Even so, Acnologia was a special case because of the Legendary Pokémon fending against him." Lisanna pointed out.

"As we speak, a counteroffensive has been put into a start in front of Mercurius." The King foretold. "The Eclipse Cannon!"

Everyone's eyes widened in shock and confusion.

"Eclipse Cannon?" Sophie wondered.

"We shall use it to attempt to eliminate all 10,000 at once."

"In one blow? How's that possible?" Cana wondered.

The King gave a sigh. "I can understand your concern. Given the massive numbers of the Dragons, we expect no more than perhaps a few hundred to survive the Eclipse Cannon."

Makarov's head cascaded down. "Yes, that is a logical assumption."

The King raised his arms. "And so! I implore you guild Mages! Please lend us your power to deal and eradicate what shall be the future apocalypse for this kingdom!" He announced, his tone starting to show signs of choking. "You are the only hope of slaying Dragons that the Eclipse can't accomplish!" He bowed his head to them all, his desperation clear. "I beg of you, please. Please lend us your strength. Do not let this kingdom fall into ruin."

Everyone saw the desperation in his plea. It was no lie, and that they were needed now more than ever.

Overlooking from afar on a high point, Lahar and Doranbolt were both eavesdropping on the situation.

"I can't believe this." Lahar said.

Doranbolt raised a brow. "What? Everyone being asked to work together?"

"No, the Eclipse Gate!" Lahar held up a clenched fist. "The existence of the gate, no, it's mentioning, violates 30 laws at least!" He looked towards Doranbolt with deep justice. "We have to inform the Council right away."

"Lahar and Doranbolt if I am not mistaken, yes?"

The voice was an astonishing surprise to them both. The voice spoken from behind was familiar, and yet they had enough problems on their hands. Turning around, their fears were confirmed as from the shadows a man with blue hair emerged.

"Jellal?!" Lahar exclaimed.

"I have a request." He announced.

* * *

Natsu ran forward with a flaming fist and a strong cry out to Future Rogue, who charged at him with equal force. Fire and shadow collided in the middle, making the hallway quake and rumble. Debris flew all over the place, making the flooring all rocky and uneven.

Natsu and Future Rogue slid back from the attacks, both sides looking ready for another go. Future Rogue made a change in dynamics by diving back into the shadows, surprising Natsu as the black shadow moved about faster than what his eyes could trace. The shadow ended up somewhere, but Natsu couldn't tell.

"Where did he…?!"

Natsu was met with a torrent of shadows from his side, sending him sliding backwards in pain as Future Rogue smirked and emerged from the shadows.

Natsu gagged before he shook his head. "Tell me…" He muttered.

"Hm?"

"I know you're lying. My nose is telling me, that everything your spazzing on about is nothing but garbage, right?" He asked in deep hostility.

Future Rogue's smirk only widened.

* * *

The King was still bowing towards all of the Mages of Fiore in desperate plea to destroy the Dragons that were soon to come. The residence in all the plaza saw that he was absolutely begging, something a King never does to anyone.

Before they could answer to his call, the full red moon was bright, and red everything above…was a complete pitch black. An overwhelming sense of great, spine-ripping force got all of them in their hearts. The air they were breathing was pure suffocating. They all felt their insides fall unstable and their knees began to feel uneasy. Everyone was panting as their heart rates were soaring from the goosebumps they were feeling.

Makarov's eyes shuddered. He was rendered completely speechless. "W-what is this overwhelming force…?"

Rune Knights were getting to their knees and gasping as they couldn't breathe well. They felt paralyzed, and all throughout Crocus, this overwhelming energy resonated. Hisui, Arcadios, _everybody_ was feeling such an immense force of something far more lethal than evil itself.

Mavis's senses were going numb. Her ethereal body was getting to its knees and she began to shudder. "This…this evil…"

"This foul energy…it's like Death's Devil has come alive…" Elfman quivered in fright.

Laxus stumbled back, barely keeping footing. "What…the darkness all around us…what is this?"

Everyone was scared, and the King was shivering and blindly looked on as everyone was feeling a demonic swell of power rattle their spines and penetrated into their being and soul's heart, making it rot in despair and all that is good and bright in existence.

It started low, but everyone could hear the maniacal, bloodcurdling, and conscience-degrading chuckling. The chuckling sounded like the darkest tone, of the foulest beast to have ever been heard. People were starting to go deaf just from hearing the escalating – now demonically maniacal laughter – beastly sound be heard from as far as can be. The citizens evacuating and all through and near Crocus could feel this demonic force and heard the loud, bone-weakening roaring.

'_My body…it's so cold.' _Gray thought in disbelief as a ghastly and hollow breeze passed them all.

Sophie's eyes were wide and her green orbs dilated at the recollection of this demonic power. _'It can't be…'_

Hearing the horror-inducing laughter, Rufus looked around. "This level of unimaginable darkness, I don't ever recall such a scarring dread falling before me."

Jura was trembling as got his knees, worrying everyone. His pupils dilated. "So much bloodlust in this power we all sense…is this…what is this we are facing…?"

Erza looked around, her fists clenched, but her body was violently trembling. "Is that who we think it is…?" She asked through the violent laughter.

At long last, the demonic laughter began to fade away, and they all heard what was the most gruesome growl. One that was vibrant, vibrating through your back and reaching your brain, leaving your state of mind in peril shock.

"None shall interfere." The demonic monotone said, the voice heard all throughout Crocus.

Though the dark energy amongst them was beginning to fade, they all were suddenly trapped in what were dark pink spatial orbs. The guild Mages gathered, the King, and everyone else were all trapped in these bizarre orbs individually.

"What's going on-?!"

Before Erza could finish a pitch black engulfed them all, right out of the blue.

When everyone uncovered, they found themselves shocked beyond comprehension. All marveled and despaired as every single Mage, citizen, knight, everyone possible…were all suspended very high above the Crocus sky, right underneath the pitch black darkness and red moon. The population retreating in the mountains, the officials, and everyone else were all suspended in the dark pink spatial orbs that had them trapped.

"What happened?!" Makarov exclaimed.

Mavis was in disbelief as she also had an orb of her own, and she felt no force like it. "This spatial energy, it's beyond Magic, and is beyond any boundaries of evil.

Hisui was startled as she was suddenly suspended like everybody else. "What?!"

"But how?!" Arcadios exclaimed.

"Oh my god! When did this happen?!" Lucy bellowed.

Future Lucy was at a loss for words. "This dark power…this wasn't in the future!"

"What?!"

"I don't know what's happening, honestly!"

Minerva concentrated her Magic Power in her sphere, but her spatial orbs only imploded when she attempted to try them, leaving her arms in pain.

"Milady!" Orga exclaimed from his orb.

"This spatial force. It's like something that exceeds my Territory." She muttered.

All at once, Mages tried busting out using their Magic, blasting whatever spells to dissipate the force, but no matter what happened, the energy just distorted their Magic, leaving their Magic attacks to just dissipate themselves when touching the orb, leaving them all incapacitated.

"I…I can't teleport!" Doranbolt exclaimed. "But how?!"

"Dispelling and any Magic to cancel out, it's not even working!" Lahar shouted. "What had just happened?" He looked over, and to his shock, all of Crime Sorciere was gathered in their own three spheres. "Crime Sorciere?!"

"Lahar." Jellal said. "I don't know what's going on, but this is beyond control."

Ultear concentrated very hard, but she sank to her knees. "It's…it's no use. My Time Magic itself doesn't work."

"It's like this distortion is plucking us from using our power." Meredy said.

Ichiya's nostrils went numb. "This parfume…so gore."

Kaguar slashed Archenemy, but it only bounced off, no matter what happened. Gravity Magic didn't even faze the orbs, only leaving the spells and Magic to be distorted and left to become nothing.

Frosch was quivering. "I…I'm scared."

Lector swallowed. "D-don't worry. I-it's not we're gonna die, right Sting…" Lector looked around, but all throughout the ring of dark pink orbs in the high sky, things were off.

Gajeel looked up, his mouth gaping. "How's this happening?"

Sting looked over towards Rogue. "Wait, weren't we sucked up along with them?"

"I guess not."

In front of Mercurius, Wendy was all alone as everyone but her was sucked up in the spatial darkness. "Carla?! Vanessa?! Lucy?!" She looked around, her little fists tight. "This is bad."

The citizens and all that weren't trapped looked on from above, realizing the one flaw that unfolded. The flaw being that only the Dragon Slayers were left unhindered.

"Wait, they weren't sucked up like we were?" Vanessa wondered.

Laxus looked around, his eyes narrow. "I don't know about you guys, but I got a grave feeling going on."

"You mean besides the fact that only us Dragon Slayers are the only ones not up there?" Gajeel wondered in sarcasm.

"Somethin' like that."

Rogue's eyes narrowed. "I've got a feeling the omens are just to come."

* * *

In the world inhabited by Pokémon, there were many Water-Types, an abundance that thrived in ponds, rivers, seashores, and more commonly, the vast ocean sea. That's where the two Nics were.

With help from Dialga and Palkia, the two were making progress to their stop at the dark trenches within the seas of a region they were not familiar with. According to Dialga this region they were close to was more likely known as the Hoenn Region, but just because it's not Kalos doesn't mean there were still some familiar sites like Luvdisc, Chinchou, Clamperl, Tentacool, and Tentacruel; and the farther and darker the two ventured, the more colder, and more abysmal it seemed to get. And Pokémon like Relicanth, Huntail. Gorebyss, Starmie, and even Cloystered were clustered together.

The two were jetting down as fast as possible, using their Splash Plate Forms to slip and sink into the waters of the trenches. Their destination was amongst them.

"This is got to be the deepest trench in the world, right?" Nic asked.

Future Nic nodded. "Yes, which is precisely where our ally is to be."

The two slowly sank into the black trench, where they could only hear the sound of water. The water pressure was heavy down where they were, and so had to be aware of what may be down where they were. They were also wise to not use their Pokémon, exclude Greninja, because pressures this deep could very well be…

As they took the initiative and swam along the dark trench floors, Relicanth swimming away from them out of the shock of their pace, the water seemed to feel off.

"The water…it's dense." Nic said. "You think this is the work of Lysandre?"

Future Nic looked towards him as they swam, their vision being supported by the edges of their waterproof coats glowing angler-like lights.

"…it has to be the case. With Arceus's life unstable, I fear that cataclysms are starting to spread. Do you remember when we first ventured into these waters?"

"Yeah, it's best you don't remind me."

Sad to say, things were very on edge. On the surface, waves were gigantic, tsunamis were going all over the place. Cyclones and stormy skies were all across the landscape. The tallest sea stacks known in the world, as reports put it, where demolished by these huge waves. Beaches were closed, and citizens and Pokémon alike were advised to move inland until these storms passed. That would've been bad enough, but the fact was also that random hotpots erupted through the sea, creating new land in random places, including over giant shipwrecks. Natural disasters were happening all over the world, and scientists had reported that the energy levels are far from natural, and that it's like an astronomical force, but couldn't prove it. They even gathered reports from places like the Johto Region's Cianwood City, where it was flooded and the folk had to move within inland of the island. Cyclones and hurricanes, mixed with lightning, even ravaged Route 8 of Kalos, nearly putting the entire beach reaching for miles underwater. The weather was out of control, much to the Weather Trio's shock, and they all knew it was due to the instability of the end approaching, but they had to keep hopes up, even in the darkest of times – and waters.

Their stop was present up ahead. The two Nics were wide-eyed when they saw what was out before them.

The trenches ceased and in front was a massive darkness. Whereas the trenches were ending on either end. It was like…a dead end. It was their destination.

Both Nics looked at one another warily and back at the darkness ahead. Nic took a slow step through the trench rocks, advancing to only a few paces away from the ledge.

He finally spoke. "Hear me, do you not?"

A massive outline of a figure was seen, and it was as big as can get. The red outlines were clearly visible on its body, especially the arm-like hands. Its yellow eyes opened up again, and the two could sense the swell of a small current that nearly whisked them away if not for their hands anchoring them to the ground.

And that was just a yawn of the beast.

Future Nic recuperated himself from that shock of a current-like yawn and narrowed his eyes. "It's us, Nic Pularis."

"…so, you traveled all the way to the darkest seas to reach me." The voice of the large beast called. "I remember you now, it was seven years ago…that black beast from that one world." His throat bellowed, making the trench ledge the two were on rumble briefly. They were lucky to have held their ground. "I still remember the fight like yesterday. I then wake up to find the sea in desperation, yet I have no control."

"We understand your aggravation." Nic implied. "It's because the end is drawing near, but to avert it, we need your help…Kyogre."

The Sea Basin Pokémon's image became clear in the waters, his face intimidating and his teeth all shown. The Legendary sea-basin dweller growled out again.

"…what do you need?" He asked.

* * *

A loud clang echoed all over Kalos, and everyone's confusion was diverted towards the overview of the Eclipse Gate, where Wendy looked up and saw that all of the twelve Zodiac checkpoints were met with. Hisui and Arcadios both went wide eyed as the Eclipse Gate was changing a few gears, and then the doors began to open up.

"The gates are opening." Wendy muttered, where she looked down at her feet as a hot mist eroded beneath her knees.

"The gates are opening, but we're not down there." Lucy said.

"So that's the Eclipse Gate." Juvia said. "I feel so much dark power, even in this."

"Still, even if we're up here…" Hisui looked nervous and looked like she was gonna collapse. "We should have a salvaged fu-!"

A rumble erupted from the ground, more concentrated on the Eclipse Gate, startling everyone. The Dragon Slayers on the ground began to question as they felt the quaking.

"You guys feel that?"

"Yeah. It's big."

"You think it's the Dragons coming?"

"I don't know, but we've gotta be ready."

Laxus looked up at a balcony. "Let's get to a high point."

Wendy was backing away and out of the way as the rumbling from the Eclipse Gate was getting louder. Her heart rate was fast, so fast that she was pale. "What's happening?" She questioned. She looked at the gate, her eyes widening when she saw a figure venture through it. "Uh…!" She gasped in fright.

"…no."

A humungous figure ventured out from the gates. It wasn't some random beast or figure, rather…a Dragon. The Dragon had adamantine scales with spirals on every plate. The scales were smooth around the eyes, and light marking jutted up beneath the snout, as to where the mouth had razor-sharp teeth. The huge, scaly wings were folded. Five talons were on each foot, with two scales on the end of the tail.

Everyone above, including Crime Sorciere, Doranbolt, Fairy Tail; the population was stricken with fright as the Dragon stepped out of the Eclipse Gate, roaring and shuddering the airspace around.

Arcadios's eyes were wide in horror. "No way."

Hisui's eyes dilated. "A Dragon went through the gate? How…?"

The Dragon opened his large mouth and roared. The bellow was so massive it was like a tempest that destroyed nearby statues and cracked the ground beneath. Wendy held onto the earth and violently shuddered as her mind was going blank.

"Wendy!" Carla shouted in worry, but no sound could get through the distorted orbs suspending anyone.

The Dragon raised a claw and slammed it to the earth. A shockwave went straight forward, obliterating the rows of buildings in line of the shockwave that stretched for miles across Crocus. Everyone watching cringed as that was but one hand to the ground.

"I can't believe my eyes." Erza said.

"That Eclipse sends powerful Dragons to our time?!" Gray exclaimed. "What the hell is going on?!"

* * *

Inside Mercurius, Natsu felt the earth rumble. Future Rogue frowned and stopped to look outside the shattered windows.

Natsu's eyes widened. "What was that…?"

Future Rogue chuckled. "It would seem that the gates have finally opened."

Natsu's fists clenched. "Whatever you're up to, does it have something to do with this dark power looming around?"

Future Rogue smirked. "To be honest, this dark power isn't my doing, but it sure is keeping all of the ignorance suspended to watch their demise." His head turned towards the outside. "Take a look."

Natsu looked out the window towards his side, his mind racing fast as his heart rate. To his and Future Rogue's startled demeanors, they were all seeing dark pink orbs making a massive ring that stretched for miles. Individual bodies were inside each one. He looked shocked when he saw Lucy and Future Lucy in two.

"No! Guys!" Natsu screamed.

Future Rogue turned back towards them. "I have no clue myself, and that isn't a lie." He assured. "But it sure is helping me keep everyone in a front row seat for what's to come."

"A seat for what?"

Future Rogue became shadows, traveling out of the window. "I must go and greet my pets."

"Hey, wait!" Natsu's call fell on deaf ears when Future Rogue was gone. He stared out at the open windows, glaring up as the unthinkable had erupted, and no one knew what was going on. Natsu's fists clenched and his teeth grinded against the other. "This ain't over…not by far."

* * *

Another Dragon ventured out of the gates. This one was blue with gray bubble-like spots running along the back. A back fin started from the head and went down the back and reaching the tail. He had large wings included, and his snout was shorter than the first. The sideburns were large fins, indicating him to be an aquatic Dragon with a small tuft that was a beard at his chin.

The one proceeding him was a Dragon that was all fire, pure fire. He had the figure of a Dragon with wings, limbs, and tail included. He almost seemed to be a burning skeleton in a way.

The three Dragons walked into Crocus, not minding the buildings that crumbled at their feet, or the monuments that their wings and tail demolished. All the knights and everyone suspended in the air could do was just watched in shock as Dragons roamed through Crocus. Hisui herself looked as though she was witnessing an apocalypse unfold, and she felt like she was at the heart of it all.

Another Dragon emerged from the gates, this one being a dark pink dragon, with protrusions on the head and chin dark in color to look like pincers. Dark markings were all over its body, including the edges of the scales on the wing rims. The narrow head had sharp teeth, yellow eyes, and markings that resemble butterfly wings on the sides of the eyes.

Lucy pounded on her sphere, relentlessly trying to get out. "We gotta close the gate! We gotta do it now!"

Future Lucy's eyes were tearing up, her shock overwhelming her. "It's as we all feared…the end is coming."

Hisui was starting to cry just like Future Lucy. "I've had it wrong this whole time? The attacking Dragons come through the gate?"

Another Dragon thus entered, this one being a muscular, dark-colored one. This Dragon was black on the upper jaw and head, as well as the back, upper tail, arms, and talons. The lower jaw and belly had smooth red scales. Spikes ran along the spines and down the tail.

Wendy looked on in shock and disbelief, but her attention turned towards a familiar set of footsteps close by. She turned and saw someone that tried to hurt them before. "Future Rogue?"

Future Rogue's smirk was wide.

Hisui covered her mouth. "That's the traitor! He's the one who told me of Eclipse!"

Everyone looked down at Future Rogue and was shocked that it really was Rogue of the future, shocking Sabertooth without any exception.

"Why hello, young Wendy." Future Rogue greeted through the violent wings of the Eclipse Gate, the Dark Dragon venturing off into the city. "Seems you're taking a first-hand look at the Eclipse Gate."

Wendy clutched her fists as her hair shifted through the winds and the rumbling. "What is happening?! Are you responsible for this lie?!" She yelled through the carnage.

Future Rogue looked back up at the Dragons as he watched them all roar and walk through the desolate city, breaking apart buildings with a single tail slam. Their roars were so immense that the buildings in a nearby radius broke apart. Future Rogue couldn't help but feel satisfied with what he's done.

"Tell me!" Wendy yelled.

Future Rogue turned towards her. "You really that desperate? Very well, I'll explain it with the little time you have left in this world. The Eclipse Gate is made from Magic by the Book of Zeref combine with Celestial Spirit Magic. Normally anyone could use it as a gateway to whatever time period they desire, but…" His head turned towards the lunar eclipse above. "With the red moon above, the Magic is uncontrollable, and is set on the era of Dragons!"

"Era…" Elfman muttered.

"Of Dragons?" Lisanna continued.

Darton's eyes were wide. "He lied to us! This wasn't what he had told! He used us!"

As the Dragons roared and rampaged through Crocus, another Dragon emerged from the gates, much to Future Rogue's delight. This one was made out of plain rock, including the ridges and wings he had, but the underbelly was not so, but still rather rough-looking. The facial stones were arranged in a linear fashion to show the flat teeth and yellow eyes. He lacks a nose, and the tail end was like a club.

Laxus and the other Dragon Slayers watched as the Dragons roamed through Crocus, their eyes wide. The Lightning Dragon Slayer blinked. "Damn."

"That's putting it lightly." Gajeel muttered.

Sting's fists clenched. "This is bad. We gotta make our move!"

"I agree. We've gotta strike while we still can." Rogue confirmed.

The Dragon Slayers all ran down some steps and ventured off towards the mayhem ahead of them. Meanwhile, Wendy was still in front of the Eclipse Gate, startled as she was nowhere near an idea of how to close it as more Dragons emerged. She and Future Rogue were at a standoff, only able to watch as the Dragons all rampaged and began to fly through the skies, roaring out into the dark and foul air.

Hisui was spacing out, lost in her failure. "What have I done? I destroyed my kingdom…my incompetence will leave the world in ashes…and we can't stop it."

"How do I close it?!" Wendy panicked.

Future Rogue chuckled. "You can't. Only a Celestial Mage can seal it shut. With Lucy Heartfilia incapacitated, the world shall know its place at long last…"

Suddenly, the Eclipse Gate's inner light that was the gateway turned pitch black, much to everyone's shock.

"What?" Future Rogue questioned.

All of the population above looked on in shock as the gate was starting to look funny. Darkness swirled inside the gate, and the gate itself was starting to crack. Dark cracks ran along the entire gate, and parts were starting to scrunch and break apart.

"What?!" Future Rogue screamed. "N-no! Whoever's doing this, stop!"

To all that were baffled, the Eclipse Gate contorted and began to implode. Explosions went around from within, and Wendy and Future Rogue covered up as dark shockwaves made the ground pavement shatter, sending debris and the two Dragon Slayers soaring and screaming.

"Wendy!" Carla called out from her sphere in the sky.

The gate imploded and the material comprising it began to get sucked inside a black hole that the gate collapsed into. The parts and the gate entirely all went inside the black hole as the pavement beneath was sucked in as well. When the gate was completely left destroyed and out of existence, the black hole collapsed itself and vanished in a dark flash.

Future Rogue's eyes widened. "What…?"

"The gate…it just…" Wendy was in too big of disbelief to finish.

"Destroyed? But how?" Lucy muttered with hands over her mouth.

Levy's eyes were showing how scared she was as she was on her knees. "The gate became pure dark energy. The light inside turned into darkness, but how?"

"The gate destroyed itself?" Hisui looked baffled. Arcadios was just as shocked.

"Impossible. What force could do such a thing?" He clutched his teeth. "More importantly, what becomes of the Dragon Slayers now…?"

Future Lucy reached with her left arm – her only arm – and took out her small diary she held earlier. Her eyes scrutinized the contents that she managed to read and make with her pen. Her shock was still on her face.

"X791…July 7th…Dragon King Festival…it's true." She looked back down, watching the devastation unfold. "But, how…?" Her eyes were shuddering as her heart rate was just escalating. _'This was to be true, I was positive: When the gates of this time are destroyed, everything that is to happen is erased. But…why aren't the Dragons disappearing?! This can't be remotely possible, can it? Nic and I…we came back to avert and destroy the gates, and yet afterwards, the Dragons are to disappear and the future is saved, r-right?' _Her head drooped and she looked at her knees. _'Is an outside force doing this? Is everything I know a lie? I can't tell what is going on anymore…!'_

Future Rogue grunted in frustration as he looked at the empty space that was the Eclipse Gate's former spot. He looked away, huffing, with his smirk returning. "No matter, 10,000 is too many to control anyway." While he was just as baffled as everyone else, he was still satisfied with the few that ventured through. "So only seven Dragons came through, makes no difference in my opinion."

"Wendy!"

Wendy turned towards her side, looking to find Natsu running towards her side, finally finding an exit out of the castle. He ran towards her side, disregarding the Dragons in the skies.

"Natsu!" Wendy said with surprise. "You've made it!"

"Yeah." Natsu stopped right beside her and glared at Future Rogue, his fists clenched tight. "You…"

"Natsu Dragneel, glad you could join us." Future Rogue said. "Unfortunately, you're a little late. As you can see, seven Dragons have already came through the gates before they were destroyed by something."

Natsu gritted his teeth. "Well I don't know either, but I sure as hell am gonna stop you."

Future Rogue's smirk never left his face. "I highly doubt that." He raised his arms. "My ignorance subjects of Fiore! Listen well!" The Dragons roared as they all flew circles in the skies right over Future Rogue's head. "This is a message from your new King! I hereby declare the era of humans has come to an end! As of now and forevermore, this shall be the new age, the age of Dragons!"

The Dragons roared in unison, all of them hearing his declaration. The spectators and helpless citizens and Mages in the spheres in the skies were all startled by this declaration by the Future Rogue. Sophie's eyes were wide and shuddering with a memory that sure to stay in her mind, as with Rufus. Asuka was scared and fascinated at the same time, huddled in her sphere with her parents in desperation to comfort their daughter, but were unable to do anything but watch it all happen with a spine-shivering energy.

"This is bad." Doranbolt said.

"The Eclipse miraculously destroyed itself, but now the danger lies in the seven Dragons down there." His eyes narrowed. "But what Jellal brings up from before this is extremely convincing."

"I hope the message got to them in time." Doranbolt hoped.

* * *

In the Council HQ, Rune Knights were positioned far away from out of Crocus, using zoom-in lacrima vision that made them see the onslaught of Dragons emerging. Gran Doma was beyond shocked, and the Council was all included in this uproar. Their kingdom was to be doomed, and they could only watch as powerful, almighty beasts rampaged.

"This is beyond comprehension." A council member stated. "How dare Eclipse be used!"

"This shouldn't even be possible." Another one foretold. "These Dragons are just out of control!"

Gran Doma slammed his stave on the ground. "Silence!" He ordered, his attitude beyond grumpy. Org and all of the Council members looked towards him with bitter surprise. "So the Eclipse was used, and it's July 7th. An eclipse on this day, and this cannot make sense." He analyzed. "However, the circumstances are too bleak to ignore. I am afraid that we have to listen to Lahar and Doranbolt on this one."

"You meaning letting _him _out?" Org asked.

Gran Doma's eyes looked towards him. "See to it. Regulations prohibit such an act, but we have no option. He shall prove his reputation as such fitting against Dragons."

"Very well." Org got up from his Council seat and left the building. He hurriedly ventured over to where a certain building was, and he got clearance and the authority through all of the frogs working in that particular place. _'I still can't believe this is happening.' _Org thought as he went to a lower level of the building and into what was the dungeon. He walked with a set of keys and files he ascertained and he went down what was a dark hallway, a dungeon.

He stopped in front of a particular one. He looked inside of it and there was the figure as he was hunched over, looking groggy.

The figure smirked. "You call?"

"Thisis no time to joke." Org reprimanded. "Now listen well, we're not here to give you a midnight snack, but there's a certain crisis and we need your help…Cobra."

Cobra 's smirk widened. "A little Dragon Slayer action, I can hear the desperation." He chuckled, which only served the theme he was in with his dark cell. "I'll play."

* * *

"I order for all Dragons to eliminate the Dragon Slayers in this city! Every one of them dead at your feet!" Future Rogue shouted. The Dragons, much to everyone's shock, id as told and began to fly off towards the other dragon Slayers spread all over the city.

"No way…" Natsu looked up as the Dragons flew over his head.

Wendy covered her mouth. "They're actually listening to him?"

"Are you shocked? You should be." Future Rogue held out his palm and sneered. "How's the likes of my Dragon Supremacy Magic?"

"Dragon Supremacy?" Lily questioned.

"He can control Dragons?!" Jet exclaimed.

"No way!" Macao bellowed from his sphere. "They're dead!"

The first Dragon, revealed to be called Motherglare, put a hand to the ground, making the ground shake just a little. Future Rogue stepped back and put himself on the hand. "Let's go, Motherglare. We have a world to conquer."

Motherglare roared and he flapped his wings, taking flight back into the skies, carrying Future Rogue off into the skies.

"Grrrr! HEY WE'RE NOT DONE HERE!" Natsu took off after the Dragon that was flying off, leaving Wendy by herself.

"Natsu, wait-!" She gasped suddenly when she heard a Dragon growl over her head. She slowly turned around and looked up, her eyes widening with deep shock and horror of what was a familiar Dragon with an appetite. Her knees got weak and she was caught struck with horror.

The Dragon laughed at her scared face. "**GAAHAHAHAHA!**" He roared. "**A little frightened snack, how tasty!**"

The Dragon was none other than Zirconis, and he looked hungry as his teeth were shown and salivating, large drops hitting the ground. Wendy's mouth was gaping. "It's that Dragon we talked to! Zirconis!"

* * *

Gajeel looked up at what came down in front of him. The tremor came and went as the Dark Dragon roared at his victim.

"So you're the Dragon who I gotta slay, huh?" Gajeel wondered. He cracked his bandaged knuckles. "This should be somethin'."

In her sphere in the sky, Levy looked with worry. "Gajeel…"

* * *

Laxus crackled with lightning as he crossed his arms. He took in front of what was the flaming Dragon that was third out of the gates. "So this big guy wants to burn my insides, huh?"

The Dragon growled down at him. "**Pathetic human! I am Atlas Flame, and my hellfire shall burn your life away!**"

The lightning around Laxus surged harder than before. "Oh yeah? Let's see you back up those words."

* * *

Sting and Rogue found themselves back to back as they were pit against two Dragons. Sting was facing Scissor Runner, the Dragon with the pincers that had a vile look in his eyes. As to where Sting was against him, Rogue was against the sea-like Dragon who had his teeth bared at him, known as Levia.

"Looks like we got ourselves some Dragons to slay, huh Rogue?" Sting said rhetorically.

Rogue looked up at Levia as the blue beast's towering presence was more than a little overwhelming. "Don't underestimate them. We have to be careful, no matter what."

Both Dragons growled down as they closed in to attack, as to where Sting and Rogue went lunging after them.

* * *

Dark skies were all across the land. In a particular location, a dark spiraling sky was thundering so loud that it could be heard all the way out from the tower underneath to the marsh-like city that was south of it. The climate was more humid than what anyone could imagine, and lightning crackled in the dark swirling skies above the massive tower on a narrow peninsula known as Dragonspiral Tower, at least to what Dialga and Palkia foretold to the two that made their stop there next.

Running through the elaborate structure, bypassing all of the startled Druddigon and who or whatever may be around, both Nics jumped over a fallen pillar, landing on their two feet and running up to where the staircase was.

"We're near the top! Just a little farther now!" Future Nic exclaimed.

A massive rumbling and a bellowing roar was heard. They felt static flow through the air, which was felt even from the bottom of the massive tower. The rumbling was so massive that the flooring shook like it was a springboard, causing both Nics to lose their footing just a little. The roar slowly settled down, but at the price of another column tumbling down right behind the two Nics, breaking into stone fragments.

Nic turned back ahead, unfazed. "Let's move it!"

Both were very unfamiliar with this region. They were more affiliated with Kalos, but this was a new experience they were bound to uphold. First they had to go to the Hoenn Region, and now another unknown region they found somewhat intriguing yet still slightly incomprehensive, a region known as Unova. They were approaching their stop, and as they climbed the stairs, they were approaching their next destination, which was the top.

When both Nics finally reached the top, they were above the clouds that surged like a raging sea. When they peered below, blue lightning crackled with so much intensity. The top of the tower had a very narrow bridge that connected on part to a very open domain. The domain that was before them had crumbled pillars scattered all over, with several still standing, but broken in a few parts. Even though above some clouds, the skies were still dark.

"So he's here too, huh?" Nic figured.

"That has to be the case." Future Nic said, following Nic across the narrow bridge. Darkness loomed beneath it, meaning a single misstep and they fall to an agonizing demise.

They both made it across and slowly walked around, electricity crackling. This energy was packed with so much force, and they knew it was what would help them in what was to come. Both Nics looked around the open tower top, seeing no sign of what they seemed to be looking for.

"Is he not here?" Future Nic wondered, turning his head.

"No, he's here. Lightning crackles wherever he may be. This never-ending storm is a sure sign he's nearby." Nic figured.

Both Nics stopped when they were in the center of the top. They both waited very quietly as more static crackled around, so much that it was like blue fireworks going off, which was what left them both uneasy. They looked up to the black, night sky above, seeing the dark storm clouds swirl and surge.

A massive thunder boomed that got their attention straight above. Flashes of blue lightning surged through the sky. Another loud roar boomed, followed by lightning and thunder that multiplied in what was a blue center.

"He knows we're here." Future Nic said.

Nic stared up with a calm expression as his coat flapped in the ominous winds shifting.

A blue bolt shot down, a massive one, right in front of both Nics. The thunder boomed so loud that it shook the entire tower, cracking up the pillars some more on the sides. The two covered up as light blue lightning was in front of them, surging with violent force.

Both grunted and flipped on their sunglasses at the same time to reduce the strain on their eyes. They both looked back to see the lightning fade away, revealing a black dragon that was enormous and looking down at them.

The dragon roared through the blue lightning, and when they thought it was over, the beast's conical tail shined light blue like and a generator noise like a motor surged. The dragon's roar escalated and he discharged a massive blast of blue lightning in all directions. The entire tower and route around rattled from the thunder that traveled across the sky. In that swamp-like area northwest and through the mountain on the west, lightning and thunder raged through the sky included. In the very core of it all, both Nics slid back several feet as the dragon's discharge of electricity fell several pillars once more, and left chunks of the ground in ruin.

The dragon's roar eased up, and the flow of electricity finally ceased, leaving only thunder to bellow through the skies. The dragon's red eyes looked down at the two Nics as they lifted their sunglasses from that lightshow and looked dead in the eyes of the beast. The dragon's eyes narrowed again and he roared once more, quaking Dragonspiral Tower once more, but both Nics held their ground this time.

The two-on-one stare down was brief, but very effective as the familiar black dragon took notice of the two's eyes, those that he remembered full well. "Nic Pularis, yes?"

"So you do remember." Nic said.

The beast nodded. "Yes, as I remember. There is more than just my thunderstorms in this ghastly nighttime. There is blasphemy and scorn in these dark clouds, which I can't control."

Future Nic stepped forward. "Which is why we've come to ask for your help."

The beast raised his head, a low silence emanating from all around, until a thunder boomed beneath them, vibrating the tower again.

"If it is my help you ask for, then your ideals are of salvation." He said.

Nic looked relieved behind his calm façade. "Thank you for understanding…Zekrom."

Zekrom roared up to the dark skies, his roar like that of a violent thunderstorm, which set off crackling blue lightning all around.

* * *

**In a way, this chapter, I'm 'setting the stage' sort of speak. I got everyone in their seats to get a view of what's to come. I've added a great deal of originality as intended, and will do so for the remainder of the story. All that was logic from before is pretty much broken, like the Eclipse, Dragons not disappearing, but it's nothing to worry about too much. There's a reason why all that happened, and it'll come to fruition in a few chapters, unless you understand already, in which case I still rather not spoil.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you all are loving the originality and the battles that are to unfold.**

* * *

**Next Time: Draconic Rampage**


	82. Draconic Rampage

Chapter 82 – Draconic Rampage

**As much as it pains for me to say this, I'm afraid we're on the last few chapters coming up. I know you all wanted so much more, especially with how I got Pokémon incorporated into the plot, but that shall be for when the story itself is over. With these last few chapters coming up, I wanna say thanks to those who've been waiting for the final battle to unfold, and it won't be long until it comes to fruition. For now, enjoy chapter 82!**

**To Recap:**

After the Grand Magic Games ended, Hisui is confronted by Arcadios, where the two realized that the Lucy and Nic of the future were proceeded with another person who advised Hisui. The identity was Future Rogue, who attempted to kill Lucy, but Vanessa and Magnezone saved them in the nick of time. As Natsu fights Future Rogue, the gates start opening. The King rounds up everyone to accept their help to deal with the 10,000 Dragons that were to come, but a sudden dark energy erupts and the night sky turns pitch black. Everyone, except Dragon Slayers, were suspended on spatial energy and watched in horror as the Dragons enter through the gate. To everyone, even Future Rogue's, shock, the gate was suddenly destroyed by a dark force, and that left the Dragon Slayers scattered to fend against them, including the released Cobra. Meanwhile, in the world of Pokémon, natural calamities erupt, and Nic and his future self traveled undersea and up Dragonspiral Tower to ascertain help from Kyogre and Zekrom.

* * *

**Chapter 82 – Draconic Rampage**

Overlooking the Crocus incident, the recently released Cobra had a hand in his coat pocket as he heard the Dragons roar even from such a distance. His hearing could pick up the darkness and bloodshed; it was a grotesque noise. Sure, he loved the sound of anguish and despair, but something about this hollow retribution made him feel deaf every now and again.

"I don't know what I'm supposed to be hearing right now, but I know I should be giving my regards to Jellal for this." He figured with a sneer. "But that'll have to wait, because I got a little poison to put into these overgrown lizards and their hides."

Cobra ventured downwards with no attention, giving him a chance to sneak through the crags and into the fray.

* * *

In the unknown skies devoid of any light, the Dragon King soared as fast as a fighter jet, his speed breaking the sound barrier. Too bad no one could hear him from the sky-high altitude he was at, otherwise they would've shivered at the unknown creature of draconic darkness that was speeding along after Crocus. The closer he got, the more anticipation he felt run through his scales. He's been waiting for this chance for seven long years. After hiding, he finally gets a chance to rip apart the ones who tarnished his reputation as the Dragon King. The very thought made him speed faster for vengeance.

The Dragon King roared louder than before, his declaration of besting the Legendary Pokémon to unfold. He flapped his massive, damaged wings and soared through the pitch black skies, his image soaring across the red moon over everyone's head.

* * *

Natsu ran as fast as he could towards Motherglare, the Dragon that had Future Rogue on his back with a smirk. Natsu's blood boiled to the extreme as he watched the massive beast ascend higher, leaving him with no hope of reaching him.

"Oh no you don't! Get back here!" Natsu roared above. Using his feet, he created jet-like fire that propelled him like a rocket. If anyone was watching him, which was a massive population, they'd see a flaming missile soaring through the skies and reaching Motherglare's back.

"Natsu…" Future Lucy watched as Natsu shot up through the atmosphere, her eyes misting as she saw him still facing fear in the face, the same guy who perished in the future.

Natsu ended up above Motherglare, his propulsion dissipating and instead a massive flaming fist arose. Future Rogue turned around and saw Natsu right over his head, much to his shock. _'Natsu?!' _With his guard up, he blocked with his right forearm as Natsu's fist made contact, exerting a great burst of fire all across Motherglare's scaly back. Future Rogue slid back on the Dragon closer towards the neck, regaining his footing.

"I forgot how persistent you can be." Future Rogue scowled, his smirk gone.

Natsu planted his feet on Motherglare's back, his scorn reminiscent of an angry Dragon. "What are you trying to accomplish here? Tell me!" He rushed ahead with another flaming fist, but instead of blocking, Future Rogue's arm was cloaked in shadows. Both Dragon Slayers punched forward, fire and shadow fused in a massive turbulence. The shockwaves made Natsu fly back and thud on his back while Future Rogue slid back on his feet.

The Dragon manipulator smirked. "You really wanna know?" He asked. "You know that I told you that in the future, Dragons will obliterate everything. However, the ones before you aren't the ones in charge."

"So the seven out now aren't calling the shots?" Natsu questioned.

"That's right, because in the future, one Dragon stands above all others. You've encountered him before, haven't you?" Future Rogue's eyes narrowed. "The Black Dragon, Acnologia."

Natsu's eyes also narrowed. "I don't believe you!" He rushed ahead with his whole body aflame and went head first into Future Rogue, but with one hand, the recipient blocked the assault and the flames dissipated. Natsu's eyes widened. "What?!"

"The future holds no guilds, and all were slayed by Acnologia. He sits at the top of the food chain. I tried to conquer him with my Dragon Supremacy Magic, but it had no effect on him."

Natsu's eyes widened further. _'Wait…!' _He remembered full well of what the spirit of Zirconis said on that night. Acnologia was once human, but bathed in dragon blood and thus turned into a Dragon himself. His human origins may be the reason why the Magic had no effect on him. This revelation was a real eye-opener to say the least.

"And now, only Dragons can harm him!" Future Rogue thought, though Natsu knew that it was a false concept. "My plan was to trick Princess Hisui and bring over countless Dragons from the past to the present. That strange power only made seven Dragons pass through, but my Magic gives me complete control over all of them at once. Acnologia doesn't stand a chance." He clenched his fist tight, feeling the power within him grow in intensity. "And so, I will become the new Dragon King! And rule all over humans and Dragons!"

Hisui gasped and covered her mouth. Her pupils dilated uncontrollably. _'He did use us all.'_

'_That's the true reason. He wanted domination.' _Arcadios mentally scowled.

"To become the new Dragon King…" Gray said.

"Messed up would be putting the matter lightly." Lily commented.

"Despicable." Carla sniped.

"Now, begone!" Future Rogue swiped his arm, sending a cyclone of shadows that swallowed up Natsu and sent him spiraling in the air. The Dragon Slayer screamed as he spun uncontrollably and thudded along Motherglare's back scales. He grunted through the pain he felt and managed to find his footing near the tail.

Natsu lit ablaze again and lunged after Future Rogue once more, both ready to engage again in a collision of Dragons.

* * *

The Dark Dragon lashed his tail viciously at Gajeel, but even though the tail knocked through several buildings in a single swoop, Gajeel jumped up and dodged the tail. Beneath him, buildings crumbled and fell, in which he landed on debris and turned his legs into columns that shot him towards the Dark Dragon towering over him.

"**Iron Dragon's Sword!**"

Gajeel's arm became a long, jagged sword of iron that slashed diagonally. The Dragon Slayer followed through and landed on the ground, his eyes widening when he saw no visible gashes. "Not even a scratch?" He jumped up again, reeling his fist back as it became solid iron. "Then how's about this instead?! **Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!**" He punched hard right in the beast's chest. The shock and sound was like a bell that rang like one included. However, Gajeel's snicker afterwards was short-lived when the Dark Dragon roared again, making Gajeel bounce right off of him and be sent flying into the debris field below.

"Gajeel!" Lily and Levy shouted from their spheres.

The dust settled and Gajeel was back on his feet, wiping the dust from his lip. "Damn, you're a tough sucker, aren't you?" He looked up with his arm morphing into a column of iron. He went and lunged after the Dark Dragon once more as he glared down at him. "Ain't no stopping me!"

"**We'll see about that, human!**" The Dark Dragon challenged.

* * *

"HRAH!" A Holy Ray was unleashed by Sting against Scissor Runner, the Dragon Slayer being cloaked in his White Drive as a precaution. He fired so many arrows of light at Scissor Runner and the beast roared in agitation of the attack being inflicted onto him. Sting stopped his attack and looked in shock as Scissor Runner had no visible wounds.

"Nothing?!" Sting exclaimed.

Scissor Runner glared down at Sting. "**Foolish human, that meant nothing! You call yourself a Dragon Slayer!**" He slammed his huge hand down onto Sting, yet he dodged the huge hand with sharp claws and took a big leap. "**What?**"

"How's about this instead! **White Dragon's Roar!**" Sting fired a concentrated beam of light and scored hit right in Scissor Runner's face, causing the Dragon to go blind and reel his head away, shaking it to rid of the temporary vision reduction.

"That just blinded him?!" Sting growled. He clenched his fists tighter in frustration. "Man, these guys are tougher than we thought."

"We have to keep fighting! The future of Fiore depends on our success!" Rogue reasoned as his back was to Sting's. He fired scales of shadows from his palm and projected them at Levia, who took the attack to the chest. Rogue didn't let out as he opened his mouth and fired a beam of shadows at him again in the chest.

Rogue looked at the devastation made, but found himself baffled as Levia had no damage taken as it seems. "No way…"

"**Rogue, you and the others are much too weak to defeat a Dragon.**" Levia reasoned, much to Rogue's shock.

"How do you know me?" Rogue asked.

"**I was specifically instructed to spare your life, so that you can live on and rule the world.**"

"By who?!"

"**Look up.**" Levia insisted. Rogue did as the Dragon insisted and looked up into the skies above. Over their heads was Motherglare, and on his back was Natsu and…

"Is that…?" Rogue eyes widened when he saw his future-self deliver a roundhouse kick to Natsu's chin, sending him back several feet. "No way."

"**That's right, Rogue. That's you.**" Levia said. "**In the future, you take over humanity, and we oblige by your request. You may not have the desire now, but deep down there is a darkness that lies in your heart that waits to be unleashed. Soon, when your heart becomes shadow, you and the Future Rogue shall merge, and your power will be great enough to triumph the world. You may as well give if you know what's good you and your health.**"

Rogue looked down at the ground, his eyes looking down at his shadow as it was as black as a normal night sky. It looked viciously at Rogue, and Rogue unconsciously clenched his fists tighter. _'Is what he says true? If that is me, can I really change that?'_

"I'm calling bullcrap on that!"

Levia and Rogue looked in astonishment and shock as Sting had his back turned towards Scissor Runner, his body shining with Dragon Force white scales. They saw the scowl on his face that said the same thing in the same tone.

"You think Rogue gives a crap about that? I've known him for a long time, and he values friends more than what Sabertooth ever could! As long as we're by his side, he'll never turn his back on us!" Light gathered in his palm, a very concentrated amount. "Who cares about the future? We'll change it for the better! One that'll live up to courage and family!"

Scissor Runner charged after Sting, but the Dragon was caught surprised when Sting pivoted and punched forward. A large point-blank light exploded when Sting's fist collided with Scissor Runner's snout. The Dragon reeled back from the smoke and watched with a growl as Sting was reduced to being on his knees, but he got back up again.

He looked back at Rogue. "Isn't that right?"

Rogue looked with shock, which eventually evolved into a smile and a nod. "You're right." He turned back around facing Levia once more, his concentration and resolution restored. "Because we are the Twin Dragons! We're a team!"

"Hell yeah we are, so let's kick their asses!"

Rogue glanced up at Levia with determination and pride. _'Sting's right. As long as he's around, I won't fall into darkness. He and I have another's back; if I'm to be tainted by the darkness, at least he'll be there to end me before it happens.' _His skin began to exert shadows as his Dragon Force began to awaken, black scales emerging all over his body. "If I'm going down into darkness, I'm going down fighting!"

Levia raised a brow. "**Oh? Then perhaps Future Rogue won't mind if I just break a few of your bones in the process. We'll have it your way if that'll suffice.**"

"I wouldn't dream of having it any other way!" Rogue shouted.

* * *

Zirconis ran his fingers through one of the two large hairs on his green chin. His conspicuous gaze was down towards Wendy, who seemed shocked to say the very least. The sight was enough to leave Zirconis in a chuckling mood.

"**Aw, the little small fry is scared. How appropriate.**" Zirconis mused.

"Zir…Zirconis?" Wendy questioned. She looked at the massive Dragon as he glowered down at her with a cocky smirk and having his rows of sharp teeth protruding. _'This can't be the Zirconis we spoke to recently…can it?' _She shook her head, trying to retain her focus and her one job of slaying him. _'No, wait, he can't be. He would've been dead for a long time. This Zirconis just came from the past, so he can't know who I am. I have to destroy him, I've got to!' _Wendy took a step forward, taking a fighting stance.

"Well Zirconis, I've got Magic that's even scarier. And it'll be used to destroy you where you stand!" She declared.

Zirconis's smirk was fueled further. "**Oh~? That's a bold statement…**"His wings were spread, the wingspan being bigger than what anyone watching from in their spheres imagined it to be. Zirconis's mouth opened wide. "**This will be amusing! Show me before I snack on ya!**" He bellowed, rattling the earth beneath and sending poor Wendy flying back from his roar.

"Wendy!" Carla shouted in worry.

"I remember that Dragon. Zirconis." Erza muttered. "Wendy should be careful."

Wendy found her feet on the ground and began to take in the surrounding air that gathered in her cheeks. "**Sky Dragon's Roar!**" She fired a tornado from her mouth, which swirled and blasted right through the tainted air and debris and scored a large-scaled hit on Zirconis. The Dragons grunted as he felt a massive puff of wind make him reel his head away.

"**Grrr, how's about quiet time for you!**" Zirconis retaliated with a single flap of his wings. That one flap was massive, and the maelstrom made by that single flap was like a small hurricane that went right through Wendy's roar, dissipating the attack. Wendy screamed as she was sent flying by the raging assault; and as she shot back, buildings behind her crumbled from the gust Zirconis whipped up.

Through the dust, Wendy made whirlwinds around her arms, blowing away the dust secluding her from Zirconis. She looked a little roughed up from that attack, but she was far from finished.

"I'm not done with you!" She lashed her arms forward, sending the two whirlwinds at Zirconis. "**Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!**"

Her attack landed another hit on Zirconis, but all that seemed to have done was just brush off the dirt on his scales. He sneered with glee as Wendy's spell was brushed away by one swipe of his hand.

"He…?!" Wendy was in shock as her attacks weren't doing much damage on Zirconis.

The Dragon's eye narrowed as his smirk widened. "**Now, I believe dinner is served.**"

* * *

Laxus was staring up at Atlas Flame, the flaming creature growled as his fire was so bright that it could've been seen from the far mountains. Everyone in the spheres continued watching the bitter struggle, especially Freed and the Thunder God Tribe as they watched in heavy desperation over Laxus up against a Dragon.

"**Lightning Dragon's Roar!**"

A blast of concentrated lightning blasted at Atlas Flame. The beam could've wiped out a small Dark Guild if possible. A catastrophic explosion bellowed, sending smoke in all directions. Laxus remained silent, but anticipated as he looked on as the smoke dispersed, revealing Atlas Flame unhindered. "Not even a scratch?"

Atlas Flame bellowed out at Laxus down below. "**Perish, human! Atlas Flame shall make you feel the hellfire that burns from within!**" Atlas Flame opened his mouth and fired a massive beam of super-heated fire. The fire blasted along the ground, and Laxus covered up as he was blown away long with the debris as the fire scorched and incinerated through an entire row of buildings, creating rumbling that could be heard from everyone above.

From the debris piled all along the wide street, Laxus used one muscular hand and lifted the rock over him. He looked with a scowl at Atlas Flame again.

"You're a real piece of work." He said. "Perhaps another million volts to your face will shut you up!" He clenched his fists and electricity surged through his body. Lightning crackled in his arms as a discharge occurred over Atlas Flame's head.

"**Hm?**" Looking up, Atlas Flame saw a humungous orb of lightning, having great power wielded within.

"**Raging Bolt!**" Laxus brought his arm down, and with it the massive bolt followed. Atlas Flame roared as he was it with a countless voltage of crackling, thunderous lightning. The area rattled from the vibrating thunder. The flashing kept erupting and Laxus seemed more at ease.

"That should leave a mark or two…" He heard some shifting overhead, and a shadow was underneath. Looking up in wonder, he saw a colossal foot made of solid rock come down onto him. "Aw crap!" He hurried and became lightning; in a flash, he disappeared from the spot and reappeared in a solid in midair, overlooking and witnessing the Rock Dragon had made his move.

"So that guy's bugging me too, is he?" He landed on the ground, sliding back several feet towards Atlas Flame. When he stopped, he looked at the Rock Dragon with a scowl. "Well this bites."

"**Atlas Flame, shall I assist?**" The Rock Dragon asked.

Atlas Flame, the lightning having no effect on him yet again, looked up at the Dragon that got Laxus cornered in between them. "**Carraigia, I am Atlas Flame! My hellfire shall burn this human to nothing where he stands!**"

Laxus looked up at the two Dragons towering over him, his predicament increasing. "Well this bites. Looks like it's two on one. Just my luck-!"

A sudden shock came to everyone watching, even Laxus was surprised. A massive geyser of poison blossomed on Carraigia's back. Laxus's eyes widened in surprise over the poison blooming.

'_Poison?' _He thought. He realized his attention was to the Dragon that was hit and saw Atlas Flame's mouth open as he went to attack. Laxus crackled in lightning and dodged overhead as the ground blasted apart from Atlas Flame. He let put a roar and fired another concentrated beam of lightning right in the middle of Atlas Flame's face, causing the living hellfire to moved his head and shake off the lightning.

With this chance, Laxus landed and turned around, seeing who was atop of Carraigia. To everyone's shock, it was a familiar sight.

"I can hear it." He said. "The sounds of confusion and anguish, it's like a melody playing in my head!" The person was revealed to be Cobra, and he cloaked his hands in poison and punched onto the back of the Dragon's head, making geysers of poison erupt. Carraigia moved his head about as poison gushed until Cobra finally jumped off, landing on the ground behind Laxus.

"This guy's voice is like hell. Really don't wanna hear that." The Poison Dragon Slayer said.

"I'll say." Laxus said as he looked over his shoulder at Cobra. "So you're the so-called Dragon Slayer, huh?"

Cobra didn't bother looking back at Laxus as he sneered. "You're one to talk."

Both Dragons roared down at the Second Generation Dragon Slayers, catching their attention.

Laxus seemed annoyed just as much as Cobra was. "Yeah, I can understand why your ears are annoyed. These things are like Vulcans ready to keel over." His body crackled in lightning, ready to strike at Atlas Flame.

Cobra's hands were cloaked in heavy poison. "These things need to keep their ugly mouths shut. For the record, I'm in a good mood since I was given a freebie from my stay in prison, and I wanna take in as much voices as I possibly can. Only…" He began to look irritated. "This giant freak of nature is making it hard for me to hear any of them!"

Laxus and Cobra both lunged at their respective Dragons, getting back into the fray. As Cobra dodged a giant hand, he landed on Carraigia and punched downwards, unleashing point-blank poison yet again, including from inside Carraigia's mouth. Watching above, Kinana looked with shock an awe as she saw Cobra entering the fray. _'It's him…'_ She thought, recalling meeting him from the Infinity Castle dilemma. _'My Erik, he's fighting too!'_

"Go, Laxus!" The Thunder God Tribe shouted as Laxus bombarded Atlas Flame with a barrage of lightning bolts.

* * *

Future Rogue ducked from a kick by Natsu. He smirked and became a shadow that moved around Natsu, whose knows was picking up something from behind him. When Natsu looked back, seeing the menace reappearing from his shadow form, he was met with another torrent of shadows that pushed him back. Natsu put a hand on the Dragon's back to keep him from slipping so far back as he fell closer towards the edge.

"Give up, Natsu." Future Rogue said. "I'm a lot stronger than I was during the Games so long ago. I have the power to rule you all with these Dragons!"

With no delay, Future Rogue fired another vicious wave of shadows at Natsu, but he propelled himself upwards with his feet hit ablaze and came down onto Future Rogue with an axe kick of fire. The assault was blocked by a forearm, and Future Rogue swiped his arm, making Natsu slid back on Motherglare's back again.

"You're doing all of this, just so you can become the Dragon King?" Natsu growled. "I've heard of pretty messed up things before, but yours is just breaking the bar."

"Don't make me laugh. My goal can and will be accomplished." Future Rogue replied. "I will usher the age of Dragons, and all who stand before me will feel my wrath!"

Natsu began to feel a very powerful Magic surge as shadows converged around Future Rogue. His dark smirk made the whole ensemble.

"I've dreamed of such power, and now I have it! ACNOLOGIA WILL PERISH BEFORE ME! AND SO WILL YOU, NATSU DRAGNEEL!"

Natsu saw what was an intensified blast of shadows concentrated into another spear just like with what he attempted with Future Lucy. This time, Natsu was ready.

"**Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!**" He bellowed. He made a great surge of fire pour into his palms and a large and heated fireball was made overhead. With a roar that bellowed like that of a Dragon's, Natsu through the fireball at point-blank range, making shadow collide with fire yet again.

Future Rogue reeled back as the unstable fire and shadow began to mix together, even Natsu was startled by this and both went wide-eyed as a major flash blinded them both.

Everyone watching saw a huge explosion on Motherglare's back. The Dragon roared in pain as he felt the attack engulfing his back. To their disbelief, they all saw the Dragon's painful cry and bellow, meaning that the level of power was able to injure him. They also saw Natsu and Future Rogue both shoot off from Motherglare's back, both falling down below.

"Natsu!" Lucy and Happy shrieked. Future Lucy gasped.

Future Rogue was caught by Motherglare's open hand, saving him from a disastrous fall, but Natsu was nowhere near lucky as he plummeted down to sunder. He shrieked as he fell down through cold night air. He was completely helpless as he fell as not even Happy could save him.

"Gngh! Crap!" He yelled. He opened his eyes, his body turning onto his stomach as he fell like a rock, his momentum included relentless as he fell faster than before. "Aw man! Why did Happy have to get suspended?! WAAAAH!" He shrilled a cry as he fell further.

As he fell like a flaming star, he took notice of something ablaze beneath him. To his curiosity, he saw what was a huge Fire Dragon that was hard to spot if one was blind. "A real…Fire…Dragon…" He began to smirk mischievously as he fell further, his mouth opening.

"Alright! I got myself an all you can eat buffet!" He yelled joyfully.

Down beneath, Laxus and Atlas Flame were completely unaware of what was Natsu coming down. Laxus was on the ground as he made a massive concentration of lightning into what was a halberd. "**Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd!**" Laxus threw the halberd at his target, and when it made contact, it exploded and discharged lightning to a potent level, rattling the ground beneath Atlas Flame.

"That should shut you up." He said. However, when he heard a chuckle, his eyes widened. "What?"

The smoke cleared, revealing Atlas Flame unharmed and smirking. "**Foolish human, that had no damage dealt. My hellfire burns Magic.**" The Dragon informed in a taunting tone.

Laxus cursed underneath his breath. "Damnit. No matter what I try, this guy's untouchable. What lousy luck…"

Both Laxus and Atlas Flame heard something like a jet, but it was coming from straight over their heads and it had a mop of pink on it. As it fell, Laxus saw what was coming down.

"Natsu?!" He questioned in shock.

"HAHA!" Natsu fell with satisfaction and rumbling stomach. He crashed right atop of Atlas Flame's head, and the huge Dragon growled from the sudden thump to the head. "A real Fire Dragon, alright!"

"**Who are you, pest?! You dare crash on me?!**" Atlas Flame bellowed.

"I'm Natsu Dragneel!" Natsu introduced. "I do dare…to eat ya!"

He opened his mouth and began to devour Atlas Flame's fire, sucking it up like a vacuum. Laxus hung his mouth wide open in disbelief over Natsu's 'strategy', and the same shock from everyone, especially Happy and the two Lucys, was no different.

Erza pinched the bridged of her nose. "Oh geez."

"That idiot's always thinking with his stomach." Gray sighed.

Atlas Flame's eyes widened. "**You? Eat me?!**" He roared and began swaying his head around. "**There's no way!**"

"Oh yes it is pal, and your flames are so delicious!" Natsu muffled as fire continued going into his gut. He held on as Atlas lame rammed his head into the ground, trying to scrape him off to no avail as the Fire Dragon Slayer was like a parasite. As Atlas Flame raised his head, Natsu was still perched and held on tight, continuing to take in the flames.

"The hell are you doing, Natsu?" Laxus called up as the Dragon had his tail to him.

"The heck's it look like?! I'm getting this guy into my belly!" The Dragon Slayer shouted.

Laxus sweat dropped. "What?"

"Just hurry towards Wendy! She needs backup!"

Laxus looked down at the ground, contemplative about the scenario. It's true that when he thought about it, Wendy was rather inexperienced and rather young. However he saw it, each Dragon Slayer was all alone in this fight, and there was no way they were gonna breach and get any outside help with the distorted orbs having everyone captive in the sky. After thinking about it for a bit, Laxus looked back at Natsu on Atlas Flame's head.

"You sure you got this one?" He called out.

"Hell yeah! This one's all mine!" Natsu yelled. Laxus thus took off and headed to where the castle was, which was primarily where Wendy was busy confronting Zirconis. As the Dragon Slayer departed the scene, that left Natsu with a smirk as he resumed his tasty treat of hellfire, which was by far the most delicious fire he's had up to date.

"**This shall be your final meal, brat! Taste my fury instead!**" Atlas Flame scowled. He exerted his anger through his heated body, and the nearby area palpitated from his power. The Dragon rammed his head left and right into buildings, smashing apart structures using only his head to rip and smash apart everything. His anger boiled as he still felt Natsu atop of his head, his stubborn attitude infuriating him further. "**YOU DARE LAY YOUR HANDS ON ME!**" He roared. Atlas Flame relentlessly thrashed his head through building after building, leaving wreckage and crumbled devastation. Natsu was as persistent as ever as he continued feasting.

Atlas Flame bored through another building, until a sudden feel of nostalgia washed over him. The Fire Dragon's flame-lit eyes widened when this odd feeling overcame him and stop in his tracks. His body became stiff when he began to contemplate.

'_**What was that? Was that…? No, that's ridiculous.**__' _Atlas Flame thought. _'__**And yet, why does this boy remind me of…him?**__' _

To Atlas Flame, this nostalgia was but of four centuries ago. In the pits of fire, there was a Dragon who was above him, and triumphed over their battles. Natsu's style of devouring, his senses, his grip, it was all resembling the Fire Dragon King, the one who devoured his flames like Natsu is. Igneel.

"**Human.**" Atlas Flame called.

"Hm?"

"**What is your affiliation with Igneel?**" He questioned.

Natsu's eyes widened as his mouth was filled with fire. "Hang on just a sec. Are you telling me you know Igneel?"

"**Igneel, a friend of mine, and the Fire Dragon King.**"

"A friend? No way!" Natsu flashed a smile, despite having puffy cheeks full of fire. "Igneel…he's my dad!"

Atlas Flame's eyes widened in amazement.

* * *

In the northeastern part of the Unova Region, there lied a particular location where no one dared to venture if they valued their lives. The location was named Giant Chasm, and it more or less lived up to its name. The location was a massive impact crater that stretched for miles, and an abundance of trees was like a maze that kept intruders lost and forced to retreat if they had lacked navigation skills. The crater was home to a lot of extraterrestrial Pokémon, including the infamous Metagross, which is a super powerful Pokémon. In the center of the whole crater was desolation, supposedly from weather or an incident that happened a long time ago, thus explaining the broken and fallen forest life. In the northeast of that location was a steep pathway that lead to a large opening.

The only problem was that the entire Giant Chasm was covered in snow, burying the location and leaving thick snow up the path.

Two figures were seen climbing the path, both being the two Nics. They were in their Icicle Plate Forms, meaning they were immune to everything that was frozen solid. The tree tips sticking out were frozen solid, and the rocks they trudged over were solid ice.

The one they were after, _he _is the reason Giant Chasm was in sub-zero maelstrom of ice and snow.

"They told us that he isolates himself." Nic said, gripping to another ice chunk. "I never took into account that he had the full power to freeze the whole continent."

"You can't blame him." Future Nic said, his pace with Nic's as they both found their hands on the ledge at long last. "From what we remember, he and the other two helped us when we were in the Tower of Heaven." He hauled himself up and over the ledge, one knee on the ice-covered ground. He and Nic both looked around; left, then right, then left again. They weren't followed, but they knew the temperature was dropping.

They were closing in on their target.

"Dialga told us he dislikes humanity, but I guess you can't blame him." Nic looked inside the dark, cold entrance of Giant Chasm. He and Future Nic both felt themselves shiver, even though they were in their Icicle Plate Forms. "As destructive and powerful he is, I think he chose the benefit of the decision of seclusion."

"He may have helped us before, but let's not get our hopes up." Future Nic said.

Both Nics ventured into Giant Chasm, hands in coat pockets as they entered the dark and foreboding chamber. The area within the chasm was spacious, and they entered a chamber, they found the pond water on either end of a massive slab of rock covered in frost frozen. They saw no sign of their intended target, but they did see a deeper cave entrance when they ventured onto the slab.

"He must be in there." Nic ominously foretold, his breath shown through the cold air. The normal human would've been shivering like mad, perhaps frostbite if clothed weakly. While Pokémon would be more or less okay, both Nics had a resistance to being frozen.

"I have a good reason to believe he knows we're here already." Future Nic said, his brows furrowed. "Let's get this over with. We may not have much more time."

Both took careful but resolute footsteps into the cavern's dark tunnel. It was like walking through a glacier, only instead the ice it was frost covering rock. The few pools of water were beyond frozen, and several patches of ice were layered all throughout the long tunnel. It would take quite a bit of firepower for Charizard to melt all of it if they were really concerned, but they had a bigger matter entirely to pay attention to.

They stopped in their tracks in the middle if the humungous chamber they were in. Frost was all over the ground, patches of ice scoured on the walls, and countless, giant ice spikes were on the ground and on the ceiling.

There was an immense pressure, a pressure so great that it would've frozen you to the bone if you didn't have the will. Before the two Nics, the pressure was clear. They found their culprit, and their target.

The creature's eyes flashed yellow and he moved his sturdy legs, in which the thumping of the legs adjusting set off light tremors. The massive creature's figure was layered in frost as he was dormant for what seemed to be a long period of time. The dragon-like behemoth arose and his shadow casted over the two Nics.

The beast let out a roar, a bellow that rippled through the airspace. The shockwaves from the roar were frosty, and the frost all over his body was blown away. The nearby flooring became ice instead of frost as the shockwave passed it. Nearby spikes were either shattered or cracked, only for those cracks to be filled by frost.

The frozen beast looked down at who had ventured into his domain, seeing the two Nics standing beneath. Being near a human was something he disliked and made him hostile, but these two in particular were resisting the shivering presence. While everything around him was frozen, these two weren't.

The beast lowered his head to look at the two. "Humans. I know who you are." He said. "But explain, why are there two of you."

"It's a very prolonged story." Nic said.

"We'll make it as brief as possible, but first we must ask for any cooperation you can provide." Future Nic insisted. "Are you willing?"

The icy dragon let out a low growl and a sneer, his icy breath exerting a layer of frost on the two Nics, making them blink at the show of exasperation.

"I am aware of my very few interferences with humanity affairs. Your kind has no appeal to me, as I rather thrive away from your 'barbaric' and 'confusing' kind." The dragon said, raising his head high. "But, I know what is at stake, as I had given you the power of unlocking your ideals and the truth, as did Reshiram and Zekrom."

His glare intensified, making both Nics wary.

"I know your path is of light. If you wish for my allegiance, it shall be granted." He acknowledged.

Both Nics looked relieved as a wave of calm washed over them, half-grins on their faces.

Nic nodded. "Thank you, Kyurem. Please, hear us out…"

* * *

Watching from atop of Motherglare, Future Rogue saw the city of Crocus become a warzone. Explosions erupted in several places at once, which were the Dragon Slayers duking it out with their respective Dragons that they tasked themselves to handle. Laxus was seen running towards Wendy's aid as she was barely holding on against Zirconis, Cobra was against Carraigia, the Twin Dragons were against Scissor Runner and Levia, and Gajeel was against Dark Dragon, more or less labeled as Escuronix. All Dragons present rampaged, and everyone else suspended in spatial orbs and unable to do anything to help, not even Hibiki's Archive Magic could get a signal inside.

"That's it. Rampage and tear those Dragons Slayers apart." Future Rogue ordered, holding up a clenched hand to grasp his authority. "Their power will make my dream come to fruition. Acnologia shall perish, leaving me to take his place and rule as I envision the world to be."

He chuckled, baring his teeth with his grin of ambition. "These humans were so easy to fool. They'll grasp onto nay hope they can to obtain survival, not even thinking of the consequences. Their greed in survival and hope is what shall be their downfall in the end."

Hisui drooped her head in sadness. She still felt responsible, and hearing Future Rogue's words were but a Brine to the wound.

"The skies will burn. The land shall become ash. The light of life shall be dimmed into weakness. The crown waiting in the Dragon King Festival has my name on it, and my shadow will cleanse the world and make it feel reborn!"

"Stop the nonsensical crap already!" A familiar and pesky voice shouted from below.

Rogue groaned as his joy was put to a halt yet again. "Again?" He sighed. He looked over his shoulder to see Natsu interfering again, but shock was in his eyes when a massive difference unfolded.

Natsu was flying atop of Atlas Flame as the Fire Dragon flew after Motherglare, both having literal and metaphorical fire in their eyes.

"You wanna wipe out everything and everyone, you gotta go through us first!" Natsu roared. In cooperation, Atlas Flame bashed heads with Motherglare, both Dragons clashing until they backed away, growling and snarling in retaliation of another for picking their sides.

Lucy and Future Lucy smiled at Natsu's comeback, both having a joy in their hearts once again.

"Aw yeah! Go, Natsu!" Happy cheered from his orb.

Lily crossed his arms. "Didn't see that coming."

"That idiot's full of surprises, I'll give him that." Gray said.

"Riding a Dragon is manly!" Elfman declared in shock. "I never thought it was possible." His sisters also smiled at the sight.

Future Rogue gritted his teeth. "How can you ride a Dragon like that? Atlas Flame, what is with your betrayal?!" He scowled.

"**My actions reflect what goes through my heart.**" The Dragon responded.

"What?"

"**This boy atop, he is the son of Igneel, my dear friend. For that, I hold it as respect to help his son.**"

Natsu looked down with his trademark smirk. "I appreciate it, thank, Uncle."

Atlas Flame sweat dropped. "**U-Uncle?**"

"This can't be." Future Rogue stated. "He should be under my control. My Dragon Supremacy Magic can't be…" He looked beyond angry as his eyes dilated in rage. "Natsu, what have you done?!"

Natsu gave a confident smirk. "Isn't it obvious? We became friends."

Atlas Flame nodded in agreement.

"You're…friends?" Future Rogue questioned.

Natsu punched forward. "Okay Uncle, let's go!"

Atlas Flame roared and opened his mouth. He lunged at Motherglare and sank his fiery fangs into the Dragon's neck, making Motherglare snarl and scowl as he swerved through the skies, trying to shake off Atlas Flame to only become agitated.

"Motherglare, retaliate!" Future Rogue ordered.

Motherglare opened his mouth, where all of his teeth were visible. While Atlas Flame's head and neck were not open, his body was. The Dragon fired a sky blue beam that was his roar and blasted Atlas Flame's side.

Though the attack went straight through the Dragon's body, it did reach the mountains in the distance. A few glints were seen and then a massive explosion obliterated what was the entire mountain, shocking everyone suspended.

"You okay?" Natsu worried.

"**My body is pure flame. Attacks like those can't harm me.**" Atlas Flame assured, his fangs still in Motherglare's neck.

"**And my adamantine body can't be burned.**" Motherglare retorted, stating his advantage.

"**You've never seen my hellfire, Motherglare.**" Atlas Flame's head had a raging fireball that soared from atop of his head. Though small, it had a figure engulfed in his hellfire. Future Rogue and Motherglare's eyes looked at the fireball arching and letting out a roar. "**My flames burn like those from the depths of Hell, and this young man that I call my friend has eaten it!**"

The fireball was revealed to be Natsu as his and Atlas Flame's eyes widened. "**He has hellfire raging in his belly!**"

Natsu's right fist had a massive cloak of hellfire and went crashing down on Motherglare. "**Fire Dragon's Hellfire Fist!**"

He crashed his fist down right in front of Future Rogue, landing a devastating punch onto Motherglare's back. Hellfire erupted that was almost five times as large as Motherglare, hitting him like a meteor. The Dragon roared in agony as that hit scored some damage.

"Yeah! That's the way!" Happy cheered.

"That hit looked like it scored some damage." Carla observed.

The King's eyes shuddered at the raw power displayed before him from below. He, nor anyone as a matter of fact, never expected such a catastrophic turn. He observed with shock in his sphere. "My beautiful city has been reduced to total chaos." He despaired as he saw the few Dragon Slayers continue their brawl with the Dragons. "People fighting other people. Dragons versus Dragon. People against Dragons. It's as the legends say; this is the Dragon King Festival. We're all doomed."

* * *

Cobra was seen atop of Carraigia and drove a hard punch to the head, but the flying Rock Dragon felt nothing. "**Poison Dragon's Sharp Horn!**" A point-blank eruption of poison erupted, even pouring out from the Dragon's mouth. The venomous assault left Cobra smirking as his attack dialed down and the Dragon closed his mouth. "So how did you like that, ya overgrown mistake of a boulder?"

Carraigia flew around, his body succumbing to no burns, not even a scratch that was visible. Cobra couldn't believe that his poison almost did nothing.

"**Insolent human, that tickled!**" Carraigia bellowed. "**You've had your fun, now get off me!**"

The dragon raced through the skies and tilted his body, making his rock-hard side grind into multiple rows of buildings at once. The debris flying around broke apart further as they hit Carraigia's body. Cobra held on tight on the head as rocks flew, regardless of them being a part of Carraigia or the buildings trashed.

Carraigia turned direction, and Cobra finally relented. He jumped off of him and puffed his cheeks as Carraigia felt Cobra no longer on him. "**Poison Dragon's Roar!**"

A large-scale volume of poison was shot at Carraigia, striking him down from the skies with a venomous explosion. The Rock Dragon descended and his heavy structure hit the ground. Cobra landed on the ground on a knee, his frown visible.

"I can hear it, the sound of your amusement." He notified, which was confirmed when the poison cleared up, revealing Carraigia with no visible wounds again. "Your snickering's damaging my sensitive ears, and I don't like that!"

* * *

Wendy looked up as Zirconis didn't even have a scratch on himself. She was losing power fast, and she even used Arms, twice. "Zirconis, why are you doing this?" She pleaded.

Zirconis raised a brow, once again stroking one of the long hairs on his chin. "**Oh~? So now you want a little chat, do ya? Well, guess I can't blame you for stalling.**" He pointed up at Future Rogue and Motherglare, and Wendy followed his direction. "**You see Motherglare fighting Atlas Flame? That up there is calling all the shots.**"

"You mean Future Rogue?" Wendy clarified.

"**Yeah, that guy. Call him what you want, but I think he had a pretty fun idea.**" He chuckled. "**Now don't get me wrong, no human's gonna boss me around, but I followed along at his expense. Besides, I wouldn't mind seeing Acnologia take his last breath. I mean I sure wouldn't wanna be slayed by his claws.**"

Wendy swallowed with her nerves at a critical point. To think Future Rogue wanted to become King of all Dragons. To have deceived everybody for so long, that meant even fooling innocence like the Princess. To go through all of this trouble to kill the king of all Dragons, it was an action that was beyond reprehensible.

"**But I've had enough chitchat, small fry. Time for you to get into my belly!**" A change in dynamics occurred, and Zirconis went speeding after Wendy, resuming his job to fight and destroy her.

With her Magic running low, Wendy had little chance since her Magic also seemed to only inflict minor damage. She could only await for what may be a very gruesome end.

"**Lightning Dragon's Roar!**"

A sudden blast of lightning came from the side, electrocuting the air and hitting Zirconis right on the cheek. The Dragon was caught off guard by the eye-opener and reeled his head away, shaking off the static still on his face.

"Laxus?" Wendy asked, shocked.

Laxus appeared from her left, his eyes set on Zirconis. "Say, bet you can use a little help. So this overgrown lizard's that tough, huh?"

Zirconis faced Laxus, his smirk fading and his eyes on Laxus. "**So who are you? A bug zapper?**"

"Oh a regular comedian?" Laxus's arm was cloaked in crackling lightning. He raised his arm high, and Zirconis saw a massive sphere of lightning above.

Laxus brought his arm down, the attack falling as well. "Well laugh after this! **Raging Bolt!**"

Laxus massive bolt of lightning struck Zirconis, engulfing the Dragon in lightning and static. The beast growled in annoyance as sparks crackled all over his rough skin, but even through the aggravating dilemma, he glared Laxus, his attack only fueling his anger.

"Let me help! **Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!**" Wendy whirled her arms around, hurling whirlwinds that sliced through the air and struck Zirconis's chin. The massive beast slid back a few paces before his hands hit the ground, getting him on all fours.

"Nice assist, Wendy." Laxus thanked. He cracked his knuckles in front of Zirconis., lightning continuing to spark around his body. "So, you up for more?"

Zirconis smirked maliciously. "**I see you all got some fight in you after all.**"

* * *

Future Rogue was met with another fist to the face, making him stutter back on Motherglare. As he regained ground, the massive Dragon clashed heads with Atlas Flame, making both Dragons rumble and Future Rogue nearly lost balance, leaving him open.

"F**ire Dragon's Sword Horn!**" Natsu engulfed himself in flames and went charging after Future Rogue again, his head meeting his chest. The attack made Future Rogue get pushed back several feet towards the tail, and when he uncovered, he seemed agitated.

"Alright, Natsu. My patience is running low. I'm done here!" Future Rogue's Magic Power was beginning to distort, almost fusing into another type of Magic entirely. Natsu could feel it, and it smelled like a mix of shadows and a familiar yet contradicting Magic.

Future Rogue's entire body was layered in light and shadows, his hair now sticking up like a madman's. The hidden right side of his back was perfectly clear, and to all that were startled before nearly gaped their mouths when they saw how the right side was solid back, and the eye was but a scar that went down the bridge of his nose. This was a new Future Rogue, with an intense force of Magic.

"You've gotta be kidding me." Natsu mumbled in bewilderment.

"**Light Shadow Dragon Mode!**" Future Rogue announced, his smirk darkening. "You surprised? I took this power from Sting when I ended his life in the future. It wasn't easy, but it was necessary if I'm to gain power to show my authority for the throne."

Natsu's fists shook in hostility. "You're a monster."

"Not true! I am the new Dragon King!" Future Rogue declared. "And nothing will ever change that! HRAH!" Future Rogue fired a blast of light shadow from his hands, and it was like a laser that Natsu dodged by shifting to the right. Future Rogue saw the angry look Natsu had, which made him feel more accomplished with his show of power.

"Face it, I will be king!" Light shadow swirled in his hand again. "AND NOTHING WILL EVER DARE CHALLENGE MY TITLE!"

The pitch black sky's moon was suddenly blocked by dark storm clouds that began spiraling overhead.

Natsu, and everyone, suddenly felt their eyes widen. All Dragons, Dragon Slayers, and everyone in distorted orbs had felt a chilling wind pass through all of them. All of Crocus and the nearby mountains still intact had what was a wind of desolating spread about. The nearby sea waves were swishing around uncontrollably, despite the wind not even being that of a hurricane.

It was like the waves themselves were scared.

The goosebumps Future Rogue had were uncontrollable. The shadows in his hands were dissipating, and he had no idea how or what on earth was doing such a thing.

"This…this power…this evil dread…" Future Rogue was hearing his own voice shake. "What is this…bloodthirst?"

Natsu couldn't control his body. It was trembling, but he wasn't the only one. _'I can't move. This evil…'_

'_This can't be…'_ Mavis shuddered, dropping to her knees all of a sudden in her sphere. "This evil…it's so abundant...so impure…is this even evil itself? What can this possibly be…?!" Her goosebumps grew that were all over her body shuddered as well, dying and leaving the ethereal body paralyzed and suffocating from this air, despite not she was just a ghost.

Makarov's heart beat intensified, thumping and pounding irregularly. He looked just as horrified. "No, this can't be…"

Lahar, Doranbolt, Jellal, and Crime Sorciere all felt the foul, tainted air was hard to breathe in. They too felt their goosebumps shrivel in despair. Gray's body was shivering even though he was immune to cold weather, and no one could control it. It was like they died.

"This power…" Jellal muttered. "This isn't Zeref *cough* it can't be. This evil… it's far worse."

Meredy was shuddering, and the weak minded began to tear up. Levy and others were starting the show tears of horror and the dreadful screams and wailing of the silent winds, ironically killing off their goosebumps.

Cobra's one eye was dilating. "My hearing…it's…!" He suddenly screamed as he got a knee, the agony forcing him to cover his ears. "I can't hear jack, but I can hear…death! This melody ain't melody! It's a hollow grave out for revenge!"

Erza's eyes widened in fright. "No…I can't smell anything. But, I know this feeling." He couldn't swallow as he was shuddering and his body was breathing harshly.

As shocking as it was, Future Rogue was feeling the same. He clutched his own throat. _'This dread. This vile, corrosive death. It's screaming for massacres! This evil, how can it be so large?!'_

"I've had my fun watching, now begone!" The demonic, monotone voice announced.

The same dark energy around everyone from before was now around the Dragon Slayers. Natsu looked down to see pitch black engulfing him. "What?!"

Sting, Rogue, Gajeel, Cobra, Wendy, and Laxus were all suddenly engulfed in the pitch black energy. As shocking as it was Atlas Flame's body was all consumed in this pitch black darkness as well.

In a flash, they all ended up in the sky in dark pink orbs, them too becoming prisoners.

"Wait, what the hell?!" Natsu bellowed.

"**Natsu!**" Atlas Flame said in shock as the Fire Dragon Slayer's orb was right beside his massive one for his size.

Natsu looked over, his eyes wide. "Uncle?! You too?!"

"What happened…?" Gajeel trailed off, his eyes narrowing.

Ichiya was covering his nose, his body shuddering while on his knees. "This parfume, it's a rotting sense that makes my nose decay!" He muffled, nearing falling over.

Future Lucy was shuddering, her eyes dilating as her heart skipped so many beats from this silent dread. "This power…it wasn't in my time…what's going on here?!"

Future Rogue was on an unnerved Motherglare as his Light Shadow Dragon Mode was still in play. He looked around, startled. "Who are you?! Answer me!" He bellowed.

The demonic monotone laughter echoed all across the Crocus mountains and sea, the waves getting riled up further. In the pitch black stormy skies, blocking out the red moon, dark shadows began to converge, streaming from all over. The maniacal laughter was boiling with bloodlust and negative energy. The shadows began to manifest into what was a cocoon of dark purple and pitch black.

The cocoon dissolved and faded, revealing someone who was always cloaked in a dark purple aura and shadows that fumed profusely around him.

Erza's eyes widened as her heart pulsed loudly. "Lysandre."

"It's him!" Elfman yelled. "He's the monster who nearly killed Nic!"

"He left a genocide in the Celestial World. A foul creature." Sophie muttered, with Cana swallowing a lump beside her.

Sting and everybody else felt this man's dark power. It was so potent that the swirling dark clouds were pitch black, and the negative energy was as suffocating to the weak-minded as it always was. His vermilion eyes blinked, making the entire ring of millions of lives feel their nerves jump.

"Greetings, you pathetic parasites of humanity." Lysandre announced. "I trust you all have enjoyed the show."

"Wait…" Rogue muttered.

"That guy…he did this?!" Orga exclaimed.

"I can't recall just unimaginable levels of evil." Rufus said, his eyes still wide.

"He's…he's back." Vanessa mumbled.

Lysandre looked down at Future Rogue, who looked angry at Lysandre. "Oh? Anger. I love such an emotion; it drives one for greater power. That emotion gives me joy to witness." He said nonchalantly.

"Enough of your games! Who the hell are you?!" Future Rogue demanded.

Lysandre snickered. "Hmph! Who am I? I am the bringer of Hell. I taint the purest of light, and shall make the void eternal!" His fangs showed as he smirked. "And you've been great entertainment."

"What?" Future Rogue's eye widened further. "You mean…YOU DESTROYED THE ECLIPSE GATE?!"

Lysandre chuckled. "That's right. Did you honestly believe that Dragons could rule over everything?" He questioned. "Nobody but Nic's sorry excuse of a parade saw the true battle of Acnologia seven years ago. Why don't I show you all!"

He raised his arms overhead, and a humungous oval of pitch black and dark purple loomed through the air. Inside the frame was an image appearing. The frame then dissipated, and the six Dragons still present and not in orbs were seen in the air as an illusion of Tenrou Island was seen. The entire suspended population of Crocus and then some were watching the replay of what was the entire scene of Acnologia attacking, and to their shock and disbelief, they saw the Weather Trio and Dialga and Palkia emerge. Nothing was left out of the illusion and flashback. They all saw what was a cataclysmic brawl, and they all shriveled in terror over the dozens of explosions, and their jaws dropped when Mega Rayquaza destroyed the Etherion Cannon. They were more startled with the consecutive finish, and saw Acnologia fly away in defeat as the Weather Trio scurried back home.

The illusion faded, and dark energy converged back into Lysandre's open palm, his smirk showing how satisfied he was with how terrified they were.

"Acnologia…" Sting started.

"Lost to creatures from Nic's world?" Rogue muttered.

Future Rogue and the six Dragons were getting antsy. The illusion had to be fake, right? But it seemed so real.

"You mean…the Dragon King already lost?" He muttered in shock.

Lysandre snickered. "One may see it like that. A Legendary Pokémon makes a Dragon look like a Carvanha to a Sharpedo." He shook his head, fangs still visible. "So much for these so-called Dragon Slayers. They don't deserve pity as they don't compare to Legendaries. They can't even scratch a Dragon, what a shame and disgrace to their own kind!" He berated viciously.

Natsu's fists clutched tightly, his pride taking a hit. He looked away in bitterness. "No! Why couldn't I do it?!"

Sting looked down in shame. "Damn."

"What a cruel monster." Laxus muttered.

Gajeel looked away from a worried Levy, grunting. "We couldn't slay a Dragon, dammit!"

Both Lucys looked at Natsu, who was upset over the second time not being strong enough to kill a Dragon. "Natsu." They said softly in unison.

Natsu began pounding eth sphere he was in viciously. "Hey! Let us out! We are strong! We'll kick your ass! We've got more fight to prove! We're not done yet, you hear me! Nothing can beat a Dragon Slayer! Nothing!" He bellowed, but his roars were on deaf ears as the distortion by the orb made it so no sound could be out that far.

"So what's this all about? Why are you hindering my plans? Why are you doing all of this?" Future Rogue demanded.

Lysandre's glare at the Dragon Slayer made him shiver.

"You really wanna know?" He asked. "I want a void. An eternal darkness to spread. My Masters shall get their wish. The negative energy looming around your scared souls adds fuel to their seal being unlocked. Not much longer until they get set free, and Hell will have a cowardly name for what shall be the end…OF EVERYTHING!"

Pillars of darkness breached the ground below. The Dragons got out of the way as they saw the pillars of deadly evil skyrocket, touching the swirling black skies. Purple lightning crackled above, and the pillars of pure darkness stopped, leaving craters of literally almost nothing. If ten pillars of darkness were to touch anything, they'd be reduced to literally nothing.

"Dragon Slayers are nothing to me. I shall end it all, but first…" He turned his head towards the sea. "I have but one job to accomplish before that. I must slaughter Nic Pularis."

"Nic…Pularis?" Lahar's eyes muttered inside his orb, recalling his mission and threat to the Council awhile back.

Future Rogue's eyes dilated and his fists clenched so tight that blood didn't circulate. "You're lying." He growled. "A Dragon can't be beaten! Acnologia could be easily killed with my army! I will become the new Dragon King, and not even these Legendary Pokémon have a prayer against me!" He testified.

Motherglare's head suddenly turned towards the sea, sensing and seeing the corrosive air along the sea beginning to distort. All attention, Jura, Bacchus, Kagura, every single person trapped, even Atlas Flame, saw the distortion along the seashore.

"What?" Future Rogue angrily turned towards the sea, where he saw spatial tears shaping.

Lysandre smirked. "Well, well. What do we have here?"

Everyone in the sky saw two figures walk in unison. They saw their strides as one, and right beside them were twelve creatures of various shapes and sizes, though they seemed identical somewhat.

The figures all walked onto the shores, along with their Pokémon. It was none other than Nic and Future Nic, and that included the six Pokémon each individually had. All fourteen stood tall, proud, and mighty as they glared at the large-scale creatures ahead of them, but they were more or less focused on Future Rogue and Lysandre.

"Nic?!" Erza had a mixture of shock satisfaction as Nic had finally arrived.

"That's Luminous?" Jura asked.

Kagura's eyes widened, as did Jellal's and Millianna's. Everyone who knew him were baffled as he was here, and not only that, but two of him were present. The whole situation was complete disbelief.

"Nic Pularis." Future Rogue sneered.

"Sorry we couldn't have made it sooner." Nic apologized.

"But this was necessary." Future Nic told. "Lysandre, this is it."

Lysandre's dark smirk widened, his vermilion eyes turning feral, and his fangs turned blood red. The shift and growth in negative energy was what made everyone feel their spines crawl once more.

Future Rogue looked down from Motherglare. "The new Dragon King will not be ignored! You have no prayer against six Dragons!"

All of the present Dragons roared in compliance, all aimed at the fourteen on the beach.

Both Nics turned towards the other, sharing the same glances. They had confident smirks; these smirks were by no means of arrogance, but of courage of what will be brought by their accomplishments if their plan happens.

Nic turned back ahead. "Which is why we went for reinforcements."

Future Rogue stared in shock. "Re…inforcements?"

An exotic bellow raced through the air, echoing through the whole city. The Dragons looked around, confused by the odd bellow. Everyone heard it loud and clear as well, but had no idea from where it came from.

Two spatial holes emerged from above the fourteen above. When they opened, one was pink and one was blue, both emanating stardust of their respective color. Dialga and Palkia emerged from the two portals, which closed behind them. Both bellowed again, their power suddenly waving around.

Ultear's eyes widened. "Are those…?"

Jellal nodded. "Legendary Pokémon, from Nic's world."

"It's the rulers of all time and space itself; Dialga, and Palkia." Lysandre sounded glee as he saw them right before him, waiting or the chance to finally kill them after slaughtering Nic and then Arceus.

"We have arrived." Palkia announced.

"And we shall not be the only ones." Dialga foretold.

"What?! You mean there's more coming?!" Bickslow bellowed.

"I forgot that Nic's world has a ton of those things." Evergreen said.

The Dragons all widened their eyes as they saw Palkia's pearls glow. The space ruler let out a rippling screech. Palkia spread his arms out, and fragments of the area around began to crack, as if space itself was starting to shatter. In total, there were six.

The cracks all shattered like glass, revealing locations related to the dark seas, what looked like a deep magma chamber, the air, a tower, and a frosted chasm of sorts. Each one looked so real, and Future Rogue realized that it was indeed reality, from Nic's world.

A spatial crack that resembled the depths of the darkest, coldest trenches was starting to pour out water. Within that massive flood of deep water, everyone saw yellow eyes and a massive figure swim right through and into the sea, creating a giant wave that crashed onto the shore, but nobody bothered looking back as the wave crashed behind them, sprinkling their backs with water that didn't deter them in the slightest.

The second cracked had magma pouring out on the beach sore. Steam was erupting outwards, and the whole area seemed slightly hotter than before. The magma was smooshed when something stepped out, making a tremor with the first step. Out came what was something that had magma dripping from the sides of his mouth.

A crack in the sky showed the dark ozone layer, and everyone watched as a serpentine creature roared and swerved out of the crack as it vanished. The serpentine beast let out a loud roar, the airspace all around shaking and trembling, like the sound of thunder.

The crack resembling a tower began to exert massive amounts of electricity. Light blue electricity went around, zapping the beach in random areas, even zapping and obliterating nearby stones to small fragments. Out came a pitch black beast that began to dial down from the lightning show he displayed. He roared, shaking the airspace as well.

From another portal, it showed the gray clouds of the night. They seemed foreboding and ominous. Through it, they all saw fiery comet shoot out. The fire around the beast faded as he spread his wings and made it to Earth Land. He let out a shrilling roar that sent heated ripples throughout the area, making the nearby fragments of rock melt. His white body completely contrast the black dragon's.

The last one was right behind the two Nics. A shrilling and cold air followed by an icy mist flowed out. A gargantuan beast stepped out, turning the sand underneath his step into solid ice. He growled behind the two, making the backs of their head get covered in frost.

Everyone from above had no comprehension as to the situation. If they had never saw it, they'd never believe it. Eight creatures from portals came at Nic's call. Future Rogue was startled to say the least.

"Impossible…this level of immense power…" He was caught in catastrophic surprise.

Before everyone, Kyogre, Groudon, Rayquaza, Zekrom, Reshiram, and Kyurem had just arrived. They had so much power, and the six Dragons now gathered looked at the six with a challenge in their eyes.

"You've brought an army." Lysandre said, showing no surprise.

"Six Dragons, and eight Legendary Pokémon." Future Nic said.

He and Nic, and their twelve Pokémon, all took a step forward. As they did, all eight Legendaries roared into the sky, making a massive tremor and shockwaves bellow so loudly and so large, that nearby buildings cracked and crumbled. The sea waves began to swish larger than before, and boulders on the seashore shattered into dust.

"This level of power is terrifying." Rogue said in his orb, able to feel it with everyone else."

"So these guys are gonna take on the Dragons?" Sting questioned.

Kyurem stepped forward, another step making ice cover some sand. "This shall be where our kind stand."

"To preserve the future." Reshiram announced.

"We'll fight the threat that dares defy our kind." Zekrom told.

Rayquaza swerved in a small loop, his head lowered, yet the straight angle made him look intimidating. "We've done this before, we'll do it again."

"It's been seven years since we've joined like this." Groudon said, glancing back at Kyogre.

Kyogre shared the same glance. "As impossible as it may seem, it looks like we'll be fighting more Dragons."

Both Greninja stepped forward, with Nic's speaking as he took a strong stance. "Everyone, we've made it this far. We dare not tread another path. This is where we make our last stand!"

Charizard stepped forward, his future counterpart following suit. "This is where all of our effort pays off. It's do or die, and I rather see to live the light of tomorrow!" He yelled, exerting a fiery flame.

Staraptor spread her talons apart and her wings were up. Her counterpart from the future turned towards her and smiled. "We'll show no cowardice. We've stared death in the face, and we'll do so for as long as we shall."

"Save the children!" Both Kecleon and Future Kecleon declared. "Save all from this bad dream!"

Arbok and Future Arbok hissed, both ready for what shall be the greatest and most devastating brawl they shall ever have. Arbok's eyes narrowed. "I shall fight for my brotherssss and ssssisssterssss! If we fall, we fall together, and I refusssse to have giant bagssss of sssscaly filth be the causssse!"

Both Garchomp stepped forward, their thuds made by their footsteps. Garchomp roared out, making the air shake. He bared his claws and fangs. "They'll all crumble like tissue paper! Let's see what kinds of damage we can do!"

Future Rogue's eyes widened as he swiped his arm. "So no mercy, my pets! Kill them all!"

The Dragons all roared, bellowing and quaking the airspace violently. They all individually roared, and they all glared at the Legendaries presented before them.

Lysandre glared at the two Nics, his party a completely different story. Both Nics were set on him and him alone. They were gonna end it here and now. Future Rogue and his party has business arranged with the reinforcements Nic brought.

Both Nics then looked back at each other, the seriousness in their warm, blue eyes showing their resolve to end it all.

Future Nic looked absolute, as did his Pokémon. They all came back in time to finish something before it began. They escaped the end, so the inevitable shall never be met with again. _'Erza…Vanessa…everyone…' _He looked back at his Pokémon, all of the six glancing back at him without turning their heads towards their right to look at Future Nic. They all shared the same resolve, and they knew full well that this shall be it.

They all shared the same thought. _'Let's make this final battle count.'_

Nic looked at his Pokémon as well, all six sharing the same resolve. They will all make it through this. Without even Staraptor, or Kecleon, or Arbok, or any of them, who knows what on earth they'll do. It would never be the same again. They were in this together, and so if they all died, at least they died together. But that won't happen. This time, they'll win, and no one will be sacrificed.

Both Nics looked up simultaneously at the Legendary Pokémon gathered behind them, and then they looked back at Lysandre and the Dragons of Future Rogue. Both raised their arms and extended them out.

They both made the signal. "Everyone…**ATTACK!**"

And with that, the almighty battle to decide the fate of the universe and history had begun.

* * *

**How was that for a chapter. I had complete originality, and decided to give the two nameless Dragons some names. I figured getting the Dragon Slayers a shot like they did in the canon was needed before the big showdown.**

**I know you're all anxious, super anxious, for this final battle. I am too. This has gotta be good quality writing in these last couple of chapters. Did you all expect such a cliffhanger? To be fair, six to eight Legendaries is more than enough, because writing so many fights is troublesome; besides, if you think about it, the Weather Trio and Tao Trio did give Nic Legendary Force, so it's fair that they have part of the final battle. They had the most profound impact on Nic; and I tried limiting the Legendaries debuted in the story because even a plot has to be coherent yet limited. Get what I'm saying?**

**Guest: I don't think so. Sorry, but no Halloween one-shot.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are excited for the epic and final battle unfolding, especially with Nic's Pokémon and Legendaries involved against Dragons.**

* * *

**Next Time: Battle of Legends**


	83. Battle of Legends

Chapter 83 – Battle of Legends

**Here's the colossal battle you've all been waiting for! We'll see if this matches up with what happened with the Weather Trio VS Acnologia back in the Tenrou Island Arc.**

**Guest: Sorry, not interested in making a story like that. I already intend on doing **_**One's Road to Remembrance**_**.**

**And so, let the colossal battle begin!**

**To Recap:**

With Cobra entering the fray, all seven Dragon Slayers were struggling against the Dragons, and their attacks didn't do much of anything. Future Rogue explained that he used everyone possible so he can kill Acnologia and become the new Dragon King, and Atlas Flame sided with Natsu and fought against Motherglare. Both Nics made it to Giant Chasm and got help from Kyurem. All Dragons Slayers, including Atlas Flame, were suspended in spatial orbs like everyone, and it was revealed that Lysandre had done it all; the Eclipse Gate's destruction, the entire population suspended, and the dark energy being extremely immense in Fiore. Nic and his Pokémon soon arrived with their future selves and the Tao and Weather Trio to assist in the battle against the six Dragons remaining. They all thus readied to charge to end it all.

* * *

**Chapter 83 – Battle of Legends**

Upon the call of the two Nics, their six individual Pokémon let out cries and roars of their own as they lunged into the fray. The Legendary Tao and Weather Trio following behind bypassed both Nics and dashed off into the fray.

Kyurem ran from the seashore and into Crocus, every single step made layering the ground underneath in ice. He sped in towards Zirconis.

The massive green Dragon looked at the incoming beast with a raised brow. "**Oh? Ambitious now are we? Well don't think that I don't usually like my food cold! I'll put you down myse-!**"

Kyurem jumped up high, his sturdy legs making a ripple of ice along the ground, layering it in frost. The icy dragon was overhead and the center of his sealed shut mouth made an orb of draconic energy. "**Dragon Pulse!**" Kyurem's attack was unleashed downwards and the head chomp down on Zirconis.

The Jade Dragon roared as he was engulfed in a multicolored explosion. He shot back and fell on his back with a booming thud that rattled the nearby vicinity. Kyurem landed with ice and frost layering the street beneath him.

Zirconis arose from the massive dust cloud, his head throbbing and his scales damaged in quite a few places. "**What the-?!**"

He was cut off when two small figures zipped pass his face in small blurs, making explosions again, but smaller than what a Legendary could do. Zirconis grunted and his eyes turned around and up as the two Staraptors' wings finished glinting, indicating Steel Wing was used.

Kyurem used the distraction to his advantage. "**Ice Beam!**" A light blue orb was in front of his mouth and fired it at Zirconis, leaving a massive trail of ice sticking out as it traveled across the street.

Zirconis screamed when he was hit once again by the icy cold attack. The beastly Dragon's entire body shot back from the huge misty cloud, revealing his frontal half in sub-zero ice. Zirconis smashed through a large building structure, falling onto his back.

Levia raised his head and roared out to the sea, where Kyogre was located. The blue beast flapped his wings and took flight. He sailed on overhead and went after Kyogre with his teeth bared. Both gargantuan beasts roared out to one another.

As Levia was over Kyogre's head, he did not pay attention to two figures down below who sprung up super high via Bounce. Levia looked down to see two blurs with pink scarf-like tongues sprung upwards and appear in front of his short snout.

"**Bounce!**" Both Greninja raised their legs, one each, and dealt a pulsing kick right into Levia's snout. As both Greninja back flipped and descend back to the ground, Levia grunted from the attack recoiled a little.

Kyogre opened his massive mouth as Levia was caught off guard. "**Hydro Pump!**" The massive beast let loose a devastating volume of pressurized water. The attack pulsed into the air and jetted towards Levia, striking him right in the underbelly. The force of the attack made Levia roar in pain as he shot up further into the sky, roaring as he shot to a critical point before falling downwards, smashing into the seashore with a shockwave and making sand palpitate outwards.

Both Greninja leaped back and evaded the sand waves, remaining wary of Levia rising up again.

Escuronix roared as he was dared to go up against the beast that stepped forward known as Groudon. The Continent Pokémon let out another heated roar that made the earth beneath him crack. Glowing red lava lit up in between the cracks.

Escuronix spread his wings and took flight, flying right over Groudon's head. The Dark Dragon's teeth were visible as his mouth opened up and dark energy swelled up. Groudon opened his mouth as well, and a faint green-yellow glowed around him. Numerous green orbs dilated and floated around Groudon's head, with the largest being the center one in front of his mouth.

"**Solar Beam!**" He bellowed. A massive green beam of solar energy was fired, the unleashed concentration being so dense that the ground beneath cracked and broke apart under Groudin's pressure.

At the same time, Escuronix fired a dark beam that was his roar. Bothe attacks met in the middle, and a bright field of energy erupted in between the two, expanding outwards and becoming a catastrophic explosion that rattled the entire city, much everyone's shock. They saw a whole section of Crocus get reduced to debris and dust as the explosion engulfed the buildings and monuments around.

When the explosion settled, a humungous crater that stretched for a quarter of a mile ran through the ground. All were shocked as Groudon came out unscathed without even a scratch, and Escuronix seemed irritated as he sailed downwards with red talons to attack.

Groudon reached up and grabbed the talons with both claws and stopped Escuronix in his tracks. Groudon didn't even budge as the land shuddered from that catch. He used his raw power and threw Escuronix aside like a ragdoll, hitting the ground and tumbling back until the back of his head had hit another building.

Escuronix got up to his feet slowly, but he was suddenly slashed across the ankles. The Dark dragon grunted in pain and stepped back as the Slash was backed up with what was beneath him, startling the massive ebast.

"We'll cut to the chase!" Both Kecleon declared, assisting Groudon as they let out cries and lunged to attack Escuronix.

Carraigia was swinging his body around, his club-like tail knocking down parts of buildings. "**Get off, pests!**" He bellowed. He referred to the two Arbok that were on his back, causing a massive ruckus as they were slamming their tails and their hoods against his rock-like ridged on his back. The discomfort was a real back-sore. He swerved around, but he couldn't seem to get the stubborn serpents off. "**You'll regret messing with me, vile creatures!**" Carraigia bellowed.

"**Dragon Pulse!**"

The sudden attack called was what got Carraigia's attention. He looked up to witness Reshiram on the attack, his mouth open and exerted a pulsing, multicolored beam that shaped into a massive dragon. The assault opened its mouth and chomped down on Carraigia's head, making a massive multicolored explosion that rattled the vicinity, sending shockwaves throughout the alleys.

Carraigia slid back against the wide open streets, his rock hard cranium taking a beating from that assault. He shook his head and looked back at Reshiram above, who glowered down and let out a shrill roar, screeching through the air.

Both Arbok slid near to the head, more to the neck, and they looked at each other and nodded. Both opened their mouths, and a silver light began to converge and concentrate to a single point. Both silver lights expanded and manifested into two black garbage bags.

"**Gunk Shot!**" They bellowed. They raised their heads and slammed down the garbage bags, creating two massively huge purple explosions on the neck area. The force made Carraigia feel an unsanitary sting on his neck.

Scissor Runner glared down at the two Garchomp at his feet, and they were accompanied by Zekrom, whom floated overhead and had his red eyes glare at Scissor Runner. The massive Dragon looked peeved to say the least.

"**Those stupid humans are one thing, but your species is another. I don't care who or what you are, as I will kill you all!**" Scissor Runner roared. He spread his wings apart to intimidate the ones battling before him and he bared his fangs.

Future Garchomp bared his sharp teeth as well. "This guy's big."

"The bigger they are, the harder they fall!" Garchomp roared.

Scissor Runner raised a claw and proceeded to smashing it against the ground where the two Garchomp stood. The two dragons ascended into the sky, where they both had airbrakes put on and adjusted their trajectory right for Scissor Runner. Their mouths opened wide as they went Mach speed, their fangs glowing and elongating.

"**Crunch!**" Both bellowed. Faster than what Scissor Runner could react to, both Garchomp collided with his long neck and snapped their jaws down.

The Dragon roared in agony as he felt both Garchomp rip into his neck, their sharp claws digging into his rough skin didn't help either. Scissor Runner roared and tried to swish left and right, but that merely fell as a distraction, leaving him to not realize the dark clouds in the night sky crackling with lightning.

Laxus and Orga's eyes widened at the feeling of this immense electrical pressure. It left them both astounded.

"**Thunder!**" Zekrom roared. The monstrous clouds above crackled with intense lightning, which made thunder boom throughout all of Crocus and afar. Lily was left to cover his ears as a massive bolt went striking down, blitzing through the dark air and hammering Scissor Runner with several million volts.

The Dragon roared in pain as lightning crackled through his senses, but as he was left stunned, both Garchomp had smiles as their fangs were still sank in the Dragon's skin, their Ground-Type characteristic making them immune.

Both Nics raced along, both glowing and transforming into their Draco Plate Forms. They flapped their draconic wings and took flight. They were passed by both their Charizard as they raced after Motherglare, who roared out at Rayquaza.

"Very well!" Future Rogue manifested into shadows and he disappeared.

Down below, he reappeared while still in his Light Shadow Dragon Mode. "Nic Pularis! You will not escape your fate!"

Future Nic turned towards Nic as they sailed through the skies. "I'll handle Rogue. I'll meet up with you then to take on-"

"I know!" Nic yelled, his eyes set on Lysandre as he had a devious smirk on his face. The dark aura and skin-rotting shadows made him look as intimidating as ever, but he dared to not waver. "Lysandre is all mine for now! Be careful!" He told his future self.

With a nod, Future Nic glided down and barrel-rolled to adjust his landing onto the massively large flat roof of an equally massive building. He slid to a halt and glared down Future Rogue, his heart racing from the anticipation and energy looming around.

"Nice of you to join me." Future Rogue said, his hand cloaked in light shadows. He held it up, looking thrilled. "This will be your end!"

Future Nic spread his arms out and made a combative stance. "You have a very sully view on destiny and the future. You have no idea what's truly before you. If you're as arrogant as you were in the Grand Magic Games, then you haven't changed."

Nic flapped his wings and shot after Lysandre, who seemed to bare his hands and claws. His tail wagged and the dark energy around him exerted more bloodthirst, causing a wave of decay to fill Nic's nostrils as he sped on in. It was painful to smell and made him want to gag, but he had more pressing matters to deal with than his own empty stomach.

"Finally, I shall confront you this last time!" Lysandre's right hand was engulfed in manifested shadows that became his Shadow Claw. He held the arm back. "I'll rip the life right out of you like I did to you a long time ago!"

Nic's hands glowed and light blue energy shaped into massive claws, creating Dragon Claw. The look in his eyes was that of someone who Lysandre hated to the rotten core, the same one who foiled his plans so long ago, and now each one was the final obstacle on their paths to their fates.

"BRING IT ON!" Nic bellowed. He thrust his Dragon Claw forward, jabbing Lysandre's Shadow Claw, making a light blue and dark flash that sent an air ripple throughout all of Crocus for all to behold.

* * *

As all were duking it out, explosions and rumbling far beneath, Rayquaza was high in the sky, opening his massive mouth and roaring out to Motherglare, who returned the same, air-shaking roar. Both dragons of other worlds had their eyes set on dominating and ending what they were dragged into.

"**So you fight for the one down below. The one who defies Rogue. I shall hold nothing back!**" Motherglare declared.

Rayquaza's serpentine body adjusted so his neck was high but the head hung to intimidate. "You will try, as will I!"

Both Charizards arrived and flapped their wings in place. One Charizard each was on either side of Rayquaza, both saying nothing to Rayquaza as they knew their roles.

"We'll be backup." Future Charizard confirmed.

"But there's no way we're not gonna sit back while Rayquaza lays some hurt. Let's go!" Charizard enforced. The two soared on opposite ends and went around, zooming in massive arcs on the sides on either end.

Motherglare opened his mouth and let loose a light blue beam that was his devastating roar. The blast went after Rayquaza, but the Sky High Pokémon was more than ready. "**Dragon Pulse!**" In response, Rayquaza unleashed his own Dragon Pulse. The mouth opened up as the beam met it on the middle.

The two attacks that met together flashed, and a white and bright explosion shot upwards into the sky, the perimeter being so massive that it could've wiped out maybe a sizeable fraction of Crocus. The shockwaves raced through the atmosphere and left building tops to crumble away, otherwise cracked beyond repair.

The bright light faded, and the explosion settled. Motherglare snarled and raised his claws to go into an offensive approach.

However, he forgot the two Charizard coming around from both sides. "**Flamethrower!**" Both Charizards opened their mouths and let loose what would've been a Flamethrower that could melt solid rock and huge glaciers. The heated attack blitzed and scored direct, explosive hits on Motherglare's sides of the face, making the Dragon growl from the attacks getting his smooth scales on his face.

Both Charizard altered their course and flew up and away as Rayquaza was outlined in a thick green aura. "**Extreme Speed!**" Rayquaza became a green blur, moving so fast that the sound barrier could've been broken ten times over, and a long streak of green showed his trail as the human eye didn't get to blink before Rayquaza went head on into Motherglare, making a green explosion upon impact in the face.

Motherglare roared in anger and pain as Rayquaza flew out of the smoke, swerving into the sky.

* * *

Future Rogue rushed after Future Nic with his hand cloaked in light shadow. Future Nic didn't move much, but when he did, he shifted left to dodge and drove an uppercut beneath the arm, socking Future Rogue in the chin. He retracted the arm and pivoted, spinning around to knock his elbow to the back of Future Rogue's head, making him yelp as he fell down to a knee.

"You'll pay for that-GAH!" Future Rogue was cut off when he was dealt a harsh blast of blue, sending him tumbling until he slid to a halt. He felt his body sting from that attack, realizing that Future Nic's Dragon Breath had done more than he could've thought.

"I didn't come for insults or threats that won't be delivered." Future Nic said.

In a flash, he suddenly used Dragon Claw and crossed them, intercepting Future Rogue as he reappeared in a flash and punched ahead with light shadows. Light blue static and black and white static filled the air, but no one budged.

"You say that now, but I didn't expect this to occur, none of it!" Future Rogue shouted. "No matter. The Dragons will tear your creatures apart, and so they'll slaughter Lysandre, and then I shall take my place as the winner of the Dragon King Festival. Now get lost, Nic Pularis!" Future Rogue began to apply more force, his side starting to gain ground.

Future Nic grunted and began to glow. "You're in the darkness for so long…you can't see!"

In a rapid flash, Future Nic was seen past Future Rogue, the latter gaging blood as the former was in his Dread Plate Form, having used Night Slash and the dark purple needle was pointed ahead. Future Nic sheathed the needle and looked back as Future Rogue clutched his right side. "**Knock Off!**" Future Nic's arm was engulfed in black static and clenched his fist. He brought it up and hammer fist Future Rogue as he pivoted and intercepted Knock Off with another Light Shadow Dragon's Slash.

Both backed off, but Future Rogue seemed to be on wit's end as to how his foe was so calm and keeping up with his Light Shadow Dragon Mode. "You can't seriously be packing this much power. This form should surpass that Legendary Force you used."

Future Nic had a glare set on Future Rogue as he took another stance. "You haven't even seen what Pokémon can truly do. **Dark Pulse!**" Future Nic fired a beam of jumbled dark rings from his joined palms and fired the attack at Future Rogue.

Future Rogue became a shadow and swerved around the Dark Pulse as Future Nic moved it, within his shadow form, Future Rogue had an angry stare as Future Nic had his eyes set on him.

* * *

Everyone above was watching the craziest battle in the history of Earth Land, with the revelation of Nic being from a different world being icing on the cake. Officials couldn't even grasp how ridiculous it was that another human from another world had brought a cataclysm in theirs. The only upside was that the Legendary Pokémon they saw down below were driving back the Dragons, much to everyone's disbelief.

"I have no memory of such raw and destructive power before." Rufus stated.

"So, this is the true power of the mightiest creatures of Nic's home." Minerva stated, watching Kyogre jump out of the water and blast Levia's side with Hydro Pump. She watched as Levia shot back and roared out to Kyogre again after his side had a large bruise from the water pressure. "They're more devastating than these Dragons. I never would've imagined I see such a day."

Sting watched in disbelief as Reshiram blasted Carraigia with a Dragon Pulse from the right side, the draconic multicolored explosion being so massive that Carraigia fell onto his side, fragments of his face and parts of his body both cracking and smaller parts getting chunked off. Both Arbok jumped off and landed on the ground, hissing as Carraigia groaned from the pain accumulated.

'_Whoa. This crazy power. I've never felt this much in one place before.' _He thought with his heart beating from the unlimited power he was sensing. _'It's not even Magic. This pressure, just what is this?'_

'_I never would've imagined Dragon Slayers could be outclassed by Legendary Pokémon. Do they really have the power to defeat Acnologia?' _Rogue thought back to when Lysandre showed the illusion, and he couldn't be anymore baffled with how Acnologia was defeated by the Weather Trio. To make matters more disturbing, the Weather Trio they were seeing right now wasn't even using that power.

Natsu was watching it unfold all over again. As he watched Zekrom bring down another bolt of Thunder onto Scissor Runner, he watched as the Dragon screamed in agony; even more so when both Garchomp lunged onto the Dragon's back and used Crunch, ripping into him again.

His fists clenched as the pit of his stomach was feeling anguish. "I don't get it. I'm a Dragon Slayer. So why couldn't I slay a Dragon a second time?" He growled. It was agonizing enough that Acnologia showed them up, but now all Dragon Slayers were much too weak to slay some serious carnage. Natsu just wanted to save them all, but this was not his fight. It was Nic's, and it was a painful pill he choked on, but he knew better than to fight Lysandre, because that was the same man who curbstomped Gildarts without much of a hassle, and his power was worse than Zeref. All he could do was what everyone else was able to do: watch.

"This is just like in Kalos and Tenrou Island." Vanessa said, watching the battle escalate as she saw Zirconis try and swat both Staraptor away, only for him to get distracted for Kyurem to jump and deliver a kick to his snout. The force made Zirconis fall back with a thud.

"Whoa, these guys…" Jenny trailed off as her body shivered.

"They're so powerful." Eve stated with equal shock.

"A parfume of the purest of fragrances against the pungent odors that infiltrate my nostrils." Ichiya pompously declared.

Jura was on his knees, his status shocking his colleagues. "This power…no one can survive this force. I doubt even a Wizard Saint can hold his own."

"…not even close." Makarov grumbled.

Mavis had her eyes set on Lysandre as the vicious monster clashed Shadow Claw with Nic's Dragon Claw. Both raced within the skies, their clashed looking like fireworks as they moved so fast that they were glints of light blue and darkness slashing all throughout the sky.

"That man up there. This evil…this power…" Mavis was shivering to the core as she even held her arms to her sides. "This spatial force, and this darkness…I can't believe I'm saying this…but I think Lysandre is…" What she said next, it was muttered so low that only she could understand. "Stronger than Lumen Histoire. Such darkness and devoid of any light."

Lahar watched from above as both Kecleon ran up Escuronix's two wings and went for the neck, where their claws glowed and elongated. He watched as they used Slash, and they actually left cuts on either side of the neck. "How much power does these creatures have that come from Nic's world? Why are they even here?"

Doranbolt watched as Groudon's mouth opened up and Eruption was unleashed. Both Kecleon jumped off the shoulders and avoided the molten rocks that struck Escuronix's chest, creating a fiery and lava-like explosion that rattled the earth yet again.

He shuddered in heavy disbelief. "Is this the apocalypse…?"

"The Council will end this. They got footage live, and there is a strong Etherion shall be used. They don't care how they handle the situation as long as all of these creatures are gone. That I am certain of." Lahar pointed out.

Kagura watched in disbelief and awe as she saw the two Charizard and Rayquaza go head to head with Motherglare. The Dragon rushed after Rayquaza high in the sky, but he was caught off guard when the two Charizard came in from straight ahead horizontally, shooting like rockets.

Their mouths opened and fired another rock-melting Flamethrower at the exposed underside, creating a huge explosion of fire that made Motherglare roar again, which left him open for Rayquaza to shoot down with a roar, using Extreme Speed and speeding past Motherglare, engulfing him in a massive green explosion, and both Charizards twisted their bodies and maneuvered away as fragments of Motherglare's spiral scales fell from the explosion, scattering to the desolate streets.

"Those creatures…" Kagura shuddered, covering her mouth. "This is what Luminous has been hiding."

"Meow!" Millianna screeched. "This is so crazy! Nic's forces are pushing the Dragons back?!"

Kagura's eyes narrowed as the land thundered beneath. _'Titania is one thing, but Luminous, he may be the most lethal person there is now, having such monsters at his disposal.'_

* * *

Zirconis roared. His whole set of teeth bared and rattled the airspace. He stood on a whole street of ice, catered to Kyurem's power getting warmed up, ironically. The air in the area was a shivering, frigid one that had Zirconis's cold blood grow weak.

Kyurem took more icy steps forward. "Is that all you've got, Dragon?"

"**You're just riling me up! NOW I'M ANGRY!**" Zirconis bellowed. The thunderous roar sent shockwaves all around, passing Kyurem and the two Staraptor as they had their talons gripped to the ice beneath. The shockwaves shattered nearby windows and stands, but the ice did not break.

Zirconis spread his wings and brought them back. With an angry scowl, he flapped them once, sending a massive storm at Kyurem. The chaotic winds were like a wall, and Kyurem was shoved back several feet, while both Staraptor brought their wings up to block the winds as they skidded back, leaving claw marks with their talons. When they finished their skid, they were far behind Kyurem, but that blow didn't deter them in the slightest.

"It's on now!" Staraptor shouted.

"You're angry, we're fearless! Come at us!" Future Staraptor declared. She and her counterpart both took flight again, getting into the high altitude above, where they twirled and set a course for Zirconis.

Both went flying into the beast. "**Double Team!**" They both flashed and the two became what seemed to be a massively large flock of Staraptor. The sheer size of the combined Double Team was shocking as the number seemed countless. "**Aerial Ace!**" The flock hollered in unison as the real and illusionary copies all became blurs and went at blinding speed.

Zirconis did what instincts told him to do and opened his mouth so the flock could end up in his belly, but it was for naught as only illusions went inside, and the real two went straight for the forehead. The combined Aerial Ace made strong flashes and shockwaves, exploding in front of Zirconis's head. Both Staraptor flew off to the side as the explosion cleared, showing Zirconis's head suffering what seemed to be bleeding scales in the forehead.

Kyurem raised his head and draconic energy began to surge in pace again. "**Dragon Pulse!**" He fired a beam of multicolored energy that shaped into another enormous dragon. The head went at Zirconis, but the Jade Dragon was prepared as he clenched a fist and punched forward. A powerful explosion erupted when the fist et the mouth of Dragon Pulse.

The explosion that leveled numerous buildings all around became smoke, and Zirconis slid back, shattering what was the ground beneath in his skid. His hand was badly bruised, and he looked extremely angry, as well as in pain. "**I'm not done with you! HRAH!**" Zirconis wasted no time as he opened up his mouth and fired what was a brutal beam from his mouth.

The beam traveled towards Kyurem, who held his cold, hard ground and unleashed Ice Beam. The light blue beams met with Zirconis's roar right in the middle, making an implosion of unstable energy. A field of eruption expanded outwards, devastating the debris and ice and reducing them to dust and vapor.

* * *

Believe it or not, both Greninja were sprinting with grace of ninjas across the raging sea. They were swift and stepped from one part to another, as if they were running in mountains all over again. They sprinted after Levia as he was in the water as well, quarreling with Kyogre, explaining further result of the raging waves.

Levia opened his mouth and exerted a roaring beam. The roar blasted Kyogre as the Sea Basin Pokémon was beneath his feet. Kyogre was engulfed in an explosion, his roar clear even through the geyser-like waves that crashed all around.

Levia looked arrogant to suffice when he saw Kyogre's tails plunge into the sea. "**That should keep you dow-!**"

He was cut off when a sudden blast of boiling water, two large, pressurized volumes, struck his neck and chin, the stinging hot water doused him and made his nerve feel like they were on fire. Levia grunted and reeled his head away, leaving his side open as both Greninja jumped out of the water they were slammed into.

"Ready?" Future Greninja asked.

"Yeah!" Greninja shouted.

Both Greninja readied their own attacks, with one making hand signs and puffing while another made compressed water in the shape of a star.

"**Smokescreen!**" Future Greninja huffed out a massive black cloud of smoke at Levia's face. The heavy mass of smoke made Levia unable to see, and his sense of smell was clogged up.

"**I can't see! Confound frogs!**" Levia shouted.

"**Water Shuriken!**" Greninja swung his arms and let loose several compressed stars of water, all ripping through Smokescreen and explosions could be seen inside the Smokescreen. Levia's grunts meant the attack's sharp prowess must have stung his sting.

Both Greninja landed in a crouch position on the drenched seashores. They looked up to see Levia moving his head out of the smoke cloud and snarled down at the two Greninja.

"**You creatures have something to prove.**" Levia admitted. "**Such tenacity means nothing to us! We shall destroy you all…**" He didn't finish as the waves out at sea swished around more violently, making the shores tremor and shake from the magnitude of each wave striking.

A massive water spout arose, and out came Kyogre. The Legendary beast of the sea let out a monstrous roar, his whole body not even scratched by that beam.

"**Impossible!**" Levia scowled. "**Not a scratch?! How?!**"

"Is that really the best you can do?!" Kyogre scowled. He opened his mouth, where a light blue orb was seen. "**Ice Beam!**" An ice ripple went echoing around the air as massive beams of shivering ice went blasting at Levia. Levia was engulfed in a pillar of light blue, erupting cold atmosphere all around and both Greninja slid backwards and fell on their backs from the shockwaves that left their forearms layered in frost. The shockwaves scattered all across the beaches and shores, quaking the earth yet again as the sea waves were also turned frozen, and the frozen sea expanded out quite far out, even leaving inland with frost on the buildings.

When Kyogre landed back into the water, a crash sound was heard. A massive splash bellowed, and the shockwaves from the crash shattered the ice on the water and leaving it to fall in random places throughout the sea.

Greninja got up to a knee. "Kyogre's…"

"Yeah." Future Greninja said, watching Kyogre emerge and growl at Levia, who winced from his body layered in cold ice. "Those attacks were nothing more than warmup shots for him."

* * *

Nic glowed and shifted into what was his dual Types. "**Dark/Dragon!**" When the glowed faded, Nic was within a serpentine tornado of fire that passed Lysandre as the man frowned. Lysandre looked back as the shooting fire did a 45 Degree turn overhead and shot up. The fire dissipated, and spreading his wings and roaring was Nic in said form. The coral red edging on his Draco Plate Form was replaced by a bright red; the laces, talons on the shoes, belt, and wing membrane were all a bright, fiery red. Royal blue remained as it usually was in the Draco Plate Form.

As Nic flapped, little embers emerged from his wings. He opened his mouth, where fire was surging with heavy intensity. "**Inferno!**" An extreme volume of blue fire spiraled and went burning the dark air, the actual negative molecules in the air seen cindering.

Lysandre smirked as he became dark shadows, dissipating as Inferno rushed towards him. The Inferno kept on going and a heated ripple expanded out from afar. The audience-in-terror saw a blue explosion in the skies.

Lysandre reappeared above with his dark purple aura as massive as was the vicious Shadow Ball he had conjured in his hands. Nic looked up and saw the Shadow Ball coming down onto him. He backed away and dodged the incoming attack, and the Ghost-Type assault plummeted downwards into Crocus.

What happened next was a moment of silence as the Shadow Ball disappeared, and then a black and purple explosion erupted, rattling the entire city of Crocus, making the battles going on momentarily cease and shoot glances at the explosion fading.

"That one blow…" Sting muttered.

"It would've annihilated Domus Flau if possible." Rogue said under his breath.

"You're just as powerful as ever, Lysandre." Nic said. "The more negative energy you take in, the more strength you gain."

"Do you not feel torn towards the despair?" Lysandre taunted. "Your kind has been plagued with ruin. You steal and take. You pillage for your own selfish gain." The lower half became dark shadows and he rushed after Nic, but Nic used his maneuverability and evaded Lysandre as best as he could. "I am the embodiment of sins, as I leave the skies pitch black. The moon before you is pitch black, and the stars withered away, just as Arceus shall when your heart shall be ripped out! **Psybeam!**"

"**Dragon Pulse!**"

Both Nic and Lysandre fired their attacks. A streaky blue beam with pink circles and a multicolored dragon-shaped beam blasted at the other, colliding in the middle and creating what was another intense eruption. Shockwaves filled the sky as the two attacks dissipated, leaving a standstill.

Or so it seemed. Nic's eyes dilated briefly before he ascended in a hurry, dodging Psybeam as it went through.

"**Aura Sphere!**" Lysandre manifested a sphere of blue aura and fired it at Nic. The sphere blasted like a rocket and Nic had his claws out. To Lysandre's dismay, Nic made Dragon Claw and in a flash bisected Aura Sphere. Nic kept on going and disregarded the explosion behind.

Nic passed Lysandre, making a trail of light blue with his Dragon Claw. Lysandre was caught in an explosion of light blue, to which he swiped away with his tail.

"You'll pay for that, Nic Pularis!" Lysandre turned around and put his hands together, sending a Swift attack at Nic. Yellow stars in golden sparkles went rotating through the skies and Nic took a sharp turn to look back at the incoming Swift.

He brought his draconic wings back as his eyes widened. "**Heat Wave!**" A massive wind of flames was sent forward when Nic brought the wings ahead. The Heat Wave met Swift, but the stars kept going through the hot winds, as though it was a ghost. Nic's eyes widened before he used his wings to block, taking the Swift.

"Nic!" Erza shouted.

The Heat Wave kept going, but Lysandre didn't bother moving. He instead closed his eyes and reopened them, sending a violent shockwave that overpowered Heat Wave. The Fire-Type move dissipated, and Nic lost momentum and the shockwaves of darkness sent him falling to the ground.

As he fell, Lysandre unleashed what was an earth-trembling Dark Pulse. "PERISH, FOOL!" His Dark Pulse shot downwards, looking like a black beam of pure rotting will. Much to everyone's shock Nic glowed while still falling and became his Sky Plate Form.

He maneuvered out of the way of Dark Pulse as the attack continued onwards, breaching and obliterating an entire building. Shockwaves bellowed from that catastrophic blow, and the nearby groundworks cracked apart.

Lysandre sneered. "Indefatigable."

"**Air Slash!**" Nic ascended higher in a slant and began twirling. His folded wings became light blue and spiraling saucers went at Lysandre. The slashing attack was only made futile, however, as Lysandre swiped his arm, sending a desolate, rotting Ominous Wind that was like a veil and expanded outwards. The hostile move completely overwhelmed Air Slash and made it disperse, and the Ominous Wind went out towards Nic as he kept spinning in, and the Ominous Wind collided with him, making him spiral out uncontrollably.

It only took a few moments, but Nic found some momentum, and circled around. As he circled around in an arc, Lysandre's smirk followed. Their eyes never left the other, as if they did, the other would gain the advantage. Lysandre learned full well of the power Nic had last time, so if he wasn't careful, he may end up close to the brink of death again.

'_I won't let you win!' _Both mentally declared.

Lysandre put his hands together, conjuring Dark Pulse again. The intense energy could be felt from miles away since the malevolent energy was so massive. Nic countered by glowing and shifting into his Insect Plate Form. His dragonfly wings held him up as he readied his move.

"**Dark Pulse!**"

"**Bug Buzz!**"

Red, high frequency shockwaves rampaged onwards and the wall of red met the Dark Pulse. The result of the two attacks colliding was a blinding light and a white explosion in the center. The Bug Buzz's shockwaves and frequency bounced all over the rooftops, rippling so hard that the buildings beneath crumbled to fractions.

The smoke dissipated, and Nic saw that Lysandre was not there. He was gone, possibly lurking around to find an opening. Nic felt a growing surge of dark pressure above him, and that was all he needed.

A dark purple hole opened up above, and Nic backed away to avoid Lysandre drop down from the dark hole, foul energy engrossing him to the brim. Lysandre grunted as his Phantom Force missed, but Nic used the opportunity at hand.

"**X-Scissor!**" Nic's eyes widened as he had his hands glow light blue and he crossed them, making a large X with magenta outlining. The Bug-Type move scored a powerful blow to Lysandre's side, making it sound like a jet crashed. The impact made Lysandre grunt as time seemed to slowed down.

He disappeared into shadows as the attack followed through. Nic lurched forward, his hands feeling a rotting energy from touching the man. He snapped out of it when Lysandre reappeared behind him with a smirk.

"Tenacious…but not good enough! **Feint Attack!**" Lysandre's eyes widened as his vermilion eyes dilated. His tail came from the side to strike Nic.

Nic turned around at the last second, using only his left hand the grab the tail end. The bone-shattering force rippled through his arm, but despite that, he remained stoic and pressed hard. His teeth clutched together as the direct contact was as painful as it was before, but it was of no matter as this was something he shall not fail at.

"You brat!" Lysandre scoffed.

"You're one to talk! **Struggle Bug!**" Nic's eyes flashed bright green, and at point-blank, the bright green comets bombarded Lysandre, making bright green bursts that pelted him profusely. Lysandre shot back and fell downward towards a lower altitude.

He stopped and jutted his arms up at Nic. "**Psychic!**"

Nic glowed and shifted his form again, becoming the Dread Plate Form by itself again. This meant he had lost his wings and he began descending, but this wasn't anything he couldn't handle. While he was immune to Psychic, this left him an opportunity to strike. "**Feint Attack!**"

He disappeared all of a sudden, and all were left shocked. He suddenly appeared above Lysandre, ready and planted a foot onto his head. However, Lysandre caught him without looking, and his grip was a very vicious one. He tossed Nic aside and his left arm jutted out, making a spatial portal. He made another Shadow Ball, one more potent than before, and shot it inside the portal, with it closing behind.

As Nic shot back, starting to descend due to gravity, he was left with much to no options. _'I gotta work fast!' _He exclaimed mentally. Down beneath him a spatial portal opened up, and Nic looked down as his hands were put together and unsheathed a Night Slash.

A sudden pink crescent blade that was full of spatial energy went shooting out of the blue. Nic's eyes widened and he sheathed his attack and glowed to become his Draco Plate Form again. He shot straight up and evaded the pink crescent as it bisected Shadow Ball and ripped through the spatial portal, splicing it in two.

Shocked, Lysandre put his arms forward and unleashed a massive shockwave of darkness, one that rippled outwards, and the crescent ripped through it like it was nothing. Lysandre was struck head on by the impact, and he was engulfed in a dark pink explosion. The violent man bellowed intense cries of shrilling pain as the attack made a bright pink light in the skies. Everyone watching could've seen the space all around distort, and the molecules were all pink and vanished. The dark clouds in the sky all spread out and circled far outwards, showing a no different pitch black sky. Even the moon was pitch black, and they were too caught up as they fell back in their orbs as the shockwaves of the attack even went through their orbs, as if distorting and breaking through space itself.

"What was that?!" Levy exclaimed.

"That looked…like that attack that Palkia used!" Sophie configured.

She was right on the money as the explosion settled. Nic's heart pulsed from the adrenaline of that attack and Lysandre shook his head. His body had taken more than a few scratches. He looked with his violent vermilion eyes and saw Palkia on Nic's right.

"Palkia." He growled.

Palkia's pink aura outlined his body as always. He looked at Lysandre and disregarded how shocked Nic was.

"Palkia?" Nic questioned.

"Did you believe that we were not involved in this?" Palkia questioned.

A flashy white beam with hints of light blue went past Nic on his left. The massive Flash Cannon went through the atmosphere with ripples of exerted force reaching out. The Flash Cannon went towards Lysandre, but the monster was more than equipped to handle it. With one hand stretched out, he made an Aura Sphere and readied to intercept.

However, as he smirked, the Flash Cannon suddenly appeared right in front of him. With a gasp of shock, Lysandre was struck again by the booming assault, engulfed in a silver explosion of agony and light. Everyone watching covered up from the blinding light, as the attack had appeared out of nowhere.

Meredy watched with awe. "Did that attack teleport?!"

Ultear's eyes narrowed as she saw Lysandre brush the assault away, his grunts serving to guess the damage taken. "No, time slowed down for Lysandre."

On Nic's left, Dialga appeared and roared outwards, his body outlined in blue as usual. The ruler and embodiment of all time glared at Lysandre and looked determined.

"This battle shall not be fought without myself partaking!" He declared.

Lysandre's dark purple aura fumed further. "You…"

Nic had his eyes set on Lysandre as his hands had Dragon Claw ready. He spread his wings and went zooming in, with Dialga and Palkia following behind.

* * *

Future Rogue blasted light shadows at Future Nic just as he had became his Sky Plate Form. His Air Slash was fired, sending saucers that struck and met the light shadow, making another explosion in between the two. The two suddenly locked fists when they closed the distance between again, sending what was another crash sound around.

"Give up, Nic! Dragons are superior, and you know it!" Future Rogue reasoned.

His response was not a pleasant one. Instead of verbal, he got a Wing Attack that swatted his left side. Future Rogue slid off to the side and got a hand to the ground.

"Then perhaps I should give a demonstration…" Future Nic's voice trailed off as he was gathering what was green energy waves. Future Rogue and everybody else in the sky felt what was an incredible mass of power resonating from Nic.

"What…what the…?!" Future Rogue felt the atmosphere around get a little light, and air currents began to surge around Nic, becoming a thick green as they closed in. A green dome encompassed Nic, and Future Rogue was feeling an overwhelming pressure build up.

Future Nic barely looked visible as the energy was starting to make his silhouette become black inside. The eyes glowed yellow, and then the dome went shut, slowly compressing into a cocoon of sorts.

Future Rogue looked beyond startled. _'This force…no, it can't be! This is the same as…!' _He recalled the Grand Magic Games, where he was overwhelmed, even in Dragon Force by this unbelievable power. His pupils dilated. _'No, I can't let this happen! I'm stronger than his powers! I am the next Dragon King!'_ He cloaked his hand in light shadow. "Nic Pularis, the world shall crumble at my fingers, and you stand in my way! HYYAAAHHH!"

A massive blast of light shadow went towards Future Nic, leaving a shattered trail along the flat rooftop. The attack rattled the entire building, and yet the green cocoon was undeterred.

A pulse suddenly went outwards. The cocoon suddenly exploded outwards, and with it were green and dense shockwaves that had loud, ear-splitting dragon roars bellowing as a bonus. The green waves were so immense that Future Rogue fell onto his back harshly, and the edging of the rooftop completely fell apart.

What was a small whirlwind around Future Nic dissipated, and this left Future Rogue to get up in haste.

"What…he…?!" His eyes widened, and everyone else was just as morally shocked beyond repair. For the second time, they all saw Nic Pularis undergo what was a maelstrom of a change.

He was actually floating the air. He sported a green headpiece that looked draconic. Like his Groudon Legendary Force, it stopped beneath the nose line, and the top of the headpiece had a big yellow oval with green filling the middle. Future Nic's eyes were black with yellow pupils and black sclera. In the corners of the headpieces were horn-like structures. Two jutted up, and two jutted from the sides of the headpiece, seemingly from the cheeks. The back of the neck had yellow lines running down from the back of Future Nic's hair.

Over the black t-shirt was the coat, which looked more like scales than anything. The edging was black and the coat was green. On the back of the coat were two het-like wings that were green and edged in red. The shoulders had boubous pauldrons that were round and green. The arms were also the same green color that even went to the hands. He also appeared to have sharp claws. The belt was a solid black, and the buckle was a complete yellow oval. The pants were green and had yellow ovals on the side, three on each leg and connected to one another by small yellow lines. His feet were green, and the shoes were not present, showing his toes instead having claws. The shins had the same wings that the back of the coat did.

The coat itself was far longer, and was approximately three times as big, but the last 2/3 of it looked like a super long tail. The rest of the coat beneath the belt had yellow ovals on the sides, and they reached down past the feet, where the sturdy tail started, and were segments of three-wing parts started. The rest of the way down towards the tail end was no different than from Rayquaza above, who shot a quick glance down at Nic to see what he's become. He roared in approval before looking back and dodging another beam from Motherglare.

Future Rogue looked startled. "No way…"

Future Nic let out a screeching roar, showing his sharp teeth. His long tail connected to his coat swayed left and right as he gained a few feet in altitude. The screeching roar rippled outwards, rattling the nearby tall structures, as well as many spines watching.

"**Legendary Force – Rayquaza!**" Future Nic bellowed.

Goosebumps went up Future Rogue's spine, a great level of power resonating from Future Nic, as well as the ongoing Legendary Pokémon fighting. He was left momentarily open for Future Nic to gather energy in his mouth and multicolored energy began shaping.

"**Dragon Pulse!**" Future Nic shouted, sending a massively large Dragon Pulse at Future Rogue. The recipient blocked with a swipe of his arm making a wall of light shadow to absorb the Dragon Pulse. To his shock and horror, the Dragon Pulse went straight through the light shadow like it was tissue paper, scoring a direct hit on Future Rogue.

Future Rogue was hit so hard by the explosion that he shot to another flat building top nearby, tumbling over and thudding on his side. He stood back up, seeing Future Nic swerve through the air towards him like Rayquaza did as said dragon went and used Extreme Speed, zipping into Motherglare and making another explosion of green erupt, causing the Adamantine Dragon to fall backwards in the sky.

Angered with the tide against him, Future Rogue was engulfed in shadows. "I won't lose my throne! The world is mine!"

Future Nic roared again, rattling the airspace. All of the blade wings on him gave a light blue glow. He swerved his body in a full circle, finishing up with a whip of his tail. Air Slash went blasting at Future Rogue and the Dragon Slayer's shadow swerved past the saucers, barely escaping the catastrophic blades as they sliced through the sky, as well as the rooftop and straight through in a slant to penetrate the entire structure, causing whole place to come down.

Future Rogue emerged from the shadow and became light to pierce Future Nic, but his efforts were in vain as Future Nic swerved his body around the light like a coil and Future Rogue did a sharp turn back, but again Future Nic dodged with no problem made.

"Hold still!" Future Rogue blitzed in light and blasted off after him, his light becoming whispy and increasing in density.

Future Nic hollered out at Future Rogue and he brought his long tail back. With a massive whack of his tail. Future Nic socked the light that was Future Rogue, and the light deflected off in another direction. Future Nic opened his mouth and blasted forth yet another Dragon Pulse, this one just as potent as before. The light was struck hard, and the explosion sent another shockwave, shattering rooftop edges.

Future Rogue emerged from the smoke and sank down onto another building top, leaving a thick trail embedded in the flat roofing.

Future Nic roared into the air, his serpentine coat swerving.

* * *

Reshiram looked down as he saw Carraigia struggling. He was frustrated and very fatigued from the actual damage, and the heat of Reshiram was so immense that it was making Carraigia steam. The rocks on his body were also seemingly giving into the heat, having a few ridged on his back melted, making him feel a massive burn.

"**You insulant white flier!**" Carraigia opened his mouth, firing a bright orange roar into the sky. Reshiram of course flapped his wings and sailed around, dodging the roar. Carraigia's head turned to follow Reshiram, but Reshiram was too fast for him.

Reshiram regained his balance and he opened his mouth again. Instead of Dragon Pulse, the tips of his ears became hot and red. His engine-like tail had begun to flare with intense heat. The whole area around was starting to get super warm.

Everyone watching Reshiram could feel an extraordinary level of power generating in front, and a fireball with streaking blames expanded in front. "**Fusion Flare!**" Reshiram fired the powerful fireball without a second thought. The fireball was like a bright light of doom and Carraigia couldn't escape.

A shrill roar bellowed as an explosion of fire erupted, being seen from afar. Even Natsu could've felt the intense heat from his sphere.

* * *

Zekrom roared in the skies. As the two Garchomp looked up and saw Zekrom starting to engulf in electricity, a massive load of it, the two retreated off of Scissor Runner, and they landed on the ground. They looked up as lightning and thunder bellowed around Zekrom.

Zekrom's engine-like tail was starting to make a sound. "You're stubborn." He admitted. His body was then engulfed in what seemed to be an area or sphere of violet electricity. The electricity was massively potent, and violet electricity surged all around, leaving fried trails along the ground. "**Fusion Bolt!**"

Zekrom flew down into the super slow Scissor Runner. The attack was like a ticking time bomb and Zekrom discharged a massive amount of electricity, emitting shocking shockwaves upon hitting Scissor Runner. The Dragon's roar bellowed through the sound of thunder, and the ground beneath cracked further, having violet electricity run through and underneath until it exploded violently.

Through the smoke, Zekrom floated out with a growl and watched Scissor Runner growl backed, albeit weakly and he got to a knee, static frying his nerves.

"**You…impudent fool.**" Scissor Runner groaned.

* * *

Kyurem jumped back and dodged Zirconis's tail, which demolished nearby rubble. Kyurem glared up at Zirconis as the Jade Dragon, despite his heavy bruising, had a smirk.

"**Getting cold feet now, are we?**" Zirconis taunted.

Kyurem saw no joke implied as his entire body was frozen. Kyurem let out another roar, shaking the ground. At that instant, Kyurem's entire body began to mist, and both Staraptor nearby knew that something big was gonna happen. They both flew high and away as the whole street and area became layered in solid ice, showing how cold Kyurem was becoming. Zirconis looked at the ground, seeing how it had frost and ice all over.

The temperature dropped rapidly, and Zirconis's eyes widened. "**What's happening?!**" His shock continued on as Kyurem raised his head and massive icicles, the size of Kyurem himself, all materialized over Zirconis, circling overhead and pointed down at him.

"Cold feet you say? Well I say you're cold hearted…and dead!" Kyurem let out another screech, rattling the icy ground. "**Glaciate!**" The Ice-Type attack made way for Zirconis, and the Dragon roared as all he could possibly see above was a flash of icy blue glints in the sky. Everything to him was a blinding light before horror struck his frosted-up body.

The ice spikes punctured and pierced his body. The dozens of ice spikes all rained down, and Zirconis's right wing, left waist, knee, and his chest. The force of the attack sent an icy shockwave around, and the ground underneath completely shattered, the ice blowing into random directions. Kyurem was unfazed as ice scattered everywhere, and the mist of cold air and frost cleared.

Lyon and Gray both had awe that Kyurem's attack was clearly a frigid disaster, and they never saw such raw ice power, which surpassed their Master, Ur. Kyurem and the two Staraptor watched as the frozen land around them slowly began to fade away into frost alone.

Zirconis fell backwards, his eyes going hazy and devoid of any life. He thudded loudly, making a crater in the ground. His injuries ultimately led to his expiration.

Kyurem roared in glory as he obtained victory. Wendy and Laxus looked especially shocked to say the least, though Wendy showed more horror than the formal expression.

* * *

Escuronix fired a dark beam from his mouth, shooting it at Groudon. The Ground-Type did not falter as he opened his mouth, where molten rocks, which was his Solar Beam, was unleashed on towards the beam. The two beams collided, but the stalemate was short-lived for Escuronix as Solar Beam broke through, and the green beam struck his chest. Escuronix groaned as Solar Beam made him slide back along the deserted streets, and the beam soon ended, leaving Escuronix to collapse to a knee.

"No way!" Gajeel exclaimed.

Groudon had his patience, and he lost it after Escuronix struggled back up to both knees. His body was coated in lava energy, and instantly everything got super warm. The ground beneath Escuronix was quaking hard, and lava cracks were surfacing underneath.

Groudon bellowed up towards the sky, and he brought his huge armored hands forward. "Begone! **Precipice Blades!**" Jutting up from the ground were hundreds of lava-covered incandescent pillars that arose all over the place. Escuronix looked in peril as the spikes jutted around him, and a violent roar echoed as a Precipice Blade struck him from below, piercing through his chest.

An enormous lava explosion erupted, and Escuronix was dead silent as his whole being was swallowed in the explosion of lava, incinerating the ground and leaving small fireballs of shards to rain down o=along the sides.

Both Kecleons watched in awe and shock, as did Gajeel, as Escuronix's entire abdominal area had showed the fried insides. The insides were nothing but ash, and Escuronix's skin was charred and reduced to black. He fell backwards with a thud, dead.

* * *

Kyogre emerged from the sea once more as Levia was straight overhead. Both Greninja watched from the shores as Kyogre was directly underneath Levia. Their eyes were wide as they knew what was gonna happen.

"The power of the sea shall swamp your soul!" All around Kyogre, light blue orbs comprised of so much pressure began to build up, and they had an extreme around of aquatic force swelling within.

Levia's eyes widened. "**NO!**"

He was too late to dodge as Kyogre's light blue orbs touched his abdomen.

"**Origin Pulse!**" Kyogre roared as massively powerful blue beams shot like lasers. The waves all around went wild as they even crashed against the shores, forcing both Greninja to hold their ground. Levia's abdomen was engulfed in the attack, and he roared in agonizing pain and anguish as he was eventually swallowed up in a roaring explosion of blue that shot straight up into the sky.

Everyone gaped their mouths in shock as Kyogre's attack soon dissipated, leaving a jet like sound to annihilate the sound barrier and it reached all across Crocus. The glints of Origin Pulse faded, and Kyogre was seen staring up from the shallow seas as Levia was immobile in the air.

His entire front had fried marks, and his abdomen had blood. Scrapes were on his torn fins, and his wings were reduced to tattered remains. The Dragon roared weakly one last time before he sailed out of the sky, crash landing onto the shores on his side, defeated and expired.

Kyogre growled lowly in victory, and Gajeel stared in deep shock.

* * *

"**You…dare!**" Carraigia bellowed. He roared and violently shook his body uncontrollably, regarding the two Arbok that were on his back once more. Both snakes held on and they each looked at another. The bellowing didn't get to them as they knew what had to be done.

"Let'sssss do thisssss!" Arbok declared.

Both Arboks slithered towards the upper back while another slithered past the rocks on his back, being cautious of the melted ones. When both Arboks got into position, they raised their tails in unison.

"**Earthquake!**"

Both Arboks brought their tails down at the same time, slamming them onto Carraigia's back. Carraigia felt his whole body vibrate. While he didn't feel any pain, he did feel a great discomfort running through his back as shockwaves and ripples rampaged through even all of his limbs. It was ticklish, and yet at the same time it wasn't. The vibrations were so strong that he couldn't even move. The ground beneath was affected by Earthquake as well, having weaker vibrations and making debris crumble nearby, but otherwise was fine.

With Carraigia feeling vibrations, both Arboks lunged off of the Rock Dragon as Reshiram was high above and his tail engine was engulfed in a huge amount of pressurized fire. The heat was so intense by the pressure that the fire actually turned blue.

A vortex of blue ire was seen in Reshiram's mouth, and as both Arbok slithered a safe distance away, Carraigia's 'massage' was a completely faux when he was really distracted for what shall be a scorching finish.

"**Blue Flare!**" Reshiram roared, firing a torrent of blue flames, one of the hottest flames ever known. The torrent of roaring fire closed in, and Carraigia screamed in agony. He was hit by Blue Flare, ending up with his whole rock-hard body engulfed in a massive inferno. The heated rock on his body gave in, and Carraigia was engulfed in a blue explosion that erupted upwards. Blue fire shot into the sky, making all of Crocus feel heated.

When the flames died, Reshiram looked with a serious gaze. The whole area around was cindering and reduced to ashes. Reshiram looked relived as Carraigia's body was still present, yet a majority of the rocks on his body were melted away, leaving cinder and melted debris scattered. The Rock Dragon roared weakly before his molten injuries made him succumb, and he expired.

* * *

Garchomp roared and had used his left toes and right arm fin to hold off Scissor Runner's facial pincers. Scissor Runner growled as he cried crushing Garchomp, but he was too stubborn and had surprisingly an enormous amount of muscle packed in his body.

"You're nothing special! Do you hear me?!" Garchomp bellowed, struggling to keep his body from getting pincered. As impressive as his training and exercise paid off, he was still facing a copious amount of pressure. Still, he won't falter that easily.

"**Dragon Rush!**" Future Garchomp came from the side and his draconic attack struck the left side of Scissor Runner's face. A draconic explosion bellowed, and Scissor Runner's head reeled to the side, enough to make him lose his grip and nearly fall over. He caught himself and looked back in the sky, but only saw the two Garchomp gaining altitude as Zekrom took over from there on.

Scissor Runner looked on as the electrical generator in Zekrom's tail had begun to spin. A generator sound was heard all over and his body was beginning to get engulfed in so much voltage. Electricity, a massive amount of it, had surged, and random and massive bolts of lightning shot all over as he roared. The bolts trailed all over the area, and Scissor Runner watched in horror as Zekrom came crashing down.

"**Bolt Strike!**"

Zekrom roared as he looked like a meteor of lightning. Scissor Runner's world had been obliterated in a flash as Zekrom rushed into him with so much voltage and raw power. Another earth-rattling explosion expanded outwards, sending a beam of lightning into the sky. The sound of thunder roared for miles around, crackling lightning into the sky.

When the bolt faded with static in the corrosive winds, Zekrom was seen in the sky, looking down with a steadily gaze as there was a massive crater, and within it was Scissor Runner, his skin in static and his life short circuited.

* * *

Motherglare roared, sending another beam at Rayquaza, but the dragon serpentine and spiraled his whole body around the beam, much to everyone's increased shock. The beam continued on, exploding out in the pitch black skies in a flash. Motherglare's eyes widened when Rayquaza past him, causing the Dragon to lose a small sense of balance and had to turn his whole body, but Rayquaza was nowhere above, much to his disbelief.

"**Where'd he go?**" Motherglare wondered. He looked around to only find the two Charizard in the distance, but why so far?

His answer came when Rayquaza suddenly came in from below with what was an Extreme Speed once again. The dragon's pulsing blast chomped down on the exposed underside, creating a large explosion of draconic energy, making Motherglare roar weakly.

Rayquaza swerved back into the high altitude, reaching eye-level with Motherglare as his underside was still smoking. With him hindered, Rayquaza used this opportunity and his body had a green outline.

"It's time we break through your defenses, once and more all!" Rayquaza declared. His body swerved a bit as it had also become outlined in a green aura. Said aura was packed full of intense power. Jellal's eyes widened when this level of power was beyond what he could have expected in a million years.

Motherglare roared one more time in defiance as Rayquaza sped on in, becoming a green missile. "**Dragon Ascent!**"

Rayquaza was a green line passing Motherglare, and when he past him, the serpentine dragon's green outline faded away. He put on the air brakes and looked on ahead as Motherglare didn't move, neither did Rayquaza. It didn't seem like anything happened, but after a few seconds, a ripple finally exerted from Motherglare and he was engulfed in a green rupture. He roared in agony, his blood spilling from his mouth as his adamantine scales on his back and wings were all penetrated.

The majority of his scales shattered like porcelain, and the shards fell to the ground, as did Motherglare as his mind went blank.

All eyes were wide in sheer shock as Rayquaza roared once again, bellowing outwards as Motherglare hit the ground, making a rupture and a shockwave leveled the area, making his bruised and bloody corpse lay along the shattered adamantine scales he had chunked off, especially a massive amount from when Rayquaza struck mainly his right side.

* * *

Future Rogue's hand was embedded in light and shadow. He pulled it back and slashed forward, but he was met with his assault being blocked by one hand by Future Nic, dissipating the light and shadows. Future Rogue's eye widened. "No…!"

"I told you before, you're not half the menace Lysandre is. He was just using you; you were his entertainment until we arrived. The reality of your dream will never come to pass! Not ever!" Future Nic's mouth opened, revealing his sharp teeth. "**Crunch!**"

He sank his fangs into Future Rogue's side, making the Dragon Slayer grunt in pain at the huge jaw power.

Future Nic's long tail suddenly began to spiral and coil around Future Rogue. As they spun, Future Nic let go of his mouthful and hauled his body and Future Rogue's into the air above. The air pressure intensified and Future Rogue found it hard to retain a straight focus.

"Let…go!" He struggled to shouted. Using his Magic, he became a shadow and escaped Future Nic's coils. Future Nic straightened out and swerved upwards as Future Rogue manifested back into himself again in midair.

In midair, he looked angry and took to a realization something happened. When he looked around the city, his eyes widened in disbelief. "No…" To his shock, he saw all of the Legendary Pokémon had triumphed over his Dragons, all of their lives ending. All six were brutally beaten down, and Future Rogue was caught spacing out. "No…my dream…"

Future Nic roared high into the air as his body exerted a green outline. Future Rogue looked up in deep horror as Future Nic dove at him. "**Maxus Legendary Arts – Dragon Ascent!**"

With blinding speed, he became a green blur that zipped past Future Rogue in the air. The force generated an immense explosion and Future Rogue screamed in agony and a ripple extended outwards. The attack for Future Nic faded, and he swerved back around in the skies, looking down as Future Rogue plummeted below. He fell thousands of feet, smashing into the pavement in a ten-foot crater. His entire attire was torn apart, and his eyes were devoid of any strength, leaving Future Nic to roar in triumph.

* * *

Lysandre fired another Dark Pulse, but as it traveled after Nic, a blue ripple emerged from Dialga as the diamond on his chest shined. The Dark Pulse suddenly got much slower, giving Nic the opportunity to maneuver around and ascend greatly.

Palkia appeared from the side of Lysandre as time was gradually slowed down for him. His eyes widened when Palkia raised a claw, where he made a dense Dragon Claw and brought the claw in a slash. The harsh impact on Lysandre made him take a shockwave-making blast and shoot backwards in the pitch black sky.

Time returned normal or Lysandre as he shot backwards. The ghastly man retained his posture and made an Aura Sphere in his hands. He fired it at Palkia, and the ruler of space had his two pearls shine brightly, and the magenta markings on him glowed a bright pink. The airspace in front began to ripple pink, and the Aura Sphere hit the ripples, but never passed through.

"What?!" Lysandre bellowed.

He was distracted long enough for Nic to appear behind, where he slashed at Lysandre's back with Dragon Claw as well, making Lysandre grunt as he faltered away. As Lysandre fell, Nic opened his mouth and began to ready Dragon Pulse.

"No you don't!" Lysandre reached his arm out, and a spatial portal emerged.

Dialga opened his mouth, where another Flash Cannon was conjuring. Silver light began to manifest and he had it all packed in an orb in front. He let it all out, and a Flash Cannon went beaming towards Lysandre.

"How predictable." He growled. Lysandre made a second spatial portal in front of his other hand, where the Flash Cannon went into. To Dialga's disbelief, the Flash Cannon appeared out of the spatial hole aimed at Nic, and the Flash Cannon went at him.

Nic fired his charged Dragon Pulse and let loose as much power as possible, the attack struck Flash Cannon, generating a smoky explosion that ruptured the airspace yet again. As the smoke cleared, the Flash Cannon ploughed through, and Nic maneuvered out of the way to evade it.

Flash Cannon made a shining light that exploded in the distance, startling more of the audience.

Nic, Dialga, and Palkia were all in a standoff as they surrounded Lysandre. The violent man growled low and his body's aura began to manifest some catastrophic winds. His eyes dilated as the levels of hatred and frustration had begun piling on further.

Lysandre flashed open his eyes, unleashing a very disruptive Ominous Wing in all directions. The dark winds went all around like a hurricane, expanding out quickly and making Nic and the two Legendaries scream as they shot backwards from the maelstrom that continued to bellow forth reducing little trees on the ground to dead, withering ones.

Lysandre's bloody red canines showed as he caught sight of Nic as the latter was straightening out. He opened his mouth and loops began surging around him. A blue orb swelled in front. "**Dragon Brea-!**"

A green glint has seen passing Lysandre, striking him in an upward slant. Time slowed down, showing the shock to everyone's faces. Erza and Vanessa's eyes were wide as they saw the green glint being Future Nic.

Lysandre's eyes were still feral, and they seemingly intensified. _'Two Nics…this…!'_

Future Nic slanted upwards and swerved through the skies as his Dragon Ascent had met its mark, making Lysandre get engulfed in a green explosion, and his Dragon Breath collapsed altogether, making a green and blue explosion engulf him.

Future Nic swerved through the air until he circled around and met up with Nic's side. "Sorry for the wait."

Nic grinned in confidence. "It's fine. We got him on the ropes now. Let's…"

"You two…"

Nic's entire forces all looked up and felt what was cold and shriveling wave running through their veins. Lysandre's monotone voice bellowed in what could've been the most hostile growl ever to have penetrated their ears. The explosion faded away, revealing Lysandre as his skin was completely pale, and his eyes were black with the vermilion slits feral.

His dark energy never stopped escalating. All the hate he was feeling, the vision of two Nics, meaning two Pokémon of each of their six. The remembrance of them defeating him back in Kalos all those years ago didn't die off. The more he recalled the determined faces of theirs, the more agitated and thicker his aura became, eventually making the calm duo become startled as Lysandre's hatred was fueling his own power.

"NIC PULARIS!" Lysandre roared.

Dark shockwaves rampaged all around, quaking the seas that Kyogre was in, shattering any remnants of stone all around, and making Mavis's eyes tear up as the purest of light she'd always known become tainted from this unfathomable power.

The pitch black sky all around began to look…distorted. Even Palkia was left baffled as the skies were having waves of blood red, dark purple, and pitch black. Among that was red and purple lightning crackling uncontrollably, of which Zekrom couldn't seem to manipulate.

"You've gone and made me die. You suffered no attention in your childhood and you still wish to save humanity. You want to be the bleeding scorn in my way! YOUR EXISTENCE IS A NUISANCE!" Lysandre's bellowing sent dark ripples all around. All of the two Nics' Pokémon hurriedly gathered up in the streets and looked up with the other Legendaries as so much blood red and purple lightning gathered in one place within the sky. Within the gathering maelstrom of shrilled wailing, what seemed to be a swirling vortex appeared over Lysandre's head as his arms were overhead and the dark purple aura around him began to burst with blood red. His vermilion eyes dilated as he emanated violent screams and wailing.

Dark pillars of rotting intensity manifested, rising up all over the place. Everyone looked down as segments of Crocus was completely reduced to obliteration. The dead Dragons in the area were all consumed in pillars of wailing darkness, the shadows and demons within them reducing them to not even blood marks on the streets.

As all of the dead Dragons and buildings were reduced to nothing more than an unmemorable existence, Future Rogue's body was violently shaking in the crater. "This power…he…he set me up." The ground beneath him slowly cracked as blood red shadows began to converge from below.

"He had me set up from the beginning. Are Pokémon…truly this powerful…?" The blood red and dark shadows began to rise further and arched down onto him. "I WANTED TO BECOME THE RULER OF THE WORLD! THAT THRONE WAS MINE! MIIIIIIINE!"

He screamed in agony, and was cut off when the shadows slammed into him, wrapping him into a cocoon that left his shrilled screams silent. The cocoon thus imploded, and Future Rogue was no more as the shadows reduced him to not even molecules. The shadows spilled all around, and not even blood or bone remained.

All of Nic's Pokémon were fortunately spared as the pillars of darkness and shadows stopped going nuts, and they all instead were sucked up into the pitch black void within the sky. Their skin and scales crawled with anticipation as a distortion void spiraled in the sky.

Palkia's eyes widened. "Oh no…"

"I'm afraid so. We're too late." Dialga said.

Nic's eyes looked worrisome. "What's going on?!"

Future Nic's claws clenched. His fangs gritted as his serpentine body looked distressed. "No…this is very bad." He said. He was so distressed that he couldn't swallow. "Lysandre, he…"

Nic looked up into the sky, and everyone's hearts stopped, literally, when four figures with dark purple outlines began to close in from above. His eyes widened and dilated.

"Lysandre had finally gathered enough negative energy and emotions." Future Nic cursed. "That monster was wearing down the seal keeping Giratina and the others in the void. And now he finally gathered the right amount of dark matter and heinous thought, making it a portal…" His eyes narrowed. "To undo the seal."

"My Masters, ARISE!" Lysandre bellowed into the sky.

Out of the pitch black void in the sky, silent as a grave, Giratina in his Altered Form emerged, his Satan-like glare making all fall to their knees in their spheres. Atlas Flame himself felt vulnerable and trembling.

"It can't be…" Natsu's body shook as Giratina, Mewtwo, Darkrai, and Hoopa all emerged from the spatial distortion above.

Future Lucy covered her mouth, gasping. "No…the Dragons and everything…this wasn't supposed to happen! Nic knew this, and he didn't tell me?!" Her tears flowed as she looked down. "No…no…no…" Her voice got weaker and weaker. "This was the true end."

The Dark Legendaries all flew around and let out dark rippling cries, making souls tremble. They all gathered around Lysandre as the energy around him only escalated further. The distortion in the void above only expanded further. Blood red, dark purple, and pitch black lightning crackled and swirled in the skies.

The heinous energy could be seen from space. All of Earth Land was engulfed in this bizarre and monstrous dark colored lightning and sky. Every person populated around was scared, even the bravest of warriors, to the coldest of hearts. Even foreigners and strong Mages specializing in space and darkness, they all trembled and felt an almighty Hell eat the supposed Hell for breakfast and the seas turned to dark water, almost as black as ink. The wildlife all around, even the purest and eldest of trees, were nothing more than withering twigs that fell over.

Giratina's deep and demonic chuckle could be heard from miles, making all in their spheres shut their eyes and cover their ears from the insidious sound penetrating their ear drums. "Well done, Lysandre. We are free, and all shall become rotting corpse that shall not even have bones to call their own."

Darkrai held up a fist. "The eternal nightmare shall bring a new era of only darkness and silence. The void and universe shall merge, making all life start from zero."

"Hell yeah!" Hoopa screeched. "About time! Now we can show these worthless lifeforms why we deserve the universe!"

"Leave none standing. Defeat any and all with dare stand. Not even fabrication shall be in my sight. Everything must fall to us." Mewtwo said. "Lysandre, you have our gratitude for your services."

Lysandre smirked as he still had his sights on the two Nic before him. "Gratitude is for the weak. I want blood!"

Mewtwo's eyes narrowed. "As do we."

Giratina screeched into the skies, making dark ripples bellow. "You have earned this right! Slaughter Nic! And bring the universe crumbling down!"

All four of the Dark Legendaries' eyes flashed blood red, their hatred and contempt boiling to a point where the space around them was distorting, encompassing Lysandre in a dark, corrosive cloud. The energy would've killed even a single soul if too close. Everyone felt Lysandre and the Dark Legendaries' power further increase with their savage-hearted intentions booming.

Blood red and purple lightning flashed, and Lysandre's maniacal laughter became louder. The cloud of evil even went and covered up the Dark Legendaries.

They all felt an energy shift in the dark air, and threw it, they saw shapes changing. Roaring and grunts could be heard. The blossoming cloud of what appeared to be blood red had finally dissipated, showing a few figures changing. Both Nics looked beyond horrified at the alterations made, and they felt more than startled as their hearts stopped.

Hoopa was far bigger than before. He looked like an oversized goblin with detached arms. His tail was pointed and magenta with light blue all around included. The large legs were light blue with the front having magenta lines running down towards the yellow pointed ends of the feet. Two rings were at the shins. Above the ring that acted like a belt, Hoopa's abdominal area looked bizarre. Six enormous magenta curves, three on each side, had hollow holes. The very center of Hoopa had a massive ring, and inside was nothing but pitch black. The magenta chin and back of the neck covered for the light blue throat. His face was light blue, and his teeth were seen, mainly two large ones sticking up from the lower jaw. The black nose was accompanied by sharp magenta eyes. The ears had two rings at the base, and they looked like black horns. Hoopa had a massive magenta ponytail pointed up like a madman's. The creepiest part was the fact he had six detached arms with three claws. Yellow rings were on each wrist, and the base had a black spike that was bound by a yellow ring.

Mewtwo had also altered. He was larger and bulkier than his usual self. The horns on the head were longer and made it to the V-shaped protrusions on the forehead. The horns were pointed and curved upwards. Two tubes were on the back of his head, and the eyes were a venomous blue. Large purple growths were on his shoulders, almost like pauldrons. The limbs were longer and bulkier, and yet the stomach was smoother. Thighs and forearms both had two raised ridges. The tail had become slightly smaller and stiffer with a curled end.

And then came the most horrific change of them all, Giratina, Mega Mewtwo, Hoopa, and Darkrai all roared into the bloody cloud that consumed Lysandre. The cloud dissipated, revealing Lysandre was a completely different monster.

Future Nic's eyes widened, as did his Pokémon's. "Oh god…it's him."

Nic's eyes, as well as his Pokémon's, were all wide with horror at the revelation established. "Lysandre, he…"

Lysandre had altered completely. He had an intricate gold crest-like crown on his forehead, much like what Giratina had. His man-like hair was more spiky and pointed up more. The sideburns and sides of the hair were blood red, while the top was pitch black. His small beard included was blood red. His face and neck were light gray, with the eyes and sclera pitch black with the pupils being vermilion still, only sharper and more feral-looking.

Around the collar bone in a V-shape like Nic's shirt usually is, there were blood red pointed ridges similar to Darkrai's. The shoulders were instead massive golden ridges that went below the red perimeter, connecting to a massive golden ring in his center with the inside swirling pitch black, blood red, and dark purple. It was like a black hole almost. Like before, golden claws, three on each side, were around his rib cage. An upside down purple arch was below the middle ring, acting like edging of the coat. His pants seemed to be combined with his legs, which were pitch black and longer and bulkier, like Mega Mewtwo. The two ridges on the thighs were lined in purple. The shins had black lines around a red line, a set of two with two golden spikes on each ring. The shoes were gone and instead were three toes with blood red claws. The tail was now dark purple and slightly stiffer. Two golden spikes were on the bulbous end still, but the tail had magenta on the upper half and covering the bulbous tail. The underside had dark and red rings, like the shins did, resembling parts of Giratina.

The scariest part included that that his arms were detached as well. His arms were now four, and instead, the ends were white whisps that were bound to the hands by dark purple rings. Each of the four hands were pitch black, but each forearm resembled Hoopa Unbound, Darkrai, Mega Mewtwo, and for Giratina, it looked like his wing with three blood red claws, the same claws on his Hoopa hand. The wrists all had dark purple rings.

Around him was instead a blood red aura, and his blood red fangs showed. This power they sensed, it left their spines stiff, everyone's. Lysandre let loose a catastrophic blood red shockwave that made the two Nics and Dialga and Palkia shoot away, grunting.

When they straightened out, Future Nic looked terrified as his teeth gritted. "He's been given greater power born from hatred…he's…"

Lysandre raised all of his four detached arms, sending blood red and pitch black distortion waves all around him and the Dark Legendaries. "I am…**RAGNAROK LYSANDRE!**"

His bellowing echoed outwards, reaching all across Earth Land and pierced into the hearts of the purest and most sinister, bringing them to a standstill.

Giratina looked satisfied and his demonic eyes were set on Nic. "Kill the boys! KILL THEM ALL!"

The Dark Legendaries readied to attack, and the Legendaries and Pokémon on Nic's side were all unnerved.

A sudden roar in the distance got their attention. The roar bellowed as loudly as can be. The sound of what was a fighter jet was off near the sea.

"What was that?" Greninja asked.

The sound echoed again like a roar.

Kecleon tilted her head. "Doomsday sucks."

The sound echoed louder and louder, and Cana was inside her sphere as more fear piled on. "It can't be."

"I know that sound." Gajeel said.

Natsu's eyes widened. The same creature from all those years back, he had returned. "No way, it's him!"

Mavis shuddered. "How was that monster drawn towards here? Was he…looking for revenge?"

"That's the same sound, the sound of something who nearly ended us on Tenrou Island." Makarov muttered. The sound echoed again as the sound barrier broke, and all saw a black dragon fly in the pitch black sky.

The Dragon Slayers; Sting, Rogue, all of them, saw with their own eyes of a familiar creature soaring across the dark waters.

Cana's eyes shuddered more as she recalled the incident of Tenrou Island. "Why are we suffering this again?!"

Roaring through the skies, everyone present saw Acnologia bare his teeth. Lahar and Doranbolt both couldn't believe who they were seeing, Crime Sorciere and all guilds and citizens were cowardly enough already, but this seemed like icing on the cake.

"Acnologia?!" Sting shouted.

The whole population despaired as the Dragon King went sailing in, passing underneath so many distortion orbs, and yet they all didn't feel the wind, as if that was distorted around them. The Back Dragon had eyes full of rage as he went after the Legendary Pokémon all around.

Rayquaza, Groudon, and Kyogre all turned around to see Acnologia advance. Rayquaza roared again. "Him again?!"

Kyogre roared as well. "I thought he learned the last time!"

"What is he here for?" Groudon demanded.

Acnologia roared as he felt an overwhelming sense of evil. This level of foreboding power mixed with the Legendaries was what he was sensing. He wanted to crush it. He wanted to dominate, and perish this dark power to show that he shall never have his reputation sullied again. The scars all over him were painful reminders of how he lost, and he wouldn't accept that again. His goal was set on the source – Ragnarok Lysandre and the Dark Legendaries.

Ragnarok Lysandre's smirk was shown. "Well, well, what do we have here?"

"Fuel to the flames of corrosion." Hoopa said, looking glee.

Mega Mewtwo held up a clenched fist, an unimaginable power swelling from him. "This is where we shall leave a reminder that this Dragon had made the biggest mistake of his life."

Acnologia roared again, closing the physical distance.

"This damaged fool shall fall." Giratina stated, his dark stare glaring daggers into all who would look at Satan himself. "Eliminate him."

Acnologia opened his mouth and fired a roar. The attack went beaming after the dark overlords, passing by the two Nics, Dialga, and Palkia. The assault beamed closer, but the bloody look of Ragnarok Lysandre wasn't at all annoyed, rather amused.

His smirk increased further as his blood red aura flared, and all spines in the orbs could feel their blood grow cold as Ragnarok Lysandre reached his Giratina hand out, and a spatial hole was made, a large one. The roar was taken in as a hole, and Natsu was beyond baffled as Acnologia's attack was once again stopped like it was seven years ago.

"Im…possible." Natsu shuddered, the dark energy still flaring like crazy.

Acnologia stopped his roar when he saw the spatial portal. He saw how it took his attack, and he snarled low with a hot breath.

A spatial portal opened up underneath him, and Acnologia was suddenly engulfed in a roar. His own roar. The Dragon King bellowed in pain and agony as his own attack had disastrous results on him. All saw the light blue beam shoot straight up and swallowed Acnologia in what soon erupted into a light blue flash, swallowing up a majority of the sky.

Palkia got in front of everyone still in the air, Rayquaza, Zekrom, and Reshiram included and his pearls glowed. The space around distorted as shockwaves rampaged through the skies, and on the ground the Pokémon all gaped with shock at Acnologia's attack turning against him.

The ball of energy that swallowed the sky faded, revealing Acnologia steaming and scratched badly. He shook his head and angrily glared back at his opponents. His teeth bared as he roared out again in frustration.

His wings flapped and he went soaring in towards the Dark Legendaries. He closed the distance quick as he brought a claw back. "**Revenge shall be mine!**"

Before his claw could reach Mega Mewtwo, Mega Mewtwo reached out. Acnologia suddenly stopped cold, as if he became frozen. The Dragon King was immobile as some force was keeping him from moving, which was in reality Mega Mewtwo's Psychic.

"We have no business with you. Wait your turn after we kill Nic and his forces." He savagely stated. Using a single index finger, Acnologia fell straight down from the sky, crashing hard head first into the ruins of Crocus beneath. Dust scattered as Acnologia made a humungous crater. The entire city felt a massive tremor from that crash.

Arcadios's eyes widened. "I can't believe what I am seeing."

"Acnologia is here, but he…" Hisui trailed off.

"He's at the mercy of those monsters." The King shuddered. "The world's greatest danger, and he's no more than a ragdoll."

Natsu could only stare in deep shock. "No way. His ass is getting kicked…"

Lucy and Future Lucy watched in deep revelation as the Dark Legendaries and Ragnarok Lysandre had Acnologia up and roaring in his deep crater again.

The Dragon King looked pissed as he angrily roared up at the Dark Legendaries. Behind him, a spatial hole was seen, and it seemed wide. Acnologia didn't even get a chance as a large arm reach out and grabbed his neck.

Hoopa smirked as his clever work was paying off. Another hand went into a ring that made a spatial portal, this one going towards the front of the throat. Acnologia was held with claws digging into his scales.

A third portal emerged, this one being the same size, and from it a third fist from Hoopa shot through violently shooting a swift punch to the Dragon's stomach. Acnologia tried to gag or roar in pain, but he was suffocating by the two hands.

Darkrai looked down at Acnologia. "Tch, why not join everyone in their nightmare." From his hand stretched out, a Dark Pulse was fired down. The Dark-Type attack closed in fast, and when it was but a bright purple light to Acnologia, he completely forgot the hands that retreated back to Hoopa's sides through the closed spatial portals.

Acnologia was engulfed in a field of darkness, reaching out so far that it exploded and left an even bigger crater in the ruins of the city.

The explosion settled, and Acnologia seemed to have taken some serious damage. The Dragon King looked up in heavy exasperation. "**Your kind sickens me. You think you're better than the Dragons. You think your power surpasses mine? I won't stand for thi-!**"

Acnologia was silenced when all that was decent about him was muted. From his side was Giratina, and he violently assaulted Acnologia's right side, slashing with his red claws on the wings to make a mighty Dragon Claw. The vicious attack ripped right through Acnologia, blood coming out of his right side.

Both Nic saw Acnologia suffer the same fate they did. They looked distressed and nervous as they looked back and unconsciously clutched their right sides, where Lysandre ripped into them before. The sight was gruesome if not mind-blowing.

Acnologia spilled blood, but he found his feet underneath. His right side was a complete mess with blood on the rib cage and waist, but he wasn't giving up. He turned towards Giratina, looking into his Satan eyes, the eyes of the most vile devil who regrets no single misdeed and shall do it all again. Acnologia brought a claw back and slashed at Giratina. Giratina used the hard ridged on the sides of his mouth and head to knock the claw away, and screech out at Acnologia.

Acnologia roared back and took flight, but he found it harder with his damage. He ascended higher and higher, and Giratina did so as well.

Both met in the air, and Acnologia viciously charged, as did Giratina. As Acnologia was gonna rip into him, Giratina suddenly vanished, much to everyone's shock.

"Wait, he's gone?" Elfman exclaimed.

"His presence, I still know it's around." Freed said.

Future Nic looked around as well, having a vile feeling. "I know this move."

"Yeah, me too." Nic said.

Acnologia looked around, seeing no sign of Giratina. A sudden crack appeared in the space on his right. He turned and looked to find the cracks increasing. As it space was cracking apart again, but the difference was that ghastly darkness was seeping through. Finally the pieces all shattered, and a void like darkness had a black figure with red eyes lunging out. The figure that was Giratina had pitch black shadows, and Acnologia actually felt…fear.

He faltered back, but he was doomed as his abdomen was struck by Giratina when he exited Shadow Force. The massive impact made Acnologia scream and roar in vile agony. What was a dark purple explosion encompassed him, and a violent and screeching explosion sent shockwaves of pure antimatter in all directions. Nic and Future Nic's Pokémon all covered up, but even they were caught in the shockwaves and flew off in random directions. The Legendaries themselves covered up and faltered backwards from this gruesome force.

When the dark explosion faded away, Giratina was in the air, screeching down as Acnologia fell straight down, his stomach all bloodied and marked badly by Giratina's move. He fell into the crater again, making what was an enormous thud.

The Dark Legendaries bellowed as they showed their power, making everyone feel hope falter to the negatives.

"Acnologia lost?! That fast?!" Max yelled.

"They are so screwed!" Macao shouted.

"This can't be happening! No way!" Romeo protested in anguish.

"That Acnologia, that very same Dragon we saw in that illusion, he was dispatched just like that." Sting muttered, his body quaking.

Rogue looked horrified. "So this is the raw power of Pokémon."

Atlas Flame looked shocked. "**…uh…impossible. The Dragon King, the Apocalypse…was defeated by a greater apocalypse?!**"

Future Lucy began to tear up. "This was the real fate of the future, and Nic didn't tell me! Why?!"

Lucy looked at her despairing counterpart and had heavy remorse as she saw her on her knees and sobbing in despair, coherently muttering of despair and no hope. Lucy looked down at Acnologia's unconscious form, pondering. _'Perhaps because Nic knew it was for the best. I wouldn't have handled the situation any better myself.'_

Vanessa stared in shock. "The Weather Trio took a long time to beat him."

"He went down in mere minutes." Orga said.

"The reports of Acnologia are nothing now." Lahar grimaced. "These creatures, it's clear they are but a force far worse than Acnologia-no! Worse than Zeref. May the Council hurry."

Ragnarok used his Hoopa hand and reached down at Acnologia. "Stand aside, lightweight."

In a flash, Acnologia was engulfed in a pitch black energy, and suddenly in the sky, right next to Atlas Flame, the wounded and weakened Acnologia laid in a large pink orb. All were shocked by him getting suspended like they were, and they were even more baffled that he was defeated so easily.

Dialga looked piqued. "They're stronger than before!"

Palkia hollered out a screech again. "They won't take Arceus or Nic Pularis's life!"

Ragnarok Lysandre stretched his Hoopa and Giratina claws out, where the rings came off and spatial portals were made in front. "You won't get in my way again!" Pitch black orbs were in the two hands and surged with anguish and an overwhelming energy that made the temperature drop. "**Maxus Legendary Arts: Dark Void!**"

The black orbs were shot into the spatial portals, which closed immediately after. Right beside Dialga and Palkia the portals opened up again, and the two were suddenly hit from the sides. They were both enveloped in what was a black and somewhat visible sphere each. Both Dialga and Palkia saw pitch black inside as they couldn't see anything inside.

"Dialga!" Nic shouted.

"Palkia!" Future Nic followed up.

The two spheres holding the rulers of time and space fell to the ground. The black spheres hit the ground hard, leaving more tremors to quickly dissipate. The spheres vanished, and in the craters were Dialga and Palkia on their sides. They both looked fine, and yet they weren't. They were twitching, and they seemed distressed, but they couldn't wake up.

"No!" Both Nics yelled. They angrily looked back at Ragnarok Lysandre as he smirked and chuckled, sending fear down their spines.

"I put them in their nightmares, where they belong." He explained. "You will join them, and all shall perish, giving birth to a new universe of zero!"

Nic swallowed hard, and if he was honest, he never felt more scared in his entire life. His wings barely held him up from the anxiety he felt. With Dialga and Palkia in pain in their sleep and out of commission, there was little hope, but…

"You can say this is a nightmare, but I'll wake you up." Nic sated.

"Hm?" Ragnarok raised a brow.

The Dark Legendaries behind him growled.

Future Nic took over, his tail wagging as he swerved in place. "We'll end this, and we'll end this dream!" He declared loudly. "We didn't come back from the future to have it ripped away like this again! We'll spot all five of you, and this nightmare will be erased forever!"

Nic held up a clenched fist, his eyes filled with determination. "Even if it kills us!"

Future Nic roared loudly, agreeing with Nic. He closed his mouth as the echo stretched all around. _'For everyone from my time; Erza, Vanessa, everyone that helped us, you'll all see the light again.' _He pictured Erza, and then he pictured his sister. Having them taken away was hard, but this was his final course, and if he's going out, he's going out big.

Future Nic and Nic both yelled at the same time. "This last battle will count, and the light will purge you, Ragnarok Lysandre!"

Ragnarok Lysandre's blood red aura palpitated, making the air around him distort. "You? Defeat us? THEN PROVE IT!"

The Dark Legendaries and the Legendaries all around roared in unison, declaring their sides and readying for the battle that shall change the future forever. For Future Nic and his Pokémon, this shall indeed be the last fight to the bitter end.

* * *

**Sorry for the wait, but the length was far greater than what I had anticipated. Did this chapter exceed your expectations? Pease let me know in a comment or review.**

**There is a very strong chance that the next chapter will be another long one, given all that's been happening in this chapter, so the next one shall be the final fight to end it all.**

**Given that note, the next chapter will be backed up a few days compared to normal. My family is starting preparations for moving, so I gotta help out. I gotta have a lot of work around the house done, so the next big chapter shall take some time until the heat dies down. Moving is a lot of work.**

**I know Acnologia's fight was short, but if I was honest, he didn't have much of a role except demonstrate how he ranked up compared to the Dark Legendaries.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys love the final battle reaching the climax and the Pokémon battling, and especially since you all love Nic's Pokémon.**

* * *

**Next Time: Eternal Light**


	84. Eternal Light

Chapter 84 – Eternal Light

**Well guys, Insane Dominator is here, proud to announce the final fight chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**. I want to thank everyone whose been reviewing and following along with the story. Let's be real here, the beginning wasn't so pleasing, but the more I wrote, the better the plot became, right? All of those fights finally boiled down to this finale, and each fight involving Lysandre had been blood boiling. This shall be the finale fight that shall not be forgotten.**

**And so, enjoy the second to last chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**!**

**To Recap:**

With all incapacitated, Nic, Future Nic, and their Pokémon followed the Legendary Pokémon into battle against the Dragons. Future Nic completely overwhelmed Future Rogue in his Legendary Force - Rayquaza, in which the same implied for the Legendary Pokémon against the Dragons. Nic was assisted by Dialga and Palkia as they were able to keep up with Lysandre. After the Dragons were killed, Lysandre had accumulated enough negative energy to kill Future Rogue, and manifest a void that swallowed up all f Erath Land, the Dark Legendaries emerged, and Lysandre became more powerful, becoming Ragnarok Lysandre. Acnologia arrived soon after, wanting revenge, but he was easily swatted down by the power of the Dark Legendaries and Ragnarok Lysandre, leaving him suspended like everybody else. Ragnarok Lysandre put Dialga and Palkia to sleep with Dark Void, leaving both Nics, their Pokémon, and the Weather and Tao Trio to keep on fighting for the future.

* * *

**Chapter 84 – Eternal Light**

There was a violent intensity, one that left all speechless with paralyzed spines. The air was suffocating even through the spatial orbs incapacitating them. It was a battle of hatred against the only hope for all life amongst the stars. While the irony was that there were no stars. Pitch black swelled the infinite confines of space, and Arceus's eyes were hollow and desolate, almost like a corpse. His body had only a faint glow.

'_Nic Pularis.'_ Arceus muttered. _'The rest is up to you. May you and your Pokémon fight for what your heart chooses.'_

Both Nics were in the air, with the remaining Pokémon all roaring and snarling up at Ragnarok Lysandre and the four menacing Legendary Pokémon that dare to attempt to slaughter them.

"We're pushed, we'll admit that." Nic testified, holding up the wristband on his left wrist.

"So we'll hit you with all that we have." Future Nic added, his Mega Wristband showing.

Seeing the peculiar Key Stones and the Mega Wristbands, a majority of everyone watching had no clue what was going on. However, Fairy Tail was another story as they glanced in shock.

"Nic's gonna use it!" Sophie stated.

Ragnarok Lysandre's smirk intensified as he looked at the two synchronized, holding up their wrists to eye level. Down below them, Nic's Charizard spread his wings, as well as Future Nic's Garchomp stepping forward.

On que, both sprung up into the air with violent roars, bellowing and rattling the airspace around.

"You ready, Garchomp?" Charizard asked Future Garchomp as they ascended.

Future Garchomp heard the rhetorical tone and kept on ascending into the bizarre black skies. "Evermore!"

Both escalated higher and higher at unimaginable speeds. Just as both Nics tapped the Key Stones on their left wrists, both Charizard and Future Garchomp's bodies each emanated blue and purple light waves.

"Charizard!"

"Garchomp!"

Both Nics raised their Mega Wristbands, which became visible at will on Future Nic in his Legendary Force. They emanated light waves of their own that corresponded to Charizard and Future Garchomp as they shot right above them. "Mega Evolve!"

High in the dark skies of the beyond, Charizard and Future both had undergone the light of Mega Evolution. Their individual parts altered and manifested new power. The entire audience was feeling an excess amounts swelling within the two Pokémon. The Magic Council watching via lacrima-vision, as Lahar and Doranbolt, were all shocked upon seeing this 'power-up'.

Charizard and Future Garchomp both growled, with one giving off a devastating heat, as to where the other emanated a terrifying pressure. Both lights in the sky flashed and exploded, sending shockwaves all around in the air.

Mega Charizard and Mega Garchomp bellowed out hazardous and rock-melting roars. They reached a critical altitude and descended like fighter jets with streams of foul air following them.

"Mega Evolution. How predictable." Ragnarok Lysandre sneered. "Is that all?"

Rayquaza bellowed out, catching everyone's attention. "Do not mock the power of Mega Evolution!" He reprimanded, but the recipients only showed sinister smirks. "Perhaps we shall show you ourselves!" Rayquaza let out another screech as the circle on his head began to shine. Light waves began to exert out from him, and yet another, more potent, wave of power could be felt.

"You feel that? What unmatched power!" Jura marveled.

"I can't believe this." Lyon said. "That thing can undergo the same transformation?!"

Doranbolt could feel such an overwhelming power from Rayquaza, and he was trembling, almost panting. _'This ominous power alone, that's enough to leave us lying on the ground. But this…'_

"Such raw force. These 'Pokémon' creatures, are they just about to show their _true _power?!" Lahar exclaimed.

Rayquaza's light waves burned with a bright light encasing him. Inside the changes occurred, and a barely conscious Acnologia watching growled as he saw what he recognized. Rayquaza's body had lengthened, and a majority of everything altered greatly. His image was faint, but many couldn't help but see his Mega Evolution.

The sphere exploded, and from the bright flash came a shockwave that rattled with so much intensity that buildings barely standing, or whatever was left of them, cracked from the overwhelming pressure.

Mega Rayquaza let out an earth-trembling roar, ripples and shockwaves running wild, but all persevered.

Kyogre and Groudon both roared in response to the Weather Trio Master's call to battle. A sudden pulse emanated from both the being of land and sea. In the seas, the waves were going wild and were splitting apart from the actual pressure being unleashed. The land beneath Groudon was no different as it actually began to crack and had lava red filling the gaps; steam becoming visible as the land was splitting apart.

Energy condensed around Groudon and Kyogre, making fields of red and blue. The two colors shined brightly, and Groudon curled up a little as the energy began to crystalize around him. What looked like trench water swirled inside the deep blue glass encasing Kyogre, while Groudon's was red with swirling lava inside. Both glass energy casings condensed further into floating gems of purple and dark blue.

Everyone, once again, felt yet another massive flow of power. This unimaginable force was unparalleled, even Jura and Makarov were astounding by this astronomical level. It's put any and all of the Wizards Saints and human beings of any Magic content to bitter shame. That's what happens when you feel the full wrath of the land and sea.

Yellow and blue intricate symbols as they did before, and the cores both cracked. When both shattered, shockwaves of heated red and cool-sea blue expanded out. The nearby sea levels arose to the point where the seashores were now water, and the land at Groudon's feet was a mound of lava.

Both Primal Legendaries let loose deafening roars, rattling the cracked and deformed earth all throughout Crocus and the mountains, as well as the raging dark waters that was the sea.

Vanessa looked at the carnage below. "Primal Groudon…Primal Kyogre…"

Kyurem raised his head and screeched out. At will, ice pillars arose in a variety of places. He signified his wrath, and he spread his feet apart. He adjusted his frozen appendages, pointing the translucent pointed tips at Reshiram overhead.

"Reshiram, give me your power." Kyurem demanded.

Reshiram looked down at Kyurem and looked very distressed. Zekrom felt the same way. Both never really liked doing what was implied. They'd rather have the other picked, and in Zekrom's case he was left the fortunate one.

"…alright, the truth hurts, but our fates rest on this outcome." Reshiram acquiesced.

The four pointed tips shot out of Kyurem like grabbling lines and were connected by a thick black thread. The spikes snaked upwards and faced Reshiram. Reshiram looked ready for what was to come. The four spikes all aimed and went at all sides of Reshiram.

Levy and other guild members and spectators cringed and looked away briefly as Reshiram's body was punctured. The white dragon let out a cry as his body was enveloped in a purple light, flames and heat from all around getting sucked inside. Actual heat waves were seen rushing inside the sphere of purple, and Reshiram looked as though he was in small pain as he curled up and became a flaming manifestation.

The manifestation of fire swirled inside the purple light, slowly shrinking altogether. The sphere became a dazzling display of orange and purple that continuously shrank until what became a smooth, round stone of pure white.

"Reshiram's form altered?!" Jet was left shocked.

"And that ice monster did that?!" Droy exclaimed.

The Light Stone descended downwards as the spikes all retreated into Kyurem, holding back in place and the wings adjusted back to their original structure. The Light Stone floated down and ended up at the base of the peculiar end of Kyurem's tail.

When the Light Stone inserted itself, it immediately transformed, becoming a fire orb. The orb dissolved into Kyurem's tail, and an orange light began to engulf Kyurem from the tail. The dragon suddenly spontaneously combusted, leaving many in question.

When the flames dissipated, Kyurem had become different. The legs were slightly shorter, but the middle toes had ice and had some more ice detailed. The tail was like Reshiram's but was attached by three gray skin marks. Four holes were horizontal on the tail. The torso was slimmer; the shoulders had squared of ice with two spikes each, which were the same that were of Kyurem. His arms were thin with two rings, with wings between the rings. The right forearm and wing were both frozen. The neck was upright with Reshiram fur. The ice underneath the jaw, allowing the mouth to move.

"Behold! White Kyurem!" The beast roared, sending waves of ice in his rippling bellow, but to the touch it was like a major burn, as if the attack was a complete polar opposite in one.

"White Kyurem?" Gray wondered. His eyes suddenly widened. "Hey wait, hold up a sec! Nic looked just like that when he shot out of Nirvana!"

"I never knew that these Legendary Pokémon had so many secrets." Erza stated.

Future Lucy looked in heavy desperation. It was one thing that the 'supposed' future was a lie, but Future Nic not telling her was an even greater shock. Why would he not tell her of the impending doomsday? Was he sparing her feelings? Was he keeping it a low profile so as not to leave her in hopeless despair? However the reason went, she felt sick in the stomach. Future Nic led her on, and there was absolutely nothing she could do.

'_Nic, please. Please save the future.'_ Future Lucy thought. _'Make our final efforts count. You need to correct history…so we can see everyone again.'_

Future Nic roared right beside Nic, his position altering. _'I won't have our sacrifices be for nothing. If history changes…' _His eyes narrowed as his headpiece had begun shining brightly, getting Nic's surprise.

"You too?" Nic asked with wide eyes.

'_This is what we all wanted!' _Future Nic remained devoted, no matter what will happen if they somehow miraculously succeeded.

_The Eclipse Gate had just opened, and Lucy and Nic stood in front of what was a massive light. The gates had a very odd power, and they felt some shrilled terror, and not just because Dragons were closing in on them from the skies. The domain they were in was the shambles of Mercurius. Nic stood in front, in silence._

"…"

"_Nic." Lucy asked. "I don't know about this."_

_Nic glanced back at her. "You having second thoughts? Because I'm going, with or without you. I have to."_

_Lucy looked in despair and her gaze was down. She just lost her inspiration: Natsu. Her beacon's flame went out, and now with her guild and everyone gone, she was all alone. To add insult to injury…she only had the one left arm after a Dragon's fire cindered her arm. _

_Speaking of which, they only had a shirt amount of time as the alcove of shambles they hid from with the Eclipse Gate wasn't gonna keep their scents masked much longer. Dragons were roaming outside, waiting for prey somewhere._

"_Nic…I don't know if we can do this." Lucy said._

_Nic turned towards her. "Don't know? Or don't think?" He tried to sound calm, despite the little time and Magic Power the Eclipse Gate had left._

"_I…" Lucy contemplated heavily, but her depression was a major drawback on how she was able to think properly. "I don't know anymore." Her body began to shudder as she began to tear up. Her tears dripped down her cheeks. "All I know is…that if we do this, history will change."_

"_But it'll be for the better. Better for all of us." Nic replied._

"_But not for us." Lucy looked back up at him. "Nic, if we do change history…we'll all disappear from existence."_

_Nic remained stoic, aware of the risks. He was aware the first time when he came further back from the later future. He knew saying farewell to Erza and Vanessa was by far the most disastrous thought he went through. It took all of his willpower not to shudder and end up like Lucy._

_It was when he placed his hands inside his pockets and gripped to his Poke Balls that he knew he wouldn't be in this alone. If history changed, yes, they'd indeed disappear. But if they disappeared, at least he will never be alone. He and his Pokémon shall make the upmost and selfless sacrifice to prove it._

"…_yes, Lucy. If we do go through this. Everything in our timeline will change, and we'll disappear." He looked towards the Eclipse Gate, facing the golden light. "But, I don't care."_

_Lucy's eyes widened._

"_If it means restoring the lives lost, and saving all that was destroyed, and bringing the stars back to the heavens, I'll risk my life. My Pokémon and I were fully prepared from the start and intend to end it this way. Natsu would've done the same._

"_Nat…su…" The name mentioned made Lucy's eyes tear up further._

"_You'd think he sacrificed himself just for you to die? No, he'd follow the resolve to change the future. Like it or not, we don't have a choice in the matter. It's either stay and die, or change history and disappear. To bring everything back to stability…we have to disappear."_

_As Dragons roared outside, Lucy was heavily in distressed, but the way Nic sounded was like this was the resolution set. This would be Natsu's will entrusted to her. This was her last chance to prove to her late hero that she was gonna try and change everything, no matter what sacrificed made._

_With a face of rejuvenated hope and with a nod of confirmation, Lucy gave Nic her answer. "You're right. Everyone we know is gone. We have to change the future, and give our sacrifices meaning!"_

_Nic nodded. "I couldn't agree more."_

_As a Dragon stepped over the alcove, he caught sight of Nic and Lucy as the two looked in front of the gate as the doorway was flickering on and off, meaning the Magic Power was almost gone._

"_Let's go." Nic ordered._

_With that, the duo stepped inside the Eclipse Gate just before the light flickered away, rendering the gate unable to act before a Dragon's Roar obliterated it._

Future Nic served higher in altitude, tendrils emerging from the circular light on his headpiece. _'Us eight didn't come back to have it all taken from us! We'll sacrifice our lives and fall as one! For everything and everyone!' _He let out a primal roar that bellowed outwards.

Mega Rayquaza stared with a neutral look as Future Nic's Legendary Force was enveloped in the sphere of what happened to him earlier. Nic looked shocked, as were all twelve of their Pokémon as they witnessed Future Nic's new transformation. The tendrils he grew were changing further on the jet-like protrusions he had, and his coat's tail had lengthened considerable.

The energy levels shot off the highest of charts, and the sphere exploded, releasing what was massively powerful shockwave that sent a ripple throughout the entire sky.

Future Nic had also become a Mega Evolution. His eyes were still black, but the eyes were solemnly red with black, sideways tree branch marking running along the sides, stopping before the ears. The edging on the lower protrusions, looking like the ones of Mega Rayquaza with the same tendrils, had yellow. The lower jaw and bare neck were now black. The edging on the coat wings became yellow instead of red. The upper jet-like protrusions of his headpiece had tendrils as well. The forehead had an intricate triangle marking with an oval, all underneath the yellow circle atop of the headpiece. The pants became a solid black with orange-yellow gems, two sets of two on the sides of the shins and thighs. The feet were still green with black underneath. The wings on his shins had also had the edging change from red to yellow. From the last 3-5 of the coat, which was a massively long tail, it looked no different from Mega Rayquaza's tail. The black shirt was the same, and the belt was black, with the coat still morally the same.

"**Legendary Force – Mega Rayquaza!**" Future Nic bellowed loudly, violently rattling the ominous airspace.

All trembled in their spheres at the feeling of this power. This was beyond a battle of titans in their vocabulary. What was happening was an actual battle of Pokémon. A last-man-standing Pokémon battle.

Nic took his shock and used it as fuel to his flame. There was no way his future self nor his regular self would ever give up. The demonic terror of even Satan has been tormenting him for so long, and even up to now they had an epic clash. From Lysandre HQ all the way to the other world, with the stakes far greater with every battle fought.

"Let me at 'em!" Mega Garchomp bellowed, flying at Mach speed through the skies.

"I wanna crush some bones too. These blind Zubat earned it, and then some!" Garchomp yelled, sailing right by his side and both racing along the still air.

Mega Charizard and Future Charizard roared as well, with the remaining eight Pokémon all declaring cries and roars of their own. The pressure each gave off was tremendous. Though not as grand nor formidable as the Legendaries, they had tenacity, durability, and endurance to back themselves up.

Giratina screeched outwards, his shrilled cry piercing the hearts of all and making every single creature suspended feel a heart attack. "The universe shall be ours to demolish! None shall stand in our way! Eliminate them all!"

Giratina flapped his shadowy wings, and he went flying in after Mega Rayquaza, who opened his mouth and fired Dragon Pulse. Unfortunately the attack was dodged, and Giratina continued on and ignored the multicolored explosion flashing in the skies behind. His golden claws got hold of Mega Rayquaza and went crashing into the earth beneath, creating a massive crater.

Giratina had a foot pressed on Mega Rayquaza when the dust settled, and his mouth had an Aura Sphere ready. The attack had an immense level of power that would leave a mark.

"**Dual Chop!**"

The sudden attack call was what suddenly got the attack sliced in two. Mega Garchomp was the revealed culprit as he sliced right through with glowing green claws.A blue explosion enveloped Giratina's face, but the ghostly dragon backed away and took flight once more.

Garchomp emerged from seemingly out of nowhere from a running start. He lunged up and used Crunch. His sharp fangs gripped onto the tail, making Giratina growl and turn around as Garchomp also had his claws and toes gripping onto the tail.

"Pests!" Giratina bellowed. With a single swing of his tail, he used the force of a wrecking ball and smashed Garchomp through a broken wall, but the raptor dragon creature remained his hold and his Crunch was super effective as it was.

Mega Rayquaza emerged from the crater and screeched up at Giratina head on. He brought his tail around and smacked Giratina's face, but Giratina backed away, all while swinging his tail underneath, finally making Garchomp fling off and slide along the ground, using his fins as anchors.

"Stubborn." He commented as Mega Garchomp looked up as well.

* * *

Darkrai's speed was light that of a night shadow. Without a misstep in his dodging, he swerved around, evading Zekrom's Dragon Claw as the beast slashed with massive energy claws. Darkrai screeched into a pivot and looked back to fire a Dark Pulse. The attack landed right in Zekrom's center. The black dragon roared as he was engulfed in a dark explosion, causing him to falter backwards.

As the smoke settled, both Kecleon emerged with fierce lunges. "Say hallelujah!" Kecleon demanded.

Darkrai ascended and dodged. He watched as the two Color Swap Pokémon descended from their jump. He readied what was a sphere of darkness and was about to fire it down onto them. As he aimed, a suddenly Ice Beam hit the sphere of darkness head on.

"GAH!" Darkrai covered up from a mixture of a dark and icy explosion that sent a ripple around. Both Kecleon bellow were hit by the shockwaves and felt the shivering wave course through them. They did manage and landed on their feet, albeit a little rough.

Both looked up to see White Kyurem roaring from above. He opened his mouth and fired another Ice Beam. The Ice-Type move traveled towards Darkrai, but it was when his blue eyes flashed that a pressure swelled.

"I feed off of nightmares! The dread brewing is what gives me power!" He announced. He swiped both his arms, and a tempest of purple wind erupted. "**Ominous Wind!**"

The beams of ice hit the wall of purple dread. The passing wind was like the grim reaper's wailing cry for souls. A twister of purple and ice emerged from in between, and White Kyurem roared out.

The twister exploded, sending a massive wave of purple winds and ice in all directions. Although Darkrai was unfazed as the shockwaves went through him like a ghost, both the Kecleon, Zekrom, and White Kyurem faltered back from the unimaginable force.

Darkrai chuckled in amusement of their actions. "Heh."

* * *

Both Mega Charizard and Future Charizard roared into the skies as they flew at unimaginable speeds. The startling development was that there were two figures on their backs and by their sides. A closer examination was the two Greninja flying on their respective Charizard, and the respective Staraptor were flying by their sides. They all had one target, as did Primal Kyogre: Hoopa.

Primal Kyogre opened his mouth, where a humungous mirror of water was seen. "**Hydro Pump!**" He let loose his monstrous cyclone of water. The pressure alone could turn the world's toughest metal into punctured scrap.

Hoopa put two of his six detached hands together and made a jumbled array of dark rings. "This fight was over before it started! **Dark Pulse!**" He fired his massive attack, in which it met Hydro Pump right in the middle. The result was yet another flashy light, with a mix of water and shadow erupting like two huge walls.

The rupture and smoke was the perfect cover. All six Pokémon charged in from a deep angle and shot like rockets. They dove through the smoke, and they saw Hoopa on the other end.

"Let 'em have it!" Greninja shouted.

Both Mega Charizard and Future Charizard opened their mouths. Blue and hot fire surged within their mouths. "**Flamethrower!**" They bolted through the dissipating smoke and their two Flamethrower attacks went blazing down onto Hoopa.

Hoopa didn't even move as two rings from two wrists lengthened and floated above. The rings made a spatial portal within and both Flamethrowers, no matter how powerful, went inside. They all saw the attack get swallowed up, and right underneath, two portals opened up and aimed for them. The Flamethrower went after them this time.

"Hang on!" Both Greninja yelled. They jumped off the two Charizard and fired two forceful Scald moves. The heated Water-Type attacks met the two Flamethrower, creating a superheated steam cloud that obscured everything.

With their eyesight. Staraptor and Future Staraptor glided at sharp angles through the steam and became blurs. "**Aerial Ace!**"

They both went at such speeds that Hoopa didn't get to see. He was passed by them both, and was enveloped in a small explosion from both sides. Both Staraptor glided around and took notice of Hoopa's sides. Their attacks didn't even leave a mark.

"Disappear!" Hoopa yelled. His eyes glowed blood red, and bot Staraptor were suddenly halted in their tracks. They were frozen stiff by Hoopa's Psychic, and they saw Hoopa's claws in two hands twitch, and both shot down harshly. The two Staraptor smashed into the sea, making geysers erupt.

"Staraptor!" All four bellowed.

"Begone! This universe lives in darkness and corruption alone!" Hoopa bellowed. He fired yet another Dark Pulse attack right at the two Charizard. Mega Charizard and Future Charizard alike flapped and diverged. They maneuvered with Greninja on their backs to escape the Dark Pulse that blasted through the air. The Dark Pulse tilted all around as Hoopa moved his hands, making it go and draw closer to where he could possibly get a hit in.

As it failed to reach either, Primal Kyogre roared, getting Hoopa's attention. The Dark Pulse began to falter and dissipate when Hoopa's focus was brought by Primal Kyogre.

"**Ice Beam!**" Primal Kyogre yelled. An orb of light blue surged from inside his open mouth, and from the icy sphere shot several zapping beams of icy blue. They traveled over the water, immediately turning it solid.

As the Ice Beam drew closer, the Staraptor both emerged from the water like rockets. Albeit shaken up some, they shot up and out just before the sea on the shore was turned to ice.

Hoop retaliated by putting his two hands together, making yet another Dark Pulse. Hoopa fired another Dark Pulse and it went traveling over the land, shattering and reducing rubble and debris to ash and dust. They both met at the point of land and sea meeting, and the two meeting created what was an immense explosion that shot upwards into the sky, rattling the land and sea alike.

The shockwaves even made the Staraptor, Charizard, and Greninja all barely hold their positions in the air, with their sturdy wings holding them in place.

"This day just keeps getting insane!" Mega Charizard yellowed through the roaring shockwaves.

* * *

Mega Mewtwo put his arms forward, where an Aura Sphere was being formed. His eyes sharpened. "PERISH!" A massive ripple exerted outwards, shattering the airspace and the nearby ground. The Aura Sphere went zooming along as though it was a meteor, with thunder-like echoes.

Primal Groudon opened his mouth as green orbs encompassed the area around him. The energy spheres gathered intensively, and he fired his Solar Beam attack.

As Solar Beam traveled, both Arbok were using rubble as bunkers. He opened their mouths in unison on either side of the street. Silver lights swelled with power of its own right, and made black garbage bags with purple outlines. "**Gunk Shot!**" They both fired their Poison-Type moves at the same time.

The Gunk Shot attacks traveled alongside the Solar Beam, making the green beam have two purple comets traveling on both sides. The Aura Sphere met the three attacks in the middle. Another explosion erupted, this one rivaling an atomic bomb. A ball of sheer ruptures caused an earthquake, sending shockwaves that toppled the remaining buildings in Crocus, which was nothing more than ruins and dust.

Mega Mewtwo was unhindered from the explosion, but Primal Groudon used an arm and covered up from the shockwaves and earth-shaking explosion.

"Hang on!" Future Arbok yelled. He and his present day counterpart both prepared for a shockwave heading their way, and their bunkers only held up for a few moments before they were sent flying.

As the two Arbok went flying, rock shot all around. Their eyes opened up and their reflexes kicked in. Using their fangs, they snapped onto a large debris rock, and flung themselves and slithered from rock to rock as they escalated further, much to all, especially Cobra's, shock. Both Poison-Types managed to spring up to a high debris piece and landed on the same one as it hit the ground last. The debris piece shattered like glass, and both Arbok sprung and landed safely and pivoted around.

After that whole escape, they hissed back at Mega Mewtwo and went slithering through the debris field, becoming purple blurs that startled a lot.

When they got to a point where they were right by Primal Groudon's side, both raised their tails. "How about a tasssste of some fresh rock!" Both Arbok yelled, slamming their tails against the earth. The force was not enough for their Earthquake, but enough to make all the debris in the area from all over the streets to become airborne.

Arbok and Future Arbok whisked their tails around and batted rock debris in a furious fashion. Before Mega Mewtwo realized it, a whole storm of rocks was heading his way, and there were loads of them.

Primal Groudon opened his mouth, where lava could be seen inside. Molten rock fired like comets, via his Eruption attack.

Mega Mewtwo looked annoyed as he narrowed his eyes. He didn't bother moving his fingers as he levitated and his Psychic activated. Primal Groudon's molten rocks suddenly stopped cold in the air. To all that were amazed, the molten rocks had no way of advancing, and Mega Mewtwo didn't move as he reverted the attack back at the massive field of rock heading his way.

When the Psychic-enhanced Eruption attacked the field of rock heading Mega Mewtwo's way, a wall of fire erupted, almost lava-like. A massive wall of fire escalated horizontally, and then the combined fire power shot upwards, making a field of melting fire exploded further. The force made both Arbok scoot back and barely hold their ground as heat and burning shockwaves struck them, leaving their scales torched.

"Not good enough." Mega Mewtwo stated in a flat tone. He reached his arm out and fired yet another Aura Sphere at Primal Groudon, this one scoring what was a direct hit. The Continent Pokémon was engulfed in a pillar of blue and that earth rattled again.

As the explosion raged on, Mega Mewtwo smirked.

* * *

In the skies raging above, you could've seen blood red, green, and royal blue sparks. The sparks went off consecutively, but the display was far from fascinating. Every spark and clash was like a lightning strike that even startled Laxus and Orga. The raw and destructive power erupting left all in shattering disbelief, with nothing to keep them from running or escaping.

If anyone knew that only a couple Dragon Dance moves would make Nic a blinding blur would they not have been surprised. According to some, they say natural lightning strikes 1/1000 of a second. Imagine having every second being at least fifty different parry and interceptions, creating clashes of Ragnarok Lysandre and the two Nics.

"HRAH!" Nic used Dragon Claw, which met Ragnarok Lysandre's Giratina claw, and he had to block and parry the Mega Mewtwo claw included, making him slash at two arm as they also used Dragon Claw. Future Nic was no different, only he was using his Extreme Speed and parrying Dragon Claw from the Hoopa and Darkrai arms.

The three zipped through the skies and ended up in the mountains, over the seas, and their clashes kept them all on their toes. Ragnarok Lysandre was relentlessly attacking them and they had kept him evading as they were parrying through every millisecond the battle takes them.

Ragnarok Lysandre's blood red aura palpitate, sending a volatile wave of shrilled terror all around. Both Nics saw this as a backfire and covered up as the shockwaves reached out. The gray waters of the sea split apart, and the ground cracked and broke apart, in which the molten lava in the cracks by Primal Groudon's work turned into dark purple and then became shriveled shadows, surprisingly.

Ragnarok Lysandre reached his claws out as the shockwaves left Future Nic and Nic both with burned up skin, but the decaying feeling wasn't a hindrance to them. They've felt much worse. All of his hands clenched and he smirked.

"For so many years, almost an entire century, the Dark Legendaries have been waiting for this chance, a chance to bring everything to zero." Ragnarok Lysandre announced. "Arceus, Dialga, and Palkia; they were responsible for their failed attempts so long ago, and for that time period, their anger and hatred boiled, becoming more than just Pokémon prowess, but a decaying manifestation of evil. That became power, power they have given to me and use to seek their retribution!"

"You were nothing more than a puppet to them!" Nic yelled. He opened his mouth and fired Dragon Pulse again. The attack raced after Lysandre, but he blocked with his Mega Mewtwo hand, and a spatial portal opened up, sucking up the move in whole.

A spatial portal opened up right beside Future Nic, but he swerved around the draconic blast and the Dragon-Type move continued on, making a multicolored explosion in the distance that flashed in the skies.

"I don't care! In the end, everyone is but a puppet! Humans can be manipulated into others bidding with ease. They're such a scared and frail kind. They'd do anything to maintain survival, even if it means making others puppets and seeking slaughter! It's how the universe works!" Ragnarok Lysandre announced. "That Princess was a perfect example of how foolish and naïve you all can be. Watching you all made me and the others sick to the rotten cores. You're all filled with false hopes, so how about we suck that hope away! **Psycho Cut!**"

The four detached forearms all swiped, covering a perfect 360 Degrees. Large, pink crescents went outwards and expanded to a hardly finite degree. The four crescents reached out like a huge pink ripple, and Nic and Future Nic dodged up in a flash. The Psycho Cut disappeared outwards. In a dark pink flash, rumbling was heard, and all around, the mountains were all severed entirely. It didn't matter how tall or wide. Lysandre's assault cut straight through the mountains and all. The upper half of the mountains were suspended but for brief seconds before reducing to dust and crumbled up bits.

"His power…it's greater than what it was in Tenrou Island." Erza said in shock.

Both Nics looked back as Ragnarok Lysandre's detached arms were cloaked in Shadow Claw and were fiercely chasing them down. They had little to no room to counter as they were evading two arms each, slashing and thrusting ferociously.

"Dialga and Palkia, they shall live the nightmare as they are now! I want them to see their hopes and dreams get maimed right in front of their eyes!" Ragnarok Lysandre yelled as his arms were still slashing away. "The others, Giratina, Mega Mewtwo, Hoopa, and Darkrai all want a few pints of blood themselves! They wanna taste blood and agony of all again, starting with the most powerful Pokémon that shall bring ruin with their own destruction!"

Nic barrel-rolled through the air and evaded the claws. He straightened out and jutted backwards. Out of instinct, as the claws were opened up and fired at him again, he reached outwards, surprisingly clutching them by the dark purple ring wrists. The clutching made the assault dissipate, but the issue now was that he had little resources to use.

'_Lysandre's nothing more than a puppet and he has no mind of thinking otherwise.' _Nic thought in strain. _'I gotta snap him into the light. To do that, I gotta break through that darkness!' _

In a flash thanks to the immense Speed, he vanished and reappeared in front of Ragnarok Lysandre. His wings took an enormous flap. "**Twister!**" A twister suddenly went around the evil man, encasing him inside and leaving him open.

Nic shot up and twisted his body when reaching the highest point. He opened up his mouth, and Future Nic looked back to see the Twister. Using his tail to swat both the arms chasing him, he opened up his mouth.

"**Dragon Pulse!**"

Both launched their simultaneous Dragon Pulse at Ragnarok Lysandre. In a sudden second, the Twister ruptured and completely exploded outwards as purple, deadly winds expanded in all directions. The malicious assault made then double Dragon Pulse get overpowered with no contest. Both Nics gagged when the hurricane of Ominous Wind swallowed them up. The gory winds made them feel their skins decaying again. Any normal person would've been bone, but not for Nic thanks to his Plates keeping him stable and alive.

The massive tempest ended, and both Nics were battered up bad. The streets below and buildings were reduced to oblivion, as to where they had black steam corroding their cheeks and arms. Future Nic's wings were all cracked, some shattered. His headpiece also had some cracks running through it.

"I've had enough from before the labs!" Ragnarok Lysandre bellowed. "There is no world piece, for evil is as eternal as darkness! **Ancient Power!**" An image of himself had separated from his body. The image also had blood red aura. The image glowed and manifested into a swirling silver light with a blood red aura around it. Ragnarok Lysandre fired the attack, making a blood red shockwave echo. It was still so chilling that Gray and Lyon could feel the shockwave making their blood turn cold. This hatred and raw power was leaving them in the prospect of encased in solid ice, only they weren't. Fear was unconditional, and everyone, no matter how immense of a will, were left in a state of fear.

Ancient Power was suddenly spliced. Ragnarok Lysandre didn't even blink when he saw that Future Nic's Air Slash was so dense that it cut the attack in two. Air Slash went on towards Ragnarok Lysandre while the two Ancient Power continued onwards. Ragnarok Lysandre opened up portals in front and Air Slash went inside.

The same portals opened up behind both Nics and they swerved and vanished away, allowing the two to escape from the Air Slash and Ancient Power collision that made a silver ball of rupture emerged.

Watching the light fade, Future Nic growled like Mega Rayquaza would. _'Even as Mega Rayquaza I'm cornered.'_

'_Lysandre.' _Nic thought. He began to recount the tales of their battles. They've had so many in the past. How it started from a few weeks after the events of Nirvana and how it ended up to this point if beyond any reasoning. _'Every battle we've had, your hatred is expressed for life. You've made your point thorough…now we're gonna express ours!' _"Nic! Let's go!"

"Right!"

Both shot straight up into the grotesque air, having no end. They reached a high point, Nic and Future Nic both held up a clenched fist each, with Nic having his left one up, while Future Nic had a right claw up. They suddenly fist bumped, and their power began to swirl all around. Green mixed with draconic energy, creating a cyclone of enormous proportions.

"What?" Ragnarok Lysandre growled, his blood red fangs protruding outwards. "They're combining their power? HRAH!" Ragnarok Lysandre's forehead had a shining light blue ball of energy and shot like a rocket upwards, looking like a violet comet.

Both Nic went down as their fists were still bumped. They spiraled around with their connected fists being the epicenter. A tornado of draconic blue and green thundered ferociously downwards. Two massive comets went speeding and Ragnarok Lysandre bellowed outwards.

"Now!" Nic shouted.

Future Nic's fist opened up, his claws suddenly gripping Nic's wrist. With a spiral pivot, Future Nic shot Nic downwards, separating their energy. Nic let out a primal cry as he darted down in Dragon Rush.

Ragnarok Lysandre brought a Hoopa fist back and cloaked it in Slash. Lysandre brought his attack forward, but his eyes remained blank when he saw Nic's Dragon Rush passing him. He was caught shocked as Nic was beneath him.

"**Maxus Legendary Arts – Dragon Ascent!**"

His attention was caught as a flaw. It was too caught on Nic that he was a diversion. He turned back upwards to see a green blur.

"**Dragon Rush!**"

His attention was snapped back down below. It was a bitter taste for Ragnarok Lysandre as he didn't open any spatial holes in time. A green and draconic blur zipped from above and below, diving past him. Both Nics ended up on opposite side; one above and one below.

Ragnarok Lysandre's blood-curdling and heinous roars of pain bellowed as a mixture of green and draconic energy swelled within a huge explosion that overtook the skies again.

* * *

Down below just above the ruins of what was Crocus, Mega Rayquaza let out a blood-curdling roar of his own. Pressure was heavy within the roar and Giratina returned the same roar, only his was like sharp nails clawing a chalkboard, and the shrilled left all in fear.

On the ground, both Garchomp and Mega Garchomp let out roars, enough to make the nearby structures-in-ruin quake.

"Get some!" Garchomp yelled, running so fast along the streets that blades of wind exerted, slicing up more structures that were over five feet. He and Mega Garchomp both lunged up at Giratina and had a double Dual Chop ready.

Giratina screeched about and the blood red claws on his wings formed, making Shadow Claw. Giratina slashed at both. "Away with you!" He and the two Garchomp had their claw-related attacks clash, making green and dark static discharge all around. Both Garchomp grunted at the immense power being inflicted all around, and they only faltered a little.

A shockwave emitted again, but Giratina only scooted back a few feet while the Garchomp fell back down.

Mega Rayquaza used this chance and he swerved through the skies in a spiral. He got closer to Giratina and opened his mouth for a Dragon Pulse again. Giratina's murderous gaze was back at Mega Rayquaza and he opened his mouth, creating Aura Sphere. Aura Sphere fired at Mega Rayquaza faster than what Dragon Pulse did, and the blue sphere struck the Dragon Pulse as soon as it launched, engulfing Mega Rayquaza in an explosion. The massive dragon fell backwards and his roars defined his pain.

"You're not getting away!" Giratina yelled. His red spikes on the wings glowed yet again, this time becoming light blue for Dragon Claw.

Mega Garchomp and Garchomp both went up again, this time getting over Giratina. "Okay you cold-hearted centipede, let's see how you like a backstabber!" Mega Garchomp roared.

"**Dual Chop!**"

Both did Dual Chop again, this time landing their marks on Giratina's back, stabbing him. The dragon let out a screech, but it wasn't a screech of pain, but rather a screech of annoyance.

"Pests are always in my way." Giratina growled. He glanced and swerved his body around, the two Garchomp still clawed into his back. Mega Garchomp adjusted one blade with Dual Chop still and stuck it elsewhere on Giratina's back.

"**Crunch!**" Garchomp opened his mouth and the fangs glowed and elongated. He snapped down onto Giratina's back, making a shrilled roar bellow again. Giratina faltered towards the ground, where he crashed on his six huge legs, making a crater.

Giratina screeched outwards, sending ripples all around. The hazardous ripples signified his anger, and the earth trembled in absolute fear. Mega Rayquaza reeled away from the dark rippling roar, but both Garchomp barely persevered as the rotting shockwaves reduced the dust all around to oblivion.

Both Garchomp, no matter how strong, were no match for the hatred, and they were finally shot right off and hit the ground hard. The shockwaves had them trail through the ground until they smashed through a pile of debris, having it fall down onto them, making dust cover everything on the ground.

Giratina arose through the dust cloud and flapped his wings. Mega Rayquaza roared out to him again, and he and Giratina thus went at it again. They both went flying into another, making another shockwave immediately dissipate the dust.

The dust dissipating showed that debris was still piled on, but the ground severely cracked around the debris pile. The cracks continued, and then the ground shattered apart.

"**Dig!**" Both Garchomp yelled. They emerged from underground and their force sent street debris flying beneath as they soared upwards and went for a double uppercut.

Giratina looked down as he was still butting heads. His eyes glowed and Mega Rayquaza and the two Garchomp could see the actual anger and heat within his bloody, venomous gaze.

* * *

"HRRRAAAAHHHH! **Psychic!**"

Hoopa's wrath outlined Primal Kyogre, generating light blue all around the sea creature. Primal Kyogre found himself unable to move and he was smacked down into the shallow sea head first. The harsh impact was brutal, and Hoopa watched with a monstrous smirk as Primal Kyogre sank into the shallow water, his image fading.

Hoopa's attention turned towards the Water Shuriken coming from the side. The culprit was Future Greninja and Greninja actually held upside down by the two Staraptors' talons. They flawlessly got the shuriken upside down, but they all were for naught as Hoopa didn't even move his limbs or anything for his Psychic to completely nullify and petrify the shuriken in all. And the saddest part was that they were all mere inches from his face.

A faint roar came from above, and the temperature actually felt hot. The intensity boiling up to where Hoopa had no choice but to look up.

An orange and black duo roared as they descended with the air around them either blue or red from their heat. They descended so fast that the sound barrier was broken yet again. "**Fly!**" They both shouted. They brought their feet down and landed right on Hoopa's face, making another shockwave erupt. Hoopa slowly began to fall backwards, thudding against the ground and ending up in a crater.

Both Mega Charizard and Future Charizard roared in success. The two Staraptor swung their feet and the two Greninja tucked their knees and flipped. "**Bounce!**" They both had a leg out and down, soaring downwards towards Hoopa.

Hoopa saw the two frogs head his way, and his chaotic eyes narrowed. He reached out and made a ring appear with a spatial portal. Both Greninja went wide-eyed as they were heading right for the portal.

The two Charizard hurried and snagged the two Greninja by the arms and hauled them through and around the skies in a long arc, saving them from ending up who knows where.

"Thanks for the save." Greninja thanked Mega Charizard, flipping onto his back.

Future Greninja parroted the movements. "We were overzealous. We can't be reckless with those rings."

Future Staraptor had Staraptor in toe as they circled around the sea, taking note how Primal Kyogre appeared yet again through the water. He screeched out at Hoopa, who roared back out, showing no fear.

"This is very cumbersome pickle." Future Staraptor noted.

* * *

Zekrom roared up into the skies, where lightning surged. He looked out at Darkrai and bellowed out yet again. "**Thunder!**" The massive and ground-splitting Thunder went zapping downwards onto Darkrai. The Pitch-Black Pokémon looked up at the incoming bolt and didn't show much appeal. He moved so fast that he was unable to be seen. Thunder went on and struck the ground beneath.

A dome of thunder and lightning crackled, and it was so gigantic that it could be seen miles away, covering almost a fifth of Crocus. The explosion of lightning dissipated, showing the cracks that shaped like bolts of lightning that began from a crater.

"Poor aim!" Darkrai chided. "Your bolts of lightning mean nothing to me, for I shall engulf you all in my own hellish force!"

He swiped his arms, sending what was another Ominous Wing that went surging around like crazy. A maelstrom of purple winds went surging around, rapidly expanding the area until it engulfed what would've been the size of Magnolia, of which would've been desecrated as such as well. The overwhelming hurricane of Ominous Wind made Zekrom and White Kyurem roar as they were flung around like ragdolls.

Darkrai chuckled as the two were helpless, despite their electrifying and ice powers. The hatred and desire for blood embedded in the Ominous Winds came from Darkrai's will, the same will that drives the others. As he watched Zekrom and White Kyurem's faces contort with a burning pain, the anger turned into a sadistic satisfaction, but it was nowhere close to what he wanted.

A sudden, ear-splitting Screech bellowed from below, making Darkrai cover up his ears as his head was hurting from the red shockwaves echoing from down below. "Gah! What is this confound tune! They challenge the wails of nightmares created?!"

He looked down, realizing how both Kecleon were down below, but their Screech reached up to Darkrai's high height, and that left his Defense to drop significantly. "You…"

"**Dragon Claw!**" Zekrom came from behind as Darkrai was still victim to Screech as it only affected the enemy it targeted…if so it seemed. Zekrom brought his claws back and then slashed forward, scoring a startling hit on Darkrai and sent his tumbling backwards in the air.

"HRAH!" Angered and aggravated, Darkrai emitted a dark shockwave all around again. He angrily erupted outwards, darkness rippling out. Zekrom and White Kyurem roared again and they covered up. White Kyurem opened his mouth to use Ice Beam, but to his disbelief, the Ice Beam turned pitch black and the orb in front of his mouth shattered like rock.

"What?!" White Kyurem screamed in pain as he was caught in the shockwaves.

Both Kecleon below were blown away, and barely got footholds on the ground as dark shockwaves left their scaly skin tingling with a rotting sensation. It burned, but so did their desire to defeat them once and for all.

* * *

Future Arbok swatted his tail, and then in a sudden swift motion he recoiled it so it wouldn't be caught by Mega Mewtwo's open palm. He used the back of his hood and got Mega Mewtwo's shoulder, but he didn't budge, no matter how much strength he had.

Arbok came from above with a tail slam on the head, making a direct hit. The tail colliding with the skull made the ground beneath give in. a fifteen-foot wide crater emerged and debris shattered from the raw power impact.

Primal Groudon raised an arm and brought it forward. He brought it down and then the ground got immensely heated. So heated that the small debris almost immediately melted. "**Precipice Blades!**"

In a furious linear fashion. Precipice Blades jutted up from the ground. Both Arbok sprung up and retreated away as lava-coated blades of stone finally reached and stabbed Mega Mewtwo, engulfing him in a massive eruption of lava and rock. Both the eruption and shockwave generated almost immediately melted and destroyed what was left of nearby structures, leaving molten rock all around.

Steam overtook everything, and everyone watching was left in shattering awe.

"My god, this is a battle of otherworldly creatures." Darton said with wide eyes.

Arcadios had similar shock. "This was not even what was told. This was all a hidden farce. This was the true destruction of our world? And the universe?"

Hisui's eyes shuddered as she watched the explosions from Precipice Blades reduce Mercurius to ash. "I can't…believe I'm witnessing the apocalypse."

Primal Groudon stepped forward, with every step filling the cracked earth with molten rock and lava. Red glistened beneath as he and both Arbok peered from seemingly out of nowhere, they too having some charred scaled from the heated shockwaves.

"Issssss that all…?" Arbok sounded alert as the steam cleared.

Future Arbok hissed out. "…no."

Mega Mewtwo was seen standing on the sizzling ground. His body had a glow to it, and his injuries weren't even visible.

"Not even a scratch?" Primal Groudon growled.

Mega Mewtwo's body had a dark aura around it, and that was never a good sign. His eyes began to glow, giving off an intense energy that put Acnologia to shame, hence the Dragon King growling in distaste in his sphere.

* * *

The smoke cleared out, revealing Ragnarok Lysandre with his body having a few bruises. His bloody aura was veiling him heavily, and his four hands were clutched tight. Both Nics converged in front and a fair distance away. Their eyes were wide as his insidious frown bared bloody canines.

Slowly, his body was generating a yellow glow, his few scrapes on his body beginning to regenerate. Future Nic and Nic both cursed mentally as they saw their foe use Recover. The injuries on Ragnarok Lysandre's body were fully healed, and his frown turned to a snicker.

"You pathetic fools." Ragnarok Lysandre sneered. His bloody aura began to palpitate profusely, making ripples of darkness pulse out. Both Nics had to cover up. "You honestly believe that you could defeat me? ME?! I AM RAGNAROK LYSANDRE!"

His roar echoed outwards through the entire atmosphere, bellowing and being heard all throughout Earth Land.

"I AM THE BLEEDING SCORN THAT MAKES HELL'S GUTS ROT! BLOODY MURDER AND CATACLYSMIC TERROR IS NOTHING! I AM THE TRUE TERROR THAT SHALL SENT EVERY LIVING EXISTENCE TO THE NORM AND BECOME NOTHING! NOT EVEN DARKNESS SHALL EXIST! YOU ALL SHALL HAVE YOUR GUTS SHRIVEL IN FEAR!"

A blood red pillar that had the diameter of Mercurius engulfed Ragnarok Lysandre. His power was far beyond Satan. Shockwaves pulsated outwards. A massive wave of evil and wailing dread pulsed through the area.

Everything of Crocus was no more. The dark waters were all caught in raging tsunamis going out at sea. The nearby mountains and onwards were reduced to piles of rubble in an instant. The Legendary Pokémon in the area were all hit by the shockwaves, causing them all to get pushed back. Both Nics' Pokémon were caught in the shockwaves.

All twelve screamed in violent pain as they felt their skins burn with bitter force from the shockwaves.

The hurricane of evil left both Garchomp to tumble through the air, and Giratina fired a single, large Aura Sphere that pulsed outwards. Both Garchomp were hopeless as they were struck hard, engulfed in explosions of blue and flew into the earth, the ground shattering completely.

Darkrai made a massive jumble of Dark Pulse, and the attack was launched straight down, creating a field of pure darkness that was seen from space. Both Kecleon screamed in pain as they were swallowed up in the attack.

Mega Mewtwo tensed up and made a force field that expanded outwards. The assault had huge and millions of comets. The attack reached out, obliterating the debris beneath. While still flying back, both Arbok barely had time to process and try to block with their tails, but ended up failing as Psystrike was too powerful, and they screamed in pain as they were shot some ways back.

Hoopa made several rings at once as both Greninja, Charizard, and Staraptor were all hopelessly distraught after the shockwaves of Ragnarok Lysandre and Hoopa fired Dark Pulse through all six rings from his six arms. The attack struck all six in simultaneous fashion, engulfing them all in another Dark Pulse.

Both Nics screamed as they were unable to hold themselves. They both shot outwards and fell down from the sky. Both Nics grunted in searing pain and were unable to control themselves through the shockwaves. The disaster in front bellowed up as he saw them both either try and flap or swerved into a steep angle. They did manage, but they both glowed and was engulfed in rainbow light, undoing the Legendary Force.

Both Nics, now reverted to normal, tumbled and thudded against the ground until they landed on their sides, blood spilling from the sides of their mouths. They could only groan and cough as Ragnarok Lysandre bellowed out above.

* * *

An image of the desolation of Crocus was seen, and the Magic Council was standing. They were afraid, their heart rates surging. Gran Doma heard of Zeref and Acnologia, but this evil was not even close to them and his bellows could be heard all over Earth Land. They had to rid of him. Now.

Gran Doma slammed his stave down. "We can't hold back anymore. This power shall be averted from us. These Pokémon have cursed us long enough, and made this man their bringer of doom on our heads. We won't accept this!"

Org nodded. "Now shall we eradicate?"

"Yes. The Etherion Cannon is fully charge." Gran Doma said. "Sadly those lives must be sacrificed, but if it's to lift the burden worse than Zeref, we must do so." His eyes intensified. "FIRE!"

* * *

High above the pitch black, blood red, and dark purple planet known as Earth Land, the Etherion Cannon, having been fully charged, made a bright light. Ragnarok Lysandre glanced up, seeing something penetrating the darkness in the skies above.

All he did was raised an arm, and snapped his fingers. "Sacred lights…how hopeless."

The snap of his finger echoed up. The sacred light went from white to black just like that. The black light suddenly imploded, and the entire cannon was reduced to a whirling wreck that was sucked inside of itself from the negative particles collapsing.

Gran Doma and all of the Magic Council's eyes widened. Gran Doma was so shocked he dropped his stave and almost collapsed. "It can't be…"

"Our scared light…reduced to darkness. The purest of all Magic energy, and it was pitch black in a snap of fingers?!" Another cried out.

Org couldn't even swallow. "This is impossible. A second time by these creatures…"

Gran Doma's eyes dilated. "No…no! I won't accept this!"

"Neither can I!" Another Councilmen stated. "We have to deploy every weapon if it means annihilating the threat who's gonna destroy our world!"

Another Councilmen looked hostile at the screen in front. "This evil is making my bones rattle…"

Suddenly in a flash of pitch black, all of the Councilmen, let alone every single resident in Era, were in a pitch black void out of no warning.

"What?!" Org exclaimed.

Everyone was caught in a panic as they suddenly were in dark pink orbs and were floating in the sky above Era. Not only them, but to all residence in Era, and among all in Fiore, were in dark pink orbs.

Ragnarok Lysandre growled hysterically. "Let's have an audience. HRAH!" he raised his arms as his blood red aura concentrated. It seemed denser than before.

All across Earth Land, every single life form was suddenly cloaked in pitch black and lifted into the sky in dark pink orbs. It could've been a wild animal, or an unknown demon, or whatever; everything in Earth Land ended up suspended just like all in Crocus. Not one living being or ghost was excluded.

They all had a shrivel run through their spines, and they saw a vision of what was happening in Crocus. They were all confused, but the fact was that it was real, and not even the mightiest of Mages or beast could stay composed at this eternally dark force that had them incapacitated.

"What's happening?!"

"We're all gonna die!"

"What are those creatures?! Are they…monsters?!"

"What sorcery?! This doesn't even feel like Magic! It's darker!"

"Is that man there, the cause?"

Ragnarok Lysandre's bellow echoed, making the Dark Legendaries screech out. Future Nic groaned and shifted towards his back. The thud was like nails prodding. He wiped the corners of his mouth and panted. _'He's the strongest, I admit that much.'_

'_Lysandre…' _Nic sat up and groaned in pain, but persevered and began to stand up. He and his future-self supported the other as they had little endurance left after that cataclysmic despair. Everything all around was a wasteland of debris, but this didn't stop them. _'By no means will we fall…'_

Ragnarok Lysandre chuckled as he looked down at the two. "Those stoic and composed expressions of yours make me sick. You still think that you can save the universe? I tainted and destroyed the only light this world had. You're next."

"We don't believe such a thing." Future Nic stated.

"You can throw the punches to fall a mountain range. You can break a man's spirit with just the thought of you. But what you cannot do, is make us believe we have no hope." Nic retorted.

"Your bonds are meaningless!" Ragnarok Lysandre bellowed. "You think that even an Arbok or a Kecleon can stop a dark beast that threatens life?!"

Both Nics narrowed their eyes. "My strength is their strength, and they know what's at stake. You can take a limb or a fang from them, but you won't break them!" Nic announced.

Future Nic took the lead. "Because our love for one another is stronger than family! And family never falls when we work together!"

* * *

Mega Rayquaza shook his head as he was still dazed from the dark shockwaves. It was like a deterring force that left him vulnerable. "What…?" He looked around, realizing that his opponent was gone. He turned around and about, but his dark energy was still present and yet he was not there. "Where did he go?"

A sudden crack behind him got his attention. He turned around, only for space to shatter like glass and reveal a dark force of pure negativity within. Giratina rushed out. "**Shadow Force!**"

Engulfed in black antimatter, Giratina screeched and struck Mega Rayquaza. The dragon screamed as the force was destructive and overbearing to the point where he fell backwards and smashed into the ground. Mega Rayquaza gagged as the shock from the attack left him stunned. He growled as he was on the ground, trying to wiggle.

He did manage to get up, but was immediately slashed back down by Giratina when the beast swatted Mega Rayquaza with his tail. The dragon hollered and smashed his head back down onto a debris pile. Mega Rayquaza's weakened roar of pain left a mournful tune as Lamia Scale and Mermaid Heel were left despairing.

Giratina's six legs were on the ground. He snarled as he closed the distance slowly as Mega Rayquaza tried to get up, but was too weak to do so. Giratina closed in, his form towering over Mega Rayquaza.

"Now let me make your last moments as corrosive as I can." Giratina pressed a foot down on Mega Rayquaza's neck, holding him down as his right wing made a Dragon Claw. The Dragon Claw was held back as Giratina glowered down. "This universe shall…die!"

Mega Rayquaza grunted and was unable to get up. All he could do now was wait for what shall be the final blow to the face that will also end him.

Giratina slowly brought Dragon Claw down…

"HEY!"

Giratina stopped advancing with Dragon Claw and looked up.

"YOU!"

Everyone watching said battle gasped at the sudden cries. All attention and shock was diverted to what was turning around the corner down below. Everyone around the world saw the vision of the battle, and they were just as shocked.

Garchomp and Mega Garchomp were both running along the ground, panting as they had more than a few red stains on their bodies. They ran fast and lunged forward. "BRING IT OOO~N!" Both bellowed at the exact same time. They lunged ahead at Mach speed, their blades making debris mounds split apart.

They opened their mouths for a unison Crunch. They used Mega Rayquaza's side as a stepping stone and jumped onto Giratina. They both gripped hard, and Giratina twisted and turned to try and snap mouth jaws onto them, but only they had found themselves on his back and snapping Crunch down.

"You!" Giratina wailed. "Get off me!"

"**Dragon Pulse!**" A sudden blast of draconic energy was launched. The culprit was revealed to have been Mega Rayquaza, who was able to get up. The Dragon Pulse went along and struck Giratina's side, causing the monster to stumble of to the side. Both Garchomp and Mega Garchomp jumped off and became airborne before Giratina hit a debris mound.

Mega Rayquaza used Giratina's shock and swerved on over, whacking him along the side with his tail, making the beast falter away while both Garchomp used Dual Chop and stabbed into Giratina's back.

The violent action caused Giratina to yelp a demonic howl and pivoted. The back of his wings swatted them both away, sending them crashing through some glass still intact of a window.

Giratina angrily turned towards Mega Rayquaza and both roared out at the same time. Giratina made Shadow Claw through his blood red spikes again and slashed at him. Mega Rayquaza evaded away and used his claws to shove Giratina back, albeit only a few feet to gain momentum. Both Garchomp suddenly jumped out of the broken window and they attacked with Crunch, snapping down on the gold claws on the ribs. The roars they emitted were equal with the thuds of Giratina's feet when he stumbled away. With Giratina distressing with the two Garchomp on him, he was again distracted for another Dragon Pulse to strike him down. Both Garchomp escaped by jumping off and watched as Mega Rayquaza's Dragon Pulse made another hit, making another draconic burst that sent him stumbling into another debris mound. The debris went flying upon the impact and Giratina fell down with a thud on his side.

"Grrrrrrrrr!" Giratina hastily got back up, only for both Garchomp to lung back up and latch onto his face. Both used Crunch and snapped their jaws on his crown, making Giratina bellow in annoyance again. The biting all around was aggravating and he whipped his head, sending them flying off him. "You're all annoying me-!"

He was cut off by Mega Rayquaza whacking his tail into him again, causing him to fly backwards again towards the ground with a thud.

Both Mega Garchomp, Garchomp, and Mega Rayquaza roared outwards as Giratina's bloody gaze exerted more pressure when trying to get back up.

"Choke on this you swine!" Garchomp lunged ahead with Mega Garchomp after Giratina to attack further, disregarding their murderous injuries.

* * *

Hoopa yet out a loud roar that bellowed dark ripples. His arms extended forward, and humungous waves arose. The water on either side of Primal Kyogre was manipulated and made giant swirling pillars of dark water all around.

"Perish!" Hoopa screamed. Sending his two top arms down, the two huge water pillars arched down. The tips became pressurized like massive spears. The two spear pillars of water diverged and diffused, becoming an astonishing huge amount of hundreds of smaller spears of super compressed water.

Primal Kyogre looked up at the massive flow that was gonna rain down on him, and he had no control. The seashore water was shallow and that left him barely able to maneuver. He could only wait as the hundreds of spears of water went down onto him.

"**Heat Wave!**" A massive hurricane of blue winds of the most cindering of heat went scorching from above. The giant tempest made Hoopa scream as the heat was charring up his body.

The Psychic was halted due to the lack of focus, and the spears all lost their pressure, becoming what was a light rain coming down on Primal Kyogre, who was surprised to say the least. His exhausted form looked on as he saw the Heat Wave end.

Hoopa reeled backwards. His tail swerving. "Who dares…?!"

"**Steel Wing!**" A sudden pair of steel-hard wings went smashing against Hoopa's head from behind. A metallic explosion made his head get all hazy before the culprits were seen as the two Staraptor.

"Get 'em!" Future Staraptor shouted.

"For the future!" Both Greninja shouted on either side of Hoopa. As Hoopa regained focus, he realized the assault had fallen upon him, but he was very short on time. "**Scald!**"

Both Greninja unleashed boiling hot water in massive volumes, indicating the two Greninjas' exhausted forms from the battle and Ragnarok Lysandre. The boiling water got Hoopa on both sides, making him scream in pain as steam and mist flared from the impact.

Both Greninja landed and immediately backed away as Hoopa emerged from the mist cloud, his anger seemingly greater. "You'll all pay for that!"

"You'll try!" Future Charizard shouted. "But we have a future to salvage, and you're not part of it! **Dragon Claw!**" Future Charizard made light blue claws and he went soaring in a slant after Hoopa.

Hoopa had a claw out. "I don't care for you all! I'll spill your blood! **Psychic!**"

Future Charizard suddenly was outlined in light blue energy and he felt a crushing force. Gravity seemed to be against him. He fell straight down head first. It seemed disastrous at first as he quickly closed the distance between himself and the ground, but he was far from a quitter.

"**Heat Wave!**" Future Charizard managed to flap his wings, sending an enormous tempest of hot flaming winds down on the desecrated ground. The hot winds were like a counterbalance and the Heat Wave not only began to melt what was left of the ground, but the Heat Wave also went outwards. Future Charizard slowed down greatly as Heat Wave went in all directions, getting Hoopa's feet in the process.

Hoopa felt the cindering waves hit his feet and he backed off. "Curses!"

Future Charizard was still compressed by Psychic, but he did slow down thanks to Heat Wave and got his feet underneath. His landing made a massive crater in the ground, sending a hot wave around. Embers showered down and Future Charizard smirked.

"This is for trying to flatten my future-self! **Dragon Claw!**" Mega Charizard went flying in at an amazing speed at a low altitude. His Dragon Claw was much wider and larger, and the exerted force when made and extended made a quick blast that reduced rubble to small bits. He flew on in behind Hoopa and slashed. Scoring a gruesome blow to the back.

Hoopa screamed as his back was engulfed in a light blue explosion.

"**Hydro Pump!**" Primal Kyogre suddenly jumped out of the sea, making water shift everywhere. He opened his mouth, where an unimaginable torrent of huge water pressure blasted Hoopa, sending him flying backwards and skid along the shattered remains of the ground, smashing into a debris mound.

* * *

Darkrai looked annoyed to a great degree. "Damn you all." He said, looking at Zekrom and White Kyurem. "You're just annoying me. This universe was made for darkness, born from it, and you dare stand between it?!" He looked down and saw Dialga and Palkia still in distress as they were still asleep in craters on the ground, their bodies suffering more than a few injuries and wounds from being tossed around like ragdolls from Ragnarok Lysandre's demonic shockwaves. Seeing them in distress made Darkrai feel satisfied again. He then turned back towards Zekrom and White Kyurem. "How's about you join them as well!"

"What are you saying?" Zekrom asked.

"I think I know. Prepare yourself!" White Kyurem yelled.

Darkrai raised his right arm, making dark matter and turning it into a sphere mixed with crimson. "Sleep your way through the void of despair! Never shall you wake up!" The dark sphere expanded and he reached forward with it. "**Dark Void!**"

The singular sphere became two, and the Dark Void went speeding after their targets. White Kyurem roared outwards and he ascended and swerved towards the right, barely missing the Dark Void. Zekrom, however, was not so lucky.

He roared outwards and Thunder was used. "We shall not fall into the void! **Thunder!**" Lightning crackled in the sky, but the massive bolt that went shooting down as before missed the Dark Void asit was too fast. "What?!"

"Zekrom! Move!" White Kyurem yelled, but it was too late.

Dark Void struck Zekrom, and many faces all over Earth Land were in desperation as they saw Zekrom get engulfed in a sphere of perplexing darkness. The lightning dragon roared as all he could hear was deafening silence, and pitch black took up his vision.

His eyes grew hazy, and he sadly began to close them until he finally fell asleep.

Darkrai snickered in satisfaction and watched the sphere dissipate. The slumbering dragon fell from the sky and descended downwards, crashing down on some debris.

White Kyurem looked back at Darkrai and vice versa. Darkrai slowly raised an arm out towards him, another dark matter conversion happening. "And now it's your turn…"

"**BONZAAAAAAAAIIII!**"

Darkrai's eyes widened and he turned to hear the battle cry. He was met with two Kecleon who had scorned and hellish bruises all over their body. The Dark Pulse they took should've killed them, but durability was one thing they stomached. They used Thief, and they dealt a kick to Darkrai's face. The intense force made a ripple bellow, and Darkrai began to falter backwards from mid-altitude.

"The starving children shall be fed! HYAH!" Kecleon used Slash and passed Darkrai in midair, leaving a white trail that went through his waist. Darkai's shrilled grunt was music to their ears.

"The leaves will change color as they always do! HRAH!" Future Kecleon came down from above, delivering a Thief in the form of an axe kick right atop of the head. Darkrai recoiled back and grunted from the pain.

"GRAH!" He looked around and looked disgusted at the two Kecleon, but to his exasperation they were gone. His eyes widened again when he looked around, but no sight of them anywhere. "Where'd they…?"

"Birds gotta fly, but you're going down! **Shadow Sneak!**"

The unison cry from behind made Darkrai turn and look back, but only saw nothing. He could barely make out the red stripes still present. Two shadows stretched out from underneath and were so fast Darkrai didn't keep track. He turned around, sensing the shadows but was struck in the waist with a double Shadow Sneak. The Shadow Sneak assault stretched up in a long slant over the two Kecleons' heads.

Darkrai gagged and jerked away from the arching Shadow Sneak, but was left a target for White Kyurem. "**Dragon Pulse!**"

Darkrai jerked out of the way, barely, as a draconic beam had a mouth and tried chomping down on him, but instead got a debris pile, sending a multicolor blast upwards.

"For the new tomorrow!" Both Kecleon shouted, tilting their heads. They both jumped and went back on the attack. "And for a feast of knuckle sandwiches for you!"

* * *

Primal Groudon slid backwards and was unable to hold his ground as Mega Mewtwo's force field expanded outwards, and hundreds of thousands of small comets blitzed, engulfing Primal Groudon in another earth-rattling explosion.

A surge of massively huge explosions occurred in the area, putting any Dragon's roar to shame. The land and shadows in the ground went everywhere, and Primal Groudon found himself hunched forward, groaning and facing the ground. Many were just as baffled as the mightiest. The dark evil was surpassing the Primal Groudon, and the toughest of Mages and darkest in nature were left petrified indeed.

Mega Mewtwo held his palm out. An Aura Sphere was made, and it grew in size. Mega Mewtwo took aim at a struggling foe. "Goodbye."

A sudden silence came and went. A dead silence. Primal Groudon and everyone else looked shocked; Cobra and Kinana sharing the same shock.

Mega Mewtwo was suddenly immobile, yellow static around his body The Aura Sphere dissipated, leaving him frustrated. "What…?" He struggled to look behind, but he managed and was shocked when there was Arbok. Arbok's pattern was glowing red, meaning he used the trick up his sleeve to stop him – Glare.

"Paralysis. Damn you!" Mega Mewtwo turned around and angrily readied to force a palm out, but Future Arbok slithered out of the blue and his Ice Fang was massive.

"No you don't!" Future Arbok lunged out and attacked. Mega Mewtwo glanced over at the incoming purple blur and emitted a shockwave. Future Arbok grunted and shot backwards, but his ice didn't break. A broken pipe was behind him, and he caught note of it. Using his tail, he used it and made a sharp turn back towards Mega Mewtwo, lunging again with greater momentum than before.

Mega Mewtwo's waist was bit into, making him grunt in pain as cold ice bit into him. Mega Mewtwo's body began to tense up with a dense pressure, one that made the ground beneath make a crater, a large one, but the pressure did not deter Future Arbok as he had his Ice Fang still on him.

"Get losssst!" Future Arbok threw Mega Mewtwo out, sending him flying.

Mega Mewtwo straightened out and had his hands out as he shot back. "You snakes will pay for that…!" He felt a huge heat coming from behind, and he felt another intense pressure. He turned around while slowing down, finding Primal Groudon firing Eruption at him. The molten rocks went his way, and Mega Mewtwo instead focused fire on that instead. "You're angering me-GAH!"

His body was covered in yellow sparks, leaving him stunned and unable to move. He completely forgot of Arbok's Glare, which paralyzed him. "Damnit!" He couldn't even shield himself as the molten rocks met their mark, making a lava-like explosion.

Mega Mewtwo was seen falling into the ground, thudding profusely until slamming into a debris mound.

* * *

Ragnarok Lysandre looked around, seeing as how the tides was beginning to change thanks to both Nic's Pokémon. "What?! This can't be! They're on par with my Masters?! Inconceivable! How?!"

"We told you." Nic said, standing straight up with confidence.

"Our strength is their strength. We'll keep getting up until you finally fall." Future Nic said.

A sudden pulse came from their bodies, which felt like a heartbeat. The pulse echoed through the whole area, reaching up to Arceus in space.

Arceus gasped.

"What was…that?" Ragnarok Lysandre questioned. The pressure he was feeling was generating from both Nics, and it was starting to energize as another pulse came from them. This pulse was stronger, and it had a funny sensation, like something tickles you.

"You feel that?" Mira asked.

"I think Nics got one last trick guys." Elfman mumbled.

Both Nics felt their Plates vibrate with a vivid fire. This one was so intense that the particles in the atmosphere around them were glistening with a brilliant intensity. The pulsing kept escalating, and both felt the fire in themselves keep on growing.

"You may say you're fear, but no matter what, evil and cold hearts don't mean anything to us. We strive for a better tomorrow, no matter what!" Nic declared again.

Jellal's eyes were wide. He again felt this intense power growing from Nic. _'This power, the power of the stars…what is Nic doing?'_

If both were honest, they weren't sure what they were doing, but the stronger they willed on, the more vibrant this reaction was. The Plates inside were palpitating, pulsating at astronomical levels.

The rippling pulses reached out at Arceus again in space, and the darkness in his frail and dead gaze had come back. _'This…this power…Nic Pularis has…'_

"What's happening?!" Ragnarok Lysandre bellowed. Dark waves went from all around, beginning to swerve towards the two Nics. The dark waves soon became slightly brighter as they encased the two. The darkness became what was a bright pink, and an aura could be seen inside.

Giratina turned around, feeling this power. _'Is this…?!' _He was struck hard with his thoughts turned away and Mega Garchomp used Dual Chop, slashing and stabbing at his front.

Ragnarok was feeling a light energy, one that was equally defying his dark powers. "What's going on?! Don't you dare bring the light back! I shall bring everything to pitch black!" He extended his arms out, and the dark pink suddenly became a pitch black and blood red.

Ragnarok Lysandre smirked again, but then everyone grew curious as glistening cracks could be seen through the cocoon. All eyes widened, and the cracks continued to increase until a glistening light could be seen inside.

The cocoon exploded, creating a shockwave that made Ragnarok Lysandre hold his hand out, using Barrier to stop the shockwaves, but to his shock and horror, piercing light rays caught him by surprise, and he screamed as he shot backwards.

He snarled back, but when the dazzling display vanished, it revealed both Nics having a pink aura around themselves. What they had was a faint glow around their bodies. Their V-necks were white, and the pants were a dark pink. The shoes were pink, but the undersides and soles were dark pink. The laces were white. The belt was dark pink, with the buckle being a Heal Ball. The coat was white with pink edging. The emblem and ring on the back were also pink.

"No way…" Gray mumbled. "They both have…"

Erza's eyes were fixated with disbelief. "They've done it."

Future Lucy and Lucy couldn't even fathom this pure force they were feeling. Atlas Flame and a wounded Acnologia both had the same foreboding power. It was all pure positive, and there was no explanation as to why or how. Everyone watching all over Earth Land, the mightiest and weakest, felt something light in their hearts.

Darkrai looked away as he barely dodged a jab from Kecleon. "No."

"This can't be." Hoopa said.

Giratina's blood boiled profusely, his anger escalating. "Nic Pularis! Slaughter him! NOW!"

Ragnarok Lysandre eyes dilated with the foulest of frustration and his four arms made four large spheres of aura. The immense energy in the four each had a huge gravity wave, and the pressure was immense that it made the two Nics feel weighed down. All four spheres were fired at them, traveling and shattering the land beneath.

Both Nics put their own hands together, their bodies giving off a valiant aura of pink. Their hands created a pink sphere, and the lunar energy converged heavily into them.

Their eyes widened in unison as they pushed forward. "**Moonblast!**"

They fired both Fairy-Type moves at the same time, making the ground beneath them shatter as well. Six trails in total expanded and met in the middle. A blast of pink and aura erupted into the skies, making rippling shockwaves high into the atmosphere.

The smoke dissipated with Ragnarok Lysandre swiping his Darkrai arm, and he snarled out. "You'll both get gutted alive!"

"You'll try!" Both Nics yelled in unison, their bodies engulfed in pink sparkles.

"We're but united people! We're the contenders that were realized within!" Nic announced.

"This Pixie Plate we've unlocked symbolizes how much everyone means to us. Ruining their future is what we'll eradicate. The light of tomorrow will come, and your darkness shall be gone!" Future Nic announced.

Ragnarok Lysandre snarled. "Contenders that are fairies, you say? Well then I'll rot off your wings, Fairy Contenders!"

The three all were seen back in the skies, with a blood red and two pink comets zigzagging furiously. Each clash again had sparks and fireworks of dark and light alike. The intense force of the blasts given off rattled the airspace, and the energy levels were far beyond any charts, even the suspended Magic Council was in awe at this raw force. No words were needed as they were all witnessing the battle of the future generations.

"**Fairy Wind!**" Nic swiped his arm high in the air, sending winds of pink sparkles at Ragnarok Lysandre. The intricate attack managed to make hi cover up, grunting in annoyance.

High above in flight, Future Nic's fists were coated in a dark pink. His legs were also coated in the energy. "**Play Rough!**"

He went zooming down like a light ray, blitzing and appearing above Ragnarok Lysandre's head. The recipient glanced up and saw Future Nic about to deal a vicious amount of blows. "**Shadow Claw!**"

Future Nic's punches and kicks were parried from above, pink flashes clashing with a double Shadow Claw from the Hoopa and Giratina claws. Each attack was the speed of light, ferociously parrying every cosmic blow and making pink and shadow punches become flashes.

Nic rushed from ahead, his limbs cloaked in Play Rough. Ragnarok Lysandre saw the attack and he used the Darkrai and Mega Mewtwo limbs and began to parry and block with Shadow Claw there.

"HRRRAAAHHHHH!" Both let out cries as Ragnarok Lysandre's furious display of slashing and punching was starting to lose momentum as both Nics were driving themselves further. The enemy looked up and down, looking distraught and angry as both punched and kicked all the way.

'_This can't be.' _Ragnarok Lysandre thought. _'I am the bleeding void that eradicates life! How am I being overpowered?! Is it…because he's unlocked the eighteenth Plate?!' _Veins appeared on his forehead, and he was about to let out another venomous scream, but he only started before both Nic s drove a pink uppercut and fist on the chin and top of the head at the exact same time. The bone shattering and pink blast wave reached out, and all was caught in a shrilling suspense.

Giratina and the Dark Legendaries were caught in the pink blast wave, losing momentum and faltering over from damage taken.

* * *

In space, the pink wave reached out at Arceus, The Alpha Pokémon's pink was starting to gain color again, and the darkness all around him was beginning to fill with stardust again. "This power." His voice returned. "He has done it…"

The eighteen Plates were all unlocked, and Arceus was feeling the energy swell from them all. The eighteen Plates that he feeds on have finally unleashed their unison power, and his body began to glow.

"Nic Pularis…he's ascertained my power at long last." The light all around him began to get brighter and the darkness all throughout space was beginning to get engulfed in a bright light.

* * *

Ragnarok Lysandre and all people in the world of Pokémon and Earth Land looked up, and the natural disasters were showing some star with a shining meteor shower expanding and brightening up the dark skies. The glow was as bright as the sun.

"What?! This isn't happening!" Ragnarok Lysandre bellowed. "**ARCEUS!**"

"**Dazzling Gleam!**"

Ragnarok Lysandre turned back down to see Nic floating and exerted a bright, piercing light. The Fairy-Type move went at Ragnarok Lysandre, but he put his hands forward. "I can taint the purest of light, fools!" True to his sinister words, the Dazzling Gleam heading for him, no matter how pure, became pitch black in a flash and dissipated.

As the pitch black faded, a pink sphere that was Moonblast went shooting from Future Nic and towards Ragnarok Lysandre. The pink sphere was traveling at the speed of light, and Ragnarok Lysandre was engulfed in a pillar of pink that rattled the city ruins.

"**So much evil against light.**" Atlas Flame muttered.

"Impossible." Mavis muttered. "This infinite evil, it's being parried by this infinite light. How…?"

Giratina angrily looked up at the two Nics as they had bright light surging around them. The bright light in the skies meant that by unlocking the last Plate, the darkness they worked so hard to achieve in spreading was dissipating.

"Kill Nic Pularis!" Giratina shouted. Out of control and bellowing, he flapped his wings and ascended into the skies after them. He drew near, but was cut off when Mega Garchomp appeared in front with Crunch.

"Too slow you overgrown centipede!" Mega Garchomp sneered. He opened his mouth and snapped down onto Giratina's crown. The dragon screamed as Mega Garchomp snapped on him again, and he violently shook, but at the cost of Mega Garchomp coming off was the end piece of the crown he latched onto.

The beast let out an unsubtle scream, leaving him open for Mega Rayquaza and Garchomp above.

"Okay you swine, you're grounded!" Garchomp bellowed.

"Giratina, it's the end of the line!" Mega Rayquaza bellowed.

Both either were outlined in green or draconic energy exerted from the head appendages. The draconic flow and green mass began to swirl in the skies above, catching Giratina by surprise. Giratina only looked up just to stare at the sun-like light. His eyes burned and he looked away.

"**Dragon Rush!**"

"**Dragon Ascent!**"

Both massively brutal Pokémon let out strong roars as they became a combination of green and draconic energy. The fusion force made the sky above Giratina look like a green meteor shaped into a beastly dragon. Giratina looked up and screamed out the most ear-splitting roar he could.

"NO! THIS WAS OUR TIME! **OUR TIII~ME!**"

A boom was all that was heard before the two attacks made contact, striking Giratina. The entire land and sea alike, as far as the eye could see, was engulfed in a cataclysmic shockwave, obliterating any vapor around and leaving green and dragon energy to whirl around all throughout the skies to whip around light a hurricane, albeit both Nics and Ragnarok Lysandre undeterred.

Giratina screamed within, swallowed up from the attacks. His screech dissipated as he fell downwards, vanishing into the dust and debris.

* * *

Darkrai looked around and then up, the light burning him and his eyes. He growled and became a shadow. "Damn Arceus!" He scowled as his white top vanished into the shadows.

The shadow suddenly prodded up, uppercutting Darkrai with a thick Shadow Sneak. Darkrai howled in pain as he was sent flying right out from the ground and in midair.

Future Kecleon tilted her head. "Now, the finishing touch."

Kecleon went lunging out from out of nowhere, her claws thick and glowing. "**Slash!**" She was high above and dove right down, her claws leaving white trails as she fell onto Darkrai. She spun in the air for upmost momentum and slashed at him, making him cry out as she passed him.

A sudden Slash came again with Darkrai feeling Kecleon pass again. He fell down with a thud, with Kecleon on a knee and posing with her claws becoming normal again.

Above Darkrai as he struggled, there was an odd orange light. Looking up, Darkrai saw that both Kecleon were retreating. When he looked up, he saw that White Kyurem was around a spherical red-purple aura that burned, and yet it froze. Darkrai felt the frost all around the area begin to emerge, and when it was underneath, it was like touching small embers. He tried getting up, but was of no use as both Kecleons did a number on him.

"The shadows shall freeze in the burning anguish you brought onto yourselves! **Ice Burn!**" White Kyurem fired all around what were reddish-purple beams that blazed through the skies, all converging and heading for Darkrai.

Darkrai's eyes widened as he screamed, seeing nothing and feeling only a burning chill.

* * *

As an icy, orange explosion shot into the sky, rattling the earth. Hoopa looked up at both Nics and roared. He looked pissed, and he made the rings all around him expand and make spatial portals. Six rings appeared underneath the two, but they paid no heed and instead kept on fighting.

"Say goodbye!" Hoopa announced. He nudged his body forward at the rings, but when he tried moving his hands, he couldn't for some reason. "Huh?"

Turning his body around, he felt all of his limbs have an immense pressure that had them pinned. It really hurt for some odd reason. "Grrr! What is this-?!"

He turned and looked around, realizing that all of his limbs were all pinned to the street ground by the Nics' Pokémon. All Greninja, Staraptor, and Charizard used their hands, claws, and sturdy wings to hold them all down.

Hoopa looked enraged. "Get off!" He deployed Psychic, and Nics' battered creatures were feeling a negative force try and push them away. It was like gravity was smiting them away from the arms, and the two Greninja were the only ones unaffected and persevered.

Future Staraptor grunted. "Gnnnngh! We won't…!"

"NEVER!" Staraptor mustered up every ounce of her physical prowess and used her talon to grip onto the arm she had. "**Close Combat!**" She violently slashed and swatted her body, though not wildly, through the Psychic, creating a fearsome burst of winds that left Hoopa shocked. She let out a scream as she delivered all of the wing jabs and single talon strikes she could possibly dish out. Making her look like a gray and brown blur of a speed faster than lightning. "HRRRAAAAHHH!" She showed no cowardice, savagely pounding at Hoopa's arm. Each blow could've crushed a human bone, and there were hundreds of thousands of strikes on the arm.

Hoopa screamed in violent agony as his one arm had felt as though it was gonna fall apart.

With Psychic weakened in doing so, Future Staraptor followed her counterpart's example. Close Combat was also fired, and Future Staraptor let out a predatory bird's caw as she dealt with blowing through the force of Psychic with all her might, reaching the arm and jabbing and clawing in consecutive lightning fashion.

Mega Charizard opened his mouth. "Burn away your power! Let's go beyond that extra mile! To the heavens! **Flamethrower!**" Using his pure muscle from all those boulders and trees he's lifted from the years of hardship, it all came to reality. He held down the arm and opened his mouth. What was an eruption of blue fire completely exploded all around, melting the earth completely. The arm was point-blank, a range that left Hoopa to scream and gawk as he almost lost any and all feeling as the arm was cindered.

With his Psychic further reduced, Future Charizard roared as he used one clawed hand and suppressed the heavy arm. Veins were clear, and he brought his arm back. "**Dragon Claw!**"

Hoopa again roared in agonizing pain as Dragon Claw stabbed his arm, leaving him distraught. Hoopa was thus stunned and the two Greninja nodded at the other.

"**Scald!**" With Psychic completely dissipated, Scald's boiling water swamped the two remaining arms with mist, completely leaving the whole six arms in agonizing pain, some parts of each arm unrecognizable. Hoopa had no way to act as his mouth hung open, spacing out and left for Primal Kyogre to deal the final blow.

"Thanks to you all! Now let's bring it on home! **Origin Pulse!**"

As distraught as Hoopa was, he glanced over, only for blue beams to close on in and engulf him.

* * *

Mega Mewtwo fired Aura Sphere at Primal Groudon, the intensity strong enough to level Magnolia. The bomb went blasting away, but then two huge garbage bags or raw Poison-Type went flying like missiles and met at the 8 and 4 positions of the incoming Aura Sphere. The combined attack made an explosion and Primal Groudon didn't bother covering up as he instead swatted it all away.

The smoke dissipated, and Mega Mewtwo was seen aggravated. His body was cross-armed and another force field was beginning to emerge. "I've had enough of you all-!"

"Tremble you basssssstard!" The slithery cry came from above.

Primal Groudon looked up, as did Mega Mewtwo, but all Mega Mewtwo got were two purple tails.

"**Earthquake!**"

When the two Arbok slammed their tails onto Mega Mewtwo, the momentum smacked to the head of the psychopath. Mega Mewtwo gagged when he suddenly was within the ground. All around, a violent tremor arose. The ground waved with another violent shockwave by the Arbok duo. All across Crocus and through the mountain did the tremor erupt. The shockwave violently shook through what was remaining of the mountains, shattering every massive boulder. The whole layer of Crocus debris was turned upside down. Nics' Pokémon across Crocus all jumped and leapt from flying rock to flying rock without a single misstep, perfect accuracy.

The dust settled, and Primal Groudon grunted as the dust on him was shrugged off just from turning back. In front was a near hundred-foot wide crater, which was extremely deep. In the center were the two Arbok as they hissed. Their tails had a few bruises from going full force on the double Earthquake, but they were undeterred from their goals.

Seeing Mega Mewtwo cringe on the ground, they hissed and slithered away surprisingly. Mega Mewtwo had a dazed look in his eyes, but the haze in his eyes narrowed, and he saw why both Arboks retreated.

"**Precipice Blades!**"

As the lava-covered incandescent blades went for Mega Mewtwo, ground was burning, and all Mega Mewtwo did was go wide-eyed and screamed in the most blood-curdling way that bellowed. The scream was then muffled by a massive lava explosion mixed in rock, which both Arbok slithered away from and watched from the edge of the crater with a scornful hiss.

* * *

The thundering below settled, and Ragnarok Lysandre had wide eyes as his fellow Masters were all amongst the debris, groaning and looking defeated. His disbelief made his anger spike. "No…no, no NO! NO! THIS UNIVERSE SHALL BE TARNISHED!" He angrily turned towards the two Nics, who had a bright glow. "YOUR LIGHT SHALL DIE!"

The bright glow around them was turned pitch black, and they both kept pouring out the light with every ounce of focus and will they could pour on. Pitch black and negative energy began closing in.

Both Nics remained silent as Ragnarok Lysandre's power was dimming out their light.

* * *

Arceus eyes glowed. "Nic Pularis…use it." His eyes glowed brighter than before, and magnified the intense light rays all throughout space.

* * *

The light in space was getting brighter, and Ragnarok Lysandre covered up as the light was burning up. The dark and negative energy all around him was tarnishing, rotting away. Shrilled wails could be heard from the shadows being burned away.

"What?! Arceus?!" Ragnarok Lysandre bellowed. "Impossible!"

Both Nics glared at Ragnarok Lysandre viciously. "Our trust goes beyond measure! Trust and loyalty is what defines friends, not that it would matter to you anyway!" Nic announced.

A light ay beamed downwards through the pitch black world, and everyone felt the unimaginable wavelengths the beam of light had.

Future Nic didn't move with his counterpart. "I've lost precious things from my time. I lost my guild, my home, my sister, my lover, and I am not going down like this." He and Nic both kept forward, but Ragnarok Lysandre looked shocked as a light beam shot down onto them. "Because what we've been through…" He reached into his pocket, clutching something.

Nic looked back, seeing that Future Nic was holding onto his phone and earbuds within his pockets, but it was even more shocking how he just let his grip go, ignoring the items completely.

"The past is the past. That's what I've learned. And I can't change my own past, but I'll change everyone else's!"

Nic blinked, but it all made sense. Future Nic found something, something more meaning. Nic did as well, and they both held onto it. It was that strength of those mementoes of the first two people to show them love in the world that gave them the fortitude to find someone they can love.

Nic and Future Nic held up their right arms as the beam hit them, engulfing them. The light all in the sky began to converge down onto the two Nics. They were in a bright flash, one that was so potent that Ragnarok Lysandre couldn't even become shadows as he could get burned. He could only cover up as all citizens and residence of Earth Land saw the bright light from space.

Gran Doma's eyes were wide. "This…this light."

Makarov stared out at the white norm. "Is that…?"

Vanessa stared in disbelief. "…Nic."

All of their twelve Pokémon looked up at the sky, seeing their trainers take in the light that was full of power and cosmic distortion.

Ragnarok Lysandre looked back as the beam of light had faded. Ragnarok Lysandre looked astonished, as were all people around the world. The energy felt could even reach the confines of space, where the stars were glimmering very weakly again.

In a majestic glow, two figures were seen. Both Nics had red pupils, and green outlined their eyes all the way around. Their heads had a massive headpiece; the forehead was a gold front, with white horns on both sides. The mane went backwards with a gray striated underside. The neck was completely white, but the chin and face was left sound. The neck had white ridges on either side. The t-shirt was gray, and the pants were a pure white. The shoes were white, but the laces and soles were gold. The coat was white, and the edging and the buckle were gold. The buckle was instead a cross-like wheel with green dots. While back of the coats had nothing, a large golden cross-like wheel floated right behind them both.

The two Nics had an Alpha look in their gazes, and they had a golden light all around them.

"You feel that?" Gray asked.

"Is this…infinite power?" Mavis shuddered. "…infinite possibilities…a god…"

"Nic, is that…really him?" Lucy asked.

"He's…?" Future Lucy couldn't find the words.

Acnologia was inside his sphere, still in bleeding pain. He growled again, feeling this god-like power.

"It…can't be." Org mumbled.

The glow around them increased, making Ragnarok Lysandre growl. "Who are you?!"

"**Alpha Legendary Force – Arceus.**" Both announced confidently. They held their arms out, white were normal. They both widened their eyes before emitting a strong cry. At that instant, every ounce of debris beneath Ragnarok Lysandre shot up, defying all common knowledge of gravity. The debris from all across Crocus shot all across from miles away, bombarding and encasing him and his wails in a gravitational field that had a huge planet-like sphere of rock in the air.

The sphere in the sky was still, as both Nics narrowed their eyes. They knew Ragnarok Lysandre had more fight in him, and they were right as the core of the gravity field was seen inside. The core was Ragnarok Lysandre, and blood red and dark purple was seeping through the cracks.

A large explosion erupted from the ball in the sky, shattering and rotting debris away like it was nothing. The little pieces were reduced to ash as Ragnarok Lysandre appeared and had only a few scratches on him, but using his Recover move then and there dissipated the efforts.

"Your little display means nothing, granted." He scowled. "I am the bringer of hell, and I'll taint you all I shall!" He extended his arm out, where blood red and pitch black swelled. "Do not even think of bowing! I want to slaughter you!" He fired blood red and pitch black at the two Nics, but both dodged, almost like teleporting in a golden light.

The blood red beams and pitch black spears traveled outwards until they weren't seen. A few glints were seen before the entire eastern hemisphere was within an explosive hurricane of darkness that obliterated rock and abandoned wildlife. All lives flashed before everyone's eyes as they all closed their eyes, but the distortion of the dark pink spheres shielded them.

Both Nics appeared behind. "You're a disgrace to all humans and Pokémon! HRAH!" Both emitted a bright pink flash behind Ragnarok Lysandre, and the monster screamed as he felt a burning sensation as he shot forward. He looked back with a scowl, seeing the two now no longer having gold, but instead a bright pink. The gray underside of the mane and shirt were also dark pink.

"The Pixie Plate active? The shining beacon is so cliché." Ragnarok Lysandre taunted. "**Shadow Claw-!**"

"BEGONE!" Both exerted a pink force field outward, stopping Ragnarok Lysandre's Shadow Claw and made him shoot back.

"GRRRRR! NO YOU DON'T!" Ragnarok Lysandre recovered from the pink field and became a bloody shadow. He reappeared behind the two, with his arms swiped. "**Psycho Cut!**" He unleashed four massively huge crescents at the two Nics, but all they did was turn around and swipe their arms, dissipating Ragnarok Lysandre's attack. "No!"

"He's completely overwhelmed." Makarov noted.

"…that power. It truly is infinite." Mavis said.

"**Ragnarok Lysandre. You are indeed the most powerful and most hateful creature in the known history and existence, but might and anger alone is never enough to reign.**" Both Nics' voices sounded so different, in fact it wasn't even theirs.

Cobra's eyes widened. "A pure voice, through telepathy?"

"That who I think it is?" Gajeel questioned.

Natsu's eyes widened. "No way…"

Ragnarok Lysandre's eyes widened. "Arceus?!"

"**Yes, Ragnarok Lysandre. It is I, using the power of these two noble men who share the telepathic link and powers of my own.**" Arceus announced. "**This bloodthirsty power that you seek for eradicating all life as you know it, has led you to overlook one piece of evidence. True power evolves from the union of others.**"

"I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS!" Ragnarok Lysandre bellowed.

"**You, who has been the controlled by Giratina, Hoopa, Darkrai, and Mewtwo, need to understand! Your power evolved from your anger and revenge that you sought so badly for, which was a desire of no heart and a rotting behavior that destroys life with no ideal for you. Nic Pularis, however, had a very unfair child abuse brought down onto him, but he still has the heart of gold, because he sought to hold his dear sister close from harm's way. Love and loyalty is what defines these young men, one of which came from the future of ruin that you brought down onto the universe. He's the heart of a man, and the soul of Pokémon; the years he's been through, he chose his own path of hardship, but never went through it alone. The Pokémon of Greninja, Charizard, Kecleon, Staraptor, Garchomp, and Arbok had all found a place to call home within each other's hearts. It was Nic who bound them for all eternity, and their true strength was revealed to us today. You all turned your back on what great power comes from the heart! You have all sealed your fate for the bitter worse!**"

Ragnarok Lysandre's bloody gaze looked feral, and he looked as though was gonna bleed from the mouth. The corners of his mouth dripped with pitch black blood. "You can't be anymore wrong, Arceus! Blood and anger drives everyone! Strength doesn't come from a heart! It's an organ that must be ripped out of weak and pathetic insects throughout the universe! NO ON EDESERVES TO LIVE OUT OF LIVE AND BONDS! THEY ARE THE GREATEST OF INSECURITIES FOR ALL!"

"**You will never understand that no amount of hate and rage will be enough to annihilate the singular power that links humans and Pokémon together! You are an imperfection, whose time is up!**"

Both Nics raced through the skies above. "This is for all the bonds that everyone share! We'll make them a reality!" Nic yelled.

Pink stardust glistened from all around them, spreading all around them. The stardust fell to the ground, and Dialga, Palkia, and Zekrom all slowly opened their eyes, looking up in slight awe at the two Nics.

The wheel on their backs shined brighter than before. Light gathered from around them, and the backs of the wheels had a stomach and lower body of Arceus, giving both Nics a tail of Arceus and a centaur look. They had a golden glow as the two 'Arceus' galloped upwards into the pitch black sky, their golden glow making small specks of stars seep through the darkness in the sky.

"The stars…" Levy had hands over her mouth.

"They're coming back to life." Droy said.

"And after all these years." Jet stated.

Both Nics were high above, and the weakened Dark Legendaries groaned as they laid on the ground. Hoopa and Mega Mewtwo were both back in their original forms, and they looked startled and confused.

"…Arceus?" Giratina questioned.

Both Nics made a singular motion. They bowed their heads and held a single hand up each. The wheel each had shined, and a pink orb of phenomenal power beyond astronomical appeared in their hands. The two orbs combined, creating a singular dense pink orb.

"Thy judgement has been casted, and your stand shall fall forevermore. The sickening pain sought and created shall be cast out, and thy holy relic shall be the light beyond purity to see to that calling card of justice!"

Both launched the pink orb in the sky, a dark pink falling behind it. It went up into the pitch black sky, disappearing.

"It can't be…" Ragnarok Lysandre trailed off.

"**Alpha Legendary Arts – Judgement!**"

The pitch black sky suddenly began to brighten up. The entire sky was filled with endless to millions of meteors. All saw what was heaven itself. The entire array of bright meteors fell down from the sky. Their sheer numbers were off millions. Streaks of pink were clearly visible. The massive heavenly barrage was far worse than Jellal's Grand Chariot. The millions upon millions of pink meteors of pure light went falling downwards, and Ragnarok Lysandre already felt his body burning from the bright lights.

"**YOUR WORDS MEAN NOTHING! I WILL NEVER FALL TO YOU! NEVEEEEEE~R!**" He was enveloped in blood red, dark purple, and pitch black. Everyone again felt their bodies give in. The sheer power felt was of no level in its own right. The Dark Legendaries bellowed out in their weakened states before collapsing into unconsciousness, leaving Ragnarok Lysandre to unleash a massively huge blast of pure negative energy.

The entire blast wave colliding could be seen from space again. The top half was light and the bottom half was pure hell. A clash of heaven and hell.

Ragnarok Lysandre let out a blood-rotting shriek as his vermilion pupils dilated to a feral extent. He screamed violently as his darkness was giving in. The darkness that was turning the meteors pitch black and into nothing was outnumbered. The millions to possibly billions of pure pink lights closed in.

'_No! NO!' _He grunted as the comets were closing in. _'Infinite power?! INFINITE?! That can't be! I am the Satan killer himself! I make the underworld look like a happy place! How is the light casting out my darkness?! BONDS ARE NOTHING! NOTHING! __**GYYAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!**__'_

Ragnarok Lysandre was hit by the billions of pink meteors set solemnly onto him. His body went limp as his blood red aura was pelted like a puddle and began to evaporate. The man's figure was engulfed in a pink light, and his eyes turned blood red and his skin cracked with blood red.

Ragnarok Lysandre finally let out one final scream, so loud and corrosive that it bellowed like someone getting bloodied and slaughtered. All the anguish in known existence and hatred and pain was let out, and it made some people go deaf.

An atomic explosion erupted. A thick and bloody wave of negative and boiling elements of wailing demons and unknown energy flew right over everyone's heads. The wave of negative energy bellowed and roared and the tsunami went in all directions. The infinite evil violently screeched out as it was burned away and scattered through space, the light of the real Arceus in space burning away the evil, every trace of it, leaving not even a molecule of it. It was destroyed and erased from existence, completely.

The pitch black and distorted sky above and all across the world and of the world of Pokémon began to fade away into nothing. The darkness and natural disasters stopped as of that instant, everything settling down just like that. The seawater returned to being blue, and the skies in some parts all returned to being blue, with the moon shown again. The best part was that the stars in the sky were all visible once more.

"They…they did it." Lucy looked relieved.

"Lysandre…" Happy said.

"He's…defeated." Wendy said.

Mavis looked distraught. "Not even the great Fairy Law or Lumen Histoire could hold up against Lysandre…but that did."

Everyone who was despairing could breathe again, and the rotting feeling in their bodies had been eliminated, gone. Erza was the first to smile, followed by Vanessa. Future Lucy began to streak a tear as the whole world and everyone – who felt like it and not distraught – cheered. The cheers were all over, and they were loud as the greatest evil was defeated.

Both Nics slowly descended towards the ground. As they did, the original gray and gold returned to their forms. They both had serious but relieved looks on their faces. They looked on as a figure could be seen floating in front of them.

It was Lysandre; his soul.

He was his normal self. Not his tainted and corrupted self, nor Ragnarok Lysandre. He was himself from all those years ago, back when Team Flare was a thing.

"So, this is where my last stand fails." He remarked. He looked morosely at the two Nics with a grin. "My path of expunging all that was wrong in the universe has failed. Every time, you were always in the way. Team Flare, and now me. My road has crumbled. The bonds of life…are they really for eternity?" He chuckled. "This, I guess, is where I should thank you, for being the noble being who dared to dethrone me and change my chosen destiny…farewell."

Lysandre's soul floated upwards, fading away into ill-existence. Both Nics looked up silently; though deluded, he did have the respect of being the greatest threat Nic has never known. Their eyes narrowed, finally taking in that he was no defeated…for good."

Both Nics looked down, seeing everyone to be a wasteland. They gave a morose look and they remained silent. "…" They dared say nothing. Gladly no casualties, but the damage done was gonna have to be fixed.

When they descended, the soles of their shoes emitted golden ripples across the land and sea, spreading out far and wide. The world of Earth Land was within this golden ripple. The ripples kept expanding, and as they did, the buildings and landmarks were all repaired. The seas were rejuvenated, and Mercurius was repaired. The hemisphere and all of the Crocus and mountain range was returned to normality, as though nothing happened.

Gasped were heard, and shock piled on. But people cheered loudly as the dark pink spheres holding them were descending back to the ground. Natsu and everyone else all cheered loudly, as did Atlas Flame. They all ended up on the outskirts along the southern mountains just outside of Crocus, as to where everyone else all over the world was safely put back where they were. The dark pink orbs popped like bubbles, and the cleansed air returned.

Natsu looked around. "Hey! It's all back to normal!"

"He did it! They did it! Whoever they are did it!" Happy cheered.

Lily gave a cocky smirk. "Well done."

Everyone felt joy in their hearts as they saw the work of gods. All of Fairy Tail cheered, and Vanessa and Sophie hugged, and Juvia clung to Gray after so long. Future Lucy nearly dropped to her knees almost crying.

The beings known as the two Fairy Contenders gave off a golden glow of purity, and they reverted back to themselves. Mega Charizard and Mega Garchomp all reverted back to the way they were. Kyurem and Reshiram separated, and the Weather Trio roared out as their transformations reverted back to normal.

"Nic!" Both Nics turned around, shock and smiles falling on their faces as they saw their Pokémon converge as fast as lightning. They all looked so happy and proud.

"We have won, Nic-ssssama." Arbok said.

Kecleon tilted her head, as did her counterpart. "Evil has exited stage right." She remarked.

Charizard smirked. "Now that sure left a mark or two."

Garchomp looked over. "Big deal, a couple of scrapes never keeps me down."

"Neither myself." Staraptor said.

Greninja stood with crossed arms. "It looks like Lysandre is…"

Nic nodded. "Yeah…but it's finally over. We've won."

"And won you've have." All fourteen looked back behind them, where they saw the Legendaries all present, with Dialga and Palkia towering above them. It was Dialga who spoke.

"Dialga." Future Nic said.

"You all, all fourteen of you." Dialga started. "What you did was something that no one could have ever possibly attempt. The universe and Arceus would've been lost to succumb to the fate that fell Lysandre."

"The courage you all displayed was too great. The strength and heart has broken the unbreakable." Palkia said.

Rayquaza roared, his body swerving in a circle before correcting. "That was a huge surprise."

Zekrom looked down at the fourteen. "The void and forever wailing darkness that Dialga, Palkia, and myself were in, we escaped thanks to you."

"We can't thank you enough." Dialga said. "However…"

They all looked back, seeing the Dark Legendaries all unconscious and right next to the other. They all had that maleficent energy, which was like a rotting feeling of hatred.

"We must deal with them accordingly." Palkia said. "Nic Pularis. Greninja. Charizard. Kecleon. Staraptor. Garchomp. Arbok. You all showed the binds you've forged. You have saved the universe. Allow yourselves to be relieved, as the fate of all existence has been saved."

The fourteen looked at each other and smiled happily over their victory.

Dialga and Palkia both roared out. The pink pearls on Palkia glowed again, and spatial tears were seen all around. The energy went into the pink marks on his neck, and the Dark Legendaries were all encased in dark pink spheres of their own, unable to move in their unconscious state.

Kyogre swam towards the tear closest towards him. "After that, I shall once again go dormant. Farewell, Nic Pularis." He dove into the tear, swimming into the trenches of the dark waters he calls home.

Groudon looked perplexed at first at the two Arbok, but the nod he gave was of their own hissing in return. The Arboks bowed, hissing in respect over the ally gained. Groudon turned towards the tear with a magma chamber and went inside.

Reshiram screeched, as did Zekrom. The turbines in their tails all churned, and streaks of orange and blue lightning could be seen in the sky as they curved and flew into tears in the sky. Kyurem took the one that led him to Giant Chasm, as he went back home to go dormant with everyone else.

Rayquaza was the last to follow. He swerved through the skies and let out a roar of acknowledgment as he departed back for the Ozone Layer in the respective world. Through the tear, the Ozone Layer was pure again.

Dialga and Palkia both roared again, flying into the skies. A single huge tear was in the skies, and all of the Crocus residence saw the beings of time and space enter. Dialga entered the tear, with Palkia flying in tow with the Dark Legendaries captive. They all followed behind, and the tear faded away.

Acnologia roared outwards, catching Atlas Flame off guard. The Dragon King turned his back and headed into the skies.

"Hey, get back here!" Natsu shouted, but Lucy put a hand on his shoulder.

Lucy shook her head. "Natsu, no."

"Even he knows to turn tail and run after that dark power." Future Lucy said.

Acnologia, despite his new scar and damages, was able to fly. He wasn't steady, but be managed and flew off into the night sky. All of Crocus watched him fly off, scorn on their faces as he retreated.

Future Nic turned towards his Pokémon, all mournfully smiling at the other. _'We've finally did it. We've won…'_

* * *

In a matter of minutes, the fourteen were seen on the cliffs of the mountains, in front of their guild and the others that were in the Grand Magic Games. Hisui and the Rune Knights had established themselves back in Crocus at the time being, and the citizens were all making progress down the mountains. Lahar and Doranbolt were elsewhere, contemplative on the infinite power displayed. The Magic Council itself was in a unique uproar about every single living and ethereal being seeing a calamity. It was a memory that was burned into their minds and souls.

Macao held up an arm. "Alright! Wait a go, buddy!"

"You've finally kicked that guy's ass for good!" Wakaba cheered.

Elfman beamed proudly. "You're beyond the manliest of men! Even manlier than me!"

Mira was clasping with smiles, Sophie was right beside her with smiles and cheers, and the remaining members like Kinana, Juvia, Laxus, Levy, Gajeel, and everyone gave respects in their own rights. Both Nics and their Pokémon were swamped with overzealous praising. They were covered in dirt, scrapes, bruises, and blood, but they were resilient enough to hold out. A few of the girls cheered with tears running down their face.

Vanessa went up to Nic and gave him the biggest hug in the world, a small tear running down her cheek. "Nic…you're okay." She quietly thanked Arceus of all gods that he was alive after that.

Nic returned the embrace, holding his little sister close. "It's okay, we're all alive. We've made it."

Future Nic looked at the two embrace, his half-grin hollow.

"Nic." Everyone cleared way of Erza as she was still in bandages and supported by Sophie. She managed to hold herself up when she was carried far enough. She stood in front of the present Nic, her smile of great satisfaction.

Nic stared at her, his grin full of warmth. "Erza…"

Erza embraced forward, joining Vanessa as the two girls in Nic's life were back with him. There were no words needed for what Erza felt. She was happy to say the very least, but felt relieved as her lover was alive. They were all alive, and it was thanks to their noble efforts. Her long red hair touched Nic's cheek, and he felt his smile grow.

Yet again Future Nic gave a mournful smile. _'The past has been changed. That's good…'_

Makarov stepped forward, having Erza and Vanessa break away from the embrace with Nic. Makarov was in his ceremonial cloak and looked up at the two Nics and their Pokémon. "Nic." He started. "Well one, to you both. No matter what time period you came from, you have came back to change what was the end. You and your Pokémon showed us all the true strength your kind possesses. To that, we couldn't ask for a better savior. You can be the being of infinite power now, but your heart has been revealed to us. You're beyond a fairy. You are Fairy Tail's greatest example. More so; you've all stood up, showing that you are indeed Pokémon in your own right."

Future Nic smiled down at Makarov. "Master, thank you." He looked back towards the faces of everyone else, all smiling with glee and cheers. "Everyone…"

A twinkle of glow was seen from Atlas Flame. "**Hm?**" He realized that his whole body was glowing and giving off golden lights. "**This light…**"

"Huh?" Natsu looked up at Atlas Flame. "Uncle?"

Everyone looked back to see Atlas Flame in the glow. They saw him stare down at them, mainly Natsu.

"**Due to history being corrected, I guess this would mean I am returning to my own time.**"

"That makes sense." Mira pointed out. "Time and space have been restored, so that means everything corrected and warped through a broken time current must be sent back."

"So he's really heading back 400 years into the past?" Carla said.

Atlas Flame was engulfed in a golden light entirely. "**Nic Pularis and Pokémon, I shall never forget what I saw. And to you, Natsu Dragneel…I shall never forget you…**"

With those final words, Atlas Flame became a bright light, reducing to sparkles of gold. Natsu stared up as the sparkles all glistened and burned like those of embers. He breathed in and out, a small grin on his face. "Thanks for everything…Uncle."

Everyone had a moment of silence before Freed found out a point.

"Question to ask." He asked Future Lucy and Future Nic, who were seen side by side. "Now that the future has been corrected for the better, what shall happen to you eight?"

Lucy turned towards them with a blink. "Uh, hey yeah. He has a point."

Gray smiled. "I guess since we're all still having beating hearts, we live, right?"

Juvia had hearts and wiggled her hips. "Our two hearts can be beating together!"

"Yeah, it would make sense that we didn't die after all." Wendy pointed out. "Since everything is salvaged, that means you can return to your time and see us again, right?"

"…"

Future Lucy and Future Nic had mournful smiles, their silence breaking the hopes of everyone.

"Nic?" Happy asked worriedly. "You okay?"

Natsu tilted his head, smirking. "Come on, don't tell us you can't travel to the future again. Come on, we all get revived or something, right?"

Again, a mournful silence fell. This made everyone now lose their smiles.

"Nic? Lucy?" Mira asked.

Nic looked to himself, having a worried gaze of his own. "What happens…?" He trailed doff when a speck of gold came from Future Nic. The same glow came from his Pokémon, catching the present day six in a startling shock.

"The time hasssss finally arrived, Nic-ssssama." Future Arbok bowed his head.

Future Nic nodded in understanding. "Yes, it is."

"Time for what?" Natsu asked.

Nic looked to see his future-self mournfully looking ahead, as with the others.

"Our time in this world…ends now." Future Nic said. "We have to say goodbye…for good."

Eyes grew wide, and everyone looked like they were seeing ghosts. Erza turned towards Future Nic with a shock. "What do you mean?"

"The future you guys think, it'll never happen." Future Greninja said. "That's not how it works. Time is a very hard concept, and when we came here, there was a bitter price to be paid."

Future Garchomp took over. "Our time is up. Now that Lysandre is no more, the future changes so that everything is a memory. That means everything that was before us must disappear." His body glowed with everyone else's, which got brighter with more sparkles.

Future Kecleon mournfully frowned and tilted her head. "He'll disappear from history…and be no more."

Everyone felt another wave of shock with them. Cana's mouth gaped open. "You guys…"

"No…way…" Lisanna covered her mouth.

Nic looked with equal shock, but suppressed any gasping or worry. If he was honest with himself, he'd probably understand himself. It was a lot to sacrifice. As long as the stars are in the skies, and everyone's alive, that was the true goal. "So, you're all going to…"

"…perish." Garchomp followed.

Staraptor looked ahead, a steel gaze on her face. "So this was your fate, and you took it head on."

Future Staraptor nodded. "No fear; no retreat. If it means saving the universe, we'd gladly sacrifice ourselves along with Nic. This is was we came here to do."

"It's true." Future Lucy said, a mournful smile as she saw her present day-self look sad. "We'll disappear from existence."

Lucy stepped forward. "Wait, no! You're joking, right?! You're all gonna…" Her body shuddered. "This is what you were chosen to do…?"

Future Lucy looked sad as well as she frowned. "I know how you feel, but everyone is dead. They can't come back, no matter ow hard you try."

"This is what we decided on." Future Nic said, the glow around his body getting brighter. "We came here fully prepared for that sacrifice. Besides…" He looked away from Nic and towards Erza and Vanessa, their mournful looks fueling Future Nic's need to hold back misty eyes. "I've kept my own sister and Erza waiting long enough."

Erza looked down and her eyes began to mist. Vanessa was no different, only she had a hand over her mouth and had some tears running down her face.

All of Nic's Pokémon stared at their future-selves. They all had the same calmness, as they expected, but fighting alongside themselves was an experience and bond they shall forever cherish. If they were honest, it was a heartbreak in their own right. You get to know yourselves and others only to see them take the biggest leap of faith towards death.

Noc stood in front of his future-self. He stared calmly forward, seeing as how this was something he could not repair. Future Nic smiled at his present-day self. "Nic, Greninja, Charizard, Kecleon, Staraptor, Garchomp, and Arbok. Thank you all for everything. This couldn't have been accomplished without you."

Nic shook his head. "No, the real heroes today are you guys."

Future Nic snickered. "Guess this day belongs to all of us then. I was glad that my final battle was alongside myself and the Pokémon who I call closer than family. We finally did it, we actually won, and it was because we believed in each other. Thank you for that."

Kecleon looked towards her future-self. They both had mournful looks, but deep down they knew to stay strong. In unison, they both blinked twice and tilted their heads in the same directions.

"Thanks for sharing the stage with me." Kecleon said.

"You were the best actress out there. The spotlight shift to you now. This is where…my final curtain falls." Future Kecleon said, choking back some tears but smiling. "You have so many great co-stars. Please, give more performances, for all of our sakes. The show…must go on."

Charizard looked at Future Charizard. "So, I guess this is your green mile." He said.

Future Charizard snickered. "Ironic, huh? We got that extra mile, and now we hit that mileage." He sounded a little bitter, but he kept a smirk. "Say, you got something to prove, like me. You gotta leave an example. Don't ever turn your back on what you've done…because we can't go any further."

Charizard mournfully smiles. "Because we reached the peak."

Future Charizard held up his fist. "Damn right. But I have reached the peak, as for you, reach for the stars."

Charizard fist bumped his future-self, returning the same smirk. "I can do that." He said, but the words pained his heart to say.

The two Arboks hissed at one another. Arbok lowered his head. "I wasssss glad to have come thisssss far. Thisss wassss never possssible without you all. Arbok, you are beyond loyal to your family."

Future Arbok smiled mournfully, his eyes holding back the mist they had. "Assss are you. Thessssse monssssterssss aren't nothing without sssomeone with a sssslithery backbone to Glare them down." Future Arbok said. "We did it. That'ssss for sure. We gave Arbok a good name. We've had a good run too, literally. All thossse tree-jumping exxxxercccisssssessss and thossse long day runsssss…I wanna do more of thossse…forever with Nic-sssama and Greninja, and everyone."

Staraptor was spoken to by her future self. "Stay strong. You got a will to make."

"I already made one. My will…is to keep going with my family." Staraptor said to herself. "We refuse to turn our backs on any challenge that dare stand in our way of life."

Future Staraptor stared at her present day-self and had a silence. Both saw the fierce look of predators they gave off. They were both fierce predators and sworn combatants…but it was super hard to see yourself fall. This was what all they had to say.

Future Garchomp growled at Garchomp. He returned the growl, baring his claws and teeth. They sneered at another for a few more moments until they settled down in a snap. In unison, both smiled.

"Tch, still got it." Future Garchomp said.

Garchomp looked down. "As crazy as this is, ripping a giant beast apart with myself may be the greatest thrill in my life."

Future Garchomp nodded. "Me too." They both reached out their claws and shook them. They both stared ahead at another…and then their heads butted in a flash. They both weren't testing another's strength, but instead…their heart.

Both Garchomps closed their eyes, smiling as they were holding back the tears they had.

"Live long, and rip holes through scum for me." Future Garchomp stated.

Greninja looked at his future-self. Both said nothing. They only stared as the Future Greninja had a glow. They only stared, but the looks in their eyes showed it all. It was the look of hurt and will. They were both crying on the inside, hard. They could see the other was recounting their tales of combat, from start to finish. To see Greninja's future to become dead with the others, it was heartbreaking, but it's better than dying off alone.

Future Greninja held his hand out and nodded. "Well done. Thank you, for the last thrill ever."

Greninja shook the hand, holding back the mist in his eyes. "Farewell…and prosper in the beyond…with family."

Future Greninja nodded. "Live long, and prosper with each other."

Future Nic looked at his present day-self. "Nic…"

Nic pulled off a smile, despite how it hurt. "I want to thank you for sharing a proper ending."

Future Nic reached into his pockets, and he held up his earbuds and phone. He smiled back. "I wouldn't have wanted it any other way."

"Nic…" Erza looked at the several characters. They were all painfully saying farewell, and she could only do the respectful thing and standby with a strong look.

The light around the eight all got brighter until they began to get engulfed in spheres. Future Lucy teared up. "I miss Fairy Tail. It's my family. Finally, I'll get to see them again."

Future Nic lowered his head. "Grandma and Grandpa."

Nic's eyes widened.

"Remember what they said? Someday, we'll find something and someone more precious to remember them…" He looked towards Erza and smiled. "And we found it."

He looked back at Nic and smiled sincerely. "So, live on…and continue to see the sun rise, for the greater good…"

With those final words, the eight all stared at themselves with strong smiles and their spheres glowed brighter. Nic and his Pokémon all had strong and will-bound looks as they saw their images fade. The eight spheres all met at the same time high all above Crocus, where there was a gold Fairy Tail symbol, with a purple Poke Ball symbol around it. The sparkles all faded away, leaving them to disappear.

* * *

There was a light breeze blowing. Nic could feel it on his face. Nic saw what was a blue sky with partly clouds covered. They went over his head. He blinked. "What…?" He sat up and felt his hands feel something that felt like grass. He looked down and saw what was a field of gold grass, with petals flowing in the winds. "Is this…?"

"Nic?" Nic turned to see Lucy, sitting up at the same time.

"Lucy…! Your…" Nic was looking at her right arm. It was there. Lucy gasped as she saw that her arm was back, but more importantly her prized Fairy Tail emblem. Nic turned towards his left, seeing his Pokémon all there as well, all shocked as he was. "Everyone."

Greninja looked around. "Where are we?"

"I'd rather not say." Charizard said.

Nic and everyone else got up as a light breeze went past them again. They were on a hill. They weren't sure where they were exactly, but the air was pure and tranquil. It was peaceful. It was heaven.

They all looked at each other before deciding to head downslope…

"Lucy! Hey!"

"Nic!"

The two familiar voices got their attention. Everyone stopped moving and turned around, looking upslope. They saw a crowd, but the crowd was really all of Fairy Tail with proud smiles. The most noticeable figures standing out were four of them.

Nic and Lucy's eyes widened when they saw Natsu, Happy, Erza, and Vanessa all out front.

"Everyone's waiting, slowpoke!" Happy said happily.

Lucy's eyes began to mist as she gasped.

Nic's eyes widened further when he saw Erza and Vanessa. "Erza…Vanessa…"

Natsu ran down with a smile towards Lucy, where he extended a hand out towards her. "Come on Lucy, the adventure continues!"

Lucy was startled to say the least. She felt tears drop and she finally smiled. "…okay." She accepted Natsu's hand and Natsu pulled Lucy along. Both had big smiles as they ran up the hill, with Happy laughing with them all reunited.

Erza ran down the hill, with Vanessa in tow. The two had proud smiles on their faces when they finally met Nic, who was stunned beyond comprehension. The three was stared at each other, though Nic's was more wide and had misty eyes.

Tears shed down Nic's cheek. He was met with a passionate hug by Erza. Her red hair shifted in the breeze in front of his face. He was feeling more tears swell.

Erza pulled back from her embrace and smiled warmly. "We've waiting for you. We're so proud of you."

Vanessa smiled. "Let's go."

Nic smiled happily. He's waited for this reunion for so long, and his emotions just went out. Tears went down his face, but not just him. His Pokémon all had tears down their faces, every single one of them. Garchomp, Charizard, Arbok, Greninja, Staraptor, and Kecleon had tears of joy as they all made it.

With nothing left behind them, Nic turned towards his Pokémon and they all had tears fall at the same time. They all then turned back towards the hill. Erza grabbed Nic by the hand and the two ran side by side with the Pokémon right by Nic's left. All of them followed Vanessa up the hill, with Nic, his Pokémon, and Erza all having smiles as the adventure continues on.

* * *

Wendy was being comforted by Mira as the Dragon Slayer cried for their death. Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe looked down at the ground, mourning in shame for what happened. Gray and Juvia had their heads hung, and Sophie and Gajeel were no different. Wendy was really the only one crying, and Lucy was hugging Natsu as he held her while keeping a straight face.

It was a time of mourning, and all heads were towards the ground in mourning. All of Fairy Tail took a blow, as the future heroes that came back had gone and made the ultimate sacrifice.

Makarov faced forward, his straight face filled with grief.

As Vanessa turned away with tears silently running down her cheeks, Erza's eyes were misting up bad. "I didn't know…they'd die…"

She looked back at Nic and his Pokémon. All of their backs faced them. They couldn't see their faces, nor did they have the right to. Erza looked away as her eyes were still misting up.

Nic, Greninja, Charizard, Kecleon, Staraptor, Garchomp, and Arbok all had blank facial expressions as they recalled the final words preached towards themselves. As they all echoed, they stared into the starry sky, out towards the sea. The sea was all they could hear, as their loss was whisked away like the tide.

* * *

**By far, the longest chapter I have ever accomplished. I didn't wanna make this into another chapter, so I made it into a massively huge chapter. This was A LOT to take in, but it happened. Roughly 24K, a new record! **

**When you also think about it, the whole time ideal was similar to the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky. That was the connection I made. I actually watched the Temporal Tower and aftermath walkthrough to run by that concept and sad stuff. I swear, every time, that game makes me cry!**

**In light of all this. The next chapter shall sadly be the final chapter. You'll see what happens after all of the chaos has been sorted out. However, how was the big battle? Did you give respect to Nic's Pokémon? I know Kecleon and Arbok in particular are Pokémon who aren't given much credit in anime and games, but I made them stand out indefinitely in this story.**

**I'm gonna be honest, I was crying a bit as I was writing the goodbye scene. It was hard to see all those characters just die. Comment if you got the feels badly like I did.**

**I also want to thank everyone who had been loving this story and the Nic VS Lysandre confrontations from start to finish. As well as his character development. Comparing from the start, I made him grow in character immensely, so that's an achievement.**

**Please Favorite, Follow, &amp; Review this story and/or chapter if you guys are looking forward to the final chapter or epilogue, and if this was the most insane battle you've ever witnessed.**

* * *

**Next Time: With You Forever**


	85. With You Forever

Chapter 85 – With You Forever

**This is Insane Dominator here, and I am proud and regretful to announce the final chapter of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**. I have made it so far within a year and eight months' time. After so long, I have gotten to where I always dreamed to be, at the finale. The thoughts swelling inside of me were all conveyed at long last, and now I shall wrap all of that up here and now. I want to personally thank all of you who have contributed with favoring, Following, and reviewing the story from the very beginning. It's with a heavy heart that I now announce the finale.**

**And so, enjoy the emotional conclusion of **_**The Fairy Contender**_**!**

**To Recap:**

After the Legendary Pokémon powered up, including Future Nic into Mega Rayquaza, they all engaged in battle with Ragnarok Lysandre and the Dark Legendaries. Though they struggled, all were wiped down hard, and all of Earth Land and the universe was within darkness, blood red, and pitch black. Etherion fell apart, and every living being was suspended. When the Dark Legendaries were about to make their kill, Nics' Pokémon all bounced back and attacked, with Legendaries joining in. Nic and Future Nic both kept on fighting, and unlocked the last Plate – The Pixie Plate, and dubbed the Fairy Contenders. Arceus's life was revived, and as they fought and the Dark Legendaries were overpowered, both Nics became Arceus and overpowered Ragnarok Lysandre and ended him with Judgement, finally defeating him for good. All damage done was erased and all life was revived. Acnologia retreated into the skies, and Atlas Flame returned to the past. Everyone grew mournful as the future Lucy, Nic and Pokémon all revealed that with history changed, they'll die. With teary farewells, they passed on, meeting everyone with smiles in a field of gold.

* * *

**Final Chapter – With You Forever**

Within the confines of space, stars were seen, the nebulas and galaxies made it look beautiful and exotic once more. As stars and asteroids flourished throughout the cosmos, Giratina, Darkrai, Hoopa, and Mewtwo were all within spatial spheres. Each one had a bloody look full of scorn. It was one thing they were defeated again after just breaking out, but it was a bitter taste left in their mouths knowing that _casual _Pokémon were the ones responsible for stopping them.

Before them were Dialga, Palkia, and Arceus. Arceus had a majestic shine all around his body. A golden glow was cascaded all around him, brimming with universal force that was unmatched beyond comprehension.

Dialga and Palkia remained steadily as Arceus raised his head, his presence turning stoic and justified. This force given off made the Dark Legendaries, mainly Giratina, snarl in spite.

"Giratina, Hoopa, Darkrai, and Mewtwo. You four have been judged by the light of truth, and no amount of moral can reverse what you have caused." Arceus boomed. "Ages ago, you four have banned together. You sought to take the universe in your hands, starting with ground zero, and keep it in eternal darkness so no life shall be the same. You wanted your violence and sadistic demeanor to rampage, causing mayhem for all ages. After dealing with you hence then, I have banished and sealed you in the void. And so, here we are again."

"You not only used a pawn, but you almost ended the universe. Granted you were closer than before, but those actions shall never be forgotten." Dialga said.

"All aspects of time and space had been rearranged until it was fixed. You were the cause. Your anger and hatred has been boiled up." Palkia judged. "Justice shall be fallen onto you."

Giratina, in his Origin Form, angrily screeched outwards. He rammed repeatedly and thrashed in his sphere. "Arceus! I will have your blood! I will have your blood!" He angrily shouted.

Hoopa tried using his spatial powers, but his Bound Form was no match as Palkia's spatial powers were of supreme command. Darkrai and Mewtwo both were hopeless but they angrily punched and rammed the spheres with little to no success.

"ARCEUS!" They all shouted.

Arceus's eyes glowed brightly. A golden light expanded outwards. "You shall be brought to justice! Have your punishment fall before you!"

All of the Dark Legendaries screamed in searing agony as the whole space was engulfed in a golden light.

* * *

It was perhaps two or three days after the whole battle of grand history. The heat had finally died down, and everyone rejoiced as they were all still alive. News of Nic Pularis and his six Pokémon was now common knowledge throughout Earth Land and their home world, and their display of power was by far the most immense anyone could have ever foreseen.

In Crocus's castle, Mercurius, everyone gathered with decorations and fancy attires. It was the night of a royal party. A celebration.

In the dressing room, Yukino stared at her reflection with a frown. On her head was a spring green rose with gold chains around her snow-white head. Her dress was a spring green with a low cut to show tons of her buxom. The cut was fur-lined. Her choker was spring green.

"Do I really have to wear this?" She asked.

Lucy winked. "Yeah, it looks amazing in you!"

"It suits you, Yukino." Mira said.

Lisanna looked over her shoulder, trying to reach the laces on her girdle. "Mira, can I get some help?"

"Here." Sophie applied and assist as she tied the laces instead.

Yukino looked down, seeing the smiles of the Fairy Tail girls. She wasn't sure she belonged with them, but they insisted she came along. She just dreaded about seeing familiar faces again.

After a few minutes, they exited the dressing room and ventured into the palace. They stepped into what was the banquet hall, and it was gigantic and elegant. The girls looked amazed as hundreds of dishes, foods, and an assortment of drinks were arranged. The people were wearing fancy party dresses that made them each stand out.

"Wow!" Lucy clasped her hands, seeing the golden embroidery.

"Amazing." Wendy gasped.

"Hey, you guys made it." They looked over to see Elfman voicing them over before he ate a chicken leg. He was among the Fairy Tail group that was clustered together.

"Alright, let's drink on!" Cana opened her mouth and hung the booze bottle over her head, having a waterfall fall into her mouth.

Gray looked over towards Gajeel, whose hair was tied back and he had a navy blue tuxedo over a light blue striated shirt with a yellow collar. "That's a little above your paygrade, isn't it?"

"At least I'm wearing a getup." Gajeel barked back, taking note of Gray only in his boxers and a light blue ribbon around his neck.

"Over here you guys. We have to become acquainted and get along with our former competitors." Erza informed. She was in a black and white dress with a long red skirt; the sleeves were also cut with slits. She had a bold necklace around her neck. She had ruby earrings and intricate gold chains on her head with oval rubies. Her hair was in a ponytail falling from a bud.

"Tell that to Natsu." Gray sniped.

Gajeel had a hand underneath his chin. "Come to think of it, Luminous isn't around either."

"When you put it like that, none of us have seen Nic in a couple days. The heck he's doing?" Gray wondered.

All of the patrons in the banquet hall were having smiles and enjoying company with one another. Elfman was eating, though Droy's eating habits were superior; Cana was downing booze like no tomorrow, Bisca and Alzack were happily teaching their daughter etiquette,

"The King is very generous." Lily commented with Happy and Carla in attires to fit their sizes.

"Aye!"

"I'm sure these ruffians will put him through his paces, just wait and see." Carla pointed out.

"This palace is so lively." Jenny noted.

Ichiya struck a pose. "A dazzling glimmer like the stars themselves!" He told the Trimens.

"Hooray for King Ichiya!" They cheered.

On another side of the banquet hall, Kagura stepped forth with a yellow skirt flowing from a purple dress. She also had gold embroidery. Unlike the others, her style was far from suited. She didn't look comfortable in the very least. "This is so stupid."

"Aw come one!" Beth whined.

"It's beautiful, Kagura." Arana praised.

"It'd be better with a smile." Risley pointed out.

"Meow! That looks great, Kagura!" Millianna cheered.

Makarov sat with Goldmine, Bob, Obaba, and Yajima. All of them seemed to be having quite the plentiful time with smiles with how the recent events turned out.

Makarov sighed with booze held up. "Never thought I'd be in a royal shindig."

"Old age has its benefits." Yajima smiled.

* * *

Lucy was indulging in the banquet food, looking all plentiful and happy as she bit into some pastry dish with crust. Walking up to her was Princess Hisui, who had a calm and elegant smile. "Hello, Lucy!"

Lucy nearly choked out of shock but managed to swallow. She turned towards the Princess. "Princess Hisui!" She exclaimed in surprise.

The Princess giggled. "I'm glad the food is to your liking."

Lucy sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "Perhaps a little too much." The two ladies shared a similar chuckle in amusement of the conversation that was brought up, which revolved around the party.

Hisui changed the subject sometime later. "So you're related to the Heartfilia family."

Lucy smiled, though it was rather hollow. "Heh, yeah. That was a long time ago."

"I see. Your father and I were very much acquainted."

Lucy's eyes widened. "Really?!"

"Indeed. Even though he has done good for me, I've only given you grief. I'm sorry."

"It's fine. I'm a guild Mage after all. Trouble comes with the job." Lucy countered, showing no ill-will or even possible resentment.

Hisui kept on smiling. "By the way." She observed the banquet hall, noticing some important people not present. "I'm surprised that that pink-haired boy isn't here with you. And I'm more surprised that Nic Pularis isn't here. To be honest, this party was meant as a thank you for his valiance. We wanted to personally thank him on behalf of Fiore."

Lucy looked around, noticing how the two weren't present. "Now that I think of it, they aren't here."

* * *

Vanessa was among the crowd, standing out quite well in her attire. She had an intricate dress with a navy blue color with gray fur outlining the low cut like the many dresses. The sleeves were long, but had slits. The edging and dress had dark blue embroidery, a very unique and dark dress with a lemon yellow skirt running down to her blue heels. The dress itself gave the single blonde bang over her right eye emphasis.

"You look very formal, Vanessa." Braixen praised, herself only having a pink dress shirt and a tiara.

Vanessa held up a glass of lemonade with fresh lemon inside. She looked down towards her. "Yes. Thank you. I could say the same for you too."

"Guilty as charged."

"Krokorok doesn't do dress-up! Krokorok ain't no fashion freak!"

Mawile sweat dropped despondently. "A simple blue bowtie doesn't kill you."

"Let me tell you something, Mawile! Krokorok has no shame! He runs around biting names and claiming names!"

"I believe that's the other way around, Einstein." Mawile turned away in her small magenta dress. "Lie down before you hurt yourself."

Before things could get out of hand, Venusaur thankfully stepped in. His head had a green chain with a pink rose. "Okay you two, let's not upset the atmosphere around here. It's been a long week. Let's just vent ourselves at low level and just have a good time."

Sliggoo slithered up to Vanessa, not having anything on due to her slime. The same with Magnezone as he had no attire. The Dragon-Type looked up at Vanessa. "Vanessa, where is your brother?"

Vanessa looked around, noticing that Sliggoo was right. "Wait, when you put it like that, I haven't seen him in a few days."

Magnezone seemed still in the air. "Perhaps it's for the best."

Vanessa looked towards Magnezone, mournfully smiling. "Yeah, he's somewhere. He'll be okay."

* * *

Sophie sported her own dress. It was a brown dress with white fur line on the low cut. Her hair was still slicked down, but a layer was in a braid behind her head. Her lipstick was pure pink, and below the dress was a long black skirt with frilly edging. She seemed content as she looked around idly, minding her own business.

"Ah, as I expected. I had a feeling you'd be here, cousin."

Sophie turned around, seeing Rufus present with a gentlemen's smile. His overall appearance looked the usual. "Rufus?" Sophie blinked and she didn't recall his grin ever being that sincere before. Still, she didn't let on and decided to have it let go. "So, how is your memory?"

"That feeling of immortal scars. The requiem that was of no requiem but a bloody shrill that makes heads decay. That memory, no matter how hard I try it's engraved into my mind." Rufus mournfully looked down. "It would seem I have stepped into your shoes, Sophie."

Sophie smiled wider. "Takes one to know one, huh?"

"As you propose, scars make the experience. This is no exception. All of Earth Land had been scarred for life." He lifted his cap upwards, his chin up as his confidence was back. "The light of an ensemble easily memorized, yet the dread of the past never fades for a Mage such as ourselves. You truly have opened my eyes. I suppose that's what family does for another, right?"

Sophie looked back at the Fairy Tail group that was close by, all of them holding their spirits high and laughed when Droy was choking on a whole meat leg and bone, of course Jet had to bail him out on that.

She giggled. "A guild can make the Mage and vice versa."

Rufus looked around, intrigued by something missing. "If memory serves me correctly, Nic is absent at the night's banquet."

Sophie looked around, a frown on her face. "Yeah, I remember too. It's been almost three days. I know he's been through enough, but I hope he isn't hurt somewhere." Of course she just contradicted herself, but said nothing of it. She was a little hurt as well, so was everybody. The memory of Future Nic and everyone passing on before their eyes was a scornful mark in her mind, and it took a little time for all of them to recover from the blow. Now the question was if Nic had recovered.

"Natsu and Nic aren't here, still?" Bickslow wondered.

"Luminous's sister and Titania have been a little antsy as of late." Evergreen pointed out.

Laxus had no room to say as he had ladies on his arms, feeling his muscles as hard as rock. Of course Freed wasn't too happy with them getting past his bodyguard skills.

"Lucy hasn't seen Natsu or Nic." Levy.

"They're fine. They're tough dogs." Jet shrugged off.

Warren looked just as carefree. "Natsu's probably sleepin' somewhere. Nic, who knows?"

* * *

Unlike them, or all of Fairy Tail for that matter, the only one who was having a fidget over the missing duo was Erza. While she was supposed to be happy, she couldn't lie to herself when she was worried. Natsu was one thing, but Nic was another thing entirely. "Nic, where are you?" She pondered as she walked all around the banquet hall. The past two days he was missing, as was Greninja and the others. Saying she was worried would be an understatement.

Her worries of the crestfallen were stopped cold when she came eye to eye with Kagura. The two swordswomen didn't make any faults in their approach, but it was Erza who put up a bold front. She approached Kagura, keeping a friendly atmosphere around her.

"Have you healed well, Kagura?"

"I could ask the same."

Both implied could either be of mutual respect, but whether it'd be of physical or mental wounds, they powered on.

Erza pressed on with a smile. "We've been through quite a lot…so may I ask, can we come out of this as friends?"

"I'll pass." Although Erza didn't seem too surprised by Kagura's answer, it did leave her sad a bit. However, Kagura then added on something even Erza didn't expect.

The pink in her cheeks thickened. "Instead…" She looked away in embarrassment. "I'd hope you'd be my older sister."

To say Erza was shocked would be icing on the cake; superficial. The more Erza looked at Kagura, the more she seemed sincere and embarrassed. She came out with a smile. "How can I refuse such a cute face?" She pulled the blushing swordswoman to her chest in one of her hugs, leaving Kagura more embarrassed than ever.

"I-I was clearly joking, you dimwit!" Kagura exclaimed, trying to hide her embarrassment, but was of no avail.

Mermaid Heel was looking pretty happy and comical with their ace all jumbled up like a puzzle. As they were all laughing and settling down, Millianna's thoughts were left to fall back to what happened. When she looked at Erza, her mind was brought back to the third day of the games, the same day those questions of Erza possibly protecting Jellal from her. It was an internal debate, and she seemed more troubled and despondent as she couldn't even look at Erza.

Erza turned around, letting Kagura go. "Millianna, the least you can do is cheer up, right?"

The feline woman gave no reply.

Erza grinned as she reached into her chest open in her dress. "Well then, perhaps this will perk your spirits…" She plucked out Happy, who was all dressed up. "Here!"

"Aye, sir!" Happy greeted.

Millianna's eyes sparkled. "Kitty?!" Her eyes twinkled before her pouting resumed and she looked away.

Erza reached into her chest again, this time plucking out Carla and Lily. "There's more~."

Millianna could no longer resist and she took a leap of joy. Her eyes were brimming with happiness. "Aw~! So many kitties! Meo~~w!" She snagged all three Exceeds into her clutches and nuzzled them fiercely, a huge smile on her face.

"Hey, we're not stuffed animals!" Lily chided.

"Aye, I can't breathe." Happy wheezed.

"Erza…" Carla growled.

Erza couldn't help but giggle as to where Kagura openly shrugged and shook her head. Erza's eyes widened when she remembered why she was scoping around to begin with.

"Happy, do you know why Natsu or Nic aren't here?" She asked.

Happy's face was being pinched by Millianna, giving him a silly expression. His cheeks were pushed in and out. "No, I haven't seen them." He muffled.

"I'm worried." Erza thought as she put a hand to her chin to think. "I hope nothing has happened with Natsu, and I'm more than worried about finding Nic. Just where is he…?"

Another individual had decided to join in. Her heels could be heard from afar, catching the girls and Exceeds' attention. It was someone that left the Mermaid Heels on edge. Minerva stepped into the conversation. She had a purple dress that flowed like a waterfall with intricate gold lamented along the edged. The left side had a slit in it, showing her slender left leg. Her hair was all curled up, only having two long strands hang that framed her face. The top of her head had two large buds.

"You three…" She started with subtlety.

Erza's eyes widened. "Minerva, how have you been?"

Kagura and Millianna's gazes were by no means welcoming. They seemed rather on edge, and Minerva couldn't blame them for what she, or in technicality what Bellona had done. It was still something that had to be settled amongst the four, and now was as good as ever.

"What do you want?" Kagura sniped.

"Hey, you're that Sabertooth girl." Millianna said. "You…"

Erza swiftly turned back towards them. "Both of you, be nice." She glanced back at Minerva, who had her head hung low. "You know what happened wasn't Minerva's fault by any means. Your anger can't be let out in her."

Minerva glanced up at them as they all stared at her before she looked back to the floor. "U…uh…my apologies for what happened with Bellona." Minerva apologized. "My weakness left you all in harm's way."

Erza smiled. "Minerva, it's fine. It's no grudge against you."

Kagura had to understand the matter. It wasn't Minerva's fault, and she witnessed it first-hand. Millianna did as well. It was Minerva who was no different. They were all victims of Bellona. A shared group who were just puppets on her game board. All pawns.

"Your apology is accepted." Kagura replied. "However, that one in particular is another story entirely."

"Meow!" Millianna agreed.

Minerva smiled, satisfied with how the three made up.

Erza's eyes widened again, catching onto something. "Speaking of Bellona, where is she?"

"After she suffered humiliation, she fled. It was no doubt she was victim of Lysandre's spatial suspension. I would expect her to be as traumatized as any other individual." Minerva explained.

"I see, so she's fled…" The matter itself then changed to another subject. "Minerva, have you seen Nic by any chance."

The Sabertooth Princess shook her head with a frown. "No, I'm afraid our savior of the stars has been missing for quite some time."

Erza looked down, saddened that Nic was still missing. After what he's been through, with the experience and all of the overwhelming displays of power and exhaustion, it had to be accurate to say if he wasn't here, something happened, and she had to get to the bottom of it, pronto.

* * *

Sting walked up with a glass of champagne in hand and a bottle, putting on a smile. "Natsu, Nic, any of you care to have a drink!"

"It's good stuff!" Lector insisted.

Turning around, Gajeel had a face full of chicken leg. "Salamander and Luminous ain't here." He muffled.

Sting frowned in disappointment. "Huh? And here I was trying to be friendly after all this fighting."

"Sorry pal, guess the plan didn't work." Lector grunted.

"Fro thinks so too!" Frosch said.

Rogue stepped forward, catching Gajeel's attention. "Ryos."

"That was long ago. I'm Rogue, it's more preferable that way." The Shadow Dragon Slayer reasoned.

"You know about that guy? Your future-self was pathetic, even towards his bitter end." Gajeel reminded them all of Future Rogue, but the saddest part was how he was in disarray with a false dream of becoming the Dragon King, and failed in the hands of Legendary Pokémon.

The memory of his future-self didn't leave Rogue with any sense of shame. He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Yes, I am aware. My future-self was a really pathetic premonition." He straightened up, looking Gajeel in the eyes with resolution. "I will never become that fool, not ever!"

"Fro thinks so too!" Frosch agreed.

Gajeel smirked with the same thoughts of hope. Sting scooted right by his side with a big smile. "Well since those two aren't here, guess you'll do!"

"Watch it pal. You wanna be a punching back?" Gajeel threatened.

"Chillax, he's still new to being social." Lector persuaded.

Orga raised a brow with crossed arms. "Well Sting's improved."

"I have no memory of him being this charitable." Rufus said.

Sting poured into Gajeel's glass and sat the bottle down. He held up his glass and the two made a toast. "A toast to the friendship between fairies and tigers!"

As the two made their toast, another party had made a turn to meet them. Yukino was talking with Lucy and Mira and they stopped dead in their tracks when they made eye contact with Sting and his group. There was a still tension in the air, and it was extremely awkward for everyone around. Sabertooth was having looks of surprise just as much as Yukino did.

"Yukino!" Frosch cheered.

Yukino turned away. "S-sorry. I didn't mean to be here." She hurriedly began to walk away until Sting implored her to stop.

"Wait, Yukino!" He insisted. "Please. Hang around for just a little bit at least. Master and Lady Bellona are gone for good. They won't be with us."

"Really?" Lucy wondered.

Sting pressed on with guilt. "We're very sorry for how you were treated by us. But as of now we're starting from zero. Sabertooth is gonna change for the better."

Yukino looked back at Sting.

"The way we treated another, was just wrong…but that Sabertooth is dead. From now on, we'll be a guild who treasures our own kin."

Yukino looked down and away. "…and why are you telling me all of this?"

Sting looked directly at her, no one else. "I know you're still healing, and this may be too much to ask for…but we'd love it if you would give us a second chance."

Yukino gave no reply, but the offer was still stirring her up. Sting was right, it was too much to ask, but with Sting's words, she was starting to show a small grin.

"You're right! That is too much, idiots!"

Everyone's attention was diverted towards the side, where they saw Mermaid Heel in tow of riled up – and slightly intoxicated – Kagura. Yukino was the most shocked. "Kagura?"

"Her life belongs to me! She's gonna join Mermaid Heel, no arguments!"

"WHAT?!" All of Sabertooth exclaimed.

"Uh…HUH?!" Yukino was equally as shocked.

Sting barged up to her, seeing the red in her drunken cheeks. "You're too wasted to know what you're saying!"

"She's with Mermaid Heel! I said no arguments!" A drunken Kagura growled at Sting, who growled back in retort. Both had a glare-off as it was a war with the prize being one Yukino.

"Stop!" A third party joined in. It was Fairy Tail with Erza leading the army with crossed arms underneath her chest. "We won't stay silent over this war if fate!" She protested.

"We're very manly!" Elfman stated.

"That's right! And if she decides to join a guild, it's ours!" Lucy stated.

"That's right." Gray said.

Juvia had puffed cheeks with a pout. "I think there's far too many competing for Gray's love!"

"And, uh…there's also me." Lisanna groaned, raising her hand.

Romeo's eyes widened. "Yeah! You're both little sisters, soft tones, and same hair!"

"Fairy Tail too?" Yukino was starting to grow speechless.

"I smell a beautiful parfume from the mistress. You have a fragrance that can shine in our guild, yes?" Ichiya insisted.

"Yeah, the more the merrier." Jenny agreed.

"If that's the case, Lamia Scale will claim her." Lyon stated. "Gray's guild won't best us this time."

"Are we seriously getting involved?" Jura wondered. Sherry right beside him sighed.

"Our guild's been all brawn and macho, but women always gets our blood pumpin'! I don't care that we lost, but no way in hell we're losing now!" Bacchus shouted.

"WILD!" Quatro Cerberus agreed.

"H-hey, wait! C'mon, settle down. You don't have to…" Yukino was in no position to really say much as they were all set for battle for her.

Makarov smirked. "We're all in for the win!"

"Not if we have anything to say about it!" Goldmine backlashed.

"I'll spin you all!" Obaba announced.

"My youthful blood is starting to boil back up again!" Bob said.

In no time flat, all of the guilds and patrons were caught in what was a rampage. A brawl thrashed and sent tables and people alike flying. Punching, choking, and a variety of things went down, and food splattered all across the floor that people used as weapons, like a chicken leg to whack someone with.

In the midst of it all, Yukino was seen tearing up and Mira was hovering behind her. "Aw, there's no need to cry." She comforted Yukino.

"I know…" Yukino turned to look up at her, a beautiful smile on her face as he was crying tears of not guilty, but instead joy. "But you al…make me really happy."

Mira's smile widened. "Your smiling, wonderful." She and Yukino watched on as the guilds went to work with destruction and mayhem. "You have so many places that you belong to."

Yukino nodded. "Yes, I do."

Arcadios walked up towards the balcony, overlooking the destroyed banquet hall. "Silence! That shall be enough!" He raised and then slammed his sword into the balcony, echoing loudly and causing the fight and participants to halt. Their attention was towards Arcadios as he stood over them all. They all separated and watched as Arcadios cleared his throat.

"In honor for your display during this year's Grand Magic Games, we give our thanks to you. And to Nic Pularis, His Majesty and all of Fiore would be glad for you to heed our word of thanks for saving all of Earth Land and all life amongst the stars!"

Erza watched with a smile as the doors behind Arcadios slid open. As she watched a shadowy figure emerge, she started to get sad again. It's been so long, and still no sign of Nic. She wouldn't expect him to just disappear without a good reason. His three months in that dimension was an example, but what was the reason this time? It struck her as odd, and she had enough. Her frown returned.

Everyone else, however, watched as the King presented himself, only for every single person to deadpan, especially Lucy, as the King was none other than…

"What's up my subjects! Your King has arrived!" Natsu was present in the King's robe and crown. He maniacally laughed as Mato and Darton gaped their mouths in disbelief, but they weren't the only ones. Every single person deadpanned and gaped their mouths in utter shock.

"Long live King Natsu! The new ruler of Fiore!" Natsu again maniacally laughed.

Gray could only despair and grimace and Lucy gaped her mouth and groaned.

Arcadios gritted his teeth. "Garou Knights, get him…"

"Sorry, we tried. He's too strong." Kama reasoned, with the Garou Knights agreeing.

While many were just baffled and perplexed at Natsu's antics, many of his guild mates sure did find this his best joke yet. Some broke out in laughter even. However, some like Master Makarov couldn't fathom Natsu in the slightest. He could only gawk and grimace as all of his fair fell out due to stress.

Mato jumped up and town, trying to reach for his crown. "P-please, enough!"

"What's the rush? We won your games, right?" Natsu asked. "As the prize I should be the new King, and you all are my followers!" He thus resumed laughing.

Lucy laughed just a bit given this was Natsu. "Well he always goes out with a bang, right? Erza?" Lucy turned around, but she found her left side vacant. "Erza?" She looked around, realizing that Erza was gone. "Erza? I wonder she went?" Another thought popped into her head. "And what happened to Nic?"

* * *

The streets were cleared due to the celebration and banquet, leaving a certain someone to roam freely with no traffic. The lone person roaming was Erza as she stepped hastily through Crocus. Her heels weren't her priorities as she had her dress's skirt lifted to support herself in her haste. The party was of no matter to her anymore; the ceremony, the people, all of that was of nothing to her. There was only Nic on her mind. Her worries got the best of her and she searched through the streets of northern Crocus.

"Where is he?" She looked around the alleys, her guard up in any special case. Sadly no sign of him even in there. Her search led her towards the outskirts of the northern Crocus area, right along the streets that were overlooking the seashores. "I don't know what he's been doing, but when I find him I'll-" She cut herself off when the corner of her eye caught sight of someone along the sands of the beaches.

It wasn't alone, as the person was seemingly alongside creatures of various shapes and sizes. Her body shifted towards the beaches as the moon was in its waning gibbous phase. Her eyes widened when she realizes and confirmed who they were. "Is that…?"

True to her speculations, it was Nic. All of his Pokémon were gathered around something large. Erza didn't get a good look at it until Nic and his Pokémon all slowly stepped back. Her surprise mounted yet again. "A raft?"

Nic and the others had frowns and despondent gazes. They were far from celebratory. All seven were gathered around what was a large, square raft made of buoyant material. It was queen bed sized roughly, and the most astonishing part of it was what was on it.

Looking from afar, Erza squinted and looked shocked again. It was all of Fairy Tail, every one of its members; those who stayed behind for seven years, and the core members. Every single one of them was a framed drawing. All of the drawings were detailed of the upper bodies of everybody. Organized delicately along the raft, the outer frames were of the members of seven years. Inside in a big oval was Team Tenrou. However, in the center several frames were present. One was of a smiling Vanessa, and around her frame was the frames of her six Pokémon in a circle. Another one in the center was Erza, and her features involving her beautiful long red hair and body and all was proportioned exactly like the real one. Erza indeed felt touched by how exact the drawing was, but she stopped stiff when she saw what was between her and Vanessa's drawing.

The drawing was Nic himself. It was detailed with the sunglasses on the V-neck. Around his framed were the six frames of his own Pokémon. All of those six surrounded Nic, but the sides of the circle they made had enough room to link Erza and Vanessa's frame with his.

Nic and the others looked devastated. They looked as though they haven't slept in days, and they looked as though they haven't eaten either. It came to Erza what they were doing this whole time. _'Nic…'_

It was true. Nic hasn't slept in days, and his Pokémon were in the same boat; no sleep, no feeding, and instead they were really making a raft while Nic gathered up frames and had taken the vast amount of hours to draw everybody in mourn.

Nic looked down at the sunglasses on his V-neck. It was a long gaze, but it was to take in the last of what he had to let go. His future-self had found something worth holding onto, more so than the past. He looked at the raft, his future-self's picture. His eyes mist, but he blinked and inhaled. It was time.

His Pokémon all looked at Nic with nods of agreement; they knew it was time as well.

Nic reached for his sunglasses and pulled them out of the V-neck. Instead of putting them on, he instead flipped them open and gently placed them in front of his picture, right behind Greninja's frame. He then reached into his pocket, clutching onto something. His face seemed to show remorse as he held it in place for a moment.

What came next was something even Erza from afar never saw coming. They all witnessed Nic gently pulling out his phone and earbuds. He held them in his hands as he looked at his reflection through the screen. When he looked at the device, he can remember his grandparents, but at the same time it was also a memento.

He managed to mournfully grin as his eyes mist. "So long."

It was time to put the past behind, and to do that, it was time for another sacrifice. He placed his phone and coiled up earbuds right next to his phone, and slowly slipped his hand away. His eyes began to mist again and he looked at Greninja.

Greninja's nod of approval and understanding was transmitted towards the others. Once again, they all came together and stepped into the water. The cool tides against them was irrelevant as they all gently pushed the raft out towards the sea.

Erza remained hollow as Nic began to walk back towards the shore and turned around, with Greninja, Charizard, Kecleon, Staraptor, Garchomp, and Arbok all having despondent eyes. They were all misting up hard.

"May the heavens welcome the blessed, and lead you through God's field of dreams. May we hear your song of the stars, so that we may be blessed to watch you twinkle among the eternal norm of benevolence." Nic tried his hardest to stay strong through his speech, despite the few small tears that were ready to fall. "I know that you all have taken your place among the deceased, and rejoiced with smiles and tears of joy…for seven brave saviors have fallen. They were more than what could've been; they were more so. They were ourselves, our future that we changed for the better. They were warriors, who died together. Human. Pokémon. Brothers. Sisters. Comrades. But the most important thing…family. Us alone would never have come to salvage a great change in fate. They came back knowing what fates they shall have fallen onto them." Tears began to shed down his cheek. "They lost their family, the guild that taught them to open up, and where Nic had met the love of his life."

Erza's eyes were misting up from afar, hearing Nic's future family funeral.

"You were all not of fruition, but that doesn't mean you won't ever be forgotten. Our future is still family, and family is forever, whether it'd be the past or future. We were all connected, and bonds are even through death. That shows how strong and important they are. You can chain us down, they can chain you down, but as long as we are in this and thinking of each other, knowing that as a whole we are home, nothing will end us again. Nic. Greninja. Charizard. Kecleon. Staraptor. Garchomp. Arbok. May they rejoice with love and fury in the great battles above us, and have them fight for love and thrill of the challenges. Have them be besides the other…for all eternity."

With tears running down his cheeks hard, he raised his left arm out. All six Pokémon on his left side were lined up, all equally as sorrowful. They all composed the best they could, looking proud and mighty as Nic raised his left arm.

He leveled the arm to face the moon, signaling. Charizard took in a quick breath and fired Flamethrower high into the skies. When the flames lit up the skies, a pyro explosion bellowed in the form of fireworks. Orange sparkles rained down along the sea.

Greninja took in a deep breath of his own, unleashing Scald into the air. The compressed, boiling stream shot into the same place as Flamethrower did. Again another explosive firework went off, making blue sparkles rain down.

Arbok remained strong and composed as he made a silver ball of light brimming with power. It became Gunk Shot, and Arbok fired the attack at the same spot in the final salute. A purple explosion rumbled up in a purple firework, sending twinkling purple sparkles down.

The raft peacefully drifted off through the calm night sea, with the orange, blue, and purple sparkles sprinkling down to make the farewell a dazzling one.

Nic lowered his head and his tears began to settle some. Greninja looked down as his own tears ran down his face. Charizard kept a strong composure, but his mouth quivered as tears, like everybody else, ran down his face. Kecleon and Staraptor looked sadly at another, seeing the sad tears each other had. Arbok's head lowered, and he hissed some without choking on a tear or two, which was hard to accomplish. Garchomp openly sniffled and looked down. He glanced away and had a tear hit the drenched sands.

Nic turned towards the six, his team looked back at him, all still somber. Nic tried to pull a half-grin, relieved with how they all were still alive. "I love you guys. I wouldn't ask for any other Pokémon."

All of them huddled together, silently breaking down after all of the pain and stress that's been building up for so long.

Watching from afar, Erza felt a single tear fall from her cheek. She never saw Nic breakdown since his humiliating defeat against Lysandre back in Kalos, only this one wasn't of fail, but of grief. He succeeded, but at the cost of valuable allies. It was a bittersweet victory.

She smiled warmly as Nic and his Pokémon poured their emotions out. It was for the best. She was so proud that Nic finally was able to let go. He had more important things to consider now, and she was one of them.

It may have been several minutes, maybe almost half an hour, but after settling down, all seven were sitting and looking out at the sea as the moon reflected along the water. They were all calmed down, and they looked tired.

Erza finally approached from Nic's right, gently making her way towards him as he had hands huddling his knees. She gently talked to him, to try and make a casual start. She kept a smile. "You've had it rough." It wasn't a great start, but she couldn't find another sentence to consider.

Nic didn't bother looking at her and instead looked out at sea. "Yeah, perhaps that is an understatement."

"That's true. You know, the King and the royal family threw a party for you." Nic's stare out towards the sea, glanced over towards her. The eyes said it all. "I see." Still, she kept a smile, knowing this was Nic after all.

She took a seat on her knees, not caring how her dress was gonna get dirty. She sat right beside him, and looked at him with a soft smile. "Nic, I'm so proud of you. You know that? I know it wasn't easy, not in the least, but I think you did a very great thing."

"The universe or the funeral."

"You can say both. You sacrificed so much to take Lysandre down. You were given a chance and you and your Pokémon saved us all. Nic from the future did the same, and he would've done it a second time if he could. I know I'd be proud and happy, because in the end it's what you give that makes it all meaningful." She looked out towards the seam watching calm waves flow in and out. She looked up towards the moon and resumed. "Those pictures were beautiful. What you gave was the time and heart to remember everyone that vanished from the future. They had lives too."

She leaned on over and pulled Nic's head into her chest, lovingly holding him in a hug. Nic grinned softly and wrapped his arms around Erza. His tight hold onto her warm body was desperate, almost possessive, to alleviate the thoughts that she might be gone if he were to let go.

Feeling Nic's hold, she rubbed his head softly. His short black hair was soft, surprisingly. "You have a heart purer than gold. No amount of darkness can take that away."

His Pokémon gathered around on the left and kept themselves close to one another.

A golden light was seen twinkling in the sky, and it was pretty bright. Everyone's comfort was on hold when the star got their attention.

Nic's eyes widened when his Plates were reacting strongly.

"What is it, Nic?" Erza asked.

Nic stood up and looked at the gold star in the starry night sky. It was pure force without any level of restraint. "This light. It's him!"

"You mean…" Erza got up as well. She looked on as the golden star above began to descend at the speed of light. It gave off a radiant glow, and it came closer, shining valiantly and without flaw. All of Nic's Pokémon looked up at the light descending, seeing what the energy was.

The large light high above the sea settled in that one spot. Fifty feet up from the waters and looking down at the eight, the light revealed itself as it dimmed. The light faded away, giving view to Arceus in a vivid shine. He looked brim and full of life.

"Arceus." Nic said in surprise.

Erza's eyes were wide, "His power, it's off the charts…" Of course she forgot that he had infinite power, but that was not important at the moment.

By Arceus's side, two tears in space were made. Out of them came pink and blue stardust. Naturally it was Dialga and Palkia who emerged, both right by Arceus's side.

"My friends, I welcome you. Congratulations." Arceus said. "You have won."

"The crisis was averted. The stars in the heavens have returned from the void." Dialga explained.

"It was a long road, but now it's to an end." Palkia said.

"All concept of time and space has returned to normal. Everything is as it should be." Arceus said. "My friends, the long battle is finally over."

Nic smiled, as did his Pokémon. Nic looked over towards Erza and she was smiling happily as well.

"Allow me to thank you. Nic Pularis and friends, on behalf of the heavens and the universe, we thank you for the sacrifices and the arduous efforts you've put into ascertaining all eighteen Plates. Your success has brought light back into life. I thank you heavily, all seven of you, for fighting the scourge known as the Dark Legendaries. Their actions and deception is what triggered such peril."

Nic's eyes widened when he realized something. "Wait. What happened to them?"

Arceus raised his head high. "Do not be alarmed. I have dealt with them accordingly. Never again shall they deploy such evil into the void."

"Very well. Thank you." Nic honestly wasn't sure if Arceus had just gone and erased their memories, or separated them and then did that, or what. He knows Arceus wouldn't put them in the void again and that's a good thing. You learn from your mistakes.

"Ages ago, when I banished and sealed them away for their violent intentions, I did not have any idea that they'd use a misguided puppet for their dirty work. I had no idea that their hatred would be directed towards all life. Especially you, Nic Pularis. I was hoping that by directing you to another world that it shall buy you the time to gain the experience and power to fend against them."

Nic didn't hold anything against them. It wasn't their fault; desperation brings tidings to many things. If he was the trump card, then so be it. Besides, it wasn't at all a bad thing. He was actually glad, because he got to meet Erza. In this adventure or the Plates, he found love. Someone to share the pain and experience with.

Nic grinned. "It was our honor."

"We have been keeping a very watchful eye on you this whole time. And, based on what was observed, the success of this plan had everything to do with the love and loyalty between you and your Pokémon." Arceus explained.

"You call yourselves family, but we have agreed that it is more than that." Dialga said.

"Time and space has bounded you seven in one. You seven are linked for eternity." Palkia told.

Nic and his Pokémon all looked at each other with shock. When they each stared at one another, it did make sense. They were so accustomed to another. They were all irreplaceable. They all then looked back up towards Arceus.

"Nic Pularis. You sacrificed your freedom in your youth. You made yourself a victim of ill-will and vile intention to hold your little sister dear and out of harm's way. A noble action that gave birth to your durability and stubborn defiance against all. You have thus chosen your own path to search what was your style. You have chosen the path of a unique trainer with no equal. The exercises and training you've been put through were by yourself. You have ascertained the understanding of Pokémon by being in their shoes. By training with them, putting yourself in harm's way constantly, you have adapted and find your being integrated in the duration of your adventures with your Pokémon. The pure heart of a human, but the soul of the most versatile of Pokémon. That is why I chose you."

Nic gasped in shock.

"The world you grew up in. People and Pokémon may see the other as equals, and are in everyday life, but their bonds can either go so far, or they can be breached. Only so few have proven that with so few Pokémon…but you have shared that bond that can go beyond any and all limitations. Loyalty and faith is everlasting in your eyes. It brings me joy that you see Pokémon as your brothers and sisters. More so; family being death."

All seven smiled proudly by Arceus's words of praise.

It was now the moment of truth. "Now, Nic Pularis, it is time to return what is rightfully mine."

Nic lost his confidence. Erza looked towards Nic as he lowered his head. She saw that he was gonna give up infinite power. She really wanted to say something. She could've asked him what it felt like, but then again those things were best left unsaid. The burden had to be lifted, as it shall be.

Nic looked up towards Arceus. "So…what happens to my powers? Are they…?"

Arceus didn't look so bummed. "It's alright. Don't let your worries take over."

"Nic, you've been integrated with the Plates for so long now." Dialga explained. "You will lose a hefty fraction of the abilities and powers you ascertained, but thanks to the Plates stability within you, you can use your powers all you want."

Nic, again, was speechless. "So, that means I get to keep my prowess."

"Of course. It's the least that we can do to thank you for all that you've done." Arceus then raised a brow. "Although…turning into me, was a once in a lifetime deal."

Nic grinned. "I understand. Omnipotence is a little overbearing."

Arceus chuckled some. "Ah, yes. Nic, now…"

Nic took in a deep breath. Erza and the six took a step back as Arceus's eyes glowed brightly, using his own powers. Nic's core was brimming with gold. Inside, Nic was feeling hundreds and thousands of years of all elements and knowledge flash. It was a lot to take in, and it felt like the core within him practically spliced into its own half. It felt like a ten ton stone was lifted from the pit of his stomach, and Nic jerked back as his body flashed a bright, golden light. The light manifested in front.

"Is that…?" Erza watched as the golden light separated into eighteen Plates of all different colors. The Plates all circled around in a wheel. Nic watched as the wheel of Plates expanded. The Plates all made way and circled around Arceus. Arceus's body gave another golden light. All at once, the Plates went into his body, and intricate golden streams emerged and faded from his body.

When they faded, Arceus was looking better than before. His shine actually made the seawater crystal clear, and the moon was brighter. The eight of them looked up to see the stars in the sky twinkling brightly.

"The Plates are where they belong." Palkia said. "We are forever in your debt, Nic Pularis."

"Thank you." He was thankful he got to keep his powers, but he did lose some strength, including the Arceus powers, but he can live with that. He had his whole life ahead of him. With that said, he looked towards his right. He looked at Erza. The two shared the same gaze; the gaze of wonder and worry. A sea breeze went pass them both. They stared tentatively, and it seemed there was something off or wrong.

Nic turned towards Arceus, wondering what had to be done. "Arceus…will I have to head back to my world?"

It wasn't a pretty question, and if Erza was honest, she wished it was never asked. She wanted to be with Nic. If she wasn't who knows what will happen? She was broken several times, and she can't feel the same again knowing they'll never be able to see the other, ever.

Arceus gave his answer. "That's not entirely true."

Everyone's eyes widened. In Erza's case, the light in her eyes brightened.

"Nic, you have joined these two worlds together. Nic, you have gained more than enough power to rival that of the Plates themselves. You can do whatever you see fit. It would make no sense to keep you separated from those who you've grown attached to. You have earned the right to live wherever you may see fit."

Erza looked at Nic. "I'm glad."

Nic smiled back. "Yeah, me too." He turned towards his left. "And what do you guys say about us being here?"

"I will go anywhere with you, pal." Greninja held up a fist.

Kecleon tilted her head. "No words needed."

Charizard huffed some flame off to the side. "Like heck I'd disagree with any challenge thrown our way."

"I second that." Staraptor said.

Arbok hissed and bowed. "With all of ussss and Nic-ssssama, anywhere shall be fine."

"Tch, as long as we got something to keep us sane, I'm all for it." Garchomp said, in his way saying he'll follow them anywhere and everywhere.

"You can travel between worlds whenever you want. You can open a dimensional tear yourself, Nic Pularis." Arceus told. His altitude arose and continued escalating. "And so, this is farewell. While I can't predict what shall come next for you, I can say that as long as you all face it – together – nothing will ever stop you."

Nic smiled and nodded. "Arceus."

"Be well, my young friends." Arceus ascended and flew through the air. He strode over their hands, as though leaping through air itself. He did a turn and he ascended high into the sky. It looked as though he was heading towards the moon. He escalated high and a golden tear opened up. He ventured inside the confines of time and space to find a suitable spot for his slumber. The portal went shut behind him, making gold sparkles twinkle in its place.

"And so, we too are relieved of duty, and shall venture off on our own." Dialga said. He lifted himself and went off.

Palkia nodded down at Nic and roared out loud. "My young friends, be well with whatever you choose next."

He and Dialga thus flew into the sky, where they entered blue and pink tears in space respectively. They both went inside their own dimension of stardust, and the tears closed and vanished.

With all of that over, Nic dropped to his knees, a proud smile as his eyes mist. "We did it. It's finally over."

Erza knelt down to Nic and she had misty eyes as well. She was so happy Nic could live in both worlds. She was so happy they can be together, forever. She wrapped her arms around his neck as they rejoiced.

"Nic, is it true? You're gonna stay?"

Nic pressed into her hug, wrapping his arms around her again. "I'm not going anywhere. As long as my Pokémon, my sister, and you are with me…anywhere is home for me."

Erza's smile widened. "Well then…welcome home."

Erza and Nic both pulled apart. The redhead looked at Nic again, and he looked as tired as can be. He needed sleep, food, and water. The other six were no different. She'll return the dress in the morning, but this time was for her and Nic. Both leaned into and Erza slipped her bottom lip right over his. The two kissed and tilted their heads as their lips locked. It's been forever since they were this close again, and they were so happy they were gonna stay like this.

With Erza's head tilted away, Nic's eyes opened slightly as his head faced the sea and moon. His Pokémon and eyes looked up above where the moon was.

Eight ethereal figures were seen. Images of the future Pokémon stood right beside Future Nic as Future Erza stood alongside him. All eight images grew smiles and turned away. Future Nic and Future Erza reached and interlocked their figures.

As all eight walked off with eternal happiness, their images faded into the norm.

* * *

**And that's a wrap! Thank you all for reading****to the finale! I want to once again thank you all who favored, followed, and reviewed along the way. This chapter's final update was also the same day my dog passed away, as he passed on this morning. It's sad, so that emotion was conveyed into the funeral for the future-selves. Still, he was a good dog.**

**I am indeed making plans for a sequel, however, I also want to get **_**One's Road to Remembrance**_** a lot of time since it'll now be my only story for until the sequel is set and ready. I don't make promises, but due to the excessive ideas I have, and the fact Fairy Tail is still ongoing, I say the sequel shall be started up maybe in November. Yes I will involve canon arcs; no I won't do the Eclipse Arc. I will add my unique original arcs for some vivid flavor. **

**This story has been given a lot of praise and criticism, and thanks to that I powered on with my plot. **_**The Fairy Contender**_** has achieved a plot revolving around the Plates and a main antagonist. In your final reviews, tell me what you loved about the story, Nic's Pokémon, the plot, NicxErza, anything. Thank you guys for giving this story a chance.**

**This is Insane Dominator, and thanks for reading!**


	86. Sequel & Updates

Insane Dominator here, back and giving you all a little post-story notice! I know it's **extremely** late, but nevertheless, I'm still here to provide for you guys.

I was looking back and forth between my past works, and I don't think that I made this clear before, so I'll go ahead and say it right now for those who aren't aware.

The sequel to _The Fairy Contender_ is up. Actually, it's been up for 6 months now. It's called _A Contender's Bonds_. So if anyone who wasn't aware still wants to read more of Nic and Erza, hop on over and give out your opinions. For all of my appreciative readers, thanks for the support!


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